Skandapurana 14.9

English (machine translation) 14.9

Language: English

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Pulastya said: / Then one should go, O best of kings, to the sacred ford renowned throughout the three worlds, / celebrated as Kedāra, which takes away all sins of mortals,

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where the holy Mandākinī joins with the Sarasvatī. / A man who bathes there, O king, is freed from all sins.

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Hear, O king, an ancient narrative as it occurred, / sung in many ways by the seers on the excellent mountain Arbuda.

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Ajapāla was the best of kings, born in the solar dynasty; / he protected the earth with its seven continents—there is no doubt about this.

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There were no elephants, no foot-soldiers, and no horses for that lord of the earth; / and there were no chariots, O great king, nor treasuries of such a kind.

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He took no tax from his subjects beyond [what was just], O king; / he conducted such a rule, intent upon the welfare of all people.

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If any transgressor ever arose on the face of the earth, / the weapons went of their own accord and instantly subdued him.

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While this ruler of men was thus abiding on the earth's surface, / people lived in happiness, the thorns [of danger] having been destroyed in his kingdom.

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The rain cloud rained at will, crops were full of sap, / and cows yielded abundant milk while that lord of men was present.

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Then, after some time, the venerable sage Vasiṣṭha / came to his house on the occasion of a pilgrimage to sacred fords.

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Seeing him, he worshipped him according to the way prescribed in the scriptures, / by rising up to meet him, greeting him reverently, and offering water for the arghya and water for the feet.

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Thus worshipped by him with supreme devotion, O king, / seated comfortably and rested, Vasiṣṭha, the best of sages, / related stories of royal seers and likewise of divine seers.

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Then, at the conclusion of a story, O best of kings, / endowed with humility, he questioned that sage of celebrated vows.

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Ajapāla said: / "O brahmin, the past, the future, and likewise the present— / you know it all, O holy one, by the power of the practice of austerity.

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Curiosity has arisen in my heart, O foremost of sages; / grant me your favor and tell me out of graciousness."

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Vasiṣṭha said:
Speak, O tiger among kings, whatever is in your mind. / I will tell you everything, even if it is very difficult to obtain.

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The king said:
Through the ripening of what action is this excellent kingdom of mine / free from thorns, always secure, and endowed with all desires?

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No one is wretched, none stricken by grief, and none seized by disease; / neither is there any poor man in my kingdom, O great sage.

This virtuous woman, my wife, is dearer [to me] even than my life-breaths; / her mind is set on me, her life-breath devoted to me, always delighting in my welfare. / Tell me in detail, O brahmin, everything thought of by her.

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Is it through the power of gift, or of a vow or sacrifice, O sage, / or of austerity, O best of sages, or of a vow and restraint?

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The merit earned in another birth indeed arouses my supreme curiosity. / Tell [it] graciously in detail, O best of the twice-born!

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Vasiṣṭha said:
Listen to everything, O protector of the earth, as it is told in detail. / You must not feel anger nor shame, O noble-minded one.

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In another body, O king, you were born in the Śūdra caste; / and this virtuous woman, your wife, was formerly born in the Śūdra caste.

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Then, at a certain time, when a famine arose, / all people were afflicted by hunger through the loss of food, O great king.

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Then you went together with your wife to another country; / and climbing with difficulty up to a certain mountain stream,

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a charming, auspicious lotus forest was seen by you. / Having bathed there and drunk the water, the ancestors and gods were propitiated.

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Indeed, this was thought in your mind: "Taking the lotuses, / I shall make a sale, by which I may have food in every way."

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Then, taking many lotuses along with your wife, / you went, O best of kings, to where many people had gone.

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Afflicted by the famine, none among the people took [them]. / You wandered everywhere and, being weary, fell into despondency.

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Then, at the close of the day, you took shelter in a cave. / Having thrown the lotuses on the ground, overcome by hunger, you fell asleep.

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At that very time, there came to your ears / the sound of the Vedas and Purāṇas being recited by foremost brahmins.

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Hearing that and rising suddenly, realising there was a night vigil, / you took the lotuses and went right there to the temple of Śiva, along with your wife.

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There a courtesan named Nāgavatī, devoted to Śivarātri, / was keeping a night vigil at Kedāra with supreme devotion.

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A maidservant standing by her side was asked by you, O lord of men: / "O maiden, for what purpose is this night vigil in front of the god?"

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By her it was said: "Indeed, on Śivarātri this fair-complexioned courtesan, / Nāgavatī by name, keeps a vigil at night with devotion.

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Whoever, endowed with faith and devotion, keeps a night vigil / after worshipping Mahādeva, attains the supreme abode.

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A person who fasts and worships Tryambaka with lotuses / goes to the realm of Rudra, attended by hosts of apsarases.

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One with desires obtains desires very difficult even for the gods to obtain. / So you, give me the lotuses and, taking three palas of gold / as their price, maintain your life!"

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Then you were addressed by your wife when the gold was about to be accepted: / "The price of these must not be accepted by you under any circumstances, O lord!

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A fast has occurred by force for both of us due to the absence of food. / With these lotuses Hara must certainly be worshipped today by both of us!

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This must be done by you today; her gold should be rejected!" / Hearing his wife's word, Śiva was worshipped with those lotuses.

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With faith, a vigil before Śiva / was kept by you, O great king, together with your wife in the temple of Śiva.

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Hearing of the Purāṇa took place there, O best of kings; / and on Śivarātri, O great king, Śiva was worshipped with lotuses.

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Likewise, a vigil was kept at night before Kedāra / with devotion and a concentrated mind by you, O great king.

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Then, when morning came, having begged alms, the breaking of the fast / was performed by you before Śiva, along with your wife, O great king.

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Then, in the course of time, you met your death; / and this wife of yours entered the fire along with you.

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Then, O great king, she was born as the daughter of the lord of Daśārṇa; / and you were born as the king in the city of Vaideha, O best of kings,

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known by the name Ajapāla on the surface of the earth; / and you are dear to all living beings, O best of kings.

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For this reason, this wife, dear as life, was born / again as yours, about which you ask me.

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Through the māhātmya of that god Kedāra, O ruler of the earth, / your kingdom gives happiness to men and is free of thorns.

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It was obtained by you, O great king, through the grace of Kedāra, / by which you protect the earth even without an army.

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Pulastya said:
Hearing that speech of his, that king, filled with wonder, / made up his mind to go to Kedāra, O ruler of the earth.

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Going to that delightful mountain and worshipping that all-pervading lord, / he became fully devoted to Śivarātri year after year.

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Having installed his son in the kingdom, he then went to Arbuda; / and through its power he, along with his wife, later attained liberation.

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All this māhātmya of Kedāra has been told to you, O lord of the earth, / granting auspiciousness to men and destroying all sins.

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Between Māgha and Phālguna, on the fourteenth day of the dark fortnight, / is that which is known as Śivarātri on this earth, O noble-minded one.

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On that day, O king, one should certainly undertake a pilgrimage to him; / one should perform the worship of Kedāra, O great king, O ruler of men.

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Whoever keeps a vigil there on the fourteenth day of the dark fortnight of Māgha, / having observed a fast, O king, goes to the world of Śiva.

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Having bathed at the confluence of the Gaṅgā and Sarasvatī, which grants all desires, / those who behold Kedāra shall go to the supreme state.

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Whoever drinks the pure water in the pool named Kedāra / redeems seven preceding and seven succeeding ancestors.

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And whoever hears this daily with supreme devotion, O king, / even he is freed from sins by the power of Kedāra.

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Thus ends the ninth chapter, titled 'Description of the Glory of Kedāra,' in the third section Arbuda, in the seventh section Prabhāsa, in the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa of eighty-one thousand verses.

Linked texts (1)

Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit