Skandapurana 16.23
English (machine translation) 16.23
- Language
- English
16.23.1
Īśvara said: / Then, his mind calmed and filled with wonder, / his being pervaded by devotion to Śambhu, the Moon remained in Prabhāsa sacred field. // 1
16.23.2
The powerful one did just as had been previously spoken by the God: / going into the ocean, he took that excellent liṅga. // 2
16.23.3
Summoning Viśvakarman along with his attendants, / Soma himself commanded Tvaṣṭṛ, the artisan of the gods: // 3
16.23.4
The Moon said: / “O Viśvakarman, this liṅga was given to me by Śambhu. / Take it, O mighty-armed one, and install it in a suitable place. // 4
16.23.5
Protect it meanwhile; I must go to my own abode, O powerful one. / I shall bring the utensils for the sacrifice for the sake of the sacrifice.” // 5
16.23.6
Īśvara said: / Having spoken thus, the Moon then went to the realm of the Moon. / Having gone to the realm of the Moon, possessing great radiance, O great goddess, // 6
16.23.7
which extends ten million yojanas, is ever filled with nectar, and is auspicious, / and having summoned there, O great goddess, his intelligent door-keeper, // 7
16.23.8
[and] his minister whose body is golden-wombed, equal in intellect to Bṛhaspati: / “Quickly taking all the assembly of equipment for the sacrifice, // 8
16.23.9
let them go to the Prabhāsa sacred field, dedicated to my command. / Together with the brahmins who maintain the sacred fires, let them go to the excellent sacred field. // 9
16.23.10
Let everything be quickly accomplished so that the sacrifice proceeds. / To all the brahmins dwelling in the realm of the Moon, // 10
16.23.11
an aerial chariot of great wealth must be given individually; / and a million cows, accompanied by their calves and yielding milk, // 11
16.23.12
adorned with loads of gold, with splendor equal to the wish-fulfilling cow; / and one hundred and twenty-five thousand black-eared horses; // 12
16.23.13
ten thousand tusked elephants adorned with bells as ornaments; / and four thousand chariots with the speed of the wind; // 13
16.23.14
one hundred thousand young camels equipped with jewels and rubies; / and one crore of troops endowed with the fourfold army; // 14
16.23.15
fire-purified garments for the brahmins as well, / and divine, auspicious ornaments for the officiating priests; // 15
16.23.16
various pastries, foods, and diverse drinks; / one hundred thousand laborers, and one hundred thousand female servants. // 16
16.23.17
Whatever property from wood down to bamboo has been prescribed by my order, / and whatever else the brahmins may ask for—let all that be brought there. // 17
16.23.18
To the gods, the Dānavas, the Yakṣas, Gandharvas, and Rakṣasas, / to the rulers of the earth of the seven continents, and to the dwellers in the seven subterranean realms, // 18
16.23.19
and to thousands of various kings, let proclamation be made repeatedly. / A proclamation must be made to all regarding coming to Prabhāsa.” // 19
16.23.20
Having instructed his minister there in this way, the Moon, filled with haste, / went to Brahmā's world, to the presence of Brahmā, for the sacrifice. // 20
16.23.21
The Moon's minister too, the golden-wombed one of great luster, / placing Soma's command upon his head, equipped with the sacrifice's provisions, // 21
16.23.22
arrived at the Prabhāsa sacred field and exerted himself for the sacrifice. / And in the same way, he summoned the dwellers of the earth, intermediate space, and heaven. // 22
16.23.23
Hearing the proclamation, all arrived there quickly. / Having surveyed that sacred field extending to a yojana of the sun, // 23
16.23.24
and having summoned the brahmins, the superintendent of Soma said to them: / “All the sacrificial accessories have been brought by me at the command of Soma, O twice-born ones. / Whatever needs to be done next, let that be performed by you.” // 24
16.23.25
Addressed thus, all the brahmins, their impurities shaken off by austerity, / saw Tvaṣṭṛ, the artisan of the gods, right there. // 25
16.23.26
Having seen him, and seeing the liṅga nearby, all the twice-born said: / “How is this? Tell us, O Viśvakarman! / Why do you stand here, accompanied by ten million artisans?” // 26
16.23.27
Viśvakarman said: / “Appointed by Soma, I am engaged in guarding the liṅga. / Therefore an effort is being made by me, O twice-born ones, to carry out his command.” // 27
16.23.28
Īśvara said: / When the brahmins heard this and understood the whole reason, / they prepared themselves and then commenced the sacrificial rite. // 28
16.23.29
There was an auspicious sacrificial ground for the gods, extending for a yojana. / Having prepared that sacrificial ground of the gods, they also built the hall for the patron's wife. // 29
16.23.30
They constructed the oblation-hall, the assembly shed, the northern altar, / the abode of the Brahman priest, and the fire-house—such places as these. // 30
16.23.31
Extending over a yojana, sacrificial posts, pavilions, / and various sacrificial pits Viśvakarman swiftly fashioned there. // 31
16.23.32
The fire-pits there numbered in the thousands, up to the pavilion. / There all those brahmins, skilled in the rites of consecration, // 32
16.23.33
well adorned with various ornaments and jewels, / did everything in accordance with proper rule, having consulted the treatise again and again. // 33
16.23.34
[Collecting] divine trees and herbs, firewood, flowers, kuśa grass, and the like, / all sacrificial materials, plentiful ghee, and fresh milk;
16.23.35
likewise whatever other paraphernalia of sacrifice is prescribed, / pitchers, jars, and other vessels, all made of auspicious gold;
16.23.36
the respectful [priests] performed the consecration sacrifice in full accordance with the rules. / The company of brahmins there rejoiced, gratified with various types of food, sweetmeats, and delicacies.
16.23.37
Touching heaven and earth with the loud roar of Vedic chanting, / the pavilion shone resplendently there, decorated with banners,
16.23.38
furnished with divine thrones, adorned with strings of pearls, / with garlands of divine sandalwood, and with festoons of Kalpa-tree shoots,
16.23.39
and with divine fragrances and perfumes; it became like the realm of heaven. / The fourteen classes of living beings gathered there:
16.23.40
inanimate beings, serpents, and likewise birds; / beasts of the wild are counted as the fourth, and domestic animals as the fifth;
16.23.41
men are declared the sixth, and the piśāca class is taught as seventh; / rākṣasas are proclaimed the eighth, and sacrifices are the ninth;
16.23.42
gandharvas, the deities of Indra's host, the saumyas, the prājāpatyas, / and the brāhmas—thus is the fourteenfold host declared.
16.23.43
The Viśvedevas, the Sādhyas, the Maruts, and the Vasus, / the eight guardians of the world, and the lunar mansions along with the planets,
16.23.44
and whatever deities exist in the cosmic egg—they all arrived there, / rejoicing in the Prabhāsa sacred field when the sacrificial rite was undertaken.
16.23.45
Rivers flowed with ghee and milk; their mire was curds and milk-rice. / Heaps of cooked foods and fruits rose like mountains;
16.23.46
they were seen in diverse shapes at that great festival of sacrifice. / Gandharvas sang right there, and hosts of apsarases danced.
16.23.47
With various types of food and delicacies, and desirable drinks, / the gods, sages, and the fourteen classes of beings were fully satisfied.
16.23.48
Having thus prepared every requisite component of the sacrifice together with all provisions, / the minister left guardians right there / and went to the world of Brahmā to invite Soma.
16.23.49
Īśvara said: / Seeing Soma of great brilliance standing beside Brahmā, / bowing down prostrate on the ground like a staff before Soma and Brahmā,
16.23.50
with folded hands and bowed neck, he spoke: / Hemagarbha said: / “O Blessed One, by your command every single part of the sacrifice
16.23.51
has been prepared by me for you in the sacred field of Prabhāsa. / All the brahmin seers and other royal seers there
16.23.52
are waiting anxiously, looking eagerly along your path. / You should now carry out whatever duty remains to be done.”
16.23.53
Īśvara said: / Being addressed in this way by the ocean's son, / the moon, smiling, then spoke to Brahmā, the witness of the worlds:
16.23.54
“O Blessed Lord, ruler of all the gods, out of desire to grace me, / as I wish to perform the consecration sacrifice, accept my hospitality, O Lord!
16.23.55
Today my birth has borne fruit, and my austerity has borne fruit, O Lord! / Today my godhood will come to pass by your grace, O Brahmā!
16.23.56
Through fierce austerity I have obtained the liṅga of Umā's lord. / You should perform the entire rite of its consecration.”
16.23.57
Brahmā said: / “I shall certainly perform the consecration of the nature of Śaṃkara for you, / especially of Someśa, the liṅga of your worship.
16.23.58
For whoever will be or have been the makers of the night (moons), / for all those belonging to the lunar lineage, this is the primal deity.
16.23.59
This god Someśvara, who was called Bhairava in the beginning, / I consecrate again and again when one Manvantara passes after another.
16.23.60
When I, eight years of age, went to the sacred field of Prabhāsa, / summoned previously by Indra when Bhairava was consecrated,
16.23.61
from that time forth my name is proclaimed as ‘the Child-Formed One’ (Bālarūpin). / In all other sacred fords I dwell in the form of an old man,
16.23.62
but in Prabhāsa, O Moon, I reside continuously in childhood. / Whatever sacred fords exist in the cosmic egg, and whatever brahmins are renowned in them,
16.23.63
I, the foremost among them, am established in Prabhāsa, O lord of the night. / In every kalpa, O lord of the night, I have a different name:
16.23.64
‘Svayambhū’ is the name in the first, ‘Padmabhū’ is remembered in the second, / ‘Viśvakartṛ’ in the third, and ‘Bālarūpin’ in the fourth.
16.23.65
A repeated cycle of these very names will continue / as long as I remain established in Prabhāsa until the end of two parārdhas.
16.23.66
By the primal Soma, who was born from Śambhu's eye, / austerity was performed right there in Prabhāsa, and Īśvara was made visible.
16.23.67
Then the trident-bearer, pleased, gave a boon to that earlier moon: / ‘Because, O Soma, I have been worshipped by you with lasting devotion,
16.23.68
therefore the name Someśa shall belong to this liṅga, / as long as Brahmā Śatānanda does not dissolve back into Prakṛti.
16.23.69
And whatever lords of the night and makers of the night shall come to be, / they shall worship me here again and again.’
16.23.69_1
Having spoken thus, the blessed Śambhu vanished right there. / At that time, O Soma, the primal liṅga was consecrated by me.
16.23.71
Since then, two hundred thousand, / two thousand, and one hundred and six moons have passed.
16.23.72
You are now the seventh, O mighty-armed Soma! / So many liṅgas have been brought to consecration by me.
16.23.73
I am that very one now, [granting] the fruit arising from its worship; / I shall consecrate it—good fortune to you, Soma! That is my duty.”
16.23.74
Īśvara said: / Having spoken thus, the blessed Brahmā, endowed with the lore of the Vedas, / containing all the deities, accompanied by the gods and joined by the sacred fords,
16.23.75
together with lordly yogins and seers headed by Sanatkumāra, / summoned Bṛhaspati and placed the family priest at the head.
16.23.76
Mounting his swan vehicle, together with ten million celestial seers, / Brahmā, lord of the universe, then arrived with Soma, the king [of planets],
16.23.77
at the great sacred ford of Prabhāsa, where the Dāruvana is remembered [to be], / where the river Ṛṣitoyā flows, destroyer of the greatest sins.
16.23.78
In this sacred ford at Prabhāsa, that [part] is called the portion of Brahmā. / This sacred field belongs to three deities, as I have told you, my beloved.
16.23.79
Having arrived there at the exceedingly pure portion of Brahmā, the four-faced [god] / summoned the sages residing in the elevated places.
16.23.80
Seeing the Creator arrive together with the preceptor of the seers and gods, / they all worshipped him with eulogies conforming to the Vedas.
16.23.81
Then Brahmā, grandfather of the worlds, addressed all the twice-born: / "Soma, having propitiated Someśa, the destroyer of sins, for a long time,
16.23.82
and he having become pleased, has obtained this unsurpassed liṅga. / O best among twice-born, you have come for the installation of the god.
16.23.83
Just as the installation dedicated to Śaṃkara should always be performed by me, / so must it be performed by you who abide in my portion.
16.23.84
Since the liṅga fell down to earth because of your anger, / its installation must indeed be done by you without doubt."
16.23.85
Īśvara said:
Then taking all the sages, Brahmā, grandfather of the worlds— / Brahmā, the lord of the universe, was then led by Soma, the king,
16.23.86
to the great sacred ford of Prabhāsa. Together with Sāvitrī, the lord / caused one hundred fire-pits and one hundred pavilions to be constructed.
16.23.87
In each pavilion he appointed seventeen officiating priests there; / urged by the preceptor, the priest of the gods, Brahmā
16.23.88
stood at the side then, and initiated the lord Soma together with Rohiṇī / in accordance with the rites prescribed in the Vedas.
16.23.89
Having made Rohiṇī, who possessed all auspicious marks, the consecrated wife, / the goddess wearing an antelope skin, covered in a silk cloth,
16.23.90
was brought to the wife's chamber by the priests who had mastered the Vedas. / The moon, endowed with initiation, praised by seers and gandharvas,
16.23.91
holding an udumbara staff, wrapped in an antelope skin, / endowed with immense splendour, shone while seated in the assembly.
16.23.92
Then, O great goddess, Brahmā, grandfather of all the worlds, / chose the officiating priests according to the Vedic rite.
16.23.93
There the preceptor [Bṛhaspati] was chosen as the hotṛ, and Vasiṣṭha as the adhvaryu; / Marīci was the udgātṛ there, and Nārada was made the brahman priest.
16.23.94
Members of the assembly, along with Sanatkumāra, were appointed there, / equipped with garments, ornaments, crowns, and rings,
16.23.95
adorned with a host of decorations in that sacrifice as priests for that purpose; / four experts were placed in each of the four [quarters], thus making sixteen priests.
16.23.96
Kaśyapa was the prastotṛ there, and Gālava the pratihartṛ; / likewise Garga was the subrahmaṇya, and Pulaha was made a member of the assembly.
16.23.97
Śukra was designated the hotṛ, Kratha was cited as the neṣṭṛ; / Durvāsas was the maitrāvaruṇa, and Kauśika was the brāhmaṇācchaṃsin.
16.23.98
Śākalya was the acchāvāka, Kratu was the grāvastut, / Śālaṅkāyana was the pratiprasthātṛ,
16.23.99
Manu was the agnīdhra there, and Aṅgiras was made the unnetṛ. / Having appointed these and other officiating priests in the pavilions, the lord,
16.23.100
appointed officiating priests in each of the other pavilions as well; / having set up the hundred pavilions, he fashioned the fire-pits.
16.23.101
Each pavilion there measured twenty cubits; / purifying the ground with the astra-mantra and sprinkling it with the five products of the cow,
16.23.102
covering it with a hide and drawing lines with the astra-mantra, O Pārvatī, / scratching the ground, sprinkling it, and digging the pit according to rule,
16.23.103
and arranging eight fire-pits in a single pavilion, my beloved, / he smeared the pavilion and performed the vajrīkaraṇa rite.
16.23.104
Square, bow-shaped, circular, and lotus-shaped, / he made them with great effort, beginning from the eastern direction:
16.23.105
placing a four-cornered pit in the east, / a vulva-shaped one in the south-east, a bow-shaped one in the south,
16.23.106
a triangular one in the south-west, a circular one in the west, / a hexagonal one in the north-west, and a lotus-shaped one in the north,
16.23.107
and an octagonal one in the north-east, with one [circular pit] in the center according to rule. / Each radiant pavilion had sixteen pillars,
16.23.108
equipped with banners and archways, Brahmā constructed according to rule; / placing a nyagrodha tree in the east, and likewise an udumbara in the south,
16.23.109
an aśvattha in the west, and a palāśa in the north in sequence, / setting up banners of the measure of an arm's length there,
16.23.110
flags of yellow and other colours were arranged, beginning in the east. / Then Brahmā commenced the establishment of the fire in the fire-pit.
16.23.111
He directed the brahmins in their respective places to chant prayers: / the Śrīsūkta, the Pāvamānasūkta, and constantly the Vājin [hymns],
16.23.112
the Vṛṣākapi and the Indra hymn—the Ṛgvedins chanted them in the east; / the Rudra hymns, the Puruṣasūkta, and the […]
16.23.113
the Brāhmaṇa, the ancestral hymns, and the Indra hymns the Yajurvedins chanted in the south; / the Devavrata, the Vāmadevya, the Jyeṣṭhasāman, the Rathaṃtara,
16.23.114
and the Bheruṇḍa sāmans the Sāmavedin chanted in the west; / the Atharvaśiras, the Skambhasūkta, the Atharvaṇa,
16.23.115
and the Nīlarudra hymns the Atharvavedin chanted in the north. / Then the lord performed all the fire-rites, such as the rite of conception.
16.23.116
Then, having offered the full offering, he began the rite of bathing [the liṅga] / using the five shoots and mixed with earths,
16.23.117
with astringents, the five products of the cow, the five nectars, and fruits, / together with the waters of sacred fords; he then began the bath accompanied by mantras.
16.23.118
Having fashioned the eyes of the god and applied the auspicious mark on the forehead, / [bringing] whatever sacred fords exist on the earth and especially in Pātāla,
16.23.119
And whatever [sacred fords] there were in heaven, all arrived there at that moment. / Meanwhile, then, while the gods were looking on, Brahmā
16.23.120
rent the earth and entered, and there he saw the liṅga. / Having covered that [liṅga] named Sparśa with honey and roots of darbha grass,
16.23.121
and placing the brahma-stone there, the self-controlled one installed the liṅga / of great splendour above it, having made it immovable.
16.23.122
And abiding in the highest reality, he then performed the ritual placement of mantras. / Having thus installed the liṅga there, Brahmā, the guru of the universe,
16.23.123
worshipped it according to ritual rule with elaborate mantras spoken in the Vedas. / When the ritual placement of mantras was performed there by Brahmā, the creator of the world,
16.23.124
the assembly of brahmins rejoiced there with auspicious cries of victory and the like, / and the fire became smokeless, blazing with the radiance of ten million suns.
16.23.125
Celestial drums sounded, and the lords of the directions were pleased. / A shower of flowers fell profusely in that great festival of sacrifice.
16.23.126
Then, having installed the glorious liṅga of Someśa, the Grandfather / caused abundant sacrificial fees to be given to the brahmins.
16.23.127
Surrounded by the foremost brahmin seers headed by Sanatkumāra, / Soma formerly gave the three worlds as a sacrificial fee to Brahmā.
16.23.128
To those principal brahmin seers and likewise to the members of the assembly, / he gave gold, jewels, and abundant fees in the millions.
16.23.129
Consecrated then by all the brahmin seers, that one of great lustre, / the best among luminous bodies, illuminated the three worlds with his own radiance.
16.23.130
Nine goddesses attended upon him: / Sinī, Kuhū, Dyuti, Puṣṭi, Prabhā, Vasu, Kīrti, Dhṛti, and Lakṣmī.
16.23.131
Having attained the concluding bath without agitation, having performed the sacrifice dedicated to Maheśvara, / the Lord of the Night became fulfilled and perfected.
16.23.132
Then Brahmā the Grandfather granted him an extensive kingdom, / O fair-faced one, over seeds, medicinal plants, brahmins, and waters.
16.23.133
To whichever rulers of the earth had gathered at that sacrifice, / he granted kingdoms, wealth, pleasures, and likewise imperishable heaven.
16.23.134
The Lord of Plants himself fed the brahmins; / he then gave everything to those dwelling in the Prabhāsa sacred field.
16.23.136
He also gave the sixteen great gifts, beginning with gold. / Whatever an ordinary, common person there requested,
16.23.136_2
that very thing he received in accordance with his own action. / When the sacrifice was thus completed, all the gods, accompanied by Indra,
16.23.137
having installed their own liṅgas, departed each as they had come. / But the Moon, the all-pervading lord, together with Brahmā, O goddess,
16.23.137_3
worshipped the liṅga again in sin-destroying Prabhāsa. / He worshipped it at the three junctures of the day with incense, garlands, and ointments; / having bowed to it, O ruler of the gods, the Lord of the Night praised it continually.
Linked texts (1)
- Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit