Skandapurana 2.1.26
English (machine translation) 2.1.26
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2.1.26.1
Now, the greatness of the Tumburu (Ghoṇa) sacred ford.
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Śrī Sūta said:
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“Here I shall proclaim, O Śaunaka and other [sages] of great splendour,
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the māhātmya of the Ghoṇatīrtha, which destroys all sins.”
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For people, a ritual ablution there yields the fruit of austerities performed in another birth.
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On the full moon festival day of the bright fortnight conjoined with Uttarāphalgunī,
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when the sun resides in Pisces, all the sacred fords everywhere,
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the Gaṅgā and others in the three worlds, arrive in the afternoon at Tumbu's sacred ford.
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The seers said: / O venerable Sūta, omniscient one, master of the meaning of all sacred treatises,
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all the rivers beginning with Gaṅgā, at the exceedingly purifying Ghoṇatīrtha—
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for what purpose do they perform ritual ablution there when the sun resides in Pisces?
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The venerable Sūta said:
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"Indeed, all sinful mortals diligently bathe in us;
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casting off their webs of sin, people depart fulfilled.
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How can that web of our sins be completely destroyed?"
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Having thus reflected, the sacred fords headed by Gaṅgā, with great effort,
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remembering the enchanting and divine speech of the great-souled Nārada,
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the son of Brahmā, which eradicates all sins,
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having gone to Mount Śrīveṅkaṭa, which dries up [sins such as] the murder of a brahmin,
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and having bathed there in the waters of the Svāmipuṣkariṇī, the foremost of sacred fords,
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thereafter, O brahmins, at the exceedingly purifying Ghoṇatīrtha,
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on the festival day of the bright fortnight conjoined with Uttarāphalgunī,
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all the sacred fords bathe when the sun resides in Pisces.
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Who in the three worlds knows the greatness of that sacred ford?
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Now the description of the great faults of those averse to bathing in Ghoṇatīrtha:
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Therefore, O best of the twice-born, Ghoṇatīrtha is the most sacred of sacred fords.
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One who destroys groves, is cruel, sells daughters and horses,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—they call him a murderer of a brahmin.
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One who plunders property of the gods as well as one who seizes what was given,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—they call him a murderer of a brahmin.
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One who breaches reservoirs and dams, one who lusts after intercourse with another's wife,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—the wise call him a thief.
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That vile materialist who, having said to a twice-born, "I give,"
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[does not,] and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—the wise know him as a drinker of liquor.
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One who is hostile to gurus and twice-born folk, devoted to self-praise,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—the wise call him a thief.
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One who eats unconsecrated food, one who consumes food left over from ancestral rites,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—the twice-born call him a thief.
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One who gives food left over from ancestral rites [to others], one who opposes mother and father,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—the wise call him a thief.
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One intent on union with another's wife, fond of pleasure with a brother's wife,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—they call him a violator of the guru's bed.
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A twice-born who speaks with an outcaste, who constantly lacks kuśa grass in hand,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—contact with him is indeed the fifth [great sin].
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One who eats food after hearing the voice of a menstruating woman, a dog, or an outcaste,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—contact with him is indeed the fifth [great sin].
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One who causes obstacles to the Purāṇas, marriages, sacred thread ceremonies, and other religious duties,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—they call him a slaughterer of cattle.
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One who slays someone who has sought refuge, one turned away from all sacred fords,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—the wise call him a killer of an embryo.
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One who has neglected ancestral sacrifices, abandoned his wife, the lowest of his lineage,
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and has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa—they call him a killer of cows.
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The minor sins that are equal to great sins,
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O best of the twice-born, attach to one who has abandoned the bath at Ghoṇa.
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Now the description of the removal of all sins by the bath at Ghoṇa:
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O brahmins, even one addicted to great sins, a dog-cooker or the lowest of his family,
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cruel, a destroyer of his lineage, miserable, ungenerous, devoid of righteous rites,
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a slayer of animals, devoted to hostility toward others, and likewise a slanderer,
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a speaker of untruth, deceitful, and attached to another's wife,
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a betrayer of friends, an ungrateful man, a killer of an embryo, and an extreme sinner,
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delighting in another's wife, wicked, an informant regarding others' wealth,
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false, engaged in agriculture, treacherous to his master, and a deceiver,
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greedy, a killer of his father, turned away from all gods,
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praising himself, creating obstacles to righteousness, dishonest—
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the one who spends wealth on the unworthy, who breaks up harmony,
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the cutter of trees endowed with fine shoots and fruits,
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the betrayer of trust, and the one devoted to slaying warriors,
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one who maintains no sacred fire, who has no son, one who employs poison,
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one who hates the guru, the sinner who brings discord between husband and wife,
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one who exercises lordship over a village or likewise over a temple,
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a brahmin who makes a display for hire, one intent on cruel deeds,
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one who has made a habit of a multitude of sins, one devoted to secret vices,
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one who commits sin through ignorance, or who does wicked deeds knowingly—
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all these, O foremost of brahmins, the charming Ghoṇatīrtha
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purifies through ritual ablution, drinking, and the like. Ah, the grandeur of the sacred ford! // 36
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Now begins the story of the gandharva named Tumburu.
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Śrī Sūta said:
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Here I shall relate an ancient legend, destroying sin,
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calming all evils, bestowing the fruit of liberation. // 37
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Formerly, Gārgya, endowed with great splendor, skilled in all branches of learning,
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all-knowing, moral, a brahmin of controlled senses, spoke thus: // 38
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Bowing to the great-souled Devala, his mind serene, [he said:]
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“Relate [it], O fortunate one; be compassionate to me!
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Tell of the auspicious māhātmya of Ghoṇatīrtha, which takes away all sins.” // 39
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Devala said:
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A gandharva named Tumburu, having cursed his devoted wife,
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bathed here and worshipped Veṅkaṭeśa, the ocean of mercy, // 40
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and attained the realm of Viṣṇu, free from return [to rebirth]. // 41
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Gārgya said:
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“For what reason, O seer Devala, did the gandharva named Tumburu,
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skilled in all branches of learning, // 42
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curse his beautiful wife, a woman endowed with all virtues? By what fault [did this happen]?
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Tell that, O fortunate one, for my curiosity to hear is great.” // 43
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Now begins the manner of the rule of the Māgha ablution taught by Tumburu to his wife.
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The gandharva named Tumburu spoke lovingly to his wife:
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“Perform with me the bath that removes impurities during the three [critical days of] Māgha. // 44
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In the month of Māgha, when the sun has risen, destroying all sins,
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smear this bank with cow dung for the worship of Viṣṇu. // 45
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With colored powders and minerals, [draw] white lotuses and svastikas.
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Serve me and Viṣṇu in this auspicious month. // 46
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In this Māgha, prepare a lamp-wick for this Mādhava;
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with devotion offer before Hari fire along with incense. // 47
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Having become pure, cook food for the great-souled Mādhava.
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With circumambulations and prostrations, with devotion along with me in Māgha, // 48
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perform daily worship to Viṣṇu, the God of gods.
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Unwearied, listen constantly to the Purāṇa of Viṣṇu. // 49
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Having bathed every day, drink with diligence Hari's foot-water.
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‘Kṛṣṇa! Viṣṇu! Mukunda! Nārāyaṇa! Janārdana! // 50
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Acyuta! Ananta! Soul of all!’—chant thus unceasingly.
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Abandoning anger, jealousy, greed, and the like, observe the vow. // 51
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Thereby liberation will be yours, and the eternal realm of Viṣṇu.”
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Now begins the manner of the curse given by Tumburu to his wife and the liberation from it.
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Hearing what her husband said thus, the gandharva's beloved,
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in anger, spoke unbearable [words] to her husband that lead to misfortune: // 52
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“When intense cold has arisen in Māgha, and the sun has risen faintly in the morning,
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how could one plunge into [water] in this Māgha that brings torment from cold, O sinless one? // 53
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The rites mentioned by you cannot be performed by me repeatedly.
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O husband, I will not take a bath with you in the morning. // 54
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If I die from extreme cold, you will not be my protector!”
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Hearing what was spoken thus, her husband, the gandharva lord, // 55
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though peaceful, then cursed his wife who spoke unpleasant words.
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A son averse to righteousness, a wife who speaks unpleasant words, // 56
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and a king hostile to brahmins—one should punish them immediately with a curse.
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Considering this maxim, he then cursed the faithful wife thus: // 57
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"On the highly meritorious Veṅkaṭādri, which destroys all sins,
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and near Ghoṇatīrtha, inside the hollow of a pippala tree,
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there, devoid of water, O foolish woman, become merely a frog!"
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Hearing such words of her husband, the beloved of the gandharva,
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falling at his feet, the chaste woman begged Tumburu.
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Her husband Tumburu then declared the counter-curse:
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"Indeed, Agastya, the greatly fortunate ascetic whose senses are conquered,
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having bathed in the excellent Ghoṇatīrtha on the great lunar day of the full moon,
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when, beside that aśvattha tree, to his disciples
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the best of brahmins speaks the māhātmya of Ghoṇatīrtha,
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then you, attentive inside the hollow of the pippala tree,
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having heard the liberation-granting māhātmya of Ghoṇatīrtha,
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having shaken off all sins, will delight with me."
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Thus addressed, the lawful, faithful wife then fell silent.
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From her husband's curse, she entered the most terrible body of a frog.
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On that summit of Śeṣādri, to the south of Ghoṇatīrtha,
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the woman went very slowly into the hollow of the pippala tree.
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Ten thousand years passed for her inside the hollow of the aśvattha tree.
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Then, after a period of time, Agastya went to the enchanting Veṅkaṭādri,
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and, having bathed according to the rules in the sacred Śrīsvāmitīrtha,
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having bowed to the god Varāhasvāmin to the south of the sacred ford,
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having gone to the abode of Veṅkaṭeśa, to Śrīnivāsa, the treasure-house of compassion,
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to the eternal God of gods, whose eyes are large, who is known through the Vedas,
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having bowed down, the greatly fortunate Agastya then went to Ghoṇatīrtha.
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Having bathed there in that best of sacred fords with his disciples, the best of yogins,
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under the shade of the pippala tree, with devotion to his disciples,
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the māhātmya of Ghoṇatīrtha, which destroys the murder of a brahmin,
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bestows all auspiciousness, is meritorious, and grants all prosperities,
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the foremost among yogins, the blessed seer Agastya, proclaimed.
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Now, at Ghoṇatīrtha, through the darśana of Agastya, the cessation of Tumburu's wife's state as a frog:
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Then, having heard [it], the female frog, at the feet of that yogin
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fell, having perceived the glory of the sage through the lamp of knowledge.
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Having attained her former form, the captivating form of a woman,
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"O Agastya, foremost of yogins, protect, protect, O ocean of mercy!
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Protect me with compassion, O brahmin, who opposed the words of her husband!"
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Having said this to him, the large-eyed woman then fell silent.
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Agastya said:
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"Who are you, O fair-hipped lady? May there be auspiciousness to you. What sin in a previous birth
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bestowed the birth of a frog? Tell that, and do not delay."
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The woman said:
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"There is a gandharva named Tumburu, skilled in all fields of knowledge.
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I am his wife, O brahmin, O Agastya, who are attended by sages!
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My husband knows all duties, Tumburu, the best of sages.
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'Perform all lawful duties constantly together with me, O charming lady!'
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Hearing then that command of my husband, which was beneficial for the other world,
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an unbearable and extremely harsh statement, leading indeed to a bad destination,
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was spoken by me through foolishness, O father, best of sages!"
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Now the duties of devoted wives spoken by Agastya:
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Agastya said:
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"Your husband of razor-sharp intellect cursed you, filled with anger.
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Thus, a curse was quite fitting for one opposing her husband's words.
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She who, disregarding the words of her husband, acts according to her own will,
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that woman falls into a dreadful hell as long as the moon and the stars endure.
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Women have no independence; the speech of the husband must not be transgressed.
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Through devotion to the husband, through merit, and through service to the husband,
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women go to the abode of Viṣṇu, and not even by other noble vows.
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The husband is mother, the husband is Viṣṇu, the husband is Brahmā, the husband is Śiva,
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the husband is teacher, the husband is the sacred ford—so the wise know for women.
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Rejecting the husband's words, that woman who with other good deeds
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is always engaged, even she would never become pure at all."
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Now, a woman who is without a husband, by [the instruction of] elders who know the highest duty,
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she, being grateful, may perform a vow that bestows the fruit of righteousness.
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She who is directed by her husband, devoted to her husband's thought,
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who bathes in the sacred ford of her husband's lotus-feet, is dear to Hari;
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she has bathed in all sacred fords, such as the Gaṅgā—of this there is no doubt.
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Therefore, the fault committed by you came back to you, and as its fruit
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was being experienced by you here while hearing the majesty of the Ghoṇatīrtha,
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liberation occurred, and that beautiful-limbed female form [was restored] as before.
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Therefore, the renown of the Ghoṇatīrtha in this world
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came to be as 'Tumbutīrtha.' Oh, the majesty of the sacred ford!
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Now, the attainment of various fruits by those who bathe in the Ghoṇatīrtha:
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Śrī Sūta said:
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In the most holy Ghoṇatīrtha, which destroys all sins,
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those who bathe on the full-moon day, O Śaunaka and others of great splendor—
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theirs is the holy fruit of a sacrifice, the fruit of ten thousand sacred fords.
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He who gives a thousand tawny cows day after day,
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- Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit