Skandapurana 2.7.9
English (machine translation) 2.7.9
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The Maithila said:
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"How was the birth of that burnt Kāma brought about, O lord?
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What suffering befell him in that [birth] due to transgressing the act? (1)
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Tell me this, O holy one, for I am curious to hear."
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Śrutadeva said:
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"I shall speak of the birth of Kumāra, which destroys sin upon hearing, (2)
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which brings renown, bestows sons, conforms to dharma, and destroys all diseases.
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When Kāma was slain by Śambhu, his wife named Rati, (3)
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she fainted on seeing her husband reduced to ashes before her.
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Having regained consciousness after a moment, she lamented in diverse ways,
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at whose lamentation even the forest shared her grief then.
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And wishing to abandon her own body in the fire of his funeral pyre, she remembered Mādhava,
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her husband's friend, to perform the rites due at that moment.
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He, the mighty lord, came to prepare the pyre for the hero's wife.
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Terrified at the sight of his friend's wife, he fell into a faint for a moment,
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and then comforted Rati with various words of consolation:
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“I am like a son to you, auspicious lady; while I am here, you ought not
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to abandon your body, which is the instrument of dharma.” Though thus [comforted] in many ways,
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Rati, restrained by him, by no means set her mind on living.
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Seeing her resolve, Vasanta prepared a pyre on the riverbank.
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She plunged into the heavenly river, performed all the necessary rites,
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restrained the collection of her senses, placed her mind firmly upon the Self,
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and began to mount the funeral pyre. Then a bodiless voice arose:
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“Do not enter the fire, auspicious lady, devoted as you are to your husband!
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Your husband will have two births in succession,
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from Hara and then from the Yādava Viṣṇu. There, in the latter birth,
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he will be born of Kṛṣṇa, the Great Viṣṇu, through the daughter of Bhīṣmaka, named Pradyumna.
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And you, through the curse of Brahmā, will dwell in Śambara's abode,
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and you will be united with your husband named Pradyumna.”
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Having spoken thus, the voice resounding in the sky fell silent.
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Having heard it, though resolved upon death, she turned back.
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Then, their own purpose served when Kāma was slain by Hara, the gods assembled,
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led by the preceptor, Indra, and Agni, observing what Rati had done.
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They restrained the chaste woman by granting her a great boon:
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“Though bodiless, he will become embodied; though dead, he will become visible to your eyes.”
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Having thus dissuaded her, they instructed her in dharma:
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“In a previous kalpa, this king named Sundara was a mighty lord,
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and you alone were his wife even then, having caused a mingling of menstrual blood.
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Because of that, this condition has befallen you; perform expiation now:
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perform morning ritual ablution in the Mandākinī during the month of Vaiśākha;
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worship Madhusūdana, and listen likewise to the divine narrative;
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undertake the observance named Aśūnyaśayana, radiant lady!
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By this righteous conduct and by the observance in the month of Mādhava, auspicious lady,
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the recovery of your husband will surely come to pass for you; there is no doubt.”
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Having thus granted her a boon, the gods departed as they had come.
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Having thus turned back from her severe ordeal, that goddess, Kāma's chaste wife,
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performed ablution in the Gaṅgā when the sun stood in Aries,
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and the high-minded lady [undertook] the observance named Aśūnyaśayana.
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By the power of that religious merit, immediately Kāma became visible to her eyes,
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O great king, possessing irresistible valor in the world.
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In a previous kalpa too, he was a king devoted to righteousness;
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because he did not perform the great duties prescribed for Vaiśākha, Smara
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suffered the destruction of his body, even though he was a son of the Supreme Self,
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when Vaiśākha was passed in vain while the sun stood in Aries.
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If this was the plight of the gods, what then of human beings?
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After Tryambaka disappeared, the mountain's daughter was despondent;
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seeing her standing silently and bewildered, the Himavat mountain
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was astonished, embraced her with both arms, and took her to his own home.
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Having seen the beauty, generosity, and virtues of the great-souled Hara alone,
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with her mind devoted solely to him, thinking, “May he alone be my husband,”
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she went to the bank of the Gaṅgā to perform austerity, holding fast to her vows,
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though she was dissuaded by her father, her mother, and her kinsmen.
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Worshiping the great liṅga, taking no food, bearing matted locks,
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at the end of a thousand divine years Maheśvara became visible to her.
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Assuming the form of a celibate student, the omnipresent Lord, at dusk, at the entrance to her leaf-hut,
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tested the firmness of her mind devoted to him through various arguments;
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recognizing her eagerness for the boon, the great lord said: “Choose a boon, auspicious lady!”
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Then that fair-faced lady chose Rudra as her husband, saying: “Be thou [my husband].”
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Having granted the boon in just that way, he remembered the seven seers.
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Those sages also came and stood before him with folded hands.
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He instructed the seers to ask Himālaya for the maiden.
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Thus commanded by the Lord, for the sake of the maiden, to Himavat's home
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they all arrived through the sky, illuminating the ten directions.
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That mountain went out to meet those seven, foremost among knowers of Brahman.
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Having worshipped them all according to rule, once they were comfortably seated, he asked:
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“Blessed am I, my purpose accomplished, since you have come to my home.
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I consider your coming to be indeed the fruit of my birth.
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There is nothing to be done by us for great souls whose aims are already fulfilled.
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Nevertheless, tell me your task, what must be done by me now.”
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Addressed thus, they spoke accordingly to Himavat, the great mountain:
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“Words worthy of yourself have surely been spoken by you, O lord of mountains!
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We shall tell you the reason for our coming, O highly exalted one.
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Your daughter named Pārvatī was formerly Satī, the daughter of Dakṣa.
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Born as your maiden, she had abandoned her body at the sacrifice.
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In the three worlds, none other than Śambhu is competent to take her hand in marriage.
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That goddess should be given by you, desiring immortality, to Śambhu.
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Good deeds were performed by you in thousands of past lives;
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now, by your good fortune, they have come to fruition.”
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Hearing those words of theirs, the great mountain, delighted at heart,
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spoke again: “My daughter, wearing bark garments,
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fasting on the bank of the Gaṅgā, performs severe austerity,
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desiring Śambhu as her husband. Indeed, this is her desire.
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The maiden is given by me to that three-eyed, great-souled one.
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Going quickly to where Śambhu, the great lord, is,
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and announcing: ‘Accept her, given with love by Himavat,’
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you yourselves must perform this marriage rite.”
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Addressed thus by Himavat, they took leave of him and went to Śiva.
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All the women, led by Lakṣmī, and the deities, led by Viṣṇu,
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the six mothers, and the sages went to see the great festival.
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Śiva, accompanied by all the hosts of immortals, the sages, and the mothers,
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mounted upon a bull, surrounded by hosts of Pramathas,
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with drums, conches, mṛdaṅgas and the like, with kāhalī trumpets, paṭahas and other instruments,
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with Vedic chants and praise-singers, entered Himavat's city.
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At an auspicious moment, during an auspicious ascendant, aspected by auspicious planets,
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the mountain conducted the marriage with a heart full of joy.
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Then there was a great festival for living beings throughout the three worlds, O king.
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When the great festival had concluded, Śaṃkara, who brings welfare to the world,
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sported with the goddess at his pleasure, conforming to worldly ways.
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In the prosperous abode of Himavat, which was like the palace of Indra,
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at night, on the bank of the Nandinī, in rows of forests
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adorned with the humming of intoxicated bees and birds and the cries of peacocks,
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the all-pervading lord sported at his pleasure for thousands of divine years.
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Because women lacked Indra’s boon at that time, O best of kings,
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from union with a man, women's embryos certainly miscarry.
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Alas, because of lovemaking every day, no embryo formed from Hara in the goddess.
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Anxiety arose among the gods because a son was not obtained by virtue of the boon, O lord.
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All assembling and taking counsel, spoke thus among themselves:
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“Like an impassioned man, Hara, the sovereign lord, has become constantly attached to lovemaking with the goddess.
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Our objective is not accomplished because of the constant discharge of the embryo.
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Let it be arranged by us so that lovemaking does not take place again.”
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Having spoken thus among themselves, they deliberated here for a moment.
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Deciding upon Agni for the task, they spoke to him with honor:
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“O Agni, you are the mouth of the gods; you are their kin and refuge.
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Even now, go to where Hara is sporting.
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Show yourself at the end of their lovemaking, so that lovemaking does not recur.
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Seeing you, the goddess will feel ashamed and will surely withdraw from there.
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Then, having become a disciple at the end of lovemaking, question the slayer of Smara about the ultimate truth.
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Under the pretext of asking questions about truth, pass much time, O lord!”
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When much time has passed, the goddess will give birth to Kumāra."
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Thus entreated by the gods, Agni said, "Om," and went to Hara. 64.
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Even before the discharge of semen, the fire-god arrived during their lovemaking.
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Seeing him, the goddess, ashamed and unclothed, went away dejected. 65.
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Then Rudra, abandoning their lovemaking in haste and extremely enraged,
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said to the fire-god: "Take this that has been emitted, O wicked one! 66.
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My semen is hard to bear, O sinner; an obstacle was made by you in our lovemaking.
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And I cast my semen into your mouth, O bearer of oblations!" 67.
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Having spoken thus, Hara discharged his semen into the mouth of the fire-god.
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Bearing that ferocious semen in his belly, burning intensely, 68.
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the person of sacrifice went to the abode of the gods, brooding.
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Barely surviving, he reported that to the gods. 69.
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Hearing what was spoken by the fire-god, the gods experienced both joy and sorrow:
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There was joy that the semen was preserved, but "how will birth take place?" 70.
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Such was the sorrow then; and in the belly of the fire-god that [seed] belonging to Śambhu,
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the cast-in fiery energy, grew; then ten months passed. 71.
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Engrossed in immense suffering, he saw no means of delivery.
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He indeed took refuge with the gods for the sake of releasing the embryo. 72.
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Those gods, along with the fire-god, approached the glorious Gaṅgā.
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They quickly entreated Gaṅgā with a hymn of praise: 73.
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"You are the mother of all the gods; you alone are the protector of the worlds.
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For the sake of the gods, O auspicious one, bear the fiery energy of Śambhu! 74.
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The embryo is growing inside the fire-god, and since he is not female, there is no delivery for him.
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Therefore, deliver him and all of us; have compassion!" 75.
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Entreated in this way, the goddess spoke the word: "So be it."
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Then the gods recited to the fire-god the mantra that releases the embryo. 76.
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Extracting the embryo by that mantra, the bearer of oblations discharged
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into Gaṅgā the fiery energy of Śambhu, resplendent and extremely hard for the worlds to bear. 77.
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Having borne it for a few months, she was unable [to bear it] beyond that;
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deprived of water by its power, her body burst into blood. 78.
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Distressed by intense pain, the goddess, the sole purifier of the worlds,
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by the power of her devotion to her husband, drew out the embryo staying in her womb 79.
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and cast it into a thicket of reeds, burning all around.
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Split by the reeds, it was indeed divided into six parts. 80.
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Prompted then by Brahmā, the six Kṛttikās arrived.
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Uniting the sixfold-divided [seed] of Śambhu in the thicket of reeds, 81.
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making it into a six-faced person having a single body, distinctly—
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the Kṛttikās, commanded by the Creator, made him firmly so. 82.
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That body, having the form of a person, six-faced, lying in the reeds,
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remained indeed in the reeds for a long time, guarded. 83.
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Once Pārvatī and the Supreme Lord, mounted on the bull,
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with minds intent on going to Śrīśaila, passed by that place. 84.
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Then Goddess Pārvatī’s breasts suddenly flowed with milk.
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Astonished, she said to Rudra: "Why have my breasts flowed with milk? 85.
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Tell me the reason, O soul of the universe!" Thus addressed, Hara said: 86.
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"Listen, O goddess, I shall explain: your son is down below. 87.
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Before the semen was discharged into you, the bearer of oblations arrived.
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Seeing him, you became ashamed and entered another place. 87.
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Out of anger, the ferocious semen was discharged by me into the mouth of the fire-god;
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and by the grace of the gods, the all-pervading [fire-god] discharged it into Gaṅgā. 88.
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Gaṅgā, burning, cast it into the midst of the reeds.
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There it was split sixfold and made firm by the mothers; 89.
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it assumed the form of a person. Seeing him, your breasts flowed with milk.
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He of great prowess, whose valor equals Viṣṇu's, is to be protected. 90.
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He truly shines as your legitimate son, undoubtedly.
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Therefore, take him quickly; by him your renown will be very great." 91.
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Thus commanded by Śambhu, she swiftly took that child;
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placing him on her lap, the goddess suckled him at her breasts. 92.
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Bewitched by the god, the goddess became devoted to maternal love for her son.
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The consort of Śaṃkara returned again to Kailāsa with the Lord. 93.
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Fondling her son, the goddess attained supreme satisfaction.
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Thus the wondrous birth of Kumāra has been narrated to you by me. (94)
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Whoever constantly hears this auspicious birth of Kumāra
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attains the increase of sons and grandsons; there is no doubt about this. (95)
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Since there was great sorrow even for Hara at his birth,
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even one who has devoutly heard the religious duties of Vaiśākha becomes peerless. (96)
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Therefore, the religious duty of Vaiśākha indeed destroys multitudes of all sins;
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it prevents widowhood, is meritorious, and bestows all prosperity. (97)
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By its power, even Anaṅga regained his bodily form.
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He whose month of Vaiśākha passes without bathing and without giving, (98)
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even if he performs other religious duties, there will be a succession of miseries.
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Every religious duty will be beneficial if this one alone is observed. (99)
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Linked texts (1)
- Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit