Skandapurana 2.9.5
English (machine translation) 2.9.5
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Skanda said:
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Anciently, O sage, there was a king named Uparicara Vasu,
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the son of Āyu, the ruler of the earth, celebrated as Amāvasu,
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a friend of Indra, who attained devotion to the Lord Nārāyaṇa.
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Righteous, devoted to the ancestors, propitiating ancestors and gods,
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devoted to good conduct, capable, forbearing, free from malice,
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benefactor to all, tranquil, devoted to celibacy, pure,
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free from anger, moderate in eating, gentle, devoid of vices, a sage,
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free from dualities, free from modifications, devoid of pride, resolute, knower of the Self,
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free from deceit, respectful to others, a yogin, ascetic, who had conquered his senses;
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detached from wealth, sons, wife, kinsmen, and the like,
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that king chanted the Nārāyaṇa-mantra daily with devotion.
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Then, pleased with him, the Blessed Lord Vāsudeva himself gave him
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an empire; he, unattached to it, worshiped Him with reverence.
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Concentrated during the five times [of day] according to the prescribed rule,
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he worshiped the Lord of gods, and with the remnants of that [offering], the gods and ancestors;
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with the remnants of theirs, having distributed to the brahmins and dependents,
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he ate the food remnants, devoted to truth, non-violent toward all living beings.
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The king recognized the fault in eating the meat of any living being
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as equal to a great sin, and he spoke accordingly to his subjects.
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With his whole being he worshiped Janārdana, the God of gods,
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without beginning, middle, or end, the maker of the worlds, imperishable.
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He made his mind firm upon the feet of glorious Vāsudeva,
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and the king constantly applied his two ears to hearing the story of the Blessed Lord;
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his two eyes to the darśana of Mukunda and of His devotees;
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the lord of the earth set his speech to singing the virtues of Hari;
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upon the fragrance of tulasī flowers that touched Nārāyaṇa's feet,
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the king set his breath, and never upon other fragrances;
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his own skin to the touch of garments and other things enjoyed by the Lord of Śrī;
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he applied his tongue to food offered to Nārāyaṇa;
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likewise, the king directed his two feet to going into the immediate vicinity of the Lord's temple and sacred field,
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and his two hands to the service of Hari;
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he placed his head in bowing to the feet of Viṣṇu,
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and he formed supreme friendship with the great devotees of the Lord.
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Not even a single moment of that royal sage passed
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without devotion to the Lord of Ramā, as he observed his vows.
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With great provisions indeed, he celebrated Viṣṇu's birthday festivals;
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for that purpose he constructed gardens, temples, and pleasure groves.
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To him who bore such devotion to Nārāyaṇa, O best of brahmins,
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the king of gods himself offered a seat on his own couch.
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Indra gave him the extremely beautiful Vaijayantī garland,
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made of unfading lotuses, and also abundant jewels.
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"One's self, kingdom, wealth, wife, vehicles, and the like—
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all that belongs to the Lord": thus he always regarded them.
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Desire-prompted, occasional, and perpetual supreme sacrificial rites—
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he performed them all with concentrated mind, following the Sātvata injunctions.
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Chief brahmins knowledgeable in the Pañcarātra, in the house of that great-souled one,
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regularly ate first what was offered to the Lord.
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While he, the slayer of his foes, was ruling the kingdom righteously,
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no untruthful speech arose, nor did his mind turn wicked,
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nor did he commit even an atom of sin with his body.
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For the nourishment of devotion to the Lord, the great treatise Pañcarātra
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the king listened to daily from the mouth of a devotee of the Lord.
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Establishing pure righteousness and gladdening all his subjects,
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he protected the earth just as Indra protects heaven.
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Even among the seven kinds of meat-eaters, in his kingdom
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there was not a single person, nor were there any wearing the guise of heretics.
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Intractable women, adulterous men,
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and those who cause confusion of caste duties were unheard of in his kingdom.
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Of the eleven kinds of liquor and the three kinds of surā,
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no one in this realm even smelled any while he ruled the kingdom.
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Yet, though possessing such virtues, on one occasion out of partiality for the celestials,
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due to a false statement he fell from heaven and entered the bowels of the earth.
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Having gone underground, he, ever fond of righteousness,
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became devoted to Nārāyaṇa and chanted his mantra with steady mind.
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By his grace alone, he rose up once again;
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having attained heaven, he enjoyed there the happiness desired by his heart.
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Becoming the lord of Cedi once again on earth due to a curse of the ancestors,
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he unweariedly worshipped Hari according to the rites enjoined in the Pañcarātra.
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Then the king attained the heavenly world in a divine body,
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and together with the hosts of supreme seers residing there,
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confirming his worship of the Lord, he dwelt there for some time.
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Then he attained the supreme, fearless abode of Vāsudeva.
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Thus ends the fifth chapter, titled "Description of the Virtues of Uparicara Vasu," in the Vāsudeva-māhātmya of the second [section], the Vaiṣṇavakhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa consisting of eighty-one thousand verses.
Linked texts (1)
- Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit