Skandapurana 2.9.7

English (machine translation) 2.9.7

Language: English

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Then, situated in the midst of the earth, that king, censuring his own deed

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and repenting greatly, showing reverence to those great sages,

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constantly repeated in his mind the three-syllabled mantra of the Lord. (1)

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Even there, with supreme devotion, at the five appropriate times, in his own mind

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he respectfully worshipped Hari, the lord of the gods, in the cavity of the earth. (2)

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Then the Lord Vāsudeva, master of the universe, was pleased with him / who worshipped him according to the time and according to the scriptures, even in calamity. (3)

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The boon-giving Lord Viṣṇu then himself spoke / to Garutmān, of great speed, the best of birds standing near him: (4)

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“O best of birds, O highly fortunate one, go at my word!

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The sovereign king named Vasu, righteous of soul, has taken refuge in me. (5)

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Due to the fault of transgressing the brāhmaṇas, he has entered the surface of the earth;

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he has rendered honor to them. Therefore, go to his presence today! (6)

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O Garuḍa, by my command, [deliver] this one hidden in the cavity of the earth;

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make that best of kings, who moves down below, one who moves in the sky, without delay!” (7)

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Then Garutmān, having the speed of the wind, flapping his wings,

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entered the cavity of the earth where Vasu sat with restrained speech. (8)

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Then, lifting him up with his beak, the son of Vinatā

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swiftly flew up into the sky and released him there. (9)

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At that very moment, the king again became ‘Uparicara’ [the sky-farer];

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he went to heaven in his bodily form and attained supreme bliss. (2.9.7.10)

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Thus, O brāhmaṇa seer, even by him, due to the fault of speech and disregard of the good,

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was a fate fit for one who does not perform sacrifices attained, though he was a great soul who knew righteousness. (11)

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Yet solely the Supreme Person, Hari, the Lord, was served by him;

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therefore, he quickly cast off the sin and attained the heavenly world. (12)

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Enjoying diverse happiness and what his heart desired there,

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he dwelt like another Śakra, his fame being sung by the gods. (13)

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Once, as he was moving about in an aerial chariot shining like the sun,

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accompanied by the apsaras Adrikā, Acchodā beheld him. (14)

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She was the mind-born daughter of the ancestors abiding in the abode of Soma. (15ab)

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of the great-souled [ancestors] named Agniṣvāttas, who are formless. // 15

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Because they were formless, she of pure smiles did not recognize her own ancestors;

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she regarded that Vasu as her father, and he regarded her as if his daughter. // 16

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Seeing such a feeling between the two of them, the ancestors then cursed them:

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“O girl, you shall become a daughter of this king upon the earth! // 17

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O Vasu, having become a human being, in your own wife—

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in this very apsaras—you will certainly father this daughter.” // 18

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Having thus been cursed by the ancestors, the two then bowed down and begged them

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for release from the curse. Then those compassionate ones said: // 19

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“Because this was inevitably destined to happen, you two have incurred

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this curse. In that, only the highest good will befall both of you. // 2.9.7.20

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In the twenty-eighth Dvāpara [yuga], however, O Vasu, on earth you shall become the son

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of the king, the great-souled Kṛtayajña. // 21

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Even there, just as now, you will be endowed with all virtues,

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a sky-farer, and a foremost leader among great devotees of the Lord. // 22

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Having worshipped Viṣṇu with devotion according to the rite prescribed in the Pañcarātra,

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along with your subjects, you will worship the gods and us with his remnants. // 23

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Then, with a divine body, you will attain heaven;

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having enjoyed divine pleasures there, you will attain the realm of Viṣṇu. // 24

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O Acchodā, you too, renowned on earth by the name Kālī,

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will be born by a part of yourself from Adrikā, who will have the body of a fish. // 25

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There, while still an unmarried girl, you will obtain Hari from Parāśara as your son.

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By his grace alone, you will attain worldly enjoyment and liberation.” // 26

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Having thus been cursed and favored by the ancestors, that king,

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obtaining birth here from Kṛtayajña, became renowned for his virtues. // 27

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Just as before, he was devoted to Kṛṣṇa and knew the rites for the gods and ancestors.

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And Mahendra, out of friendship, gave him abundant wealth. // 28

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The banner of victory which had formerly been obtained from Vāsudeva

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in Śvetadvīpa by himself for the destruction of enemies, Indra gave that to him as well. // 29

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Moving in the intermediate space, the king enjoyed very rare earthly pleasures,

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and at the end attained heaven with a divine body. // 2.9.7.30

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Enjoying the fruit of the remainder of his past merits, which was desired by his mind,

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he experienced many kinds of pleasures there and attained intense detachment. // 31

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Then, on a solitary peak of Meru, pure and having assumed a steady seat,

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he meditated in the lotus of his own heart upon his chosen deity, the lord of Ramā. // 32

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Having abandoned the divine body through yogic concentration, that silent sage

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then reached the orb of the sun with his subtle body,

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which they declare to be the door of liberation for committed yogins. // 33

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With his subtle body burnt away by its splendor, consisting of existence and consciousness, exceedingly pure,

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that fortunate one became free of all lingering impressions. // 34

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Then, by the psychopomp deities residing in that orb,

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he was led to the wondrous realm of Viṣṇu called Śvetadvīpa. // 35

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For that island, O sage, even though existing on earth, is transcendental;

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it is the abode of the devotees of Hari, attainable by unswerving devotion. // 36

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And it serves as the gateway to Goloka, Brahmapura, and Vaikuṇṭha, O observer of good vows,

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for the great-souled devotees who desire to attain them. // 37

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Whichever realm one desires, worshipping Him, to that very realm

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the white liberated souls, whose characteristics were previously described, lead him, O sage. // 38

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There in that realm, he acquired a divine body like a white liberated soul;

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having then attained the realm of Goloka, he reached supreme bliss. // 39

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Those who thus worship Nārāyaṇa, the supreme Brahman,

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by unswerving righteousness alone, become white liberated souls. // 2.9.7.40

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All this which you asked has been narrated to you, O sage:

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the state of the unswerving devotees and the description of the White Realm.” // 41

Thus ends the seventh chapter, titled “Description of the Liberation of Uparicara Vasu,” in the glorious Vāsudeva-māhātmya of the second section, the Vaiṣṇavakhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa of eighty-one thousand verses. // 7

Linked texts (1)

Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit