Skandapurana 5.206

English (machine translation) 5.206

Language: English

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Viśvāmitra said: / All this has been related to you as I was asked, O ruler of men: / the māhātmya of Bālamaṇḍana, which destroys all sins,

where, when even a single ablution is performed, O best of kings, / the merit arising from bathing in all sacred fords is obtained, / on the thirteenth day of the bright fortnight in the month of Māgha.

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Ānarta said: / Why is Indra's stay on the surface of the earth for only five nights, / and not longer, as it is for other gods?

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And at the end of the year, which are the days on which Indra / comes to the earth, and what is the month? Tell me all this!

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Viśvāmitra said: / Listen, O king of the earth, I will tell this story / of how Indra may not remain on the surface of the earth for more than five nights.

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Formerly, in the Bṛhatkalpa, there was a lord of gods named Jayatsena, / master of the entire three worlds, who crushed the pride of the Danavas.

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He always received worship in all the three worlds. / But after some time, the beloved wife of the sage Gautama,

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named Ahilyā, was matchless in beauty on earth; / having seen her, Indra fell under the power of the god of love and desired her.

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Coming regularly from the world of heaven, he indulged his desire / whenever Gautama had gone out, O king, for the purpose of kindling-wood, / for sacred grass, or for fruits and roots, as the great-souled [sages] themselves do.

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Then Nārada, the best of sages, told him / all of Śakra's conduct, and likewise what had occurred with Ahilyā.

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Hearing that, Gautama immediately and swiftly went to his house, / only to see the lord of the gods united with his wife.

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Śakra too, seeing Gautama, intent upon flight, / ran out from that hermitage, naked and frantic with fear.

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Ahilyā also, terrified with fear upon seeing her husband arrived, / stood with her face cast down, O king, her senses perturbed.

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Seeing that conduct of his wife clearly, Gautama / pronounced a curse, O great king, his eyes reddened with rage:

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"Because, O Śakra, you have committed such a contemptible sinful deed, / and my virtuous wife has been violated, therefore become testicle-less!

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And let a thousand vulvas appear upon your face without delay, / whereby you may suffer disgrace across the three worlds, both moving and unmoving!

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Moreover, if you ever come here to the mortal world, O Vāsava, / for the sake of worship, then your head will shatter into a hundred pieces!"

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Having thus cursed Śakra, he then spoke to Ahilyā, / reviling her repeatedly with eyes reddened with rage:

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"Because you, O sinful woman, have committed this contemptible act, / therefore turn into stone and remain upon the surface of the earth!"

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Then in that very instant his wife became turned to stone, / and Indra, likewise, was stripped of both testicles.

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Indeed, he came to be marked with a thousand vulvas on the region of his face.

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Then Hari, having reached a solitary cave of Mount Meru, / dwelt there continually filled with shame, and did not go to his own city.

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Then all the hosts of gods, distressed at being abandoned by him / and not knowing where he stayed, engaged in searching the caves.

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They were oppressed by fierce Dānavas when heaven was left without a king.

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Meanwhile, Jīva was asked by Śakrāṇī, who was frightened with fear / and agitated: "Where then has Purandara gone?"

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Then Jīva, having meditated for a long time and seeing him with the eye of knowledge, / went accompanied by the gods, and then spoke very harshly:

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"Why have you thus abandoned the enjoyments of kingship and resorted to a solitary place? / Have you undertaken meditation, or have you resorted to fierce austerity?"

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Hearing the words of Bṛhaspati, Purandara, with vulvas on his face, / spoke filled with shame, wretched and overwhelmed with tears:

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"I will by no means rule over the three worlds. / Look at the state I have been reduced to by the sage Gautama!

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With a face marked with a thousand vulvas, how shall I / face the gods, Paulomī, and likewise Śiva?

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My worship arising from the mortal world has been ruined, O Bṛhaspati, / on account of a certain incident, through the curse of the sage Gautama."

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Hearing that from the king of the gods, Bṛhaspati spoke; / filled with great sorrow and surrounded by all the gods, / he went into the presence of Gautama and spoke to him in person:

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"This entire threefold world, abandoned by Śakra, / is oppressed by the Dānavas, O brahmin, its sacrifices and festive rites destroyed.

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Filled with utter shame, he does not desire his own kingship. / Therefore, you ought to show him favor as is fitting, / by mitigating the curse at my request, O best of the twice-born!"

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Hearing that, Gautama said: "My word cannot be false; / I will not annul the word that I myself have uttered."

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Then Viṣṇu, and Maheśvara himself, / and all the hosts of gods standing bowed in humility, spoke to you:

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"It is not proper for you to render the word of a brahmin otherwise; / nevertheless, O chief of brahmins, grant mitigation of the curse for Hari."

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Seeing the firmness of his mind, the gods headed by Viṣṇu / approached the presence of Brahmā and reported everything to him:

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the curse that had befallen Śakra from that great sage;

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how a shameful humiliation had befallen the king of the gods; / and how the entire three worlds had been thrown into distress by the Dānavas;

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and how the ashamed lord of Śacī would not rule. / Hearing that, the lotus-born [Brahmā] quickly, accompanied by Hari and Śambhu,

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went to where the sorrowful Pākaśāsana was staying; / and bringing Gautama to that very spot, the Grandfather

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then spoke visibly before the gods and Vāsava: / "An improper deed was done by the king of the gods, O best of sages,

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in that your wife was violated by him whose mind was afflicted by lust. / There is no fault in you for having cursed Purandara in this transgression, / yet supreme forbearance among sages is always praised.

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A policy should be arranged by your own grace in such a way / that Śatakratu may govern his kingdom of the three worlds.

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Having restored his two testicles and removed these vulvas, / act so that he may again have entry into the mortal world!"

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Hearing their words, that sage, out of respect for the gods, / then attached two testicles taken from a ram.

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Touching those vulvas with his hand, the noble sage turned them into eyes. / Then Gautama, of great austerity, spoke to the gods:

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"I have made this Śakra thousand-eyed, O best of gods. / Having the testicles of a ram, he shall also rule his own kingdom; / a charming beauty born of eyes will appear on his face.

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And his virility will come from the two testicles born of a ram; / but he shall have no entry into the mortal world for the sake of worship."

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In that moment, Purandara became thousand-eyed, / endowed with supreme splendor through the power of that sage.

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Then, clasping the two feet of the great-souled Gautama, / Śakra spoke these words in the assembly of all the gods: 52

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“Worship originating in the world of mortals is hard to attain, best of brahmins; / act so that it may be mine through your grace! 53

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Let not my title of ‘Lord of the Three Worlds’ perish, O twice-born one! / Ordain that, through your grace, it may be everlasting.” 54

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Hearing that, filled with shame and also with compassion, the good sage / spoke to that chastiser of Pāka before the eyes of all the gods: 55

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“Your worship shall take place in the mortal world for five nights, / and you will attain an incomparable satisfaction that will last throughout the year. 56

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In whatever region, city, or village this great festival of five nights is held, / there the people shall remain free from disease for a whole year. 57

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There shall be no mental agonies nor bodily illnesses, and never any famine; / nor will the king perish, nor will there be unhappiness anywhere in the world. 58

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In whatever place your festival is held, O Puraṃdara, / cows will produce abundant milk there; / there will be abundance of food, and the people will be happy and freed from all afflictions.” 59

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Indra said: / “If so, then when autumn has arrived, captivating all living beings, / strewn with Saptacchada trees, adorned with Bandhūka flowers, 60

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filled with the fragrance of Mālati, teeming with new crops, / illuminated by the moon's radiance, resonant with the humming of bees, 61

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abounding in white and blue water-lilies—let the great festival be celebrated there, / so that both the young and the old may rejoice: bring that about!” 62

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Gautama said: / “Today, under the constellation of Śravaṇa, a great festival has been granted to you, / under the auspicious constellation sacred to Viṣṇu, free of all sin. 63

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My wife was violated by you under the constellation named Pauṣṇa; / under that [same constellation], your fall will clearly take place, O Puraṃdara, 64

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so that this fame of mine may proclaim that deed of yours / and attain renown in this world, and no one may commit a sin. 65

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The five constellations beginning with Śravaṇa, taken individually, / will, for the sake of your worship, be equal to five sacrifices, / and will undoubtedly comprise all sacred fords. 66

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Whatever desire one contemplates when performing your worship, / especially with fruits and flowers, he shall obtain it entirely. 67

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However, no idol of yours will ever be worshipped anywhere, / because my wife, a brahmin woman dear to me as life, was defiled by you. 68

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Therefore, brahmins who have mastered the Vedas / shall erect a wooden staff with all your mantras according to their ability, 69

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in accordance with the rite of five nights, as is done for other gods; / then, having caused the invocation [into it], the worship offered by mortals / must be received by you, O thousand-eyed one, and satisfaction shall be yours. 70

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In whatever manner one raises your sleeping staff, / to that degree higher accomplishment will arise for him, O Vāsava. 71

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He who, devoted to the five-night vow and dedicated to celibacy, / performs your worship with fruits and flowers as prescribed, 72

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shall obtain release from all sins committed with another's wife. 73

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‘Homage to Śakra, the god; homage to you, Śunāsīra; / homage to you whose hand bears the vajra; homage to you who hold the vajra in your fist.’ 74

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Whoever offers an oblation to you, O Śakra, with this mantra, / all his sin committed with another's wife will be destroyed. 75

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And whoever recounts this dialogue of yours with me, O Puraṃdara, / with true devotion, and likewise listens to it, 76

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no disease shall afflict him for a whole year.” / Hearing that, all the gods rejoiced, saying, “So be it!” 77

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Taking Śakra with them, they returned once more to Amarāvatī. / Gautama, too, filled with anger, went to his own abode. 78

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Thus ends the two hundred and seventh chapter, entitled “Description of Indra’s Great Festival,” in the Māhātmya of the Sacred Field of Hāṭakeśvara, in the Nāgarakhaṇḍa, the sixth [part] of the auspicious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa consisting of eighty-one thousand verses. 207

Linked texts (1)

Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit