Skandapurana 5.45

English (machine translation) 5.45

Language: English

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Sūta said: / Right there, O best of the twice-born, is the exceedingly holy triad of Puṣkaras, / where austerity was performed of old by the king who ruled Ānarta. 1

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Whoever performs a ritual ablution there at midday in the month of Kārttika / when the moon is in Kṛttikā, goes to the supreme state. 2

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The ṛṣis said: / How did the exceedingly holy triad of Puṣkaras arrive there? / And in what place is it to be recognized, and by what signs? Tell us, O Sūta! 3

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Sūta said: / I shall declare to you by what signs the triad of Puṣkaras / was seen of old there by the sage, the wise Viśvāmitra. 4

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Anciently, while that good sage Viśvāmitra was dwelling there, / the holy full-moon day of Kārttika, joined with the asterism Kṛttikā, arrived. 5

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Knowing that sacred field to consist of all sacred fords, the treasury of austerity, / that son of Gādhi, then pondered in his own mind: 6

“Today is that holy full-moon day of Kārttika, joined with the asterism Kṛttikā, / on which welfare is obtained by men through bathing in the water of Puṣkara; / but the original Puṣkara is far away, and it is impossible to go now. 7

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Therefore I shall perform my ritual ablution in whatever is located here.” / Having thus resolved with a mind purified by faith, 8

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he then searched for the Puṣkaras on every side; / but because of the multitude of sacred fords there, he could not reach a certainty. 9

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Looking repeatedly at every body of water, he performed his ritual ablution after that; / then, wandering here and there, he became exhausted. 10

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Having resorted to the root of a tree, he sat down upon the ground; / then, having become pure, he praised the three Puṣkaras with faith: / “Heaven is a yojana from the Middle one, half a yojana from the Smallest, / while from the Eldest pool it is declared by the pure-minded to be nearly a cubit away. 12

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The sacred fords certainly purify through bathing and gifts; / but by the mere sight of Puṣkara a person is freed from sin. 13

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Resorting to the forest of Puṣkara, if a single brahmin is fed / even with greens, roots, and fruits, ten million are fed! 14

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Difficult is ritual ablution at Puṣkara, difficult is austerity at Puṣkara, / difficult is dwelling at Puṣkara; everything is difficult at Puṣkara! 15

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The person who bathes at Puṣkara on the full-moon day of Kārttika under the asterism Kṛttikā / is instantly freed from the sin arising from birth and death! 16

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The person who bathes in the Eldest in the morning, in the Middle one at midday, / and in the Smallest when the sun has set, would at once attain heaven. 17

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Sin remains in the bodies of all embodied beings only as long / as men do not take a ritual ablution in the waters of Puṣkara. 18

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Just as darkness touched by the rays of the sun vanishes, / so through contact with the waters of Puṣkara does sin swiftly depart. 19

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Even having committed sins such as killing a brahmin, a man on earth, / by bathing at Puṣkara on the full-moon day of Kārttika, attains guiltlessness. 20

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What need of gifts, what need of observances and burnt-offerings, what need of extensive sacrifices? / The fruit of all of them is obtained by bathing at Puṣkara on the full-moon day of Kārttika! 21

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If this speech has been spoken truthfully by me with self-control, / then may there quickly be for me an immediate darśana of Puṣkara!” 22

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As the wise Viśvāmitra was speaking thus, / a bodiless voice arose from the sky, O best of the twice-born: 23

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“O Viśvāmitra, best of sages, my stay is always in the sky, / except on the single full-moon day of Kārttika joined with the asterism Kṛttikā. 24”

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Therefore, on that day my dwelling is certainly on the earth's surface / in this very sacred forest; therefore, perform your ritual ablution. 25.

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Viśvāmitra said: / You are heard to be the refuge of all sacred fords; / then how, O lord of sacred fords, may I know that you are present right here? 26.

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Then there arose again a loud voice moving in the sky, / delighting Viśvāmitra, the best of sages, O best of brahmins: 27.

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Not very far from this forest there are bodies of water here; / in one of them there is a lotus that stands facing downwards. 28.

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In the second, it faces upwards, and in the third, it faces sideways. / There, by the upward-facing lotuses Jyeṣṭhapuṣkara is to be recognized; 29.

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by the sideways-facing ones, O best of brahmins, the middle one is celebrated; / and by the downward-facing ones Kaniṣṭhapuṣkara on earth is to be known. 6.45.30.

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Recognizing [them] by these signs, O best of sages, perform your ritual ablution. / Having heard that, the sage quickly rose and went from there. 31.

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Those bodies of water were situated there with such lotuses; / having seen them and being endowed with faith, he performed his ritual ablution in due order. 32.

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And then, according to the rule, he properly performed the libation to the ancestors. 33.

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Then with vegetables, roots, and wild grains accompanied by fruits, / he performed a śrāddha according to rule right there, O best of brahmins. 34.

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Standing on its bank, concentrated in mind, he watched / on the Kārtika full moon day in the conjunction with Kṛttikā, eager to see the sign. 35.

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The brahmins said: / What kind of sign arises on the Kārtika full moon day at Jyeṣṭhapuṣkara / when the conjunction with Kṛttikā arrives? Tell us all that quickly! 36.

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Sūta said: / On the Kārtika full moon day, when the moon enters into the conjunction with Kṛttikā, / then an extraordinary lotus emerges from the midst of the water. 37.

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In its center a person merely the size of a thumb is seen by people / who have bathed well and are endowed with faith; then one obtains the fruit of the sacred ford. 38.

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For this reason, having bathed, the great sage Viśvāmitra / watched for that sign, applying great effort. 39.

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As that wise Viśvāmitra was thus watching, / the ruler of Ānarta, King Bṛhadbala, arrived there, 6.45.40.

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exceedingly exhausted from hunting, having slain many herds of deer, / bears, boars, antelopes, and sambar deer, 41.

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lions, tigers, wolves, and ferocious forest-dwellers, / as well as others; at midday he arrived along that path. 42.

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Then he saw Viśvāmitra, the lord of sages, near a tree, / seated, having completed his ritual ablution, watching the pool of water. 43.

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Then, having bowed to him respectfully and dismounted from his horse, / the best of kings, afflicted by fatigue, entered into that water. 44.

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In that interval, that lotus emerged from the water, / endowed with a thousand petals, possessing a radiance equal to twelve suns. 45.

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Having seen that great, most wondrous lotus, the protector of the earth, / seized by curiosity, took hold of it with his own left hand. 46.

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Then, as soon as that lotus was touched, O best of brahmins, / a very great sound arose, by which the universe was filled. 47.

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Hearing that sound, the protector of the earth fell into a faint / and tumbled into that water, and the lotus vanished from sight. 48.

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Then, with great difficulty, he was pulled out of the water / by his servants, who were afflicted with grief and sorrow, crying out: “Alas, alas!” 49.

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Then, having reached the bank and regained consciousness with difficulty, / as soon as he looked at his own limbs, leprosy had set in. 6.45.50.

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Then he was overwhelmed with dejection upon seeing such a body of his own, / with rotted nose, feet, and hands, and accompanied by a rattling voice. 51.

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Then, going into the presence of the sage Viśvāmitra, the king / spoke miserable words in a voice choked with tears: 52.

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“O lord, see what kind of body has indeed become mine, / suddenly and blameworthy, after diving into this water! 53.

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Is it a defect of the water, then, or of the ground, O lord of sages, / through which my body has suddenly undergone such deformity?” 54.

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Viśvāmitra said: / “This was indeed a solar lotus that you touched, O king, / while being impure, in whose center the sun himself resides. 55.

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When the conjunction with Kṛttikā of the moon occurs in the month of Kārtika, O king, / only then does this appear in the water of Puṣkara. 56.

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So this is Jyeṣṭhapuṣkara, where you, afflicted by fatigue, / entered; and today is the Kārtika full moon day endowed with the conjunction with Kṛttikā. 57.

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Having beheld this, a man who performs ritual ablution in this pool of water, / endowed with supreme faith, goes to the supreme state. 58.

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By you, while impure, O king, merely to seize it, / this lotus was touched; therefore such a fruit has resulted.” 59.

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Bṛhadbala said: / “How may the destruction of the disease of leprosy happen for me, O best of sages, / through austerity, restriction, or even an observed vow?” 6.45.60.

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Viśvāmitra said: / “Worship the thousand-rayed sun in this sacred field, O king; / then you will attain the perfection arising from the destruction of leprosy.” 61.

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Having heard that speech of the sage, King Bṛhadbala / then immediately installed an image of the sun. 62.

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Endowed with supreme faith, he worshipped it according to the rule with flowers, incense, and ointments, / especially on Sunday, 63.

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devoted to fasting, worshipping with red sandal and red flowers, / endowed with supreme faith. 64.

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Then, at the end of a year, that protector of the earth / became freed from the disease of leprosy, possessing a radiance equal to twelve suns. 65.

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Then, having returned to his own kingdom and enjoyed many pleasures, / at the end of his body he reached the abode of the lord of the day. 66.

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Sūta said: / Thus there, O best of brahmins, by the wise Viśvāmitra / the three Puṣkaras were made manifest for all the world.

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A man who performs a ritual ablution there in the month of Kārttika on the full-moon day and under the Kṛttikās / goes to the world of Brahmā.

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Likewise, a man who beholds the Sun installed by Bṛhadbala / for a year on Sundays, taking only a moment, / that man is freed from diseases, if he is afflicted with disease.

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Or if healthy, a man immediately obtains his heart's desire; / free from desires, he attains liberation by the grace of the Sun.

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He who sets free a bull at the sacred Puṣkaras / on the full-moon day of Kārttika during the conjunction with Kṛttikā obtains the fruit of an Aśvamedha.

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Many sons should be desired, so that if even one goes to Gayā, / or sacrifices with an Aśvamedha, or sets free a dark bull.

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On one side are all the sacred fords and all the gifts; / on the other side is the setting free of a bull at the Puṣkaras on the full-moon day of Kārttika.

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And whoever hears this constantly, or recites it endowed with faith, / having attained all desires indeed, is honoured in the world of Brahmā.

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Thus ends the forty-fifth chapter, titled 'Description of the Glory of the Three Puṣkaras', in the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa, in the collection of eighty-one thousand [verses], in the sixth Nāgarakhaṇḍa, in the glorification of the sacred field of the glorious Hāṭakeśvara.

Linked texts (1)

Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit