Skandapurana 5.49

English (machine translation) 5.49

Language: English

5.49.1

Sūta said:
Right there, situated on the bank of the pool, is the exceedingly holy [liṅga] / named Kalaśeśvara, which destroys all sins.

5.49.2

Upon seeing Kalaśeśvara, a human being is liberated from sins.

5.49.3

Formerly, there was a man named Kalaśa, born of the Yadu lineage, / a sacrificer, a master of generosity, capable, and devoted to the welfare of all people.

5.49.4

Then, after some time, the sage Durvāsas, best of munis, / having observed the vow of Cāturmāsya, arrived at his house.

5.49.5

Thereupon the king rose quickly and went forward with joy, / respectfully saying: “Welcome! Welcome to you!”

5.49.6

Then, having bowed to him with devotion, washed his feet himself, / and offered the guest-offering, he spoke thus, his eyes clouded with tears of joy:

5.49.7

“Here is the kingdom, here are my sons, here are these women, here is the wealth. / Say whatever it is, O muni, and I will accomplish your purpose.”

5.49.8

Durvāsas said:
It is fitting for you, great king, to speak such a purpose / to a brahmin who has come to your house, one observing vows like us.

5.49.9

I have no need of wealth, nor of a kingdom, best of kings. / I have kept the vow of Cāturmāsya, and therefore I wish to break my fast.

5.49.10

Therefore, O king, whatever food is already prepared in your house, / give that to me to eat; my hunger increases exceedingly.

5.49.11

Sūta said:
Then that protector of the earth personally gave him / the food just as it had been prepared and well cooked, for his meal—

5.49.12

various condiments, many cooked dishes, / manifold food to be drunk, sucked, chewed, and licked, / and also varied meat, well prepared with salt and seasonings.

5.49.13

Then that brahmin, emaciated with hunger, ate in haste, / taking large mouthfuls with joy, not discerning the taste.

5.49.14

Then, when he was satiated, the taste of the meat was recognized by him, O twice-born ones; / thereupon the lord of sages, his soul overcome with anger, cursed him:

5.49.15

“Since by giving meat you have caused the breaking of my vow, / therefore you shall become a ferocious tiger that feeds on flesh!”

5.49.16

Then the king, terrified, bowed down before the lord of sages / and, trembling and deeply grieved, spoke with a wretched countenance:

5.49.17

“Devotion was shown by me to you whose throat was parched with hunger, O muni, / with food just as it had been prepared; why then are you bent on cursing me?

5.49.18

Therefore, show favor to me, your devoted and bowed [servant], / by showing grace regarding the curse swiftly, best of brahmins!”

5.49.19

Durvāsas said:
Except at a śrāddha or a sacrifice, a twice-born man should not eat meat, / especially at the conclusion of the vow born of Cāturmāsya.

5.49.20

A twice-born man who, having been intent on fasting, eats meat, / his vow certainly becomes vain because of the vain meat.

5.49.21

Therefore my vow arising from Cāturmāsya has been ruined; / on that account you have now been cursed by me in anger, O king of kings.

5.49.22

The king said:
Even so, O brahmin, grant as desired an end to the curse / for me, who am full of devotion, wretched, and especially innocent.

5.49.23

Durvāsas said:
When the cow Nandinī shall show you the liṅga / worshiped of old by Bāṇa, then your liberation will quickly take place.

5.49.24

Having spoken thus, that best of brahmins went to his own hermitage; / and that protector of the earth became a tiger of most ferocious appearance.

5.49.25

His memory immediately lost, seeing living beings standing before him, / he killed them, and, driven away by others, he entered the great forest.

5.49.26

Then his ministers, desiring the end of the king's curse, / indeed kept that kingdom of his well protected.

Thus ends the forty-ninth chapter, entitled "The Description of King Kalaśa's Attainment of Tiger-hood through the Curse of Durvāsas," in the account of Kalaśeśvara, in the Māhātmya of the Holy Field of Hāṭakeśvara, in the Nāgarakhaṇḍa, the sixth [part], in the eighty-one-thousand-verse collection of the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa.

Linked texts (1)

Skandapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit