Puranic Encyclopaedia: A Comprehensive Dictionary with Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature c4.3187

c4.3187

One day Śaryāti with his wives and children came to that forest for a picnic. Sukanyā, daughter of King Śaryāti, along with her companions separated from the King and roamed about in the forest making merry. They soon came to the place where Cyavana sat doing penance. There was an unusual radiance around the heap of earth they saw there and Sukanyā out of curiosity started striking down the earth. Then from inside came Cyavana’s voice advising her not to crumble down the earth as she was doing. Sukanyā ignored the advice and searched for the source of the voice. She then saw two points of glow and taking a thorn gave two pricks at those points and left the place with her companions. Those glow-points were the eyes of Cyavana and Cyavana felt insufferable pain when his eyes were thus pierced through. But he neither became angry nor cursed the girl who did this havoc. Cyavana went on with his penance. But soon the country of Śaryāti began to experience the bad effects of this evil-deed. People one by one in the beginning and then the whole lot were disabled from passing either urine or faeces. From men and women the disease spread to the animals also. The country was in a chaos and the subjects flocked to the palace to complain to the King. Śaryāti knew that somebody must have in a some way tormented Cyavana and enquired of each and everyone of his subjects. Whether anybody had knowingly or unknowingly given pain to Cyavana. Nobody had done so and the King was worried. Then Sukanyā ran to her father and confessed what she had done. The King ran immediately to the place where Cyavana was doing penance and striking down the earth prostrated before the sage who was sitting there sad and miserable. The King apologised to Cyavana and requested him to pardon his daughter.