Mahabharata Vol. 1 (Penguin Translated Texts) (26 page)

Vaishampayana said, ‘O unblemished one! O king! I will now recount to you in entirety the lineages of Prajapati Daksha, Vaivasvata Manu, Bharata, Kuru, Puru, Ajamidha and Yadava. These are great and holy accounts that lead to bliss. The histories of these illustrious ones bring wealth, fame and long life.

‘Prachetas
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had ten righteous sons, who were like maharshis in their energy and possessed a radiance that was ascending. They were known as the first ancestors. In earlier times, these greatly energetic ones were burnt with the lightning from clouds. O tiger among men! Daksha was born from Prachetas and from Daksha were born all subjects. Hence he is the grandfather of the worlds. He united with Virini and gave birth to 1000 sons, all rigid in their vows like he himself. In an assembly of these 1000 of Daksha’s sons, Narada taught them the supreme philosophy of sankhya,
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the means to salvation. O Janamejaya! In a desire to create more beings, Prajapati Daksha created fifty women and accepted them as his daughters. He gave ten to Dharma, thirteen to Kashyapa and twenty-seven to Chandra, with the last given the task of reckoning time.

‘Kashyapa was Marichi’s son. Dakshayani was supreme among his thirteen wives. Through her, he gave birth to the valorous adityas, Indra and the others and also to Vivasvat. From Vivasvat was born a son, the lord Yama. O king! Martanda was born as Yama’s son and Martanda had the wise lord Manu as his son. Manu’s lineage
became famous as that of men.
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All men, including Brahmanas, Kshatriyas and others, were descended from Manu. O king! At that time, the Brahmanas were united with the Kshatriyas. The Brahmanas among men were devoted to the study of the Vedas and their branches. It is said that Manu
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had ten mighty sons who were devoted to the pursuit of the Kshatriya dharma—Vena, Dhrishnu, Narishyanta, Nabhaga, Ikshvaku, Karusha, Saryati, Ila as the eighth and Prishadhra as the ninth. Nabhagarishtha was the tenth. In addition, Manu had fifty other sons on earth. But it is heard that they all quarrelled with each other and perished.

‘The learned Pururava was born from Ila and it is said that she was both his father and mother. Pururava ruled over thirteen islands in the ocean. He was immensely famous and though human, was always surrounded by superhuman beings. Pururava was intoxicated with his valour and waged war against the Brahmanas. Paying no heed to their protests, he robbed them of their riches. O king! On seeing this, Sanatkumara came from Brahma’s world and showed him the right way. But he did not accept this. At this, the maharshis were angry and cursed him. That king of men perished because of avarice, power and arrogance. He lived in the world of the gandharvas with Urvashi. He brought to the earth the three types of sacrificial fire. Through Urvashi, six sons were born to this son of Ila’s—Ayus, Dhiman, Amavasu, Dridhayus, Vanayus and Shatayus. It is said that Ayus had five sons through Svarbhanu’s daughter—Nahusha, Vriddhasharma, Raji, Rambha and Anenas. Nahusha was Ayus’s son. He was wise and devoted to the truth. O lord of the earth! Following the dictates of dharma, he ruled over a large kingdom. Nahusha protected the ancestors, gods, rishis, Brahmanas, gandharvas,
uraga
s
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and rakshasas. He treated Brahmanas, Kshatriyas and Vaishyas equally. He killed hordes of
dasyu
s
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and made them pay tribute to the rishis. Like animals, that valorous one forced them to carry him on their backs. He overwhelmed the gods with his energy, austerities, valour and power and became like Indra himself. Through Priyavasa, Nahusha had six sons—Yati, Yayati, Samyati, Ayati, Pancha and Uddhava.

‘Nahusha’s son Yayati was devoted to the truth and became an emperor. He ruled over the entire earth and performed many sacrifices. With great power, he worshipped the ancestors and the gods, who were always present. Yayati was always invincible and showed great kindness towards his subjects. His sons were great archers who possessed all the qualities. O great king! They were born from his wives, Devayani and Sharmishtha. From Devayani were born Yadu and Turvasu. From Sharmishtha were born Druhyu, Anu and Puru. O king! In accordance with dharma, he ruled over his subjects for a long time. Then he was attacked by the dreadful old age and he lost his beauty. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Having been overcome by old age, the king told his sons Yadu, Puru, Turvasu, Druhyu and Anu, “O sons! I desire to savour the pleasures of youth. As a young man, I wish to spend my time with young women. Help me.” Yadu, the eldest son and born from Devayani, replied, “For what purpose do you want our youth? What act do you wish to perform?” Yayati told him, “Accept my old age from me. With your youth, I will satisfy my senses. During a long sacrifice, I was cursed by the sage Ushanas. Therefore, I have lost all my powers of enjoying desire. O sons! I am suffering because of this. Any one of you can rule over the kingdom with my body. And I will satisfy my desire by taking up a new and young body.” Yadu and the other brothers did not agree to take up his old age.

‘At this, the youngest son, Puru, always devoted to the truth and powerful, said, “O king! Enjoy yourself with a new and
young body. As you command, I will take up your old age and rule over the kingdom.” At these words, the rajarshi
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used the power of his austerities to transfer his old age to his great-souled son. The king again became a young man with Puru’s age. Puru ruled over the kingdom with Yayati’s age. After a thousand years, the invincible Yayati had still not satisfied his desires and told his son Puru, “You are my heir. You are the son through whom my lineage will continue. From now on, my lineage will be known in this world as Puru’s lineage.” O tiger among kings! Then he instated Puru as the king. After a long time, he succumbed to the laws of time.’

Janamejaya asked, ‘Our ancestor Yayati was tenth in the line from Prajapati. How did he obtain Shukra’s daughter,
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who was difficult to obtain? O supreme among Brahmanas! I wish to hear this in detail. Also tell me separately and in detail the accounts of the chiefs of the Puru lineage.’

Vaishampayana said, ‘O Janamejaya! Yayati was a rajarshi who was as radiant as the king of the gods himself. I will answer your question and tell you how, in ancient times, Shukra and Vrishaparva gave him their daughters and how the union between Devayani and Nahusha’s son Yayati took place. Many years ago, a great fight occurred between the gods and the demons over who would rule over the three worlds, with all their movable and immovable riches. In a desire to obtain victory, the gods appointed the son of Angirasa,
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who was a sage, as the priest for their sacrifices. The others
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appointed
the wise Ushanas.
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These two Brahmanas were bitter rivals. The gods killed all the demons who had assembled for battle. But they were revived by Kavya with his knowledge. Having thus been brought to life, they fought with the gods again. In turn, the demons killed many gods in battle. However, though immensely learned, Brihaspati could not revive them. He did not possess the knowledge known as
sanjivani
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that the valorous Kavya possessed. Thus, the gods were immersed in supreme misery.

‘In great anxiety and afraid of Kavya Ushanas, the gods went to Brihaspati’s eldest son Kacha and said, “Worship us as we worship you. Please help us in this supreme task. That Brahmana with unlimited energy possesses knowledge. Quickly bring us that knowledge from Shukra and you will have a share in all sacrificial offerings made to us. You will find the Brahmana with Vrishaparva.
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He always protects the demons, but does not protect those who are not demons. You are younger than him. Therefore, you can worship that wise one. You can also pay homage to Devayani, the beloved daughter of that great-souled one. You alone are capable. There is no one else. You are certain to obtain the knowledge by propitiating Devayani with your conduct, magnanimity, sweetness, action and self-control.” Having been thus honoured and addressed by the gods, Kacha, Brihaspati’s son, agreed. He then went to Vrishaparva.

‘O king! Having been thus sent by the gods, he soon arrived at the capital of the king of the demons. On seeing Shukra there, he said, “O illustrious one! Please accept me as your disciple. I am the grandson of Angirasa and the son of Brihaspati. I am known by the name of Kacha. Accepting you as my supreme preceptor, I will practise brahmacharya for a thousand years. Therefore, allow me.” Shukra replied, “O Kacha! You are extremely welcome and I will accept your words. You deserve respect and I will treat you with
respect. Because, by doing that, Brihaspati will also be honoured.” Shukra Ushanas, the son of Kavi, commanded Kacha to take the vow and he did so. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Accepting the vow and the duration of the vow, as he had promised, he began to worship his preceptor and Devayani. The young man was at the peak of his youth and pleased Devayani with his constant worship, singing, dancing and the playing of musical instruments. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Devayani was a maiden who had just attained the bloom of her youth and he pleased her through his conduct and offerings of flowers and fruit. The Brahmana rigidly stuck to his vows and when they were alone, Devayani also sang with him and sported with him. Five hundred years passed in this fashion and Kacha stuck to his vows. Then the danavas came to know that he was Kacha.

‘One day, they saw him alone in the forest when he was tending to the cattle. Without hesitation, out of hatred for Brihaspati and in a desire to protect the knowledge, they killed him. After killing him, they chopped him up into pieces as small as sesamum seeds and fed it to jackals and wolves. The cows returned home without the cowherd. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! When Devayani saw that the cows had returned home from the forest without Kacha, she immediately said, “O lord! The sun has set and the agnihotra fire
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has not yet been lit. The cows have returned without the cowherd and Kacha is not to be seen. O father! It is certain that Kacha must have died or been killed. I tell you truthfully that I cannot live without him.” Shukra replied, “If he is dead, I will revive him by uttering the words: ‘Come back to life’.” With the aid of the knowledge of sanjivani, he summoned Kacha. Having been thus summoned, Kacha joyfully reappeared. When the Brahmana’s daughter asked him, he said that he had been killed. On another occasion, at Devayani’s request, the Brahmana Kacha again went to the forest to collect flowers. The danavas saw him and killed him a second time. The asuras burnt him, ground the ashes and mixed them with wine, feeding this to the Brahmana.
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Devayani again spoke to her father, “O father! Kacha was sent to gather flowers. But he cannot be seen.” Shukra replied, “O daughter! Kacha is Brihaspati’s son and he has gone to the land of the dead. Though revived by my knowledge, he has again been killed. What shall I do? O Devayani! Do not grieve and do not weep. Someone like you should not grieve over a mortal man. The gods and the entire world must accept that which comes.” Devayani said, “The oldest Angirasa is his grandfather. Brihaspati, blessed with the power of austerities, is his father. He is the son and the grandson of a rishi. Why should I not grieve and weep? He himself is a brahmachari blessed with the power of austerities. He is always attentive and skilled in every work. I will happily follow the path that Kacha has trod on. O father! I love the handsome Kacha.” Shukra replied, “It is certain that the asuras hate me. They have killed my innocent disciple. These terrible danavas want to make me a non-Brahmana. The killing of a Brahmana oppresses Indra himself. Let this evil come to an end now.” Having been spurred by Devayani, maharshi Kavya again summoned Kacha, Brihaspati’s son.

‘Summoned by the knowledge, but scared about his preceptor’s safety, Kacha softly replied from inside the stomach. Shukra then asked him, “O Brahmana! How did you come to be inside my stomach? Tell me truly.” Kacha replied, “Through your grace, my memory has remained with me. I remember exactly what happened and how and can therefore bear this unending misery and insufferable pain. O Kavya! The asuras killed me. They burnt me and ground and mixed the ashes with wine, which they then gave you. But when you are there, how can the asuras’ powers of delusion overcome the powers of a Brahmana?” Shukra said, “O daughter! How can I now do what is dear to you? Kacha can only be brought to life through my death. O Devayani! Kacha is inside me. He can only reappear by ripping my stomach apart.” Devayani said, “Both the sorrows will burn me like fire—your destruction and Kacha’s. I will have no protection after Kacha’s death. And if you die, I will not be able to bear life.” Shukra replied, “O Brihaspati’s son! You have attained success, since Devayani worships you so much. Unless you are Indra in Kacha’s disguise, accept today the knowledge of bringing the dead
back to life. No one can emerge alive from my stomach, but a Brahmana cannot be killed. Therefore, accept the knowledge I give you. Return to life as my son. O son! Possessed of the knowledge that I give you, bring me back to life after I leave my body. When you emerge from my stomach with the knowledge your preceptor gives you, act in accordance with dharma.” Receiving the knowledge from his preceptor, the Brahmana emerged from the stomach. The handsome Kacha emerged from the Brahmana’s right side, like the full moon in shuklapaksha.
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He saw his preceptor’s remains, lying in a heap of Brahmana powers. Kacha revived him with the secret knowledge he had received.

‘Then Kacha paid homage to his preceptor and said, “The preceptor is an object of worship. The giver of knowledge is supreme. He is the most precious of all precious objects in the four directions. He who doesn’t revere him is never established and goes to the worlds of the evil.” Having been deceived through drinking wine and remembering the terrible consequences of losing consciousness, and also seeing the reappearance of the handsome Kacha whom he had drunk when intoxicated with wine, the mighty Kavya arose in anger. He wished to bring about the welfare of Brahmanas. The illustrious one himself spoke this injunction against the drinking of wine. “From this day, if a stupid Brahmana commits the crime of drinking wine, he will be considered to have committed the crime of killing a Brahmana. He will be hated in this world and the next. I am laying down this dharma for Brahmanas in all the worlds. Let this be heard by good Brahmanas who worship their preceptors, by the gods and by all the worlds.” Having said this, the illustrious repository of immeasurable ascetic powers summoned the danavas, who had been deprived of their senses by destiny. Having summoned them, he said, “O danavas! You are strong. But know that Kacha has obtained his wish and will live with me. Having obtained the great knowledge of sanjivani, the Brahmana is now as powerful as Brahma himself.” Kacha lived for a thousand years in his preceptor’s house. With his preceptor’s permission, he then prepared to return to the land of the thirty gods.’