Mahabharata: Volume 4 (48 page)

‘“The deed accomplished by Nara in ancient times was great. But Narayana was superior to him because of his many qualities. O king! Therefore, discard your vanity and go to Dhananjaya
⁸²
before a weapon has been affixed to Gandiva, the best of bows. He possesses Kakudika, Shuka, Naka, Akshisamtarjana, Santana, Nartana, Ghora and Ajyamodaka as the eighth.
⁸³
All men who are pierced by these confront their death, or move around insane, or lose their senses and become unconscious, or go to sleep, or jump around, or vomit, or urinate, or incessantly cry and laugh. Partha’s qualities are innumerable and Janardana is superior to him. You have known him as Kunti’s son, Dhananjaya. O great king! But know that Nara and Narayana are Arjuna and Keshava, brave warriors and bulls among men. If you know this, do not harbour any suspicions about me. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Be an arya in your resolution and make peace
with the Pandavas. O best of the Bharata lineage! If you think it best that there should not be any discord with you, strive for peace and do not set your mind on war. O best of the Kuru lineage! Your lineage is extremely revered on earth. O fortunate one! Let it continue to be that way. Think about what is best for you.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Having heard the words of Jamadagni’s son, the illustrious rishi Kanva addressed these words to Duryodhana, in the midst of the assembly of the Kurus. “Brahma, the grandfather of the world, is eternal and without decay. The illustrious rishis Nara and Narayana are like that. Among all the Adityas, Vishnu alone is eternal, without birth, without end and the eternal lord and god. The others—the moon, the sun, the earth, the water, the wind, the fire, the sky, the planet and the stars—are subject to death. When there is the final dissolution of the universe, all of them give up the three worlds and are created again and again. There are others who die in an instant—men, animals, birds and those which are born in inferior species,
⁸⁴
inhabiting the world of the living. Having enjoyed their great prosperity, kings are destroyed by age. They confront death and enjoy their good deeds and bad deeds. Therefore, you should have peace with Dharma’s son. Let the Pandavas and the Kurus rule the earth. O Suyodhana! You should not think that you are strong. O bull among men! It is the strong who decide that others are strong. O Kourava! Among those who are strong, it is not strength alone that makes them strong. All the Pandavas are strong because of the valour of the gods. In this context, an ancient story is told about Matali, when he searched for a suitor to whom he could give his daughter away. The lord of the three worlds
⁸⁵
has a charioteer named Matali. A single daughter was born
in his lineage. She was famous in the worlds because of her beauty. She was as beautiful as a goddess and was famous by the name of Gunakeshi. She surpassed all other women in her beauty and form. O king! Knowing that the time had arrived, together with his wife, Matali decided to give her away and worried, thought about the matter. ‘In families of men who are weighty, virtuous, prosperous, famous, gentle and spirited, the growing up of a daughter is deplorable. The mother’s family, the father’s family and the one into which the daughter is given—these three families are afflicted. I have used the eye of my mind to search in the two worlds of gods and men. But there is no one who satisfies me as a suitor—among gods, daityas, gandharvas, men and the many rishis. No one is suitable as a groom.’
⁸⁶
In the night, Matali discussed this with his wife Sudharma and decided to travel to the world of the serpents.
⁸⁷
‘As a groom, I do not see anyone in the worlds of gods and men who is equal to Gunakeshi in beauty. But there is certain to be one among the serpents.’
⁸⁸
Having discussed in this way with Sudharma, he circumambulated her and having inhaled the fragrance of his daughter’s head, entered the earth.”’

‘Kanva said, “When Matali was travelling along the road, he met maharshi Narada. Because he so desired, he was going to see Varuna. Narada asked, ‘Where are you going? O charioteer! Is it on your own task, or on the instructions of Shatakratu?’ Being questioned by Narada, who was travelling along the same road towards Varuna, Matali told him everything about his own objective. The sage told him, ‘Let us travel together. I have myself descended from heaven to see the lord the waters.
⁸⁹
I will tell you everything
when we see the nether regions of the earth. O Matali! After having searched there, we will approve of a suitable groom.’ Matali and Narada immersed themselves in the nether regions of the earth. The great-souled ones saw the guardian of the world who was the lord of the waters. There, Narada received the homage due to a devarshi and Matali also received honours due to the great Indra. In a happy frame of mind, they told Varuna about their task and having taken his leave, went to the world of the serpents. Narada knew everything about all the beings who dwelt in the nether regions of the earth and described everything in detail to his companion.

‘“Narada said, ‘O son!
⁹⁰
You have now seen Varuna, surrounded by his sons and grandsons. Now behold the regions of the lord of the waters. They are fortunate and prosperous in every way. This immensely wise one is the son of Varuna, the lord of the cows. He is specially distinguished because of his good conduct and purity. This is his beloved son Pushkara, whose eyes are like lotuses. He is beautiful and handsome and has been chosen by Soma’s daughter as her husband. She is famous by the name of Jyotsnakali and she is second only to Shri
⁹¹
in her beauty. It has been said that this son of a cow has been made the eldest son of Aditya himself.
⁹²
Behold Varuni’s abode.
⁹³
It is constructed out of gold everywhere. O friend of the lord of the gods! By obtaining this, the gods obtained their divinity. O Matali! You can see all those radiant weapons. They belong to the daityas, who were ousted from the kingdom.
⁹⁴
Since they are indestructible, they still remain. O Matali! They were conquered by the gods and require great power to be used. O Matali!
There are many species of rakshasas and many species of
bhuta
s
⁹⁵
here. They possessed divine weapons that had been constructed by the gods earlier.
⁹⁶
There is a great fire here, a fire that was created in Varuna’s lake.
⁹⁷
Theres is also Vishnu’s chakra, surrounded by a fire without smoke. This is the bow Gandiva,
⁹⁸
created for the destruction of the world. Because it is always protected by the gods, the bow is known by the name of Gandiva.
⁹⁹
When the time for action has arrived, it is always certain that it has the strength of one hundred thousand breaths of life. It chastises and brings under its control kings who are allied with the rakshasas. This is the staff first created by Brahma, imbibed with knowledge of the brahman. This is a great weapon for Indras among men and has been pronounced to be that by the great Shakra. The sons of the lord of the waters bear this great weapon. This is the umbrella of the king of the waters
¹⁰⁰
and is kept in the room reserved for umbrellas. Like a cloud, it showers cold waters everywhere. The water that showers from this umbrella is as pure as the moon. But it is enveloped in darkness and nothing can be seen. O Matali! There are many extraordinary sights here. But because of the task you have to accomplish, let us quickly leave this spot.’”’

‘“Narada said, ‘This city is located in the navel
¹⁰¹
of the world of the serpents. This is known as Patala and is
frequented by daityas and the danavas.
¹⁰²
Living beings and immobile objects are washed down here by the waters and enter, uttering loud noises because they are oppressed by fear. Feeding on the water, the fire known as asura always blazes forth here. But it knows its own restrictions and keeps to its limits. Having killed their enemies, the gods drunk the amrita here and kept the remnants. It is from here that the waxing and waning of the moon can be witnessed.
¹⁰³
At every conjunction of time, it is from here that the divine Hayashira arises.
¹⁰⁴
It is golden in complexion and fills the universe with water. All the objects that have the form of water fall down here. Therefore, this supreme region is famous by the name of Patala.
¹⁰⁵
For the welfare of the universe, it is from here that Airavata accepts the water and sprinkles it on the clouds. The great Indra then showers this down as rain.
¹⁰⁶
Many kinds of aquatic creatures, in diverse shapes and forms, dwell here. They roam in the water, drinking the water, which is like the rays of the moon. O charioteer! During the day, some inhabitants of the nether regions of Patala are pierced by the rays of the sun and die. They are revived again at night. The moon arises every day, enveloped in its rays. It touches the amrita and revives the beings with this touch. The daityas dwell here, addicted to adharma. Vasava has robbed them of their prosperity and they are tied down here, oppressed by destiny. Maheshvara, the lord of all beings and famous by the name of Bhutapati,
¹⁰⁷
performed severe austerities here for the welfare of all beings. The brahmanas who observe the rites of the cow dwell here. They are maharshis devoted to studying and teaching. They have given up their lives and
have conquered heaven. A person who lives anywhere, feeds on anything and wears anything, is said to observe the rite of the cow. Airavata, the king of elephants, Vamana, Kumuda and Anjana, supreme among elephants, were born in the lineage of Supratika.
¹⁰⁸
Look here and see if there is a groom who appeals to you because of his qualities. O Matali! We will then go to him and make efforts to choose him as a groom. There is an egg that is placed in these waters. It blazes with its radiance. It has been here since the time when beings were created.
¹⁰⁹
It is not shattered. Nor does it move. I have never heard the story about its birth or creation. No one knows about its father or its mother. O Matali! At the time of destruction, it is said that a gigantic fire arises from it and consumes all the three worlds, with their mobile and immobile objects.’”

‘Kanva said, “On hearing what Narada had said, Matali replied, ‘There is no one here who appeals to me. Let us swiftly go somewhere else.’”’

‘“Narada said, ‘This supreme and excellent city is known as Hiranyapura of the daityas and the danavas, who roam around with a hundred different kinds of maya. Maya fashioned it in his mind and Vishvakarma created it with a great deal of effort.
¹¹⁰
It was placed in the nether regions of Patala. Having been granted a boon in ancient times, the brave and greatly energetic danavas lived here, practising a thousand different kinds of maya. Shakra, or Varuna, or Yama, or the lord of riches,
¹¹¹
or any of the others, could not control them. The asuras known as the Kalakhanjas were created
from Vishnu’s feet. The Nairritas and Yatudhanas were created from Brahma’s altar.
¹¹²
They had teeth and terrible forms and were valorous, with the speed of the wind. They were endowed with the prowess of maya. They lived here and protected themselves. The danavas named Nivatakavachas were invincible in battle. You know that even Shakra was incapable of restraining them. O Matali! You yourself, together with your son Gomukha, have repeatedly been shattered by them and also the king of the gods, Shachi’s consort, together with his son. O Matali! Behold those mansions, constructed out of gold and silver. They have been designed and constructed with diverse kinds of wonderful artisanship. They have green lapis lazuli, red coral, white coral that is like the sun and radiant diamonds. They shine like the earth, mountains or rocks, and seem to be like the stars. They are as radiant as the sun and like a blazing fire. They have colourful nets of jewels and are tall, standing close to one another. It is impossible to describe their forms, constituents and qualities. They are large and possess all the qualities. Look at the sporting grounds of the daityas and their beds. The vessels and the seats are bejewelled and extremely expensive. Look at the mountains which are like clouds, with currents of water flowing down them and trees that can move around at will and provide blossoms and fruit one desires. O Matali! Is there anyone here who appeals to you as a groom? Or if you so wish, let us go towards some other direction on earth.’”

‘Kanva said, “Matali then spoke to the one who had addressed him in this way. ‘O devarshi! I do not wish to do anything that causes displeasure to the denizens of heaven. Though the gods and the danavas are brothers, they are always engaged in enmity. I cannot find pleasure in an alliance with the enemy’s party. It is better that we should go somewhere else. I should not look at the danavas. I know this of myself. I wish to give that lotus away.’”’

‘“Narada said, ‘This is the world of the Suparnas. They are birds which kill serpents. They are not exhausted in their valour, in travelling, or in bearing loads. O charioteer! This is the lineage that has descended from the six sons of Vinata’s son
¹¹³
—Sumukha, Sunamna, Sunetra, Suvarchasa, Surupa, the king of the birds, and Subala. There were hundreds and thousands who were born and reared in Vinata’s lineage, born in the lineage of the king of the birds. They were born in Kashyapa’s lineage and extended it.
¹¹⁴
All of them are endowed with prosperity. All of them are marked by the srivatsa sign.
¹¹⁵
All of them aspire for good fortune and bear strength. They are kshatriyas in their deeds and are ruthless in feeding on serpents. Because they destroy their relatives,
¹¹⁶
they never attain the status of brahmanas. O Matali! Listen. I will recount the names of the foremost ones to you. This lineage is extremely revered because it is favoured by Vishnu. Vishnu is their god and Vishnu is their refuge. Vishnu is always in their hearts. Vishnu is always their objective. There are Suvarnachuda, Nagashi, Daruna, Chandatundaka, Anala, Anila, Vishalaksha, Kundali, Kashyapi, Dhvajavishkamba, Vainateya, Vamana, Vatavega, Dishachakshu, Nimesha, Nimisha, Trivara, Saptavara, Valmiki, Dvipaka, Daityadvipa, Sariddvipa, Sarasa, Padmakesara, Sumukha, Sukhaketu, Chitrabahu, Anagha, Meghakrita, Kumuda, Daksha, Sarpanta, Somabhojana, Gurubhara, Kapota, Suryanetra, Chirantaka, Vishnudhanva, Kumara, Paribarha, Harita, Susvara, Madhuparka, Hemavarna, Malaya, Matarishva, Nishakara and Divakara. I have recounted Garuda’s descendants only as examples. They are the foremost ones in fame, deeds and
spirit. O Matali! If none of these appeals to you, let us proceed. I will take you to a region where you may find what you are looking for.’”’