Chapter 6 - Pārvatī’s birth

[Sanskrit text for this chapter is available]

Brahmā said:—

1. Then the couple, with great devotion remembered the goddess for her birth in order to carry out the work of the gods.

2. Then the Goddess who formerly had cast off her body to spite her father, by means of her Yogic powers, desired to be born of the wife of the mountain.

3. In order to make her own words true, the great goddess, who bestows everything desired, delightedly entered the mind of the mountain with all her constituent elements.

4. Hence he shone with an extraordinary splendour and great joy. With a resplendent brilliance, he, of lofty mind, became invincible like a blazing fire.

5. Then, in a beneficent hour, the lord of the mountains deposited in his beloved the entire constituent element of Śiva by means of ecstatic contemplation.

6. The wife of the mountain, by the grace of the goddess who had sympathetically stationed herself in the mind of the mountain, conceived.

7. The beloved of the mountain, Menā, shone all the more by the presence of the goddess who bore the entire universe. She appeared as if she was in a brilliant sphere.

8. Menā bore the characteristic signs of pregnancy which almost indicated the imminent rise in pleasure of her lord and served as the auspicious cause for the future bliss of the gods.

9. The weakness of her body did not allow her to wear ornaments. Her face became pale like the Lodhra flower. She resembled the night when there are very few stars and the moon is in a waning state.^[2]

10. Kissing her face, emitting the fragrance of the earth in the course of his secret dalliance, the lord of the mountains, was not satiated. His love increased.^[3]

11. The lord of mountains asked Menā’s friends frequently—“What are the desires of Menā? She herself does not express them out of bashfulness.”^[4]

12. Whatever product of the mountain she wished to have in the course of her pregnancy she found brought to her. There was nothing which he, the lord of the mountain, could not accomplish in the heaven too.

13. Surmounting the difficulties of the early days of pregnancy, she grew more plump in her limbs. Menā then shone like a tender creeper putting forth more leaves and flowers.

14. The lord of the mountains considered his pregnant queen like the earth with a treasure within and like the Śamī twig with latent fire in it.{GL_NOTE::}

15. The intelligent lord of mountains performed all the sacred rites befitting his love for his wife, the loftiness of his mind, the vastness of riches earned by him and the injunctions of the Vedas.

16-17. At the proper time, he saw his wife Menā about to be delivered of the child, with delight, as one sees the sky enveloped with clouds. The lord of the mountains felt greatly rejoiced on seeing his wife of sound and auspicious in limbs the “labour-chamber” presided over by physicians. She felt very brilliant with the mother of the universe in her womb.

18. In the mean time, O sage, Viṣṇu, and other gods as well as the sages came there and eulogised Śivā who was in the womb.

The gods said:—

19. O Goddess, be victorious, O intelligent one, O mother of the universe, O great Goddess, O you of true rites, prone to truth, true in three things, O truth-formed.

20. O you stationed in truth, we have sought refuge in you. O you delighted with truth, Origin of truth, Truth of Truth, of truthful sight.

21. O beloved of Śiva, great goddess, O destroyer of the miseries of gods, you are the mother of the three worlds, consort of Śiva, pervasive and favourably disposed to your devotees.

22. O goddess of the three worlds, manifest yourself and perform the function of the gods. O goddess, all of us are well protected only due to your favour.

23. Happy persons attain their happiness only from you. Nothing shines in the three worlds without you.

Brahmā said:—

24. Thus eulogising, in many ways, the great goddess stationed in the womb, the gods returned to their abodes, highly delighted in their minds.

25. When nine months were completed, in the tenth month, the goddess, the mother of the universe, bore all the states of a child in the womb in the complete form.

26. The time was good. The planets, stars and the luminary heavenly bodies were quiet; the sky was clear and there was brilliance in all the quarters.

27. The earth consisting of forests, villages and oceans was very auspicious. Lotuses blossomed in lakes, rivers and tanks.

28 O excellent sage, diverse winds gentle to the touch blew; good men rejoiced and bad people became unhappy.

29. The gods stood in the sky and sounded big drums. A shower of flowers fell. Excellent Gandharvas sang sweet songs.

30. Vidyādhara women and the celestial nymphs danced in the sky; in the heavenly region great festivities were celebrated by the gods and others.

31. At that time Śivā, Satī of perfect power formerly appeared in front of Menā in her real form.

32. She was born at midnight when the constellation Mṛgaśiras was in conjunction with the moon on the ninth day in the month of Madhu (March-April) in the spring season like the Gaṅgā from the moon’s sphere.

33. Coming out of the belly of Menā at the proper time in her real form, she resembled Lakṣmī coming out of the ocean.

34. When she was born, Śiva was glad. A slow, fragrant and auspicious wind blew favourably.

35. Along with the rain there was a shower of flowers. Fires calmly glowed and the clouds rumbled.

36. At the time of her birth, riches and prosperity flourished in the city of Himavat. All miseries perished.

37. Viṣṇu and other gods reached there in time and saw the mother of the universe. They were delighted and happy.

38. They eulogised Śivā the mother of the universe, the beloved of Śiva, of great illusory power, of divine features and resident of Śiva’s region.

The Gods said:—

39. O great goddess, O mother of the universe, O achiever of all accomplishments, you alone can carry out the work of the gods. Hence we bow to you always.

40. O you favourably disposed to the devotees, do everything conducive to the happiness of the Gods. You have fulfilled the desire of Menā. Now, you fulfil that of Śiva.

Brahmā said:—

41. After eulogising Śivā thus, Viṣṇu and other gods bowed to her again delightedly and returned to their abodes praising her great divine ways.

42. O Nārada, Menā rejoiced much on seeing goddess Umā of the splendour of the blue lotus as her daughter.

43. On seeing her divine features, the beloved of the mountain attained perfect knowledge. After that realisation she eulogised the supreme Goddess with very great delight.

Menā said:—

44. “Great favour has been shown by you, O Goddess, O mother of the universe, inasmuch as you have manifested yourself in front of me brilliantly.

45. You are the primordial one among all Energies. O Śivā, you are the mother of the three worlds. O Goddess you are the beloved of Śiva, you are great goddess eulogised by the gods.

46. O great Goddess, be pleased. Remain in my meditation in this form, but have the form of my daughter in public view.”

Brahmā said:—

47. On hearing these words of Menā, the wife of the mountain, the delighted goddess Śiva replied to Menā, the beloved of the mountain thus.

The Goddess said:—

48. “O Menā, formerly you served me excellently. I am delighted by your devotion. I have come near you to grant you a boon.

49. On hearing my words “Express your wish and choose a boon” you had chosen the boon “great Goddess, become my daughter. Do what is beneficent to the gods.”

50. Accordingly granting you the boon I returned to my abode. O beloved of the mountain, I have become your daughter at the proper time.

51. I have assumed the divine form now, so that you may be reminded of me. In a human form if I had appeared, it would have put you out of knowledge about me.

52. Constantly thinking of me in the form of your daughter, or in the divine form with love, both of you will surely attain my region, the great goal.

53. I shall do the work of the gods showing my wonderfully divine sports. I shall become the wife of Śiva and redeem good men.”

Brahmā said:—

54. After saying thus Śivā kept quiet. Even as the mother was watching with pleasure, she assumed the body of a daughter by her power of illusion.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

For the similarity of idea and verbal expression compare Kālidāsa’s Raghuvaṃśa. III. 2.

[2]:

Cf. Ibid. III. 3.

[3]:

Cf Ibid. III. 5.

[4]:

Ibid. III. 9.