The Markandeya Purana

by Frederick Eden Pargiter | 1904 | 247,181 words | ISBN-10: 8171102237

This page relates “the birth of vaivasvata in the savarnika manvantara” which forms the 78th chapter of the English translation of the Markandeya-purana: an ancient Sanskrit text dealing with Indian history, philosophy and traditions. It consists of 137 parts narrated by sage (rishi) Markandeya: a well-known character in the ancient Puranas. Chapter 78 is included the section known as “exposition of the manvantaras”.

Canto LXXVIII - The Birth of Vaivasvata in the Sāvarṇika Manvantara

[1]

Mārkaṇḍeya relates how the gods praised the Sun, what became of the splendour pared off from the Sun, and how the Sun regained his wifeHe mentions the positions assigned to the Sun’s children.

Mārkaṇḍeya spoke:

Then the gods and the devarṣis assembling praised in words the Sun, who is worthy of being praised by the entire three worlds.

The gods spoke:

“Adoration to thee who hast the nature of the Ṛc! adoration to thee who hast the nature of the Sāman! adoration to thee whose form has the nature of the Tajus! to thee who hast the glory of the Sāmans! Adoration to thee who hast become the sole domain of knowledge, to the cleanser of darkness! to thee who hast the nature of pure light! to the purified, to the stainless Soul! Adoration to the most excellent, to the desirable one! to the utmost one, to the supreme Soul! Adoration to thee whose nature pervades the entire universe, to the embodiment of Soul!” (This fine delightsome eulogy must he heard by men with faith. Having become a disciple and having given also the guru his fee one may hear it rapt in meditation. It must not be heard by those who have become emptyhanded. Now may this become fruitful!) “Adoration to the being who is the universal cause, to the goal[2] of men of wise intellect! Adoration to thee who hast the nature of the sun, who hast the nature of the brilliant Soul! Adoration to thee, the illuminator, and adoration to the maker of day! And adoration to the causer of night, to the maker of twilight and moon-light! Thou art this universe, thou art the adorable! With thee, as thou revolvest above the world, the entire egg of Brahmā, devoid of intelligence,[3] with everything moveable and immoveable, turns round! This universe when touched by thy rays comes, to life, pure! Water and other objects are cleansed by contact with thy rays! Oblations, alms-giving and the other deeds which compose righteousness tend to no benefit so long as this world has no contact with thy rays! All these Ṛces verily are thine; these Yajuṣes on the other hand are thine also; and all the Sāmans drop from thy body! Since thou are composed of the Ṛc, O lord of the world, and thou indeed art composed of the Yajus, and composed also of the Sāman, therefore, O lord, thou art composed of the three! Thou verily art Brahmā’s form; thou art the highest and the lowest also! Moreover thou art material and nonmaterial; thou art minute and yet thou dost exist in massive shape! Thou hast the form of Time, composed of moments, kāṣṭhas and other divisions of time, yet subject to decay! Be gracious! Of thine own will mitigate the innate splendour of thy form!”

Mārkaṇḍeya spoke:

Being extolled thus by the gods and devarṣis, the imperishable globe of splendour shed his splendour then. That portion of the Sun’s splendour which was composed of the Ṛc became the earth, and of that portion composed of the Yajus was made the sky, and that portion composed of the Sāman became heaven.[4] Of the fifteen shreds of his splendour which were pared off by Tvaṣṭṛ, the high-souled Tvaṣṭṛ verily made Sarva’s[5] trident, the discus of Viṣṇu and the Yasus, the very terrible weapon of Śaṅkara, and Agni’s spear and Kuvera’s palki; and all the fierce weapons of the others who are the gods’ foes, and of the Yakṣas and Vidyādharas—those Viśvakṛt made. And therefore the adorable lord bears only a sixteenth part. His splendour was pared off by Viśvakarman into fifteen parts.

Then assuming a horse's form the Sun went to the Northern Kurus, and saw Sañjñā there disguised in mare’s shape. And she, seeing him approaching and afraid of a strange male, went towards him face to face, intent on guarding her rear. And thereupon as the two met there and joined their noses, two sons issued from the mare’s mouth, Nāsatya and Dasra; and at the termination of the flow of semen Revanta was born, bearing sword, shield and armour, mounted on horseback, furnished with arrows and quiver. Then the Sun displayed his own peerless form, and she gazing upon his true form felt a keen joy; and the Sun, the robber of the waters, brought home this his loving wife Sañjñā restored to her own shape.

Her eldest son then became Vaivasvata Manu; and her second son Yama became the righteous-eyed judge because of the curse. His father himself made an end of the curse by saying—“Insects taking flesh[6] from his foot shall fall to the earth.” And because he is righteous of eye, impartial to friend and foe, therefore the Dispeller of darkness appointed him over the southern region.[7] And Yamunā became the river which flows from the recesses of mount Kalinda. The Aśvins were made the gods’ physicians by their high-souled father. And Revanta also was appointed king of the Guhyakas. Hear also from me the places assigned to the Shadow-Sañjñā’s sons. The eldest son of the Shadow-Sañjñā was equal to Manu the eldest-born; hence this son of the Sun obtained the title Sāvarṇika. He also shall be a Manu when Bali shall become Indra. He was appointed by his father as the planet Saturn among the planets. The third of them, the daughter named Tapatī, had a son Kuru, king of men, by king Sambaraṇa.[8]

Thus I describe the seventh period, that of Manu Vaivasvata, his sons, the kings, the ṛṣis, the gods and the king of the gods.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

This title is a mistake as the canto shews. It should he the Vaivasvata manvantara.

[2]:

Niṣṭhāyai.

[3]:

Or, illusory; ā-viddha.

[4]:

Svarga.

[5]:

Śiva’s

[6]:

For tritīyo māṃ samādāya, which is erroneous, the Bombay edition reads kṛmayo māṃsam āddya which is intelligible; but patiṣyatīti which both editions read in the next line must then be changed to patiṣyantīti.

[7]:

Yāmye.

[8]:

She married the Panrava ting Sambaraṇa and was the twelfth ancestress of the Pāṇḍavas; see MahāBhārata, Ādi-P. xciv. 3738-9; xcv. 3791; and clxxi. 6521-clxxiii. 6616.

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