Chapter 92 - The Greatness of Revā

[Sanskrit text for this chapter is available]

Kuñjala said:

1-3. Reaching Kālañjara (the four) very much afflicted, tormented by great sins, lamenting and senseless lived there; and there came a very glorious siddha. He asked them who were afflicted with great grief: “For what reason are you unhappy?” He the very wise one, and proficient in all (branches of) knowledge was told by them (the cause of their grief). The very meritorious one having known their great sin, showed compassion to them.

The siddha said:

4-36a. On the occasion of the new moon day falling on Monday, you four, impure with sins, should go to Prayāga, Puṣkara, Arghatīrtha, being the third, and Vārāṇasī, the fourth one. You will be free from sins when you will have bathed in the water of the Ganges. There is no doubt that you will attain purity.

All of them, instructed by him, carefully saluted him, (and) tormented by sins, quickly went from Kālañjara. The best twice-born ones—Vidura, Candraśarman, Vedśarman as the third, the drunkard and wicked-hearted vaiśya (named) Vañjūlaka, having reached Vārāṇasī, O you best one, then to Prayāga, Puṣkara, and Arghatīrtha, when the new moon day fell on a Monday, went to the great city. When that auspicious day came they bathed in the water of the Ganges. Just by bathing (in the water of the Ganges) they became free from the sins like the murder of a cow. Those Holy Places, polluted with sins like the murder of a brāhmaṇa, of a preceptor, and of drinking liquor, roamed over the earth. O best brāhmaṇa, Puṣkara, Arghatīrtha, Prayāga—the destroyer of sins, and Vārāṇasī as the fourth, were polluted with sins. All became black, and roamed in the form of swans. The best brāhmaṇas bathed at all holy places. Their blackness that had come to them through sin would not leave (them, though), O king, they again and again bathed at very holy places. O best brāhmaṇa, whichever holy places they, in the form of swans, visited, all of them, being very much afflicted went with them. Women of the form of sins roamed around them. In the form of swans they went to sixty-eight very holy places. O great king, they (i.e. Vidura and others), with their minds full of sins, again came to the Manasa (lake) along with the very Holy Places. O great king, there they bathed, but the major sin did not leave them. The Mānasa (lake), with its mind full of the sense of shame, and having taken the form of a swan, became black-bodied—whom you have seen before. Then they went to the northern bank of Revā which destroys sins. O best brāhmaṇa, they became free from sins just by (taking) a bath at the confluence of (Revā and Kubjā), which was resorted to by gods and siddhas. Having given up that (dark) complexion, they obtained merit. Whichever sacred place the swans had gone to, and had bathed at, women seeing them, laughed (at them); and the sin did not leave them at all, (but) by the fire in the form of the water of Kubjā even the greatest sin was reduced to ashes; and those women died. The sins of the murder of a brāhmaṇa, of a preceptor, that of drinking liquor and of illicit intercourse were reduced to ashes, destroyed by (the confluence of) Kubjā with Revā. Those that died on the bank of the river, were, O noble one, gone. Know that swan to be Mānasa (lake) which accompanied the sixty-eight very holy places (moving) in the form of swans. Hear from me the names of the four black swans: Prayāga, Puṣkara, the excellent Arghatīrtha, and Vārāṇasī as the fourth one. All the four destroy sins. These four Holy Places, overcome with (the sin of) the murder of brāhmaṇas, went sadly to holy places, O you highly intelligent one. O son, the terrible sin of them, who were (thus) wandering, did not go away. They were indeed purified at the confluence of Kubjā (with Revā), and were freed from their sins. It is said that in front of Indra Prayāga became the king of all the meritorious holy places, (as he was) approved of by them. Let (other) holy places roar as long as the Revā is not seen as destroying sins like the murder of a brāhmaṇa. Revā is greatly meritorious and very blessed at the conjunction with Meghanāda and the big confluence; Revā is not obtainable everywhere. She is difficult to be reached by men at Oṃkāra, Bhṛgukṣetra, and at her confluence with Narmadā and Kubjā, and by best gods at Māhiṣmatī. She is meritorious at her confluence with Viṭaṅkā, at Śrīkaṇṭha and Maṅgaleśvara. Revā, full of the merit of gods is not obtainable everywhere. A man is happy there, where (Revā) the mother of holy places, the great goddess and the destroyer of heaps of sins (flows) between the two banks. A man obtains the fruit of the horse-sacrifice by just one bath (in Revā).

36b-37. I have told you all this that you asked for, and that removes all sins, that is holy, giving salvation to those who listen to it.

Having spoken thus the very intelligent (Kuñjala) spoke to his third son.