Chapter 48 - Cessation of Great Sins Incurred by King Śaṅkara

[Sanskrit text for this chapter is available]

Śrī Sūta said:

1-5. With reference to (Lord) Rāmanātha, O excellent sages, I shall recount a story that destroys sins. Listen to it with great concentration.

Formerly, there was a king of the Pāṇḍya land, named Śaṅkara. He was favourably disposed towards Brāhmaṇas. He was righteous and truthful in speech and a regular performer of sacrifices. He was conversant with the truths of the Vedas and the Vedāṅgas. He annihilated the armies of the enemies. He righteously protected the people of the four castes and stages of life. He was devoted to the conduct of life in accordance with the Vedas. He had mastered Purāṇas and Smṛtis. He always worshipped Śiva and Viṣṇu, and worshipped other deities as well. He used to make great gifts to noble-souled Brāhmaṇas.

Once that intelligent king went to a penance grove for the purpose of hunting.

6-7a. It was very dreadful on account of such cruel animals as lions, tigers, elephants and buffaloes. It had a terrible noise of crickets and was infested with reptiles. It was full of dreadful beasts of prey. It was terrible on account of forest-fires.

7b-11. Śaṅkara, the crest-jewel among kings, was accompanied by many soldiers. He had with him a big number of hunters. His feet were protected by sandals. He wore a red turban and green garments. He had put on the protectors of leather for his fingers as well as palms. He was armed with a bow and arrows. A great sword was kept fastened at his side. He was seated on an excellent white horse. He was dressed in an excellent manner. He was well accoutred. He was surrounded by foot-soldiers. Entering the great forest, the young king of lion-like strength, roamed about here and there along with his armies in the forest, beautiful mountains and caves and crossing big streams, he hunted the animals.

12-17. “See here, a swift deer is running ahead in the forest. Let it be bound or killed.” When the soldiers shouted thus Śaṅkara, the great king, jumped down himself, entered the forest region and killed the deer. While slaying the lions, boars, buffaloes, elephants, Śarabhas (eight-footed fabulous animals) and other wild animals, King Śaṅkara mistook a quiescent sage of controlled mind for a tiger, because he (the sage) wore a tiger’s skin and stayed in a certain cave in the forest region. The king quickly killed him with a flat-jointed arrow. The arrow was very swift, O eminent Brāhmaṇas, and it killed his wife too who was seated near him and who loved her husband like her own vital airs. On seeing his parents killed in the forest, their frightened son who was exceedingly distressed, cried and lamented bitterly.

18-25. “O father! O mother! where have you both gone now, leaving me here? Where should I go? Who will be my refuge? O father, who will teach me the Vedas and the scriptural texts? O mother, who will give me food along with moral instructions? O father, as you are dead now, who will give me training in the rituals and in the general conduct of life? O mother, when I become excited with anger, who will fondle me? Both of you are sinless. Still, who is that sinner by whom you two have been killed with arrows, you who were steadfastly engaged in austerities, and had been my very vital breath and, my elders (father and mother) in this forest?”

Thus their sons, O Brāhmaṇas, cried very bitterly. Śaṅkara who was wandering in the forest heard this lamentation. So he immediately proceeded towards the mouth of the cave in the direction from which the sound had come. The sages of the places nearby too came to that hermitage quickly.

On seeing the sage killed with an arrow and the wife too killed, the king (standing there) holding the bow and also the son lamenting, all those sages became agitated very much. Saying “Do not cry”, they pacified the frightened son.

The sages said:

26-27. O dear one, the king of the dead behaves equally towards all living ones, whether rich or poor, whether learned or foolish, whether stout or lean. Whether in the forest or in the city, whether in the village, on the mountain or in any other place, all creatures have to succumb to (god of) death.

28-33a. O child, those who are in the womb, those who are born, the youths, the old people—everyone has to go to the city of Yama. O son of a Brāhmaṇa, when the time comes, the body has to be abandoned by religious students, householders, forest-dwellers and recluses, O highly intelligent son of a Brāhmaṇa. All people have to go to the abode of the dead ones, whether they be Brāhmaṇas, Kṣatriyas, Vaiśyas, Śūdras or people of mixed castes. Devas, Sages, Yakṣas, Gandharvas, Serpents, Rākṣasas, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Hara and others as well as all other creatures shall die. It does not behove you to bewail. The non-dual Brahman of the nature of existence, knowledge and bliss, mentioned in the Upaniṣads has no birth or growth or dissolution, O excellent one.

33b-38. If anyone considers the physical body to be splendid, he is deluded and vicious. This physical body is a vessel of dirt and filth. It has nine pores and exits. It is the abode of putrid lymph and blood. It is in the form of a bubble. It is full of (millions of) worms and germs. It causes lust, anger, fear, malice, delusion and jealousy. It is enamoured of other men’s wives, and craves for fields and riches belonging to others. It is full of violence, envy and foul matter. It is a mere receptable of faeces and urine.

This body is like a pot with a number of holes. It is always filthy. Can the air named Prāṇa (vital breath) stay there for long? Hence do not feel grieved over your mother and father. Due to their own Karmas they have gone somewhere leaving their abode. Due to your Karmas, you still stay on the earth.

39-42. When your Karmas are exhausted, you will also die. A ghost that is about to die bewails a ghost that is dead. You were not born at the time when your parents were born. Therefore the fates of yours (as well as theirs) are different. If, O highly intelligent one, your fate and theirs were similar, you too would have gone to that place where those two dead ones have gone. If the kinsmen of the dead people shed tears on the earth, the dead ones and those whose funeral rites are not performed, will have to drink those tears certainly in the other world.

43-46. Hence give up your grief. Take courage. With great concentration perform the obsequies in accordance with the Vedic injunctions. Since your mother and father died after being struck down by an arrow, you have to dispel the evil arising from it. Collect together their burnt bones and deposit them in Rāmasetu that yields salvation. It is in the holy spot of Śiva (named) Rāmanātha. So also perform Śrāddha, Sapiṇḍīkaraṇa and other rites there itself. Perform it, O son of a Brāhmaṇa, for the sake of purifying them. Thereby the evil of ill-fated death shall perish, not otherwise.

Śrī Sūta said:

47-52. On being told thus by the sages, O Brāhmaṇas, that son of Śākalya named Jāṅgala deposited the bones of his parents in the holy spot of Rāmeśvara in the manner mentioned by the sages. He performed Śrāddha and other rites as well.

He performed the various rites there, till the first anniversary of their death. The only son of the sage, named Jāṅgala, remained there for a year. On the last day of that year, at night, the Brāhmaṇa saw in his dream his mother and father holding a conch, discus and an iron club. They were seated on Garuḍa. They were adorned with lotus-garlands. They shone in the garlands of Tulasī leaves with refulgent fish-shaped ear-rings.

53-59. Kaustubha jewel adorned their chests. They shone brilliantly in their yellow robes. On seeing them thus, Jāṅgala, the son of the sage, was highly delighted in his mind.

He returned to his hermitage, O Brāhmaṇas, and lived there happily. The boy Jāṅgala recounted to those Brāhmaṇas the details of his parents as seen in the dream. He was extremely delighted.

On hearing this the sages too were pleased in their minds.

On seeing the king, all those sages became very furious, O Brāhmaṇas. Cursing King Śaṅkara, they spoke thus:

“O king of Pāṇḍya state, O highly foolish one, O ruthless Brāhmaṇa-slayer, since the murder of a Brāhmaṇa and the murder of a woman has been committed by you, you have to cast off your body into fire. Otherwise there is no redemption for you even by means of hundreds of expiations. Merely by speaking with you, one will incur ten thousand sins of Brāhmaṇa-slaughter. Oh! you have sullied the fair race of Pāṇḍyas.”

60-66. On being told thus by the sages, O eminent Brāhmaṇas, Śaṅkara, the Pāṇḍya king said: “Let it be so. I shall cast off my body into the fire in the presence of you all for purifying the sin of Brāhmaṇa-murder. O excellent sages, may you (be pleased to) bless me. May my sin perish by casting my body off.” After saying this to all those sages, Śaṅkara, the king of Pāṇḍyas, called his ministers together and spoke these words:

“O my ministers, the murder of a Brāhmaṇa (couple) has been committed by me unwittingly. The murder of a woman is very heinous. It bestows a dreaded Naraka. In order to wipe off this sin, I shall cast off my body into a well-kindled fire of huge flames. Bring wood and fuel quickly. Let the fire be kindled with them. Crown my son Suruci in the kingdom ere long. O ministers, do not feel sad. Fate cannot be transgressed.”

67-69. On being told thus by the king, the ministers began to cry: “O great king, O lord of Pāṇḍyas, friendly even to the enemies, indeed we have always been protected by you as though we were your own sons. Without you we will not enter the city that is comparable to the city of Devas. We too shall enter the fire kindled with huge pieces of wood.”

On hearing their words of lamentation, Śaṅkara, the Pāṇḍya king, spoke thus to all the ministers pacifying them:

Śaṅkara said:

70-77a. What will you do with me, O ministers? I am a great sinner. It is not proper on my part to sit on the throne and rule the earth extending to the four oceans. So install my son Suruci immediately on my throne. Bring fuel quickly so that I can enter fire. O my excellent ministers, don’t delay now.

On being told thus those ministers brought the fuel in a moment. On seeing the fire well kindled, King Śaṅkara took his holy bath and performed the Ācamana rite. In the vicinity of the sages, thus purified in soul he circumambulated the fire and those sages quickly. He bowed down to the fire and the sages and meditated on Lord Umāpati (Śiva) in the presence of those sages. Then the king calmly began to leap into the fire.

At that time, O Brāhmaṇas, even as the sages continued to listen, there was heard an unembodied voice roaring fearfully:

77b-83. “O King Śaṅkara, do not enter the fire now. O highly intelligent one, may you not be afraid of the sin of Brāhmaṇa-slaughter. I will give you this secret instruction embedded in the Vedas. Listen attentively, O king. What is spoken by me may be carried out by you.

On the shore of the Southern Sea on the Gandhamādana mountain, on the highly meritorious Rāmasetu highly destructive of great sins, there is the Liṅga Rāmanātha of Maheśvara installed by Rāma. Serve him three times a day with great devotion and continue the same for a year. Perform the rites of circumambulation and obeisance. May the great ablution rite of Rāmanātha be performed by you. Let the Naivedya of different kinds be made everyday. Worship Rāmaliṅga with sandal-paste, agallochum and camphor. Perform the ablution rite with ghee produced from cow’s milk. The ghee should weigh two Bhāras.

84-89. Everyday perform the bathing rite for the Liṅga of the Lord with cow’s milk weighing two Bhāras as well as with a Droṇa of honey. Perform the Naivedya everyday with milk pudding and cooked rice. Perform the propitiation of the lord by means of lights everyday with gingelly oil. If you perform all these rites to the Trident-bearing Rāmanātha, O great king, your sins of woman-murder and Brāhmaṇa-murder shall perish instantly.

O lord, by visiting Rāmanātha hundreds of sins of Brāhmaṇa-slaughter, ten thousand sins of drinking liquor, ten thousand sins of stealing gold, ten thousand sins of sexual intercourse with the preceptor’s wife as well as the evil due to association with these sinners perish instantly. All those sins that are as heinous as the great sins (like Brāhmaṇa-slaughter) shall also perish by serving Rāmanātha.

90. If an opportunity to render great service unto Rāmanātha is got by men, of what avail is Gaṅgā, Gayā, Prayāga or any sacrifice?

91. Therefore go to Rāmasetu, regularly worship Rāmanātha. O lord, do not delay. Hasten to go there.”

92-96. After saying this the unembodied voice ceased. On hearing it, all the sages made the king to hurry up. “Go quickly, O great king, to Rāmasetu that bestows salvation. It was due to our ignorance of the glory of Rāmanātha that we advised you to cast off your body in a well-kindled fire now.”

On being permitted thus by the excellent sages, that King Śaṅkara hurriedly despatched the army consisting of the four divisions to his city. He then bowed down to all the sages with the extremely delighted inner soul and taking with him ample cash, surrounded by only a few soldiers, he went to Gandhamādana for the purpose of serving Rāmanātha.

97-101. He stayed for a year in Rāmasetu that bestows sanctity. He took food only once a day. He subdued his anger, controlled his sense-organs. During the three junctions, he devoutly served Rāmanātha. He joyously gave Rāmanātha ten Bhāras (of gold) and cash.

Everyday he performed the great worship of Rāmanātha. Everyday he devoutly took his holy bath in Dhanuṣkoṭi. He joyously gave food to Brāhmaṇas. He carried out everything suggested by the unembodied voice. He performed all the rites of worship too.

Even as he performed everything thus, O Brāhmaṇas, a year passed by. At the end of the year, Śaṅkara who was delighted in his mind, had attained purity. He then eulogized Rāmanātha, the supreme lord, the storehouse of mercy.

Śaṅkara said:

102-107. I bow down to Rudra, the lord, Rāmanātha, the lord of Umā. Kindly protect me, O lord. Burn down my sin of the Brāhmaṇa-slaughter. O Mahādeva, the destroyer of the three Puras, O swallower of the poison Kālakūṭa, protect me, O ocean of mercy; release me from (the sin of) woman-murder, O Gaṅgādhara (one who holds Gaṅgā on his head), of uneven eyes, O Rāmanātha with three eyes.

Protect me with your merciful glance. O Lord, dispel my sins. O enemy of Kāma, O bestower of all desired things on the devotees, O Rāghaveśvara!

Cast the benign glance at me, O Dhūrtaṭi; purify me, O Mṛtyuñjaya, O protector of Mārkaṇḍeya from fear, O immutable Śiva.

Obeisance to you half of whose body is occupied by the Daughter of the Mountain. Make me free from sins permanently. O Śaṅkara, the moon-crested lord with the rosary of Rudrākṣa beads as ornament!

108-1 13. Make me fully fit to practise the ideal conduct as laid down in the Vedas. Obeisance to you. Obeisance to you who broke the teeth of Sun-god and who cut off the nose of Bhāratī. Obeisance to Lord Rameśvara; be the bestower of purity on me. I bow down again and again to the bull-emblemed Lord Rāmanātha. Bliss personified, O embodiment of existence, knowledge and bliss! May my sin perish.

Even as he eulogized Rāmanātha, the great lord, thus with great devotion, the extremely terrible sin of Brāhmaṇa-slaughter issued forth from the mouth of that king. It was excessively dreadful with deep-red hair. It was clad in blue garments.

At the bidding of Rudra, Bhairava struck with his trident the hideous Brahmahatyā that came out of the mouth of the king.

When the Brahmahatyā was killed at the bidding of Śiva by Bhairava, Rāmanātha who was delighted in his mind, spoke to the king:

Śrī Rāmanātha said:

114-121. O Pāṇḍya king, O sinless great ruler, I am delighted with this hymn of yours. I shall grant you a boon. Choose the boon you desire.

The evil that you had incurred through the murder of a woman and a Brāhmaṇa has vanished. You are pure. You are rid of all your sins. Rule the kingdom as before.

I destroy even ten thousand Brahmahatyā-sins of those men who serve me here with a mind endowed with devotion. There is no doubt about it that I destroy other sins too, such as ten thousand sins of drinking liquor, ten thousand sins of indulging in sexual intercourse with the preceptor’s wife, ten thousand sins of stealing gold and ten thousand sins of associating with these sinners. Those men who serve me, O king, do not undergo (the sufferings of) worldly existence. They undoubtedly attain salvation in the form of Sāyujya.

I shall destroy the mass of great sins of those who devoutly eulogize me with this prayer, O lord of men, I am delighted with your devotion and this prayer of yours. Request for any boon from me as you please. O king, I am the bestower of boons.

On being told thus by Śiva, Śaṅkara, the great king, spoke to Śaṅkara, the storehouse of mercy, Lord Rāmanātha:

The king said:

122-125. O Maheśvara, I am contented and blessed with your vision. More than this I have nothing to request for. Your pair of feet that dispelled the distress of the son of Mṛkaṇḍu has been seen by me, O Lord Mahādeva. There is nothing else to be requested for. Let my devotion to the lotus-like pair of your feet be steady. Let me not be reborn in the filthy belly of mothers. O lord, let those men who recite this prayer composed by me be liberated from all their sins. Let them attain the merit of service unto you.

Śrī Sūta said:

126-128. Saying “So be it”, O excellent Brāhmaṇas, Rāmanātha blessed him. The Blue-throated Hideous (three)-eyed Lord vanished in the Liṅga form. The king who was blessed by Rāmanātha bowed down to Rāmanātha with fully contented inner soul. Surrounded by the army, he went to his city with delight.

129-133. He reported this incident to the sages who lived in the forest. Delighted in their minds, those sages crowned the king in the kingdom. Accompanied by his sons and wives after attaining the kingdom free from thorns (i.e. obstacles or enemies), O Brāhmaṇas, he protected the earth for a long time along with his ministers.

When the last days of his life arrived, he meditated on Śiva Rāmeśvara. On death he derived the splendid Sāyujya (type of liberation) with Rāmanātha.

Thus, O Brāhmaṇas, the glory of Rāmanātha has been recounted to you and also the meritorious narrative of the king named Śaṅkara.

Listening to this or reading this chapter with great reverence, a devotee shall be rid of all sins. He attains Rāmanātha.