Puranic encyclopaedia
by Vettam Mani | 1975 | 609,556 words | ISBN-10: 0842608222
This page describes the Story of Dibhaka included the Puranic encyclopaedia by Vettam Mani that was translated into English in 1975. The Puranas have for centuries profoundly influenced Indian life and Culture and are defined by their characteristic features (panca-lakshana, literally, ‘the five characteristics of a Purana’).
Story of Ḍibhaka
A prince who, puffed up by the power of boons and blessings from the gods, tried to harm sage Durvāsas. Balabhadrarāma killed him. The following account occurs in the Bhaviṣya Purāṇa.
Brahmadatta, King of Sālva, had two wives. No children were born to them for several years. Brahmadatta’s minister, Mitrasaha, also had no children. Mitrasaha was a brahmin and a scholar. On his advice, Brahmadatta, with his wives, went to Kailāsa and performed tapas to please Śiva to get children. As a result of ten years' rigorous tapas Śiva was pleased and blessed him that two sons would be born to him. Later his wives gave birth to two sons. The son of the eldest queen was named Haṃsa and that of the second queen was named Ḍibhaka. At this time a son was also born to Mitrasaha, the minister by the blessing of Viṣṇu. That child was named Janārdana.
Haṃsa and Ḍibhaka were spoilt, but Janārdana was a bhakta of Viṣṇu. Haṃsa and Ḍibhaka performed tapas in their childhood to please Śiva and got invincible power and arrows. After that they became lokakaṇṭakas (torturers) and went round the world. Once they went to Kaśyapa’s āśrama and destroyed the place of worship. After that they went to the āśrama of Durvāsas. There they tortured the sages and made the sages naked who were wearing only loin cloth. Then they returned.
Enraged by these, sage Durvāsas went to Dvārakā taking the destroyed loin-cloth and other articles. Śrī Kṛṣṇa and his courtiers stood up and saluted him when they saw Durvāsas coming like saṃhārarudra. On hearing the news, Śrī Kṛṣṇa assured him that he would kill Haṃsa and Ḍibhaka and sent him back pacified.
Haṃsa and Ḍibhaka began a rājasūya. They sent Janārdana to Śrī Kṛṣṇa with the message that he should either fight with them or give them tribute (in the form of money). Janārdana went to Dvārakā, just as Akrūra, a devotee of Viṣṇu, went to Ambāḍi with the message of Kaṃsa. Immediately Kṛṣṇa and Balabhadra with the chief Ministers like Sātyaki went to Sālva. In the war that followed Śrī Kṛṣṇa killed Haṃsa and Bala. Bhadrarāma killed Ḍibhaka. (Mahābhārata Bhaviṣya Parva, Chapter 103-129).