Chapter 7 - Description of Śrīpāda’s glory

[Note: This page represents a summary English translation of the Dvisāhasrī by Ṭembesvāmī, chapter 7.—In the 7^th chapter after removing the misery of a Brahmin lady, He gave life to the dead twice-born and killed thieves, though He had already disappeared in the Kurupura (i.e. Kuravapura).]

07/01-02: Nāmadhāraka spoke: He asks why He disappeared.

07/03-12: Siddha spoke: Though beyond the reach of senses He becomes visible and He had disappeared in order to incarnate (04).

A Vedic Brahmin lives with his wife Ambikā in Kuravapura. She gives birth to a son who is fool, stupid, less-intelligent and stubborn. Though he is initiated with the sacred thread he is unable to chant even the Gāyatrī formula. The father beats the son and the mother stops and says not to beat him, otherwise she would give up her life (05-07). He promises not to beat him. The Brahmin then dies soon (08). The mother and the son pass their life on begging. After some time other Brahmins censure them (09). They ask him to leave the place or to die. He goes to river Kṛṣnā for dying (10). The mother follows him. Śrīpādaśrīvallabha sees them, stops them and says compassionately that suicide is very difficult to bear (11-12).

07/13-14: Brahmin lady spoke: The people hate and neglect them. Hence what to do?

07/15-16: Śrīpāda spoke: The sin of suicide would taint them in the next births. She should bear the misery. She would definitely get a scholar son in the next birth by propitiating Lord Śiva.

07/17-18: Brahmin lady spoke: He shuld tell who propitiated Lord Śiva formerly.

07/19-26: Śrīpāda spoke: In ancient time king Candrasena’s friend Maṇibhadra living in Ujjain has propitiated Lord Śiva and has achieved CintāmaṇI (wish-fulfilling jewel). Other kings wish to get it by payment, but Maṇibhadra does not give, they attack. He knows that, yet he continues to propitiate Lord Śiva on Pradoṣa^[1] (20-21). The young cowherds see Maṇibhadra doing so. They worship Lord Śiva (22). When the mothers call them in the evening, others leave the place, but one of them stays there (23). His mother forces the boy who becomes disappointed and wants to give up his life (24). Lord Śiva, reveals, consoles him and offers a boon. The boy asks to forgive his mother for the disruption in the worship (25-26).

07/27-29AB: Lord Śiva: He is the recipient of the liberation, while his mother has no offence. On the contrary she will be the mother of Lord Viṣṇu’s incarnation (28). Lord Śiva disappears and the stone becomes Lord Śiva’s Mahākāla Phallus (at Ujjain) (29AB).

07/29CD-33AB: The kings accept that king Candrasena is pious and leave the idea to fight with him. Candrasena and the kings go to the cowherds. They are pleased and give wealth as well as the chieftainship of cowherds (29CD-32). The cowherdess is born as Yasodā (Śrīkṛṣṇa’s foster mother) (33AB).

07/33CD: The Brahmin lady would attain the same by worshipping Lord Śiva.

07/34-35: Brahmin lady spoke: Lord Śiva may release her in next birth, but how to spend life with this (i.e. dull son). She asks the boon for the blessedness of this motherhood.

07/36-41: Śrīpāda is pleased and places His hand on his head. The boy becomes a scholar. Śrīpāda asks her to spend her life in worship-ping Lord Śiva. She will obtain a son like Him (in the next birth) (36-38). She returns to her village and worships Lord Śiva (39). The Lord thinks to become her son. Though he is invisible, He fulfills the desires of the devotees (40-41).

07/42-43: Nāmadhāraka spoke: He wants to know how can He decide, though His task is not over, how can He remain in his place and can become the other one (Nṛsiṃhasarasvatī) and how can He fulfill the desire of the devotees, though invisible.

07/44-60: Siddha spoke: Though He is visible, He is invisible to those blinded by the impurities of the Kali Era (45). (He narrates a story that) A dull Brahmin merchant is Lord Śrīpāda’s devotee and prays for the profit in order to feed the Brahmins for the appeasement of Śrīpāda (46-47). He earns a plenty of money and while on the way to accomplish his decision, the thieves make friendship with him and kill him. Śrīpāda appears there and kills them with his trident (48- 50). One of them prays for His shelter and the Lord asks him to save the Brahmin merchant (51-52). Śrīpāda revives the Brahmin and disappears (53). The Brahmin gets up, sees the killed thieves, comes to know the thing from the protected thief and becomes unhappy, because He has become visible to thieves but not to him (54-55). The Brahmin goes to Kuravapura and feeds the Brahmins. By His grace he attains the rewords of worldly pleasures and liberation (56- 57AB).

Though invisible He has becomes visible to righteous ones but not to the impure-minded ones. Though He incarnates in another place, He works there (57CD-58). The residents of this holy place obtain the desired fruits (59). Any one remembering Śrīpāda achieves all the desired object (60).

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

The word Pradoṣa means an evening, but in Lord Śiva’s devotional worship, it means the evening of the 12^th or 13^th day of every month. The Pradoṣa on Monday is effectively fruitful.