Gayatri Vedanta US /Srimdad Bhagavatam 9.

CANTO NINE
Chapter One King Sudyumna Becomes a Woman
1. King Pariksit said: My lord, Sukadeva Gosvami, you have elaborately described all the periods of the various Manus and, within those periods, the wonderful activities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who has unlimited potency. I am fortunate to have heard all of this from you.
2-3. Satyavrata, the saintly king of Dravidadesa who received spiritual knowledge at the end of the last millennium by the grace of the Supreme, later became Vaivasvata Manu, the son of Vivasvan, in the next manvantara [period of Manu]. I have received this knowledge from you. I also understand that such kings as Iksvaku were his sons, as you have already explained.
4. O greatly fortunate Sukadeva Gosvami, O great brahmana, kindly describe to us separately the dynasties and characteristics of all those kings, for we are always eager to hear such topics from you.
5. Kindly tell us about the abilities of all the celebrated kings born in the dynasty of Vaivasvata Manu, including those who have already passed, those who may appear in the future, and those who exist at present.
6. Suta Gosvami said: When Sukadeva Gosvami, the greatest knower of religious principles, was thus requested by Maharaja Pariksit in the assembly of all the scholars learned in Vedic knowledge, he then proceeded to speak.
7. Sukadeva Gosvami continued: O King, subduer of your enemies, now hear from me in great detail about the dynasty of Manu. I shall explain as much as possible, although one could not say everything about it, even in hundreds of years.
8. The transcendental Supreme Person, the Supersoul of all living entities, who are in different statuses of life, high and low, existed at the end of the millennium, when neither this manifested cosmos nor anything else but Him existed.
9. O King Pariksit, from the navel of the Supreme Personality of Godhead was generated a golden lotus, on which the four-faced Lord Brahma took his birth.
10. From the mind of Lord Brahma, Marici took birth, and from the semen of Marici, Kasyapa appeared from the womb of the daughter of Daksa Maharaja. From Kasyapa, by the womb of Aditi, Vivasvan took birth.
11-12. O King, best of the Bharata dynasty, from Vivasvan, by the womb of Samjna, Sraddhadeva Manu was born. Sraddhadeva Manu, having conquered his senses, begot ten sons in the womb of his wife, Sraddha. The names of these sons were Iksvaku, Nrga, Saryati, Dista, Dhrsta, Karusaka, Narisyanta, Prsadhra, Nabhaga and Kavi.
13. Manu at first had no sons. Therefore, in order to get a son for him, the great saint Vasistha, who was very powerful in spiritual knowledge, performed a sacrifice to satisfy the demigods Mitra and Varuna.
14. During that sacrifice, Sraddha, Manu's wife, who was observing the vow of subsisting only by drinking milk, approached the priest offering the sacrifice, offered obeisances to him and begged for a daughter.
15. Told by the chief priest "Now offer oblations," the person in charge of oblations took clarified butter to offer. He then remembered the request of Manu's wife and performed the sacrifice while chanting the word vasat.
16. Manu had begun that sacrifice for the sake of getting a son, but because the priest was diverted by the request of Manu's wife, a daughter named Ila was born. Upon seeing the daughter, Manu was not very satisfied. Thus he spoke to his guru, Vasistha, as follows.
17. My lord, all of you are expert in chanting the Vedic mantras. How then has the result been opposite to the one desired? This is a matter for lamentation. There should not have been such a reversal of the results of the Vedic mantras.
18. You are all self-controlled, well balanced in mind, and aware of the Absolute Truth. And because of austerities and penances you are completely cleansed of all material contamination. Your words, like those of the demigods, are never baffled. Then how is it possible that your determination has failed?
19. The most powerful great-grandfather Vasistha, after hearing these words of Manu, understood the discrepancy on the part of the priest. Thus he spoke as follows to the son of the sun-god.
20. This discrepancy in the objective is due to your priest's deviation from the original purpose. However, by my own prowess I shall give you a good son.
21. Sukadeva Gosvami said: O King Pariksit, after the most famous and powerful Vasistha made this decision, he offered prayers to the Supreme Person, Visnu, to transform Ila into a male.
22. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, the supreme controller, being pleased with Vasistha, gave him the benediction he desired. Thus Ila was transformed into a very fine male named Sudyumna.
23-24. O King Pariksit, that hero Sudyumna, accompanied by a few ministers and associates and riding on a horse brought from Sindhupradesa, once went into the forest to hunt. He wore armor and was decorated with bows and arrows, and he was very beautiful. While following the animals and killing them, he reached the northern part of the forest.
25. There in the north, at the bottom of Mount Meru, is a forest known as Sukumara where Lord Siva always enjoys with Uma. Sudyumna entered that forest.
26. O King Pariksit, as soon as Sudyumna, who was expert in subduing enemies, entered the forest, he saw himself transformed into a female and his horse transformed into a mare.
27. When his followers also saw their identities transformed and their sex reversed, they were all very morose and just looked at one another.
28. Maharaja Pariksit said: O most powerful brahmana, why was this place so empowered, and who made it so powerful? Kindly answer this question, for I am very eager to hear about this.
29. Sukadeva Gosvami answered: Great saintly persons who strictly observed the spiritual rules and regulations and whose own effulgence dissipated all the darkness of all directions once came to see Lord Siva in that forest.
30. When the goddess Ambika saw the great saintly persons, she was very much ashamed because at that time she was naked. She immediately got up from the lap of her husband and tried to cover her breast.
31. Seeing Lord Siva and Parvati engaged in sexual affairs, all the great saintly persons immediately desisted from going further and departed for the asrama of Nara-Narayana.
32. Thereupon, just to please his wife, Lord Siva said, "Any male entering this place shall immediately become a female!"
33. Since that time, no male had entered that forest. But now King Sudyumna, having been transformed into a female, began to walk with his associates from one forest to another.
34. Sudyumna had been transformed into the best of beautiful women who excite sexual desire and was surrounded by other women. Upon seeing this beautiful woman loitering near his asrama, Budha, the son of the moon, immediately desired to enjoy her.
35. The beautiful woman also desired to accept Budha, the son of the king of the moon, as her husband. Thus Budha begot in her womb a son named Pururava.
36. I heard from reliable sources that King Sudyumna, the son of Manu, having thus achieved femininity, remembered his familial spiritual master, Vasistha.
37. Upon seeing Sudyumna's deplorable condition, Vasistha was very much aggrieved. Desiring for Sudyumna to regain his maleness, Vasistha again began to worship Lord Sankara [Siva].
38-39. O King Pariksit, Lord Siva was pleased with Vasistha. Therefore, to satisfy him and to keep his own word to Parvati, Lord Siva said to that saintly person, "Your disciple Sudyumna may remain a male for one month and a female for the next. In this way he may rule the world as he likes."
40. Thus being favored by the spiritual master, according to the words of Lord Siva, Sudyumna regained his desired maleness every alternate month and in this way ruled the kingdom, although the citizens were not satisfied with this.
41. O King, Sudyumna had three very pious sons, named Utkala, Gaya and Vimala, who became the kings of the Daksina-patha.
42. Thereafter, when the time was ripe, when Sudyumna, the king of the world, was sufficiently old, he delivered the entire kingdom to his son Pururava and entered the forest.
Chapter Two The Dynasties of the Sons of Manu
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: Thereafter, when his son Sudyumna had thus gone to the forest to accept the order of vanaprastha, Vaivasvata Manu [Sraddhadeva], being desirous of getting more sons, performed severe austerities on the bank of the Yamuna for one hundred years.
2. Then, because of this desire for sons, the Manu known as Sraddhadeva worshiped the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead, the Lord of the demigods. Thus he got ten sons exactly like himself. Among them all, Iksvaku was the eldest.
3. Among these sons, Prsadhra, following the order of his spiritual master, was engaged as a protector of cows. He would stand all night with a sword to give the cows protection.
4. Once at night, while it was raining, a tiger entered the land of the cowshed. Upon seeing the tiger, all the cows, who were lying down, got up in fear and scattered here and there on the land.
5-6. When the very strong tiger seized the cow, the cow screamed in distress and fear, and Prsadhra, hearing the screaming, immediately followed the sound. He took up his sword, but because the stars were covered by clouds, he mistook the cow for the tiger and mistakenly cut off the cows' head with great force.
7. Because the tiger's ear had been cut by the edge of the sword, the tiger was very afraid, and it fled from that place, while bleeding on the street.
8. In the morning, when Prsadhra, who was quite able to subdue his enemy, saw that he had killed the cow although at night he thought he had killed the tiger, he was very unhappy.
9. Although Prsadhra had committed the sin unknowingly, his family priest, Vasistha, cursed him, saying, "In your next life you shall not be able to become a ksatriya. Instead, you shall take birth as a sudra because of killing the cow."
10. When the hero Prsadhra was thus cursed by his spiritual master, he accepted the curse with folded hands. Then, having controlled his senses, he took the vow of brahmacarya, which is approved by all great sages.
11-13. Thereafter, Prsadhra gained relief from all responsibilities, became peaceful in mind, and established control over all his senses. Being unaffected by material conditions, being pleased with whatever was available by the grace of the Lord to maintain body and soul together, and being equal toward everyone, he gave full attention to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vasudeva, who is the transcendental Supersoul, free from material contamination. Thus Prsadhra, fully satisfied in pure knowledge, always keeping his mind on the Supreme Personality of Godhead, achieved pure devotional service to the Lord and began traveling all over the world, without affection for material activities, as if he were deaf, dumb and blind.
14. With this attitude, Prsadhra became a great saint, and when he entered the forest and saw a blazing forest fire, he took this opportunity to burn his body in the fire. Thus he achieved the transcendental, spiritual world.
15. Being reluctant to accept material enjoyment, Manu's youngest son, whose name was Kavi, gave up the kingdom before attaining full youth. Accompanied by his friends, he went to the forest, always thinking of the self-effulgent Supreme Personality of Godhead within the core of his heart. Thus he attained perfection.
16. From Karusa, another son of Manu, came the Karusa dynasty, a family of ksatriyas. The Karusa ksatriyas were the kings of the northern direction. They were celebrated protectors of brahminical culture and were all firmly religious.
17. From the son of Manu named Dhrsta came a ksatriya caste called Dharsta, whose members achieved the position of brahmanas in this world. Then, from the son of Manu named Nrga came Sumati. From Sumati came Bhutajyoti, and from Bhutajyoti came Vasu.
18. The son of Vasu was Pratika, whose son was Oghavan. Oghavan's son was also known as Oghavan, and his daughter was Oghavati. Sudarsana married that daughter.
19. From Narisyanta came a son named Citrasena and from him a son named Rksa. From Rksa came Midhvan, from Midhvan came Purna, and from Purna came Indrasena.
20. From Indrasena came Vitihotra, from Vitihotra came Satyasrava, from Satyasrava came the son named Urusrava, and from Urusrava came Devadatta.
21. From Devadatta came a son known as Agnivesya, who was the fire-god Agni himself. This son, who was a celebrated saint, was well known as Kanina and Jatukarnya.
22. O King, from Agnivesya came a brahminical dynasty known as Agnivesyayana. Now that I have described the descendants of Narisyanta, let me describe the descendants of Dista. Please hear from me.
23-24. Dista had a son by the name Nabhaga. This Nabhaga, who was different from the Nabhaga described later, became a vaisya by occupational duty. The son of Nabhaga was known as Bhalandana, the son of Bhalandana was Vatsapriti, and his son was Pramsu. Pramsu's son was Pramati, Pramati's son was Khanitra, Khanitra's son was Caksusa, and his son was Vivimsati.
25. The son of Vivimsati was Rambha, whose son was the great and religious King Khaninetra. O King, the son of Khaninetra was King Karandhama.
26. From Karandhama came a son named Aviksit, and from Aviksit a son named Marutta, who was the emperor. The great mystic Samvarta, the son of Angira, engaged Marutta in performing a sacrifice [yajna].
27. The sacrificial paraphernalia of King Marutta was extremely beautiful, for everything was made of gold. Indeed, no other sacrifice could compare to his.
28. In that sacrifice, King Indra became intoxicated by drinking a large quantity of soma-rasa. The brahmanas received ample contributions, and therefore they were satisfied. For that sacrifice, the various demigods who control the winds offered foodstuffs, and the Visvedevas were members of the assembly.
29. Marutta's son was Dama, Dama's son was Rajyavardhana, Rajyavardhana's son was Sudhrti, and his son was Nara.
30. The son of Nara was Kevala, and his son was Dhundhuman, whose son was Vegavan. Vegavan's son was Budha, and Budha's son was Trnabindu, who became the king of this earth.
31. The best of the Apsaras, the highly qualified girl named Alambusa, accepted the similarly qualified Trnabindu as her husband. She gave birth to a few sons and a daughter known as Ilavila.
32. After the great saint Visrava, the master of mystic yoga, received absolute knowledge from his father, he begot in the womb of Ilavila the greatly celebrated son known as Kuvera, the giver of money.
33. Trnabindu had three sons, named Visala, Sunyabandhu and Dhumraketu. Among these three, Visala created a dynasty and constructed a palace called Vaisali.
34. The son of Visala was known as Hemacandra, his son was Dhumraksa, and his son was Samyama, whose sons were Devaja and Krsasva.
35-36. The son of Krsasva was Somadatta, who performed asvamedha sacrifices and thus satisfied the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Visnu. By worshiping the Supreme Lord, he achieved the most exalted post, a residence on the planet to which great mystic yogis are elevated. The son of Somadatta was Sumati, whose son was Janamejaya. All these kings appearing in the dynasty of Visala properly maintained the celebrated position of King Trnabindu.
Chapter Three The Marriage of Sukanya and Cyavana Muni
1. Sri Sukadeva Gosvami continued: O King, Saryati, another son of Manu, was a ruler completely aware of Vedic knowledge. He gave instructions about the functions for the second day of the yajna to be performed by the descendants of Angira.
2. Saryati had a beautiful lotus-eyed daughter named Sukanya, with whom he went to the forest to see the asrama of Cyavana Muni.
3. While that Sukanya, surrounded by her friends, was collecting various types of fruits from the trees in the forest, she saw within the hole of an earthworm two things glowing like luminaries.
4. As if induced by providence, the girl ignorantly pierced those two glowworms with a thorn, and when they were pierced, blood began to ooze out of them.
5. Thereupon, all the soldiers of Saryati were immediately obstructed from passing urine and stool. Upon perceiving this, Saryati spoke to his associates in surprise.
6. How strange it is that one of us has attempted to do something wrong to Cyavana Muni, the son of Bhrgu. It certainly appears that someone among us has polluted this asrama.
7. Being very much afraid, the girl Sukanya said to her father: I have done something wrong, for I have ignorantly pierced these two luminous substances with a thorn.
8. After hearing this statement by his daughter, King Saryati was very much afraid. In various ways, he tried to appease Cyavana Muni, for it was he who sat within the hole of the earthworm.
9. King Saryati, being very contemplative and thus understanding Cyavana Muni's purpose, gave his daughter in charity to the sage. Thus released from danger with great difficulty, he took permission from Cyavana Muni and returned home.
10. Cyavana Muni was very irritable, but since Sukanya had gotten him as her husband, she dealt with him carefully, according to his mood. Knowing his mind, she performed service to him without being bewildered.
11. Thereafter, some time having passed, the Asvini-kumara brothers, the heavenly physicians, happened to come to Cyavana Muni's asrama. After offering them respectful obeisances, Cyavana Muni requested them to give him youthful life, for they were able to do so.
12. Cyavana Muni said: Although you are ineligible to drink soma-rasa in sacrifices, I promise to give you a full pot of it. Kindly arrange beauty and youth for me, because they are attractive to young women.
13. The great physicians, the Asvini-kumaras, very gladly accepted Cyavana Muni's proposal. Thus they told the brahmana, "Just dive into this lake of successful life." [One who bathes in this lake has his desires fulfilled.]
14. After saying this, the Asvini-kumaras caught hold of Cyavana Muni, who was an old, diseased invalid with loose skin, white hair, and veins visible all over his body, and all three of them entered the lake.
15. Thereafter, three men with very beautiful bodily features emerged from the lake. They were nicely dressed and decorated with earrings and garlands of lotuses. All of them were of the same standard of beauty.
16. The chaste and very beautiful Sukanya could not distinguish her husband from the two Asvini-kumaras, for they were equally beautiful. Not understanding who her real husband was, she took shelter of the Asvini-kumaras.
17. The Asvini-kumaras were very pleased to see Sukanya's chastity and faithfulness. Thus they showed her Cyavana Muni, her husband, and after taking permission from him, they returned to the heavenly planets in their plane.
18. Thereafter, King Saryati, desiring to perform a sacrifice, went to the residence of Cyavana Muni. There he saw by the side of his daughter a very beautiful young man, as bright as the sun.
19. After receiving obeisances from his daughter, the King, instead of offering blessings to her, appeared very displeased and spoke as follows.
20. O unchaste girl, what is this that you have desired to do? You have cheated the most respectable husband, who is honored by everyone, for I see that because he was old, diseased and therefore unattractive, you have left his company to accept as your husband this young man, who appears to be a beggar from the street.
21. O my daughter, who were born in a respectable family, how have you degraded your consciousness in this way? How is it that you are shamelessly maintaining a paramour? You will thus degrade the dynasties of both your father and your husband to hellish life.
22. Sukanya, however, being very proud of her chastity, smiled upon hearing the rebukes of her father. She smilingly told him, "My dear father, this young man by my side is your actual son-in-law, the great sage Cyavana, who was born in the family of Bhrgu."
23. Thus Sukanya explained how her husband had received the beautiful body of a young man. When the King heard this he was very surprised, and in great pleasure he embraced his beloved daughter.
24. Cyavana Muni, by his own prowess, enabled King Saryati to perform the soma-yajna. The muni offered a full pot of soma-rasa to the Asvini-kumaras, although they were unfit to drink it.
25. King Indra, being perturbed and angry, wanted to kill Cyavana Muni, and therefore he impetuously took up his thunderbolt. But Cyavana Muni, by his powers, paralyzed Indra's arm that held the thunderbolt.
26. Although the Asvini-kumaras were only physicians and were therefore excluded from drinking soma-rasa in sacrifices, the demigods agreed to allow them henceforward to drink it.
27. King Saryati begot three sons, named Uttanabarhi, Anarta and Bhurisena. From Anarta came a son named Revata.
28. O Maharaja Pariksit, subduer of enemies, this Revata constructed a kingdom known as Kusasthali in the depths of the ocean. There he lived and ruled such tracts of land as Anarta, etc. He had one hundred very nice sons, of whom the eldest was Kakudmi.
29. Taking his own daughter, Revati, Kakudmi went to Lord Brahma in Brahmaloka, which is transcendental to the three modes of material nature, and inquired about a husband for her.
30. When Kakudmi arrived there, Lord Brahma was engaged in hearing musical performances by the Gandharvas and had not a moment to talk with him. Therefore Kakudmi waited, and at the end of the musical performances he offered his obeisances to Lord Brahma and thus submitted his long-standing desire.
31. After hearing his words, Lord Brahma, who is most powerful, laughed loudly and said to Kakudmi: O King, all those whom you may have decided within the core of your heart to accept as your son-in-law have passed away in the course of time.
32. Twenty-seven catur-yugas have already passed. Those upon whom you may have decided are now gone, and so are their sons, grandsons and other descendants. You cannot even hear about their names.
33. O King, leave here and offer your daughter to Lord Baladeva, who is still present. He is most powerful. Indeed, He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose plenary portion is Lord Visnu. Your daughter is fit to be given to Him in charity.
34. Lord Baladeva is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One who hears and chants about Him is purified. Because He is always the well-wisher of all living entities, He has descended with all His paraphernalia to purify the entire world and lessen its burden.
35. Having received this order from Lord Brahma, Kakudmi offered obeisances unto him and returned to his own residence. He then saw that his residence was vacant, having been abandoned by his brothers and other relatives, who were living in all directions because of fear of such higher living beings as the Yaksas.
36. Thereafter, the King gave his most beautiful daughter in charity to the supremely powerful Baladeva and then retired from worldly life and went to Badarikasrama to please Nara-Narayana.
Chapter Four Ambarisa Maharaja Offended by Durvasa Muni
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: The son of Nabhaga named Nabhaga lived for a long time at the place of his spiritual master. Therefore, his brothers thought that he was not going to become a grhastha and would not return. Consequently, without providing a share for him, they divided the property of their father among themselves. When Nabhaga returned from the place of his spiritual master, they gave him their father as his share.
2. Nabhaga inquired, "My dear brothers, what have you given to me as my share of our father's property?" His elder brothers answered, "We have kept our father as your share." But when Nabhaga went to his father and said, "My dear father, my elder brothers have given you as my share of property," the father replied, "My dear son, do not rely upon their cheating words. I am not your property."
3. Nabhaga's father said: All the descendants of Angira are now going to perform a great sacrifice, but although they are very intelligent, on every sixth day they will be bewildered in performing sacrifice and will make mistakes in their daily duties.
4-5. Nabhaga's father continued: "Go to those great souls and describe two Vedic hymns pertaining to Vaisvadeva. When the great sages have completed the sacrifice and are going to the heavenly planets, they will give you the remnants of the money they have received from the sacrifice. Therefore, go there immediately." Thus Nabhaga acted exactly according to the advice of his father, and the great sages of the Angira dynasty gave him all their wealth and then went to the heavenly planets.
6. Thereafter, while Nabhaga was accepting the riches, a black-looking person from the north came to him and said, "All the wealth from this sacrificial arena belongs to me."
7. Nabhaga then said, "These riches belong to me. The great saintly persons have delivered them to me." When Nabhaga said this, the black-looking person replied, "Let us go to your father and ask him to settle our disagreement." In accordance with this, Nabhaga inquired from his father.
8. The father of Nabhaga said: Whatever the great sages sacrificed in the arena of the Daksa-yajna, they offered to Lord Siva as his share. Therefore, everything in the sacrificial arena certainly belongs to Lord Siva.
9. Thereupon, after offering obeisances to Lord Siva, Nabhaga said: O worshipable lord, everything in this arena of sacrifice is yours. This is the assertion of my father. Now, with great respect, I bow my head before you, begging your mercy.
10. Lord Siva said: Whatever your father has said is the truth, and you also are speaking the same truth. Therefore, I, who know the Vedic mantras, shall explain transcendental knowledge to you.
11. Lord Siva said, "Now you may take all the wealth remaining from the sacrifice, for I give it to you." After saying this, Lord Siva, who is most adherent to the religious principles, disappeared from that place.
12. If one hears and chants or remembers this narration in the morning and evening with great attention, he certainly becomes learned, experienced in understanding the Vedic hymns, and expert in self-realization.
13. From Nabhaga, Maharaja Ambarisa took birth. Maharaja Ambarisa was an exalted devotee, celebrated for his great merits. Although he was cursed by an infallible brahmana, the curse could not touch him.
14. King Pariksit inquired: O great personality, Maharaja Ambarisa was certainly most exalted and meritorious in character. I wish to hear about him. How surprising it is that the curse of a brahmana, which is insurmountable, could not act upon him.
15-16. Sukadeva Gosvami said: Maharaja Ambarisa, the most fortunate personality, achieved the rule of the entire world, consisting of seven islands, and achieved inexhaustible, unlimited opulence and prosperity on earth. Although such a position is rarely obtained, Maharaja Ambarisa did not care for it at all, for he knew very well that all such opulence is material. Like that which is imagined in a dream, such opulence will ultimately be destroyed. The King knew that any nondevotee who attains such opulence merges increasingly into material nature's mode of darkness.
17. Maharaja Ambarisa was a great devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vasudeva, and of the saintly persons who are the Lord's devotees. Because of this devotion, he thought of the entire universe as being as insignificant as a piece of stone.
18-20. Maharaja Ambarisa always engaged his mind in meditating upon the lotus feet of Krsna, his words in describing the glories of the Lord, his hands in cleansing the Lord's temple, and his ears in hearing the words spoken by Krsna or about Krsna. He engaged his eyes in seeing the Deity of Krsna, Krsna's temples and Krsna's places like Mathura and Vrndavana, he engaged his sense of touch in touching the bodies of the Lord's devotees, he engaged his sense of smell in smelling the fragrance of tulasi offered to the Lord, and he engaged his tongue in tasting the Lord's prasada. He engaged his legs in walking to the holy places and temples of the Lord, his head in bowing down before the Lord, and all his desires in serving the Lord, twenty-four hours a day. Indeed, Maharaja Ambarisa never desired anything for his own sense gratification. He engaged all his senses in devotional service, in various engagements related to the Lord. This is the way to increase attachment for the Lord and be completely free from all material desires.
21. In performing his prescribed duties as king, Maharaja Ambarisa always offered the results of his royal activities to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, who is the enjoyer of everything and is beyond the perception of material senses. He certainly took advice from brahmanas who were faithful devotees of the Lord, and thus he ruled the planet earth without difficulty.
22. In desert countries where there flowed the River Sarasvati, Maharaja Ambarisa performed great sacrifices like the asvamedha-yajna and thus satisfied the master of all yajnas, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Such sacrifices were performed with great opulence and suitable paraphernalia and with contributions of daksina to the brahmanas, who were supervised by great personalities like Vasistha, Asita and Gautama, representing the king, the performer of the sacrifices.
23. In the sacrifice arranged by Maharaja Ambarisa, the members of the assembly and the priests [especially hota, udgata, brahma and adhvaryu] were gorgeously dressed, and they all looked exactly like demigods. They eagerly saw to the proper performance of the yajna.
24. The citizens of the state of Maharaja Ambarisa were accustomed to chanting and hearing about the glorious activities of the Personality of Godhead. Thus they never aspired to be elevated to the heavenly planets, which are extremely dear even to the demigods.
25. Those who are saturated with the transcendental happiness of rendering service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead are uninterested even in the achievements of great mystics, for such achievements do not enhance the transcendental bliss felt by a devotee who always thinks of Krsna within the core of his heart.
26. The king of this planet, Maharaja Ambarisa, thus performed devotional service to the Lord and in this endeavor practiced severe austerity. Always satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead by his constitutional activities, he gradually gave up all material desires.
27. Maharaja Ambarisa gave up all attachment to household affairs, wives, children, friends and relatives, to the best of powerful elephants, to beautiful chariots, carts, horses and inexhaustible jewels, and to ornaments, garments and an inexhaustible treasury. He gave up attachment to all of them, regarding them as temporary and material.
28. Being very pleased by the unalloyed devotion of Maharaja Ambarisa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead gave the King His disc, which is fearful to enemies and which always protects the devotee from enemies and adversities.
29. To worship Lord Krsna, Maharaja Ambarisa, along with his queen, who was equally qualified, observed the vow of Ekadasi and Dvadasi for one year.
30. In the month of Kartika, after observing that vow for one year, after observing a fast for three nights and after bathing in the Yamuna, Maharaja Ambarisa worshiped the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, in Madhuvana.
31-32. Following the regulative principles of mahabhiseka, Maharaja Ambarisa performed the bathing ceremony for the Deity of Lord Krsna with all paraphernalia, and then he dressed the Deity with fine clothing, ornaments, fragrant flower garlands and other paraphernalia for worship of the Lord. With attention and devotion, he worshiped Krsna and all the greatly fortunate brahmanas who were free from material desires.
33-35. Thereafter, Maharaja Ambarisa satisfied all the guests who arrived at his house, especially the brahmanas. He gave in charity sixty crores of cows whose horns were covered with gold plate and whose hooves were covered with silver plate. All the cows were well decorated with garments and had full milk bags. They were mild-natured, young and beautiful and were accompanied by their calves. After giving these cows, the King first sumptuously fed all the brahmanas, and when they were fully satisfied, he was about to observe the end of Ekadasi, with their permission, by breaking the fast. Exactly at that time, however, Durvasa Muni, the great and powerful mystic, appeared on the scene as an uninvited guest.
36. After standing up to receive Durvasa Muni, King Ambarisa offered him a seat and paraphernalia of worship. Then, sitting at his feet, the King requested the great sage to eat.
37. Durvasa Muni gladly accepted the request of Maharaja Ambarisa, but to perform the regulative ritualistic ceremonies he went to the River Yamuna. There he dipped into the water of the auspicious Yamuna and meditated upon the impersonal Brahman.
38. In the meantime, only a muhurta of the Dvadasi day was left on which to break the fast. Consequently, it was imperative that the fast be broken immediately. In this dangerous situation, the King consulted learned brahmanas.
39-40. The King said: "To transgress the laws of respectful behavior toward the brahmanas is certainly a great offense. On the other hand, if one does not observe the breaking of the fast within the time of Dvadasi, there is a flaw in one's observance of the vow. Therefore, O brahmanas, if you think that it will be auspicious and not irreligious, I shall break the fast by drinking water." In this way, after consulting with the brahmanas, the King reached this decision, for according to brahminical opinion, drinking water may be accepted as eating and also as not eating.
41. O best of the Kuru dynasty, after he drank some water, King Ambarisa, meditating upon the Supreme Personality of Godhead within his heart, waited for the return of the great mystic Durvasa Muni.
42. After executing the ritualistic ceremonies to be performed at noon, Durvasa returned from the bank of the Yamuna. The King received him well, offering all respects, but Durvasa Muni, by his mystic power, could understand that King Ambarisa had drunk water without his permission.
43. Still hungry, Durvasa Muni, his body trembling, his face curved and his eyebrows crooked in a frown, angrily spoke as follows to King Ambarisa, who stood before him with folded hands.
44. Alas, just see the behavior of this cruel man! He is not a devotee of Lord Visnu. Being proud of his material opulence and his position, he considers himself God. Just see how he has transgressed the laws of religion.
45. Maharaja Ambarisa, you have invited me to eat as a guest, but instead of feeding me, you yourself have eaten first. Because of your misbehavior, I shall show you something to punish you.
46. As Durvasa Muni said this, his face became red with anger. Uprooting a bunch of hair from his head, he created a demon resembling the blazing fire of devastation to punish Maharaja Ambarisa.
47. Taking a trident in his hand and making the surface of the earth tremble with his footsteps, that blazing creature came before Maharaja Ambarisa. But the King, upon seeing him, was not at all disturbed and did not move even slightly from his position.
48. As fire in the forest immediately burns to ashes an angry snake, so, by the previous order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, His disc, the Sudarsana cakra, immediately burnt to ashes the created demon to protect the Lord's devotee.
49. Upon seeing that his own attempt had failed and that the Sudarsana cakra was moving toward him, Durvasa Muni became very frightened and began to run in all directions to save his life.
50. As the blazing flames of a forest fire pursue a snake, the disc of the Supreme Personality of Godhead began following Durvasa Muni. Durvasa Muni saw that the disc was almost touching his back, and thus he ran very swiftly, desiring to enter a cave of Sumeru Mountain.
51. Just to protect himself, Durvasa Muni fled everywhere, in all directions--in the sky, on the surface of the earth, in caves, in the ocean, on different planets of the rulers of the three worlds, and even on the heavenly planets--but wherever he went he immediately saw following him the unbearable fire of the Sudarsana cakra.
52. With a fearful heart, Durvasa Muni went here and there seeking shelter, but when he could find no shelter, he finally approached Lord Brahma and said, "O my lord, O Lord Brahma, kindly protect me from the blazing Sudarsana cakra sent by the Supreme Personality of Godhead."
53-54. Lord Brahma said: At the end of the dvi-parardha, when the pastimes of the Lord come to an end, Lord Visnu, by a flick of His eyebrows, vanquishes the entire universe, including our places of residence. Such personalities as me and Lord Siva, as well as Daksa, Bhrgu and similar great saints of which they are the head, and also the rulers of the living entities, the rulers of human society and the rulers of the demigods--all of us surrender to that Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Visnu, bowing our heads, to carry out His orders for the benefit of all living entities.
55. When Durvasa, who was greatly afflicted by the blazing fire of the Sudarsana cakra, was thus refused by Lord Brahma, he tried to take shelter of Lord Siva, who always resides on his planet, known as Kailasa.
56. Lord Siva said: My dear son, I, Lord Brahma and the other demigods, who rotate within this universe under the misconception of our greatness, cannot exhibit any power to compete with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, for innumerable universes and their inhabitants come into existence and are annihilated by the simple direction of the Lord.
57-59. Past, present and future are known to me [Lord Siva], Sanat-kumara, Narada, the most revered Lord Brahma, Kapila [the son of Devahuti], Apantaratama [Lord Vyasadeva], Devala, Yamaraja, Asuri, Marici and many saintly persons headed by him, as well as many others who have achieved perfection. Nonetheless, because we are covered by the illusory energy of the Lord, we cannot understand how expansive that illusory energy is. You should simply approach that Supreme Personality of Godhead to get relief, for this Sudarsana cakra is intolerable even to us. Go to Lord Visnu. He will certainly be kind enough to bestow all good fortune upon you.
60. Thereafter, being disappointed even in taking shelter of Lord Siva, Durvasa Muni went to Vaikuntha-dhama, where the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Narayana, resides with His consort, the goddess of fortune.
61. Durvasa Muni, the great mystic, scorched by the heat of the Sudarsana cakra, fell at the lotus feet of Narayana. His body trembling, he spoke as follows: O infallible, unlimited Lord, protector of the entire universe, You are the only desirable objective for all devotees. I am a great offender, my Lord. Please give me protection.
62. O my Lord, O supreme controller, without knowledge of Your unlimited prowess I have offended Your most dear devotee. Very kindly save me from the reaction of this offense. You can do everything, for even if a person is fit for going to hell, You can deliver him simply by awakening within his heart the holy name of Your Lordship.
63. The Supreme Personality of Godhead said to the brahmana: I am completely under the control of My devotees. Indeed, I am not at all independent. Because My devotees are completely devoid of material desires, I sit only within the cores of their hearts. What to speak of My devotee, even those who are devotees of My devotee are very dear to Me.
64. O best of the brahmanas, without saintly persons for whom I am the only destination, I do not desire to enjoy My transcendental bliss and My supreme opulences.
65. Since pure devotees give up their homes, wives, children, relatives, riches and even their lives simply to serve Me, without any desire for material improvement in this life or in the next, how can I give up such devotees at any time?
66. As chaste women bring their gentle husbands under control by service, the pure devotees, who are equal to everyone and completely attached to Me in the core of the heart, bring Me under their full control.
67. My devotees, who are always satisfied to be engaged in My loving service, are not interested even in the four principles of liberation [salokya, sarupya, samipya and sarsti], although these are automatically achieved by their service. What then is to be said of such perishable happiness as elevation to the higher planetary systems?
68. The pure devotee is always within the core of My heart, and I am always in the heart of the pure devotee. My devotees do not know anything else but Me, and I do not know anyone else but them.
69. O brahmana, let Me now advise you for your own protection. Please hear from Me. By offending Maharaja Ambarisa, you have acted with self-envy. Therefore you should go to him immediately, without a moment's delay. One's so-called prowess, when employed against the devotee, certainly harms he who employs it. Thus it is the subject, not the object, who is harmed.
70. For a brahmana, austerity and learning are certainly auspicious, but when acquired by a person who is not gentle, such austerity and learning are most dangerous.
71. O best of the brahmanas, you should therefore go immediately to King Ambarisa, the son of Maharaja Nabhaga. I wish you all good fortune. If you can satisfy Maharaja Ambarisa, then there will be peace for you.
Chapter Five Durvasa Muni's Life Spared
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: When thus advised by Lord Visnu, Durvasa Muni, who was very much harassed by the Sudarsana cakra, immediately approached Maharaja Ambarisa. Being very much aggrieved, the muni fell down and clasped the King's lotus feet.
2. When Durvasa touched his lotus feet, Maharaja Ambarisa was very much ashamed, and when he saw Durvasa attempting to offer prayers, because of mercy he was aggrieved even more. Thus he immediately began offering prayers to the great weapon of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
3. Maharaja Ambarisa said: O Sudarsana cakra, you are fire, you are the most powerful sun, and you are the moon, the master of all luminaries. You are water, earth and sky, you are the air, you are the five sense objects [sound, touch, form, taste and smell], and you are the senses also.
4. O most favorite of Acyuta, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, you have thousands of spokes. O master of the material world, destroyer of all weapons, original vision of the Personality of Godhead, I offer my respectful obeisances unto you. Kindly give shelter and be auspicious to this brahmana.
5. O Sudarsana wheel, you are religion, you are truth, you are encouraging statements, you are sacrifice, and you are the enjoyer of the fruits of sacrifice. You are the maintainer of the entire universe, and you are the supreme transcendental prowess in the hands of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. You are the original vision of the Lord, and therefore you are known as Sudarsana. Everything has been created by your activities, and therefore you are all-pervading.
6. O Sudarsana, you have a very auspicious hub, and therefore you are the upholder of all religion. You are just like an inauspicious comet for the irreligious demons. Indeed, you are the maintainer of the three worlds, you are full of transcendental effulgence, you are as quick as the mind, and you are able to work wonders. I can simply utter the word namah, offering all obeisances unto you.
7. O master of speech, by your effulgence, full of religious principles, the darkness of the world is dissipated, and the knowledge of learned persons or great souls is manifested. Indeed, no one can surpass your effulgence, for all things, manifested and unmanifested, gross and subtle, superior and inferior, are but various forms of you that are manifested by your effulgence.
8. O indefatigable one, when you are sent by the Supreme Personality of Godhead to enter among the soldiers of the Daityas and the Danavas, you stay on the battlefield and unendingly separate their arms, bellies, thighs, legs and heads.
9. O protector of the universe, you are engaged by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as His all-powerful weapon in killing the envious enemies. For the benefit of our entire dynasty, kindly favor this poor brahmana. This will certainly be a favor for all of us.
10. If our family has given charity to the proper persons, if we have performed ritualistic ceremonies and sacrifices, if we have properly carried out our occupational duties, and if we have been guided by learned brahmanas, I wish, in exchange, that this brahmana be freed from the burning caused by the Sudarsana cakra.
11. If the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is one without a second, who is the reservoir of all transcendental qualities, and who is the life and soul of all living entities, is pleased with us, we wish that this brahmana, Durvasa Muni, be freed from the pain of being burned.
12. Sukadeva Gosvami continued: When the King offered prayers to the Sudarsana cakra and Lord Visnu, because of his prayers the Sudarsana cakra became peaceful and stopped burning the brahmana known as Durvasa Muni.
13. Durvasa Muni, the greatly powerful mystic, was indeed satisfied when freed from the fire of the Sudarsana cakra. Thus he praised the qualities of Maharaja Ambarisa and offered him the highest benedictions.
14. Durvasa Muni said: My dear King, today I have experienced the greatness of devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, for although I have committed an offense, you have prayed for my good fortune.
15. For those who have achieved the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the master of the pure devotees, what is impossible to do, and what is impossible to give up?
16. What is impossible for the servants of the Lord? By the very hearing of His holy name one is purified.
17. O King, overlooking my offenses, you have saved my life. Thus I am very much obliged to you because you are so merciful.
18. Expecting the return of Durvasa Muni, the King had not taken his food. Therefore, when the sage returned, the King fell at his lotus feet, pleasing him in all respects, and fed him sumptuously.
19. Thus the King respectfully received Durvasa Muni, who after eating varieties of palatable food was so satisfied that with great affection he requested the King to eat also, saying, "Please take your meal."
20. Durvasa Muni said: I am very pleased with you, my dear King. At first I thought of you as an ordinary human being and accepted your hospitality, but later I could understand, by my own intelligence, that you are the most exalted devotee of the Lord. Therefore, simply by seeing you, touching your feet and talking with you, I have been pleased and have become obliged to you.
21. All the blessed women in the heavenly planets will continuously chant about your spotless character at every moment, and the people of this world will also chant your glories continuously.
22. Sri Sukadeva Gosvami continued: Thus being satisfied in all respects, the great mystic yogi Durvasa took permission and left, continuously glorifying the King. Through the skyways, he went to Brahmaloka, which is devoid of agnostics and dry philosophical speculators.
23. Durvasa Muni had left the place of Maharaja Ambarisa, and as long as he had not returned--for one complete year--the King had fasted, maintaining himself simply by drinking water.
24. After one year, when Durvasa Muni had returned, King Ambarisa sumptuously fed him all varieties of pure food, and then he himself also ate. When the King saw that the brahmana Durvasa had been released from the great danger of being burned, he could understand that by the grace of the Lord he himself was also powerful, but he did not take any credit, for everything had been done by the Lord.
25. In this way, because of devotional service, Maharaja Ambarisa, who was endowed with varieties of transcendental qualities, was completely aware of Brahman, Paramatma and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and thus he executed devotional service perfectly. Because of his devotion, he thought even the topmost planet of this material world no better than the hellish planets.
26. Srila Sukadeva Gosvami continued: Thereafter, because of his advanced position in devotional life, Maharaja Ambarisa, who no longer desired to live with material things, retired from active family life. He divided his property among his sons, who were equally as qualified, and he himself took the order of vanaprastha and went to the forest to concentrate his mind fully upon Lord Vasudeva.
27. Anyone who chants this narration or even thinks of this narration about the activities of Maharaja Ambarisa certainly becomes a pure devotee of the Lord.
28. By the grace of the Lord, those who hear about the activities of Maharaja Ambarisa, the great devotee, certainly become liberated or become devotees without delay.
Chapter Six The Downfall of Saubhari Muni
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: O Maharaja Pariksit, Ambarisa had three sons, named Virupa, Ketuman and Sambhu. From Virupa came a son named Prsadasva, and from Prsadasva came a son named Rathitara.
2. Rathitara had no sons, and therefore he requested the great sage Angira to beget sons for him. Because of this request, Angira begot sons in the womb of Rathitara's wife. All these sons were born with brahminical prowess.
3. Having been born from the womb of Rathitara's wife, all these sons were known as the dynasty of Rathitara, but because they were born from the semen of Angira, they were also known as the dynasty of Angira. Among all the progeny of Rathitara, these sons were the most prominent because, owing to their birth, they were considered brahmanas.
4. The son of Manu was Iksvaku. When Manu was sneezing, Iksvaku was born from Manu's nostrils. King Iksvaku had one hundred sons, of whom Vikuksi, Nimi and Dandaka were the most prominent.
5. Of the one hundred sons, twenty-five became kings in the western side of Aryavarta, a place between the Himalaya and Vindhya mountains. Another twenty-five sons became kings in the east of Aryavarta, and the three principal sons became kings in the middle. The other sons became kings in various other places.
6. During the months of January, February and March, oblations offered to the forefathers are called astaka-sraddha. The sraddha ceremony is held during the dark fortnight of the month. When Maharaja Iksvaku was performing his oblations in this ceremony, he ordered his son Vikuksi to go immediately to the forest to bring some pure flesh.
7. Thereafter, Iksvaku's son Vikuksi went to the forest and killed many animals suitable for being offered as oblations. But when fatigued and hungry he became forgetful and ate a rabbit he had killed.
8. Vikuksi offered the remnants of the flesh to King Iksvaku, who gave it to Vasistha for purification. But Vasistha could immediately understand that part of the flesh had already been taken by Vikuksi, and therefore he said that it was unfit to be used in the sraddha ceremony.
9. When King Iksvaku, thus informed by Vasistha, understood what his son Vikuksi had done, he was extremely angry. Thus he ordered Vikuksi to leave the country because Vikuksi had violated the regulative principles.
10. Having been instructed by the great and learned brahmana Vasistha, who discoursed about the Absolute Truth, Maharaja Iksvaku became renounced. By following the principles for a yogi, he certainly achieved the supreme perfection after giving up his material body.
11. After his father's disappearance, Vikuksi returned to the country and thus became the king, ruling the planet earth and performing various sacrifices to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Vikuksi later became celebrated as Sasada.
12. The son of Sasada was Puranjaya, who is also known as Indravaha and sometimes as Kakutstha. Please hear from me how he received different names for different activities.
13. Formerly, there was a devastating war between the demigods and the demons. The demigods, having been defeated, accepted Puranjaya as their assistant and then conquered the demons. Therefore this hero is known as Puranjaya, "he who conquered the residence of the demons."
14. Puranjaya agreed to kill all the demons, on the condition that Indra would be his carrier. Because of pride, Indra could not accept this proposal, but later, by the order of the Supreme Lord, Visnu, Indra did accept it and became a great bull carrier for Puranjaya.
15-16. Well protected by armor and desiring to fight, Puranjaya took up a transcendental bow and very sharp arrows, and, while being highly praised by the demigods, he got up on the back of the bull [Indra] and sat on its hump. Thus he is known as Kakutstha. Being empowered by Lord Visnu, who is the Supersoul and the Supreme Person, Puranjaya sat on the great bull and is therefore known as Indravaha. Surrounded by the demigods, he attacked the residence of the demons in the west.
17. There was a fierce battle between the demons and Puranjaya. Indeed, it was so fierce that when one hears about it one's hairs stand on end. All the demons bold enough to come before Puranjaya were immediately sent to the residence of Yamaraja by his arrows.
18. To save themselves from the blazing arrows of Indravaha, which resembled the flames of devastation at the end of the millennium, the demons who remained when the rest of their army was killed fled very quickly to their respective homes.
19. After conquering the enemy, the saintly king Puranjaya gave everything, including the enemy's riches and wives, to Indra, who carries a thunderbolt. For this he is celebrated as Puranjaya. Thus Puranjaya is known by different names because of his different activities.
20. The son of Puranjaya was known as Anena, Anena's son was Prthu, and Prthu's son was Visvagandhi. Visvagandhi's son was Candra, and Candra's son was Yuvanasva.
21. The son of Yuvanasva was Sravasta, who constructed a township known as Sravasti Puri. The son of Sravasta was Brhadasva, and his son was Kuvalayasva. In this way the dynasty increased.
22. To satisfy the sage Utanka, the greatly powerful Kuvalayasva killed a demon named Dhundhu. He did this with the assistance of his twenty-one thousand sons.
23-24. O Maharaja Pariksit, for this reason Kuvalayasva is celebrated as Dhundhumara ["the killer of Dhundhu"]. All but three of his sons, however, were burned to ashes by the fire emanating from Dhundhu's mouth. The remaining sons were Drdhasva, Kapilasva and Bhadrasva. From Drdhasva came a son named Haryasva, whose son is celebrated as Nikumbha.
25. The son of Nikumbha was Bahulasva, the son of Bahulasva was Krsasva, the son of Krsasva was Senajit, and the son of Senajit was Yuvanasva. Yuvanasva had no sons, and thus he retired from family life and went to the forest.
26. Although Yuvanasva went into the forest with his one hundred wives, all of them were very morose. The sages in the forest, however, being very kind to the King, began very carefully and attentively performing an Indra-yajna so that the King might have a son.
27. Being thirsty one night, the King entered the arena of sacrifice, and when he saw all the brahmanas lying down, he personally drank the sanctified water meant to be drunk by his wife.
28. When the brahmanas got up from bed and saw the waterpot empty, they inquired who had done this work of drinking the water meant for begetting a child.
29. When the brahmanas came to understand that the King, inspired by the supreme controller, had drunk the water, they all exclaimed "Alas! The power of providence is real power. No one can counteract the power of the Supreme." In this way they offered their respectful obeisances unto the Lord.
30. Thereafter, in due course of time, a son with all the good symptoms of a powerful king came forth from the lower right side of King Yuvanasva's abdomen.
31. The baby cried so much for breast milk that all the brahmanas were very unhappy. "Who will take care of this baby?" they said. Then Indra, who was worshiped in that yajna, came and solaced the baby. "Do not cry," Indra said. Then Indra put his index finger in the baby's mouth and said, "You may drink me."
32. Because Yuvanasva, the father of the baby, was blessed by the brahmanas, he did not fall a victim to death. After this incident, he performed severe austerities and achieved perfection in that very spot.
33-34. Mahdhata, the son of Yuvanasva, was the cause of fear for Ravana and other thieves and rogues who caused anxiety. O King Pariksit, because they feared him, the son of Yuvanasva was known as Trasaddasyu. This name was given by King Indra. By the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the son of Yuvanasva was so powerful that when he became emperor he ruled the entire world, consisting of seven islands, without any second ruler.
35-36. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is not different from the auspicious aspects of great sacrifices, such as the ingredients of the sacrifice, the chanting of Vedic hymns, the regulative principles, the performer, the priests, the result of the sacrifice, the arena of sacrifice, and the time of sacrifice. Knowing the principles of self-realization, Mahdhata worshiped that transcendentally situated Supreme Soul, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Visnu, who comprises all the demigods. He also gave immense charity to the brahmanas, and thus he performed yajna to worship the Lord.
37. All places, from where the sun rises on the horizon, shining brilliantly, to where the sun sets, are known as the possession of the celebrated Mandhata, the son of Yuvanasva.
38. Mandhata begot three sons in the womb of Bindumati, the daughter of Sasabindu. These sons were Purukutsa, Ambarisa, and Mucukunda, a great mystic yogi. These three brothers had fifty sisters, who all accepted the great sage Saubhari as their husband.
39-40. Saubhari Rsi was engaged in austerity, deep in the water of the River Yamuna, when he saw a pair of fish engaged in sexual affairs. Thus he perceived the pleasure of sex life, and induced by this desire he went to King Mandhata and begged for one of the King's daughters. In response to this request, the King said, "O brahmana, any of my daughters may accept any husband according to her personal selection."
41-42. Saubhari Muni thought: I am now feeble because of old age. My hair has become grey, my skin is slack, and my head always trembles. Besides, I am a yogi. Therefore women do not like me. Since the King has thus rejected me, I shall reform my body in such a way as to be desirable even to celestial women, what to speak of the daughters of worldly kings.
43. Thereafter, when Saubhari Muni became quite a young and beautiful person, the messenger of the palace took him inside the residential quarters of the princesses, which were extremely opulent. All fifty princesses then accepted him as their husband, although he was only one man.
44. Thereafter, the princesses, being attracted by Saubhari Muni, gave up their sisterly relationship and quarreled among themselves, each one of them contending, "This man is just suitable for me, and not for you." In this way there ensued a great disagreement.
45-46. Because Saubhari Muni was expert in chanting mantras perfectly, his severe austerities resulted in an opulent home, with garments, ornaments, properly dressed and decorated maidservants and manservants, and varieties of parks with clear-water lakes and gardens. In the gardens, fragrant with varieties of flowers, birds chirped and bees hummed, surrounded by professional singers. Saubhari Muni's home was amply provided with valuable beds, seats, ornaments, and arrangements for bathing, and there were varieties of sandalwood creams, flower garlands, and palatable dishes. Thus surrounded by opulent paraphernalia, the muni engaged in family affairs with his numerous wives.
47. Mandhata, the King of the entire world, consisting of seven islands, was struck with wonder when he saw the household opulence of Saubhari Muni. Thus he gave up his false prestige in his position as emperor of the world.
48. In this way, Saubhari Muni enjoyed sense gratification in the material world, but he was not at all satisfied, just as a fire never ceases blazing if constantly supplied with drops of fat.
49. Thereafter, one day while Saubhari Muni, who was expert in chanting mantras, was sitting in a secluded place, he thought to himself about the cause of his falldown, which was simply that he had associated himself with the sexual affairs of the fish.
50. Alas! While practicing austerity, even within the depths of the water, and while observing all the rules and regulations practiced by saintly persons, I lost the results of my long austerities simply by association with the sexual affairs of fish. Everyone should observe this falldown and learn from it.
51. A person desiring liberation from material bondage must give up the association of persons interested in sex life and should not employ his senses externally [in seeing, hearing, talking, walking and so on]. One should always stay in a secluded place, completely fixing his mind at the lotus feet of the unlimited Personality of Godhead, and if one wants any association at all, he should associate with persons similarly engaged.
52. In the beginning I was alone and engaged in performing the austerities of mystic yoga, but later, because of the association of fish engaged in sex, I desired to marry. Then I became the husband of fifty wives, and in each of them I begot one hundred sons, and thus my family increased to five thousand members. By the influence of the modes of material nature, I became fallen and thought that I would be happy in material life. Thus there is no end to my material desires for enjoyment, in this life and the next.
53. In this way he passed his life in household affairs for some time, but then he became detached from material enjoyment. To renounce material association, he accepted the vanaprastha order and went to the forest. His devoted wives followed him, for they had no shelter other than their husband.
54. When Saubhari Muni, who was quite conversant with the self, went to the forest, he performed severe penances. In this way, in the fire at the time of death, he ultimately engaged himself in the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
55. O Maharaja Pariksit, by observing their husband progressing in spiritual existence, Saubhari Muni's wives were also able to enter the spiritual world by his spiritual power, just as the flames of a fire cease when the fire is extinguished.
Chapter Seven The Descendants of King Mandhata
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: The most prominent among the sons of Mahdhata was he who is celebrated as Ambarisa. Ambarisa was accepted as son by his grandfather Yuvanasva. Ambarisa's son was Yauvanasva, and Yauvanasva's son was Harita. In Mahdhata's dynasty, Ambarisa, Harita and Yauvanasva were very prominent.
2. The serpent brothers of Narmada gave Narmada to Purukutsa. Being sent by Vasuki, she took Purukutsa to the lower region of the universe.
3. There in Rasatala, the lower region of the universe, Purukutsa, being empowered by Lord Visnu, was able to kill all the Gandharvas who deserved to be killed. Purukutsa received the benediction from the serpents that anyone who remembers this history of his being brought by Narmada to the lower region of the universe will be assured of safety from the attack of snakes.
4. The son of Purukutsa was Trasaddasyu, who was the father of Anaranya. Anaranya's son was Haryasva, the father of Praruna. Praruna was the father of Tribandhana.
5-6. The son of Tribandhana was Satyavrata, who is celebrated by the name Trisanku. Because he kidnapped the daughter of a brahmana when she was being married, his father cursed him to become a candala, lower than a sudra. Thereafter, by the influence of Visvamitra, he went to the higher planetary system, the heavenly planets, in his material body, but because of the prowess of the demigods he fell back downward. Nonetheless, by the power of Visvamitra, he did not fall all the way down; even today he can still be seen hanging in the sky, head downward.
7. The son of Trisanku was Hariscandra. Because of Hariscandra there was a quarrel between Visvamitra and Vasistha, who for many years fought one another, having been transformed into birds.
8. Hariscandra had no son and was therefore extremely morose. Once, therefore, following the advice of Narada, he took shelter of Varuna and said to him "My lord I have no son. Would you kindly give me one?"
9. O King Pariksit, Hariscandra begged Varuna, "My lord, if a son is born to me, with that son I shall perform a sacrifice for your satisfaction." When Hariscandra said this, Varuna replied, "Let it be so." Because of Varuna's benediction, Hariscandra begot a son named Rohita.
10. Thereafter, when the child was born, Varuna approached Hariscandra and said, "Now you have a son. With this son you can offer me a sacrifice." In answer to this, Hariscandra said, "After ten days have passed since an animal's birth, the animal becomes fit to be sacrificed."
11. After ten days, Varuna came again and said to Hariscandra, "Now you can perform the sacrifice." Hariscandra replied, "When an animal grows teeth, then it becomes pure enough to be sacrificed."
12. When the teeth grew, Varuna came and said to Hariscandra, "Now the animal has grown teeth, and you can perform the sacrifice." Hariscandra replied, "When all its teeth have fallen out, then it will be fit for sacrifice."
13. When the teeth had fallen out, Varuna returned and said to Hariscandra, "Now the animal's teeth have fallen out, and you can perform the sacrifice." But Hariscandra replied, "When the animal's teeth grow in again, then he will be pure enough to be sacrificed."
14. When the teeth grew in again, Varuna came and said to Hariscandra, "Now you can perform the sacrifice." But Hariscandra then said, "O King, when the sacrificial animal becomes a ksatriya and is able to shield himself to fight with the enemy, then he will be purified."
15. Hariscandra was certainly very much attached to his son. Because of this affection, he asked the demigod Varuna to wait. Thus Varuna waited and waited for the time to come.
16. Rohita could understand that his father intended to offer him as the animal for sacrifice. Therefore, just to save himself from death, he equipped himself with bow and arrows and went to the forest.
17. When Rohita heard that his father had been attacked by dropsy due to Varuna and that his abdomen had grown very large, he wanted to return to the capital, but King Indra forbade him to do so.
18. King Indra advised Rohita to travel to different pilgrimage sites and holy places, for such activities are pious indeed. Following this instruction, Rohita went to the forest for one year.
19. In this way, at the end of the second, third, fourth and fifth years, when Rohita wanted to return to his capital, the King of heaven, Indra, approached him as an old brahmana and forbade him to return, repeating the same words as in the previous year.
20. Thereafter, in the sixth year, after wandering in the forest, Rohita returned to the capital of his father. He purchased from Ajigarta his second son, named Sunahsepha. Then he offered Sunahsepha to his father, Hariscandra, to be used as the sacrificial animal and offered Hariscandra his respectful obeisances.
21. Thereafter, the famous King Hariscandra, one of the exalted persons in history, performed grand sacrifices by sacrificing a man and pleased all the demigods. In this way his dropsy created by Varuna was cured.
22. In that great human sacrifice, Visvamitra was the chief priest to offer oblations, the perfectly self-realized Jamadagni had the responsibility for chanting the mantras from the Yajur Veda, Vasistha was the chief brahminical priest, and the sage Ayasya was the reciter of the hymns of the Sama Veda.
23. King Indra, being very pleased with Hariscandra, offered him a gift of a golden chariot. Sunahsepha's glories will be presented along with the description of the son of Visvamitra.
24. The great sage Visvamitra saw that Maharaja Hariscandra, along with his wife, was truthful, forbearing and concerned with the essence. Thus he gave them imperishable knowledge for fulfillment of the human mission.
25-26. Maharaja Hariscandra first purified his mind, which was full of material enjoyment, by amalgamating it with the earth. Then he amalgamated the earth with water, the water with fire, the fire with the air, and the air with the sky. Thereafter, he amalgamated the sky with the total material energy, and the total material energy with spiritual knowledge. This spiritual knowledge is realization of one's self as part of the Supreme Lord. When the self-realized spiritual soul is engaged in service to the Lord, he is eternally imperceptible and inconceivable. Thus established in spiritual knowledge, he is completely freed from material bondage.
Chapter Eight The Sons of Sagara Meet Lord Kapiladeva
1. Sukadeva Gosvami continued: The son of Rohita was Harita, and Harita's son was Campa, who constructed the town of Campapuri. The son of Campa was Sudeva, and his son was Vijaya.
2. The son of Vijaya was Bharuka, Bharuka's son was Vrka, and Vrka's son was Bahuka. The enemies of King Bahuka took away all his possessions, and therefore the King entered the order of vanaprastha and went to the forest with his wife.
3. Bahuka died when he was old, and one of his wives wanted to die with him, following the sati rite. At that time, however, Aurva Muni, knowing her to be pregnant, forbade her to die.
4. Knowing that she was pregnant, the co-wives of the wife of Bahuka conspired to give her poison with her food, but it did not act. Instead, the son was born along with the poison. Therefore he became famous as Sagara ["one who is born with poison"]. Sagara later became the emperor. The place known as Gangasagara was excavated by his sons.
5-6. Sagara Maharaja, following the order of his spiritual master, Aurva, did not kill the uncivilized men like the Talajanghas, Yavanas, Sakas, Haihayas and Barbaras. Instead, some of them he made dress awkwardly, some of them he shaved clean but allowed to wear mustaches, some of them he left wearing loose hair, some he half shaved, some he left without underwear, and some without external garments. Thus these different clans were made to dress differently, but King Sagara did not kill them.
7. Following the instructions of the great sage Aurva, Sagara Maharaja performed asvamedha sacrifices and thus satisfied the Supreme Lord, who is the supreme controller, the Supersoul of all learned scholars, and the knower of all Vedic knowledge, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. But Indra, the King of heaven, stole the horse meant to be offered at the sacrifice.
8. [King Sagara had two wives, Sumati and Kesini.] The sons of Sumati, who were very proud of their prowess and influence, following the order of their father, searched for the lost horse. While doing so, they dug into the earth very extensively.
9-10. Thereafter, in the northeastern direction, they saw the horse near the asrama of Kapila Muni. "Here is the man who has stolen the horse," they said. "He is staying there with closed eyes. Certainly he is very sinful. Kill him! Kill him!" Shouting like this, the sons of Sagara, sixty thousand all together, raised their weapons. When they approached the sage, the sage opened His eyes.
11. By the influence of Indra, the King of heaven, the sons of Sagara had lost their intelligence and disrespected a great personality. Consequently, fire emanated from their own bodies, and they were immediately burned to ashes.
12. It is sometimes argued that the sons of King Sagara were burned to ashes by the fire emanating from the eyes of Kapila Muni. This statement, however, is not approved by great learned persons, for Kapila Muni's body is completely in the mode of goodness and therefore cannot manifest the mode of ignorance in the form of anger, just as the pure sky cannot be polluted by the dust of the earth.
13. Kapila Muni enunciated in this material world the Sankhya philosophy, which is a strong boat with which to cross over the ocean of nescience. Indeed, a person eager to cross the ocean of the material world may take shelter of this philosophy. In such a greatly learned person, situated on the elevated platform of transcendence, how can there be any distinction between enemy and friend?
14. Among the sons of Sagara Maharaja was one named Asamanjasa, who was born from the King's second wife, Kesini. The son of Asamanjasa was known as Amsuman, and he was always engaged in working for the good of Sagara Maharaja, his grandfather.
15-16. Formerly, in his previous birth, Asamanjasa had been a great mystic yogi, but by bad association he had fallen from his exalted position. Now, in this life, he was born in a royal family and was a jati-smara; that is, he had the special advantage of being able to remember his past birth. Nonetheless, he wanted to display himself as a miscreant, and therefore he would do things that were abominable in the eyes of the public and unfavorable to his relatives. He would disturb the boys sporting in the River Sarayu by throwing them into the depths of the water.
17. Because Asamanjasa engaged in such abominable activities, his father gave up affection for him and had him exiled. Then Asamanjasa exhibited his mystic power by reviving the boys and showing them to the King and their parents. After this, Asamanjasa left Ayodhya.
18. O King Pariksit, when all the inhabitants of Ayodhya saw that their boys had come back to life, they were astounded, and King Sagara greatly lamented the absence of his son.
19. Thereafter, Amsuman, the grandson of Maharaja Sagara, was ordered by the King to search for the horse. Following the same path traversed by his uncles, Amsuman gradually reached the stack of ashes and found the horse nearby.
20. The great Amsuman saw the sage named Kapila, the saint who is an incarnation of Visnu, sitting there by the horse. Amsuman offered Him respectful obeisances, folded his hands and offered Him prayers with great attention.
21. Amsuman said: My Lord, even Lord Brahma is to this very day unable to understand Your position, which is far beyond himself, either by meditation or by mental speculation. So what to speak of others like us, who have been created by Brahma in various forms as demigods, animals, human beings, birds and beasts? We are completely in ignorance. Therefore, how can we know You, who are the Transcendence?
22. My Lord, You are fully situated in everyone's heart, but the living entities, covered by the material body, cannot see You, for they are influenced by the external energy, conducted by the three modes of material nature. Their intelligence being covered by sattva-guna, rajo-guna and tamo-guna, they can see only the actions and reactions of these three modes of material nature. Because of the actions and reactions of the mode of ignorance, whether the living entities are awake or sleeping, they can see only the workings of material nature; they cannot see Your Lordship.
23. O my Lord, sages freed from the influence of the three modes of material nature--sages such as the four Kumaras [Sanat, Sanaka, Sanandana and Sanatana]--are able to think of You, who are concentrated knowledge. But how can an ignorant person like me think of You?
24. O completely peaceful Lord, although material nature, fruitive activities and their consequent material names and forms are Your creation, You are unaffected by them. Therefore, Your transcendental name is different from material names, and Your form is different from material forms. You assume a form resembling a material body just to give us instructions like those of Bhagavad-gita, but actually You are the supreme original person. I therefore offer my respectful obeisances unto You.
25. O my Lord, those whose hearts are bewildered by the influence of lust, greed, envy and illusion are interested only in false hearth and home in this world created by Your maya. Attached to home, wife and children, they wander in this material world perpetually.
26. O Supersoul of all living entities, O Personality of Godhead, simply by seeing You I have now been freed from all lusty desires, which are the root cause of insurmountable illusion and bondage in the material world.
27. O King Pariksit, when Amsuman had glorified the Lord in this way, the great sage Kapila, the powerful incarnation of Visnu, being very merciful to him, explained to him the path of knowledge.
28. The Personality of Godhead said: My dear Amsuman, here is the animal sought by your grandfather for sacrifice. Please take it. As for your forefathers, who have been burnt to ashes, they can be delivered only by Ganges water, and not by any other means.
29. Thereafter, Amsuman circumambulated Kapila Muni and offered Him respectful obeisances, bowing his head. After fully satisfying Him in this way, Amsuman brought back the horse meant for sacrifice, and with this horse Maharaja Sagara performed the remaining ritualistic ceremonies.
30. After delivering charge of his kingdom to Amsuman and thus being freed from all material anxiety and bondage, Sagara Maharaja, following the means instructed by Aurva Muni, achieved the supreme destination.
Chapter Nine The Dynasty of Amsuman
1. Sukadeva Gosvami continued: King Amsuman, like his grandfather, performed austerities for a very long time. Nonetheless, he could not bring the Ganges to this material world, and thereafter, in due course of time, he died.
2. Like Amsuman himself, Dilipa, his son, was unable to bring the Ganges to this material world, and he also became a victim of death in due course of time. Then Dilipa's son, Bhagiratha, performed very severe austerities to bring the Ganges to this material world.
3. Thereafter, mother Ganges appeared before King Bhagiratha and said, "I am very much satisfied with your austerities and am now prepared to give you benedictions as you desire." Being thus addressed by Gangadevi, mother Ganges, the King bowed his head before her and explained his desire.
4. Mother Ganges replied: When I fall from the sky to the surface of the planet earth, the water will certainly be very forceful. Who will sustain that force? If I am not sustained, I shall pierce the surface of the earth and go down to Rasatala, the Patala area of the universe.
5. O King, I do not wish to go down to the planet earth, for there the people in general will bathe in my water to cleanse themselves of the reactions of their sinful deeds. When all these sinful reactions accumulate in me, how shall I become free from them? You must consider this very carefully.
6. Bhagiratha said: Those who are saintly because of devotional service and are therefore in the renounced order, free from material desires, and who are pure devotees, expert in following the regulative principles mentioned in the Vedas, are always glorious and pure in behavior and are able to deliver all fallen souls. When such pure devotees bathe in your water, the sinful reactions accumulated from other people will certainly be counteracted, for such devotees always keep in the core of their hearts the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who can vanquish all sinful reactions.
7. Like a cloth woven of threads extending for its length and breadth, this entire universe, in all its latitude and longitude, is situated under different potencies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Lord Siva is the incarnation of the Lord, and thus he represents the Supersoul in the embodied soul. He can sustain your forceful waves on his head.
8. After saying this, Bhagiratha satisfied Lord Siva by performing austerities. O King Pariksit, Lord Siva was very quickly satisfied with Bhagiratha.
9. When King Bhagiratha approached Lord Siva and requested him to sustain the forceful waves of the Ganges, Lord Siva accepted the proposal by saying, "Let it be so." Then, with great attention, he sustained the Ganges on his head, for the water of the Ganges is purifying, having emanated from the toes of Lord Visnu.
10. The great and saintly king Bhagiratha brought the Ganges, which can deliver all the fallen souls, to that place on earth where the bodies of his forefathers lay burnt to ashes.
11. Bhagiratha mounted a swift chariot and drove before mother Ganges, who followed him, purifying many countries, until they reached the ashes of Bhagiratha's forefathers, the sons of Sagara, who were thus sprinkled with water from the Ganges.
12. Because the sons of Sagara Maharaja had offended a great personality, the heat of their bodies had increased, and they were burnt to ashes. But simply by being sprinkled with water from the Ganges, all of them became eligible to go to the heavenly planets. What then is to be said of those who use the water of mother Ganges to worship her?
13. Simply by having water from the Ganges come in contact with the ashes of their burnt bodies, the sons of Sagara Maharaja were elevated to the heavenly planets. Therefore, what is to be said of a devotee who worships mother Ganges faithfully with a determined vow? One can only imagine the benefit that accrues to such a devotee.
14. Because mother Ganges emanates from the lotus toe of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Anantadeva, she is able to liberate one from material bondage. Therefore whatever is described herewith about her is not at all wonderful.
15. Great sages, completely freed from material lusty desires, devote their minds fully to the service of the Lord. Such persons are liberated from material bondage without difficulty, and they become transcendentally situated, acquiring the spiritual quality of the Lord. This is the glory of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
16-17. Bhagiratha had a son named Sruta, whose son was Nabha. This son was different from the Nabha previously described. Nabha had a son named Sindhudvipa, from Sindhudvipa came Ayutayu, and from Ayutayu came Rtuparna, who became a friend of Nalaraja. Rtuparna taught Nalaraja the art of gambling, and Nalaraja gave Rtuparna lessons in controlling and maintaining horses. The son of Rtuparna was Sarvakama.
18. Sarvakama had a son named Sudasa, whose son, known as Saudasa, was the husband of Damayanti. Saudasa is sometimes known as Mitrasaha or Kalmasapada. Because of his own misdeed, Mitrasaha was sonless and was cursed by Vasistha to become a man-eater [Raksasa].
19. King Pariksit said: O Sukadeva Gosvami, why did Vasistha, the spiritual master of Saudasa, curse that great soul? I wish to know of this. If it is not a confidential matter, please describe it to me.
20-21. Sukadeva Gosvami said: Once Saudasa went to live in the forest, where he killed a man-eater [Raksasa] but forgave and released the man-eater's brother. That brother, however, decided to take revenge. Thinking to harm the King, he became the cook at the King's house. One day, the King's spiritual master, Vasistha Muni, was invited for dinner, and the Raksasa cook served him human flesh.
22. While examining the food given to him, Vasistha Muni, by his mystic power, could understand that it was unfit to eat, being the flesh of a human being. He was very angry at this and immediately cursed Saudasa to become a man-eater.
23-24. When Vasistha understood that the human flesh had been served by the Raksasa, not by the King, he undertook twelve years of austerity to cleanse himself for having cursed the faultless King. Meanwhile, King Saudasa took water and chanted the sapa-mantra, preparing to curse Vasistha, but his wife, Madayanti, forbade him to do so. Then the King saw that the ten directions, the sky and the surface of the globe were full of living entities everywhere.
25. Saudasa thus acquired the propensity of a man-eater and received on his leg a black spot, for which he was known as Kalmasapada. Once King Kalmasapada saw a brahmana couple engaged in sexual intercourse in the forest.
26-27. Being influenced by the propensity of a Raksasa and being very hungry, King Saudasa seized the brahmana. Then the poor woman, the brahmana's wife, said to the King: O hero, you are not actually a man-eater; rather, you are among the descendants of Maharaja Iksvaku. Indeed, you are a great fighter, the husband of Madayanti. You should not act irreligiously in this way. I desire to have a son. Please, therefore, return my husband, who has not yet impregnated me.
28. O King, O hero, this human body is meant for universal benefits. If you kill this body untimely, you will kill all the benefits of human life.
29. Here is a learned, highly qualified brahmana, engaged in performing austerity and eagerly desiring to worship the Supreme Lord, the Supersoul who lives within the core of the heart in all living entities.
30. My lord, you are completely aware of the religious principles. As a son never deserves to be killed by his father, here is a brahmana who should be protected by the king, and never killed. How does he deserve to be killed by a rajarsi like you?
31. You are well known and worshiped in learned circles. How dare you kill this brahmana, who is a saintly, sinless person, well versed in Vedic knowledge? Killing him would be like destroying the embryo within the womb or killing a cow.
32. Without my husband, I cannot live for a moment. If you want to eat my husband, it would be better to eat me first, for without my husband I am as good as a dead body.
33. Being condemned by the curse of Vasistha, King Saudasa devoured the brahmana, exactly as a tiger eats its prey. Even though the brahmana's wife spoke so pitiably, Saudasa was unmoved by her lamentation.
34. When the chaste wife of the brahmana saw that her husband, who was about to discharge semen, had been eaten by the man-eater, she was overwhelmed with grief and lamentation. Thus she angrily cursed the King.
35. O foolish, sinful person, because you have eaten my husband when I was sexually inclined and desiring to have the seed of a child, I shall also see you die when you attempt to discharge semen in your wife. In other words, whenever you attempt to sexually unite with your wife, you shall die.
36. Thus the wife of the brahmana cursed King Saudasa, known as Mitrasaha. Then, being inclined to go with her husband, she set fire to her husband's bones, fell into the fire herself, and went with him to the same destination.
37. After twelve years, when King Saudasa was released from the curse by Vasistha, he wanted to have sexual intercourse with his wife. But the Queen reminded him about the curse by the brahmani, and thus he was checked from sexual intercourse.
38. After being thus instructed, the King gave up the future happiness of sexual intercourse and by destiny remained sonless. Later, with the King's permission, the great saint Vasistha begot a child in the womb of Madayanti.
39. Madayanti bore the child within the womb for seven years and did not give birth. Therefore Vasistha struck her abdomen with a stone, and then the child was born. Consequently, the child was known as Asmaka ["the child born of a stone"].
40. From Asmaka, Balika took birth. Because Balika was surrounded by women and was therefore saved from the anger of Parasurama, he was known as Narikavaca ["one who is protected by women"]. When Parasurama vanquished all the ksatriyas, Balika became the progenitor of more ksatriyas. Therefore he was known as Mulaka, the root of the ksatriya dynasty.
41. From Balika came a son named Dasaratha, from Dasaratha came a son named Aidavidi, and from Aidavidi came King Visvasaha. The son of King Visvasaha was the famous Maharaja Khatvanga.
42. King Khatvanga was unconquerable in any fight. Requested by the demigods to join them in fighting the demons, he won victory, and the demigods, being very pleased, wanted to give him a benediction. The King inquired from them about the duration of his life and was informed that he had only one moment more. Thus he immediately left his palace and went to his own residence, where he engaged his mind fully on the lotus feet of the Lord.
43. Maharaja Khatvanga thought: Not even my life is dearer to me than the brahminical culture and the brahmanas, who are worshiped by my family. What then is to be said of my kingdom, land, wife, children and opulence? Nothing is dearer to me than the brahmanas.
44. I was never attracted, even in my childhood, by insignificant things or irreligious principles. I did not find anything more substantial than the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
45. The demigods, the directors of the three worlds, wanted to give me whatever benediction I desired. I did not want their benedictions, however, because I am interested in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who created everything in this material world. I am more interested in the Supreme Personality of Godhead than in all material benedictions.
46. Even though the demigods have the advantages of being situated in the higher planetary system, their minds, senses and intelligence are agitated by material conditions. Therefore, even such elevated persons fail to realize the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is eternally situated in the core of the heart. What then is to be said of others, such as human beings, who have fewer advantages?
47. Therefore I should now give up my attachment for things created by the external energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. I should engage in thought of the Lord and should thus surrender unto Him. This material creation, having been created by the external energy of the Lord, is like an imaginary town visualized on a hill or in a forest. Every conditioned soul has a natural attraction and attachment for material things, but one must simply give up this attachment and surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
48. Thus Maharaja Khatvanga, by his advanced intelligence in rendering service to the Lord, gave up false identification with the body full of ignorance. In his original position of eternal servitorship, he engaged himself in rendering service to the Lord.
49. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vasudeva, Krsna, is extremely difficult to understand for unintelligent men who accept Him as impersonal or void, which He is not. The Lord is therefore understood and sung about by pure devotees.
Chapter Ten The Pastimes of the Supreme Lord, Ramacandra
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: The son of Maharaja Khatvanga was Dirghabahu, and his son was the celebrated Maharaja Raghu. From Maharaja Raghu came Aja, and from Aja was born the great personality Maharaja Dasaratha.
2. Being prayed for by the demigods, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth Himself, directly appeared with His expansion and expansions of the expansion. Their holy names were Rama, Laksmana, Bharata and Satrughna. These celebrated incarnations thus appeared in four forms as the sons of Maharaja Dasaratha.
3. O King Pariksit, the transcendental activities of Lord Ramacandra have been described by great saintly persons who have seen the truth. Because you have heard again and again about Lord Ramacandra, the husband of mother Sita, I shall describe these activities only in brief. Please listen.
4. To keep the promise of His father intact, Lord Ramacandra immediately gave up the position of king and, accompanied by His wife, mother Sita, wandered from one forest to another on His lotus feet, which were so delicate that they were unable to bear even the touch of Sita's palms. The Lord was also accompanied by Hanuman [or by another monkey, Sugriva], king of the monkeys, and by His own younger brother Lord Laksmana, both of whom gave Him relief from the fatigue of wandering in the forest. Having cut off the nose and ears of Surpanakha, thus disfiguring her, the Lord was separated from mother Sita. He therefore became angry, moving His eyebrows and thus frightening the ocean, who then allowed the Lord to construct a bridge to cross the ocean. Subsequently, the Lord entered the kingdom of Ravana to kill him, like a fire devouring a forest. May that Supreme Lord, Ramacandra, give us all protection.
5. In the arena of the sacrifice performed by Visvamitra, Lord Ramacandra, the King of Ayodhya, killed many demons, Raksasas and uncivilized men who wandered at night in the mode of darkness. May Lord Ramacandra, who killed these demons in the presence of Laksmana, be kind enough to give us protection.
6-7. O King, the pastimes of Lord Ramacandra were wonderful, like those of a baby elephant. In the assembly where mother Sita was to choose her husband, in the midst of the heroes of this world, He broke the bow belonging to Lord Siva. This bow was so heavy that it was carried by three hundred men, but Lord Ramacandra bent and strung it and broke it in the middle, just as a baby elephant breaks a stick of sugarcane. Thus the Lord achieved the hand of mother Sita, who was equally as endowed with transcendental qualities of form, beauty, behavior, age and nature. Indeed, she was the goddess of fortune who constantly rests on the chest of the Lord. While returning from Sita's home after gaining her at the assembly of competitors, Lord Ramacandra met Parasurama. Although Parasurama was very proud, having rid the earth of the royal order twenty-one times, he was defeated by the Lord, who appeared to be a ksatriya of the royal order.
8. Carrying out the order of His father, who was bound by a promise to his wife, Lord Ramacandra left behind His kingdom, opulence, friends, well-wishers, residence and everything else, just as a liberated soul gives up his life, and went to the forest with Sita.
9. While wandering in the forest, where He accepted a life of hardship, carrying His invincible bow and arrows in His hand, Lord Ramacandra deformed Ravana's sister, who was polluted with lusty desires, by cutting off her nose and ears. He also killed her fourteen thousand Raksasa friends, headed by Khara, Trisira and Dusana.
10. O King Pariksit, when Ravana, who had ten heads on his shoulders, heard about the beautiful and attractive features of Sita, his mind was agitated by lusty desires, and he went to kidnap her. To distract Lord Ramacandra from His asrama, Ravana sent Marica in the form of a golden deer, and when Lord Ramacandra saw that wonderful deer, He left His residence and followed it and finally killed it with a sharp arrow, just as Lord Siva killed Daksa.
11. When Ramacandra entered the forest and Laksmana was also absent, the worst of the Raksasas, Ravana, kidnapped Sitadevi, the daughter of the King of Videha, just as a tiger seizes unprotected sheep when the shepherd is absent. Then Lord Ramacandra wandered in the forest with His brother Laksmana as if very much distressed due to separation from His wife. Thus He showed by His personal example the condition of a person attached to women.
12. Lord Ramacandra, whose lotus feet are worshiped by Lord Brahma and Lord Siva, had assumed the form of a human being. Thus He performed the funeral ceremony of Jatayu, who was killed by Ravana. The Lord then killed the demon named Kabandha, and after making friends with the monkey chiefs, killing Vali and arranging for the deliverance of mother Sita, He went to the beach of the ocean.
13. After reaching the beach, Lord Ramacandra fasted for three days, awaiting the arrival of the ocean personified. When the ocean did not come, the Lord exhibited His pastimes of anger, and simply by His glancing over the ocean, all the living entities within it, including the crocodiles and sharks, were agitated by fear. Then the personified ocean fearfully approached Lord Ramacandra, taking all paraphernalia to worship Him. Falling at the Lord's lotus feet, the personified ocean spoke as follows.
14. O all-pervading Supreme Person, we are dull-minded and did not understand who You are, but now we understand that You are the Supreme Person, the master of the entire universe, the unchanging and original Personality of Godhead. The demigods are infatuated with the mode of goodness, the Prajapatis with the mode of passion, and the lord of ghosts with the mode of ignorance, but You are the master of all these qualities.
15. My Lord, You may use my water as You like. Indeed, You may cross it and go to the abode of Ravana, who is the great source of disturbance and crying for the three worlds. He is the son of Visrava, but is condemned like urine. Please go kill him and thus regain Your wife, Sitadevi. O great hero, although my water presents no impediment to Your going to Lanka, please construct a bridge over it to spread Your transcendental fame. Upon seeing this wonderfully uncommon deed of Your Lordship, all the great heroes and kings in the future will glorify You.
16. Sukadeva Gosvami said: After constructing a bridge over the ocean by throwing into the water the peaks of mountains whose trees and other vegetation had been shaken by the hands of great monkeys, Lord Ramacandra went to Lanka to release Sitadevi from the clutches of Ravana. With the direction and help of Vibhisana, Ravana's brother, the Lord, along with the monkey soldiers, headed by Sugriva, Nila and Hanuman, entered Ravana's kingdom, Lanka, which had previously been burnt by Hanuman.
17. After entering Lanka, the monkey soldiers, led by chiefs like Sugriva, Nila and Hanuman, occupied all the sporting houses, granaries, treasuries, palace doorways, city gates, assembly houses, palace frontages and even the resting houses of the pigeons. When the city's crossroads, platforms, flags and golden waterpots on its domes were all destroyed, the entire city of Lanka appeared like a river disturbed by a herd of elephants.
18. When Ravana, the master of the Raksasas, saw the disturbances created by the monkey soldiers, he called for Nikumbha, Kumbha, Dhumraksa, Durmukha, Surantaka, Narantaka and other Raksasas and also his son Indrajit. Thereafter he called for Prahasta, Atikaya, Vikampana and finally Kumbhakarna. Then he induced all his followers to fight against the enemies.
19. Lord Ramacandra, surrounded by Laksmana and monkey soldiers like Sugriva, Hanuman, Gandhamada, Nila, Angada, Jambavan and Panasa, attacked the soldiers of the Raksasas, who were fully equipped with various invincible weapons like swords, lances, bows, prasas, rstis, sakti arrows, khadgas and tomaras.
20. Angada and the other commanders of the soldiers of Ramacandra faced the elephants, infantry, horses and chariots of the enemy and hurled against them big trees, mountain peaks, clubs and arrows. Thus the soldiers of Lord Ramacandra killed Ravana's soldiers, who had lost all good fortune because Ravana had been condemned by the anger of mother Sita.
21. Thereafter, when Ravana, the king of the Raksasas, observed that his soldiers had been lost, he was extremely angry. Thus he mounted his airplane, which was decorated with flowers, and proceeded toward Lord Ramacandra, who sat on the effulgent chariot brought by Matali, the chariot driver of Indra. Then Ravana struck Lord Ramacandra with sharp arrows.
22. Lord Ramacandra said to Ravana: You are the most abominable of the man-eaters. Indeed, you are like their stool. You resemble a dog, for as a dog steals eatables from the kitchen in the absence of the householder, in My absence you kidnapped My wife, Sitadevi. Therefore as Yamaraja punishes sinful men, I shall also punish you. You are most abominable, sinful and shameless. Today, therefore, I, whose attempt never fails, shall punish you.
23. After thus rebuking Ravana, Lord Ramacandra fixed an arrow to His bow, aimed at Ravana, and released the arrow, which pierced Ravana's heart like a thunderbolt. Upon seeing this, Ravana's followers raised a tumultuous sound, crying, "Alas! Alas! What has happened? What has happened?" as Ravana, vomiting blood from his ten mouths, fell from his airplane, just as a pious man falls to earth from the heavenly planets when the results of his pious activities are exhausted.
24. Thereafter, all the women whose husbands had fallen in the battle, headed by Mandodari, the wife of Ravana, came out of Lanka. Continuously crying, they approached the dead bodies of Ravana and the other Raksasas.
25. Striking their breasts in affliction because their husbands had been killed by the arrows of Laksmana, the women embraced their respective husbands and cried piteously in voices appealing to everyone.
26. O my lord, O master! You epitomized trouble for others, and therefore you were called Ravana. But now that you have been defeated, we also are defeated, for without you the state of Lanka has been conquered by the enemy. To whom will it go for shelter?
27. O greatly fortunate one, you came under the influence of lusty desires, and therefore you could not understand the influence of mother Sita. Now, because of her curse, you have been reduced to this state, having been killed by Lord Ramacandra.
28. O pleasure of the Raksasa dynasty, because of you the state of Lanka and also we ourselves now have no protector. By your deeds you have made your body fit to be eaten by vultures and your soul fit to go to hell.
29. Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said: Vibhisana, the pious brother of Ravana and devotee of Lord Ramacandra, received approval from Lord Ramacandra, the King of Kosala. Then he performed the prescribed funeral ceremonies for his family members to save them from the path to hell.
30. Thereafter, Lord Ramacandra found Sitadevi sitting in a small cottage beneath the tree named Simsapa in a forest of Asoka trees. She was lean and thin, being aggrieved because of separation from Him.
31. Seeing His wife in that condition, Lord Ramacandra was very compassionate. When Ramacandra came before her, she was exceedingly happy to see her beloved, and her lotuslike mouth showed her joy.
32. After giving Vibhisana the power to rule the Raksasa population of Lanka for the duration of one kalpa, Lord Ramacandra, the Supreme Personality of Godhead [Bhagavan], placed Sitadevi on an airplane decorated with flowers and then got on the plane Himself. The period for His living in the forest having ended, the Lord returned to Ayodhya, accompanied by Hanuman, Sugriva and His brother Laksmana.
33. When Lord Ramacandra returned to His capital, Ayodhya, He was greeted on the road by the princely order, who showered His body with beautiful, fragrant flowers, while great personalities like Lord Brahma and other demigods glorified the activities of the Lord in great jubilation.
34. Upon reaching Ayodhya, Lord Ramacandra heard that in His absence His brother Bharata was eating barley cooked in the urine of a cow, covering His body with the bark of trees, wearing matted locks of hair, and lying on a mattress of kusa. The most merciful Lord very much lamented this.
35-38. When Lord Bharata understood that Lord Ramacandra was returning to the capital, Ayodhya, He immediately took upon His own head Lord Ramacandra's wooden shoes and came out from His camp at Nandigrama. Lord Bharata was accompanied by ministers, priests and other respectable citizens, by professional musicians vibrating pleasing musical sounds, and by learned brahmanas loudly chanting Vedic hymns. Following in the procession were chariots drawn by beautiful horses with harnesses of golden rope. These chariots were decorated by flags with golden embroidery and by other flags of various sizes and patterns. There were soldiers bedecked with golden armor, servants bearing betel nut, and many well-known and beautiful prostitutes. Many servants followed on foot, bearing an umbrella, whisks, different grades of precious jewels, and other paraphernalia befitting a royal reception. Accompanied in this way, Lord Bharata, His heart softened in ecstasy and His eyes full of tears, approached Lord Ramacandra and fell at His lotus feet with great ecstatic love.
39-40. After offering the wooden shoes before Lord Ramacandra, Lord Bharata stood with folded hands, His eyes full of tears, and Lord Ramacandra bathed Bharata with tears while embracing Him with both arms for a long time. Accompanied by mother Sita and Laksmana, Lord Ramacandra then offered His respectful obeisances unto the learned brahmanas and the elderly persons in the family, and all the citizens of Ayodhya offered their respectful obeisances unto the Lord.
41. The citizens of Ayodhya, upon seeing their King return after a long absence, offered Him flower garlands, waved their upper cloths, and danced in great jubilation.
42-43. O King, Lord Bharata carried Lord Ramacandra's wooden shoes, Sugriva and Vibhisana carried a whisk and an excellent fan, Hanuman carried a white umbrella, Satrughna carried a bow and two quivers, and Sitadevi carried a waterpot filled with water from holy places. Angada carried a sword, and Jambavan, King of the Rksas, carried a golden shield.
44. O King Pariksit, as the Lord sat on His airplane of flowers, with women offering Him prayers and reciters chanting about His characteristics, He appeared like the moon with the stars and planets.
45-46. Thereafter, having been welcomed by His brother Bharata, Lord Ramacandra entered the city of Ayodhya in the midst of a festival. When He entered the palace, He offered obeisances to all the mothers, including Kaikeyi and the other wives of Maharaja Dasaratha, and especially His own mother, Kausalya. He also offered obeisances to the spiritual preceptors, such as Vasistha. Friends of His own age and younger friends worshiped Him, and He returned their respectful obeisances, as did Laksmana and mother Sita. In this way they all entered the palace.
47. Upon seeing their sons, the mothers of Rama, Laksmana, Bharata and Satrughna immediately arose, like unconscious bodies returning to consciousness. The mothers placed their sons on their laps and bathed Them with tears, thus relieving themselves of the grief of long separation.
48. The family priest or spiritual master, Vasistha, had Lord Ramacandra cleanly shaved, freeing Him from His matted locks of hair. Then, with the cooperation of the elderly members of the family, he performed the bathing ceremony [abhiseka] for Lord Ramacandra with the water of the four seas and with other substances, just as it was performed for King Indra.
49. Lord Ramacandra, fully bathed and His head clean-shaven, dressed Himself very nicely and was decorated with a garland and ornaments. Thus He shone brightly, surrounded by His brothers and wife, who were similarly dressed and ornamented.
50. Being pleased by the full surrender and submission of Lord Bharata, Lord Ramacandra then accepted the throne of the state. He cared for the citizens exactly like a father, and the citizens, being fully engaged in their occupational duties of varna and asrama, accepted Him as their father.
51. Lord Ramacandra became King during Treta-yuga, but because of His good government, the age was like Satya-yuga. Everyone was religious and completely happy.
52. O Maharaja Pariksit, best of the Bharata dynasty, during the reign of Lord Ramacandra the forests, the rivers, the hills and mountains, the states, the seven islands and the seven seas were all favorable in supplying the necessities of life for all living beings.
53. When Lord Ramacandra, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, was the King of this world, all bodily and mental suffering, disease, old age, bereavement, lamentation, distress, fear and fatigue were completely absent. There was even no death for those who did not want it.
54. Lord Ramacandra took a vow to accept only one wife and have no connection with any other women. He was a saintly king, and everything in His character was good, untinged by qualities like anger. He taught good behavior for everyone, especially for householders, in terms of varnasrama-dharma. Thus He taught the general public by His personal activities.
55. Mother Sita was very submissive, faithful, shy and chaste, always understanding the attitude of her husband. Thus by her character and her love and service she completely attracted the mind of the Lord.
Chapter Eleven Lord Ramacandra Rules the World
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: Thereafter, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Ramacandra, accepted an acarya and performed sacrifices [yajnas] with opulent paraphernalia. Thus He Himself worshiped Himself, for He is the Supreme Lord of all demigods.
2. Lord Ramacandra gave the entire east to the hota priest, the entire south to the brahma priest, the west to the adhvaryu priest, and the north to the udgata priest, the reciter of the Sama Veda. In this way, He donated His kingdom.
3. Thereafter, thinking that because the brahmanas have no material desires they should possess the entire world, Lord Ramacandra delivered the land between the east, west, north and south to the acarya.
4. After thus giving everything in charity to the brahmanas, Lord Ramacandra retained only His personal garments and ornaments, and similarly the Queen, mother Sita, was left with only her nose ring, and nothing else.
5. All the brahmanas who were engaged in the various activities of the sacrifice were very pleased with Lord Ramacandra, who was greatly affectionate and favorable to the brahmanas. Thus with melted hearts they returned all the property received from Him and spoke as follows.
6. O Lord, You are the master of the entire universe. What have You not given to us? You have entered the core of our hearts and dissipated the darkness of our ignorance by Your effulgence. This is the supreme gift. We do not need a material donation.
7. O Lord, You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who have accepted the brahmanas as Your worshipable deity. Your knowledge and memory are never disturbed by anxiety. You are the chief of all famous persons within this world, and Your lotus feet are worshiped by sages who are beyond the jurisdiction of punishment. O Lord Ramacandra, let us offer our respectful obeisances unto You.
8. Sukadeva Gosvami continued: Once while Lord Ramacandra was walking at night incognito, hiding Himself by a disguise to find out the people's opinion of Himself, He heard a man speaking unfavorably about His wife, Sitadevi.
9. [Speaking to his unchaste wife, the man said] You go to another man's house, and therefore you are unchaste and polluted. I shall not maintain you any more. A henpecked husband like Lord Rama may accept a wife like Sita, who went to another man's house, but I am not henpecked like Him, and therefore I shall not accept you again.
10. Sukadeva Gosvami said: Men with a poor fund of knowledge and a heinous character speak nonsensically. Fearing such rascals, Lord Ramacandra abandoned His wife, Sitadevi, although she was pregnant. Thus Sitadevi went to the asrama of Valmiki Muni.
11. When the time came, the pregnant mother Sitadevi gave birth to twin sons, later celebrated as Lava and Kusa. The ritualistic ceremonies for their birth were performed by Valmiki Muni.
12. O Maharaja Pariksit, Lord Laksmana had two sons, named Angada and Citraketu, and Lord Bharata also had two sons, named Taksa and Puskala.
13-14. Satrughna had two sons, named Subahu and Srutasena. When Lord Bharata went to conquer all directions, He had to kill many millions of Gandharvas, who are generally pretenders. Taking all their wealth, He offered it to Lord Ramacandra. Satrughna also killed a Raksasa named Lavana, who was the son of Madhu Raksasa. Thus He established in the great forest known as Madhuvana the town known as Mathura.
15. Being forsaken by her husband, Sitadevi entrusted her two sons to the care of Valmiki Muni. Then, meditating upon the lotus feet of Lord Ramacandra, she entered into the earth.
16. After hearing the news of mother Sita's entering the earth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead was certainly aggrieved. Although He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, upon remembering the exalted qualities of mother Sita, He could not check His grief in transcendental love.
17. The attraction between man and woman, or male and female, always exists everywhere, making everyone always fearful. Such feelings are present even among the controllers like Brahma and Lord Siva and is the cause of fear for them, what to speak of others who are attached to household life in this material world.
18. After mother Sita entered the earth, Lord Ramacandra observed complete celibacy and performed an uninterrupted Agnihotra-yajna for thirteen thousand years.
19. After completing the sacrifice, Lord Ramacandra, whose lotus feet were sometimes pierced by thorns when He lived in Dandakaranya, placed those lotus feet in the hearts of those who always think of Him. Then He entered His own abode, the Vaikuntha planet beyond the brahmajyoti.
20. Lord Ramacandra's reputation for having killed Ravana with showers of arrows at the request of the demigods and for having built a bridge over the ocean does not constitute the factual glory of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Ramacandra, whose spiritual body is always engaged in various pastimes. Lord Ramacandra has no equal or superior, and therefore He had no need to take help from the monkeys to gain victory over Ravana.
21. Lord Ramacandra's spotless name and fame, which vanquish all sinful reactions, are celebrated in all directions, like the ornamental cloth of the victorious elephant that conquers all directions. Great saintly persons like Markandeya Rsi still glorify His characteristics in the assemblies of great emperors like Maharaja Yudhisthira. Similarly, all the saintly kings and all the demigods, including Lord Siva and Lord Brahma, worship the Lord by bowing down with their helmets. Let me offer my obeisances unto His lotus feet.
22. Lord Ramacandra returned to His abode, to which bhakti-yogis are promoted. This is the place to which all the inhabitants of Ayodhya went after they served the Lord in His manifest pastimes by offering Him obeisances, touching His lotus feet, fully observing Him as a fatherlike King, sitting or lying down with Him like equals, or even just accompanying Him.
23. O King Pariksit, anyone who aurally receives the narrations concerning the characteristics of Lord Ramacandra's pastimes will ultimately be freed from the disease of envy and thus be liberated from the bondage of fruitive activities.
24. Maharaja Pariksit inquired from Sukadeva Gosvami: How did the Lord conduct Himself, and how did He behave in relationship with His brothers, who were expansions of His own self? And how did His brothers and the inhabitants of Ayodhya treat Him?
25. Sukadeva Gosvami replied: After accepting the throne of the government by the fervent request of His younger brother Bharata, Lord Ramacandra ordered His younger brothers to go out and conquer the entire world, while He personally remained in the capital to give audience to all the citizens and residents of the palace and supervise the governmental affairs with His other assistants.
26. During the reign of Lord Ramacandra, the streets of the capital, Ayodhya, were sprinkled with perfumed water and drops of perfumed liquor, thrown about by elephants from their trunks. When the citizens saw the Lord personally supervising the affairs of the city in such opulence, they appreciated this opulence very much.
27. The palaces, the palace gates, the assembly houses, the platforms for meeting places, the temples and all such places were decorated with golden waterpots and bedecked with various types of flags.
28. Wherever Lord Ramacandra visited, auspicious welcome gates were constructed, with banana trees and betel nut trees, full of flowers and fruits. The gates were decorated with various flags made of colorful cloth and with tapestries, mirrors and garlands.
29. Wherever Lord Ramacandra visited, the people approached Him with paraphernalia of worship and begged the Lord's blessings. "O Lord," they said, "as You rescued the earth from the bottom of the sea in Your incarnation as a boar, may You now maintain it. Thus we beg Your blessings."
30. Thereafter, not having seen the Lord for a long time, the citizens, both men and women, being very eager to see Him, left their homes and got up on the roofs of the palaces. Being incompletely satiated with seeing the face of the lotus-eyed Lord Ramacandra, they showered flowers upon Him.
31-34. Thereafter, Lord Ramacandra entered the palace of His forefathers. Within the palace were various treasures and valuable wardrobes. The sitting places on the two sides of the entrance door were made of coral, the yards were surrounded by pillars of vaidurya-mani, the floor was made of highly polished marakata-mani, and the foundation was made of marble. The entire palace was decorated with flags and garlands and bedecked with valuable stones, shining with a celestial effulgence. The palace was fully decorated with pearls and surrounded by lamps and incense. The men and women within the palace all resembled demigods and were decorated with various ornaments, which seemed beautiful because of being placed on their bodies.
35. Lord Ramacandra, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, chief of the best learned scholars, resided in that palace with His pleasure potency, mother Sita, and enjoyed complete peace.
36. Without transgressing the religious principles, Lord Ramacandra, whose lotus feet are worshiped by devotees in meditation, enjoyed with all the paraphernalia of transcendental pleasure for as long as needed.
Chapter Twelve The Dynasty of Kusa, the Son of Lord Ramacandra
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: The son of Ramacandra was Kusa, the son of Kusa was Atithi, the son of Atithi was Nisadha, and the son of Nisadha was Nabha. The son of Nabha was Pundarika, and from Pundarika came a son named Ksemadhanva.
2. The son of Ksemadhanva was Devanika, Devanika's son was Aniha, Aniha's son was Pariyatra, and Pariyatra's son was Balasthala. The son of Balasthala was Vajranabha, who was said to have been born from the effulgence of the sun-god.
3-4. The son of Vajranabha was Sagana, and his son was Vidhrti. The son of Vidhrti was Hiranyanabha, who became a disciple of Jaimini and became a great acarya of mystic yoga. It is from Hiranyanabha that the great saint Yajnavalkya learned the highly elevated system of mystic yoga known as adhyatma-yoga, which can loosen the knots of material attachment in the heart.
5. The son of Hiranyanabha was Puspa, and the son of Puspa was Dhruvasandhi. The son of Dhruvasandhi was Sudarsana, whose son was Agnivarna. The son of Agnivarna was named Sighra, and his son was Maru.
6. Having achieved perfection in the power of mystic yoga, Maru still lives in a place known as Kalapa-grama. At the end of Kali-yuga, he will revive the lost Surya dynasty by begetting a son.
7. From Maru was born a son named Prasusruta, from Prasusruta came Sandhi, from Sandhi came Amarsana, and from Amarsana a son named Mahasvan. From Mahasvan, Visvabahu took his birth.
8. From Visvabahu came a son named Prasenajit, from Prasenajit came Taksaka, and from Taksaka came Brhadbala, who was killed in a fight by your father.
9. All these kings in the dynasty of Iksvaku have passed away. Now please listen as I describe the kings who will be born in the future. From Brhadbala will come Brhadrana.
10. The son of Brhadrana will be Urukriya, who will have a son named Vatsavrddha. Vatsavrddha will have a son named Prativyoma, and Prativyoma will have a son named Bhanu, from whom Divaka, a great commander of soldiers, will take birth.
11. Thereafter, from Divaka will come a son named Sahadeva, and from Sahadeva a great hero named Brhadasva. From Brhadasva will come Bhanuman, and from Bhanuman will come Pratikasva. The son of Pratikasva will be Supratika.
12. Thereafter, from Supratika will come Marudeva; from Marudeva, Sunaksatra; from Sunaksatra, Puskara; and from Puskara, Antariksa. The son of Antariksa will be Sutapa, and his son will be Amitrajit.
13. From Amitrajit will come a son named Brhadraja, from Brhadraja will come Barhi, and from Barhi will come Krtanjaya. The son of Krtanjaya will be known as Rananjaya, and from him will come a son named Sanjaya.
14. From Sanjaya will come Sakya, from Sakya will come Suddhoda, and from Suddhoda will come Langala. From Langala will come Prasenajit, and from Prasenajit, Ksudraka.
15. From Ksudraka will come Ranaka, from Ranaka will come Suratha, and from Suratha will come Sumitra, ending the dynasty. This is a description of the dynasty of Brhadbala.
16. The last king in the dynasty of Iksvaku will be Sumitra; after Sumitra there will be no more sons in the dynasty of the sun-god, and thus the dynasty will end.
Chapter Thirteen The Dynasty of Maharaja Nimi
1. Srila Sukadeva Gosvami said: After beginning sacrifices, Maharaja Nimi, the son of Iksvaku, requested the great sage Vasistha to take the post of chief priest. At that time, Vasistha replied, "My dear Maharaja Nimi, I have already accepted the same post in a sacrifice begun by Lord Indra.
2. "I shall return here after finishing the yajna for Indra. Kindly wait for me until then." Maharaja Nimi remained silent, and Vasistha began to perform the sacrifice for Lord Indra.
3. Maharaja Nimi, being a self-realized soul, considered that this life is flickering. Therefore, instead of waiting long for Vasistha, he began performing the sacrifice with other priests.
4. After completing the sacrificial performance for King Indra, the spiritual master Vasistha returned and found that his disciple Maharaja Nimi had disobeyed his instructions. Thus Vasistha cursed him, saying, "May the material body of Nimi, who considers himself learned, immediately fall."
5. For unnecessarily cursing him when he had committed no offense, Maharaja Nimi countercursed his spiritual master. "For the sake of getting contributions from the King of heaven," he said, "you have lost your religious intelligence. Therefore I pronounce this curse: your body also will fall."
6. After saying this, Maharaja Nimi, who was expert in the science of spiritual knowledge, gave up his body. Vasistha, the great-grandfather, gave up his body also, but through the semen discharged by Mitra and Varuna when they saw Urvasi, he was born again.
7. During the performance of the yajna, the body relinquished by Maharaja Nimi was preserved in fragrant substances, and at the end of the Satra-yaga the great saints and brahmanas made the following request to all the demigods assembled there.
8. "If you are satisfied with this sacrifice and if you are actually able to do so, kindly bring Maharaja Nimi back to life in this body." The demigods said yes to this request by the sages, but Maharaja Nimi said, "Please do not imprison me again in a material body."
9. Maharaja Nimi continued: Mayavadis generally want freedom from accepting a material body because they fear having to give it up again. But devotees whose intelligence is always filled with the service of the Lord are unafraid. Indeed, they take advantage of the body to render transcendental loving service.
10. I do not wish to accept a material body, for such a body is the source of all distress, lamentation and fear, everywhere in the universe, just as it is for a fish in the water, which lives always in anxiety because of fear of death.
11. The demigods said: Let Maharaja Nimi live without a material body. Let him live in a spiritual body as a personal associate of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and, according to his desire, let him be manifest or unmanifest to common materially embodied people.
12. Thereafter, to save the people from the danger of an unregulated government, the sages churned Maharaja Nimi's material body, from which, as a result, a son was born.
13. Because he was born in an unusual way, the son was called Janaka, and because he was born from the dead body of his father, he was known as Vaideha. Because he was born from the churning of his father's material body, he was known as Mithila, and because he constructed a city as King Mithila, the city was called Mithila.
14. O King Pariksit, from Mithila came a son named Udavasu; from Udavasu, Nandivardhana; from Nandivardhana, Suketu; and from Suketu, Devarata.
15. From Devarata came a son named Brhadratha and from Brhadratha a son named Mahavirya, who became the father of Sudhrti. The son of Sudhrti was known as Dhrstaketu, and from Dhrstaketu came Haryasva. From Haryasva came a son named Maru.
16. The son of Maru was Pratipaka, and the son of Pratipaka was Krtaratha. From Krtaratha came Devamidha; from Devamidha, Visruta; and from Visruta, Mahadhrti.
17. From Mahadhrti was born a son named Krtirata, from Krtirata was born Maharoma, from Maharoma came a son named Svamaroma, and from Svarnaroma came Hrasvaroma.
18. From Hrasvaroma came a son named Siradhvaja [also called Janaka]. When Siradhvaja was plowing a field, from the front of his plow [sim] appeared a daughter named Sitadevi, who later became the wife of Lord Ramacandra. Thus he was known as Simdhvaja.
19. The son of Siradhvaja was Kusadhvaja, and the son of Kusadhvaja was King Dharmadhvaja, who had two sons, namely Krtadhvaja and Mitadhvaja.
20-21. O Maharaja Pariksit, the son of Krtadhvaja was Kesidhvaja, and the son of Mitadhvaja was Khandikya. The son of Krtadhvaja was expert in spiritual knowledge, and the son of Mitadhvaja was expert in Vedic ritualistic ceremonies. Khandikya fled in fear of Kesidhvaja. The son of Kesidhvaja was Bhanuman, and the son of Bhanuman was Satadyumna.
22. The son of Satadyumna was named Suci. From Suci, Sanadvaja was born, and from Sanadvaja came a son named Urjaketu. The son of Urjaketu was Aja, and the son of Aja was Purujit.
23. The son of Purujit was Aristanemi, and his son was Srutayu. Srutayu begot a son named Suparsvaka, and Suparsvaka begot Citraratha. The son of Citraratha was Kremadhi, who became the king of Mithila.
24. The son of Ksemadhi was Samaratha, and his son was Satyaratha. The son of Satyaratha was Upaguru, and the son of Upaguru was Upagupta, a partial expansion of the fire-god.
25. The son of Upagupta was Vasvananta, the son of Vasvananta was Yuyudha, the son of Yuyudha was Subhasana, and the son of Subhasana was Sruta. The son of Sruta was Jaya, from whom there came Vijaya. The son of Vijaya was Rta.
26. The son of Rta was Sunaka, the son of Sunaka was Vitahavya, the son of Vitahavya was Dhrti, and the son of Dhrti was Bahulasva. The son of Bahulasva was Krti, and his son was Mahavasi.
27. Sukadeva Gosvami said: My dear King Pariksit, all the kings of the dynasty of Mithila were completely in knowledge of their spiritual identity. Therefore, even though staying at home, they were liberated from the duality of material existence.
Chapter Fourteen King Pururava Enchanted by Urvasi
1. Srila Sukadeva Gosvami said to Maharaja Pariksit: O King, thus far you have heard the description of the dynasty of the sun-god. Now hear the most glorious and purifying description of the dynasty of the moon-god. This description mentions kings like Aila [Pururava] of whom it is glorious to hear.
2. Lord Visnu [Garbhodakasayi Visnu] is also known as Sahasra-sirsa Purusa. From the lake of His navel sprang a lotus, on which Lord Brahma was generated. Atri, the son of Lord Brahma, was as qualified as his father.
3. From Atri's tears of jubilation was born a son named Soma, the moon, who was full of soothing rays. Lord Brahma appointed him the director of the brahmanas, drugs and luminaries.
4. After conquering the three worlds [the upper, middle and lower planetary systems], Soma, the moon-god, performed a great sacrifice known as the Rajasuya-yajna. Because he was very much puffed up, he forcibly kidnapped Brhaspati's wife, whose name was Tara.
5. Although requested again and again by Brhaspati, the spiritual master of the demigods, Soma did not return Tara. This was due to his false pride. Consequently, a fight ensued between the demigods and the demons.
6. Because of enmity between Brhaspati and Sukra, Sukra took the side of the moon-god and was joined by the demons. But Lord Siva, because of affection for the son of his spiritual master, joined the side of Brhaspati and was accompanied by all the ghosts and hobgoblins.
7. King Indra, accompanied by all kinds of demigods, joined the side of Brhaspati. Thus there was a great fight, destroying both demons and demigods, only for the sake of Tara, Brhaspati's wife.
8. When Lord Brahma was fully informed by Angira about the entire incident, he severely chastised the moon-god, Soma. Thus Lord Brahma delivered Tara to her husband, who could then understand that she was pregnant.
9. Brhaspati said: You foolish woman, your womb, which was meant for me to impregnate, has been impregnated by someone other than me. Immediately deliver your child! Immediately deliver it! Be assured that after the child is delivered, I shall not burn you to ashes. I know that although you are unchaste, you wanted a son. Therefore I shall not punish you.
10. Sukadeva Gosvami continued: By Brhaspati's order, Tara, who was very much ashamed, immediately gave birth to the child, who was very beautiful, with a golden bodily hue. Both Brhaspati and the moon-god, Soma, desired the beautiful child.
11. Fighting again broke out between Brhaspati and the moon-god, both of whom claimed, "This is my child, not yours!" All the saints and demigods present asked Tara whose child the newborn baby actually was, but because she was ashamed she could not immediately answer.
12. The child then became very angry and demanded that his mother immediately tell the truth. "You unchaste woman," he said, "what is the use of your unnecessary shame? Why do you not admit your fault? Immediately tell me about your faulty behavior."
13. Lord Brahma then brought Tara to a secluded place, and after pacifying her he asked to whom the child actually belonged. She replied very slowly, "This is the son of Soma, the moon-god." Then the moon-god immediately took charge of the child.
14. O Maharaja Pariksit, when Lord Brahma saw that the child was deeply intelligent, he gave the child the name Budha. The moon-god, the ruler of the stars, enjoyed great jubilation because of this son.
15-16. Thereafter, from Budha, through the womb of Ila, a son was born named Pururava, who was described in the beginning of the Ninth Canto. When his beauty, personal qualities, magnanimity, behavior, wealth and power were described by Narada in the court of Lord Indra, the celestial woman Urvasi was attracted to him. Pierced by the arrow of Cupid, she thus approached him.
17-18. Having been cursed by Mitra and Varuna, the celestial woman Urvasi had acquired the habits of a human being. Therefore, upon seeing Pururava, the best of males, whose beauty resembled that of Cupid, she controlled herself and then approached him. When King Pururava saw Urvasi, his eyes became jubilant in the ecstasy of joy, and the hairs on his body stood on end. With mild, pleasing words, he spoke to her as follows.
19. King Pururava said: O most beautiful woman, you are welcome. Please sit here and tell me what I can do for you. You may enjoy with me as long as you desire. Let us pass our life happily in a sexual relationship.
20. Urvasi replied: O most handsome man, who is the woman whose mind and sight would not be attracted by you? If a woman takes shelter of your chest, she cannot refuse to enjoy with you in a sexual relationship.
21. My dear King Pururava, please give protection to these two lambs, who have fallen down with me. Although I belong to the heavenly planets and you belong to earth, I shall certainly enjoy sexual union with you. I have no objection to accepting you as my husband, for you are superior in every respect.
22. Urvasi said: "My dear hero, only preparations made in ghee [clarified butter] will be my eatables, and I shall not want to see you naked at any time, except at the time of sexual intercourse." The great-minded King Pururava accepted these proposals.
23. Pururava replied: O beautiful one, your beauty is wonderful and your gestures are also wonderful. Indeed, you are attractive to all human society. Therefore, since you have come of your own accord from the heavenly planets, who on earth would not agree to serve a demigoddess such as you.
24. Sukadeva Gosvami continued: The best of human beings, Pururava, began freely enjoying the company of Urvasi, who engaged in sexual activities with him in many celestial places, such as Caitraratha and Nandana-kanana, where the demigods enjoy.
25. Urvasi's body was as fragrant as the saffron of a lotus. Being enlivened by the fragrance of her face and body, Pururava enjoyed her company for many days with great jubilation.
26. Not seeing Urvasi in his assembly, the King of heaven, Lord Indra, said, "Without Urvasi my assembly is no longer beautiful." Considering this, he requested the Gandharvas to bring her back to his heavenly planet.
27. Thus the Gandharvas came to earth, and at midnight, when everything was dark, they appeared in the house of Pururava and stole the two lambs entrusted to the King by his wife, Urvasi.
28. Urvasi treated the two lambs like her own sons. Therefore, when they were being taken by the Gandharvas and began crying, Urvasi heard them and rebuked her husband. "Now I am being killed," she said, "under the protection of an unworthy husband, who is a coward and a eunuch although he thinks himself a great hero.
29. "Because I depended on him, the plunderers have deprived me of my two sons the lambs, and therefore I am now lost. My husband lies down at night in fear, exactly like a woman, although he appears to be a man during the day."
30. Pururava, stricken by the sharp words of Urvasi like an elephant struck by its driver's pointed rod, became very angry. Not even dressing himself properly, he took a sword in hand and went out naked into the night to follow the Gandharvas who had stolen the lambs.
31. After giving up the two lambs, the Gandharvas shone brightly like lightning, thus illuminating the house of Pururava. Urvasi then saw her husband returning with the lambs in hand, but he was naked, and therefore she left.
32. No longer seeing Urvasi on his bed, Pururava was most aggrieved. Because of his great attraction for her, he was very much disturbed. Thus, lamenting, he began traveling about the earth like a madman.
33. Once during his travels all over the world, Pururava saw Urvasi, accompanied by five companions, on the bank of the Sarasvati at Kuruksetra. With jubilation in his face, he then spoke to her in sweet words as follows.
34. O my dear wife, O most cruel one, kindly stay, kindly stay. I know that I have never made you happy until now, but you should not give me up for that reason. This is not proper for you. Even if you have decided to give up my company, let us nonetheless talk for some time.
35. O goddess, now that you have refused me, my beautiful body will fall down here, and because it is unsuitable for your pleasure, it will be eaten by foxes and vultures.
36. Urvasi said: My dear King, you are a man, a hero. Don't be impatient and give up your life. Be sober and don't allow the senses to overcome you like foxes. Don't let the foxes eat you. In other words, you should not be controlled by your senses. Rather, you should know that the heart of a woman is like that of a fox. There is no use making friendship with women.
37. Women as a class are merciless and cunning. They cannot tolerate even a slight offense. For their own pleasure they can do anything irreligious, and therefore they do not fear killing even a faithful husband or brother.
38. Women are very easily seduced by men. Therefore, polluted women give up the friendship of a man who is their well-wisher and establish false friendship among fools. Indeed, they seek newer and newer friends, one after another.
39. O my dear King, you will be able to enjoy with me as my husband at the end of every year, for one night only. In this way you will have other children, one after another.
40. Understanding that Urvasi was pregnant, Pururava returned to his palace. At the end of the year, there at Kuruksetra, he again obtained the association of Urvasi, who was then the mother of a heroic son.
41. Having regained Urvasi at the end of the year, King Pururava was most jubilant, and he enjoyed her company in sex for one night. But then he was very sorry at the thought of separation from her, so Urvasi spoke to him as follows.
42. Urvasi said: "My dear King, seek shelter of the Gandharvas, for they will be able to deliver me to you again." In accordance with these words, the King satisfied the Gandharvas by prayers, and the Gandharvas, being pleased with him, gave him an Agnisthali girl who looked exactly like Urvasi. Thinking that the girl was Urvasi, the King began walking with her in the forest, but later he could understand that she was not Urvasi but Agnisthali.
43. King Pururava then left Agnisthali in the forest and returned home, where he meditated all night upon Urvasi. In the course of his meditation, the Treta millennium began, and therefore the principles of the three Vedas, including the process of performing yajna to fulfill fruitive activities, appeared within his heart.
44-45. When the process of fruitive yajna became manifest within his heart, King Pururava went to the same spot where he had left Agnisthali. There he saw that from the womb of a sami tree, an asvattha tree had grown. He then took a piece of wood from that tree and made it into two aranis. Desiring to go to the planet where Urvasi resided, he chanted mantras, meditating upon the lower arani as Urvasi, the upper one as himself, and the piece of wood between them as his son. In this way he began to ignite a fire.
46. From Pururava's rubbing of the aranis came a fire. By such a fire one can achieve all success in material enjoyment and be purified in seminal birth, initiation and in the performance of sacrifice, which are invoked with the combined letters a-u-m. Thus the fire was considered the son of King Pururava.
47. By means of that fire, Pururava, who desired to go to the planet where Urvasi resided, performed a sacrifice, by which he satisfied the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, the enjoyer of the results of sacrifice. Thus he worshiped the Lord, who is beyond the perception of the senses and is the reservoir of all the demigods.
48. In the Satya-yuga, the first millennium, all the Vedic mantras were included in one mantra--pranava, the root of all Vedic mantras. In other words, the Atharva Veda alone was the source of all Vedic knowledge. The Supreme Personality of Godhead Narayana was the only worshipable Deity; there was no recommendation for worship of the demigods. Fire was one only, and the only order of life in human society was known as hamsa.
49. O Maharaja Pariksit, at the beginning of Treta-yuga, King Pururava inaugurated a karma-kanda sacrifice. Thus Pururava, who considered the yajnic fire his son, was able to go to Gandharvaloka as he desired.
Chapter Fifteen Parasurama, the Lord's Warrior Incarnation
1. Sukadeva Gosvami continued: O King Pariksit, from the womb of Urvasi, six sons were generated by Pururava. Their names were Ayu, Srutayu, Satyayu, Raya, Vijaya and Jaya.
2-3. The son of Srutayu was Vasuman; the son of Satyayu, Srutanjaya; the son of Raya, Eka; the son of Jaya, Amita; and the son of Vijaya, Bhima. The son of Bhima was Kancana; the son of Kancana was Hotraka; and the son of Hotraka was Jahnu, who drank all the water of the Ganges in one sip.
4. The son of Jahnu was Puru, the son of Puru was Balaka, the son of Balaka was Ajaka, and the son of Ajaka was Kusa. Kusa had four sons, named Kusambu, Tanaya, Vasu and Kusanabha. The son of Kusambu was Gadhi.
5-6. King Gadhi had a daughter named Satyavati, whom a brahmana sage named Rcika requested from the King to be his wife. King Gadhi, however, regarded Rcika as an unfit husband for his daughter, and therefore he told the brahmana, "My dear sir, I belong to the dynasty of Kusa. Because we are aristocratic ksatriyas, you have to give some dowry for my daughter. Therefore, bring at least one thousand horses, each as brilliant as moonshine and each having one black ear, whether right or left."
7. When King Gadhi made this demand, the great sage Rcika could understand the King's mind. Therefore he went to the demigod Varuna and brought from him the one thousand horses that Gadhi had demanded. After delivering these horses, the sage married the King's beautiful daughter.
8. Thereafter, Rcika Muni's wife and mother-in-law, each desiring a son, requested the Muni to prepare an oblation. Thus Rcika Muni prepared one oblation for his wife with a brahmana mantra and another for his mother-in-law with a ksatriya mantra. Then he went out to bathe.
9. Meanwhile, because Satyavati's mother thought that the oblation prepared for her daughter, Rcika's wife, must be better, she asked her daughter for that oblation. Satyavati therefore gave her own oblation to her mother and ate her mother's oblation herself.
10. When the great sage Rcika returned home after bathing and understood what had happened in his absence, he said to his wife, Satyavati, "You have done a great wrong. Your son will be a fierce ksatriya, able to punish everyone, and your brother will be a learned scholar in spiritual science."
11. Satyavati, however, pacified Rcika Muni with peaceful words and requested that her son not be like a fierce ksatriya. Rcika Muni replied, "Then your grandson will be of a ksatriya spirit." Thus Jamadagni was born as the son of Satyavati.
12-13. Satyavati later became the sacred river Kausiki to purify the entire world, and her son, Jamadagni, married Renuka, the daughter of Renu. By the semen of Jamadagni, many sons, headed by Vasuman, were born from the womb of Renuka. The youngest of them was named Rama, or Parasurama.
14. Learned scholars accept this Parasurama as the celebrated incarnation of Vasudeva who annihilated the dynasty of Kartavirya. Parasurama killed all the ksatriyas on earth twenty-one times.
15. When the royal dynasty, being excessively proud because of the material modes of passion and ignorance, became irreligious and ceased to care for the laws enacted by the brahmanas, Parasurama killed them. Although their offense was not very severe, he killed them to lessen the burden of the world.
16. King Pariksit inquired from Sukadeva Gosvami: What was the offense that the ksatriyas who could not control their senses committed before Lord Parasurama, the incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, for which the Lord annihilated the ksatriya dynasty again and again?
17-19. Sukadeva Gosvami said: The best of the ksatriyas, Kartaviryarjuna, the King of the Haihayas, received one thousand arms by worshiping Dattatreya, the plenary expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Narayana. He also became undefeatable by enemies and received unobstructed sensory power, beauty, influence, strength, fame and the mystic power by which to achieve all the perfections of yoga, such as anima and laghima. Thus having become fully opulent, he roamed all over the universe without opposition, just like the wind.
20. Once while enjoying in the water of the River Narmada, the puffed-up Kartaviryarjuna, surrounded by beautiful women and garlanded with a garland of victory, stopped the flow of the water with his arms.
21. Because Kartaviryarjuna made the water flow in the opposite direction, the camp of Ravana, which was set up on the bank of the Narmada near the city of Mahismati, was inundated. This was unbearable to the ten-headed Ravana, who considered himself a great hero and could not tolerate Kartaviryarjuna's power.
22. When Ravana attempted to insult Kartaviryarjuna in the presence of the women and thus offended him, Kartaviryarjuna easily arrested Ravana and put him in custody in the city of Mahismati, just as one captures a monkey, and then released him neglectfully.
23. Once while Kartaviryarjuna was wandering unengaged in a solitary forest and hunting, he approached the residence of Jamadagni.
24. The sage Jamadagni, who was engaged in great austerities in the forest, received the King very well, along with the King's soldiers, ministers and carriers. He supplied all the necessities to worship these guests, for he possessed a kamadhenu cow that was able to supply everything.
25. Kartaviryarjuna thought that Jamadagni was more powerful and wealthy than himself because of possessing a jewel in the form of the kamadhenu. Therefore he and his own men, the Haihayas, were not very much appreciative of Jamadagni's reception. On the contrary, they wanted to possess that kamadhenu, which was useful for the execution of the agnihotra sacrifice.
26. Being puffed up by material power, Kartaviryarjuna encouraged his men to steal Jamadagni's kamadhenu. Thus the men forcibly took away the crying kamadhenu, along with her calf, to Mahismati, Kartaviryarjuna's capital.
27. Thereafter, Kartaviryarjuna having left with the kamadhenu, Parasurama returned to the asrama. When Parasurama, the youngest son of Jamadagni, heard about Kartaviryarjuna's nefarious deed, he became as angry as a trampled snake.
28. Taking up his fierce chopper, his shield, his bow and a quiver of arrows, Lord Parasurama, exceedingly angry, chased Kartaviryarjuna just as a lion chases an elephant.
29. As King Kartaviryarjuna entered his capital, Mahismati Puri, he saw Lord Parasurama, the best of the Bhrgu dynasty, coming after him, holding a chopper, shield, bow and arrows. Lord Parasurama was covered with a black deerskin, and his matted locks of hair appeared like the sunshine.
30. Upon seeing Parasurama, Kartaviryarjuna immediately feared him and sent many elephants, chariots, horses and infantry soldiers equipped with clubs, swords, arrows, rstis, sataghnis, saktis, and many similar weapons to fight against him. Kartaviryarjuna sent seventeen full aksauhinis of soldiers to check Parasurama. But Lord Parasurama alone killed all of them.
31. Lord Parasurama, being expert in killing the military strength of the enemy, worked with the speed of the mind and the wind, slicing his enemies with his chopper [parasu]. Wherever he went, the enemies fell, their legs, arms and shoulders being severed, their chariot drivers killed, and their carriers, the elephants and horses all annihilated.
32. By manipulating his axe and arrows, Lord Parasurama cut to pieces the shields, flags, bows and bodies of Kartaviryarjuna's soldiers, who fell on the battlefield, muddying the ground with their blood. Seeing these reverses, Kartaviryarjuna, infuriated, rushed to the battlefield.
33. Then Kartaviryarjuna, with his one thousand arms, simultaneously fixed arrows on five hundred bows to kill Lord Parasurama. But Lord Parasurama, the best of fighters, released enough arrows with only one bow to cut to pieces immediately all the arrows and bows in the hands of Kartaviryarjuna.
34. When his arrows were cut to pieces, Kartaviryarjuna uprooted many trees and hills with his own hands and again rushed strongly toward Lord Parasurama to kill him. But Parasurama then used his axe with great force to cut off Kartaviryarjuna's arms, just as one might lop off the hoods of a serpent.
35-36. Thereafter, Parasurama cut off like a mountain peak the head of Kartaviryarjuna, who had already lost his arms. When Kartaviryarjuna's ten thousand sons saw their father killed, they all fled in fear. Then Parasurama, having killed the enemy, released the kamadhenu, which had undergone great suffering, and brought it back with its calf to his residence, where he gave it to his father, Jamadagni.
37. Parasurama described to his father and brothers his activities in killing Kartaviryarjuna. Upon hearing of these deeds, Jamadagni spoke to his son as follows.
38. O great hero, my dear son Parasurama, you have unnecessarily killed the king, who is supposed to be the embodiment of all the demigods. Thus you have committed a sin.
39. My dear son, we are all brahmanas and have become worshipable for the people in general because of our quality of forgiveness. It is because of this quality that Lord Brahma, the supreme spiritual master of this universe, has achieved his post.
40. The duty of a brahmana is to culture the quality of forgiveness, which is illuminating like the sun. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, is pleased with those who are forgiving.
41. My dear son, killing a king who is an emperor is more severely sinful than killing a brahmana. But now, if you become Krsna conscious and worship the holy places, you can atone for this great sin.
Chapter Sixteen Lord Parasurama Destroys the World's Ruling Class
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: My dear Maharaja Pariksit, son of the Kuru dynasty, when Lord Parasurama was given this order by his father, he immediately agreed, saying, "Let it be so." For one complete year he traveled to holy places. Then he returned to his father's residence.
2. Once when Renuka, the wife of Jamadagni, went to the bank of the Ganges to get water, she saw the King of the Gandharvas, decorated with a garland of lotuses and sporting in the Ganges with celestial women [Apsaras].
3. She had gone to bring water from the Ganges, but when she saw Citraratha, the King of the Gandharvas, sporting with the celestial girls, she was somewhat inclined toward him and failed to remember that the time for the fire sacrifice was passing.
4. Later, understanding that the time for offering the sacrifice had passed, Renuka feared a curse from her husband. Therefore when she returned she simply put the waterpot before him and stood there with folded hands.
5. The great sage Jamadagni understood the adultery in the mind of his wife. Therefore he was very angry and told his sons, "My dear sons, kill this sinful woman!" But the sons did not carry out his order.
6. Jamadagni then ordered his youngest son, Parasurama, to kill his brothers, who had disobeyed this order, and his mother, who had mentally committed adultery. Lord Parasurama, knowing the power of his father, who was practiced in meditation and austerity, killed his mother and brothers immediately.
7. Jamadagni, the son of Satyavati, was very much pleased with Parasurama and asked him to take any benediction he liked. Lord Parasurama replied, "Let my mother and brothers live again and not remember having been killed by me. This is the benediction I ask."
8. Thereafter, by the benediction of Jamadagni, Lord Parasurama's mother and brothers immediately came alive and were very happy, as if awakened from sound sleep. Lord Parasurama had killed his relatives in accordance with his father's order because he was fully aware of his father's power, austerity and learning.
9. My dear King Pariksit, the sons of Kartaviryarjuna, who were defeated by the superior strength of Parasurama, never achieved happiness, for they always remembered the killing of their father.
10. Once when Parasurama left the asrama for the forest with Vasuman and his other brothers, the sons of Kartaviryarjuna took the opportunity to approach Jamadagni's residence to seek vengeance for their grudge.
11. The sons of Kartaviryarjuna were determined to commit sinful deeds. Therefore when they saw Jamadagni sitting by the side of the fire to perform yajna and meditating upon the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is praised by the best of selected prayers, they took the opportunity to kill him.
12. With pitiable prayers, Renuka, the mother of Parasurama and wife of Jamadagni, begged for the life of her husband. But the sons of Kartaviryarjuna, being devoid of the qualities of ksatriyas, were so cruel that despite her prayers they forcibly cut off his head and took it away.
13. Lamenting in grief for the death of her husband, the most chaste Renuka struck her own body with her hands and cried very loudly, "O Rama, my dear son Rama!"
14. Although the sons of Jamadagni, including Lord Parasurama, were a long distance from home, as soon as they heard Renuka loudly calling "O Rama, O my son," they hastily returned to the asrama, where they saw their father already killed.
15. Virtually bewildered by grief, anger, indignation, affliction and lamentation, the sons of Jamadagni cried, "O father, most religious, saintly person, you have left us and gone to the heavenly planets !"
16. Thus lamenting, Lord Parasurama entrusted his father's dead body to his brothers and personally took up his axe, having decided to put an end to all the ksatriyas on the surface of the world.
17. O King, Lord Parasurama then went to Mahismati, which was already doomed by the sinful killing of a brahmana. In the midst of that city he made a mountain of heads, severed from the bodies of the sons of Kartaviryarjuna.
18-19. With the blood of the bodies of these sons, Lord Parasurama created a ghastly river, which brought great fear to the kings who had no respect for brahminical culture. Because the ksatriyas, the men of power in government, were performing sinful activities, Lord Parasurama, on the plea of retaliating for the murder of his father, rid all the ksatriyas from the face of the earth twenty-one times. Indeed, in the place known as Samanta-pancaka he created nine lakes filled with their blood.
20. Thereafter, Parasurama joined his father's head to the dead body and placed the whole body and head upon kusa grass. By offering sacrifices, he began to worship Lord Vasudeva, who is the all-pervading Supersoul of all the demigods and of every living entity.
21-22. After completing the sacrifice, Lord Parasurama gave the eastern direction to the hota as a gift, the south to the brahma, the west to the adhvaryu, the north to the udgata, and the four corners--northeast, southeast, northwest and southwest--to the other priests. He gave the middle to Kasyapa and the place known as Aryavarta to the upadrasta. Whatever remained he distributed among the sadasyas, the associate priests.
23. Thereafter, having completed the ritualistic sacrificial ceremonies, Lord Parasurama took the bath known as the avabhrtha-snana. Standing on the bank of the great river Sarasvati, cleared of all sins, Lord Parasurama appeared like the sun in a clear, cloudless sky.
24. Thus Jamadagni, being worshiped by Lord Parasurama, was brought back to life with full remembrance, and he became one of the seven sages in the group of seven stars.
25. My dear King Pariksit, in the next manvantara the lotus-eyed Personality of Godhead Lord Parasurama, the son of Jamadagni, will be a great propounder of Vedic knowledge. In other words, he will be one of the seven sages.
26. Lord Parasurama still lives as an intelligent brahmana in the mountainous country known as Mahendra. Completely satisfied, having given up all the weapons of a ksatriya, he is always worshiped, adored and offered prayers for his exalted character and activities by such celestial beings as the Siddhas, Caranas and Gandharvas.
27. In this way the supreme soul, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Lord and the supreme controller, descended as an incarnation in the Bhrgu dynasty and released the universe from the burden of undesirable kings by killing them many times.
28. Visvamitra, the son of Maharaja Gadhi, was as powerful as the flames of fire. From the position of a ksatriya, he achieved the position of a powerful brahmana by undergoing penances and austerities.
29. O King Pariksit, Visvamitra had 101 sons, of whom the middle one was known as Madhucchanda. In relation to him, all the other sons were celebrated as the Madhucchandas.
30. Visvamitra accepted the son of Ajigarta known as Sunahsepha, who was born in the Bhrgu dynasty and was also known as Devarata, as one of his own sons. Visvamitra ordered his other sons to accept Sunahsepha as their eldest brother.
31. Sunahsepha's father sold Sunahsepha to be sacrificed as a man-animal in the yajna of King Hariscandra. When Sunahsepha was brought into the sacrificial arena, he prayed to the demigods for release and was released by their mercy.
32. Although Sunahsepha was born in the Bhargava dynasty, he was greatly advanced in spiritual life, and therefore the demigods involved in the sacrifice protected him. Consequently he was also celebrated as the descendant of Gadhi named Devarata.
33. When requested by their father to accept Sunahsepha as the eldest son, the elder fifty of the Madhucchandas, the sons of Visvamitra, did not agree. Therefore Visvamitra, being angry, cursed them. "May all of you bad sons become mlecchas," he said, "being opposed to the principles of Vedic culture."
34. When the elder Madhucchandas were cursed, the younger fifty, along with Madhucchanda himself, approached their father and agreed to accept his proposal. "Dear father," they said, "we shall abide by whatever arrangement you like."
35. Thus the younger Madhucchandas accepted Sunahsepha as their eldest brother and told him, "We shall follow your orders." Visvamitra then said to his obedient sons, "Because you have accepted Sunahsepha as your eldest brother, I am very satisfied. By accepting my order, you have made me a father of worthy sons, and therefore I bless all of you to become the fathers of sons also."
36. Visvamitra said, "O Kusikas [descendants of Kausika], this Devarata is my son and is one of you. Please obey his orders." O King Pariksit, Visvamitra had many other sons, such as Astaka, Harita, Jaya and Kratuman.
37. Visvamitra cursed some of his sons and blessed the others, and he also adopted a son. Thus there were varieties in the Kausika dynasty, but among all the sons, Devarata was considered the eldest.
Chapter Seventeen The Dynasties of the Sons of Pururava
1-3. Sukadeva Gosvami said: From Pururava came a son named Ayu, whose very powerful sons were Nahusa, Ksatravrddha, Raji, Rabha and Anena. O Maharaja Pariksit, now hear about the dynasty of Ksatravrddha. Ksatravrddha's son was Suhotra, who had three sons, named Kasya, Kusa and Grtsamada. From Grtsamada came Sunaka, and from him came Saunaka, the great saint, the best of those conversant with the Rg Veda.
4. The son of Kasya was Kasi, and his son was Rastra, the father of Dirghatama. Dirghatama had a son named Dhanvantari, who was the inaugurator of the medical science and an incarnation of Lord Vasudeva, the enjoyer of the results of sacrifices. One who remembers the name of Dhanvantari can be released from all disease.
5. The son of Dhanvantari was Ketuman, and his son was Bhimaratha. The son of Bhimaratha was Divodasa, and the son of Divodasa was Dyuman, also known as Pratardana.
6. Dyuman was also known as Satrujit, Vatsa, Rtadhvaja and Kuvalayasva. From him were born Alarka and other sons.
7. Alarka, the son of Dyuman, reigned over the earth for sixty-six thousand years, my dear King Pariksit. No one other than him has reigned over the earth for so long as a young man.
8. From Alarka came a son named Santati, and his son was Sunitha. The son of Sunitha was Niketana, the son of Niketana was Dharmaketu, and the son of Dharmaketu was Satyaketu.
9. O King Pariksit, from Satyaketu came a son named Dhrstaketu, and from Dhrstaketu came Sukumara, the emperor of the entire world. From Sukumara came a son named Vitihotra; from Vitihotra, Bharga; and from Bharga, Bhargabhumi.
10. O Maharaja Pariksit, all of these kings were descendants of Kasi, and they could also be called descendants of Ksatravrddha. The son of Rabha was Rabhasa, from Rabhasa came Gambhira, and from Gambhira came a son named Akriya.
11. The son of Akriya was known as Brahmavit, O King. Now hear about the descendants of Anena. From Anena came a son named Suddha, and his son was Suci. The son of Suci was Dharmasarathi, also called Citrakrt.
12. From Citrakrt was born a son named Santaraja, a self-realized soul who performed all kinds of Vedic ritualistic ceremonies and therefore did not beget any progeny. The sons of Raji were five hundred, all very powerful.
13. On the request of the demigods, Raji killed the demons and thus returned the kingdom of heaven to Lord Indra. But Indra, fearing such demons as Prahlada, returned the kingdom of heaven to Raji and surrendered himself at Raji's lotus feet.
14. Upon Raji's death, Indra begged Raji's sons for the return of the heavenly planet. They did not return it, however, although they agreed to return Indra's shares in ritualistic ceremonies.
15. Thereafter, Brhaspati, the spiritual master of the demigods, offered oblations in the fire so that the sons of Raji would fall from moral principles. When they fell, Lord Indra killed them easily because of their degradation. Not a single one of them remained alive.
16. From Kusa, the grandson of Ksatravrddha, was born a son named Prati. The son of Prati was Sanjaya, and the son of Sanjaya was Jaya. From Jaya, Krta was born, and from Krta, King Haryabala.
17. From Haryabala came a son named Sahadeva, and from Sahadeva came Hina. The son of Hina was Jayasena, and the son of Jayasena was Sankrti. The son of Sankrti was the powerful and expert fighter named Jaya. These kings were the members of the Ksatravrddha dynasty. Now let me describe to you the dynasty of Nahusa.
Chapter Eighteen King Yayati Regains His Youth
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: O King Pariksit, as the embodied soul has six senses, King Nahusa had six sons, named Yati, Yayati, Samyati, Ayati, Viyati and Krti.
2. When one enters the post of king or head of the government, one cannot understand the meaning of self-realization. Knowing this, Yati, the eldest son of Nahusa, did not accept the power to rule, although it was offered by his father.
3. Because Nahusa, the father of Yayati, molested Indra's wife, Saci, who then complained to Agastya and other brahmanas, these saintly brahmanas cursed Nabusa to fall from the heavenly planets and be degraded to the status of a python. Consequently, Yayati became the king.
4. King Yayati had four younger brothers, whom he allowed to rule the four directions. Yayati himself married Devayani, the daughter of Sukracarya, and Sarmistha, the daughter of Vrsaparva, and ruled the entire earth.
5. Maharaja Pariksit said: Sukracarya was a very powerful brahmana, and Maharaja Yayati was a ksatriya. Therefore I am curious to know how there occurred this pratiloma marriage between a ksatriya and a brahmana.
6-7. Sukadeva Gosvami said: One day Vrsaparva's daughter Sarmistha, who was innocent but angry by nature, was walking with Devayani, the daughter of Sukracarya, and with thousands of friends, in the palace garden. The garden was full of lotuses and trees of flowers and fruits and was inhabited by sweetly singing birds and bumblebees.
8. When the young, lotus-eyed girls came to the bank of a reservoir of water, they wanted to enjoy by bathing. Thus they left their clothing on the bank and began sporting, throwing water on one another.
9. While sporting in the water, the girls suddenly saw Lord Siva passing by, seated on the back of his bull with his wife, Parvati. Ashamed because they were naked, the girls quickly got out of the water and covered themselves with their garments.
10. Sarmistha unknowingly put Devayani's dress on her own body, thus angering Devayani, who then spoke as follows.
11. Oh, just see the activities of this servant-maid Sarmistha! Disregarding all etiquette, she has put on my dress, just like a dog snatching clarified butter meant for use in a sacrifice.
12-14. We are among the qualified brahmanas, who are accepted as the face of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The brahmanas have created the entire universe by their austerity, and they always keep the Absolute Truth within the core of their hearts. They have directed the path of good fortune, the path of Vedic civilization, and because they are the only worshipable objects within this world, they are offered prayers and worshiped even by the great demigods, the directors of the various planets, and even by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Supersoul, the supreme purifier, the husband of the goddess of fortune. And we are even more respectable because we are in the dynasty of Bhrgu. Yet although this woman's father, being among the demons, is our disciple, she has put on my dress, exactly like a sudra taking charge of Vedic knowledge.
15. Sukadeva Gosvami said: When thus rebuked in cruel words, Sarmistha was very angry. Breathing heavily like a serpent and biting her lower lip with her teeth, she spoke to the daughter of Sukracarya as follows.
16. You beggar, since you don't understand your position, why should you unnecessarily talk so much? Don't all of you wait at our house, depending on us for your livelihood like crows?
17. Using such unkind words, Sarmistha rebuked Devayani, the daughter of Sukracarya. In anger, she took away Devayani's garments and threw Devayani into a well.
18. After throwing Devayani into the well, Sarmistha went home. Meanwhile, King Yayati, while engaged in a hunting excursion, went to the well to drink water and by chance saw Devayani.
19. Seeing Devayani naked in the well, King Yayati immediately gave her his upper cloth. Being very kind to her, he caught her hand with his own and lifted her out.
20-21. With words saturated with love and affection, Devayani said to King Yayati: O great hero, O King, conqueror of the cities of your enemies, by accepting my hand you have accepted me as your married wife. Let me not be touched by others, for our relationship as husband and wife has been made possible by providence, not by any human being.
22. Because of falling in the well, I met you. Indeed, this has been arranged by providence. After I cursed Kaca, the son of the learned scholar Brhaspati, he cursed me by saying that I would not have a brahmana for a husband. Therefore, O mighty-armed one, there is no possibility of my becoming the wife of a brahmana.
23. Sukadeva Gosvami continued: Because such a marriage is not sanctioned by regular scriptures, King Yayati did not like it, but because it was arranged by providence and because he was attracted by Devayani's beauty, he accepted her request.
24. Thereafter, when the learned King returned to his palace, Devayani returned home crying and told her father, Sukracarya, about all that had happened because of Sarmistha. She told how she had been thrown into the well but was saved by the King.
25. As Sukracarya listened to what had happened to Devayani, his mind was very much aggrieved. Condemning the profession of priesthood and praising the profession of uncha-vrtti [collecting grains from the fields], he left home with his daughter.
26. King Vrsaparva understood that Sukracarya was coming to chastise or curse him. Consequently, before Sukracarya came to his house, Vrsaparva went out and fell down in the street at the feet of his guru and satisfied him, checking his wrath.
27. The powerful Sukracarya was angry for a few moments, but upon being satisfied he said to Vrsaparva: My dear King, kindly fulfill the desire of Devayani, for she is my daughter and in this world I cannot give her up or neglect her.
28. After hearing Sukracarya's request, Vrsaparva agreed to fulfill Devayani's desire, and he awaited her words. Devayani then expressed her desire as follows: "Whenever I marry by the order of my father, my friend Sarmistha must go with me as my maidservant, along with her friends."
29. Vrsaparva wisely thought that Sukracarya's displeasure would bring danger and that his pleasure would bring material gain. Therefore he carried out Sukracarya's order and served him like a slave. He gave his daughter Sarmistha to Devayani, and Sarmistha served Devayani like a slave, along with thousands of other women.
30. When Sukracarya gave Devayani in marriage to Yayati, he had Sarmistha go with her, but he warned the King, "My dear King, never allow this girl Sarmistha to lie with you in your bed."
31. O King Pariksit, upon seeing Devayani with a nice son, Sarmistha once approached King Yayati at the appropriate time for conception. In a secluded place, she requested the King, the husband of her friend Devayani, to enable her to have a son also.
32. When Princess Sarmistha begged King Yayati for a son, the King was certainly aware of the principles of religion, and therefore he agreed to fulfill her desire. Although he remembered the warning of Sukracarya, he thought of this union as the desire of the Supreme, and thus he had sex with Sarmistha.
33. Devayani gave birth to Yadu and Turvasu, and Sarmistha gave birth to Druhyu, Anu and Puru.
34. When the proud Devayani understood from outside sources that Sarmistha was pregnant by her husband, she was frenzied with anger. Thus she departed for her father's house.
35. King Yayati, who was very lusty, followed his wife, caught her and tried to appease her by speaking pleasing words and massaging her feet, but he could not satisfy her by any means.
36. Sukracarya was extremely angry. "You untruthful fool, lusting after women! You have done a great wrong," he said. "I therefore curse you to be attacked and disfigured by old age and invalidity."
37. King Yayati said, "O learned, worshipable brahmana, I have not yet satisfied my lusty desires with your daughter." Sukracarya then replied, "You may exchange your old age with someone who will agree to transfer his youth to you."
38. When Yayati received this benediction from Sukracarya, he requested his eldest son: My dear son Yadu, please give me your youth in exchange for my old age and invalidity.
39. My dear son, I am not yet satisfied in my sexual desires. But if you are kind to me, you can take the old age given by your maternal grandfather, and I may take your youth so that I may enjoy life for a few years more.
40. Yadu replied: My dear father, you have already achieved old age, although you also were a young man. But I do not welcome your old age and invalidity, for unless one enjoys material happiness, one cannot attain renunciation.
41. O Maharaja Pariksit, Yayati similarly requested his sons Turvasu, Druhyu and Anu to exchange their youth for his old age, but because they were unaware of religious principles, they thought that their flickering youth was eternal, and therefore they refused to carry out their father's order.
42. King Yayati then requested Puru, who was younger than these three brothers but more qualified, "My dear son, do not be disobedient like your elder brothers, for that is not your duty."
43. Puru replied: O Your Majesty, who in this world can repay his debt to his father? By the mercy of one's father, one gets the human form of life, which can enable one to become an associate of the Supreme Lord.
44. A son who acts by anticipating what his father wants him to do is first class, one who acts upon receiving his father's order is second class, and one who executes his father's order irreverently is third class. But a son who refuses his father's order is like his father's stool.
45. Sukadeva Gosvami said: In this way, O Maharaja Pariksit, the son named Puru was very pleased to accept the old age of his father, Yayati, who took the youth of his son and enjoyed this material world as he required.
46. Thereafter, King Yayati became the ruler of the entire world, consisting of seven islands, and ruled the citizens exactly like a father. Because he had taken the youth of his son, his senses were unimpaired, and he enjoyed as much material happiness as he desired.
47. In secluded places, engaging her mind, words, body and various paraphernalia, Devayani, the dear wife of Maharaja Yayati, always brought her husband the greatest possible transcendental bliss.
48. King Yayati performed various sacrifices, in which he offered abundant gifts to the brahmanas to satisfy the Supreme Lord, Hari, who is the reservoir of all the demigods and the object of all Vedic knowledge.
49. The Supreme Lord, Vasudeva, who created the cosmic manifestation, exhibits Himself as all-pervading, like the sky that holds clouds. And when the creation is annihilated, everything enters into the Supreme Lord, Visnu, and varieties are no longer manifested.
50. Without material desires, Maharaja Yayati worshiped the Supreme Lord, who is situated in everyone's heart as Narayana and is invisible to material eyes, although existing everywhere.
51. Although Maharaja Yayati was the king of the entire world and he engaged his mind and five senses in enjoying material possessions for one thousand years, he was unable to be satisfied.
Chapter Nineteen King Yayati Achieves Liberation
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: O Maharaja Pariksit, Yayati was very much attached to woman. In due course of time, however, when disgusted with sexual enjoyment and its bad effects, he renounced this way of life and narrated the following story to his beloved wife.
2. My dearly beloved wife, daughter of Sukracarya, in this world there was someone exactly like me. Please listen as I narrate the history of his life. By hearing about the life of such a householder, those who have retired from householder life always lament.
3. While wandering in the forest, eating to satisfy his senses, a he-goat by chance approached a well, in which he saw a she-goat standing helplessly, having fallen into it by the influence of the results of fruitive activities.
4. After planning how to get the she-goat out of the well, the lusty he-goat dug up the earth on the well's edge with the point of his horns in such a way that she was able to come out very easily.
5-6. When the she-goat, who had very nice hips, got out of the well and saw the very handsome he-goat, she desired to accept him as her husband. When she did so, many other she-goats also desired him as their husband because he had a very beautiful bodily structure and a nice mustache and beard and was expert in discharging semen and in the art of sexual intercourse. Therefore, just as a person haunted by a ghost exhibits madness, the best of the he-goats, attracted by the many she-goats, engaged in erotic activities and naturally forgot his real business of self-realization.
7. When the she-goat who had fallen into the well saw her beloved goat engaged in sexual affairs with another she-goat, she could not tolerate the goat's activities.
8. Aggrieved by her husband's behavior with another, the she-goat thought that the he-goat was not actually her friend but was hardhearted and was her friend only for the time being. Therefore, because her husband was lusty, she left him and returned to her former maintainer.
9. Being very sorry, the he-goat, who was subservient to his wife, followed the she-goat on the road and tried his best to flatter her, but he could not pacify her.
10. The she-goat went to the residence of a brahmana who was the maintainer of another she-goat, and that brahmana angrily cut off the he-goat's dangling testicles. But at the he-goat's request, the brahmana later rejoined them by the power of mystic yoga.
11. My dear wife, when the he-goat had his testicles restored, he enjoyed the she-goat he had gotten from the well, but although he continued to enjoy for many, many years, even now he has not been fully satisfied.
12. O my dear wife with beautiful eyebrows, I am exactly like that he-goat, for I am so poor in intelligence that I am captivated by your beauty and have forgotten the real task of self-realization.
13. A person who is lusty cannot satisfy his mind even if he has enough of everything in this world, including rice, barley and other food grains, gold, animals and women. Nothing can satisfy him.
14. As supplying butter to a fire does not diminish the fire but instead increases it more and more, the endeavor to stop lusty desires by continual enjoyment can never be successful. [In fact, one must voluntarily cease from material desires.]
15. When a man is nonenvious and does not desire ill fortune for anyone, he is equipoised. For such a person, all directions appear happy.
16. For those who are too attached to material enjoyment, sense gratification is very difficult to give up. Even when one is an invalid because of old age, one cannot give up such desires for sense gratification. Therefore, one who actually desires happiness must give up such unsatisfied desires, which are the cause of all tribulations.
17. One should not allow oneself to sit on the same seat even with one's own mother, sister or daughter, for the senses are so strong that even though one is very advanced in knowledge, he may be attracted by sex.
18. I have spent a full one thousand years enjoying sense gratification, yet my desire to enjoy such pleasure increases daily.
19. Therefore, I shall now give up all these desires and meditate upon the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Free from the dualities of mental concoction and free from false prestige, I shall wander in the forest with the animals.
20. One who knows that material happiness, whether good or bad, in this life or in the next, on this planet or on the heavenly planets, is temporary and useless, and that an intelligent person should not try to enjoy or even think of such things, is the knower of the self. Such a self-realized person knows quite well that material happiness is the very cause of continued material existence and forgetfulness of one's own constitutional position.
21. Sukadeva Gosvami said: After speaking in this way to his wife, Devayani, King Yayati, who was now free from all material desires, called his youngest son, Puru, and returned Puru's youth in exchange for his own old age.
22. King Yayati gave the southeast to his son Druhyu, the south to his son Yadu, the west to his son Turvasu, and the north to his son Anu. In this way he divided the kingdom.
23. Yayati enthroned his youngest son, Puru, as the emperor of the entire world and the proprietor of all its riches, and he placed all the other sons, who were older than Puru, under Puru's control.
24. Having enjoyed sense gratification for many, many years, O King Pariksit, Yayati was accustomed to it, but he gave it up entirely in a moment, just as a bird flies away from the nest as soon as its wings have grown.
25. Because King Yayati completely surrendered unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vasudeva, he was freed from all contamination of the material modes of nature. Because of his self-realization, he was able to fix his mind upon the Transcendence [Parabrahman, Vasudeva], and thus he ultimately achieved the position of an associate of the Lord.
26. When Devayani heard Maharaja Yayati's story of the he-goat and she-goat, she understood that this story, which was presented as if a funny joke for entertainment between husband and wife, was intended to awaken her to her constitutional position.
27-28. Thereafter, Devayani, the daughter of Sukracarya, understood that the materialistic association of husband, friends and relatives is like the association in a hotel full of tourists. The relationships of society, friendship and love are created by the maya of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, exactly as in a dream. By the grace of Krsna, Devayani gave up her imaginary position in the material world. Completely fixing her mind upon Krsna, she achieved liberation from the gross and subtle bodies.
29. O Lord Vasudeva, O Supreme Personality of Godhead, You are the creator of the entire cosmic manifestation. You live as the Supersoul in everyone's heart and are smaller than the smallest, yet You are greater than the greatest and are all-pervading. You appear completely silent, having nothing to do, but this is due to Your all-pervading nature and Your fullness in all opulences. I therefore offer my respectful obeisances unto You.
Chapter Twenty The Dynasty of Puru
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: O Maharaja Pariksit, descendant of Maharaja Bharata, I shall now describe the dynasty of Puru, in which you were born, in which many saintly kings appeared, and from which many dynasties of brahmanas began.
2. King Janamejaya was born of this dynasty of Puru. Janamejaya's son was Pracinvan, and his son was Pravira. Thereafter, Pravira's son was Manusyu, and from Manusyu came the son named Carupada.
3. The son of Carupada was Sudyu, and the son of Sudyu was Bahugava. Bahugava's son was Samyati. From Samyati came a son named Ahamyati, from whom Raudrasva was born.
4-5. Raudrasva had ten sons, named Rteyu, Kakseyu, Sthandileyu, Krteyuka, Jaleyu, Sannateyu, Dharmeyu, Satyeyu, Vrateyu and Vaneyu. Of these ten sons, Vaneyu was the youngest. As the ten senses, which are products of the universal life, act under the control of life, these ten sons of Raudrasva acted under Raudrasva's full control. All of them were born of the Apsara named Ghrtaci.
6. Rteyu had a son named Rantinava, who had three sons, named Sumati, Dhruva and Apratiratha. Apratiratha had only one son, whose name was Kanva.
7. The son of Kanva was Medhatithi, whose sons, all brahmanas, were headed by Praskanna. The son of Rantinava named Sumati had a son named Rebhi. Maharaja Dusmanta is well known as the son of Rebhi.
8-9. Once when King Dusmanta went to the forest to hunt and was very much fatigued, he approached the residence of Kanva Muni. There he saw a most beautiful woman who looked exactly like the goddess of fortune and who sat there illuminating the entire asrama by her effulgence. The King was naturally attracted by her beauty, and therefore he approached her, accompanied by some of his soldiers, and spoke to her.
10. Seeing the beautiful woman, the King was very much enlivened, and the fatigue of his hunting excursion was relieved. He was of course very much attracted because of lusty desires, and thus he inquired from her as follows, in a joking mood.
11. O beautiful lotus-eyed woman, who are you? Whose daughter are you? What purpose do you have in this solitary forest? Why are you staying here?
12. O most beautiful one, it appears to my mind that you must be the daughter of a ksatriya. Because I belong to the Puru dynasty, my mind never endeavors to enjoy anything irreligiously.
13. Sakuntala said: I am the daughter of Visvamitra. My mother, Menaka, left me in the forest. O hero, the most powerful saint Kanva Muni knows all about this. Now let me know, how may I serve you?
14. O King with eyes like the petals of a lotus, kindly come sit down and accept whatever reception we can offer. We have a supply of nivara rice that you may kindly take. And if you so desire, stay here without hesitation.
15. King Dusmanta replied: O Sakuntala, with beautiful eyebrows, you have taken your birth in the family of the great saint Visvamitra, and your reception is quite worthy of your family. Aside from this, the daughters of a king generally select their own husbands.
16. When Sakuntala responded to Maharaja Dusmanta's proposal with silence, the agreement was complete. Then the King, who knew the laws of marriage, immediately married her by chanting the Vedic pranava [omkara], in accordance with the marriage ceremony as performed among the Gandharvas.
17. King Dusmanta, who never discharged semen without a result, placed his semen at night in the womb of his Queen, Sakuntala, and in the morning he returned to his palace. Thereafter, in due course of time, Sakuntala gave birth to a son.
18. In the forest, Kanva Muni performed all the ritualistic ceremonies concerning the newborn child. Later, the boy became so powerful that he would capture a lion and play with it.
19. Sakuntala, the best of beautiful women, along with her son, whose strength was insurmountable and who was a partial expansion of the Supreme Godhead, approached her husband, Dusmanta.
20. When the King refused to accept his wife and son, who were both irreproachable, an unembodied voice spoke from the sky as an omen and was heard by everyone present.
21. The voice said: O Maharaja Dusmanta, a son actually belongs to his father, whereas the mother is only a container, like the skin of a bellows. According to Vedic injunctions, the father is born as the son. Therefore, maintain your own son and do not insult Sakuntala.
22. O King Dusmanta, he who discharges semen is the actual father, and his son saves him from the custody of Yamaraja. You are the actual procreator of this child. Indeed, Sakuntala is speaking the truth.
23. Sukadeva Gosvami said: When Maharaja Dusmanta passed away from this earth, his son became the emperor of the world, the proprietor of the seven islands. He is referred to as a partial representation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in this world.
24-26. Maharaja Bharata, the son of Dusmanta, had the mark of Lord Krsna's disc on the palm of his right hand, and he had the mark of a lotus whorl on the soles of his feet. By worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead with a grand ritualistic ceremony, he became the emperor and master of the entire world. Then, under the priesthood of Mamateya, Bhrgu Muni, he performed fifty-five horse sacrifices on the bank of the Ganges, beginning from its mouth and ending at its source, and seventy-eight horse sacrifices on the bank of the Yamuna, beginning from the confluence at Prayaga and ending at the source. He established the sacrificial fire on an excellent site, and he distributed great wealth to the brahmanas. Indeed, he distributed so many cows that each of thousands of brahmanas had one badva [13,084] as his share.
27. Bharata, the son of Maharaja Dusmanta, bound thirty-three hundred horses for those sacrifices, and thus he astonished all other kings. He surpassed even the opulence of the demigods, for he achieved the supreme spiritual master, Hari.
28. When Maharaja Bharata performed the sacrifice known as Masnara [or a sacrifice in the place known as Masnara], he gave in charity fourteen lakhs of excellent elephants with white tusks and black bodies, completely covered with golden ornaments.
29. As one cannot approach the heavenly planets simply by the strength of his arms (for who can touch the heavenly planets with his hands?), one cannot imitate the wonderful activities of Maharaja Bharata. No one could perform such activities in the past, nor will anyone be able to do so in the future.
30. When Maharaja Bharata was on tour, he defeated or killed all the Kiratas, Hunas, Yavanas, Paundras, Kankas, Khasas, Sakas and the kings who were opposed to the Vedic principles of brahminical culture.
31. Formerly, after conquering the demigods, all the demons had taken shelter in the lower planetary system known as Rasatala and had brought all the wives and daughters of the demigods there also. Maharaja Bharata, however, rescued all those women, along with their associates, from the clutches of the demons, and he returned them to the demigods.
32. Maharaja Bharata provided all necessities for his subjects, both on this earth and in the heavenly planets, for twenty-seven thousand years. He circulated his orders and distributed his soldiers in all directions.
33. As the ruler of the entire universe, Emperor Bharata had the opulences of a great kingdom and unconquerable soldiers. His sons and family had seemed to him to be his entire life. But finally he thought of all this as an impediment to spiritual advancement, and therefore he ceased from enjoying it.
34. O King Pariksit, Maharaja Bharata had three pleasing wives, who were daughters of the King of Vidarbha. When all three of them bore children who did not resemble the King, these wives thought that he would consider them unfaithful queens and reject them, and therefore they killed their own sons.
35. The King, his attempt for progeny frustrated in this way, performed a sacrifice named marut-stoma to get a son. The demigods known as the Maruts, being fully satisfied with him, then presented him a son named Bharadvaja.
36. When the demigod named Brhaspati was attracted by his brother's wife, Mamata, who at that time was pregnant, he desired to have sexual relations with her. The son within her womb forbid this, but Brhaspati cursed him and forcibly discharged semen into the womb of Mamata.
37. Mamata very much feared being forsaken by her husband for giving birth to an illegitimate son, and therefore she considered giving up the child. But then the demigods solved the problem by enunciating a name for the child.
38. Brhaspati said to Mamata, "You foolish woman, although this child was born from the wife of one man through the semen discharged by another, you should maintain him." Upon hearing this, Mamata replied, "O Brhaspati, you maintain him!" After speaking in this way, Brhaspati and Mamata both left. Thus the child was known as Bharadvaja.
39. Although encouraged by the demigods to maintain the child, Mamata considered him useless because of his illicit birth, and therefore she left him. Consequently, the demigods known as the Maruts maintained the child, and when Maharaja Bharata was disappointed for want of a child, this child was given to him as his son.
Chapter Twenty-one The Dynasty of Bharata
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: Because Bharadvaja was delivered by the Marut demigods, he was known as Vitatha. The son of Vitatha was Manyu, and from Manyu came five sons--Brhatksatra, Jaya, Mahavirya, Nara and Garga. Of these five, the one known as Nara had a son named Sankrti.
2. O Maharaja Pariksit, descendant of Pandu, Sankrti had two sons, named Guru and Rantideva. Rantideva is famous in both this world and the next, for he is glorified not only in human society but also in the society of the demigods.
3-5. Rantideva never endeavored to earn anything. He would enjoy whatever he got by the arrangement of providence, but when guests came he would give them everything. Thus he underwent considerable suffering, along with the members of his family. Indeed, he and his family members shivered for want of food and water, yet Rantideva always remained sober. Once, after fasting for forty-eight days, in the morning Rantideva received some water and some foodstuffs made with milk and ghee, but when he and his family were about to eat, a brahmana guest arrived.
6. Because Rantideva perceived the presence of the Supreme Godhead everywhere, and in every living entity, he received the guest with faith and respect and gave him a share of the food. The brahmana guest ate his share and then went away.
7. Thereafter, having divided the remaining food with his relatives, Rantideva was just about to eat his own share when a sudra guest arrived. Seeing the sudra in relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, King Rantideva gave him also a share of the food.
8. When the sudra went away, another guest arrived, surrounded by dogs, and said, "O King, I and my company of dogs are very hungry. Please give us something to eat."
9. With great respect, King Rantideva offered the balance of the food to the dogs and the master of the dogs, who had come as guests. The King offered them all respects and obeisances.
10. Thereafter, only the drinking water remained, and there was only enough to satisfy one person, but when the King was just about to drink it, a candala appeared and said, "O King, although I am lowborn, kindly give me some drinking water."
11. Aggrieved at hearing the pitiable words of the poor fatigued candala, Maharaja Rantideva spoke the following nectarean words.
12. I do not pray to the Supreme Personality of Godhead for the eight perfections of mystic yoga, nor for salvation from repeated birth and death. I want only to stay among all the living entities and suffer all distresses on their behalf, so that they may be freed from suffering.
13. By offering my water to maintain the life of this poor candala, who is struggling to live, I have been freed from all hunger, thirst, fatigue, trembling of the body, moroseness, distress, lamentation and illusion.
14. Having spoken thus, King Rantideva, although on the verge of death because of thirst, gave his own portion of water to the candala without hesitation, for the King was naturally very kind and sober.
15. Demigods like Lord Brahma and Lord Siva, who can satisfy all materially ambitious men by giving them the rewards they desire, then manifested their own identities before King Rantideva, for it was they who had presented themselves as the brahmana, sudra, candala and so on.
16. King Rantideva had no ambition to enjoy material benefits from the demigods. He offered them obeisances, but because he was factually attached to Lord Visnu, Vasudeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he fixed his mind at Lord Visnu's lotus feet.
17. O Maharaja Pariksit, because King Rantideva was a pure devotee, always Krsna conscious and free from all material desires, the Lord's illusory energy, maya, could not exhibit herself before him. On the contrary, for him maya entirely vanished, exactly like a dream.
18. All those who followed the principles of King Rantideva were totally favored by his mercy and became pure devotees, attached to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Narayana. Thus they all became the best of yogis.
19-20. From Garga came a son named Sini, and his son was Gargya. Although Gargya was a ksatriya, there came from him a generation of brahmanas. From Mahavirya came a son named Duritaksaya, whose sons were Trayyaruni, Kavi and Puskararuni. Although these sons of Duritaksaya took birth in a dynasty of ksatriyas, they too attained the position of brahmanas. Brhatksatra had a son named Hasti, who established the city of Hastinapura [now New Delhi].
21. From King Hasti came three sons, named Ajamidha, Dvimidha and Purumidha. The descendants of Ajamidha, headed by Priyamedha, all achieved the position of brahmanas.
22. From Ajamidha came a son named Brhadisu, from Brhadisu came a son named Brhaddhanu, from Brhaddhanu a son named Brhatkaya, and from Brhatkaya a son named Jayadratha.
23. The son of Jayadratha was Visada, and his son was Syenajit. The sons of Syenajit were Rucirasva, Krdhahanu, Kasya and Vatsa.
24. The son of Rucirasva was Para, and the sons of Para were Prthusena and Nipa. Nipa had one hundred sons.
25. King Nipa begot a son named Brahmadatta through the womb of his wife, Krtvi, who was the daughter of Suka. And Brahmadatta, who was a great yogi, begot a son named Visvaksena through the womb of his wife, Sarasvati.
26. Following the instructions of the great sage Jaigisavya, Visvaksena compiled an elaborate description of the mystic yoga system. From Visvaksena, Udaksena was born, and from Udaksena, Bhallata. All these sons are known as descendants of Brhadisu.
27. The son of Dvimidha was Yavinara, whose son was Krtiman. The son of Krtiman was well known as Satyadhrti. From Satyadhrti came a son named Drdhanemi, who became the father of Suparsva.
28-29. From Suparsva came a son named Sumati, from Sumati came Sannatiman, and from Sannatiman came Krti, who achieved mystic power from Brahma and taught six samhitas of the Pracyasama verses of the Sama Veda. The son of Krti was Nipa; the son of Nipa, Udgrayudha; the son of Udgrayudha, Ksemya; the son of Ksemya, Suvira; and the son of Suvira, Ripunjaya.
30. From Ripunjaya came a son named Bahuratha. Purumidha was sonless. Ajamidha had a son named Nila by his wife known as Nalini, and the son of Nila was Santi.
31-33. The son of Santi was Susanti, the son of Susanti was Puruja, and the son of Puruja was Arka. From Arka came Bharmyasva, and from Bharmyasva came five sons--Mudgala, Yavinara, Brhadvisva, Kampilla and Sanjaya. Bharmyasva prayed to his sons, "O my sons, please take charge of my five states, for you are quite competent to do so." Thus his five sons were known as the Pancalas. From Mudgala came a dynasty of brahmanas known as Maudgalya.
34. Mudgala, the son of Bharmyasva, had twin children, one male and the other female. The male child was named Divodasa, and the female child was named Ahalya. From the womb of Ahalya by the semen of her husband, Gautama, came a son named Satananda.
35. The son of Satananda was Satyadhrti, who was expert in archery, and the son of Satyadhrti was Saradvan. When Saradvan met Urvasi, he discharged semen, which fell on a clump of sara grass. From this semen were born two all-auspicious babies, one male and the other female.
36. While Maharaja Santanu was on a hunting excursion, he saw the male and female children lying in the forest, and out of compassion he took them home. Consequently, the male child was known as Krpa, and the female child was named Krpi. Krpi later became the wife of Dronacarya.
Chapter Twenty-two The Descendants of Ajamidha
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: O King, the son of Divodasa was Mitrayu, and from Mitrayu came four sons, named Cyavana, Sudasa, Sahadeva and Somaka. Somaka was the father of Jantu.
2. Somaka had one hundred sons, of whom the youngest was Prsata. From Prsata was born King Drupada, who was opulent in all supremacy.
3. From Maharaja Drupada, Draupadi was born. Maharaja Drupada also had many sons, headed by Dhrstadyumna. From Dhrstadyumna came a son named Dhrstaketu. All these personalities are known as descendants of Bharmyasva or as the dynasty of Pancala.
4-5. Another son of Ajamidha was known as Rksa. From Rksa came a son named Samvarana, and from Samvarana through the womb of his wife, Tapati, the daughter of the sun-god, came Kuru, the King of Kuruksetra. Kuru had four sons--Pariksi, Sudhanu, Jahnu and Nisadha. From Sudhanu, Suhotra was born, and from Suhotra, Cyavana. From Cyavana, Krti was born.
6. The son of Krti was Uparicara Vasu, and among his sons, headed by Brhadratha, were Kusamba, Matsya, Pratyagra and Cedipa. All the sons of Uparicara Vasu became rulers of the Cedi state.
7. From Brhadratha, Kusagra was born; from Kusagra, Rsabha; and from Rsabha, Satyahita. The son of Satyahita was Puspavan, and the son of Puspavan was Jahu.
8. Through the womb of another wife, Brhadratha begot two halves of a son. When the mother saw those two halves she rejected them, but later a she-demon named Jara playfully joined them and said, "Come to life, come to life!" Thus the son named Jarasandha was born.
9. From Jarasandha came a son named Sahadeva; from Sahadeva, Somapi; and from Somapi, Srutasrava. The son of Kuru called Pariksi had no sons, but the son of Kuru called Jahnu had a son named Suratha.
10. From Suratha came a son named Viduratha, from whom Sarvabhauma was born. From Sarvabhauma came Jayasena; from Jayasena, Radhika; and from Radhika, Ayutayu.
11. From Ayutayu came a son named Akrodhana, and his son was Devatithi. The son of Devatithi was Rksa, the son of Rksa was Dilipa, and the son of Dilipa was Pratipa.
12-13. The sons of Pratipa were Devapi, Santanu and Bahlika. Devapi left the kingdom of his father and went to the forest, and therefore Santanu became the king. Santanu, who in his previous birth was known as Mahabhisa, had the ability to transform anyone from old age to youth simply by touching that person with his hands.
14-15. Because the King was able to make everyone happy for sense gratification, primarily by the touch of his hand, his name was Santanu. Once, when there was no rainfall in the kingdom for twelve years and the King consulted his learned brahminical advisors, they said, "You are faulty for enjoying the property of your elder brother. For the elevation of your kingdom and home, you should return the kingdom to him."
16-17. When the brahmanas said this, Maharaja Santanu went to the forest and requested his elder brother Devapi to take charge of the kingdom, for it is the duty of a king to maintain his subjects. Previously, however, Santanu's minister Asvavara had instigated some brahmanas to induce Devapi to transgress the injunctions of the Vedas and thus make himself unfit for the post of ruler. The brahmanas deviated Devapi from the path of the Vedic principles, and therefore when asked by Santanu he did not agree to accept the post of ruler. On the contrary, he blasphemed the Vedic principles and therefore became fallen. Under the circumstances, Santanu again became the king, and Indra, being pleased, showered rains. Devapi later took to the path of mystic yoga to control his mind and senses and went to the village named Kalapagrama, where he is still living.
18-19. After the dynasty of the moon-god comes to an end in this age of Kali, Devapi, in the beginning of the next Satya-yuga, will reestablish the Soma dynasty in this world. From Bahlika [the brother of Santanu] came a son named Somadatta, who had three sons, named Bhuri, Bhurisrava and Sala. From Santanu, through the womb of his wife named Ganga, came Bhisma, the exalted, self-realized devotee and learned scholar.
20. Bhismadeva was the foremost of all warriors. When he defeated Lord Parasurama in a fight, Lord Parasurama was very satisfied with him. By the semen of Santanu in the womb of Satyavati, the daughter of a fisherman, Citrangada took birth.
21-24. Citrangada, of whom Vicitravirya was the younger brother, was killed by a Gandharva who was also named Citrangada. Satyavati, before her marriage to Santanu, gave birth to the master authority of the Vedas, Vyasadeva, known as Krsna Dvaipayana, who was begotten by Parasara Muni. From Vyasadeva, I [Sukadeva Gosvami] was born, and from him I studied this great work of literature, Srimad-Bhagavatam. The incarnation of Godhead Vedavyasa, rejecting his disciples, headed by Paila, instructed Srimad-Bhagavatam to me because I was free from all material desires. After Ambika and Ambalika, the two daughters of Kasiraja, were taken away by force, Vicitravirya married them, but because he was too attached to these two wives, he had a heart attack and died of tuberculosis.
25. Badarayana, Sri Vyasadeva, following the order of his mother, Satyavati, begot three sons, two by the womb of Ambika and Ambalika, the two wives of his brother Vicitravirya, and the third by Vicitravirya's maidservant. These sons were Dhrtarastra, Pandu and Vidura.
26. Dhrtarastra's wife, Gandhari, gave birth to one hundred sons and one daughter, O King. The oldest of the sons was Duryodhana, and the daughter's name was Duhsala.
27-28. Pandu was restrained from sexual life because of having been cursed by a sage, and therefore his three sons Yudhisthira, Bhima and Arjuna were begotten through the womb of his wife, Kunti, by Dharmaraja, by the demigod controlling the wind, and by the demigod controlling the rain. Pandu's second wife, Madri, gave birth to Nakula and Sahadeva, who were begotten by the two Asvini-kumaras. The five brothers, headed by Yudhisthira, begot five sons through the womb of Draupadi. These five sons were your uncles.
29. From Yudhisthira came a son named Prativindhya, from Bhima a son named Srutasena, from Arjuna a son named Srutakirti, and from Nakula a son named Satanika.
30-31. O King, the son of Sahadeva was Srutakarma. Furthermore, Yudhisthira and his brothers begot other sons in other wives. Yudhisthira begot a son named Devaka through the womb of Pauravi, and Bhimasena begot a son named Ghatotkaca through his wife Hidimba and a son named Sarvagata through his wife Kali. Similarly, Sahadeva had a son named Suhotra through his wife named Vijaya, who was the daughter of the king of the mountains.
32. Nakula begot a son named Naramitra through his wife named Karenumati. Similarly, Arjuna begot a son named Iravan through his wife known as Ulupi, the daughter of the Nagas, and a son named Babhruvahana by the womb of the princess of Manipura. Babhruvahana became the adopted son of the king of Manipura.
33. My dear King Pariksit, your father, Abhimanyu, was born from the womb of Subhadra as the son of Arjuna. He was the conqueror of all atirathas [those who could fight with one thousand charioteers]. From him, by the womb of Uttara, the daughter of Viradraja, you were born.
34. After the Kuru dynasty was annihilated in the Battle of Kuruksetra, you also were about to be destroyed by the brahmastra atomic weapon released by the son of Dronacarya, but by the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, you were saved from death.
35. My dear King, your four sons--Janamejaya, Srutasena, Bhimasena and Ugrasena--are very powerful. Janamejaya is the eldest.
36. Because of your death by the Taksaka snake, your son Janamejaya will be very angry and will perform a sacrifice to kill all the snakes in the world.
37. After conquering throughout the world and after accepting Tura, the son of Kalasa, as his priest, Janamejaya will perform asvamedha-yajnas, for which he will be known as Turaga-medhasat.
38. The son of Janamejaya known as Satanika will learn from Yajnavalkya the three Vedas and the art of performing ritualistic ceremonies. He will also learn the military art from Krpacarya and the transcendental science from the sage Saunaka.
39. The son of Satanika will be Sahasranika, and from him will come the son named Asvamedhaja. From Asvamedhaja will come Asimakrsna, and his son will be Nemicakra.
40. When the town of Hastinapura [New Delhi] is inundated by the river, Nemicakra will live in the place known as Kausambi. His son will be celebrated as Citraratha, and the son of Citraratha will be Suciratha.
41. From Suciratha will come the son named Vrstiman, and his son, Susena, will be the emperor of the entire world. The son of Susena will be Sunitha, his son will be Nrcaksu, and from Nrcaksu will come a son named Sukhinala.
42. The son of Sukhinala will be Pariplava, and his son will be Sunaya. From Sunaya will come a son named Medhavi; from Medhavi, Nrpanjaya; from Nrpanjaya, Durva; and from Durva, Timi.
43. From Timi will come Brhadratha; from Brhadratha, Sudasa; and from Sudasa, Satanika. From Satanika will come Durdamana, and from him will come a son named Mahinara.
44-45. The son of Mahinara will be Dandapani, and his son will be Nimi, from whom King Ksemaka will be born. I have now described to you the moon-god's dynasty, which is the source of brahmanas and ksatriyas and is worshiped by demigods and great saints. In this Kali-yuga, Ksemaka will be the last monarch. Now I shall describe to you the future of the Magadha dynasty. Please listen.
46-48. Sahadeva, the son of Jarasandha, will have a son named Marjari. From Marjari will come Srutasrava; from Srutasrava, Yutayu; and from Yutayu, Niramitra. The son of Niramitra will be Sunaksatra, from Sunaksatra will come Brhatsena, and from Brhatsena, Karmajit. The son of Karmajit will be Sutanjaya, the son of Sutanjaya will be Vipra, and his son will be Suci. The son of Suci will be Ksema, the son of Ksema will be Suvrata, and the son of Suvrata will be Dharmasutra. From Dharmasutra will come Sama; from Sama, Dyumatsena; from Dyumatsena, Sumati; and from Sumati, Subala.
49. From Subala will come Sunitha; from Sunitha, Satyajit; from Satyajit, Visvajit; and from Visvajit, Ripunjaya. All of these personalities will belong to the dynasty of Brhadratha, which will rule the world for one thousand years.
Chapter Twenty-three The Dynasties of the Sons of Yayati
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: Anu, the fourth son of Yayati, had three sons, named Sabhanara, Caksu and Paresnu. O King, from Sabhanara came a son named Kalanara, and from Kalanara came a son named Srnjaya.
2. From Srnjaya came a son named Janamejaya. From Janamejaya came Mahasala; from Mahasala, Mahamana; and from Mahamana two sons, named Usinara and Titiksu.
3-4. The four sons of Usinara were Sibi, Vara, Krmi and Daksa, and from Sibi again came four sons, named Vrsadarbha, Sudhira, Madra and atma-tattva-vit Kekaya. The son of Titiksu was Rusadratha. From Rusadratha came Homa; from Homa, Sutapa; and from Sutapa, Bali.
5. By the semen of Dirghatama in the wife of Bali, the emperor of the world, six sons took birth, namely Anga, Vanga, Kalinga, Suhma, Pundra and Odra.
6. These six sons, headed by Anga, later became kings of six states in the eastern side of India. These states were known according to the names of their respective kings. From Anga came a son named Khalapana, and from Khalapana came Diviratha.
7-10. From Diviratha came a son named Dharmaratha, and his son was Citraratha, who was celebrated as Romapada. Romapada, however, was without issue, and therefore his friend Maharaja Dasaratha gave him his own daughter, named Santa. Romapada accepted her as his daughter, and thereafter she married Rsyasrnga. When the demigods from the heavenly planets failed to shower rain, Rsyasrnga was appointed the priest for performing a sacrifice, after being brought from the forest by the allurement of prostitutes, who danced, staged theatrical performances accompanied by music, and embraced and worshiped him. After Rsyasrnga came, the rain fell. Thereafter, Rsyasrnga performed a son-giving sacrifice on behalf of Maharaja Dasaratha, who had no issue, and then Maharaja Dasaratha had sons. From Romapada, by the mercy of Rsyasrnga, Caturanga was born, and from Caturanga came Prthulaksa.
11. The sons of Prthulaksa were Brhadratha, Brhatkarma and Brhadbhanu. From the eldest, Brhadratha, came a son named Brhanmana, and from Brhanmana came a son named Jayadratha.
12. The son of Jayadratha, by the womb of his wife Sambhuti, was Vijaya, and from Vijaya, Dhrti was born. From Dhrti came Dhrtavrata; from Dhrtavrata, Satkarma; and from Satkarma, Adhiratha.
13. While playing on the bank of the Ganges, Adhiratha found a baby wrapped up in a basket. The baby had been left by Kunti because he was born before she was married. Because Adhiratha had no sons, he raised this baby as his own. [This son was later known as Karna.]
14. O King, the only son of Karna was Vrsasena. Druhyu, the third son of Yayati, had a son named Babhru, and the son of Babhru was known as Setu.
15. The son of Setu was Arabdha, Arabdha's son was Gandhara, and Gandhara's son was Dharma. Dharma's son was Dhrta, Dhrta's son was Durmada, and Durmada's son was Praceta, who had one hundred sons.
16. The Pracetas [the sons of Praceta] occupied the northern side of India, which was devoid of Vedic civilization, and became kings there. Yayati's second son was Turvasu. The son of Turvasu was Vahni; the son of Vahni, Bharga; the son of Bharga, Bhanuman.
17. The son of Bhanuman was Tribhanu, and his son was the magnanimous Karandhama. Karandhama's son was Maruta, who had no sons and who therefore adopted a son of the Puru dynasty [Maharaja Dusmanta] as his own.
18-19. Maharaja Dusmanta, desiring to occupy the throne, returned to his original dynasty [the Puru dynasty], even though he had accepted Maruta as his father. O Maharaja Pariksit, let me now describe the dynasty of Yadu, the eldest son of Maharaja Yayati. This description is supremely pious, and it vanquishes the reactions of sinful activities in human society. Simply by hearing this description, one is freed from all sinful reactions.
20-21. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, the Supersoul in the hearts of all living entities, descended in His original form as a human being in the dynasty or family of Yadu. Yadu had four sons, named Sahasrajit, Krosta, Nala and Ripu. Of these four, the eldest, Sahasrajit, had a son named Satajit, who had three sons, named Mahahaya, Renuhaya and Haihaya.
22. The son of Haihaya was Dharma, and the son of Dharma was Netra, the father of Kunti. From Kunti came a son named Sohanji, from Sohanji came Mahisman, and from Mahisman, Bhadrasenaka.
23. The sons of Bhadrasena were known as Durmada and Dhanaka. Dhanaka was the father of Krtavirya and also of Krtagni, Krtavarma and Krtauja.
24. The son of Krtavirya was Arjuna. He [Kartaviryarjuna] became the emperor of the entire world, consisting of seven islands, and received mystic power from Dattatreya, the incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus he obtained the mystic perfections known as asta-siddhi.
25. No other king in this world could equal Kartaviryarjuna in sacrifices, charity, austerity, mystic power, education, strength or mercy.
26. For eighty-five thousand years, Kartaviryarjuna continuously enjoyed material opulences with full bodily strength and unimpaired memory. In other words, he enjoyed inexhaustible material opulences with his six senses.
27. Of the one thousand sons of Kartaviryarjuna, only five remained alive after the fight with Parasurama. Their names were Jayadhvaja, Surasena, Vrsabha, Madhu and Urjita.
28. Jayadhvaja had a son named Talajangha, who had one hundred sons. All the ksatriyas in that dynasty, known as Talajangha, were annihilated by the great power received by Maharaja Sagara from Aurva Rsi.
29. Of the sons of Talajangha, Vitihotra was the eldest. The son of Vitihotra named Madhu had a celebrated son named Vrsni. Madhu had one hundred sons, of whom Vrsni was the eldest. The dynasties known as Yadava, Madhava and Vrsni had their origin from Yadu, Madhu and Vrsni.
30-31. O Maharaja Pariksit, because Yadu, Madhu and Vrsni each inaugurated a dynasty, their dynasties are known as Yadava, Madhava and Vrsni. The son of Yadu named Krosta had a son named Vrjinavan. The son of Vrjinavan was Svahita; the son of Svahita, Visadgu; the son of Visadgu, Citramtha; and the son of Citraratha, Sasabindu. The greatly fortunate Sasabindu, who was a great mystic, possessed fourteen opulences and was the owner of fourteen great jewels. Thus he became the emperor of the world.
32. The famous Sasabindu had ten thousand wives, and by each he begot a lakh of sons. Therefore the number of his sons was ten thousand lakhs.
33. Among these many sons, six were the foremost, such as Prthusrava and Prthukirti. The son of Prthusrava was known as Dharma, and his son was known as Usana. Usana was the performer of one hundred horse sacrifices.
34. The son of Usana was Rucaka, who had five sons--Purujit, Rukma, Rukmesu, Prthu and Jyamagha. Please hear of these sons from me.
35-36. Jyamagha had no sons, but because he was fearful of his wife, Saibya, he could not accept another wife. Jyamagha once took from the house of some royal enemy a girl who was a prostitute, but upon seeing her Saibya was very angry and said to her husband, "My husband, you cheater, who is this girl sitting upon my seat on the chariot?" Jyamagha then replied, "This girl will be your daughter-in-law." Upon hearing these joking words, Saibya smilingly replied.
37. Saibya said, "I am sterile and have no co-wife. How can this girl be my daughter-in-law? Please tell me." Jyamagha replied, "My dear Queen, I shall see that you indeed have a son and that this girl will be your daughter-in-law."
38. Long, long ago, Jyamagha had satisfied the demigods and Pitas by worshiping them. Now, by their mercy, Jyamagha's words came true. Although Saibya was barren, by the grace of the demigods she became pregnant and in due course of time gave birth to a child named Vidarbha. Before the child's birth, the girl had been accepted as a daughter-in-law, and therefore Vidarbha actually married her when he grew up.
Chapter Twenty-four Krsna the Supreme Personality of Godhead
1. Sukadeva Gosvami said: By the womb of the girl brought by his father, Vidarbha begot three sons, named Kusa, Kratha and Romapada. Romapada was the favorite in the dynasty of Vidarbha.
2. The son of Romapada was Babhru, from whom there came a son named Krti. The son of Krti was Usika, and the son of Usika was Cedi. From Cedi was born the king known as Caidya and others.
3-4. The son of Kratha was Kunti; the son of Kunti, Vrsni; the son of Vrsni, Nirvrti; and the son of Nirvrti, Dasarha. From Dasarha came Vyoma; from Vyoma came Jimuta; from Jimuta, Vikrti; from Vikrti, Bhimaratha; from Bhimaratha, Navaratha; and from Navaratha, Dasaratha.
5. From Dasaratha came a son named Sakuni and from Sakuni a son named Karambhi. The son of Karambhi was Devarata, and his son was Devaksatra. The son of Devaksatra was Madhu, and his son was Kuruvasa, from whom there came a son named Anu.
6-8. The son of Anu was Puruhotra, the son of Puruhotra was Ayu, and the son of Ayu was Satvata. O great Aryan King, Satvata had seven sons, named Bhajamana, Bhaji, Divya, Vrsni, Devavrdha, Andhaka and Mahabhoja. From Bhajamana by one wife came three sons--Nimloci, Kinkana and Dhrsti. And from his other wife came three other sons--Satajit, Sahasrajit and Ayutajit.
9. The son of Devavrdha was Babhru. Concerning Devavrdha and Babhru there are two famous songs of prayer, which were sung by our predecessors and which we have heard from a distance. Even now I hear the same prayers about their qualities [because that which was heard before is still sung continuously].
10-11. "It has been decided that among human beings Babhru is the best and that Devavrdha is equal to the demigods. Because of the association of Babhru and Devavrdha, all of their descendants, numbering 14,065, achieved liberation." In the dynasty of King Mahabhoja, who was exceedingly religious, there appeared the Bhoja kings.
12. O King, Maharaja Pariksit, who can suppress your enemies, the sons of Vrsni were Sumitra and Yudhajit. From Yudhajit came Sini and Anamitra, and from Anamitra came a son named Nighna.
13. The two sons of Nighna were Satrajita and Prasena. Another son of Anamitra was another Sini, and his son was Satyaka.
14. The son of Satyaka was Yuyudhana, whose son was Jaya. From Jaya came a son named Kuni and from Kuni a son named Yugandhara. Another son of Anamitra was Vrsni.
15. From Vrsni came the sons named Svaphalka and Citraratha. From Svaphalka by his wife Gandini came Akrura. Akrura was the eldest, but there were twelve other sons, all of whom were most celebrated.
16-18. The names of these twelve were Asanga, Sarameya, Mrdura, Mrduvit, Giri, Dharmavrddha, Sukarma, Ksetropeksa, Arimardana, Satrughna, Gandhamada and Pratibahu. These brothers also had a sister named Sucara. From Akrura came two sons, named Devavan and Upadeva. Citraratha had many sons, headed by Prthu and Viduratha, all of whom were known as belonging to the dynasty of Vrsni.
19. Kukura, Bhajamana, Suci and Kambalabarhisa were the four sons of Andhaka. The son of Kukura was Vahni, and his son was Viloma.
20. The son of Viloma was Kapotaroma, and his son was Anu, whose friend was Tumburu. From Anu came Andhaka; from Andhaka, Dundubhi; and from Dundubhi, Avidyota. From Avidyota came a son named Punarvasu.
21-23. Punarvasu had a son and a daughter, named Ahuka and Ahuki respectively, and Ahuka had two sons, named Devaka and Ugrasena. Devaka had four sons, named Devavan, Upadeva, Sudeva and Devavardhana, and he also had seven daughters, named Santideva, Upadeva, Srideva, Devaraksita, Sahadeva, Devaki and Dhrtadeva. Dhrtadeva was the eldest. Vasudeva, the father of Krsna, married all these sisters.
24. Kamsa, Sunama, Nyagrodha, Kanka, Sanku, Suhu, Rastrapala, Dhrsti and Tustiman were the sons of Ugrasena.
25. Kamsa, Kamsavati, Kanka, Surabhu and Rastrapalika were the daughters of Ugrasena. They became the wives of Vasudeva's younger brothers.
26. The son of Citraratha was Viduratha, the son of Viduratha was Sura, and his son was Bhajamana. The son of Bhajamana was Sini, the son of Sini was Bhoja, and the son of Bhoja was Hrdika.
27. The three sons of Hrdika were Devamidha, Satadhanu and Krtavarma. The son of Devamidha was Sura, whose wife was named Marisa.
28-31. Through Marisa, King Sura begot Vasudeva, Devabhaga, Devasrava, Anaka, Srnjaya, Syamaka, Kanka, Samika, Vatsaka and Vrka. These ten sons were spotlessly pious personalities. When Vasudeva was born, the demigods from the heavenly kingdom sounded kettledrums. Therefore Vasudeva, who provided the proper place for the appearance of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, was also known as Anakadundubhi. The five daughters of King Sura, named Prtha, Srutadeva, Srutakirti, Srutasrava and Rajadhidevi, were Vasudeva's sisters. Sura gave Prtha to his friend Kunti, who had no issue, and therefore another name of Prtha was Kunti.
32. Once when Durvasa was a guest at the house of Prtha's father, Kunti, Prtha satisfied Durvasa by rendering service. Therefore she received a mystic power by which she could call any demigod. To examine the potency of this mystic power, the pious Kunti immediately called for the sun-god.
33. As soon as Kunti called for the demigod of the sun, he immediately appeared before her, and she was very much surprised. She told the sun-god, "I was simply examining the effectiveness of this mystic power. I am sorry I have called you unnecessarily. Please return and excuse me."
34. The sun-god said: O beautiful Prtha, your meeting with the demigods cannot be fruitless. Therefore, let me place my seed in your womb so that you may bear a son. I shall arrange to keep your virginity intact, since you are still an unmarried girl.
35. After saying this, the sun-god discharged his semen into the womb of Prtha and then returned to the celestial kingdom. Immediately thereafter, from Kunti a child was born, who was like a second sun-god.
36. Because Kunti feared people's criticisms, with great difficulty she had to give up her affection for her child. Unwillingly, she packed the child in a basket and let it float down the waters of the river. O Maharaja Pariksit, your great-grandfather the pious and chivalrous King Pandu later married Kunti.
37. Vrddhasarma, the King of Karusa, married Kunti's sister Srutadeva, and from her womb Dantavakra was born. Having been cursed by the sages headed by Sanaka, Dantavakra had formerly been born as the son of Diti named Hiranyaksa.
38. King Dhrstaketu, the King of Kekaya, married Srutakirti, another sister of Kunti's. Srutakirti had five sons, headed by Santardana.
39. Through the womb of Rajadhidevi, another sister of Kunti's, Jayasena begot two sons, named Vinda and Anuvinda. Similarly, the king of the Cedi state married Srutasrava. This king's name was Damaghosa.
40. The son of Srutasrava was Sisupala, whose birth has already been described [in the Seventh Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam]. Vasudeva's brother named Devabhaga had two sons born of his wife, Kamsa. These two sons were Citraketu and Brhadbala.
41. Vasudeva's brother named Devasrava married Kamsavati, by whom he begot two sons, named Suvira and Isuman. Kanka, by his wife Kanka, begot three sons, named Baka, Satyajit and Purujit.
42. King Srnjaya, by his wife, Rastrapalika, begot sons headed by Vrsa and Durmarsana. King Syamaka, by his wife, Surabhumi, begot two sons, named Harikesa and Hiranyaksa.
43. Thereafter, King Vatsaka, by the womb of his wife, Misrakesi, who was an Apsara, begot sons headed by Vrka. Vrka, by his wife, Durvaksi, begot Taksa, Puskara, Sala and so on.
44. From Samika, by the womb of his wife, Sudamani, came Sumitra, Arjunapala and other sons. King Anaka, by his wife, Karnika, begot two sons, namely Rtadhama and Jaya.
45. Devaki, Paumvi, Rohini, Bhadra, Madira, Rocana, Ila and others were all wives of Anakadundubhi [Vasudeva]. Among them all, Devaki was the chief.
46. Vasudeva, by the womb of his wife Rohini, begot sons such as Bala, Gada, Sarana, Durmada, Vipula, Dhruva, Krta and others.
47-48. From the womb of Pauravi came twelve sons, including Bhuta, Subhadra, Bhadrabahu, Durmada and Bhadra. Nanda, Upananda, Krtaka, Sura and others were born from the womb of Madira. Bhadra [Kausalya] gave birth to only one son, named Kesi.
49. Vasudeva, by another of his wives, whose name was Rocana, begot Hasta, Hemangada and other sons. And by his wife named Ila he begot sons headed by Uruvalka, all of whom were chief personalities in the dynasty of Yadu.
50. From the womb of Dhrtadeva, one of the wives of Anakadundubhi [Vasudeva], came a son named Viprstha. The sons of Santideva, another wife of Vasudeva, were Prasama, Prasita and others.
51. Vasudeva also had a wife named Upadeva, from whom came ten sons, headed by Rajanya, Kalpa and Varsa. From Srideva, another wife, came six sons, such as Vasu, Hamsa and Suvamsa.
52. By the semen of Vasudeva in the womb of Devaraksita, nine sons were born, headed by Gada. Vasudeva, who was religion personified, also had a wife named Sahadeva, by whose womb he begot eight sons, headed by Sruta and Pravara.
53-55. The eight sons born of Sahadeva such as Pravara and Sruta, were exact incarnations of the eight Vasus in the heavenly planets. Vasudeva also begot eight highly qualified sons through the womb of Devaki. These included Kirtiman, Susena, Bhadrasena, Rju, Saminardana, Bhadra and Sankarsana, the controller and serpent incarnation. The eighth son was the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself--Krsna. The highly fortunate Subhadra, the one daughter, was your grandmother.
56. Whenever the principles of religion deteriorate and the principles of irreligion increase, the supreme controller, the Personality of Godhead Sri Hari, appears by His own will.
57. O King, Maharaja Pariksit, but for the Lord's personal desire, there is no cause for His appearance, disappearance or activities. As the Supersoul, He knows everything. Consequently there is no cause that affects Him, not even the results of fruitive activities.
58. The Supreme Personality of Godhead acts through His material energy in the creation, maintenance and annihilation of this cosmic manifestation just to deliver the living entity by His compassion and stop the living entity's birth, death and duration of materialistic life. Thus He enables the living being to return home, back to Godhead.
59. Although the demons who take possession of the government are dressed like men of government, they do not know the duty of the government. Consequently, by the arrangement of God, such demons, who possess great military strength, fight with one another, and thus the great burden of demons on the surface of the earth is reduced. The demons increase their military power by the will of the Supreme, so that their numbers will be diminished and the devotees will have a chance to advance in Krsna consciousness.
60. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, with the cooperation of Sankarsana, Balarama, performed activities beyond the mental comprehension of even such personalities as Lord Brahma and Lord Siva. [For instance, Krsna arranged the Battle of Kuruksetra to kill many demons for the relief of the entire world.]
61. To show causeless mercy to the devotees who would take birth in the future in this age of Kali, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, acted in such a way that simply by remembering Him one will be freed from all the lamentation and unhappiness of material existence. [In other words, He acted so that all future devotees, by accepting the instructions of Krsna consciousness stated in Bhagavad-gita, could be relieved from the pangs of material existence.]
62. Simply by receiving the glories of the Lord through purified transcendental ears, the devotees of the Lord are immediately freed from strong material desires and engagement in fruitive activities.
63-64. Assisted by the descendants of Bhoja, Vrsni, Andhaka, Madhu, Surasena, Dasarha, Kuru, Srnjaya and Pandu, Lord Krsna performed various activities. By His pleasing smiles, His affectionate behavior, His instructions and His uncommon pastimes like raising Govardhana Hill, the Lord, appearing in His transcendental body, pleased all of human society.
65. Krsna's face is decorated with ornaments, such as earrings resembling sharks. His ears are beautiful, His cheeks brilliant, and His smiling attractive to everyone. Whoever sees Lord Krsna sees a festival. His face and body are fully satisfying for everyone to see, but the devotees are angry at the creator for the disturbance caused by the momentary blinking of their eyes.
66. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krsna, known as lila-purusottama, appeared as the son of Vasudeva but immediately left His father's home and went to Vrndavana to expand His loving relationship with His confidential devotees. In Vrndavana the Lord killed many demons, and afterwards He returned to Dvaraka, where according to Vedic principles He married many wives who were the best of women, begot through them hundreds of sons, and performed sacrifices for His own worship to establish the principles of householder life.
67. Thereafter, Lord Sri Krsna created a misunderstanding between family members just to diminish the burden of the world. Simply by His glance, He annihilated all the demoniac kings on the Battlefield of Kuruksetra and declared victory for Arjuna. Finally, He instructed Uddhava about transcendental life and devotion and then returned to His abode in His original form.