1 Recaptulating
First let me recapitulate where we completed . In the last posting we stopped telling sage Narada met the father of Prachetas and talked about the large number of animals killed in Yaguas by him and they were waiting to take revenge on him after his death.
At that instance sage Narada told the story of King Puranjana who was a lustful king. One day he came to a beautiful city and there he met a beautiful woman. The later story after meeting the woman is told in this posting
1a. King Puranjana makes searching enquiries of to the young woman:
King Puranjana asked the beautiful woman he met- Are you a sage in hiding, or are you the goddess Sri, or Parvathi, or Saraswathi, or Lakshmi, from whose hand the lotus has dropped? You appear extremely beautiful with bashful feelings, lady!
2. The lady replies to the king
The lady of passion smiled, reciprocated the courtesy of Puranjana and gracefully replied, we are now in this city, whose founder I do not know. These men and women are my friends. When I sleep, the cobra keeps awake and watches the city. I welcome your visit seeking sensual pleasures. You are welcome to take possession of this city and enjoy for a hundred years, the pleasures procured by me. My heart has become captive to you of charming looks and good compassion.
The couple thus mutually made a contact, entered the city and lived delightfully for a hundred years enjoying life like anything When in the harem, the king was subject to delusion, cheerfulness and joy, arising from his wife and children.
3. King Puranjana become slave to the beautiful woman
The unwise king, full of desires, came to be deceived and was doing only the queens dictates. He drank and ate when she drank and ate, similarly in singing, standing, sitting, walking and running, he only emulated her. He was glad when she was glad and lamented or rejoiced when she did likewise. King Puranjana became an imitation like a deer kept for amusement.
4. King Puranjana goes for hunting
One day, king Puranjana went hunting, out to the forest, mounting his chariot drawn by five horses. He led eleven regiments and set off. Mad with passion for game, the king hurried forward with bow and arrows, leaving back his wife.
The proud king was cruel and merciless, killing all creatures instead of only sacrificial animals as prescribed religiously. Proud and indiscriminate hunting and killing resulted in loss of wisdom and caused affliction. His hunting was reckless, merciless and pitiful. He slew hares, hogs, buffaloes, deer, porcupine and all others indiscriminately and became fatigued.
Fainting with hunger and thirst, he hurried back home and took rest after bath and food. Then he had his toilet, pigments, garlands and dresses and satisfied, gladdened and proud with love, he went to his wife's apartment, but missed to see her.
5. King Puranjana searches the woman find out and appease her
He made enquiries and at last found her lying stretched on bare ground. He became nervous and confused. In vain, he tried to please her. The king, though an expert in the art of love-making, failed in his efforts, even gently touching her feet and caressing her on his lap. He then resorted to spoken words thus:
O sparkling and fair-faced lady! You are the queen. Let me see your smiling looks of weighty love and bashfulness, charming with sweet accents. Pray tell me, who has wronged you and I shall avenge. Your face was never so dull, without tilaka, so cheerless, angry, frightful, untrimmed and cold. Your lips are now rid of their ruby shine. Be pleased to restore your favour to me, though I went out hunting without you, being mad with passion.Pray, lovingly accept my dutiful service. I am rendered powerless by the violence of Manmata. Thus he managed to appease her.
6. King Puranjana continues happy life
Puranjana subdued himself to the queen and lived in delight. He rejoiced at the sight of her, especially after bath and charming decorations; embraced her and lost all reason. He was so taken up by romance; he did not perceive the passage of time. In overflowing pride, sleeping in princely bed, resting on his queens arms, the highly intelligent king became over-powered by darkness, unable to know what was what. So much he enjoyed his youth and life, that his reason became clouded and his youth passed away as if it were a fleeting moment.
7. What happened in the kingdom of Puranjana?
The king Puranjana had by his wife Puranjani, several sons and daughters of good and generous nature. The sons were married to worthy girls and the daughters to deserving youths. The sons had each many sons and Puranjana dynasty grew and extended to the Panchalas.
8. Life of Puranjana
In the mean time the king became more and more attached to the palace, its treasury, his kith and kin and other sense objects in the place with the young woman he met. He performed sacrifices slaughtering animals, propitiating the Devas, Pitris and Asuras. His age was advancing, though it was unwelcome for his romantic instincts.
9. Chandvega a Gandharva attack the city of Punarjana living with woman
There was a Gandharva chief, called Chandavega, with 360 strong Gandharvas under him. Chandavega came upon the city of Puranjana to plunder it.
Minister Prajagana of Puranjana offered resistance and fought with the 360 Gandharvas and their wives, vigorously and single-handedly for years.. He was tired, but king Puranjana was rolling in wine and women and little did he concern himself with the danger.
10 Entering of Dorbhagya
Daurbhagya, daughter of Kala, wandered far and wide in search of consort. She offered her hand to sage Narada, who refused. Being displeased, she cursed Narada that he should not stay in any one place. ( This has later relevance)
Courted by Yayatis son, Prince Puru, and pleased with him, she conferred a boon that he would succeed his father's throne.
Later, she chose Bhaya (fear) as her husband. The couple enjoyed the world created by Karma, bringing about the destruction of creatures.
Puranajanas city was rich in earthly pleasures and was guarded by an old serpent. Slowly, the soldiers of King Bhaya and consort Dhaurbhagya roamed about the kingdom. They entered the city on all sides and there was violent harassment.
The Ghandharvas completely shattered the city and king Puranjana became powerless, even his own sons and grandsons disregarding him.
11. King Puranjana leaves the city
He reluctantly quit the city and Prajvara, the elder brother of Bhaya burnt the whole city. Families were distressed and the sufferings were great. They bitterly wept and so did the king. The old serpent went out abandoning the city and was seized by the Yavanas.
12. King Puranjana breathe his last
King Puranjana could think of no well wishers and he had incurred even the curses of various sacrificial animals mercilessly slain by him. After long years of suffering, he lost his memory and breathed his last, his mind attached to women.
13. Rebirth of king Puranjana
Later he was born as a beautiful woman in the house of Ramasimha of Vidarbha dynasty. The Pandya king Malayadhvaja married the princess, who was offered to him as a prize for his valour in vanquishing other princes. By her, he had a daughter of blue eyes, and seven sons, who became the seven kings of the Dravida country. Every one of the seven kings had very many sons; and a Manvantra thereafter, the earth was enjoyed by their descendents. The daughter was virtuous and was married to Agastya.
14.The queen of Vidharbha ( Puranjana now on rebirth)leave to forest with king
The sage-king Malayadhwaja intended to do penance and worship Sri Krishna. He divided the kingdom among his sons and left for the Kulachala Mountain. Queen Vidarbha also left the house, children and pleasures and went with the king. The king did Tapas, subsisting on roots, seeds, fruits, flowers, leaves, grass and water, which slowly reduced his physical condition. He gained perfect realisation and could see the Lord within himself and thus rose out of Samsara.
15, the queen go in to king's funeral fire
The queen of Vaidarbhi renounced pleasures and affectionately waited on Malaya dhvaja, for he was God himself for her. Clad in bark, thin by denial, with her hair locks matted, she shone by her husbands side. He was firm in his sitting posture and when once worshipping his feet, she did not feel the warmth, became confused, heart-broken and lamented, for Jiva had left his body.
She loudly wailed and fell on his feet, showering tears. At last she laid the body on a pile of wood in the lonely forest, set fire to it and with complete control of mind, decided to die with him.
16. The queen now get realised of his past life
Just then a Brahman friend appeared there and consoled her thus: Who are you? Who is lying there? Whom do you lament?
Do you know me, your friend, with whom we lived in happiness before the creation? Even if you do not know, know at least that you had an unknown friend, whom you left and went in search of some place, and was lost finding delight in Samsara
I am a swan, companion of the Lord, in Lake Manasa. You left me and set your heart upon vulgar pleasures, went down to the earth, wandered about and found a house constructed by a woman (Maya).
You are not the daughter of Vidarbha king and this warrior is not your husband . You are the husband of Puranjani, and later got imprisoned you in the city of nine gates?
Thus instructed by Hamsa (Paramatma), the Hamsa in the Manasa (Jiva) became calm and blessed and recovered memory lost in having strayed away from Him.
Hearing this story, the Prachinabarhis ( Father of Prachetas) asked Narada its relevance of the story in the context and sage Narada explained him the relevance of this story…. Let us see it tomorrow.
Compiler- R. Gopala Krishnan, 77, a Keralite Iyer, retired from Kerala Telecom as Asst General Manager now settled in Chennai.
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