courtesy: Sri.PK.Ramakrishnan
The original version is in Mahabharata Adi Parva 42nd and 43rd adhyaya.
Parikshit was the descendant of Pandavas. Whilehunting he made the mistakeof
putting a dead snake on the neck of a rishi who was practicing mouna vratam. That rishis son on seeing
his father thus cursed that Parikshit would be bitten by the snake Takshaka in seven days. When
Takshaka was going to the palaceof Parikshithe saw Kasyapa. Read on - the
"And when the seventh day had arrived, a Brahmana , named Kashyapa was going to/palaceof Parikshit.
Takshaka was going to the palaceof Parikshithe saw Kasyapa. Read on - the
"And when the seventh day had arrived, a Brahmana , named Kashyapa was going to/palaceof Parikshit.
Then Thakshaka spake unto Kasyapa
without loss of time, saying, 'Where dost thou go so quickly, and what is the
business on which thou goest?' Kasyapa replied, saying, 'O Brahmana, I am going
whither king Parikshit, that best of the Kurus, is. He shall today be burnt by
the poison of the snake Takshaka. I go there quickly in order to cure him, in
fact, in order that, protected by me, the snake may not bite him to death.'
Takshaka answered, saying, 'Why dost thou seek to revive the king to be bitten
by me? I am that Takshaka. O Brahmana, behold the wonderful power of my poison.
Thou art incapable of reviving that monarch when bit by me.' So saying,
Takshaka, then and there, bit a lord of the forest (a banian tree). And the
banian, as soon as it was bit by the snake, was converted into ashes. But
Kasyapa revived it. Takshaka thereupon tempted him, saying, 'Tell me thy
desire.' And Kasyapa, too, thus addressed, spake again unto Takshaka, saying,
'I go there from desire of wealth.' And Takshaka, thus addressed, then spake
unto the high-souled Kasyapa in these soft words, 'O sinless one, take from me
more wealth than what thou expect from that monarch, and go back!' And Kasyapa,
that foremost of men, thus addressed by the snake, and receiving from him as
much wealth as he desired, wended his way back."
without loss of time, saying, 'Where dost thou go so quickly, and what is the
business on which thou goest?' Kasyapa replied, saying, 'O Brahmana, I am going
whither king Parikshit, that best of the Kurus, is. He shall today be burnt by
the poison of the snake Takshaka. I go there quickly in order to cure him, in
fact, in order that, protected by me, the snake may not bite him to death.'
Takshaka answered, saying, 'Why dost thou seek to revive the king to be bitten
by me? I am that Takshaka. O Brahmana, behold the wonderful power of my poison.
Thou art incapable of reviving that monarch when bit by me.' So saying,
Takshaka, then and there, bit a lord of the forest (a banian tree). And the
banian, as soon as it was bit by the snake, was converted into ashes. But
Kasyapa revived it. Takshaka thereupon tempted him, saying, 'Tell me thy
desire.' And Kasyapa, too, thus addressed, spake again unto Takshaka, saying,
'I go there from desire of wealth.' And Takshaka, thus addressed, then spake
unto the high-souled Kasyapa in these soft words, 'O sinless one, take from me
more wealth than what thou expect from that monarch, and go back!' And Kasyapa,
that foremost of men, thus addressed by the snake, and receiving from him as
much wealth as he desired, wended his way back."
The incident goes on further like this.
Takshaka tells the Brahmachari Brahmin that it is fate that Pariishit has to die of snake bite and therefore none on earth can prevent it.
And Takshaka gave him a priceless stone (Manickam) in return to send him away from the scene.
Two persons who were sitting on the tree that was burnt into ashes by Takshaka first and revived by the power of Brahmin Brahmachari
after words , witnessed by their own eyes how they were burnt into ashes by Takshaka and came back to life by the power of the Brahmin
Brahmachari.
They went and told this incident to Prince Janamejaya son of Parishit. Janamejaya took revenge for this by organising a Yagna Homam to
destroy the entire spices of all snakes. All the snakes were thus destroyed by falling in the fire of the Homa except four, one of them was
Takshaka. It was then, Maharishi Astika came to rescue the lives of them. That is another big story in the purana.
That's why even today we, while performing Sandhayavandhana , we warrn the snakes to go out of our life without biting us,
and to remember the assurance of Maharish Astika.
Takshaka tells the Brahmachari Brahmin that it is fate that Pariishit has to die of snake bite and therefore none on earth can prevent it.
And Takshaka gave him a priceless stone (Manickam) in return to send him away from the scene.
Two persons who were sitting on the tree that was burnt into ashes by Takshaka first and revived by the power of Brahmin Brahmachari
after words , witnessed by their own eyes how they were burnt into ashes by Takshaka and came back to life by the power of the Brahmin
Brahmachari.
They went and told this incident to Prince Janamejaya son of Parishit. Janamejaya took revenge for this by organising a Yagna Homam to
destroy the entire spices of all snakes. All the snakes were thus destroyed by falling in the fire of the Homa except four, one of them was
Takshaka. It was then, Maharishi Astika came to rescue the lives of them. That is another big story in the purana.
That's why even today we, while performing Sandhayavandhana , we warrn the snakes to go out of our life without biting us,
and to remember the assurance of Maharish Astika.
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