Book 1/Chapter 20/1:74
On Vyâsa doing his duties
1-8. The Risis said :-- “O Sûta! What did Veda Vyâsa do, when the highest Yogi
S’ûka, Deva-like, acquired all the excellent supernatural powers? Kindly describe all these in detail.”
Hearing this question, Sûta spoke :-- O
Rishis! Vyâsa already had with him many disciples
Asita, Devala, Vais'ampâyana, Jaimini, Sumantu and others, all engaged in the
study of the Vedas. After their studies
were over, they all went out to propagate Dharma on the earth.
Then Vyâsa , seeing that the disciples
went to the earth and his son S’ûka Deva had got to the next world, became very
much distressed with sorrow and wanted to go to some other place. He then decided to go to his birth place and
went to the banks of the Ganges and there remembered his auspicious mother
Satyavatî, forsaken by him before, very sorrowful, and the daughter of a
fisherman. He then quitted that
heaven-like mountain, the source of all happiness and came to his own birth
place. Reaching the island where he was
born, he enquired the whereabouts of the beautiful faced, the fisherman's
daughter as well the wife of a king. The
fishermen replied that their king had given her in marriage to the king
S'antanu. Then the king of fishermen,
seeing Vyâsa there, gladly worshipped him and gave him a cordial welcome and
spoke with folded palms, thus :--
9-16. O Muni!
When I have become so fortunate as to see you, rare even to the Devas, then
my birth has been sanctified today and you have purified my family. O Brâhmin!
Kindly say what for have you come?
My wife, son and all my riches and every other thing that I have are at
your disposal.
Thus hearing the history of his mother
Satyavatî, Vyâsa erected an Âs’rama on the beautiful banks of the river
Sarasvatî and remained there in tapasyâ with an enlightened mind.
Some time elapsed when the highly
energetic S’antanu got through his wife Satyavatî two sons. Vyâsa Deva considered them as his two
brothers and became very glad, though he himself used to live in the forest. The first son of the king S’antanu was Chitrângada,
endowed with all auspicious qualities, exceedingly beautiful, and tormenting
his foes; the second son was Vichitra-vîrya; he was endowed with all qualities. The king S’antanu became very happy to get
these children.
S’antanu had one son before through his
wife Gangâ; he was a great hero and very powerful; and the two sons of
Satyavatî were equally powerful. The
high souled S’antanu now seeing the three sons, all endowed with all auspicious
qualities, began to think that the Devas were incapable to defeat him.
17-34.
After some time, the religious S’antanu
quitted his worn-out body as a man quits his clothes worn out in due time. After the king S’antanu had ascended the Heavens,
the energetic Bhîs'ma performed duly his funeral obsequies and gave various things
in charity to the Brâhmanas. He did not
accept the kingdom himself; but placed Chitrângada on the throne and became
known by the name of Devavrata (truthful in vow like the Devas). The pure souled Chitrângada, born of
Satyavatî became so much powerful by sheer force of his arms, and became so
great a hero that the enemies felt endless troubles. Now once on an occasion, the greatly powerful
Chitrângada, surrounded by a great army, went on an hunting excursion to the
forest in quest of rurû deer, etc., when the Gandarbha Chitrângada, seeing the
king on the way, alighted from
his chariot.
O ascetics! A fierce battle then ensued for three years
on that sacred and wide expanse Kuruksettra between the two heroes, both
equally powerful. In the battle, the
king Chitrângada, the son of S’antanu was slain by the Gandarbha Chitrângada
and went up to Heavens.
Bhîs’ma, born of the womb of Gangâ,
hearing the above news, expressed his sorrows and, being surrounded by the
ministers completed all the funeral obsequies and installed Vichitravîrya on
the throne. The beautiful Satyavatî
became very much agitated by the death of her son; but when the ministers and
the highsouled spiritual teachers consoled her, she became glad when she saw
that her youngest son became king. Vyâsa
Deva, too, felt himself glad to hear that his youngest brother had been made
king.
After some time when the all auspicious,
Satyavatî's son Vichîtravîrya attained his youth, Bhîs’ma began to think of his
marriage. At this time the king of Kâsî
(Kâs'îrâj) called an assembly Svayamvara (where the kings are invited and the
bride selects the bridegroom) for the marriage of her three daughters, endowed
with all auspicious qualities, at one and the same time. Thousands and thousands of kings and princes
from various countries were invited there in
the assembly; and, worshipped duly, they went and decorated the hall. At that time the highly energetic fiery Bhîs’ma
alone, mounting on his chariot, attacked the infantry and cavalry, and defeated
all the kings assembled there, and perforce carried away the three daughters of
Kâs'îrâj and took them to Hastinâpur.
Bhîs’ma behaved towards those three
daughters as if they were mothers,
sisters or daughters and informed
Satyavatî without any delay of everything that had happened.
35-39. Then he called for the astrologers and
Brâhmins, versed in the Vedas and enquired about the auspicious day for their
marriage. When the day was fixed and when
every preparation was made, the religious Bhîs’ma wanted Vichitravîrya to marry
them.
At this time, the eldest daughter,
beautiful-eyed spoke out modestly to the Gangâ's son Bhîs’ma :-- “O Gangâ's
son, the illustrious son of your family and the best of the Kurus! You are the best knower of Dharma; therefore
what more shall I say to you. In the
Svayamvara assembly I mentally selected S'âlva and it struck me that he, too,
looked on me with a very loving heart towards me.
So, O tormentor of foes! Now do what is fit for that sacred family; O
Gangâ's son! Not only you are
extraordinarily powerful but you are also the foremost of
the religious. Sâlva mentally wanted to
marry me; now do as you like.”
40-44. When the eldest daughter spoke thus, Bhîs’ma
asked the aged Brâhmanas, ministers and his mother “What ought to be done now”
and, taking the opinions of all, spoke to that daughter :-- “O beautiful one! You can go wherever you like.” Thus saying,
Bhîs’ma released her. Then the beautiful
daughter of Kâsîrâj went to the house of Sâlvarâj and expressed to him her
heart's desire :-- “O great king! Knowing
me attached to yourself, Bhîs’ma has quitted
me according to the laws of Dharma; I have therefore come to you now; marry me. O best of the kings! I will be your legal wife, for already I used
to think you as my husband and you, too, must have thought me your wife.”
45-47. S'âlva replied as follows :-- “O beautiful
one! When Bhîs’ma caught hold of your
arm before me and took you to his chariot, then I won't marry you. You can say yourself what intelligent man can
marry a woman touched by another? Therefore
I won't marry you, though Bhîs’ma has quitted you, in the light of another.
Hearing these words of S’âlva, the daughter
of Kâsîrâj wept bitterly; yet S’âlva quitted her. Therefore, finding no other way, she went
back to Bhîs’ma weeping, and said as follows :--
48-50. O great warrior! S’âlva did not consent to marry me, as you
first took me to the chariot and afterwards left me. So, O Mahâbhâga! You better look to Dharma and marry me, as
you know best what is Dharma. If you do
not marry me, I will certainly quit my life.
Hearing her words Bhîs’ma said :-- O
beautiful one! How can I accept you,
when your mind has become attached towards another. So, O fair one! You better go back soon to your own father
with a calm, clear mind.
When Bhîs’ma said thus, that daughter of
Kâsîrâj did not go back, out of sheer shame, to her father's house, but went to
a forest and in a greatly solitary place of pilgrimage began to practise
asceticism.
51-56. Now the other two daughters of Kâsîrâj,
beautiful and all auspicious Ambâlikâ and Ambikâ became the wives of the king
Vichîtravîrya. Thus the powerful king Vichîtravîrya
began to enjoy various pleasures in the palace and in the gardens and thus passed
his time. For full nine years the king
Vichîtravîrya enjoyed the sexual pleasures and became attacked with consumption and
fell into the jaws of death.
Hearing the death news of her son
Vichîtravîrya, Satyavatî became very sorry and surrounded by her ministers,
performed his funeral obsequies. Then
she spoke privately to Bhîs’ma with a grievous heart :-- “O highly fortunately
son! now you better govern your father's
kingdom and see that the family of Yayâti does not become extinct. So better take your brother's wife and try your best to
continue your family line.
57-74. Bhîs’ma then said :-- "O Mother! Did you not hear of the promise that I
already made before my father? So I
cannot ever marry and govern the kingdom.”
Hearing these words of Bhîs’ma,
Satyavatî became anxious. She began to
think as follows :-- “How now the continuity of the family be kept! And it is not advisable to remain idle when the kingdom has become kingless; no
happiness can be derived in this state.” Thus thinking, she became exceedingly
distressed; then the Gangâ's son, Bhîs’ma spoke to her :-- “O respected one! Do not worry your mind with cares; now take
steps so as to secure a son from Vichîtravîrya's wife. Call some best Brâhmin, born of a good family and unite him with Vichîtravîrya's
wife. There is no fault, as far as I
know, in doing thus to keep up the family line.
O sweet smiling one! Thus having
begotten the grandson, give him this kingdom; I will also obey his commands.”
Hearing these reasonable words of Bhîs’ma, Satyavatî remembered her own son,
the sinless Vyâsa Deva, who was born to her during her virginity.
As soon as Vyâsa was remembered, he, the
great ascetic and effulgent like the sun, came there and bowed down to his
mother. The highly energetic Vyâsa was
then worshipped duly by Bhîs’ma and welcome by Satyavatî and began to rest
there like a smokeless fire.
The mother Satyavatî then spoke to the
chief Muni :-- “O son! Now procreate a
beautiful son from your sperm and the ovum of Vichîtravîrya's wife.”
Hearing the mother's words, Vyâsa
considered them as Veda's injunction and thought they must be obeyed and
promised before her that he must obey and and fulfil her orders.
He remained there, waiting for the
menstruation period. When the due period
of menstruation arrived, Ambikâ bathed and had a sexual intercourse with Vyâsa
and begot a very powerful son, but a blind one (since she closed her eyes at
the sight of Vyâsa during her intercourse).
Seeing the son born blind Satyavatî became
exceedingly sorry; she, then, asked her other son's wife :-- “Go soon and get a
son born of you in the aforesaid manner.” When the menstruation period arrived,
Ambâlikâ during the night time went to Vyâsa and mixed and became pregnant. In due time a son was born; that child became
of a very pale colour; so Satyavatî thought the new child, too, unfit for the
kingdom.
Therefore at the end of the year again
asked her son's wife Ambâlikâ to go to Vyâsa .
She asked Vyâsa also for the same purpose and sent Ambâlikâ to his bed
room. But Ambâlikâ became afraid, and
could not go herself but sent her maid servant for the purpose. Thus from the womb of the maid servant the high
souled Vidura was born, having Dharma's parts and the most auspicious towards all.
Thus Vyâsa begot three very powerful sons
Dhritarâstra, Pandu and Vidura for the continuity of the family line. O sinless Maharsis! Thus I have described to you how my Guru
Vyâsa Deva, who knows well all the Dharmas, kept up the continuity of his family
and how he begot sons in the womb of his brother Vichîtravîrya's wives, according
to the laws of Dharma, to keep up a family.
Thus ends the twentieth chapter of the 1st
Skandha as well as the first Skandha on Vyâsa doing his duties in the
Mahâpurânam S'rî Devî Bhâgavatam of 18,000 verses by Maharsi Veda Vyâsa .
Source: Translation of The Srimad Devi Bhagvatam by Swami Vijnanananda
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