SHAKTI
CAUSE AND EFFECT:
Each event in the present is caused by an event in the past. The destruction phase of the Kuru-dynasty and other royalties related to the Kuru Empire - Where had it begun? What past events caused the present events?
There lived a king named UPARICHARA, a member of the Vasu Clan. He was an honest virtuous king. He once performed penance. Indra, the Ruler of the Gods was pleased. He gifted a divine aerial vehicle to the Earthly ruler. It was a vehicle made of shining marble. The king wandered all over the Earth with its help. He was overjoyed. He had a pretty wife named GIRIKA. He had five sons by her. All ruled different lands allotted to them by their father. Once, Girika had the desire for a union with her husband. Her body craved for his embrace. But, the king was ordered by his father to go for hunting. The king followed the instructions of his father. But, his mind was dwelling on the pretty form of his wife. His semen slipped out of his body. The king felt that his ‘Veerya’ should not be wasted like this. He took a leaf and with proper hymns, packed his seminal fluid in it. He wanted to send it to his wife. He had a pet eagle. He gave it to the bird and asked it to deliver it to his wife as soon as possible. The bird obeyed the master’s command. It took the leaf in its beak and started towards the palace. But, unfortunately another eagle saw this packet of leaf on the pet-eagle’s beak and mistook it to be a piece of meat. A fierce fight took place between the birds and the leaf packet fell into the waters of River Yamuna.
RAADRIKA was a divine nymph! She was very proud of her beauty and charms. She was always teasing good souls engaged in religious pursuits; trying to attract them with her physical charms; playing with the ‘fire’, like an ignorant child. On the banks of Yamuna, a virtuous Brahmin was engaged in performing his regular religious worship. Raadrika could not keep quiet. With her clothes slipping out, she entered the waters and played around, disturbing the good Brahmin. But, her charms had no effect on the Brahmin. He was seriously engaged in doing ‘Praanaayaama’. She felt offended. She held his feet and pulled him into the waters. The Brahmin was annoyed. He cursed her to become a fish. Raadrika, who was wandering in the waters as a fish, caught the ‘seminal liquid’ and absorbed it. After about ten months, she was caught by a fisher-man. He cut open her stomach, and lo! Two babies, one male and another female, came out. He was surprised and took both the babies to the king. The king took the male baby for himself and gave off the female baby to the fisher-man. The male child was named MATSYA and became a famous virtuous
king. The female child was black in color and was named KAALI. Her body had a peculiar smell; the smell of fish. So, she was called MATSYA-GANDHAA. She grew up in the house of the fisher-man, who was the chief of his clan. Raadrika? What happened to her? When she was cursed, she fell at feet of the Brahmin and the kind soul gave her a way out of her curse. So as per his words, she was redeemed of the curse, when she gave birth to two human babies. She had learnt her lesson now. She went back to her heavenly abode, as a better person. Matsya-Gandhi, the daughter of a VASU, was very pretty and attractive. But her home was the fisher-man’s humble abode and not a palace. Why was she discarded by the king- because she was a female? Was it her fault to be born a female? Has SHAKTI, no honorable place in the hearts of men?
SAGE PARAASHARA
The Sage was visiting all sacred religious centers. In the course of the journey, he had reached the banks of Yamuna. He asked the fisher-man to take him across the river in his boat. The man was engaged in consuming food. He ordered his daughter to take the Sage in the boat and leave him on the other bank. The pretty daughter did likewise. The Sage’s mind wavered. ‘What a beauty!’ His mind rocked in passion like the boat he was traveling. His right hand reached her right hand, and he grabbed her towards him. She was unnerved. Taking away her hand gently, she advised the Sage of his unrighteous act. The Sage kept quiet. But as soon as he reached the other bank, he took advantage of the solitude and embraced her forcibly. Struggling against his uncontrolled passion, the black-hued young girl tried to dissuade him by mentioning the stinking smell coming out of her body. But that was no problem to the Sage. He by the power of his penance changed the stink to a pleasant smell pervading all the quarters .The young damsel was pleased. But still she felt that the suggestion of the Sage was not right. She asked the Sage to wait for the nightfall. Maybe by then he would get back his senses. No, he was not to be stopped. By the power of his penance the whole surroundings were covered with a misty darkness. KAALI still struggled vainly. She pleaded with him. ‘What would happen to her afterwards? Who will marry her? How would she face the society again?’ The Sage was a treasure of penance. He told her that she would again become a virgin after the union. He also blessed her that her parents would never know of this secret union and the child born to her would be a great Sage like himself. And, she would always emanate a pleasant smell from her body. Now, nothing else could prove an obstacle. The Sage embraced the young maiden with increasing passion. After he was satiated, he had a bath and left the island. KAALI soon became pregnant and delivered a black-hued baby in the island. The child immediately stood as a man in front of her. After saluting her, he left her to perform penance. He was born by the ‘Essence of Vishnu’. He edited the VEDAS. He composed the PURANAS. He was KRISHNA DVAIPAAYANA VYAASA – the’ Black-hued; island born; editor’.
But- KAALI?
Did she lose her virginity for the price of a perfume? Why did not the Sage make her his wife and give her a status? A wife is an attachment! A wife is a responsibility! A wife is a burden!
His powers gained through lengthy penance gave him the right to use a girl like an inert object to satisfy his own passion. Is SHAKTI only an ‘object of enjoyment’? Is this DHARMA?
MAHAABHISHA was a great king born in IKSHVAKU dynasty. The emperor followed the path of DHARMA. He performed thousand Ashva-Medha Sacrifices and hundred Vaajapeya Sacrifices. He pleased Indra. He went to the Heaven after his death. Once he went to the court of Brahma. Many Gods had assembled there. The divine damsel Ganga was also there.
A gentle wind blew. Her upper garment fell off revealing her beautiful breasts. All Gods immediately looked downwards. The king, who was new to such happenings, looked at her without winking. Ganga also returned a love-filled glance. Observing this shameless act by both of them, Brahma got angry. He cursed the king to take birth in the mortal world. Ganga was also cursed to have a ‘union’ with the mortal king. She left the court, regretting her loss of self-control.
The Eight divine principles - VASUS once happened to visit the hermitage of Sage Vasishta. Their wives accompanied them. One of the Vasus was DYOU. His wife saw the divine cow Nandini at the hermitage of the Sage. Her husband informed her that whoever drank the milk from that divine cow will become youthful and live long. His wife wanted to gift the cow to her friend in the mortal world, the daughter of King USHEENARA. She told her husband to bring that cow to her. DYOU, without thinking of the consequences stole that cow. Other Vasus helped him accomplish this unrighteous act. The Sage was not present at that time. He later returned to find his favorite cow gone along with her calf. He felt anxious. He searched for her, here and there. Then, by divine vision he found out the evil deed of the ‘Vasus’. Angered, he cursed them to get born in the mortal world. The Vasus were shocked. They regretted their foolish action. They fell at the feet of the Sage. The Sage was compassionate. He told them that except DYOU, the rest of the ‘Vasus’ will return to their heavenly abode within a year. But the main culprit will live in the mortal world for a long time. The Vasus were returning to their homes, crestfallen. They met the ‘divine damsel’ Ganga on their path. She also looked depressed. They saluted her and requested her to give birth to them in the mortal world. They told her to throw them into the river as soon as they were born, so they could become free of the curse. She agreed. She knew that MAHABHISHA was born as king Shantanu in the mortal world. He had chosen the Puru-dynasty born king PRATEEPA as his father. She walked away lost in deep thoughts. Which Divinity would prefer to have a human as her spouse?
King Prateepa, the father of Shantanu was offering worship to God Surya, on the bank of River Ganga. As he watched, a shining divine damsel arose out of the waters. She approached the king and sat on his broad right thigh. He asked her what the purpose of sitting on his right lap was. She said that she was enamored by him and wanted to be his. The king was not to be moved by her beauty. He told her that he had not the habit of wooing girls other than his queen and would not commit such an unrighteous act. But he told her that since she sat on the right lap reserved for daughters and daughter-in-laws, she could marry his son, when he was born. The damsel agreed and vanished into the waters. In due time, the king had a son born out of his queen. He named him Shantanu. The son grew up filled with all virtues. When he came of age, his father related to him this event of the past, and ordered his son that when the divine damsel came out again, Shantanu should marry her without questioning her identity and live happily with her. The king made his son the heir to the throne. He went away to the forest to perform penance and by contemplating on the SUPREME DEVI attained the heavenly abode. Shantanu ruled the kingdom according to the path set by his father.
Once he went to the forest regions to hunt. In that impenetrable jungle, on the banks of River Ganga, he saw a young damsel of unparalleled beauty. Enamored, the king approached her and enquired about her identity. Ganga knew him to be Mahabhisha. But he did not know that she was Ganga. She answered coyly that she was in love with that great king and wanted to be in his company. The king was overjoyed. But the clever damsel put forth a condition for the marriage. She told the king that her actions should not be questioned or controlled whether he felt them to be right or wrong. The king was too much in love to think about the consequences of such a condition. He agreed. The divine lady took a human form and went to the king’s abode. Many years passed in sheer marital bliss. They were like Indra and Shachi on Earth. In due time, the pretty maiden became pregnant and gave birth to a beautiful baby. But, as soon as it was born, she took the baby to the river and threw it into the river. The king watched helplessly. He did not stop her for fear of losing her. This happened seven times. The king was feeling agitated. He had seen enough wickedness of this girl. ‘What a mother! She was evil-personified’, he thought and decided to put an end to the demonic actions of his pretty wife. Little did he know that the children born were the seven ‘Vasus’ and they had happily returned to their abodes in the heaven by the compassionate deed of Ganga. The eighth son was born. He was DYOU, the main culprit in stealing the cow of Sage Vasishta. But the king did not know the happenings of the divine world. He pleaded with his wife to spare the child as she started to walk towards the river with the just-born baby. She did not heed to his words. She was on her way to kill her own baby. The king lost control. He was angry and frustrated. He addressed her in many evil terms and called her a wicked witch and sinner of the worst nature. Ganga was infuriated. She, biting her lips in controlled anger, explained to the king the divine events and took leave of him. Since the child was a divinity born in the human world, she told the king that she would take care of the child till he came of age return him to the king later. The king was stunned by the events. He had lost his dearest wife forever. He felt dejected. His sorrow knew no bounds. Years passed in terrible loneliness. Once he went to the same river bank where he had seen his dearest wife for the first time. As he sadly remembered the past events, he saw that the river had become shallow. He also saw a young boy engaged in archery practice. The boy was an expert-hand in archery. He was equal to the ‘God of love’ in beauty. The king could not recognize his own son. He questioned the boy as to his parentage. The boy did not answer. He vanished from sight. The king felt that the boy should be his son. He stood on the bank and prayed to the Goddess Ganga. She appeared before him. She brought the boy to him. Giving the son to the rightful father, she informed the king that his son had lived in the hermitage of Sage Vasishta and had mastered all the scriptures and was also an expert in the usage of weapons. He would be known by the name - Gangeya. She vanished from sight. The king felt blessed. He took his son to his own palace and established him as the crown-prince. In the joy of getting a son, he soon forgot his divine wife of the past. King Shantanu enjoyed the company of his son for four years engaged in various sports. He spent most of his time in hunting wild animals. Once he was wandering in the forest groves situated on the banks of River Yamuna. There he experienced a pleasant perfume spreading all over that area. The scent did not seem to belong to any known source like flowers or trees or animals. Following the track of the scent he reached the colony of the fisher-men. There he saw a black-hued pretty maiden. The scent was emanating form her body. Smitten with passion, he asked for her hand. She requested the handsome king to take permission of her father. When the king placed his request to the Chief of the fishermen community, the father of Kaali put forth a condition for the marriage. He told the king firmly that only the sons born of his daughter should become heir to the throne of Hastinaapura. The king remembered his own son born of Ganga, who would be the next heir and so unable to give the required promise, he returned home heart-broken. But he lost all peace of mind. His condition became worse day by day. Burning with passion and bound by Dharma, he withered slowly.
The son of Ganga observed his father’s plight. He approached his father and politely questioned:
“O my great father! What ails you? What are you worried about? If any enemy is the cause of your trouble, I will destroy him in no time. Father, tell me what you are worried about. What use is a son if he does not remove the worries of his father? A son takes birth to fulfill the obligations of the past birth. All great men of the past have served their fathers in various ways. Rama, the son of Dasharatha left for the forest with his brother Lakshmana and his wife Sita, just to justify his father’s promise to his step mother Kaikeyi. Rohita, the son of Harischandra, sold himself to help his father pay back his debt to his Guru Visvaamitra. Shunasshepa, the son of Ajigarta, got himself sold by his father to get sacrificed in the Sacrificial altar of a king, though he was later rescued by Sage Visvaamitra. Parashuraama cut off the head of his own mother, when he was ordered by his father Jamadagni. O my father! This body is ready for any service that you demand. Nothing is impossible for me. With my bow, I can remove any problem that has been tormenting you. Wasteful is the life of a son, if he does not fulfill the desire of his father! Fie upon such a son!”
Shantanu was hesitant to reveal his real state of his mind and brushed off the whole thing with some vague explanation. Gangeya was not satisfied. He consulted the ministers and with their help found out the cause of his father’s worry. He took those ministers along and went to the fishermen-chief and heard from him the condition that was put forth for the marriage.
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