Mahabharata – 155

by

Sankar Mukherjee

and

Dr Ramesh Chandra Mukhopadhyaya
                       Aadivamsavatarana Parva

The Ganga Samtanu episode reconsidered

There is a school of historians who claim that the Aryans migrated into India from else where. Who were the Aryans? For our purpose it were the people who composed this Mahabharata.The Mahabharata refers to the Vedas over & over again as the scriptures par excellence that should guide the society. The Vedas are the extant manuscript of the earliest Indo – European language. The Vedas has their hymns to the rivers e.g.Nadisukta. The Vedas address the rivers of India as their mother. This clearly shows that the authors of the Vedas did not know that they had migrated from else where.Their home was India. It goes without saying that the Vedic rishis knew less about their time than what our modern western scholars such as Max Muller & the like know about their time or the Vedic time. However India is a land which is embedded with the rivers of goddesses. In other words a river is a river & yet it is a goddess. And no wonder Santanu was married to the most revered of the goddesses of the rivers. And rivers are ever in flux. When a river becomes your wife her conduct is unpredictable. So one should not look askance at Ganga, when, she killed her babies one after another. The sight of this might remind a French reader of the aesthetics of cruelty as propounded by Antonin Artaud.Even in India today we have seen mothers killing their children out of greed.Think of Peter Mukherjea & his wife Indrani. But what seems heartless & uncouth with mortals like us might be looked upon differently from heavenly stand point.To explain this the fortune of the Vasus who were divinities themselves have been cited in the Mahabharata.The Vasus  are gods & they were destined to be born as men. But human life hateful to them. Does it not prove that human life is full of sorrows in relation to the life in heaven? But at the same  time the Mahabharata speaks of activities of god that are offence not only in the eyes of men but also in the eyes of heaven. Besides the speaks of human sages who are highly revered by the gods themselves. The divinities called the Vasus behave like men when they went to steal the cow of sage Vasishtha. The cow of sage Vasishtha is e recurrent motif in the Puranas & the epics.The great sage Viswamitra also wanted to rob Vasishtha of his cow. Viswamitra apprently failed in his venture. But the consequences for him was not deplorable.The failed Viswamitra continued in his struggle through penance. And in the long run he discovered the Gayatri mantra.The chanting of the Gayatri mantra is a must for every Brahmin including Vasishtha.Needless to say Viswamitra who was born a kshatriya had a phase shift.He was acknowledged as brahmin.The story of Vasus & Vasishtha reminds us of the story of Viswamitra & Vasishtha.

Mahabharata – 154

by

Sankar Mukherjee

and

Dr Ramesh Chandra Mukhopadhyaya
                       Aadivamsavatarana Parva

            Vasishtha & the Vasus

In course of Santanu’s conversation with Ganga, Ganga told him that she killed her children only to liberate them from mortal limitations. They were in fact gods. But they were cursed by the sage Vasishtha & were born as humans.Santanu    asked -- Who was Apava or Vasishtha? What was the fault of the Vasus & why through the curse of Apava, the Vasus had to be born among men? What is the fault of  this eighth child of yours, for which he has to live among men? Why are the Vasus,the lords of the three worlds,ill fated to be born amongst men?Oh Gange!Tell me that.

Thus addressed,  Ganga,then replied to her husband, the bull amongst men -- Oh king!  In the past he who was obtained as son by Varuna or water god was called Vasishtha, the Muni who afterwards came to be known as Apava. He had his ashrama on the side of the mountain Sumeru.The spot was sacred & crowded with birds & beasts. And flowers bloomed there at all times of the year in every season. That foremost of  pious men, the son of Varuna, Vasishtha practised his ascetic penances in that ashrama, laden with fruits & water.

Dakshaprajapati had a daughter known by the name of Surabhi, who, for benefiting the world, brought forth, by her connection with Kasyapaprajapati ,a daughter Nandini in the form of a cow. That foremost of all cows, Nandini, was the cow capable of granting every desire. Vasishtha obtained Nandini for his fire sacrifice. And Nandini, dwelling in that hermitage which was served by sages, roamed about fearlessly in that sacred & delightful hermitage. One day  there came into that hermitage the Vasus with Prithu & other celestials. And wandering there with their wives, they enjoyed themselves in those delightful woods and mountains. And as they were roaming there, the wife of one of the Vasus saw Nandini the cow capable of granting every desire in those woods. And seeing that cow possessing the wealth of all achievement, large eyes, flourished udder, fine tail, beautiful hoofs and every other auspicious sign,& yielding much milk, showed the animal to her husband Dyu. When Dyu was shown that cow, he began to admire her several qualities. And addressing his wife, Dyu said that the cow belonged to the Rishi Vasishtha of  this beautiful ashrama. A mortal who drinks the sweet milk of this cow has his youth for ten thousand years.

The exquisite goddess of faultless features then said to her husband of blazing splendour. -- There is on earth a friend of mine, prince Jitavati by name of great beauty. She is the daughter of the great royal sage Usinara famous for truthfulness & intelligence. Oh illustrious one! I desire to have this cow,with her calf for that friend of mine. Therefore, Oh best of the gods! Bring that cow for my friend so that she may drink  her milk & may alone become on earth free from disease & senility. Oh Sire! It is expected that you will  fulfill my   desire. There is nothing in this world that would be more pleasing to me.

On hearing these words of his wife, Dyu,moved by the desire of her, stole that cow, aided by his brothers Prithu & the others. Indeed, Dyu, to comply  with the request of  his lotus-eyed wife, ignored presently the high ascetic merits of the rishi Vasishtha who owned her. He did not think at that time that he might fall by committing the sin of stealing the cow.

When Vasishtha returned to his ashrama with fruits that he had collected, he did not find the cow with her calf there. He began to search for them in the woods. But when the cows were not found nearby on search, the sage saw by his intelligent vision that they were  stolen by the Vasus. His anger  was instantly flared up & he cursed the Vasus, saying -- as the Vasus have stolen my cow they will be born on earth. The great sage Vasishtha cursing the Vasus in anger set his mind once more in meditation.

The Vasus, knowing the curse of the Brahmarshi of great power later, again visited his ashrama. And they approached the rishi, to pacify him. But they failed,

The virtuous Vasishtha said, You Vasus, with Dhava and others, you have been cursed by me.But you shall be freed from my curse within a year of your birth among men. But Dyu, shall for his sinful act, shall have to reside on earth for a long span of time. My words cannot go in vain. Dyu, though residing on Earth, shall not beget children. He shall, however, be virtuous and conversant with the scriptures. He shall be an obedient son to his father. But he shall have to abstain from the pleasure of female companionship.

Saying this to the Vasus, the great rishi went away for meditation. The Vasus then together approched me. And,Oh king! They requested me for the boon that as soon as they would be born,I should throw them into the water. I did as they desired, in order to free them from their earthly life. Dyu only is to live on earth for some time as your son. This son of yours will attain the heaven during his old age.

            Ganga parted from Santanu

Ganga in her farewell address to Santanu with whom she lived for a long time said - Be that as it may,as because you questioned my conduct go away I must to serve the divine will.But whenever you remember me  I shall show up. Having said this, the goddess disappeared presently from the sight of the king with her youngest child.She went away to the region she chose. And that child of Santanu was named both Gangeya and Devavrata. And in course of time he outdid his father in all the skills.

Santanu, after the disappearance of his wife, returned to his capital with a sorrowful heart.

Mahabharata – 153

by

Sankar Mukherjee

&

Dr Ramesh Chandra Mukhopadhyaya
                       Aadivamsavatarana Parva

Ganga explains herself 

Santanu wonderded how cruel was his wife. She killed seven of her sons one after another. Was it not the direst of sins? His wife replied -- I am Ganga, the daughter of the great sage Jahnu. I am ever worshipped by the great sages, I have lived with you so long for achieving the objective of the gods.

The eight most honourable Vasus who are the gods of great energy, were born as humans due to Vasishtha's curse. On earth, besides you, there was no one who deserved the honour of being their father. There is no woman also on earth except one like me,a celestial in human form, to become their mother. I assumed a human form to bring them forth. You also, became their father.You  attained the region of eternal bliss before this birth. In accordance  to the agreement between me & the Vasus I have freed them from the curse of the rishi Vasishtha by immersing them into my waters as soon as they were born.Oh king!Keep this eighth child of rigid vows. And let this child be called Gangadatta as he is my son.

Mahabharata – 152

by

Sankar Mukherjee

and

Dr Ramesh Chandra Mukhopadhyaya
               Aadivamsavatarana Parva

5.     

Married life of Ganga & Santanu

Santanu whose passions were under control, enjoyed the full  pleasure of the company of a celestial damsel as his wife.And adhering to his promise,he refrained from asking her anything.Santanu, was extremly happy with her conduct, beauty & attention to his comforts. And the goddess Ganga also, being the river assuming a magnificent human form with celestial beauty, lived happily as the celestial woman of a wife of Santanu. Santanu did not know the real identity of the celestial woman. And she satisfied the king by her attractiveness and affection, by her craftiness & love, by her music and dance and became herself happy. The king was so delighted with his beautiful wife that months, seasons,& years passed  by. Santanu was however not conscious of the great passage of time.

And the king, while thus enjoying himself with his wife, had eight children born to him one by one,who in beauty were like divinities. But, those children, one after another, as soon as they were born, were thrown into the river by his wife  saying ----- This is for your good.

The king was very unhappy with his wife for such behaviour. But he was unable to speak a single word about it lest his wife might leave him.

 When the eighth child was born and his wife laughed in pleasure,

The king with  sorrowful heart & wishing to  save it from annihilation, addressed her and said -- kill it not! Who are you and whose wife? Why do you kill your own children? Slaying your sons, the burden of your sins would be great! Ganga replied, oh you! desirous of offspring I shall not slay this child of yours. Now according to our agreement earlier, the period of my stay with you is at an end.

The celestial woman of In other words Santanu’s wife smiled & said that Santanu had violated the agreement of marriage. Hence she vanished from the eye carrying the eighth child in her arms never to return. Was she real or a fleeting vision? Santanu was overwhelmed with grief.

  Marriage or cohabitation with celestial woman is a recurrent motif in the Mahabharata & the Puranas.The celestial women are as it were la belle dame sans mercy. Urvashi left Pururava & the latter was in great distress. The raven was surely hoarse & cried – Oh never more! The cruel Menoka left the new born Shakuntala to be protected by the birds. Does it necessarily mean that the heavenly damsels have no human heart? Do they have no locality or a name? But in a dream as it were Ganga explained herself before Santanu.

Mahabharata – 151

by

Sankar Mukherjee

and

Dr Ramesh Chandra Mukhopadhyaya
                Aadivamsavatarana Parva

        Mahabhisha Born as Santanu

The great Pratipa of the Kuru race promised Ganga the goddess that he would accept Ganga as his daughter in law. But alas!  he did not have a son to get married with Ganga so he apparently suspended his penance. About this time great Pratipa, the bull amongst Kshatriyas, was engaged,with his wife in austerities from the desire of offspring. Mahabhisha due to the curse of Brahma  was born as a son to them,at their old age. The child was known as Santanu. Because when he was born his father controlled his inner senses. And the bull among men, Santanu, knowing the region of perennial bliss which can be achieved by one's own deeds alone, becomes devoted to virtue. When Santanu  grows young Pratipa tells him “Oh Santanu,in the past a celestial lady came to me for your hands. If you meet that fairy lady in secret  and if she solicits you for children, accept her as your wife. Never judge  her acts & ask not who she is or whose child she is or from where she is coming. Fulfill her desire.” And king Pratipa crowns Santanu as the king in his place & goes away to the woods.

Santanu meets Ganga

The king Santanu of great intelligence & royal effulgence becomes addicted to hunting and pass much of his time in the woods. He gets great pleasure in killing deer and buffaloes, along  the bank of the Ganges.The region is frequently visited  by Siddhas and Charanas. And there he sees a lovely lady of blazing beauty.She looks like another Lakshmi herself,of faultless teeth and decked with celestial ornaments,& clothes. And the king seeing her, becomes surprised, and his euphoria produces instant shivering.With his eyes he seems to be drinking in her charms. But his lust is not satisfied. The king then in soft words addresses her, Oh slender-waisted one! and adds -- Be you a goddess or the daughter of an ogre, or of the race of the Gandharvas  or Apsaras, Yakshas or the Nagas, or be you of human origin, Oh you of celestial beauty! I solicit you to be my wife.

The maiden then, hearing those soft and sweet words of the smiling king,& remembering her promises to the Vasus, addresses the king in deep loving voice -------Oh king! I shall be your wife and obey your commands. But, Oh king! you must not interfere with me in anything I do,be it agreeable or not.Nor shall you ever address me unkindly. As long as you shall behave

kindly, I promise to live with you. But I shall certainly leave you the moment you interfere with me or speak to me any unkind word.

 The king answers -- Let it be so.

And Ganga then obtaining that excellent king, for her husband, becomes highly pleased.

Mahabharata – 150
by
Sankar Mukherjee
and Dr Ramesh Chandra Mukhopadhyaya
          Aadivamsavatarana Parva
               Ganga & Pratipa
Vaisampayana Continued -- The king Pratipa, spent many years in ascetic penances on the bank of the river Ganga to do good to all creatures.
The lovely Ganga, one day, assuming the form of a beautiful female,& rose from the waters. She was charmed by the grace & appearance of
the king who was engaged in penance. She sat on his right thigh. It was like  a Sala tree. The king said to her, Oh amiable one! -- What do you desire? What can I do for you?
The Ganga in the disguise of a human female answered, -- I desire you as my husband! Be mine! To refuse a lustrous woman coming of her own is never refused by the wise.
 Pratipa answered--  Oh you  fair lady! I never go to wives of other men or to women that are not of my caste. This is my vow.
Then Ganga in the disguise of a human female answered --Oh king! I am a maiden. I am not unlucky or ugly. I am every way worthy of being enjoyed. I am a divine maiden of rare beauty.I desire you for my husband. Refuse me not.
 Pratipa replied -- Oh maiden! I have already left that course of life, to which you are requesting me to get involved. I am now travelling along a different path. If I break my vow, sin will destroy me. Oh you fair lady! You are sitting on my right thigh. Know that this is the seat for daughters & daughters-in-law. The left thigh is for the wife. But you have not chosen that. Therefore,I cannot enjoy you as my object of desire. Be my daughter-in-law. I accept you for my son.
Ganga in the disguise of a human female answered -- Let it be  so.
Let me be united with your son. Out of my respect for you, I shall be a wife of the famous Bharata race. You are the greatest of all the kings on earth. I am incapable of measuring the virtues of your race even if I do that for a hundred years. The greatness and goodness of many kings of your race are peerless. Your race is foremost on the earth. Oh king! let it be clear now that why I want to be your daughter-in-law.Due to my certain oath, your son  must refrain from judging  my acts. If this is granted I shall do good to him and increase his happiness. And he shall finally attain  heaven.
Pratipa replied --Let  it be so.
Ganga disappeared then and there from the neighborhood of the king.

Mahabharata – 149

by

Sankar Mukherjee

and

Dr Ramesh Chandra Mukhopadhyaya
                            Aadivamsavatarana  Parva

Mahabhisha cursed by Brahma & Vasu’s cursed by Vasishtha

Vaisampayana continued --- There was a king known by the name of Mahabhisha born in the Ikksvaku race. He was truthful & of great prowess. By a thousand horse sacrifices and a hundred Rajasuyas he had satisfied the chief of the gods the Indra & attained  heaven.

One day the gods assembled together to worship Brahma. Many royal sages & king Mahabhisha were also there.And Ganga,the queen of rivers, also came there.And her clothes like the rays of the moon were displaced by the act of  wind god.And as her female parts became exposed,the gods bent down their heads.But the king Mahabhisha was gazing at Ganga without any fear. Mahabhisha was for this cursed by Brahma.

Brahma  said -- You shall be re-born on earth. But you shall again attain these regions by your deeds.

King Mahabhisha then thinking about all the pious kings on earth, wished to be born as a son to Pratipa of great prowess.

And Ganga,too seeing king Mahabhisha lost her patience,went away from Brahmaloka,thinking of him.

And on her way she saw,the Vasus fainted & lying on the earth. And Ganga seeing them in that embarassing situation, asked them  --Why do you look  so dejected? You are the dwellers of heaven. Is everything right with you?

The Vasus, answered her -- Oh Gange! we have been cursed, for a minor fault, by the great sage Vasishtha. The foremost sage Vasishtha,was engaged in his evening prayers seated in a solitary place.As he was not being seen by us, we crossed him unmindfully. Therefore in anger he cursed us, saying --- Be born among men! It is beyond our power to overrule what has been said by the  Veda knowing  Vasishtha.

Therefore,Oh fortunate lady be a human female &  make us your children. We are unwilling to enter the womb of any human female.

 Ganga said to  them -- Let  it be so.

She asked them -- On earth -- among the foremost of the men who will be your father?

The Vasus replied -- On earth, Pratipa begot a son,Santanu by name.He will be a king of world-wide fame. He will be our father.

Ganga said -- Oh you sinless celestials! That is exactly my wish. I have a desire to satisfy his wishes.Your desires seems to coordinate with my wishes.  The Vasus then said, -------- It would be fitting that  you throw the children after birth, into the waters, so that,we may be rescued soon without having to live on earth for long.

 Ganga then answered --I shall do what you desire. But in order that my union is fruitful with king Santanu, provide him with a son.

 The Vasus then replied-- We shall each contribute an eighth part of our respective energies With the sum thereof, you shall have one son after your wishes. But this son shall not beget any children on earth. That son would be of great energy & prowess.

The Vasus, making this arrangement with Ganga, went away with great happiness.

The episode is really very interesting. Mahabhisha ogled at Ganga in undress & was cursed to be born on earth. This tells us that the trace of mortal longing linger in the soul even when the soul is transported to heaven.And once it is manifest in heaven one is post haste expelled from heaven. In other words heaven is a realm where there is no room for human passions. Although much of earthly activities such as songs & dance take place in heaven the earthly responses to such activities are rather a taboo in heaven. But curiously enough the person like Mahabhisha cursed in this way has the option to choose his father on earth. Ganga noticed Mahabhisha’s longing for her & she decided to satisfy the longing of Mahabhisha. That speaks of her innate compassion for every one.So she decided to be born a woman on earth to become a consort of Mahabhisha born in earth.This throws a light on the essence of the institution called marriage.Seen from the heaven’s point of view marriage on earth is not necessarily a sacrament. It is an instance of agreement.Ganga decided to become the wife of Mahabhisha or Santanu only for a time.Thereafter she would be free to pursue her will.Furthermore the gods named Vasus did not opt for any human womb to be born on earth in this episode.When gods are born like this they become demigods on earth.It seems that when we are dead our souls will get the opportunity to get our unsatisfied longings on earth satisfied through another birth & there we might choose our parents while we exists in the so called bodiless state in terms of the earth.Besides since marriage is an agreement in heaven can any husband & wife live together in heaven alight with love streaming down from Lord Brahama’s affectionate eyes?