Adhyaya 8

Verse 1

श्रीशुक उवाच हरितो रोहितसुतश्चम्पस्तस्माद् विनिर्मिता । चम्पापुरी सुदेवोऽतो विजयो यस्य चात्मज: ॥ १ ॥

Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: Rohita’s son was Harita, and Harita’s son was Campa, who founded the city of Campāpurī. Campa’s son was Sudeva, and Sudeva’s son was Vijaya.

Verse 2

भरुकस्तत्सुतस्तस्माद् वृकस्तस्यापि बाहुक: । सोऽरिभिर्हृतभू राजा सभार्यो वनमाविशत् ॥ २ ॥

Vijaya’s son was Bharuka, Bharuka’s son was Vṛka, and Vṛka’s son was Bāhuka. When King Bāhuka’s enemies seized all his possessions, he accepted the vānaprastha way of life and entered the forest with his wife.

Verse 3

वृद्धं तं पञ्चतां प्राप्तं महिष्यनुमरिष्यती । और्वेण जानतात्मानं प्रजावन्तं निवारिता ॥ ३ ॥

Bāhuka died in old age and returned to the five elements. Then one of his queens wished to die with him, following the satī vow, but Aurva Muni—knowing she was pregnant—restrained her from death.

Verse 4

आज्ञायास्यै सपत्नीभिर्गरो दत्तोऽन्धसा सह । सह तेनैव सञ्जात: सगराख्यो महायशा: । सगरश्चक्रवर्त्यासीत् सागरो यत्सुतै: कृत: ॥ ४ ॥

Knowing she was pregnant, the co-wives conspired and mixed poison into her food, yet it did not take effect. The son was born together with that poison, and thus became renowned as Sagara. In time Sagara became a cakravartī emperor, and the region known as Gaṅgāsāgara was excavated by his sons.

Verse 5

यस्तालजङ्घान् यवनाञ्छकान् हैहयबर्बरान् । नावधीद् गुरुवाक्येन चक्रे विकृतवेषिण: ॥ ५ ॥ मुण्डाञ्छ्मश्रुधरान् कांश्चिन्मुक्तकेशार्धमुण्डितान् । अनन्तर्वासस: कांश्चिदबहिर्वाससोऽपरान् ॥ ६ ॥

Obeying the words of his guru Aurva, Mahārāja Sagara did not slay the rough peoples—the Tālajaṅghas, Yavanas, Śakas, Haihayas, and Barbaras. Instead he assigned them various distorted modes of dress: some shaven yet with mustaches, some with hair left loose, some half-shaven, some without undergarments, and others without outer garments. Thus their clans were marked by differing attire, but Sagara did not kill them.

Verse 6

यस्तालजङ्घान् यवनाञ्छकान् हैहयबर्बरान् । नावधीद् गुरुवाक्येन चक्रे विकृतवेषिण: ॥ ५ ॥ मुण्डाञ्छ्मश्रुधरान् कांश्चिन्मुक्तकेशार्धमुण्डितान् । अनन्तर्वासस: कांश्चिदबहिर्वाससोऽपरान् ॥ ६ ॥

Obeying the words of his guru Aurva, Mahārāja Sagara did not slay the rough peoples—the Tālajaṅghas, Yavanas, Śakas, Haihayas, and Barbaras. Instead he assigned them various distorted modes of dress: some shaven yet with mustaches, some with hair left loose, some half-shaven, some without undergarments, and others without outer garments. Thus their clans were marked by differing attire, but Sagara did not kill them.

Verse 7

सोऽश्वमेधैरयजत सर्ववेदसुरात्मकम् । और्वोपदिष्टयोगेन हरिमात्मानमीश्वरम् । तस्योत्सृष्टं पशुं यज्ञे जहाराश्वं पुरन्दर: ॥ ७ ॥

Following the yoga taught by the great sage Aurva, Mahārāja Sagara performed aśvamedha sacrifices and thus pleased Śrī Hari—the Supreme Lord, the indwelling Paramātmā, the very essence of Vedic wisdom. Yet Indra, the king of heaven, stole the horse released for offering in that sacrifice.

Verse 8

सुमत्यास्तनया द‍ृप्ता: पितुरादेशकारिण: । हयमन्वेषमाणास्ते समन्तान्न्यखनन् महीम् ॥ ८ ॥

Sumati’s sons, proud of their prowess and power and obedient to their father’s command, searched for the missing horse. In that search they dug into the earth on all sides, to a vast extent.

Verse 9

प्रागुदीच्यां दिशि हयं दद‍ृशु: कपिलान्तिके । एष वाजिहरश्चौर आस्ते मीलितलोचन: ॥ ९ ॥ हन्यतां हन्यतां पाप इति षष्टिसहस्रिण: । उदायुधा अभिययुरुन्मिमेष तदा मुनि: ॥ १० ॥

Thereafter, in the northeastern direction, they saw the horse near the āśrama of Kapila Muni. “Here is the thief who has taken the horse,” they cried. “He sits with closed eyes; surely he is sinful—kill him, kill him!” Thus shouting, the sixty thousand sons of Sagara raised their weapons and rushed toward the sage. Then the muni opened His eyes.

Verse 10

प्रागुदीच्यां दिशि हयं दद‍ृशु: कपिलान्तिके । एष वाजिहरश्चौर आस्ते मीलितलोचन: ॥ ९ ॥ हन्यतां हन्यतां पाप इति षष्टिसहस्रिण: । उदायुधा अभिययुरुन्मिमेष तदा मुनि: ॥ १० ॥

Then, in the northeastern quarter, near Kapila Muni, they saw the horse and cried, “This is the thief who has taken the horse. He sits with closed eyes; he is a sinner—kill him, kill him!” Thus shouting, the sixty thousand sons of Sagara lifted their weapons and charged at the sage. At that moment the muni opened His eyes.

Verse 11

स्वशरीराग्निना तावन्महेन्द्रहृतचेतस: । महद्‌व्य‌तिक्रमहता भस्मसादभवन् क्षणात् ॥ ११ ॥

Influenced by Indra, the king of heaven, the sons of Sagara lost their good sense and offended a great personality. Consequently, fire arose from their own bodies, and in a moment they were burned to ashes.

Verse 12

न साधुवादो मुनिकोपभर्जिता नृपेन्द्रपुत्रा इति सत्त्वधामनि । कथं तमो रोषमयं विभाव्यते जगत्पवित्रात्मनि खे रजो भुव: ॥ १२ ॥

Some say that the sons of King Sagara were burned to ashes by fire that issued from Kapila Muni’s eyes in anger. But learned saints do not accept this, for Kapila Muni’s form is wholly established in pure goodness (sattva); how could ignorance appear there as wrath? Just as the spotless sky is not tainted by the dust of the earth.

Verse 13

यस्येरिता साङ्ख्यमयी द‍ृढेह नौ- र्यया मुमुक्षुस्तरते दुरत्ययम् । भवार्णवं मृत्युपथं विपश्चित: परात्मभूतस्य कथं पृथङ्‌मति: ॥ १३ ॥

Kapila Muni proclaimed in this world the Sāṅkhya philosophy, a sturdy boat by which one may cross the ocean of ignorance. One who longs for liberation can take shelter of it to pass beyond the bhava-arṇava—the sea of material existence, the path of death. In such a profoundly learned sage, established in the Paramātmā, how could there be any distinction between enemy and friend?

Verse 14

योऽसमञ्जस इत्युक्त: स केशिन्या नृपात्मज: । तस्य पुत्रोशुमान् नाम पितामहहिते रत: ॥ १४ ॥

Among Mahārāja Sagara’s sons was one named Asamañjasa, born of the King’s second queen, Keśinī. Asamañjasa’s son was called Aṁśumān, ever devoted to the welfare of his grandfather, King Sagara.

Verse 15

असमञ्जस आत्मानं दर्शयन्नसमञ्जसम् । जातिस्मर: पुरा सङ्गाद् योगी योगाद् विचालित: ॥ १५ ॥ आचरन् गर्हितं लोके ज्ञातीनां कर्म विप्रियम् । सरय्वां क्रीडतो बालान्प्रास्यदुद्वेजयञ्जनम् ॥ १६ ॥

In a former birth Asamañjasa had been a great mystic yogī, yet by bad association he fell from his lofty state. In this life, though born in a royal line and able to remember his past (jāti-smara), he chose to present himself as a miscreant, performing deeds condemned by the people and displeasing to his kinsmen.

Verse 16

असमञ्जस आत्मानं दर्शयन्नसमञ्जसम् । जातिस्मर: पुरा सङ्गाद् योगी योगाद् विचालित: ॥ १५ ॥ आचरन् गर्हितं लोके ज्ञातीनां कर्म विप्रियम् । सरय्वां क्रीडतो बालान्प्रास्यदुद्वेजयञ्जनम् ॥ १६ ॥

He would harass the boys playing in the river Sarayū by hurling them into the deep waters, throwing the people into alarm. By such conduct opposed to all propriety, he became a cause of fear for everyone.

Verse 17

एवं वृत्त: परित्यक्त: पित्रा स्‍नेहमपोह्य वै । योगैश्वर्येण बालांस्तान् दर्शयित्वा ततो ययौ ॥ १७ ॥

Because of such abominable deeds, his father withdrew affection and exiled him. Then Asamañjasa displayed his yogic prowess by reviving those boys and showing them to the King and to their parents; after that, he departed from Ayodhyā.

Verse 18

अयोध्यावासिन: सर्वे बालकान् पुनरागतान् । द‍ृष्ट्वा विसिस्मिरे राजन् राजा चाप्यन्वतप्यत ॥ १८ ॥

O King, all the residents of Ayodhyā were astonished to see their boys returned to life. Yet King Sagara deeply lamented the absence of his own son.

Verse 19

अंशुमांश्चोदितो राज्ञा तुरगान्वेषणे ययौ । पितृव्यखातानुपथं भस्मान्ति दद‍ृशे हयम् ॥ १९ ॥

Thereafter, by King Sagara’s order, Aṁśumān set out to search for the horse. Following the path dug by his uncles, he gradually reached a heap of ashes and saw the horse nearby.

Verse 20

तत्रासीनं मुनिं वीक्ष्य कपिलाख्यमधोक्षजम् । अस्तौत् समाहितमना: प्राञ्जलि: प्रणतो महान् ॥ २० ॥

There he saw the sage Kapila—an incarnation of Adhokṣaja Viṣṇu—seated by the horse. The great Aṁśumān, with mind fully attentive, offered obeisances with folded hands and prayed.

Verse 21

अंशुमानुवाच न पश्यति त्वां परमात्मनोऽजनो न बुध्यतेऽद्यापि समाधियुक्तिभि: । कुतोऽपरे तस्य मन:शरीरधी- विसर्गसृष्टा वयमप्रकाशा: ॥ २१ ॥

Aṁśumān said: O Lord, O Paramātmā, even Brahmā to this day cannot understand Your position, neither by meditation nor by mental speculation. What then of others like us—created by Brahmā in many forms and wholly covered by ignorance? How can we know You, the Transcendent?

Verse 22

ये देहभाजस्त्रिगुणप्रधाना गुणान् विपश्यन्त्युत वा तमश्च । यन्मायया मोहितचेतसस्त्वां विदु: स्वसंस्थं न बहि:प्रकाशा: ॥ २२ ॥

My Lord, embodied beings, ruled by the three guṇas, perceive only the actions and reactions of those modes, and they sink into the darkness of tamas. Bewildered by the Lord’s external māyā, they do not know You who dwell within their own hearts; their intelligence, covered by sattva, rajas, and tamas, sees only outward manifestations.

Verse 23

तं त्वामहं ज्ञानघनं स्वभाव- प्रध्वस्तमायागुणभेदमोहै: । सनन्दनाद्यैर्मुनिभिर्विभाव्यं कथं विमूढ: परिभावयामि ॥ २३ ॥

O my Lord, You are concentrated, solid knowledge itself; by Your own nature, māyā and the delusion born of the guṇas’ differences are destroyed. Liberated sages such as Sanandana and the other Kumāras can contemplate You—how then can an ignorant soul like me meditate upon You?

Verse 24

प्रशान्त मायागुणकर्मलिङ्ग- मनामरूपं सदसद्विमुक्तम् । ज्ञानोपदेशाय गृहीतदेहं नमामहे त्वां पुरुषं पुराणम् ॥ २४ ॥

O perfectly peaceful Lord, although material nature, karma, and the names and forms arising from them are Your creation, You are never touched by them. Therefore Your holy name and form are transcendental, distinct from material names and forms. You accept a bodylike appearance only to instruct us in divine knowledge, yet in truth You are the supreme original Person; I offer my respectful obeisances unto You.

Verse 25

त्वन्मायारचिते लोके वस्तुबुद्ध्या गृहादिषु । भ्रमन्ति कामलोभेर्ष्यामोहविभ्रान्तचेतस: ॥ २५ ॥

O my Lord, in this world fashioned by Your māyā, those who take home and hearth as real become absorbed in them. Their hearts, bewildered by lust, greed, envy, and illusion, remain bound to wife and children, and they wander endlessly through this material existence.

Verse 26

अद्य न: सर्वभूतात्मन् कामकर्मेन्द्रियाशय: । मोहपाशो द‍ृढश्छिन्नो भगवंस्तव दर्शनात् ॥ २६ ॥

O Supersoul of all beings, O Bhagavān, simply by seeing You today the strong rope of illusion—rooted in lusty desire and sense-driven action—has been cut. I am now freed.

Verse 27

श्रीशुक उवाच इत्थंगीतानुभावस्तं भगवान्कपिलो मुनि: । अंशुमन्तमुवाचेदमनुग्राह्य धिया नृप ॥ २७ ॥

Śrī Śuka said: O King Parīkṣit, when Aṁśumān had glorified the Lord in this manner, the great sage Kapila—Viṣṇu’s powerful incarnation—mercifully explained to him the path of spiritual knowledge.

Verse 28

श्रीभगवानुवाच अश्वोऽयं नीयतां वत्स पितामहपशुस्तव । इमे च पितरो दग्धा गङ्गाम्भोऽर्हन्ति नेतरत् ॥ २८ ॥

The Supreme Lord said: My dear Aṁśumān, here is the animal your grandfather sought for his sacrifice—take it with you. As for your forefathers, who have been burned to ashes, they can be delivered only by the sacred waters of the Gaṅgā, and by no other means.

Verse 29

तं परिक्रम्य शिरसा प्रसाद्य हयमानयत् । सगरस्तेन पशुना यज्ञशेषं समापयत् ॥ २९ ॥

Thereafter Aṁśumān circumambulated Kapila Muni and, bowing his head, offered reverent obeisances. Having thus pleased him, he brought back the sacrificial horse, and with that horse Mahārāja Sagara completed the remaining rites of the yajña.

Verse 30

राज्यमंशुमते न्यस्य नि:स्पृहो मुक्तबन्धन: । और्वोपदिष्टमार्गेण लेभे गतिमनुत्तमाम् ॥ ३० ॥

Having entrusted the kingdom to Aṁśumān, Mahārāja Sagara became free from desire and released from bondage. Following the path instructed by Aurva Muni, he attained the unsurpassed supreme destination.