Adhyaya 112
Gurutīrtha Māhātmya (within the Nahuṣa Episode): Celestial Song, Divine Splendor, and Reflective Doubt
Within the Bhūmi-khaṇḍa’s layered tīrtha narrative, a celestial performance stirs inner disturbance in Śambhu’s daughter, and she rises with a firm ascetic resolve, seeking steadiness through tapas. A prince-like figure then appears, blazing with divine radiance—fragrances, garlands, ornaments, garments, and auspicious marks adorning him. Astonished onlookers speculate: is he a deva, a Gandharva, a Nāga’s son, a Vidyādhara, or even Indra sporting his power? The questioning sharpens into further identifications—Śiva, Kāma (Manobhava), Pulastya, or Kubera—unfolding the Purāṇic motif of “divine ambiguity,” where extraordinary beauty tests discernment. As Samā reflects, a beauty-sovereign lady arrives with Rambhā and companions; smiling and lightly laughing, she addresses Śambhu’s daughter. The colophon places this chapter within the Vena narrative, the glorification of Gurutīrtha, the account of Cyavana, and the Nahuṣa episode.
Shlokas
Verse 1
कुंजल उवाच । तदेव गानं च सुरांगनाभिर्गीतं समाकर्ण्य च गीतकैर्ध्रुवैः । समाकुला चापि बभूव तत्र सा शंभुपुत्री परिचिंतयाना
Kuṃjala said: Hearing that very song—sung by celestial maidens and accompanied by steady, well-set melodies—Śambhu’s daughter, absorbed in reflection, became inwardly agitated there.
Verse 2
आसनात्तूर्णमुत्थाय महोत्साहेन संयुता । तूर्णं गता वरारोहा तपोभावसमन्विता
Rising quickly from her seat, filled with great resolve, the noble lady hastened forth—endowed with the spirit and disposition of austerity (tapas).
Verse 3
तं दृष्ट्वा देवसंकाशं दिव्यरूपसमप्रभम् । दिव्यगंधानुलिप्तांगं दिव्यमालाभिशोभितम्
Seeing him—radiant like a god, splendid with a divine form and equal divine brilliance—his limbs anointed with celestial fragrance and adorned with heavenly garlands.
Verse 4
दिव्यैराभरणैर्वस्त्रैः शोभितं नृपनंदनम् । दीप्तिमंतं यथा सूर्यं दिव्यलक्षणसंयुतम्
Adorned with celestial ornaments and garments, the prince shone—radiant like the sun—endowed with divine marks.
Verse 5
किं वा देवो महाप्राज्ञो गंधर्वो वा भविष्यति । किं वा नागसुतः सोयं किंवा विद्याधरो भवेत्
Will he become a god, greatly wise? Or will he become a Gandharva? Is he the son of a Nāga—or might he become a Vidyādhara?
Verse 6
देवेषु नैव पश्यामि कुतो यक्षेषु जायते । अनया लीलया वीरः सहस्राक्षोपि जायते
I see none like him even among the gods—how much less among the Yakṣas. By this very sportive power, that hero can become even Sahasrākṣa (Indra).
Verse 7
शंभुरेष भवेत्किंवा किंवा चायं मनोभवः । किंवा पितुः सखा मे स्यात्पौलस्त्योऽयं धनाधिपः
Could this be Śambhu (Śiva)? Or is he Manobhava (Kāma), the god born of the mind? Or might he be my father’s friend—Pulastya—or this lord of wealth (Kubera)?
Verse 8
एवं समा चिंतयती च यावत्तावत्त्वरं रूपगुणाधिपा सा । समेत्य रंभासु महासखीभिरुवाच तां शंभुसुतां प्रहस्य
While Samā was thus reflecting, that lady—sovereign in beauty and charm—quickly came there. Arriving with Rambhā and her close companions, she spoke to Śambhu’s daughter with a smile and a light laugh.
Verse 112
इति श्रीपद्मपुराणे भूमिखंडे वेनोपाख्याने गुरुतीर्थमाहात्म्ये च्यवनचरित्रे नहुषाख्याने द्वादशाधिकशततमोऽध्यायः
Thus ends the one-hundred-and-twelfth chapter in the Śrī Padma Purāṇa, in the Bhūmi-khaṇḍa—within the narrative of Vena, in the glorification of Gurutīrtha, in the account of Cyavana, and in the episode concerning Nahuṣa.