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Pradyumna
In the Malaya mountains Pradyumna saw a great sage Agastya, who once drank the whole ocean. After spending worship of the sage, Pradyumna talked to him about development of spiritual knowledge.
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Narada Through Mahalaxmi's Grace Makes Agatysa into Vyasa
Becoming Vyasa
On the other hand, Agastya who was not at all happy leaving his dearest Kashi was desperate to get there back as soon as possible. But, he knew that his wish was going to remain unfulfilled. While wandering about, he reached Kolapur where he worshipped goddess Mahalaxmi. When goddess Mahalaxmi appeared, he asked her whether he would ever be able to reach Kashi in his present life. Goddess Mahalaxmi replied--' Your wishes will be fulfilled in the coming nineteenth dwapar, when you would incarnate as Vyas and would contribute a great deal in the propagation of the Vedas and Puranas.
Source
Skanda Purana
Haritasva
The gods were being abused by a great demon, Andhaka-asura. He conquered heaven (svarga) against the combined efforts of the Trimurti (Brahma, Vishnu, and (Siva). Brihaspati, priest of the gods, advised them to get help from King Haritasiva. Agastya, a great rishi of superhuman powers, told Haritasva that the demon was protected with images of Siva and Parvati in his belly. Consequently, Haritasiva fired his arrows at Andhaka-asura‘s belly, removing his protection, and killed him. That was how a king restored Deva- loka (svarga) to Indra (king of the devas) and the gods
Tuesday, January 19, 2021
Panchavati
Once Sri Rama, Seeta and Lakshmana went to the Ashram of Sutheekshna Muni. The sage said, Sri Rama, you have come to Dandakaranya. The ashram of the great sage Agasthya is just four yojanas from here. Pay your respects to him and get his blessings. Accordingly Sri Rama travelled towards the south, with Seeta and Lakshmana. They reached the ashram of the Sage Agasthya.
It was a beautiful forest. The ashram of Agasthya was particularly enchanting. The three walked on,enjoying the beauty of the ashram. Calm deer moved about there. The three enjoyed the sight and visited several temples there. There were Brahmasthana and Agnisthana there.
- There were temples dedicated to Vishnu, Mahendra, Chandra, Bhaga and Kubera.
- There were temples sacred to Dhatru, Vidhatru, Vayu, Vasuki, Gayathri, Anantha, the eight Vasus, Varuna with a chord, Kartikeya and Dharma.
The three visited these temples and then entered the ashram. They went up to the great sage and prostrated before him. Sage Agasthya blessed them. He said, Sri Rama, I heard that you had arrived in this forest. I was expecting you. It is providence that has brought you to the forest. You or Lakshmana or Seeta should not repine at your fate.
Sri Rama answered, Great Sage, I have come to the forest to obey my father. I am not unhappy over this. Instead, I am happy that I am fulfilling the promise of my father. Great Sage, I will have to spend some years in this forest. So, I pray to you to indicate a suitable spot for our stay. It must be close to a water source. It must be beautiful. It must be accessible to the rishis and the munis. It should be possible for us to hasten to their rescue if they are in any way threatened. Be pleased to suggest such a spot.
Sage Agasthya replied, Sri Rama, there is a place close by known as Panchavati. There are gardens there which bear fruits of different kinds. There are pools with crystal clear water. Near by flows the Godavari. Therefore it is best for you to settle there. But before that I will give you some astras. He gave Sri Rama two quivers, a diamond studded bow, the Vishnu Dhanus, a sword with a gold hilt,and magnificent weapons. They were weapons which Mahavishnu had employed against daityas.The quivers were inexhaustible; they would be full of arrows always. Agasthya was pleased to bestow them all on Sri Rama.Sri Rama received them devoutly. His heart overflowed with gratitude. He expressed his gratitude to Agasthya and made obeisance once again. He then bent his steps towards Panchavati with Seeta and Lakshmana.
On the way they saw a huge eagle. It was sitting on the branch of a banyan tree. Sri Rama suspected it to be a rakshasa in the disguise of a bird and asked, Who are you? The bird replied, Havent you heard of Vynatheyas? I am one of them. Kashyapa Brahma had a wife, Vinatha by name. She had two sons, Garuda and Aruna. They came to be known as Vynatheyas because they were the sons of Vinathe. Garuda became Lord Vishnus vehicle, while Aruna became the Sun Gods charioteer. Two sons were born to Aruna “ Sampathi and Jatayu. I am Jatayu. My elder brother Sampathi is on the coast of southern sea. I have lived here for many years. Who are you, and why have you come here? Sri Rama told him who they were. Jatayu was very happy and said, Rama my child, I am a friend of your father Dasharatha. I am old, but yet, if you stay on in Panchavati, I will render whatever help I can. Sri Rama was very happy. He travelled towards Panchavati with Jatayu.
Just as Sage Agasthya had indicated, Panchavati was the loveliest part of the forest. Five banyan trees grew in a cluster and therefore the place came to be known as Panchavati. (The region of pancha “ five vatas “ banyan trees). Sweet fragrance reached the nostrils as soon as they entered the region. The expansive greenery all round was all charm. The place abounded in animals which could be hunted. The godavarri flowed near by, so that religious rites could be conveniently performed. There were trees laden with fruit which would satisfy ones hunger. What more could they ask for?
Lakshmana constructed a beautiful hut of leaves, using wooden logs and other material. They brought flowers and fruits and offered worship to parnakuti and entered the hut.
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Shurpanakha
Some years passed. One day, as they were all sitting in the hut, a rakshasi, Shurpanakhi by name, came that way.
Shurpanakhi was the step-sister of Ravana, the ruler of Lanka. In other words, she was the daughter of Ravanas step mother. In one corner of Dandakaranya was a region known as Janasthana. It was a part of Ravanas realm. Ravana had stationed his step brothers, Khara and Dushana, there, with a big army, for the defence of Janasthana. Shurpanakhi lived with her brothers.
Shurpanakha was very cruel by nature. She delighted in harassing people. She was very ugly but she had the power of putting whatever form she pleased. She saw Sri Rama in Panchavati. He was handsome and well-built and she was attracted to him. She came up to him and asked,Who are you? Why have you come here? Who are these two with you? Sri Rama answered according to his simple nature and told her who they were. Shurpanakhi said, Sri Rama, I have a desire; fulfil it. I am attracted to you; marry me.
Her words amused Sri Rama. He wished to have some sport. He said to her., Shurpanakhi, I am sworn to have only one wife. So I cannot have another wife. But ask my brother. Shurpanakhi came up to Lakshmana and asked him to marry her. He burst into a laughter. Shurpanakhi was enraged.She understood that they were making fun of her. She said, O you are making me a butt of ridicule, are you? I will teach you a lesson. All this trouble is caused by this woman here, isnt it? I will eat her. She then rushed towards Seeta.. Lakshmana then realized the threat. He caught hold of her and cut off her ears and nose.
Screaming dreadfully, Shurpanakhi ran towards the Janasthana, which was in another corner of the forest, to complain to her brother Khara. When he saw her with her ears and nose cut off, Khara angrily roared. Sister, who brought you to this state? Tell me at once. I shall despatch them to the land of death. Shurpanakhi narrated all that had happened. Khara summoned fourteen of his chief generals and sent them with Shurpanakhi. His orders were,Kill Rama and bring his head.
They all came to Panchavati. They rained arrows on Sri Rama. Sri Rama saw the fourteen generals and Shurpanakhi who was with them. He understood the situation. Before beginning the fight he said to them, who are you? Why are you employing weapons here? We aretapaswisi, and adhere to the path of righteousness. Why do you trouble us? I am not afraid of you. If you wish to fight, I am ready.. But I am giving you advice, lest you should all die needlessly.
The rakshasas replied, We are the generals of Khara. This Shurpanakhi is the sister of Khara. You have cut off her ears and nose and disfigured her. Our master Khara is, therefore, enraged. Can we let you go unpunished? If you have the strength, fight with us. So saying they started the fight. They had very powerful weapons weapons so powerful that the antagonists would be reduced to ashes, and the entire army would be annihilated. But Sri Rama overcame them all with his arrows. He fixed fourteen arrows, all as powerful as the sun, to his bow and let them all fly simultaneously. The rakshasas were all crushed and, screaming wildly, fell to the ground and died.
The sight stunned Shurpanakhi. Screaming dreadfully she ran to her brother and reported to him what had happened. He was furious. He could not believe that a mere human being could overpower formidable rakshasas.Very well, I shall teach him a lesson, he said and summoned his younger brother Dushana, who was the commander of his forces and another general Trishira. He set out with them and a force of fourteen thousand brutal and powerful soldiers. The army of the rakshasa armed with weapons of different types, set out with much fanfare and shouting. There were unfavourable omens as they advanced, but the arrogant Khara ignored them and marched on. He reached Panchavati.
Gods assembled in the skies to watch this battle between truth and untruth, between righteousness and unrighteousness and between peace and cruelty. Sri Rama saw Khara and his army and said to Lakshmana, Lakshmana, this seems to be Shurpanakhis brother. He has now marched against me. I have decided that I myself will kill this rakshasa; so take Janaki with you and go far from here.Lakshmana obeyed his brother without a word.
Sri Rama put on his armour, took up his formidable Kodanda and twanged the bowstring. The gods,the rishis and the gandharvas who had assembled to watch this battle cried, May victory favour the virtuous, may Dharma win. They were apprehensive as Sri Rama was to fight single handed against an army of fourteen thousand.
The fierce army rushed at Sri Rama. Sri Ramas eyes spit fire. Khara began with a thousand arrows all of which he shot together at the same time. With his fierce bow Sri Rama cut them all into pieces. The rakshasas sent forth arrows of different types, but Sri Rama cut them also into pieces. The enraged rakshasas assaulted Sri Rama. The huge army which comprised horses and elephants also surrounded Sri Rama. But he broke the arrows into smithereens; the weapons shot by the rakshasas fell to the ground broken, even before they reached Sri Rama.
At the same time, Sri Ramas arrows took heavy toll of whole sections of the rakshasa army. Once Sri Rama roared like a lion and, fixed the gandharvastra to his bowstring and shot it. At once thousands of arrows leapt from the bow and began to massacre the rakshasas. The arrows seemed to fill the entire sky. All the rakshasas who had accompanied Khara, barring a few who were lying injured, were now dead. At the sight of the innumerable rakshasas lying dead Dushana and Trishira felt humiliated. Together they fought valiantly against Sri Rama, but both were killed and fell to the ground.
Khara was now bursting with anger. Some fear also clouded him. Almost his entire army had been wiped out, he was alone. Yet unyielding , he faced Sri Rama. He rained arrows on Sri Rama. Some of them reached Sri Ramas forehead. His armour was broken by some arrows. Sri Rama then strung the Vaishnava bow which had been gifted by Sage Agasthya and assailed Khara. He cut the banner on his chariot. He killed the horse and the charioteer. He broke Kharas bow. Khara then threw away his bow and jumped down from his chariot, his mace in his hand.
Sri Rama addressed Khara who was now standing on the ground, armed with his mace: You rakshasa, without reason you have brought your army here and are fighting. This is unrighteous.You who act against the interests of your subjects do not deserve to live. You should not be allowed to live but should be killed. You should be exterminated like a serpent which has crept into the house.Livid with rage Khara hurled his mace at Sri Rama. Sri Rama aimed arrows at the mace which was whirling and advancing towards him. He shot the arrows at the mace. The mace was broken in the air and fell down in pieces.
This added fuel to the fury of Khara. He uprooted a saal tree which grew near by and hurled it at Sri Rama. Sri Rama cut it, too, and felled it. He decided that Khara should no longer be permitted to live,and shot an arrow which was equal of Brahmastra. The weapon struck Kharas chest. The rakshasa fell to the ground with an unearthly yell and died. The gods cried out in joy. The munis came up to Sri Rama and said, Sri Rama, a dreadful danger has been eliminated. Hereafter we can engage in our sacrifices untroubled. Seeta and Lakshmana, too, arrived and eulogized Sri Ramas greatness. They all spent the day happily.
https://frontinformation.blogspot.com/search/label/Panchvati
http://minddestination.blogspot.com/search/label/Surpanaka
https://frontinformation.blogspot.com/search/label/Panchvati
http://minddestination.blogspot.com/search/label/Surpanaka
Monday, January 11, 2021
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