Rudra-saṃhitā (3): Pārvatī-khaṇḍa

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] Note: Himavat or Himācala is represented in two forms (1) the mobile and (2) immobile. The former is the subtle human form while the latter is the gross, stationary form identical with the mountain Himālayas. The present section recounts the marriage of Himavat with Menā in his mobile form. See RS III. 1. 15. 1. O Brahmā, how did the goddess Satī, the daughter of Dakṣa who forsook her body in her father’s sacrifice, become the daughter of Himācala, and the mother of the universe? 2. How could she secure Śiva as her husband after performing a severe penance? Please explain this clearly to me who ask you about it. 3. O foremost of sages, listen to the story of Śivā which is excellent, sanctifying, highly divine, auspicious and destructive of all sins. 4-5. When the great goddess Satī, the daughter of Dakṣa, was sporting about on the Himālayas with Śiva, Menā, the beloved of Himācala thought that she was her own daughter and loved her like a mother with all kinds of nourishments. 6-7. When the great Goddess Satī, the daughter of Dakṣa who had been to her father’s sacrifice and who did not receive his due attention became angry and cast off her body, at the very same time, O sage, Himācala’s beloved Menā wanted to propitiate her in Śivaloka. 8. Satī thought to herself:—“I shall be her daughter” and cast off her body in order to become the daughter of Himācala. 9. At the proper time Satī who had cast off her body and who was worshipped and eulogised by the gods became the daughter of Menā out of sheer joy. 10. On being advised by Nārada, the goddess who was named Pārvatī, performed a severe penance and thereby secured Śiva as her husband. 11. O Brahmā, of great intellect and foremost of eloquent gods, please tell me the origin and details of the marriage of Menā. 12. Blessed indeed is the gentle lady Menakā of whom Satī was born as a daughter. Hence that chaste lady is worthy of the honour and blessings of everyone. 13. O sage Nārada, you listen to the story of the origin of Pārvatī’s mother and her marriage and other details both sanctifying and conducive to the growth of devotion. 14. O excellent sage, there in the northern region is a mountain called Himavat who is the lord of mountains and has great splendour and prosperity. 15. His twofold aspects—that of a mobile nature and that of the immobile one—are well known. I succinctly describe his subtle form. 16. He is beautiful and is the storehouse of multifarious gems. Extending from the eastern to the western ocean he appears like a measuring rod of the Earth. 17. He abounds in various trees. Being of variegated shape and features he is adorned by many peaks on him. Lions, tigers and other animals frequent it. Many happy persons live there for ever. 18. He is the storehouse of snow (and yet) very fierce. He is the resort of wonderful things. He is resorted to by the gods, sages and seers. He is a great favourite of Śiva. 19. He is of pure soul, an abode of austerities. He sanctifies even the great souls. He is the bestower of the benefit of austerities. He is the auspicious storehouse of multifarious minerals. 20. He is of a divine form. He is beautiful in every part. He is the unaffected part of Viṣṇu. He is the king of leading mountains and a great favourite of the good. 21. Due to the desire for the benefit of the manes and the gods and for the stabilisation of his race as well as for the increase of virtue, Himācala wanted to marry. 22. At that time, considering their own interest entirely, O excellent sage, the gods approached the celestial forefathers and said lovingly to them. 23. “O ye forefathers, listen to our words with pleasure. If you desire that the affairs of the gods be fulfilled you must act accordingly soon. 24-25. Uniting your eldest daughter Menā of auspicious features with Himācala, a great benefit will accrue to everyone. At every step, the miseries of the gods and those of yours as well can be reduced”. 26. On hearing these words of the gods, pondering over them and remembering the curse incurred by their daughters, the forefathers said “Amen” to their proposals. 27. They gave their daughter Menā to Himavat. In that auspicious marriage there were great festivities. 28. Viṣṇu, the other gods and the sages reached there with their hearts set on Śiva. 29. Giving many charitable gifts they made the celebration a great success. They praised the celestial forefathers and the Himavat. 30. All the gods and the sages rejoiced and returned to their own abodes with their hearts set on Śiva. 31. After receiving many articles as gifts and marrying the beloved lady Menā, the lord of mountains returned to his abode and rejoiced. 32. O excellent sage, the pleasing details of the splendid marriage of Himavat with Menā have been recounted to you thus. What more do you wish to hear?

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, the intelligent one, please now tell me reverently about the origin of Menā as well as the imprecation. Please clear my doubts. 2. O Nārada and the sages, listen to the narrative of the origin of Menā. O excellent son, O great scholar, I shall mention it now. 3. O sage, I have already told you about my son Dakṣa. He had sixty daughters all of whom were the instruments of creation. 4. He celebrated their marriages with Kaśyapa and other bridegrooms. You know all that already. O Nārada, now, listen to the present story. 5. Among those, the daughter Svadhā was given to the forefathers. She had three daughters all of whom were of handsome features and virtuous forms. 6. O excellent sage, listen to their holy names which remove obstacles and confer blessings. 7. Menā was the eldest. Dhanyā was the middle. Kalāvatī was the youngest. All these were mentally conceived daughters of the forefathers. 8. They were not born of the womb of Svadhā. They were conventionally considered her children. On reciting their names, men can achieve their desires. 9. The mothers of the worlds are worthy of reverence of the entire universe always. They are the bestowers of great joy. They are great yoginīs, storehouses of knowledge. They pervade the three worlds. 10. O excellent sage, once the three sisters went to Śvetadvīpa (white island) in the world of Viṣṇu for sightseeing purpose. 11. After bowing to and eulogising Viṣṇu with great devotion they halted there at his bidding. A great concourse of people was held there. 12. O sage, at the same time, Siddhas, sons of Brahmā— Sanaka and others came there. They bowed to and lauded Viṣṇu and stayed there at his bidding. 13. On seeing those sages Sanaka and others and the persons who had assembled there, stood up. When they, the elders of gods respected by the people, sat they all bowed to them. 14. Helpless by misfortune and deluded by lord Śiva ’s illusion O sage, the three sisters did not stand up. 15. Śiva’s illusion is weighty and capable of deluding the worlds. The entire universe is subservient to it. It is also called Śiva’s Will. 16. The same is also called an action that has begun to fructify. Its names are many. Everything takes place on Śiva’s wish. There is nothing to be pondered over in this respect. 17. Becoming a victim thereof, the sisters did not make obeisance to them. They remained surprised and stunned thereafter seeing them. 18. On seeing such a behaviour on their part the great sages, Sanaka and others, despite being wise, became unbearably furious. 19. Himself deluded by Śiva’s illusion Sanaka, a perfect Yogin, furiously told them giving a curse as punishment. 20. Inspite of being the daughters of the forefathers, ye three sisters are foolish, bereft of wisdom and ignorant of the essence of the Vedas. 21. You did not stand up nor did you pay any respects to us. You were haughty and deluded and so evinced a deluded disposition of human beings. Hence all of you shall leave heaven. 22. May the three sisters deluded by ignorance be born as human womenfolk. May ye reap this fruit as a result of the power of your own action. 23. On hearing this, the chaste maidens got perplexed. The three fell at his feet and spoke with their heads bent down. 24. “O excellent sage, ocean of mercy, be pleased now. Because we were mentally confounded we did not bow to you. 25. O Brahmin, the result thereof has been achieved by us. O great sage it is not your fault. Bless us now whereby we shall regain heavenly abode again.” 26. On hearing their words, O dear, the sage spoke to them. He had been induced by Śiva’s illusion to give them redemption from the curse. He was a bit consoled. 27. “O ye three daughters of forefathers, listen with pleasure to my words that will dispel your sorrow and bestow happiness on you. 28. May the eldest among you become the wife of Himavat the mountain that is a part of Viṣṇu. Pārvatī shall be her daughter. 29. The second daughter Dhanyā shall be the Yoginī, the wife of Janaka. Her daughter shall be Mahālakṣmī in the name of Sītā. 30. The youngest Kalāvatī shall be the wife of the Vaiśya —Vṛṣabhāna. At the end of Dvāpara, Rādhā shall be her daughter. 31. The Yoginī Menā shall attain the great region Kailāsa along with her body and in the company of her husband due to the boon of Pārvatī. 32. Janaka shall be blessed by Sītā born in Janaka’s race and he shall be a living liberated soul. A great Yogin, he will attain Vaikuṇṭha. 33. Kalāvatī by the virtue of Vṛṣabhāna shall become a living liberated soul and attain Goloka along with her daughter. There is no doubt about it. 34. Without adversity how can one attain greatness? To persons of good rites, if misery vanishes happiness is likely to be difficult of access. 35. Ye the daughters of forefathers shall shine in heaven. By the vision of Viṣṇu your evil actions have been quelled.” 36. After saying this, the sage was freed of his fury on thinking of Śiva, the bestower of wisdom, worldly pleasures and salvation. 37. Listen further to my words always pleasing to you. You are all blessed by Śiva’s pleasure. Hence you will be worthy of honour and respect immediately. 38. Menā’s daughter, goddess Pārvatī, the mother of the universe shall become Śiva’s beloved after performing severe penance. 39. Dhanyā’s daughter Sītā will become Rāma ’s wife. Based on worldly conventions she will sport about with Rāma. 40. Kalāvatī’s daughter Rādhā, resident of Goloka shall become the wife of Kṛṣṇa united with him in secret love. 41. After saying this, that holy sage Sanatkumāra vanished there itself along with his brothers after he was eulogised duly. 42. The three sisters, the mentally conceived daughters of the forefathers were freed of their sins and attained happiness. They returned to their residence quickly.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, the best of eloquent ones, of great wisdom, please tell me. What is the subsequent story of the good auspicious mountain? 2. You have narrated the wonderful story of the auspicious antecedents of Menā. The details of the marital rites too are heard. Please continue the subsequent narrative. 3. After marrying Menā what did the mountain do afterwards? How was Pārvatī, the mother of the universe, born of her? 4. How did she secure Śiva as her husband after performing a severe penance? Narrate all these things in detail regarding the glory of Śiva. 5. O sage, lovingly listen to the auspicious glory of Śiva on hearing which even a slayer of a brahmin becomes pure and attains all desires. 6. O Nārada, there was great pomp and ceremony in the three worlds when Himācala returned to his abode after marrying Menā. 7. The delighted Himācala too celebrated a great festival. With good intention he worshipped and revered brahmins, kinsmen and others. 8. The contented brahmins returned to their respective abodes after blessing them. The kinsmen and the others also returned. 9. The delighted Himacāla sported with Menā in his cosy abode, Nandana and other parks as well as in several nice places. 10. At that time, O sage, Viṣṇu, the gods and the noble-sould sages approached the mountain. 11. On seeing the gods after their arrival, the noble Himācala bowed to them gladly and honoured them with devotion. He praised his own good fortune. 12. With the head bent down and palms joined in reverence, he eulogised them with great devotion. Himācala’s hair stood on end and tears of love fell from his eyes. 13. O sage, after bowing to them, the delighted Himācala spoke thus to Viṣṇu and other gods. 14. Today my life has become fruitful. My good penance has become fruitful. Today my knowledge has become fruitful. Today my sacred rites have become fruitful. 15. I have become blessed today. My entire kingdom, my wife and family have become blessed. Everything has become blessed. There is no doubt about it. 16. Wherefore have all of you come in a body? Lovingly command me, considering me your own servant. 17. On hearing these words of Himācala, Viṣṇu and other gods considered their affair fulfilled and were delighted. They spoke. 18. “O Himācala of great intellect, please listen to our beneficent words. We shall gladly tell you why we have come. 19. O Himācala, the mother of the universe Umā, who was born as Dakṣa ’s daughter, became Rudra ’s wife and sported for a long time on the: earth. 20. On being disrespected by her father, Satī remembered her vow, abandoned her body and returned to her own region. 21-22 O Himācala, this story is well known in the world. You too know it. If this takes place it will be an asset to all gods as well as to you. The gods too will be under your control.” 23. On hearing these words of Viṣṇu and others the delighted lord Himācala said—“So be it” and worshipped them with respect. 24. After instructing him in the method to be followed with great devotion they approached Umā, the consort of Śiva. 25. They stationed themselves in a good place and remembered the mother of the universe, and bowing to her repeatedly eulogised her with devotion. 26. O goddess Umā, mother of the universe, resident of Śivaloka, favourite of Śiva, O great goddess, O Durgā, we bow to you, 27. With great devotion we bow to the illustrious Energy, the holy, the tranquil, the holy nourishment and the one with the forms of Mahat and the Avyakta. 28. We worship you, Śiva the cause of welfare, the pure, the gross, the subtle, the great goal and the one delighted with the inner and good learning. 29. You are faith, fortitude and prosperity. You alone have control over everything; you are the splendour and energy of the sun illuminating your own universe. 30. We bow to her who promotes robustness in all the beings of the universe from Brahmā to a blade of grass in the whole Cosmos. 31. You are Gāyatrī, the mother of the Vedas, Sāvitrī, Sarasvatī, the sustenance of all the universe; you are the triad of the Vedas having Dharma for its form. 32. You are sleep in all living beings; you are hunger, satiety, thirst, splendour, brilliance and contentment. You are the delighter of every one for ever. 33. To those who perform meritorious actions you are the goddess of fortune. To the sinners you are the eldest sister, the deity of Ignominy; you are peace for the universe, and the mother sustaining lives. 34. You are the essential feature of five elements. You are Justice in those who uphold justice. You are endeavour personified. 35. Of the Ṛgveda you are the invocation; of the Yajurveda you are the blending knot of the mantras; of Sāmaveda you are the song and of the Atharvaṇa Veda you are the measure of time, you are the final goal. 36. She who is the Tāmasika power of all the Gods, she who is visible in the Rājasika quality of the Creator, she who is heard by us as the benefactress and of the form of Śiva is eulogised here. 37. Let us bow to her who is interested in residing on the Vindhya mountains; who is clever in the playful activity of affording protection to Aṣṭāṅga Yoga; who is devoid of cessation and who acts like a raft that enables the crossing of the ocean of worldly existence with its terrible miseries. 38. May she be pleased with us, for keeping up the sustenance of the world, she, who in the form of slumber that is extremely exhilarating to all born in the universe, extends pleasure in the nose, eyes, face, arms, chest and the mind. 39. Thus eulogising the great Goddess Satī, the mother of the universe, all of them stood waiting lovingly desirous of seeing her.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Thus eulogised by the Gods, the Goddess Durgā, the mother of the universe, the destroyer of impassable distress, appeared in front of them. 2. She was seated in a wonderful divine gem-set chariot over which a soft cushion had been spread and which was decorated with tinkling ornaments. 3. She was shining with the brilliance of her limbs that surpassed even the lustre of a crore of suns. She was surrounded by a halo created by her own lustre. She was of symmetrical splendour. 4. She was the unequalled supreme illusion, the beautiful wife of Sadāśiva. She had all the three qualities and was devoid of attributes also, she had been staying in the region of Śiva. 5. She was the mother of the three deities, Caṇḍī, Śivā, the destroyer of the distress of all, the mother of all supreme slumber and the redeemer of all her own people. 6. Śivā was seen by the gods through the power of huge column of brilliance. Again the gods eulogised her in order to have a sight of her. 7. Then Viṣṇu and other gods who were desirous of seeing her saw the mother of the universe there itself after receiving her favour. 8. The dwellers of heaven were extremely pleased, they bowed to her again and again and particularly eulogised her. 9. O Śivā, O great Goddess, O mother of the universe we gods bow to you, the destroyer of all distress. 10. O Goddess, neither the Vedas nor the sacred texts know you perfectly. Your greatness, O Śivā, is beyond the scope of speech and mind and cannot even be meditated upon. 11. Even the Vedas mention you, trembling with fright, by negating what you are not. What will be the matter in regard to others? 12. Many devotees know the same after getting your favour through devotion. There is no cause for fear to the devotees who seek refuge in you. 13. O great Goddess listen to our submission which we, your slaves for ever, are going to explain. 14. Formerly you were born as the daughter of Dakṣa and were married to Śiva. You destroyed the great misery of Brahmā and others. 15. Being disrespected by your father, you cast off your body in accordance with your vow. You then went to your own world and Śiva became miserable. 16. O great Goddess, the purpose of the gods has not been completely carried out. The sages are agitated. Hence we, Gods, have sought refuge in you. 17. O great Goddess, please fulfil the desire of the God, O Śivā, so that the words of Sanatkumāra may be fruitful. 18. O Goddess, incarnating again on the earth please be the wife of Rudra (Śiva) again. Carry on your sports in a fitting manner and let the Gods be happy. 19. O Goddess, may Rudra too, the resident of Kailāsa be happy. Let all become happy. Let misery perish entirely. 20. Saying so, Viṣṇu and the other gods, full of loving devotion remained waiting silently and humbly. 21-22. Śivā too was delighted on hearing the eulogy of the gods and ascertaining the course of the same after remembering her lord Śiva, the compassionate Umā addressed smilingly the gods, chief of whom was Viṣṇu. The Goddess, favourably disposed to her devotees, said:— 23. O Viṣṇu, O, Brahmā, O Gods and sages who are free from sorrow and pain ye listen to my words. I am delighted undoubtedly. 24. My activities are conducive to happiness everywhere in the three worlds. The delusion of Dakṣa and other things were carried out by me alone. 25. I shall take a full incarnation on the earth. There is no doubt in this. There are many reasons for the same. I shall mention them with respect. 26. Formerly, O gods, with great devotion Himācala and Menā rendered service to me in my life as Sati, like my parents. 27. Even now they continuously render me service and Menā particularly (does so). There is no doubt about my becoming their daughter. 28. Just as you, Rudra too, desires my incarnation in the abode of Himavat. Hence I shall incarnate. That shall be the end of misery in the world. 29. All of you return to your abodes. You shall be happy for a long time. After incarnating I shall give Menā full happiness. 30. I shall become Śiva’s wife. But this desire is a great secret with me. Śiva’s divine sport is wonderful. It deludes even the wise. 31-32. Ever since I cast off my body born of Dakṣa on seeing my lord’s disrespect at the hands of my father at the altar of sacrifice, my lord Rudra is tormented by thoughts about me. 33-34. He saw my anger at the altar of my father’s sacrifice. Thinking that the virtuous lady had cast-off her body out of love for him he became a Yogin and abandoned home-life. He assumed an unearthly form and features. But he could not bear my separation. 35. On account of me he was much distressed. He put on an abnormal dress. Ever since he forsook the excellent pleasure of love. 36. Hear further, O Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, O sages and O gods, the divine sports of the supreme lord Śiva, that protect the universe. 37. Oppressed by the pangs of bereavement He wreathed a garland of my bones. Although He is the sole enlightened god He did not get peace anywhere. 38. Like a non-god, like a helpless creature he roamed about here and there and cried aloud. The lord Himself could not distinguish between the proper and the improper. 39. The lord Śiva did this just to show the behaviour of a love-lorn lover. He blabbered like a lover in despair due to separation. 40. But really the supreme lord has no aberrations, is not distressed and remains unconquered. My master Śiva is perfect, lord of all and the controller of illusion. 41. He is not tarnished by illusion. Of what avail are illusion, love and other emotions for Him? 42. Rudra, the lord, is anxious to marry me and hence my incarnation on the Earth at the residence of Menā and Himācala, O gods. 43. In order to propitiate Rudra, I shall incarnate as the daughter of Menā, the wife of Himācala, in accordance with the way of the world. 44. After performing a severe penance as His devotee I shall become Rudra’s beloved and then perform the work of the gods. This is truth, real truth, there is no doubt about it. 45. All of you return to your abodes. Continuously worship Śiva. Undoubtedly your miseries will be quelled by His favour. 46. By the grace of merciful lord Śiva, you will achieve auspicious results. As the wife of that lord I shall be honoured and worshipped in the world. 47. O dear, even as the gods were watching, Śiva, the mother of the universe, vanished after saying this and returned immediately to her world. 48. After making obeisance to the direction in which she went, the delighted Viṣṇu and others, sages and the gods, returned to their abodes. 49. O excellent sages, thus I have narrated to you the auspicious narrative of the goddess Durgā. It is always pleasing to men and it bestows worldly pleasures and salvation. 50. Whoever hears or recites this with concentration, reads or teaches this, will obtain the fruits of all desires.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. When the Goddess Durgā vanished and the gods returned to their abodes, what happened next? 2. O dear, how did Menā and the lord of the mountains perform the great penance? How did he beget a daughter of Menā. Please narrate. 3. O best of brahmins, O most excellent of my sons, listen to that great account. After bowing to Śiva with devotion I shall narrate that story which increases devotion. 4. When Viṣṇu and other gods returned after instructing him, the lord of the mountains and Menā performed a great penance. 5. Meditating on Śivā and Śiva day and night with devout mind, the couple worshipped them continuously. 6. The beloved of the mountain worshipped the goddess along with Śiva, joyously. She gave charitable gifts always to the brahmins for their satisfaction. 7. Desirous of obtaining a child, she worshipped Śivā everyday for twenty-seven years beginning it in the month of March-April. 8. Observing a fast on the eighth day of the lunar fortnight, she made charitable gifts of sweets, offerings of oblation rice cakes, puddings and fragrant flowers on the ninth day. 9. She made clay idol of the Goddess and worshipped her by offering various things on the banks of the Gaṅgā in Auṣadhiprastha. 10. On some days she observed a complete fast. On some days she observed sacred rites. Some days wind alone constituted her food and some days she drank only water. 11. With her mind fixed on Śivā, Menā passed twenty seven years with pleasure and brilliant lustre. 12. At the end of twenty-seven years, Umā the beloved of Śiva, the mother of the world and identical with the universe became highly delighted. 13. The goddess Śivā, delighted by her good devotion appeared in front of Menā in order to bless her. 14. Appearing to her in a form of divine limbs through a lustrous zone, she smilingly said to Menā. 15. O beloved of the mountain, I am delighted by your penance. O chaste lady, tell me what you desire in your mind. 16. O Menā, whatever is desired by you by penance, sacred rites and ecstatic contemplation I shall grant you and that too whenever you wish for it. 17. Then seeing the goddess in her presence Menā bowed and spoke these words:— 18. O Goddess, your form has been perceived by me directly, just now. I wish to eulogise you. Be pleased. 19. On being thus requested by Menā, the goddess Umā, the enchantress of everyone, embraced Menā and was highly delighted. 20. Acquiring very great wisdom, Menā eulogised Śivā, who had appeared in person, by means of pleasing words with great devotion. 21. I bow to the great goddess, the bestower of all desires, I bow to her who wields great illusion, the creator and sustainer of the universe. 22. I bow to her of contemplative sleep, and to her the wielder of great illusion and the cause of permanent bliss. I bow to the mother of the universe. I bow to Siddhā having the garland of auspicious lotuses. 23. I bow to the grandmother, of perpetual bliss. I bow to the goddess who dispels the sorrow of the devotees, who is a model for all women and who constitutes the intellect of all living beings. 24. You are the cause of the snapping of all fetters of ascetics. Which one of your powers can be sung by women like me? You are violence mentioned in the Atharvaveda. You (of such powerful means) fulfil my desire. 25. The living beings are being united to the different principles of the nature of permanence and otherwise and those without substance are discarded. You are the inherent power of those permanent principles. In the proper time you become a woman of ability with Yogic powers. 26. You are the origin and the sustainer of the worlds. You are the eternal Prakṛti, the great, by whom even the Brahman is brought under control. O you, of noble nature, O mother, be pleased with me. 27. You are the great power latent in fire; you are the burning power of the sun’s rays; you are the pleasing power of the extensive moonlight. O Goddess, I bow to you. 28. To good women you manifest yourself as their beloved; to persons of perfect self-control and sublimation you manifest yourself as eternal; to the entire universe you manifest as desire; as of Viṣṇu you are the Māyā so you are of Śiva. 29. You assume different forms as you please for the purpose of creation, sustenance and annihilation and give birth to the bodies of Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Śiva. You, of such potentiality, be pleased. Obeisance to you again. 30. Thus eulogised, the goddess spoke to Menā desiring her to choose a boon. 31. O Himācala’s beloved, you are as favourite to me as my vital air. Whatever you desire I shall give you. There is nothing that I can withhold from you. 32. On hearing these nectar-like words of the Goddess, the delighted Menā, the wife of Himācala, said. 33. O Śivā, Hail, Hail! O great goddess, If you consider me worthy of a boon, I shall choose one. 34. O mother of the universe, at first let me have a hundred sons endowed with longevity, heroism, prosperity and accomplishments. 35. After that let me have a daughter of comely features and good qualities who will delight both the families and who will be revered by the three worlds. 36. O Śivā, be my daughter for fulfilling the needs of the gods. O Goddess, be Rudra ’s wife and indulge in divine sports with the lord. 37. On hearing the words of Menā, the delighted goddess spoke smilingly, fulfilling her desire. 3 8. May hundred heroic sons be born to you. One of them very strong will be born at first. 39. I shall be born as your daughter since I am delighted by your devotion. Since I have been served by the gods I shall fulfil their desire and carry out their activities. 40. Saying so, the Goddess Śivā vanished from there even as Menā was watching. 41. O dear one, on getting the desired boon from the Goddess, Menā attained immeasurable joy. Her misery occasioned by penance vanished. 42. Bowing down in that direction, the chaste lady of delighted mind returned to her abode repeating the benedictory word “ Jaya ” (be victorious). 43. She told her husband about the boon, which had already been understood by him through good omens, by her words which were rendered useless. 44. On hearing the words of Menā, the lord of mountains became delighted. He praised his wife who was devoted to Śiva lovingly. 45. O sage, when their mutual sexual intercourse took place, Menā conceived and the child in the womb gradually grew up. 46-48. She gave birth to a beautiful son Maināka who later on became the worthy recepient of the love of Nāga ladies and who later on entered into an alliance with the lord of ocean. O celestial sage, when Indra, the slayer of Vṛtra, became angry and began to chop off the wings of mountains, he retained his wings, nay, he did not even feel the pain of being wounded by the thunderbolt. He had good limbs. He had neat strength and prowess. He was the most important of all the mountains born of him. He too became the lord of mountains. 49. In the city of Himācala there was a wonderful celebration of the event. The couple were highly delighted. Their pain was at an end. 50. He gave monetary gifts and charitable offerings to brahmins. Their devotion to Śivā and Śiva became increased.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Then the couple, with great devotion remembered the goddess for her birth in order to carry out the work of the gods. 2. Then the Goddess who formerly had cast off her body to spite her father, by means of her Yogic powers, desired to be born of the wife of the mountain. 3. In order to make her own words true, the great goddess, who bestows everything desired, delightedly entered the mind of the mountain with all her constituent elements. 4. Hence he shone with an extraordinary splendour and great joy. With a resplendent brilliance, he, of lofty mind, became invincible like a blazing fire. 5. Then, in a beneficent hour, the lord of the mountains deposited in his beloved the entire constituent element of Śiva by means of ecstatic contemplation. 6. The wife of the mountain, by the grace of the goddess who had sympathetically stationed herself in the mind of the mountain, conceived. 7. The beloved of the mountain, Menā, shone all the more by the presence of the goddess who bore the entire universe. She appeared as if she was in a brilliant sphere. 8. Menā bore the characteristic signs of pregnancy which almost indicated the imminent rise in pleasure of her lord and served as the auspicious cause for the future bliss of the gods. 9. The weakness of her body did not allow her to wear ornaments. Her face became pale like the Lodhra flower. She resembled the night when there are very few stars and the moon is in a waning state. 10. Kissing her face, emitting the fragrance of the earth in the course of his secret dalliance, the lord of the mountains, was not satiated. His love increased. 11. The lord of mountains asked Menā’s friends frequently—“What are the desires of Menā? She herself does not express them out of bashfulness.” 12. Whatever product of the mountain she wished to have in the course of her pregnancy she found brought to her. There was nothing which he, the lord of the mountain, could not accomplish in the heaven too. 13. Surmounting the difficulties of the early days of pregnancy, she grew more plump in her limbs. Menā then shone like a tender creeper putting forth more leaves and flowers. 14. The lord of the mountains considered his pregnant queen like the earth with a treasure within and like the Śamī twig with latent fire in it.{GL_NOTE::} 15. The intelligent lord of mountains performed all the sacred rites befitting his love for his wife, the loftiness of his mind, the vastness of riches earned by him and the injunctions of the Vedas. 16-17. At the proper time, he saw his wife Menā about to be delivered of the child, with delight, as one sees the sky enveloped with clouds. The lord of the mountains felt greatly rejoiced on seeing his wife of sound and auspicious in limbs the “labour-chamber” presided over by physicians. She felt very brilliant with the mother of the universe in her womb. 18. In the mean time, O sage, Viṣṇu, and other gods as well as the sages came there and eulogised Śivā who was in the womb. 19. O Goddess, be victorious, O intelligent one, O mother of the universe, O great Goddess, O you of true rites, prone to truth, true in three things, O truth-formed. 20. O you stationed in truth, we have sought refuge in you. O you delighted with truth, Origin of truth, Truth of Truth, of truthful sight. 21. O beloved of Śiva, great goddess, O destroyer of the miseries of gods, you are the mother of the three worlds, consort of Śiva, pervasive and favourably disposed to your devotees. 22. O goddess of the three worlds, manifest yourself and perform the function of the gods. O goddess, all of us are well protected only due to your favour. 23. Happy persons attain their happiness only from you. Nothing shines in the three worlds without you. 24. Thus eulogising, in many ways, the great goddess stationed in the womb, the gods returned to their abodes, highly delighted in their minds. 25. When nine months were completed, in the tenth month, the goddess, the mother of the universe, bore all the states of a child in the womb in the complete form. 26. The time was good. The planets, stars and the luminary heavenly bodies were quiet; the sky was clear and there was brilliance in all the quarters. 27. The earth consisting of forests, villages and oceans was very auspicious. Lotuses blossomed in lakes, rivers and tanks. 28 O excellent sage, diverse winds gentle to the touch blew; good men rejoiced and bad people became unhappy. 29. The gods stood in the sky and sounded big drums. A shower of flowers fell. Excellent Gandharvas sang sweet songs. 30. Vidyādhara women and the celestial nymphs danced in the sky; in the heavenly region great festivities were celebrated by the gods and others. 31. At that time Śivā, Satī of perfect power formerly appeared in front of Menā in her real form. 32. She was born at midnight when the constellation Mṛgaśiras was in conjunction with the moon on the ninth day in the month of Madhu (March-April) in the spring season like the Gaṅgā from the moon’s sphere. 33. Coming out of the belly of Menā at the proper time in her real form, she resembled Lakṣmī coming out of the ocean. 34. When she was born, Śiva was glad. A slow, fragrant and auspicious wind blew favourably. 35. Along with the rain there was a shower of flowers. Fires calmly glowed and the clouds rumbled. 36. At the time of her birth, riches and prosperity flourished in the city of Himavat. All miseries perished. 37. Viṣṇu and other gods reached there in time and saw the mother of the universe. They were delighted and happy. 38. They eulogised Śivā the mother of the universe, the beloved of Śiva, of great illusory power, of divine features and resident of Śiva’s region. 39. O great goddess, O mother of the universe, O achiever of all accomplishments, you alone can carry out the work of the gods. Hence we bow to you always. 40. O you favourably disposed to the devotees, do everything conducive to the happiness of the Gods. You have fulfilled the desire of Menā. Now, you fulfil that of Śiva. 41. After eulogising Śivā thus, Viṣṇu and other gods bowed to her again delightedly and returned to their abodes praising her great divine ways. 42. O Nārada, Menā rejoiced much on seeing goddess Umā of the splendour of the blue lotus as her daughter. 43. On seeing her divine features, the beloved of the mountain attained perfect knowledge. After that realisation she eulogised the supreme Goddess with very great delight. 44. “Great favour has been shown by you, O Goddess, O mother of the universe, inasmuch as you have manifested yourself in front of me brilliantly. 45. You are the primordial one among all Energies. O Śivā, you are the mother of the three worlds. O Goddess you are the beloved of Śiva, you are great goddess eulogised by the gods. 46. O great Goddess, be pleased. Remain in my meditation in this form, but have the form of my daughter in public view.” 47. On hearing these words of Menā, the wife of the mountain, the delighted goddess Śiva replied to Menā, the beloved of the mountain thus. 48. “O Menā, formerly you served me excellently. I am delighted by your devotion. I have come near you to grant you a boon. 49. On hearing my words “Express your wish and choose a boon” you had chosen the boon “great Goddess, become my daughter. Do what is beneficent to the gods.” 50. Accordingly granting you the boon I returned to my abode. O beloved of the mountain, I have become your daughter at the proper time. 51. I have assumed the divine form now, so that you may be reminded of me. In a human form if I had appeared, it would have put you out of knowledge about me. 52. Constantly thinking of me in the form of your daughter, or in the divine form with love, both of you will surely attain my region, the great goal. 53. I shall do the work of the gods showing my wonderfully divine sports. I shall become the wife of Śiva and redeem good men.” 54. After saying thus Śivā kept quiet. Even as the mother was watching with pleasure, she assumed the body of a daughter by her power of illusion.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. The goddess of great brilliance assumed the form of her baby child in front of Menā and began to cry in accordance with the ways of the world. 2. On account of her splendour that diffused all round the lying-in-couch, the midnight lamps that burnt in the lying-in-chamber were rendered dim in a trice, O sage. 3. The women in the house were extremely glad on hearing the gentle cry of the child. In their excited flutter and great pleasure they rushed in. 4. The superintendent of the harem immediately informed the king about the birth of Pārvatī which was pleasant and conducive to the work of the gods. 5. To the superintendent of the harem who brought the news, there was nothing which the king could not give even including his royal white umbrella. 6. Accompanied by the chief priest and learned brahmins, the lord of mountains came there and saw the child who shone in her lovely clothes. 7. The lord of mountains rejoiced on seeing the child shining in dark splendour like that of the blue lotus. 8. All the citizens there, both men and women, rejoiced much. There were great festivities. Different sorts of musical instruments were played. 9 Auspicious songs were sung. The dancing girls exhibited their saltatorial skill. The lord of mountains performed post-natal sacred rites and made charitable gifts to the brahmins. 10. Himavat came to the outer gate of the palace and joined the festivities. With a delighted mind he distributed monetary gifts to the beggars. 11. In an auspicious hour, in the company of the sages, Himavat named his daughter Kālī and assigned other pleasing names to her. 12. He gave charitable gifts to the brahmins out of love and respect. Varieties of festivities were gone through with suitable music. 13. Though he had many sons, the lord of mountain and his wife rejoiced more on seeing Kālī frequently, after these celebrations. 14. There in the palace of the lord of mountains the goddess Śivā grew up like Gaṅgā in the rainy season and like the moon-light in the autumn. 15. The goddess Kālī of exquisite body and comely appearance acquired more and more splendour like the disk of the moon acquiring more and more digits day by day. 16. The child was fondly attached to every member of the family, Hence the kinsmen called her Pārvatī, a name befitting her family. The girl had all the qualities of good conduct and behaviour. 17. Afterwards when Kālī wanted to perform a penance she was forbidden by her mother who said—“O, no (Umā). Hence O sage, the sweetfaced lady came to be called Umā in the world. 18-19. Although he had many sons, the eyes of the mountain were never satiated on seeing the child Pārvatī endowed with good fortune. In the spring season there may be many flowers in full bloom but the swarms of bees, O excellent sage, are specially drawn to the mango blossom. 20. The mountain Himālaya was both embellished and sanctified by his daughter like a learned man by his speech of grammatical purity. 21. Just as a lamp in the house is praised by leaping flames of brilliance, just as the path of the good by the Gaṅgā, so also the lord of mountains was respected on account of Pārvatī. 22. During her childhood, the goddess played frequently on the sandy banks of the Gaṅgā in the middle of her playmates with balls and dolls. 23. O sage, the goddess Śivā when the suitable time for her education arrived learnt all the lores from a good preceptor, with concentrated mind and great pleasure. 24. Just as the flock of swans returns to the Gaṅgā in the autumnal season and just as the brilliant lustre manifests itself in the medicinal herbs during the night, so also all the learning of the previous birth returned to Kālī. 25. O sage, thus I have described one of the divine sports of Śivā. I shall narrate another one of her divine sports. You listen to it lovingly. Article published on 05 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Once, induced by Śiva, you went to the abode of Himācala lovingly, you who have the knowledge of Śiva and who are the foremost among those who know the divine sports of Śiva. 2. O sage Nārada, on seeing you, the lord of the mountains bowed to you and worshipped you. He called his daughter and asked her to fall at your feet. 3. O excellent sage, he bowed to you again. Himavat joined his palms in reverence and bent his head considering it his duty and spoke to you. 4. O sage Nārada, of good knowledge, O lord, foremost among the sons of Brahmā, you are omniscient. You are sympathetic. You are engaged in rendering help to others. 5. Please read the horoscope of my daughter and tell me about her good and bad fortune. Whose beloved wife will my fortunate daughter be? 6-7. O excellent sage, being thus requested by Himavat the lord of mountains, you looked at Kālī ’s palm and the limbs as well. O dear, you are wise. You know many facts. You are eloquent in speech. You then spoke. 8. “O Menā, O king of mountains, this daughter of yours has all auspicious signs. Like the first digit of the moon she will increase day by day. 9. She will delight her husband, and heighten the glory of her parents. She will be a great chaste lady. She will grant bliss to everyone always. 10. I see all good signs in the palm of your daughter, O lord of mountains. There is an abnormal line also. Listen to the indication thereof. 11. Her husband will be a naked Yogin, without any qualities. He will be free from lust. He will have neither mother nor father. He will be indifferent to honours. His dress and manners will be inauspicious. 12. On hearing your words the couple thought them true. Both Menā and Himavat were much distressed. 13. O sage, on hearing your words, and inferring that indications referred to Śiva, Pārvatī ’s joy knew no bounds. 14. Convinced that Nārada’s words could not be false, Śivā turned her mind and love to Śiva’s feet. 15. The lord of mountains who was very much grieved in mind spoke to you, “O Nārada, O sage, what is the way out? What shall I do? A great misery has befallen us”. 16. On hearing that, O sage, you who are eloquent in speech, delighted Himavat by your sweet words of auspicious import and spoke to console him. 17. “O lord of mountains, listen to my words with affability. They are true. They cannot be false. The lines in the palm are the lines of Brahmā. They cannot be untrue. 18. O lord of mountains, there is no doubt that her husband will be such a person. You now hear what you have to do whereby you will be happy. 19. There is a bridegroom like that. He is lord Śiva who has sportively assumed a physical form. In Him all bad characteristics are equal to good characteristics. 20.In a majestic person a defect does not produce misery. It may well cause misery in a non-majestic person. Sun, fire and Gaṅgā may be cited as examples. 21. Hence you give your daughter in marriage to Śiva. That will be a wise step. Lord Śiva who is the sole lord, unchanging and without any aberration is worthy of being resorted to. 22. By performing penance, Śiva can be propitiated quickly and He will accept her undoubtedly. 23. In every respect, Śiva, the lord of all, is the most suitable person. He cannot be slain even by thunderbolts. He can render Brahmā and others distressed.” 24. O dear sage, after saying this you continued. You delighted him with auspicious words. You spoke to the king of the mountains. 25. “O lord of mountains, she will be the wife of Śiva and will remain his favourite always. She will be a chaste lady of good rites. She will increase the pleasure of her parents. 26. Performing a penance she will fascinate Śiva’s mind towards herself. He too will marry none else except her. 27. A love akin to this pair will not be found anywhere. Never in the past was it seen nor will it occur in future. Nor it is current now. 28. O best of mountains, the two will fulfil the work of the gods. They will resuscitate those who have breathed their last. 29. O lord of mountains, Śiva will become Ardhanārīśvara (half male and half female), with your daughter forming half the part of your body. Their meeting once again will be delightful. 30. After propitiating lord Śiva, the lord of all, by the power of her penance, your daughter will take away half the body of Siva. 31. By propitating Śiva with her penance she will acquire the lustre of gold and will be known as Svarṇagaurī. Your daughter will be as fair-complexioned as lightning. 32. This girl will be famous in the name of Gaurī, She will deserve the respect of Viṣṇu, Brahmā and the other Gods. 33. O excellent mountain, you shall not give her to anyone else. This is a secret of the gods. This shall not be revealed to any one else. 34. O celestial sage, Nārada, on hearing these words that you spoke O, sage, the eloquent Himavat spoke thus: 35. O sage Nārada, O intelligent one, I have one submission to make. Please listen to it lovingly and make us delightful. 36. It is heard that the great God abhors all attachments. He has perfect self-control. He is ever busy in penance and is out of reach of even the Gods. 37. O celestial sage, He is in the path of meditation. How can He withdraw His mind from the supreme Brahman ? I have a great doubt in this respect. 38-39. The supreme Brahman is great and imperishable. It is like the streak of a lamp. It is termed Sadāśiva. It is without aberration. It is beyond Brahmā. It is both full and devoid of qualities. It has no special traits, no desires. It sees within and not without. 40. O sage, from the Kinnaras who come here, such are the things heard about Him. Can it be untrue? 41. This is also heard that Śiva had entered into a contract with the lady Satī. Listen to what I say? 42. “O Satī, Dākṣāyaṇī, my beloved, I shall not take the hand of any woman except you as my wife. This is the truth that I say.” 43. This was the agreement that He made with Satī formerly. She is dead. How then will He take another woman to be His wife. 44. After saying these words, the lord of mountains kept quiet in your presence. O celestial sage, on hearing that,you spoke words that revealed the truth. 45. “O lord of mountains, of great intellect, you need not worry. This daughter of yours, Pārvatī, was formerly the daughter of Dakṣa. 46. Satī was her auspicious name. Satī who was Dakṣa’s daughter became Rudra ’s wife. 47. Being dishonoured at the sacrifice of her father, and being the witness of Śiva’s dishonour she was furious and she cast off her body. 48. She herself is born in your house as Pārvatī. There is no doubt that she will become Śiva’s wife.” 49-50. O sage, all these details you mentioned to the lord of mountains. You told the previous history of Pārvatī that increased her pleasure and on hearing which, the lord of mountains, his wife and children were freed from all suspicions. 51. On hearing the story from Nārada, Pārvatī bent down her head in bashfulness but her smile heightened the beauty of her face. 52. On hearing the story, the lord of mountains stroked her fondly, kissed her on the head and placed her on his seat. 53. O sage, on seeing her seated there you spoke again delighting the lord of mountains, Menakā and her sons. 54-55. “O king of mountains, she will have a better throne than this. Śiva’s thigh will be her permanent abode. On getting the seat on the thigh of Śiva your daughter will go to the world where no eye or mind can reach.” 56. O Nārada, after saying this to the lord of mountains, you went to heaven immediately. The lord of mountains too, whose mind was filled with joy, returned to his palace endowed with all riches.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, O dear one, O foremost among the devotees of Śiva, O intelligent one, taking pity on me you have narrated a wonderful story to me and have increased my pleasure thereby. 2. O Brahmā, when I, of divine vision, had gone to my abode what happened thereafter? Please tell me now. 3. After you had gone to heaven, some time passed. Once Menā approached the lord of mountains and bowed to him. 4. After waiting there for some time with humility, the beloved of the mountain addressed her lord; the chaste lady who loved her daughter as ardently as her own life spoke to the lord of mountains thus. 5. As but is natural to women, the words of the sage have not been understood by me well. (I think it is better) that you perform the marriage of our daughter with a handsome bridegroom. 6. Let the bridegroom of Pārvatī be born of a good family endowed with good characteristic signs. In every respect that marriage will yield an unprecedented happiness. 7. Obeisance to you. Do everything necessary to make our daughter, as beloved to us as our own lives, very happy and delighted after being united with a good bridegroom. 8. After saying this, with tears in her eyes Menā fell at the feet of her husband. Raising her, the lord of mountains, the most excellent among intelligent people, made a true statement. 9. O gentle lady Menakā, listen. I shall tell you the truth. Do not be under false impressions. The sage’s statement will never be false. 10. If you feel affectionate towards your daughter, zealously instruct your daughter. Let her perform the penance with Śiva as the object, devotedly and steadily. 11. If Śiva is delighted, O Menakā, He will marry her. Everything shall be auspicious. The inauspicious features indicated by Nārada will perish. 12. All inauspicious things are auspicious in Sadāśiva. Hence immediately teach your daughter to hasten to perform the penance for attaining Śiva. 13. On hearing these words of the lord of mountains, Mena was greatly delighted. She approached her daughter to advise her to take interest in penance. 14. On seeing the tender limbs of her daughter, Menakā was greatly distressed. Her eyes welled up in tears immediately. 15. The beloved of the lord of mountains was unable to advise her daughter to perform penance. Pārvatī understood the implied wish of her mother quickly. 16. Then the omniscient supreme goddess Pārvatī immediately spoke to her mother after consoling her again and again. 17. O mother, of great intelligence, listen in the early dawn to-day. At night I had a dream I shall tell you. Be pleased. 18. A brahmin sage advised me lovingly and compassionately to perform the penance of Śiva, O mother. 19. On hearing that, Menakā called her husband there and told him the dream as seen by her daughter. 20. After hearing the dream of his daughter from Menakā, the lord of the mountains was pleased and he spoke thus to his wife. 21. O dear, at the end of the latter half of the night, I too had a dream. Please listen to it lovingly. I shall zealously explain it. 22. A great saint of exquisite limbs, as mentioned by Nārada, arrived near my city with very great pleasure in order to perform penance there. 23. Delighted much I took my daughter there with me. He was recognised as Lord Śiva, the bridegroom as mentioned by Nārada 24. Advising our daughter to render service to that saint I requested him to approve of it but He didn’t. 25. A great discussion took place (between her and Śiva based on Sāṅkhya and Vedānta ). Thereafter at His bidding my daughter stayed there. 26. Concealing her love in the heart she served Him with devotion. This is the dream I had, O bright-faced lady and I have told you all. 27. Hence, dear Mena, for some time the result of this has to be watched. Certainly know this to be the proper step for me. 28. O excellent sage, the lord of the mountains having thus explained to Menakā, both of them remained watching its result, pure in mind. 29-30. When a few days passed by, lord Śiva, the goal of saintly men, the cause of protection and enjoyment wandering here and there in his flutter and excitement due to the separation from Satī, came there with pleasure accompanied by a few of his Gaṇas, in order to perform penance. The lord was completely agitated due to Satī’s love and separation from her. 31. He performed his penance there. Pārvatī engaged herself in His service continuously accompanied by two of her maids. 32. Although the lord Śiva was hit and wounded by the arrows of Kāma who was sent thither by the gods to enchant Him, He was not swayed at all. 33. Burning Kāma there by His fiery eye, on remembering my words, the lord became angry with me and vanished from the scene. 34. After sometime, Lord Śiva quelled the pride of Pārvatī but he was propitiated by her again performing great penance. 35. Following the conventions of the world, the lord married Pārvatī after being sponsored by Viṣṇu. Then everything auspicious ensued. 36. O dear, thus the story of the lord, the divine story of Śiva, has been narrated in brief. What is it that you wish to hear again?

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, the fortunate disciple of Viṣṇu, O lord, foremost among the devotees of Śiva, please narrate the divine sport of Śiva in detail to me. 2. What did Śiva, separated from Satī, do? When did He go to the excellent ridge of the Himavat to perform penance? 3. How did the discussion between Śivā and Śiva take place? How did Pārvatī attain Śiva by performing penance? 4. O Brahmā, these and other things, connected with the divine life of Śiva, pleasing and auspicious, you kindly narrate. 5. On hearing this inquiry of Nārada, Brahmā, the excellent lord of the worlds, remembered the lotus-like feet of Śiva and spoke. 6. O celestial sage, most excellent among the devotees of Śiva, listen to His glory that sanctifies, renders everything auspicious and increases devotion. 7. Returning to His mountain, Śiva in his excitement caused by his separation from his beloved, remembered Satī, who was dearer to Him than his very life. 8. Addressing His Gaṇas, He bewailed her and narrated her good qualities heightening love. In this way He showed the way of the world to the people. 9. Abandoning the polished manners of a householder, He cast off his dress and roamed about all the worlds, clever in divine sports that He was. 10-11. Not seeing her anywhere, the pangs of his separation from Satī increasing, Śiva, the benefactor of His devotees, returned to His mountain and entered into trance for the destruction of misery. Thereupon He saw His imperishable real form. 12. Thus Śiva remained for a long time eliminating the three attributes, and unaffected by aberrations. The lord Himself, the controller of illusion remained in the state of the Supreme Brahman. 13. Then He gave up trance. Many years elapsed. What happened thereafter, I shall now recount to you. 14. The drops of sweat caused by exhaustion fell on the Earth from the lord’s forehead and took the shape of a child immediately. 15. O sage, the child was tawny-coloured and had four arms. He was comely in features. His brilliance was supermundane and unbearable to others. 16. Like a common child he cried in front of the Great lord who was engaged in worldly activities. 17. Afraid of Śiva, the Earth pondered deeply over it and appeared before him in the guise of a good lady. 18. She lifted up the child immediately and held him to her chest. Lovingly she suckled the child with her excellent breast milk that flowed over her body. 19. She kissed the child’s face lovingly and petted him smilingly. In the absence of Satī she herself acted as his mother in the interest of lord Śiva. 20. Śiva knew that she was the Earth. Śiva, the cause of protection and enjoyment, the immanent soul, on seeing her activities became contented and eagerly said to her laughingly. 21. “O Earth, you are blessed. Rear this child of mine lovingly, born of my glittering drops of sweat over you. 22. Although the child is born of the sweat of my body, O Earth, he will be famous in the world after your name. He will be a bestower of pleasures and will be free from the three distresses always. 23. This boy of yours will be a bestower of lands and will have good qualities. He will make me too happy. Accept him with pleasure”. 24. After saying this He stopped. He was a bit relieved of His pangs of separation. Śiva, free from aberrations, and a lover of good men, acted thus only for following the worldly conventions. 25. The Earth too, as Śiva bade her, returned to her abode along with the child. She was extremely happy. 26. The child acquired the name Bhauma (son of the Earth). He attained youth immedately. For a long time he worshipped lord Śiva at Kāśī. 27. By the grace of lord Śiva, the son of the Earth, acquired the status of a planet. He went to the heavenly sphere beyond the region of Venus. 28. O sage, thus I have told you the story of Śiva and His separation from Satī. Now listen to the story of His performance of penance. Article published on 06 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1-2. O Nārada, the daughter of the mountain, honoured in the three worlds, was brought up in the palace of Himācala. When she was eight years old, Śiva distressed by Śatī ’s separation came to know of her birth. Keeping her wonderful memory within his heart He rejoiced much. 3. In the meantime, following the conventions of the world, Śiva wished to perform penance in order to concentrate his mind properly. 4-5. Taking some important Gaṇas of quiet nature, Nandin and others, with Him, He went to the excellent Himālayan ridge—Gaṅgāvatāra, O sage, where the great holy river Gaṅgā flowed from Brahmapura formerly, in order to quell sins. 6-7. Staying there, Śiva of full self-control, started His activities of penance. With full concentration and alertness He thought on His own Self, the cause of mental knowledge, the eternal, the luminous, free from affliction, identical with the universe, consciousness and Bliss, without a second and having no support. 8-9. When Śiva began His meditation, the Pramathas also began their meditation as well as some Gaṇas, Nandin, Bhṛṅgi etc. Some of the Gaṇas rendered service to Śiva, the Supreme Self. Some of them became His gatekeepers. They observed silence and did not shout. 10. In the meantime on hearing that Śiva had come to Auṣadhiprastha, the mountain Himavat too went there. 11. Accompanied by his attendants, the lord of the mountains bowed to the lord Śiva, worshipped Him with pleasure and eulogised Him with palms joined in reverence. 12. O great god, lord of the gods, O lord Śiva, the three worlds are sustained by you alone who are lord of the worlds. 13. Obeisance to Thee, O lord of gods, obeisance to the one who has assumed the form of a Yogin, obeisance to Thee that art possessed and devoid of attributes and obeisance to Thee who art sportive. 14. O Śiva, obeisance to the resident of Kailāsa, obeisance to one who wanders all over the worlds, obeisance to thee the great lord, to the one indulging in divine sports, obeisance to the trident-holder. 15. O lord, of complete and perfect qualities, obeisance to Thee, devoid of aberrations. Obeisance to Thee without aspirations. Obeisance to Thee without desires. Obeisance to the bold one, to the great soul. 16. O overlord of the three attributes, O lord of delusion, favourably disposed towards the people, obeisance unto you, who grant inner pleasures of the soul. Obeisance to Brahman, the great soul. 17. Obeisance to Thee, worthy of being served by Viṣṇu Brahmā and others; obeisance to Thee of the form of Viṣṇu and Brahmā; obeisance to Thee, the creator of Viṣṇu and Brahmā, obeisance to Thee O one favourably disposed to the devotees. 18. O one engaged in penance, O one the venue of penance; obeisance to Thee the bestower of fruits of penance; obeisance to Thee who lovest penance; obeisance to Thee of the form of Brahman and quiescent. 19. Obeisance to Thee who lay down the principles of dealings and worldly conventions; obeisance to the great Śiva full of attributes; obeisance to Thee the great soul. 20. O great lord, your divine sports are incomprehensible. They bestow happiness on saintly men. Your nature is subservient to the devotees and you are under their control. You are the performer of all activities. 21. O lord, you have come here because my fortune is in its ascendancy. You have been described as a bestower of favours to the distressed. You have put me under your patronage and protection. 22. Today my life has borne fruit, in fact everything connected with me has become fruitful since you have come here. 23. Knowing me to be your slave of great composure, O great lord, you can freely command me. With my mind not fascinated by other things I shall serve you with great pleasure. 24. On hearing these words of the lord of mountains, lord Śiva slightly opened his eyes and cast a glance on the lord of mountains who was accompanied by his attendants. 25. On seeing the lord of mountains with his followers, the bull-bannered god Śiva, the lord of the universe permanently engaged in meditation and Yogic practice said smilingly. 26. I have come to perform penance in secret on your top. Make arrangements so that none should be able to come near me. 27. You are a noble soul, the abode of penance and permanent residence of sages, gods, demons and other great men. 28. You are the permanent residence of brahmins and others; you are always sanctified by Gaṅgā; you render help to others and you are the lord and king of all mountains. 29. O king of mountains, delighted in resorting to you and controlling my senses and mind I am going to perform penance here at Gaṅgāvataraṇa. 30. O lord of mountains, O best of mountains, now put forth all endeavour whereby my penance can be conducted without obstacles. 31. O excellent Mountain, this alone is the greatest service that you can render. Please arrange for it with due effort. Please return to your abode with your mind full of pleasure. 32. After saying this, the lord of the worlds, the cause of protection and enjoyment kept silent. The lord of the mountains then spoke to Śiva with affection. 33. O great lord of the universe, I have come myself and worshipped you. What shall I ask you who stay in my own kingdom? 34. O great lord, you cannot be attained by great penance even by the gods who put forth great efforts. But you yourself have come here. 35. There is none more fortunate than me; there is none more meritorious than me, since you have come to perform penance on my summit. 36. O great lord, I consider myself greater than the god of gods. You have come here with your Gaṇas and made me blessed. 37. O lord of gods, independently and without any obstacles perform your great penance. O lord, I am your slave always. I shall do all service to you. 38. After saying this, the lord of the mountains returned at once to his abode and enthusiastically narrated everything to his beloved wife. 39. O Nārada, calling together all his attendants with the members of their families, the lord of the mountains said emphatically. 40. From now onwards, none of you shall go to the ridge of mine, called Gaṅgāvataraṇa. This is my command. I am telling you the truth. 41. If anyone of you goes there I shall punish that rogue particularly. This is the truth I am speaking. 42. O sage, after thus checking all of his attendants, the mountain made other arrangements also. I now tell you all about the same.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Then, the delighted lord of the mountains, took some fresh flowers and fruits with him and approached Śiva along with his daughter. 2. Approaching the lord of the three worlds, engaged in meditation and bowing to Him he mentally dedicated to Him, his wonderful daughter. 3. Placing the fruits and flowers in front of Him and making his daughter stand before Him, the lord of the mountains spoke to Śiva. 4. O lord, my daughter who is eager to serve you, the moon-crested lord, I have brought here with a desire to propitiate you. 5. Let her serve you, the benefactor, for ever, along with two of her maids. O lord, if you wish to bless me, please permit her. 6-10. Then Śiva looked at her in the first flush of her youth. Her complexion resembled the full blown blue lotus petals. Her face appeared as the full moon. Her auspicious dress and features were the repositories of all graceful charms. Her neck had the shape of the conch-shell. Her eyes were wide and her ears shone exquisitely. On either side, her long-rounded arms resembling a lotus-stalk shone beautifully. Her two breasts resembling lotus-buds were stout, plump and firm. Her waist was slender and the curly locks of her hair shone well. Her feet resembled the land-lotus and were comely in appearance. She was competent to shake the minds of even the sages deeply engrossed in meditation, even at the very sight. She was a crest-jewel of all the maidens in the world. 11-12. On seeing her in that exquisite form as increased the pleasure and love of even those who meditate, the great Yogin Śiva closed His eyes immediately and meditated upon His real form, the great principle that is beyond the three attributes and is imperishable. 13-14. On seeing Śiva the lord of all, the chief of those devoted to penance, the lord with the moon as his ornament, who can be known through spiritual insight and who was sitting in the meditative posture closing His eyes, Himācala saluted Him again. Though he was not disheartened, he entertained some doubts. Thus he, the lord of mountains, foremost of the eloqueut, spoke to Śiva, the sole kinsman of the universe. 15. O great lord of the gods, O Śiva, the merciful, O lord, open your eyes and look at me who have sought refuge in you. 16. O Śiva, O great lord, the delighter ofthe universe, O great God, I bow to you who destroy all adversities. 17. O lord of gods, the Vedas and the sacred lore do not know you entirely. Your greatness is beyond the sphere of words and minds, inexpressible by means of words and incomprehensible. 18. Not to speak of others, even the Vedas describe you with awe and timidity not positively but negating what you are not. 19. Securing your grace through devotion, many devotees become acquainted with you. Seeking refuge in you they get correct knowledge about your real self. 20. Please listen to my entreaty with a long heart. I am your slave. O dear lord, in humility I shall explain the same to you. 21. O great god Śiva, by your favour I feel most fortunate. O lord, consider me your slave and be sympathetic towards me. Obeisance to you. 22. O lord, I shall be visiting you daily along with my daughter. O lord, be pleased to command me accordingly. 23. On hearing his words, the great lord of the gods broke His meditation, opened His eyes, thought a little and spoke. 24. “O mountain, you shall come every day to see me, leaving your daughter in your abode. Otherwise I cannot be seen” 25. On hearing the words of Śiva in that view, the father of Śivā the mountain, bowed his head and replied to Śiva. 26. “Let this be kindly mentioned why this girl cannot accompany me here. Is she unworthy of your service? I do not know the reason thereof.” 27. Particularly pointing out the worldly conduct of fake ascetics, the bull-bannered god Śiva laughingly spoke to the mountain. 28. This auspicious slender-bodied maiden of comely hips and moon-like face should not be brought near me. I forbid you again and again. 29. A woman is a phase of illusion. As the scholars who have mastered the Vedas say particularly, a young damsel is a hindrance to ascetics. 30. O mountain, I am an ascetic, a yogin, never affected by illusion. Of what avail is a woman thrust on me? 31. O friend resorted to by great ascetics, you shall not say so again, since you are an adept in Vedic religion, a scholar and one foremost among the wise. 32. O mountain, by contact with a woman, worldliness springs up; non-attachment perishes and the virtuous penance is destroyed. 33. Hence, O mountain, no ascetic shall have any truck with women. A woman is the root of all worldly attachments. She destroys all wisdom and detachment together. 34. Speaking these and many other similar things to the lord of mountains, lord Śiva the great Yogin, stopped. 35. On hearing these ruthless words of Śiva free from sickness and desire, the father of Pārvatī became nervous, O celestial sage, and a little agitated. But he kept quiet. 36. On hearing the words of the ascetic and finding her father, the lord of the mountains, frightened, Pārvatī bowed to Śiva and spoke these words clearly. Article published on 06 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Yogin, O lord, wise and clever, please listen to the reply to what you, as an ascetic, said to the lord of mountains. 2. O Śiva, you perform this great penance because you possess the energy of penance. Your intellect is inclined to perform penance because you are a noble soul. 3. That energy is the Prakṛti, the cause of all activities. Everything is created, sustained and destroyed by it. 4. O lord, please ponder over who you are and who this subtle Prakṛti is. Without Prakṛti how can the great lord of the phallic form exist? 5. You are worthy of the worship, respect and meditation of all living beings for ever, thanks to Prakṛti. Thinking of this in your heart, please reply. 6. On hearing these words of Pārvatī, the great lord engaged in the causation of great enjoyment and protection became delighted. He laughed and said. The great lord said:— 7. I am destroying the Prakṛti with my great penance. I remain in reality without Prakṛti. 8. Indeed Prakṛti should not be taken in by good people. They should remain unaffected eschewing all worldly conduct. 9. O dear one, this was said by Śiva in accordance with worldly conventions and dealings. Pārvatī thereupon laughed to herself and spoke these sweet words. 10. O Yogin, O lord Śiva, based on what you said how can that Prakṛti cease to exist and how can you be considered beyond that Prakṛti? 11. You shall ponder over this and say with reference to the facts as they are. All these (the universe etc) are bound by Prakṛti continuously. 12. Hence you shall not say anything, not do anything. Know that speaking, doing etc. is a Prākṛta activity. 13. What you hear, what you eat, what you see and what you do—all these are (essentially) the activities of Prakṛti. To say that it is unreal is meaningless. 14. O lord, if you are greater than Prakṛti, wherefore do you perform penance, O Śiva, now, on this mountain Himavat, 15. O Śiva, you have been swallowed by Prakṛti, you do not know your own situation. O lord, if you do not know your own situation why do you perform penance? 16. O yogin, what have I to do with an argument with you? Scholars say that without perception inference has no authority at all. 17. As long as the embodied beings remain the objects of the sense-organs, everything is Prākṛta. Wise men consider it so. 18. O lord of ascetics, a long-winded talk is of no avail. Listen to my emphatic statement. I am Prakṛti and you are Puruṣa. This is the truth. There is no doubt about it. 19. With my blessings you become qualitative and embodied. Without me, you are attributeless and incompetent to perform any activity. 20. Being always subservient to Prakṛti you perform all activities. Self-controlled, free from aberrations and untainted by me how can you perform them? 21. If you are really superior to Prakṛti, if what you say is true, you need not be afraid to be near me, O Śiva. 22. On hearing these words of Pārvatī based on the Sāṃkhya system, Śiva replied to her, upholding the Vedāntin’s point of view. 23. O Pārvatī, O upholder of the Sāṃkhya system, if you say so, O sweet-voiced lady, you render me unforbidden service every day. 24. If I am the Brahman, the supreme lord, unsullied by illusion, comprehensible through spiritual knowledge and the master of illusion what will you do then? 25. Having spoken to Pārvatī thus, the lord, the conciliator and the blesser of the devotees spoke to the mountain thus. 26. O lord of mountains, here itself on your beautiful excellent ridge, I shall perform my penance showing to the world my real blissful form and nature. 27. O lord of mountains, permission shall be given to me to perform penance. Without your permission it is not possible for me (or any one else) to perform any penance here. 28. On hearing these words of Śiva, the lord of gods, Himavat bowed to Śiva and said. 29. The entire universe consisting of gods, Asuras and human beings, is yours. O great god, though insignificant, I blabber something to you. 30. Thus addressed by Himavat, Śiva, the benefactor of the worlds, laughingly permitted him to go. 31. Permitted by Śiva, Himavat returned to his abode along with Pārvatī. He wanted to visit Him daily. 32. Even without her father but accompanied by her maids, Pārvatī approached Śiva everyday for serving Him with devotion. 33. O dear, at the bidding of lord Śiva, none of the Gaṇas, Nandīśvara and others, purely carrying out the orders of Śiva, prevented her. 34. The discourse of Śivā and Śiva who represented the principles of Sāṃkhya and Vedanta and who, if thoughtfully considered, are not different from each other, was very happy and pleasing for ever. 35. At the request of the lord of mountains, Śiva permitted Pārvatī to remain with Him being true to His words though with all gravity and seriousness. 36. He, the lord of individual souls, said to Pārvatī in the company of her maids—“You can serve me everyday You can go (as you please). You can stay here fearlessly.” 37. Saying this, He accepted the goddess in his service. Śiva is free from aberrations. He is a great Yogin, the lord who indulges in different kinds of divine sports. 38. This is the supreme courage of great ascetics possessed of fortitude that though surrounded by obstacles they are not overpowered by them. 39. Then, the lord of mountains, returned to his city and rejoiced in the company of his wife, the sages and attendants. 40. Śiva mentioned the Yoga of meditation on the great Ātman with His mind freed from obstacles. 41. Pārvatī, along with her maids, continued her daily service to the moon-crested lord, coming and going without any hindrance. 42. She washed Śiva’s feet and drank that holy water. With a cloth heated in fire she wiped his body. 43. After worshipping Him with sixteen types of offerings duly, and bowing to Him repeatedly she used to return to her father’s abode. 44. O excellent sage, a long time elapsed as she continued her service to Him who was engrossed in meditation. 45. Sometimes accompanied by her maids, she sang exquisite songs of good note that increased love in the hermitage of Siva. 46. Sometimes she brought Kuśa grass, flowers and sacrificial twigs. Sometimes, assisted by her maids, she scubbed (scrubbed?) and cleaned the place. 47. Sometimes she stayed in the house of the moon-crescent lord, pure and holy. Sometimes she used to gaze at the lord lovingly and with surprise. 48-49 In the course of his penance sometimes the lord of the goblins thought about her as free from attachment. But as she was in her physical form He did not take her as His wife though she was near Him, though she was endowed with every feature of beauty, though she was capable of deluding even the sages. 50. On seeing her with perfect control over her sense-organs and engrossed in serving Him always, the lord mercifully thought. 51. “I shall take her only when the last seed of ego goes away from her; when she herself performs a penance.” 52. Thinking thus, the lord of the Bhūtas reverted to meditation. The lord who could indulge in great sports became a great Yogin. 53. O sage, when Śiva, the great Ātman, sank into meditation, no other thought entered His mind. 54. As for Pārvatī, she served Him everyday with great devotion, always thinking on the form of that Great Soul. 55. Śiva who was engrossed in meditation saw her every day in full composure. Forgetting His previous thoughts about her, He did not see her although He saw her. 56. In the mean time Indra, other gods and the sages eagerly sent Kāma there at the bidding of Brahmā. 57. They had been harassed by the demon Tāraka. the demon of great strength. Hence they wanted to unite Pārvatī and Śiva in love. 58. After reaching there Kāma tried all his tricks but Śiva was not at all agitated. He reduced Kāma to ashes. 59. O sage, Pārvatī too was divested of her ego. At his bidding she performed a penance and obtained Him as her husband. 60. Pārvatī and Śiva were very happy. Engrossed in helping others they carried out the work of the gods. Article published on 06 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, great devotee of Śiva and disciple of Viṣṇu, this great story of Śivā and Śiva has been narrated very well by you. 2. Who was this Tāraka demon, O Brahmā, by whom the gods were harassed. Whose son was he? Narrate his story with reference to Śiva. 3. How did Śiva of full control reduce Kāma to ashes? Please narrate that too with pleasure. The story of the lord is indeed wonderful. 4. How did Śivā perform the severe penance for the sake of happiness? How did the primordial energy who is greater than the universe secure Śiva as her husband? 5. O great scholar, narrate all these complete in every detail to me, your son, who has dedicated his soul to Śiva and who has developed full faith in Him. 6. O celestial sage, of great intellect, O foremost of my sons, whose sacred rites are laudable, I explain the entire story after thinking on Śiva. Listen. 7. O Nārada, first of all, you hear the birth of Tāraka himself, to secure whose death great effort was made by the gods depending on Śiva. 8. My son Marīci begot Kaśyapa who married thirteen daughters of Dakṣa. 9. The eldest of them Diti bore two sons: Hiraṇyakaśipu the elder and Hiraṇyākṣa the younger. 10. When these two began to harass the gods, Viṣṇu assumed the forms of Man-lion and Boar and killed them. Then the gods became fearless and happy. 11. The distressed Diti sought refuge in Kaśyapa and and serving him with devotion and observing the sacred rites she conceived. 12. On coming to know of it, Indra entered her womb forcibly and cut it off many a time with his thunderbolt. 13. By the power of her sacred rites, the child in the womb did not die as she was sleeping at that time, by a stroke of good luck. They were cut into seven pieces and so she had seven sons. 14. These sons became gods by the name of Maruts. They all went to heaven along with Indra and were taken as his own attendants by the king of gods. 15. Diti resorted again to her husband repenting for her action. She made the sage pleased by means of great service. 16. Be pure and perform penance for ten thousand years of Brahmā. When it is completed you will have a son. 17. O sage, the penance was completed by Diti who performed it with faith. Thereafter from him she conceived and delivered of a son. 18. That son of Diti named Vajrāṅga (of adamantine limbs) was on a par with the gods. Befitting his name, his body was strong and powerful even from his very birth. 19. At the bidding of his mother, he immediately abducted Indra, the lord of gods, the other gods and punished them in various ways. 20. Seeing the distress of Indra and others, Diti became very happy. Indra and other gods became miserable due to their own actions. 21. Always engaged in the welfare of the gods, I went there accompanied by Kaśyapa. Employing gentle and peaceful words I got the gods released. 22. Releasing the gods with respect, Vajrāṅga, a great devotee of Śiva, was delighted in his heart, and he of pure soul, without any aberration, spoke. 23. In order to achieve his interest, Indra killed the foetus of my mother. He has now tasted the fruit thereof. Well may he rule over his kingdom. 24. O Brahmā, I did this only at the bidding of my mother. I have no desire for the enjoyments of any one of the worlds. 25. O Brahmā, foremost of those who know the Vedas, tell me the essence of real philosophy whereby I can ever remain happy, pleased in heart and free from aberrations. 26. On hearing that, O sage, I said—“ Sāttvika feelings constitute the essence of real philosophy. I shall lovingly create an exquisite lady.” 27. After offering her who was named Varāṅgī, to that son of Diti, I went to my abode in great delight. So also Kaśyapa, his father. 28. Thereafter the demon eschewed his diabolical feelings and resorted to sublime thoughts. Since he was free from fiendish feelings he became happy. 29. But no sublime feeling entered in the heart of Varāṅgī. With chastity and faith she served her husband lovingly in diverse ways. 30. Her husband Vajrāṅga of great lordly status was glad very soon on account of her service. He then spoke thus:— 31. O beloved, what do you wish? What is it that you cherish in your mind? On hearing that, she bowed to her husband and revealed her desire. 32. “O my good husband, if you are so pleased grant me a powerful son who will conquer three worlds and cause misery to Viṣṇu.” 33. On hearing the words of his beloved, he was disagreeably surprised and vexed. He was free from inimical thoughts. With perfect wisdom and Sāttvika feelings in his heart he said:— 34. My beloved wishes enmity with the gods. It does not appeal to me. What shall I do? Where shall I go? How can my vow be preserved from destruction? 35. If my wife’s wishes are fulfilled, the three worlds will be much distressed, so too the gods and the sages. 36. If my beloved’s desires are not fulfilled, I am sure to be cast into hell. In either case righteousness will be lost. This is what we have heard. 37. O sage, thus Vajrāṅga whirled a lot in a dilemma. Intelligently he considered the corresponding strength and weakness of both the alternatives. 38. O sage, as willed by Śiva, though intelligent the king of demons agreed to the proposal. He told his wife “So be it.” 39. For that purpose he performed another very difficult penance with great zeal with me as the object of worship, for number of years. 40. On seeing the great penance I went to him for granting the boon. With a delighted mind I told him “speak out the boon you wish to have.” 41. On seeing me in the firmament in the pleasant mood he worshipped and eulogised me as well as craved for the boon as desired by his wife. 42. O lord, give me a son who will be carrying out what is beneficent to his mother, who will be strong, valorous and efficient, who will be a storehouse of penance. 43. On hearing his words, O sage, I said “So be it.” After granting the boon I returned to my abode thinking on Śiva, though a bit distressed. Article published on 06 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Then that Varāṅgī. devoted to him, conceived. The child within her body developed in many years with its brilliance. 2. That Varāṅgī, when the time was complete, delivered of a son of huge body and great strength dazzling the ten quarters. 3. At the same time, several phenomena of evil portent forboding misery and distress happened, when the son of Varāṅgī was born making the gods miserable. 4. O dear, the phenomena of three varieties indicating great calamity and terrifying the worlds occurred in the sky, heaven and earth. I shall narrate them. 5. With a terrifying noise, thunderbolts fell along with comets; shooting meteors rose up, making the world miserable. 6. The earth with all the mountains quaked; the quarters blazed; the rivers and oceans were particularly agitated. 7. The rough wind blew with a hissing noise. Gusts of wind with troops of tempests and dust for banner uprooted several trees. 8. O great brahmin, the misty haloes around the sun and the moon in the grip of Rāhu became the harbingers of great fear and unhappiness. 9 At that time terrifying sounds that resembled those of the chariot issued forth from cracks and crevices in the mountains. 10. Within villages, inauspicious vixens howled hideously vomitting fires; as it were, through their mouths along with the hissing and twanging sounds of the hootings and howlings of owls and jackals. 11. Lifting up their necks, the dogs barked in diverse ways producing sounds of singing or lamenting here and there. 12. O dear, groups of mad asses ran here and there braying loudly and digging the ground with their hoofs. 13. Terrified by the asses, birds flew up from their nests. In their excitement and flutter they honked and cronked. They did not find a peaceful perch anywhere. 14. Beasts in sheds and forests roamed here and there in great fright as though beaten and driven about, passing urine and shitting dungs as they pleased. 15. Frightened cows sprayed blood through their udders; their eyes brimmed with tears, clouds showering putrid matter became terrifying. 16. Idols and images of deities appeared to cry and fly up. Even when there was no gale, trees fell down. Planets in the sky clashed with one another. 17. O excellent sage, these and similar portending phenomena occurred: Ignorant persons thought the submersion of the whole universe was imminent. 18. Then Kaśyapa Prajāpati thought well and named the powerful demon Tāraka. 19. That heroic demon, with his manliness and valour manifesting quickly grew and developed with his steely frame like the lord of mountains. 20. Then the demon Tāraka, of great strength and exploit, endowed with a lofty mind, requested permission of his mother for performing penance. 21. The permission having been secured, that demon possessing great power of illusion and capable of deluding even experts in the magical art, thought of performing penance in order to conquer all the gods. 22. Strictly adhering to the directions of his elders and preceptors he went to the forest of Madhu and performed a severe penance duly, having Brahmā as his objective. 23. For a hundred years he performed penance with his hands lifted up, standing on only one leg and gazing at the sun. With his mind steady and firm he observed all sacred rites. 24. Then for a hundred years, the lord and king of Asuras, Tāraka performed the penance: stood steady touching the ground with the single big toe. 25. For hundred years he performed penance by drinking only water; another hundred years by sustaining himself on air alone, another hundred years standing in water and another hundred years standing on dry land. 26. A hundred years he performed the penance amidst fires, a hundred years in a topsy-turvy position and a hundred years supported on the ground by the palms of his hands. 27. O sage, a hundred years he remained with his head down and feet up clinging fast to the branch of a tree and inhaling the pure smoke of the sacrificial fire. 28. Thus with ardour, the king of the demons performed the severe penance duly unbearable even to those who heard about it. 29. O sage, in the process of such a penance, a huge mass of light shot up from his head and spread all round. It caused great havoc. 30. All the worlds of the gods were well nigh consumed by it alone. O sage, all the celestial sages were hard hit and distressed. 31-32. Indra, the lord of gods, was extremely terrified. He thought “Some one is performing a penance. Surely he will usurp my position. This master mind shall in a trice destroy the whole cosmos”. All those who entertained similar doubts could not decide what to do. 33. Then all those gods and sages consulted one another and in their great fright they came to my world and approached me in a piteous plight. 34. Bowing to and eulogising me with palms joined in reverence, all of them explained everything to me distressed in mind that they were. 35. Coming to a definite conclusion with adequate thought as to the reason for the same, I went where the demon was performing penance in order to grant him the boon. 36. O sage, I told him thus—“Tell me what boon you want. A severe penance has been performed by you. There is nothing which cannot be granted to you”. 37. On hearing these words of mine, Tāraka, the great demon, bowed and eulogised me and requested for a terrible boon. 38. “O Pitāmaha, if you are glad and ready to grant me the boon what is it that cannot be achieved by me? Hence I request you for this boon. Please listen. 39. O lord of gods, if you are pleased and if a boon is to be given to me, be kind enough to grant me two boons. 40. O great lord, there should certainly be no man equal to me in strength in this entire universe created by you. 41. If a son born of Śiva becomes the commander-inchief of an army and discharges weapons against me, let my death occur then”. 42. O excellent sage, thus requested by that demon, I granted him two boons and hastened back to my abode. 43. Securing the excellent boon in accordance with his cherished desire, the demon was very glad and went to the town Śoṇita. 44. That great demon was crowned the king of the three worlds with the permission of Śukra, the preceptor of the demons. 45. Then the great demon became the leader of the three worlds. He inaugurated his commanding position by harassing the mobile and immobile beings. 46. He duly established his suzerainty over the three worlds. He protected his subjects but inflicted pain on the gods and others. 47. Then the demon Tāraka seized gems and jewels of all the guardians of the quarters, Indra and others, offered under duress by them on being afraid of him. 48. Afraid of him, Indra surrendered his Airāvata (white elephant) and Kubera all his nine treasures. 49. White horses were surrendered by Varuṇa, the wish-yielding cow Kāmadhenu by the sages, and the sun out of fear for him surrendered his divine horse Uccaiḥśravas. 50. Wherever a fine article was espied by the demon, he seized it immediately. The three worlds became void of all valuable things. 51. O sage, the oceans the offered him their gems on account of fear. The entire earth became exuberant in productivity without being tilled and yielded what his subjects desired. 52. The sun glowed gently and mildly as not to make him distressed. The moon was always visible with his brilliant light and the wind blew always favouring him. 53. Whatever riches the gods possessed or the manes or others had, were forfeited by the wicked demon. 54. Bringing the three worlds under his control, he declared Indra himself. He became the undisputed lord and ruled over them with perfect self-control. 55. Dismissing the gods he installed demons in their places. Some gods he engaged in his personal service. 56. O sage, the gods harassed by him, led by Indra, sought refuge in me. They were helpless and extremely agitated.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] Summary: Brahmā consoles the gods harassed and frightened by the demon Tāraka. 1. The gods terribly tormented by Tāraka, bowed to and eulogised me, the lord of subjects with great devotion. 2. On hearing the eulogy of the gods pleasing and true to facts I was highly pleased and replied to the heaven-dwellers thus. 3. O gods, welcome to you. I hope you are all fulfilling your duties without obstacles. Why have you all come here? Tell me. 4. On hearing my words those gods bowed to me duly and spoke. Being tormented by Tāraka they were in a piteous plight. 5. O lord of the worlds, thanks to the boon received from you. The demon Tāraka is very haughty. Driving us out with force he has taken possession of our positions. 6. Is it not known to you what misery has befallen us? Please dispel our misery quickly. We seek refuge in you. 7. He torments us wherever we happen to stay by day or at night. Wherever we flee we see Tāraka. 8. O dear, lord of all, we are extremely harassed and agitated due to Tāraka. 9. Agni, Yama, Varuṇa, Nirṛti, Vāyu and other guardians of the deities are under his control. 10. None of them is ever independent. All serve him in the manner of human beings accompanied by their followers. 11. Being harassed by him, the gods have become subservient of him. They are engaged in carrying out his wishes. All of us are his servants. 12. Our woman folk, the groups of heavenly nymphs have been captured by Tāraka, the powerful. 13. No sacrifice is in the making. No ascetic is in penances. The charitable and virtuous activities are being seldom pursued in the worlds. 14. His commander-in-chief is a simple demon— Krauñca. He has now gone to the nether worlds and is harassing the people very much. 15. The regions of our three worlds have been forcibly taken, O Brahamā (Brahmā?), by this Tāraka of sinful and ruthless temperament. 16. O lord of the worlds, we were in heaven but now that we have been turned out by that demon we shall go to any place which you may kindly suggest. 17. You are our final resort. You are our ruler, creator, and protector. But we are scorched in the fire of the name Tāraka. We are extremely agitated. 18. Our ruthless activities against him have turned out to be weak and ineffective, even as medicinal herbs of great potency are rendered ineffective in an ailment brought about by the combination of all deranged humours. 19. We had some hope of victory in Sudarśana the discus of Viṣṇu. But even that discus has become ineffective in his neck where it has fallen as though it were a floral offering to a deity. 20. O sage, on hearing these words of the gods, I told them befitting the occasion. 21. “O gods, the demon Tāraka has flourished, thanks to my words of blessings. His destruction through me does not seem proper. 22. Improper is the destruction through that source wherefrom he has flourished. Even a poisonous tree tended and nurtured by one cannot be cut and felled down by oneself. 24 23. Śiva is the most suitable agent to carry out your task. But I myself cannot do anything remedial in this case. 24. Tāraka will be destroyed by his own sin. How that shall be done you know from me. I shall advise you. 25. Thanks to the power of the boon granted by me. Tāraka cannot be killed by me or by Viṣṇu or by Śiva or by any one of the gods. It is true. 26. O gods, if there is a son born of Śiva, he alone can kill the demon Tāraka. 2 7. O best of gods, you carry out the remedy I am suggesting. By the grace of lord Śiva, it can be successfully accomplished. 28. Satī, the daughter of Dakṣa, formerly cast off her body. She is now born of Menakā ’s womb. That event is already known to you all. 29. O gods, it is certain that lord Śiva will marry her. Still you shall pursue your endeavour. 30. Make such arrangements as to ensure the discharge of semen into Pārvatī, the daughter of Menakā. 31. Śiva is a great Yogin who can make semen flow upwards in the body. Only Pārvatī can make him discharge the semen downwards, out of the body. There is no other woman capable of it. 32. That daughter of the lord of the mountains is now in her prime of youth. She is serving Śiva in his penance on the Himalayas. 33. As a result of the tenacious pleadings of her father, she is serving Him in meditation. 34. She is the most beautiful lady in the three worlds. She stands in front of Him and worships Him. Still lord Śiva who is engrossed in His meditation is not distracted by her presence. 35. It is your duty to ascertain means to make Him desire Pārvatī for His wife. O gods, do something in that direction very quickly. 36. I shall go to the demon’s abode and try to dissuade him from his obstinacy. O gods, you can go to your abode 24. For the similarity of idea and verbal expression, cp. Kalidasa ’s Kumāra. 37. After saying thus to the gods I hastened to the demon Tāraka. I addressed him thus. 38. You are ruling over our heaven which contains the essence of all brilliance. You are desirous of getting more than what you bargained for at the time of your penance. 39. I granted you a boon but not the kingdom of heaven. Hence leave off this region. You can rule over the earth. 40. O best of Asuras, even there you can achieve the fruit of your activities as here in Devaloka. There is nothing to hesitate in this matter. 41. After thus exhorting the demon to leave off heaven I, the lord of all, remembered Śiva and Śivā and vanished from the scene. 42. Leaving the heaven, Tāraka descended to the earth. Stationed in the town Śoṇita, he ruled over the entire kingdom. 43. On hearing my words, the gods bowed to me and went to Indra ’s abode. They were duly received by Indra. 44, After reaching there and consulting one another, the gods in a body lovingly told Indra. 45. “O lord, you should carry out the suggestions of Brahmā and see that Śiva is lovingly inclined towards Śivā. 46. After explaining every thing to the lord, the gods went in all directions to their respective abodes with great pleasure. Article published on 06 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. When the gods had gone, Indra remembered Kama. He was so afflicted by Tāraka, the wicked demon. 2. In an instant, Kāma, the lover of Rati, came there along with Vasanta. He was accompanied by Rati too. Being powerful enough to conquer the three worlds he was very haughty. 3. Making due obeisance standing in front of Indra, the lofty-minded Kāma joined his palms in reverence and said:— 4. “What is the matter that has cropped up now? Wherefore was I remembered? Please tell me. I am here to carry it out”. 5. On hearing the words of Kāma, Indra, the lord of the gods, said praising him lovingly saying “well done, very proper”. 6. O Kāma you are blessed indeed, since you are in readiness to carry out the affair I have on hand. You have begun well. 7. Listen to what is relevant to the context. I shall tell you everything. My job is equally your job and not otherwise. 8. I have many friends and great friends at that. But, O Kāma, I have no other friend on a par with you anywhere. 9. O dear, for my conquest, the unparallelled thunderbolt has been made. Even that weapon may sometimes be ineffective but you are never so. 10. Who can be dearer than the person from whom one derives benefit? Hence you, my greatest friend, must carry out my task. 11. Time being accursed, a great irremediable misery has befallen me. None other than you can dispel it. 12. The test of a donor is at the time of famine; the test of a warrior is at the time of battle; the test of a friend is at the time of adversity and the test of a woman is in the financial weakness of the family. 13. O dear, the test of a real friend is in the time of distress and is also based on what he does behind the back. It is not otherwise. This is truth. 14. Now that an adversity has befallen me, which cannot be thwarted by anyone else, O dear friend, it shall be a test for you today. 15. This is not a matter that brings pleasure to me alone. This is a matter that concerns all the gods and others too. 16. On hearing these words of Indra the fish-bannered god Kāma spoke smilingly in words indicating love and gravity. 17. Why do you say like this? I make no answer to you. A helping unreal friend is neither seen nor spoken of in the world. 18. He who speaks much at the time of adversity will not turn out much. Yet, O king, my lord, I shall say something. Please listen. 19. O dear friend, I shall cause the downfall of that enemy of yours who is performing a severe penance to usurp your position. 20. I shall topple gods, sages, demons and others through the side-glances of a beautiful woman. I do not at all take human beings into consideration. 21. Let your thunderbolt and other weapons of innumerable varieties be set aside. What will they do when I, your friend, am present? 22. I can undoubtedly make Brahmā and Viṣṇu go astray. Others are of no consideration. I shall make even Śiva fall. 23. I have only five arrows that are soft and flowery. My bow is of three types. That too is flowery. The bowstring consists of bees. 24. My support and strength is my beloved wife Ratī. Spring is my minister. O god, I am having five forces. The moon, the storehouse of nectar, is my friend. 25. The sentiment of love is my commander-in-chief. The coquettish gestures and emotions are my soldiers. All these are soft and gentle. O Indra, I too am of that sort. 26. An intelligent man shall put together things that are mutually complementary. You shall therefore engage me in a task that accords with my capacity. 27. On hearing his words, Indra was much pleased. Pleasing Kāma, the bestower of cherished happiness, by means of his words, he spoke. 28. O dear Kāma, you are competent to carry out the task which I have conceived in my mind. It cannot be realised through anyone else. 29. O Kāma, foremost among my friends, listen. I shall explain truly for what I remembered you and desired your presence, O Kāma. 30. Securing a wonderful boon from Brahmā, the great demon Tāraka has become invincible and a pest for everyone. 31. The entire world is harassed by him. Many virtuous rites are destroyed. The gods have become miserable and so also the sages. 32. He had been fought by the gods to the utmost of their ability formerly. But the weapons of all the gods became quite futile. 33. The noose of Varuṇa, the god of waters, snapped. When hurled at his neck by Viṣṇu, the discus Sudarśana was blunted. 34. The death of this wicked demon has been foretold by Brahmā, the lord of the people, at the hands of the boy born of Śiva. the great Yogin. 35. O dear friend, this task must be achieved by you diligently. Then we, the gods, can be very happy. 36. It will be beneficent to me. It will render the whole world happy. Realising the duties of a friend you are now to act. 37. Śiva is at present engaged in a great penance. The supreme lord is always independent. It is not to achieve any desire that He performs the penance. 38. For the sake of gods, at the bidding of her father, Pārvatī is attending on Him, I hear. 39. O Kāma, you shall certainly do everything necessary to bring about an interest in her in the mind of Śiva who has self-control. 40. You will become contented after this. Your miseries will be destroyed. Your exploit will be permanently established in the world. Not otherwise. 41. On being thus addressed, Kāma was glad, his face beaming like a full blown lotus. He lovingly said to the lord of gods, “I shall undoubtedly do it.” 42-43. After saying this when he said “So be it” he said “yes.” Kāma accepted it because he was deluded by Śiva’s illusion. Accompanied by his wife and Spring he went to the place where Śiva, the Yogin, was performing penance. Article published on 06 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. After going there, the haughty Kāma, deluded by Śiva ’s magic power, stationed himself, after first spreading the enchanting power of Spring all around. 2. The enchanting influence of Spring spread everywhere around Oṣadhiprastha, the penance-grove of Śiva, the supreme lord, O excellent sage. 3. O great sage, the groves bloomed with special exuberance, O excellent sage, due to his power. 4. The fragrant flowers of Mango and Aśoka trees shone heightening feelings of love. 5. The water lilies with bees hovering on them proved to be the causes for the rise of love in the minds of everyone. 6. The sweet cooings of the cuckoos heightened emotions of love. They were exquisite and pleasing to the mind. 7. O sage, diverse sounds of the hummings of the bees rang sweet in the ears of everyone heightening temptations of love. 8. The bright light of the moon scattered all around appeared to be the emissary of lovers and their beloveds. 9. At that time the Kāladīpikā (brilliant lamp) induced reticent haughty persons to love. O good sir, the wind blew gently but distressed those who were separated from their beloveds. 10. Thus the vast diffusion of Spring caused the display of emotions of love. It was unbearable to the forestdwelling sages. 11. O sage, then, even the insentient beings had the emotions of love. What about the state of sentient ones? 12. Thus spring employed his unbearable power heightening the love of all living beings. 13. On seeing the untimely display of spring, Śiva the lord, who had assumed a physical body indulging in divine sports, thought it surprising. 14. But He, the chief of the self-controlled and the remover of man’s misery continued his severe penance. 15. When spring spread everywhere, Kāma accompanied by Rati stood on his left side, with the arrow of mango blossom taken out and kept in readiness. 16. Enchanting all people, he spread his influence. Who was not enchanted on seeing Kāma in the company of Rati? 17. Thus they initiated their dalliance. The sentiment of love too accompanied by coquettish gestures and emotions reached the vicinity of Śiva along with his attendants. 18. Kāma, usually stationed within the mind manifested himself outside. But he could not find any vulnerable loop-hole in Śiva whereby he could enter Him. 19. When Kāma did not secure any entry within the great Yogin, he became deluded and frightened much through the magical power of Śiva. 20. Who could gain access to Śiva in meditation, who could fix an eye in his forehead that resembled fire with shooting blazing flames? 21. In the mean time Pārvatī came there along with her two maids and brought various kinds of flowers for Śiva’s worship. 22. Certainly Pārvatī had a greater beauty than the most exquisite lady described by people on the earth. 23. When she wore pretty flowers of the season how could her beauty be described even in a hundred years? 24. No sooner did she enter within the proximity of Śiva than He came out of his meditation for a short while. 25. Profiting by that opportune moment, Kāma, by means of his arrow Harṣaṇa delighted the moon-crest god Śiva who was nearby. 26. O sage, in assistance to Kāma, Pārvatī reached the place near Śiva with emotions of love and accompanied by Spring. 27. In order to make the trident-bearing lord take interest in her, Kāma drew his bow very carefully and discharged his flowery arrow on Him. 28. As was her usual practice she approached Śiva, bowed to Him, worshipped Him and stood in front of Him (awaiting further instructions). 29. Pārvatī was stared at by lord Śiva, while she was laying bare some of the limbs bashfully, as is natural to women in such circumstances. 30. Remembering the boon granted to her by Brahmā formerly, O sage, lord Śiva began to describe her limbs joyfully. 31. “Is this your face or the moon? Are these your eyes or lotus petals? These two eyebrows are the bows of Kāma of noble soul. 32. Is this your lower lip or Bimba fruit? Is this your nose or the beak of a parrot? Do I hear your voice or the cooing of the cuckoo? Is this your slender waist or the sacrificial altar? 33. How can her gait be described? How can her comely appearance be described? How can the flowers be described? How can the clothes be described? 34. Whatever is graceful and sweet in the creation has been incorporated here. Indeed, all her limbs are exquisite in every respect. 35 How blessed is this Pārvatī of mysteriously wonderful features. There is no other woman equal to her in beauty in the three worlds. 36. She is a storehouse of the finest beauty. She has wondrous beautiful limbs. She is an enchantress of even sages. She increases great happiness.” 37. After describing her body again and again, recollecting the boon granted by Brahmā, Śiva stopped. 38. When Śiva put His hand within her garment and moved it, she, as is natural to women, bashfully withdrew and kept aloof. 39. O sage, then Pārvatī smilingly laid bare some parts of her body and cast graceful glances at Him with great pleasure. 40. On seeing these movements and gestures Śiva became fascinated. Lord Śiva indulging in great divine sports spoke these words. 41. “I feel great pleasure on merely seeing her. What pleasure shall I derive by embracing her?” 42. Thinking thus only for a moment, the enlightened Śiva became detached, honoured Pārvatī and spoke. 43. “How wonderful and mysterious is the situation that has arisen! How is it that I have been deluded and fascinated? Though I am the lord and master, I have been perturbed by Kāma. 44. If I, the master, were to yearn for the touch of a woman’s limbs what will not be done by other incompetent and insignificant creatures”. 45. Thus resuming detachment, lord Śiva forbade her sitting on the couch. How can there be a downfall for the great lord Śiva? Article published on 06 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, the most fortunate one, what happened then? Be pleased to tell me that story that destroys our sins altogether. 2. O dear one, hear the story of what happened thereafter. Out of love for me I shall recount Śiva ’s sports that bring about joy. 3. On seeing the dissipation of His courage, lord Śiva, the great Yogin, thought within Himself wondering much. 4. How is it that obstacles have cropped up while I am performing the great penance? Who can be that wicked person who has made my mind highly perturbed? 5. With love I have described in bad taste another man’s woman. I have contravened rules of virtue and transgressed the bounds of the Vedas. 6. After thinking like this, the great Yogin, the goal of the good, surveyed all round, his suspicion having been aroused. 7. He saw Kāma stationed on His left side with his bow fully drawn and ready to discharge the arrow. Kāma was haughty and so was very senseless. 8. O Nārada, on seeing Kāma in that attitude, instantaneously anger was aroused in lord Śiva, the supreme soul. 9. O sage, standing high up in the air, holding the arrow and the bow, Kāma discharged his arrow, usually unerring on Śiva. 10. The infallible weapon became futile on the great lord. The furious weapon calmed down in regard to the great soul, Śiva. 11. Kāma was frightened when his weapon failed, Standing there and seeing lord Śiva, the conqueror of death in front, he trembled. 12. O great sage, when his endeavour became futile, Kāma who was frightened much remembered Indra and all other gods. 13. O great sage, remembered by Kāma, Indra and other gods came there, bowed to and eulogised Śiva. 14. When the gods eulogised thus, a great flame of fire sprang up from the third eye of the infuriated Śiva. 15. That fire originating instantaneously from the eye in the middle of His forehead blazed with flames shooting up and resembling the fire of final dissolution in refulgence. 16. After shooting up in the sky, it fell on the ground and rolled over the earth all round. 17. Even before the gods had the time to say “Let him be forgiven, let him be excused” it reduced Kāma to ashes. 18. When the heroic Kāma was thus slain, the gods became miserable. In their agitation they lamented much and saying “O what has happened?” they cried aloud. 19. With pallid face and limbs, the extremely agitated daughter of the king of mountains returned to her palace taking the maids along with her. 20. Due to the misery on account of the death of her husband, Rati fell down unconscious, as if dead. 21. When she regained consciousness after a while, Rati in her great agitation lamented loudly and said:— 22. “What shall I do? Where can I go? What is it that the gods have done in making my husband a victim thus? They have called him here and destroyed him. 23. O! O! O lord Kāma, dearer to me than my vital airs, O bestower of happiness, what has happened here? Ha, Ha, my dear, my dear!” 24. Lamenting thus and crying out various piteous words she beat with her hands, kicked with her legs and plucked her hairs. 25. O Nārada, on hearing her lamentation even the beasts and residents of the forest, nay all the immobile trees and bushes became miserable. 26. In the meantime Indra and other gods remembered lord Śiva and consoled Rati saying as follows:— 27. Take some ashes and preserve them. With effort check your fear. The lord will resuscitate your lover. You will regain your lover again. 28. There is none who gives us happiness or misery. All enjoy and experience the fruit of what they do. In vain do you curse the gods. 29. After consoling Rati thus, all the gods approached Śiva and propitiated Him. With great devotion they spoke these words to Him. 30. O lord, O great god, favourably disposed to those who seek refuge in you, be pleased to listen to these well intended words of ours. 31. O Śiva, be pleased to ponder over the action of Kāma. O lord Śiva, there is no tinge of selfishness in what Kāma has done. 32. O lord, he had been induced to do so by all the gods harassed by the wicked Tāraka. O Śiva, please know that it is not otherwise. 33. O lord, the chaste Rati is lonely and miserable now. O lord Śiva, she is in great lamentation, O bestower of everything, please console her. 34. If you have finally disposed off Kāma, O Śiva, you are desirous of annihilating all the gods by means of your fury. 35. On seeing the distress of Rati, the gods are almost doomed. Hence you must remove the distress of Rati. 36. On hearing their words, lord Śiva was pleased. He said this to all the gods. 37. O gods, O sages, all of you listen attentively to my words. What has happened, thanks to my fury, cannot be altered. 38. The lord Kāma, the husband of Rati, shall remain bodiless till Viṣṇu incarnates as Kṛṣṇa on the earth and marries Rukmiṇī. 39. Kṛṣṇa will beget Kāma in Rukmiṇī when he goes to Dvārakā 25 and begins to procreate children. 40. His name will certainly be Pradyumna. The demon Sambara will abduct the boy at the time of his very birth. 41. After abducting the boy, the great demon, Śambara, will throw him in the sea. The foolish fellow will take him for dead and will return to his city. 42. O Rati, you shall stay in his city till then. There alone you will get back your husband Pradyumna. 43. Kāma in the name of Pradyumna will regain his wife after killing Śambara in a battle. O gods, he will be happy thereafter. 44. After taking all the valuable properties of Śambara, O gods, he will go to the city again along with her. These words of mine are true. 45. On hearing these words of Śiva, the gods heaved a sigh of relief. Joining their palms in reverence and bowing to Him they said:— 25. This town, associated with Lord Kṛṣṇa, is situated in Kathiawar. 46. “O great god, lord of the gods, O lord, the ocean of mercy, please resuscitate Kāma quickly. O Śiva, save the life of Ratī.” 47. On hearing these words of the gods, great God became delighted. The lord of all, the ocean of mercy, spoke again. 48. O gods, I am delighted. I shall resuscitate Kāma within myself. He will be one of my Gaṇas and will sport about always. 49. O gods, this story should not be narrated in the presence of any one. All of you return to your abodes. I shall destroy all miseries. 50. After saying this Rudra vanished even as the gods were eulogising Him. The gods became delighted and free from mental suspense. 51. O sage, abiding by the directions of Śiva and consoling Rati by means of the conciliatory words of Śiva, the gods returned to their respective places. 52. O excellent sage, then Rati, the wife of Kāma went to the city and waited for the time mentioned by Siva. Article published on 06 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, please tell me “Where did the flame of fire emerging from the eye of Śiva go?” Please tell me also the further story of the moon-crested lord. 2. When the fire from the third eye of Śiva reduced Kāma to ashes it began to blaze all round without burning anything. 3. A huge hue and cry was raised in the three worlds consisting of the mobile and immobile creatures. Immediately the gods and sages sought refuge in me. 4. All of them in their agitation bowed to and eulogised me with their palms joined in reverence and the heads bent down. They intimated to me their grief. 5. On hearing that I pondered over the reason for the same, and remembering Śiva humbly I went there in order to protect the three worlds. 6. That fire, out to burn everything, very brilliant with its shooting flames, was thwarted by me as I had the capacity by Śiva’s grace. 7. O sage, then I made that fire of fury, out to burn the three worlds, tender in its blaze and mare-like in shape. 8. Taking that fire mare-like in form, at the will of Śiva, I, the lord of the worlds, went to the sea shore, for the benefit of the worlds. 9. O sage, on seeing me arrived there, the sea took a human form and approached me with palms joined in reverence. 10. Bowing to and duly eulogising me, the grandfather of all the worlds, the ocean said lovingly. 11-12. “O Brahmā, the lord of all, why have you come here? Please command me with pleasure knowing me to be your servant”. On hearing the words of the ocean I remembered Śiva. I spoke with love in order to benefit the world. 13. O dear, intelligent one, causing the welfare of all the worlds, O ocean, induced by Śiva’s will, I shall explain to you. 14. This is the fire of fury of lord Śiva, the great lord. It is in the form of a mare now. After burning Kāma it was about to burn everything. 15. At the will of Śiva I was requested by the gods who were harassed by it, and so I went there and suppressed the fire. 16. I gave it the form of a mare. I have brought it here. O ocean, I ask you to be merciful. 17. This fury of lord Śiva, now in the form of a mare, you will bear till the final dissolution of all living beings. 18. O lord of rivers, when I shall come and stay here, you shall release it. This is Śiva’s wonderful fire of fury. 19. His perpetual diet shall consist of your waters. This shall be preserved by you with effort lest it should go down. 20. Thus requested by me, the ocean agreed. None else could have grasped Śiva’s fire of fury thus. 21. That fire in the form of a mare entered the ocean and began to consume the currents of water. It blazed with all its shooting flames. 22. O sage, then, delighted in mind I returned to my abode. The ocean of divine form bowed to me and vanished. 23. O great sage, the entire universe, freed from the fear of that fire became normal. The gods and the sages became happy. Article published on 07 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O dear Brahmā, O disciple of Viṣṇu, of great intellect. O Creator of three worlds, this is a very wonderful story of the great soul Śiva that has been narrated. 2. When Kāma had been reduced to ashes by the fire from the third eye of Śiva and when that fire had been deposited in the ocean what happened thereafter? 3. What did Goddess Pārvatī, the daughter of the lord of mountains, do? O storehouse of mercy, please tell me now where she went along with her maids. 4. O dear, of great intellect, listen to the story of the moon crested lord, my master and the cause of great enjoyment and protection. 5. A wonderfully loud sound arose covering the whole firmament when the fire issuing from Śiva’s eye burnt Kāma. 6. On hearing that loud report and seeing Kāma burnt, Pārvatī was terribly frightened and she returned to her abode along with her maids. 7. Himavat along with his attendants and relatives was surprised on hearing that loud report. He was agitated on remembering that his daughter had gone there. 8. On seeing his daughter excessively agitated, the lord of the mountains was sorry. The lord of the mountains approached her gently as she was crying due to her separation from Śiva. 9-10. Approaching her and wiping off her eyes with his hand he said—“Dear daughter, do not be afraid, do not cry. He took her on his lap and consoled her. The lord of the mountains took her immediately to his palace. 11. When Śiva had vanished after burning Kāma, Pārvatī became extremely agitated due to His separation. She did not attain pleasure anywhere. 12. Returning to her father’s abode and meeting her mother, Śivā, the daughter of the mountain, considered herself born again. 13. She cursed her own beauty. She said to herself. “O, I am doomed”. The daughter of the lord of mountains did not regain composure though consoled and assuaged by the maids. 14. She did not achieve happiness and peace in sleeping, drinking, bathing, or sitting amidst her maids. 15. Remembering the various gestures and movements of Śiva, she muttered to herself ever and anon—“Fie upon my beauty. Fie on my birth and activity”. 16. Thus Pārvatī was much distressed in mind due to separation from Śiva. She did not at all feel happy. She always muttered “Śiva, Śiva.” 17. O dear, with her consciousness centred round the Pināka -bearing lord, she continued to stay in the palace of her father. Śiva bewailed much and fainted frequently. 18. The lord of the mountains, Menakā, and their sons chief of whom was Maināka of undisturbed mind, tried to console her but still she did not forget Śiva. 19. O celestial sage, O intelligent one, employed by Indra, the slayer of Bala, you came to Himalaya mountain roaming here and there as you pleased. 20. You were then worshipped by the noble-souled mountain. You enquired of his health and happiness and you were seated in a noble seat. 21. Then the lord of the mountains told you the story of his daughter from her service to Śiva to the burning of Kāma by Him. 22. O sage, on hearing that, you told the lord of the mountains—“Worship Śiva.” You stood up, remembered Śiva mentally and took leave of him. 23. O sage, leaving him you hastened to meet Pārvatī secretly, you a favourite of Śiva, perfectly wise and engaged in helping the world. 24. Approaching Pārvatī and addressing her, you spoke to her respectfully. You are foremost among the wise and you were interested in her welfare. Your words were true. 25. O Pārvatī, listen. I am sympathetic to you. I shall speak truly. My words will be beneficent to you in all respects. They will lead to the achievement of your desire. They are free from aberrations. 26. The great god has been served by you without austerities. You had some pride which He, the blesser of the distressed, eradicated. 27. O Śivā, after burning Kāma, lord Śiva though favourably disposed to His devotees, left you, since the lord is a great Yogin and so unattached to you. 28. Hence you shall propitiate Him by performing a great penance. Śiva will take you as His wife, after you have been sanctified by austerities. 29. You will never forsake the auspicious Śiva. O goddess, you will not take any one other than Śiva as your husband. 30. On hearing your words, O sage, Pārvatī, the daughter of the mountain, heaved a sigh of relief and gladly spoke to you with palms joined in reverence. 31. O sage, O omniscient one, you help all the worlds, please tell me a formula for the propitiation of lord Siva. 32. No sacred rite will ever fructify without a good preceptor. Truly this eternal statement of the Vedas was heard by me before. 33. On hearing these words of Pārvatī, O excellent sage, you taught her the five-syllabled mantra of Śiva in accordance with the sacred law. 34. O sage, generating her faith you told her the supreme efficacy of the great formula thus. 35. O goddess, listen to the wonderful efficacy of this formula on hearing which Śiva becomes excessively pleased. 36. This formula is a king of all formulas. It yields all cherished desires, bestows all worldly pleasures and salvation, and appeals much to Siva. 37. Repeating this formula in accordance with the injunctions you shall propitiate Śiva. He will certainly appear before you. 38. O Śiva, meditate on His form, observing all restraints. Repeat the five-syllabled mantra. Śiva will be pleased quickly. 39. O chaste lady, perform the penance thus. Lord Śiva can be attained through penance. Every one attains the desired fruits in penance and not otherwise. 40. O Nārada, after saying thus to Pārvatī, you, the favourite of Śiva, went to heaven, a casual visitor engaged in the welfare of the gods. 41. O Nārada, on hearing your words and securing the excellent five-syllabled mantra, Pārvatī was extremely pleased.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. After your departure, O celestial sage, convinced that Śiva could be achieved by means of penance, Pārvatī became glad and decided to perform penance. 2. She took her maids Jayā and Vijayā into confidence and through them made her parents acquainted. 3. First she wanted her father Himavat, the lord of mountains, to hear her humble words. 4-5. O Himavat, let the words of your daughter be heard through us. She wishes to make her body, beauty and family fruitful. This can be achieved through penance and not otherwise. 6. O excellent mountain, the permission may kindly be given—“Let Pārvatī go to the forest and perform penance there”. 7. O excellent sage, thus requested by Pārvatī through the maids, the lord of the mountains carefully considered the proposal and said: 8. This appeals to me. I it appeals to Menā as it ought to be, what else can be a better course? 9. There is no doubt about it that my House will be fortunate. If her mother also likes this, what can be more auspicious than this? 10. After hearing the words spoken by her father and (in a way) commanded by him, the two maids went to her mother along with her. 11. O Nārada, approaching Pārvatī’s mother, they bowed down and with palms joined in reverence they respectfully spoke thus. 12. O mother, O gentle lady, please listen to the words of your daughter. Obeisance be to you. You will listen with pleasure and act accordingly. 13. For the sake of attaining Śiva, your daughter wishes to perform a severe penance. She has secured the permission of her father. She now wants to seek it from you. 14. O chaste lady, she is desirous of making her beauty fruitful. If your permission too is received, the penance can be performed. 15. O excellent sage, after saying this, the maids became silent. Distressed in mind, Mena did not accept the proposal. 16. Then Pārvatī herself spoke to her mother joining her palms in humility and remembering the lotus-like feet of Śiva. 17. O mother, I shall be going in the morning for performing penance to achieve Śiva. Please permit me to go to the penance-grove for the task. 18. On hearing the words of her daughter, Menā was distressed. That chaste lady called her daughter near and spoke to her in dejection. 19. O daughter Śiva, if you are distressed, if you wish to perform penance, you can do it at home. O Pārvatī, do not go out. 20. Where do you wish to go for performing penance? All the deities are in my house. All the holy centres and the different temples too are here. 21. Do not be stubborn, dear daughter. You shall not go out of your home. What did you achieve when you went out previously? What are you going to achieve at present? 22. Dear child, slender is your body and hard is the penance. Hence you shall perform penance here. You shall not go out. 23. For a woman to go to a penance-grove for the realisation of her desire is what we have never heard of before. Hence, dear daughter, do not go out for penance. 24. Thus, in various ways, the daughter was dissuaded by her mother. But she did not find any pleasure except in propitiating Śiva. 25. Pārvatī acquired the name Umā since she was prevented from going to forest by Menā and forbidden to perform penance. 26. O sage, on realising that Pārvatī was quite dejected, Menā, the beloved of the mountain, permitted her to perform penance. 27. O excellent sage, on getting permission from her mother, Pārvatī remembered Śiva and felt happy. 28. Bowing to her parents with joy, Pārvatī remember ed Śiva and set out for performing penance along with her maids. 29. Discarding all the fine clothes of her taste, she wore tree-barks and the fine girdle of Muñja grass. 30. She eschewed necklace and wore the pure deer skin. She arrived at Gaṅgāvataraṇa for performing penance. 31. The Gaṅgāvataraṇa was in the Himālayan ridge where Kāma was burnt by Śiva who was performing meditation. 32. Oh dear, that Himalayan ridge devoid of Śiva was painfully seen by Pārvatī, the mother of the universe, the daughter of the mountain. 33. She stood for a while in the place where formerly Śiva had performed penance and became dispirited by the pangs of separation. 34. Crying aloud “Alas O Śiva” she, the daughter of the mountain, lamented sorrowfully and anxiously. 35. Suppressing the delusion with fortitude after a long time Pārvatī, the daughter of Himavat, got herself initiated for the observance of ritualistic activities. 36. She performed penance in the excellent holy centre Śṛṅgitīrtha which (later) acquired the title “ Gaurī - Śikhara ” due to her performance of penance thereon. 37. O sage, many beautiful holy plants were laid there by Pārvatī for testing the fruitfulness of her penance. 38. Neatly cleaning the ground, the beautiful lady built the altar. Then the penance, difficult to be performed even by the sages, was begun. 39. Suppressing her sense-organs with her mind, she started the great penance in a place within the proximity. 40. In the summer she kept a perpetually blazing fire all round and remaining within continued muttering the mantra. 41. In the rainy season she continuously remained sitting on the bare ground on the rock and got herself drenched by the downpour of rain. 42. During the winter, with great devotion she remained in water throughout. During snowfall and in the nights too she performed her penance observing fast. 43. Performing such austerities and engrossed in the muttering of the five-syllabled mantra, Pārvatī meditated on Śiva, the bestower of fruits of our cherished desires. 44. Everyday during leisure time she used to water the trees planted by her along with her maids and extended acts of hospitality. 45. Chill gusts of wind, cool showers, and unbearable heat she bore with equanimity. 46. Different sorts of worries she did not mind at all. O sage, fixing her mind in Śiva alone she remained firm and steady. 47. The first year she spent in taking fruits, the second in taking leaves, in the course of her penance. She spent many years thus. 48. Then Śivā, the daughter of Himavat, eschewed even the leaves. She did not take any food. She was engrossed in the performance of penance. 49. Since she, the daughter of Himavat, eschewed leaves from her diet she was called Aparṇā by the gods. 50. Then Pārvatī performed great penance standing on one leg and remembering Śiva, she continued muttering the five-syllabled mantra. 51. Clad in barks of trees, wearing matted hair and eager in the meditation of Śiva, she surpassed even sages by her penance. 52. Pārvatī thus spent three thousand years in the penance-grove performing penance and meditating on lord Śiva. 53. Remaining for a short while in the place where Śiva had performed penance for sixty thousand years, Pārvatī thought like this. 54. Does not the Supreme lord know me observing these ritualistic activities now? Wherefore am I not followed by him though engaged in penance? 55. In the Śāstras and the Vedas, lord Śiva is always sung in praise by the sages as the bestower of welfare, omniscient, all-pervading and all-seer. 56. The lord is the bestower of all riches, the moulder of fine emotions, the bestower of the desires of devotees and the remover of their distress. 57. If I am devoted to the bull-bannered lord, discarding all desires, may He be pleased with me. 58. If the mantra of the Nārada Tantra, consisting of five syllables has been continuously repeated by me with great devotion may He be pleased with me. 59. If I am a devotee without aberrations of Śiva, the lord of all, may He be extremely pleased with me. 60. Pondering frequently like this incessantly, she performed penance for a long time, with her face turned downwards, her apparel of bark and mind without any aberrations. 61. She performed penance difficult to be performed even by the sages, so much so that people were struck with surprise. 62. All of them came there to witness her penance. Considering themselves blessed, they proclaimed thus approvingly. 63. “To follow the standard of the virtuous personages is declared to be conducive to greatness. There is no delimitation in penance. Virtue shall be honoured by the wise always. 64. After seeing or hearing about the penance of this lady what penance will be pursued by a man? A penance greater than this has never been before, nor will it ever be”. 65. Saying thus, they praised the penance of Pārvatī and joyously returned to their abodes. Even persons of sturdy countenance praised her penance. 66. O sage, listen to another surprising influence of the penance of Pārvatī, the mother of the universe. 67. Even the naturally inimical beings in and around her hermitage became free from animosity due to her power. 68. Lions and cows prone to the passions of love, hatred etc. ceased to harass one another, thanks to her greatness. 69. O excellent sage, creatures like cats, mice etc. who are born enemies to one another did not exhibit any bad characteristics there. 70. O excellent sage, trees bore fruits, grasses grew in plenty and flowers of variegated nature and colour blossomed there. 71. The entire forest became comparable to Kailāsa as it were the achievement of her penance.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O excellent sage, while Pārvatī was engaged in penance thus for attaining Śiva, a long time elapsed but Śiva did not appear. 2. Then Himavat came there along with his wife, sons and ministers and spoke to Pārvatī, who had resolved to continue her penance. 3. O Pārvatī, O fortunate one, do not torture yourself by this penance. Dear girl, Śiva is not to be seen. Certainly he is detached. 4. You are a young woman of tender limbs. You will be overpowered and exhausted by this penance. There is no doubt about it. I am speaking the truth. 5. Hence, O comely lady, get up. Come back to our house. Of what avail is Śiva by whom Kāma has been reduced to ashes? 6. O goddess, hence not being emotional, Śiva will not come to claim you as the excellent lady. Why do you yearn for him? 7. Just as the moon in the sky cannot be caught, O sinless girl, so also Śiva is inaccessible. Know this. 8-9. The same thing was said by Menā, Sahya mountain, Meru, Mandara, Maināka and Krauñca and others, The unafflicted Pārvatī was thus sought to be dissuaded by various arguments. 10. When she was thus addressed by all of them, she with a broad smile, spoke to Himavat. 11. O father, O mother, O kinsmen, have all of you forgotten what I had said formerly. Even now listen to my vow. 12. This great God by whom Kāma has been burnt in fury is detached (you say). I shall propitiate him, by means of penance. He is favourably disposed to His devotees. 13. All of you please go to your respective abodes with delight. He will certainly be pleased. You need not be anxious over this. 14. With my penance alone here itself, I shall bring Him who burnt Kāma and the mountainous forest. 15. Sadāśiva can be easily served through penance. Ye fortunate Sirs, please know this truth. I am telling you the truth. 16. After addressing thus, her father Himalaya, her mother Menakā, her brothers Maināka and Mandara, the eloquent Pārvatī, the daughter of the king of mountains, kept quiet. 17. Thus addressed by Pārvatī, the lord of mountains and the other mountains went back the way they came, surprised within and praising her. 18. After all of them had departed, she with firm resolve in the great Truth, accompanied by her maids performed a severe penance. 19. O excellent sage, by that great penance the three worlds including the gods, Asuras and men, nay all the mobile and immobile beings, became heated. 20-21. The Prajāpatis, the Guhyakas and others experienced great distress but could not understand the reason thereof. The gods, Asuras, Yakṣas, Kinnaras, Cāraṇas, Siddhas, Sādhyas, the sages, the serpents and the Vidyādharas too had the same experience. 22. All of them, Indra and others, who were extremely agitated, took leave of their preceptor and sought refuge in me on the mountain Sumeru. All their limbs had been scorched. 23. Devoid of splendour, and agitated excessively they bowed to and eulogised me. They spoke simultaneously thus. 24. “O lord, the whole of this universe consisting of the mobile and immobile has been created by you. Why is it scorched so much? We do not understand. 25. O Brahmā, please tell us the reason. O lord, you shall protect us, the gods whose bodies have been scorched. There is none else to protect us”. 26-27. On hearing their words I remembered Śiva and pondered over everything. I realised that the universe was scorched as a result of Pārvatī’s penance. Accompanied by them I hastened respectfully to the milk ocean to inform Viṣṇu about it. 28. Reaching that place along with the gods, I saw Viṣṇu shining lustrously on a splendid seat. Bowing to and eulogising him with palms joined in reverence I spoke. 29. “Save, save, O Viṣṇu, save us who have sought refuge in you, being scorched by the great and severe penance of Pārvatī. 30. On hearing these words of mine on behalf of the heaven-dwellers, lord Viṣṇu seated on the Serpent couch spoke to us:— 31. The entire reason has been known to me. It is caused by Pārvatī’s penance. I shall now go to lord śiva accompanied by all of you. 32. O gods, we shall request lord Śiva to approach Pārvatī and marry her for the welfare of all the worlds. 33. We shall do everything necessary to make the Pināka -bearing lord of the gods go there to grant the boon to Śivā. 34. Therefore now we shall go to the place where the great lord Śiva of severe penance, the conferrer of all auspicious things, stays. 35. On hearing those words of Viṣṇu, the gods and the rest became excessively afraid of Śiva, the furious, the annihilator and the one desirous of burning everything. 36. We dare not go near the great lord Śiva who is very terrifying, furious and who has the burning brilliance of the deadly fire of dissolution. 37. Undoubtedly he will burn us all in His anger as Kāma, the indefatigable god, has been burnt by him. 38. O sage, on hearing the words of Indra and others, Viṣṇu, the lord of Lakṣmī spoke these words, consoling all the gods. 39. O gods, listen with pleasure and attention to my words. The lord, the destroyer of the fear of gods, will not consume you in fire. 40. Considering Śiva to be benevolent you shall shrewdly seek refuge in Him. 41. We shall all seek refuge in Śiva, the ancient Puruṣa, the lord, of excellent features, greater than the greatest, the supreme self, the great one resorting to penance. 42. Thus urged by the great lord Viṣṇu they set out desirous of seeing the Pināka-bearing lord Śiva. 43. At first Viṣṇu and others who were anxious to see the penance of Pārvatī went to her hermitage which was on the way. 44. On seeing the excellent penance of Pārvatī and being enveloped by her refulgence they bowed to her who was engaged in penance and who had brilliant features. 45. After praising the penance of Pārvatī whose body was achievement personified, the gods went to the place where the bull-bannered lord was present. 46. After reaching there the gods sent you in, O sage, and stood at a distance from Śiva who had reduced Kāma to ashes. They were watching. 47. O Nārada, you the fearless devotee of Śiva approached Śiva and saw the lord extremely pleased. 48. O sage, you came back again and beckoning to the gods, with effort you took them, Viṣṇu and others, to Him. 49. Then Viṣṇu and other gods went there and saw lord Śiva, favourably disposed to His devotees, delighted and comfortably seated. 50-51. Then Viṣṇu, the gods, the Siddhas, the sages and I bowed to and eulogised Śiva seated in the Yogic posture, surrounded by the Gaṇas. He was seated in the form. of penance. We eulogised Him with hymns from the Vedas and Upaniṣads.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Obeisance to lord Śiva, obeisance to the destroyer of Kāma; obeisance, obeisance to one worthy of eulogy; to one of profuse splendour, to the three-eyed lord. 2. Obeisance to Śiva clad in skin; obeisance to the terrible, to the terrible-eyed, to great lord and to the lord of the three worlds. 3. You are the lord of worlds; you are the father, the mother and the lord; you are Śiva the benefactor. You are particularly compassionate. 4. You are the creator of all the worlds; O lord, you shall save us. O great God, except you who else is competent to destroy misery? 5. On hearing these words of the gods, Nandikeśvara who was endowed with great sympathy began to inform Śiva. 6. O foremost among the gods, Viṣṇu, other gods, the sages and Siddhas eulogise you in order to see you. They are being threatened by Asuras. Hence they seek some remedy and resort to thy feet, the seat of great fearlessness. 7. Hence, O lord of all, the sages and the gods shall be protected by you. You have been particularly mentioned as the kinsman of the distressed and favourably disposed towards your devotees. 8. Śiva, who was thus informed by Nandin and who was extremely sympathetic, slowly reverted from His meditation and opened His eyes. 9. Then lord Śiva, the highly efficient great Ātman, reverted from His trance and spoke to the gods. 10. “O great gods, Viṣṇu, Brahmā and others, why have you come near me? Mention the reason for the same.” 11. On hearing these words of Śiva, all the gods rejoiced. They looked at Viṣṇu as if to induce him to speak. 12. Then Viṣṇu, the great devotee and benefactor of the gods mentioned the matter of great importance of the gods as mentioned by me (before). 13. “O Śiva, all the gods have come here to submit to you their misery perpetrated mysteriously by Tāraka. 14-15. O Śiva, the demon Tāraka will be killed only by your self-begotten son and not otherwise. Ponder over what I have said and take pity on me. Obeisance, O great lord, to you. O lord, redeem the gods from the misery brought about by Tāraka. 16. Hence, O lord Śiva, Pārvatī shall be accepted by you and grasped with your right hand. Accept her hand as offered in marriage by the lord of mountains. She is full of noble attributes. 17. On hearing those words of Viṣṇu, Śiva was pleased and said indicating to them the goal of the good, eager in Yogic feats as He was. 18-19. “If goddess Pārvatī, the most beautiful lady were to be accepted by me, she will be able to resuscitate Kāma on account of the marriage. Then all the gods, sages and ascetics will become lusty and incompetent in the great path of Yoga. 20. Kāma was burnt by me for the achievement of universal goal. It was at the suggestion of Brahmā, O Viṣṇu. No anxiety need be felt in this connection. 21. O lord of gods, O intelligent one, it is your duty not to be obdurate after considering the situation of what shall be done and what not. 22. O Viṣṇu, a great favour to the gods has been done by me when Kāma was burnt. May ye all stay free from lust certainly along with me. 23. Just as I, so also you, O gods, can without effort perform difficult tasks being endowed with the energy of great penance. 24. Kāma not being with you, you can be endowed with the supreme bliss and be free from aberrations by means of spiritual contemplation, O Gods. 25. O Brahmā, O Viṣṇu, O Indra, O sages and O gods, what had been done by Kāma formerly and forgotten by you may be recollected and pondered over. 26. O gods, meditation of everyone had been spoiled by the stubborn Kāma, the great archer formerly. 27. Kāma leads to hell; lust to anger, anger to delusion and delusion destroys penance. 28. Anger and lust shall be eschewed by you, the best of gods. My words shall be headed by you all and not otherwise. 29. After saying thus, the bull-bannered lord Śiva expressed the wish that Brahmā, Viṣṇu, the gods and the sages, should speak. 30. Śiva became quiet after resorting to meditation again. Śiva, as before, was surrounded by His Gaṇas. 31-33. Śiva thought within Himself His own Soul, the form that is unsullied, free from distortions, aberrations and ailments, the form which is greater than the greatest, eternal, free from sense of possession, free from obsessions, beyond the ken of sounds and words, devoid of attributes and knowable through perfect wisdom. Thinking upon His own features thus in His meditation, the lord, the cause of great enjoyment and protection became engrossed in supreme bliss. 34. On seeing Śiva again engaged in meditation all the dwellers of heaven, Viṣṇu, Indra and others, humbly told Nandin. 35. What shall we do now? Śiva has become detached and has gone on meditation. You are a companion of Śiva and pure assistant. You are omniscient. 36. O chief of the Gaṇas, we seek refuge in you. Please guide us. What is the remedy by which Śiva can be propitiated? 37. O sage, thus urged by the gods, Viṣṇu and others, Nandin, the favourite Gaṇa of Śiva replied to the gods. 38. O Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, O Indra, O gods and O sages, pay heed to my words gratifying to Śiva. 39. If you persist still in your wish that Śiva shall marry, you shall eulogise with respect and piteous request. 40. O gods, great lord cannot be made subservient by ordinary devotion. The supreme lord does even what shall not be done when moved by extraordinary devotion. 41. O Brahmā, Viṣṇu and other gods, then act accordingly, otherwise go the way you have come. Tarry not. 42. O sage, on hearing his words, Viṣṇu and other gods, considering that it must be so, eulogised Śiva with pleasure. 43. O great lord, lord of the gods, O ocean of mercy, lift us up from the great distress. Save us who have sought refuge in you. 44. Thus the gods eulogised Śiva with many piteous entreaties. They cried loudly being agitated by their devotion. 45. Viṣṇu accompanied by me spoke out many piteous words, remembering Śiva with great devotion. 46. Śiva was thus eulogised by the gods, Viṣṇu and me. He, the great lord, ceased His meditation due to His attachment for His devotees. 47. The delighted Śiva said heightening the pleasure of Viṣṇu and other gods, after glancing at them with merciful looks. Śiva is favourably disposed to His devotees. 48. O, Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, O Indra and other gods, why have you all collectively come here in my presence? Tell me the truth. 49. O great lord, you are omniscient. You are the immanent being and the lord of all. Don’t you know what is in our mind? Still I speak at you bidding. 50. O Śiva, many kinds of miseries have befallen us due to the demon Tāraka. It is for that that you have been propitiated by the gods. 51. For attaining you Śivā is born of mountain Himācala. The demon’s death can be at the hands of your son alone begotten of her. 52. This is the boon granted to him by Brahmā. Incapable of being killed by others, the demon harasses the entire universe. 53. At the instance of Nārada, she is performing a great penance. All the three worlds consisting of the mobile and immobile beings have been enveloped by her refulgence. 54. O lord Śiva, please go and grant Śivā the boon. O lord, destroy our misery and bestow happiness on us. 55. O Śiva, there is a great enthusiasm in my heart as well as in those of the gods to witness your marriage. Please get it performed in a fitting manner. 56. The opportune moment for the fulfilment of the boon granted by you to Ratī has arrived. Make your promise fruitful. 57. After saying this and bowing to and eulogising Him with different hymns, Viṣṇu, the gods and the sages, all of us waited in front of Him. 58. On hearing the words of the gods Śiva, subservient to His devotees, laughed and replied. Śiva is a strict preserver of Vedic conventions. 59. O Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, O gods, all of you please hear with attention. I am going to say a specific thing in a suitable manner. 60. Marrying is not a proper thing for men. Marriage is a great fetter that binds firmly. 61. There are many base bondages in the world. Association with women is the toughest of all. One can free oneself from all bondages except that of women. 62. Anyone bound with nooses of iron and timber can secure release but one bound with nooses of women never frees oneself. 63. Worldly enjoyment tightens the bondage. Salvation is inaccessible to a man drawn to worldly enjoyment even in his dream. 64. If he wishes for happiness, an intelligent man shall duly forsake all worldly pleasures. Worldly enjoyment that dooms persons is on a par with poison. 65. O Indra, a man attains downfall even by conversing with a sensuous person. Great preceptors say that worldly enjoyment is a bitter beer mixed with sugar. 66. Although I know and realise all these, although I have specific wisdom yet I shall accede to your request and make it fruitful. 67. I am definitely subservient to my devotees. Hence I may do everything. I am known all over the three worlds as one who performs ill fitting things. 68. The vow of the king of Assam ( Kāmarūpa ) was made fruitful. I saved king Sudakṣiṇā who had become a hireling and a prisoner. 69. I am the three-eyed God who bestows happiness but brought about the misery of Gautama. I especially curse those wicked persons who harass my devotees. 70. I have the feelings of endearment towards devotees. I drank up poison for the welfare of the gods. O gods, the miseries of the gods have always been removed by me. 71. For my devotees, I experienced many sufferings. I removed the misery of the sage Viśvānara by becoming a householder. 72. What is the use of talking much? O Viṣṇu, O Brahmā, I speak the truth. All of you know truly that I have vowed as follows. 73. Whenever any devotee of mine is involved in any adversity I remove it instantaneously and completely. 74. I know the sufferings you undergo from the demon Tāraka. I shall remove them. Truth, I tell you the truth. 75. Although I am not interested at all in dalliance I shall marry Pārvatī for begetting a son. 76. O gods, all of you go back to your respective abodes fearlessly. I shall achieve your task. In this respect you need not be anxious at all. 77. O sage, after saying this, Śiva became silent and entered into spiritual contemplation. Viṣṇu and other gods went back to their respective abodes.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. When Brahmā, Viṣṇu and other gods had gone along with the sages what happened thereafter? 2. O dear one, what did Śiva do? Within what time did He go to grant the boon? How? Please tell me for my pleasure. 3. When Brahmā and other gods had gone back to their respective abodes, Śiva entered into spiritual contemplation in order to test her penance. 4. He meditated upon His own soul within Himself, the Ātman that is greater than the greatest, free from illusion and obsessions and stationed within itself. 5. The bull-bannered lord Śiva, the object of the expression That, whose movements are unknown, is the cause of enjoyment and protection. Śiva is the lord Supreme. 6. O dear then, Pārvatī was engaged in great penance. Even Śiva wondered at that. 7. He became distracted from spiritual contemplation. A deity subservient to His devotees cannot be otherwise. Śiva, the cause of great enjoyment and protection remembered the seven celestial sages, Vasiṣṭha and others. 8. Immediately on being remembered, the seven sages came there with faces beaming with delight and praising their good fate. 9. Bowing to Him with folded arms and bent shoulders they eulogised lord Śiva with extreme pleasure by means of words choked with devotional feelings. 10. “O great God, lord of gods, O lord, O ocean of mercy, we have become very well blessed since we have been remembered by you now. 11. Why have we been remembered? We may kindly be commanded. O lord, have pity on us as on your own slaves. Obeisance be to you. 12. On hearing the words of the sages, lord Śiva, the storehouse of sympathy spoke lovingly and laughingly with eyes beaming like full-blown lotus. 13. O dear seven celestial sages, listen to my words. You are all my benefactors. You are clever and perfectly wise. 14. The great Goddess Pārvatī, the daughter of the mountain is performing a penance now in the mountain called Gaurīśikhara, with a steady mind. 15. O brahmins, she is desirous of attaining me as her husband. She is being served by her maids. She has discarded all other desires. She is determined in her resolve. 16. O excellent sages, you go there at my bidding. With love in mind, conduct the test of her resolve. 17. O virtuous ones of good rites, at my bidding, you need not hesitate to employ even deceitful and critical remarks. 18. Thus commanded those sages quickly went there where the mother of universe, the brilliant daughter of the mountain, shone with refulgence. 19. There she was seen as the personified achievement of penance itself. She was shining brilliantly with great splendour. 20. Mentally bowing to her, the seven sages, of good rites, humbly spoke to her after being warmly welcomed and worshipped by her. 21. O daughter of the mountain, listen. Why do you perform this penance? Which god do you wish to propitiate? For what purpose? Please tell us now. 22. Thus addressed by the brahmins, the goddess Śivā, daughter of the lord of mountains, replied truly before them though it was a great secret. 23. O great sages, listen to my words with hearty affection. I am saying only what I thought in my own way. 24. On hearing my words you will laugh at me considering my proposal impossible. O brahmins, I hesitate in revealing it but what can I do? 25. This mind of mine is resolute helplessly attempting at a great task. Verily it is trying to erect a high wall on the surface of water. 26. At the bidding of the celestial sage I am performing this steady penance with the desire that Rudra be my husband. 27. The unfledged birdling of my mind flies up tenaciously. May lord Śiva, the storehouse of mercy fulfil its desire. 28. On hearing her words, the sages honoured Pārvatī mentally with pleasure but spoke these deceptive false words laughingly. 29. O daughter of the mountain, although you are wise and intelligent, you are not able to see through the conduct of that celestial sage who professes to be a great scholar but who is cruel-minded. 30. Nārada is a quibbler. He misleads others. If his words are paid heed to, you stand to lose in every respect. 31. Now listen to a true anecdote that sheds light thereon, with keen intellect. We are enlightening you out of love and affection, take it to heart. 32. Dakṣa, the son of Brahmā, at the bidding of his father, begot ten thousand sons of his wife. He dearly loved them and employed them in performing a great penance. 33. The sons went to the holy lake Nārāyaṇasaras in the western zone for performing penance. Nosing it out, Nārada too went there. 34. Sage Nārada misled them with his deceptive instructions. At his instance, they never went back home to their father. 35. On hearing this, Dakṣa was infuriated but his father consoled him. Thereafter he begot a thousand other sons and engaged them in penance. 36. The sons too went to the same place for penance at the bidding of their father. Nārada too went there, a self-appointed instructor for them. 37. He gave them the same instruction and they went the way of their brothers. They never returned to the parental abode. They were engrossed in the avocation of mendicants. 38. O daughter of mountain, the good conduct of Nārada is thus well-known. Now hear about another activity of his in making men detached. 39. There was a Vidyādhara named Citraketu. The sage instructed him and made him detached from his house. 40. He bestowed his instructions on Prahlāda and made him suffer much at the hands of Hiraṇyakaśipu. He is definitely a person who splits others’ intellect. 41. Whomsoever this sage advocates his philosophy, very pleasing to the ears, generally the same person discards his hearth and home and begins to beg for alms. 42. Nārada has a dirty soul though he is endowed with a white brilliant complexion for ever. We know him particularly because we are his associates. 43. People from a distance may describe a stork as a gentle bird that does not prey on fish. But in fact an associate knows the conduct of his associates. 44. You too who are honoured by the wise have followed his advice and thus become a fool. That is why you are performing this severe penance. 45. O young lady, He, for whose sake you are performing this elaborate penance is a perpetually indifferent person of no emotional disturbance. Undoubtedly He is an enemy of Kāma. 46. The trident-bearing Śiva has an inauspicious body, is free from shame and has no home or pedigree. He is naked and ill-featured. He associates with ghosts and goblins and the like. 47. That rogue of a sage has destroyed your discretion with his deception. He has deluded you with apparently good arguments and made you perform this penance. 48. O great Goddess, daughter of the mountain, you alone think within yourself how much pleasure could be derived by getting such a bridegroom. 49. At first he married Satī, the chaste daughter of Dakṣa, eagerly but the fool that he was he could not maintain the household even for a few days. 50. He accused her and forsook her Himself. The lord went on meditating on His own form, free from stains and sorrows and sported happily. 51. He is single without a second and without attachment. He is after salvation, O gentle lady, how can a woman put up with him. 52. O blessed one, even now, at our bidding, return to your house. Cast off this foolish intention. You will benefit thereby. 53. A befitting bridegroom for you is lord Viṣṇu endowed with all good qualities. He is a resident of Vaikuṇṭha, lord of wealth and is skilled in sports. 54. O Pārvatī, with him we shall fix your marriage that will confer all happiness on you. Leave off this obduracy. Be happy. 55. On hearing these words, Pārvatī, the mother of the universe, laughed and spoke to the wise sages. 56. O excellent sages, what you have said may be true according to your light and wisdom; but O brahmins, my tenacity cannot be affected. 57. Being born of a mountain, toughness is congenital to my body. Pondering over this with a short intellect you will please desist from preventing me. 58. I shall never discard the wholesome advice of the celestial sage. Vedic scholars know and affirm that the advice of a preceptor is wholesome. 59. Those who firmly believe that the advice of the preceptor is true will experience great happiness here and hereafter. They will have no unhappiness anywhere. 60. Those who distrust the maxim in their heart of hearts that the advice of preceptors is true will experience nothing but misery here and hereafter, no happiness anywhere. 61. O brahmins, the advice of the preceptors is not to be eschewed at all. Whether it leads to the attachment of a household or otherwise, my tenacity will remain pleasing to me for ever. 62. O excellent sages, what you have just spoken shall be interpreted in another way. I shall explain it in brief. 63. When you glorify Viṣṇu as the abode of noble qualities or as a sportive deity I do not contradict. As to your statement that Sadāśiva is devoid of attributes I shall tell you the reason. 64. Śiva is Brahman, unchanging and without aberration. He assumes shapes and forms for the welfare of his devotees. He does not make a show of worldly lordship. 65. Therefore he assumes the attitude and behaviour of great Yogins. Śiva is a supreme bliss personified and an Avadhūta in form. 66. Interest in embellishment and ornaments shall be found in those who are deluded by illusion and who are not in unison with the Brahman. The lord is devoid of attributes, unborn, free from illusion, of invisible movement and a cosmic Being. 67. O brahmins, Śiva does not shower His blessings on the ground of faith, caste etc. I know Śiva truly only through the blessings of the preceptor. 68. O brahmins, if Śiva does not marry me I shall remain for ever a virgin. Truth, I tell you the truth. 69. Even if the sun were to rise in the west, even if the mountain Meru were to move; even if the fire were to be cool and even if the lotus were to bloom on a rock at the top of a mountain, my stubbornness cannot be nullified. I am telling you the truth. 70. After saying thus and bowing to those sages, the daughter of the mountain stopped and remembered Śiva with an unruffled mind. 71. On realising the resoluteness of Pārvatī, the sages hailed her and bestowed excellent blessings upon her. 72. O sage, after bowing to the goddess, the sages who wanted to test her, were delighted. They immediately returned to Śiva’s abode. 73. Having reached the place they informed Śiva of all the details. Taking leave of Him with respect, they went to the heaven.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. When those sages returned to their abodes, lord Śiva, the cause of great enjoyment and protection wanted to test the penance of the goddess. 2. Under the pretext of testing, Śiva wanted to see her. With a delighted mind He assumed the form of a Jaṭila (an ascetic with matted hair) and went to the forest of penance of Pārvatī. 3. He took the form of a very old man with the body of a brahmin. His brilliance shone. He was delighted in mind. He had an umbrella and a staff (to support Him). 4. There He saw the goddess surrounded by her maids on the platform, as pure as the digit of the moon. 5. Śiva, who is favourably disposed towards His devotees, approached her with pleasure in the guise of a celibate. 6. On seeing that brahmin of wonderful refulgence come, goddess Pārvatī worshipped Him with all the articles of worship. 7. She worshipped him with great joy by means of well prepared and arranged articles of worship. Thereafter Pārvatī enquired after the health of the brahmin with respect. 8. Who are you and whence have you come in the guise of a Brahmacārin ? You are making this forest refulgent by your splendour. Please speak, O foremost among Vedic scholars. 9. I am an aged brahmin roaming about as I please. I am an intelligent ascetic bestowing happiness and helping others. 10. Who are you? What is your parentage? Why do you perform penance in this isolated forest? Your penance cannot be surpassed even by the sages of eminent status. 11. You are neither a small girl nor an old woman. You appear to be an auspicious young woman. How is it that you are performing this penance even when you are unmarried. 12. O gentle lady, are you the wife of an ascetic who does not provide you with food and shelter and so leaving you has gone to another place? 13. Tell me, in which family are you born? Who is your father? What are your undertakings? You are very fortunate. Futile is your interest in penance. 14. Are you the mother of the Vedas ? Are you Lakṣmī or Sarasvatī ? I dare not guess who you are? 15. O brahmin, I am not the mother of the Vedas, nor Lakṣmī nor Sarasvatī. I am the daughter of Himācala and my name is Pārvatī. 16. Previously I had been born as Satī, the daughter of Dakṣa. By Yogic means I cast off my body since my husband was insulted by my father. 17. Even in this life, Śiva came to me but due to ill luck, He reduced Kāma to ashes, left me and went away. 18. O brahmin, when Śiva went away, I came out of my father’s house, being greatly dejected, to perform this steady penance on the banks of the celestial river. 19. Even after performing this severe penance for a long time, I could not attain Him. I was just to consign myself to fire but on seeing you, I have stopped for a while. 20. Now you can go. I shall enter fire since I have not been accepted by Śiva. Wherever I take birth I shall woo only Śiva. 21. After saying so, Pārvatī jumped into the fire in the presence of the brahmin although she was forbidden by Him again and again. 22. Even as she jumped into the fire, it became as cool as sandal paste due to her ascetic power. 23. The brahmin stopped her standing on her way as she was trying to go away and asked her laughingly. 24. O gentle lady, I cannot understand anything. Your penance is wonderful. Your body is not charred by the fire. Still your desire remains unsatiated so far. 25. O gentle lady, let me know about your desire; I am a brahmin who can bestow pleasure upon everyone. 26. Please tell me everything truly and methodically. Since we have become friends nothing should be kept a secret from me. 27. I wish to ask you now. O gentle lady, whom do you wish to have as your husband? It is in you that the fruit of penance is seen. 28. If your penance is for others or for the supreme object, wherefore should you perform it at all? You had a jewel in your hand, you cast it off and have taken up a base metal instead. 29. Why have you rendered your beauty in vain by taking recourse to this penance that eschewing different sorts of fine clothes hide is worn by you. 30. Hence tell me the reason, truthfully, for this penance. Let me, a great brahmin, be pleased on hearing the same. 31. Thus asked by him, Pārvatī urged her maid. She of good rites made everything narrated to him through her maid. 32. Induced by Pārvatī, her bosom friend Vijayā who knew all about her good rites spoke to the ascetic. 33. O saintly sir, listen. I shall recount the story of Pārvatī as well as the reason for penance, if you wish to hear. 34. This my friend is the daughter of Himācala, lord of mountains. She is the daughter of Menakā named Kālī but famous as Pārvatī. 35. She is not married to anyone nor does she desire any other than Śiva for her husband. She has performed this penance for three thousand years. 36. It was for that purpose that my friend started penance like this. I shall tell you the reason. Listen, O excellent brahmin, O saintly one. 37. Leaving off Indra and other gods, Viṣṇu and Brahmā, Pārvatī wishes to attain the Pināka -bearing Śiva as her husband. 38. She my friend planted many trees before. O brahmin, all of them have put forth flowers and fruits. 39-40. My friend has been performing severe penance at the bidding of Nārada to make her beauty fruitful, to embellish her father’s race and to bless Kama. She has directed this penance to lord Śiva. O holy ascetic, how is it that her desire is not fulfilled. 41. O excellent brahmin, you enquired of her desire. I have just told you out of my love for her. What else do you wish to hear. 42. On hearing these truthful words of Vijayā, O sage, Śiva who came disguised as an ascetic said laughingly. 43. The maid has said something, but I deduce only a huge joke therefrom. If it be true, let the gentle lady herself speak out. 44. When these words were uttered by that brahmin ascetic, goddess Pārvatī spoke to the brahmin thus.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O great brahmin, listen to my story entirely. What my friend has said just now is the whole truth, not otherwise. 2. I am telling you the truth and not a lie. Śiva has been wooed by me, by mind, speech and action as well as by means of ascetic feelings. 3. I know that it is an inaccessible object. How can I attain it? Still out of my eagerness I am performing this penance. 4. After saying these words to him, the daughter of the mountain kept quiet. On hearing the words of Pārvatī the brahmin said. 5. So long I had been desirous of knowing what our gentle lady craves for that she performs this great penance. 6. O dear lady, I have now known it through your own words. I am now going away from this place. You can do as you please. 7. What should be done by you is not mentioned by me. To me your further friendship is useless. -But this should be mentioned that your future should be happy. 8. After saying these words to her when he proposed to go, goddess Pārvatī bowed to and spoke to the brahmin. 9. “O excellent brahmin, why do you go? Stay and tender me wholesome advice”. When she said thus, the staff-bearing brahmin stopped and spoke. 10. If you are stopping me with devotion, truly desirous of hearing then I shall explain everything whereby you may gain some wisdom. 11. I know Śiva through and through with all His weighty attributes. I shall tell you the truth. Listen with attention. 12. The great lord is bull-bannered. His body is smeared with ashes. His hair is matted. He is clad in the hide of a tiger. He has covered His body with the hide of an elephant. 13. He holds the skull. Serpents twine round His limbs. Poison has left a mark on his neck. He eats even forbidden stuffs. He has odd eyes and is definitely awful. 14. His birth and pedigree cannot be traced. He is devoid of the enjoyment of a householder. He has ten arms. He is mostly naked and is ever accompanied by ghosts and goblins. 15. What is the reason whereby you wish Him to be your husband? O gentle lady, where has your wisdom gone? Think well and tell me. 16. A previous terrible activity of His has been heard by me. If you are interested in hearing I shall tell you. 17. Dakṣa ’s daughter, the chaste lady Satī wooed Vṛṣabhavāhana. (Śiva) as her husband. Fortunately their union was well known. 18. Satī was discarded by Dakṣa because she was the wife of the skull-bearing Śiva. Śiva too was eschewed in the allocation of shares in the sacrifice. 19. On account of the insult Satī was infuriated and she discarded her dear life. Śiva too was abandoned by her. 20. You are a jewel among women. Your father is the king of all mountains. Why do you crave for a husband like this and that too by means of a severe penance? 21. Handing over a gold coin you wish to buy a piece of glass. Setting aside the pure sandal paste you wish to smear mud over your body. 22. Unmindful of the sunlight you wish to have the light of the glow worm. Throwing away the fine China silk you wish to wear the hide. 23. Discarding the life at home you yearn for a life in the forest, O madam, throwing away excellent treasure you wish a piece of iron in return. 24. Leaving off the guardians of the quarters you run after Śiva. This is not well said. It is against the conventions of the world. 25. Where you with eyes like the petals of a lotus? Where this three-eyed creature—Śiva? You are moon-faced while Śiva is five-faced. 26. On your head the divine plaited hair shines with glossy splendour like a serpent. But Śiva has only the matted hair to boast of. 27. Sandal paste is applied on your body, while the ashes of the funeral pyre on that of Śiva. Where your silken garment and where the elephant-hide of Śiva. 28. Where the divine ornaments and where the serpents of Śiva? Where the deities that move about and where Śiva, fond of goblins and their oblations? 29. Where the pleasing sound of his tabor? Where His peculiar drum called Damaru ? Where the set of fine drums and the inauspicious sound of his horn? 30. Where the inauspicious sound of double drum and where the sound of his throat? There is no matching beauty between you both. 31. If He had money to spare how could He have been a naked being? His vehicle is a bull. He has no other appendages. 32. There is not even a single quality in the odd-eyed Śiva out of the innumberable qualities pleasing to women and expected in bride-grooms. 33. Your friend Kāma was burnt by Śiva. He insulted you also by leaving you off and going elsewhere. 34. His caste is not recognised. He has no learning or wisdom. His assistants are the ghosts. Poison is seen even in His throat. 35. He also moves about in isolation. He is detached from everything particularly. Hence you cannot fix your mind in Him. 36. Where your necklace and where the garland of skulls that he wears? Where your rich divine unguent and where the ash from the funeral pyre that He has on His body? 37. O divine lady, everything concerning you and Śiva, such as form, features etc. is mutually discordant. I do not like your resolution. You can do whatever you please. 38. You yourself have evolved taste for all bad objects. Turn your mind from Him. If not, do whatever you please. 39. On hearing these words of that brahmin, Pārvatī said angrily to the brahmin who discredited Śiva.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. So long I have been thinking that some one else has come. Now everything has become clear. You are a person who cannot be killed. 2. O lord, what has been said by you is known. It is not otherwise. If what has been said by you is real, it cannot be called unreal. 3. Sometimes lord Śiva is seen in that guise. But He is the supreme Brahman who, out of his own accord, takes up bodies in his own sports. 4. You have now come in the form of a student ascetic for the sake of deceiving me. Using false arguments, you have spoken fraudulent words. 5. I know the real form of Śiva very particularly. I shall therefore explain Śiva’s reality in the proper perspective after careful consideration. 6. He is in fact devoid of attributes- But for some re-sons He takes up attributes. How can He have a birth, he who is really attributeless but takes up attributes? 7. Sadāśiva is the support and receptacle of all lores. Of what avail is learning to Him who is perfect and the supreme soul ? 8. At the beginning of the Kalpa, all the Vedas were given by Śiva to Viṣṇu in the form of breath. Who can be a good lord equal to Him? 9. How can He be measured in age, He who is primordial to everything and everyone. Even primordial nature ( Prakṛti ) is born of Him. Of what avail is then Energy to Him? 10. With the threefold Energies, Śiva blesses those who worship Him always as the lord of Energies. 11. Every individual soul becomes fearless and conquers death by worshipping Him. Hence His designation ‘the conqueror of death’ is famous in all the three worlds. 12. Viṣṇu attains and retains his Viṣṇuhood by His favour. Similarly Brahmā his Brahmahood and the gods their godhood. 13-14 Whenever the lord of the gods wants to see Śiva he has to propitiate His gate-keepers, the ghosts etc., otherwise his crown becomes shattered by batons. Really Śiva is a great lord. He has no need for many attendants. 15. What is it that cannot befall one who serves the auspicious-featured Śiva. What is deficient in that lord? Does Sadāśiva like me? 16. Even if a person is perpetually poor for seven lives, after serving Śiva, his prosperity becomes unhampered. 17. How can he find benefit inaccessible—he in whose presence the eight Siddhis (achievements) dance always for the sake of propitiation with speechless mouths or with lowered faces. 18. Although Śiva resorts to inauspicious things yet by thinking on Him everything becomes auspicious. 19. His worship fulfils all desires. How can there be aberration in Him who always remains in an unmodified state. 20. People are sanctified by merely seeing the person in whose mouth the auspicious name “Śiva” is ever present. 21. If, as you say, the ash from the funeral pyre is unholy, how is it that the same transferred to Śiva’s body is taken thence and worn on the head by the gods? 22. How can He be easily realised, He who is the deity that creates, sustains and annihilates the worlds, all the same who is devoid of attributes and is termed Śiva? 23. The form of Śiva, the supreme soul, is that of Brahman, devoid of attributes. How can people like you know it, people with extrovert faces? 24. Persons of evil conduct, sinners and those who have gone astray from the path of the gods do not at all know the reality of Śiva of attributeless form. 25. If, out of ignorance of His reality, any one were to discredit Śiva, his merit hoarded ever since birth becomes reduced to ashes. 26. You have censured Śiva of immeasurable splendour and I have worshiped you, hence I have become sinful. 27. On seeing a person who hates Śiva one should take bath along with one’s clothes. On seeing a person who hates Śiva one should perform expiatory rites. 28. O wicked one, you profess knowledge of Śiva. But you should know that the eternal Śiva is not known at all. 29. Whatever may be the form or feature of Śiva, He is multiformed. Still He is my favourite. He is without aberration and beloved of the good. 30. Neither Viṣṇu nor Brahmā can equal that noble soul. How can then the gods and others be? They are always dependent on Time and are not eternal. 31. After realising this with my sharp intellect factually, I have come to this forest and am performing the elaborate penance for attaining Śiva. 32. My ambition is to attain the supreme lord who is favourably disposed to His devotees and who blesses the distressed. 33. After saying this, O sage, Pārvatī, the daughter of the mountain, stopped and meditated on Śiva with unaffected mind. 34-35. On hearing the words of the goddess when the brahmin ascetic began to say something, Pārvatī whose mind was fixed on Śiva and who was averse to hear any disparaging remarks about Śiva spoke immediately to Vijayā, her maid. 36. This base brahmin must be prevented strenuously. He is inclined to say something again. He will surely censure Śiva. 37. Not only does he who disparages Śiva incur sin but also he who hears the same. 38. A person who disparages Śiva is definitely worthy of being killed by Śiva’s attendants. If it is a brahmin he must be dismissed or the hearer shall go away from that place immediately. 39. This wicked man will again disparage Śiva. Since he is a brahmin, he is not to be killed. He shall be abandoned. He shall not be seen at all. 40. Let us leave this place at once and go elsewhere. Do not tarry. Let there be no more talk with this ignorant man. 41. Saying this, O sage, even as Pārvatī was about to step ahead, the brahmin manifesting as Śiva clasped his beloved. 42. After assuming the handsome form in the manner Pārvatī had meditated upon and manifesting it to Pārvatī, Śiva addressed her while she stood with her lowered head. 43. “Where will you go, leaving me? You are not to be discarded again by me. I am delighted. Tell me what boon shall I grant you. There is nothing that cannot be given to you. 44. From today I am your slave bought by you by performing penance. I have been bought by your beauty. Even a moment appears like a Yuga. 45. O Pārvatī, O great Goddess, you are my eternal wife. Let this shyness be eschewed. You please ponder with your keen intellect. 46. O steady-minded one, you have been tested by me in various ways. Let my guilt be excused in following this worldly game. 47. Even in the three worlds I do not see a beloved like you. O Pārvatī, in every respect I am subservient to you. You can fulfil all your desires. 48. O beloved, come on near me. You are my wife. I am your bridegroom. I shall immediately go to my abode—the excellent mountain, along with you. 49. When the lord of the gods spoke in this way, Pārvatī rejoiced. Whatever distress she had felt during penance she cast off as something old. 50. O excellent sage, her weariness subsided. In fact, when the fruit is realised, the exertion felt during the process of undertaking perishes.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, O fortunate one, what happened thereafter? I wish to hear everything. Please narrate the glory of Pārvatī to me. 2. O celestial sage, let this be listened to. I shall resume the story joyfully, the story that quells all sins and increases devotion to Śiva. 3. O brahmin, on hearing the words of Śiva, the great Soul and on seeing His pleasant form and features Pārvatī was delighted much. 4. The highly chaste lady, goddess Pārvatī replied to the lord standing near with great pleasure and face beaming with love. 5. O lord, O lord of gods, you are my husband. Has it been forgotten by you why you destroyed the sacrifice of Dakṣa formerly with great tenacity? 6. Listen, O lord of gods, I am born of Menā for the achievement of the task of the gods terrified to the quick by Tāraka. 7. O lord of gods, if you are delighted, if you are sympathetic, O lord, become my husband. O lord do as I say. 8. With your permission I am going to my father’s abode. Let your pure great glory be made well known. 9. O lord, you will please go to Himavat. Clever in divine sports, be the mendicant and beg of him, me as your alms. 10. Spreading your glory in the worlds you shall make everything about my father fruitful. Thus you start your householder’s life.” 11. There is no doubt that my father with his kinsmen will accede to your request as he has already been urged by the sages lovingly. 12. Formerly as Dakṣa’s daughter I was offered to you by my father. But the marriage rites were not duly performed then. 13. The planets were not worshipped by my father. Therefore a great defect occurred in our marriage in regard to the planets. 14. Hence, O lord, you will celebrate marriage in accordance with the rules for the fulfilment of the task of the gods. 15. The customary procedures of the marriage shall certainly be followed. Let Himavat know that an auspicious penance has been performed well by his daughter. 16. On hearing these words, Sadāśiva was highly delighted. Laughingly and lovingly He spoke to Pārvatī. 17. O great Goddess, listen to my important statement. See that our marriage rites are performed in the proper manner without deficiency. 18. O sweet-faced one, all the living beings Brahmā and others are non-eternal. O beautiful lady, know all these visible things to be perishable. 19. Know that the single beings assumed manifold forms. The attributeless took over the attributes. That which is self-luminous had other lights imposed on it. 20. O gentle lady, I, the independent, have been made subservient by you. You alone are the great illusory power, the Primordial nature that creates. 21. This entire universe has been made of illusion; it is held by the supreme soul with His great intellect. It is united and enveloped by the Gaṇas of the nature of pervading souls of meritorious deeds, akin to the nature of supreme soul. 22. What are these planets? What are these sets of seasons? What are those other planets? o gentle lady, what is said by you, O fair-complexioned one. 23. We two have created the universe different in attributes and actions for the sake of the devotees and with a disposition favourable to them. 24. You are indeed the subtle primordial nature consisting of Rajas, Sattva and Tamas. You are capable of perpetual activity. You are both possessed and devoid of attributes. 25. O slender-waisted lady, of all living beings I am the soul without abberation without yearnings. I take up bodies at the requests and wishes of my devotees. 26. O daughter of the mountain, I will not go up to Himavat your father. I will not become a mendicant and beg of him for you. 27. O daughter of the lord of mountains, even a weighty person endowed with great qualities, even a noble soul, is considered base immediately after uttering the words—“Please give me”. 28. O benevolent lady, after knowing this what is it that you say is our duty? Gentle lady, do as you wish. 29. Thus addressed, the great goddess, the chaste lady of lotus-like eyes told Śiva with devotion after bowing to Him again and again. 30. “You are the cosmic soul and I am the cosmic nature. There is nothing to deliberate on this. We two are independent and subservient to the devotees. We two are both possessed and devoid of attributes. 31. O lord Śiva, with effort, you will please do according to my request. O Śiva, beg of Himavat for me, You will bestow a fortune on him. 32. O great lord, be sympathetic. I am your devotee for ever. I am your wife for ever in ever birth. 33. You are Brahman, the great soul, devoid of attributes greater than primordial nature, without abberration, free from yearnings, independent, great lord. 34. Still you are possessed of attributes too and enthusiastic in the uplift of the devotees. You sport about in your own soul engrossed in it and you are clever in your different sports. 35. O great lord, I know you in every respect. O omniscient, of what avail is a detailed talk. Take pity on me. 36. Spread your glory in the world indulging in your wonderful divine sports. Singing them, O lord, people can cross the ocean of worldly existence. 37. After saying these words to the great lord, Pārvatī stopped and bowed to Him frequently with shoulders stooping and palms joined in reverence. 38. Thus addressed by her, Śiva of the noble soul, just to follow and imitate the worldly conventions thought that it should be so. Being desirous of doing so he rejoiced. 39. Then Śiva vanished. With a great delight He went to Kailāsa but at His separation from Pārvatī his mind was distressed. 40. After reaching there He mentioned the news to Nandin and others. He was very much delighted. 41. Those Gaṇas, Bhairava and others were greatly pleased. They celebrated the occasion with great festivities. 42. O Nārada, all went on auspiciously. All misery was at an end. Śiva too was in a pleasant mood. Article published on 07 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Brahmā, O dear, of great fortune, you have the real vision and are blessed. This wonderful story was heard by me, thanks to your blessings. 2. When Śiva returned to His mountain, O intelligent one, what did Pārvatī allauspicious do and where did she go? Please tell me. 3. O dear, listen with pleasure to what happened thereafter when Śiva returned to His place. I shall mention it, remembering Śiva, 4. Accompanied by her maids and assuming meaningful dress and features she returned to her father’s house repeating the name of lord Śiva. 5. On hearing that Pārvatī was returning, Menā and Himavat excessively delighted went ahead seated in a divine vehicle. 6-7 The chief priest, the citizens, the maids, the kinsmen and also others accompanied them. All the brothers with Maināka, the eldest, accompanied them highly delighted and crying shouts of victory. 8-12. The auspicious waterpot was placed in the main highway decorated with sandal paste, aguru, musk and branches of trees with fruits. The priests, brahmins and sages reciting the Vedas, dancing girls, all went ahead seated on lofty elephants to receive her. All round stumps of plantain trees were fixed. Women along with their sons and husbands held lamps in their hands. Brahmins were shouting mantras etc. in an auspicious voice. Various instruments were played. Conch shells were sounded. In the meantime Pārvatī reached the outskirts of the city. Entering the city she saw her parents again. 13. On seeing the parents rushing at her in their great delight, she gladly bowed to them along with her maids. 14. They gave her their blessings and embraced her. Saying “O darling,” they shed tears in their excitement of love. 15. Women near and dear as also the wives of her brothers embraced her closely with great pleasure. 16. “A great task has been well accomplished by you. It has saved the whole family. All of us are sanctified by your noble conduct”. 17. Praising her with these and similar words they bowed to her with great delight. They worshipped her with sandal paste and sweet scented flowers in great joy. 18. At that time the gods, seated in their aerial chariots in the sky, showered auspicious flowers, bowed to and eulogised her with hymns. 19. Then the Brahmins and others joyfully took you within the city in a resplendent chariot. 20. Then the brahmins, the maids and other women took her within the house with due honour. 21. O great sage, ladies performed her ceremonial ablution; the brahmins offered benedictions. Himvat and Menakā rejoiced much. 22. Himavat considered his household life fruitful. A daughter is far better than an ignoble son. He praised you too, Nārada, saying “Well done, Well done”. 23. The lord of the mountains gave monetary gifts to brahmins and lords. He made the brahmins recite auspicious hymns, as part of the festivities. 24. The parents delighted with their daughter; the brothers and the sisters gathered joyfully in the courtyard, O sage. 25. The happy and delighted Himavat, honoured everyone. Then he went to the Gaṅgā for his bath. 26. In the meantime, Śiva, favourably disposed to His disciples and prone to divine sports, assumed the guise of a dancer and approached Menakā. 27-28. He held the blowing horn in his left and the drum in his right hand. He wore a red cloth and had the wallet suspended behind his back. In the guise of a dancer with the skill of dancing and singing, he danced well and sang many songs in sweet voice. 29. He blew the horn and played on the drum in very sweet tunes. Everything was very pleasant. 30 All the citizens men, women, children and old folks assembled there to witness the performance. 31. O sage, on hearing the sweet songs, and seeing the delightful dance, the people entered into raptures of ecstacy. 32-35 Pārvatī became unconscious. She saw Śiva’s handsome form, bearing trident and other symbols before her vision. He had smeared the ashes all over His body. He was wearing a garland of bones. His face was beaming with his shining three eyes. He had the sacred thread of a serpent. Exquisitely white in complexion, the handsome lord Śiva, the friend of the distressed, the ocean of mercy was repeating the words “Choose the boon (or the bridegroom).” On seeing Him thus in her mind she bowed to Him. Mentally she had chosen the boon when she had said, “Be my husband”. 36. And He had granted her the auspicious boon with pleasure and vanished. The mendicant now continued the dance. 37. Menā who was greatly delighted took gems and jewels in gold vessels in order to give them to Him. 38. But the dancer did not accept the gifts. He requested for the hand of Pārvatī and began to dance and sing again. 39. Menā was surprised on hearing his words and she was furious. She rebuked the mendicant and wished to drive him out. 40. In the meantime the lord of mountains returned from the Gaṅgā. He saw the mendicant in the human form in his court-yard. 41. On hearing the details from Menā he became very angry. He ordered his attendants to drive out the dancer. 42. But, O excellent sage, none of them could push him out as he was hot to the touch like a blazing fire and very brilliant. 43. O dear, then the mendicant who was clever at diverse sports showed his endless great power to the mountain. 44. The mountain saw him immediately transmuted in to the form of Viṣṇu the four-armed, with crown earrings and yellow garment. 45. Flowers etc. which had been offered to the macebearing lord, Viṣṇu, at the time of worship, he saw on the body and over the head of the mendicant. 46. Then the lord of mountains saw the four-faced deity, the creator of worlds, red in colour and reciting the Vedic hymns. 47. Then the lord of mountains saw the form of the sun, the eye of the universe, much to his enthusiastic amazement. 48. Then, O dear one, he saw him in the wonderful form of Śiva accompanied by Pārvatī. He was smiling and shining beautifully. 49. Then he saw him in the form of a mass of splendour of no specific shape. It was unsullied, free from peculiar attributes and desires. It was wonderfully formless. 50. Thus he saw many forms and features there. He was surprised and delighted much. 51. Then the chief of mendicants begged of Himavat and Menā the hand of Pārvatī as alms. He, the source of great enjoyment did not accept anything else. 52-54. The lord of mountains deluded by Śiva’s magic did not accede to this request. The mendicant too did not take anything. He vanished from the scene. Then Himavat and Menā realised that Śiva had deceived them and gone to His abode. After some pondering, they developed a feeling of devotion to Śiva who is the cause of salvation, the bestower of divine bliss. Article published on 07 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. On knowing their undistracted great devotion to Śiva, O Nārada, Indra and other gods, thought like this. 2. If the mountain were to give his daughter to Śiva with single-minded devotion he will attain salvation immediately and will disappear from Bhārata. 3. The mountain is the storehouse of endless gems. If he were to leave off the Earth and go, the name of the Earth— Ratnagarbhā (having gems in the womb)—shall be a misnomer. 4. He will cast off his immobile aspect and assume a divine form. He will give his daughter to the Trident bearing deity and will go to Śiva’s region. 5. He will undoubtedly attain mergence into lord Śiva. having enjoyed pleasures there, he will attain salvation. 6. Thinking like this and consulting one another they, in their bewilderment, decided to send god Bṛhaspati there. 7. O Nārada, then Indra and other gods, went to Bṛhaspati’s abode lovingly with humility, in their eagerness to achieve their self- interest. 8. Reaching there, all the gods including Indra bowed to Bṛhaspati and submitted every detail to him. 9. O revered preceptor, please go to the abode of Himavat for the fulfilment of our task. After going there, you shall make disparaging remarks about the trident-bearing deity. 10-11. Pārvatī will not marry any other person except Śiva. The mountain will derive the benefit only after sometime if he gives the daughter in marriage without his full concurrence. Let the mountain stay on earth for the present. O preceptor, you shall make him stay on the earth as he is the support of many gems. 12. On hearing these words of the gods, the preceptor of the gods, plugged his ears with his hands. He did not accept the proposal of the gods. He remembered the name “Śiva”. 13. Then remembering lord Śiva, Bṛhaspati of liberal mind rebuked the gods again and again and said. 14. All of you gods seem to be selfish in nature. You want to destroy other’s interests. Indeed I will go to hell by disparaging Śiva. 15. O gods, one of you shall go to the mountain. Let him urge the lord of the mountains and achieve the desired object. 16. Let him stay in Bhārata after giving his daughter without willingness. It is certain he will attain salvation if he gives his daughter with devotion. 17. Afterwards the seven celestial sages will properly persuade the mountain. Except Pināka -bearing deity, Pārvatī will not marry any other person. 18. Or, O gods, all of you go to Brahmā ’s region taking Indra with you. Tell Brahmā all your details. He will get your work done immediately. 19. On hearing it and consulting among themselves the gods came to my Assembly. After duly bowing to me they informed me about the details. 20. On hearing the words of the gods about censuring Śiva, O sage, I the reciter of the Vedas spoke to them in an aggrieved tone. 21. “Dear children, I am incompetent to decry Śiva. It is unbearable. It destroys all riches. It is the seed of all adversities. 22. O gods, all of you go to Kailāsa and propitiate Śiva. Make Him go to Himavat’s abode quickly. 23. Let him approach the lord of mountains and make disparaging remarks about Himself. Rebuking others is conducive to destruction. Rebuking oneself is conducive to fame”. 24. On hearing my words, all the gods, joyously bowed to me and went to Kailāsa, the chief of mountains. 25. Going there and seeing Śiva they bowed to Him with bent heads and palms joined in reverence. The gods eulogised Śiva. 26. O great lord, lord of gods, O Śiva, the merciful, we seek refuge in you. Be sympathetic. Obeisance be to you. 27. O lord, you are favourably disposed to your devotees, always carrying out their tasks. You are the uplifter of the distressed, and an ocean of mercy. You save us from all our miseries and distresses. 28. Eulogising lord Śiva thus, Indra and other gods respectfully submitted all the details. 29. On hearing the words of the gods, lord Śiva agreed to the proposal. He made the gods return after assuring them smilingly. 30. Hastening to their abodes, the gods rejoiced much considering their work fully fulfilled and praising Sadāśiva. 31. Then the lord Śiva who is favourably disposed to his devotees, the lord of magic and free from aberrations went to the lord of mountains. 32-33. When the lord of the mountains was seated in his royal assembly along with Pārvatī and kinsmen, Sadāśiva came there, in the meantime bearing a staff and an umbrella. He was dressed in divine clothes and had a shining mark on the forehead. 34. He was in the guise of a saintly brahmin. He was repeating the name of Viṣṇu with devotion. He had the garland of crystal beads in his hand and the Śālagrama stone round his neck. 35. On seeing that extraordinary guest, Himavat with his attendants stood up in reverence and prostrated before him with devotion. 36. Pārvatī bowed with devotion to her dear lover in the guise of a brahmin. On realising him mentally the goddess eulogised him with great joy. 37. With great pleasure Śiva bestowed his blessings on all. O dear, He bestowed on Pārvatī her cherished desire in addition. 38. The brahmin received with pleasure the articles of homage etc. offered by Himavat, the lord of mountains. 39. O sage, after duly worshipping the excellent brahmin with pleasure, the mountain Himavat enquired of his welfare. 40. Again, the lord of mountains asked him “Who are you, please?” Immediately the chief of brahmins, spoke to the lord of mountains thus. 41. O foremost among mountains, I am a brahmin devotee of Viṣṇu, and a great scholar. My occupation is that of a match-maker. I roam about on the earth. 42. I go where I wish. I go everywhere. By the power of my preceptor I am omniscient. I am simple-minded and by nature I help others and I am sympathetic and quell aberrations. 43. I have come to know that you desire to give your daughter to Śiva, this daughter so tender like a lotus flower, of divinely excellent form and endowed with all accomplishments. 44-47. To Śiva—who has no support, who is devoid of associations, who is deformed, who is without attributes, who resides in the cremation-ground, who has the form of a snake-catcher, who is a Yogin, who is naked, who has deficient limbs, who wears snakes as his ornaments, whose name and pedigree are unknown, whose conduct is bad, who has no sport, whose body is smeared with ashes, who is furious, who lacks in discrimination, whose age is not known, whose matted hair is ill worn, who supports all who roam about, who has garland of snakes who is a mendicant, who is engaged in following wrong-paths and who tenaciously discards the Vedic path. 48. O mountain, this inclination of yours is not at all conducive to auspiciousness. O foremost among the wise, born of Nārāyaṇa ’s family, learn sense. 49. For the marriage of Pārvatī, He is not at all a deserving person. On hearing of this, the general public will smile in derision. 50. O lord of mountains, see for yourself. He has not a single kinsman. You are the storehouse of great gems and jewels. He has no assets at all. 51. O lord of mountains, you shall consult your kinsmen, sons, wife and wise counsellors, except Pārvatī. 52. O lord of mountains, the medicine does not appeal at all to the patient. Wrong diet that brings about great defects always appeals to him. 53. Saying this, the brahmin stopped. He took food and left the place with pleasure for his abode. Śiva is one who quietly indulges in His divine sports.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. On hearing the words of the brahmin, Menā spoke to Himavat with tears welling up in her eyes, due to grief and with. the heart extremely dejected. 2. O lord of mountains, please listen to my words conducive to happiness. Please consult important devotees of Śiva regarding what has been mentioned by the brahmin. 3. Many disparaging remarks about Śiva have been made by this brahminical devotee of Viṣṇu. O lord of mountains, on hearing these words, my mind is very much dejected. 4. O lord of mountains, I shall not give my daughter endowed with all good accomplishments to Śiva with ugly features, ignoble conduct and defiled name. 5. If you do not accede to my request, I shall undoubtedly die. I will immediately leave this house or swallow poison. 6. With a rope I shall tie Pārvatī round my neck and go to a thick forest. I would rather drown myself in the great ocean. I shall never give my daughter to him. 7. Saying thus with great grief, Menā entered the chamber of anger. Casting off her necklaces she lay down on the ground sighing and sobbing. 8. O dear, in the meantime all those seven celestial sages were remembered by Śiva whose mind was agitated by the pangs of separation from Pārvatī. 9. All those seven sages, as soon as they were remembered by Śiva, came there in person as though they were another set of wish-yielding Kalpa trees. 10. Arundhatī too came there as though she was an achievement personified. On seeing them resplendent like the sun, Śiva stopped his recitation of mantras. 11. O sage, standing in front of Śiva and bowing to and eulogising Him, the seven sages of great austerity considered themselves blessed. 12. Then, as they were struck with surprise, they joined their palms in reverence, bowed to and addressed Śiva adored by all the worlds:— 13. The sages said:—“O most excellent of all, O great ruler, O Emperor of the heaven-dwellers, how can our fortune which is very excellent be described by us? 14-15. Formerly we had performed three kinds of penance; we had studied the excellent Vedas; we had made offerings in the fire, we had visited many holy centres; thus whatever merit we have acquired verbally, mentally and physically that entire merit has now accrued to us by your blessing in remembering us. 16. A man who worships you always shall be blessed. How can that merit be properly described, the merit of those whom you yourself remember? 17. O Sadāśiva, we have become the most excellent of all people by your remembering us. Usually you never even come across the path of ambitions and aspirations of ordinary people. 18-19. O lord, your vision, very difficult to be acquired, is like the fruit stooping down within the reach of the dwarf, like sight to a man born blind, like eloquency acquired by a dumb man, like the indigent meeting with a treasure-trove, like the lame man reaching the top of a high mountain and like the barren woman bearing a child. 20. By seeing you today we have become the most respectable sages worthy of the worship of all the worlds. We have reached the highest position. 21. O lord of gods, by seeing you who are the lord of all gods we have become worthy of great respect. There is no necessity of talking more. 22. If any duty is assigned to us it will be a favour to us. An auspicious task befitting us, your utter slaves, shall be given to us. 23. On hearing their words, Śiva the great lord, in conformity with the conventions of the world, spoke these pleasant words:— 24. Sages are always to be adored and particularly you all. O brahmins, it was for a specific reason that you have been summoned here. 25. My attitude of being helpful is known to you. That must be achieved, especially in the interest of the fulfilment of the desires of the world. 26. Cause for great misery has arisen for the gods at the hands of Tāraka the wicked. Boon has already been granted. He is invincible. What shall I do? 27. O great sages, all the eight cosmic bodies that I possess are not for furthering my self-interest, they are for helping the wide world. 28-29. A great penance has been performed by Pārvatī. That cannot be performed even by great sages. I have to give her the great fruit thereof. Indeed my vow is to render delight to my devotees. The fruit I bestow on her shall be conducive to her welfare. Hence I wish to marry her. 30. At the request of Pārvatī I went to the abode of the mountain in the guise of a mendicant. Clever in divine sports I thereby sanctified her. 31. On hearing to know that I am the supreme Brahman, the couple were desirous of giving me their daughter with great devotion in accordance with the Vedic manner. 32. On the inducement of the gods, in order to reduce the quality of devotion (of Himavat and Menā) I took the guise of a devotee of Viṣṇu and rebuked myself. 33. O sages, on hearing it they were dejected and have now lost interest in me and do not wish to give their daughter to me. 34. Hence you all go to the abode of Himavat and urge the excellent mountain and his wife. 35. Speak out the words as venerable as the Vedas. Do everything necessary to get the matter straightened out and settled. 36. O excellent ones, I wish to marry their daughter. I have agreed to marry her and have already granted her that boon. 37. What is the use of talking too much? Himavat must be convinced. Menā too must be convinced similarly, so that the purpose of the gods shall be served well. 38. Whatever mode is selected by you shall be more than necessary. The task is yours. You alone are the sharers of the credit. 39. On hearing these words, the seven sages of pure mind became delighted and thought themselves blessed by the lord. 40. “We have become blessed and contented in every respect. We have become venerable to every one, especially adorable. 41. He who is worthy of being respected by Brahmā and Viṣṇu, he who secures everything accomplished is sending us, his emissaries on an errand that is conducive to the happiness of all the worlds. 42. He is the master of the worlds and their father. She is considered the mother. Let this proper alliance increase for ever like the moon”. 43. Saying thus the celestial sages bowed to Śiva and went by aerial path in the direction of the city of Himavat. 44. On seeing that city of heavenly splendour, the sages were surprised. Expatiating on their good fortune they spoke to one another. 45. We are really blessed and meritorious in being able to see this city because we have been engaged in a task like this. 46. This city seems to be better than Alakā, heaven, Bhogavatī and even Amarāvatī. 47. The houses are beautiful and well-built. The courtyards are well laid out and paved with different kinds of crystals and jewels of variegated colours. 48. Slabs of solar and lunar stones are found in every house. Different kinds of celestial trees are also growing here. 49. The splendour of festoons is also seen in every house. They are of different colours and sorts with shapes of parrots and swans carved on the walls of the palaces. 50. The canopies with hanging festoons are of diverse character. There are many lakes and ponds. 51. The gardens and parks are of various kinds frequented by delighted people. Here men are like gods and the women are like the celestial damsels. 52. In the land of activities (i.e. Bhārata ), the sacrificial priests and the followers of Purāṇas perform holy rites with a desire to attain heaven. That is in vain because they have left off the city of Himavat. 53. Men are eager to go to heaven only as long as this city is not seen. O brahmins, when this city is seen what is the use of heaven? 54. Describing the city thus all those excellent sages went to the rich and well-furnished abode of Himavat. 55. On seeing those seven sages, resplendent like the sun, coming along the aerial path from a distance, Himavat was surprised and said:— 56. The seven venerable persons, resplendant like the sun, are approaching me. These sages shall be worshipped by me now. 57. We householders are really blessed, to whom great men like these, bestowing happiness on all, pay their visit. 58. In the meantime they descended on the ground from the sky. On seeing them Himavat advanced to welcome them. 59. With palms joined in reverence he bowed to them with stooping shoulders and worshipped them with due respect and honour. 60. Desiring welfare of others, the seven sages embraced Himavat, the lord of mountains and spoke words of auspicious blessings with pleasant faces. 61. Keeping them ahead he said—“My household life is blessed”. With great devotion he got and offered them seats. 62. When they were duly seated, he too sat with their permission. Then Himavat spoke to the refulgent sages:— 63-64. I am blessed. I am contented. My life is fruitful. I am the best person worthy of being seen in the three worlds. I am as pure as any of the holy centres. All this is because you, verily in lord Viṣṇu’s forms, have come to my abode. Perfect ones such as you, what special purpose can there be in visiting poor persons like me? 65. Still I am your servant. Some task there may be to be entrusted to me. Mercifully may it be spoken out. May my life be fruitful.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Śiva is the father of the universe. Pārvatī is the mother of the universe. Hence your daughter shall be given to Śiva, the supreme soul. 2. O Himālaya, by this activity your life will be fruitful. You will become the venerable person of the most venerable in the universe. There is no doubt about it. 3. O great sage, on hearing these words of the seven usages, the lord of the mountains bowed to them with joined palms and spoke thus. 4. O ye seven sages of great enlightenment, what you have just now said has been already cherished by me by the will of Śiva. 5. Now, a certain brahmin professing Vaiṣṇava cult came here and spoke very critically about Śiva. 6. Ever since, the mother Pārvatī has gone out of sense. Hences she does not wish her daughter’s marriage with Śiva. 7. She has entered the chamber of anger. She is aggrieved and her clothes have become dirty. O brahmins, her obduracy is so great that she does not pay heed to any ad vice. 8. I too am, you can say, out of sense. I am telling you the truth. I do not wish to give my daughter to Śiva who is apparently a mendicant. 9. O sage, after saying these words, the king of mountains deluded by Śiva’s magic became silent and sat amidst the sages. 10. The seven celestial sages praised the magic of Śiva and sent Arundhatī to Menakā. 11. Then at the bidding of her husband Arundhatī, the bestower of knowledge, went quickly to the place where Menā and Pārvatī were sitting. 12. After going in she saw Menā lying in her grief. The chaste lady spoke to her these carefully selected sweet and wholesome words:— 13. O Menakā, get up. O chaste lady, I, Arundhatī, have come to your house. The seven sages of sympathetic nature have also come. 14. On hearing Arundhatī’s voice, Menā got up quickly and bowed to her who was on a par with Lakṣmī in her brilliance. 15. Ha, what a meritorious thing is this! We are blessed. Arundhatī, the daughter-in-law of the Creator of the universe, the wife of Vasiṣṭha, has come here. 16. O gentle lady, what for is your visit now? Please tell me specifically. My daughter and I are your slaves. Be merciful to us. 17. Arundhatī, the chaste lady thus addressed, advised her in various ways and returned to the place where the sages were seated. 18. Then they began to advise the lord of the mountains, after thinking on the feet of Śiva. They were clever in speech and they spoke respectfully. 19. O lord of the mountains, may our words, the cause of everything auspicious, be heard. Give Pārvatī to Śiva. Become the father-in-law of the world-destroyer. 20. For the destruction of Tāraka, formerly Brahmā requested Śiva who is the lord of all and who does not beg of any one, to strive for this alliance. 21. Śiva, the foremost of Yogins was not eager to marry. But since requested by Brahmā, the lord agreed to take your daughter. 22. Pārvatī performed a penance and the lord promised her. Thus for these two reasons the lord of Yogins wishes to marry her. 23. On hearing the words of the sages, Himavat laughed but he was a little frightened. He spoke with humility. 24. I do not see any royal paraphernalia with Śiva, He has none to support him. He has no assets. He has no kinsman. 25. I do not wish to give my daughter to a Yogin who is extremely detached. O ye sons of the Creator of the Vedas tell me decisively. 26. If a father were to give his daughter in marriage to an unsuitable person, out of love, delusion, fear or covetousness, he is doomed. He will go to hell. 27. Out of my own free will, I will not give her to the trident-bearing Śiva. O sages, whatever arrangement is befitting here, may kindly be carried out. 28. O excellent sages, on hearing these words of the mountain Himavat, Vasiṣṭha, the most eloquent among them replied:— 29. O lord of mountains, listen to my words in every respect conducive to your welfare; they are not against virtue. They are true and shall bring about your joy here and hereafter. 30. Statements, in ordinary language and in the Vedas, are of three forms. A scholar knowing all lores understands them by means of his pure vision of knowledge. 31. It is only an enemy, though keen in intellect, who says what is pleasing to the ears now but what transpires to be untrue and unwholesome afterwards. He never speaks wholesome things. 32. Only a virtuous and sympathetic friend will speak such words as are unpleasant in the beginning but conducive to happiness in the end. 33. But the third variety of behaviour nectarlike to the ears, conducive to happiness on all occasions, essential and truthful is considered to be the most excellent. 34. O mountain, these are the three types of behaviour as mentioned in the treatises on polity. Tell me which type of behaviour shall I adopt to please you. 35. Śiva, the lord of gods, is devoid of riches created by Brahmā. But His mind is engrossed in the ocean of true knowledge. 36. How can lord Śiva who is knowledge-Bliss Himself have any desire for articles created by Brahmā? An ordinary householder gives his daughter to one who has a kingdom and riches in his possession ? 37. By offering his daughter to a miserable person, a father may be guilty of slaughtering his daughter. Who can think Śiva miserable whose servant is Kubera ? 38. He is attributeless, supreme soul, great lord and greater than Prakṛti. He can create and annihilate things by a mere sportive touch of His eyebrows. 39. His manifestations are threefold, He is the cause of creation sustenance and annihilation in the names of Brahmā Viṣṇu and Śiva. 40. Brahmā stays in Brahmaloka, Viṣṇu in the milk ocean, Śiva in Kailāsa, all these are the attributes of Śiva. 41. The primordial nature, born of Śiva, maintains threefold forms in the creative activity, partially out of sport with diverse digits. 42 Vāṇī, the deity presiding over the activity of speech, is born of his mouth; Lakṣmī, in the form of riches, is born out of his chest. 43. Pārvatī manifested herself in the splendours of the gods. After killing all the demons she granted riches and glory to the gods. 44. In another Kalpa she was born of the womb of Dakṣa ’s wife. Her name was Satī. She attained Śiva. Dakṣa gave her to Him. 45. By her Yogic power she cast off her body on hearing about the insult to her husband. She is now born of you in the womb of Menā. 46. This Pārvatī is the wife of Śiva in every birth. In every Kalpa she is the great cosmic intellect, mother of wise men. 47. She is victorious always in the form of Siddhā, the bestower of Siddhi (achievement) and is Siddhi personified. Śiva carefully preserves the bones and ashes from the funeral pyre of Satī. 48. Hence, you give your daughter, this gentle lady to Śiva out of your own free will. Otherwise she will herself go and surrender herself as his beloved wife. 49. Taking the firm decision on seeing her innumerable sufferings He came to the place of your daughter’s penance in the guise of a brahmin. 50. After consoling her and granting her the boon He returned to His abode. It was for complying with her request that Śiva requested you for the hand of Śivā, O mountain. 51. Both of you had accepted the proposal as you were drawn by devotion to Śiva. O lord of mountains, how is it that your mind has taken a somersault now? Please tell me. 52. On being requested by the gods, the lord has sent us, the sages and Arundhatī to you. 53. O mountain, we instruct you plainly. By giving Pārvatī to Śiva you will meet with great bliss. 54. O lord of mountains, even if you do not give Pārvatī to Śiva out of your own free will, their marriage will take place as a result of the inexorable workings of fate. 55. O dear one, Śiva has already granted Pārvatī the boon at the time of her penance. A promise of Śiva cannot be turned topsyturvy. 56. Oh! even the promise of ordinary good men acting under the guidance of Śiva cannot be transgressed in all the worlds. O mountain, what then about that of Śiva Himslf. 57. Working singlehanded, Lord Indra chopped off the wings of mountains as though at play. Pārvatī too sportively broke the peak of Meru. 58. All riches can be sacrificed, O lord of mountains, for the sake of a single entity, but the eternal Śruti has it that one should forsake a single entity for the sake of a unit. 59. When danger was imminent at the hands of a brahmin, the chief of kings, Anaraṇya, saved his entire asset by giving his daughter to him. 60. When he was threatened by the curse of brahmin his preceptors, wise kinsmen and people well-versed in the science of polity advised him hastily. 61. O king of mountains, you too save your kinsmen by giving your daughter to Śiva. You can claim thus the gods too to your side. 62. On hearing the words of Vasiṣṭha, Himavat, with a dejected heart but laughing outwardly asked him about the details of the story of the king. 63. O brahmin, what is the race to which the king Anaraṇya belonged? How did he save his assets by giving his daughter? 64. On hearing these words of the mountain, Vasiṣṭha became glad and told him the details of the interesting story of the king.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. The king Anaraṇya hailed from the race of the fourteenth Manu Indrasāvarṇi, 2. The great king Anaraṇya, born of Maṅgalāraṇya was very strong. He was a special devotee of Śiva and ruled over the seven continents. 3. Having Bhṛgu as his priest he performed a hundred sacrifices. He did not accept the position of Indra even when offered by the gods. 4. O Himavat, hundred sons were born to him and a beautiful daughter Padmā who was equal to Lakṣmī. 5. O excellent mountain, he was more fond of his daughter than of his hundred sons. 6. He had five queens who were endowed with great qualities and fortunes and were loved by him over and above his life. 7. The girl entered the prime of her youth in her father’s palace. The king issued letters of invitation for the requisition of good bridegrooms. 8. In the meantime the sage Pippalāda eagerly hastening back to his hermitage saw a certain Gandharva in an isolated place in the penance- grove. 9. The Gandharva was an expert in the science of erotics. He was in the company of a woman. He was therefore completely submerged in the ocean of pleasure, sexual dalliance and was lusty. 10. On seeing him the great sage became very lustful. He lost interest in penance and began to think of acquiring a wife. 11. Thus the good sage spent a long time with his mind utterly agitated by pangs of love. 12. Once while the good sage was on his way to the river Puṣpabhadrā for taking his bath he happened to see the young maiden Padmā who was as charming as goddess Lakṣmī. 13. The sage asked the persons standing by—“Who is this girl?” The people, afraid of the curse bowed to the sage and replied. 14. This excellent lady, the repository of all good qualities, is the daughter of Anaraṇya and is called Padmā. She is another Lakṣmī (goddess of fortune). She is being wooed by great kings. 15. On hearing the words of the people who spoke the truth, the sage became much agitated in the mind and was eager to possess her. 16. O mountain, the sage took bath and worshipped his favourite deity Śiva duly. The lustful sage went to the council-chamber of Anaraṇya for the sake of alms. 17. Immediately after seeing the sage, the king was struck with awe and bowed to him. He offered him homage ( Madhuparka ) and devoutly worshipped him. 18. Out of love, the sage accepted everything and ultimately requested for the hand of his daughter. The king kept quiet, being unable to give any decisive reply. 19. The sage repeated his request saying—“O great king, give me your daughter. Otherwise in a trice I will reduce everything to ashes ”. 20. The king and his attendants were overwhelmed by the splendour of the sage. Staring at the old emaciated brahmin, they began to cry. 21. The queens, knowing not what shall be done, lamented. The chief queen, the mother of the girl, fell unconscious in the excess of her grief. 22. The brothers of the girl were agitated with sorrow. O lord of mountains, everything and every one connected with the king was overwhelmed with grief. 23. In the meantime the wise brahmin, the excellent preceptor of the king, as well as his intelligent priest came there. 24. The king bowed to them and paid homage. He cried before them. He explained to them everything and asked them what was the proper step to be taken immediately. 25-26. The brahmin, the preceptor of the king and the scholarly priest were experts in sacred lore and polity. They advised the king in that matter. 27. O wise king, listen to our beneficial words. Do not be anxious. In the company of your kinsmen turn your good attention to the sacred texts. 28. O king, whether today or after a year, the princess is to be given to a deserving person, a brahmin or anyone else. 29. In the three worlds we do not see more deserving person than this brahmin. Give your daughter to this sage and save your riches. 30. O king, if all riches face the danger of destruction due to one object or person, the wise man saves everything by abandoning that object or person unless it be that who has sought refuge. 31. On hearing the words of the wise, the king lamented again and again but ultimately offered his daughter fully bedecked in ornaments to the excellent sage. 32. O mountain, accepting and marrying the beautiful maiden Padmā, on a par with goddess Lakṣmī, in accordance with holy laws, the delighted sage returned to his abode. 33. After giving his daughter to an old man, the king was much dejected in mind. Abandoning everything he went to the forest for performing penance. 34. O mountain, when the king went to the forest, the queen, passed away, due to the pangs of separation from her husband and daughter. 35. Without the king, the respectable sons and officers of the king became unconscious. The other people thinking that the king was dead lamented much. 36. Anaraṇya went to the forest, performed great penance, and worshipped Śiva with devotion. In the end, he attained Śivaloka free from all ailments. 37. The eldest son of the king, Kīrtimān, virtuously ruled over the kingdom and tended the subjects like his own children. 38. Thus, O mountain, I have narrated to you the auspicious story of Anaraṇya, how he saved his race and his wealth by offering his daughter to the sage. 39. O king of mountains, you too, give your daughter to Śiva, save the entire family and keep even the gods under your control.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O dear, what did the excellent mountain do after hearing the anecdote of Anaraṇya and the marriage of his daughter? Please tell me. 2. After hearing the story of Anaraṇya including the anecdote of the offer of his daughter, the lord of mountains again asked Vasiṣṭha with palms joined in reverence. 3. O leading sage Vasiṣṭha, O son of Brahmā, O merciful one, you have narrated the wonderful story of Anaraṇya. 4. What did Padmā, the daughter of Anaraṇya, do after marrying sage Pippalāda. Please mention her story fully. 5-6 The very old and venerable sage Pippalāda returned to his hermitage along with his wife Padmā and passed time in pleasure. He was not too much sensuous. He continued to perform his penance and holy rites in the forest and on the mountain. 7. The daughter of Anaraṇya served the sage devoutly physically, mentally and verbally like Lakṣmī serving Viṣṇu. 8. Once Dharma (Virtue) assumed the guise of a king by his magical power and happened to see on the way that lady of gentle smiles going to the celestial river for her holy dip. 9-10. The lord Dharma was seated in a beautiful chariot studded with gems. He was bedecked in many kinds of ornaments. He was in the prime of fresh youth, glorious and lustrous like the cupid. On seeing Padmā he spoke thus, in order to know the innermost feelings of the sage’s wife. 11. O beautiful woman, you are Lakṣmī herself; you are charming, you are worthy of a king; you are in the very prime of youth; you will be ever young; you are a lovely sweet lady. 12. I am telling you the truth, O slender-limbed lady. You lack lustre and colour in the presence of the sage Pippalāda who is old and weak. 13. Cast off that ruthless old brahmin always engaged in penances. Look up to me a great king, heroic in sexual dalliance and agitated by Kāma. 14. A beautiful woman acquires beauty as a result of the merit of a previous birth. The beauty becomes completely fruitful only after embracing a man of aesthetic taste. 15. I am the lover of a thousand beautiful women. I am an expert in the erotic science and literature. Abandon that husband and make me your slave. 16. You can indulge in sexual dalliance in the beautiful secluded forests, mountains and banks of rivers in my company. Make your life fruitful. 17. Saying this, he got down and was eager to catch her hands. The chaste lady then addressed him thus. 18. Away, away, go away you sinful king. If you cast your lustful ogles at me you will be doomed in a trice. 19. How can I resort to you, lecherous and mad after women, after forsaking the excellent sage Pippalāda whose body is sanctified by austerities? 20. By the very touch of a person under the influence of women all merits are destroyed. He is a great sinner. His very sight promotes sins. 21. Even if he performs holy rites, a person succumbing to the viles of women is always impure. The manes, the gods and all men despise him. 22. Of what avail is knowledge, penance, repetition of sacred mantras, sacrifice, adoration, learning and charitable gift to him who is henpecked? 23. Since you spoke to me viewing me with the feelings that I am your wife although I ought to have been viewed as your mother, you will have a gradual decline as a result of my curse. 24. On hearing the curse of the chaste woman, O lord of mountains, Dharma cast off the guise of a king and assumed his real form. Tremblingly he spoke thus— 25. O mother, know me as Dharma elderly and venerable to men of wisdom and preceptors. O chaste lady, I always consider other’s wives as mothers. 26. It was to know your innermost feelings that I approached you. I knew your mind, still I was urged by fate. 27. Only proper suppression, not the contrary, is carried out by you. Chastisement of those who go astray from the right path is carried out by Śiva Himself. 28. Obeisance to Śiva who distributes happiness, misery, boons, prosperity or adversity on all. 29. Obeisance to Śiva who can make people enemies or friends, create affection or quarrel, to generate or destroy things. 30. Obeisance to Śiva who has made milk white, who has bestowed chillness on water and heat on fire. 31. Obeisance to Śiva, by whom the primordial nature, the principles Mahat etc, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Śiva and others are created. 32. After saying thus Dharma, the most venerable god in the universe stood in front of her, stunned but delighted at her chastity. But he did not say anything. 33. Princess Padmā, the chaste beloved of Pippalāda, O mountain, was surprised on realising that it was Dharma and said. 34. O Dharma, you are the ever present witness of all activities. O lord, why did you deign to deceive me to know my mind? 35. O Dharma, what has been done already does not amount to any guilt on my part. You have been cursed in vain by me but it was due to my ignorance and innate nature of woman. 36. I am now thinking as to what shall be done about it. May that idea strike me whereby I may get peace. 37. This sky, these quarters and the winds may get destroyed but the curse of a chaste lady will never be destroyed. 38. In the Satyayuga you shine with all the legs, O king of gods, on all occasions, day or night, like the moon on a full moon night. 39. If you are destroyed, the annihilation of all creations will occur. But a sense of helpless despair is unnecessary. So I shall explain. 40. In the Tretāyuga, one leg shall be defunct, O excellent god. Another leg too shall be defunct in Dvāpara and the third one in the Kali age, O lord. 41. In the latter half of Kali, all the legs will be chopped off. Again in the Satyayuga you will attain perfection. 42. In the Satyayuga you will be all-pervasive and in the other Yugas partially so. Thus in accordance with the Yugas, you will be maintaining your position. 43. Let these words of mine be true and pleasing to you. I am now going to serve my husband. O lord, you return to your abode. 44. On hearing her words Dharma became delighted. Then Dharma, the son of Brahmā, spoke to the chaste lady who had been speaking to him. 45-46. O chaste lady, you are blessed, you are devotedly attached to your husband. Hail to you. Take this boon. Your husband is the cause of your great protection. Let him be a young man with sexual vigour and righteousness. He shall be comely in appearance, good in conduct, eloquent in speech and perpetually stable in youth. 47. Let him enjoy more longevity than Mārkaṇḍeya. Let him be richer than Kubera. Let him enjoy more prosperity and power than Indra. 48. Let him be a devotee of Śiva on a par with Viṣṇu. Let him be a greater Siddha than Kapila. Let him vie with Bṛhaspati in intelligence and with Brahmā in equanimity. 49. You will be blessed with all the fortunes of your master as long as you live. Also you will be perpetually young. 50. Undoubtedly you will become the mother of ten sons who will be greater than your husband, they will have all good qualities and live long. 51. O chaste lady, let your abode be endowed with all riches, brightly illuminated always and superior to even the abode of Kubera. 52. O excellent mountain, after saying thus, Dharma stood quiet there. She circumambulated him, bowed to him and returned to her house. 53. Bestowing blessings upon her, Dharma returned to his abode. He praised Padmā lovingly in every assembly he visited. 54. She sported about in secret with her husband who became a young man. She gave birth to sons who surpassed her husband in their good qualities. 55. All kinds of riches were granted to the couple increasing their happiness. They were conducive to the prosperity here and hereafter. 56. O lord of mountains, this ancient story of the couple has been narrated to you. You have heard the story with pleasure and respect. 57. Knowing the real situation give your daughter Pārvatī to Śiva. Cast off sins, O lord of mountains, in the company of your wife Mena. 58-61. After a week there is a very auspicious hour very rare to meet with. The presiding planet of the lagna is in the lagna. The moon is in conjunction with his son, Mercury as well as the constellation Rohiṇī. The moon and the stars occupy pure positions. The month is Mārgaśīrṣa and the day is Monday free from all defects. All the planets are in auspicious conjunction. They are not aspected by the evil planets. The Jupiter is in a position that is conducive to the birth of a good child and all good fortune to the bridegroom. O lord of mountains, give your daughter Pārvatī, the mother of the universe, the primordial Being to Śiva, the father of the universe. You will then get quiet and contentment. 62. After saying this, the excellent sage Vasiṣṭha, most excellent of wise men, stopped after remembering lord Śiva, the creator of divine sports of diverse varieties.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. On hearing the words of the seven sages, Himācala, his wife and attendants were very much surprised. The lord of the mountains spoke to the other mountains. 2. O lord of mountains— Meru, O Sahya O Gandhamādana, O Mandara, O Maināka, O Vindhya, all of you listen to my words. 3. Vasiṣṭha says like this. It is to be considered what I shall do now. You consider well, decide and let me know. 4. On hearing his words, Sumeru and other mountains decided carefully and spoke to Himalaya lovingly. 5. Of what avail is a long discussion and deliberation now? What should be done is only that. She is born only for the purpose of the gods. 6. Incarnating for the sake of Śiva, she shall be given to Śiva. Śiva has been propitiated by her and Śiva has also spoken to her. 7. On hearing the words of Meru and others, Himācala was greatly pleased and Pārvatī laughed within herself. 8. Arundhatī too convinced Menā with reasoned statements and examples from various mythological legends. 9. Then the wife of the mountain too was delightedly convinced. She entertained Arundhatī, the sages and the mountain with a grand feast and then took food herself. 10. Then the chief of mountains, freed from wrong notions and grown wise, spoke with palms joined in reverence and mind extremely delighted. 11. O fortunate sages, please listen to my words. All my bewilderment has vanished since I have heard the story of Śiva and Śiva. 12. Everything that I possess, my body, wife, Menā, sons, daughter, assets and achievements and other things belong to Śiva and not otherwise. 13-14. After saying so, he bedecked his daughter with various ornaments. Then he took them all and placed them on the lap of the sage saying “These are the presents I have to give her.” 15. O mountain, you are the donor, Śiva is the mendicant, and the alms goddess Pārvatī. What else can be better than this ? 16. Since the course of your summits is befitting, you are blessed, you are the chief of all mountains, you are great in every respect. 17. After saying thus, the sages of pure mind offered their blessings to the girl—“Be pleasing to Śiva.” 18. They touched her with their hands and continued—“Everything will be well with you. As the moon in the bright half of the month, may your qualities increase.” 19. After saying thus and offering fruits and flowers to the lord of mountains, the sages made him believe that the alliance was a settled fact. 20. The great chaste lady Arundhatī tempted Menā further with Śiva’s good qualities. 21. According to the worldly convention they smeared the moustache of the mountain with powdered turmeric and saffron as an auspicious custom. 22. After fixing the auspicious Lagna for the marriage and congratulating and complimenting one another the sages came to Śiva’s abode on the fourth day. 23. After reaching the place, Vasiṣṭha and other sages bowed to Śiva and eulogised Him with different hymns. They then spoke to lord Śiva. 24. O lord Śiva, lord of the gods, O great lord Śiva, please listen lovingly to the narration of what we, your attendants, have done. 25. O great lord, the lord of mountains and Menā have been urged with different kinds of statements and examples from mythological legends. Undoubtedly he is enlightened. 26. Pārvatī has been betrothed to you by the lord of mountains. It is not otherwise. Now please start for the marriage with your attendants and the gods. 27. O great god, O lord, go to the abode of Himācala and marry Pārvatī in accordance with the customs for the sake of a son. 28. On hearing their words, lord Śiva who was delighted and who loved to follow worldly conventions laughed and said:— 29. O fortunate one, a marriage ceremony has never been witnessed nor even heard of by me before. The details of the same shall be mentioned by you all, specifically. 30. On hearing these words in a worldly vein uttered by Śiva they laughingly replied to Sadāśiva, lord of the gods. 31-33. Please invite and summon Viṣṇu with his retinue, Brahmā with his sons, lord Indra, 70 all the sages, Yakṣas, Gandharvas, Kinnaras, Siddhas, Vidyādharas, heavenly nymphs and others. All of them will jointly accomplish everything for you. There is no doubt about it. 34. Saying this and taking His permission the seven sages joyfully returned to their abodes praising the way of Śiva.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] Summary: The letter of betrothal is despatched, the requisites for the celebration are gathered and the mountain -invitees arrive. 1. Dear wise father, when the seven sages returned what did Himācala do? Please tell me, O lord. 2. O great sage, I shall tell you what Himācala did, when the seven sages and Arundhatī left. 3. Bidding farewell to his brothers, Meru and others Himācala, the lord of mountains, rejoiced in the company of his sons, daughter and wife. 4. Urged by them lovingly, Himācala caused the letter of betrothal to be written by Garga, his priest. 5. He despatched the letter of betrothal to Śiva along with articles of homage through his kinsmen. 6. Those people arrived at Kailāsa and handed over the letter to Śiva after applying the holy mark on his forehead. 7. After being duly honoured by the lord, they returned highly delighted to the penance of the mountain. 8. On seeing those people who had been highly honoured by lord Śiva and who had returned excessively delighted, the mountain rejoiced much. 9. Then he extended his invitation highly pleasing to his kinsmen stationed in different places with great delight. 10. Then he began collecting foodstuffs and other requisite articles intended for the performance of the marriage. 11. Mountainous masses of rice, beaten rice, jaggery, sugar candies and salt were heaped up. 12. He caused huge tanks and receptacles built for milk, ghee and curds as well as for fried flour cakes of barley and other grains and ball-like sweets. 13. Big tanks and receptacles were made for the nectar, sugarcane juice, baked cakes, and the sugar candies. 14. Tanks were built for butter, spirituous beverages, sweet juices of various kinds and rice preparations of various sorts. 15. Different kinds of pickles and side dishes were prepared that might appeal to Śiva’s Gaṇas and the gods. Different kinds of valuable garments purified in fire were kept ready. 16. Gems and jewels of different kinds, gold, silver and other articles were gathered duly. 17. Auspicious rites were started by the mountain on an auspicious day. The womenfolk of the mountain performed the purificatory ceremony for Pārvatī. 18. Women bedecked in ornaments performed auspicious rites. The delighted brahmin women of the city did everything in accordance with the tradition and custom. 19. Great festivities and holy auspicious rites were performed by the delighted Himavat too. 20-21. Delighted in every respect and eagerly awaiting the arrival of his kinsmen he was excited with various emotions. The invitees came there along with their wives, children and attendants. O celestial sage, listen to a detailed narration of the arrival of those mountains. 22-24. In order to increase the devotion to Śiva I shall explain in brief. Mandara, the chief mountain in heaven came to Himavat in a divine form. He was highly refulgent. He was accompanied by his wife and children. His company shone brilliantly. He had brought with him many gems and jewels. 25. Bringing with him many articles of presentation, the liberal Western mountain reached there in a divine form. 26. The Eastern mountain came there with brilliant gems and jewels. He looked delighted and extremely brilliant, 27. The highly venerable lord of mountains, Malaya, came there with his followers. He was happy with his excellent followers. 28. The mountain Dardura came along with his wife. He was exquisitely dressed. He was delighted. He had many attendants with him. 29. O dear, the delighted mountain Niṣadha came along with his attendants. He was very brilliant. 30. The fortunate mountain Gandhamādana came with great pleasure along with his children and womenfolk. 31. Mountains Karavīra and Mahendra of great wealth and prosperity also came there. 32. Pāriyātra came with attendants, children and womenfolk. He was brilliant and delighted. He had brought many gems and jewels with him. 33. Krauñca the chief of mountains, came with a large army of attendants. He had articles of presentation with him. He was accompanied by his kinsmen and relatives. 34. Puruṣottama mountain came with many presentation articles. He was highly honoured along with his followers. 35. The mountain Nīla with plenty of wealth came along with his sons and womenfolk. 36. The mountains Trikūṭa, Citrakūṭa, Veṅkaṭa, Śrīgiri, Gokāmukha and Nārada came also. 37. The excellent mountain Vindhya possessing many riches, came there delightedly along with his wife and sons. 38. The mountain Kālañjara, highly resplendent and extremely delighted came along with his attendants. 39. The mountain Kailāsa favouring every one because of brilliant lord Śiva came there delighted. 40. All other mountains from several continents, O brahmin, assembled together in the abode of Himavat. 41. O sage, all these mountains, invited by Himavat came there to attend the marriage of Śiva and Śivā. 42. The brilliant rivers, Śoṇabhadra and others came delightfully to be present at the marriage of Śiva and Śivā. 43. All the rivers bedecked in ornaments came lovingly in divine forms at the marriage of Śiva and Śivā. 44. The rivers Godāvarī Yamunā Brahmastrī and Veṇikā came to attend the marriage of Śiva and Śivā. 45. With great pleasure Gaṅgā too, assuming a divine form and fully bedecked in ornaments came to attend the marriage of Śiva and Śivā. 46. The best of rivers Narmadā, daughter of Rudra, came joyfully and quickly to attend the marriage of Śiva and Śivā. 47. The entire city of Himavat was full of excitement and ardent fervour when the invitees gathered there together. 48. Great festivities went on in the city. Banners, flags and festoons shone everywhere. The canopies hid the sunlight. 49. Himavat welcomed them with great delight and reverence. The mountains and the rivers, the gents and the ladies were duly received. 50. He housed them suitably in separate places. They were gratified with the amenities provided by Himavat.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Then the lord of mountains, O excellent sage, attended to the decoration of the entire city befitting the great festivities ahead. 2. The roads were watered and swept clean. At every door, stumps of plantain trees and other auspicious symbols were fixed. 3. The courtyard was embellished with plantain trees tied with silken cords. There were festoons of mango leaves. 4. Festoons with garlands of jasmine flowers shone, everywhere. Other articles of auspicious portent were fixed in every quarter. 5. These and other things were carried out by Himavat for the sake of his daughter. Every activity was supervised by Garga of great ability. Everything auspicious worth mentioning found a place there. 6. He called Viśvakarman and requested him to erect a large and spacious dais beautiful with side rostrums, altars etc. 7. The dais, O celestial sage, was ten thousand Yojanas wide. It was wonderfully constructed and had all the characteristic features. 8. All the mobile and immobile objects of the world were represented there with realistic appearance. Everything was wonderfully portrayed. 9. The mobile objects presented there surpassed the immobile ones and the immobile ones surpassed the mobile ones in excellence. 10. The watery places presented there excelled the solid grounds. Even experts could not distinguish what was water and what was solid ground. 11. There were artificial lions. There were rows of storks. There were artificial peacocks, but very beautiful in appearance. 12. Artificial women were represented as dancing with artificial men casting wistful glances at them and enchanting them. 13. Beautiful representations of gatekeepers with uplifted bows in their hands appeared like real originals. 14. The statue of Mahālakṣmī at the main entrance appeared like the goddess just emerged from the milk-ocean. It was because all the characteristics were complete. 15. Elephants with their mahouts and horses with their riders were so natural that none would say that they were artificial. 16. Chariots were driven by charioteers, other vehicles by other drivers. There were foot-soldiers too. All of them were artificial. 17. O sage, Viśvakarman was so delighted that he made all these things to fascinate the visiting dignitaries, the gods and the sages. 18. O sage, the statue of Nandin, at the portals, of crystalline purity and brilliance, was a prototype of the real Nandin. 19. Above that there was the celestial chariot Puṣpaka decorated with sprouts. It shone with gods represented therein. 20. On the left side there were two huge saffron coloured elephants with four tusks and appearing to be of sixty years in age. They shone lustrously. 21. There were two horses too, brilliant like the sun. They were bedecked in divine ornaments and other necessary embellishments. 22. The guardians of the quarters were shown as adorned with great gems. All the gods were portrayed by Viśvakarman realistically. 23. Bhṛgu and other sages, secondary gods, Siddhas and others were represented by Viśvakarman. 24. A wonderful image of Viṣṇu with his attendants, Garuḍa and others was created by him with wonderful features. 25. I too was portrayed as surrounded by my sons, Vedas and Siddhas. O Nārada, I was represented as reciting the hymns. 26. An artificial image of Indra seated on Airāvata and accompanied by his attendants was made by him looking as beautiful as the full moon. 27. O celestial sage, of what avail is a long-drawn description? The gods were drawn by Viśvakarman as desired by Himavat. 28. The Altar was erected by him with wonderful features, fascinating the gods and exquisite in form. 29. On being commanded by the lord of mountains, the intelligent Viśvakarman created different abodes for the residence of the gods and others. 30. Great couches of wonderful brilliance very cosy and exquisite were made by Viśvakarman for their sake. 31. For the residence of Brahmā, seven wonderful abodes were created in a trice. They had great brilliance. 32. A brilliant abode of Viṣṇu called Vaikuṇṭha, with wonderful features, was created in a trice. 33. Viśvakarman created a wonderfully divine palace for the lord of gods endowed with all riches. 34. Wonderful mansions for the guardians of the quarters were erected by Viśvakarman. They were beautiful and large. 35. Mansions of various kinds were built by him for other gods too. 36. The highly intelligent Viśvakarman built everything very quickly for the propitiation of Śiva from whom he had secured great favours. 37. Similarly he erected Śiva’s mansion of various shapes and of great brilliance. Having the symbol of Śiva it was designated as Śivaloka. It was admired by all the gods. 38. Thus for propitiating Śiva, wonderful and very brilliant structures were erected by Viśvakarman. 39. Making all arrangements in accordance with worldly conventions, Himavat awaited eagerly for the arrival of Śiva. 40. Thus, O divine sage, I have narrated the pleasing story of Himavat entirely. What else do you wish to hear?

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O dear father Brahmā, O intelligent disciple of Viṣṇu, obeisance be to you. O merciful one, this wonderful story has been heard by us from you. 2. Now I wish to hear the story of the auspicious marriage of the moon-crested lord that dispels all sins. 3. What did lord Śiva do on receiving the auspicious letter of betrothal. Please narrate that story of Śiva, the supreme soul. 4. Dear child of great intellect, listen to the glory of Śiva, what lord Śiva did on receiving the auspicious letter, 5. On reading the auspicious letter with joy, Śiva laughed in delight. The lord honoured them duly. 6. Causing the letter to be read aloud, He duly accepted the proposal. Honouring the messengers He informed them. 7. He told the sages—“Every thing is auspicious and well done. All of you shall grace the celebration of my marriage. The marriage proposal has been accepted by me”. 8. On hearing these words of Śiva, they were delighted. After bowing to and circumambulating Him they returned joyful of their great luck and grace. 9. Then Śiva, the lord of the gods, the lord indulging in divine sports, remembered you, O sage, in accordance with worldly conventions. 10-11. You came there praising your good luck. Bowing to Him humbly with palms joined in reverence and with stooping shoulders you eulogised Him with the utterances of words “hail to Thee”. O sage, you requested Him for his behest. 12. Then the delighted Śiva, heightening your pleasure with sweet speech and evincing interest in worldly conventions told you thus, O excellent sage. 13. O excellent sage, listen to us lovingly. I am speaking to you because you are the crest-jewel of my devotees. 14. At your bidding a great penance has been performed by Pārvatī. Propitiated by her I have granted her the boon of my being her husband. 15. Being subservient to her by her devotion I shall marry her. The auspicious hour free of defects has been fixed by the seven sages. 16. O Nārada, the marriage will take place after seven days from today. Following the worldly conventions I shall make a grand festival of the same. 17. O dear one, on hearing these words of Śiva, the supreme soul, you were delighted and you spoke after bowing to the lord. 18. This is your sacred rite. You have been considered subservient to your devotees. You have carried out the desire of Pārvatī. 19. O lord, a task befitting my capacity must be mentioned by you. Considering me your own servant please be kind to me. Obeisance to you. 20. O great sage, Śiva, favourably disposed to His devotees, on being thus requested by you replied very delightedly to you. 21. O sage, on my behalf, invite all the gods beginning with Viṣṇu, and sages, Siddhas and others. 22. Giving due weightage to my bidding, may all of them come here enthusiastically, in all their splendour along with their women and children. 23. O sage, those who do not take part in the celebration of my marriage, are not my people, even if they are the gods. 24. Paying heed to this behest of Śiva, O sage, you, a great favourite of Śiva, invited all of them approaching everyone severally. 25. O Nārada, after carrying out your duties as his emissary you, the great sage, returned to Śiva and remained there with His permission. 26. Śiva too waited there eagerly expecting their arrival while his attendants were celebrating great festivities by dance and songs. 27. At the same time, Viṣṇu, along with his retinue, came there suitably dressed. 28. Accompanied by his wife and followers he bowed to Śiva with great devotion and joy, and with his permission stayed there in a good abode. 29. I too accompanied by my attendants went to Kailāsa. After bowing to the lord, I too waited there with pleasure along with my followers. 30. Indra and other guardians of the quarters came there with their retinue and womenfolk richly decorated and in festive mood. 31. Similarly the sages, the Nāgas, the Siddhas, the secondary gods and others who had been duly invited came there in jovial mood. 32. Lord Śiva duly received and welcomed all those gods and others severally. 33. Then a great festival was celebrated at Kailāsa. It was very wonderful. The celestial damsels danced in a befitting manner. 34. O sage, in the meantime Viṣṇu and other gods who had arrived there desired to make Śiva’s procession to start. 35. At the bidding of Śiva, all of them performed service to Śiva considering His work as their own. 36. The seven Mothers performed the rites of bedecking Śiva in a fitting manner very joyously. 37. Even the very natural dress and features of Śiva assumed the work of ornamentation, O excellent sage, at the will of lord Siva. 38. The moon took the place of the crown. The third eye became the beautiful ornament on the forehead. 39. O sage, the serpents that had been embellishing His ears before became the ear-rings studded with various gems. 40. The serpents in the other parts became the befitting ornaments of those parts, very beautiful and studded with gems. 41. The ashes became the sweet unguent smeared over his body. The elephant hide etc. became the beautiful silken cloth. 42. The form assumed a beauty beyond description. Lord Śiva seemed to have acquired from Himself all the riches. 43. Then all the gods, demons, Nāgas, Pataṅgas, Apsarasas, sages and others approached Śiva and proclaimed jovially. 44. O lord, start on journey for wedding the great goddess, the daughter of the mountain, accompanied by us. Be merciful. 45. Then the omniscient Viṣṇu of joyful mind spoke befitting the occasion after bowing to Śiva with devotion. 46. O lord of the gods, favourite of those who seek refuge in you, please carry out the task of your devotees. O lord, please listen to my submission. 47. O Śiva, let the rites of your marriage with the daughter of the lord of mountains be performed according to the laws laid down in the Gṛhya Sūtras. 48. The rites followed in your marriage, O Śiva, will become famous and be followed in the world. 49. Please cause the construction of the altar and the Nāndīmukha according to family tradition. Thus you will be spreading your glory in the world, O lord. 50. Lord Śiva thus requested by Viṣṇu, and being himself eager to follow worldly conventions performed the same duly. 51. Authorised by Him, I performed all the rites conducive to prosperity, assisted by the sages. 52-55. The sages Kaśyapa, Atri, Vasiṣṭha, Gautama, Bhāguri, Bṛhaspati, Kaṇva, Śakti, Jamadagni, Parāśara, Mārkaṇḍeya, Śilāpāka, Aruṇapāla, Akṛtaśrama, Agastya, Cyavana, Garga, Śilāda, Dadhīci, Upamanyu, Bharadvāja, Akṛtavraṇa, Pippalāda, Kuśika, Kautsa, Vyāsa, with his disciples, and other sages came to Śiva. Urged by me they performed the sacred rites duly. 56. All of them who had mastered the Vedas and Vedāṅgas performed the safety rites for Śiva and tied the auspicious thread round his wrist. 57. By reciting hymns from Ṛk, Yajus, and Sāman they performed the holy rites. All the sages were greatly pleased. 58. In order to ward off obstacles they performed the adoration of the planets under my instruction. They worshipped the gods stationed in the altar. 59. After performing the social and Vedic rites in a fitting manner Śiva became pleased and bowed to the brahmins joyously. 60. Then the lord of all started from the excellent mountain Kailāsa keeping the brahmins and the gods ahead. 61. Outside the mountain Kailāsa, Śiva stopped for a while along with the gods and brahmins receiving different ovations. 62. Then a great jovial festival was celebrated by the gods and others in order to propitiate Śiva. Songs were sung. Instruments were played. Dances were held.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Then Śiva called Nandin and other Gaṇas and ordered them to accompany Him. 2. Station a few Gaṇas here and the rest of you accompany me to the city of the mountain in a jovial mood. 3. Then the lords of Gaṇas thus ordered took their armies and started joyously. I shall explain it in general terms. 4. The lord of Gaṇas, Śaṅkhakarṇa started with a crore of Gaṇas to the city of Himavat along with Śiva. 5. Kekarākṣa took ten crores of Gaṇas with gaiety. Vikṛta, the leader of Gaṇas, took eight crores of Gaṇas. 6. Viśākha took four crores and Pārijāta took nine crores of Gaṇas. 7. The glorious Sarvāntaka and Vikṛtānana took sixty crores. Dundubha took eight crores. 8. O sage, Kapāla took five crores and the heroic Sandāraka took six crores of Gaṇas. 9. Kanduka and Kuṇḍaka took a crore of the Gaṇas. Viṣṭambha took eight crores. 10. The leader Pippala joyously went with a thousand crores. O excellent sage, Sanādaka the hero also took so many. 11. Āveśana went with eight crores. Mahākeśa took a thousand crores. 12. O sage, Kuṇḍa and Parvataka each took twelve crores of Gaṇas with him. The heroic Candratāpana went with eight crores. 13. Kāla, Kālaka and Mahākāla each went with hundred crores of Gaṇas. The leader of Gaṇas named Agnika went with a crore. 14. Agnimukha, the leader of Gaṇas, went with a crore. Ādityamūrdhā and Ghanāvaha each went with a crore of Gaṇas. 15. Sannāha and Kumuda went with hundred crores. So also Amogha and Kokila each went with hundred crores. 16. Sumantra, the leader of Gaṇas, went with a crore of Gaṇas. Kākapādodara and Santānaka went each with six crores of Gaṇas. 17. Mahābala, Madhupiṅga and Kokila each went with nine crores. Nīla and Pūrṇabhadra each went with ninety crores of Gaṇas. 18. Caturvaktra with seven crores, Karaṇa with twenty crores and the leader of Gaṇas Ahiromaka went with ninety crores. 19. O Nārada, Yajvākṣa, Śatamanyu and Meghamanyu each of these leaders too went with so many crores. 20. Kāṣṭhāgūḍha, the leader of Gaṇas, went with sixtyfour crores. So too Virūpākṣa, Sukeśa, Vṛṣabha and Sanātana. 21. Similarly Tālaketu, Ṣaḍāsya, the eternal Cañcvāsya Saṃvartaka, Caitra and the lord Lakulīśa himself. 22-23. The brilliant Lokāntaka, Daityāntaka, lord Bhṛṅgiriṭi, the glorious Devapriya, Aśani and Bhānuka went with sixtyfour crores. Others in jovial mood went in thousands with Śiva to attend his marriage, O sage. 24. A thousand crores of Bhūtas aud three crores of Pramathas went. Vīrabhadra went with sixtyfour crores of Gaṇas and three crores of Romajas. 25. In the marriage procession of Śiva, Nandin and other leaders of Gaṇas went surrounded by hundreds and twenties of crores of Gaṇas. 26. Knowing delightedly that it was Śiva’s marriage, Bhairava the Kṣetrapāla went jovially with crores and crores of Gaṇas. 27. These and other leaders of Gaṇas of great strength and multitudinous in number joined the procession with joy and enthusiasm. 28. They had a thousand hands. They wore matted hair and crowns. They were bedecked with streaks of the moon. They had three eyes and blue necks (like lord Śiva). 29. All of them wore garlands of Rudrākṣa beads. They had the holy ashes smeared over the body. They had the ornaments of necklaces, earrings, bracelets, crowns etc. 30. The leaders were as refulgent as Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Indra, Aṇimā and other Energies. They were as brilliant and lustrous as crores of suns. 31. O sage, some of them belonged to this terrestrial world, some came through nether worlds, some came through the sky and some came through seven heavens. 32. Of what avail is this talk? O celestial sage, Śiva’s own Gaṇas living in all the worlds came and joined the procession of Śiva, with pleasure. 33. Thus, lord Śiva, accompanied by his Gaṇas, gods and others, went to the city of Himagiri for the celebration of His marriage. 34. O great sage, listen to another incident that happened when Śiva, the lord of all, went for his marriage along with the gods and others. 35. Rudra ’s sister Caṇḍī assuming a great festive mood came there with great pleasure but inspiring terror in others. 36. She was riding on a ghost. She was bedecked in the ornaments of serpents. A gold pot filled (with water) shone over her head. 37. She was accompanied by her attendants. Her face was beaming. Her eyes dazzled. She was enthusiastic and glad. She was strong. 38. The divine Bhūta attendants were crores and crores in number. They shone in diverse forms. 39. Accompanied by them Caṇḍī of deformed face went ahead gladly and enthusiastically. She was equally competent to please and to harass. 40. All the Gaṇas of Śiva numbering to eleven crore s, terrible but favourites of Śiva were kept by her far behind. 41. The loud sounds of Ḍamarus, the Jhaṅkāra sound of the Bherīs and the sound of the conches pervaded all the three worlds. 42. The tumultuous sound of the Dundubhis rose up in the air blessing the universe auspiciously and destroying everything other than auspicious. 43. O sage, behind the Gaṇas, the enthusiastic gods, the Siddhas, the guardians of the quarters and others followed. 44. O sage, Viṣṇu, seated on Garuḍa and going in the middle of the group shone with the great umbrella held aloft. 45. He was surrounded by his attendants who fanned him with Cāmaras. His Pārṣadas too shone well. He was bedecked in all his ornaments. 46-47. I too shone well on the way with the Vedas, Śāstras, Purāṇas and Āgamas personified and along with my sons, Prajāpatis, Sanaka and other Siddhas. I was eager in rendering service to Śiva. 48. Going along, seated on the elephant Airāvata in the midst of his armies, Indra, the lord of god, shone well fully decorated in various ways. 49. Many other sages enthusiastic about the marriage of Śiva shone well on their way. 50-51. Śākinīs, Yātudhānas Vetālas, Brahmarākṣasas, Bhūtas, Pretas and Pramathas, Tumburu, Nārada, Hāhā, Hūhū, Gandharvas and Kinnaras went ahead playing on their musical instruments with great delight. 52-53. The Mothers of the universe, the celestial virgins, Gāyatrī, Sāvitrī, Lakṣmī, the celestial maidens, the wives of the gods, the mothers of the worlds went ahead with great joy, only because it was the marriage of Śiva. 54-55. Lord Śiva, favourably disposed to virtue, was seated on his bull of crystal purity and beauty—the bull who is called Dharma by the Vedas, Śāstras, Siddhas and sages. Śiva was being served by the gods and sages on his way. He shone well. 56. Accompanied by all these sages and decorated in various ways, lord Śiva was going to the abode of the mountain Himālaya for the marriage with Pārvatī. He shone well. 57. Thus the story of Śiva’s grand procession has been narrated to you. O Nārada, listen to the incidents of good portent that happened in the city of Himavat.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Then after mutual consultation and getting Śiva ’s permission, O sage, Viṣṇu sent you ahead to the abode of the mountain. 2. Urged by Viṣṇu, O Nārada, you bowed to lord Śiva and went ahead of all to the abode of Himavat. 3. O sage, after going there, you saw your own image made by Viśvakarman and were surprised. You were a bit ashamed too. 4. O great sage, tired of seeing the portrayal of yourself, you became engaged in seeing the other builds of Viśvakarman. 5. You entered the great altar of Himavat, studded with various gems and decorated with gold pots and stumps of plantain trees. 6. It had a thousand columns. It was wonderful. O sage, you were struck with surprise on seeing the altars. 7. Then you were a bit confused and greatly bewildered. You spoke to the lord of mountains thus. 8-9. O lord of mountains, tell me the truth. Has lord Śiva seated on his bull and surrounded by his Gaṇas come already for the marriage? Have the gods with Viṣṇu and others at their head, the sages, the Siddhas and the secondary gods come already?” 10. On hearing your words full of surprise, O sage, the mountain Himavat told you the truth. 11. O Nārada, O highly intelligent one, Śiva with the marriage party has not come till now for the purpose of marrying Pārvatī. 12. O Nārada, know that all these things have been portrayed by Viśvakarman. O celestial sage, shake off your bewilderment. Be calm. Remember Śiva. 13. Showing kindness to me you take your food and rest for a while. Then gladly accompany Maināka and others to Śiva’s presence. 14. Accompanied by these mountains you request Śiva along with the gods, and the great sages, Śiva whose sproutlike feet are worshipped by gods and demons. Bring them here. 15. You accepted the suggestion noble-heartedly and performed the duties there. Then accompanied by the sons of the mountain and others you went to Śiva’s presence. 16. There the brilliant god Śiva surrounded by the gods and others was seen and bowed to by you and the mountains with devotion. 17. Then all the gods including Indra, Viṣṇu and me and Śiva’s attendants asked you, O sage. 18. They had been struck with surprise and suspicion on seeing the mountains Maināka, Sahya, Meru and others bedecked in all kinds of ornaments. 19. O Nārada, intelligent one, you appear to be bewildered. Have you been duly honoured by Himavat or not? Tell us in detail. 20. Why have these excellent mountains Maināka, Sahya, Meru and others highly bedecked and of great valour, come here? 21. O Nārada, does the mountain really intend to give his daugther to Śiva or not? What is it that is taking place in the abode of Himavat now? Please tell us. 22. We are having doubts in our minds. Hence we, the heaven-dwellers, ask you. Please say everything, O righteous one, and dispel our suspicions. 23. On hearing these words of Viṣṇu and other heaven-dwellers, O sage, you who had been fascinated by the magic of Tvaṣṭṛ (Viśvakarman) spoke to them. 24. Going to an isolated place, O sage, you spoke these words to me, to Viṣṇu and also to Indra who is the lord of gods and a former enemy of the mountains, having cut off their wings. 25. The distorted portayal of heaven-dwellers is something enchanting. He desires to delude the gods in a loving but cunning manner. 26. O lord of Śacī, have you forgotten everything? Formerly you had deluded him. Hence he wishes to surpass you here in the abode of the mountain of noble heart. 27. I have been fascinated by my shining portrait. Viṣṇu, Brahmā and Indra have been realistically portrayed by him. 28. O lord of gods, why should I talk too much? He has made artificial prototypes of all the gods. No one, not a single detail, has been left out. 29. It is for the purpose of particularly enchanting the gods that this spell has been employed by him through this caricature. 30. On hearing your words lord Indra who was frightened from head to foot, immediately spoke to Viṣṇu. 31. O lord of Lakṣmī, O lord of gods, Tvaṣṭṛ who is agitated due to the grief over his son will surely kill me under this pretext and not otherwise. 32. On hearing his words Viṣṇu, the lord of gods laughingly consoled Indra by speaking thus. 33. O lord of Śacī, formerly you had been enchanted by the demons Nivātakavacas, your previous enemies, by the power of their great spell. 34. O Indra, at my instance, this mountain Himavat and others too were rendered wingless. 35. Let the mountains now create magic on remembering that and wish to surpass us foolishly. We are not to be afraid of our enemies. 36. O Indra, Śiva favourably disposed to His devotees, will undoubtedly look to our welfare. 37. While he was speaking this to Indra of agitated mind, Śiva spoke to Viṣṇu following the worldly custom. 38. “O Viṣṇu, O lord of gods, what are you speaking to each other?” O sage, after speaking thus to them Śiva addressed you. 39. “O Nārada, what does the great mountain say? Tell me the truth with details. You must not keep any secret. 40. Does the mountain want to give the daughter or not? Tell me that quickly. O dear one, on going there, what did you see? What did you do? Tell me that quickly. 41. Addressed thus by Śiva, O sage, you endowed with divine vision told him secretly what you saw in the altar. 42. O great lord, lord of gods, listen to my auspicious words. O lord, there is no fear of any hindrance in the celebration of marriage. 43. The lord of mountains will surely give his daughter to you. It is certainly to take you there that these mountains have come here. 44. But to delude the gods a wonderful spell has been created. O omniscient, it is only to inspire curiosity. There is no possibility of any obstacle. 45. O lord, Viśvakarman, a great expert in creating illusion has constructed a peculiar altar in his house at his instance. It is full of surprising things. 46. A fascinating assembly of gods has been built there. On seeing it I was deluded by his skill and was struck with surprise. 47. O dear, on hearing your words, the lord Śiva following the worldly convention, laughingly spoke to Viṣṇu and other gods. 48. O Viṣṇu, if the mountain Himavat gives his daughter to me, what have I to do with this spell? Speak to me what is true. 49. O Brahmā, O Indra, O sages, O gods, speak truly. What have I to do with the spell if the mountain gives his daughter? 50. It is held by scholars, knowing cogent reasons, that somehow or other the fruit should be achieved. Hence you, with Viṣṇu at the head, will hasten seeking only the task on hand. 51. Discussing thus with gods, Śiva appeared to be completely overpowered by Kāma like an ordinary man. 52-54. At the bidding of Śiva, Viṣṇu and other gods, the noble sages and others, O sage, kept you and mountains at the head and started for the abode of Himavat. They were surprised to see the wonderful abode. The delighted Śiva reached the outskirts of the city accompanied by Viṣṇu and others as well as his delighted Gaṇas.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. On hearing that the all-pervading Śiva had come very near his city, the lord of mountains Himavat rejoiced much. 2. Then, gathering all the requisite things he sent mountains and the brahmins to welcome Siva. 3. With his mind melting with devotion and joyously praising his luck, the mountain personally went to see Śiva as dear as the very vital air. 4. On seeing the army of the gods Himavat was struck with wonder. Considering himself blessed he appeared in front of them. 5. The gods too were struck with wonder on seeing his army. The gods and the mountains became delighted. 6. The vast army of the mountains and the gods, O sage, on coming together shone like the eastern and western oceans in juxtaposition. 7. Meeting each other, the gods and the mountains considered themselves blessed. They were greatly delighted. 8. Seeing Śiva in front, Himavat bowed to Him. The mountains and the brahmins bowed to Sadāśiva. 9-14. He was seated on his bull, fully bedecked in ornaments and beaming in the face. The beauty of his divine person illuminated the quarters. His body shone in the delicate silken garments. His crown was lustrous with the gems set in it. He was smiling shedding pure brilliance everywhere. Serpents had transformed themselves into ornaments on his body. He had a wonderful lustre and a divine refulgence. Gods served him with chowries in their hands. Viṣṇu was standing to the left, Brahmā to the right, Indra at his back. Behind on either side, the gods were standing. He was being eulogised by the gods and others. He looked benevolent to the people. Being one He had assumed different physical bodies for his own reasons. He was Brahman itself, the lord of all and the bestower of boons. He was both with or without attributes, subservient to the devotees, merciful, greater than primordial Being and primordial nature, Existence, Knowledge and Bliss itself. 15. The mountain saw Viṣṇu, bedecked in ornaments and seated on Garuḍa to the right of lord Śiva. 16. O sage, to the left of the lord stood I, the fourfaced deity, shining brilliantly and accompanied by my attendants. 17. On seeing us both, great favourites of Śiva for ever, the lord of mountains with all his retinue respectfully bowed to us. 18. Similarly, on seeing the gods and others brilliantly shining behind lord Śiva and at his sides, the lord of mountains bowed to them. 19. At the bidding of Śiva the mountain went ahead to his city. Behind him went Viṣṇu, Brahmā, the sages and the gods. 20. O Nārada, the sages, the gods and others accompanying the lord, praised the city of Himavat with great delight. 21. Stationing the gods and others on his beautiful summit specially arranged for them, Himavat went to the place where the altar for the rites had been erected. 22. After causing squares and quadrangles to be made with festoons, he performed the ceremonial ablutions, gave charitable gifts and supervised everything. 23. Then he sent his sons to Śiva accompanied by all his attendants and followers, Viṣṇu and others. 24. The extremely delighted lord of mountains in the company of his kinsmen desired to perform the reception to the bridegroom with great pomp and ceremony. 25. The sons of the mountain accompanied by their relatives went to Śiva and acquainted him with the request of the mountain. 26. The sons of the mountain came back to their abode with his permission and informed the king of mountains gladly that the bridegroom and the party were on their way there. 27. O sage, on hearing the request thus made, Viṣṇu and other gods with the lord rejoiced much. 28. Dressed richly and exquisitely the gods, the gaṇas, the sages and others started towards the abode of lord Himavat. 29. In the meantime, Menā desired to see Śiva. O sage, through her lord, you, the excellent sage, were requisitioned there. 30. O sage, urged by the lord who desired to fulfil the task of Śiva you went there. 31. O sage, after bowing to you, Menā with her heart full of surprise told you that she wanted to see the real form of lord Śiva that dispels haughtiness. Article published on 09 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O sage, I shall first see the bridegroom of Pārvatī. Let me have an idea of the form and features of Śiva for which she performed the great penance. 2. Thus, urged by ignorance, O sage, she went to the terrace along with you to see Śiva. 3. Then Śiva, realising her false pride in herself, spoke to Viṣṇu and me as a part of His wonderful sport. 4. “At my bidding, O dear ones, both of you go one by one accompanied by the gods to the threshold of the mountain. I shall follow afterwards.” 5. On hearing it Viṣṇu called all and told them of his suggestion. The gods then walked in accordance with that suggestion enthusiastically. 6. O sage, the lord of the universe, let Menā stand on the terrace and see the procession along with you in order to make her mind confused. 7. In the meantime, seeing the splendid vast army, O sage, Menā became delighted as usual. 8. At the head of procession came the beautiful fastidious Gandharvas, dressed in rich clothes and bedecked in fine ornaments. 9. They rode on different vehicles. They played on musical instruments. Flags and banners of various colours and sizes fluttered on their chariots. The heavenly nymphs accompanied them. 10. On seeing Vasu, the lord of Vasus, along with Vasus, Menā became delighted and exclaimed—“O this is Śiva”. 11. O excellent sage, you told her “These are only the attendants of Śiva. This is not Śiva, the bridegroom.” 12. On hearing this, Menā fell athinking “A person greater than this! Hā, how will he be!” 13. In the meantime she saw Maṇigrīva, the other Yakṣas and their vast army with twice the splendour of Vasus. 14. On seeing the lustrous Maṇigrīva the lord of Yakṣas, Menā was delighted and said—“This is Śiva, the bridegroom of Pārvatī.” 15. “This is not Śiva, the bridegroom of Pārvatī. He is only an attendant of Śiva” said you to Menā, the wife of the mountain. By that time the god of fire passed by. 16. On seeing his splendour twice that of Yakṣas, she said “This is Śiva, the bridegroom of Pārvatī” but you said “No”. 17. By that time Yama passed by with twice the splendour of the previous one. On seeing him delighted Menā exclaimed “This is Śiva”. 18. “No” said you. By that time Nirṛti, the lord of Puṇyajanas, passed by having twice the splendour of Yama. 19. On seeing him the delighted Menā said “This is Śiva”. “No” said you to her. By that time Varuṇa passed that way. 20. On seeing his splendour twice that of Nirṛti, she said “This is Śiva, the bridegroom of Pārvatī”. But you said “No”. 21. By that time Vayu passed by with twice the splendour of Varuṇa. On seeing him the delighted Menā said “This is Śiva”. 22. “No” said you. By that time Kubera, the lord of Guhyakas, passed by with twice the splendour of Vāyu. 23. On seeing him the delighted Menā said “This is Śiva”. “No”, said you to her. By that time Īśāna passed by. 24. On seeing his splendour twice that of Kubera, she said “This is Rudra, the bridegroom of Pārvatī”. But you said “No”. 25. Then came Indra, the most important of all the gods, the lord of the three worlds, endowed with divine refulgence and who had twice the splendour of Isāna. 26. On seeing him Menakā said—“This is Śiva”. “Not he”, said you then “This is Indra, the lord of gods”. 27. By that time the moon passed by with twice the splendour of Indra. On seeing him she said “This is Siva ” and you denied it. 28. By that time the Sun passed by with twice the splendour of the moon. On seeing him she said “It is he”. You said to her “No”. 29. By that time Bhṛgu and other sages, all highly lustrous and accompanied by their disciples, passed by. 30. On seeing Bṛhaspati in their midst Menakā said:—“This is Śiva the master of Pārvatī”. Then you said “No”. 31. By that time Brahmā passed by. He was in an excellent from of lustre, praised by excellent sages and looking like an embodied Dharma itself. 32. O sage, seeing me the highly delighted Menā said—“This is Pārvatī’s husband”. You said to her “No”. 33-35. In the meantime lord Viṣṇu came that way. He looked glorious and splendid, dark-blue like the fresh cloud and having four arms. He had the handsome features of numberless cupids. He wore yellow garments. He was the king of heaven with eyes resembling the petals of a lotus, and looked very calm. He had Garuḍa as his vehicle. He possessed all the characteristic signs conch etc. He was bedecked in crown and other ornaments. He wore Śrīvatsa on his chest. He had an uncommon splendour that was incomprehensible 36. On seeing him Menā’s eyes became dazed. With great delight she said—“This is Śiva himself the bridegroom of Pārvatī. There is no doubt about it”. 37-39. On hearing Menakā’s words you said—“No, this is not the lord, the cause of protection and enjoyment. This is not the bridegroom of Pārvatī. This is Viṣṇu, the officer-in-charge of the marriage-party of Śiva and a great favourite of Śiva. The bridegroom Śiva is better than him. O Menā, it is impossible for me to describe his beauty. He is the lord of the entire universe, the lord of all, the Self-Emperor”. 40. On hearing your words, Menā thought her daughter auspicious, rich, fortunate and harbinger of happiness for the three families. 41. Her face was beaming with pleasure and her heart was delighted. Frequently congratulating herself on her good luck she said:— 42. By the birth of Pārvatī, I have become blessed in every respect. The lord of mountains too is blessed. Every thing connected with me is blessed. 43. Her would-be-husband is the lord of these leaders of great lustre whom I have seen now. 44. How can I describe her good luck even in hundred years? It is impossible to describe it when I see the lustre of these leaders. 45. Thus spoke Menā with her mind full of love and hope. By that time Śiva, the wonderful source of enjoyment and protection, came that way. 46. He showed himself in his real form free from change of illusion. O dear, the Gaṇas of wonderful forms proved to be the dispeller of Menā’s pride. 47. O sage Nārada, on seeing Him come, you lovingly pointed him out to her as the bridegroom of Śiva and spoke to her. 48. This is Śiva Himself, O comely maiden, see. It was for him that Pārvatī performed a great penance in the forest. 49. Thus addressed by you the delighted Menā stared at the lord with joy; the lord Īśāna of wonderful features and of wonderful attendants. 50. Immediately the army of Śiva came there consisting of wonderful arrays of Bhūtas, Pretas and Gaṇas. 51. Some were in the form of violent gusts of wind, producing hissing sounds with waving flags. Some had crooked faces. Others were deformed. 52. Some were awful with overgrown moustaches and beards. Some were lame. Some were blind. Some held staffs and nooses and some great iron clubs in their hands. 53. Some rode on peculiar vehicles. Some played on horns. Some played on Ḍamarus. Some played on Gomukhas. 54. Some had no faces. Some had distorted and deformed faces. Some had many faces. Some had no hands. Others had deformed hands. Some of them had many hands. 55. Some had no eyes. Some had many eyes. Some had no head. Some had deformed heads. Some had no ears. Some had many ears. The Gaṇas had all types of dresses and features. 56. Such and other innumerable deformed Gaṇas, heroic and terrible, strong and strenuous passed by, O dear. 57. O sage, you pointed out the Gaṇas of Śiva to her with your finger and said—“O lovely lady, see the attendants of Śiva and Śiva Himself.” 58. O sage, on seeing the innumerable Gaṇas, Bhūtas and Pretas, Menakā was terribly frightened instantaneously. 59-61. On seeing Śiva in their midst, the mother of Pārvatī trembled. She saw Śiva who though devoid of attributes was better than those who had all the attributes, He was seated on the Bull. He had five faces and three eyes. He had ashes smeared over the body. He had matted hair with the crescent moon on His head. He had ten hands with the skull in one of them. His upper cloth was tiger’s hide. He held the bow Pināka in one of his hands and the Trident in another. He had odd eyes, ugly features utterly dishevelled and untidy. He wore the hide of an elephant. 62. She was stunned, tremulous agitated and confused. You said to her “This is Śiva” and pointed Him out to her. 63. On hearing your words she fell on the ground like a tender creeper blown by the wind. Menā the chaste lady was grief-stricken. 64. “What is this? I have been deceived for being too ambitious. Of what use is it to see this deformity?” Saying this, Menakā fell unconscious there in a trice. 65. Her maids exerted themselves in various ways and attended on her. Then gradually she, the beloved of the lord of mountains, regained consciousness.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1-2. On regaining consciousness, the chaste beloved of the mountain lamented with great agitation and began to rebuke everyone. In faltering words she frequently censured her sons at first and then scolded her daughter. 3. O sage, formerly it was mentioned be you that Pārvatī would marry Śiva. Afterwards you assigned some activity of worship to Himavat. 4. Its fruit is visible now, to be sure. But it is adverse and meaningless. O sage, O wicked minded one, I the innocent woman have been cheated by you by all means. 5. The fruit of penance which she performed and which is very difficult even for the sages to perform, has been this, painful to every onlooker. 6. What shall I do? Where shall I go? Who will dispel my sorrow? My family is wrecked. My life is doomed. 7. Where are those so called celestial sages? I shall pluck out their beards. Where is that mischievous woman who came here by herself in the guise of the wire of one of them? 8. By whose guilt have I been ruined now?” Saying this she turned to her daughter and began to say harsh words. 9. O wretched daughter, what is it that you have done? This is extremely painful to me. You have given gold and brought a glass piece, O wicked girl. 10. You have cast away sandal paste and smeared yourself with mud. You have driven away the swan and have held a crow in your hands. 11. Setting aside the sacred river water you have drunk the well-water. Losing the sun you have clung to the glowworm in all earnestness. 12. Throwing away cooked rice you have eaten the husk. Spilling away the clarified butter you have eagerly swallowed castor oil. 13. Setting the lion aside a jackal has been served by you. Without listening to the lore of Supreme Brahman you have heard base ballads. 14. O daughter, casting off the holy sacrificial ashes at home you have taken the inauspicious ashes from the funeral pyre. 15. Abandoning the great lords, Viṣṇu and others you have performed penance for Śiva. Your intellect has really gone astray. 16. Fie on you. Fie on your intellect. Fie on your beauty and conduct. Fie on your adviser. Fie on your maids too. 17. Fie on us who brought you thus to the world, O daughter. O Nārada, fie on your intelligence and fie on those seven sages who gave us wrong advice. 18. Fie on the whole family. Fie on the efficiency in performing the rites. Fie on everything done by you. You have inflamed this household. Almost it has been a death blow to me. 19. Let not the king of the mountains come near me. Let not the seven sages show their faces to me. 20. Has anything been achieved? Our whole race is wrecked by all conspiring together. How is it that I have not remained a barren woman? How is it that a miscarriage did not take place when I conceived? 21. How is it that I did not die? How is it that this girl did not die? Why is she not devoured by the demons and others from the sky? 22. I shall cut off your head. What shall I do with the bodies? Abandoning you where shall I go? Alas, my whole life is doomed, 23. After saying this Menā fell unconscious on the ground. Agitated by grief and anger she did not go near her husband. 24. There was a great hue and cry at that time, O great sage. The gods came near her. 25. O celestial sage, I too came myself. On seeing me, O excellent sage, you spoke to her. 26. The real handsome form of Śiva is not known by you. This form is assumed by Śiva in a sportive mood. It is not the real form. 27. Hence, O chaste lady, cast off anger. Be calm. Leave off your obduracy. Do what is proper to be done. Give Pārvatī to Śiva. 28. On hearing your words, Menā spoke to you—“O wicked one, get up and go away. You are base”. 29. When she said thus, Indra and all other gods and the guardians of the quarters came and spoke. 30. O Menā, O daughter of the Pitṛs, listen to our words joyously. This Śiva is the Supreme lord Himself, the bestower of the greatest happiness. 31. He is favourably disposed to good devotees. On seeing your daughter’s severe penance He had appeared before her and granted her the boon. 32. Menā cried aloud frequently and spoke to the gods—“My daughter will not be given to Śiva of fierce features. 33. Why have you all conspired together to render her beauty futile?” 34. O excellent sages, when she uttered thus, the seven sages, Vasiṣṭha and others, came there and spoke:— 35. “O daughter of the Pitṛs, O beloved of the mountain, we have come here to achieve a purpose. In this important affair how can we entertain opposite views? 36. The very vision of Śiva is the greatest gain. He has come to your palace as the suppliant for your gift”. 37. Though advised by them, Mena did not accept their proposal. Weak in knowledge she spoke to the sages in anger. 38. I would rather slay her with weapons than give her to Śiva. All of you go away. You shall never come near me. 39. O sage, on saying thus she stopped. She cried aloud in great excitement. A great hue and cry ensued due to her intercession. 40. Then Himācala himself came there extremely agitated. In order to convince her he spoke lovingly pointing to her the reality of the situation. 41. O beloved Menā, listen to my words. How is it that you have become dispirited? How many important persons have come to our abode! And you are insulting them! 42. You do not know Śiva. Śiva has many names and many forms. Seeing a peculiar distorted form you have become excited. 43. He has been realised by me. He is the protector of everyone. He is worthy of worship of the most adorable. He can bless and countermand. 44. Do not be obstinate. O faultless beloved, do not be grief-stricken. Get up. Hasten. O virtuous one, carry on your duties. 45. Let me remind you of a former incident when Śiva came to our place in a hideous form and exhibited his sports. 46. But on seeing his greatness we both consented to give our daughter in marriage to him. O beloved, keep that promise. 47. After saying thus, the lord of the mountains stopped, O sage. On hearing it Menā, the mother of Śivā, spoke to Himavat. 48-50. “O lord, let my words be heard. You can carry out what I say. Take your daughter Pārvatī, tie her up and cast her down into a deep abysmal chasm. Or drown her in the deep sea and be happy. I am not going to give her to Śiva. If you give your daughter to him who is of hideous features, O lord, I shall certainly leave off this mortal frame. 51. When these words were spoken by Menā in her obduracy, Pārvatī voluntarily spoke in a sweet voice. 52. “O mother, your noble intellect has become perverted. Why do you foresake virtue, you who ought to depend on virtue alone? 53. This Śiva has no one else greater than him. He is Śiva. the source of everything. He is beautiful, pleasing and eulogised in all the Vedas. 54. Śiva is the benefactor. He is the lord of gods. He is self-ruler. O mother, He is of many forms and names. He is served by Viṣṇu, Brahmā and others. 55. He is the support of everything. He is the creator and annihilator. He is free from aberrations. He is the lord of the three deities. He is indestructible and eternal. 56. It is for him that all the gods, as attendants, have come here. They stand in a festive mood at your threshold. What more pleasure do you need? 57. Hence get up. Endeavour to make your life fruitful. Give me to Śiva. Make my effort meaningful. 58. O mother, give me to lord Śiva. O mother, agree to my humble entreaty. I request you. 59. If you do not give me to Śiva, I am not going to woo anyone else. How can a jackal, the cunning cheat, seize the share of the lion? 60. O mother, Śiva has been wooed, yes, wooed by me mentally, verbally, and physically. You can do what you please. 61-62. On hearing these words of Pārvatī, Menā, the beloved of the lord of mountains lamented much. She became angry. She caught hold of Pārvatī and thrashed her with fists, elbows gnashing her teeth. She was greatly agitated and furious. 63. O dear one, O sage, you and other sages who were there, separated her from the mother and took her far off. 64. Menā then rebuked them again and again. She hurled harsh repulsive words at all of them. 65. See what I will do to Pārvatī of evil inclination. I will give her deadly poison or I will push her down in a deep well. 66. Or I will cut her into many pieces with weapons and arrows. Or I will drown my daughter Pārvatī in the deep sea. 67. Or I will certainly cast off my body. But I will never give my daughter to Śiva of hideous form. 68. What an awful bridegroom has been secured by this wicked girl? The mountain and I, nay the whole family, has been made a laughing stock. 69. He has neither a mother nor a father. He has no brother no kinsman. He has not even a fellow clansman. He has no beauty, no skill, not even a house of His own! 70. He has no good dress, no ornaments, no assistant? His vehicle is not good. He is neither rich nor even in the prime of youth. 71. He has no tidiness about him. He is not learned. What a repulsive body he has! What has he, on seeing which I may be tempted to give my good daughter to him?” 72. O sage she lamented thus and in many a similar manner she cried in the excess of her grief. 73. Then I came there quickly and narrated to her the principles of Śiva which ought to have dispelled her perverted knowledge. 74. “O Menā, you shall listen lovingly to my auspicious words whereby your evil inclination shall cease. 75. Śiva is the creator, sustainer and annihilator of the universe. You do not know His real form. Wherefore do you then seek sorrow? 76. The lord has several forms and names. He indulges in many kinds of divine sports. He is the lord of all and independent. He is the master of delusion and free from doubtful alternatives. 77. Realising this, O Menā, give your daughter to Śiva. Abandon your misplaced stubbornness. Your evil inclination is destructive of all affairs”. 78. Thus addressed by me Menā continued to cry again and again. Slowly, O sage, she eschewed all shame and spoke to me. 79. O Brahmā, why do you render her excellent beauty futile? Why don’t you kill her yourself? 80. You shall not tell me again that she should be given to Śiva. I will not give my daughter, dearer than my own life, to Śiva. 81. O great sage, when she expressed thus, Sanaka and other Siddhas came there and spoke lovingly. 82. This Śiva is the supreme being, the bestower of supreme happiness. Out of His sympathy He has granted His vision to your daughter. 83. Then Menā said to them after sobbing frequently—“My riches are not to be given to Śiva of hideous form. 84 Why are you Siddhas collectively attempting to make her exquisite beauty futile?” 85. When this was mentioned by her I became stunned. All the gods, Siddhas, sages and human beings were bewildered. 86. In the meantime, on hearing of her persistent obduracy, Viṣṇu a favourite of Śiva came there and spoke as follows. 87-88. You are the beloved mental daughter of the Pitṛs. You are endowed with all good qualities. You are wife of Himavat himself. Yours is the excellent race of Brahmā. Your well-wishers in the world are also like him (Brahmā). You are really blessed. What more can I say? You are reputed to be a patron of virtue. Why do you then eschew virtue? 89. May this be pondered over by you yourself. Can anything against you be mentioned by the gods, sages, or Brahmā or by myself? 90. You do not know Śiva. He is both possessed and devoid of attributes. He is hideous as well as comely. He is worthy of worship by all. He is the ultimate goal of the good. 91. The primordial nature is created by Him alone. Near her, the excellent primordial Being has also been created by Him. 92. Brahmā and I are created thereafter. Then, with the three attributes, Śiva Himself, incarnated in order to be beneficial to the worlds. 93. The Vedas originated from Him. The gods sprang up from Him. Whatever mobile and immobile there is in the universe, sprang up from him. 94. Who has described His form? By whom can it be known? Even Brahmā and I were not able to gauge him. 95. Whatever is seen in the universe from Brahmā down to a blade of grass is identical with Śiva. Know it. There need not be any hesitation in this matter. 96. He alone, in the course of his divine sport, has incarnated himself in divine form. It was by the fascination of Pārvatī’s penance that He has come to your threshold. 97. Hence, O wife of Himavat, eschew your sorrow. Worship Śiva. You will have great pleasure. All pain will be quelled. 98. O sage, when instructed by Viṣṇu, Menakā ’s mind was somewhat softened. 99. But she did not give up her obduracy. She did not consent to the proposal of giving her daughter to Śiva. Menā was deluded by Śiva’s magic. 100. On hearing the pleasing words of Viṣṇu, the beloved of the mountain, the mother of Pārvatī became slightly enlightened and spoke to Viṣṇu. 101. If He assumes a lovely form and body my daughter may be given to Him and not otherwise even if you attempt it a thousand times. This is my firm decision. 102. After saying thus Menā of steady resolve kept quiet. She was induced by Śiva’s will whose magical power deludes all.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. In the meantime, O sage, urged by Viṣṇu you went immediately to Śiva to conciliate Him. 2. After reaching there, with a desire to get the task of the gods fulfilled, you pleaded with Śiva after eulogising Him with different kinds of hymns. 3. On hearing your words Śiva joyously assumed a wonderfully excellent and divine form and showed His mercifulness. 4. O sage, on seeing the comely form of Śiva, the receptacle of exquisite beauty, far better than that of the cupid, you were greatly delighted. 5. Highly delighted you eulogised Him again and again with different kinds of hymns and returned to the place where Mena was seated along with other gods. 6. Reaching there, O sage, with great affection and delight, you spoke to the great pleasure of Mena, the wife of Himavat. 7. O Mena of wide eyes, see the excellent features of Śiva. The merciful Śiva has taken great pity on us. 8. Extremely surprised on hearing your words, Menā the beloved wife of the mountain, saw Śiva’s form that afforded great bliss. 9-12. It was as refulgent as that of a thousand suns. Every part of the body was exquisite. The garments were of variegated colours. He was embellished with different ornaments. He was smiling with great delight. His comeliness was highly pleasing. He was fair-complexioned and lustrous. The crescent moon added to his beauty. Viṣṇu and other gods lovingly served Him. The sun acted as His royal umbrella. The moon embellished Him. In every way He was extremely handsome bedecked in ornaments. It was impossible to describe adequately the great beauty of His vehicle. 13. The Gaṅgā and the Yamunā were waving the Chowries. The eight Siddhis danced in front of Him. 14. Viṣṇu, I, Indra and the other gods bedecked their bodies and dress and accompanied Śiva. 15. The Gaṇas of various forms and features shouted cries of “Victory” “Victory” and walked in front of Śiva. 16. The Siddhas, the secondary gods, the extremely delighted sages went in company of Śiva. The others too were equally delighted. 17. Thus the fully decorated gods, were very jubilant and in the company of their wives they eulogised Śiva, the Supreme Brahman. 18. Viśvāvasu and others along with the celestial damsels sang songs of Śiva’s glory. 19. O excellent sage, when Śiva was nearing the threshold of the palace of Himavat, there was much jubilation there. 20. O excellent sage, who can describe the exquisite splendour of the supreme lord at that time. 21. On seeing Him in that form Menā stood stunned as though drawn in a picture for a moment, O sage, and spoke these words. 22. O great lord, my daughter is indeed blessed, she by whom the great penance was performed. It is by virtue of that penance that you have come to my threshold. 23. O lord of Pārvatī, be pleased now. Pardon me for the heap of repulsive words I showered on Śiva. 24. After saying thus and eulogising the moon-crested lord, Menā, the beloved of the mountain, bowed to Him with palms joined in reverence and stood shy. 25. By that time the ladies of the town left the work they were engaged in, in their eagerness to see Śiva. 26. A certain lady in the midst of her bath and toilet was overwhelmed with the desire to see Śiva, the bridegroom of Pārvatī. She came out with the shampoo powder still held in her hands. 27. A certain lady engaged in fanning her husband in the company of her maid left that job and came out to see Śiva with the fan still in her hands. 28. Another lady engaged in suckling her babe at her breast left him dissatisfied and came out eagerly to see the lord. 29. Another lady engaged in trying her waist girdle came out with it. Another lady came out with garments worn inside out 30. Another lady left her husband who had sat down to dine and came out athirsting and enthusiastic to see the bridegroom. 31. A certain lady holding the collyrium in her hand after applying it to one of her eyes came out to see the bridegroom of the daughter of the mountain with the salve stick still in her hand. 32. Another damsel engaged in applying the red lac juice to her feet heard the tumult outside and so left it in the middle and came out to see the procession. 33. Thus the ladies forsook their activities, left their houses and came out. On seeing the exquisite form of Śiva they were greatly fascinated. 34. Delighted on seeing Śiva and overwhelmed by affection they cherished the comely form in their hearts and spoke as follows:— 35. The eyes of the residents of this town have become fruitful. The life of the persons who have seen this comely form has become meaningful. 36. The life is fruitful and the rites are fruitful only of the person who has seen Śiva, the destroyer of all sins. 37. Pārvatī has accomplished everything inasmuch as she performed penance for Śiva. She is blessed, she is contented in securing Śiva as her husband. 38. If Brahmā had not joined this pair, Śiva and Śivā, his endeavour of creation would have entirely become fruitless. 39. This is well done. The excellent pair has been united. Everything has become meaningful in every activity. 40. A vision of Śiva is inaccessible to men without penance. All of us have now become contented by seeing Śiva. 41. Just as Lakṣmī was blessed by securing Viṣṇu as her lord, formerly, so also the gentle lady Pārvatī has become embellished on securing Śiva. 42. Just as Sarasvatī was blessed by securing Brahmā as her husband, so also the gentle lady Pārvatī has become embellished on getting Śiva as her husband. 43. All of us, men and women, are blessed—we who see Śiva, the lord of all, the husband of Pārvatī. 44. Saying thus they worshipped Śiva with sandal paste and raw rice grains. They showered Him with fried grains respectfully. 45. The ladies standing near Menā were enthusiastically praising the good luck of Menā and the mountain. 46. Hearing the auspicious stores and anecdotes of the ladies, the lord became delighted, O sage, along with Viṣṇu and others.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. The delighted Śiva accompanied by His Bhūtas, Gaṇas, gods and others went to the abode of the mountain zealously. 2. Menā, the exquisite beloved of Himācala, got up from her seat and went into the harem along with the women-folk. 3. For the customary Nīrājana (waving of lights) rites of Śiva, the chaste lady came near the entrance with lights and vessels in her hands along with womenfolk of the sages. 4. Menā saw with pleasure lord Śiva, the bridegroom of Pārvatī, served by all the gods and who by that time had come there. 5-11. Śiva had the complexion of the colour of the Campaka flower. He had only one face but retained the three eyes. The face was beaming with a simple smile. He was bedecked in gems and gold and wore a garland of Mālatī flowers. The gemset crown was lustrous. He wore brilliant necklaces. He was bedecked in bangles and bracelets of fine workmanship. He was shining well with the two clothes of great value, fine texture and unrivalled beauty and purified in fire. Highly embellished in sandal paste, aguru, musk and fine saffron, he had a gemset mirror in his hand and his eyes were lustrous with the collyrium. He was shedding a halo around him enveloping everything. He was extremely beautiful. He appeared to be very young. His limbs had the full complement of their ornaments. He was very attractive to the ladies. He was not nervous or self-conscious. His lotuslike face had the brilliance of a thousand moons. His body shone with a refulgence more than that of a thousand cupids. He was beautiful in every limb. Seeing the lord thus as her son-in-law, Menā forgot all her grief. She was glad. 12. She praised her good luck. She congratulated Pārvatī, the mountain and his entire family. She congratulated herself. She rejoiced again and again. 13. Gazing at her son-in-law joyously with beaming face, the chaste lady performed the Nīrājana rite. 14. Remembering what Pārvatī had told her, Menā was agreeably surprised and with a beaming lotus-like face full of delight she muttered to herself. 15. “I see the beauty of the great lord far in excess of what Pārvatī had told me before. 16. Śiva’s loveliness cannot be expressed adequately now.” In the same state of pleasant surprise she went in. 17. The young ladies proclaimed that the daughter of the mountain was fortunate. Some girls said that she had become a goddess. 18. Some said—“Such a bridegroom has never been seen, not to our knowledge.” Some girls said to Menā—“Pārvatī is really blessed.” 19. The chief of Gandharvas sang songs. The celestial damsels danced. On seeing Śiva’s lovely form, the gods were delighted. 20. The instrument players played on musical instruments in sweet tones showing their diverse skill. 21. The delighted Himācala too carried out the customary rites of reception at the entrance. Menā also jubilantly took part in the same along with all the womenfolk. 22. She made formal inquiries about the health of the bridegroom and gladly went into the house. Śiva went to the apartments assigned to Him along with the Gaṇas and the gods. 23. In the meantime the servant-maids in the harem of the mountain took Pārvatī out in order to worship the tutelar family deity. 24-30. There the gods saw joyously with winkless eyes the bride of dark complexion like the collyrium, and fully bedecked in ornaments in every limb. With a side glance she was respectfully looking at the three-eyed lord avoiding the eyes of others. With a gentle smile playing in her face she appeared very beautiful. Her plaited hair was thickly grown and looked beautiful. Decorative lines over her body were exquisite. She had the Tilaka with musk and saffron. Gemset necklace shone over her chest. Bracelets and bangles of gems and jewels shone brilliantly. With diamond earrings her cheeks appeared brilliant. Her rows of teeth sparkled like diamonds. Red lac applied over her lips which were naturally red like Bimba fruits was exquisite. She had a gemset mirror in her hand. A toy lotus also embellished her. Sandal paste, aguru musk and saffron were smeared over the body by her. Her feet and soles were naturally red. Tinkling anklets added to their beauty. 31. On seeing the primordial deity, the mother of the universe along with Menakā, the gods and others bowed down their heads with great devotion. 32. The three-eyed deity saw her with the corner of an eye and was glad. On seeing the shapely body of Satī he forgot the pangs of separation. 33. With his eyes riveted to her, he forgot everything else. Hair stood on ends all over his body, as he continued seeing her with delight. 34. Then Pārvatī went out of the city, worshipped the family goddess and returned to her parental abode along with the brahmin women. 35. Śiva went to the apartments indicated by Himācala, joyously along with the gods, Viṣṇu and Brahmā. 36. All of them stayed there with joy, attending on Śiva. They were duly honoured by Himavat, the mountainous lord. Article published on 10 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] Summary: The ceremonious entry of Śiva into the inner apartments of the palace of Himavat. 1. Then the chief of mountains caused the investiture rite with the sacred thread for Pārvatī and Śiva with the Vedic hymns recited enthusiastically. 2. Then Viṣṇu, the other gods and the sages entered the inner apartments of the palace of the mountain enthusiastically at the request of Himācala. 3. After performing the conventional rites in accordance with the Vedic injunctions and the social customs they decorated Pārvatī with the ornaments provided by Śiva. 4. First of all she was bathed, then bedecked with the ornaments. The Nīrājana rites too were also performed by the maids and brahmin women. 5. The daughter of the mountain and the beloved of Śiva, the lovely lady shone with the pair of fresh clothes. 6. O sage, an exquisite divine jacket studded with various gems was worn by the goddess who shone all the more. 7. She wore a necklace studded with divine gems. Costly bangles of pure gold were worn by her. 8. The lovely lady, the daughter of the great mountain, the mother of the three worlds staying there itself meditated on Śiva and shone thereby. 9. Then there was great jubilation delighting both the sides. Different kinds of charitable gifts were distributed among the brahmins. 10. Monetary gifts were distributed among others. They were diverse. Many songs were sung jubilantly. 11. Then Viṣṇu, I the creator, Indra and other gods as well as the sages joined in jubilation with great pleasure. 12. Then after bowing humbly to Pārvatī with devotion and remembering the lotus-like feet of Śiva they returned to their camps obtaining the permission of Himavat. 13. In the meantime Garga, a great expert in the science of astrology, spoke to Himavat, the lord of mountains. 14. O Himavat, O lord, O father of Pārvatī, now fetch Śiva to your palace for the marriage rites. 15. On realising that the auspicious time for the marriage rites had been intimated by Garga, the mountain rejoiced much. 16. With the desire to bring Śiva there, the mountain gladly sent mountains, brahmins and others. 17. The mountains and brahmins with auspicious holy objects in their hands jubilantly went to the place where lord Śiva stood. 18. Then the sound of the Vedic chants, musical instruments, songs and dances jubilantly arose there. 19. On hearing the loud sound of musical instruments trumpets etc. the attendants of Śiva simultaneously got up joyously along with the gods and sages. 20. With great joy m their minds they said to one another—“O here come the mountains to take Śiva over there! 21. The auspicious hour for marriage rites has come. We consider that our fortune is imminent. 22. Indeed we are highly blessed as to witness the marriage ceremony of Śiva and Pārvatī, highly portentous of the good fortune of all the worlds.” 23. Even as these confabulations were going on, the ministers of the lord of mountains came there. 24. They approached Śiva, Viṣṇu and others and made their submission that the time for the celebration of marriage had arrived and that they would please hasten to the palace. 25. On hearing that, O sage, Viṣṇu and others rejoiced much and cried shouts of victory to the mountain. 26. Śiva too rejoiced much eager that he was approaching Pārvatī but kept the signs of joy within his mind alone in a wonderfully serene manner. 27. Then the ceremonial ablution with the sacred articles of toilet, was performed by the delighted tridentbearing lord eager to bless the worlds. 28. The bath being over He wore fine clothes. He was attended upon by the guardians of the quarters and surrounded by several others. He was then seated on the shoulders of the Bull. 29. With the lord in front, all of them entered the palace of Himavat playing on various musical instruments and exhibiting their eagerness. 30. The brahmins sent by Himavat and the excellent mountains enthusiastically went ahead of Śiva. 31. The great royal umbrella was held aloft over the great lord. He was fanned by chowries and a canopy was spread over Him. 32. Viṣṇu, Indra, the other guardians of the quarters and I going ahead shone with great brilliance and splendour. 33. In that great festivity conches were blown, drums were beaten and the musical instruments, paṭaha, Ānaka and Gomukha were played on, repeatedly. 34. Musicians sang auspicious songs. Dancing girls danced to the tune. 35. Accompanied by these, attended upon by all important gods and with flowers showered on Him delightedly, the sole kinsman of the universe walked ahead shedding lordly splendour. 36. Lord Śiva, eulogised with many hymns of praise, entered the sacrificial altar. He was duly worshipped. 37. The excellent mountains jubilantly made Śiva dismount the bull and lovingly took Him within. 38. After duly bowing to Śiva who arrived there with the gods and Gaṇas, Himavat performed the Nīrājana with great devotion. 39. Praising his own good luck and bowing to all the gods, sages and others jubilantly he honoured them suitably. 40. The mountain, after offering Pādya and Arghya to them, took Śiva along with Viṣṇu and the important gods, within. 41. In the quadrangle inside he made us, Viṣṇu, Śiva and other important persons sit on gemset thrones. 42. The Nīrājana rites was then performed by Mena, her maids and the brahmin women as well as other ladies of the city with joy. 43. The necessary rites such as offering of Madhuparka etc. to Śiva, the supreme soul, were joyously performed by the priest who knew his duties. 44-45. O sage, urged by me, the priest carried out the auspicious rites relevant to the context after entering the enclosure where the altar had been built along with Himavat. Pārvatī. bedecked in all her ornaments was seated as the bride. 46. She was seated over the raised platform and Śiva was led along with Viṣṇu and me. 47. Waiting for the auspicious Lagna befitting marriage, Bṛhaspati and others became jubilant. 48. Garga was seated in the place where the chronometer had been kept. The Oṃkāra Mantra was repeated during the interval before the Lagna. 49. Repeating the Puṇyāha mantras, Garga lifted the handful of rice-grains and handing them over to Pārvatī he made her shower it on Śiva. 50. Śiva was duly worshipped by the joyful and sweetfaced Pārvatī with the rice-grains mixed with curd and Darbha water. 51. Gazing at Śiva for whom great penance had been performed by her formerly, Pārvatī shone beaming with pleasure. 52. Requested by me and the sages Garga and others, Śiva, following the worldly conventions worshipped her. 53. Thus, worshipping each other Śiva and Pārvatī identifying themselves with the universe, shone well. 54. Both of them, enveloped by the glory of the three worlds and gazing at each other, were offered the Nīrājana by Lakṣmī and other ladies particularly. 55. The brahmin ladies and the citizen ladies performed the Nīrājana rites. All of them derived great pleasure and gaiety on seeing Śiva and Pārvatī.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. In the meantime, urged by the priest Garga Himavat started the rite of marriage in the company of Menā. 2. Himavat and Menā held the gold pot on either side. Himavat was bedecked in fine clothes and ornaments. 3. The joyous mountain with the assistance of his priest wooed the bridegroom after offering water, clothes, ornaments, sandal paste etc. 4. Then the brahmins were requested by Himavat “May the rite be formally started after narrating the Tithi etc. The auspicious hour has come.” 5. After saying “So be it”, the excellent brahmins who knew the proper time proclaimed the Tithi etc. very delightedly. 6. Then Himācala mentally urged with pleasure by lord Śiva, the cause of great enjoyment, smilingly spoke to Śiva. 7. “O Śiva, please do not delay. Please mention your genealogy, saintly lineage, family, name and your Veda along with your branch of the Vedas.” 8. On hearing these words of Himavat, Śiva of sweet face, turned His face away. He without sorrow attained a pitiable plight. 9. When lord Śiva stood thus unable to say anything in reply and was seen so by the gods, sages, Gandharvas, Yakṣas, and Siddhas, O Nārada, you did something laughable. 10. Urged by Śiva mentally O Nārada, you, the knower of Brahman with mind fixed in Śiva, played on your Vīṇā. 11. You were forbidden strictly by the lord of mountains, Viṣṇu, gods, sages and by me. 12. When at the will of Śiva you did not desist from it, you were again spoken to thus by the mountain then—“Do not play on the Vīṇā now.” 13. O celestial sage, O wise one, when you were thus strenuously forbidden, you remembered Śiva and spoke to the lord of the mountains. 14. You have been utterly deluded. You do not know anything about Śiva of whom you speak. You have no inner vision. 15. Śiva was directly asked by you to mention His Gotra. On this occasion these words are utterly ridiculous and derisible. 16. O mountain, even Viṣṇu, Brahmā and other gods do not know His Gotra, family and name. What then can be said about others? 17. It was a result of the severe penance of Pārvatī that Śiva was seen by you, O mountain, in one day according to whose calculation a crore of Brahmās become annihilated. 18. He is the formless supreme Brahman. He is attributeless. He is greater than Primordial Nature. He has no shape, is free from aberrations He is the master of delusion. He is greater than the greatest. 19. He has no Gotra, family or name. He is independent. He is favourably disposed to His devotees. At His will He assumes bodies taking many names. He is full of attributes. 20. He is sugotrin (having good gotra) as well as devoid of gotra. He is of noble family as well as devoid of a family. Thanks to Pārvatī’s penance ( pārvatītapas ). He has now become your son-in-law, There is no doubt about it. 21. The whole world consisting of the mobile and immobile has been deluded by Him in His divine sport. O excellent mountain, even the wisest of men does not know Him. 22. The head of lord Śiva of phallic image was not seen by Brahma. Viṣṇu who went to the nether worlds did not see His foot. How surprised he was. 23. O excellent mountain, of what avail is this talk? Śiva’s magical power is inscrutable. The three worlds, Viṣṇu, Brahmā and others too are subservient to Him. 24. Hence, O father of Pārvatī, ponder over this deeply. No doubt need be entertained by you even slightly with respect to this bridegroom of your choice. 25. O sage, after saying this, you, of perfect wisdom, who carried out the will of Śiva replied again to the mountain after delighting him with your words. 26. O dear, O great mountain, O father of Pārvatī, listen to my words. After hearing them, give your daughter to Śiva. 27. Know that the divine sound alone is the gotra, and family of Śiva in His divine form, who assumes forms in His divine sport. 28. Śiva is identical with Nāda. And Nāda is identical with Śiva. There is no difference between the two—Nāda and Śiva. 29. O lord of mountains, Nāda being prior to Śiva in His sportive, attributive form, Nāda is the most excellent of all. 30. Hence, O Himācala, mentally urged by Śiva, the lord of all, I played upon my lute. 31. O sage, on hearing your words, Himavat, the lord of mountains was satisfied and the bewilderment in his mind vanished. 32. Then Viṣṇu, the other gods and the sages said “Well done, Well done”. They were freed of all bewilderment. 33. The shrewd people realised the majesty of lord Śiva. They were pleasantly surprised and began to say to one another. 34. “Śiva is of the form of knowledge. He is greater than the greatest. It is at His bidding that the vast universe is born. He is of independent movement. He can be realised by the greatest concentration. He, the lord of the three worlds, is now seen by us.” 35. Then Meru and the excellent mountains became agitated and simultaneously spoke to Himavat, the lord of mountains. 36. O mountain, be firm and stand by your decision to give your daughter. If you say “No”, you stand to lose. We speak the truth. Do not hesitate. Let the girl be given to Śiva. 37. On hearing the words of his friends, Himavat urged by Brahmā gave his daughter to Śiva. 38. “O lord Śiva, I am giving this girl, my daughter to you as your wife. O lord of all, be pleased to accept her.” 39. Himavat gave his daughter Pārvatī, the mother of the three worlds, to Śiva the great, repeating the mantra “Tasmai Rudrāya Mahate”. 40. Placing the hand of Pārvatī in the hand of Śiva the mountain rejoiced much mentally. He had the satisfaction of crossing the ocean of his ambition. 41. Śiva grasped the lotus -like hand of Pārvatī in his hand repeating the Vedic mantras. Lord Śiva was greatly delighted. 42. Touching the ground and showing the worldly course of action, O sage, Śiva recited the mantra “Kāmasya Kodāt”. 43. There was a great jubilation everywhere that gladdened everyone. Cries of “ Victory ” rose up in the heaven, the earth and the sky. 44. The delighted people shouted “Well done” and “Obeisance to you”. The Gandharvas sang sweetly with pleasure. The celestial damsels danced. 45. The citizens, the subjects of Himavat rejoiced in their minds. There was great auspicious jubilation. 46. Viṣṇu, Indra, I and the gods were delighted, with the faces beaming like full blown lotuses. 47. Then the gleeful lord of mountains gave the ancillary articles of present to Śiva in a fitting manner. 48. Then his kinsmen worshipped Śiva with devotion and gave Pārvatī and monetary presents to Śiva in accordance with the various injunctions of the Śāstras. 49. O excellent sage, in order to please Śiva and Pārvatī, the delighted Himavat presented many gifts of articles. 50. He gave to Śiva some articles as dowry. Different kinds of gems and gemset vessels were given to him. 51. He gave a hundred thousand cows, a hundred horses duly fitted up and a hundred thousand servant maids of loving nature and endowed with all necessary articles. 52. O sage, he gave a crore of elephants and chariots inlaid with gold and made beautiful by gems. 53. Thus Himavat attained perfect satisfaction after giving his daughter Pārvatī to Śiva, the great lord, in accordance with the rules. 54. Then the lord of mountains with palms joined in reverence eulogised lord Śiva joyously with the hymns of the Yajurveda. 55. Then at his behest, the sages jubilantly performed the holy ablution over the head of Pārvatī. Being conversant with the Vedas he asked them specially to perform this. 56. Repeating the names of lord Śiva, they performed Paryukṣaṇa rite. There was a great jubilation and gaiety, O sage.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Then at my behest, the lord made the brahmins kindle the sacrificial fire and performed the homa, placing Pārvatī on the lap. 2. Śiva poured offerings into the fire with Mantras from Ṛk, Yajus and Sāma Vedas. Pārvatī’s brother Maināka offered handfuls of fried grains. 3. Then according to the worldly convention, Pārvatī and Śiva performed the circumambulation round the fire, O dear. 4. The husband of Pārvatī exhibited a wonderful feat. O celestial sage, listen to that. I shall mention it out of love for you. 5. On that occasion, deluded by Śiva’s power of illusion I stared at the feet of the goddess as well as the crescentshaped nails. 6. On seeing them, O celestial sage, I became overwhelmed by passion. My mind was greatly disturbed. 7. Deluded by the cupid I stared at her limbs frequently. Then, immediately after staring at them, my semen dropped on the ground. 8. I, the grandfather, was ashamed by the emission of my semen. O sage, I pressed the penis secretly with my feet. 9. O Nārada, on coming to know of it, the great God Śiva became furious. He wanted to kill me immediately because I was overwhelmed by lust. 10. O Nārada, there was great hue and cry everywhere. All the people trembled. Even Viṣṇu, the sustainer of the universe, was terrified. 11. O sage, then Viṣṇu and other gods eulogised Śiva who was blazing furiously and who attempted to kill me. 12. O lord of gods, O pervader of the universe, O Sadāśiva, O lord of the universe, O lord of the world or the very world itself, be pleased. 13. You are the supreme soul, the supreme lord and the cause of all emotions. You are free from aberrations, devoid of wastage. You are eternal, free from suspicions and doubts. You are undying. You are the great god. 14. You are Truth, Brahman and Consciousness. You are imperishable, from whom have originated the beginning, the end and the middle of visible worlds, even I too. These visible things are not the true ones. 15. The sages, desirous of liberation, worship and meditate upon your lotus feet. They are steady in their resolve. They avoid attachment on either side. 16. You are the perfect Brahman, the nectar, free from grief, devoid of attributes and the great one. You are the sole bliss, free from excitement, aberrations and even static and insentient. 17. You are the cause of production, sustenance and dissolution of the universe Śiva, the lord of souls, is greater than the universe. He is free from the necessity of its aid. He is always pervasive. 18. You are the One, both Sat and Asat. You are non-dual. Gold whether as the basic metal or as the ready made ornament does not alter in its basic and intrinsic essence. 19. People have doubts in you by their ignorance. The remedy for illusion lies in thinking on your Nirguṇa aspect, not by itself. 20. O supreme lord, we are blessed by your very vision. O Śiva, you are the bestower of supreme bliss to the people who are steady in their devotion. Have mercy. 21. You are the primordial Being. You have no beginning. You are the Puruṣa beyond the Prakṛti. You are the lord of the universe. You are the lord of the world. You are free from aberrations. You are greater than the greatest. 22. Your Rājasika manifestation is Brahmā, the grandfather. O lord, thanks to your grace, Viṣṇu is Puruṣottama by your Sāttvika nature. 24. O great lord of universal form, the manifest, the great principle, the elements, the Tanmātras, and the sense-organs are presided over by you. 25. O supreme lord, O merciful Śiva, O lord of gods, be pleased, O best of Beings, be pleased. 26. The seven oceans are your clothes. The quarters are your long arms. The firmament is your head, O allpervasive. The sky is your navel. The wind is your nose. 27. O lord, the fire, the sun and the moon are your eyes. The clouds are your hair. The planets and the stars are your ornaments. 28. O lord of gods, how shall I eulogise you? O supreme lord, you are beyond description. O Śiva, you are incomprehensible to the mind. 29. Obeisance to Thee, the five-faced Rudra. Obeisance to thee, with fifty crores of forms. Obeisance to thee, the lord of three deities. Obeisance to the most excellent one. Obeisance to the principle of learning. 30. Obeisance, Obeisance to the inexpressible, the eternal, the lightning-flamed, the flame-coloured. Obeisance to lord Śiva. 31. Obeisance, obeisance to thee stationed in the world with the form resembling a crore of lightning streaks, consisting of eight corners and very lustrous. 32. On hearing their words, lord Śiva was delighted. Favourably disposed to his devotees he offered me freedom from fear. 33. O dear, then Viṣṇu, the other gods and the sages began to smile and became merry. 34. O dear, my semen pressed very frequently, turned into several sparkling drops. 35. Thousands of sages called Vālakhilyas sprang up from the sparkling drops. 36. O sage, then the sages, gathered near me with great pleasure and said—“O father O father”. 37. They were then sternly told by you urged by Śiva’s wish. The Vālakhilyas were rebuked angrily by you. 38. All of you together go to the mountain Gandhamādana. You shall not stay here. No purpose shall be served by your staying here. 39. After performing great penance you will become great sages and disciples of the sun. This has been said by me at the behest of Śiva. 40. Thus addressed, all the Vālakhilyas went immediately to the mountain Gandhamādana after bowing to Śiva. 41. O excellent sage, I was able to breathe fearlessly, thanks to Viṣṇu and others, the noble souls urged by lord Śiva. 42. After knowing that Śiva favourably disposed to His devotees can do everything and dispel the pride of the wicked, I eulogised Him, the lord of all. 43. O great God, O lord of gods, the ocean of mercy, you are the creator, the sustainer and the annihilator of everything. 44. It is at your will that the entire world including the mobile and immobile is kept checked as the bulls amongst a series of cows. 45. After saying so I bowed to Him with palms joined in reverence. Viṣṇu and others too eulogised lord Śiva. 46. On hearing the piteous eulogies made by me as well as by Viṣṇu and others lord Śiva became delighted. 47. He granted me the boon of fearlessness delightedly. All were happy, O sage, and I rejoiced much.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O Nārada, thereafter at the bidding of Śiva, I carried out the concluding ceremonies of the wedding of Śiva and Pārvatī joyously through the sages. 2. Their ceremonial head-bath was respectfully gone through. The brahmins showed the Pole star Dhruva with respect. 3. Thereafter the rite of Hṛdayālambhana was performed. O great brahmin, then Svastipāṭha was jubilantly celebrated. 4. At the behest of the brahmins, Śiva applied Red powder on the head of Pārvatī. The lustre of Pārvatī at that time was beyond description and very wondrous. 5. Thereafter at the bidding of the brahmins both sat on the same cushion and attained such a lustre as accentuated joy in the hearts of the devotees. 6. O sage, then they returned to their apartment and, at my behest performed the rite of Saṃsrava Prāśana, of wonderful sportive nature that they were. 7. When the sacrificial rites in marriage ceremony were thus concluded duly, lord Śiva gave the Pūrṇapātra to me, the creator of the worlds. 8. Śiva then made the gift of cows to the presiding priest. Other gifts of auspicious nature were also made. 9. He gave the brahmins a hundred gold pieces each. A crore of gems and other articles were distributed among the people as gifts. 10. The Gods, mobile and immobile creatures, rejoiced much. Shouts of victory rose up. 11. Auspicious sounds of music were heard everywhere. The sound of the musical instruments was pleasing and increased the joy of everyone. 12. Viṣṇu accompanied by me, all the gods and sages took leave of the mountain and returned to their abodes. 13. The ladies in the city of the mountain then took Śiva and Pārvatī to the abode of Kubera. 14. There several social customs and conventions were gone through by the ladies. All round, there was great jubilation. 15. Then the couple, benefactors of the people, were led near the bed chamber. It was exquisitely decorated according to convention. 16. The ladies of the city of Himavat approached them and performed the customary auspicious rites. 17. Shouting cries of victory they untied the knot. They were smiling and ogling at one another with hairs standing on their ends due to pleasure. 18-20. Entering the bedchamber and gazing at lord Śiva, the beautiful damsels were much fascinated and they praised their good luck. He was gorgeously dressed in fine clothes. He was bedecked in gemset ornaments. He appeared to be in the prime of youth. He fascinated the ladies with charming loveliness. He was smiling gently and glancing at everyone lovingly. 21-23. Then the sixteen celestial ladies arrived there and saw the couple with great respect. They were Sarasvatī, Lakṣmī, Sāvitrī, Jāhnavī, Aditi, Śacī, Lopāmudrā, Arundhatī, Ahalyā, Tulasī, Svāhā, Rohiṇī, Vasundharā, Śatarūpā, Saṃjñā and Rati. 24. There were several virgins of the gods, Nāgas, and the sages. They were charming and attractive. Who can enumerate them? 25. A gemset throne was offered to Śiva who sat on it joyously. The celestial ladies made these sweet witty remarks to Him one by one. 26. O great lord, Satī who was more than your life to you has now joyously rejoined you. O lover, seeing the face of your beloved of moonlike splendour, cast off the heat of your distress. 27. Spend your time, O lord of time, in the close embrace of Satī. Thanks to my fervent wish, there will be no separation at any time between you both. 28. O lord of gods, leave off your shyness. Take Satī to your bosom and stand close to her. Why do you feel shy of her without whom your vital airs may go off. 29. O Śiva, give the sweets to Śatī and eat them yourself. Do not be in a flutter. Perform Ācamana and offer her betel leaves along with camphor. 30. Take hold of the hand of your beloved wife glittering with gold and stroke her hair. There is no higher pleasure at the hands of her lover to a loving maiden than this. 31. At the conclusion of the meal, for the purity of the mouth, please give water. The love of this pair is very rare to be seen. 32. Why should you be shy of your beloved for whom you lamented and roamed here and there always keeping her in your heart? 33. O Śiva, a duty shall be performed by women in the bedchamber after the meal. Hence give Tāmbūla (betel leaves with spices) to Śivā and go to bed. 34. This lady was not intended at first to be given to you. But it is after my efforts that she has been given to you. Hence you must have a good dalliance with her. 35. Leave off your old age. Be extremely youthful so that Menā whose mind is fixed in her daughter may approve of you. 36. Satī was formerly abandoned by you. Kāma too was burnt. Then O lord, how is it that Vasiṣṭha is sent as an emissary now. 37. Now, O great lord, be steady in the words of women. There is a duty for women after marriage, maturity and loftiness of demeanour. 38. O lord, expert in erotic science and technique, fulfil the desire of Pārvatī. Loving that you are, try to cross the ocean of the love of your beloved. 39. O lord, the knower of innermost thoughts, you know the emotions of love-oppressed maidens. It is not only the husband that she cherishes in her heart but she keeps the supreme lord too there for ever. 40. A hungry person will not be satisfied until he partakes of a sweet hearty meal. O Śiva do everything whereby the woman will be satiated. 41. Now please send off Śiva along with Pārvatī to a secluded spot after making the bed, giving them betal and keeping the gem-bedecked lamp ready near by. 42. On hearing these words of the women, lord Śiva, who was free from aberrations and was the supreme preceptor of great Yogins spoke to them. 43. O dignified ladies, do not utter such words to me. You are the chaste mothers of the worlds, how do you speak so trivially in regard to your son? 44. On hearing the words of Śiva, the celestial ladies were ashamed. In their excitement they became motionless like dolls in a picture. 45. Eating the sweets and performing Ācamana lord Śiva was much delighted. In the company of His wife He chewed the betal with camphor.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. At that time, thinking that the hour was favourable, Rati hopefully spoke to Śiva who is favourably disposed towards depressed people. 2. Why did you reduce my beloved husband to ashes without gaining any interest when he had come near you with Pārvatī ? He was my only fortunate possession very rare to get. 3. Give me back my husband, the lord of my journey of life who used to work lovingly with me. Remove my distress caused by separation. 4. O lord Śiva, in the great festival of your marriage, all people are happy. I alone am unhappy without my husband. 5. O lord, make me possessed of my husband. O Śiva, be pleased. O lord, friend of the distressed, please make your words true. 6. Excepting you, who is there in the three worlds including the mobile and immobile creatures who can destroy my sorrow. Knowing this, be merciful. 7. O lord, merciful to the depressed, make me jubilant at the jubilant celebration of your marriage that gives pleasure to everyone. 8. There is no doubt in this, that only when my lord is resuscitated will your sportive dalliance with your beloved Pārvatī be complete and perfect. 9. You are competent to do everything because you are the supreme lord. O lord of all, of what avail is this talk. Please resuscitate my husband quickly. 10. After saying thus she gave him the ashes of the cupid along with the bag in which they had been contained. “O lord, O lord”, saying thus she lamented much in front of Śiva. 11. On hearing the lamentation of Rati, Sarasvatī and other celestial ladies wept bitterly and spoke in piteous tones. 12. Obeisance to you, O lord, you are known as favourably disposed to your devotees. You are friend of the distressed, storehouse of mercy. Resuscitate the cupid. Make Rati jubilant. 13. On hearing their words, lord Śiva was delighted. The lord, the ocean of mercy, glanced compassionately. 14. Thanks to the nectarine glance of the Tridentbearing lord, Kāma came out of the ashes, a comely wonder-inspiring body with splendid dress and features. 15. On seeing her husband in the same form as before, wielding the bow and the arrows and smiling, Rati bowed to lord Śiva. 16. She became contented. With her husband resuscitated and with palms joined in reverence she eulogised the lord, the bestower of her husband, frequently. 17. On hearing the eulogy of Kāma and his wife, Śiva was delighted and he spoke with his heart melting with pity. 18. O Kāma, I am delighted by your eulogy in the company of your wife. O self-born, tell me the boon you desire. I shall grant it. 19. On hearing these words of Śiva, Kāma was highly delighted. Humbly and in faltering accents he spoke with palms joined in reverence. 20. O lord of gods, O ocean of mercy, if you, the lord of all, are pleased with me please be delightful to me. 21. O lord, please forgive my fault formerly perpetrated by me. Please grant me great affection towards my people and devotion to your feet. 22. On hearing the words of Kāma, lord Śiva was delighted. Giving consent, the lord of mercy laughingly said. 23. O Kāma, I am delighted. O intelligent one, do not fear. Go near Viṣṇu and wait outside. 24. On hearing these words he bowed to, circumambulated and eulogised the lord. Then he went out and bowed to Viṣṇu and gods. 25. Addressing Kāma, the gods congratulated him and offered him their auspicious blessings. Remembering Śiva, Viṣṇu and others spoke to him. 26. O Kāma, you are blessed. Burnt by Śiva you have been blessed by Him. The lord of all has resuscitated you by means of his sympathetic glance, the Sāttvika part. 27. No man causes happiness or sorrow to another man. Man experiences the fruits of what he does. Who can ward off the destined protection, marriage or consummation at the proper time? 28. After saying thus, the gods happily honoured him. Viṣṇu and other gods who had realised their desire stayed there with pleasure. 29. He too remained there, at the bidding of Śiva, with great delight. There were shouts of “Victory” “Obeisance” and “well-done”. 30. At the bed-chamber Śiva placed Pārvatī on His left side and fed her with sweets. She too delightedly fed him with sweets in return. 31. Śiva according to the conventions of the world performed the customary rites. Taking leave of Menā and the mountain He came to the audience hall. 32. O sage, there was great jubilation then. Sounds of Vedic chants rose up. People played on the four kinds of musical instruments. 33. Coming back to His apartment, Śiva saluted the sages, Viṣṇu and me according to the worldly convention. He was duly saluted by the gods and others. 34. Shouts of “Victory” and “Obeisance” rose up along with the sound of Vedic mantras which were auspicious and which removed all obstacles. 35. Then Viṣṇu, I ( Indra ), gods, sages, Siddhas, secondary gods and the Nāgas eulogised Him severally. 36. O śiva, be victorious. O lord Śiva, the support of all, be victorious. O Rudra, O great lord, the supporter of the world, be victorious. 37. O Pārvatī’s lord, O lord, accentuator of pleasure, O three-eyed one, O lord of all, the lord of illusion, be victorious, be victorious. 38. O lord, devoid of attributes, bereft of desires, O lord beyond all causes, O omnipresent, O playful support of all, O assumer of forms, Obeisance to you, be victorious. 39-40. O lord, bestower of good desires to your devotees, O merciful one, O bliss-formed, assuming forms through magic illusions, be victorious. Be victorious, O kind, O All-souled one, friend of the distressed, storehouse of mercy, O lord of illusion, free from aberrations, whose body is beyond the reach of speech and mind. 41. Eulogising thus, Viṣṇu and others joyously served lord Śiva, the husband of Pārvatī duly, and with great love. 42. O Nārada, Śiva, the lord who had assumed body sportively, granted boons and honour to all present there. 43. O dear one, Viṣṇu and others taking leave of the great lord delightedly returned to their respective places. They were duly honoured and their faces beamed with pleasure. Article published on 10 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. O dear one, then the clever chief of mountains caused suitable arrangements to be made in the courtyard for feeding the visitors. 2. He caused the ground to be swept clean and scrubbed well. Different kinds of fragrant stuffs were used to make the place attractive and pleasing. 3. Then the mountain invited all the gods and others along with the lord for taking food, through his sons and others. 4. O sage, on hearing the invitation of the mountain, the lord accompanied by Viṣṇu, the gods and others went gladly to take His meal. 5. The mountain received the lord and all those duly and made them sit in good seats in the inner apartment. 6. After serving sweet and well-cooked delicious foodstuffs, he requested them to take their food with palms joined in reverence and head bent down. 7. Then duly honoured, Viṣṇu and other gods keeping Sadāśiva at the head took their food. 8. They sat in rows together, took their food simultaneously laughing (and talking). 9. Nandin, Bhṛṅgi, Vīrabhadra and his Gaṇas took their meals separately. The fortunate people took food enthusiastically. 10. The gods, with Indra, the guardians of the quarters all forunate and brilliant took their food cracking jokes and talking. 11. The sages and brahmins, Bhṛgu and other sages sat in separate rows and took their food with pleasure. 12. The Gaṇas of Caṇḍī took their meals and then cracked jokes and talked merrily. 13. After taking meals and rinsing their mouths Viṣṇu and others went to their apartments for rest. 14. At the bidding of Menā, the chaste ladies requested Śiva humbly and made Him stay in the bedchamber where great festivities were going on. 15. Seated on a gemset throne offered by Menā, Śiva surveyed the bedchamber with pleasure. 16. It was brightly illuminated with hundreds of gemset lamps. There were many gemset vessels. Pearls etc. were gorgeously displayed. 17. Gemset mirrors, white chowries, pearl necklaces and gorgeous things were richly displayed. 18. It was unequalled in its divine exquisiteness highly pleasing and richly decorated. 19. It was evincing the powerful influence of the boon granted by Śiva. It appeared to be a replica of Śiva Loka itself. 20. It was richly rendered fragrant with various sweet smelling substances. It was very bright. There was sandal paste and aguru. Beds were richly strewn with flowers. 21. Many wondrous things of variegated colours and shapes were displayed there. It had been constructed in gems by Viśvakarman himself. 22. In some places replicas of Vaikuṇṭha, Brahmaloka and the cities of the guardians of the quarters were seen. 23. In a certain place the beautiful Kailāsa was represented. In another place Indra’s palace was depicted. Over all was represented the Śivaloka. 24. Seeing all these wonderful representations lord Śiva praised Himavat and was very glad. 25. In that bedchamber, in a beautiful gemset couch lord Śiva lay down with pleasure. 26. Himavat fed all his brothers and others with pleasure and attended to the subsequent duties. 27. While the supreme lord had his sleep and the lord of the mountains was engaged in these duties, the night passed away giving place to dawn. 28. In the morning the enthusiastic people began to play on different kinds of musical instruments. 29. Viṣṇu and the other gods got up with joy, remembered the lord of gods and excitedly got ready. 30. They got their vehicles ready for the departure to Kailāsa and sent Dharma to Śiva. 31. At the bidding of Viṣṇu, Dharma went near the bed chamber. The Yogin Dharma addressed Śiva, the lord of Yogins, in a manner befitting the context. 32. Get up, get up O Śiva, O lord of the Pramathas. Please come over to the audience hall. Make the assembled people gratified. 33. On hearing these words of Dharma lord Śiva laughed. He surveyed him with sympathetic looks and got up from the bed. 34. He laughingly said to Dharma—“You go ahead. I shall come there presently. There is no doubt in this matter. 35. Thus addressed by Śiva, he returned to the audience hall. The lord Śiva too wanted to go. 36. On coming to know of it the ladies came enthusiastically. With their eyes fixed on the feet of Śiva, they sang auspicious songs. 37. Śiva then, in accordance with the worldly customs, went through his morning routine. He took leave of Menā and the mountain and went to the audience hall. 38. There was great jubilation there, O sage. Vedic mantras were recited loudly. The people played on the four kinds of musical instruments. 39. Śiva came to His apartment and bowed to the sages, Viṣṇu and me in accordance with the worldly conventions and was saluted by the gods and others. 40. Shouts of Victory and Obeisance rose up along with the auspicious sound of Vedic chants. There was great tumult.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Then Viṣṇu and other gods, the sages and ascetics sent message to the mountain about their intention to leave after finishing their immediate duties. 2. Then the lord of mountains finished his ceremonial ablution and the worship of his favourite deity. Calling his kinsmen in the city, he came to the audience hall joyously. 3. There he worshipped the lord with pleasure and requested him to stay in his house for a few days more along with all the people. 4. “O Śiva ” he said “I am contented by your sight. I am blessed since you came here with the gods”. 5. Saying these words and many more, the lord of mountains pleaded with palms joined in reverence to the lord along with Viṣṇu and other gods. 6. Then the gods and sages remembered Śiva and spoke with delight. 7. O lord of the mountains, you are blessed. Your glory is great. Even in the three worlds, there is none equal to you in merit. 8. At your very door, lord Śiva, the supreme Brahman, the goal of the good and favourably disposed to His devotees, has deigned to come along with us, His slaves. 9. O lord of mountains, this audience hall is very excellent. You have honoured us in diverse ways. The foodstuffs served to us were extraordinary. It is impossible to describe them suitably. 10. It is no wonder that everything is perfect where the goddess Pārvatī is present. We too are blessed since we came. 11. Thus there was mutual admiration and glorification of an enlightened nature. There was great jubilation. The sound of Vedic chant and shouts of victory were heard every where. 12. There were auspicious songs. The celestial damsels danced. The bards sang songs of praise. There was a liberal exchange of monetary gifts. 13. Then the mountain took leave of the lord of gods and went home. He made arrangements for a joyous feast with all paraphernalia in accordance with the rules. 14. He brought the lord with all his attendants and followers for the feast. He was very enthusiastic. 15-16. He washed the feet of Śiva, Viṣṇu and mine with reverence. He seated all of us, including the gods, the sages and others in the altar. The lord of mountains was assisted by his kinsmen. 17. The mountain satiated them with various kinds of juicy foodstuffs. All of them took food including Śiva, Viṣṇu and me. 18. Then the ladies of the city indulged in the customary utterance of foul abusive words laughing, jingling and peeping at all of them. 19. O Nārada, they took their food and rinsed their mouths. Taking leave of the mountain they returned to their apartments fully satisfied and pleased. 20. O sage, on the third day similarly they were thus duly honoured by the lord of mountains with customary gifts. 21. On the fourth day, the rite of Caturthīkarman was performed with due observance. Without this the marriage rites would have been incomplete. 22. There was diverse jubilant festivity. Shouts of “well-done”, “Victory” etc were heard. There were exchanges of gifts, sweet music and different kinds of dances. 23. On the fifth day the delighted gods lovingly intimated to the mountain about their desire to go back. 24. On hearing that, the lord of mountains spoke to the gods with palms joined in reverence “O gods, please stay a few days more”. 25. Saying thus with great love he made all of us, the lord, Viṣṇu and others stay there for many days, honouring us duly every day. 26. Thus many days elapsed as the gods continued to stay there. Then the gods sent the seven sages to the lord of the mountains. 27. They enlightened the mountain and Menā with what was relevant to the occasion. They told them about Śiva’s principles with due praise. 28. O sage, the proposal was agreed to by the great lord. Then Śiva went to the mountain to tell him about the intended journey, along with the gods and others. 29. When the lord of gods started on his journey towards his mountain along with the gods, Menā cried aloud and told the merciful lord. 30. O merciful lord, do mercifully protect Pārvatī. You are quickly pleased. Hence you will please forgive even a thousand faults in her. 31. My dear daughter is devoted to your lotus-like feet in every birth. Even sleeping or awake she does not think about anything else. 32. O conqueror of death, even on hearing about your devotion she is filled with tears of pleasure and horripilation. On hearing your censure she becomes silent as though dead. 33. Saying this, Menakā dedicated her daughter to Him and crying aloud became unconscious in front of them. 34. When she regained consciousness, Śiva took leave of her and the mountain and set on journey with the gods jubilantly. 35. The gods with the lord and His Gaṇas started on their journey silently. They wished the mountain well. 36-37. The lord and the gods waited in a part outside the city of Himavat for the arrival of Pārvatī there. O great sage, thus I have narrated the journey of Śiva. Now listen to the journey of Pārvatī and of her departure with festivities.

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Then the seven sages spoke to the lord of the mountains —“O mountain, make arrangements for the journey of your daughter today itself.” 2. O great sage, on hearing these words and knowing her pangs of separation, the lord of mountains was greatly affected by his love towards her and remained silent for a short while. 3. After some time, the lord of the mountains regained his consciousness and said—“Let it be so”. He then sent the message to Menā. 4. O sage, on hearing the message of the mountain, Menā was both delighted and sorry. She immediately set about arranging for her journey. 5. O sage, Menā, the beloved of the mountain, made arrangements for all kinds of festivities in accordance with the tradition of her family and the injunctions of the Vedas. 6. She bedecked Pārvatī with twelve kinds of ornaments and good silken garments of nice border. All kinds of embellishments befitting her royal state were made. 7. Realising Menā’s inclinations a chaste brahmin lady instructed Pārvatī in the duties of a chaste wife. 8. O Pārvatī, listen to my words with love that accentuate righteousness, that increase the pleasure here and hereafter and afford happiness to those who pay heed to them. 9. A chaste lady sanctifies the worlds, destroys sins and is blessed. None else is so worthy of respect. 10. O Pārvatī, she who serves her husband with love and considers him her sole lord, enjoys all pleasures here and obtains salvation hereafter along with her husband. 11-13. The chaste ladies— Sāvitrī, Lopāmudrā, Arundhatī, Śāṇḍilyā, Śatarūpā, Anasūyā, Lakṣmī, Svadhā, Satī, Saṃjña, Sumati, Śraddhā, Menā, Svāhā and several others whose names are not mentioned lest the list should be too detailed have attained adoration from all people by their virtue of chastity. They have been honoured by Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Śiva and great sages. 14. Lord Śiva, benefactor of the depressed, worthy of worship and the goal of the good shall be served by you always. 15. The duty of a chaste lady is very important and it has been mentioned in the Vedas and Smṛtis. No other duty is so admirable as this. 16. A chaste lady shall take food only after her husband has taken it. O Śivā, if he stands, the woman too shall remain standing. 17. When he sleeps she can also sleep. But she must intelligently wake up before him. She shall do what is beneficial to him. She shall love him without any sort of deception. 18. O Śivā, she shall never show herself unembellished to him. If for any important work he is on exile she shall never adorn herself. 19. A chaste lady shall never mention her husband’s name. If the husband scolds or rebukes her she shall not abuse him in return. Even when beaten by him she shall remain glad and say “I may even be killed, O lord. Be kind to me.” 20. When called by him she shall leave the work she is engaged in and approach him immediately. With palms joined in reverence and love she shall bow to him and say as follows. 21. “O lord, be pleased to say what I have been called for.” Whenever ordered by him to do any job she shall do it gladly. 22. She shall not stand near the entrance for a long time. She shall not go to other people’s house. She shall not take his money, even though it be a little, and give it to others. 23. Without being told she shall arrange the necessary requisities for his daily worship. She shall wait for the opportunity to do him a timely service. 24. Without the permission of her husband she shall not go even on pilgrimage. She shall eschew the desire to attend social festivities. 25. If a women wants holy water she shall drink the same with which her husband’s feet have been washed. All holy rivers are present in that water. 26. She shall partake of the leavings of her husband’s food or whatever is given by him saying “This is thy great grace.” 27. She shall never take food without first offering due share to the gods, the Pitṛs, the guests, the servants, cows and saintly mendicants. 28. A gentle lady of chaste rites shall always be clever to manage the household with limited requisites. She shall be averse to spend unnecessarily. 29. Without being permitted by her husband she shall not observe fast and other rites. Should it be so, she will derive no benefit. She may fall into hell in other worlds. 30. While the husband is sportively engaged or seated comfortably she shall not worry him to get up under the pretext of attending to some household work. 31. Whether he is impotent, distressed, sick or senile, happy or unhappy, the husband shall never be transgressed. 32. During the three days of her monthly course she shall neither show her face nor speak to him. She shall not speak within his hearing till she becomes pure after her bath. 33. After her bath she shall see her husband’s face and not that of anyone else. Or after thinking on her husband she shall then gaze at the sun. 34-35. If a chaste lady wishes for the longevity of her husband she shall not forsake turmeric, vermilion, saffron, collyrium, a blouse, the betel, the necklace, ornaments, brushing and plaiting the hair bangles and earrings. 36. A chaste woman shall never associate intimately with a washerwoman, a harlot, a female ascetic or a fallen woman. 37. She shall not talk to any woman who disparages or hates her husband. She shall not stand alone anywhere nor shall she take bath in the nude. 38. A chaste lady shall never sleep on a mortar threshing rod, a broom, a grinding stone, a machine or on the threshold. 39. Except at the time of sexual intercourse she shall never show her maturity and initiative. She shall like whatever her husband is interested in. 40. A chaste lady shall be delighted when her husband is delighted and dejected when he is dejected. She shall always wish for his benefit. 41. She shall be virtuous and equanimous in affluence and adversity. She shall have fortitude and shall never go astray. 42. Even when ghee, salt, oil or other things are exhausted she shall not tell her husband openly about it lest he should be subjected to undue strain. 43. O Goddess, the husband is superior to Brahmā, Viṣṇu or Śiva, for a chaste lady her husband is on a par with Śiva. 44. She who transgresses her husband and observes fast and other rites wrecks the longevity of her husband and after death goes to hell. 45. If she furiously retorts to her husband she is born as a bitch in a village or as a vixen in a secluded place. 46. The chaste lady shall never take a higher seat never approach a defiled person, never speak to her husband in agitation. 47. She should avoid slanderous words, shun quarrels and shall not speak aloud or laugh in the presence of elders. 48-49. She who delights her husband delights all the worlds. When she sees her husband coming home she shall hasten to serve him food and water, hand him betel and change of garments, and serve him by massaging his feet. By pleasing words she shall fascinate him and dispel his gloom. 50. What father gives is limited, what brother gives is limited and what the son gives is also limited. A chaste lady shall worship her husband who gives what has no limit. 51. To a wife the husband is god, preceptor, virtue, holy centre and sacred rite. She should cast off everything and adore him alone. 52. She who forsakes her husband and secretly violates her fidelity is born as a she-owl of cruel nature wasting its days in the hollow of a tree. 53. If she desires to beat her husband in retaliation, she becomes a tiger or a wild cat. She who ogles at another man becomes squint-eyed. 54. She who partakes of sweet dish denying the same to her husband becomes a pig in the village or a wild goat eating its own dung. 55. She who addresses her husband in singular becomes dumb. She who is jealous of a co-wife becomes ill-fated in matrimony again and again. 56. She who casts glance on another person hiding it from her husband becomes one-eyed, twisted-faced or ugly. 57. Just as a body bereft of the soul becomes unclean in a moment, similarly a woman without a husband is always unclean even though she may take a neat bath. 58. The mother, the father and the husband are blessed if there is a chaste lady in the house. 59. The three families—that of the father, that of the mother and that of the husband—enjoy the pleasures of heaven due to the merit of the chaste woman. 60. Disloyal women cause the downfall of the three families, that of the father, mother and husband and become distressed here and hereafter. 61. Wherever the chaste lady sets her foot, the sin is dispelled therefrom and the place is sanctified. 62. Even the sun, moon and wind touch the chaste woman to sanctify themselves and not otherwise. 63. Waters desire the touch of the chaste lady thinking—“Now our sluggishness is gone. Now we are able to purify others”. 64. Wife is the root of the household, and of its happiness; she is the source of the fruit of virtue and for the flourishing of the family. 65. In every house there are women proud of their exquisite beauty and comely appearance. But it is only due to the devotion of Śiva that a chaste lady is obtained. 66. The present and the next world can be won through her. A wifeless man is not authorized to perform the rites of gods, Pitṛs guests and sacrifices. 67. He alone is the true householder in whose house there is a chaste lady. The others are devoured by an ogress or old age. 68. Just as the body is purified by a plunge in the Gaṅgā, so everything is sanctified on seeing a chaste woman. 69. A chaste lady is not different from Gaṅgā. She and her husband are like Pārvatī and Śiva. Hence a sensible man shall worship them. 70. The husband is the high tone and the wife is the quarter tone. The husband is austerity and the woman is forbearance. The husband is the fruit and the wife is a sacred rite. O Pārvatī, such a pair is blessed. 71. O daughter of the lord of mountains, thus the duty of a chaste wife is described to you. Now, listen to their classifications with attention and love. 72. O gentle lady, the chaste ladies can be divided into four classes. Even when they are remembered they dispel sins. The divisions comprise of the superior etc. 73. They are superior, middling, inferior and very inferior. I shall explain their characteristics. Listen with attention. 74. O gentle lady, she whose mind is not aware of any one else and who is conscious of her husband even in her dreams is the noblest of all. 75. O daughter of the mountain, she who sees another man as her father, brother or son with a clean conscience is the middling among chaste ladies. 76. O Pārvatī, she who ponders over her duty mentally and desists from going astray is inferior among the chaste. Of course she is pure in conduct. 77. She who remains chaste for fear of her husband or the family is very inferior among the chaste ladies, so say the ancient poets. 78. O Pārvatī, these four types of chaste ladies dispel sins. They sanctify all the worlds. They are delighted here and hereafter. 79. A brahmin who died due to the curse of Varāha ( Boar ), was at the request of the three deities, resuscitated by Atri ’s wife (Anasūyā), thanks to the power of chastity. 80. O Śiva, O daughter of the mountain, knowing this well, you shall render service to your husband every day with pleasure as it bestows all desires. 81. You are the Goddess and the mother of the universe. Śiva Himself is your husband. By remembering you women become chaste. 82. O Pārvatī, O gentle lady, what avails mentioning all this to you. Still I mention this just to follow the worldly convention. 83. Saying this, the brahmin lady stopped and bowed to her. Pārvatī, the beloved of Śiva, derived great pleasure. Article published on 10 October, 2018

[ Sanskrit text for this chapter is available ] 1. Thus instructing the goddess in the rites of a chaste lady, the brahmin lady told Menā while taking leave of her “Make arrangements for her journey”. 2. Saying “So be it” she became exasperated by her affection. Controlling herself a little she called Pārvatī to her when her agitation due to imminent separation became all the more unbearable. 3. Embracing her she cried loudly and frequently. Pārvatī too cried uttering piteous words. 4. The beloved of the mountain as well as her daughter became unconscious due to grief. The wives of the gods too fainted on hearing Pārvatī cry. 5. All the ladies cried. Everything became senseless. Who else, even the great lord, the leader of Yogins, cried at the time of departure. 6. In the meantime, Himavat came hurriedly along with his sons, ministers and brahmins. 7. Holding his dear daughter to his bosom and saying “Where are you going?” with frequent vague vacant glances, he cried due to his fascination. 8. Then the chief priest in the company of other brahmins enlightened everyone. The wise priest by his spiritual discourse was able to convince them easily. 9. With great devotion Pārvatī bowed to her parents and the preceptor. Following the worldly convention she cried aloud frequently. 10. When Pārvatī cried the ladies cried too, particularly the mother Menā, sisters and brothers. 11. Her mother, sister, brothers, father and the other ladies who were affectionately attached to her cried frequently. 12. Then the brahmins respectfully intimated to them the auspicious hour for the starting of the journey and consoled them. 13. Then Himavat and Menā composed themselves and caused the palanquin to be brought for Pārvatī to get in. 14. The brahmin ladies helped her to get into the palanquin. They gave their blessings. Her parents and the brahmins too offered their blessings. 15. Menā and the lord of mountains gave her a royal send-off with various auspicious rare presents not accessible to common people. 16. O sage, Pārvatī started after bowing to the preceptors, elders, father, mother, the brahmins, the chief priest, sisters and the other women. 17. Himavat, the sensible affectionate father with his sons accompanied her as far as the place where the lord was waiting joyously along with the gods. 18. Everyone was jubilant and jolly with love. They bowed to the lord with devotion. Praising Him they returned to Kailāsa. 19. Then Śiva told Pārvatī—“I am reminding you although you know the previous birth. If you remember, speak out. In my divine sport you are always my beloved.” 20. On hearing the words of Śiva, Satī Pārvatī the beloved of Śiva replied smiling. 21. O dear lord, I remember everything as well as the fact that you became a silent ascetic. Obeisance to you. Please do everything necessary now befitting the occasion. 22. On hearing her words as pleasing as the steady flow of nectar, Śiva rejoiced much, eagerly devoted to the way of the world. 23. Getting every requisite thing ready, he fed the gods including Viṣṇu and others with various pleasant things. 24. He fed all the others who had attended His marriage with juicy cooked food of various sorts. 25. After taking food the gods and the Gaṇas, with their womenfolk fully bedecked in gems and jewels bowed to the moon-crested lord. 26. After eulogising Him with pleasing words and circumambulating Him with joy they praised the marriage celebration and returned to their abodes. 27. O sage, Śiva Himself bowed to me and to Viṣṇu following the worldly convention as Viṣṇu had bowed to Kaśyapa. 28. Considering Him the supreme Brahman I eulogised him in the excellent manner after embracing him and offering him my benediction. 29. Viṣṇu and I with palms joined in reverence, took leave of them and praising the marriage of Śiva and Pārvatī went back to Viṣṇu’s abode. 30. On the mountain, Śiva stayed with Pārvatī and continued his divine sports with joy. The Gaṇas too were happy and they worshipped the married couple. 31. O dear, I have thus narrated the auspicious story of the marriage of Śiva, that dispels sorrow, generates delight and increases wealth and longevity. 32. He who hears this story with pure mind fixed on them or narrates the same, shall attain Śivaloka. 33. This narrative is said to be wondrous and the cause of everything auspicious. It quells all hindrances and ailments. 34. It is conducive to glory and the attainment of heaven. It bestows longevity, sons and grandsons, all cherished desires, worldly pleasures and salvation too. 35. It wards off premature death. It is auspicious and it causes peace. It makes bad dreams subside. It is an instrument for the acquisition of keen intellect. 36. It shall be read on all occasions of Śiva’s festivals by the people who desire auspicious results. It gives satisfaction to Śiva. 37. At the installation of the idols of the deities this shall be particularly read. At the beginning of all auspicious rites it shall be read with pleasure. 38. With purity in mind and body it shall be heard. All affairs become fruitful thereby. This is true, really true. Article published on 10 October, 2018