Indian Myth and Legend Donald A. Mackenzie 1844 downloads.pdf

The Project Gutenberg eBook of Indian Myth and Legend
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other
parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may
copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License
included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in
the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are
located before using this eBook.

Title: Indian Myth and Legend

Author: Donald A. Mackenzie

Illustrator: Warwick Goble

Release date: October 29, 2014 [eBook #47228]
Most recently updated: October 24, 2024

Language: English

Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/47228

Credits: Produced by David Garcia, Gonçalo Silva, Marilynda
Fraser-Cunliffe and the Online Distributed Proofreading
Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from
images generously made available by The Internet Archive)

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK INDIAN MYTH AND
LEGEND ***

INDIAN MYTH AND LEGEND

MYTH AND LEGEND IN
LITERATURE AND ART
CLASSIC MYTH AND LEGEND
By A. R. Hope Moncrieff
CELTIC MYTH AND LEGEND
POETRY AND ROMANCE
By Charles Squire
TEUTONIC MYTH AND LEGEND
By Donald A. Mackenzie
ROMANCE AND LEGEND
OF CHIVALRY
By A. R. Hope Moncrieff
EGYPTIAN MYTH AND LEGEND
By Donald A. Mackenzie
INDIAN MYTH AND LEGEND
By Donald A. Mackenzie
MYTHS OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA
By Donald A. Mackenzie
MYTHS OF CRETE
AND PRE-HELLENIC EUROPE
By Donald A. Mackenzie

THE GRESHAM PUBLISHING COMPANY LTD.

SITA FINDS RAMA AMONG LOTUS
BLOOMS
From the painting by Warwick Goble

INDIAN MYTH
AND LEGEND

DONALD A. MACKENZIE

With Illustrations in Colour
by Warwick Goble
and numerous monochrome
Plates

THE GRESHAM PUBLISHING COMPANY LIMITED
66 CHANDOS STREET COVENT GARDEN LONDON

PREFACE
This volume deals with the myths and legends of India, which survive to us in the
rich and abundant storehouse of Sanskrit literature, and with the rise and growth of
Brahmanism, Buddhism, Jainism, &c. The reader is introduced to the various sacred
works of the Hindus, including the ancient invocatory hymns of the four Vedas, the later
speculative and expository “Forest Books” in which “the Absolute is grasped and
proclaimed”, and those great epic poems the Rámáyana, which is three times longer than
the Iliad, and the Máhábharata, which is four times longer than the Rámáyana. In no
other country have the national poets given fuller and finer expression to the beliefs and
ideals and traditions of a people, or achieved as a result wider and more enduring fame.
At the present day over two hundred million Hindus are familiar in varying degrees with
the legendary themes and traditional beliefs which the ancient forest sages and poets of
India invested with much beautiful symbolism, and used as mediums for speculative
thought and profound spiritual teachings. The sacred books of India are to the Hindus
what the Bible is to Christians. Those who read them, or hear them read, are believed to
be assured of prosperity in this world and of salvation in the next. To students of history,
of ethnology, and of comparative religion they present features of peculiar interest, for
they contain an elaborate sociology of the ancient Aryo-Indians, their political
organizations, their codes of laws, their high ethical code, and above all their
conceptions of God, the soul, and the Universe. Some knowledge of them is necessary
for those who desire to approach with sympathy the investigation of the religious beliefs
of our Hindu fellow men and to understand their outlook upon life and the world.
The Introduction deals with various aspects of the study of these ancient myths and
legends which have been the inspiration of a national literature infused with much
grandeur and sublimity. The historic Aryan controversy, of which the science of
comparative mythology is a by-product, is passed under review, and it is shown to what
extent philological theories regarding race problems have been modified during recent
years as a result of the adoption of broader and more exact methods of ethnic and
archæological research and the ever-extending study of comparative mythology. There
has also been condensed much important data dealing with the early phases of Aryo-
Indian civilization accumulated for historical purposes by industrious and painstaking
Sanskrit scholars who have been engaged in investigating and systematizing the internal
evidence of the various religious poems and treatises. It will be found that no general
agreement has yet been reached regarding Aryo-Indian chronology, but it now appears to
be well established that although there were early cultural as well as racial “drifts”, fresh
invasions, which had far-reaching results in the social and religious life of northern
India, occurred at a late period in what is known as the Vedic Age. In consequence, the
problem presented by this ancient civilization tends rather to grow more complex than to
become simplified. Its origin is still wrapped in obscurity. At the very dawn of history

Aryo-Indian culture had attained a comparatively high state of development, and a
considerable period must be allowed for its growth. Even some of the ancient Vedic
hymns, addressed by priests to the deities, are styled “new songs”, which suggests the
existence of an older collection. Many of them also afford indications that immemorial
beliefs were in process of change and fusion. The sublime deities, Varuna and Mitra
(Mithra), for instance, were already declining in splendour. Yet they must have been
closely associated with Indra, king of the gods, in the unknown Aryan homeland, as is
made evident by an inscription recently deciphered at Boghaz Köi, in Asia Minor, which
refers to them as deities of the mysterious Mitanni people who were of Aryan speech like
the settlers in the Punjab. There is no evidence, however, that the Mitanni rulers gave
recognition to the fire god Agni, who in India was exalted as the twin brother of Indra.
The problem involved may not be devoid of ethnic significance, although the identity of
the Agni-worshipping section of the early raiders remains obscure.
During the early Vedic Age in India prominence was given to the gods: the social
organization was of patriarchal character; the goddesses remained shadowy and vague,
some being, indeed, little more than figures of speech. A great change took place,
however, after the invasions of the Bharata and other tribes who are now referred to as
“late comers”. Profound and speculative thinkers attained to the pantheistic conception
of the world soul; new doctrines, which are not referred to in the Vedic hymns, regarding
the ages of the universe and transmigration of souls, received wide acceptance as the
result of missionary efforts: the Vedic gods were reduced to the position of minor deities
and new goddesses rose into prominence, one indeed being Bharati, the tribal deity of
the Bharatas, who became associated with the Saraswati river and under her new name
was ultimately made the wife of the supreme god Brahma. It is significant to note that
the new culture radiated from the “Middle Country”, the area controlled by the “late
comers”. That it contained elements which were not of Indian origin is made clearly
evident when we find that the doctrines of the ages of the universe and transmigration of
souls were shared by other peoples, including the Greeks and Celts and a section of the
ancient Egyptians. Sumero-Babylonian and Egyptian resemblances may also be traced in
post-Vedic religious literature, the former, for instance, in the Deluge legend, and the
latter in the myth regarding the avenging goddess Kali, who slaughters the enemies of
the gods like Hathor-Sekhet, and has similarly to be restrained by one of the deities. The
worship of goddesses was also prominent among the Sumerians, Egyptians, Greeks, and
Celts, as contrasted with the worship of gods among broad-headed mountain and
wandering peoples. In this connection special interest attaches to the conclusions of
prominent ethnologists, who include in the Mediterranean or “Brown” race of brunet
“long heads” the early Egyptians and Neolithic Europeans, the Sumerians and present-
day “Aryan” types in India, and especially in the old “Middle Country” and Bengal. On
the other hand, a broad-headed type is still prominent in the Punjab, the area occupied by
the earliest invaders who worshipped the Vedic gods. Dr. Haddon suggests that these
pioneers of civilization were mixed with peoples of Mongolian and other affinities.
Some such ethnic explanation must be urged to account for the differences between
Vedic and post-Vedic mythologies. The invasions of the “late comers”, who entered

India by a new route, no doubt stimulated thought and promoted culture after settled
conditions were secured, as was undoubtedly the result of the mingling of races
elsewhere.
“It may be put down as an axiom”, says Professor Jastrow, “that nowhere does a
high form of culture arise without the commingling of diverse ethnic elements.
Civilization, like the spark emitted by the striking of steel on flint, is everywhere the
result of stimulus evoked by the friction of one ethnic group upon another”: and he
supports his theory with the evidence afforded by Egypt, Babylonia, Greece, Rome,
France, Germany, and Great Britain, as well as the present-day United States of America,
“the melting pot” of many peoples.
Throughout this volume comparative evidence is provided to assist the reader
towards the study of this most interesting aspect of the Aryan problem. We trace the
cremation custom, which has prevailed in India since Vedic times, to countries as wide
apart as Great Britain, into which it was introduced during the Bronze Age, and Southern
Siberia, where it is still practised by the Mongolian Buriats. Over the areas occupied by
representatives of the Mediterranean race it was unknown prior to the invasions of
unidentified fire-worshippers. Special interest also attaches to the horse sacrifice, which
was also an Aryo-Indian ceremony even in Vedic times. It is not yet unknown among the
Buriats. At one time the horse sacrifice was widely prevalent. White horses were
sacrificed to the sun in Ancient Greece; the sun horses are referred to with horror by
Ezekiel; the ceremony was also connected with the mysteries of Aricia grove. Indeed, as
is pointed out in Chapter V, various ancient peoples offered up this domesticated and
historic animal. In the Indian epics and religious treatises there are illuminating
references to the horse sacrifice which throw much light on the significance of the
immemorial practice. White and black horses were alternately favoured, and it is evident
that the practice was not only associated with solar worship, but was also intended to
secure fertility—crops, and therefore rain in the first place, increase of flocks, herds,
human offspring, &c.—as is undoubtedly the case among the modern-day Buriats. In
India the horse was also offered up as a sin offering, a late conception, evidently. A
prominent feature of this sacrifice in most countries was the decapitation of the
sacrificial victim. Recent evidence from Egypt suggests that the sacrifice of the ass may
have preceded the sacrifice of the horse. Professor Flinders Petrie has found in a triple
tomb in the early dynastic Tarkhan cemetery the skeletons of three asses with the heads
cut off and placed beside them. He suggests that the animals were killed to accompany
their owner to the other world. The Buriats still sacrifice horses at graves, professedly
for the same reason. As this custom was not prevalent throughout Ancient Egypt, it may
have been an importation, connected, perhaps, with the myth about the sun-ass which
gallops round a hill-surrounded world followed by the pursuing night serpent. An
isolated reference is also made to the sacrifice of the ass in a Twelfth Dynasty story
about a Naga-like demigod, a fact which emphasizes the historical importance of the
material embedded in folk tales and mythologies. In this connection it may be noted that
certain developed myths suggest there may have been either a cultural contact of Ancient

Egypt with India, through an unidentified medium, or an infusion of religious ideas into
both countries from a common source. In an Indian creation myth Prajápati weeps
creative tears like the Egyptian sun-god Ra, whose rays are tears from which all things
spring, as Maspero shows.
In India the juice of the soma plant was identified with the vital principle, and the
demons were the poisoners of crops and plants; in Egypt honey-flowers and sacred trees
sprang from the fertilizing tears of deities, while the tears of demons produced poisonous
plants, diseases, &c. Like the Egyptian Horus, the Indian Prajápati, or Brahma, sprang
from a lotus bloom floating on the primordial waters. The chaos-egg myth is also
common to both mythological systems. Brahma issues from a golden egg like Ra, and a
similar myth is connected with the Egyptian Ptah and Khnumu, and with the Chinese
P'an Ku, while the egg figures in Eur-Asian folk tales which contain the germs of the
various mythologies. All mythologies have animistic bases; they were, to begin with,
systematized folk beliefs which were carried hither and thither in various stages of
development by migrating and trading peoples. Each separate system bears undoubted
traces of racial or local influences; each reflects the civilization in which it flourished,
the habits of thought and habits of life of the people, and the religious, ethical, and
political ideals of their rulers and teachers. When well-developed myths of similar
character are found in widely separated districts, an ethnic or cultural contact is
suggested. Such myths may be regarded as evidence of remote racial movements, which,
although unsupported by record or tradition, are also indicated by ethnological data. It is
hoped that the reader will find much suggestive material in this connection in their study
of the myths and legends of India. They will also find that many of the tales retold in this
volume have qualities which make universal appeal, and that some are among the most
beautiful which survive from the civilizations of the ancient world.
Not a few, we are assured, will follow with interest the development from primitive
myths of great and ennobling ideas which have exercised a culturing influence in India
through many long centuries, and are still potent factors in the domestic, social, and
religious life of many millions of Hindus.
DONALD A. MACKENZIE.

CONTENTS
Chap. Page
Introduction xvii
I. Indra, King of the Gods 1
II. The Great Vedic Deities 19
III. Yama, the First Man, and King of the Dead 38
IV. Demons and Giants and Fairies 61
V. Social and Religious Developments of the Vedic Age 76
VI. Mysteries of Creation, the World's Ages, and Soul Wandering 97
VII. New Faiths: Vishnu Religion, Buddhism, and Jainism 119
VIII. Divinities of the Epic Period 138
IX. Prelude to the Great Bharata War 157
X. Royal Rivals: the Pandavas and Kauravas 173
XI. The Tournament 185
XII. First Exile of the Pandavas 195
XIII. The Choice of Draupadi 213
XIV.Triumph of the Pandavas 224
XV. The Great Gambling Match 237
XVI.Second Exile of the Pandavas 249
XVII. Defiance of Duryodhana 270
XVIII. The Battle of Eighteen Days 285
XIX.Atonement and the Ascent to Heaven 310
XX. Nala and Damayantí 328
XXI.Wanderings in the Forest 340
XXII. Nala in Exile 353
XXIII. The Homecoming of the King 364
XXIV. Story of Rama: How Sita was Won 374
XXV. The Abduction of Sita 394
XXVI. Rama's Mission Fulfilled 408
Index 429

PLATES IN COLOUR
Page
SITA FINDS RAMA AMONG LOTUS BLOOMS Frontispiece
From the painting by Warwick Goble
SHANTANU MEETS THE GODDESS GANGA facing 164
From the painting by Warwick Goble
ARJUNA AND THE RIVER NYMPH facing 226
From the painting by Warwick Goble
THE ORDEAL OF QUEEN DRAUPADI facing 242
From the painting by Warwick Goble
THE RETURN OF THE HEROES SLAIN IN BATTLE facing 320
From the painting by Warwick Goble
DAMAYANTI AND THE SWAN facing 330
From the painting by Warwick Goble
DAMAYANTI CHOOSING A HUSBAND facing 336
From the painting by Warwick Goble
RAMA SPURNS THE DEMON LOVER facing 400
From the painting by Warwick Goble

PLATES IN MONOCHROME
Page
facing
THE CREMATION GHAT, BENARES
xxxvi
KALI facing xl
From a bronze in the Calcutta Art Gallery
facing
A VYASA, OR PUBLIC READER, RECITING THE MAHABHARATA
xlviii
INDRA facing 4
From the Indra Temple, Ellora
INTERIOR OF A TEMPLE TO VISHNU (BRINDABAN) facing 10
THE PARADISE OF INDRA facing 16
From a rock sculpture at Mâmallapuram
AGNI, THE FIRE GOD facing 20
From a painting by Nanda Lall Bose
SHIVA'S DANCE OF DESTRUCTION, ELLORA facing 26
SURYA IN HIS CHARIOT facing 32
From the Kailâsa Temple, Ellora
THE KAILASA TEMPLE OF SHIVA, ELLORA facing 40
YAMA AND SAVITRI facing 52
From a painting by Nanda Lall Bose
THE CITY OF THE GODS, PALITANA facing 58
DURGA SLAYING GIANTS AND DEMONS facing 64
From a sculpture at Mámallapuram
THE CELESTIAL FAIRIES (APSARAS) facing 68
Sculpture on a modern Hindu temple, Benares
GROUP OF PRESENT-DAY BRAHMANS facing 80
SADHUS (RELIGIOUS MENDICANTS) AT BENARES facing 82
A YOGI ON A BED OF SPIKES facing 84
An example of present-day austerities
THE BIRTH OF BRAHMA: SPRINGING FROM A LOTUS ISSUING
facing 100
FROM VISHNU
From an original Indian painting
HANUMAN facing 106
From a bronze in the Victoria and Albert Museum
THE HINDU TRINITY AT ELEPHANTA facing 120

VISHNU UPHOLDING THE UNIVERSE facing 124
From a sculpture at Mâmallapuram
KRISHNA AND THE GOPIS (HERDSMAIDS) facing 128
From a modern sculpture
BUDDHA EXPOUNDING THE LAW facing 130
THE BOAR INCARNATION OF VISHNU RAISING THE EARTH
facing 136
FROM THE DEEP
From a rock sculpture at Udayagiri
INTERIOR OF A ROCK-HEWN BUDDHIST TEMPLE (AJANTA) facing 140
LAKSHMI ARISING FROM THE SEA OF MILK facing 144
From a sculpture at Mâmallapuram
SHIVA DANCING ON TRIPURA facing 148
From a bronze in the Madras Museum
GANESA facing 150
From a sculpture in the Victoria and Albert Museum
KARTIKEYA, THE WAR GOD facing 152
From a painting by Surendra Nalh Gangoly
PARVATI, WIFE OF SHIVA facing 154
From a South Indian temple
A VAISHNAVAITE NUN READING THE RAMAYANA facing 374
THE CORONATION OF RAMA AND SITA facing 424

To My Indian Friends

INTRODUCTION
The triangular sub-continent of India is cut off from the rest of Asia by the vast
barriers of the Himalayas, the Hindu Kush, the Suleiman mountains, and the Indian
Ocean. Its population comprises about two hundred and ninety-five millions, and is of
greatest density on the fertile northern plain, which is watered by three river systems, the
Indus and its tributaries on the west, and the Ganges and Brahmaputra with their
tributaries which pour into the Bay of Bengal. South of the Vindhya mountain ranges is
the plateau of the Deccan. The climate varies from temperate on the Himalayan slopes to
tropical in southern India, and over the entire country there are two pronounced annual
seasons, the dry and the rainy.
Our interest abides in this volume chiefly with the northern plain and the people
who are familiar in varying degrees with the sacred and heroic literature passed under
review; that is, with the scenes of the early Indian civilization known as Aryan and those
numerous inheritors of Aryan traditions, the Hindus, who exceed two hundred and seven
millions of the population of India. Modern Hinduism embraces a number of cults which
are connected with the early religious doctrines of the Aryanized or Brahmanized India
of the past; it recognizes, among other things, the ancient caste system which includes
distinct racial types varying from what is known as the Aryan to the pre-Dravidian
stocks. Other religious organizations may be referred to in passing. Buddhists are chiefly
confined to Burma, Sikhs number two millions, the Mohammedans nearly sixty-three
millions, while the Parsees number roughly ninety-five thousand; less than three million
natives and half-castes are Christians.
Like Egypt, India is a land of ancient memories, but its history, or rather pre-
history, does not begin until about a thousand years after the erection was completed of
the great pyramids at Gizeh. Between 2000 B.C. and 1200 B.C. tribes of pastoral and
patriarchal peoples of Aryan speech were pouring over the north-western frontier and
settling in the Punjab. There are no written or inscribed records, or even native
traditions, of this historic migration, but we are able to follow vaguely, from the
references found in religious compositions, the gradual conquest of northern India,
which covered a period of several centuries. To what extent this invasion was racial,
rather than cultural, it is extremely difficult to discover. But no doubt can be entertained
regarding the influence exercised by the ancient military aristocracy and their religious
teachers. Certain of the Aryan gods still receive recognition in India after a lapse of over
three thousand years. This fact makes Indian mythology of special interest to the ever-
increasing number of students of comparative religion.
Indian mythology also possesses particular attractions for us on account of its
intimate association with what is known as the “Aryan problem”. Scholars of a past
generation held pronounced views on Aryan matters, and produced a considerable

literature of highly controversial character. In fact, theories regarding the Aryan
languages and the Aryan “race” are as varied as they are numerous; the wordy warfare
which occupied the greater part of the nineteenth century, was waged ever strenuously
and not infrequently with much brilliance; occasionally, however, it was not awanting in
the undesirable elements of personal feeling and national antipathy. But, happily, we
appear to have reached a time when this fascinating and important problem can be
considered dispassionately in the proper scientific spirit, and without experiencing that
unnecessary dread of having to abandon decided opinions which may have been formed
when the accumulated data had less variety and bulk than that which is now available.
This change has been brought about by the extended study of comparative religion and
the wonderful and engaging results which have attended modern-day methods of ethnic
and archæological research.
The Aryan controversy had its origin at the close of the eighteenth century, when
that distinguished Oriental scholar Sir William Jones, who acted for a period as a judge
of the Supreme Court in Bengal, drew attention to the remarkable resemblances between
the Sanskrit, Greek, Latin, German, and Celtic languages. In 1808, Schlegel published
his Language and Wisdom of the Hindus, and urged the theory that India was the home
of an ancestral race and a group of languages that were progenitors of various European
ones. Other scholars subsequently favoured Zend, the language of Persia, and transferred
the “racial beehive” to that country; rival claims were afterwards set up for Asia Minor
and the Iranian plateau.
The science of Comparative Philology was a direct product of these early
controversies; it was established in the “thirties” when Bopp published his Comparative
Grammar in which a new term, having a racial significance, was invented: he grouped
all European languages, except Basque, Magyar, Turkish, and Finnish, as “Indo-
Germanic”. After the study of Sanskrit literature revealed, however, that the Aryans
occupied but a small part of India when their sacred hymns, the Vedas, were composed,
the cradle of the Aryan race was shifted to some uncertain area beyond the Himalayan
mountains.
Max Müller, the distinguished Sanskrit authority, who in the words of an Indian
scholar “devoted his lifetime to the elucidation of the learning, literature, and religion of
ancient India”,[1] abandoned Bopp's patriotic term “Indo-Germanic” and adopted Aryan,
which he founded on the Sanskrit racial designation “Arya”. At first he accepted the
theory of an Aryan race and especially of an Aryan civilization which originated on the
Central Asian plateau, but, as will be seen, he subsequently modified his views in this
regard.
A new theory regarding the Aryans, who are now more commonly referred to as
Indo-Europeans, was strongly advocated in 1851 and later by Dr. Robert Gordon
Latham, who devoted many years to the study of ethnology and philology. He argued
that as the major part of the peoples speaking Indo-European tongues was found in
Europe, the cradle of the race might, after all, be transferred westward. This theory was

supported by the fact (among others) that the Lithuanian language was no less archaic
than Sanskrit.
The European hypothesis found in time many able supporters, and the advocates of
rival Teutonic and Celtic claims waxed eloquent and heated over the exact location of
the Aryan homeland. An industrious search was meanwhile conducted for words
common to all Aryan languages which described the natural features of the racial
“cradle”. This work of reconstruction was certainly not lacking in picturesque results, for
attractive visions were presented of Aryan Arcadias in which the simple and
contemplative ancestors of many bitter controversialists dwelt together in exemplary
unity and peace. The question of location might remain unsettled, but it was generally
agreed that the ancient people were surrounded by cows, sheep, and goats; sometimes
they rode their horses or yoked them in rough rumbling carts, and sometimes they ate
them. No asses were admitted to the fold because of their decided partiality for Central
Asian plains, which seemed quite reasonable. Trouble was occasionally caused by
wolves and bears, or, mayhap, a stray lion, but these and other worries associated with
the simple life might be compensated for by the fact that the primitive people, as one
writer[2] put it, “understood the art of drinking”. Mead, brewed from honey, was found to
be “dear to the hearts of the ancient Aryans”; had the Brahman ever forgotten his
“madhu”, the Welshman his “medhu”, or the Lithuanian his “medus”? Problems arose
regarding the ancients' knowledge of trees: it was found that “bhaga” was applied
indifferently by the family groups to the beech and the oak, and more than one ingenious
explanation was suggested to account for this apparent discrepancy. Then, suddenly,
Professor Max Müller swept into the background the rival Aryan homeland pictures,
pointing out the while that it is “almost impossible to discover any animal or any plant
that is peculiar to the north of Europe and is not found sporadically in Asia also”.
Destructive criticism proceeded apace, until now nothing has been left to us of the
ancestral Arcadia but “air, water, heat and cold”. In his review of the widely accepted
philological “evidence” regarding the Aryan homeland, Max Müller declared it to be so
pliant that it was possible “to make out a more or less plausible case for any part of the
world”. The advanced group of philologists held, indeed, that no racial centre could be
located. Ultimately “Delbrück went so far,” says Professor Ripley, “as to deny that any
single parent language ever existed in fact”.[3]
Meanwhile ethnologists and archæologists were engaged accumulating important
data. It was found that Europe had been invaded at the close of the Stone Age by a
broad-headed (brachycephalic) people, who brought no culture and even retarded the
growth of civilization in their areas of settlement. A new problem was thus presented:
were the Aryans a brachycephalic (broad-headed) or a dolichocephalic (long-headed)
people? Its solution was rendered all the more difficult when it was found that living
representatives of both racial types were peoples of Aryan speech. The idea that skull
shapes, which are associated with other distinct physical characteristics, were due to
habits of life and the quality of food which had to be masticated, was in time advanced
to discredit new methods of ethnic research, but it has since been thoroughly disproved.

In many ancient graves are found skulls which do not differ from those of modern men
and women, living under different conditions and eating different food.
Patriotic controversialists were not awanting again in dealing with the problem of
varying skull shapes. French scientists, for instance, have identified the “broad heads”,
now generally known as the Alpine race, with the ubiquitous Celts, but as present-day
Hindus are mainly “long heads”, the Aryan racial connection here suggested remains
obscure. A clue to the mystery was sought for in Asia Minor, but no satisfactory result
could be obtained there to support philological theories, because the Armenians, who are
“broad heads”, and their enemies and neighbours the Kurds, who are “long heads”, are
both peoples of Aryan speech. A scornful scientist has dismissed as a “prehistoric
romance”, the theory that the fair Scandinavian “long heads” are identical with the
brunet “long heads” of India. Both the Celtic (Alpine) and Indo-Germanic racial theories
are as inconclusive as they are diametrically in opposition.
The science of philology, which, at its inception, “dazzled and silenced all”, has
been proved to be no safe guide in racial matters. We must avoid, as Professor Ripley
says, “the error of confusing community of language with identity of race. Nationality
may often follow linguistic boundaries, but race bears no necessary relation whatever to
them.”[4]
By way of illustration, it may be pointed out in this connection that English is
spoken at the present day by, among others, the Hong Kong Chinamen, the American
Red Indians and negroes, by the natives of Ireland, Wales, Cornwall, and the Scottish
Highlands, besides the descendants of the ancient Britons, the Jutes, the Angles, the
Saxons, the Norsemen, the Danes, and the Normans in England, but all these peoples
cannot be classified in the racial sense simply as Englishmen. Similarly, the varied types
of humanity who are Aryan in speech cannot all be regarded as representatives of the
“Aryan race”, that is, if we accept the theory of an “Aryan race”, which Virchow, by the
way, has characterized as “a pure fiction”.
Max Müller, in his closing years, faced this aspect of the problem frankly and
courageously. “Aryas”, he wrote, “are those who speak Aryan languages, whatever their
colour, whatever their blood. In calling them Aryas we predicate nothing of them except
that the grammar of their language is Aryan.... I have declared again and again that if I
say Aryas, I mean neither blood, nor bones, nor hair, nor skull; I mean simply those who
speak an Aryan language. The same applies to Hindus, Greeks, Romans, Germans, Celts,
and Slavs. When I speak of these I commit myself to no anatomical characteristics. The
blue-eyed and fair-haired Scandinavians may have been conquerors or conquered, they
may have adopted the language of their darker lords or their subjects, or vice versa. I
assert nothing beyond their language when I call them Hindus, Greeks, Romans,
Germans, Celts, and Slavs, and in that sense, and in that sense only, do I say that even
the blackest Hindus represent an earlier stage of Aryan speech and thought than the
fairest Scandinavians.... To me an ethnologist who speaks of an Aryan race, Aryan blood,

Aryan eyes and hair, is as great a sinner as a linguist who speaks of a dolichocephalic
dictionary or a brachycephalic grammar.”[5]
Aryan, however, has been found to be a convenient term, and even ethnologists do
not scorn its use, although it has been applied “in a confusing variety of signification by
different philologists”. One application of it is to the language group comprising
Sanskrit, Persian, Afghan, &c. Some still prefer it to “Indo-European”, which has found
rivals in “Afro-European”, among those who connect the Aryan languages with North
Africa, and “Afro-Eurasian”, which may be regarded as universal in its racial
application, especially if we accept Darwin's theory that the Garden of Eden was located
somewhere in Africa.[6] We may think of the Aryans as we do of the British when that
term is used to include the peoples embraced by the British Empire.
In India the Aryans were from late Vedic times divided into four castes—Brahmans
(priests), Kshatriyas (kings and warriors), Vaisyas (traders, &c.), and Sudras
(aborigines).
Caste (Varna) signifies “colour”, but it is not certain whether the reference is to be
given a physical or mythological application. The first three castes were Aryans, the
fairest people; the fourth caste, that comprising the dark-skinned aborigines, was non-
Aryan. “Arya”, however, was not always used in the sense that we have been
accustomed to apply “Aryo-Indian”. In one of the sacred books of the ancient people it is
stated: “The colour of the Brahmans was white; that of the Kshatriyas red; that of the
Vaisyas yellow; and that of the Sudras black”.[7] This colour reference connects “caste”
with the doctrine of yugas, or ages of the universe (Chapter VI).
Risley, dealing with “the leading castes and tribes in Northern India, from the Bay
of Bengal to the frontiers of Afghanistan”, concludes from the data obtained from census
returns, that we are able “to distinguish two extreme types of feature and physique,
which may be provisionally described as Aryan and Dravidian. A third type, which in
some respects may be looked upon as intermediate between these two, while in other,
and perhaps the most important, points it can hardly be deemed Indian at all, is found
along the northern and eastern borders of Bengal. The most prominent characters are a
relatively short (brachycephalic) head, a broad face, a short, wide nose, very low in the
bridge, and in extreme cases almost bridgeless; high and projecting cheekbones and
eyelids, peculiarly formed so as to give the impression that the eyes are obliquely set in
the head.... This type ... may be conveniently described as Mongoloid....”[8]
According to Risley, the Aryan type is dolichocephalic (long-headed), “with
straight, finely-cut (lepto-rhine) nose, a long, symmetrical narrow face, a well-developed
forehead, regular features, and a high facial angle”. The stature is “fairly high”, and the
body is “well proportioned, and slender rather than massive”. The complexion is “a very
light transparent brown—‘wheat coloured’ is the common vernacular description—
noticeably fairer than the mass of the population”.

The Dravidian head, the same authority states, “usually inclines to be
dolichocephalic”, but “all other characters present a marked contrast to the Aryan. The
nose is thick and broad, and the formula expressing its proportionate dimensions is
higher than in any known race, except the Negro. The facial angle is comparatively low;
the lips are thick; the face wide and fleshy; the features coarse and irregular.” The stature
is lower than that of the Aryan type: “the figure is squat and the limbs sturdy. The colour
of the skin varies from very dark brown to a shade closely approaching black.... Between
these extreme types”, adds Risley, “we find a large number of intermediate groups.”[9]
Of late years ethnologists have inclined to regard the lower types represented by hill
and jungle tribes, the Veddas of Ceylon, &c., as pre-Dravidians. The brunet and long-
headed Dravidians may have entered India long before the Aryans: they resemble closely
the Brahui of Baluchistan and the Man-tse of China.
India is thus mainly long-headed (dolichocephalic). We have already seen, however,
that in northern and eastern Bengal there are traces of an infusion of Mongolian “broad
heads”; another brachycephalic element is pronounced in western India, but it is not
Mongolian; possibly we have here evidences of a settlement of Alpine stock. According
to Risley, these western broad heads are the descendants of invading Scythians,[10] but
this theory is not generally accepted.
The Eur-Asian Alpine race of broad heads are a mountain people distributed from
Hindu Kush westward to Brittany. On the land bridge of Asia Minor they are represented
by the Armenians. Their eastern prehistoric migrations is by some ethnologists believed
to be marked by the Ainus of Japan. They are mostly a grey-eyed folk, with dark hair
and abundant moustache and beard, as contrasted with the Mongols, whose facial hair is
scanty. There are short and long varieties of Alpine stock, and its representatives are
usually sturdy and muscular. In Europe these broad-headed invaders overlaid a long-
headed brunet population, as the early graves show, but in the process of time the broad
heads have again retreated mainly to their immemorial upland habitat. At the present day
the Alpine race separates the long-headed fair northern race from what is known as the
long-headed dark Mediterranean race of the south.
A slighter and long-headed brunet type is found south of Hindu Kush. Ripley has
condensed a mass of evidence to show that it is akin to the Mediterranean race.[11] He
refers to it as the “eastern branch”, which includes Afghans and Hindus. “We are all
familiar with the type,” he says, “especially as it is emphasized by inbreeding and
selection among the Brahmans.... There can be no doubt of their (the Eastern
Mediterraneans) racial affinities with our Berbers, Greeks, Italians, and Spaniards. They
are all members of the same race, at once the widest in its geographical extension, the
most populous and the most primitive of our three European types.”[12]
Professor Elliot Smith supports Professor Ripley in this connection, and includes
the Arabs with the southern Persians in the same group, but finding the terms “Hamitic”
and “Mediterranean” insufficient, prefers to call this widespread family the “Brown

race”, to distinguish its representatives from the fair Northerners, the “yellow”
Mongolians, and the “black” negroes.
North of the Alpine racial area are found the nomadic Mongolians, who are also
“broad heads”, but with distinguishing facial characteristics which vary in localities. As
we have seen, the Mongoloid features are traceable in India. Many settlers have migrated
from Tibet, but among the high-caste Indians the Mongoloid eyes and high cheek bones
occur in families, suggesting early crossment.
Another distinctive race has yet to be accounted for—the tall, fair, blue-eyed, long-
headed Northerners, represented by the Scandinavians of the present day. Sergi and other
ethnologists have classed this type as a variety of the Mediterranean race, which had its
area of localization on the edge of the snow belt on lofty plateaus and in proximity to the
Arctic circle. The theory that the distinctive blondness and great stature of the
Northerners were acquired in isolation and perpetuated by artificial selection is,
however, more suggestive than conclusive, unless we accept the theory that acquired
characteristics can be inherited. How dark eyes became grey or blue, and dark hair red or
sandy, is a problem yet to be solved.
The ancestors of this fair race are believed to have been originally distributed along
the northern Eur-Asian plateaus; Keane's blonde long-headed Chudes[13] and the Wu-
suns in Chinese Turkestan are classed as varieties of the ancient Northern stock. An
interesting problem is presented in this connection by the fair types among the ancient
Egyptians, the modern-day Berbers, and the blondes of the Atlas mountains in Morocco.
Sergi is inclined to place the “cradle” of the Northerners on the edge of the Sahara.
The broad-headed Turki and Ugrians are usually referred to as a blend of the Alpine
stock and the proto-Northerners, with, in places, Mongolian admixture.
As most of the early peoples were nomadic, or periodically nomadic, there must
have been in localities a good deal of interracial and intertribal fusion, with the result
that intermediate varieties were produced. It follows that the intellectual life of the
mingling peoples would be strongly influenced by admixture as well as by contact with
great civilizations.
It now remains for us to deal with the Aryan problem in India. Dr. Haddon
considers that the invading Aryans were “perhaps associated with Turki tribes” when
they settled in the Punjab.[14] Prior to this racial movement, the Kassites, whose origin is
obscure, assisted by bands of Aryans, overthrew the Hammurabi dynasty in Babylon and
established the Kassite dynasty between 2000 B.C. and 1700 B.C. At this period the
domesticated horse was introduced, and its Babylonian name, “the ass of the East”, is an
indication whence it came. Another Aryan invasion farther west is marked by the
establishment of the Mitanni kingdom between the area controlled by the Assyrians and
the Hittites. Its kings had names which are clearly Aryan. These included Saushatar,
Artatatama, Sutarna, and Tushratta. The latter was the correspondent in the Tel-el-
Amarna letters of his kinsmen the Egyptian Pharaohs, Amenhotep the Magnificent, and

the famous Akhenaton. The two royal houses had intermarried after the wars of
Thothmes III. It is impossible to fix the date of the rise of the Mitanni power, which held
sway for a period over Assyria, but we know that it existed in 1500 B.C. The horse was
introduced into Egypt before 1580 B.C.
It is generally believed that the Aryans were the tamers of the horse which
revolutionized warfare in ancient days, and caused great empires to be overthrown and
new empires to be formed. When the Aryans entered India they had chariots and swift
steeds.
There is no general agreement as to the date of settlement in the Punjab. Some
authorities favour 2000 B.C., others 1700 B.C.; Professor Macdonell still adheres to
1200 B.C.[15] It is possible that the infusion was at first a gradual one, and that it was
propelled by successive folk-waves. The period from the earliest migrations until about
800 or 700 B.C. is usually referred to as the Vedic Age, during which the Vedas, or more
particularly the invocatory hymns to the deities, were composed and compiled. At the
close of this Age the area of Aryan control had extended eastward as far as the upper
reaches of the Jumna and Ganges rivers. A number of tribal states or communities are
referred to in the hymns.
It is of importance to note that the social and religious organization of the Vedic
Aryans was based upon the principle of “father right”, as contrasted with the principle of
“mother right”, recognized by representative communities of the Brown race.
Like the Alpine and Mongoloid peoples, the Vedic Aryans were a patriarchal
people, mainly pastoral but with some knowledge of agriculture. They worshipped gods
chiefly: their goddesses were vague and shadowy: their earth goddess Prithivi was not a
Great Mother in the Egyptian and early European sense; her husband was the sky-god
Dyaus.
In Egypt the sky was symbolized as the goddess Nut, and the earth as the god Seb,
but the Libyans had an earth-goddess Neith. The “Queen of Heaven” was a Babylonian
and Assyrian deity. If the Brown race predominated in the Aryan blend during the Vedic
Age, we should have found the Great Mother more in prominence.
The principal Aryan deities were Indra, god of thunder, and Agni, god of fire, to
whom the greater number of hymns were addressed. From the earliest times, however,
Aryan religion was of complex character. We can trace at least two sources of cultural
influence from the earlier Iranian period.[16] The hymns bear evidence of the declining
splendour of the sublime deities Varuna and Mitra (Mithra). It is possible that the
conflicts to which references are made in some of the hymns were not unconnected with
racial or tribal religious rivalries.
Indra, as we show (Chapter I), bears resemblances to other “hammer gods”. He is
the Indian Thor, the angry giant-killer, the god of war and conquests. That his name even
did not originate in India is made evident by an inscription at Boghaz Köi, in Asia
Minor, referring to a peace treaty between the kings of the Hittites and Mitanni.

Professor Hugo Winckler has deciphered from this important survival of antiquity “In-
da-ra” as a Mitanni deity who was associated with Varuna, Mitra, and Nasatya.
No evidence has yet been forthcoming to indicate any connection between the
Aryans in Mitanni and the early settlers in India. It would appear, however, that the two
migrations represented by the widely separated areas of Aryan control, radiated from a
centre where the gods Indra, Varuna, and Mitra were grouped in the official religion. The
folk-wave which pressed towards the Punjab gave recognition to Agni, possibly as a
result of contact, or, more probably, fusion with a tribe of specialized fire-worshippers.
If we separate the Indra from the Agni, cremating worshippers, it will be of interest
to follow the ethnic clue which is thus suggested. Modern-day Hindus burn their dead in
accordance with the religious practice of the Agni worshippers in the Vedic Age. It is
doubtful, however, if all the Aryan invaders practised cremation. There are references to
burial in the “house of clay”, and Yama, god of the dead, was adored as the first man
who explored the path to the “Land of the Pitris” (Fathers) which lay across the
mountains. Professor Oldenberg considers that these burials referred to the disposal of
the bones and ashes of the dead.
Professor Macdonell and Dr. Keith, however, do not share Professor Oldenberg's
view in this connection.[17] They hold that the epithet Agni-dagdhah, “burnt with fire”,
“applies to the dead who were burned on the funeral pyre”; the other custom being burial
—An-agni-dagdhah, “not burnt with fire”. They also refer to Paroptah, “casting out”,
and Uddhitah, “Exposure of the dead”, which are expressions of doubtful meaning.
These authorities add: “Burial was clearly not rare in the Rigvedic period: a whole hymn
(x, 18) describes the ritual attending it. The dead man was buried apparently in full
attire, with his bow in his hand, and probably at one time his wife was immolated to
accompany him.... But in the Vedic period both customs appear in a modified form: the
son takes the bow from the hand of the dead man, and the widow is led away from her
dead husband by his brother or nearest kinsman. A stone is set up between the dead and
the living to separate them.”
The Persian fire-worshippers, on the other hand, did not cremate their dead, but
exposed them on “towers of silence” to be devoured by vultures, like their modern-day
representatives the Parsees, who migrated into India after displacement by the
Mohammedans. In Persia the sacred fire was called Atar,[18] and was identified with the
supreme deity Ahura-Mazda (Ormuzd).
Agni of the Vedic Age is the messenger between gods and men; he conducts the
deities to the sacrifice and the souls of the cremated dead to Paradise; he is also the twin
brother of Indra.
Now, it is of interest to note, in considering the racial significance of burial rites,
that cremation was not practised by the western representatives of the Brown race. In
pre-Dynastic Egypt the dead were interred as in Babylon,[19] with food vessels, &c.

Neolithic man in Europe also favoured crouched burials, and this practice obtained all
through the Bronze Age.
The Buriats, who are Mongols dwelling in the vicinity of Lake Baikal, still
perpetuate ancient customs, which resemble those of the Vedic Aryans, for they not only
practise cremation but also sacrifice the horse (see Chap. V). In his important study of
this remarkable people, Mr. Curtin says:[20] “The Buriats usually burn their dead;
occasionally, however, there is what is called a ‘Russian burial’, that is, the body is
placed in a coffin and the coffin is put in the ground. But generally if a man dies in the
Autumn or the Winter his body is placed on a sled and drawn by the horse which he
valued most to some secluded place in the forest. There a sort of house is built of fallen
trees and boughs, the body is placed inside the house, and the building is then
surrounded with two or three walls of logs so that no wolf or other animal can get into
it.” The horse is afterwards slain. “If other persons die during the winter their bodies are
carried to the same house. In this lonely silent place in the forest they rest through the
days and nights until the first cuckoo calls, about the ninth of May. Then relatives and
friends assemble, and without opening the house burn it to the ground. Persons who die
afterwards and during the Summer months are carried to the forest, placed on a funeral
pile, and burned immediately. The horse is killed just as in the first instance.”
When the dead are buried without being burned, the corpse is either carried on a
wagon, or it is placed upright in front of a living man on horseback so as to ride to its
last resting place. The saddle is broken up and laid at the bottom of the grave, while the
body is turned to face the south-east. In this case they also sacrifice the horse which is
believed to have “gone to his master, ready for use”.
Cremation spread throughout Europe, as we have said, in the Bronze Age. It was
not practised by the early folk-waves of the Alpine race which, according to Mosso,[21]
began to arrive after copper came into use. The two European Bronze Age burial
customs, associated with urns of the “food vessel” and “drinking cup” types, have no
connection with the practice of burning the dead. The Archæological Ages have not
necessarily an ethnic significance. Ripley is of opinion, however, that the practice of
cremation indicates a definite racial infusion, but unfortunately it has destroyed the very
evidence, of which we are most in need, to solve the problem. It is impossible to say
whether the cremated dead were “broad heads” or “long heads”.
“Dr. Sophus Müller of Copenhagen is of opinion that cremation was not practised
long before the year 1000 B.C. though it appeared earlier in the south of Europe than in
the north. On both points Professor Ridgeway of Cambridge agrees with him.”[22]
The migration of the cremating people through Europe was westward and
southward and northward; they even swept through the British Isles as far north as
Orkney. They are usually referred to by archæologists as “Aryans”; some identify them
with the mysterious Celts, whom the French, however, prefer to associate, as we have
said, with the Alpine “broad heads” especially as this type bulks among the Bretons and

the hillmen of France. We must be careful, however, to distinguish between the Aryans
and Celts of the philologists and archæologists.
It may be that these invaders were not a race in the proper sense, but a military
confederacy which maintained a religious organization formulated in some unknown
area where they existed for a time as a nation. The Normans who invaded these islands
were Scandinavians[23]; they settled in France, intermarried with the French, and found
allies among the Breton chiefs. It is possible that the cremating people similarly formed
military aristocracies when they settled in Hindustan, Mitanni, and in certain other
European areas. “Nothing is commoner in the history of migratory peoples,” says
Professor Myres,[24] “than to find a very small leaven of energetic intruders ruling and
organizing large native populations, without either learning their subjects' language or
imposing their own till considerably later, if at all.” The archæological evidence in this
connection is of particular value. At a famous site near Salzburg, in upper Austria, over a
thousand Bronze Age graves were discovered, just over half of which contained unburnt
burials. Both methods of interment were contemporary in this district, “but it was
noticed that the cremated burials were those of the wealthier class, or of the dominant
race.”[25] We find also that at Hallstatt “the bodies of the wealthier class were reduced to
ashes”.[26] In some districts the older people may have maintained their supremacy. At
Watsch and St. Margaret in Carniola “a similar blending of the two rites was observed ...
the unburnt burials being the richer and more numerous”.[27] The descent of the Achaens
into Greece occurred at a date earlier than the rise of the great Hallstatt civilization.
According to Homeric evidence they burned their dead; “though the body of Patroklos
was cremated,” however, “the lords of Mycenae were interred unburnt in richly
furnished graves”.[28] In Britain the cremating people mingled with their predecessors
perhaps more intimately than in other areas where there were large states to conquer. A
characteristic find on Acklam Wold, Yorkshire, may be referred to. In this grave “a pile
of burnt bones was in close contact with the legs of a skeleton buried in the usual
contracted position, and they seemed to have been deposited while yet hot, for the knees
of the skeleton were completely charred. It has been suggested in cases like this, or
where an unburnt body is surrounded by a ring of urn burials, the entire skeleton may be
those of chiefs or heads of families, and the burnt bones those of slaves, or even wives,
sacrificed at the funeral. The practice of suttee (sati) in Europe rests indeed on the
authority of Julius Cæsar, who represents such religious suicides as having, at no remote
period from his own, formed a part of the funeral rites of the Gaulish chiefs; and also
states that the relatives of a deceased chieftain accused his wives of being accessory to
his death, and often tortured them to death on that account.”[29] If this is the explanation,
the cremating invaders constituted the lower classes in Gaul and Britain, which is
doubtful. The practice of burning erring wives, however, apparently prevailed among the
Mediterranean peoples. In an Egyptian folk-tale a Pharaoh ordered a faithless wife of a
scribe to be burned at the stake.[30] One of the Ossianic folk tales of Scotland relates that
Grainne, wife of Finn-mac-Coul, who eloped with Diarmid, was similarly dealt with.[31]
The bulk of the archæological evidence seems to point to the invaders, who are usually

referred to as “Aryans” having introduced the cremation ceremony into Europe. Whence
came they? The problem is greatly complicated by the evidence from Palestine, where
cremation was practised by the hewers of the great artificial caves which were
constructed about 3000 B.C.[32] As cremation did not begin in Crete, however, until the
end of period referred to as “Late Minoan Third” (1450-1200 B.C.)[33] it may be that the
Palestinian burials are much later than the construction of the caves.

1 Photo. Johnson and Hoffmann
THE CREMATION GHAT, BENARES

It seems reasonable to suppose that the cremation rite originated among a nomadic
people. The spirits of the dead were got rid of by burning the body: they departed, like
the spirit of Patroklos, after they had received their “meed of fire”. Burial sites were
previously regarded as sacred because they were haunted by the spirits of ancestors (the
Indian Pitris = “fathers”). A people who burned their dead, and were therefore not bound
by attachment to a tribal holy place haunted by spirits, were certainly free to wander. The
spirits were transferred by fire to an organized Hades, which appears to have been
conceived of by a people who had already attained to a certain social organization and
were therefore capable of governing the communities which they subdued. When they
mingled with peoples practising other rites and professing different religious beliefs,
however, the process of racial fusion must have been accompanied by a fusion of beliefs.
Ultimately the burial customs of the subject race might prevail. At any rate, this appears
to have been the case in Britain, where, prior to the Roman Age, the early people

achieved apparently an intellectual conquest of their conquerors; the practice of the
cremation rite entirely vanished.
We have gone far afield to find a clue to assist towards the solution of the Aryan
problem in India. The evidence accumulated is certainly suggestive, and shows that the
conclusions of the early philologists have been narrow in the extreme. If the long-headed
Kurds are, as Ripley believes, the descendants of the Mitanni raiders, then the Aryans of
history must be included in the Brown race. As, however, cremation was not practised by
the Berbers, the Babylonians, the early Cretans, or other representatives of the ancient
brunet dolichocephalic peoples, it may be that the custom, which still lingers among the
Mongolian Buriats, was not in the narrow sense of Aryan origin. It may have been first
practised among an unknown tribe of fire-worshippers, who came under the influence of
a great teacher like Zoroaster. We cannot overlook in this connection the possibility of an
individual origin for a new and revolutionary system of religious doctrines. Buddhism,
for instance, originated with Buddha.
As we have said, the Vedic religion of the Aryans in India was characterized by the
worship of male deities, the goddesses being of secondary and even slight importance. A
religious revolution, however, occurred during the second or Brahmanical Age—the age
of priestly ascendancy. Fresh invasions had taken place and the Aryans were divided into
tribal groups of Westerners and Easterners, on either side of a central power in
Madhyadesa, the “Middle Country” which extended between the upper reaches of the
Saraswati and the Ganges and the Jumna rivers. The Westerners included the peoples of
the Punjab and the north-western frontier, and the Easterners the kingdoms of Kasi
(Benares) and Maghadha as well as Kosala and Videha, which figure prominently in the
Ramáyana epic, where the kings are referred to as being of the “Solar race”. The Middle
Kingdom was the centre of Brahmanical culture and influence: it was controlled by those
federated tribes, the Kuru Panchalas, with whom were fused the Bháratas of the “Lunar
race”. It is believed that the military aristocracy of the “Middle Country” were late
comers who arrived by a new route and thrust themselves between the groups of early
settlers.[34] The Bharatas worshipped a goddess Bharati who was associated with the
Saraswati river on the banks of which the tribe had for a period been located. Saraswati
became the wife of Brahma, the supreme god, and it would seem that she had a tribal
significance.
If the Bharatas of the “Lunar race” worshipped the moon and rivers, it is possible
that they belonged to the Brown race. The folk-religion of the tribe would be perpetuated
by the people even although their priests became speculative thinkers like the unknown
authors of the Upanishads. It is significant to note, therefore, that the goddesses
ultimately came into as great prominence in India as in Egypt. This change took place
during the obscure period prior to the revival of Brahmanism. In the sixth century before
the Christian era Buddhism had origin, partly as a revolt of the Kshatriya (aristocratic)
class against priestly ascendancy, and the new faith spread eastward where Brahmanic
influence was least pronounced. When the influence of Buddhism declined, the Pantheon
is found to have been revolutionized and rendered thoroughly Mediterranean in

character. The Vedic gods had in the interval suffered eclipse; they were subject to the
greater personal gods Brahma, with Vishnu and Shiva, each of whom had a goddess for
wife. Brahma, as we have said, had associated with him the river deity Saraswati of the
Bharatas; the earth goddess, Lakshmi, was the wife of Vishnu; she rose, however, from
the Ocean of Milk. But the most distinctive and even most primitive goddesses were
linked with Shiva, the Destroyer. The goddess Durga rivalled Indra as a deity of war.
Kali, another form of Durga, was as vengeful and bloodthirsty as the Scottish Cailleach,
or the Egyptian Hathor, who, as the earlier Sekhet, rejoiced in accomplishing the
slaughter of the enemies of Ra.[35] Kali, as we shall see (Chapter VIII) replaced the
Vedic king of the gods as a successful demon slayer. As the Egyptian Ra went forth to
restrain Hathor, so did Shiva hasten to the battlefield, flooded by gore, to prevail upon
his spouse Kali to spare the remnant of her enemies.

2

KALI
From a bronze in the Calcutta Art
Gallery

The rise of the goddesses may have been due in part to the influence of Dravidian
folk-religion. This does not, however, vitiate the theory that moon, water, and earth

worship was not unconnected with the ascendancy of the Brown race in India. The
Dravidian brunet long heads were, as we have said, probably represented in the pre-
Aryan, as well as the post-Vedic folk-waves, which mingled with pre-Dravidian stocks.
Mr. Crooke inclines to the view that the Aryan conquest was more moral and intellectual
than racial.[36] The decline of the patriarchal religion of the Vedic military aristocracy
may thus be accounted for; the religious practices of the earlier people might ultimately
have attained prominence in fusion with imported ideas. If the Aryan racial type was
distinctive, as it appears to have been, in colour at any rate, the predominant people who
flourished when the hymns were composed, may have greatly declined in numbers
owing to the ravages of disease which in every new country eliminates the unfit in the
process of time. Even if Aryan conquest was more racial in character than Mr. Crooke
will allow, the physical phenomena of the present day can be accounted for in this way,
due allowance being made, of course, for the crossment of types. In all countries which
have sustained the shock of invasion, the tendency to revert to the aboriginal type is very
marked. At any rate, this is the case in Egypt and Crete as present-day evidence shows.
In Great Britain, which was invaded by the broad heads of the Bronze Age, the long-
headed type is once again in the majority; a not inconsiderable proportion of our people
show Stone Age (Mediterranean) physical characteristics.
In this connection it is of interest to refer to immemorial beliefs and customs which
survive in representative districts in Britain and India where what may be called pre-
Aryan influences are most pronounced. A people may change their weapons and their
language time and again, and yet retain ancient modes of thought. In Devon, which the
philologists claim to be largely Celtic like Cornwall, the folk-lore shows marked
affinities with that of Ireland, Wales, and Scotland, suggesting the survival of ancient
Mediterranean racial influence, for much of what we call Celtic links with what belongs
to ancient Greece and the Egyptian Delta. Mr. Gomme has shown[37] in an interesting
summary of recorded folk-practices that the “ram feast” of Devon resembles closely in
essential details similar ceremonies in ancient Greece and modern India. At the
beginning of May the people of Devon were wont to sacrifice a ram lamb to the deity of
waters. The animal was tied to a pillar, its throat was cut, and young men scrambled to
obtain pieces of its flesh for girls. The devourer was assured of good luck during the
year. After the ceremony, dancing, wrestling, and drinking were indulged in. A
comparison is drawn between this and similar rites among the ancient Semites and
ancient Greeks. In India a Dravidian Paria acts as the temporary village priest. He uses a
whip like the “gad whip” in Lincolnshire, and kills the lamb by tearing its throat with his
teeth. A scramble takes place for the flesh, the people circulate the village, as some
communities in our own country still perpetuate the ceremony of “riding the marches” of
ancient burghs; then universal licence prevails. Similarly law was suspended at the
ancient Scottish Hallowe'en celebrations; in some districts even in our own day
Hallowe'en and New Year practical jokes and rowdyism is still prevalent. Herodotus
refers to the universal licence and debauchery which characterized the Isis festival in
Egypt.

A remarkable feature of post-Vedic religion in ancient India is the prominence
given to the doctrine of metempsychosis (transmigration of souls) and the conception of
the yugas or ages of the universe.
In the Rigveda the soul of the dead proceeds at once, or at any rate after burial,
towards the next world. In one passage only is it spoken of “as departing to the waters or
the plants”, and this reference, Professor Macdonell suggests,[38] “may contain the germs
of the theory” of transmigration. In the speculative prose treatises, the Upanishads,
which were composed in the Middle Country, the doctrine of metempsychosis is fully
expounded. It does not follow, however, that it originated in India although it may have
obtained there unrecognized by the priestly poets who composed the hymns to the
deities, long before it became an essential tenet of orthodox or official religion. Other
representative communities of the Brown race professed this doctrine which appears to
have evolved from the vague belief shared by more than one primitive race, that the
souls of the dead, and especially of dead children, were ever on the outlook for suitable
mothers. Even in Central Australia a particular tribe has perpetuated “the germs of the
theory”, which may also be traced in the widespread custom of visiting standing stones
at a certain phase of the moon to perform a ceremony so that offspring may be obtained.
The Upanishadic doctrine of metempsychosis is less likely to have been so much
coincidental as racial when we find that it is restricted to those areas where definite
racial influences must have been at work. The Greeks believed in transmigration. So did
also a section of the Egyptian people as Herodotus has stated and as is proved by
references in folk-tales, temple chants and inscriptions.[39] As we show (Chapter VI), the
Irish conception closely resembled the Indian, and it also obtained among the Gauls.
There is no trace, however, that the Teutonic peoples were acquainted with the fully
developed doctrine of metempsychosis; the souls of the dead departed immediately to
Valhal, Hela, or the loathsome Nifelhel.
The doctrine of the world's ages is common to the Indian, Greek, and Irish
mythologies, but is not found in Teutonic mythology either.[40] There are indications that
it may have at one time obtained in Egypt, for there was an Age of Ra, then a deluge, an
Age of Osiris, an Age of Set, &c.; but the doctrine, like other conceptions in Egypt,
probably suffered from the process of priestly transformation in the interests of sectarian
propaganda.
In India the ages are called the yugas, and this term has a totally different meaning
in Vedic and Upanishadic times. Evidently the Bharata invasion and the establishment of
the middle country power of their allies, the Kuru-Panchalas, was not unconnected with
the introduction of the doctrines of metempsychosis and the yugas, and the prominence
subsequently given to the worship of female deities.
If this theory can be established, we are confronted by an extremely interesting
problem. It would appear that the mythology of the Vedic period bears a close
resemblance to Teutonic, while that of the post-Vedic period connects more intimately
with Greek, Celtic, and Egyptian. Assuming that the Vedic people were influenced by

what we recognize as Teutonic modes of thought, do we find here proof that the Aryans
came from Europe? In Chapter II it is shown that the Norse Heimdal displays points of
resemblance to Agni. The former, however, has been developed almost beyond
recognition as a fire god, and it is evident that we find him in northern Europe in his
latest and most picturesque form. On the other hand, there is no dubiety about the origin
of the Vedic Agni.
The evidence afforded by archæology is highly suggestive in this connection.
Scandinavia received its culture from the south at a comparatively late period in the
Bronze Age, and it certainly exercised no intellectual influence in Europe in earlier
times. Bronze is, of course, of less ethnic significance than beliefs, but it is difficult to
believe, at the same time, that an isolated and poorly armed people could have imposed
its intellectual culture over a wide area without having received anything in return. It is
more probable that the northern Germanic peoples were subjected to the same influences
which are traceable in their mythology and in the Vedic hymns, from a common source,
and there may be more than mere mythology in the persistent tradition that the ancestors
of the Teutons immigrated from Asia led by Odin. We need not assume that the
movement was so much a racial as a cultural one, which emanated from a particular area
where religious conceptions were influenced by particular habits of life and
“immemorial modes of thought”. Among the settled and agricultural peoples of the
Brown race, the development of religious ideas followed different lines, and were
similarly controlled by early ideas which sprang from different habits and experiences.
In the opening chapters we present various phases of Aryan life and religion in
India, beginning with the worship of Indra, and concluding with the early stages of
modern Hinduism. From the ancient tribal struggles of the Middle Country accumulated
the hero songs which received epic treatment in the Mahábhárata, while the traditions of
the “Easterners” were enshrined in the Rámáyana. Although neither of these great works
can be regarded as historical narratives, they contain a mass of historical matter which
throws much light on the habits and customs and beliefs of the early peoples.
These epics were utilized by Brahmanical compilers for purposes of religious
propaganda, and survive to us mainly as sacred books. In our pages we have given
prominence to the heroic narrative which remains embedded in the mass of doctrinal
treatises and mythological interpolations. The miraculous element is somewhat toned
down in the accounts of conflicts, and the more dramatic phases of the heroic stories are
presented in as full detail as space permits, so as to afford our readers glimpses of
ancient life in northern India at a time when Vedic religion still held sway. This applies
especially to the Mahábhárata, the kernel of which, no doubt, contains the hero songs of
the Bharata and other tribes. The mythical conflicts of the Rámáyana appeal less to
western minds than its purely human episodes. We cannot help being impressed by the
chivalrous character of the leading heroes, the high sense of honour displayed by the
princes, and the obedience shown by sons to their parents. We may weary of Rama's
conflicts with giants and demons, but will long remember him as the child who
pronounced his name as “'Ama” and cried for the moon, or sat on his father's knee at

meetings of the State Council. Our interest will also abide with him as a lover and a
faithful husband who suffered wrong. His brothers are noble and heroic characters,
worthy of Shakespeare. But even the Bard of Avon never depicted more wonderful and
fascinating women than the heroines of the Mahábhárata and Rámáyana. Our gallery
includes, among others, the noble and self-sacrificing Savitri, who rescued her husband
from the clutches of death by exercise of her strong love and devotion; the faithful and
virtuous Sita, and the sorrowful and constant Damayantí, and beautiful Shakuntalá. In
western literature romance usually ends with marriage; in India the devotion of wives is
of more account than the yearnings of love-smitten Juliets on moonlight nights.
Another aspect of Sanskrit literature is the feeling of the poets for Nature. These
voluminous writers revelled in the luxuriant loveliness and splendour of Indian forests,
and the charms of gleaming valleys and serene, snow-capped mountains; even the gods
loved to hear the hum of insects and the songs of melodious birds, and, like mortals, to
gather flowers of sweet scents and brilliant colours. Hundreds of songs were sung in
praise of the lotus blooms that gemmed the clear waters of lakes and ponds, and Paradise
was pictured as a jungle of beauty, fanned by soft winds, radiant with blossoms, and ever
vocal with music and song. To illustrate this phase of India's classic literature, we
reproduce at length the representative story of Nala with much of its poetic details.
The civilization revealed by the narrative poems was of no mean order. The ancient
Aryans were chivalrous knights. No such barbaric incident occurs in the Mahábhárata
battles as when in the Iliad the victorious Achilles drags behind his chariot the body of
the slain Hector. When Arjuna, the Indian Achilles, slays Karna, the Indian Hector, he
honours his fallen foe and performs those rites at the funeral pyre which assures the dead
hero immortal bliss in Paradise. When, again, Arjuna mortally wounds Bhishma, he
procures water to quench the thirst of his dying opponent. Even the villains are not
without their redeeming qualities. Duryodhana of the Mahábhárata, who consents to the
slaughter of his sleeping rivals, dies with grief because the innocent children of his
enemies were slain. Rávana, the demon king of Ceylon, touches us in the Rámáyana by
his grief for his son, who was slain fighting against Laksmana, brother of Rama.
To appreciate fully the sacred and romantic literature of India, we should follow the
advice of Robert Louis Stevenson. “To learn aright from any teacher,” he wrote, “we
must first of all, like a historical artist, think ourselves into sympathy with his position.”
And if in endeavouring to understand the religious conceptions of the ancient forest
sages, we, at times, find ourselves in difficulties, it may be that “if a saying is hard to
understand, it is because we are thinking of something else”—we are looking on India
with European eyes and with European prejudices. “There is always”, said Stevenson, “a
ruling spirit behind the code of rules, an attitude, a relation, a point of the compass, in
virtue of which we conform or dissent.”[41]
We are confident that our readers who peruse with sympathy and, we hope, with
enjoyment, the chapters which follow, will feel themselves drawn closer than hitherto to
the millions of our fellow subjects in the great dependency of the British Empire, by

whom Rama and Yudhishthira are regarded as ideal types of strong manhood, and Savitri
and Sita as perfect women and exemplary lovers and wives.

3

A VYASA, OR PUBLIC READER, RECITING THE MAHABHARATA

FOOTNOTES:
[1] Romesh C. Dutt's Ramáyana dedication.
[2] Rydberg's Teutonic Mythology.
[3] The Races of Europe, W. Z. Ripley, p. 481.
[4] The Races of Europe, W. Z. Ripley, p. 17.
[5] Biographies of Words and the Home of the Aryas, pp. 120 and 245.
[6] The Descent of Man, Charles Darwin, chap. vi, p. 155 (1889 ed.), and The Ancient
Egyptians, G. Elliot Smith, pp. 63, 64 (1911).
[7] Muir's Original Sanskrit Texts, vol. 1, p. 140.
[8] The Tribes and Castes of Bengal, H. H. Risley, vol. 1, xxxi.
[9] ibid. xxxii-xxxiii.
[10] The People of India, H. H. Risley, p. 59.
[11] The Races of Europe, W. Z. Ripley, 450 et seq.

[12] The Races of Europe, W. Z. Ripley, p. 451.
[13] Man, Past and Present, A. H. Keane, p. 270.
[14] The Wanderings of Peoples, A. C. Haddon, p. 21.
[15] Vedic Index of Names and Subjects (1912), p. viii.
[16] A convenient term to refer to the unknown area occupied by the Vedic Aryans before
they invaded India.
[17] Vedic Index of Names and Subjects, A. A. Macdonell and A. B. Keith, Vol. I, pp. 8, 9
(1912).
[18] Compared with the Latin atrium, “the room that contained the hearthfire”. Agni is
cognate with the Latin ignis, cf. Lithuanian, ugnis szwenta, “holy fire”—Early Religious
Poetry of Persia, Professor Moulton, pp. 38, 39.
[19] The theory that certain Babylonian graves show traces of cremation has been
abandoned.—A History of Sumer and Akkad, L. W. King, pp. 20, 21 (1910).
[20] A Journey in Southern Siberia, Jeremiah Curtin, p. 101.
[21] The Dawn of Mediterranean Civilization, A. Mosso, London Trans., 1910.
[22] British Museum Guide to the Antiquities of the Bronze Age, pp. 23, 24.
[23] Associated, some authorities urge, with Germans from the mouth of the Elbe.
[24] The Dawn of History, J. L. Myres, p. 199.
[25] British Museum Guide to the Antiquities of the Bronze Age, p. 98.
[26] British Museum Guide to the Antiquities of the Early Iron Age, p. 8.
[27] ibid. p. 6.
[28] ibid. p. 8.
[29] British Museum Guide to the Antiquities of the Bronze Age, pp. 16, 17.
[30] Egyptian Myth and Legend, p. 143.
[31] Campbell's West Highland Tales, vol. iii, p. 55.
[32] A History of Civilization in Palestine, R. A. S. Macalister.
[33] The Discoveries in Crete, Professor R. M. Burrows, p. 100. Dating according to
Crete the Forerunner of Greece, C. H. and H. B. Hawes, p. xiv.
[34] Vedic Index of Names and Subjects.
[35] See Egyptian Myth and Legend.
[36] The North-Western Provinces of India, 1897, p. 60.
[37] Ethnology in Folklore, George Laurence Gomme, p. 34 et seq.
[38] A History of Sanskrit Literature, p. 115.
[39] See Egyptian Myth and Legend.
[40] The “Golden Age” of the gods, and the regeneration of the world after Ragnarok, do
not refer to the doctrine of the world's ages as found in other mythologies.
[41] Lay Morals.

INDIAN MYTH AND LEGEND

CHAPTER I
Indra, King of the Gods
Types of Hammer Gods—The Aryan Indra—Chinese World Shaper—Scottish Hunting Deity—
Egyptian Artisan God—Greek and Roman Thunder Gods—Thor—Hittite, Assyrian, and other types—A
Wail from Palestine—Babylonian Influence—Indra's Indian Character—A Nature Myth—Drought Demon
slain—Gods and Demons in conflict—Origin of Indra's Thunderbolt—Demons' plot to destroy Universe—
Babylonian Creation Myth—How Indra Shaped the World—Elfin Artisans in India, Egypt, and Germania—
Babylonian Artisan God—Indra the Harvest God—The God of Battle—Comparison with Thor—Aryan
Cattle Lifters—Indra's Queen and Attendants.

The ancient Eur-Asian “hammer god”, bearing the tribal name of Indra,
accompanied the earliest invading bands of hunting and pastoral Aryans, who hailed
with joy the “fresh woods and pastures new” of the Punjab, the green country of “Five
Rivers”. This deity of wanderers and invaders was already of great antiquity and wide
distribution; his attributes were in accord with the habits and ideals of his worshippers;
they multiplied with the discoveries of man and were ever influenced by the conditions
prevailing in new areas of localization. He was the Thunderer who brought rain to
quicken dried-up pasture lands; he was the god of fertility, and he became the corn spirit;
he was “the friend of man”; he was the artisan of the Universe which he shaped with his
hammer, the dragon slayer, the giant killer, the slaughterer of enemies, the god of war.
His racial significance must ever remain obscure. We cannot identify his original home,
or even fix with certainty the archæological period in which he first took definite shape.
It is possible that he may have been invoked and propitiated by Neolithic, or even by
Palæolithic, flint knappers who struck fire from stone long ere they suspected the
existence of metal; the primitive hunting and pastoral wanderers may have conceived of
a thunder deity engaged in splintering the hills with his stone hammer, and fighting
demons in the rude manner in which they themselves contended against beasts of prey.
Memories of the Stone Age cling to the hammer god. Indra's bolt was “the all-dreaded
thunderstone” of Shakespeare's lyric; until recently Palæolithic and Neolithic artifacts
were reputed to be “elf bolts” and “thunder bolts” which fell from the sky; in
Scandinavian folklore “the flint hills” are the fragments of the weapon wielded by the
thunder giant Hrungner. The bolt or hammer ultimately became an axe; and according to
the modern Greeks, lightning flashes are caused by the blows of the “sky axe”
(astropeléki); Scottish Gaelic retains an immemorial reference to the “thunder ball”
(peleir-tarnainaich).
The hammer god's close association with hilly countries suggests that he was first
worshipped on the steppes and then distributed by the nomads whose migrations were
propelled by changing climatic conditions. He is found as far east as China, where, as
P'an Ku, the dwarfish “first man”, he smites primeval rocks with his thunder hammer
while engaged in the work of shaping the hills; he is found as far west as Scotland,

where, as the hunting giant Finn-mac-Coul, “in height sixty feet”, he strikes with his
hammer, “Ord na Feinne”, such mighty blows on his shield that he is heard by his
followers in Lochlann (Scandinavia). From ancient Egypt come distant echoes of the
world artisan Ptah, now a dwarf and anon a giant, who hammers out the copper sky,
suggesting the presence in Memphis of early Asian settlers at the very dawn of history.
In southern Europe the deity is Zeus-pater (Jupiter), the sublime wielder of the
thunderbolt; in northern Europe he is lusty Thor, hurling Mjolner through the air against
Jotuns, or cleaving valleys with it in the mountain range which he mistook for the giant
Skrymer. We find the hammer god as Tarku among the Hittites; he is Indra in Mitanni as
in the Punjab; he is Rammon, or Adad, who is carried aloft in triumph by the soldiers of
Assur-banipal, the Assyrian Emperor; he is remembered in Palestine by the wail of
Naaman, who cried: “When my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship
there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon: when I
bow down myself in the house of Rimmon, the Lord pardon thy servant in this
thing....”[42] The thunder god is also known in Babylon, which received many of its
settlers from the hills of Elam and where Kassites, associated with Aryans, established a
dynasty after successful invasion, prior to the discovery of the Punjab. The authorities
are agreed that Aryan culture shows traces of Babylonian influence; it does not follow,
however, that Indra is of Babylonian origin.
But although his name, which has been deciphered as “In-da-ra” at Boghaz-Köi in
Asia Minor, may belong to the early Iranian period, the Vedic “King of the gods”
assumed a distinctly Indian character after localization in the land of the “Five Rivers”;
he ultimately stepped from his chariot, drawn by the steeds of the Aryan horse tamers,
and mounted an elephant; his Heaven, called Swarga, which is situated on the summit of
Mount Meru, eclipses Olympus and Valhal by reason of its dazzling Oriental splendour;
his combats are reflections of the natural phenomena of Hindustan.
When the hot Indian summer draws to a close, the whole land is parched and athirst
for rain; rivers are low and many hill streams have dried up; man and beast are weary
and await release in the breathless enervating atmosphere; they are even threatened by
famine. Then dense masses of cloud gather in the sky; the tempest bellows, lightnings
flash and thunder peals angrily and loud; rain descends in a deluge; once again torrents
pour down from the hills and rivers become swollen and turgid. Indra has waged his
battle with the Drought Demons, broken down their fortress walls, and released the
imprisoned cow-clouds which give nourishment to his human “friends”; the withered
pastures become green with generous and rapid growth, and the rice harvest follows.
According to Vedic myth, Indra achieved his first great victory immediately after
birth. Vritra, “the encompasser”, the Demon of Drought, was holding captive in his
mountain fortress the cloud-cattle which he had harried in the approved manner of the
Aryan raiders.[43] Mankind entreated the aid of the gods, “the shining ones, the world
guardians”:

Who will take pity? Who will bring refreshment?

Who will come nigh to help us in distress?
Counsels the thoughts within our hearts are counselling,
Wishes are wished and soar towards the highest—
O none but them, the shining ones, are merciful,
My longing wings itself towards the Eternals.

4

INDRA
From the Indra Temple, Ellora

Indra arose heroically to do battle for the sacrificers. Impulsively he seized the
nectar of the gods, called Soma, and drank a deep draught of that intoxicating juice.
Then he snatched up his thunderstone which had been fashioned by the divine artisan
Twashtri, who resembles the Germanic Mimer, the “wonder smith”. His “favourite
bays”, named the Bold and the Brown, were yoked in his golden chariot by his
attendants and followers, the youthful Maruts.
Now, at the very beginning, Indra, the golden child, became the king of the three
worlds. He it was who gave the air of life; he gave strength also. All the shining gods
revered him and obeyed his commands. “His shadow is immortality; his shadow is
death.”

The Maruts, the sons of red Rudra, were the spirits of tempest and thunder. To each
of their chariots were yoked two spotted deer and one swift-footed, never-wearying red
deer as leader. They were stalwart and courageous youths, “full of terrible designs like to
giants”; on their heads were golden helmets and they had golden breastplates, and wore
bright skins on their shoulders; their ankles and arms were decked with golden bracelets.
The Maruts were always strongly armed with bows and arrows and axes, and especially
with gleaming spears. All beings feared those “cloud shakers” when they hastened forth
with their lightning spears which “shattered cattle like the thunderstone”; they were wont
to cleave cloud-rocks and drench the earth with quickening showers.
When Indra drove forth to attack the Drought Demon, the “hastening Maruts”
followed him, shouting with loud voices: in “a shower” were the Maruts “let loose”;
they dashed towards the imprisoned cows of the clouds and “chased them aloft”.
The dragon Vritra roared when Indra drew nigh; whereat heaven shook and the
gods retreated. Mother Earth, the goddess Prithivi (prit´hi-vee), was troubled regarding
her golden son. But Indra advanced boldly with the roaring Maruts; he was inspired by
the hymns of the priests; he had drunken deeply of Soma; he was strengthened by the
sacrifices offered on earth's altars; and he wielded the thunderstone.
The Drought Demon deemed itself invulnerable, but Indra cast his weapon and
soon discovered the vulnerable parts of its writhing body. He slew the monster; it lay
prone before him; the torrents burst forth and carried it away to the sea of eternal
darkness. Then Indra rejoiced and cried out:

I have slain Vritra, O ye hast'ning Maruts;
I have grown mighty through my own great vigour;
I am the hurler of the bolt of Thunder—
For man flow freely now the gleaming waters.

On earth the worshippers of the god were made glad; the Rishi hymned his praises:

I will extol the manly deeds of Indra:
The first was when the Thunder stone he wielded
And smote the Dragon; he released the waters,
He oped the channels of the breasted mountains.

He smote the dragon Vritra in its fortress—
Twashtri had shaped for him the thunder weapon—
Then rushing freely like to bellowing cattle
The gladsome waters to the sea descended.

Bull-spirited did Indra choose the Soma,
He drank its juices from the triple ladles;
Then clutched the Bounteous One his thunder weapon,
And fiercely smote the first-born of the Dragons.

The smitten monster fell amidst the torrents,
That pause nor stay, for ever surging onward;
Then Vritra covered by the joyful billows
Was carried to the darksome deeps of Ocean.

—Rigveda, i. 32.
A post-Vedic version of the encounter between Indra and the demon Vritra is given
in the “Vana Parva” section of Mahābhārata. Although it is coloured by the change
which, in the process of time, passed over the religious beliefs of the Aryans, it retains
some features of the original myth which are absent in the Vedic hymns. It should be
understood that, at the period referred to, the belief obtained that the gods derived their
powers from the saintly Rishis,[44] who fed them with sacrifices and underwent terrible
penances, which enabled them to support or destroy the Universe at will.
It is related that in the Krita Age (the first Age of the Universe) a host of Dānāvas
(giants and demons) were so strongly armed that they were invincible in battle. They
selected the dragon Vritra as their leader, and waged war against the gods, whom they
scattered in all directions.
Realizing that they could not regain their power until they accomplished the death
of Vritra, the Celestials appeared before their Grandsire, the Supreme Being, Brahma,
the incarnation of the Soul of the Universe. Brahma instructed them to obtain the bones
of a Rishi named Dadhicha, from which to construct a demon-slaying weapon. So the
gods visited the Rishi and bowed down before him, and begged the boon according to
Brahma's advice.
Said Dadhicha: “O ye gods, I will renounce my body for your benefit.”
Then the Rishi gave up his life, and from his bones the artisan god, Twashtri,
shaped Indra's great weapon, which is called Vajra.[45]
Twashtri spake to Indra and said: “With this, the best of weapons, O exalted one,
reduce that fierce foe of the gods to ashes! And, having slain the foe, rule thou happily
the entire domain of heaven, O chief of the celestials, with those that follow thee.”[46]
Then Indra led the gods against the mighty host. They found that Vritra was
surrounded by dreaded Danavas, who resembled mountain peaks. A terrible conflict was
waged, but once again the gods were put to flight. Then Indra saw Vritra growing bolder,
and he became dejected. But the Supreme Being protected him and the gods endowed
him with their strength, so that he became mightier than before. Thereupon Vritra was
enraged, and roared loudly and fiercely, so that the heavens shook and the earth trembled
with fear. Deeply agitated, Indra flung his divine weapon, which slew the leader of the
Danavas. But Indra, thinking the demon was still alive, fled from the field in terror to
seek shelter in a lake. The Celestials, however, perceived that Vritra had been slain, and
they rejoiced greatly and shouted the praises of Indra. Then, rallying once more, the gods
attacked the panic-stricken Danavas, who turned and fled to the depths of ocean. There

in the fathomless darkness they assembled together, and began to plot how they would
accomplish the destruction of the three worlds.[47]
At length the dread conspirators resolved to destroy all the Rishis who were
possessed of knowledge and ascetic virtue, because the world was supported by them.
So they made the ocean their abode, raising billows high as hills for their protection, and
they began to issue forth from their fortress to make attacks on the mighty saints.
In the Babylonian Story of Creation the female dragon Tiawath (Tiamat), whose
name signifies “the sea”,[47] desired to possess the world, and plotted against the gods
with her horde of giant serpents, “raging dogs, scorpion men, fish men, and other terrible
beings”. The gods then selected Belus (Bel-Merodach) as their leader, and proclaimed
him their king. He slew Tiawath and covered the heavens with one part of her body, and
fashioned the earth with the other half. Then he set the moon and the stars in the sky, and
afterwards created man: “he divided the darkness, separated the heavens from the earth,
and reduced the universe to order”.[48] The sun was the offspring of the moon.
The Indian Vedic and Epic dragon-slaying stories have evidently no connection,
however, with a lost Creation myth. It is possible that they are part of the floating
material from which Babylonian mythology was framed. At the same time Babylonian
influences may not have been absent in the post-Vedic Age. Indra bears points of
resemblance to Bel-Merodach, but he is not a Creator in the sublime sense; he is rather
an artisan god like the Chinese P'an Ku, the lonely hammerman, and the Egyptian Ptah,
who acquired a potter's wheel, in addition to his hammer, in the Nile valley.
Indra fashioned the universe in the simple manner that the early Aryans built their
wooden houses.[49] How he obtained the requisite material puzzled the Vedic poets. It
may be that there was a World Tree, however, like the great ash Ygdrasil of Teutonic
mythology. After measuring space with the sun, Indra set up four corner posts and
constructed the world walls; the roof was the cloud-thatched sky. The wide doors of the
world opened to the east, and every morning they were opened to admit the sun, which
Indra flung at evening into the darkness as a Neolithic man may have flung out a house
torch. These doors are the “gates”, celebrated in the Vedic hymns, through which the
gods entered to partake of the sacrifices and libations. Indra, who is called “an
accomplished artisan”, is lauded as the god who “firmly secured the dominion of air in
the frame of heaven and earth”. In another hymn it is told: “Indra measured six broad
spaces, from which no existing thing is excluded: he it is who made the wide expanse of
earth and the lofty dome of the sky, even he”. (V. i, 47·3, 4.)

5

INTERIOR OF A TEMPLE TO VISHNU (BRINDABAN)

In the work of shaping the universe Indra is assisted by the shadowy deities Savitri,
who merged with Surya, the sun god, Brihaspati, “Lord of Prayer”, who merged with
Agni, god of fire, and Vishnu, god of grace. He was also aided by the Ribhus, the
artisans of the gods, who dwelt in the region of mid-air. Their number is given variously
as three or the multiples of three; they were the sons of Sudhanvan, who was apparently
identical with Indra, because “Indra is a Ribhu when he confers gifts”; indeed, the
artisans are referred to as the children of the Thunder god. They make grass and herbs,
and also channels for streams. In some respects they resemble the earth-gnomes, the
Khnumu, “the modellers”, the helpers of the Egyptian artisan god Ptah, who shaped the
world. “Countless little figures of these gods are found in Egyptian tombs; for even as
once the Khnumu had helped in the making of the world, so would they help to
reconstruct in all its members the body of the dead man in whose tomb they were
laid.”[50] The Ribhus similarly renovated aged and decrepit parents; “they reunited the
old cow to the calf”; they are also credited with having shaped the heavens and the earth,
[51]
and with having fashioned the “cow of plenty”, and also a man named Vibhvan.[52]
According to the Oxford Dictionary, they are “the three genii of the seasons in
Hindu mythology”. The Sanskrit word “Ribhu” is sometimes compared with the
Germanic word “Elf”. Professor Macdonell considers it “likely that the Ribhus were

originally terrestrial or aerial elves”.[53] They are evidently of common origin with the
Teutonic elfin artisans who are associated with Thor, the Germanic Indra.
The mother of the Ribhus was Saranyu, daughter of Twashtri, “the Hindu Vulcan”,
the “master workman”. Twashtri forms the organism in maternal wombs and supports
the races of man.[54] As we have seen, he was the fashioner of Indra's thunderbolt:
similarly the Teutonic elfin artisan Sindre makes Thor's hammer.[55]
The two groups of Teutonic wonder-smiths were rivals; so were the Ribhus and
Twashtri. The elfin artisans prove their skill in both cases by producing wonderful gifts
for the gods. Loke acts as a mischief-making spy in Germanic myth, and Dadyak in
Indian, and both lose their heads for wagers, but save them by cunning.
The Ribhus had provided the Celestials with horses and chariots, but Twashtri
fashioned a wonderful bowl which filled itself with Soma for the gods. In the contest
that ensued the Ribhus transformed the bowl into four cups. “This bowl”, says Professor
Macdonell, “perhaps represents the moon, the four cups being its phases.” One of the
Ribhus was a famous archer, like the elfin artisan Egil of Teutonic mythology.
The artisan of Babylonian mythology is Ea, father of Bel-Merodach. He is “King of
the abyss, creator of everything, lord of all”. He was the god of artisans in general, and is
identified with the sea-deity of the Persian Gulf—half-fish, half-man—who landed
“during the day to teach the inhabitants the building of houses and temples, the gathering
of fruits, and also geometry, law and letters”. His pupils included “potters, blacksmiths,
sailors, stonecutters, gardeners, farmers, &c.”[56]
The Ribhus and Twashtri were the artisans of nature, the spirits of growth, the genii
of the seasons, the elves of earth and air. Indra's close association with them emphasizes
his character as a god of fertility, who brought the quickening rain, and as the corn god,
and the rice god. He was the son of Father Heaven and Mother Earth, two vague deities
who were never completely individualized, but were never forgotten. Heaven was the
sky-god Dyaus-pita (from div = to shine), the Zeus pater of the Greeks, Jupiter of the
Romans, and Tivi[57] (later, Odin) of the Germanic peoples, whose wife was the earth-
goddess Jord, mother of Thor. The Hindu earth-mother (Terra mater) was Prithivi. Dyaus
is sometimes referred to as a ruddy bull, whose bellowing is the thunder; as the Night
heaven he is depicted as a black steed decked with pearls which are the stars; in one of
the Vedic hymns reference is made to his “thunderstone”. Prithivi, who is sometimes
symbolized as a cow, is the source of all vegetation, the supporter of earth, the female
principle. She never assumes the importance of the Assyrian Ishtar, or the north Egyptian
“earth-mother” Neith, or the “earth-mothers” of Europe. The Vedic Aryans were Great
Father worshippers rather than Great Mother worshippers: their female deities were
Night, Dawn, Earth, and the Rivers, but they were not sharply individualized until late;
they are vague in the Vedas.
As the Greek Cronus (Roman Saturn) slew his father Urănus (Heaven), so did Indra
slay his father Dyaus (Heaven). His earth-mother addresses him, saying: “Who has made

thy mother a widow? Who has sought to slay the sleeping and the waking? What deity
has been more gracious than thou, since thou hast slain thy father, having seized him by
the foot?”[58]
The Indian father-slaying myth appears to be connected with the doctrine of
reincarnation. In the Laws of Manu it is stated that “the husband, after conception by his
wife, becomes an embryo and is born again of her; for that is the wifehood of a wife, that
he is born again by her”.[59] In the famous story of Shakuntălā, the husband is similarly
referred to as the son of his wife, the son being a reincarnation of the father.[60] This
belief resembles the Egyptian conception which is summed up in the phrase “husband of
his mother”.[61]
At the barley harvest in spring and the rice harvest in autumn offerings were made
to the gods. A sacrificial cake of the new barley or rice was offered to Indra and Agni, a
mess of old grain boiled and mixed with milk and water was given to the other gods, and
a cake was also offered to Father Heaven and Mother Earth in which clarified butter was
an important ingredient; or the offering might consist entirely of butter, because
“clarified butter is manifestly the sap of these two, Heaven and Earth; ... he (the offerer)
therefore gladdens these two with their own sap or essence”.
The reason for this harvest offering is explained as follows: The gods and the
demons contended for supremacy. It chanced that the demons defiled, partly by magic
and partly by poison, the plants used by men and beasts, hoping thus to overcome the
gods. Men ceased to eat and the beasts stopped grazing; all creatures were about to
perish because of the famine.
Said the gods: “Let us rid the plants of this.”
Then they offered sacrifices and “accomplished all that they wanted to accomplish,
and so did the Rishis”.
A dispute then arose among the gods as to who should partake of the offerings of
the firstfruits—that is, of the new plants which replaced those the demons had poisoned.
It was decided to run a race to settle the matter. Indra and Agni won the race and were
therefore awarded the cake. These two gods were divine Kshatriyas (noblemen), the
others were “common people”. Whatever Kshatriyas conquer, the commoners are
permitted to share; therefore the other gods received the mess of old grain.
After the magic spell was removed from the plants by the gods, men ate food and
cattle grazed once again. Ever afterwards, at the beginning of each harvest, the first fruits
were offered up to Indra and Agni. The fee of the priest was the first-born calf “for that
is, as it were, the firstfruits of the cattle”.[62]
The popular Thunder god of the Vedic period bears a close resemblance to the hard-
drinking, kindly, and impulsive Thor, the Teutonic god of few words and mighty deeds,
the constant “friend of man” and the inveterate enemy of demons. In the hymns Indra is
pictured as a burly man, with “handsome, prominent nose”, “good lips”, and “comely

chin”; he is “long-necked, big-bellied, strongly armed”, and has a weakness for
ornaments. He is much addicted to drinking “sweet, intoxicating Soma”; he “fills his
stomach”; he quaffs “thirty bowls” at a single draught ere he hastens to combat against
“hostile air demons”. Sometimes he is placed in a difficulty when two tribes of his
worshippers are in conflict: both cry to him for victory, but—

The god giveth victory unto him
Who with generous heart pours out
The draught he thirsts for—
Nor feels regret in giving;
Indra joins with him upon the battlefield.

Rigveda, iv, 24. 2-6.
The Aryans, who were as notorious cattle lifters as the Gauls and the Scottish
Highlanders, were wont to invoke the god ere they set out on a raid, chanting with loud
voices:

Indra, whose riches are boundless, O grant us
Thousands of beautiful cows and horses:
Destroy, thou mighty one, all who despise us,
Visit with death all those who would harm us, and
Indra, whose riches are boundless, O grant us,
Thousands of beautiful cows and horses.

Wilson's translation.
In other hymns the Thor-like character of Indra, the war god, is naively depicted. A
sceptic is supposed to say: “Many men declare that there is no Indra. Who ever saw him?
Why should we adore him?”
The god makes answer: “O singer, I am: behold me! I am here now, and I am
greater than any living being. I delight in the performance of holy rites. I am also the
Destroyer; I can hurl creation to ruin.” Rigveda, viii, 89.

I never knew a man to speak so to me,
When all his enemies are safely conquered;
Yea, when they see how fierce the battle rages,
They even promise me a pair of bullocks.

When I am absent in far distant places,
Then all with open hands their gifts would bring me ...
Lo! I will make the wealthy niggard needy,
Seize by the foot and on the hard rock dash him.

Rigveda, x, 27.

The lord of both the worlds hates all the haughty,
He cares for those who feel themselves but human.

Rigveda, vi, 47.[63]
These verses recall: “Silence, thou evil one,” roared Thor, “or else with my hammer
shall I strike thy head off and end thy life.”
Then did Loke answer humbly: “Silent indeed I shall be now, O Thor, for I know
full well thou wilt strike.”[64]

6

THE PARADISE OF INDRA
From a Rock Sculpture at Mâmallapuram

The human qualities of Indra are illustrated in epic narrative. Arjuna, the Indian
Achilles, is his son, and pays a visit to the brilliant Celestial city on the summit of Mount
Meru, where flowers are ever blooming, and pretty nymphs dance to pleasure battle-
slain warriors.
Arjuna saluted his divine sire. “And Indra thereupon embraced him with his round
and plump arms. And taking his hand, Shakra (Indra) made him sit on a portion of his

own seat.... And the lord of the Celestials—that slayer of hostile heroes—smelt the head
of Arjuna, bending in humility, and even took him upon his lap.... Moved by affection,
the slayer of Vritra touched that beautiful face with his own perfumed hands. And the
wielder of the thunderbolt, patting and rubbing gently again and again with his own
hands, which bore the marks of the thunderbolt, the handsome and large arms of Arjuna,
which resembled a couple of golden columns and were hard in consequence of drawing
the bowstring and shooting arrows, began to console him. And the slayer of Vritra ...
eyeing his son of curling locks smilingly and with eyes expanded with delight, seemed
scarcely to be gratified. The more he gazed, the more he liked to gaze on. And seated on
one seat, the father and son enhanced the beauty of the assembly, like the sun and moon
beautifying the firmament together.”[65]
Indra was attended in his heaven by vague spirits, called Vasus, who appear to have
acted as his counsellors. When Bhishma, a hero of the great Bhărata war, was slain in
battle, he was given a place among the Vasus. The Thunder god's queen is a shadowy
personality, and is called Indrani.
Indra was attended by a dog, as befitted a deity of primitive huntsmen. After the
early Aryan period, he showed less favour for his bays and chariot, and seated himself
upon a great white elephant, “the handsome and ever victorious”, named Airavata; it
“was furnished with four tusks” and “resembled the mountain of Kailasa with its
summits”.

FOOTNOTES:
[42] 2 Kings, v, 18.
[43] One of the sections of the epic Mahabharata is called “Go-Harran”, which signifies
“cattle harrying”.
[44] The deified poets and sages. See Chapter VIII.
[45] Adolf Kaegi says: “Also Vadha or Vadhar”, which he compares with German,
Wetter; O.H. German, Wetar: Anglo-Saxon, Weder; English, Weather. The original word
signifying the sudden change in atmospheric conditions caused by the thunderstorm was
ultimately applied to all states of the air.
[46] Roy's translation of Mahabharata.
[47] Like the giants and demons of Teutonic mythology, who fought with the gods in the
Last Battle.
[48] The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria, by T. G. Pinches, LL.D.
[49] Cosmology of Rigveda, Wallis.
[50] Religion of the Ancient Egyptians, Professor A. Wiedemann, p. 137.
[51] Rigveda, iv, 34. 9.
[52] Cosmology of Rigveda, Wallis.
[53] A History of Sanskrit Literature, pp. 106, 107.
[54] Rigveda, ii, 53; iii, 55.

[55] Teutonic Myth and Legend, pp. 35-9.
[56] The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria, T. G. Pinches, LL.D.
[57] An old Germanic name of Odin related to Divus. Odin's descendants were the
“Tivar”. (Pronounce Dyaus as one syllable rhiming with mouse.)
[58] Rigveda, iv, 18. Wilson, vol. iii, p. 153.
[59] The Laws of Manu, ix, 8; p. 329. (Sacred Books of the East, vol. xxv.)
[60] Adi Parva, sect. lxxiv of Mahabharata, Roy's translation.
[61] See Egyptian Myth and Legend.
[62] The Satapatha Brahmana, translated by Professor J. Eggeling, Part I, pp. 369, 373.
(Sacred Books of the East, vol. xii.)
[63] Arrowsmith's translation.
[64] Teutonic Myth and Legend, p. 173.
[65] Vana Parva section of Mahăbhărata, sect. xliii, Roy's translation.

CHAPTER II
The Great Vedic Deities
Agni the Fire God—Source of Life—The Divine Priest—Myths regarding his Origin—The Child God
—Resemblances to Heimdal and Scyld—Messenger of the Gods—Martin Elginbrodde—Vayu or Vata, the
Wind God—Teutonic Vate and Odin—The Hindu “Wild Huntsman”—Rudra the Howler—The Rain God—
Sublime Varuna—The Omniscient One—Forgiver of Sins—Mitra, an ancient Deity—Babylonian Prototype
—A Sun God—A Corn God—Mitanni Deities—Surya, the Sun God—The Adityas—Ushas, Goddess of
Dawn—Ratri, Night—Chandra, the Moon—Identified with Soma—The Mead of the Gods—A Humorous
Hymn—Sources of Life—Origin of Spitting Ceremonies.

Agni, the fire god, was closely associated with Indra, and is sometimes called his
twin brother. The pair were the most prominent deities in Vedic times: about 250 hymns
are addressed to Indra and over 200 to Agni.
Indra gave the “air of life” to men; Agni symbolized the “vital spark”, the principle
of life in animate and inanimate Nature; he was in man, in beast, and fish; he was in
plants and trees; he was in butter and in intoxicating Soma. The gods partook of the
nature of Agni. In one of the post-Vedic Creation myths he is identified with the
Universal soul; Brahma existed in the form of Agni ere the worlds were framed and gods
and men came to be. Agni was made manifest in lightning, in celestial sun flames, in the
sacred blaze rising from the altar and in homely household fires. The fire god was the
divine priest as contrasted with Indra, the divine warrior.
In the Vedic invocations there are evidences that several myths had gathered round
the fascinating and wonderful fire god. One hymn refers to him as a child whose birth
was kept a secret; his mother, the queen, concealed him from his sire; he was born in full
vigour as a youth, and was seen sharpening his weapons at a distance from his home
which he had forsaken.[66] Sometimes he is said to have devoured his parents at birth:
this seems to signify that he consumed the fire sticks from which holy fire was produced
by friction. Another hymn says that “Heaven and Earth (Dyaus and Prithivi) fled away in
fear of (the incarnation of) Twashtri when he was born, but they returned to embrace the
lion”.[67]
Agni was also given ten mothers who were “twice five sisters”,[68] but the reference
is clearly explained in another passage: “The ten fingers have given him birth, the
ancient, well-loved Agni, well born of his mothers”.[69]
Dawn, with its darkness-consuming fires, and starry Night, are the sisters of Agni;
“they celebrate his three births, one in the sea, one in the sky, one in the waters
(clouds)”. Typical of the Oriental mind is the mysterious reference to Agni's “mothers”
owing their origin to him. The poet sings:

Who among you hath understood the hidden (god)?
The calf has by itself given birth to its mothers.

Professor Oldenberg, who suggests that the waters are the “mothers”, reasons in
Oriental mode: “Smoke is Agni, it goes to the clouds, the clouds become waters”.[70]

7

AGNI, THE FIRE GOD
From a painting by Nanda Lall Bose
(By permission of the Indian Society of
Oriental Art, Calcutta)

In his early humanized form Agni bears some resemblance to Heimdal, the Teutonic
sentinel god, who has nine mothers, the daughters of sea-dwelling Ran, and is thus also a
“son of the waters”; he is clad in silvern armour, and on his head is a burnished helmet
with ram's horns. Horsed on his swift steed, Gulltop, he watches the demons who seek to
attack the citadel of the gods.... His sight is so keen that he can see by night as well as by
day.... Heimdal is loved both by gods and by men, and he is also called Gullintani
because his teeth are of gold. There was a time when he went to Midgard (the earth) as a
child; he grew up to be a teacher among men and was named Scef. Scef is identified as
the patriarch Scyld in Beowulf, who came over the sea as a child and rose to be the king

of a tribe. Mankind were descended from Heimdal-Scef: three sons were born to him of
human mothers—Thrall, from whom thralls are descended; Churl, the sire of freemen,
and Jarl from whom nobles have sprung.[71]
In Mahabharata there is a fragment of an old legend which relates the origin of
Karna, the son of Queen Pritha and the sun god: the birth of the child is concealed, and
he is placed in a basket which is set afloat on the river and is carried to a distant country.
[72]

One of the Vedic references to Agni, as we have seen, suggests an origin similar to
Karna of the epic period. He was connected with the introduction of agriculture like the
Teutonic Scef, which signifies “Sheaf”. Agni is stated to have been “carried in the
waters.... The great one has grown up in the wide unbounded space. The waters (have
made) Agni (grow)”.[73] Agni is “sharp faced” (i, 95); he is “the bright, brilliant, and
shining one” (iv, i. 7); he is “gold toothed” (v, 22); he sees “even over the darkness of
night” (i, 94. 7); he “makes all things visible”; he conquers the godless, wicked wiles; he
sharpens his two horns in order to pierce Rakshasas (giants) (v, 2). “O Agni, strike away
with thy weapons those who curse us, the malicious ones, all ghouls, be they near or far”
(i, 94. 9). Heimdal blows a trumpet in battle; Agni is “roaring like a bull” (i, 94. 10).
As Heimdal, in his Scef-child form, was sent to mankind by the gods,
“Matarisvan[74] brought Agni to Bhrigu as a gift, precious like wealth, of double birth,
the carrier, the famous, the beacon of the sacrifice, the ready, the immediately successful
messenger.... The Bhrigus worshipping him in the abode of the waters have verily
established him among the clans of Ayu. The people have established beloved Agni
among the human clans as (people) going to settle (establish) Mitra” (i, 60). Oldenberg
explains that people going anywhere secure safety by ceremonies addressed to Mitra, i.e.
by concluding alliances under the protection of Mitra. Another reference reads, “Agni
has been established among the tribes of men, the son of the waters, Mitra acting in the
right way”. Oldenberg notes that Mitra is here identified with Agni; Mitra also means
“friend” or “ally” (iii, 5. 3, and note). Scyld in Beowulf, the mysterious child of the sea,
became a king over men. Agni “indeed is king, leading all beings to gloriousness. As
soon as born from here, he looks over the whole world.... Agni, who has been looked and
longed for in Heaven, who has been looked for on earth—he who has been looked for
has entered all herbs” (i, 98).[75] To Agni's love affairs upon earth there are epic
references, and in the “Vishnu Purana” he is mentioned as the father of three human
sons.
The reference to the Bhrigus, to whom Agni is carried, is of special interest. This
tribe did not possess fire and were searching for it (Rigveda, x. 40. 2). In another poem
the worshippers of Agni are “human people descended from Manush (Manu)” (vi, 48. 8).
The Bhrigus were a priestly family descended from the patriarch Bhrigu: Manu was the
first man. Two of the Teutonic patriarch names are Berchter and Mannus.

Agni was the messenger of the gods; he interceded with the gods on behalf of
mankind and conducted the bright Celestials to the sacrifice. The priest chanted at the
altar:
Agni, the divine ministrant of the sacrifice, the greatest
bestower of treasures; may one obtain through
Agni wealth and welfare day by day, which may
bring glory and high bliss of valiant offspring.
Agni, whatever sacrifice and worship thou encompassest
on every side, that indeed goes to the gods. Thou
art King of all worship.... Conduct the gods
hither in an easy-moving chariot.[76]
Like Indra, Agni was a heavy consumer of Soma; his intensely human side is not
lost in mystic Vedic poetry.
Agni, accept this log, conqueror of horses, thou who lovest
songs and delightest in riches....
Thou dost go wisely between these two creations (Heaven
and Earth) like a friendly messenger between
two hamlets....
His worshippers might address him with great familiarity, as in the following
extracts:—
If I were thee and thou wert me, thine aspirations should
be fulfilled.
Rigveda, xiii, 44. 23.
If, O Agni, thou wert a mortal and I an immortal, I would
not abandon thee to wrong or to penury: my
worshippers should not be poor, nor distressed,
nor miserable.
Rigveda, viii, 19.
These appeals are reminiscent of the quaint graveyard inscription:

Here lie I, Martin Elginbrodde.
Hae mercy on my soul, Lord God,
As I wad dae were I Lord God,
And ye were Martin Elginbrodde.

The growth of monotheistic thought is usually evinced in all mythologies by the
tendency to invest a popular deity with the attributes of other gods. Agni is sometimes
referred to as the sky god and the storm god. In one of the hymns he is entreated to slay
demons and send rain as if he were Indra:

O Agni, overcome our enemies and our calamities;
Drive away all disease and the Rakshasas—
Send down abundance of waters
From the ocean of the sky.

Rigveda, x, 98. 12.
Indra similarly absorbed, and was absorbed by, the wind god Vayu or Vata, who is
also referred to as the father of the Maruts and the son-in-law of the artisan god
Twashtri. The name Vata has been compared to Vate, the father of the Teutonic Volund or
Wieland, the tribal deity of the Watlings or Vaetlings; in old English the Milky Way was
“Watling Street”. Comparisons have also been drawn with the wind god Odin—the
Anglo-Saxon Woden, and ancient German Wuotan (pronounced Vuotan). “The
etymological connection in this view”, writes a critic, “is not free from difficulty.”[77]
Professor Macdonell favours the derivation from “va” = “to blow”.
The Indian Vata is invoked, as Vayu, in a beautiful passage in one of the hymns
which refers to his “two red horses yoked to the chariot”: he had also, like the Maruts, a
team of deer. The poet calls to the wind:

Awake Purandhu (Morning) as a lover awakes a sleeping maid....
Reveal heaven and earth....
Brighten the dawn, yea, for glory, brighten the dawn....

These lines recall Keats at his best:

There is no light
Save what from heaven is with the breezes blown....

Ode to the Nightingale.
A stirring hymn to the wind god loses much of its vigour and beauty in translation:

Sublime and shining is the car of Vata;
It sweeps resounding, thundering and crashing;
Athwart the sky it wakens ruddy flashes,
Or o'er the earth it sets the dust-clouds whirling.

The gusts arise and hasten unto Vata,
Like women going to a royal banquet;
In that bright car the mighty god is with them,
For he is rajah of the earth's dominions.

When Vata enters on the paths of heaven,
All day he races on; he never falters;
He is the firstborn and the friend of Ocean—

Whence did he issue forth? Where is his birthplace?

He is the breath[78] of gods: all life is Vata:
He cometh, yea, he goeth as he listeth:
His voice is heard; his form is unbeholden—
O let us offer sacrifice to Vata.

Rigveda, x, 168.
Another wind or storm god is Rudra, also the father of the Maruts, who are called
“Rudras”. He is the “Howler” and “the Ruddy One”, and rides a wild boar. Saussaye
calls him “the Wild Huntsman of Hindu Mythology”. He is chiefly of historical interest
because he developed into the prominent post-Vedic god Shiva, the “Destroyer”, who is
still worshipped in India. The poets invested him with good as well as evil qualities:

Rudra, thou smiter of workers of evil,
The doers of good all love and adore thee.
Preserve me from injury and every affliction—
Rudra, the nourisher.

Give unto me of thy medicines, Rudra,
So that my years may reach to a hundred;
Drive away hatred, shatter oppression,
Ward off calamity.

Rigveda, ii, 33.
The rain cloud was personified in Parjanya, who links with Indra as the nourisher of
earth, and with Agni as the quickener of seeds.
Indra's great rival, however, was Varuna, who symbolized the investing sky: he was
“the all-enveloping one”. The hymns impart to him a character of Hebraic grandeur. He
was the sustainer of the universe, the lawgiver, the god of moral rectitude, and the
sublime sovereign of gods and men. Men worshipped him with devoutness, admiration,
and fear. “It is he who makes the sun to shine in heaven; the winds that blow are but his
breath; he has hollowed out the channels of the rivers which flow at his command, and
he has made the depths of the sea. His ordinances are fixed and unassailable; through
their operation the moon walks in brightness, and the stars which appear in the nightly
sky, vanish in daylight. The birds flying in the air, the rivers in their sleepless flow,
cannot attain a knowledge of his power and wrath. But he knows the flight of the birds in
the sky, the course of the far-travelling wind, the paths of ships on the ocean, and
beholds all secret things that have been or shall be done. He witnesses men's truth and
falsehood.”[79]

8

SHIVA'S DANCE OF DESTRUCTION, ELLORA (see pages 147-8)

He is the Omniscient One. Man prayed to him for forgiveness for sin, and to be
spared from the consequences of evil-doing:

May I not yet, King Varuna,
Go down into the house of clay:
Have mercy, spare me, mighty Lord.

O Varuna, whatever the offence may be
That we as men commit against the heavenly folk,
When through our want of thought we violate thy laws,
Chastise us not, O god, for that iniquity.

Rigveda, vii, 89.[80]

His messengers descend
Countless from his abode—for ever traversing
This world and scanning with a thousand eyes its inmates.
Whate'er exists within this earth, and all within the sky,
Yea, all that is beyond, King Varuna perceives....

May thy destroying snares, cast sevenfold round the wicked,
Entangle liars, but the truthful spare, O King!

Rigveda, iv, 16.[81]
In contrast to the devotional spirit pervading the Varuna hymns is the attitude
adopted by Indra's worshippers; the following prayer to the god of battle is
characteristic:—

O Indra, grant the highest, best of treasures,
A judging mind, prosperity abiding,
Riches abundant, lasting health of body,
The grace of eloquence and days propitious.

Rigveda, ii, 21. 6.
The sinner's fear of Varuna prompted him to seek the aid of other gods. Rudra and
the Moon are addressed:

O remove ye the sins we have sinned,
What evil may cling to us sever
With bolts and sharp weapons, kind friends,
And gracious be ever.
From the snare of Varuna deliver us, ward us,
Ye warm-hearted gods, O help us and guard us.

Associated with Varuna was the God Mitra (the Persian Mithra). These deities are
invariably coupled and belong to the early Iranian period. Much controversy has been
waged over their pre-Vedic significance. Some have regarded Mithra as the firmament
by day with its blazing and fertilizing sun, and Varuna as the many-eyed firmament of
night, in short, the twin forms of Dyaus. Prof. E. V. Arnold has shown, however, that in
the Vedas, Mithra has no solar significance except in his association with Agni. The fire
god, as we have seen, symbolized the principle of fertility in Nature: he was the “vital
spark” which caused the growth of “all herbs”, as well as the illuminating and warmth-
giving flames of sun and household hearth.
Mitra as Mithra with Varuna, and a third vague god, Aryaman, belong to an early
group of equal deities called the Adityas, or “Celestial deities”. “It would seem that the
worship of these deities”, says Prof. Arnold, “was already decaying in the earliest Vedic
period, and that many of them were then falling into oblivion.... In a late Vedic hymn we
find that Indra boasts that he has dethroned Varuna, and invites Agni to enter his own
service instead. We may justly infer from all these circumstances that the worship of the
‘celestials’ occupied at one time in the history of the race a position of greater
importance than its place in the Rigveda directly suggests.”[82]

The following extracts from a Mitra-Varuna hymn indicate the attitude of the early
priests towards the “Celestial deities”:—
To the gods Mitra and Varuna let our praise go forth with
power, with all reverence, to the two of mighty
race.
These did the gods establish in royal power over
themselves, because they were wise and the
children of wisdom, and because they excelled
in power.
They are protectors of hearth and home, of life and
strength; Mitra and Varuna, prosper the
mediations of your worshippers....
As the sun rises to-day do I salute Mitra and Varuna, and
glorious Aryaman.... The blessings of heaven are
our desire....
Prof. Arnold's translation.
In Babylonian mythology the sun is the offspring of the moon. The Semitic name of
the sun god is Samas (Shamash), the Sumerian name is Utu; among other non-Semitic
names was Mitra, “apparently the Persian Mithra”. The bright deity also “bears the
names of his attendants ‘Truth’ and ‘Righteousness’, who guided him upon his path as
judge of the earth”.[83]
It may be that the Indian Mitra was originally a sun god; the religion of the sun god
Mithra spread into Europe. “Dedications to Mithra the Unconquered Sun have been
found in abundance.”[84] Vedic references suggest that Mitra had become a complex god
in the pre-Vedic Age, being probably associated with a group of abstract deities—his
attributes symbolized—who are represented by the Adityas. The Mitra-Varuna group of
Celestials were the source of all heavenly gifts; they regulated sun and moon, the winds
and waters and the seasons. If we assume that they were of Babylonian or Sumerian
origin—deities imported by a branch of Aryan settlers who had been in contact with
Babylonian civilization—their rivalry with the older Aryan gods, Indra and Agni, can be
understood. Ultimately they were superseded, but the influence exercised by their cult
remained and left its impress upon later Aryan religious thought.
The Assyrian word “metru” signifies rain.[85] The quickening rain which caused the
growth of vegetation was, of course, one of the gifts of the Celestials of the firmament. It
is of interest to note, therefore, in this connection that Professor Frazer includes the
western Mithra among the “corn gods”. Dealing with Mithraic sculptures, which
apparently depict Mithra as the sacrificer of the harvest bull offering, he says: “On
certain of these monuments the tail of the bull ends in three stalks of corn, and in one of

them cornstalks instead of blood are seen issuing from the wound inflicted by the knife”.
[86]

Commenting on the Assyrian “metru” Professor Moulton says: “If this is his
(Mithra's) origin, we get a reasonable basis for the Avestan (Early Persian and Aryan)
use of the word to denote a ‘contract’, as also for the fact that the deity is in the Avesta
patron of Truth and in the Veda of Friendship. He is ‘the Mediator’ between Heaven and
Earth, as the firmament was by its position, both in nature and mythology: an easy
corollary is his function of regulating the relations of man and man.”
The character of an imported deity is always influenced by localization and tribal
habits. Pastoral nomads would therefore have emphasized the friendliness of Mithra,
who sent rain to cause the growth of grass on sun-parched steppes. Both Mithra and
Varuna had their dwelling-place in the sea of heaven, the waters “above the firmament”
from which the rain descended. Ultimately the Indian Mitra vanished, being completely
merged in Varuna, who became the god of ocean after the Aryans reached the sea coast.
In post-Vedic sacred literature the priestly theorists, in the process of systematizing their
religious beliefs, taught that a great conflict took place between the gods and demons.
When order was restored, the various deities were redistributed. Indra remained the
atmospheric god of battle, and Varuna became the god of ocean, where, as the stern
judge and lawgiver and the punisher of wrongdoers, he kept watch over the demons. In
the “Nala and Damayanti” epic narrative, the four “world guardians” are: Indra, king of
the gods; Agni, god of fire; Varuna, god of waters; and Yama, judge of the dead.
It may be that the displacement of Varuna as supreme deity was due to the influence
of the fire-worshipping cult of Agni, who was imported by certain unidentified Aryan
tribes that entered India. Agni did not receive recognition, apparently, from the other
Aryan “folk-wave”, which established a military aristocracy at Mitanni in Mesopotamia,
and held sway for a period over the Assyrians and some of the Hittite tribes. An
important inscription, which is dated about 1400 B.C., has been deciphered at Boghaz-
Köi in Asia Minor by Professor Hugo Winckler, who gives the names of the following
deities:

“Mi-it-ra, Uru-w-na, In-da-ra, and Na-sa-at-ti-ia”—

Mitra, Varuna, Indra, Nasatya. The latter is Nasatyau, the Vedic Aswins, twin gods
of morning, who have been compared to the Greek Dioskouri (Castor and Pollux), sons
of Zeus.
A Vedic triad, which suggests a rival cult to that of the worshippers of Varuna and
other Adityas, is formed by Vayu (wind), Agni (fire), and Surya (the sun).
The Indian sun god Surya, like the Egyptian Ra, had three forms. The rising sun
was Vivasvat; the setting sun was Savitri.
Vivasvat was the son-in-law of Twashtri, the artisan of Nature; he was an abstract
deity, and apparently owed his origin to the group of Adityas.

Savitri, who had yellow hair, was of pre-Vedic origin. He was the “Stimulator”.
When he commanded Night to approach, men ceased their labours, birds sought their
nests, and cattle their sheds.[87]
During the long centuries covered by the Vedic period many “schools of thought”
must have struggled for supremacy. The Vivasvat myth belongs, it would appear, to the
time before the elephant was tamed by the Aryans. Aditi, the mother of the Adityas, who
is believed to be of later origin than her children, had eight sons. She cherished seven of
them; the eighth, which was a shapeless lump, was thrown away, but was afterwards
moulded into Vivasvat, the sun; the pieces of the lump which were cast away by the
divine artisan fell upon the earth and gave origin to the elephant, therefore elephants
should not be caught, because they partake of divine nature.

9

SURYA IN HIS CHARIOT
From the Kailâsa Temple, Ellora

Surya is an Aryanized sun god. He drives a golden chariot drawn by seven mares,
or a mare with seven heads; he has golden hair and golden arms and hands. As he is
alluded to as “the eye of Varuna and Mitra”, and a son of Aditi, it is evident that if he did
not originally belong to the group of Adityas, he was strongly influenced by them. In his

Savitri character, which he possesses at morning as well as at evening, he stimulates all
life and the mind of man. One of the most sacred and oldest mantras (texts) in the Vedas
is still addressed by Brahmans to the rising sun. It runs:—

Let us meditate on that excellent glory of the divine Vivifier,
May he enlighten (or stimulate) our understandings.[88]

The feeling for Nature pervades the ancient religion and literature of India. Priests
were poets and singers in early Vedic times. A Rishi was a composer of hymns to the
gods, and several are named in the collections. Every great family appears to have had
its bardic priest, and its special poetic anthology which was handed down from
generation to generation. Old poems might be rewritten and added to, but the ambition
of the sacred poet was to sing a new song to the gods. The oldest Vedic hymns are
referred to as “new songs”, which suggests that others were already in existence.
These Rishis looked upon Nature with the poet's eye. They symbolized everything,
but they revelled also in the gorgeous beauty of dawn and evening, the luxuriance of
Indian trees and flowers, the serene majesty of Himalayan mountains, the cascades, the
rivers, and the shining lakes. The wonder and mystery of the world inspired their hymns
and their religion. Even the gods took delight in the songs of birds, the harping of forest
winds, the humming of bees, the blossoming trees, and the flower-decked sward. Heaven
has its eternal summer and soft scented winds, its lotus-gemmed lakes and never-fading
blooms.
The effulgence and silence of dawn inspired some of the most beautiful Vedic
hymns. Dawn is Ushas, the daughter of Dyaus; she is the Indian Aurora:

Hail, ruddy Ushas, golden goddess, borne
Upon thy shining car, thou comest like
A lovely maiden by her mother decked,
Disclosing coyly all thy hidden graces
To our admiring eyes; or like a wife
Unveiling to her lord, with conscious pride,
Beauties which, as he gazes lovingly,
Seem fresher, fairer, each succeeding morn.
Through years and years thou hast lived on, and yet
Thou'rt ever young. Thou art the breath of life
Of all that breathes and lives, awaking day by day
Myriads of prostrate sleepers, as from death,
Causing the birds to flutter from their nests,
And rousing men to ply with busy feet
Their daily duties and appointed tasks,
Toiling for wealth, or pleasure, or renown.[89]

The Vedic poets “looked before and after”. One sang:

In ages past did mortals gaze
On Ushas veiled in gleaming gold.
We who are living watch her rays,
And men unborn will her behold.

Rigveda, i, 113. 11.
Night, Ratri, is the sister of Dawn. The one robes herself in crimson and gold; the
other adorns her dark raiment with gleaming stars. When benevolent Ratri draws nigh,
men turn towards their homes to rest, birds seek their nests, cattle lie down; even the
hawk reposes. The people pray to the goddess to be protected against robbers and fierce
wolves, and to be taken safely across her shadow:

She, the immortal goddess, throws her veil
Over low valley, rising ground, and hill.
But soon with bright effulgence dissipates
The darkness she produces; soon advancing
She calls her sister Morning to return,
And then each darksome shadow melts away.

Rigveda, x.[90]
The moon is the god Chandra, who became identified with Soma. Among ancient
peoples the moon was regarded as the source of fertility and growth; it brought dew to
nourish crops which ripened under the “harvest moon”; it filled all vegetation with sap;
it swayed human life from birth till death; it influenced animate and inanimate Nature in
its periods of increase and decline; ceremonies to secure offspring were performed
during certain phases of the moon.
Soma was the intoxicating juice of the now unknown Soma plant, which inspired
mortals and was the nectar of the gods. The whole ninth book of the Rigveda is devoted
to the praises of Soma, who is exalted even as the chief god, the Father of all.

This Soma is a god; he cures
The sharpest ills that man endures.
He heals the sick, the sad he cheers,
He nerves the weak, dispels their fears;
The faint with martial ardour fires,
With lofty thought the bard inspires,
The soul from earth to heaven he lifts,
So great and wondrous are his gifts;
Men feel the god within their veins,
And cry in loud exulting strains:
We've quaffed the Soma bright
And are immortal grown:

We've entered into light
And all the gods have known.
What mortal now can harm,
Or foeman vex us more?
Through thee beyond alarm,
Immortal god, we soar.[91]
“The sun”, declared one of the poets, “has the nature of Agni, the moon of Soma.”
At the same time Agni was a great consumer of Soma; when it was poured on the altar,
the fire god leapt up joyfully. The beverage was the “water of life” which was believed
to sustain the Adityas and the earth, and to give immortality to all the gods; it was
therefore called Amrita (ambrosia).
As in Teutonic mythology, the Hindu giants desired greatly to possess the “mead”
to which the gods owed their power and supremacy. The association of Soma with the
moon recalls the Germanic belief that the magic mead was kept for Odin, “the champion
drinker”, by Mani, the moon god, who snatched it from the mythical children who are
the prototypes of “Jack and Jill” of the nursery rhyme.[92] Indra was the discoverer of the
Soma plant and brought it from the mountains. The Persian mead (mada) was called
Haoma.
The priests drank Soma when they made offerings and lauded the gods. A semi-
humorous Rigvedic hymn compares them to the frogs which croak together when the
rain comes after long drought.

Each (frog) with merry croak and loudly calling
Salutes the other, as a son his father;
What one calls out, another quickly answers,
Like boys at school their teacher's words repeating....
They shout aloud like Brahmans drunk with Soma,
When they perform their annual devotions.

Rigveda, vii, 103.[93]
There are references in the Rigveda to the marriage of Soma, the moon, and Suryá,
the maiden of the sun.
In Vedic religion many primitive beliefs were blended. We have seen, for instance,
that life was identified with breath and wind; the “spirit” left the body as the last breath.
Agni worshippers regarded fire as “the vital spark”. Soma worship, on the other hand,
appears to be connected with the belief that life was in the blood; it was literally “the life
blood”. The “blood of trees” was the name for sap; sap was water impregnated or
vitalized by Soma, the essence of life. Water worship and Soma worship were probably
identical, the moon, which was believed to be the source of growth and moisture, being
the fountain head of “the water of life”. In Teutonic mythology the “mead” is taken from
a hidden mountain spring, which issued from “Mimer's well” in the Underworld. Odin

drank from Mimer's well and obtained wisdom and long life. The “mead” was
transported to the moon. The “mead” was also identified with saliva, the moisture of life,
and spitting ceremonies resulted; these survive in the custom still practised in our rural
districts of spitting on the hand to seal a bargain; “spitting stones” have not yet entirely
disappeared. Vows are still taken in India before a fire. References to contracts signed in
blood are common and widespread.

FOOTNOTES:
[66] Rigveda, v, 2.
[67] Rigveda, i, 95.
[68] Rigveda, iv, 6. 8.
[69] Rigveda, iii, 23. 3.
[70] Rigveda, i, 95. 4, and note, Oldenberg's Vedic Hymns (Sacred Books of the East, vol.
xlvi).
[71] Teutonic Myth and Legend, pp. 16 and 187-9.
[72] See Chapter X.
[73] Oldenberg, Rigveda, iii, 1.
[74] A demi-god.
[75] Vedic Hymns, trans. by Oldenberg. (Sacred Books of the East, vol. xlvi.)
[76] Rigveda, i, 13 and i, 26 (Oldenberg).
[77] Art. “Aryan Religion”, Hastings' Ency. Rel. and Ethics.
[78] The air of life = the spirit.
[79] Muir's Original Sanscrit Texts, v, 58, ff.
[80] Professor Macdonell's A History of Sanskrit Literature.
[81] Indian Wisdom, Sir Monier Williams.
[82] The Rigveda, by Professor E. Vernon Arnold, p. 16 (Popular Studies in Mythology,
Romance, and Folklore).
[83] The Religion of Babylonia and Assyria, by Dr. T. G. Pinches, p. 68.
[84] Frazer's “Golden Bough” (Adonis, Attis, Osiris, p. 255, n., third edition).
[85] Professor H. W. Hogg, in Professor Moulton's Early Religious Poetry of Persia, p.
37.
[86] “The Golden Bough” (Spirits of the Corn and Wild, vol. ii, p. 10).
[87] Rigveda, ii, 38.
[88] Indian Wisdom, p. 20.
[89] Indian Wisdom, Sir Monier Williams.
[90] Indian Wisdom, Sir Monier Williams.
[91] Muir's Original Sanskrit Texts, v, 130.
[92] See Teutonic Myth and Legend.

[93] Kaegi's Rigveda, Arrowsmith's translation. This was apparently a rain charm; its
humour was of the unconscious order, of course.

CHAPTER III
Yama, the First Man, and King of the Dead
Burial Customs—Inhumation and Cremation—Yama the First Man—The Discoverer of Paradise—His
Twin Sister—Persian Twin Deities—Yama and Mitra—Yama as Judge of the Dead—The “Man in the
Eye”—Brahman's Deal with Dharma-Yama—Sacrifice for a Wife—Story of Princess Savitri—Her
Husband's Fate—How she rescued his Soul from Yama—The Heavens of Yama, Indra, and Varuna—
Teutonic, Greek, and Celtic Heavens—Paradise denied to Childless Men—Religious Need for a Son—
Exposure of Female Infants—Infanticide in Modern India—A Touching Incident.

In early Vedic times the dead might be either buried or cremated. These two
customs were obviously based upon divergent beliefs regarding the future state of
existence. A Varuna hymn makes reference to the “house of clay”, which suggests that
among some of the Aryan tribes the belief originally obtained that the spirits of the dead
hovered round the place of sepulture. Indeed, the dread of ghosts is still prevalent in
India; they are supposed to haunt the living until the body is burned.
Those who practised the cremation ceremony in early times appear to have
conceived of an organized Hades, to which souls were transferred through the medium
of fire, which drove away all spirits and demons who threatened mankind. Homer makes
the haunting ghost of Patroklos exclaim, “Never again will I return from Hades when I
have received my meed of fire”.[94] The Vedic worshippers of Agni burned their dead for
the same reason as did the ancient Greeks. “When the remains of the deceased have been
placed on the funeral pile, and the process of cremation has commenced, Agni, the god
of fire, is prayed not to scorch or consume the departed, not to tear asunder his skin or
his limbs, but, after the flames have done their work, to convey to the fathers the mortal
who has been presented to him as an offering. Leaving behind on earth all that is evil
and imperfect, and proceeding by the paths which the fathers trod, invested with a lustre
like that of the gods, it soars to the realms of eternal light in a car, or on wings, and
recovers there its ancient body in a complete and glorified form; meets with the
forefathers who are living in festivity with Yama; obtains from him, when recognized by
him as one of his own, a delectable abode, and enters upon more perfect life, which is
crowned with the fulfilment of all desires, is passed in the presence of the gods, and
employed in the fulfilment of their pleasure.”[95]
Agni is the god who is invoked by the other deities, “Make straight the pathways
that lead to the gods; be kind to us, and carry the sacrifice for us”.[96]
In this connection, however, Professor Macdonell says, “Some passages of the
Rigveda distinguish the path of the fathers or dead ancestors from the path of the gods,
doubtless because cremation appeared as a different process from sacrifice”.[97]

It would appear that prior to the practice of cremation a belief in Paradise ultimately
obtained: the dead walked on foot towards it. Yama, King of the Dead, was the first man.
[98]
Like the Aryan pioneers who discovered the Punjab, he explored the hidden regions
and discovered the road which became known as “the path of the fathers”.

To Yama, mighty king, be gifts and homage paid.
He was the first of men that died, the first to brave
Death's rapid rushing stream, the first to point the road
To heaven, and welcome others to that bright abode.

Sir M. Monier Williams'
translation.[99]
Professor Macdonell gives a new rendering of a Vedic hymn[100] in which Yama is
referred to as follows:

Him who along the mighty heights departed,
Him who searched and spied the path for many,
Son of Vivasvat, gatherer of the people,
Yama the king, with sacrifices worship.

Rigveda, x, 14. 1.
Yama and his sister Yamí, the first human pair, are identical with the Persian Yima
and Yimeh of Avestan literature; they are the primeval “twins”, the children of Vivasvat,
or Vivasvant, in the Rigveda and of Vivahvant in the Avesta. Yama signifies twin, and Dr.
Rendel Harris, in his researches on the Greek Dioscuri cult, shows that among early
peoples the belief obtained widely that one of each pair of twins was believed to be a
child of the sky. “This conjecture is borne out by the name of Yama's father (Vivasvant),
which may well be a cult-epithet of the bright sky, ‘shining abroad’ (from the root vas,
‘to shine’)”.... In the Avesta ‘Yima, the bright’ is referred to: he is the Jamshid of
Fitzgerald's Omar.[101]

10

THE KAILASA TEMPLE OF SHIVA, ELLORA

Yima, the Iranian ruler of Paradise, is also identical with Mitra (Mithra), whose cult
“obtained from 200-400 A.D. a world-wide diffusion in the Roman Empire, and came
nearer to monotheism than the cult of any other god in paganism”.[102]
Professor Moulton wonders if the Yama myth “owed anything to Babylon?” It is
possible that the worshippers of Agni represented early Iranian beliefs, and that the
worshippers of Mitra, Varuna, and the twins (Yama and Yima and the twin Aswins) were
influenced by Babylonian mythology as a result of contact, and that these opposing sects
were rivals in India in early Vedic times.
In one of the hymns[103] Yami is the wooer of her brother Yama. She declares that
they were at the beginning intended by the gods to be husband and wife, but Yama
replies:

“Who has sure knowledge of that earliest day? Who has seen it with his eyes
and can tell of it? Lofty is the law of Mitra and Varuna; how canst thou dare to
speak as a temptress?”
Arnold's translation.

In the Vedic “land of the fathers”, the shining Paradise, the two kings Varuna and
Yama sit below a tree. Yama, a form of Mitra, plays on a flute and drinks Soma with the
Celestials, because Soma gives immortality. He gathers his people to him as a shepherd
gathers his flock: indeed he is called the “Noble Shepherd”. He gives to the faithful the
draught of Soma; apparently unbelievers were destroyed or committed to a hell called
Put. Yama's messengers were the pigeon and the owl; he had also two brindled watch-
dogs, each with four eyes. The dead who had faithfully fulfilled religious ordinances
were addressed:

Fear not to pass the guards—
The four-eyed brindled dogs—that watch for the departed.
Return unto thy home, O soul! Thy sin and shame
Leave thou behind on earth; assume a shining form—
Thine ancient shape—refined and from all taint set free.

Sir M. Monier Williams'
translation.[104]
Yama judged men as Dharma-rajah, “King of righteousness”; he was Pitripati, “lord
of the fathers”; Samavurti, “the impartial judge”; Kritana, “the finisher”; Antaka, “he
who ends life”; Samana, “the leveller”, &c.
In post-Vedic times he presided over a complicated system of Hells; he was
Dandadhara, “the wielder of the rod or mace”. He had a noose with which to bind souls;
he carried out the decrees of the gods, taking possession of souls at their appointed time.
In one of the Brahmanas death, or the soul which Death claims as his own, is “the
man in the eye”. The reflection of a face in the pupil of the eye was regarded with great
awe by the early folk; it was the spirit looking forth. We read, “Now that man in yonder
orb (of the sun) and that man in the right eye truly are no other than Death; his feet have
stuck fast in the heart, and having pulled them out, he comes forth; and when he comes
forth then that man dies; whence they say of him who has passed away, ‘he has been cut
off’ (life or life-string has been severed)”.[105]
Yama might consent to prolong the life of one whose days had run out, on condition
that another individual gave up part of his own life in compensation; he might even
agree to restore a soul which he had bound to carry away, in response to the appeal of a
mortal who had attained to great piety. The Vedic character of Yama survives sometimes
in Epic narrative even after cremation had become general. The following two touching
and beautiful stories, preserved in Mahabharata, are probably very ancient Aryan folk
tales which were cherished by the people and retold by the poets, who attached to them
later religious beliefs and practices.

THE BRAHMAN AND HIS BRIDE

Once upon a time Menaka, the beautiful Apsara (celestial fairy), who is without
shame or pity, left beside a hermitage her new-born babe, the daughter of the King of
Gandharvas (celestial elves). A pious Rishi, named Sthula-kesha, found the child and
reared her. She was called Pramadarva, and grew to be the most beautiful and most pious
of all young women. Ruru, the great grandson of Bhrigu, looked upon her with eyes of
love, and at the request of his sire, Pramati, the virgin was betrothed to the young
Brahman.
It chanced that Pramadarva was playing with her companions a few days before the
morning fixed for the nuptials. As her time had come, she trod upon a serpent, and the
death-compelling reptile bit her, whereupon she fell down in a swoon and expired. She
became more beautiful in death than she had been in life.
Brahmans assembled round the body of Pramadarva and sorrowed greatly. Ruru
stole away alone and went to a solitary place in the forest where he wept aloud. “Alas!”
he cried, “the fair one, whom I love more dearly than ever, lieth dead upon the bare
ground. If I have performed penances and attained to great ascetic merit, let the power
which I have achieved restore my beloved to life again.”
Suddenly there appeared before Ruru an emissary from the Celestial regions, who
spake and said: “Thy prayer is of no avail, O Ruru. That one whose days have been
numbered can never get back her own life again. Thou shouldst not therefore abandon
thine heart to grief. But the gods have decreed a means whereby thou canst receive back
thy beloved.”
Said Ruru: “Tell me how I can comply with the will of the Celestials, O messenger,
so that I may be delivered from my grief.”
The messenger said: “If thou wilt resign half of thine own life to this maiden,
Pramadvara, she will rise up again.”
Said Ruru: “I will resign half of my own life so that my beloved may be restored
unto me.”
Then the king of the Gandharvas and the Celestial emissary stood before Dharma-
rajah (Yama) and said: “If it be thy will, O Mighty One, let Pramadarva rise up endowed
with a part of Ruru's life.”
Said the Judge of the Dead: “So be it.”
When Dharma-rajah had spoken thus, the serpent-bitten maiden rose from the
ground, and Ruru, whose life was curtailed for her sake, obtained the sweetest wife upon
earth. The happy pair spent their days deeply devoted to each other, awaiting the call of
Yama at the appointed time.[106]

STORY OF SAVITRI

There was once a fair princess in the country of Madra, and her name was Savitri.
Be it told how she obtained the exalted merit of chaste women by winning a great boon
from Yama.
Savitri was the gift of the goddess Gayatri,[107] wife of Brahma, the self-created,
who had heard the prayers and received the offerings of Aswapati, the childless king of
Madra, when he practised austere penances so that he might have issue. The maiden
grew to be beautiful and shapely like to a Celestial; her eyes had burning splendour, and
were fair as lotus leaves; she resembled a golden image; she had exceeding sweetness
and grace.
It came to pass that Savitri looked with eyes of love upon a youth named Satyavan
“the Truthful”. Although Satyavan dwelt in a hermitage, he was of royal birth. His father
was a virtuous king, named Dyumatsena, who became blind, and was then deprived of
his kingdom by an old enemy dwelling nigh to him. The dethroned monarch retired to
the forest with his faithful wife and his only son, who in time grew up to be a comely
youth.
When Savitri confessed her love to her sire, the great sage Narada, who sat beside
him, spoke and said: “Alas! the princess hath done wrong in choosing for her husband
this royal youth Satyavan. He is comely and courageous, he is truthful and magnanimous
and forgiving, he is modest and patient and without malice; honour is seated upon his
forehead; he is possessed of every virtue. But he hath one defect, and no other. He is
endued with short life; within a year from this day he must die, for so hath it been
decreed; within a year Yama, god of the dead, will come for him.”
Said the king unto his daughter: “O Savitri, thou hast heard the words of Narada.
Go forth, therefore, and choose for thyself another lord, for the days of Satyavan are
numbered.”
The beautiful maiden made answer unto her father the king, saying: “The die is
cast; it can fall but once; once only can a daughter be given away by her sire; once only
can a woman say, ‘I am thine’. I have chosen my lord; once have I chosen, nor can I
make choice a second time. Let his life be brief or be long, I must now wed Satyavan.”
Said Narada: “O king, the heart of thy daughter will not waver; she will not be
turned aside from the path she hath selected. I therefore approve of the bestowal of
Savitri upon Satyavan.”
The king said: “As thou dost advise, so must I do ever, O Narada, because that thou
art my preceptor. Thee I cannot disobey.”
Then said Narada: “Peace be with Savitri! I must now depart. May blessings attend
upon all of you!”
Thereafter Aswapati, the royal sire of Savitri, went to visit Dyumatsena, the blind
sire of Satyavan, in the forest, and his daughter went with him.
Said Dyumatsena: “Why hast thou come hither?”

Aswapati said: “O royal sage, this is my beautiful daughter Savitri. Take thou her
for thy daughter-in-law.”
Said Dyumatsena: “I have lost my kingdom, and with my wife and my son dwell
here in the woods. We live as ascetics and perform great penances. How will thy
daughter endure the hardships of a forest life?”
Aswapati said: “My daughter knoweth well that joy and sorrow come and go and
that nowhere is bliss assured. Accept her therefore from me.”
Then Dyumatsena consented that his son should wed Savitri, whereat Satyavan was
made glad because he was given a wife who had every accomplishment. Savitri rejoiced
also because she obtained a husband after her own heart, and she put off her royal
garments and ornaments and clad herself in bark and red cloth.
So Savitri became a hermit woman. She honoured Satyavan's father and mother,
and she gave great joy to her husband with her sweet speeches, her skill at work, her
subdued and even temper, and especially her love. She lived the life of the ascetics and
practised every austerity. But she never forgot the dread prophecy of Narada the sage;
his sorrowful words were always present in her secret heart, and she counted the days as
they went past.
At length the time drew nigh when Satyavan must cast off his mortal body. When
he had but four days to live, Savitri took the Tritatra vow of three nights of sleepless
penance and fast.
Said the blind Dyumatsena: “My heart is grieved for thee, O my daughter, because
the vow is exceedingly hard.”
Savitri said: “Be not sorrowful, saintly father, I must observe my vow without fail.”
Said Dyumatsena: “It is not meet that one like me should say, ‘Break thy vow,’
rather should I counsel, ‘Observe thy vow.’”
Then Savitri began to fast, and she grew pale and was much wasted by reason of
her rigid penance. Three days passed away, and then, believing that her husband would
die on the morrow, Savitri spent a night of bitter anguish through all the dark and lonely
hours.
The sun rose at length on the fateful morning, and she said to herself, “To-day is the
day.” Her face was bloodless but brave; she prayed in silence and with fervour and
offered oblations at the morning fire; then she stood before her father-in-law and her
mother-in-law in reverent silence with joined hands, concentrating her senses. All the
hermits of the forest blessed her and said: “Mayest thou never suffer widowhood.”
Said Savitri in her secret heart: “So be it.”
Dyumatsena spoke to her then, saying: “Now that thy vow hath been completed
thou mayest eat the morning meal.”
Said Savitri: “I will eat when the sun goes down.”

Hearing her words Satyavan rose, and taking his axe upon his shoulder, turned
towards the distant jungle to procure fruits and herbs for his wife, whom he loved. He
was strong and self-possessed and of noble seeming.
Savitri spoke to him sweetly and said: “Thou must not go forth alone, my husband.
It is my heart's desire to go with thee. I cannot endure to-day to be parted from thee.”
Said Satyavan: “It is not for thee to enter the darksome jungle; the way is long and
difficult, and thou art weak on account of thy severe penance. How canst thou walk so
far on foot?”
Savitri laid her head upon his bosom and said: “I have not been made weary by my
fast. Indeed I am now stronger than before. I will not feel tired when thou art by my side.
I have resolved to go with thee: do not therefore seek to thwart my wish—the wish and
the longing of a faithful wife to be with her lord.”
Said Satyavan: “If it is thy desire to accompany me I cannot but gratify it. But thou
must ask permission of my parents lest they find fault with me for taking thee through
the trackless jungle.”
Then Savitri spoke to the blind sage and her husband's mother and said: “Satyavan
is going towards the deep jungle to procure fruits and herbs for me, and also fuel for the
sacrificial fires. It is my heart's wish to go also, for to-day I cannot endure to be parted
from him. Fain, too, would I behold the blossoming woods.”
Said Dyumatsena: “Since thou hast come to dwell with us in our hermitage thou
hast not before asked anything of us. Have thy desire therefore in this matter, but do not
delay thy husband in his duties.”
Having thus received permission to depart from the hermitage, Savitri turned
towards the jungle with Satyavan, her beloved lord. Smiles covered her face, but her
heart was torn with secret sorrow.
Peacocks fluttered in the green woodland through which they walked together, and
the sun shone in all its splendour in the blue heaven.
Said Satyavan with sweet voice: “How beautiful are the bright streams and the
blossoming trees!”
The heart of Savitri was divided into two parts: with one she held converse with her
husband while she watched his face and followed his moods; with the other she awaited
the dread coming of Yama, but she never uttered her fears.
Birds sang sweetly in the forest, but sweeter to Savitri was the voice of her beloved.
It was very dear to her to walk on in silence, listening to his words.
Satyavan gathered fruits and stored them in his basket. At length he began to cut
down the branches of trees. The sun was hot and he perspired. Suddenly he felt weary
and he said: “My head aches; my senses are confused, my limbs have grown weak, and
my heart is afflicted sorely. O silent one, a sickness hath seized me. My body seems to

be pierced by a hundred darts. I would fain lie down and rest, my beloved; I would fain
sleep even now.”
Speechless and terror-stricken, the gentle Savitri wound her arms about her
husband's body; she sat upon the ground and she pillowed his head upon her lap.
Remembering the words of Narada, she knew that the dread hour had come; the very
moment of death was at hand. Gently she held her husband's head with caressing hands;
she kissed his panting lips; her heart was beating fast and loud. Darker grew the forest
and it was lonesome indeed.
Suddenly an awful Shape emerged from the shadows. He was of great stature and
sable hue; his raiment was blood-red; on his head he wore a gleaming diadem; he had
red eyes and was fearsome to look upon; he carried a noose.... The Shape was Yama, god
of death. He stood in silence, and gazed upon slumbering Satyavan.
Savitri looked up, and when she perceived that a Celestial had come nigh, her heart
trembled with sorrow and with fear. She laid her husband's head upon the green sward
and rose up quickly: then she spake, saying, “Who art thou, O divine One, and what is
thy mission to me?”
Said Yama: “Thou dost love thy husband; thou art endued also with ascetic merit. I
will therefore hold converse with thee. Know thou that I am the Monarch of Death. The
days of this man, thy husband, are now spent, and I have come to bind him and take him
away.”
Savitri said: “Wise sages have told me that thy messengers carry mortals away.
Why, then, O mighty King, hast thou thyself come hither?”
Said Yama: “This prince is of spotless heart; his virtues are without number; he is,
indeed, an ocean of accomplishments. It would not be fitting to send messengers for
him, so I myself have come hither.”
The face of Satyavan had grown ashen pale. Yama cast his noose and tore out from
the prince's body the soul-form, which was no larger than a man's thumb; it was tightly
bound and subdued.
So Satyavan lost his life; he ceased to breathe; his body became unsightly; it was
robbed of its lustre and deprived of power to move.
Yama fettered the soul with tightness, and turned abruptly towards the south;
silently and speedily he went upon his way....
Savitri followed him.... Her heart was drowned in grief. She could not desert her
beloved lord.... She followed Yama, the Monarch of Death.
Said Yama: “Turn back, O Savitri. Do not follow me. Perform the funeral rites of
thy lord.... Thine allegiance to Satyavan hath now come to an end: thou art free from all
wifely duties. Dare not to proceed farther on this path.”

Savitri said: “I must follow my husband whither he is carried or whither he goeth of
his own will. I have undergone great penance. I have observed my vow, and I cannot be
turned back.... I have already walked with thee seven paces, and the sages have declared
that one who walketh seven paces with another becometh a companion. Being thus made
thy friend, I must hold converse with thee, I must speak and thou must listen.... I have
attained the perfect life upon earth by performing my vows and by reason of my
devotion unto my lord. It is not meet that thou shouldest part me from my husband now,
and prevent me from attaining bliss by saying that my allegiance to him hath ended and
another mode of life is opened to me.”
Said Yama: “Turn back now.... Thy words are wise and pleasing indeed; therefore,
ere thou goest, thou canst ask a boon of me and I will grant it. Except the soul of
Satyavan, I will give thee whatsoever thou dost desire.”
Savitri said: “Because my husband's sire became blind, he was deprived of his
kingdom. Restore his eyesight, O mighty One.”
Said Yama: “The boon is granted. I will restore the vision of thy father-in-law....
But thou hast now grown faint on this toilsome journey. Turn back, therefore, and thy
weariness will pass away.”
Savitri said: “How can I be weary when I am with my husband? The fate of my
husband will be my fate also; I will follow him even unto the place whither thou dost
carry him.... Hear me, O mighty One, whose friendship I cherish! It is a blessed thing to
behold a Celestial; still more blessed is it to hold converse with one; the friendship of a
god must bear great fruit.”
Said Yama: “Thy wisdom delighteth my heart. Therefore thou canst ask of me a
second boon, except the life of thy husband, and it will be granted thee.”
Savitri said: “May my wise and saintly father-in-law regain the kingdom he hath
lost. May he become once again the protector of his people.”
Said Yama: “The boon is granted. The king will return to his people and be their
wise protector.... Turn back now, O princess; thy desire is fulfilled.”
Savitri said: “All people must obey thy decrees; thou dost take away life in
accordance with divine ordinances and not of thine own will. Therefore thou art called
Yama—he that ruleth by decrees. Hear my words, O divine One. It is the duty of
Celestials to love all creatures and to award them according to their merit. The wicked
are without holiness and devotion, but the saintly protect all creatures and show mercy
even unto their enemies.”
Said Yama: “Thy wise words are like water to a thirsty soul. Ask of me therefore a
third boon, except thy husband's life, and it will be granted unto thee.”
Savitri said: “My sire, King Aswapati, hath no son. O grant that a hundred sons may
be born unto him.”

11

YAMA AND SAVITRI
From a painting by Nanda Lall
Bose
(By permission of the Indian
Society of Oriental Art, Calcutta)

Said Yama: “A hundred sons will be born unto thy royal sire. Thy boon is granted....
Turn back, therefore, O princess; thou canst not come farther. Long is the path thou hast
already travelled.”
Savitri said: “I have followed my husband and the way hath not seemed long.
Indeed, my heart desireth to go on much farther. Hear my words, O Yama, as thou dost
proceed on thy journey. Thou art great and wise and powerful; thou dost deal equally
with all human creatures; thou art the lord of justice.... One cannot trust oneself as one
can trust a Celestial; therefore, one seeketh to win the friendship of a Celestial. It is meet
that one who seeketh the friendship of a Celestial should make answer to his words.”
Said Yama: “No mortal hath ever spoken unto me as thou hast spoken. Thy words
are indeed pleasing, O princess. I will grant thee even a fourth boon, except thy
husband's life, ere thou dost depart.”

Savitri said: “May a century of sons be born unto my husband and me so that our
race may endure. O grant me this, the fourth boon, thou Mighty One.”
Said Yama: “I grant unto thee a century of sons, O princess; they will be wise and
powerful and thy race will endure.... Be without weariness now, O lady, and turn back;
thou hast come too far already.”
Savitri said: “Those who are pious must practise eternal morality, O Yama. The
pious uphold the universe. The pious hold communion with the pious only, and are never
weary; the pious do good unto others nor ever expect any reward. A good deed done unto
the righteous is never thrown away; such an act doth not entail loss of dignity nor is any
interest impaired. Indeed, the doing of good is the chief office of the righteous, and the
righteous therefore are the true protectors of all.”
Said Yama: “The more thou dost speak, the more I respect thee, O princess. O thou
who art so deeply devoted unto thy husband, thou canst now ask of me some
incomparable boon.”
Savitri said: “O mighty One, thou bestower of boons, thou hast already promised
what cannot be fulfilled unless my husband is restored unto me; thou hast promised me a
century of sons. Therefore, I ask thee, O Yama, to give me back Satyavan, my beloved,
my lord. Without him, I am as one who is dead; without him, I have no desire for
happiness; without him I have no longing even for Heaven; I will have no desire to
prosper if my lord is snatched off; I cannot live without Satyavan. Thou hast promised
me sons, O Yama, yet thou dost take away my husband from mine arms. Hear me and
grant this boon: Let Satyavan be restored to life so that thy decree may be fulfilled.”
Said Yama: “So be it. With cheerful heart I now unbind thy husband. He is free....
Disease cannot afflict him again and he will prosper. Together you will both have long
life; you will live four hundred years; you will have a century of sons and they will be
kings, and their sons will be kings also.”
Having spoken thus, Yama, the lord of death, departed unto his own place. And
Savitri returned to the forest where her husband's body lay cold and ashen-pale; she sat
upon the ground and pillowed his head upon her lap. Then Satyavan was given back his
life.... He looked upon Savitri with eyes of love; he was like to one who had returned
from a long journey in a strange land.
Said Satyavan: “Long was my sleep; why didst thou not awaken me, my beloved?...
Where is that dark One who dragged me away?”
Savitri said: “Yama hath come and gone, and thou hast slept long, resting thy head
upon my lap, and art now refreshed, O blessed one. Sleep hath forsaken thee, O son of a
king. If thou canst rise up, let us now depart hence for the night is already dark....”
Satyavan rose up refreshed and strong. He looked round about and perceived that
he was in the midst of the forest. Then he said: “O fair one, I came hither to gather fruit
for thee, and while I cut down branches from the trees a pain afflicted me. I grew faint, I

sank upon the ground, I laid my head upon thy lap and fell into a deep slumber even
whilst thou didst embrace me. Then it seemed to me that I was enveloped in darkness,
and that I beheld a sable One amidst great effulgence.... Was this a vision or a reality, O
fairest and dearest?”
Savitri said: “The darkness deepens.... I will tell thee all on the morrow.... Let us
now find our parents, O prince. The beasts of the night come forth; I hear their awesome
voices; they tread the forest in glee; the howl of the jackal maketh my heart afraid.”[108]
Said Satyavan: “Darkness hath covered the forest with fear; we cannot discover the
path by which to return home.”
Savitri said: “A withered tree burneth yonder. I will gather sticks and make a fire
and we will wait here until day.”
Said Satyavan: “My sickness hath departed and I would fain behold my parents
again. Never before have I spent a night away from the hermitage. My mother is old and
my father also, and I am their crutch. They will now be afflicted with sorrow because
that we have not returned.”
Satyavan lifted up his arms and lamented aloud, but Savitri dried his tears and said:
“I have performed penances, I have given away in charity, I have offered up sacrifices, I
have never uttered a falsehood. May thy parents be protected by virtue of the power
which I have obtained, and may thou, O my husband, be protected also.”
Said Satyavan: “O beautiful one, let us now return to the hermitage.”
Savitri raised up her despairing husband. She then placed his left arm upon her left
shoulder and wound her right arm about his body, and they walked on together.... At
length the fair moon came out and shone upon their path.
Meanwhile Dyumatsena, the sire of Satyavan, had regained his sight, and he went
with his wife to search for his lost son, but had to return to the hermitage sorrowing and
in despair. The sages comforted the weeping parents and said: “Savitri hath practised
great austerities, and there can be no doubt that Satyavan is still alive.”
In time Satyavan and Savitri reached the hermitage, and their own hearts and the
hearts of their parents were freed from sorrow.
Then Savitri related all that had taken place, and the sages said: “O chaste and
illustrious lady, thou hast rescued the race of Dyumatsena, the foremost of kings, from
the ocean of darkness and calamity.”
On the morning that followed messengers came to Dyumatsena and told that the
monarch who had deprived him of his kingdom was dead, having fallen by the hand of
his chief minister. All the people clamoured for their legitimate ruler. Said the
messengers: “Chariots await thee, O king. Return, therefore, unto thy kingdom.”
Great was their wonder to find that Dyumatsena was no longer blind.

So the king was restored to his kingdom, in accordance with the boon which Savitri
had obtained from Yama. And sons were in time born unto her father. Thus did the gentle
Savitri, by reason of her great piety, raise from misery to high fortune the family of her
husband and her own father also. She was the rescuer of all; the bringer of happiness and
prosperity.... He who heareth the story of Savitri will never endure misery again....

The beauties of Yama's heaven are sung by the sage Narada in the great epic poem
Mahabharata.[109] “Listen to me,” he says. “In that fair domain it is neither too hot nor
too cold. Life there is devoid of sorrow; age does not bring frailties, and none ever
hunger or thirst; it is without wretchedness, or fatigue, or evil feelings. Everything,
whether celestial or human, that the heart seeks after is found there. Sweet are the juicy
fruits, delicious the fragrance of flowers and tree blossoms, and waters are there, both
cold and hot, to give refreshment and comfort. Nymphs dance and sing to the piping of
celestial elves, and merry laughter ever blends with the strains of alluring music.
“The Assembly House of Yama, which was made by Twashtri, hath splendour equal
to the sun; it shines like burnished gold. There the servants of the Lord of Justice
measure out the allotted days of mortals. Great rishis and ancestors await upon Yama,
King of the Pitris (fathers), and adore him. Sanctified by holiness, their shining bodies
are clad in swan-white garments, and decked with many-coloured bracelets and golden
ear-rings. Sweet sounds, alluring perfumes, and brilliant flower garlands make that
building ever pleasant and supremely blest. Hundreds of thousands of saintly beings
worship the illustrious King of the Pitris.
“The heaven of Indra was constructed by the great artisan-god himself. Like a
chariot it can be moved anywhere at will. The Assembly House has many rooms and
seats, and is adorned by celestial trees. Indra sits there with his beautiful queen, wearing
his crown, with gleaming bracelets on his upper arms; he is decked with flowers, and
attired in white garments. He is waited upon by brilliant Maruts, and all the gods and the
rishis and saints, whose sins have been washed off their pure souls, which are
resplendent as fire. There is no sorrow, or fear, or suffering in Indra's abode, which is
inhabited by the spirits of wind and thunder, fire and water, plants and clouds, and
planets and stars, and the spirits also of Prosperity, Religion, Joy, Faith, and Intelligence.
Fairies and elves (Apsaras and Gandharvas) dance and sing there to sweet music; feats
of skill are performed by celestial battle heroes, auspicious rites are also practised.
Divine messengers come and go in celestial chariots, looking bright as Soma himself.
“The heaven of Varuna was constructed by Vishwakarman (Twashtri) within the
sea. Its walls and arches are of pure white, and they are surrounded by celestial trees,
made of sparkling jewels, which always blossom and always bear fruit. In the many-
coloured bowers beautiful and variegated birds sing delightful melodies. In the
Assembly House, which is also of pure white, there are many rooms and many seats.

Varuna, richly decked with jewels and golden ornaments and flowers, is throned there
with his queen. Adityas[110] wait upon the lord of the waters, as also do hooded snakes
(Nagas) with human heads and arms, and Daityas and Danavas (giants and demons) who
have taken vows and have been rewarded with immortality. All the holy spirits of rivers
and oceans are there, and the holy spirits of lakes and springs and pools, and the
personified forms of the points of the heavens, the ends of the earth, and the great
mountains. Music and dances provide entertainment, while sacred hymns are sung in
praise of Varuna.”

12

THE CITY OF THE GODS, PALITANA

These heavens recall the Grecian “Islands of the Blest” and the Celtic Otherworld,
where eternal summer reigns, trees bear blossoms and fruit continually, and there is no
wasting with age. Indra's Assembly House is slightly reminiscent of the Teutonic Valhal,
but is really more like the gardens of the underworld Hela. The Indian heroes do not
feast on pork like those of Teutonic and Celtic myth; in the Assembly House of Kuvera,
god of wealth, however, fat and flesh are eaten by fierce sentinel dwarfs. The fairy-like
Apsaras are wooed by Indra's favoured warriors as well as by the gods.
One of the conditions which secured entry to the heaven of Yama was that a man
should have offspring. A rishi, named Mandapala, devoted himself to religious vows and
the observance of great austerities, but when he reached the region of the Pitris, he could
not obtain “the fruit of his acts”. He asked: “Why is this domain unattainable to me?”

Said the Celestials: “Because thou hast no children.... The Vedas have declared that
the son rescueth the father from a hell called Put. O best of Brahmans, strive thou to
beget offspring.”[111]
A father could only reach Heaven if his son, after performing the cremation
ceremony, poured forth the oblation and performed other necessary services to the dead.
Consequently, all men showed great anxiety to have sons. In the Vedic period the
exposure of female children was not unknown; indeed, this practice is referred to in the
Yajurveda. “It is sorrowful to have a daughter,” exclaims the writer of one of the
Brahmanas.
One reason for infanticide in modern India is associated with the practice of
exogamy (marriage outside of one's tribe). Raids took place for the purpose of obtaining
wives and these were invariably the cause of much bloodshed. In 1842 members of the
Kandhs tribe told Major Macpherson “that it was better to destroy girls in their infancy
than to allow them to grow up and become causes of strife afterwards”. Colonel
MacCulloch, Political Agent for Manipur, stamped out infanticide in the Naga country
by assuring the people of a tribe that they would be protected against the wife-hunting
parties of a stronger tribe. “Many years afterwards a troop of Naga girls from the weaker
tribe paid a visit of ceremony to Colonel MacCulloch, bearing presents of cloth of their
own weaving in token of their gratitude to the man who had saved their lives.”[112]

FOOTNOTES:
[94] Iliad, xxiii, 75.
[95] Muir, Original Sanskrit Texts, v. 302.
[96] Rigveda, x. 51 (Arnold's translation).
[97] A History of Sanskrit Literature, p. 117.
[98] As was also Manu of a different or later cult.
[99] From Indian Wisdom.
[100] A History of Sanskrit Literature, p. 117.
[101] Early Religious Poetry of Persia, Professor J. H. Moulton, p. 42.
[102] A History of Sanskrit Literature, Professor Macdonell, p. 68.
[103] Rigveda, x, 10.
[104] From Indian Wisdom.
[105] Satapatha Brahmana, translated by Professor Eggeling, Part IV, 1897, p. 371
(Sacred Books of the East).
[106] From Adi Parva section of Mahabharata.
[107] Saraswati's rival. Brahma took Gayatri, the milkmaid, as a second wife, because his
chief wife, Saraswati, despite her wisdom, arrived late for a certain important ceremony, at
which the spouse of the god was required.
[108] Unfaithful wives were transformed into jackals after death.

[109] Lokapala-Sabhakhyana section of Sabha Parva.
[110] Sons of the goddess Aditi. They are attendants of Varuna, their chief, as the Maruts
are attendants of Indra.
[111] Adi Parva section of Mahabharata, Roy's trans., p. 635.
[112] The Tribes and Castes of Bengal. H. H. Risley (1892), vol. i, lxv, et seq.

CHAPTER IV
Demons and Giants and Fairies
Indian Asuras as Demons—Persian Ahura a God—Indian Gods as Persian Demons—Theory of
Assyrian Influence—Indra's Battle with Asuras—Like Thor's Conflict with Giants—The Sun and Moon
Devourer—Giants and Demons of Ocean—The Flying City—Destruction of World by Fire—Teutonic
Parallel—Serpent Demigods—Man's Special Enemies—The Corpse Eaters—Demons of Disease, Unbelief,
and Robbery—Elves and Fairies—The “Good People”—Celestial Musicians and Dancing Girls—Origin of
Mythical Beings—Story of a Love-sick King—His Fairy Bride—The Echoing Forest Nymph—The
“Language of Birds”—Birds as Spirits and Ghosts.

The gods are the Suras and the demons the Asuras or “non-gods”. This distinction,
however, did not obtain in the early Vedic period. Originally the deities, and especially
Varuna and Mitra, were called Asuras, but in the later part of the Rigveda the term is
applied chiefly to the enemies of the gods. In the Atharvaveda, as in subsequent Epic
literature, the Asuras are simply demons and giants and goblins.
No conclusive explanation can be offered as to how this remarkable change took
place in the course of the centuries embraced by the Vedic period. It may have been due
primarily to sectarian strife between the religious teachers of those tribes which had been
influenced by Babylonian modes of thought and those which clung tenaciously to the
forms of primitive Aryan nature worship, and perhaps also the worship of ancestors
(Pitris). In the old Persian language, which, like Greek, places “h” before a vowel where
“s” is used in Sanskrit, Ahura ( = Asura) signifies “god”. The Zoroastrian chief god is
called Ahura-Mazda, “the wise Lord”, as Varuna is addressed in early Rigvedic hymns,
“wise Asura and King”, and “the all-knowing Asura who established the heavens and
fixed the limits of the earth”. On the other hand “daeva” in the Iranian dialect, which is
cognate with Sanskrit “deva”, “god”, came to mean “demon”. “Asura” is derived from
the root “asu”, which signifies “the air of life”, and “deva” from “div”, “to shine”, or
“deiwo”, “heavenly”.
The view has been urged that the revolt against “Asura” in India was due to the
hatred cherished towards the Persians who had become subject to the Assyrians, the
worshippers of Ashur. It was originally based on the assumption that Assyrian
aggression caused the migration of Aryan tribes towards India. Subsequent research,
however, has tended to dispel this theory. It has been found, for instance, that Aryans
were associated with the Kassites who overthrew the Hammurabi dynasty of Babylon
prior to the invasion of the Punjab, and that the Assyrians were for a period vassals of
the Mitanni kings, who had Aryan names and worshipped Indra, Varuna, and Mithra in
Mesopotamia and Asia Minor. The weak point in the Ashur-Asura theory is that it throws
no light on the process which caused the Persian “daeva” to be applied to demons
instead of to gods. How the gods of the Indian Aryans became the demons of Persia and

the demons of Persia became the gods of India is a problem for which a solution has yet
to be found.
The expository and speculative books of the priests—the Brahmanas and
Upanishads—which are attached to the Vedic hymns, do not help us greatly in
accounting for the change. We read that “the gods and Asuras contended together, and
that the former, being less numerous than the latter, took some bricks, and placing them
in a proper position to receive the sacrificial fire, with the formula, ‘Thou art a
multiplier’, they became numerous”.[113] In one of the Brahmanas we are informed:

“The Asuras performed at the sacrifice all that the Devas performed. The
Asuras became thus of equal power with the Devas, and did not yet yield to them.
Thereupon the Devas had a vision of the ‘silent praise’. The Asuras, not knowing it,
did not perform the ‘silent praise’. This ‘silent praise’ is the latent essence of the
hymns. Till then, whatever weapons the Devas used against the Asuras, the Asuras
used in revenge against them; but when the Devas had a vision of the ‘silent praise’
and raised it as a weapon, the Asuras did not comprehend it. With it the Devas
aimed a blow at the Asuras, and defeated them, for they had no comprehension of
this weapon. Thereupon the Devas became masters of the Asuras. He who has such
a knowledge becomes master of his enemy, adversary, and hater.”[114]

This explanation is but an echo of the Indra-Vritra combat. Another statement is to
the effect that “the Devas gave up falsehood and adopted truth, while the Asuras gave up
truth and adopted falsehood”. Further, we learn that when a sacrifice was performed the
Asuras put the offerings into their own mouths, while the Suras (gods) gave the offerings
they received to one another.
The Asuras became completely identified with the demons and giants; they
symbolized evil, darkness, and drought. In Epic literature we read that “in ancient times
the gods and Asuras were very active in destroying one another. And the terrible Asuras
always succeeded in defeating the gods.” ... Indra goes forth with his thunderbolt against
Kesin, the leader of the Asuras, who wielded a great mace; this mace the demon hurled
against the god, but Indra “cut it up in its course with his thunderbolt. Then Kesin,
furious with rage, hurled a huge mass of rock at him.” Indra “of a hundred sacrifices rent
it asunder with his thunderbolt, and it fell down upon the ground. And Kesin himself was
wounded by that falling mass of rock.[115] Thus sorely afflicted he fled”. Indra rescues a
beautiful lady who had been seized by the Asura, and she informs the god that her sister
had previously fallen a victim to the demon....[116]
The Asuras obstructed sacrifices; they were ever hovering round altars to discover
if rites were properly performed; if a priest did not perform a ceremony in orthodox
fashion, the sacrifice was of no avail, because the Asuras devoured it; if a man neglected
a part of a ceremonial performance, a demon might take possession of him and
accomplish his ruin.

One of the terrible Asuras is the demon Rahu, who causes eclipses by swallowing
the sun and the moon, like the Chinese dragon, the wolf Managarm of Teutonic
mythology, and the Grecian demons who devour Helena, the sun maiden, sister of the
twin Dioscuri. In the Vedic period Rahu was represented by the demon Svarbhanu.

13

DURGA SLAYING GIANTS AND DEMONS
From a sculpture at Mámallapuram

The Asuras of Ocean are the Daityas and Danavas, the descendants of the chaos
hags Diti and Danu, and Kasyapa, a superhuman sage. These are the giants and demons
who fought against the gods like the Titans, the Irish Fomorians, and the Norse Jotuns.
Indra confined them in this region, which is called Patala, and they remain there
“afflicted by Time”,[117] and subject to the sway of Varuna. Like the Norse giants, they
will be let loose to take part in the “Last Battle”. An “Asura fire” burns constantly in
Patala, fed by water; it is “bound and confined”, but cannot be extinguished; when the
end of all comes, it will burst forth and burn up the three worlds.[118] In Teutonic
mythology the Universe is similarly doomed to be consumed by fire at Ragnarok, “the
Dusk of the Gods”.
The abodes of these giants and demons are exceedingly beautiful; they are agleam
with gold and precious stones; seats and beds are provided in the mansions, and there are
also recreation grounds, and forests and mountains resembling clouds. Indeed, the
Daityas and Danavas live pretty much in the same manner as the gods, for “the gods and
Danavas are brothers, although ever hostile to one another”.[119] The Danava women are
of gigantic stature, and wear jewels as large as mountain boulders; when terrified by the

attacks of the gods, they “bewail like unto cranes in Autumn”. One of the Daitya tribes
reside in the moving city named Hiranyapura, which they constructed for their
protection; sometimes it sinks below the sea, or under the earth; at other times it soars
across the heavens like the sun. Indra, as we have seen, has a similar aerial city.
In the Underworld dwell also the Nagas, the demoniac Cobras; they are of human
form to the waist, the rest of their bodies being like those of serpents. Their king is
Shesha, who is also named Vasuki and Karkotáka; he is sometimes represented with a
thousand heads, and resembles Typhon, who fought with Zeus. In the Ramayana he is
Ravana, the Demon of Ceylon. The prototypes of Shesha and his hosts are the dragons
Vritra, “the encompasser”; Ahi, “the confiner”; and fierce Kushna, “the scorcher”, who
spits out the sunset fires and burns up day.
When serpent worship became prevalent among the Aryans, the Nagas were
regarded as demigods. They were occasionally “the friends of man”, and to those they
favoured they gave draughts of their nectar, which endowed them with great strength.
Their city was the Paradise of serpent worshippers. The female Nagas were beautiful
nymphs, who were sometimes wooed by mortals.
As the Asuras are the enemies of the gods, the Rakshas or Rakshasas are the
enemies of man.[120] These demons are “night prowlers”; they have greatest power after
“the first forty seconds of grey twilight preceding nightfall”. They travel faster than the
wind, and go through the air; they have also power to change their shape. Sometimes
they appear in the guise of tigers, bears, or great monkeys; and their hues vary from
yellow to red, and blue to green. In the Ramayana they are found associated with the
Asuras of Ceylon; a spy enters a demon dwelling and sees them in all their shapes, some
frightfully deformed, with small bodies and long arms; some as grotesque dwarfs, others
as horrible giants with long projecting teeth; some with one eye, others with three eyes;
some with one leg, two legs, or three, or even four; and some with heads of serpents,
horses, or elephants. In the Mahabharata the Rakshasas are like gorillas; they have
arrow-shaped ears, big red eyes, and red hair and beards, and mouths like caves; they
feast on human beings and cattle. The heroic Bhima, like Siegfried Dietrich of Bern,
Beowulf, and Finn-mac-Coul, is a mighty slayer of these man-eating demons. They are
impervious to weapons, but Bhima wrestles with them and breaks their backs or tears
them asunder, after lively combats with trees and boulders. Female Rakshasas
sometimes fall in love with human beings, and transform themselves into beautiful
women. Bhima takes one for his bride, and she carries him through the air to a Celestial
retreat among the mountains.
The most loathsome Rakshasas are the goblin-like Pisachas,[121] who are devourers
of dead bodies in cemeteries, and are exceedingly vile and malignant fiends. They are
the bringers of diseases and wasting fevers. In the Atharvaveda Agni is invoked by the
priests, who mutter charms over suffering and “possessed” mortals, to take the Pisachas
between his teeth and devour them. They are “those who hound us in our chambers,
while shouting goes on in the night of the new moon ... the flesh devourers, who plan to

injure us, and whom I overcome”. The priest declares: “I plague the Pisachas as the tiger
the cattle owners. As dogs who have seen a lion, these do not find a refuge.... From
villages I enter Pisachas fly away.... May Nirriti (a goddess of destruction) take hold of
this one.”[122]
Kali, a demon who holds friendly converse with the gods in the “Story of Nala”, is
attended by Dwápara, a flesh-eater like the Pisachas. The Panis are aerial demons, who
are hated by bluff, honest Indra, because they are the inspirers of foolish actions, slander,
and unbelief, and the imps who encourage men to neglect homage to deities. The black
Dasyus are repulsive of aspect and jealous-hearted; they are the stealers of the cloud
cows who are held captive for Vritra in the cave of the demon Vala. The Darbas, “the
tearers”, are a variety of Pisachas. Reference is made in Mahabharata to “ugly Vartikas
of dreadful sight, having one wing, one eye, and one leg”; when they “vomit blood,
facing the sun”, a dreadful happening is known to be at hand, because they are fiends of
evil omen.
Among the supernatural beings who are sometimes the enemies, but in most cases
the friends of mankind, are the Yakshas, the Gandharvas, and the Apsaras (Apsarasas).
The Yakshas are occasionally referred to as the Punyajanas, “the good people”; they
may be of human stature, with big benevolent eyes, or powerful giants who can fight as
fiercely as Rakshasas. They are guardians of hidden treasure, like the dwarfs and giants
of Teutonic legend, being associated with Kuvera, god of wealth, whose abode is
situated among the Himalayan mountains. In Kuvera's domain are found “multitudes of
spirits” who do not visit the world of men as a rule, but remain near the treasure for
purposes of defence; “some are of dwarfish stature, some of fierce visage, some
hunchbacked, some of blood-red eyes, some of frightful yells; some are feeding upon fat
and flesh, and some are terrible to behold; and all are armed with various weapons, and
endued with the speed of the wind”.[123]

14

THE CELESTIAL FAIRIES (APSARAS)
Sculpture on a modern Hindu Temple, Benares

The Gandharvas are grouped in tribes, and number over six thousand individuals.
They are all of the male sex. They haunt the air, the forests, and the mountains, and, like
the Rakshasas, have power to work illusions in the grey twilight before nightfall.
References are made in the Epics to their combats with human beings. To warriors who
overcome them they impart instruction in religious matters; those whom they conquer
they carry away, like the Teutonic elves and dwarfs. The Gandharvas are renowned
musicians and bards and singers. When they play on their divine instruments the fairy-
like Apsaras, who are all females, dance merrily. In the various Aryan heavens these
elves and fairies delight and allure with music and song and dance the gods, and the
souls of those who have attained to a state of bliss. The Apsara dancing girls are
“voluptuous and beautiful”, and inspire love in Paradise as well as upon earth. Their
lovers include gods, Gandharvas, and mortals. Arjuna, the human son of Indra, who was
transported in a Celestial chariot to Swarga over Suravithi, “the Milky Way”, was
enchanted by the music and songs and dances of the Celestial elves and fairies. He
followed bands of Gandharvas who were “skilled in music sacred and profane”, and he
saw the bewitching Apsaras, including the notorious Menaka, “with eyes like lotus
blooms, employed in enticing hearts”; they had “fair round hips and slim waists”, and

“began to perform various evolutions, shaking their deep bosoms and casting their
glances around, and exhibiting other attractive attitudes capable of stealing the hearts
and resolutions and minds of the spectators”.[124]
In the Rigveda there is a water-nymph, named Apsaras; she is the “spouse” of
Gandharva, an atmospheric deity who prepares Soma for the gods and reveals divine
truths to mortals. They vanish, however, in later times; the other Vedas deal with the
spirit groups which figure so prominently in the Epics. No doubt the groups are older
than Gandharva, the god, and Apsaras, the goddess, who may be simply the elf-king and
the fairy-queen. The “black” Dasyus are sometimes referred to by modern-day writers as
the dark aborigines who were displaced by the Aryans; a tribal significance is also given
to the Rakshasas and the Gandharvas. But this tendency to identify the creatures of the
spirit world with human beings may be carried too far. If “Dasyus” were really “dark
folk”,[125] it should be remembered that in Teutonic mythology there are “black dwarfs”,
who live in underground dwellings, and “white elves” associated with air and ocean;
there are also black and white fairies in the Scottish Highlands, so that black and white
spirits may simply belong to night and day spirit groups. It may be that the Indian
aborigines were referred to contemptuously as Dasyus by the Aryans. The application of
the names of repulsive imps to human enemies is not an unfamiliar habit even in our
own day; in China the European is a “foreign devil”, but Chinese “devils” existed long
before Europeans secured a footing in the Celestial Kingdom. Those who seek for a
rational explanation for the belief in the existence of mythical beings should remember
that primitive man required no models for the creatures of his fancy. He symbolized
everything—his ideals, his desires, his hopes and his fears, the howling wind, the low
whispering breeze, the creaking tree, the torrent, the river, the lake, and the mountain; he
heard the hammer or the trumpet of a mighty god in the thunderstorm, he believed that
giants uprooted trees and cast boulders down mountain slopes, that demons raised ocean
billows in tempest, and that the strife of the elements was a war between gods and
giants; day and night, ever in conflict, were symbolized, as were also summer and
winter, and growth and decay. If the fairies and elves of Europe are Lapps, or the small
men of an interglacial period in the Pleistocene Age, and if the Dasyus and Gandharvas
of India are merely Dravidians and pre-Dravidians who resisted the Aryan invasion,
who, then, it may be asked, were the prototypes of the giants “big as mountains”, or the
demons like “trees walking”, the “tiger-headed” Rakshasas, “ugly Vartikas” with “one
wing, one eye, and one leg”? and what animal suggested Vritra, or the fiery dragon that
burned up daylight, or Rahu, the swallower of sun and moon? If the redhaired and red-
bearded Rakshasas are to be given a racial significance, what of the blue Rakshasas and
the green? The idea that primitive man conceived of giants because he occasionally
unearthed the bones of prehistoric monsters, is certainly not supported by Scottish
evidence; Scotland swarms with giants and hags of mountain, ocean, and river, although
it has not yielded any great skeletons or even a single artifact of the Palæolithic Age.
Giants and fairies are creations of fancy. Just as a highly imaginative child symbolizes
his fears and peoples darkness with terrifying monsters, so, it may be inferred, did
primitive man who crouched in his cave, or spent sleepless nights in tempest-stricken

forests, conceive with childlike mind of demons thirsting for his blood and giants of
wind and fire intent on destroying the Universe.
In India, as elsewhere, the folk of the spirit world might woo or be wooed by
impressionable mortals. A Gandharva related to Arjuna, the Pandava prince, by whom he
was defeated in single combat, the “charming story”, as he called it, of King Samvarana
and the fairy-like Tapati, a daughter of the sun god, Surya. Tapati was of all nymphs the
most beautiful; she was “perfectly symmetrical” and “exquisitely attired”; she had
“faultless features, and black, large eyes”; and, in contrast to an Apsara, she “was chaste
and exceedingly well conducted”. For a time the sun god considered that no husband
could be found who was worthy of his daughter; and therefore “knew no peace of mind,
always thinking of the person he should select”. One day, however, King Samvarana
worshipped the sun, and made offerings of flowers and sweet perfumes, and Surya
resolved to bestow his daughter upon this ideal man.
It came to pass that Samvarana went a-hunting deer on the mountains. He rode
swiftly in pursuit of a nimble-footed stag, leaving his companions behind, until his steed
expired with exhaustion. Then he wandered about alone. In a secluded wood he beheld a
maiden of exquisite beauty; he gazed at her steadfastly for a time, thinking she was a
goddess or “the embodiment of the rays emanating from the sun”. Her body was as
radiant as fire and as spotless as the crescent moon; she stood motionless like to a golden
statue. The flowers and the creepers round about partook of her beauty, and “seemed to
be converted into gold”. She was Tapati, daughter of the sun.
The king's eyes were captivated, his heart was wounded by the arrows of the love
god Kama; he lost his peace of mind. At length he spoke and said: “Who art thou, O fair
one? O maiden of sweet smiles, why dost thou linger in these lonely woods? I have
never seen or heard of one so beautiful as thee.... The love god tortures me.”
That lotus-eyed maiden made no answer; she vanished from sight like to lightning
in the clouds.
The king hastened through the forest, lamenting for her: he searched in vain; he
stood motionless in grief; he fell down on the earth and swooned.
Then, smiling sweetly, the maiden appeared again. In honeyed words she spoke,
saying: “Arise, thou tiger among kings. It is not meet that thou shouldst lose thy reason
in this manner.”
Samvarana opened his eyes and beheld Tapati. Weak with emotion he spoke and
said: “I am burning with love for thee, thou black-eyed beauty, O accept me. My life is
ebbing away.... I have been bitten by Kama, who is even like a venomous snake. Have
mercy on me.... O thou of handsome and faultless features, O thou of face like unto the
lotus or the moon, O thou of voice sweet as that of singing Kinnaras, my life now
depends on thee. Without thee, O timid one, I am unable to live. It behoveth thee not, O
black-eyed maid, to cast me off; it behoveth thee to relieve me from this affliction by
giving me thy love. At the first sight thou hast distracted my heart. My mind wandereth.

Be merciful; I am thy obedient slave, thy adorer. O accept me.... O thou of lotus eyes, the
flame of desire burneth within me. O extinguish that flame by throwing on it the water
of thy love....”[126]
Tapati replied: “I am not mistress of mine own self. I am a maiden ruled by my
father. If thou dost love me, demand me of him. My heart hath been robbed by thee.”
Then, revealing her identity, Tapati ascended to heaven, and once again Samvarana
fell upon the earth and swooned.
The ministers and followers of the king came searching for him, and found him
“lying forsaken on the ground like a rainbow dropped from the firmament”. They
sprinkled his face with cool and lotus-scented water. When he revived, the monarch sent
away all his followers except one minister. For twelve days he worshipped the sun
constantly on the mountain top. Then a great Rishi, whom he had sent for, came to him,
and the Rishi ascended to the sun. Ere long he returned with Tapas, the sun god having
declared that Varanasi would be a worthy husband for his daughter.
For twelve years the king lived with his fairy bride in the mountain forests, and a
regent ruled over the kingdom.
But although the monarch enjoyed great bliss, living the life of a Celestial, the
people of the kingdom suffered greatly. For twelve years no rain fell, “not even a drop of
dew came from the skies, and no corn was grown”. The people were afflicted with
famine; men grew reckless, and deserted their wives and children; the capital became
like to a city of the dead.
Then a great Rishi brought Varanasi back to his capital with his Celestial bride. And
after that things became as they were before. Rain fell in abundance and corn was
grown. “Revived by that foremost of monarchs of virtuous soul, the capital and the
country became glad with exceeding joy.”[127] A son was born to the king, and his name
was Kuru.
There are many other uncatalogued Celestial beings like Tapati in Indian fairyland.
In the Atharva-veda there are numerous named and nameless spirits of good and evil,
and throughout the Epics references are made to semi-divine beings who haunt streams,
lakes, forests, and plains. A Rigveda hymn is addressed to the forest nymph Aranyani.
She echoes the voices of man and beast and creates illusions:

She mimics kine that crop the grass,
She rumbles like a cart at even,
She calls The cow, she hews down wood,
The man who lingers says, “Who calleth?”

O Aranyani will not harm
If one will not invade her dwelling,
When, having eaten luscious fruit,

At her sweet will she turns to slumber.
The singing birds are all singing spirits in India as in Europe. The “language of
birds” is the language of spirits. When Siegfried, after eating of the dragon's heart,
understood the “language of birds”, he heard them warning him regarding his enemies.
Our seafarers whistle when they invoke the spirit of the wind. Sir Walter Scott drew
attention, in his Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, to the belief that the speech of spirits
was a kind of whistling. As we have seen, the wives of Danavas had voices like Cranes;
Homer's ghosts twittered like bats; Egyptian ghosts were hooting owls. In India the
croaking raven is still a bird of evil omen, as it is also in the West. In the Scottish
Highlands the spirits of the dead sometimes appear as birds; so do fairies. The Irish gods
and the Celestial Rishis of India take the form of swans, like the “swan maidens”, when
they visit mankind. In the Assyrian legend of Ishtar the souls of the dead in Hades “are
like birds covered with feathers”. Numerous instances could be quoted to illustrate the
widespread association of birds with the spirit world.

FOOTNOTES:
[113] Muir's Original Sanskrit Texts, v, 15.
[114] Professor E. Vernon Arnold's The Rigveda, p. 54.
[115] In the combat between Thor and the giant Hrungner, the thunder-hammer similarly
cleaves a mass of flint hurled by the enemy.—Teutonic Myth and Legend.
[116] Mahabharata, Vana Parva section, pp. 679-80, Roy's trans.
[117] “Overwhelmed by misfortune” (Roy).
[118] Heaven, Earth, and the Underworld.
[119] Mahabharata.
[120] Asuras are sometimes called Rakshasas also.
[121] Pron. pe-shatch'as.
[122] Bloomfield's Atharvaveda iv, 36 (Sacred Books of the East, vol. xlii).
[123] Mahabharata, Roy's trans. (Sabha Parva, p. 32).
[124] Vana Parva section of Mahabharata.
[125] Dasyu and Dasa are “applied in many passages of the Rigveda to superhuman
enemies”. The colour reference in Dasa is probable, but it is also used in other senses. For a
full discussion on conflicting views regarding Dasyu and Dasa see Vedic Index of Names and
Subjects. Macdonell and Keith, vol. i, pp. 347-9 and 356-8.
[126] Mahabharata, Roy's translation (Adi Parva, section, pp. 495-6).
[127] Like an Egyptian Pharaoh, the rajah is here a god among men. His presence was
necessary to ensure the success of rain-bringing ceremonies.

CHAPTER V
Social and Religious Developments of the Vedic Age
Aryan Civilization—Tribes and Clans—Villages and Trade—Divisions of Society—Origin of Castes—
Rise of the Priestly Cult—Brahmanic Ideals of Life—Brahmanic Students—The Source of Algebra—
Samaveda and Yajurveda—Atharva-veda Charms and Invocations—The “Middle Country” the Centre of
Brahmanic Culture—Sacred Prose Books—Bold Pantheism of the Upanishads—Human Sacrifice and its
Symbolism—Chaos Giant Myth in India, Babylonia, and China, and in Teutonic Mythology—Horse
Sacrifices in India, Siberia, Greece, Rome, &c.—Creation the Result of Sacrifice—Death as the Creator and
Devourer.

During the Vedic Age, which came to a close in the eighth century B.C., the Aryan
settlers spread gradually eastward and southward. At first they occupied the Punjab, but
ere the Rigvedic period was ended they had reached the banks of the Jumna and the
Ganges in the “Middle Country”. In the early hymns the great Himalayan mountains
dominate fertile river valleys, but the greater part of northern India is covered by vast
and dense forests. No mention is made of the sea.
The Aryans were a pastoral and hunting people, with some knowledge of
agriculture. They possessed large herds of cattle, and had also sheep, goats, and asses;
they were, besides, famous breeders and tamers of horses; the faithful dog, man's earliest
friend, followed both herdsman and hunter. The plough was in use, and bullocks were
yoked to it; grain was thrashed in primitive manner and ground between “pounding
stones”. Barley and wheaten cakes, milk, curds, butter, and cheese, and wild fruits were
the chief articles of diet; the products of the chase were also eaten, but there appears to
have been at the earliest period a restriction in the consumption of certain foods. Beef
was not eaten at meals. Bulls were sacrificed to the gods. Two kinds of intoxicating
liquors were brewed—the mysterious Soma, beloved by deities, and a mead or ale called
“sura”, the Avestan “hura”, prepared probably from grain, which had ever an evil
reputation as a cause of peace-breaking, like dice, and of wrongdoing generally.
Metals were in use, for the earliest Aryan invasion took place in the Bronze Age,
during which there were great race movements and invasions and conquests in Asia and
in Europe. It is doubtful whether or not iron was known by the earliest Aryan settlers in
India; it was probably not worked, but may have been utilized for charms, as in those
countries in which meteoric iron was called “the metal of heaven”. The knowledge of the
mechanical arts had advanced beyond the primitive stage. Warriors fought not only on
foot but also in chariots, and they wore breastplates; their chief weapons were bows and
horn or metal-tipped arrows, maces, battleaxes, swords, and spears. Smiths roused their
fires with feather fans; carpenters are mentioned in the hymns, and even barbers who
used razors.

The father was the head of the family, and the family was the tribal unit. War was
waged by a loose federation of small clans, each of which was distinguished by the name
of a patriarch. The necessity of having to conduct frequent campaigns in a new country,
peopled by hostile aliens, no doubt tended to weld tribal units into small kingdoms and
to promote the monarchic system. But intertribal feuds were frequent and bitter. The
Aryans of the Punjab, like the Gauls who settled in northern Italy, and the clans of the
Scottish Highlands in the Middle Ages, were continually divided among themselves, and
greatly occupied in subduing rivals and in harrying their cattle.
Villages were protected by stockades or earthworks against the attacks of enemies
and wild beasts, or they contained strongholds. They were governed by headsmen, who
were, no doubt, military leaders also; disputes were settled by a judge. Land, especially
grazing land, appears to have been held in common by communities, but there are
indications that cultivated plots and houses were owned by families and ultimately by
individuals, the father in such cases being the supreme authority. Village communities,
however, might be migratory, and certain of them may have had seasonal areas of
settlement.
Permanent villages existed in groups and also at some distance from one another,
and were connected by roads, and one clan might embrace several separate communities.
Trade was conducted by barter, the cow being the standard of value, but in time jewels
and gold ornaments were used like money for purchases; “nishka”, a necklet, afterwards
signified a coin. Foreign traders were not unknown at an early period. The use of
alphabetic signs appears to have been introduced by Semites before the close of the
Vedic period; from these evolved ultimately the scientific Sanskrit alphabet and
grammar.
In the Iranian period[128] there were social divisions of the people, but the
hereditary system does not appear to have obtained until the close of Rigvedic times.
Kings might be elected, or a military aristocracy might impose its sway over an area; a
priest was originally a poet or leader of thought, or a man of elevated character, like the
Scottish Highland duine-usual, the “upwardly man”, who might be the son of a chief or
of the humblest member of a community.
The earliest Aryan divisions of society were apparently marked by occupations. At
first there were three grades: warriors, priests, and traders, but all classes might engage
in agricultural pursuits; even in the Epic period princes counted and branded cattle. In
the later Vedic age, however, a rigid system of castes came into existence, the result,
apparently, of having to distinguish between Aryans and aborigines at first, and
subsequently between the various degrees of Aryans who had intermarried with aliens.
Caste (Varna) signifies colour, and its relation to occupation is apparent in the four
divisions—Brahmans, priests; Kshatriyas, the military aristocracy; Vaisyas, commoners,
workers, and traders, who were freemen; and Sudras, slaves and aborigines. In the
Yajurveda, the third Veda, the caste system is found established on a hereditary basis.
The three upper castes, which were composed of Aryans only, partook in all religious

ceremonials, but the members of the Sudra caste were hedged about by severe
restrictions. The knowledge of the Vedas was denied to them, and they were not allowed
to partake of Soma offerings, and although in the process of time their position improved
somewhat in the religious life of the mingled people, their social inferiority was ever
emphasized; they might become traders, but never Kshatriyas or Brahmans.
The most renowned of early Brahmans were the Rishis, the poets[129] who
composed the “new songs” to the gods. They were regarded as divinely inspired men
and their fame was perpetuated after death. Several renowned poets are referred to in
sacred literature and invested with great sanctity. The hymns or mantras were committed
to memory and then handed down from generation to generation. At religious
ceremonies these were chanted by reciters, the Hotri priests. There were also priests who
were skilled in the correct performance of sacrificial rites, and family priests, the
Purohitas, who were the guides, philosophers, and friends of kings and noblemen. A
Rishi might be a Purohita and a seer, who ensured by the performance of mystic
ceremonies a monarch's success in battle and afterwards celebrated his achievements in
song.
In the process of time an organized priesthood came into existence, and a clan or
kingdom had its chief priest. The production of new hymns came to an end; those which
existed were considered sufficient for all purposes; religious beliefs were systematized,
and an arbitrary ritual became more and more complicated.
There are indications that at an early period a chief or king might offer up a
sacrifice, but when the profession of the Brahman became hereditary, no rite could be
performed unless presided over by holy men. A sacrifice might be rendered futile by an
error in the construction of an altar, or in the order of ceremonial practices, or by failure
to select appropriate chants. The Asuras and Rakshasas and other demons were ever
hovering round the altar, endeavouring to obstruct ceremonies and to take advantage of
ritualistic errors to intercept offerings intended for the gods. It was by making sacrifices
that man was believed to obtain power over the gods, or magical control over the forces
of nature.

15 Photo. Frith
GROUP OF PRESENT-DAY BRAHMANS

For the performance of some sacrifices a day of preparation might be required.
Altars had to be erected with mathematical exactness; the stones were blessed and
anointed; offerings were made at every stage of the work so that the various deities
might give protection in their various spheres. The following extract from one of the
Brahmanas affords a glimpse of the preparatory rites:—

Thrice he (the priest) perambulates it (the altar); for thrice he walks round it
(whilst sprinkling); thus as many times as he walks round it, so many times does he
perambulate it....
Having thereupon put that stone into the water pitcher, (he) throws it in that
(south-westerly) direction, for that is Nirriti's region; he thus consigns pain to
Nirriti's region....
Outside the fire altars he throws it, &c.[130]

Human failings may be imputed to Brahmans, but it must be recognized that the
ideals of their caste were of a high order. They were supposed to be born with “spiritual
lustre”, and their lives were consecrated to the instruction and uplifting of mankind and

the attainment of salvation. A Brahman's life was divided into four periods. The first was
the period of childhood, and the second was the period of probation, when he went to
live in a forest hermitage, where he acted as the servant of a revered old sage, his
spiritual father, and received instruction in Brahmanic knowledge for a number of years.
During the third period the Brahman lived the worldly life; he married and reared a
family and performed the duties pertaining to his caste. Hospitality was one of the chief
worldly duties; if a stranger, even although he might be an enemy, came and asked for
food he received it, although the Brahman family should have to fast to supply him. In
the fourth period the Brahman, having proved himself a faithful husband and exemplary
father, divided his worldly possessions between his grown-up sons and daughters; then
he abandoned his comfortable home and, assuming the deerskin clothing of hermits,
went to live in a lonely forest, or among the Himalayan mountains, to prepare for the
coming of death, far away from the shadows cast by sin and sorrow. In solitude he
performed rigid penances and addressed himself with single-minded devotion to the
contemplation of spiritual problems. Subduing the five senses, he attained to the state of
Yoga (concentration). Placing his mind entirely upon the contemplation of the soul, he
became united ultimately with the World Soul (God), thus obtaining the release which
was Salvation. Some Brahmans were teachers who instructed pupils and composed the
sacred writings. The forest hermitages were the universities of ancient India.
The profession of the priesthood had certainly its mercenary aspect; sacrificial fees
were fixed as well as sacrificial rites, and a not unimportant part of a ceremony was the
offering of generous gifts to the Brahmans, who presided at the altar. But on the whole
the riches thus expended were not given in vain. As in Egypt, the rise and endowment of
the priestly cult was due to the accumulation of wealth which enabled a section of
society to find leisure for study and the promotion of culture. Aryan civilization in India
owed much to the Brahmans. They introduced and elaborated alphabetic signs; the
devoted scholars among them compiled the first Sanskrit grammar and studied the art of
composition. Among the hermits there were great and original thinkers who laid the
basis of Indian metaphysical thought, and rose from the materialism of the early Vedic
hymns to the idealism of the speculative prose works, which included the Forest Books,
a name redolent of leafy solitude and of simple and contemplative lives on the banks of
sweetly-flowing waters. Even their devotion to the mysteries of sacrificial ritual, which
became more and more complicated, was not unproductive of permanent benefits to
mankind. The necessity for the exact construction of altars, and the observance of
ceremonies in due season, promoted the study of mathematical science. These Brahmans
invented the numerical figures which have attained universal usage, and in time they
gave the world Algebra. The influence of their culture may be traced in other directions.
At the present day it has indirectly brought into existence the science of Comparative
Religion.

16

SADHUS (RELIGIOUS MENDICANTS) AT BENARES

At the close of the Rigvedic period the Aryans had extended their sway to the
district known as Madhyadesa, the “middle country”, between the “Five Rivers” of the
Punjab and the upper reaches of the Jumna and Ganges. Pioneers were meantime
pressing southward and eastward towards the sea. Migrations were, no doubt, due to
propulsion as well as attraction; fresh folk-waves probably poured in periodically from
the north-west, while the settled population must have increased rapidly in the fertile
land controlled by the invaders, to whom the aborigines offered but slight resistance.
The second Vedic book, the Samaveda, does not contain much fresh material: it is
mainly a compilation of the Rigvedic hymns which the priests chanted at the Soma
sacrifice. Its sole interest, from a historical point of view, is the evidence it affords of the
steady growth of ritualistic tendencies. A new era of Aryan civilization is revealed,
however, by the third Veda, the Yajurveda. In this book the tribes are found to have
extended their area of control down the Ganges valley, and southward along the banks of
the Indus. It is of interest to note here that the word “Samudra”, first applied to the
broadening Indus where it receives its tributaries, and signifying “collected waters”,
became in the Brahmanas the name of the world-encircling ocean, across which in due
time loomed the ships which “once in three years” carried to Solomon's order “gold, and
silver, ivory (or elephants' tusks), and apes, and peacocks”.[131]
In the Yajurveda we find that Aryan civilization has developed greatly in the course
of three or four centuries. Powerful tribes have established kingdoms, and small states
are being subjected to the larger. The hardened system of social organization is reflected
by the references to the four distinct castes. Hitherto the Kshatriyas have controlled the

destinies of the people, but now the Brahmans achieve an intellectual conquest and
impose their sway over kings and nobles. The holy men are no longer the humble
servants of generous patrons; they are the human representatives of the all-controlling
deities. “Verily, there are two kinds of gods; for the gods themselves, assuredly, are gods,
and those priests who have studied and teach Vedic lore, are the human gods.”
The offerings to the deities are “consecrated by the feeding of priests”.[132]
Even the gods become dependent upon the priests, who provided them by offering
sacrifices with the “food” they required, and also with the Soma which gave them length
of years. Indra could not combat against the Asuras without the assistance of the priests
who chanted formulas to ensure victory; it was, therefore, due to the power exercised, in
the first place, by the priests that the drought demon was overcome and rain fell in
abundance.

17

A YOGI ON A BED OF SPIKES
An example of present-day austerities

Priests might also accumulate in heaven credit balances of Celestial power by
undergoing penances for long periods. A heavy debt was also due to them by the gods
for their sacrificial offerings. When a Brahman desired to exercise his accumulated

power, he might even depose the deities, who were therefore placed under compulsion to
fulfil his demands; his Celestial credit might exceed the “paying” possibilities of the
supreme Powers. In the sacred tales Brahmans were credited with performing rigid
penances for centuries.
In the fourth Veda, the Atharva-veda, the revival of belief in formulas is
emphasized. This book, which did not receive recognition as an inspired work at first, is
in the main a collection of metrical charms of great antiquity. Many resemble closely
those which have been collected by folk-lorists during late years in the Scottish
Highlands and elsewhere throughout Europe. The Rigveda hymns reveal the religious
beliefs and aspirations of the advanced thinkers of their age; the Atharva-veda contains
the germs of folk religion—the magical formulas chanted to dispel or invoke the vague
spirits who helped or thwarted mankind. It teaches that the Universe is upheld by
sacrifice and the spiritual exaltation of Brahmans, and that Brahmanic power may be
exercised by the use of appropriate charms. Human beings might also be influenced by
the spirits invoked by means of formulas.
Primitive man believed that all emotions were caused by spirits. When the poet
sang, he was “inspired”—he drew in a spirit; ecstasy was “a standing outside of
oneself”, the soul having escaped temporarily from the body. Wrath was caused by a
demon, and “battle fury” by the spirit of war which possessed the warrior. When a
human being was “seized” by a fit, his convulsions were believed to be caused by the
demon who had entered his body. Love was inspiration in the literal sense, and an Indian
lover might compel a heedless lady to regard him with favour by reciting an Atharva-
vedic spell. Apparently the love spirit had a weakness for honey. The lover chanted:

Honey be mine at the tip of my tongue,
May sweetness of honey pervade my speech,
So that my love may come under my spell—
So that my lady may yield to my will.

Atharva-veda, i, 34.

As the grass is shorn from earth by the wind,
So may thy soul be shorn to my will,
And then, O lady, thou'lt give me thy love,
Nor be averse to me as thou wert.

Atharva-veda, ii, 30.
A lover, we find, can invoke the lady to embrace him “as the creeper embraces a
tree”; if she clings to his arm he can cause her to cling to his heart; his influence over her
mind is like the influence of a wing-beating eagle over the wind. It may be, too, that a
neglected girl finds it necessary to prepare a love potion with “salve, sweet wood, and

spikenard”, and to cause the heart of an ungallant swain to suffer from “a parching
heart”, which “languishes for love”, and experiences the “yearning of the Apsaras”.
Warriors were charmed against spells, cattle and sheep were charmed against wild
beasts, a house was charmed against evil spirits and demons.[133] Greedy demons of
disease, who devoured the flesh of patients, were greatly feared: Brahmans performed
ceremonies of riddance and “plagued them as the tiger plagues the cattle owners”. The
following is a charm against cough:

As the soul with the soul's desires swiftly to a distance flies,
Thus do thou, O cough, fly forth along the soul's course of flight.
As a well-sharpened arrow swiftly to a distance flies,
Thus do thou, O cough, fly forth along the expanse of the earth.
As the rays of the sun swiftly to a distance fly,
Thus do thou, O cough, fly forth along the flood of the sea.

Atharva-veda, vi, 105.[134]
A Scottish Highland charm similarly invokes the Powers, or the “King of the
Elements”:

To cause the wrath of men to ebb,
Like to a wave from the sea to the floodtide,
And a wave from the floodtide to the ebb.

Occasionally a mantra is infused with high religious fervour. A Brahman might
pray:

From the sins which knowingly or unknowingly we have committed, do ye, all
gods, of one accord release us.
If awake or asleep, to sin inclined, I have committed a sin, may what has been,
and what shall be, as if from a wooden post, release me.

Atharva-veda, vi, 115. 1-2.[135]
Another hymn of this character concludes:

In heaven, where our righteous friends are blessed,
Having cast off diseases from their bodies,
From lameness free and not deformed in members,
There may we see our parents and our children.

Atharva-veda, vi, 120.[136]
While the tribes were spreading southward and eastward, Madhyadesa, the “middle
country”, remained the centre of Brahmanic culture. In that district came into existence

the earliest sacred prose works which constitute the basis of classic Hinduism. The first
were the oldest Brahmanas; these comment on and expound the doctrines of the Vedic
hymns, especially in their relation to the ritual of sacrifices. To the Brahmanas were
added the Aran´yakas, “forest books”, which are more speculative in tendency. The
expository appendices to the Aran´yakas are called the Upanishads, “the sittings down”,
or “the sessions”—the pupil sat at his master's feet—and in these a high level of thought
is attained. “For the first time”, says Professor Macdonell, “we find the Absolute grasped
and proclaimed.”
All the tribes were not infused with the same degree of culture. In the Yajur-veda
period there were various schools of thought, and these continued to exercise their
influence into historic times, even after Upanishadic doctrines became widespread.
Ere we deal, however, with the new theological doctrines of the Brahmanic
teachers, we should follow the development of sacrificial practices, because from these
evolved the bold Pantheism which characterized the conception of the World Soul,
Brahmă.
The two greatest sacrifices were the purusha-medha, the human sacrifice, and
aswa-medha, the sacrifice of the horse. Both were prevalent in early times, and in
simpler form than they survive to us in the doctrinal works and the Epics. A human
sacrifice was believed to be of highest potency, but it became extremely rare, as in
Egypt, among the ruling and cultured classes. It was perpetuated in India, however, until
about half a century ago, by the Dravidian Khonds in Bengal and Madras, and had to be
suppressed by British officers. Human sacrifices, in historic times, were “offered to the
earth goddess, Tari Pennu or Bera Pennu, and were believed to ensure good crops, and
immunity from all diseases and accidents”. One official record states that the victim,
after being stabbed by the priest, was “literally cut to pieces”. Each person who was “so
fortunate as to procure it carried away a morsel of the flesh, and presented it to the idol
of his own village”.[137]
From the practice of sacrificing human beings arose the conception that the first act
of Creation was, if not human sacrifice, at least the sacrifice of the first being with
human attributes. The Universe is the giant Purusha (“man”); he is “all that hath been
and shall be”. In a Rigvedic hymn, which is regarded as being of later composition than
the Rigvedic period, it is set forth:

“When the gods performed a sacrifice with Purusha as the oblation, the Spring
was its butter, the Summer its fuel, and the Autumn its (accompanying) offering.
This victim, Purusha, born in the beginning, they immolated on the sacrificial
grass.”

From this universal sacrifice issued forth all that exists. The Brahman rose from
Purusha's mouth, the Rajanya (Kshatriya) from his arms, the Vaisya from his thighs, and
the Sudra sprang from his feet. Indra and Agni came from his mouth, and Vayu from his
breath.

“When the gods, performing sacrifice, bound Purusha as a victim, there were
seven sticks (stuck up) for it (around the fire).... With sacrifice the gods performed
the sacrifice. These were the earliest rites.”[138]

“From his (Purusha's) navel arose the air, from his head the sky, from his ears the
four quarters; in this manner (the gods) formed the worlds.” This conception resembles
closely the story in Teutonic mythology of the cutting up by the gods of the body of the
chaos giant Ymer; his skull became the sky, his bones the rocks, his blood the sea, and so
on. One of the Chinese P'an Ku[139] myths is of similar character; the world is composed
of different parts of his body. The Babylonian Merodach also divided the body of the
chaos demon, Tiawath or Tiamat; her head became the sky, her body the earth, and her
blood the rivers which fill the sea. Purusha, the chaos giant of India, had “a thousand
heads, a thousand eyes, and a thousand feet”; the earth was equal to the space covered by
ten of his fingers; he was “the whole universe”.
The horse sacrifice was also infused, like the human sacrifice, with symbolic
significance. It was probably practised in the early Iranian period by the Aryan horse
tamers, who may have substituted man's fleet-footed friend for human beings. The
Mongolian Buriats in the vicinity of Lake Baikal, Siberia, are the latest surviving
sacrificers of the domesticated animal. Their horse sacrifice (Tailgan) was held on 2
August on a sacred hill inhabited by their gods, the Burkans, “the masters”. The horse
was bound, thrown upon its back and held tightly by ropes, while the officiating person
cut open its breast and pulled out the pulsating heart like the sacrificers of human beings
in Ancient Mexico. The animal's bones were burned on the altars, and the flesh was
cooked and devoured by the worshippers. Portions of the flesh, and some of the broth
prepared, were given to the flames, which also received libations of the liquor called
tarasun, distilled from sour milk. Tarasun was the Soma of the Buriats, and their fire
spirit was, like the Indian Agni, a ready drinker of it. Bits of food were also flung to
aerial spirits, while oblations were poured on the hill, the belief prevailing that these
offerings multiplied sufficiently to permit of the gods feeding sumptuously. As each of
the worshippers of the spirits of nature accepted a portion of sacrificial food, a prayer
was chanted, entreating the gods to cause increase of all things.
“Let our villages be one verst longer,” they said; “create cattle in our enclosures;
under our blankets create a son; send down rain from high heaven to us; cause much
grass to grow; create so much grain that the sickle cannot raise it, and so much grass that
the scythe cannot cut it.”
After the sacrifice, the food was divided and the fragments that remained were
carefully burned, “for none of it must be eaten by dogs; that would be desecration, and
misfortune would follow in its wake”.[140]
The purpose of this annual sacrifice was evidently to secure fertility and prosperity
generally, and we refer to it here so fully because of the light it throws on the Indian
ceremonial which it resembles closely in some of its details.

There are two direct references to the horse sacrifice in the Rigveda.[141] The animal
is “covered with rich trappings” and led thrice round the altar. It is accompanied by a
goat, which is killed first to “announce the sacrifice to the gods”. A goat was also slain at
a burial to inform the gods that the soul was about to enter Heaven.
In the Story of Nala and in the Ramáyana, the horse sacrifice is performed to secure
human offspring. A second Ramáyana horse sacrifice is offered as an atonement after the
slaying of the demon Ravana. An elaborate account of this great ceremonial is also given
in the Mahábhárata. It was performed after “the great war” on the advice of the sage
Vyasa to atone for the slaying of kinsmen. The horse was let loose and an army followed
it. Whichever country the animal entered had to be conquered for the owner of the horse,
so that only a powerful monarch could fulfil the conditions of the sacrifice. A hundred
such sacrifices might enable a king to depose Indra.
It is significant, however, that the animal was released to wander from kingdom to
kingdom on the night of the full moon in the spring month of Choitro, and that it
returned in the following year at the close of the winter season. When the ground was
prepared by being ploughed by the king, the queen followed him, sowing the seeds of
every kind of vegetable and curative herb which grew in the kingdom. A countless
number of representative animals were sacrificed before the sacred horse was slain, the
rain drum and trumpet were sounded, and the king and queen were drenched with holy
water.
The flesh of the horse was cooked and eaten, and Indra and the other gods appeared
and partook of their portions. Pieces were also flung in the fire, and the fire received also
its meed of Soma. When the sacrifice was completed, the king divided the herb offerings
among the people; what remained over was burned.
In the Mahábhárata a white horse is sacrificed, but in the Ramáyana a black victim
is offered up. White horses were sacrificed to Mars by the Romans; the Greeks sacrificed
white horses to the sun by throwing them in the sea; the Spartans offered up their horses,
like the Buriats, on a hilltop.
There can be little doubt that the Greek and Roman horse sacrifices were also
intended to ensure fertility. A horse was offered up to Diana at the August harvest
festival, and we know that that popular goddess gave plentiful crops and was the
guardian of flocks and herds and wild animals of the chase; she also presided at birth,
and women invoked her aid. Virgins and youths took a prominent part at this harvest
festival. The Roman horse sacrifice took place on 15 October. The animal was offered to
Mars; the head was conveyed to the king's house[142] and decorated with loaves, and the
blood was preserved until April, when it was mixed by virgins with the blood of calves;
this mixture was given to shepherds to ensure the increase of flocks which were
fumigated. In the Mahábhárata the king and the princes stand for a time in the smoke
belching from the altar, to be cleansed of their sins.

The Persians, and other peoples of Aryan speech and custom, sacrificed horses
regularly. But the custom was not confined to Indo-Europeans. The Scythians,[143] who
were probably Mongols, not only offered horses to the Spirit of Fertility, but also, like
the Buriats, to the dead. The Patagonians sacrificed horses to tree spirits. In this
connection it may be noted that some European horse sacrifices took place in sacred
groves; the Buriats tied their horse to a birch tree, which was carried to the mountain top
and fixed to a stake; the Indian sacrificial posts were probably substitutes for trees.
In the Upanishads the sacrifice of the horse is infused, as we have indicated, with
mystic symbolism. We read: “The dawn in truth is the head of the sacrificial horse. The
sun is the eye; the wind the breath ... the year the body, the heaven is the back ... the
constellations the bones; the sky the muscles; the rivers, arteries and veins; the liver and
spleen, the mountains; the herbs and trees, the various kinds of hair.” The horse is also
identified with the sun: “The sun, as long as he rises is the fore part of the body; the sun,
as long as he descends is the hind part of the body, &c.” The horse is also day and night
in turn, and its birthplace is the sea; it carries the gods and the Asuras; it is the symbol of
Death, “who is voracity”, from whom all things came. “There was not anything here
before.” Death first “created this mind, desiring, May I have a soul. He went forth
worshipping. From him, when worshipping, the waters were produced.... The froth of the
waters which was there became consistent. This became the earth.... He made himself
threefold. His eastern quarter is the head ... his western quarter is the tail, &c.”
The work of Creation proceeds, and then “he (Death as the Creator) resolved to
devour all that he had created; for he eats all.... He is the eater of the whole universe; this
whole universe is his food.”
After a year of purification the Creator slaughtered his horse body. “He gave up the
animal to the gods. Therefore they (the gods) slaughter the purified animal, representing
in its nature, as Prajápati, all deities. He (the Creator) is the Ashwameda[144] who
shines.”
The gods performed the sacrifice to overcome the demons, the representatives of
sin. Therefore the horse sacrifice removes all sin.
After much fantastic symbolism the following lesson in the form of a mantra is
extracted from the parable of Creation:—

“From the unreal lead me to the real, from darkness lead me to light, from
death lead me to immortality.”

The Upanishadic treatment of the Purusha myth differs somewhat from the Vedic,
and is intended to strengthen the Monotheistic tendencies displayed in some of the
hymns.
When the Universal soul, according to this later doctrine, took at the beginning “the
shape of a man” ... he “beheld nothing but himself”.

“He said first This, I am. Hence the name of ‘I’ was produced. Therefore, even
now a man, when called, says first, ‘It is I’, and tells afterwards any other name that
belongs to him. And, because He, as the first of all of them consumed by fire all the
sins, therefore he is called Purusha....
He was afraid; therefore man, when alone, is afraid. He then looked round.
Since nothing but myself exists, of whom should I be afraid? Hence his fear
departed; for whom should he fear, since fear arises from another.
He did not feel delight. Therefore nobody, when alone, feels delight. He was
desirous of a second. He was in the same state as husband (Pati) and wife (Patni)....
He divided this self twofold. Hence were husband and wife produced. Therefore
was this only a half of himself, as a split pea is of the whole.... This void is thus
completed by woman. He approached her. Hence men were born.”

The first two “mortals” then assumed the forms of all creatures, male and female in
turn. They were, in order, the first cattle, the first horses, the first asses, the first goats,
the first sheep, and so on. “In this manner He created every living pair whatsoever down
to the ants.” Then he reflected and said: “I am verily this creation, for I created this all.”
The lesson then follows. Men say, “Sacrifice to this, sacrifice to this, sacrifice to
one or the other god?” But these words are “not proper”, because “He is really this
creation; for he verily is all the gods”.
Thus the first Being, as a commentator remarked, “whose nature comprehended all
elements, who is eternal, who is not conceived by thought, sprang forth by himself.... He
consumed all sins, for unless one is in a worldly state he cannot consume sins.... Being
mortal he created immortals.”[145]
From the myth of the chaos-giant Purusha we pass to the higher pantheistic
conception of Brahmă, the soul of the Universe.

FOOTNOTES:
[128] A convenient term as explained in our Introduction.
[129] “A Rishi, ‘seer’, is primarily a composer of hymns.... The Rishis ultimately become
the representatives of a sacred past.” Vedic Index of Names and Subjects vol. i, pp. 115-117
(1912).
[130] Satapatha Brahmana, trans. by Prof. Eggeling (Sacred Books of the East, No.
XLIII, p. 170).
[131] 1 Kings, x, 22.
[132] Satapatha Brahmana, translated by Professor Eggeling, Part I, p. 374 (Sacred
Books of the East).
[133] There are formulas in Gaelic for blessing a house, &c. The customs of nailing
horse-shoes upon doors and hanging up holly at Christmas for protection against evil spirits
indicate the persistence of ceremonial practices long after ancient beliefs have been forgotten.

[134] Bloomfield's Atharva-veda (Sacred Books of the East, vol. xlii).
[135] Bloomfield's translation.
[136] A History of Sanskrit Literature, Professor Macdonell, p. 199.
[137] Omens and Superstitions of Southern India, by Edgar Thurston, p. 799 et seq.,
1912.
[138] Muir's Original Sanskrit Texts, vol. i, pp. 9-10.
[139] P'an Ku in his giant form. Like the Egyptian Ptah, he is now a dwarf and anon a
giant.
[140] A Journey in Southern Siberia, by Jeremiah Curtin, pp. 44-8.
[141] Rigveda, i, 162, and i, 163.
[142] That is, the so-called “royal house”, or house of the “king of the sacred rites”.
[143] A broad-headed people.
[144] Horse sacrifice.
[145] The Brihad Aranyaka Upanishad.

CHAPTER VI
Mysteries of Creation, the World's Ages, and Soul
Wandering
The World Soul—Vedic Hymn of Creation—Brahmă the only Reality—Doctrine of the Upanishads—
Creation Myths—The Chaos Egg in India and Egypt—Ancestor Worship—Celestial Rishis and Manus—
Influence of Folk Religion—Imported Doctrines—The Yugas or Ages of the Universe—Ape God's
Revelations—The Ages in Greek and Celtic Mythologies—Universal Destruction—A Deathless Sage—His
Account of the Mysteries—Narayana the Creator and Destroyer—Transmigration of Souls—Beliefs in
India, Egypt, Greece, and among the Celts.

Before the Vedic Age had come to a close an unknown poet, who was one of the
world's great thinkers, had risen above the popular materialistic ideas concerning the
hammer god and the humanized spirits of Nature, towards the conception of the World
Soul and the First Cause—the “Unknown God”. He sang of the mysterious beginning of
all things:

There was neither existence, nor non-existence,
The kingdom of air, nor the sky beyond.

What was there to contain, to cover in—
Was it but vast, unfathomed depths of water?

There was no death there, nor Immortality.
No sun was there, dividing day from night.

Then was there only that, resting within itself.
Apart from it, there was not anything.

At first within the darkness veiled in darkness,
Chaos unknowable, the All lay hid.

Till straightway from the formless void made manifest
By the great power of heat was born that germ.

Rigveda, x, 129 (Griffith's
trans.).
The poet goes on to say that wise men had discovered in their hearts that the germ
of Being existed in Not Being. But who, he asked, could tell how Being first originated?
The gods came later, and are unable to reveal how Creation began. He who guards the
Universe knows, or mayhap he does not know.

Other late Rigvedic poets summed up the eternal question regarding the Great
Unknown in the interrogative pronoun “What?” (Ka). Men's minds were confronted by
an inspiring and insoluble problem. In our own day the Agnostics say, “I do not know”;
but this hackneyed phrase does not reflect the spirit of enquiry like the arresting “What?”
of the pondering old forest hermits of ancient India.
The priests who systematized religious beliefs and practices in the Brahmanas
identified “Ka” with Praja´pati, the Creator, and with Brahma, another name of the
Creator.
In the Vedas the word “brahma” signifies “devotion” or “the highest religious
knowledge”. Later Brahmă (neuter) was applied to the World Soul, the All in All, the
primary substance from which all that exists has issued forth, the Eternal Being “of
which all are phases”; Brahmă was the Universal Self, the Self in the various Vedic gods,
the Self in man, bird, beast, and fish, the Life of Life, the only reality, the unchangeable.
This one essence or Self (Atman) permeates the whole Universe. Brahmă is the invisible
force in the seed, as he is the “vital spark” in mobile creatures. In the Khandogva
Upanishad a young Brahman receives instruction from his father. The sage asks if his
pupil has ever endeavoured to find out how he can hear what cannot be heard, how he
can see what cannot be seen, and how he can know what cannot be known? He then asks
for the fruit of the Nyagrodha tree.
“Here is one, sir.”
“Break it.”
“It is broken, sir.”
“What do you see there?”
“Not anything, sir.”
“My son,” said the father, “that subtile essence which you do not perceive there, of
that very essence this great Nyagrodha tree exists. Believe it, my son. That which is the
subtile essence, in it all that exists has itself. It is the True. It is the Self; and thou, my
son, art it.”
In Katha Upanishad a sage declares:

The whole universe trembles within the life (Brahmă); emanating from it
(Brahmă) the universe moves on. It is a great fear, like an uplifted thunderbolt.
Those who know it become immortal....
As one is reflected in a looking-glass, so the soul is in the body; as in a dream,
so in the world of the forefathers; as in water, so in the world of the Gandharvas; as
in a picture and in the sunshine, so in the world of Brahmă....
The soul's being (nature) is not placed in what is visible; none beholds it by the
eye.... Through thinking it gets manifest Immortal become those who know it....

The soul is not to be gained by word, not by the mind, not by the eye, how
could it be perceived by any other than him who declares it exists?
When all the desires cease that are cherished in his heart (intellect) then the
mortal becomes immortal.
When all the bonds of the heart are broken in this life, then the mortal becomes
immortal....[146]

The salvation of the soul is secured by union with Brahmă, the supreme and eternal
Atman (Self), “the power which receives back to itself again all worlds.... The identity of
the Brahmă and the Atman, of God and the Soul, is the fundamental thought of the entire
doctrine of the Upanishads.”[147]
Various creation myths were framed by teachers to satisfy the desire for knowledge
regarding the beginning of things. The divine incarnation of Brahmă is known as
Brahma (masculine) Prajapati, and Nãrãyana.
In one account we read: “At first the Universe was not anything. There was neither
sky, nor earth, nor air. Being non-existent it resolved, ‘Let me be’. It became fervent.
From that fervour smoke was produced. It again became fervent. From that fervour fire
was produced.” Afterwards the fire became “rays” and the rays condensed like a cloud,
producing the sea. A magical formula (Dásahotri) was next created. “Prajapati is the
Dásahotri.”
Eminently Brahmanic in character is the comment inserted here: “That man
succeeds who, thus knowing the power of austere abstraction (or fervour), practises it.”
When Prajapati arose from the primordial waters he “wept, exclaiming, ‘For what
purpose have I been born if (I have been born) from this which forms no support?...’
That (the tears) which fell into the water became the earth. That which he wiped away
became the air. That which he wiped away, upwards, became the sky. From the
circumstance that he wept (arodít), these two regions have the name of rodasí
(worlds)....”

18

THE BIRTH OF BRAHMA: SPRINGING FROM A LOTUS ISSUING FROM
VISHNU (see page 124)
From an original Indian painting

Prajapati afterwards created Asuras and cast off his body, which became darkness;
he created men and cast off his body, which became moonlight; he created seasons and
cast off his body, which became twilight; he created gods and cast off his body, which
became day. The Asuras received milk in an earthen dish, men in a wooden dish, the
seasons in a silver dish, and the gods were given Soma in a golden dish. In the end
Prajapati created Death, “a devourer of creatures”.
“Mind (or soul, manas) was created from the non-existent”, adds a priestly
commentator. “Mind created Prajapati. Prajapati created offspring. All this, whatever
exists, rests absolutely on mind.”[148]
In another mythical account of Creation, Prajapati emerges, like the Egyptian
Horus, from a lotus bloom floating on the primordial waters.
The most elaborate story of Creation is found in the Laws of Manu, the eponymous
ancestor of mankind and the first lawgiver.
It relates that in the beginning the Self-Existent Being desired to create living
creatures. He first created the waters, which he called “narah”, and then a seed; he flung

the seed into the waters, and it became a golden egg which had the splendour of the sun.
From the egg came forth Brahma, Father of All. Because Brahma came from the
“waters”, and they were his first home or path (ayana), he is called Narayana.
The Egyptian sun god Ra similarly rose from the primordial waters as the sun-egg.
Ptah came from the egg which, according to one myth, was laid by the chaos goose, and
to another issued from the mouth of Khnumu.[149] This conception may have had origin
in the story of the giant of the folk tales who concealed his soul in the egg, in the tree,
and in various animal forms. There are references in Indian literature to Brahma's tree,
and Brahma is identified with Purusha, who became in turn a cow, a goat, a horse, &c.,
to produce living creatures.
In Manu's account of Creation we meet for the first time with the Maha-rishis or
Deva-rishis, the Celestial priest poets. These are the mind-born sons of Brahma, who
came into existence before the gods and the demons. Indeed, they are credited with some
acts of creation. The seven or fourteen Manus were also created at the beginning.
Originally there was but a single Manu, “the father of men”.
The inclusion of the Rishis and the Manus among the deities is a late development
of orthodox Brahmanism. They appear to represent the Fathers (Pitris) who were adored
by ancestor worshippers. The tribal patriarch Bhrigu, for instance, was a Celestial Rishi.
It must be borne in mind that more than one current of thought was operating
during the course of the centuries, and over a wide area, in shaping the complex religion
which culminated in modern Hinduism. The history of Hinduism is the history of a
continual struggle between the devotees of folk religion and the expounders of the Forest
Books produced by the speculative sages who, in their quest for Truth, used primitive
myths to illustrate profound doctrinal teachings. By the common people these myths
were given literal interpretation. Among the priests there were also “schools of thought”.
One class of Brahmans, it has been alleged, was concerned chiefly regarding ritual, the
mercenary results of their teachings, and the achievement of political power: men of this
type appear to have been too ready to effect compromises by making concession to
popular opinion.
Just as the Atharva-veda came into existence as a book after the Rigveda had been
compiled, so did many traditional beliefs of animistic character receive recognition by
Brahmanic “schools” after the period of the early Upanishads. It may be, however, that
we should also recognize in these “innovations” the influence of races which imported
their own modes of thought, or of Aryan tribes that had been in contact for long periods
with other civilizations known and unknown.
In endeavouring to trace the sources of foreign influences, we should not always
expect to find clues in the mythologies of great civilizations like Babylonia, Assyria, or
Egypt alone. The example of the Hebrews, a people who never invented anything, and
yet produced the greatest sacred literature of the world, is highly suggestive in this
connection. It is possible that an intellectual influence was exercised in early times over

great conquering races by humble forgotten peoples whose artifacts give no indication of
their mental activity.
In Indian Aryan mythology we are suddenly confronted at a comparatively late
period, at any rate some time after tribal settlements were effected all over Hindustan
from the Bay of Bengal to the Arabian Sea, with fully developed conceptions regarding
the World's Ages and Transmigration of Souls, which, it is quite evident, did not
originate after the Aryan conquest of Hindustan. Both doctrines can be traced in Greek
and Celtic (Irish) mythologies, but they are absent from Teutonic mythology. From what
centre and what race they originally emanated we are unable to discover. The problem
presented is a familiar one. At the beginnings of all ancient religious systems and great
civilizations we catch glimpses of unknown and vanishing peoples who had sowed the
seeds for the harvests which their conquerors reaped in season.
The World's Ages are the “Yugas” of Brahmanism. “Of this elaborate system ... no
traces are found in the hymns of the Rigveda. Their authors were, indeed, familiar with
the word ‘yuga’, which frequently occurs in the sense of age, generation, or tribe.... The
first passage of the Rigveda in which there is any indication of a considerable mundane
period being noted is where ‘a first’ or an earlier age (yuga) of the gods is mentioned
when ‘the existent sprang from the non-existent’.... In one verse of the Atharva-veda,
however, the word ‘yuga’ is so employed as to lead to the supposition that a period of
very long duration is intended. It is there said: ‘We allot to thee a hundred, ten thousand
years, two, three, four ages (yugas)’.”[150]
Professor Muir traced references in the Brahmanas to the belief in “Yugas” as
“Ages”, but showed that these were isolated ideas with which, however, the authors of
these books were becoming familiar.
When the system of Yugas was developed by the Indian priestly mathematicians,
the result was as follows:—

One year of mortals is equal to one day of the gods. 12,000 divine years are
equal to a period of four Yugas, which is thus made up, viz.:
Krita Yuga, with its mornings and evenings, 4,800 divine years.
Treta Yuga, " " " " 3,600 "
Dwãpara Yuga, " " " " 2,400 "
Kali Yuga, " " " " 1,200 "
Making 12,000 "

These 12,000 divine years equal 4,320,000 years of mortals, each human year being
composed of 360 days. A thousand of these periods of 4,320,000 years equals one day
(Kalpa) of Brahma. During “the day of Brahma” fourteen Manus reign: each Manu
period is a Manvantara. A year of Brahma is composed of 360 Kalpas, and he endures
for 100 of these years. One half of Brahma's existence has now expired.

At the end of each “day” (Kalpa) Brahma sleeps for a night of equal length, and
before falling asleep the Universe becomes water as at the beginning. He creates anew
when he wakes on the morning of the next Kalpa.[151]
One of the most interesting accounts of the Yugas is given in the Mahábhárata. It is
embedded in a narrative which reflects a phase of the character of that great epic.
Bhima of the Pan´davas, the human son of the wind god Vayu, once went forth to
obtain for his beloved queen the flowers of Paradise—those Celestial lotuses of a
thousand petals with sun-like splendour and unearthly fragrance, which prolong life and
renew beauty: they grow in the demon-guarded woodland lake in the region of Kuvera,
god of treasure. Bhima hastened towards the north-east, facing the wind, armed with a
golden bow and snake-like arrows; like an angry lion he went, nor ever felt weary.
Having climbed a great mountain he entered a forest which is the haunt of demons, and
he saw stately and beautiful trees, blossoming creepers, flowers of various hues, and
birds with gorgeous plumage. A soft wind blew in his face; it was anointed with the
perfume of Celestial lotus; it was as refreshing as the touch of a father's hand. Beautiful
was that sacred retreat. The great clouds spread out like wings and the mountain seemed
to dance; shining streams adorned it like to a necklace of pearls.
Bhima went speedily through the forest; stags, with grass in their mouths, looked
up at him unafraid; invisible Yakshas and Gandharvas watched him as he went on
swifter than the wind, and ever wondering how he could obtain the flowers of Paradise
without delay....
At length he hastened like to a hurricane, making the earth tremble under his feet,
and lions and tigers and elephants and bears arose and took flight from before him.
Terrible was then the roaring of Bhima. Birds fluttered terror-stricken and flew away; in
confusion arose the geese and the ducks and the herons and the kokilas....[152] Bhima
tore down branches; he struck trees and overthrew them; he smote and slew elephants
and lions and tigers that crossed his path. He blew on his war-shell and the heavens
trembled; the forest was stricken with fear; mountain caves echoed the clamour;
elephants trumpeted in terror and lions howled dismally.
The ape god Hanuman[153] was awakened; drowsily he yawned and he lashed his
long tail with tempest fury until it stretched forth like a mighty pole and obstructed the
path of Bhima. Thus the ape god, who was also a son of Vayu, the wind, made Bhima to
pause. Opening his red sleepy eyes, he said: “Sick am I, but I was slumbering sweetly;
why hast thou awakened me so rudely? Whither art thou going? Yonder mountains are
closed against thee: thou art treading the path of the gods. Therefore pause and repose
here: do not hasten to destruction.”
Said Bhima: “Who art thou? I am a Kshatriya, the son of Vayu.... Arise and let me
pass, or else thou wilt perish.”
Hanuman said: “I am sickly and cannot move; leap over me.”

19

HANUMAN
From a bronze
in the Victoria
and Albert
Museum

Said Bhima: “I cannot leap over thee. It is forbidden by the Supreme Soul, else
would I bound as Hanuman bounded over the ocean, for I am his brother.”
Hanuman said: “Then move my tail and go past.”
Then Bhima endeavoured to lift the tail of the ape god, but failed, and he said:
“Who art thou that hath assumed the form of an ape; art thou a god, or a spirit, or a
demon?”
Hanuman said: “I am the son of Vayu, even Hanuman. Thou art my elder brother.”
Said Bhima: “I would fain behold the incomparable form thou didst assume to leap
over the ocean.”
Hanuman said: “At that Age the universe was not as it is now. Thou canst not
behold the form I erstwhile had.... In Krita Yuga there was one state of things and in the

Treta Yuga another; greater change came with Dwãpara Yuga, and in the present Yuga
there is lessening, and I am not what I have been. The gods, the saints, and all things that
are have changed. I have conformed with the tendency of the present age and the
influence of Time.”
Said Bhima: “I would fain learn of thee regarding the various Yugas. Speak and tell
what thou dost know, O Hanuman.”
The ape god then spake and said: “The Krita Yuga (Perfect Age) was so named
because there was but one religion, and all men were saintly: therefore they were not
required to perform religious ceremonies. Holiness never grew less, and the people did
not decrease. There were no gods in the Krita Yuga, and there were no demons or
Yakshas, and no Rakshasas or Nagas. Men neither bought nor sold; there were no poor
and no rich; there was no need to labour, because all that men required was obtained by
the power of will; the chief virtue was the abandonment of all worldly desires. The Krita
Yuga was without disease; there was no lessening with the years; there was no hatred, or
vanity, or evil thought whatsoever; no sorrow, no fear. All mankind could attain to
supreme blessedness. The universal soul was Narayana: he was White; he was the refuge
of all and was sought for by all; the identification of self with the universal soul was the
whole religion of the Perfect Age.
“In the Treta Yuga sacrifices began, and the World Soul became Red; virtue
lessened a quarter. Mankind sought truth and performed religious ceremonies; they
obtained what they desired by giving and by doing.
“In the Dwãpara Yuga the aspect of the World Soul was Yellow: religion lessened
one-half. The Veda, which was one (the Rigveda) in the Krita Yuga, was divided into
four parts, and although some had knowledge of the four Vedas, others knew but three or
one. Mind lessened, Truth declined, and there came desire and diseases and calamities;
because of these men had to undergo penances. It was a decadent Age by reason of the
prevalence of sin.
“In the Kali Yuga[154] the World Soul is Black in hue: it is the Iron Age; only one
quarter of virtue remaineth. The world is afflicted, men turn to wickedness; disease
cometh; all creatures degenerate; contrary effects are obtained by performing holy rites;
change passeth over all things, and even those who live through many Yugas must
change also.”
Having spoken thus, Hanuman bade Bhima to turn back, but Bhima said: “I cannot
leave thee until I have gazed upon thy former shape.”
Then Hanuman favoured his brother, and assumed his vast body; he grew till he
was high as the Vindhya mountain: he was like to a great golden peak with splendour
equal to the sun, and he said: “I can assume even greater height and bulk by reason of
mine own power.”
Having spoken thus, Hanuman permitted Bhima to proceed on his way under the
protection of Vayu, god of wind. He went towards the flowery steeps of the sacred

mountain, and at length he reached the Celestial lotus lake of Kuvera, which was shaded
by trees and surrounded by lilies; the surface of the waters was covered with golden
lotuses which had stalks of lapis lazuli. Yakshas, with big eyes, came out against Bhima,
but he slew many, and those that remained were put to flight. He drank the waters of the
lake, which renewed his strength. Then he gathered the Celestial lotuses for his queen.
In this tale we discover the ancient Indo-European myth regarding the earth's
primitive races. The first age is the White Age, the second is the Red Age, the third the
Yellow Age, and the fourth, the present Kali Yuga, is the Black or Iron Age.
Hesiod, the Greek poet, in his Works and Days, divided the mythical history of
Greece similarly, but the order of the Ages was different; the first was the Golden Age
(yellow); the second was the Silver Age (white); the third was the Bronze Age (red); the
fourth was the Age of the Heroes; and the fifth was the Age in which Hesiod lived—the
Iron (black) Age. The fourth Age is evidently a late interpolation. Authorities consider
that the Heroic Age did not belong to the original scheme.
In the Greek Golden Age men lived like the gods under the rule of Kronos; they
never suffered the ills of old age, nor lost their strength; they feasted continually, and
enjoyed peace and security. The whole world prospered. When this race passed away
they became beneficent spirits who watched over mankind and distributed riches.
In the Silver Age mankind were inferior; children were reared up for a century, and
died soon afterwards; sacrifice and worship was neglected. In the end Zeus, son of
Kronos, destroyed the Silver Race.
In the Bronze Age mankind sprang from the ash. They were endowed with great
strength, and worked in bronze and had bronze houses: iron was unknown. But Bronze
Age men were takers of life, and at length Black Death removed them all to Hades.
Zeus created the fourth race, which was represented by the semi-divine heroes of a
former generation; when they fell in battle on the plain of Troy and elsewhere, Zeus
consigned them to the Islands of the Blest, where they were ruled over by Kronos. The
fifth Age may originally have been the fourth. As much is suggested by another Hesiodic
legend which sets forth that all mankind are descended from two survivors of the Flood
at the close of the Bronze Age.
In Le Cycle Mythologique Irlandais et la Mythologie Celtique, the late Professor
D'Arbois de Jubainville has shown that these Ages are also a feature of Celtic (Irish)
mythology. Their order, however, differs from those in Greek, but it is of special interest
to note that they are arranged in exactly the same colour order as those given in the
Mahábhárata. The first Celtic Age is that of Partholon, which de Jubainville identified
with the Silver Age (white); the second is Nemed's, the Bronze Age (red); the third is the
Tuatha de Danann, the Golden Age (yellow); and the fourth is the Age of the dark
Milesians, called after their divine ancestor Mile, son of Beli, the god of night and death.
The Irish claim descent from the Milesians.

Professor D'Arbois de Jubainville considered that the differences between the Irish
and Greek versions of the ancient doctrine were due in part to the developments which
Irish legend received after the introduction of Christianity. There are, however, he
showed, striking affinities. The Tuatha de Danann, for instance, like the “Golden Race”
of the Greeks, became invisible, and shared the dominion of the world with men,
“sometimes coming to help them, sometimes disputing with them the pleasures of life”.
Like the early Christian annalists of Ireland, the Indian Brahmans appear to have
utilized the legends which were afloat among the people. Both in the Greek and Celtic
(Irish) myths the people of the Silver Age are distinguished for their folly; in the Indian
Silver or White Age the people were so perfect and holy that it was not necessary for
them to perform religious ceremonies; they simply uttered the mystic word “Om”.[155]
There are many interesting points of resemblance between certain of the Irish and
Indian legends. We are informed, for instance, of the Celtic St. Finnen, who fasted like a
Brahman, so to compel a pagan sage, Tuan MacCarell, to reveal the ancient history of
Ireland. Tuan had lived all through the various mythical Ages; his father was the brother
of Partholon, king of the “Silver Race”. At the end of the First Age, Tuan was a “long-
haired, grey, naked, and miserable old man”. One evening he fell asleep, and when he
woke up he rejoiced to find that he had become a young stag. He saw the people of
Nemed (the Bronze or Red Race) arriving in Ireland; he saw them passing away. Then he
was transformed into a black boar; afterwards he was a vulture, and in the end he
became a fish. When he had existed as a fish for twenty years he was caught by a
fisherman. The queen had Tuan for herself, and ate his fish form, with the result that she
gave birth to the sage as her son.
In similar manner Bata of the Egyptian Anpu-Bata story,[156] after existing as a
blossom, a bull, and a tree, became the son of his unfaithful wife, who swallowed a chip
of wood.
Tuan MacCarell assured St. Finnen, “in the presence of witnesses”, as we are
naively informed, that he remembered all that happened in Ireland during the period of
1500 years covered by his various incarnations.
Another, and apparently a later version of the legend, credits the Irish sage, the fair
Fintan, son of Bochra, with having lived for 5550 years before the Deluge, and 5500
years after it. He fled to Ireland with the followers of Cesara, granddaughter of Noah, to
escape the flood. Fintan, however, was the only survivor, and, according to Irish
chronology, he did not die until the sixth century of the present era.
One of the long-lived Indian sages was named Markandeya. In the Vana Parva
section of the Mahábhárata he visits the exiled Pandava brethren in a forest, and is
addressed as “the great Muni, who has seen many thousands of ages passing away. In
this world”, says the chief exile, “there is no man who hath lived so long as thou hast....
Thou didst adore the Supreme Deity when the Universe was dissolved, and the world
was without a firmament, and there were no gods and no demons. Thou didst behold the

re-creation of the four orders of beings when the winds were restored to their places and
the waters were consigned to their proper place.... Neither death nor old age which
causeth the body to decay have any power over thee.”
Markandeya, who has full knowledge of the Past, the Present, and the Future,
informs the exiles that the Supreme Being is “great, incomprehensible, wonderful, and
immaculate, without beginning and without end.... He is the Creator of all, but is himself
Increate, and is the cause of all power.”[157]
After the Universe is dissolved, all Creation is renewed, and the cycle of the four
Ages begins again with Krita Yuga. “A cycle of the Yugas comprises twelve thousand
divine years. A full thousand of such cycles constitutes a Day of Brahma.” At the end of
each Day of Brahma comes “Universal Destruction”.
Markandeya goes on to say that the world grows extremely sinful at the close of the
last Kali Yuga of the Day of Brahma. Brahmans abstain from prayer and meditation, and
Sudras take their place. Kshatriyas and Vaisyas forget the duties of their castes; all men
degenerate and beasts of prey increase. The earth is ravaged by fire, cows give little
milk, fruit trees no longer blossom, Indra sends no rain; the world of men becomes filled
with sin and immorality.... Then the earth is swept by fire, and heavy rains fall until the
forests and mountains are covered over by the rising flood. All the winds pass away;
they are absorbed by the Lotus floating on the breast of the waters, in which the Creator
sleeps; the whole Universe is a dark expanse of water.
Although even the gods and demons have been destroyed at the eventide of the last
Yuga, Markandeya survives. He wanders over the face of the desolate waters and
becomes weary, but is unable to find a resting-place. At length he perceives a banyan
tree; on one of its boughs is a Celestial bed, and sitting on the bed is a beautiful boy
whose face is as fair as a full-blown lotus. The boy speaks and says; “O Markandeya, I
know that thou art weary.... Enter my body and secure repose. I am well pleased with
thee.”
Markandeya enters the boy's mouth and is swallowed. In the stomach of the Divine
One the sage beholds the whole earth (that is, India) with its cities and kingdoms, its
rivers and forests, and its mountains and plains; he sees also the gods and demons,
mankind and the beasts of prey, birds and fishes and insects....
The sage related that he shook with fear when he beheld these wonders, and desired
the protection of the Supreme Being, whereat he was ejected from the boy's mouth, and
found himself once again on the branch of the banyan tree in the midst of the wide
expanse of dark waters.
Markandeya was then informed by the Lord of All regarding the mysteries which he
had beheld. The Divine One spoke saying: “I have called the waters ‘Nara’, and because
they were my ‘Ayana’, or home, I am Narayana, the source of all things, the Eternal, the
Unchangeable. I am the Creator of all things, and the Destroyer of all things.... I am all
the gods.... Fire is my mouth, the earth is my feet, and the sun and the moon are my

eyes; the Heaven is the crown of my head, and the cardinal points are my ears; the
waters are born of my sweat. Space with the cardinal points are my body, and the Air is
in my mind.”[158]
The Creator continues, addressing Markandeya: “I am the wind, I am the Sun, I am
Fire. The stars are the pores of my skin, the ocean is my robe, my bed and my dwelling-
place....” The Divine One is the source of good and evil: “Lust, wrath, joy, fear, and the
overclouding of the intellect, are all different forms of me.... Men wander within my
body, their senses are overwhelmed by me.... They move not according to their own will,
but as they are moved by me.”
Markandeya then related that the Divine Being said: “I create myself into new
forms. I take my birth in the families of virtuous men.... I create gods and men, and
Gandharvas and Rakshas and all immobile beings, and then destroy them all myself
(when the time cometh). For the preservation of rectitude and morality, I assume a
human form; and when the season for action cometh, I again assume forms that are
inconceivable. In the Krita Age I become white, in the Treta Age I become yellow, in the
Dwãpara I become red, and in the Kali Age I become dark in hue.... And when the end
cometh, assuming the fierce form of Death, alone I destroy all the three worlds with their
mobile and immobile existences.... Alone do I set agoing the wheel of Time: I am
formless: I am the Destroyer of all creatures: and I am the cause of all efforts of all my
creatures.”[159]
Markandeya afterwards witnessed “the varied and wondrous creation starting into
life”.
The theory of Metempsychosis, or Transmigration of Souls, is generally regarded as
being of post-Vedic growth in India as an orthodox doctrine. Still, it remains an open
question whether it was not professed from the earliest times by a section of the various
peoples who entered the Punjab at different periods and in various stages of culture. We
have already seen that the burial customs differed. Some consigned the dead hero to the
“House of Clay”, invoking the earth to shroud him as a mother who covers her son with
her robe, and the belief ultimately prevailed that Yama, the first man, had discovered the
path leading to Paradise, which became known as the “Land of the Fathers” (Pitris). The
fire worshippers, who identified Agni with the “vital spark”, cremated the dead,
believing that the soul passed to heaven like the burnt offering, which was the food of
the gods. It is apparent, therefore, that in early times sharp differences of opinion existed
among the tribes regarding the destiny of the soul. Other unsung beliefs may have
obtained ere the Brahmans grew powerful and systematized an orthodox creed. The
doctrine of Metempsychosis may have had its ancient adherents, although these were not
at first very numerous. In one passage of the Rigveda “the soul is spoken of as departing
to the waters or the plants”, and it “may”, says Professor Macdonell, “contain the germs
of the theory” of Transmigration of Souls.[160]
The doctrine of Metempsychosis was believed in by the Greeks and the Celts.
According to Herodotus the former borrowed it from Egypt, and although some have

cast doubt on the existence of the theory in Egypt, there are evidences that it obtained
there as in early Aryanized India among sections of the people.[161] It is possible that the
doctrine is traceable to a remote racial influence regarding which no direct evidence
survives.
All that we know definitely regarding the definite acceptance of the theory in India
is that in Satapatha Brahmana it is pointedly referred to as a necessary element of
orthodox religion. The teacher declares that those who perform sacrificial rites are born
again and attain to immortality, while those who neglect to sacrifice pass through
successive existences until Death ultimately claims them. According to Upanishadic
belief the successive rebirths in the world are forms of punishment for sins committed,
or a course of preparation for the highest state of existence.
In the code of Manu it is laid down, for instance, that he who steals gold becomes a
rat, he who steals uncooked food a hedgehog, he who steals honey a stinging insect; a
murderer may become a tiger, or have to pass through successive states of existence as a
camel, a dog, a pig, a goat, &c.; other wrongdoers may have to exist as grass, trees,
worms, snails, &c. As soon as a man died, it was believed that he was reborn as a child,
or a reptile, as the case might be. Sufferings endured by the living were believed to be
retribution for sins committed in a former life.
Another form of this belief had evidently some connection with lunar worship, or,
at any rate, with the recognition of the influence exercised by the moon over life in all its
phases; it is declared in the Upanishads that “all who leave this world go directly to the
moon. By their lives its waxing crescent is increased, and by means of its waning it
brings them to a second birth. But the moon is also the gate of the heavenly world, and
he who can answer the questions of the moon is allowed to pass beyond it. He who can
give no answer is turned to rain by the moon and rained down upon the earth. He is born
again here below, as worm or fly, or fish or bird, or lion, or boar or animal with teeth, or
tiger, or man, or anything else in one or another place, according to his works and his
knowledge.”[162]
Belief in Metempsychosis ultimately prevailed all over India, and it is fully
accepted by Hinduism in our own day. Brahmans now teach that the destiny of the soul
depends on the mental attitude of the dying person: if his thoughts are centred on
Brahma he enters the state of everlasting bliss, being absorbed in the World Soul; if,
however, he should happen to think of a favourite animal or a human friend, the soul will
be reborn as a cow, a horse, or a dog, or it may enter the body of a newly-born child and
be destined to endure once again the ills that flesh is heir to.
In Egypt, according to Herodotus, the adherents of the Transmigration theory
believed that the soul passed through many states of existence, until after a period of
about three thousand years it once again reanimated the mummy. The Greeks similarly
taught that “the soul continues its journey, alternating between a separate, unrestrained
existence and fresh reincarnation, round the wide circle of necessity, as the companion of

many bodies of men and animals”.[163] According to Cæsar, the Gauls professed the
doctrine of Metempsychosis quite freely.[164]
Both in India and in Egypt the ancient doctrine of Metempsychosis was coloured by
the theologies of the various cults which had accepted it. It has survived, however, in
primitive form in the folk tales. Apparently the early exponents of the doctrine took no
account of beginning or end; they simply recognized “the wide circle of necessity” round
which the soul wandered, just as the worshippers of primitive nature gods and goddesses
recognized the eternity of matter by symbolizing earth, air, and heaven as deities long
ere they had conceived of a single act of creation.

FOOTNOTES:
[146] Dr. E. Röer's translation (Calcutta).
[147] Deussen's Philosophy of the Upanishads, p. 39.
[148] Muir's Original Sanskrit Texts, vol. i, pp. 29-30.
[149] See Egyptian Myth and Legend.
[150] Muir's Original Sanskrit Texts, vol. i, p. 46.
[151] Abridged from Muir's Original Sanskrit Texts, pp. 43, 44, and Wilson's Manu, p.
50.
[152] Indian cuckoo.
[153] In his character as the Typhoon.
[154] The present Age, according to Hindu belief.
[155] “Om” originally referred to the three Vedas; afterwards it signified the Trinity.
[156] See Egyptian Myth and Legend.
[157] Roy's translation.
[158] Roy's translation. This conception of the World God resembles the Egyptian Ptah
and Ra. See Egyptian Myth and Legend.
[159] Mahabharata, Vana Parva, section clxxxix, P. C. Roy's translation.
[160] History of Sanskrit Literature, p. 115.
[161] See Egyptian Myth and Legend.
[162] Paul Deussen's translation.
[163] Psyche, Erwin Rohde.
[164] De Bello Gallico, vi, xiv, 4.

CHAPTER VII
New Faiths: Vishnu Religion, Buddhism, and Jainism
Religious Ages—Influence of the Upanishads—The Inspiration of Great Teachers—Conception of a
Supreme Personal God—Rise of Vishnu and Shiva Cults—Krishna a Human Incarnation of Vishnu—The
Bhagavad-gita—Salvation by Knowledge—Buddha's Revolt against Brahmanism—His Gloomy Message to
Mankind—Spread of Buddhism—Jainism—Revival of Brahmanism—The Puranas—Incarnations of Vishnu
—Creator as a Boar—Egyptian and European Conceptions and Customs—Jagganath—Kalki.

Modern-day Brahman pundits, the cultured apostles of the ancient forest sages,
acknowledge a Trinity composed of Brahma the Creator, Vishnu the Preserver, and Shiva
the Destroyer. A rock carving at Elephanta, which depicts the supreme god with three
heads, indicates that the conception is of considerable antiquity. To what particular
period it must be assigned, however, we cannot yet definitely decide.
The religious history of India is divided into four Ages: (1) the Vedic Age; (2) the
Brahmanical Age; (3) the Buddhist Age; and (4) the Age of the reform and revival of
Brahmanism.
As we have seen, many gods were worshipped in the Vedic Age, but ere it had
ended Pantheistic ideas found expression in the hymns. Two distinct currents of thought
characterize the Brahmanical Age. On the one hand there was the growth of priestly
influence which is the feature of the Brahmanas, and on the other the development of the
bold Pantheism of the Upanishads, which are permeated with a catholicity of spirit
directly opposed to narrow and pedantic ritualism. Towards the close of this Age, Vishnu
and Shiva were deities of growing ascendancy.
The Buddhist Age began in the sixth century before Christ, and Buddhism
gradually supplanted Brahmanism as a national religion. In the tenth century of our era,
however, Brahmanism was revived, drawing its inspiration mainly from the Upanishads,
and purified by the teachings of Buddha and other reformers.
These religious movements of the post-Vedic times, which have exercised a
cumulative influence in shaping modern-day Hinduism, were due directly and indirectly
to the speculative reasonings of the unknown authors of the Upanishads. The Pantheistic
doctrines of these ancient philosophers, however, hardly constituted a religion: they were
rather an esoteric system of belief devoid of popular appeal. But they have been the
inspiration of a succession of profound thinkers and eloquent teachers of revered
memory in India, who infused ancient modes of thought with high philosophic doctrines,
and utilized archaic myths to develop a religion which in its purest form permeates the
acts of everyday life and requires the whole-hearted devotion and service of pious
Hindus to the will of the Supreme Being.

In the Brahmanical Age Upanishadic teachings made limited appeal, but evidences
are not awanting that knowledge of them was not confined to the Brahmans, because the
revolts which gave India Buddhism and Jainism originated among the Kshatriyas.
Meanwhile the gods of the Vedas continued their hold upon the allegiance of the great
masses of the people, although the ancient Vedic religion had been divested of its
simplicity and directness by the ritualistic priesthood. Gods and men depended upon the
Brahmans for their prosperity and even for their continued existence. It was taught that
“the gods lived in fear of death, the strong Ender”, but were supported and fed by
penance and sacrifice. The priests achieved spiritual dominion over their rivals, the
Kshatriyas.

20

THE HINDU TRINITY AT ELEPHANTA
(see page 119)

There was, however, more than one “school of thought” among the Brahmans. The
sages who memorized and repeated the older Upanishads, and composed new ones,
could not have failed to pass unrecorded judgments on the superstitious practices of their
ritualistic brethren. Account must also be taken of the example and teachings of the
bands of wandering devotees, the Bhiksus, who neither performed penances nor offered
up sacrifices, and of the influence exercised by the independent thinkers among the

Kshatriyas, who regarded with disfavour the pretensions of the powerful priesthood. The
elements of revolt could never have been absent during the two centuries of the
Brahmanical Age. Upanishadic teachings had stirred the minds of thinking men, but they
had one marked defect; they left unsatisfied the religious sense which could find no
repose in a jungle of abstract thought. It was impossible, however, for the leaders of
thought to return to the polytheism of the Vedic Age, or to worship deities controlled by
human beings. A new and higher religion became a necessity for those who, like the
Hebrew Psalmist, appear to have cried:

“O Lord ... thou desirest not sacrifice, else would I give it; thou delightest not
in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit.”
—Psalms, li, 16, 17.

At any rate, we find that, before the Brahmanical Age had ended, the conception
was becoming more prevalent of a supreme personal god, greater than Indra or Agni, and
worthy of minds influenced by the Upanishads—a god who was the embodiment of the
First Cause, an Infinite Being uncontrolled by the priesthood. One section of the people
appears to have worshipped Vishnu as the Celestial incarnation of the World Soul, while
another gave recognition to Shiva. In the absence of records, however, it is impossible to
ascertain to what extent monotheistic ideas were developed by unorthodox teachers. The
new doctrines may have degenerated, like Buddhism, as they became widespread. It is
evident, however, that the priesthood were unable to ignore them, for they are referred to
in their “books”.
Although the political prominence of Vishnu and Shiva belong to the Age of
reformed Brahmanism, it is undoubted that both deities were worshipped throughout the
long period of Buddhistic ascendancy. The Greek ambassador Megasthenes, who resided
in India between B.C. 311 and 302, and wrote Ta Indika, furnishes interesting evidence
in this connection. “By his description of the god Dionysus, whom they worshipped in
the mountains, Shiva”, says Professor Macdonell, “must be intended, and by Herakles,
adored in the plains ... no other can be meant than Vishnu and his incarnation Krishna....
These statements seem to justify the conclusion that Shiva and Vishnu were already
prominent as highest gods, the former in the mountains, the latter in the Ganges valley....
We also learn from Megasthenes that the doctrine of the four Ages of the World (Yugas)
was fully developed in India by this time.”[165]
In the Rigveda Vishnu is a god of grace. He is, however, a secondary deity—an
attribute of the sun and a phase of Agni. From the earliest times, it is significant to note,
his benevolent character is emphasized. In one of the hymns[166] he is called “the
Kinsman”; he welcomed to his heaven of bliss the faithful worshippers of the gods. An
interesting reference is made to his “highest step”. As detailed in later writings, the myth
involved is to the effect that the demon Bali, one of the dreaded Danavas (Titans), had,
in the Treta Yuga, secured temporary ascendancy over the gods. Vishnu appeared before
him in the form of the dwarf Vamana, and requested as much territory as he could

measure out by taking three strides. The demon granted this request, and Vishnu
immediately assumed the form of a giant; his first step covered the heavens, the second
crossed the entire earth, and the third and highest reached the abode of the gods. So was
the Universe won back from the Asuras. It is believed that the myth refers to the progress
of the conquering sun by day and by night.
In Yajurveda Vishnu is more prominent than in the Rigveda, and in the Brahmanas
“there is a growing tendency”, remarks Professor Barnett, “to regard him as a blessed
Cosmic Spirit”.[167] He is fully identified with Brahma in the Mahábhárata. In some of
the myths he is the source of Indra's strength and valour, and he appears to have
absorbed the sublime character of Varuna, the god of sinners; he is similarly associated
with the sea, but the Sea of Milk.
Shiva is a development of the Vedic storm god Rudra, who was not only dreaded,
but also revered as a destroyer of evil-doers, hatred, evil, and disease, and as a nourisher
who gave long life.[168]
Both deities inspired love and reverential fear; they won the affections of human
hearts and were worshipped emotionally. Their cults have had independent doctrinal
development, however, and they divide Hinduism to-day into two great churches, one of
which recognizes Vishnu, and the other Shiva, as the greatest god. Their union in the
Trinity has not yet obliterated sectarian differences.
Many myths have collected round Vishnu, originally a purely abstract deity,
because the faith which he represents had to be imparted to the masses in “parables”.
These “parables” were, of course, given literal interpretation by the people. The majority
of the myths belong to the post-Buddhist Age—the Age of Brahmanical revival, during
which came into existence the sacred poems called the Puranas. Many were also
incorporated in the great epics, the Mahábhárata and the Ramáyana, which existed in
part, at least, before the rise of Buddhism and Jainism.
When Vishnu, the god of mercy and goodness, received recognition as Narayana in
the Brahmanical Age, he was worshipped as the “unconquerable preserver” who at the
dawn of each Yuga (Age) awoke as the child of the primordial waters. In one myth he
rises from a lotus bloom; in another he is supposed to sleep, as Brahma, on the coils of
the world-serpent Shesha, which is “a part of a part of Vishnu”. This serpent rests on the
tortoise, Kurma, another form of Vishnu. When the tortoise moves its limbs, Shesha is
roused to yawn; thus are earthquakes caused. A creation myth which teaches the absolute
supremacy of Vishnu tells that at the beginning Brahma sprang from a lotus issuing from
the navel of the Preserver, while Shiva came from his forehead.

21

VISHNU UPHOLDING THE UNIVERSE
From a sculpture at Mâmallapuram

Vishnu is a dark god with four arms; in one of his right hands he holds a warshell,
and in the other a flaming discus, which destroys enemies and returns after it is flung; in
one left hand he holds a mace, and in the other a lotus bloom.
The belief that the Supreme Being from time to time “assumes a human form ... for
the preservation of rectitude and morality” is an outstanding feature of Vishnuite
religion, which teaches that Vishnu was born among men as Ramachandra, Krishna,
Balarama, and Buddha. These are the Avataras of the Preserver. Avatara means literally
“a descent”, but is used in the sense of an “Incarnation”.
Rama Chandra is the hero of the Ramáyana epic, which is summarized in our
closing chapters; he is the human ideal of devotion, righteousness, and manliness, the
slayer of the demon Ravana, who oppressed and persecuted mankind.

Krishna and his brother Balarama figure as princes of Dwaraka in the
Mahábhárata. Krishna is represented as the teacher of the Vishnuite faith, the devotional
religion which displaced the Vedic ceremonies and links Upanishadic doctrines with
modern Hinduism. It recognizes that all men are sinful, and preaches salvation by
Knowledge which embraces Works. Sinners must surrender themselves to Krishna, the
human incarnation (Avatara) of Vishnu, the Preserver, the God of Love.
This faith is unfolded in the famous Bhagavad-gita[169] in the Bhishma Parva
section of the Mahábhárata epic. Krishna is acting as the counsellor and charioteer of
the Pandava warrior Arjuna. Ere the first day's battle of the Great War begins, the human
Avatara of Vishnu reveals himself to his friend as the Divine Being, and gives instruction
as to how men may obtain salvation.
Krishna teaches that the soul is “unborn, unchangeable, eternal, and ancient”; it is
one with the Supreme Soul, Vishnu, the First Cause, the Source of All. The soul “is not
slain when the body is slain”; it enters new bodies after each death, or else it secures
emancipation from sin and suffering by being absorbed in the World Soul.... All souls
have to go through a round of births. “On attaining to Me, however,” says Krishna,
“there is no rebirth.”
Krishna gives Salvation to those who obtain “Knowledge of self or Brahma”.... He
says: “The one who hath devoted his Self (Soul) to abstraction, casting an equal eye
everywhere, beholdeth his Self in all creatures, and all creatures in his Self. Unto him
that beholdeth Me in everything and beholdeth everything in Me, I am never lost and he
also is never lost in Me. He that worshippeth Me as abiding in all creatures, holding yet
that All is One, is a devotee, and whatever mode of life he may lead, he liveth in Me....
“Even if thou art the greatest sinner among all that are sinful, thou shalt yet cross
over all transgressions by the raft of Knowledge”.... Knowledge destroys all sins. It is
obtained by devotees who, “casting off attachment, perform actions for attaining purity
of Self, with the body, the mind, the understanding, and even the senses, free from
desire”. To such men “a sod, a stone, and gold are alike”.
Krishna, as Vishnu, is thus revealed: “I am the productive cause of the entire
Universe and also its destroyer. There is nothing else that is higher than myself.... I am
Om (the Trinity) in all the Vedas, the sound in space, the manliness in man. I am the
fragrant odour in earth, the splendour in fire, the life in all creatures, and penance in
ascetics.... I am the thing to be known, the means by which everything is cleansed.... I
am the soul (self) seated in the heart of every being. I am the beginning, the middle, and
the end of all beings.... I am the letter A (in the Sanskrit alphabet).... I am Death that
seizeth all, and the source of all that is to be.... He that knoweth me as the Supreme Lord
of the worlds, without birth and beginning ... is free from all sins.... He who doeth
everything for me, who hath me for his supreme object, who is freed from attachment,
who is without enmity towards all beings, even he cometh to me.... He through whom
the world is not troubled, and who is not troubled by the world, who is free from joy,
wrath, fear, and anxieties, even he is dear to me.”

To Arjuna Krishna says: “Exceedingly dear art thou to me. Therefore I will declare
what is for thy benefit. Set thy heart on Me, become my devotee, sacrifice to me, bow
down to me. Then shalt thou come to me.... Forsaking all (religious) duties, come to me
as thy sole refuge. I will deliver thee from all sins. Do not grieve.”
It is, however, added: “This is not to be declared by thee to one who practiseth no
austerities, to one who is not a devotee, to one who never waiteth on a preceptor, nor yet
to one who calumniateth Me.”
Unbelievers are those who are devoid of knowledge. Krishna says: “One who hath
no knowledge and no faith, whose mind is full of doubt, is lost.... Doers of evil, ignorant
men, the worst of their species ... do not resort to Me.” ... Such men “return to the path
of the world that is subject to destruction”. He denounces “persons of demoniac natures”
because they are devoid of “purity, good conduct, and truth.... They say that the Universe
is void of truth, of guiding principle and of ruler.... Depending on this view these men of
lost souls, of little intelligence and fierce deeds, these enemies of the world, are born for
the destruction of the Universe.” They “cherish boundless hopes, limited by death
alone”, and “covet to obtain unfairly hoards of wealth for the gratification of their
desires”; they say, “This foe hath been slain by me—I will slay others.... I am lord, I am
the enjoyer.... I am rich and of noble birth—who else is there that is like me?... I will
make gifts, I will be merry.... Thus deluded by ignorance, tossed about by numerous
thoughts, enveloped in the meshes of delusion, attached to the enjoyment of objects of
desire, they sink into foul hell.... Threefold is the way to hell, ruinous to the Self (Soul),
namely, lust, wrath, likewise avarice.... Freed from these three gates of darkness, a man
works out his own welfare, and then repairs to the highest goal.”[170]
Balarama is an incarnation of the world serpent Shesha. According to the legend, he
and Krishna are the sons of Vasudeva and Devakí. It was revealed to Kansa, King of Mat
´hurã[171], who was a worshipper of Shiva, that a son of Devakí would slay him. His
majesty therefore commanded that Devakí's children should be slain as soon as they
were born. Balarama, who was fair, was carried safely away. Krishna, the dark son,
performed miracles soon after birth. The king had his father and mother fettered, and the
doors of the houses were secured with locks. But the chains fell from Vasudeva, and the
doors flew open when he stole out into the night to conceal the babe. As he crossed the
river Jumna, carrying Krishna on his head in a basket, the waters rose high and
threatened to drown him, but the child put out a foot and the river immediately fell and
became shallow. In Mathura the two brothers performed miraculous feats during their
youth. Indeed, the myths connected with them suggest that their prototypes were
voluptuous pastoral gods. Krishna, the flute-player and dancer, is the shepherd lover of
the Gopis or herdsmaids, his favourite being Radhá. He was opposed to the worship of
Indra, and taught the people to make offerings to a sacred mountain.

22

KRISHNA AND THE GOPIS
(HERDSMAIDS)
From a modern sculpture

King Kansa had resort to many stratagems to accomplish the death of Krishna, but
his own doom could not be set aside; ultimately he was slain by the two brothers. The
Harivamsa, an appendix to the Mahábhárata, which is as long as the Iliad and the
Odyssey together, is devoted to the life and adventures of Krishna, who also figures in
the Puranas.
Vishnu's Buddha Avatara was assumed, according to orthodox teaching, to bring
about the destruction of demons and wicked men who refused to acknowledge the
inspiration of the Vedas and the existence of deities, and were opposed to the caste
system. This attitude was assumed by the Brahmans because Buddhism was a serious lay
revolt against Brahmanical doctrines and ceremonial practices.
Buddha, “the Enlightened”, was Prince Siddartha of the royal family Gautama,
which, as elsewhere told, ruled over a Sakya tribe. At his birth marvellous signs foretold
his greatness. Reared in luxury, he was kept apart from the common people; but when
the time of his awakening came, he was greatly saddened to behold human beings

suffering from disease, sorrow, and old age. One night he left his wife and child, and
went away to live the life of a contemplative hermit in the forest, with purpose to find a
solution for the great problem of human sin and suffering. He came under the influence
of Upanishadic doctrines, and at the end of six years he returned and began his mission.
Buddha, the great psychologist, was one of the world's influential teachers, because
his doctrines have been embraced in varying degrees of purity by about a third of the
human race. Yet they are cold and unsatisfying and gloomy. The “Enlightener's” outlook
on life was intensely timid and pessimistic; he was an “enemy of society” in the sense
that he made no attempt to effect social reforms so as to minimize human suffering,
which touched him with deepest sympathy, but unfortunately filled him with despair; his
solution for all problems was Death; he was the apostle of benevolent Nihilism and
Idealistic Atheism.
There is no supreme personal god in Buddhism and no hope of immortality. Gods
and demons and human beings are “living creatures”; gods have no power over the
Universe, and need not be worshipped or sacrificed to, because they are governed by
laws, and men have nothing to fear from them.
Buddha denied the existence of the Self-Soul of the Upanishads. Self is not God, in
the sense that it is a phase of the World Soul. The “self-state” is, according to the
“Enlightener”, a combination of five elements—matter, feeling, imagination, will, and
consciousness; these are united by Kamma,[172] the influence which causes life to repeat
itself. Buddha had accepted, in a limited sense, the theory of Transmigration of Souls.
He taught, however, that rebirth was the result of actions and desire. “It is the yearning
for existence”, he said, “which leads from new birth to new birth, which finds its desire
in different directions, the desire for pleasure, the desire for existence, the desire for
power.” Death occurs when the five elements which constitute life are divided; after
death nothing remains but the consequences of actions and thoughts. Rebirth follows
because “the yearning”, the essence of “works”, brings the elements together again. The
individual exists happily, or the reverse, according to his conduct in a former life; sorrow
and disease are results of wrong living and wrong thinking in previous states of
existence.

23

BUDDHA EXPOUNDING THE
LAW

The aim of the Buddhist is to become the “master of his fate”. Life to him is hateful
because, as the Enlightener taught,“birth is suffering, death is suffering; to be joined to
one thou dost not love is suffering, to be divided from thy love is suffering, to fail in thy
desire is suffering; in short, the fivefold bonds that unite us to earth—those of the five
elements—are suffering”. As there can be no life without suffering in various degrees, it
behoves the believer to secure complete emancipation from the fate of being reborn. Life
is a dismal and tragic failure. The Buddhist must therefore destroy the influence which
unites the five elements and forms another life. He must achieve the complete
elimination of inclination—of the yearning for existence. Buddha's “sacred truth”, which
secures the desired end, is eightfold—“right belief, right resolve, right speech, right
action, right life, right desire, right thought, and right self-absorption”. The reward of the
faithful, who attains to perfect knowledge, unsullied by works, is eternal emancipation
by Nirvana, undisturbed repose or blissful extinction[173], which is the Supreme Good. If
there had been no belief in rebirth, the solution would have been found in suicide.
Buddha taught that the four Noble Verities are: (1) pain, (2) desire, the cause of
pain, (3) pain is extinguished by Nirvana, (4) the way which leads to Nirvana. The

obliteration of Desire is the first aim of the Buddhist. This involves the renunciation of
the world and of all evil passions; the believer must live a perfect life according to the
Buddhist moral code, which is as strict as it is idealistic in the extreme. “It does not
express friendship, or the feeling of particular affection which a man has for one or more
of his fellow creatures, but that universal feeling which inspires us with goodwill
towards all men and constant willingness to help them.”[174]
Belief in the sanctity of life is a prevailing note in Buddhism. The teacher forbade
the sacrifice of animals, as did Isaiah in Judah.

“To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the Lord: I
am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in
the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats.”
Isaiah, i, II.

Brahmanism was influenced in this regard, for offerings to Vishnu were confined to
cakes, curds, sweetmeats, flowers, oblations, &c.
Buddha, the enemy of the priesthood, was of the Kshatriya caste, and his religion
appears to have appealed to aristocrats satiated with a luxurious and idle life, who felt
like the Preacher that “all is vanity”; it also found numerous adherents among the
wandering bands of unorthodox devotees. The perfect Buddhist had to live apart from
the world, and engage for long intervals in introspective contemplation so as to cultivate
by a stern analytic process that frame of mind which enabled him to obliterate Desire
blankly and coldly. Familiar statues of Buddha show the posture which must be
assumed; the legs are crossed and twisted, and the hands arranged to suggest inaction;
the eyes gaze on the bridge of the nose.
Monastic orders came into existence for men and women, but the status of women
was not raised. From these orders were excluded all officials and the victims of
infectious and incurable diseases. A lower class of Buddhists engaged in worldly duties.
Although Buddha recognized the caste system, his teaching removed its worst features,
for Kshatriyas and converted Brahmans could accept food from the Sudras without fear
of contamination. Kings embraced the new religion, which ultimately assumed a national
character.
Missionaries were from the earliest times sent abroad, and Buddhism spread into
Burma, Siam, Anam, Tibet, Mongolia, China, Java, and Japan. The view is suggested
that its influence can be traced in Egypt. “From some source,” writes Professor Flinders
Petrie, “perhaps the Buddhist mission of Asoka, the ascetic life of recluses was
established in the Ptolemaic times, and monks of the Serapeum illustrated an ideal to
man which had been as yet unknown in the West. This system of monasticism continued
until Pachomios, a monk of Serapis in Upper Egypt, became the first Christian monk in
the reign of Constantine.”[175]

Jainism, like Buddhism, was also a revolt against Brahmanic orthodoxy, and drew
its teachers and disciples chiefly from the aristocratic class. It was similarly influenced
in its origin by the Upanishads. Jainites believe, however, in soul and the world soul;
they recognize the Hindu deities, but only as exalted souls in a state of temporary bliss
achieved by their virtues; they also worship a number of “conquerors” or “openers of the
way”, as Buddhism, in debased form, recognizes Buddha and his disciples as gods, and
allows the worship here of a tooth and there of a hair of the Enlightener, as well as
sacred mounds connected with his pilgrimages. In the gloomy creed of the Jainites it is
taught that “emancipation” may be hastened by rigid austerities which entail systematic
starvation. Many Jainites have in their holy places given up their lives in this manner,
but the practice is now obsolete.
In the Age which witnessed the decline of Buddhism in India, and the rise of
reformed Brahmanism, the religious struggle was productive of the long poems called
the Puranas (old tales) to which we have referred. In these productions some of the
ancient myths about the gods were preserved and new myths were formulated. They
were meant for popular instruction, and especially to make converts among the
unlettered masses. Their authors were chiefly of the Vishnu cult, which had perpetuated
the teachings of the unknown sages who at the close of the Brahmanical Age revolted
against impersonal Pantheism, the ritualistic practices of the priesthood, and the popular
conceptions regarding the Vedic deities who ensured worldly prosperity, but exercised
little influence on the character of the individual.
Indra and Agni and other popular deities were not, however, excluded from the
Pantheon, but were divested of their ancient splendour and shown to be subject to the
sway of Brahma, their Lord and Creator, whose attributes they symbolized in their
various spheres of activity. Vishnuites taught that Vishnu was Brahma, and Shivaites that
Shiva was the supreme deity.
In this way, it would appear, the authors of the Puranas effected a compromise
between immemorial beliefs and practices and the higher religious conceptions towards
which the people were being gradually elevated. A similar policy was adopted by Pope
Gregory the Great, who in the year 601 caused the Archbishop of Canterbury to be
instructed to infuse Pagan ceremonials with Christian symbolism. It was decreed that
heathen temples should be changed into churches, and days consecrated to sacrificial
ceremonies to be observed as Christian festivals. The Anglo-Saxons were not to be
permitted to “sacrifice animals to the Devil”, but to kill them for human consumption “to
the praise of God”, so that “while they retained some outward joys they might give more
ready response to inward joys”. The Pope added: “It is not possible to cut off everything
at once from obdurate minds; he who endeavours to climb to the highest place must rise
not by bounds, but by degrees or steps.”[176]
It is necessary for us, therefore, in dealing with Puranic beliefs, and the movement
which culminated in modern-day Hinduism, to make a distinction between the popular

faith and the beliefs of the most enlightened Brahmans, and also between the process of
mythology-making and the development of religious ideas.
In early Puranic times, when Brahmanism was revived, Vishnu's benevolent
character was exalted to so high a degree that, it was taught, even demons might secure
salvation through his grace. Prahlada, son of the King of the Danavas, worshipped
Vishnu. As a consequence, terrible punishments were inflicted upon him by his angry
father. At length Vishnu appeared in the Danava palace as the Nrisinha incarnation (half
man, half lion), and slew the presumptuous giant king who had aspired to control the
Universe.
Another incarnation of Vishnu was the boar, Varáha. A demon named Hiranyaksha
had claimed the earth, when at the beginning of one of the Yugas it was raised from the
primordial deep by the Creator in the form of a boar. Vishnu slew the demon for the
benefit of the human race. Earlier forms of this myth recognize Brahma, or Prajapati, as
the boar. In Taittiriya Brahmana it is set forth: “This Universe was formerly water, fluid;
with that (water) Prajapati practised arduous devotions (saying), ‘How shall this universe
be (developed)?’ He beheld a lotus leaf standing. He thought, ‘There is something on
which this rests.’ He as a boar—having assumed that form—plunged beneath towards it.
He found the earth down below. Breaking off (a portion of) her, he rose to the surface.”
This treatment of the boar is of special interest. In Egypt the boar was the demon
Set, and the “black pig” is the devil in Wales and Scotland, and also in a “layer” of Irish
mythology. Hatred of pork prevailed in Egypt and its vicinity, and still lingers in parts of
Ireland and Wales, but especially in the Scottish Highlands. The Gauls, like the Aryans
of India, did not regard the boar as a demon, and they ate pork freely, as did also the
Achæans and the Germanic peoples. Roast pig is provided in Valhal and in the Irish
Danann Paradise, but the Irish “devil”, Balor, who resembles the Asura king of India,
had a herd of black pigs.
The struggle between Kshatriyas and Brahmans is reflected in Vishnu's incarnation
as Parasu-rama (Rama with the axe). He clears the earth twenty-one times of the visible
Kshatriyas, but on each occasion a few survive to perpetuate the caste.
Jagannath[177] is also regarded as a form of Vishnu, although apparently not of
Brahmanic origin. He is represented by three forms, representing the dark Krishna, the
fair Balarama, and their sister, Subhadra. Once a year the idol is bathed and afterwards
taken forth in a great car, which is dragged by pious worshippers. Some have considered
it a meritorious act to commit suicide by being crushed under its wheels.

24

THE BOAR INCARNATION OF
VISHNU RAISING THE EARTH
FROM THE DEEP
From a rock sculpture at Udayagiri

It is believed that Vishnu will yet appear as Kalki, riding on a white horse and
grasping a flaming sword. He will slay the enemies of evil and re-establish pure religion.
Many pious Vishnuites in our own day look forward to the coming of their supreme
deity with fear and trembling, but not without inflexible faith.

FOOTNOTES:
[165] A History of Sanskrit Literature, p. 411.
[166] Rigveda, i, 154, 155.
[167] Hinduism, by L. D. Barnett.
[168] Rigveda, ii, 33.
[169] The “Divine Song”.

[170] Extracts from Roy's translation of Mahábhárata.
[171] Or Muttra.
[172] Karma, “works” and their consequences.
[173] Buddha's negative attitude towards immortality and the conception of a Supreme
Being was departed from by those of his followers who have taught that Nirvana is a
conscious state of eternal bliss.
[174] Burnouf, quoted by Max Müller, Chips from a German Workshop, i, 222.
[175] Petrie, The Religion of Egypt, pp. 92-3.
[176] Bede, Historia Ecclesiastica, lib. i, chap. xxx.
[177] Juggernaut.

CHAPTER VIII
Divinities of the Epic Period
The Great Indian Epics—Utilized by the Brahmans—The Story of Manu—Universal Cataclysm—How
Amrita (Ambrosia) was obtained—Churning of the Ocean—The Demon Devourer of Sun and Moon—
Garuda, the Man Eagle—Attributes of the God Shiva—Comparison with Irish Balor—Rise of the
Goddesses—Saraswati and Lakshmi or Sri—Fierce Durga and Kali—Sati, the Ideal Hindu Wife—Legend of
the Ganges—The Celestial Rishis—Vishwamitra and Vasishtha—History in the Vedas—Wars between
Aryan Tribes—Kernel of Mahábhárata Epic.

The history of Brahmanism during the Buddhist Age is enshrined in the great epics
Mahábhárata and Ramáyana, which had their origin before B.C. 500, and continued to
grow through the centuries.
The Mahabharata, which deals with the Great War for ascendancy between two
families descended from King Bharata, has been aptly referred to as “the Iliad of India”.
It appears to have evolved from a cycle of popular hero songs, but after assuming epic
form it was utilized by the Brahmans for purposes of religious propaganda. The warriors
were represented as sons of gods or allies of demons, and the action of the original
narrative was greatly hampered by inserting long speeches and discussions regarding
Brahmanic conceptions and beliefs. An excellent example of this process is afforded by
the famous Bhagavad-gita, from which we have quoted in the previous chapter. The
narrative of the first day's battle is interrupted to allow Krishna to expound the doctrines
of the Vaishnava faith, with purpose to make converts to the cult of Vishnu. Almost
every incident in the poem is utilized in a similar manner. In fact the epic, as we are
informed in the opening section, “furnisheth the means of arriving at the knowledge of
Brahma”. The priests, with this aim in view, loaded the chariots of heroes with religious
treatises, and transformed a tribal struggle for supremacy into a great holy war. If the
Iliad survived to us only in Pope's translation, and our theologians had scattered through
it, say, metrical renderings of Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, the Thirty-nine Articles of
the Church of England, the Westminster Confession of Faith, Fox's Book of Martyrs, and
a few representative theological works of rival sects, a fate similar to that which has
befallen the Mahabharata would now overshadow the great Homeric masterpiece. The
“Iliad of India” is a part of what may be called the Hindu Bible, which embraces the
Ramayana, the Vedas, the Upanishads, the Puranas, &c.
The Ramáyana, which is called “the Odyssey of India”, because it deals with the
wanderings and adventures of the exiled prince Rama, was utilized mainly by the cult of
Vishnu, but both Vishnu and Shiva figure as great gods in the Mahábhárata, and now
one and anon the other is given first place.
If the documentary material, which is available in India for dealing with its ancient
religious beliefs, were as scanty as those which survive to us from Ancient Egypt,

comparisons might have been drawn between the Brahmanic cults and the priestly
theorists of Heliopolis, Memphis, Sais, &c., and it might have been remarked of the one
nation as of the other that its people clung to archaic beliefs long after new and higher
religious conceptions obtained as tenets of orthodox religion. In India the process of
change and development can, however, be not only traced, but partially accounted for, as
we have shown. Old myths were embraced in the epics and the Puranas for the purpose
of educating the people by effecting a compromise between folk religion and the
profound doctrines of the ancient forest sages.
“Father Manu” of the Vedas, who appears to have been worshipped as a patriarchal
ancestor, was, for instance, embraced in the Mahábhárata by the cult of Vishnu. He had
been exalted by the ritualists as one who was greater than the gods, because he had been
the first to inaugurate sacrificial rites, and he was afterwards associated with Brahma in
performing some of the acts of Creation at the beginning of one of the Yugas (Ages). It
was necessary, therefore, to show that he owed his power and opportunities to Vishnu.
In the Mahábhárata the sage Markandeya refers to Manu as the great Rishi, who
was equal unto Brahma in glory. He had practised rigid austerities in a forest for ten
thousand years, standing on one leg with uplifted hand. One day while he brooded in wet
clothes, a fish rose from a stream and asked for his protection against the greater fish
which desired to swallow it, at the same time promising to reward him. Manu placed the
fish in an earthen jar and tended it carefully till it increased in size; then he put it in a
tank. The fish continued to grow until the tank became small for it, and Manu heard it
pleading to be transferred to the Ganges, “the favourite spouse of Ocean”. He carried it
to the river, and in time the fish spoke to him, saying: “I cannot move about in the river
on account of my great length and bulk. Take me quickly to the Ocean.” Manu was
enabled to carry the fish from the Ganges to the sea, and then it spoke with a smile and
said:

25

INTERIOR OF A ROCK-HEWN BUDDHIST TEMPLE (AJANTA)

“Know thou, O worshipful one, my protector, that the dissolution of the
Universe is at hand. The time is ripe for purging the world. I will therefore advise
thee what thou shouldst do, so that it may be well with thee. Build a strong and
massive ark, and furnish it with a long rope; thou wilt ascend in it with the seven
Rishis (the Celestial Rishis), and take with thee all the different seeds enumerated
by Brahmans in days of yore, and preserve them carefully. Wait for me and I will
appear as a horned animal. Act according to my instructions, for without mine aid
thou canst not save thyself from the terrible deluge.”

Manu gathered together all the different seeds and “set sail in an excellent vessel on
the surging sea”. He thought of the fish, and it arose out of the waters like an island; he
cast a noose which he fastened to the horns on its head, and the fish towed the ark over
the roaring sea; tossed by the billows the vessel reeled about like one who is drunk. No
land was in sight. “There was water everywhere, and the waters covered the heaven and
the firmament also.... When the world was thus flooded none but Manu, the seven
Rishis, and the fish could be seen.”
After many long years the vessel was towed to the highest peak of the Himavat,
which is still called Nau-bandhana (the harbour), and it was made fast there. The fish
then spoke and said: “I am Brahma, the Lord of all Creatures; there is none greater than

me. I have saved thee from this cataclysm. Manu will create again all beings—gods,
Asuras, and men, and all those divisions of creation which have the power of locomotion
and which have it not. By practising severe austerities he will acquire this power....”
Then Manu set about creating all beings in proper and exact order.[178]
Markandeya elsewhere described the universal cataclysm with more detail. After a
drought lasting for many years, seven blazing suns will appear in the firmament; they
will drink up all the waters. Then wind-driven fire will sweep over the earth, consuming
all things; penetrating to the nether world it will destroy what is there in a moment; it
will burn up the Universe. Afterwards many-coloured and brilliant clouds will collect in
the sky, looking like herds of elephants decked with wreaths of lightning. Suddenly they
will burst asunder, and rain will fall incessantly for twelve years until the whole world
with its mountains and forests is covered with water. The clouds will vanish. Then the
Self-created Lord, the First Cause of everything, will absorb the winds and go to sleep.
The Universe will become one dread expanse of water.
Account has to be taken of the persistent legend regarding the ambrosia which gave
strength to the gods and prolonged their existence. In “Teutonic mythology” it is
snatched by Odin from the giants of the Underworld, and is concealed in the moon,
which is ever pursued by the demon wolf Managarm, who seeks to devour it.
The development of the Indian form of the myth is found in the story of “The
Churning of the Ocean”, which is dealt with in the Mahábhárata, the Ramáyana, and
several of the Puranas.
According to the epics, the ambrosia, the Indian name of which is amrita (both
words implying immortality), was required by the gods so as to enable them to
overcome the demons. In Vishnu Parva, however, a Brahmanic addition to the myth was
made so as to exalt a sage and illustrate the power he could exercise over the old Vedic
deities. It is related that Durvásas obtained from a merry nymph a sweet-scented,
inspiring garland which made him dance. He presented it to Indra, who placed it on the
head of his elephant. The elephant then began to prance about, and grew so excited that
it cast the garland on the ground. Durvásas was enraged because that his gift was
slighted in this manner, and cursed Indra and foretold the ruin of his kingdom. Thereafter
the king of the gods began to suffer loss of power, whereat the other deities became
alarmed, fearing that the demons would overcome him in battle. Appeal was made to
Brahma, who referred the gods to Vishnu, the Preserver. That supreme being
commanded that the ocean should be churned for amrita.
In the epics the gods allied themselves with the demons to procure amrita from
Vishnu's Sea of Milk. The “churning stick” was the mountain Mandara, and the
“churning rope” the serpent Vasuka[179] (Ananta or Shesha). Vishnu said: “The demons
must share in the work of churning, but I will prevent them from tasting of the amrita,
which must be kept for Indra and the gods only.”

The gods carried the mountain Mandara to the ocean, and placed it on the back of
Kurma, the king of tortoises, who was an incarnation of Vishnu.[180] Round the mountain
they twisted the serpent, which was “a part of a part of Vishnu”, the Asuras holding its
hood and the gods its tail. As a result of the friction caused by the churning, masses of
vapour issued from the serpent's mouth which, becoming clouds charged with lightning,
poured down refreshing rains on the weary workers. Fire darted forth and enwrapped the
mountain, burning its trees and destroying many birds, and the lions and elephants that
crouched on its slopes. In time the Sea of Milk produced butter flavoured by the gums
and juices which dropped from the mountain. The gods grew weary, but Vishnu gave
them fresh strength to proceed with the work. At length the moon emerged from the
ocean; then arose the Apsaras, who became nymphs in Indra's heaven; they were
followed by the goddess Lakshmi, Vishnu's white steed, and the gleaming gem which the
god wears on his breast. Then came Dhanwantari, the physician of the gods, who carried
a golden cup brimming with amrita. Beholding him, the Asuras cried out: “The gods
have taken all else; the physician must be ours.”
Next arose the great elephant Airávata, which Indra took for himself. The churning
still went on until the blue, devastating poison appeared and began to flow over the
earth, blazing like a flame mixed with fumes. To save the world from destruction, Shiva
swallowed the poison and held it in his throat. From that time he was called Nilakantha,
“the blue-throated”.
Meanwhile the demons desired to combat against the gods for the possession of the
beautiful goddess Lakshmi and the amrita. But Vishnu assumed a bewitching female
form, and so charmed the Asuras that they presented the amrita to that fair woman.
Vishnu immediately gave the amrita to the gods, but soon it was discovered that a
demon named Rahu had assumed Celestial form with purpose to drink it. The amrita had
only reached his throat when the sun and moon discovered him and informed Vishnu.
The divine Preserver then flung his discus and cut off Rahu's huge head, which
resembled a mountain peak. Rendered immortal by the amrita the head soared to the sky,
roaring loud and long. From that day Rahu's head, with mouth agape, has followed sun
and moon, and when he swallows one or the other he causes the eclipses.

26

LAKSHMI ARISING FROM THE SEA OF
MILK
From a sculpture at Mâmallapuram

Meanwhile the demons fought against the gods, but were defeated, although they
flung rocks and mountains. Thousands were slain by the sky-scouring discus of Vishnu,
and those who survived concealed themselves in the bowels of the earth and the depths
of the ocean of salt waters.
Once upon a time the ambrosia was robbed from the gods by Gar´uda, half giant
and half eagle, the enemy of serpents. This “lord of birds” was hatched from an
enormous egg five hundred years after it had been laid by Diti, mother of giants; his
father was Kas´yapa, a Brahman identified with the Pole Star, who had sacrificed with
desire for offspring. It happened that Diti, having lost a wager, was put under bondage
by the demons, and could not be released until she caused the amrita to be taken from a
Celestial mountain where it was surrounded by terrible flames, moved by violent winds,
which leapt up to the sky. Assuming a golden body, bright as the sun, Garuda drank up
many rivers and extinguished the fire. A fiercely revolving wheel, sharp-edged and
brilliant, protected the amrita, but Garuda diminished his body and entered between the
spokes. Two fire-spitting snakes had next to be overcome. Garuda blinded them with

dust and cut them to pieces. Then, having broken the revolving wheel, that bright sky-
ranger flew forth with the amrita which was contained in the moon goblet.
The gods went in pursuit of Garuda. Indra flung his thunderbolt, but the bird
suffered no pain and dropped but a single feather. When he delivered the amrita to the
demons his mother was released, but ere the demons could drink Indra snatched up the
golden moon-goblet and wended back to the heavens. The demon snakes licked the grass
where the goblet had been placed by Garuda, and their tongues were divided. From that
day all the snakes have had divided tongues.... Garuda became afterwards the vehicle of
Vishnu; he has ever “mocked the wind with his fleetness”.
Shiva, as we have indicated, developed from Rudra, the storm god. He is first
mentioned as Mahadeva, “the great god”, in the Yajurveda, and in the Mahábhárata he is
sometimes exalted above Vishnu. In one part he is worshipped by Krishna. He is the
“blue-necked, three-eyed trident-bearing lord of all creatures”. The trident is a lightning
symbol which appears to have developed from the three wriggling flashes held in the left
hand of hammer-gods like Tarku and Rammon. Shiva's third eye was on his forehead,
and from it issued on occasion a flame of fire which could consume an enemy; once he
slew Kamadeva, the love god, who wounded him with flowery arrows, by causing the
flame to spring forth.
Balor, the night god of Irish mythology, had similarly a destroying eye; “its gaze
withered all who stood before it”;[181] he was the god of lightning and death, the “eye-
flame” being the thunderbolt.
Shiva's dwelling is on the Himalayan mount Kaila´sa[182]. He is Girisha, “the lord
of the hills”, and Chandra-Shekara, “the moon crested”, Bhuteswara, “lord of goblins”,
and Sri Kanta, “beautiful throated”. When he is depicted with five heads, he is regarded
as the source of the five sacred rivers flowing from the mountains. As the god with
snow-white face, he is the spirit of asceticism (Maha-Yogi) adored by Brahmans
performing penances. In the Mahábhárata Arjuna, the warrior, invoked him by engaging
in austerities until smoke issued from the earth. Then Shiva, “the illustrious Hara”,
appeared in huge and stalwart form and wrestled with him. Arjuna's limbs were bruised
and he was deprived of his senses. When he recovered he hailed the god, saying: “Thou
art Shiva in the form of Vishnu and Vishnu in the form of Shiva....[183] O Hari, O Rudra,
I bow to thee. Thou hast a (red) eye on thy forehead.... Thou art the source of universal
blessing, the cause of the cause of the Universe.... Thou art worshipped of all the worlds.
I worship thee to obtain thy grace.... This combat in which I was engaged with thee
(arose) from ignorance.... I seek thy protection. Pardon me all I have done.”
Shiva, whose sign is the bull, embraced Arjuna and said, “I have pardoned thee.”
The god was invoked by another warrior, Ashwattaman, son of Drona. Having
naught else to sacrifice, the worshipper flung himself upon the altar fire; Shiva accepted
him and entered his body so as to assist him in slaughtering his sleeping enemies.
Bloody rites were at one time associated with Shiva worship. As the Destroyer of the

Hindu Trinity, he is armed with a discus, a sword, a bow, and a club; but his most terrible
weapon is the trident. Sometimes he is clad in the skin of an elephant and sometimes in
that of a leopard, the tail dangling behind. A serpent, coiled on his head, rears itself to
strike; another serpent darts from his right shoulder against an enemy.
The bull symbol, Nandi, the moon crescent on his forehead, and the serpent girdle,
indicate that Shiva is a god of fertility. A phallic symbol is associated with his worship.
In localities he is adored at the present day in the form of a great boulder painted red
which usually stands below a tree. Offerings are made to this stone, and women visit it
during the period of the moon's increase to pray for offspring.
As Natesa, the dancer, Shiva dances triumphantly on the body of a slain Asura. A
fine bronze in the Madras Museum depicts him with four arms, and a beaming,
benevolent face, wearing a tiara, and surrounded by a halo of fire; he absorbed the
attributes of Agni as well as those of Rudra. He is the destroyer of evil and disease, the
giver of long life and the god of medicine, and is accordingly invoked to cure sickness.
Victims of epilepsy are believed to be possessed by Shiva.
In early Puranic times, when Brahmanism was revived and reformed, the worship
of goddesses came into prominence. This was one of the most pronounced features of
the anti-Buddhist movement, and was due probably to the influence of Great Mother
worshippers. In the Vedic Age, as we have seen, the goddesses were vague and shadowy;
as wives of the gods they were strictly subordinate, reflecting, no doubt, the social
customs which prevailed among the Aryans. Ushas, the dawn, and Ratri, the night, were
mainly poetic conceptions. Even Prithivi, the Earth Mother, who was symbolized as a
cow, played no prominent part in Vedic religion: a magical influence was exercised by
water goddesses. The male origin of life appears to have been an accepted tenet of Vedic
belief. Aditi, mother of the Adityas, is believed to be of more recent origin than her sons.
Indra seems to have similarly had existence before his mother, like the other hammer
gods, and especially P'an Ku and Ptah.
Female water spirits are invariably regarded as givers of boons, inspiration and
wisdom; holy wells have from remote times been regarded as sources of luck; by
performing ceremonial acts those who visit them obtain what they wish for in silence;
their waters have, withal, curative properties, or they may be used for purposes of
divination. The name of the goddess Saraswati signifies “waters”; she was originally the
spirit of the Saraswati river, and was probably identical with Bharati, the goddess of the
Vedic Bharata tribe. In Puranic times she became the wife of Brahma and the Minerva of
the Hindu Pantheon. She is identical with Vach, “Mother of the Vedas”, the goddess of
poetry and eloquence, and Viraj, the female form of Purusha, who divided himself to
give origin to the gods and demons and all living creatures. When Brahma took for a
second wife Gayatri, the milkmaid, she cursed him so that he could only be worshipped
once a year.

27

SHIVA DANCING ON TRIPURA
From a bronze in the Madras Museum

Saranyu, who may have developed from Ushas, the Dawn, is the bride of Surya, the
sun god, and mother of the twin Aswins; she fashioned the trident of Shiva and the
discus of Vishnu, and other weapons besides.
Lakshmi, or Sri, who had her origin at the Churning of the Ocean, became the wife
of Vishnu, and the goddess of beauty, love, and prosperity. She has had several human
incarnations, and in each case was loved by the incarnation of Vishnu. She is Sita in the
Ramáyana, and the beautiful herdswoman beloved by Krishna. Lakshmi is “the world-
mother, eternal, imperishable; as Vishnu is all-pervading, she is omnipresent. Vishnu is
meaning, she is speech; Vishnu is righteousness, she is devotion; Sri is the earth, and
Vishnu is the support of the earth.” This benevolent goddess is usually depicted as a
golden lady with four arms, seated on a lotus.
Shiva's complex character is reflected in the various forms assumed by his bride. As
the Destroyer he is associated with Durga, who has great beauty and is also a war
goddess. As Kali she is the black earth-mother, and as Jagadgauri, the yellow woman,
the harvest bride. Armed with Celestial weapons, Durga is a renowned slayer of demons.

In her Kali form she is of hideous aspect. Sculptors and painters have depicted her
standing on the prostrate form of Shiva and grinning with outstretched tongue. Her body
is smeared with blood because she has waged a ferocious and successful war against the
giants. Like Shiva, she has a flaming third eye on her forehead. Her body is naked save
for a girdle of giants' hands suspended from her waist; round her neck she wears a long
necklace of giants' skulls: like the Egyptian Isis, Kali can conceal herself in her long and
abundant hair. She has four arms: in one she holds a weapon, and in another the dripping
head of a giant; two empty hands are raised to bless her worshippers. Like the Egyptian
Hathor or Sekhet, the “Eye of Ra”, she goes forth to slay the enemies of the gods,
rejoicing in slaughter. Like Hathor, too, she is asked to desist, but heeds not. Then Shiva
approaches her and lies down among her victims. Kali dances over the battlefield and
leaps on her husband's body. When she observes, however, what she has done, she ejects
her tongue with shame.
As Sati, Shiva's wife is the ideal of a true and virtuous Hindu woman. When Sati's
husband was slighted by her father, the Deva-rishi, Daksha, she cast herself on the
sacrificial fire. Widows who died on the funeral pyres of their husbands were called
Sati[184], because in performing this rite they imitated the faithful goddess.
Sati was reborn as Uma, “Light”, the impersonation of divine wisdom; as Amvika
the same goddess was a sister of Rudra, or his female counterpart, Rudra taking the place
of Purusha, the first man. Par´vati was another form of the many-sided goddess. Shiva
taunted her for being black, and she went away for a time and engaged in austerities,
with the result that she assumed a golden complexion.

28

GANESA (see page 151)
From a sculpture in the Victoria and
Albert Museum

A trinity of goddesses is formed by Saraswati, the white one, Lakshmi, the red one,
and Par´vati, the black one. The three were originally one—a goddess who came into
existence when Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva spoke of the dreaded Asura, Andhaka
(Darkness) and looked one at another. The goddess was coloured white, red, and black,
and divided herself, according to the Varaha Purana, into three forms representing the
Past, Present, and Future.
It was after Sati burned herself that the sorrowing Shiva was wounded by
Kamadeva, the love god, whom he slew by causing a flame of fire to dart from his third
eye. This god is the son of Vishnu and Lakshmi. He is usually depicted as a comely
youth like the Egyptian Khonsu; he shoots flowery arrows from his bow; his wife Rati
symbolizes Spring, the cuckoo, the humming bee, and soft winds. As Manmatha he is
the “mind-disturber”; as Mara, “the wounder”; as Madan, “he who makes one love-
drunk”; and as Pradyumna he is the “all-conqueror”.

Gane´sa[185], the four-armed, elephant-headed god of wisdom, is the son of Shiva
and Parvati. He is the general of Shiva's army, the patron of learning and the giver of
good fortune. At the beginning of books he is invoked by poets, his image is placed on
the ground when a new house is built, and he is honoured before a journey is begun or
any business is undertaken. The elephant's head is an emblem of sagacity. A myth in one
of the Puranas relates that the planet Saturn, being under a curse, decapitated Ganesa
simply by looking at him. Vishnu mounted on the back of the man-eagle Garuda and
came to the child's aid. He cut off the head of Indra's elephant and placed it on Ganesa's
neck. In a conflict with a Deva-rishi Ganesa lost one of his tusks. Several myths have
gathered round this popular, elephant-headed deity, who is also identified with the wise
rat.
Another son of Shiva and Parvati is Kartikeya, the Celestial general and slayer of
demons. He is also regarded as the son of Agni and the Ganges.
The goddess of the Ganges is Gangá. This most sacred of all Indian rivers, the
cleanser of sins and the giver of immortality, was originally confined to the Celestial
regions, where it flowed from a toe of Vishnu. How it came to earth is related in the
following myth: Sag´ara, a King of Ayodha (Oude), had great desire for offspring. He
performed penance, with the result that one wife became the mother of a single son and
the other of sixty thousand sons. He prepared to perform a horse sacrifice, but Indra stole
the sacred animal. All the sons went in search of it by digging each for the depth of a
league towards the centre of the earth. They were, however, consumed by the fire of
Kapila, a form of Vishnu, who protected the earth goddess, his bride. Sagara was
informed that his sons would come to life again and rise to heaven when the Ganges
flowed down to the earth. His grandson went through rigid penances, and at length
Brahma consented to grant the prayer that the sacred river should descend from the
Himalayas. Shiva broke the fall of the waters by allowing them to flow through his hair,
and they were divided into seven streams. When the waters reached the ashes of the slain
princes, their spirits rose to heaven and secured eternal bliss. Sagra island, at the mouth
of the Ganges, is invested with great sanctity, on account of its association with the King
of Ayodha of this legend. All the Indian rivers are female, with the exception of the Sona
and Brahmaputra, the spirits of which are male.

29

KARTIKEYA, THE WAR GOD
From a painting by Surendra Nath
Gangoly
(By permission of the Indian Society
of Oriental Art, Calcutta)

Other goddesses include Man´asa, sister of Vasuka, King of the Nagas, who gives
protection against snake bites, and is invoked by the serpent worshippers: Sasti, the
feline goddess of maternity and protectress of children, who rides on a cat; and Shitala,
the Bengali goddess of smallpox, who is mounted on an ass, carries a bundle of reeds in
her hand, and is clad in red; she is propitiated on behalf of victims of the dreaded
disease.
A prominent part is played in the Brahmanic mythology of the Restoration period
by the Deva-rishis, the deified Vedic poets, sages, and priests, who stand between the
Vedic gods and the Trinity of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva.
Originally there were seven Deva-rishis, and these were identified with the seven
stars of the Great Bear, their wives being represented by the Pleiades. Their number was,
however, increased in time.[186] Sometimes they visit the earth in the form of swans, but

more often they are brooding sages who curse gods and mortals on receiving the
slightest provocation.
One of the most prominent of these Rishis is Na´rada[187], who cursed and was
cursed by Brahma. In the Mahábhárata he is a renowned teacher and a counsellor of
kings, and also a messenger between Indra and heroes. He is a patron of music, and
invented the Vina (lute) on which he loves to play. His great rival is Parvata, who also
acts as a Celestial messenger.
Daksha is the father of Sati, the peerless wife of Shiva. It was on account of this
rishi's quarrel with her husband, who was not invited to a great feast, that she flung
herself upon the sacrificial fire. Shiva cut off Daksha's head and replaced it with the head
of a goat.
Bhrigu was the patriarch of a Vedic priestly family. He married a daughter of
Daksha, and was the father of Lakshmi, wife of Vishnu, who rose from the ocean of
milk. Bhrigu once cursed Agni, whom he compelled to consume everything. Angiras,
Kratu, and Pulaha were Deva-rishis who also married daughters of Daksha. Pulastya was
a famous slayer of Rakshasas. He once cursed a king who refused to make way for him
on a narrow forest path, and the king became a Rakshasa.
Marichi was the grandfather of the dwarf incarnation of Vishnu, and Atri was the
father of the irascible sage Durvasas, a master curser.
Vasishtha is sometimes referred to as identical with Vyasa, the reputed arranger of
the Vedas, and author of the Mahábhárata. He possessed a wonderful cow which granted
whatever he wished for. A king named Vishwamitra desired to possess this wonderful
animal, and when he found that he was unable to obtain it by force, he determined to
raise himself from the Kshatriya to the Brahman caste by performing prolonged
austerities. When Vishwamitra secured this elevation he fought with his rival.
Some Vedic scholars regard Vishwamitra and Vasishtha as actual historical
personages. They argue that Vishwamitra was originally a Purohita (family priest) in the
service of Sudas, the king of an Aryan tribe called the Tritsus. References are found in
the Rigveda to the wars of Sudas, who once defeated a coalition of ten kings.
Vishwamitra is believed to have been deposed by Sudas in favour of Vasishtha, and to
have allied himself afterwards with the enemies of the Tritsus.[188]
Professor Oldenberg, the German Sanskrit scholar, is convinced, however, that
there is no evidence in the Rigveda of the legendary rivalry between Vishwamitra and
Vasishtha. He regards the Vasishthas as the family priests of the Bharata tribe and
identical with the Tritsus.

30

PARVATI, WIFE OF SHIVA
(see page 150)
From a South Indian temple

Among the tribes which opposed the advance of the conquering King Sudas, who
appears to have been a late comer, was the Puru people on the banks of the Saraswati
river. We find that the early authors suddenly cease to refer to them, and the problem is
presented: What fate had befallen the Purus? Professor Oldenberg, whose view is
accepted by Professor Macdonell, Oxford, explains that the Purus merged in the Kuru
coalition. The Kurus gave their name to Kuru-kshetra, the famous battlefield of the epic
Mahábhárata; they had already fused with the Panchala tribe and formed the Kuru-
Panchala nation in Madhyadesa, the “Middle Country”, the home of Brahmanic culture,
the birthplace of the famous old Upanishads.
The Bharatas, and their priestly aristocracy of Tritsus, the Vasishthas, appear to
have joined the Kuru-Panchala confederacy about the time that the Brahmanas were
being composed, and these were probably influenced by the ritualistic practices of the
Vasishthas. There are references to Agni of the Bharatas, and a goddess Bharati is
mentioned in connection with the Saraswati river.

It appears highly probable that the Bharatas and the Kuru-Panchalas represent late
invasions of peoples who displaced the earlier Aryan settlers in Hindustan. Among the
enemies of the invaders were the Kasis, a tribe which became associated with Benares. It
is not possible to prove the theory that this people had any connection with the Kassites
who established a Dynasty at Babylon. The Kassites are believed to be identical with the
Cossæi of later times, who were settled between Babylon and the Median highlands.
Some think the Kassites came from Asia Minor after the Hittite raid on Babylon, if the
Kassites, as Hittite allies, were not the actual raiders. The fact that the Maltese cross,
which is found on Elamite neolithic pottery, first appears on Babylonian seals during the
Kassite Dynasty, suggests, however, that the Kassites came from the east and not the
west, with the horse, called in Babylon “the ass of the east”.
The great epic Mahábhárata, “the Iliad of India”, may have been founded on the
hero songs which celebrated the Aryan tribal wars in India. Its action is centred in Kuru-
kshetra, “the country of the Kurus”, in which the Bharatas had settled. Two rival families
contend for supremacy; these are the Kauravas (the Kurus) and the Pandavas who are
supported by the Panchalas and others. The Pandavas and Kauravas are cousins and the
descendants of the eponymous King Bharata. In the royal family tree the tribal names of
Kuru and Puru appear as names of kings.
A popular rendering is given in several chapters which follow of the epic narrative
embedded in the Mahábhárata, which is about eight times as long as the Iliad and
Odyssey combined. This monumental work is divided into eighteen books; a
supplementary nineteenth book alone exceeds in length the two famous Greek epics.
As we have stated, the Mahábhárata had its origin as an epic prior to B.C. 500. It
was added to from time to time until it assumed its present great bulk. The kernel of the
narrative, however, which appears to have dealt with the early wars between the Kurus
and Panchalas, must be placed beyond B.C. 1000.
Our narrative begins with the romantic stories which gathered round the names of
the legendary ancestors of the Kauravas and the Pandavas. The sympathies of the
Brahmanic compilers are with the latter, who are symbolized as “a vast tree formed of
religion and virtue”, while their opponents are “a great tree formed of passion”.

FOOTNOTES:
[178] Condensed from Vana Parva section of Mahábhárata, sec. clxxxvii, Roy's trans.
[179] Va'suki.
[180] Brahma, as Prajapati, assumes, in one of the myths, the form of a tortoise to “create
offspring”.
[181] Celtic Myth and Legend, p. 49.
[182] Or Kailāsa.
[183] Combined with Vishnu he is Hari-hara.

[184] Often spelled Suttee.
[185] A familiar Bengali rendering is “Gonesh”, which is often given as a pet name to an
exemplary boy.
[186] In Vishnu Purana the Rishis are divided as follows: 1, Brahmarishis, sons of
Brahma; 2, Devarishis, semi-divine saints; 3, Rajarishis, royal saints who had practised
austerities. There are variants in other sacred books which refer to Maharishis, Paramarishis,
&c.
[187] Or Nãrada.
[188] Rigveda, viii, 53. 9-11, and vii, 18.

CHAPTER IX
Prelude to the Great Bharata War
Dushyanta and Shakuntala—Romantic Wooing—Birth of Bharata—Shakuntala's Appeal—Her Claim
vindicated—King Bharata's Reign—King Hastin and King Kuru—King Shantanu's Bride a Goddess—
Seven Babes drowned—Story of Satyavati—Vyasa, Poet and Sage—Bhishma's Terrible Vow—Fisher Girl
becomes Queen—Marriage by Capture—A Childless King—Origin of Dhritarashtra, Pandu, and Vidura.

Now the sire of the great King Bharata[189] was royal Dushyanta of the lunar race,
the descendant of Atri, the Deva-rishi, and of Soma, the moon; his mother was beautiful
Shakuntala, the hermit maiden, and daughter of a nymph from the celestial regions. And
first be it told of the wooing of Shakuntala and the strange childhood of her mighty son.
One day King Dushyanta, that tiger among men, went forth from his stately palace
to go a-hunting with a great host and many horses and elephants. He entered a deep
jungle and there slew numerous wild animals; his arrows wounded tigers at a distance;
he felled those that came near with his great sword. Lions fled from before him, wild
elephants stampeded in terror, deer sought to escape hastily, and birds rose in the air
uttering cries of distress.
The king, attended by a single follower, pursued a deer across a desert plain, and
entered a beautiful forest which delighted his heart, for it was deep and shady, and was
cooled by soft winds; sweet-throated birds sang in the branches, and all round about
there were blossoming trees and blushing flowers; he heard the soft notes of the
kokila[190], and beheld many a green bower carpeted with grass and canopied by many-
coloured creepers.
Dushyanta, abandoning the chase, wandered on until he came to a delightful and
secluded hermitage, where he saw the sacred fire of that austere and high-souled
Brahman, the saintly Kanva. It was a scene of peace and beauty. Blossoms from the trees
covered the ground; tall were the trunks, and the branches were far-sweeping. A silvery
stream went past, breaking on the banks in milk-white foam; it was the sacred River
Malini, studded with green islands, loved by water fowl, and abounding with fish.
Then the king was taken with desire to visit the holy sage, Kanva, he who is
without darkness. So he divested himself of his royal insignia and entered the sacred
grove alone. Bees were humming; birds trilled their many melodies; he heard the low
chanting voices of Brahmans among the trees—those holy men who can take captive all
human hearts....
When he reached the abode of Kanva, he wondered to find that it was empty, and
called out: “Who is here?” and the forest echoed his voice.

Then came towards him a beautiful black-eyed virgin, clad in a robe of bark. She
reverenced the king and said: “What seekest thou? I am thy servant.”
Said the royal Dushyanta to the maiden of faultless form and gentle voice: “I have
come to honour the wise and blessed Kanva. Tell me, O fair and amiable one, whither he
hath gone?”
The maiden answered: “My illustrious sire is gathering herbs, but if thou wilt tarry
he will return ere long.”
Dushyanta was entranced by the beauty and sweet smiles of the gentle girl, and his
heart was moved towards her, for she was in the bloom of youth. So he spake, saying:
“Who art thou, O fairest one? Whence comest thou, and why dost thou wander alone in
the woods? O comely maiden, thou hast taken captive my heart.”
The bright-eyed one made answer: “I am the daughter of the holy and high-souled
Kanva, the ever-wise and ever-constant.”
Said the king: “But Kanva is chaste and austere and hath ever been a celibate, nor
can he have broken his rigid vow. How came it that thou wert born the daughter of such
a one?”
Then the maiden, who was named Shakuntala, because that the birds (shakunta) had
nursed her, revealed unto the king the secret of her birth. Her real sire was
Vishwamitra[191], the holy sage who had been a Kshatriya and was made a Brahman in
reward for his austerities. It came to pass that Indra became alarmed at his growing
power, and he feared that the mighty sage of blazing energy would, by reason of his
penances, cast down even him, the king of the gods, from his heavenly seat. So Indra
commanded Menaka, the beauteous Ap'sara, to disturb the holy meditations of the sage,
for he had already achieved such power that he created a second world and many stars.
The nymph called on the wind god and on the god of love, and they went with her
towards Vishwamitra.
Menaka danced before the brooding sage; then the wind god snatched away her
moon-white garments, and the love god shot his arrows at Vishwamitra, whereupon that
saintly man was stricken with love for the nymph of peerless beauty, and he wooed her
and won her as his bride. So was he diverted from his austerities. In time Menaka
became the mother of a girl babe, whom she cast away on the river bank.
Now the forest was full of lions and tigers, but vultures gathered round the infant
and protected her from harm. Then Kanva found and took pity on the child; he said:
“She will be mine own daughter.”
Said Shakuntala: “O king, I was that child who was abandoned by the nymph, and
now thou dost know how Kanva came to be my sire.”
The king said: “Blessed are thy words, O princess. Thou art of royal birth. Be thou
my bride, O beautiful maid, and thou wilt have garlands of gold and golden ear-rings and

white pearls and rich robes; my kingdom also will be thine, O timid one; wed thou me in
Gandharva mode, which of all marriages is the best.”[192]
Then Shakuntala promised to be the king's bride, on condition that he would choose
her son as the heir to his throne.
“As thou desirest, so let it be,” said Dushyanta. And the fair one became his bride.
Ere Dushyanta went away he promised Shakuntala that he would send a mighty
host to escort her to his palace.
When Kanva returned, the maiden did not leave her hiding-place to greet him; but
he searched out and found her, and he read her heart. “Thou hast not broken the law,” he
said. “Dushyanta, thine husband, is noble and true, and a son will be born unto thee who
will achieve great renown.”
In time fair Shakuntala became the mother of a comely boy, and the wheel
mark[193] was on his hands. He grew to be strong and brave, and when but six years old
he sported with young lions, for he was suckled by a lioness; he rode on the backs of
lions and tigers and wild boars in the midst of the forest. He was called All-tamer,
because that he tamed everything.
Now when Kanva perceived that the boy was of unequalled prowess, he spake to
Shakuntala and said: “The time hath come when he must be anointed as heir to the
throne.” So he bade his disciples to escort mother and son unto the city of
Gajasahvaya[194], where Dushyanta had his royal palace.
So it came that Shakuntala once again stood before the king, and she said unto him:
“Lo! I have brought unto thee this thy son, O Dushyanta. Fulfil the promise thou didst
make aforetime, and let him be anointed as thine heir.”
Dushyanta had no pleasure in her words, and made answer: “I have no memory of
thee. Who are thou and whence cometh thou, O wicked hermit woman? I never took thee
for wife, nor care I whether thou art to linger here or to depart speedily.”
Stunned by his cold answer, the sorrowing Shakuntala stood there like a log.... Soon
her eyes became red as copper and her lips trembled; she cast burning glances at the
monarch. For a time she was silent; then she exclaimed with fervour: “O king without
shame, well dost thou know who I am. Why wilt thou deny knowledge of me as if thou
wert but an inferior person? Thy heart is a witness against thee. Be not a robber of thine
own affections.... The gods behold everything: naught is hidden from them; verily, they
will not bless one who doth degrade himself by speaking falsely regarding himself.
Spurn not the mother of thy son; spurn not thy faithful wife. A true wife beareth a son;
she is the first of friends and the source of salvation; she enables her husband to perform
religious acts, her sweet speeches bring him joy; she is a solace and a comforter in
sickness and in sorrow; she is a companion in this world and the next. If a husband dies,
a wife follows soon afterwards; if she is gone before, she waiteth for her husband in
heaven. She is the mother of the son who performs the funeral rite to secure everlasting

bliss for his sire, rescuing him from the hell called Put. Therefore a man should
reverence the mother of his son, and look upon his son as if he beheld his own self in a
mirror, rejoicing the while as if he had found heaven.... Why, O king, dost thou spurn
thine own child? Even the ants will protect their eggs; strangers far from home take the
children of others on their knees to be made happy, but thou hast no compassion for this
child, although he is thy son, thine own image.... Alas! what sin did I commit in my
former state that I should have been deserted by my parents and now by thee!... If I must
go hence, take thou thy son to thy bosom, O king.”
Said Dushyanta: “It has been well said that all women are liars. Who will believe
thee? I know naught regarding thee or thy son.... Begone! O wicked woman, for thou art
without shame.”
Shakuntala made answer, speaking boldly and without fear: “O king, thou canst
perceive the shortcomings of others, although they may be as small as mustard seeds;
thou art blind to thine own sins, although they may be big as Vilwa fruit. As the swine
loveth dirt even in a flower garden, so do the wicked perceive evil in all that the good
relate. Honest men refrain from speaking ill of others: the wicked rejoice in scandal. O
king! truth is the chief of all virtues. Truth is God himself. Do not break thy vow of
truth: let truth be ever a part of thee. But if thou wouldst rather be false, I must needs
depart, for, verily, such a one as thee should be avoided.... Yet know now, O Dushyanta,
that when thou art gone, my son will be king of this world, which is surrounded by the
four seas and adorned by the monarch of mountains.”
Shakuntala then turned from the king, but a voice out of heaven spoke softly down
the wind, saying:
“Shakuntala hath uttered what is true. Therefore, O Dushyanta, cherish thy son,
and became thou wilt cherish him by command of the gods, let his name be Bharata
(‘the cherished’).”
When the king heard these words, he spoke to his counsellors and said: “The
celestial messenger hath spoken.... Had I welcomed this my son by pledge of Shakuntala
alone, men would suspect the truth of her words and doubt his royal birth.”
Thereafter Dushyanta embraced his son and kissed him, and he honoured
Shakuntala as his chief rani[195]; he said to her, soothingly: “From all men have I
concealed our union; and for the sake of thine own good name I hesitated to
acknowledge thee. Forgive my harsh words, as I forgive thine. Thou didst speak
passionately because thou lovest me well, O great-eyed and fair one, whom I love also.”
The son of Shakuntala was then anointed as heir to the throne, and he was named
Bharata.[196]
When Dushyanta died, Bharata became king. Great was his fame, as befitted a
descendant of Chandra.[197] He was a mighty warrior, and none could withstand him in

battle; he made great conquests, and extended his kingdom all over Hindustan, which
was called Bharatavarsha.[198]
King Bharata was the sire of King Hastin, who built the great city of Hastinapur;
King Hastin begot King Kuru, and King Kuru begot King Shantanu.
Be it told of the King Shantanu that he was pious and just and all-powerful, as was
meet for the great grandson of King Bharata. His first wife was the goddess Ganga of the
Ganges river, and she was divinely beautiful like to her kind. Ere she assumed human
form for a time, there came to her the eight Vasus, the attendants of Indra. It chanced that
when the Brahman Vasishtha was engaged in his holy meditations the Vasus flew
between him and the sun, whereupon the angered sage cursed them, saying: “Be born
among men!” Nor could they escape this fate, so great was the Rishi's power over
celestial beings. So they hastened to Ganga, and she consented to become their human
mother, promising that she would cast them one by one into the Ganges soon after birth,
so that they might return speedily to their celestial state. For this service Ganga made
each of the Vasus promise to confer an eighth part of his power on her son, who,
according to her desire, should remain among men for many years, but would never
marry or have offspring.

2

SHANTANU MEETS THE
GODDESS GANGA
From the painting by Warwick Goble

A day came thereafter when King Shantanu walked beside the Ganges. Suddenly
there appeared before him a maiden of surpassing beauty. She was Ganga in human
form. Her celestial garments had the splendour of lotus blooms; she was adorned with
rare ornaments, and her teeth were radiant as pearls. The king was silenced by her
charms, and gazed upon her steadfastly.... In time he perceived that the maiden regarded
him with love-lorn eyes, as if she sought to look upon him for ever, and he spoke to her,
saying: “O slender-waisted and fair one, art thou one of the Danavas, or art thou of the
race of Gandharvas, or art thou of the Apsaras; art thou one of the Yakshas or Nagas,[199]
or art thou of human kind, O peerless and faultless one? Be thou my bride.”
The goddess made answer that she would wed the king, but said she must needs at
once depart from him if he spoke harshly to her at any time, or attempted to thwart her in
doing as she willed. Shantanu consented to her terms, and Ganga became his bride.
In time the goddess gave birth to a son, but soon afterwards she cast him into the
Ganges, saying: “This for thy welfare.”
The king was stricken with horror, but he spake not a word to his beautiful bride
lest she should leave him.
So were seven babes, one after another, destroyed by their mother in like manner.
When the eighth was born, the goddess sought to drown him also; but the king's pent-up
wrath broke forth in a torrent of speech, and he upbraided his heartless wife. Thus was
his marriage vow broken, and Ganga given power to depart unto her own place. But ere
she went she revealed unto the king who she was, and also why she had cast the Vasus,
her children, into the Ganges. Then she suddenly vanished from before his eyes, taking
the last babe with her.
Ere long the fair goddess returned to Shantanu for a brief space, and she brought
with her for the king a fair and noble son, who was endowed with the virtues of the
Vasus. Then she departed never to come again. The heart of Shantanu was moved
towards the child, who became a comely and powerful youth, and was named Satanava.
[200]

When Shantanu had grown old, he sought to marry a young and beautiful bride
whom he loved. For one day as he walked beside the Jumna river he was attracted by a
sweet and alluring perfume, which drew him through the trees until he beheld a maiden
of celestial beauty with luminous black eyes.[201] The king spake to her and said: “Who
art thou, and whose daughter, O timid one? What doest thou here?”
Said the maiden, blessing Shantanu: “I am the daughter of a fisherman, and I ferry
passengers across the river in my boat.”

Now, the name of this fair maiden was Satyavati.[202] Like Shakuntala, she was of
miraculous origin, and had been adopted by her reputed sire. It chanced that a fish once
carried away in its stomach two unborn babes, a girl and a boy, whose father was a great
rajah. This fish was caught by a fisherman, who opened it and found the children. He
sent the manchild unto the rajah and kept the girl, who was reared as his own daughter.
She grew to be comely and fair, but a fishy odour ever clung to her.
One day, as she ferried pilgrims across the Jumna, there entered her boat alone the
high and pious Brahman Parashara, who was moved by the maiden's great beauty. He
desired that she should become the mother of his son, and promised that ever afterwards
an alluring perfume would emanate from her body. He then caused a cloud to fall upon
the boat, and it vanished from sight.
When the fisher girl became the mother of a son, he grew suddenly before her eyes,
and in a brief space was a man. His name was Vyasa[203]; he bade his mother farewell,
and hastened to the depths of a forest to spend his days in holy meditation. Ere he
departed he said unto Satyavati: “If ever thou hast need of me, think of me, and I shall
come to thine aid.”
When this wonder had been accomplished, Satyavati became a virgin again through
the power of the great sage Parashara, and a delicious odour lingered about her ever
afterwards.
On this maiden King Shantanu gazed with love. Then he sought the fisherman, and
said he desired the maiden to be his bride. But the man refused to give his daughter to
the king in marriage until he promised that her son should be chosen as heir to the
throne. Shantanu could not consent to disinherit Satanava, son of Ganga, and went away
with a heavy heart.
Greatly the king sorrowed in his heart because of his love for the dark-eyed maiden,
and at length Satanava was given his secret. Then that noble son of Ganga went to search
for the beautiful daughter of the fisherman, and he found her. The fisherman said unto
him, when he had made known his mission: “If Satyavati bears sons, they will not
inherit the kingdom, for the king hath already a son, and he will succeed him.”
Satanava thereupon made a vow renouncing his claim to the throne, and said: “If
thou wilt give thy daughter unto my sire to be his queen, I, who am his heir, will never
accept the throne, nor marry a wife, or be the father of children. If, then, Satyavati will
become the mother of a son, he will surely be chosen rajah.” When he had spoken thus,
the gods and Apsaras, the mist fairies, caused flowers to fall out of heaven upon the
prince's head, and a voice came down the wind, saying: “This one is Bhishma.”
So from that day the son of Ganga was called Bhishma, which signifies the
“Terrible”, for the vow that he had taken was terrible indeed.
Then was Satyavati given in marriage to the king, and she bore him two sons, who
were named Chitrangada and Vichitra-virya.[204]

In time Shantanu sank under the burden of his years, and his soul departed from his
body. Unto Bhishma was left the care of the queen-mother, Satyavati, and the two
princes.
When the days of mourning went past, Bhishma renounced the throne in
accordance with his vow, and Chitrangada was proclaimed king. This youth was a
haughty ruler, and his reign was brief. He waged war against the Gandhari of the
hills[205] for three years, and was slain in battle by their rajah. Then Bhishma placed
Vichitra-virya on the throne, and, as he was but a boy, Bhishma ruled as regent for some
years.
At length the time came for the young king to marry, and Bhishma set out to find
wives for him. It chanced that the King of Kasi (Benares) had three fair daughters whose
swayamvara[206] was being proclaimed. When Bhishma was told of this he at once
entered his chariot and drove from Hastinapur[207] to Kasi to discover if the girls were
worthy of the monarch of Bharatavarsha. He found that they had great beauty, and he
was well pleased thereat. The great city was thronged with rajahs who had gathered from
far and near to woo the maidens, but Bhishma would not tarry until the day of the
swayamvara. He immediately seized the king's fair daughters and placed them in his
chariot. Then he challenged the assembled rajahs and sons of rajahs in a voice like
thunder, saying:
“The sages have decreed that a king may give his daughter with many gifts unto
one he has invited when she hath chosen him. Others may barter their daughters for two
kine, and some may give them in exchange for gold. But maidens may also be taken
captive. They may be married by consent, or forced to consent, or be obtained by
sanction of their sires. Some are given wives as reward for performing sacrifices, a form
approved by the sages. Kings ever favour the swayamvara, and obtain wives according
to its rules. But learned men have declared that the wife who is to be most highly
esteemed is she who is taken captive after battle with the royal guests who attend a
swayamvara. Hear and know, then, ye mighty rajahs, I will carry off these fair daughters
of the king of Kasi, and I challenge all who are here to overcome me or else be
overcome themselves by me in battle.”
The royal guests who were there accepted the challenge, and Bhishma fought
against them with great fury. Bows were bent and ten thousand arrows were discharged
against him, but he broke their flight with innumerable darts from his own mighty bow.
Strong and brave was he indeed; there was none who could overcome him; he fought
and conquered all, until not a rajah was left to contend against him.[208]
Thus did Bhishma, the terrible son of the ocean-going Ganga, take captive after
battle the three fair daughters of the King of Kasi; and he drove away with them in his
chariot towards Hastinapur.[209]
When he reached the royal palace he presented the maidens unto Queen Satyavati,
who was well pleased, and at once gave many costly gifts to Bhishma. She decided that

the captives should become the wives of her son, King Vichitra-virya.
Ere the wedding ceremony was held, the eldest maiden, whose name was Amba,
pleaded with the queen to be set free, saying:
“I have been betrothed already by my sire unto the Rajah of Sanva. Oh, send me
unto him now, for I cannot marry a second time.”
Her prayer was granted, and Bhishma sent her with an escort unto the Rajah of
Sanva. Then the fair Amba related unto him how she had been taken captive; but the
rajah exclaimed, with anger: “Thou hast already dwelt in the house of a strange man, and
I cannot take thee for my wife.”
The maiden wept bitterly, and she knelt before the monarch and said: “No man hath
wronged me, O mighty rajah. Bhishma hath taken a terrible vow of celibacy which he
cannot break. If thou wilt not have me for wife, I pray thee to take me as thy concubine,
so that I may dwell safely in thy palace.”
But the rajah spurned the beautiful maiden, and his servants drove her from the
palace and out of the city. So was she compelled to seek refuge in the lonely forest, and
there she practised great austerities with purpose to secure power to slay Bhishma, who
had wronged her. In the end she threw herself upon a pyre, so that she might attain her
desire in the next life.[210]
Her two sisters, Amvika and Amvalika, became the wives of Vitchitra-virya, who
loved them well; but his days were brief, and he wasted away with sickness until at
length he died. No children were born to the king, and his two widows mourned for him.
The heart of Queen Satyavati was stricken with grief because that her two sons
were dead, and there was left no heir to the throne of King Bharata.
Now it was the custom in those days that a kinsman should become the father of
children to succeed the dead king.[211] So Queen Satyavati spake unto Bhishma, saying:
“Take thou the widows of my son and raise up sons who will be as sons of the king.”
But Bhishma said: “That I cannot do, for have I not vowed never to be the sire of
any children.”
In her despair Satyavati then thought of her son Vyasa, and he immediately
appeared before her and consented to do as was her desire.[212]
Now Vyasa was a mighty sage, but, by reason of his austerities in his lonely jungle
dwelling, he had grown gaunt and repulsive of aspect so that women shrank from before
him; fearsome was he, indeed, to look upon.
Amvika closed her eyes with horror when she beheld the sage, and she had a son
who was born blind: he was named Dhritarashtra. Amvalika turned pale with fear: she
had a son who was named Pandu, “the pale one”.

Satyavati desired that Vyasa should be the father of a son who had no defect; but
Amvika sent her handmaiden unto him, and she bore a son who was called Vidura. As it
happened, Dharma, god of justice, was put under the spell of a Rishi at this time, to be
born among men, and he chose Vidura to be his human incarnation.
The three children were reared by Bhishma, who was regent over the kingdom, and
was yet subject to Queen Satyavati. He taught them the laws and trained them as
warriors. When the time came to select a king, Dhritarashtra[213] was passed over
because that he was blind, and Vidura because of his humble birth, and Pandu, “the pale
one”, was set upon the throne.

FOOTNOTES:
[189] Pron. bah´ra-ta or bhah´ra-ta.
[190] The Indian cuckoo.
[191] Pron. vish-wah-mit´ra.
[192] The Gandharva marriage was legalized by Manu, but only for members of the
Kshatriya (kings and warriors) caste.
[193] A sign of martial and royal origin.
[194] Pron. Gaj-as-ah-va´ya.
[195] Queen.
[196] This story is the plot of “Shakuntala”, the Sanskrit drama of the poet Kalidasa, who
lived in the fifth century A.D. He makes the king give the heroine a ring, which she loses
while bathing. A fish swallows the ring, and it is found by a fisherman, who delivers it to the
king. Then suddenly His Majesty remembers his bride, whom he had forgotten and already
denied. The misfortunes of the monarch and maid resulted from the curse of the sage
Durvasas. Pron. Sha-koon´-ta-lah.
[197] Pron. chun´dra (“ch” as in “change”). Also Soma, the moon god.
[198] Subsequently the name for India as a whole.
[199] Art thou a demon or nymph or fairy or dwarf or demi-god?
[200] His other names are Deva-bratta and Ganga-bratta, and he was ultimately known as
Bhishma.
[201] The Pharaoh of the Anpu-Bata Egyptian story was similarly attracted by a perfume
which issued from a lock of hair. See Egyptian Myth and Legend.
[202] Pron. sat´ya-vat-ee.
[203] Pron. vyas´a (two syllables). The reputed author of the Mahá-bhárata.
[204] Pron. chit-ran´gad-a (“ch” as in “change”) and vi-cheet´ra-veer-ya.
[205] An Aryan tribe in the north-west of India. Part of their territory was included in the
Persian empire. Keith identifies them with the Gandarians who accompanied Xerxes in his
campaign against the Greeks.
[206] A festival at which a princess selected a husband from among the kings and
warriors assembled together.
[207] A drive of about 500 miles. Indian poets, however, have never troubled about
geographical difficulties.

[208] The Kasi tribe was Aryan but was disliked by the eastern Aryans because its beliefs
were not according to the standards imposed by the Brahmans. Conflicts were frequent.
[209] Pron. has-teen´a-poor. Marriage by capture was called a Rákshas marriage, and
was sanctioned by Manu.
[210] She helps to kill Bhishma in the great war, having changed her sex with a Yaksha.
[211] A similar practice is referred to in Genesis xxxviii; it was a regular institution
among the ancient Hebrews.
[212] This custom is called “niyoga”, and was legalized by Manu, but only for the lower
castes.
[213] Pron. dreet´a-rash´´tra, Pan´doo, and Ve-dur´a (“u” as “oo”).

CHAPTER X
Royal Rivals: the Pandavas and Kauravas[214]
King Pandu's Two Wives—Pritha and the Sun God—Birth of Karna—The Indian Moses—Babe
rescued from Floating Cradle—Pandu slays Brahman in Deer Guise—His Doom pronounced—Queen
burned on King's Pyre—Blind Brother becomes Rajah—The Rival Princes—Attempt to kill Bhima—His
Visit to the Underworld—The Draught of Strength—Drona, Preceptor of Princes—His Royal Rival
Draupada—Training of Young Warriors—The Faithful Bhil Prince—His Sacrifice.

King Pandu became a mighty monarch, and was renowned as a warrior and a just
ruler of his kingdom. He married two wives: Pritha, who was chief rani, and Madri[215],
whom he loved best.
Now Pritha was of celestial origin, for her mother was a nymph; her father was a
holy Brahman, and her brother, Vasudeva, was the father of Krishna.[216] When but a
babe she had been adopted by the Rajah of Shurasena, whose kingdom was among the
Vindhya mountains. She was of pious heart, and ever showed reverence towards holy
men. Once there came to the palace the great Rishi Durvasas, and she ministered unto
him faithfully by serving food at any hour he desired, and by kindling the sacred fire in
the sacrificial chamber. After his stay, which was in length a full year, Durvasas, in
reward for her services, imparted to Pritha a powerful charm[217], by virtue of which she
could compel the love of a celestial being. One day she had a vision of Surya, god of the
sun; she muttered the charm, and received him when he drew nigh in the attire of a rajah,
wearing the celestial ear-rings. In secret she became in time the mother of his son,
Karna, who was equipped at birth with celestial ear-rings and an invulnerable coat of
mail, which had power to grow as the wearer increased in stature. The child had the eyes
of a lion and the shoulders of a bull.
In her maidenly shame Pritha resolved to conceal her new-born babe. So she
wrapped him in soft sheets and, laying under his head a costly pillow, placed him in a
basket of wicker-work which she had smeared over with wax. Then, weeping bitterly,
she set the basket afloat on the river, saying: “O my babe, be thou protected by all who
are on land, and in the water, and in the sky, and in the celestial regions! May all who see
thee love thee! May Varuna, god of the waters, shield thee from harm. May thy father,
the sun, give thee warmth!... I shall know thee in days to come, wherever thou mayst be,
by thy coat of golden mail.... She who will find thee and adopt thee will be surely
blessed.... O my son, she who will cherish thee will behold thee in youthful prime like to
a maned lion in Himalayan forests.”
The basket drifted down the River Aswa until it was no longer seen by that lotus-
eyed damsel, and at length it reached the Jumna; the Jumna gave it to the Ganges, and by
that great and holy river it was borne unto the country of Anga.... The child, lying in soft

slumber, was kept alive by reason of the virtues possessed by the celestial armour and
the ear-rings.
Now there was a woman of Anga who was named Radha, and she had peerless
beauty. Her husband was Shatananda, the charioteer. Both husband and wife had for long
sorrowed greatly because that they could not obtain a son. One day, however, their wish
was gratified. It chanced that Radha went down to the river bank, and she beheld the
basket drifting on the waves. She caused it to be brought ashore; and when it was
uncovered, she gazed with wonder upon a sleeping babe who was as fair as the morning
sun. Her heart was immediately filled with great gladness, and she cried out: “The gods
have heard me at length, and they have sent unto me a son.” So she adopted the babe and
cherished him. And the years went past, and Karna grew up and became a powerful
youth and a mighty bowman.
Pritha, who was comely to behold, chose King Pandu at her swayamvara.
Trembling with love, she placed the flower garland upon his shoulders.
Madri came from the country of Madra[218], and was black-eyed and dusky-
complexioned. She had been purchased by Bhishma for the king with much gold, many
jewels and elephants and horses, as was the marriage custom among her people.
The glories of King Bharata's reign were revived by Pandu, who achieved great
conquests and extended his territory. He loved well to go a-hunting, and at length he
retired to the Himalaya mountains with his two wives to pursue and slay deer. There, as
fate had decreed, he met with dire misfortune. One day he shot arrows at two deer which
he beheld sporting together; but they were, as he discovered to his sorrow, a holy
Brahman and his wife in animal guise. The sage was wounded mortally, and ere he died
he assumed his wonted form, and foretold that Pandu, whom he cursed, would die in the
arms of one of his wives.
The king was stricken with fear; he immediately took vows of celibacy, and gave all
his possessions to Brahmans; then he went away to live in a solitary place with his two
wives.
Some have told that Pandu never had children of his own, and that the gods were
the fathers of his wives' great sons. Pritha was mother of Yudhishthira[219], son of
Dharma, god of justice, and of Bhima, son of Vayu, the wind god, and also of
Arjuna[220], son of mighty Indra, monarch of heaven. Madri received from Pritha the
charm which Durvasas had given her, and she became the mother of Nakula and
Sahadeva, whose sires were the twin Aswins, sons of Surya, the sun god. These five
princes were known as the Pandava brothers.
King Pandu was followed by his doom. One day, as it chanced, he met with Madri,
his favourite wife; they wandered together in a forest, and when he clasped her in his
arms he immediately fell dead as the Brahman had foretold.

His sons, the Pandava brothers, built his funeral pyre, so that his soul might pass to
heaven. Both Pritha and Madri desired to be burned with him, and they debated together
which of them should follow her lord to the region of the dead.
Said Pritha: “I must go hence with my lord. I was his first wife and chief rani. O
Madri, yield me his body and rear our children together. O let me achieve what must be
achieved.”
Madri said: “Speak not so, for I should be the chosen one. I was King Pandu's
favourite wife, and he died because that he loved me. O sister, if I survived thee I should
not be able to rear our children as thou canst rear them. Do not refuse thy sanction to this
which is dear unto my heart.”
So they held dispute, nor could agree; but the Brahmans, who heard them, said that
Madri must be burned with King Pandu, having been his favourite wife. And so it came
to pass that Madri laid herself on the pyre, and she passed in flames with her beloved
lord, that bull among men.
Meanwhile King Pandu's blind brother, Dhritarashtra, had ascended the throne to
reign over the kingdom of Bharatavarsha, with Bhishma as his regent, until the elder of
the young princes should come of age.
Dhritarashtra had taken for wife fair Gándhári, daughter of the Rajah of Gándhára.
When she was betrothed she went unto the king with eyes blindfolded, and ever
afterwards she so appeared in his presence. She became the mother of a hundred sons,
the eldest of whom was Duryodhana. These were the princes who were named the
Kauravas, after the country of Kuru-jangala.[221]
The widowed Pritha returned to Hastinapur with her three sons and the two sons of
Madri also. When she told unto Dhritarashtra that Pandu his brother had died, he wept
and mourned greatly; then he bathed in holy waters and poured forth the funeral
oblation. The blind king gave his protection to the five princes who were Pandu's heirs.
So the Pandavas and Kauravas were reared together in the royal palace at
Hastinapur. Nor was favour shown to one cousin more than another. The young princes
were trained to throw the stone and to cast the noose, and they engaged lustily in
wrestling bouts and practised boxing. As they grew up they shared work with the king's
men; they marked the young calves, and every three years they counted and branded the
cattle. Yet, despite all that could be done, the two families lived at enmity. Of all the
young men Bhima[222], of the Pandavas[223], was the most powerful, and
Duryodhana[224], the leader of the Kauravas, was jealous of him. Bhima was ever the
victor in sports and contests. The Kauravas could ill endure his triumphs, and at length
they plotted among themselves to accomplish his death.
It chanced that the young men had gone to dwell in a royal palace on the banks of
the Ganges. One day, when they feasted together in the manner of warriors, Duryodhana
put poison in the food of Bhima, who soon afterwards fell into a deep swoon and seemed

to be dead. Then Duryodhana bound him hand and foot and cast him into the Ganges; his
body was swallowed by the waters.
But it was not fated that Bhima should thus perish. As his body sank down, the
fierce snakes, which are called Nagas, attacked him; but their poison counteracted the
poison he had already swallowed, so that he regained consciousness. Then, bursting his
bonds, he scattered the reptiles before him, and they fled in terror.
Bhima found that he had sunk down to the city of serpents, which is in the
underworld. Vasuki, king of the Nagas, having heard of his prowess, hastened towards
the young warrior, whom he desired greatly to behold.
Bhima was welcomed by Aryaka, the great grandsire of Pritha, who was a dweller
in the underworld. He was loved by Vasuki, who, for Aryaka's sake, offered great gifts to
fearless Bhima. But Aryaka chose rather that the lad should be given a draught of
strength which contained the virtues of a thousand Nagas. By the king of serpents was
this great boon granted, and Bhima was permitted to drain the bowl eight times. He
immediately fell into a deep slumber, which continued for the space of eight days. Then
he awoke, and the Nagas feasted him ere he returned again unto his mother and his
brethren, who were mourning for him the while. Thus it fell that Bhima triumphed over
Duryodhana, for ever afterwards he possessed the strength of a mighty giant. He related
unto his brothers all that had befallen him, but they counselled him not to reveal his
secret unto the Kauravas, his cousins.
About this time the prudent Bhishma deemed that the young men should be trained
to bear arms; so he searched far and wide for a preceptor who was at once a warrior and
a scholar, a pious and lofty-minded man, and a lover of truth. Such was Drona, the brave
and god-adoring son of Bharadwaja. He was well pleased to have care of the princes,
and to give them instruction worthy of their rank and martial origin.
Drona had no mother: his miraculous birth was accomplished by a beautiful nymph,
and his sire was Bharadwaja, a most pious Brahman. Of similar origin was Drupada[225],
son of a rajah named Prishata[226]. Drona and Drupada were reared together like brothers
by the wise Bharadwaja, and it was the hope of both sires that their sons would repeat
their own lifelong friendship. But when, after happy youth, they grew into manhood, fate
parted them. The rajah retired from the throne, and Drupada ruled the kingdom of
Panchala[227]. Bharadwaja died soon afterwards, and Drona married a wife named Kripa,
who became the mother of his son Ashwatthama[228]. The child was so named because at
birth he uttered a cry like to the neighing of a horse. Drona devoted himself to rearing
his son, while he accumulated the wisdom of the sages and performed sacred rites with
pious mind like to his holy sire.
When the sage Jamadagni, son of Bhrigu, closed his career, he bestowed his great
wealth on the sons of Brahmans. Drona received heavenly weapons and power to wield
them. Then he bethought him to visit Drupada, the friend of his youth, and share his
inheritance with him.[229]

Drona stood before the rajah and exclaimed: “Behold thy friend.”
But Drupada frowned; his eyes reddened with anger, and for a while he sat in
silence. At length he spoke haughtily and said:
“Brahman, it is nor wise nor fitting that thou shouldst call me friend. What
friendship can there be between a luckless beggar and a mighty rajah?... I grant that in
youth such a bond united us, one to another, but it has wasted away with the years. Do
not think that the friendship of youth endures for ever in human hearts; it is weakened by
time, and pride plucks it from one's bosom. Friendship can exist only between equals as
we two once were, but no longer chance to be. Hear and know! Rich and poor, wise and
ignorant, warriors and cowards, can never be friends; it is for those who are of equal
station to exercise mutual esteem.... Say, can a Brahman respect one who is ignorant of
the Vedas? Can a warrior do other than despise one who cannot go forth to battle in his
rumbling chariot? Say, can a monarch condescend to one who is far beneath him?...
Begone, then, thou dreamer! Forget the days and the thoughts of the past.... I know thee
not....”
Drona heard the harsh words of his old friend with mute amaze. For a moment he
paused. Then abruptly he turned away, nor spake he in reply. His heart burned with
indignation as he hastened out of the city.
In time he reached the city of Hastinapur, and Bhishma bade him welcome. When
Drona undertook the training of the princes he said: “I will do as is thy desire, O
Bhishma, but on condition that when the young men are become complete warriors they
will help me to fight against mine enemy, Drupada, the Rajah of Panchala.”
Bhishma gave willing consent to this condition. Thereafter Drona abode with his
wife in the royal palace, and his son Ashwatthama was trained with the Pandavas and
Kauravas. He became the family priest as well as the instructor of the princes. And ere
long the young men were accomplished warriors, and deeply learned in wisdom and in
goodness.
Drona took most delight in the Pandavas. Yudhishthira was trained as a spearman,
but he was more renowned as a scholar than for feats of arms. Arjuna surpassed all
others in warrior skill; he was of noble bearing, and none like him could ride the steed,
guide the elephant, or drive the rattling chariot, nor could any other prince withstand his
battle charge or oppose him in single combat. He was unequalled with javelin or dart,
with battleaxe or mace, and he became the most famous archer of his day. Strong Bhima
learned to wield the club, Nakula acquired the secret of taming steeds, and Sahadeva
became a mighty swordsman, and acquired great knowledge of astronomy.
Drona trained the Kauravas with diligence also, as well as his own son, who was
wise and brave; but among all his pupils he loved Arjuna best, for he was the most
modest and the most perfect, the most fearless, and yet the most obedient to his
preceptor.

Duryodhana of the Kauravas was jealous of all the Pandavas, and especially of
Arjuna.
The fame of Drona as a preceptor was spread far and wide, and the sons of many
rajahs and warriors hastened to Hastinapur to be instructed by him. All were welcomed
save one, and he was the son of the rajah of the robber Bhils. This young man pleaded
that he might be trained as an archer, but without avail. Drona said: “Are not the Bhils
highwaymen and cattle-lifters? It would be a sin, indeed, to impart unto one of them
great knowledge in the use of weapons.”
When he heard these words, the rajah's son was stricken with grief, and he turned
homeward. But he resolved to become an accomplished warrior. So he fashioned a clay
image of Drona and worshipped it, and wielded the bow before it until his fame as an
archer was noised abroad.
One day Drona went forth with the princes to hunt in the Bhil kingdom. Their dog
ran through the woods, and it beheld the dark son of the rajah of the Bhils and barked at
him. Desiring to display his skill, the young man shot seven arrows into the dog's mouth
ere it could be closed, and, moaning and bleeding, the animal returned thus to the
princes.
Wondering greatly, the princes searched for the greatly-skilled archer, and found
him busy with his bow. They spoke, saying: “Who art thou?” And the Bhil made answer:
“I am a pupil of Drona.”
When Drona was brought to the place, the young man kissed his feet.
Said the wise preceptor: “If thou art my pupil, I must receive my reward.”
The young man made answer: “Command me, and I will give thee whatsoever thou
dost desire.”
Said Drona: “I should like to have the thumb of thy right hand.”
The faithful prince of the Bhils did not hesitate to obey his preceptor; with a
cheerful face he severed his thumb from his right hand and gave it to Drona.
After his wound had healed, the young man began to draw his bow with his middle
fingers, but found that he had lost his surpassing skill, whereat Arjuna was made happy.
All the other Bhil warriors who trained in archery followed the prince's example
and drew the bow with their middle fingers, and this custom prevailed ever afterwards
amongst the tribe.
Now when all the Hastinapur princes had become expert warriors, Drona addressed
the blind king, as he sat among his counsellors, and said: “O mighty rajah, thy sons and
the sons of thy brother Pandu have now attained surpassing skill in arms, and they are fit
to enter the battlefield.”
Said the king, who was well pleased: “So thy task is finished, O noble son of
Bharadwaja? Let now a place be made ready, in accordance with thy desire, so that the

princes may display their martial skill in the presence of their peers and the common
people.”
Then Drona, accompanied by Vidura, the king's brother, made choice of a wide and
level plain on which the Pandavas and Kauravas might perform their mighty feats.
So be it next told of the great tournament on the plain, and of the coming of
illustrious Karna.

FOOTNOTES:
[214] Pron. pan´davas and kow´ravas.
[215] Pron. pree´tha and ma-dree´.
[216] Krishna of the Yadavas was descended from the moon through Yadu:
Bharata was descended through Puru, Yadu's brother.
[217] A mantra.
[218] Identified with Cashmere by some of the authorities.
[219] Pron. yoo-dish´thi-ra (h sounded after t).
[220] Pron. arjoo´na´´.
[221] The upper part of the Punjab, which was ruled over ultimately by the
sons of Duryodhana. Another explanation is that the Kauravas, or Kuru brothers,
were called after their eponymous ancestor, King Kuru. The Kuru people are
believed to be a group of the tribes mentioned in the Rigveda. The Kurus may
have been late-comers who formed a military aristocracy, and displaced earlier
settlers who opposed their rule.
[222] Pron. bhee´ma.
[223] The Mahá-bhárata favours the Pandavas from the outset.
[224] Pron. door-yo´dhan-a.
[225] Pron. droo´pa-da.
[226] Pron. prish´ata.
[227] Pron. pan-chal´a.
[228] Pron. ash-wat-tha´ma. Aswa, a horse; sthama, sound or strength.
[229] Apparently Drona had a claim to part of the kingdom ruled over by
Drupada.

CHAPTER XI
The Tournament
A Brilliant Assembly—Princes display Feats of Arms—Mimic Warfare—Duryodhana
and Bhima—A Fierce Struggle—Arjuna's Wonderful Skill—Despondency of Kauravas—
The Coming of Karna—He proves Himself equal to Arjuna—Challenge to Single Combat
—The Gods intervene—Queen Pritha's Emotion—Karna taunted with Low Birth—
Kauravas make him a King—Joy of his Foster Father—Bitter and Angry Rivals.

On the day of the great tournament, vast multitudes of people from all
parts of the kingdom assembled round the barriers on the wide plain. A
scene of great splendour was unfolded to their eyes. At dawn many flags
and garlands of flowers had been distributed round the enclosure; they
adorned the stately royal pavilion, which was agleam with gold and jewels
and hung with trophies of war; they fluttered above the side galleries for the
lords and the ladies, and even among the clustering trees. White tents for
the warriors occupied a broad green space. A great altar had been erected by
Drona beside a cool, transparent stream, on which to offer up sacrifices to
the gods.
From early morn the murmurous throng awaited the coming of king
and counsellors, and royal ladies, and especially the mighty princes who
were to display their feats of arms and engage in mimic warfare. The bright
sun shone in beauty on that festal day.
The clarion notes of the instruments of war proclaimed the coming of
the king. Then entered the royal procession, and blind Dhritarashtra was led
towards his throne in the gleaming pavilion. With him came the fair queen
Gandhari, mother of the Kauravas, and stately Pritha, widow of King
Pandu, the mother of the Pandavas. There followed in their train many high-
born dames and numerous sweet maidens renowned for their beauty. When
all these ladies, attired in many-coloured robes and glittering with jewels
and bright flowers, were mounting the decorated galleries, they seemed like
to goddesses and heavenly nymphs ascending to the golden summit of the
mountain of Meru.... The trumpets were sounding loud, and the clamour

which arose from the surging multitude of people of every caste and every
age and every tribe was like the voice of heaving ocean in sublime tempest.
Next came venerable and white-haired Drona, robed in white, with
white sacrificial cord; his sandals were white, and the garlands he wore
were white also. His valiant son, Aswatthama, followed him as the red
planet Mars follows the white moon in cloudless heaven. The saintly
preceptor advanced to the altar where the priestly choir gathered, and
offered up sacrifices to the gods and chanted holy texts.
Then heralds sounded their trumpets as the youthful princes entered in
bright array, bejewelled and lightly girded for exercise, their left arms
bound with leather. They were wearing breastplates; their quivers were
slung from their shoulders, and they carried stately bows and gleaming
swords. The princes filed in according to their years, and Yudhishthira came
first of all. Each saluted Drona in turn and awaited his commands.
One by one the youthful warriors displayed their skill at arms, while
the vast crowd shouted their plaudits. The regent Bhishma, sitting on the
right side of the throne, looked down with delight, and Vidura, sitting on the
left side, informed the sightless king of all that took place.
The princes shot arrows at targets, first on foot and then mounted on
rapid steeds,[230] displaying great skill; they also rode on elephants and in
chariots, and their arrows ever flew with unerring aim.
Next they engaged in mimic warfare, charging with chariots and on
elephants: swords clamoured on shields, ponderous maces were wielded,
and falchions shimmered like to the flashes of lightning. The movements of
the princes, mounted and on foot, were rapid and graceful; they were
fearless in action and firm-footed, and greatly skilled in thrust and parry.
But ere long the conflict was waged with more than mimic fury. Proud
Duryodhana and powerful Bhima had sought one another and were drawn
apart from their peers. They towered on the plain with uplifted maces, and
they seemed like two rival elephants about to fight for a mate. Then they
charged with whirling weapons, and the combat was terrible to behold.
Vidura pictured the conflict to blind Dhritarashtra, as did Pritha also to
the blindfolded Queen Gandhari. Round the barriers the multitudes swayed
and clamoured, some favouring Duryodhana and others mighty Bhima.

The princes fought on, and their fury increased until at length it
seemed that one or the other would be slain. But while yet the issue hung
doubtful, Drona, whose brow was troubled, marked with concern the
menacing crowd, which was suspended with hope and fear, and seemed like
an ocean shaken by fitful gusts of changing wind. Then he interposed,
bidding his son to separate the angry combatants so that the turmoil might
have end. The princes heard and obeyed, and they retired slowly like ocean
billows, tempest-swollen, falling apart.
To allay excitement, trumpet and drum were sounded aloud. Then
white-haired Drona stepped forward, and in a voice like thunder summoned
brave Arjuna to come forth.
First of all the valiant hero performed a sacred rite. Thereafter he came
before the multitude in all his splendour, clad in golden armour, like to a
glorious evening cloud. Modestly he strode, while trumpets blared and the
drums bellowed, and he seemed a very god. He was girdled with jewels,
and he carried a mighty bow. As the people applauded and shouted his
praises, Pritha, his mother, looked down, and tears dropped from her eyes.
The blind king spake to Vidura, saying: “Why are the multitudes shouting
now like to the tumultuous sea?”
Said Vidura: “The valiant son of Pritha hath come forth in golden
armour, and the people hail him with joy.”
The blind monarch said: “I am well pleased. The sons of Pritha
sanctify the kingdom like to sacrificial fires.”
Silence fell upon the people, and Drona bade his favourite pupil to
display his skill. Arjuna performed wonders with magic arms; he created
fire by the Agneya weapon, water by the Varuna weapon, wind by the
Vayavya weapon, clouds by the Paryanya weapon, land by the Bhanma
weapon, and he caused mountains to appear by the Parvatya weapon. Then
by the Antardhyana weapon he caused all these to vanish.[231]
Arjuna then set up for his target an iron image of a great boar, and at
one bending of the bow he shot five arrows into its gaping jaws. Wondrous
was his skill. Next he suspended a cow horn, which swayed constantly in
the wind, and discharged into its hollow with unerring aim twenty rapid
arrows. Heaven and earth resounded with the plaudits of the people when

he leapt into his chariot and discharged clouds of arrows as he was driven
speedily round the grounds. Having thus displayed his accomplishments as
an archer, he drew his sword, which he wielded so rapidly round and about
that the people thought they beheld lightning and heard thunder. Ere he left
the field he cast the noose with exceeding great skill, capturing horses and
cows and scampering deer at a single throw. Then Drona embraced him,
and the people shouted his praises.
Great was the joy of the Pandavas as they rested around Drona like to
the stars that gather about the white moon in heaven. The Kauravas were
grouped around Aswatthama as the gods gather beside Indra when the giant
Daityas threaten to assail high heaven. Duryodhana's heart burned with
jealous anger because of the triumph achieved by Arjuna.
Evening came on, and it seemed that the tournament was ended; the
crowds began to melt away. Then, of a sudden, a mighty tumult of plaudits
broke forth, and the loud din of weapons and clank of armour was heard all
over the place. Every eye immediately turned towards the gate, and the
warriors and the people beheld approaching an unknown warrior, who
shook his weapons so that they rattled loudly.
So came mighty Karna, son of Surya, the sun god, and of Pritha, the
mother of the three Pandavas—Arjuna, Bhima, and wise Yudhishthira. He
was comely as a shining god, clad in golden armour, and wearing celestial
ear-rings. In his right hand he carried a great many-coloured bow; his
gleaming falchion was on his thigh. Tall as a cliff he strode forward; he was
an elephant in his fury, a lion in his wrath; stately as a palm tree was that
tamer of foemen, so fearless and so proud, so dauntless and so self-
possessed.
He paused in the centre of the plain and surveyed the people with
pride. Stiffly he paid homage to Drona and Kripa. Then he, the eldest son of
Pritha, spake to Pritha's youngest son, Arjuna, the brothers being unknown
one to another, and he said: “Whatever feats thou hast performed this day
with vain boast, Arjuna, these will I accomplish and surpass, if Drona will
permit me.”
His voice was like to thunder in heaven, and the multitude of people
sprang up and uttered cries of wonder. Duryodhana and the other sons of

Kuru heard the challenge with glad hearts, but Arjuna remained silent,
while his eyes flashed fire.
Then Drona gave the warrior permission to display his skill. Karna
was well pleased, and he performed every feat which had given Arjuna
fame on that great day.
Duryodhana proclaimed his joy with beaming countenance, and he
embraced Karna, whom he hailed as “brother”, saying: “I bid thee
welcome, thou mighty warrior. Thou hast won the honours of the field.
Demand from me whatsoever thou dost desire in this kingdom, and it will
be given unto thee.”
Said Karna: “Thy word is thy bond, O prince. All I seek is to combat
against Arjuna, whom I have equalled so far. Fain would I win the victor's
renown.”
Duryodhana said: “Thou dost ask for a worthy boon indeed. Be our
ally, and let the enemy fear thee.”
Arjuna was moved to great wrath, and cried out: “Uninvited chief!
Boasting thus, thou wouldst fain be regarded as mine equal, but I will so
deal with thee that thou wilt die the death of a braggart who cometh here an
unbidden guest, speaking boastfully ere thou art spoken to.”
Said Karna, answering proudly and calm: “Waste not words, Arjuna,
nor taunt me with coming hither uninvited. The field of combat is free to all
warriors; they enter by their valour, and do not await until thou dost call
them; they win their places by strength and skill, and their warrant is the
sword. Wrathful speech is the weapon of a coward. Do not boast of thy
pastimes or be vain of thy bloodless feats. Speak with thine arrows, O
Arjuna, until, in Drona's presence, mine will cause all men to wonder,
flying towards thee.”
Drona was stirred to wrath, and spake to Arjuna, saying: “Canst thou
hear him boast in this manner? I give thee leave to fight him here and now.”
Arjuna at once strode forward, fully armed, and he was supported by
Drona and Bhishma. Duryodhana and his band stood by Karna. Then the
two warriors prepared for single combat, but not in mimic warfare.

Thick clouds gathered in the sky; lightning flashed and thunder pealed;
the mighty Indra guarded his son Arjuna, who stood in shadow. Surya, the
sun god, cast a shaft of light athwart the darkening plain, and Karna's
golden armour gleamed bright and fair.
The noble dames looked on, and some praised Arjuna and others
praised Karna. Pritha, the mother of both heroes, was alone divided in her
love. She knew her firstborn by his voice and noble bearing and by his
armour, and her heart was torn with grief to behold the two brothers ready
to slay each other. A cloud blinded her eyes, and, uttering a low cry, she
swooned where she sat. Vidura sprinkled water on her face, and she was
revived. Then she wept bitterly because that she could not reveal the secret
of Karna's birth.
Kripa,[232] the foster-brother of Bhishma, performed the duties of
herald, and as Arjuna strode forth to combat he proclaimed: “Behold! this is
mighty Arjuna, of Bharata's great line, son of Pandu and of Pritha, a prince
of valour and worth who will not shrink from battle. Unknown and long-
armed chief,” he said unto Karna, “declare now thy name and lineage, the
royal house thou dost adorn, and the names of thy sire and thy mother.
Know thou that by the rules of single combat the sons of kings cannot
contend against low-born or nameless rivals.”
Karna heard, but was silent. He hung his head like the dew-laden lotus
bloom; he could claim nor lineage or high rank, as he believed, for he
regarded the charioteer of Anga as his sire.
Duryodhana, perceiving his discomfiture, cried out to Kripa, saying:
“Valour is not reckoned by birth but by deeds. Karna hath already shown
himself to be the peer of princes. I now proclaim him the Rajah of Anga.”
Having spoken thus, the elder of the Kauravas led Karna by the hand
and placed him upon a throne, and the red umbrella was held above his
head. Brahmans chanted the texts for the ceremony and anointed Karna as a
king. Then the fan was waved and the royal umbrella raised on high, while
the Kauravas shouted: “The rajah is crowned; blessings on the rajah; honour
to the valorous warrior!”
Robed in royal attire, Karna then spake to Duryodhana and said: “With
generous heart thou hast conferred upon me a kingdom. O prince, speak and

say what service thou wouldst have me to render unto thee.”
Said Duryodhana: “But one boon do I ask of thee, O king. Be my
comrade and, O valiant warrior, be my helper also.”
Karna said: “As thou desirest, so be it.”
Then Duryodhana and Karna embraced one another to confirm their
loyal friendship.
Lo! now a charioteer drew nigh; he was a scantily-clad and wearied
old man, and he stooped, leaning heavily upon his staff. He was the aged
sire of Karna, and rejoiced in his heart to see his son so highly honoured
among princes. Karna cast aside his weapons, knelt down, and kissed the
old man's feet. The happy sire embraced the crowned head of the warrior
and wept tears of love.
The Pandava brothers gazed upon father and son, amused and
scornful.... Bhima spake to Karna, saying: “So thou, with such a sire, hast
presumed to seek combat with a Pandava!... Son of a charioteer, what hast
thou to do with weapons of war? Better were it that thou shouldst find thee
a goad and drive a bullock-cart behind thy sire.”
Karna grew pale with wrath; his lips quivered, but he answered not a
word. He heaved a deep sigh and looked towards the sun.
Then Duryodhana arose like a proud elephant and spake to Bhima,
saying: “Seek not with insults to give sorrow unto a mighty hero. Taunts
come ill from thee, thou tiger-like chief. The proudest warrior may contend
against the most humble: a hero is known by his deeds. Of Karna's birth we
care naught. Hath Drona other than humble lineage? 'Tis said, too, that thou
and thy brethren are not sons of Pandu, but of certain amorous deities....
Look upon Karna, adorned with jewels and in golden armour! Do hinds
bring forth tigers?... Karna was born to be a king; he hath come to rule by
reason of his valour and his worth. If any prince or warrior among you will
deny my words, hear and know, now, that I will meet him in deadly
combat.”
The assembled multitude heard these mighty words with joy and
shouted loud applause.

But darkness came on, and lamps were lit upon the plain.... Drona and
the sons of Pandu made offerings at the altar, and the king and his
counsellors, the noble dames and the high-born maids, departed in silence
to their homes.... Then all the people deserted the barriers, some shouting,
“Arjuna hath triumphed;” others, “Karna is victor;” and some also,
“Duryodhana hath won.”
Pritha had rejoiced in her heart to behold her noble son crowned
king....
Duryodhana walked by Karna's side and took him away to his own
palace, glad of heart, for he no longer feared Arjuna's valour and skill at
arms.
Even Yudhishthira doubted Arjuna's worth; he feared that Karna was
the greatest hero in the world of men.

FOOTNOTES:
[230] Like the Parthians, the ancient Hindus were expert archers on
horseback.
[231] This is a notable example of the characteristic exaggerations of late
Brahmanical compilers. Other exaggerations are of milder form.
[232] Kripa, like Drona, was of miraculous birth. He and his sister were
found in a forest, and were adopted by King Shantanu.

CHAPTER XII
First Exile of the Pandavas
Princes' First Campaign—Kauravas driven back—Pandavas achieve Victory—
Drupada humbled by Drona—Panchala Kingdom divided—Pandava Prince made “Little
Rajah”—Duryodhana's Plot—Pandavas' First Exile—Their New Home—Escape in the
Night—Wanderings in the Jungle—Bhima slays a Rakshasa—The Demon Bride—Sojourn
in Eka-chakra—Story of the Brahman Family—Bhima overcomes the Asura King—
Miraculous Birth of Drupada's Children—Swayamvara proclaimed—Pandavas depart to
Panchala.

The Pandavas and Kauravas had now become accomplished warriors,
and Drona, their preceptor, claimed his reward. So he spoke unto his pupils
and said: “Go forth against Drupada, Rajah of Panchala; smite him in battle
and bring him to me.”
The cousins could not agree to wage war together by reason of their
jealousies. So the Kauravas, led by Duryodhana, were first to attack
Drupada; they rode in their chariots and invaded the hostile capital, and
slaked their thirst for battle. The warriors of Panchala arose to fight; their
shouting was like the roaring of lions, and their arrows were showered as
thickly as rain dropping from the clouds. The Kauravas were defeated, and
they retired in disorder, uttering cries of despair.
The Pandavas then rushed against the enemies of Drona. Arjuna swept
forward in his chariot like to the fire which consumeth all things at the end
of time, and he destroyed horses and cars and warriors. The battle-roar of
Bhima was like to the roar of ocean stricken by a tempest; wielding his
mace, he struck down elephants big as mountains, and many horses and
charioteers also, and he covered the ground with rivers of blood; as a
herdsman driveth his cattle before him, so did Bhima drive before him with
his mace the terror-stricken hosts of Panchala.
Drupada endeavoured to turn the tide of battle; surrounded by his
mightiest men, he opposed Arjuna. Then a great uproar arose among the
Panchala forces, for as the lion leaps upon the leader of a herd of elephants,
so did Arjuna rush against Drupada. A boastful warrior intervened, but the

strong Pandava overcame him, and at length, after fierce fighting, Arjuna
seized Drupada as Garuda, king of birds,[233] seizeth a mighty snake after
disturbing the waters of the ocean.
The remnant of the Panchala host then broke and fled, and the
Pandavas began to lay waste the capital. Arjuna, however, cried unto
Bhima: “Remember that Drupada is the kinsman of the Kauravas; therefore
cease slaying his warriors.”[234]
Drupada was led before Drona, who, remembering the proud words of
the fallen rajah, spoke and said: “At last I have conquered thy kingdom, and
thy life is in my hands. Is it thy desire now to revive our friendship?”
Drona smiled a little and continued thus: “Brahmans are full of
forgiveness; therefore have no fear for thy life, O king. I have not forgotten
that we were children together. So once again I ask for thy friendship, and I
grant thee, unasked, the half of the kingdom; the other half will be mine,
and if it pleaseth thee we will be friends.”
Said Drupada: “Thou art indeed noble and great. I thank thee, and
desire to be thy friend.”
So Drona took possession of half of the kingdom. Drupada, who
sorrowed greatly, went to rule the southern Panchalas; he was convinced
that he could not defeat Drona by Kshatriya power alone, which is inferior
to Brahman power, and he resolved to discover means whereby he might
obtain a son who could overcome his Brahman enemy.
Thereafterwards the Pandavas waged war against neighbouring kings,
and they extended the territory over which the blind maharajah held sway.
The Kauravas were rendered more jealous than ever by the successes
achieved by the Pandavas, and also because the people favoured them. Now
Duryodhana desired to become heir to the throne, but the elder prince of the
conquering Pandavas could not be set aside. In the end Yudhishthira was
chosen, although unwillingly, by the blind king, and he became Yuva-rajah,
“Little Rajah”, supplanting Bhishma, who had been regent during the
minority. Yudhishthira, accordingly, ruled over the kingdom, and he was
honoured and beloved by the people; for although he was not a mighty
warrior like Arjuna, or powerful like Bhima, he had great wisdom, and he
was ever just and merciful, and a lover of truth.[235]

Duryodhana remonstrated with his blind father, the maharajah, and he
spoke to him, saying: “Why, O my father, hast thou thus favoured the
Pandavas and forgotten thine own sons? Thou wert Pandu's elder brother,
and should have reigned before him. Now the children of thy younger
brother are to succeed thee. The kingdom is thine own by right of birth, and
thy sons are thine heirs. Why, then, hast thou lowered us in the eyes of thy
subjects?”
Said the blind Dhritarashtra: “Duryodhana, my son, know thou that
Pandu, my brother, was the mightiest ruler in the world. Could I, who have
ever been blind, have set him aside? His sons have great wisdom and worth,
and are loved by the people. How, then, could I pass them over?
Yudhishthira hath greater accomplishments for governing than thou dost
possess, my son. How could I turn against him and banish him from my
council?”
Duryodhana said: “I do not acknowledge Yudhishthira's superiority as
a ruler of men. And this I know full well, I could combat against half a
score of Yudhishthiras on the field of battle.... If, my father, thou wilt set me
aside and deny me my right to a share of government in the kingdom, I will
take mine own life and thus end my sorrow.”
Said Dhritarashtra: “Be patient, O my son, nor give way to thy
vexation. If such is thy desire, I will divide the kingdom between thee and
Yudhishthira, so that no jealousy may exist between you both.”
Duryodhana was well pleased, hearing these words, and he said: “I
agree, O my father, and will accept thine offer. Let the Pandavas take their
own land and rule over it, and I and my brethren will remain at Hastinapur
with thee. If the Kauravas and Pandavas continue to dwell here together,
there will be conflicts and much shedding of blood.”
Said Dhritarashtra: “Neither Bhishma, the head of our family, nor
Vidura, my brother, nor Drona, thy preceptor, will consent to the Pandavas
being sent hence.”
Duryodhana made answer: “Consult them not; they are beneath thee,
my sire. Command the Pandavas to depart unto the city of Varanavartha[236]
and dwell there; when they have gone no one will speak to thee regarding
this matter.”

Dhritarashtra listened to his son and followed his counsel. He
commanded Yudhishthira to depart with his brethren to the city of
Varanavartha, rich in jewels and gold, to dwell there until he recalled them.
Accordingly the Pandava brethren bade farewell to Dhritarashtra and left
Hastinapur, taking with them their mother, the widowed queen Pritha, and
went towards the city of Varanavartha. The people of Hastinapur mourned
for them greatly.
Ere they departed, Vidura spoke to them in secret, bidding them to be
aware of the perils of fire. He repeated a verse to Yudhishthira and said:
“Put thy trust in the man who will recite these words unto thee; he will be
thy deliverer.”
Now Duryodhana had plotted with Shakuni, the brother of Queen
Gandhari, to accomplish the destruction of his kinsmen. Then their ally,
Kanika the Brahman, said in secret to Dhritarashtra: “When thine enemy is
in thy power, destroy him by whatever means is at thy disposal, in secret or
openly. Show him no mercy, nor give him thy protection. If thy son, or
brother, or kinsman, or thy father even, should become thine enemy, do not
hesitate to slay if thou wouldst have prosperity. Let him be overcome either
by spells, or by curses, or by deception, or by payment of money. Do not
forget thine enemy, even although thou mayst disdain him.”
The maharajah lent a willing ear thereafter to the counsel of his son,
whom, in his secret heart, he favoured most.
Ere the Pandavas had left Hastinapur, Duryodhana sent unto
Varanavartha his secret agent, Purochana, to erect a commodious new
dwelling for them. This was accomplished with all speed, and it became
known as the “house of lac”. It was built of combustible material: much
hemp and resin were packed in the walls and between the floors, and it was
plastered over with mortar well mixed with pitch and clarified butter.
Purochana welcomed the Pandavas when they arrived at Varanavartha,
and they wondered at the splendour of the great new dwelling. But
Yudhishthira smelt the mortar, and he went over the whole house examining
it closely; then he said unto Bhima: “The enemy hath caused this mansion
to be erected for us, and their trusted workers have done well for them, for
it is full of hemp and straw, resin and bamboo, and the mortar is mixed with
pitch and clarified butter.”

In due time a stranger visited the Pandavas, and he repeated the secret
verse which Vidura had communicated to Yudhishthira. He said: “I will
construct for you a secret passage underground which will lead to a place of
safety, lest you should have to escape from this house when the doors are
made secure and it is set on fire.”
So the man set to work in secret, and ere long the underground passage
was ready. Then Bhima resolved to deal with Purochana in the very manner
that he had undertaken to deal with the princes.
One evening Pritha gave a feast in the new dwelling to all the poor
people in Varanavartha. When the guests had taken their departure, there
remained behind a poor Bhil woman and her five sons, who had drunken
heavily, as was the custom of their people, and were unable to rise up. They
slumbered on the floor.
A great windstorm had arisen, and the night was dark. So Bhima
deemed that the time had come to accomplish his purpose. He went outside
and secured the doors of the dwelling of Purochana, which stood beside that
of the Pandavas; then he set it on fire. Soon the flames spread towards the
new mansion which had been erected according to Duryodhana's desire, and
it burned fiercely and speedily. Pritha and her sons made swift escape by
the underground passage and took refuge in the jungle. In the morning the
people discovered among the embers of Purochana's house the blackened
remains of his body and the bodies of his servants. In the ruins of the
Pandavas' dwelling they found that a woman and five men had perished,
and they lamented, believing that Pritha and her sons were dead. There was
great sorrow in Hastinapur when the tidings were borne thither. All the
people bewailed the fate of the Pandavas. Bhishma and Vidura wept, and
blind Dhritarashtra was moved to tears also. But Duryodhana rejoiced in
secret, believing that his enemies had all been destroyed.
The Pandavas, having escaped through the subterranean passage,
hastened southwards and entered the forest, which abounded with reptiles
and wild animals and with ferocious man-eating Asuras and Rakshasas of
gigantic stature. Weary and footsore were they all, and greatly oppressed
with sleepiness and fear. At length the mighty Bhima lifted up all the others
and hastened on through the darkness: he took his mother on his back, and
Madri's sons on his shoulders, and Yudhishthira and Arjuna under his arms.

He went swifter than the wind, breaking down trees by his breast and
furrowing the ground that he stamped upon. The whole forest was shaken as
with fear.
At length the Pandavas, fatigued and athirst and heavy with sleep,
found a place to rest in safety; and they all lay down to slumber below a
great and beautiful Banyan tree except mighty Bhima, who kept watch over
them.
Now there lived in the forest on a Shala tree a ferocious Rakshasa
named Hidimva. He was of grim visage and terrible to behold; his eyes
were red, and he was red-haired and red-bearded; his cheeks were of cloud
colour and his mouth was large, with long, sharp-pointed teeth, which
gleamed in darkness; his ears were shaped like to arrows; his neck was
broad as a tree, his belly was large, and his legs were of great length.
The monster was exceedingly hungry on that fateful night. Scenting
human flesh in the forest, he yawned and scratched his grizzly beard, and
spoke to his sister, saying: “I smell excellent food, and my mouth waters;
to-night I will devour warm flesh and drink hot, frothy blood. Hasten, now,
and bring the sleeping men unto me; we will eat them together, and
afterwards dance merrily in the wood.”
Then the Rakshasa woman went towards the place where the Pandavas
slept. When she beheld Bhima, the long-armed one, clad in royal garments
and wearing his jewels, she immediately fell in love with him, and she said
to herself: “This man with the shoulders of a lion and eyes like to lotus
blooms is worthy to be my husband. I will not slay him for my evil
brother.”
Now a Rakshasa woman has power to transform herself, and this one
at once assumed the shape of a beautiful woman; her face became as fair as
the full moon; on her head was a garland of flowers, her hair hung in
ringlets; delicate was the hue of her skin, and she wore rich ornaments of
gold with many gems. Timidly she approached Bhima and spoke to him,
saying: “O bull among men, who art thou and whence comest thou? Who
are these fair ones lying in slumber there? Hear and know that this forest is
the abode of the wicked chieftain of the Rakshasas. He is my brother, and
hath sent me hither to kill you all for food, but I desire to save thee, O long-

armed one. Be thou my husband. I will take thee to a secret place among the
mountains, for I can speed through the air at will.”
Said Bhima: “I cannot leave my mother and my brethren to become
food for a Rakshasa.”
The woman said: “Let me be thy servant. Awaken thy mother and thy
brethren and I will rescue you all from my fierce brother.”
Said Bhima: “I will not awaken them from pleasant and needful
slumber, because I do not fear a Rakshasa. O fair one, thou canst go as it
pleaseth thee, and I care not if thou dost send thy brother unto me.”
Meantime the Rakshasa chieftain had grown impatient. He descended
from his tree and hastened after his sister, with gaping mouth and head
thrown back. Darkly blue was his body, like to a raincloud.
The Rakshasa woman said to Bhima: “He cometh hither in wrath.
Awaken thy kinsfolk, and I will carry you all through the air to escape him.”
Said Bhima: “Look on my arms, which are strong as the trunks of
elephants; my legs are like iron maces, and my chest is indeed powerful and
broad. I will slay this man-eater, thy brother.”
The Rakshasa chieftain heard the boast of Bhima, and he fumed with
rage when he beheld his sister in comely human guise, and said to her: “I
will slay thee and those whom thou wouldst fain help against me.” Then he
rushed against her, but Bhima cried: “Thou wilt not kill a woman while I
am near. I challenge thee to single combat now. This night will thy sister
behold thee slain by me as an elephant is slain by a lion.”
Said the Rakshasa: “Boast not until thou art the victor. I will kill thee
first of all, then thy friends, and last of all my treacherous sister.”
Having spoken thus, he rushed towards Bhima, who nimbly seized the
monster's outstretched arms and, wrestling violently, cast him on the
ground. Then as a lion drags off his prey, Bhima dragged the struggling
Rakshasa into the depths of the forest, lest his yells should awaken the
sleepers. There they fought together like furious bull elephants, tearing
down branches and overthrowing trees.
At length the dread clamour awoke the Pandavas, and they gazed with
wonder on the beautiful woman who kept watch in Bhima's place.

Said Pritha: “O celestial being, who art thou? If thou art the goddess of
woods or an Apsara, tell me why thou dost linger here?”
The fair demon said: “I am the sister of the chieftain of the Rakshasas,
and I was sent hither to slay you all; but when I beheld thy mighty son the
love god wounded me, and I chose him for my husband. Then my brother
followed angrily, and thy son is fighting with him, and they are filling the
forest with their shouting.”
All the brethren rushed to Bhima's aid, and they saw the two wrestlers
struggling in a cloud of dust, and they appeared like two high cliffs
shrouded in mist.
Arjuna cried out: “O Bhima, I am here to help thee. Let me slay the
monster.”
Bhima answered: “Fear not, but look on. The Rakshasa will not escape
from my hands.”
Said Arjuna: “Do not keep him alive too long. We must hasten hence.
The dawn is near, and Rakshasas become stronger at daybreak; they
exercise their powers of deception during the two twilights. Do not play
with him, therefore, but kill him speedily.”
At these words Bhima became strong as Vayu, his sire, when he is
angered,[237] and, raising aloft the Rakshasa, he whirled him round and
round, crying: “In vain hast thou gorged on unholy food. I will rid the forest
of thee. No longer wilt thou devour human beings.”
Then, dashing the monster to the ground, Bhima seized him by the hair
and by the waist, laid him over a knee, and broke his back. So was the
Rakshasa slain.
Day was breaking, and Pritha and her sons immediately turned away to
leave the forest. The Rakshasa woman followed them, and Bhima cried to
her: “Begone! or I will send thee after thy brother.”
Said Yudhishthira: “It is unseemly to slay a woman. Besides, she is the
sister of that Rakshasa, and even although she became angry, what harm
can she do us?”
Kneeling at Pritha's feet, the demon wailed: “O illustrious and blessed
lady, thou knowest the sufferings women endure when the love god wounds

them. Have pity upon me now, and command thy son to take me for his
bride. If he continues to scorn me, I will slay myself. Let me be thy slave,
and I will carry you all wheresoever you desire and protect you from
perils.”
Pritha heard her with compassion, and prevailed upon Bhima to take
her for his bride. So the two were married by Yudhishthira; then the
Rakshasa took Bhima upon her back and sped through the air to a lonely
place among the mountains which is sacred to the gods. They lived together
beside silvery streams and lakes sparkling with lotus blooms; they
wandered through woods of blossoming trees where birds sang sweetly, and
by celestial sea-beaches covered with pearls and nuggets of gold. The
demon bride had assumed celestial beauty, and ofttimes played sweet
music, and she made Bhima happy.
In time the woman became the mother of a mighty son; his eyes were
fiercely bright, like arrows were his ears, and his mouth was large; he had
copper-brown lips and long, sharp teeth. He grew to be a youth an hour
after he was born, but, still remaining bald, his mother named him
Ghatotkacha, which signifies “pot-headed”.[238]
Bhima then returned to his mother and his brethren with his demon
bride and her son. They abode together for a time in the forest; then the
Rakshasa bade all the Pandavas farewell and departed with Ghatotkacha,
who promised to come to aid the Pandavas whenever they called upon him.
One day thereafter Vyasa appeared before the Pandavas and counselled
them to go towards the city of Eka-chakra[239] and to live there for a time in
the house of a Brahman. Then he vanished from sight, promising to come
again.
The Pandavas went therefore to Eka-chakra and lived with a Brahman
who had a wife and a daughter and an infant son. Disguised as holy men,
the brethren begged for food as alms. Every evening they brought home
what they had obtained, and Pritha divided the whole into two portions; the
one half she gave to wolf-bellied Bhima, and the rest she kept for his
brethren and herself.
Now the city of Eka-chakra was protected against every enemy by a
forest-dwelling Rakshasa named Vaka, who was king of the Asuras.[240]

Each day the people had to supply him with food, which consisted of a
cartload of rice, two bullocks, and the man who conveyed the meal to him.
One morning a great wailing broke forth in the Brahman's house
because that the holy man was required to supply the demon's feast. He was
too poor to purchase a slave, and he said he would deliver himself unto
Vaka. “Although I reach Heaven,” he cried, “I will have no joy, for my
family will perish when I am gone.” His wife and his daughter pleaded in
turn to take his place, and the three wept together. Then the little boy of
tender years plucked a long spear of grass, and with glowing eyes he spoke
sweetly and said: “Do not weep, Father; do not weep, Mother; do not weep,
Sister. With this spear I will slay the demon who devours human beings.”
As they wept there they heard him, nor could forbear smiling.
Pritha was deeply moved by the lamentations of the Brahman family,
and she said: “Sorrow not. I will send forth my son Bhima to slay the Asura
king.”
The Brahman made answer, saying: “That cannot be. Thy sons are
Brahmans and are under my protection. If I go forth, I will but obey the
rajah; if I send thy son, I will be sin-guilty of his death, for the gods abhor
the man who causeth a guest to be slain, or permits a Brahman to perish.”
Said Pritha: “Bhima is strong and mighty, nor can a demon do him any
harm. He will slay this bloodthirsty Rakshasa and return again in safety.
But, O Brahman, thou must not reveal unto anyone who hath performed this
mighty deed, lest the people should trouble my son and desire to obtain the
secret of his power, for he is skilled in mantras.”[241]
Then was the household made happy, and Bhima prepared to go forth.
That mighty hero collected the rice and drove the bullocks towards the
forest. When he drew nigh to the appointed place, he began to eat the food
himself, and called the Rakshasa by name over and over again. Vaka heard
and came through the trees towards Bhima. Red were his eyes, and his hair
and his beard were red also; his ears were pointed like arrows; he had a
mouth like a cave, and his forehead was puckered in three lines. Terrible
was he to look upon; his body was huge, indeed.[242]
The Rakshasa saw Bhima eating his meal, and approached angrily,
biting his lower lip. “Fool,” he cried, “wouldst thou devour my food before

my very eyes?”
Bhima smiled, and continued eating with face averted. The demon
smote him, but the hero only glanced round as if one had touched his
shoulder, and he went on eating as before.
Raging furiously, the Rakshasa tore up a tree, and Bhima rose leisurely
and waited until it was flung at him. When that was done, he caught the
trunk nimbly and hurled it back. Many trees were uprooted and flung by
one at the other. Then Vaka sprung forward to wrestle, but the Pandava
overthrew him and dragged him round and round until the demon gasped
with fatigue. The earth shook; trees were splintered in pieces. Then Bhima
began to strike the monster with his iron fists, and at length he broke Vaka's
back across his knee. Terrible were the loud screams of the Rakshasa while
Bhima was bending him double. He died howling.
A mighty clamour was then awakened in the forest. All the other
Asuras were terror-stricken, and, bellowing horribly, they hastened towards
Bhima and made obeisance before him. Then Bhima made them take vows
never again to eat human flesh or to oppress the people of the city. They
promised willing obedience, and he allowed them to depart.
Thereafter Pritha's son dragged the monster's body to the main gate of
Eka-chakra. He entered the city secretly and hastened to the Brahman's
house, and he told Yudhishthira all that had taken place.
When the people of the city discovered that the Asura king had been
slain, they rejoiced greatly, and hastened towards the house of the Brahman.
But that holy man made evasive answer to them, and said that his deliverer
was a certain high-souled Brahman who had offered to supply food to the
demon. Thereafter the people established a festival in honour of Brahmans.
The Pandavas remained a time in the city, and they studied the Vedas.
One day there came to their dwelling a saintly man of rigid vows, and he
told the story of the miraculous births of Drupada's son and daughter from
sacrificial fire.
When Drupada had lost half of his kingdom, he paid pilgrimages to
holy places. He promised great rewards to superior Brahmans, so that he
might have offspring, ever desiring greatly to be avenged upon Drona. He
offered the austere Upayája a million cows if he would procure a son for

him, and that sage sent him unto his brother Yája. Now Yája was reluctant
to aid the rajah thus; but at length he consented to perform the sacrificial
rite, and prevailed upon Upayája to help him.
So the rite was performed, and when the vital moment came, the
Brahmans called for the queen to partake in it. But Drupada's wife was not
prepared, and said: “My mouth is still filled with saffron and my body is
scented. I am not fit to receive the libation which will bring offspring. Tarry
a little time for me.”
But the Brahmans could not delay the consummation of the sacrificial
rite. Ere the queen came, a son sprang forth from the flames: he was clad in
full armour, and carried a falchion and bow, and a diadem gleamed brightly
upon his head. A voice out of the heavens said: “This prince hath come to
destroy Drona and to increase the fame of the Panchalas”.
Next arose from the ashes on the altar a daughter of great beauty. She
was exceedingly dark, with long curling locks and lotus eyes, and she was
deep-bosomed and slender-waisted. A sweet odour clung to her body.
A voice out of heaven said: “This dusky girl will become the chief of
all women. Many Kshatriyas must die because of her, and the Kauravas will
suffer from her. She will accomplish the decrees of the gods.”
Then the son was called Dhrishta-dyumna[243] and the daughter
Draupadi.[244] Drona thereafter took the Panchala prince to his palace, and
instructed him to become an accomplished warrior. He knew that he could
not thwart destiny, and he desired to perpetuate his own mighty deeds.
Having heard these words, Pritha desired to journey towards Panchala,
and she and her sons took leave of their host. Ere they went away, the high-
souled ascetic said that Draupadi had been destined to become a Pandava
queen.
Pritha and her sons wandered from the banks of the Ganges and went
northwards, and soon they fell in with great numbers of people all going the
same way. Yudhishthira spake to a troop of Brahmans, and asked them
whither they were bound, and they answered saying that Drupada of
Panchala was observing a great festival, and that all the princes of the land
were hastening to the swayamvara of his peerless and slender-waisted
daughter, the beautiful Draupadi.

In that great and increasing company were Brahmans who were to
perform the sacred rites, and youths who were to take part in joyous revelry
—dancers and jugglers, boxers and wrestlers, and those who displayed feats
of strength and skill at arms; there were also bards there and singers to
chant the praises of heroes.
The Brahmans praised the beauty of Draupadi, and said to the Pandava
brethren: “Come with us to the festival and the sports and the swayamvara;
you will be feasted and will receive gifts. You are all as comely as princes
and as fair as the bright gods; mayhap Draupadi may choose from among ye
this stalwart and noble youth, strongly armed and of fearless bearing, and if
he should perform mighty feats, the garland may be thrown upon his
shoulders.”
Said Yudhishthira: “So be it. We will hasten with you to the
swayamvara and share banquet and bounty.”
So the Pandavas went towards Panchala with the troop of Brahmans.
When they reached the city they took up their abode in the humble dwelling
of a potter, still disguised as Brahmans, and they went out and begged food
from the people.
In their secret hearts the brethren desired greatly to win the fair bride
whose fame had been bruited abroad.

FOOTNOTES:
[233] Half man and half eagle, and enemy of the serpent race.
[234] The Kurus and Panchalas were allies.
[235] The modern-day Hindu regards Yudhishthira as an ideal man.
[236] Allahabad, then probably a frontier town of the area of Aryan control,
pronounced Var´an-a-vart´´ha.
[237] The god of wind.
[238] Bald as a pot. Pron. gat-ot-katch´a.
[239] Pron. eka chak´ra.
[240] As a rule the Asuras are the enemies of the gods and the Rakshasas
the enemies of mankind. See Chapter IV.
[241] Charms.

[242] A man-devouring demon was supposed to sit under a bridge in
Caithness every night. When a late wayfarer began to walk over, the monster
growled, “Tramp, tramp, tramp”, so as to terrify him and obtain him for food.
According to local belief, the demon “had eyes like a saucer, a nose like a poker,
and a mouth like a cave”. The Egyptian demon Set was red like the Indian
Rakshasa. Red-haired people are disliked in India still; a native girl with auburn
locks is not cared for as a bride.
[243] Pron. dhrish-ta-dyum´na.
[244] Pron. drow´pa-dee´´

CHAPTER XIII
The Choice of Draupadi
Drupada's Hope—Conditions for winning his Daughter—The Great Bow and
Whirling Target—The Swayamvara—Pandavas in Disguise—Love-sick Rajahs put to
Shame—Karna strings the Bow—Rejected as a Base-born Suitor—Arjuna's Triumph—
Chosen by Princess—An Angry Scene—Rajahs seek Vengeance—Warriors attack
Supposed Brahmans—Karna and Salya overcome—Princess taken to Potter's House—
Pritha's Command—An Evening Meal—The Royal Spy.

Now Drupada had long cherished the hope that Arjuna would become
his daughter's husband. He never revealed his wish to any man, but ere he
proclaimed the swayamvara of Draupadi, he thought of the great Pandava
archer, and caused to be made a powerful bow which only a strong man
could bend and string. For a target he had constructed a strange and curious
device: a high pole was erected, and it was surmounted by a golden fish,
which was poised above a swiftly-revolving wheel. Then Drupada issued a
proclamation far and wide summoning the regents and princes of the world
to the swayamvara. He said: “The man who will bend the bow and shoot an
arrow through the wheel which will strike and bring down the golden fish
shall obtain my daughter in marriage.” None but a mighty archer who was
Arjuna's equal could hope to win the beautiful Draupadi, for five arrows
only were allowed to each competitor, and the fish must needs be struck on
an eye to be brought down.
A great field was enclosed for the swayamvara. It was surrounded by a
fosse and barrier and swan-white pavilions, with domes and turrets that
were agleam with gold and jewels, festoons and streamers and bright
garlands. The turrets of the royal mansion were lofty and golden like
Himalayan mountain peaks.
For sixteen days there were sports and banquets, and everyone within
the city made merry. Then came the great and festal day. At dawn trumpets
and drums awakened the people, and flags and flowers decorated every
street. The whole populace gathered on the plain and massed around the
barriers. The rajah's soldiers kept order, and wrestlers and jugglers and

dancers and musicians performed merrily until the appointed hour drew
nigh.
At length the people roared their welcome to the king and the high-
born ladies and all the royal guests, who thronged the galleries and
pavilions. The mighty rajahs, frowning defiance one upon another, were
ranged on lofty seats round the throne of King Drupada. Multitudes had
gathered to gaze on the glittering scene, pressing against the barriers, or
clustering on trees and scaffolds, while others looked down from lofty
lattice and high house roofs.... A thousand trumpets clamoured; and the
murmuring of the swaying people was like the voice of the heaving main.
Among others came in all her beauty the Princess Draupadi, stepping
gently and sweet, bearing in a delicate hand the golden bridal garland,
which was adorned with sparkling gems. Tardily she made approach,
blushing with increasing loveliness, and appeared in the presence of the
princes. Mighty and high-born men were there. The Pandavas beheld in the
galleries their enemies Duryodhana, Karna, and all the great Kauravas, and
they saw also Krishna, the amorous and powerful one, and his brother, the
wine-drinking Balarama[245], the Yádava princes, the Rajah of Sindhu and
his sons, the Rajah of Chedi, the Rajah of Kosala, the Rajah of Madra, and
many more. Now the Pandavas were still disguised as Brahmans, and stood
among the holy men.
An aged and white-haired Brahman, clad in white, approached the
high altar, chanting mantras. He spread the holy grass and poured out oil;
then he kindled the sacred fire, and the offering to the gods was blessed.
Thereafter the thousand trumpets were sounded, and a tense silence
fell upon the buzzing crowd. In the solemn hush all eyes were turned
towards the royal mansion as Drupada's valiant son, Dhrishta-dyumna, led
forth his sister Draupadi, and in a voice like thunder proclaimed his father's
will, saying:
“Here stands the noble princess, my sister. Whosoever can bend this
bow, and strike with an arrow yonder whirling target set on high, may, if his
lineage is noble, claim Draupadi for his bride. My words are truth!”
Having spoken thus, the prince recited to his sister the names of the
royal guests, their lineage and their deeds of fame, and bade her award the

golden garland to the successful archer.
The rajahs then descended from their gorgeous thrones and gathered
around Draupadi as the bright gods gather around Párvati, the mountain
bride of Shiva. Their hearts were filled with love for the maiden and with
hate for one another. Rivals frowned upon rivals. Those who had been close
friends became of a sudden angry enemies because that Draupadi was so
beautiful. Krishna and Balarama alone remained aloof; calmly and self-
restrained they stood apart, while rajah opposed rajah like to angry
elephants.
Each of the love-sick monarchs gazed upon the mighty bow and upon
the whirling target on high, and for a time no man sought to lift the bow lest
he should be unable to bend it and then be put to shame. At length a rajah,
more bold than the others, picked it up and tried his strength without avail;
another followed and another, but failed to string it. Soon many rajahs
strained their arms in vain, and some fell upon the ground and groaned,
while the laughter of the people pealed around the barriers.... The gods had
assembled in mid-air and looked down with steadfast eyes.
At length proud Karna strode forward; he took the bow and bent it and
fixed the bowstring. Then he seized an arrow. Drupada and his son were
alarmed, fearing he might succeed and claim the bride. Suddenly Draupadi
intervened, for she would not have the son of a charioteer for her lord. She
said, speaking loudly: “I am a king's daughter, and will not wed with the
base-born....”
Karna smiled bitterly, his face aflame. He cast down the bow and
walked away, gazing towards the sun. He said: “O sun! be my witness that I
cast aside the bow, not because I am unable to hit the mark, but because
Draupadi scorns me.”
Others sought to perform the feat, but in vain, and many rajahs feared
to make attempt lest they should compel the laughter of the people. A buzz
of merry voices arose from beyond the barriers.
Meanwhile the Pandava brethren, disguised as Brahmans, looked on
with the others.
Then suddenly silence fell upon everyone, for Arjuna advanced from
the priestly band to lift the bow. The Brahmans applauded him, shaking

their deerskins.
Said the rajahs: “Can a weakly Brahman, who is a mere stripling,
accomplish a feat which is beyond the strength of mighty warriors.”
Others said: “The Brahman knoweth best his own skill. He would not
go forward if he were not confident of success.”
An aged priest endeavoured to restrain Arjuna, lest he should by his
failure bring ridicule upon the Brahmans; but the hero would not be
thwarted. He strode forward like to a stately elephant and bared his broad
shoulders and ample chest. He was nimble as a lion, and calm and self-
possessed.
Ere he lifted the bow, he walked round it; then he addressed a prayer to
the gods.... He stood up unmoved and serene as a mountain peak, and he
bent the bow and fixed an arrow in it....
All eyes watched him. He drew the cord, and the arrow flew upwards
with a hissing sound; it hit the target eye, and the golden fish fell over and
clashed upon the ground.
Like distant thunder arose the plaudits of the multitude; hundreds of
Brahmans shouted in ecstasy and waved their scarfs; a thousand trumpets
clamoured in triumph, and the drums were beaten loud....
The heart of Draupadi was filled with joy, and, smiling coyly, she
advanced towards Arjuna and flung the golden bridal garland over his
shoulders. Celestial blossoms fluttered, descending through the air, and the
sound of celestial music was heard.
Drupada was well pleased, because he had already recognized the hero
in his Brahman guise; but the jealous rajahs stormed in fury, and each said
unto the other: “Behold! the king goeth to greet this youth. To him we are as
worthless as jungle grass; he tramples upon us in his pride.... Are we to be
humbled by a Brahman and denied the fruit of our nourished hopes? The
daughter of a rajah must even choose a Kshatriya for her husband.... Verily,
the life of a priest is sacred, but the rajah who scorns his peers must die—he
and his son together. Let us seize also this shameless woman who honours
the Brahman—that trespasser of our birthright—so that she may be burned
at the stake!”

Shouting with anger one to another, the rajahs poured from the
galleries with drawn swords and rushed towards Arjuna and the princess.
Like ponderous wild elephants they advanced; but the Pandavas rose
against them. Arjuna bent the great bow, and Bhima, having no weapon,
uprooted a tree and stood defying them like to hell's stern judge wielding
his mighty club. Yudhishthira and the younger brothers were soon beside
them, and the Brahmans hastened also to give their aid.
For a moment the rajahs paused, wondering at the daring of the
priestly band; but impatient Karna and angry Salya, Rajah of Madra, dashed
forward like to infuriated elephants against Arjuna and Bhima. The brothers
sustained the shock, and when Karna had been struck by Arjuna, he faltered
in amaze and said: “Brahman, who art thou? Art thou a god in human
guise? No Brahman could thus attack me, nor dost there live a man who can
thwart me with defiance as thou hast done even now, save Arjuna alone.”
Said Arjuna, “I am nor god nor hero, but a humble Brahman who hath
been trained to use of arms. I have come hither to tame thy pride, thou
haughty youth; therefore be firm.”
But Karna fell back, deeming it vain to oppose the power of a holy
man.
Meanwhile Madra's king fought against peerless Bhima. Both were
long-armed and of gigantic strength. Sharp and fierce was their conflict.
When their clubs were splintered, they leapt one upon the other and
wrestled fiercely, struggling with all their might. Then, of a sudden, Bhima
stopped and swung aloft the mighty rajah and threw him heavily upon the
ground, where he lay unconscious and bleeding before the eyes of the
multitude.
The rajahs drew back, humbled because of Karna's flight and Salya's
downfall.
“Brave, indeed, are the Brahmans,” they said. “Who can they be?
What is their lineage? and whence come they?”
The Pandavas scorned to make answer. But Krishna had knowledge of
who they were, and he interposed with gentle words to soothe the angry
rajahs. The monarchs heard him and withdrew, and the tumult was
appeased.

Then Arjuna took Draupadi by the hand and led her away in peace
from that scene of angry strife. So ended the swayamvara, and Krishna
declared that the bride had been fairly won.
The Pandava brethren went towards the house of the potter, and they
entered and addressed their mother Pritha, saying: “A great gift have we
obtained this day.”
Said Pritha: “Then share the gift between you, as becomes brethren.”
Yudhishthira said: “What hast thou said, O mother? The gift is the
Princess Draupadi whom Arjuna hath won at the swayamvara.”
Said Pritha: “Alas! what have I said? I have sinned deeply in saying,
‘Then share the gift between you, as becomes brethren.’ But, O
Yudhishthira, my son, the fatal words have been spoken; you must devise
how they can be obeyed without involving one another in wrong.”
Yudhishthira pondered a time and then spake to Arjuna, saying: “My
brother, thou hast won Draupadi by thine own merit. She must therefore be
thy bride.”
Said Arjuna: “Thou, Yudhishthira, art our elder brother and we are thy
servants. The princess is for thee.”
Yudhishthira said: “Let this matter be arranged in accordance with the
will of the gods. It is for Drupada to say unto which of us his daughter will
be given.”
Now, as hath already been told, each one of the Pandavas yearned in
his secret heart to have Draupadi for his bride....
Meanwhile the evening meal had been prepared, and Pritha desired
that the princess should at once take her place, and serve out the portions to
the brethren. So she said unto Draupadi: “Divide the food, and first set aside
a share for the poor; then cut what is left into two parts, one part for Bhima,
and the rest for my other sons and for thee and me.”
The princess smiled when she beheld the great meal which Bhima
devoured.
When they had all eaten they retired to rest. Draupadi slept with Pritha,
and the brethren lay at their feet.

King Drupada was sore troubled in heart after his daughter had been
led away to the potter's house, and he sent his valiant son to watch her.
Dhrishta-dyumna went forth in disguise, and, listening at the window, he
discovered to his joy that the Brahmans were no other than the Pandava
brethren. He returned to his royal sire and related all that had happened, and
what had been spoken at the evening meal. The king was well pleased
because that the brethren were Kshatriyas and not Brahmans.
In the morning Drupada sent a priest to the potter's house to ask how it
fared with all the brethren.
Said Yudhishthira: “Inform thou the rajah that his daughter hath been
won by a family who will not bring shame or disgrace upon his royal name.
None but a man of high birth could have shot down the fish of gold.”
Drupada, ere this message was delivered unto him, sent a second
messenger bidding the brethren to come to the palace because that the
nuptial feast was ready.... Two chariots awaited them. Then Pritha and
Draupadi entered one of the chariots together, and the five brethren entered
the other, and they were all driven towards the royal palace.
When the people beheld the Pandavas and marked their comely
bearing and royal gait, they knew that they were not Brahmans, but high-
born Kshatriyas.
The Pandava guests were made welcome, and the king and his son and
all his counsellors sat down to feast with them.
Said the rajah at length unto Yudhishthira: “I perceive that you are men
of high birth. Tell me, therefore, I pray thee, who ye are—your names and
your lineage.”
Yudhishthira said: “We are of humble birth. Do now with us as is thy
desire.”
Said Drupada: “In Indra's name, I adjure thee to reveal yourselves unto
me now.”
Yudhishthira said: “Know, then, that we are the Pandava princes.... Our
brother Arjuna was the winner of Draupadi. Thy daughter, like to a lotus,
hath been but transferred from one lake to another. I have spoken what is
true.”

Drupada glowed with joy and satisfaction. He prevailed upon the
brethren to remain at the palace, and entertained them for many days.
At length Yudhishthira was addressed by Drupada, who said: “Thou art
the elder brother. Speak and say if it is thy desire that Arjuna be given
Draupadi for his bride.”
Said Yudhishthira: “I would fain speak with Vyasa, the great Rishi,
regarding this matter.”
Now Vyasa was in the city of Panchala at that time, and he was
brought before the rajah, who spake to him regarding Draupadi.
The Rishi said: “The gods have already declared that she will become
the wife of all the five Pandava brethren.”
Drupada's son spoke and said: “With reverence I have heard thy words,
O Vyasa, but to me it appears that Draupadi hath been betrothed unto
Arjuna alone.”
Said Yudhishthira: “Thou hast spoken truly, but there is wisdom in the
words of Vyasa which in my heart I cannot condemn. Besides, our mother
hath already commanded us to share our gift together.”
Then Vyasa told that Draupadi was the reincarnation of a pious woman
who once prayed unto the god Shiva for a husband: five times she prayed,
and the god rewarded her with the promise of five husbands in her next
existence. Vyasa also revealed that the Pandava brethren were five
incarnations of Indra, and thus were but as one.
Drupada then gave consent for his daughter to become the bride of all
the brethren, and it was arranged that she should be married unto them all,
one after the other, according to their ages. So on five successive days she
was led round the holy fire by each of the five Pandava princes.
Drupada thereafter conferred great gifts upon his sons-in-law; he gave
them much gold and many jewels, and he gave them numerous horses and
chariots and elephants, and also a hundred female servants clad in many-
coloured robes, and adorned with gems and bright garlands. Unto the
Pandavas Krishna gave much raiment and ornaments of gold, and rare
vessels sparkling with jewels, besides female servants from various
kingdoms.

Now when Duryodhana came to know that the Pandava brethren were
still alive, and had formed a powerful alliance with Drupada, he was moved
to jealous wrath. A great council was held, at which the young men
clamoured for war and the grave elders spoke in favour of peace. At length
it was agreed that the Pandava princes should be invited to return to
Hastinapur so that the raj might be divided between them and the sons of
Dhritarashtra. Then Vidura was sent to Panchala to speak with the Rajah
Drupada and his sons-in-law regarding this matter.

FOOTNOTES:
[245] Pron. bal-a-rah´ma.

CHAPTER XIV
Triumph of the Pandavas
Pandavas visit Drupada's Palace—Their Identity revealed—Draupadi's Five Husbands
—Kingdom assigned to Pandavas—Building of Indra-prastha—Arjuna goes into Exile—
His Serpent Bride—Marriage in Manipur—An Heir to a Throne—Meeting with Krishna—
Abduction of Princess—Miraculous Origin of Jarasandhu—His Two Mothers—Slain by
Bhima—The Imperial Sacrifice—Krishna kills Shishupala—Yudhishthira's Triumph—
Jealousy of Duryodhana.

The Pandava brethren returned to Hastinapur with Vidura. They took
with them their mother, Queen Pritha, and their wife, Draupadi, and the
people went forth in great multitudes and bade them glad welcome. Then
there was much rejoicing and many banquets.
At length Dhritarashtra spake unto Yudhishthira and his brethren and
said: “I will now divide the raj between you and my sons. Your share will
be the southwestern country of Khandava-prastha.”
Said Bhishma: “The maharajah hath spoken wisely. It is meet that you
should depart unto the country of Khandava-prastha as he hath decreed.”
So the Pandava princes bade farewell to all their kinsmen and to wise
Drona, and they went towards their own country. On the banks of the Jumna
they built a strong fort, and in time they made a great clearance in the
forest. When they had gathered together the people who were subject unto
them, they erected a great and wonderful city like unto the city of Indra, and
it was called Indra-prastha.[246] High walls, which resembled the Mandara
mountains, were built round about, and these were surrounded by a deep
moat wide as the sea.
In time the fame of Rajah Yudhishthira went far and wide. He ruled
with wisdom and with power, and he had great piety. Forest robbers were
pursued constantly and put to death, and wrongdoers were ever brought to
justice; indeed, the people who suffered from evildoing went before the
rajah as children go before a father seeking redress.

The brethren lived happily together. In accordance with the advice of a
Rishi, they made a compact that when one of them was sitting beside
Draupadi, none of the others should enter, and that if one of them should be
guilty of intrusion, he must needs go into exile for the space of twelve
years.
As it chanced, Yudhishthira was sitting with Draupadi one day when a
Brahman, whose cattle had been carried off, hastened to Arjuna and
entreated him to pursue the band of robbers. The weapons of the prince
were in the king's palace, and to obtain them Arjuna entered the room in
which Yudhishthira and Draupadi sat, thus breaking the compact made by
the brethren. He hastened after the robbers and recovered the stolen cattle,
which he brought back unto the Brahman.
On his return to the palace, Arjuna said unto his brother that he must
needs become an exile for twelve years to expiate his offence. Yudhishthira,
however, sought to prevail upon him not to depart. But Arjuna made answer
that he had pledged his oath to fulfil the terms of the compact. “I cannot
waver from truth,” he said; “truth is my weapon.” So when he had bidden
farewell to Pritha and Draupadi and his four brethren, he took his departure
from the city of Indra-prastha. And a band of Brahmans went with him.
Arjuna wandered through the jungle, and he visited many holy places.
One day he went unto Hurdwar, where the Ganges flows upon the plain,
and he bathed in the holy waters. There he met with Ulúpí, daughter of
Vásuka, king of the Nagas, who had great beauty. She loved him, and she
led him to her father's palace, where he abode a time, and she gave him the
power to render himself invisible in water. A child was born unto them, and
he was named Iravat.
Thereafterwards Arjuna went southwards until he came to the
Mahendra mountain.[247] He was received there by Parasu Rama, the
Brahman hero, who gave him gifts of powerful weapons, and imparted to
him the secret of using them.
So he wandered from holy place to holy place until he reached
Manipur. Now the rajah of that place had a beautiful daughter whose name
was Chitrángadá. Arjuna loved her, and sought her for his bride. The rajah
said: “I have no other child, and if I give her unto thee, her son must remain
here to become my heir, for the god Shiva hath decreed that the rajahs of

this realm can have each but one child.” Arjuna married the maiden, and he
dwelt for three years at Manipur. A son was born, and he was named
Chitrangada. Thereafter Arjuna set out on his wanderings once more.
He passed through many strange lands, travelling westward, and at
length he reached the city of Prabhása[248], which is nigh to Dwáraká, on
the southern sea, the capital of his kinsman Krishna, rajah of the Yádhavas.

3

ARJUNA AND THE RIVER
NYMPH
From the painting by Warwick Goble

Krishna welcomed Arjuna, and took the Pandava hero to dwell in his
palace. Then he gave a great feast on the holy mountain of Raivataka,

which lasted for two days. Arjuna looked with love upon Krishna's fair
sister, Subhadra[249], a girl of sweet smiles, and desired her for a bride.
Now it was the wish of Balarama that Subhadra should be given unto
Duryodhana, whom, indeed, she would have chosen had a swayamvara
been held. So Krishna advised Arjuna to carry her away by force, in
accordance with the advice of the sages, who had said aforetime: “Men
applaud the Kshatriyas who win brides by abducting them.”
When the feast was over, Arjuna drove his chariot from the holy
mountain towards Dwaraka until he came nigh to Subhadra. Nimbly he
leapt down and took her by the hand and lifted her into his chariot; then he
drove hastily towards the city of Indra-prastha.
Balarama was greatly angered, and desired to pursue Arjuna; and he
spoke to Krishna, saying: “Thou art calm, and I can perceive that Arjuna
has done this thing with thy knowledge. Thou shouldst not have given our
sister unto him without my consent. But let the deed be upon his own head,
for I will pursue him and slay him and his brethren, one and all.”
Said Krishna: “Arjuna is our kinsman[250] and of noble birth, and is a
worthy husband for Subhadra. If thou wilt pursue him and bring back our
sister, no one else will marry her now because that she hath been in the
house of another. Better were it that we should send messengers after
Arjuna and invite him to return here, so that the marriage may be held
according to our rites.”
Balarama said: “So be it, seeing that thou art well pleased with this
matter.”
Thus it came to pass that messengers followed Arjuna and prevailed
upon him to return with Subhadra to Dwaraka. A great feast was then held,
and they were married with pomp and in state. And Arjuna abode at the
court of Krishna for many months, until the time of his exile came to an
end.
When Arjuna returned to Indra-prastha with Subhadra, he was received
with great rejoicing by his brethren. He went unto Draupadi and greeted
her; but she said coldly: “Why come hither? Where is the sister of
Krishna?”

Arjuna soothed her with gentle words; and then Subhadra approached
Draupadi, attired in red silk, but in the simple fashion of a keeper of cows,
and made obeisance before her, saying: “I am thy handmaiden.”
Draupadi embraced the sister of Krishna and said “Let thy husband be
without an enemy.”
The heart of Subhadra was filled with joy at these words; she said: “So
be it.”
Thus was peace made; the two women thereafter loved one another,
and to Pritha both were very dear.
Now Draupadi became the mother of five sons to her five husbands;
and Subhadra had one son only, and his name was Abhimanyu[251], who in
the years that followed was an illustrious warrior.
As time went on, the Pandavas grew more and more powerful. They
waged great wars, until many rajahs owed them allegiance; and at length
Yudhishthira deemed that the time had come to hold his great Rajasúya
sacrifice to celebrate the supremacy of his power over all.
Krishna came to Indra-prastha at this time and said: “There is now but
one rajah who must needs be overcome ere the Imperial sacrifice can be
performed: his name is Jarasandha, monarch of Magadha. He hath already
conquered six-and-eighty kings, and he hath slaughtered those who were
our kinsmen dear.”
Now this rajah was of great valour and matchless strength. His body
was invulnerable against weapons; not even the gods could wound him with
mace or sword or with arrow. He was also of miraculous birth, for he was
born of two mothers[252] who had eaten of a mantra-charmed mango which
fell into the lap of his sire when that he was childless and was undergoing
penances to obtain offspring. Nor did the babe come to life after birth until
he was united by a Rakshasa woman, named Jara, the goddess of the
household, who, because she was worshipped in the palace, performed
some good each day in return.[253] So the child was called Jarasandha[254],
which signifies “united by Jara”, and he increased daily like to the moon in
its first phase.

Krishna said unto Yudhishthira: “This monarch of Magadha cannot be
vanquished in battle even by gods or by demons. But he may be overcome
in a conflict, fighting with bare arms. Now I am ‘Policy’, Bhima is
‘Strength’, and Arjuna is ‘Protector’. Together, O king, we will surely
accomplish the death of Jarasandha, who is arrogant and covetous and
proud.”
Said Yudhishthira: “Do as it seemeth best unto thee, O lord of the
universe; thou art our wise counsellor and guide.”
Then Krishna, Arjuna, and Bhima disguised themselves as Brahmans
and went towards the city of Mathura, which was Jarasandha's capital.
When they arrived there they entered the palace of the mighty rajah like to
mountain lions eyeing cattle-folds. They went boldly before the king
decked with flowers, and the king said: “Ye are welcome.”
Arjuna and Bhima were silent, but Krishna spake to Jarasandha,
saying: “These two men are observing vows, and will not open their mouths
until midnight; after that hour they will speak.”
The king provided for his guests in the sacrificial chamber, and after
midnight he visited them, and discovering that they were warriors, he
asked: “Tell me truly who ye are, and why ye have come hither.”
Said Krishna: “We are decked with flowers to achieve prosperity, and
we have entered the abode of our enemy to fulfil the vows of Kshatriyas.”
Jarasandha said: “I have never done you an injury. Why, therefore, do
ye regard me as your enemy?”
Then Krishna revealed himself, and upbraided the king because that he
was wont to offer up in sacrifice to Shiva the rajahs whom he took captive
in battle. He said: “Thou hast slaughtered our kinsmen in this manner
because thou dost imagine there liveth no man who is so powerful as thou.
For thy sins thou art doomed to go to Yama's kingdom, there to be tortured
a time. But thou canst attain to the Heaven of Indra by dying the death of a
Kshatriya in battle with thy peers. Now, O king, we challenge thee to
combat. Set free the rajahs who are in thy dungeons, or die at our hands!”
Said the king: “I have taken captive in battle these royal prisoners of
mine, whom I shall offer in sacrifice to Shiva, according to my vow. Let us
therefore meet in battle, army against army, or in single combat.”

Krishna said: “Meet thou one of us in single combat. With whom dost
thou desire to fight?”
Then Jarasandha expressed his wish to meet Bhima in battle. Bhima
was made glad thereat, for, in truth, he thirsted for the conflict; but he
desired that they should fight without weapons, and the king consented, and
made ready for the fray.
Now Jarasandha was of lofty stature and great strength, and he fought
so fiercely that the combat lasted for thirteen days in presence of great
multitudes of the people. In the end the king was swung aloft, and his back
was broken over Bhima's knee. Then a mighty tumult arose, which caused
all who were there to quake with fear, for the roar of the Pandavas mingled
with the shrieks of Jarasandha ere death silenced him.
Krishna went boldly into the palace and set free all the rajahs who
were in captivity. And one by one they took vows to attend the Imperial
sacrifice. Then Krishna received Sahadeva, son of Jarasandha, and installed
him as Rajah of Magadha.
When the great Yudhishthira came to know that Jarasandha had been
slain, he sent forth his four brethren with great armies to collect tribute from
every rajah in the world.[255] Some there were among the kings who
welcomed them; others had to be conquered in battle. But when they had
sworn allegiance to Yudhishthira, they joined the Pandava force and
assisted in achieving further victories. A whole year went past ere the
brethren returned again unto Indra-prastha.
Krishna came from Dwaraka to aid Yudhishthira at the ceremony, and
he brought with him much wealth and a mighty army.
Stately pavilions were erected for the kings who came to attend the
great sacrifice: their turrets were high, and they were swan-white and
flecked with radiant gold. Silver and gold adorned the walls of the rooms,
which were richly perfumed and carpeted and furnished to befit the royal
guests.
Then the rajahs came to Indra-prastha in all their splendour and
greeted mighty Yudhishthira. Those who were friends brought gifts, and
those who had been subdued in battle brought tribute. White-haired and
blind old Dhritarashtra came, and with him were Kripa and Bhishma and

Vidura. Proud Duryodhana and his brethren came also, professing
friendship, and Karna came with bow and spear and mace. Drona and his
son, and their enemies Drupada and his son, were there also, and Balarama,
Krishna's brother, and their father Vasudeva. And among many others were
jealous Sishupala[256], King of Chedi[257], and his son, and both wore bright
golden armour.
Many Brahmans assembled at Indra-prastha, and Krishna honoured
them and washed their feet. The gifts that were given to these holy sages
were beyond computation. In great numbers came men of every caste also;
and all were feasted at banquets, so that the words “Take ye and eat” were
heard continuously on every hand.
Now there were deep and smouldering jealousies among the assembled
rajahs, and when the time came to honour him who was regarded as the
greatest among them by presenting the Arghya[258], their passions were set
ablaze. First Bhishma spake forth and said that the honour was due to
Krishna, the pious one, who was the noblest and greatest among them all.
“Krishna,” he said, “is the origin of all things; the universe came into being
for him alone. He is the incarnation of the Creator, the everlasting one, who
is beyond man's comprehension.”
When the Arghya was given unto Krishna, Sishupala, the Rajah of
Chedi, arose in wrath and said: “It ill becomes thee, O Yudhishthira, to
honour thus an uncrowned chieftain. Gathered about thee are ruling kings
of highest fame. If the honour be due to age, then Vasudeva can claim it
before his son; if it is due to the foremost rajah, then Drupada should be
honoured; if it is due to wisdom, Drona is the most worthy; if it is due to
holiness, Vyasa is the greatest. Drona's son hath more knowledge than
Krishna, Duryodhana is peerless among younger men, Kripa is the
worthiest priest, and Karna the greatest archer. For what reason should
homage be paid unto Krishna, who is neither the holiest priest, the wisest
preceptor, the greatest warrior, nor the foremost chieftain? To the shame of
this assembly be it said that it doth honour the murderer of his own rajah,
this cowherd of low birth.”
So spake Sishupala, the tiger-hearted one, and terrible was his wrath.
He hated Krishna, because that he had carried away by force the beautiful
Rukmini, who had been betrothed unto himself, the mighty Rajah of Chedi.

Krishna then spoke. Calm was he of voice and demeanour, but his eyes
were bright. Unto the rajahs he said: “Hear me, O ye princes and kings! The
evil-tongued Sishupala is descended from a daughter of our race, and in my
heart I have never sought to work ill against a kinsman. But once, when I
went eastward, he sacked my sea-swept Dwaraka and laid low its temple;
once he broke faith with a rajah and cast him into prison; once he seized the
consort of a king by force; and once he disguised himself as the husband of
a chaste princess and deceived her. And I have suffered because of his sins,
nor sought vengeance, because that he was of our own race. He hath even
come after my consort Rukmini, and is worthy of death.”
As he spoke, the faces of many rajahs grew red with shame and anger,
but Sishupala laughed aloud and made answer: “I seek no mercy from
Krishna, nor do I fear him.”
Then Krishna thought of his bright, resistless discus, and immediately
it was in his hand. In anger he spake forth and said: “Hear me, ye lords of
earth! I have promised the pious mother of Sishupala to pardon a hundred
sins committed by her son. And I have fulfilled my vow. But now the
number is more than full, and I will slay him, O ye mighty rajahs, before
your eyes.”
Having spoken thus, Krishna flung the discus, and it struck Sishupala
on the neck, so that his head was severed from his body. He fell down like
to a cliff struck by the thunderbolt. Then the assembled rajahs beheld a
great wonder, for the passion-cleansed soul of Sishupala issued from his
body, beautiful as the sun in heaven, and went towards Krishna. Its eyes
were like to lotus blooms, and its form like to a flame; and it adored
Krishna and entered into his body.[259]
The rajahs all looked on, silent and amazed, while thunder bellowed
out of heaven, and lightning flashed, and rain poured down in torrents.
Some grew angry, and laid hands on their weapons to avenge the death of
Sishupala; others rejoiced that he had been slain; the Brahmans chanted the
praises of Krishna.
Yudhishthira commanded his brothers to perform the funeral rites over
the dead with every honour. So the body of Sishupala was burned and the
oblation poured forth. Then his son was proclaimed Rajah of Chedi.

Thereafter the great sacrifice was performed with solemnity and in
peace. Krishna, who had maintained the supremacy of Yudhishthira by
slaying a dangerous and jealous rival, looked on benignly.
Holy water was sprinkled by the Brahmans, and all the monarchs made
obeisance and honoured Yudhishthira, saying: “Thou hast extended the
fame of thy mighty sire, Pandu, and thou art become even greater than he
was. Thou hast graced with this sacrifice thine high station and fulfilled all
our hopes. Now, O emperor over all, permit us to depart to our own homes,
and bestow thy blessing upon us.”
So one by one they took leave of Yudhishthira and went away, and the
four Pandavas accompanied the greatest of them to the confines of their
kingdoms. Krishna was the last to bid farewell.
Said Yudhishthira: “Unto thee I owe all things. Because thou wert
here, O valorous one, I was able to perform the great sacrifice.”
Krishna said: “Monarch of all! rule thou over thy people with a father's
wisdom and care. Be unto them like rain which nourisheth the parched
fields; be a shade in hot sunshine; be a cloudless heaven bending over all.
Be thou ever free from pride and passion; ever rule with power and justice
and holiness, O Yudhishthira.”
So he spake from his chariot and then went his way, and Yudhishthira
turned homeward with tear-dimmed eyes.
Now when Duryodhana had witnessed the triumph of the Pandavas,
his heart burned with jealous rage. He envied the splendour of the palaces at
Indra-prastha; he envied the glory achieved by Yudhishthira. Well he knew
that he could not overcome the Pandavas in open conflict, so he plotted
with his brethren to accomplish their fall by artifice and by wrong.
As in after-time the wise Sanjaya said: “The gods first deprive of his
reason that man unto whom they ultimately send disgrace and defeat”.
But Duryodhana had to work the will of the Creator under the
influence of fate, and it was doomed that the Pandavas should suffer for a
time at his hands.

FOOTNOTES:
[246] Pron. indra-prast´ha.
[247] In Ganjam district, Madras.
[248] Pron. pra-bha´sa.
[249] Pron. soo-bhad´ra.
[250] Krishna's father, Vasudeva, was the brother of Pritha, mother of
Arjuna.
[251] Pron. ab-hi-mun´yoo (“u” as in “bun”).
[252] In one of the Egyptian temple chants Osiris is called “the progeny of
the two cows Isis and Nepthys”.
[253] Like the European household elves and fairies.
[254] Pron. ja-ra-sund´ha.
[255] That is, in Northern India.
[256] Pron. sish-oo-pah´la.
[257] Pron. chay´dee.
[258] A gift of fruit or flowers, like an offering to the image of a god.
[259] Krishna represented the worshippers of Vishnu, of whom he was an
incarnation. Sishupala, who was reputed to have been born with three eyes, was
an incarnation of Shiva. Rukmini was an incarnation of Lakshmi.

CHAPTER XV
The Great Gambling Match
Duryodhana's Plot—Shakuni the Gambler—Loaded Dice—Challenge to Yudhishthira
—An Unequal Contest—Pandavas lose Kingdom and become Slaves—Draupadi Staked
and Lost—How Duhsasana humbled her—Pandava Queen's Appeals—Treated as a Menial
—Attempt to Disrobe her—Taunted by Karna—Bhima's Terrible Vows—Alarming Omens
—Pandavas regain Liberty—Second Gambling Match—Pandavas go into Exile.

Now Shakuni, Prince of Gandhara,[260] and brother of Dhritarashtra's
queen, was renowned for his skill as a gambler. He always enjoyed good
fortune because that he played with loaded dice. Duryodhana plotted with
him, desiring greatly to subjugate the Pandavas, and Shakuni said: “Be
advised by me. Yudhishthira loves the dice, although he knows not how to
play. Ask him to throw dice with me, for there is no gambler who is my
equal in the three worlds. I will put him to shame. I will win from him his
kingdom, O bull among men.”
Duryodhana was well pleased at this proposal, and he went before his
blind father, the maharajah, and prevailed upon him to invite the Pandavas
to Hastinapur for a friendly gambling match, despite the warnings of the
royal counsellors.
Said Dhritarashtra: “If the gods are merciful, my sons will cause no
dispute. Let it be as fate hath ordained. No evil can happen so long as I am
near, and Bhishma and Drona are near also. Therefore, let the Pandavas be
invited hither as my son desireth.”
So Vidura, who feared trouble, was sent unto Indra-prastha to say:
“The maharajah is about to hold a great festival at Hastinapur, and he
desires that Yudhishthira and his brethren, their mother Pritha and their joint
wife Draupadi, should be present. A great gambling match will be played.”
When Yudhishthira heard these words, he sorrowed greatly, for well he
knew that dice-throwing was ofttimes the cause of bitter strife. Besides, he
was unwilling to play Prince Shakuni, that desperate and terrible gambler....

But he could not refuse the invitation of Dhritarashtra, or, like a true
Kshatriya, disdain a challenge either to fight or to play with his peers.
So it came to pass that the Pandava brethren, with Pritha, their mother,
and their joint wife Draupadi, journeyed to Hastinapur in all their splendour.
Dhritarashtra welcomed them in the presence of Bhishma and Drona and
Duryodhana and Karna; then they were received by Queen Gandhari, and
the wives of the Kaurava princes; and all the daughters-in-law of the blind
maharajah became sad because that they were jealous of the beauty of
Draupadi and the splendour of her attire.
The Pandava lords and ladies went unto the dwelling which had been
prepared for them, and there they were visited in turn by the lords and
ladies of Hastinapur.
On the day that followed, Yudhishthira and his brethren went together
to the gambling match, which was held in a gorgeous pavilion, roofed with
arching crystal and decorated with gold and lapis lazuli: it had a hundred
doors and a thousand great columns, and it was richly carpeted. All the
princes and great chieftains and warriors of the kingdom were gathered
there. And Prince Shakuni of Gandhari was there also with his false dice.
When salutations had passed, and the great company were seated,
Shakuni invited Yudhishthira to play.
Said Yudhishthira: “I will play if mine opponent will promise to throw
fairly, without trickery and deceit. Deceitful gambling is sinful, and
unworthy a Kshatriya; there is no prowess in it. Wise men do not applaud a
player who winneth by foul means.”
Shakuni said: “A skilled gambler ever playeth with purpose to
vanquish his opponent, as one warrior fighteth another less skilled than
himself to accomplish his overthrow. Such is the practise in all contests; a
man plays or fights to achieve victory.... But if thou art in dread of me, O
Yudhishthira, and afraid that thou wilt lose, 'twere better if thou didst not
play at all.”
Said Yudhishthira: “Having been challenged, I cannot withdraw. I fear
not to fight or to play with any man.... But first say who doth challenge and
who is to lay stakes equally with me.”

Then Duryodhana spoke, saying: “O rajah, I will supply jewels and
gold and any stakes thou wilt of as great value as thou canst set down. It is
for me that Shakuni, my uncle, is to throw the dice.”
Said Yudhishthira: “This is indeed a strange challenge. One man is to
throw the dice and another is to lay the stakes. Such is contrary to all
practice. If, however, thou art determined to play in this fashion, let the
game begin.”
Well did the Rajah of Indra-prastha know then that the match would
not be played fairly. But he sat down, notwithstanding, to throw dice with
Shakuni.
At the first throw Yudhishthira lost; indeed, he lost at every throw on
that fatal day. He gambled away all his money and all his jewels, his
jewelled chariot with golden bells, and all his cattle; still he played on, and
he lost his thousand war elephants, his slaves and beautiful slave girls, and
the remainder of his goods; and next, he staked and lost the whole kingdom
of the Pandavas, save the lands which he had gifted to the Brahmans. Nor
did he cease to play then, despite the advice offered him by the chieftains
who were there. One by one he staked and lost his brethren; and he staked
himself and lost also.
Said Shakuni: “You have done ill, Yudhishthira, in staking thine own
self, for now thou hast become a slave; but if thou wilt stake Draupadi now
and win, all that thou hast lost will be restored unto thee.”
Yudhishthira said: “So be it. I will stake Draupadi.”
At these words the whole company was stricken with horror. Vidura
swooned, and the faces of Bhishma and Drona grew pallid; many groaned;
but Duryodhana and his brethren rejoiced openly before all men.
Shakuni threw the dice, and Yudhishthira lost this the last throw. In this
manner was Draupadi won by Duryodhana.
Then all the onlookers gazed one upon another in silence and wide-
eyed. Karna and Duhsasana[261] and other young princes laughed aloud.
Duryodhana rose proudly and spake unto Vidura, saying: “Now hasten
unto Draupadi and bid her to come hither to sweep the chambers with the
other bondswomen.”

Vidura was made angry, and answered him: “Thy words are wicked, O
Duryodhana. Thou canst not command a lady of royal birth to become a
household slave. Besides, she is not thy slave, because Yudhishthira did
stake his own freedom before he staked Draupadi. Thou couldst not win
aught from a slave who had no power to stake the princess.”
But Duryodhana cursed Vidura, and bade one of his servants to bring
Draupadi before him.
Said Vidura: “Duryodhana is this day deprived of his reason.
Dishonesty is one of the doors to hell. By practising dishonesty Duryodhana
will accomplish yet the ruin of the Kauravas.”
The beautiful Draupadi was sitting at peace within the fair dwelling set
apart for the Pandavas on the banks of the Ganges; its walls and towers
were mirrored on the broad clear waters. Then suddenly, as a jackal enters
stealthily the den of a lion, the menial sent by Duryodhana entered the
palace and stood before high-born Draupadi.
Said this man: “O queen, the mighty son of Pandu hath played and
lost; he hath lost all, even his reason, and he hath staked thee, and thou hast
been won by Duryodhana. And now Duryodhana bids me to say that thou
art become his slave, and must obey him like to other female slaves. So
come thou with me, for thou must henceforth engage in menial work.”
Draupadi was astounded when he spake these words, and in her
anguish she cried: “Have I heard thee aright? Hath my husband, the king,
staked and lost me in his madness? Did he stake and loose aught beside?”
Said the man: “Yudhishthira hath lost all his riches and his kingdom;
he staked his brethren and lost them one by one; he staked himself and lost;
and then he staked thee, O queen, and lost also. Therefore, come thou with
me.”
Draupadi rose in her pride and spoke angrily, saying: “If my lord did
stake himself and become a slave, he could not wager me, for a slave owns
neither his own life nor the life of another. Speak, therefore, unto my
husband these words, and unto Duryodhana say: ‘Draupadi hath not been
won’.”
The man returned to the assembly and spake unto Yudhishthira the
words which Draupadi had said, but he bowed his head and was silent.

Duryodhana was made angry by the defiant answer of the proud
queen, and he said unto his brother Duhsasana: “The sons of Pandu are our
slaves, and thy heart is without fear for them. Go thou to the palace and bid
the princess, my humble menial, to come hither quickly.”
Red-eyed and proud Duhsasana hastened to the palace. He entered the
inner chambers and stood before Draupadi, who was clad in but a single
robe, while her hair hung loosely.
Said the evil-hearted Kaurava: “O princess of Panchala with fair lotus
eyes, thou hast been staked and lost fairly at the game of hazard. Hasten,
therefore, and stand before thy lord Duryodhana, for thou art now his
bright-eyed slave.”
Draupadi heard and trembled. She covered her eyes with her hands
before the hated Duhsasana; her cheeks turned pale and her heart sickened.
Then suddenly she leapt up and sought to escape to an inner room. But the
evil-hearted prince seized her by the hair, for he no longer feared the sons of
Pandu, and the beautiful princess quivered and shook in her loose attire like
to a sapling which is shaken by the storm wind. Crouching on her knees,
she cried angrily, while tears streamed from her lotus eyes: “Begone! O
shameless prince. Can a modest woman appear before strangers in loose
attire?”

4

THE ORDEAL OF QUEEN
DRAUPADI
From the painting by Warwick Goble

Said stern and cruel Duhsasana: “Even if thou wert naked now, thou
must follow me. Hast thou not become a slave, fairly staked and fairly won?
Henceforth thou wilt serve among the other menials.”
Trembling and faint, Draupadi was dragged through the streets by
Duhsasana. When she stood before the elders and the chieftains in the
pavilion she cried: “Forgive me because that I have come hither in this
unseemly plight....”

Bhishma and Drona and the other elders who were there hung their
heads in shame.
Unto Duhsasana Draupadi said angrily: “Cease thy wickedness! Defile
me no longer with unclean hands. A woman's hair is sacred.”
Sacred indeed were the locks of the Pandava queen, for they had been
sprinkled with water sanctified by mantras at the imperial sacrifice.
Weeping, she cried: “Hear and help me, O ye elders. You have wives
and children of your own. Will you permit this wrong to be continued.
Answer me now.”
But no man spake a word.
Draupadi wept and said: “Why this silence?... Will no man among ye
protect a sinless woman?... Lost is the fame of the Kauravas, the ancient
glory of Bharata, and the prowess of the Kshatriyas!... Why will not the
sons of Pandu protect their outraged queen?... And hath Bhishma lost his
virtue and Drona his power?... Will Yudhishthira no longer defend one who
is wronged?... Why are ye all silent while this deed of shame is done before
you?”
As she spake thus, Draupadi glanced round the sons of Pandu one by
one, and their hearts thirsted for vengeance. Bhishma's face was dark,
Drona clenched his teeth, and Vidura, white and angry, gazed upon
Duhsasana with amaze while he tore off Draupadi's veil and addressed her
with foul words. When she looked towards the Kaurava brethren,
Duhsasana said: “Ha! on whom darest thou to look now, O slave?”
Shakuni and Kama laughed to hear Draupadi called a slave, and they
cried out: “Well spoken, well spoken!”
Duhsasana endeavoured to strip the princess naked before the
assembly; but Draupadi, in her distress, prayed aloud to Krishna, invoking
him as the creator of all and the soul of the universe, and entreated him to
help her. Krishna heard her, and multiplied her garments so that Duhsasana
was unable to accomplish his wicked purpose.
Karna spake to Draupadi and said: “'Tis not thy blame, O princess, that
thou hast fallen so low. A woman's fate is controlled by her husband;
Yudhishthira hath gambled thee away. Thou wert his, and must accept thy

fate. Henceforward thou wilt be the slave of the Kaurava princes. Thou
must obey them and please them with thy beauty.... 'Tis meet that thou
shouldst now seek for thyself a husband who will love thee too well to stake
thee at dice and suffer thee to be put to shame.... Be assured that no one will
blame a humble menial, as thou now art, who looks with eyes of love upon
great and noble warriors. Remember that Yudhishthira is no longer thy
husband; he hath become a slave, and a slave can have no wife.... Ah! sweet
Princess of Panchala, those whom thou didst choose at thy swayamvara
have gambled and lost thee; their kingdom they have lost, and their power
also.”
At these words Bhima's bosom heaved with anger and with shame.
Red-eyed he scowled upon Karna; he seemed to be the image of flaming
Wrath. Unto Yudhishthira he spake grimly, saying: “If you hadst not staked
our freedom and our queen, O king and elder brother, this son of a
charioteer would not have taunted us in this manner.”
Yudhishthira bowed his head in shame, nor answered a word.
Arjuna reproved Bhima for his bitter words; but Pritha's mighty son,
the slayer of Asuras, said: “If I am not permitted to punish the tormentor of
Draupadi, bring me a fire that I may thrust my hands into it.”
A deep uproar rose from the assembly, and the elders applauded the
wronged lady and censured Duhsasana. Bhima clenched his hands and, with
quivering lips, cried out:
“Hear my terrible words, O ye Kshatriyas.... May I never reach
Heaven if I do not yet seize Duhsasana in battle and, tearing open his
breast, drink his very life blood!...”
Again he spoke and said: “If Yudhishthira will permit me, I will slay
the wretched sons of Dhritarashtra without weapons, even as a lion slays
small animals.”
Then Bhishma and Vidura and Drona cried out: “Forbear, O Bhima!
Everything is possible in thee.”
Duryodhana gloried in his hour of triumph, and unto the elder of the
Pandava brethren spake tauntingly and said: “Yudhishthira, thou art
spokesman for thy brethren, and they owe thee obedience. Speak and say,
thou who dost ever speak truly, hast thou lost thy kingdom and thy brethren

and thine own self? O Yudhishthira, hast thou lost even the beauteous
Draupadi? And hath she, thy wedded wife, become our humble menial?”
Yudhishthira heard him with downcast eyes, but his lips moved not....
Then Karna laughed; but Bhishma, pious and old, wept in silence.
Then Duryodhana cast burning eyes upon Draupadi, and, baring his
knee, invited her, as a slave, to sit upon it.
Bhima gnashed his teeth, for he was unable to restrain his pent-up
anger. With eyes flashing like lightning, and in a voice like to thunder he
cried out: “Hear my vow! May I never reach Heaven or meet my ancestors
hereafter if, for these deeds of sin, I do not break the knee of Duryodhana in
battle, and drink the blood of Duhsasana!”
The flames of wrath which leapt on the forehead of Bhima were like
red sparks flying from tough branches on a crackling fire.
Dhritarashtra was sitting in his palace, nor knew aught of what was
passing. The Brahmans, robed in white, were chanting peacefully their
evening mantras, when a jackal howled in the sacrificial chamber. Asses
brayed in response, and ravens answered their cries from all sides. Those
who heard these dread omens exclaimed: “Swashti! Swashti!”[262]
Dhritarashtra shook with terror, and when Vidura had told him all that
had taken place, he said: “The luckless and sinful Duryodhana hath brought
shame upon the head of Rajah Drupada's sweet daughter, and thus courted
death and destruction. May the prayers of a sorrowful old man remove the
wrath of Heaven which these dark omens have revealed.”
Then the blind maharajah was led to Draupadi, and before all the
elders and the princes he spoke to her, kindly and gently, and said: “Noble
queen and virtuous daughter, wife of pious Yudhishthira, and purest of all
women, thou art very dear unto my heart. Alas! my sons have wronged thee
in foul manner this day. O forgive them now, and let the wrath of Heaven be
averted. Whatsoever thou wilt ask of me will be thine.”
Said Draupadi: “O mighty maharajah, thou art merciful; may
happiness be thy dower. I ask of thee to set at liberty now my lord and
husband Yudhishthira. Having been a prince, it is not seemly that he should
be called a slave.”

Dhritarashtra said: “Thy wish is granted. Ask a second boon and
blessing, O fair one. Thou dost deserve more than a single boon.”
Said Draupadi: “Let Arjuna and Bhima and their younger brethren be
set free also and allowed to depart now with their horses and their chariots
and their weapons.”
Dhritarashtra said: “So be it, O high-born princess. Ask yet another
boon and blessing and it will be granted thee.”
Said Draupadi: “I seek no other boon, thou generous monarch: I am a
Kshatriya by birth, and not like to a Brahman, who craveth for gifts without
end. Thou hast freed my husbands from slavery: they will regain their
fortunes by their own mighty deeds.”
Then the Pandava brethren departed from Hastinapur with Pritha and
Draupadi, and returned unto the city of Indra-prastha.
The Kauravas were made angry, and Duryodhana remonstrated with
his royal sire and said: “Thou hast permitted the Pandava princes to depart
in their anger; now they will make ready to wage war against us to regain
their kingdom and their wealth; when they return they will slay us all.
Permit us, therefore, to throw dice with them once again. We will stake our
liberty, and be it laid down that the side which loseth shall go into exile for
twelve full years, and into concealment for a year thereafter. By this
arrangement a bloody war may be averted.”
Dhritarashtra granted his son's wish and recalled the Pandavas. So it
came to pass that Yudhishthira sat down once again to play with Shakuni,
and once again Shakuni brought forth the loaded dice. Ere long the game
ended, and Yudhishthira had lost.
Duhsasana danced with joy and cried aloud: “Now is established the
empire of Duryodhana.”
Said Bhima: “Be not too gladsome, O Duhsasana. Hear and remember
my words: May I never reach Heaven or meet my sires until I shall drink
thy blood!”
Then the Pandava princes cast off their royal garments and clad
themselves in deerskins like humble mendicants. Yudhishthira bade

farewell to Dhritarashtra and Bhishma and Kripa and Vidura, one by one,
and he even said farewell to the Kaurava brethren.
Said Vidura: “Thy mother, the royal Pritha, is too old to wander with
thee through forest and jungle. Let her dwell here until the years of your
exile have passed away.”
Yudhishthira spoke for his brethren and said: “Be it so, O saintly
Vidura. Now bless us ere we depart, for thou hast been unto us like to a
father.”
Then Vidura blessed each one of the Pandava princes, saying: “Be
saintly in exile, subdue your passions, learn truth in your sorrow, and return
in happiness. May these eyes be blessed by beholding thee in Hastinapur
once again.”
Pritha wept over Draupadi and blessed her. Then the Princess of
Panchala went forth with loose tresses; but ere she departed from the city
she vowed a vow, saying: “From this day my hair will fall over my forehead
until Bhima shall have slain Duhsasana and drunk his blood; then shall
Bhima tie up my tresses while his hands are yet wet with the blood of
Duhsasana.”
The Pandava princes wandered towards the deep forest, and Draupadi
followed them.

FOOTNOTES:
[260] Candahar
[261] Pron. doo-sas´a-na.
[262] Similar to “Amen”.

CHAPTER XVI
Second Exile of the Pandavas
The Gift of the Sun God—Life in the Jungle—Bhima and the Ape God—Flowers of
Paradise—Draupadi's Complaint to Krishna—Reproved by Yudhishthira—Arjuna wrestles
with the God Shiva—His Celestial Weapon—Visit to Indra's Heaven—Battle with Sea
Giants—Sages in the Forest—Duryodhana captured by Gandharvas—Pandavas rescue him
—His Desire to perish—The Rival Sacrifice—Karna's Vow—Adventure at Sacred Pond—
Pandavas in Virata—Adventures of Brethren—The Cattle Raid—Kauravas defeated—
Marriage of Arjuna's Son—End of Exile.

Yudhishthira lamented his fate to the Brahmans as he wandered
towards the forest. “Our kingdom is lost to us,” he said, “and our fortune;
everything is lost; we depart in sorrow, and must live on fruits and roots and
the produce of the chase. In the woods are many perils—many reptiles and
hungry wild animals seeking their prey.”
A Brahman advised the deposed rajah to call upon the sun god, and
Yudhishthira prayed: “O sun, thou art the eye of the universe, the soul of all
things that are; thou art the creator; thou art Indra, thou art Vishnu, thou art
Brahma, thou art Prajapati, lord of creatures, father of gods and man; thou
art fire, thou art Mind; thou art lord of all, the eternal Brahma.”
Then Surya[263] appeared before Yudhishthira and gave unto him a
copper pot, which was ever filled with food for the brethren.[264]
For twelve long years the Pandavas lived in the woods with their wife
Draupadi, and Dhaumya, the Brahman. Whatever food they obtained, they
set apart a portion for the holy men and ate the rest. They visited holy
shrines; they bathed in sacred waters; they performed their devotions.
Ofttimes they held converse with Brahmans and sages, who instructed them
in pious works and blessed them, and also promised them that their lost
kingdom would be restored in the fullness of time.
They wandered in sunshine and in shade; they dwelt in pleasant places,
amidst abundant fruits and surrounded by flowers. They suffered also from
tempests and heavy rains, when their path would be torn by streams, and

Draupadi would swoon, and all the brethren would be faint and weary and
in despair. Then Bhima would carry them all on his back and under his
arms.
The gods appeared unto the brethren during their exile. Dharma, god
of wisdom and holiness, addressed Yudhishthira his son many questions,
which he answered piously and well. Hanuman, son of Vayu, the wind god,
was made manifest before Bhima. It chanced that the strong Pandava, who
was also Vayu's son, was hastening on his way and went swift as the wind;
the earth shook under him and trees fell down, and he killed at one touch of
his foot tigers and lions and even great elephants that sought to obstruct his
path.[265] Hanuman shrank to the size of an ape, but his tail spread out in
such great proportions across Bhima's path, that he was compelled to stay
his course and stand still. He spake to Bhima then and told the tale of Rama
and Sita. Then he grew suddenly as lofty as Vindhya mountain and
transported his brother, the Pandava, to the garden of Kuvera,[266] King of
Yakshas, lord of treasure, who dwells in Mount Kailasa in the Himalayas;
then Bhima procured sweet-scented flowers, which gave youth to those who
had grown aged and turned grief into joy, and these he gave unto Draupadi.
Krishna came to visit the Pandavas in the forest, and Draupadi
lamented before him, saying: “The evil-hearted Duryodhana dared to claim
me for his slave. Fie! fie! upon the Pandavas because that they looked on in
silence when I was put to shame. Is it not the duty of a husband to protect
his wife?... These husbands of mine, who have the prowess of lions, saw me
afflicted, nor lifted a hand to save.”
Draupadi wept bitter tears from her exquisite coppery eyes, but
Krishna at length comforted her, saying: “Thou wilt yet live to see the
wives of those men who persecuted thee lamenting over their fallen
husbands as they welter in their life blood.... I will help the Pandavas, and
thou wilt be once again a queen over kings.”
Krishna said to Yudhishthira: “Had I been at Dwaraka when thou wert
called upon to visit Hastinapur, this unfair match would not have taken
place, for I would have warned Dhritarashtra. But I was waging a war
against demons.... What can I do, now that this disaster is accomplished?...
It is not easy to confine the waters after the dam hath burst.”

After Krishna returned to his kingdom, Draupadi continued to lament
her fate. She said to Yudhishthira: “The sinful, evil-hearted Duryodhana
hath a heart of steel.... O king, I lie on the ground, remembering my soft
luxurious bed. I, who sit on a grass mat, cannot forget my chairs of ivory. I
have seen thee in the court of monarchs; now thou art a beggar. I have
gazed upon thee in thy silken robes, who art now clad in rags.... What peace
can my heart know now, O king, remembering the things that have been?
My heart is full of grief.... Doth not thy wrath blaze up, seeing thy brothers
in distress and me in sorrow? How canst thou forgive thy cruel enemy? Art
thou devoid of anger, Yudhishthira?... Alas! a Kshatriya who doth not act at
the right moment—who forgiveth the foeman he should strike down, is the
most despised of all men. The hour hath now come for thee to seek
vengeance; the present is not a time for forgiveness.”
Said the wise Yudhishthira: “Anger is sinful; it is the cause of
destruction. He that is angry cannot distinguish between right and wrong.
Anger slayeth one who should be reverenced; it doth reverence to one who
should be slain. An angry man may commit his own soul to hell. Know thou
that wise men control their wrath so as to achieve prosperity both in this
world and in the next. A weak man cannot control his wrath; but men of
wisdom and insight seek to subdue their passions, knowing that he who is
angry cannot perceive things in their true perspective. None but ignorant
people regard anger as equivalent to energy.... Because fools commit folly,
should I who seek wisdom do likewise?... If wrongs were not righted except
by chastisement, the whole world would speedily be destroyed, for anger is
destruction; it maketh men to slay one another. O fair Draupadi! it is meet
to be forgiving; one should forgive every wrong. He who is forgiving shall
attain to eternal bliss; he who is foolish and cannot forgive is destroyed both
in this world and in the next. Forgiveness is the greatest virtue; it is
sacrifice; it is tradition; it is inspiration. Forgiveness, O beautiful one! is
holiness; it is Truth; it is Brahma. By forgiveness the universe is made
steadfast.... The wise man who learns how to forgive attaineth to Brahma
(the highest god). O Draupadi, remember thou the verses of the sage—

‘Let not thy wrath possess thee,
But worship peace with joy;
Who yieldeth to temptation
That great god will destroy’.

He who is self-controlled will attain to sovereignty, and the qualities of
self-control are forgiveness and gentleness. O let me attain with self-control
to everlasting goodness!”
Said Draupadi: “I bow down before the Creator and Ordainer of life
and the three worlds, for my mind, it seems, hath been dimmed. By deeds
men are influenced, for deeds produce consequences; by works are they set
free.... Man can never gain prosperity by forgiveness and gentleness; thy
virtue hath not shielded thee, O king; thou art following a shadow.... Men
should not obey their own wills, but the will of the god who hath ordained
all things.... Yet O, methinks, as a doll is moved by strings, so are living
creatures moved by the lord of all; he doth play with them as a child with a
toy.... Those who have done wrong are now happy, and I am full of grief
and in sore distress. Can I praise thy god who permits of such inequality?
What reward doth thy god receive when he alloweth Duryodhana to prosper
—he who is full of evil; he who doth destroy virtue and religion? If a sin
doth not rebound on the sinner, then a man's might is the greatest force and
not thy god, and I sorrow for those who are devoid of might.”
Yudhishthira made answer: “Alas! thy words are the words of an
unbeliever. I do not act merely for the sake of reward. I give because it is
right to give, and I sacrifice because it is my duty so to do. I follow in the
paths of those who have lived wise and holy lives, because that my heart
turneth toward goodness. I am no trader in goodness, ever looking for the
fruits thereof. The man who doubteth virtue will be born among the brutes;
[267]
he will never attain to everlasting bliss. O do not, thou fair one, doubt
the ancient religion of thy people! God will reward; he is the giver of fruits
for deeds; virtue and vice bear fruits.... The wise are content with little in
this world; the fools are not content although they receive much, because
they will have no joy hereafter.... The gods are shrouded in mystery; who
can pierce the cloud which covers the doings of the gods? Although thou
canst not perceive the fruits of goodness, do not doubt thy religion or the
gods. Let thy scepticism give room to faith. O do not slander the great god,
but endeavour to learn how to know him. Turn not away from the Supreme
One who giveth eternal life, O Draupadi.”
Said Draupadi: “I do not slander my god, the lord of all, for in my
sorrow I but rave.... But yet I hold that a man should act, lest by inaction he
is censured. Without acts no one can live. He who believeth in chance and

destiny and is inactive, liveth a life of weakness and helplessness which
cannot last long. Success comes to him who acts, and success depends on
time and circumstance. So hath a wise Brahman taught me.”
Bhima then spoke, charging Yudhishthira with weakness, and pleading
with him to wrest the sovereignty from Duryodhana: “O thou art like froth,”
he cried; “thou art unripe fruit! O king, strike down thine enemies! Battle is
the highest virtue for a Kshatriya.”
Said Yudhishthira: “Verily, my heart burneth because of our sufferings.
But I have given my pledge to remain in exile, and it cannot be violated, O
Bhima. Virtue is greater than life and prosperity in this world; it is the way
to celestial bliss.”
Then they were all silent, and they pondered over these things.
Now the Pandavas had need of celestial weapons, for these were
possessed by Drona and Bhishma and Karna. In time, therefore, the holy
sage Vyasa appeared before Arjuna and bade him to visit Mount Kailasa,
the high seat of the gracious and propitious god Shiva, the three-eyed, the
blue-throated, and to perform penances there with deep devotion, so as to
obtain gifts of arms. So Arjuna went his way, and when he reached the
mountain of Shiva he went through great austerities: he raised his arms aloft
and, leaning on naught, stood on his tiptoes; for food he ate at first withered
leaves, then he fed upon air alone. Great was the fervour of his austerities,
and from the ground smoke issued forth. The Rishis pleaded with Shiva,
fearing disaster from the penances of Arjuna. Then the god assumed the
form of a hunter and went towards Indra's warrior son, whom he challenged
to single combat. First they fought with weapons; then they wrestled one
with another fiercely and long, and in the end Arjuna was cast upon the
ground and he swooned. When that brave Pandava regained consciousness
he made a clay image of Shiva, prostrated himself and worshipped the
gracious one, and made an offering of flowers. Soon afterwards he beheld
his opponent wearing the garland he had given, and he knew that he had
wrestled with Shiva himself. Arjuna fell down before him, and received
from the god a celestial weapon named Pasupata. Then a great storm broke
forth, and the earth shook, and the spirit of the weapon stood beside Arjuna,
ready to obey his will.

Next appeared Indra, king of gods, Varuna, god of waters, Yama, king
of the dead, and Kuvera, lord of treasures, and they stood upon the
mountain summit in all their glory; unto Arjuna they gave gifts of other
celestial weapons.
Thereafter Indra transported his son to his own bright city, the celestial
Swarga, where the flowers always bloom and sweet music is ever wafted on
fragrant winds. There he beheld sea-born Apsaras, the heavenly brides of
gods and heroes, and music-loving Gandharvas, who sang songs and
danced merrily in their joy. And Urvasi, a fair Apsara of faultless form, with
bright eyes and silken hair, looked with love upon Arjuna; but she sought in
vain to subdue him, whereat she spoke scornfully, saying: “Kama, god of
love, hath wounded me with his arrows, yet thou dost scorn me. For this, O
Arjuna, thou wilt for a season live unregarded among women as a dancer
and musician.”
Arjuna was troubled, but Indra said: “This curse will work out for thy
good.”
Arjuna abode in Indra's fair city for the space of five years. He
achieved great skill in music and in dance and song. And he was trained
also to wield the celestial weapons which the gods had given unto him.
Now the demons and giants who are named the Daityas and Danavas
were the ancient enemies of Indra. Certain of them there were who had their
dwellings in the lowest division of the underworld beneath the floor of
ocean, which is called Patala. And a day came when Arjuna waged war with
them. He rode forth in Indra's great car, which went through the air like to a
bird, and Matali was the driver. When he reached the shore of the sounding
sea, the billows rose against him like great mountains, and the waters were
divided; he saw demon fish and giant tortoises, and vessels laden with
rubies. But he paused not, for he was without fear. The mighty Arjuna was
eager for battle, and he blew a mighty blast upon his war shell: the Daityas
and Danavas heard him and quaked with terror.[268] Then the demons smote
their drums and sounded their trumpets, and amidst the dread clamour the
wallowing sea monsters arose and leapt over the waves against Indra's great
son. But Arjuna chanted mantras; he shot clouds of bright arrows; he fought
with his bright celestial weapons, and the furies were thwarted and beaten
back. Then they sent fire against him and water, and they flung rocks like to

great peaks; but he fought on until in the end he triumphed, and slew all that
stood against him nor could escape.
Thereafter the valiant hero rode speedily towards the city of demons
and giants which is named Hiranyapura. The women came out to lure him,
calling aloud, and their voices were like the voices of cranes. He heard but
paused not. All these evil giant women were driven before him; in
confusion they fled, terrified by the clamour of Indra's celestial car and the
driving of Matali, and their ear-rings and their necklaces fell from their
bodies like to boulders tumbling and thundering adown mountain steeps.
Arjuna reached the city of Hiranyapura and entered it; and he gazed
with wonder on mighty chariots with ten thousand horses, which were
many-coloured like to gaily-plumaged peacocks, beautiful and stately and
proud. And he wrecked the dwellings of the Daityas and Danavas.
Indra praised his warrior son for his valour in overcoming the demons
and giants of ocean, and he gave unto him a chain of gold, a bright diadem,
and the war shell which gave forth a mighty blast like to thunder.[269]
During the years that Arjuna had his dwelling in Indra's celestial city,
Yudhishthira and his three younger brethren, with Draupadi and the priest
Dhaumya, abode a time in the forest of Kamyaka. Great sages visited them
there, and from one Yudhishthira obtained skill in dice. Others led the
wanderers to sacred waters, in which they were cleansed of their sins, and
they achieved great virtues. And the sages related unto them many tales of
men and women who suffered and made self-sacrifices, undergoing long
exiles and performing penances so as to attain to great wisdom and win
favour from the gods.
Thereafter the exiles went northward towards the Himalayas, and at
length they beheld afar off the dwelling of Kuvera, lord of treasure and
King of Yakshas. They gazed upon palaces of crystal and gold; the high
walls were studded with jewels, and the gleaming ramparts and turrets were
adorned by dazzling streamers. They saw beauteous gardens of bright
flowers, and soft winds came towards them laden with perfume; wonderful
and fair were the trees, and they were vocal with the songs of birds.
Kuvera walked forth and spake words of wisdom unto Yudhishthira,
counselling him to be patient and long-suffering, and to wait for the time

and the place for displaying Kshatriya prowess.
The exiles wandered on, and one day, when they sighed for Arjuna,
they beheld the bright car of Indra, and they worshipped Matali, the
charioteer. Then Indra came with his hosts of Apsaras and Gandharvas, and
when they had adored him, the god promised Yudhishthira that he would
yet reign in splendour over all men.
Arjuna appeared, and he was received with rejoicing, and all the
Pandavas returned together to Kamyaka. There they were visited by
Markandeya, the mighty sage, whose life endures through all the world's
ages, and he spake of the mysteries and all that had taken place from the
beginning, and revealed unto them full knowledge of the Deluge.
Now while the Pandavas were enduring great suffering in the forest,
Karna spake to Duryodhana and prevailed upon him to spy upon their
misery. So Dhritarashtra's son went forth, as was the custom every three
years, to inspect the cattle and brand the calves. And with him went Karna
and many princes and courtiers, and also a thousand ladies of the royal
household. When, however, they all drew nigh to the forest, they found that
the Gandharvas and Apsaras, who, as it chanced, had descended to make
merry there, would not permit the royal train to advance. Duryodhana sent
messages to the Gandharva king, commanding him to depart with all his
hosts; but the celestial spirits feared him not, and issued forth to battle. A
great conflict was waged, and the Kauravas were defeated. Karna fled, and
Duryodhana and many of his courtiers and all the royal ladies were taken
prisoners.
It happened that some of Duryodhana's followers who took flight
reached the place where the Pandavas were, and told them how their
kinsmen had been overcome. Then Arjuna and Bhima and the two younger
brethren went forth against the Gandharvas and fought with them until they
were compelled to release the royal prisoners. In this manner was the proud
Duryodhana humbled by those against whom he had cherished enmity.
Yudhishthira gave a feast to the Kauravas, and he called Duryodhana
his “brother”, whereat Duryodhana made pretence to be well pleased,
although his heart was stung with deep mortification.

After this the sullen and angry Duryodhana resolved to end his life.
His friends remonstrated with him, but he said: “I have naught to live for
now, nor do I desire friendship, or wealth, or power, or enjoyment. Do not
delay my purpose, but leave me each one, for I will eat no more food, and I
will wait here until I die. Return, therefore, unto Hastinapur and reverence
and obey those who are greater than me.”
Then Duryodhana made a mat of grass, and, having purified himself
with water, sat down to wait for the end, clad in rags and absorbed in silent
meditation.
But the Daityas and Danavas[270] desired not that their favourite rajah
should thus end his life lest their power should be weakened, and they sent
to the forest a strange goddess, who carried him away in the night. Then the
demons, before whom Duryodhana was brought, promised to aid him in the
coming struggle against the Pandavas, and he was comforted thereat, and
abandoned his vow to die in solitude. So he returned speedily unto
Hastinapur and resumed his high position there.
Soon afterwards, when the princes and the elders sat in council with
the maharajah, wise old Bhishma praised the Pandava princes for their
valour and generosity, and advised Duryodhana to offer them his friendship,
so that the kinsmen might ever afterwards live together in peace.
Duryodhana made no answer, and, smiling bitterly, rose up and walked out
of the council chamber. Bhishma was made angry thereat, and departed also
and went unto his own house.
Then Duryodhana sought to rival the glory of Yudhishthira by holding
an Imperial sacrifice. Duhsasana, with evil heart, sent messengers unto
Yudhishthira, inviting him to attend with his brethren; but Yudhishthira
said: “Although this great sacrifice will reflect honour on all the
descendants of King Bharata, and therefore upon me and my brethren, I
cannot be present because our years of exile have not yet come to an end.”
He spoke calmly and with dignity, but Bhima was made angry, and
exclaimed: “Messengers of Duryodhana, tell thy master that when the years
of exile are over, Yudhishthira will offer up a mighty sacrifice with weapons
and burn in consuming flames the whole family of Dhritarashtra.”