Chapter 199

“Dhritarashtra said, Upon the slaughter of the Atiratha, viz., Drona, byPrishata’s son, what did my sons and the Pandavas next do?’

“Sanjaya, said, ‘After the rout of the Kuru army, upon the slaughter ofthat Atiratha, viz., Drona, by Prishata’s son, Dhananjaya, the son ofKunti beholding a wonderful phenomenon in connection with his ownvictory, asked Vyasa, O bull of Bharata’s race, who came thither incourse of his wanderings, saying, ‘O great Rishi, while I was engaged inslaying the foe in battle with showers of bright shafts, I continuallybeheld before me, proceeding in advance of my car, a person of blazinghue, as if endued with the effulgence of fire. Whithersoever he proceededwith his uplifted lance, all the hostile warriors were seen to breakbefore him. Broken in reality by him, people regarded the foe to havebeen broken by me. Following in his wake, I only destroyed those, alreadydestroyed by him. O holy one, tell me who was that foremost of persons,armed with lance, resembling the sun himself in energy, that was thusseen by me? He did not touch the earth with his feet, nor did he hurl hislance even once. In consequence of his energy, thousands of lances issuedout of that one lance held by him.’

“Vyasa said, ‘Thou hast, O Arjuna, seen Sankara, that First cause fromwhich have sprung the Prajapatis, that puissant Being endued with greatenergy, he that is the embodiment of heaven, earth and sky, the DivineLord, the protector of the universe, the great Master, the giver ofboons, called also Isana. O, seek the protection of that boon, givingDeity, that lord of the universe. He is called Mahadeva (the SupremeDeity), of Supreme Soul, the one only Lord, with matted locks (on head),the abode of auspiciousness. Of three eyes and mighty arms, he is calledRudra, with his locks tied in the shape of a crown, and his body attiredin skins. That boon-giving lord of the universe, that Supreme Deity, isalso called Hara and Sthanu. He is the foremost of every being in theuniverse, he is incapable of being vanquished, he is the delighter of theuniverse and its supreme ruler. The first cause, the light and refuge ofthe universe, he is ever victorious. The Soul and the creator of theuniverse, and having the universe for his form, he is possessed of greatfame. The Lord of the universe, and its great Ruler, that puissant one,is also the master of all actions. Called also Sambhu, he is self-born,he is the lord of all creatures, and the origin of the Past, the Future,and the Present. He is Yoga and the lord of Yoga; he is called Sarva, andis the Lord of all the worlds. He is superior to everything. The foremostof everything in the universe, and the highest of all, he is called alsoParumesthin. The Ordainer of the three worlds, he is the sole refuge ofthe three worlds. Incapable of being vanquished, he is the protector ofthe universe, and abode (the necessity of) birth, decay, and death. TheSoul of knowledge, incapable of being compassed by knowledge, and thehighest of all knowledge he is unknowable. Through grace, he giveth untohis worshippers the boons they desire. That Lord hath for his companionscelestial beings of diverse forms, some of whom are dwarfs, some havingmatted locks, some with bald heads, some with short necks, some withlarge stomachs, some with huge bodies, some possessed of great strengthand some of long ears. All of them, O Partha, have deformed faces andmouths and legs and strange attires. That Supreme Deity, called Mahadeva,is worshipped by followers that are even such. Even that Siva, O son,endued with such energy, proceedeth through kindness, in advance of thee.In that fierce battle, O Partha, making the very hair stand on end, whoelse, O Arjuna, than the divine Maheswara, that foremost of all bowmen,that Deity of divine form, could even in imagination venture to vanquishthat force which was protected by those great smiters and bowmen, viz.,Aswatthaman and Karna and Kripa? None can venture to stay before thewarrior that hath Maheswara walking before him. There is no being in thethree worlds that is equal to him. And the very scent of the enragedMahadeva, foes in battle tremble and become senseless and fall in largenumbers. For this, the gods in heaven adore and bow to him. Those men inthis world and those other men of pious conduct, that devoutly worshipthe boon-giving, divine, and auspicious Rudra, obtain happiness here andattain to the highest state hereafter. O son of Kunti, bow down unto himthat is peace, unto him, called Rudra of blue throat, exceedingly subtle,and of great effulgence, unto him called Kapardin, him that is terrible,him that of tawny eyes, him that is boon-giving; unto that greatordainer, of red locks and righteous conduct; unto him that always doesauspicious acts; unto him that is an object of desire; him that is oftawny eyes; him that is called Sthanu; him that is called Purusha; untohim that is of tawny hair; him that is bold, him that is exceedinglysubtle and of great effulgence; unto him that is the giver of light; himthat is the embodiment of all sacred waters; him that is the God of gods;and him that is endued with great impetuosity; unto him that is ofmanifest form; him that is called Sarva; him that is of agreeable attire;unto him that has an excellent head-gear, him that is of handsome face;him that has the mountains for his habitation; him that is peace; himthat is the protector; him that has barks of trees for his attire; himwhose arms are decked with ornaments of gold, him who is fierce, him thatis the lord of all the points of the compass; him that is the lord of theclouds and of all created beings; him that is the lord of all trees andof all kine; him that has his body shrouded with trees; him who is thecelestial generalissimo; him who inspires all thought; him who has thesacrificial ladle in his hand; him who is blazing; him who wields thebow; him who is Rama’s self, him who has diverse forms; him who is thelord of the universe; him who had the munja grass for his attire; him whohas a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, a thousand arms, and a thousandlegs. O son of Kunti, seek the protection of that boon-giving Lord of theuniverse, the lord of Uma, that God of three eyes, that destroyer ofDaksha’s sacrifice; that guardian of all created things, that being whois always cheerful, that protector of all beings, that God of unfadingglory; that one with matted locks; that mover of all superior beings,that one whose navel is like that of a bull and who hath the bull for hissymbol; that one who is proud like the bull, who is the lord of bulls;who is represented by the horns of the bull; and who is the bull ofbulls; that one who hath the image of the bull on his banner; who isliberal to all righteous persons; who can be approached by Yoga only; andwhose eyes are like those of a bull; who owneth very superior weapons:who hath Vishnu himself for his arrow; who is the embodiment ofrighteousness; and who is called Maheswara; who is of vast stomach andvast body; who hath a leopard’s skin for his seat; who is the lord of theworlds; who is devoted to Brahma and who loveth Brahmanas; who is armedwith trident; who is boon-giving; who wieldeth the sword and the shield,and who is highly auspicious, who wieldeth the bow called Pinaka, who isdivested of the battle axe,[273] and who is the protector and lord of theuniverse. I place myself in the hands of that divine Lord, that grantorof protection, that God attired in deer-skins. Salutations, to that Lordof the celestials who hath Vaisravana for his friend. Salutations ever tohim of excellent vows; to him who hath excellent bowmen for hiscompanions; to him who himself wieldeth the bow; to that God with whomthe bow is a favourite weapon; who is himself the shaft impelled by thebow; who is the bowstring and the bow; and the preceptor teaching the useof the bow. Salutations to the God whose weapons are fierce; and who isthe foremost of all the gods. Salutations to him of diverse forms; to himwho hath many bowmen around him. Salutations ever to him who is calledSthanu and who has a large number of excellent bowmen for his companions.Salutations to him who destroyed the triple city. Salutations to him whoslew (the Asura) Bhaga. Salutations to him who is the lord of trees andof men. Salutations to him who is the lord of the (celestial), Mothers,and of those tribes of spirits known by the name of Ganas. Salutationsever to him who is the lord of kine and of sacrifices. Salutations everto him who is the lord of the waters and the lord of the gods, who is thedestroyer of Surya’s teeth, who is of three eyes, who is the grantor ofboons; who is called Hara, who is blue-throated, and who is of goldenlocks. I will now tell thee, according to my knowledge and as I haveheard of them, all the divine deeds of Mahadeva of Supreme wisdom. IfMahadeva becomes angry, neither gods, nor Asuras, Gandharvas, norRakshasas, even if they hide themselves in deep oceans, can have peace.In the days of yore, Daksha, for performing a sacrifice, had collectedthe necessary articles. Mahadeva destroyed that sacrifice in wrath.Indeed, He became very stern on that occasion. Shooting an arrow from hisbow, he uttered terrible roars. The celestials then became filled withanxiety and fright. Indeed, when Mahadeva became angry and the Sacrifice(in its embodied form) fled away, the gods became exceedingly frightenedat the twang of Mahadeva’s bow and the sound of his palms. The gods andAsuras all fell down and submitted to Mahadeva. All the waters swelled upin agitations and the earth trembled. The mountains split, and all thepoints of the compass and the Nagas became stupefied. The universe,enveloped in a thick darkness, could no longer be seen. The splendour ofall luminaries, with the sun was destroyed. The Rishis, filled with fear,became agitated, and desirous of their own good as also of all creatures,performed propitiatory rites. Surya was then eating the principaloblation. Smilingly Sankara approached him and tore out his teeth. Thegods then, humbling themselves to him, fled away, trembling. Once more,Mahadeva aimed at the gods a shower of blazing and keen arrows resemblingflames of fire mixed with smoke, or clouds with lightning. Beholding thatarrowy shower, all the gods bowing down unto Maheswara, assigned to Rudraa substantial share in sacrifices. In fright, the gods, O prince, soughthis protection. His wrath being dispelled, the great God then restoredthe sacrifice. The gods that had fled away came back. Indeed, they are tothis day afraid of Maheswara. Formerly, the valiant Asuras had, inheaven, three cities. Each of those cities was excellent and large. Onewas made of iron, another of silver, and the third of gold. The goldencity belonged to Kamalaksha, the silver city to Tarakaksha, and thethird, made of iron, had Vidyunmalin for its lord. With all his weapons,Maghavat (Indra) was unable to make any impression on those cities.Afflicted (by the Asuras), all the gods sought the protection of Rudra.Approaching him, all the gods with Vasava at their head, said, ‘Theseterrible dwellers of the triple city have received boons from Brahma.Filled with pride in consequence of those boons, they are greatlyafflicting the universe, O Lord of the gods, none, save thee, iscompetent to slay them. Therefore, O Mahadeva, slay these enemies of thegods: O Rudra, creatures slain in every sacrifice shall then be thine.Thus addressed by the gods, Mahadeva thus accepted their request, movedby the desire of benefiting them, and said, ‘I will overthrow theseAsuras. And Hara made the two mountains, viz., Gandhamadana and Vindhya,the two poles of his car. And Sankara made the earth with her oceans andforests his battle car. And the three-eyed deity made that prince ofsnakes, viz., Sesha, the Aksha, of that car. And that God of gods, thewielder of Pinaka, made the moon and the sun the two wheels of thatvehicle. And the triple-eyed Lord made Elapatra and Pushpadanta, the twopins of the yoke. And the valiant Mahadeva made the Malaya mountains theyoke, and the great Takshaka the string for tying the yoke to the poles,and the creatures about him the traces of the steed. And Maheswara madethe four Vedas his four steeds. And that lord of the three worlds madethe supplementary Vedas the bridle-bits. And Mahadeva made Gayatri andSavitri the reins, the syllable Om the whip, and Brahma the driver. Andmaking the Mandara mountains the bow, Vasuki the bowstring, Vishnu hisexcellent shaft, Agni the arrow-head, and Vayu the two wings of thatshafts, Yama the feathers in its tail, lightning the whetting stone, andMeru the standard, Siva, riding on that excellent car which was composedof all the celestial forces, proceeded for the destruction of the triplecity. Indeed, Sthanu, that foremost of smiter, that Destroyer of Asuras,that handsome warrior of immeasurable prowess, adored by the celestials,O Partha, and by Rishis possessing wealth of asceticism, caused anexcellent and unrivalled array called after his own name, and stoodimmovable for a thousand years. When, however, the three cities cametogether in the firmament, the lord Mahadeva. pierced them with thatterrible shaft of his, consisting of three knots. The Danavas were unableto gaze at that shafts inspired with Yuga-fire and composed of Vishnu andSoma. While the triple city commenced to burn, the goddess Parvatirepaired thither to behold the sight. She had then on her lap, a childhaving a bald head with five clumps of hair on it. The goddess asked thedeities as to who that child was. Sakra, through ill-feeling endeavouredto strike that child with his thunderbolt. The divine lord Mahadeva (forthe child was none other), smiling, quickly paralysed the arm of theenraged Sakra. Then god Sakra, with his arm paralysed accompanied by allthe celestials, speedily repaired to the lord Brahma of unfading glory.Bowing unto him with their heads, they addressed Brahma with joined handsand said, ‘Some wonderful creature, O Brahma, lying on the lap ofParvati, in the form of a child, was behold by us but not saluted. Wehave all been vanquished by him. We, therefore, desire to ask thee as towho he may be. Indeed, that boy, without fighting, hath with the greatestease vanquished us all with Purandara at our head.’ Hearing these wordsof theirs, Brahma. that foremost of all persons, acquainted with Brahma,reflected for a moment and understood that boy of immeasurable energy tobe none else than the divine Sambhu, Addressing then, those foremost ofcelestials with Sakra at their head, Brahma said, ‘That child is thedivine Hara the Lord of the entire mobile and immobile universe. There isnothing superior to Maheswara. That Being of immeasurable splendour whowas beheld by you all with Uma, that divine lord, had assumed the form ofa child for Uma’s sake. Let us all go unto him. That divine andillustrious one is the Supreme Lord of the world. Ye gods, ye could notrecognise that master of the universe.’ Then all the gods with theGrandsire repaired to that child, endued with the effulgence of themorning sun. Beholding Maheswara, and knowing that he was the SupremeBeing, the Grandsire Brahma thus adored him: Thou art Sacrifice, O lord,thou art the stay and refuge of the universe. Thou art Bhava, thou artMahadeva, thou art the abode (of all things), and thou art the highestrefuge. This whole universe with its mobile and immobile creatures, ispervaded by thee. O holy one, O lord of the past and the future, O lordof the world, O protector of the universe, let Sakra, afflicted with thywrath, have thy grace.’

“Vyasa continued, ‘Hearing these words of the lotus-born Brahma,Maheswara became gratified. Desirous of extending his grace, he laughedaloud. The celestials then gratified (with praise) both Uma and Rudra.The arm of the thunder-wielding Sakra re-got its natural state. Thatforemost one of all the gods, that destroyer of Daksha’s sacrifice, thatdivine lord having the bull for his sign, became gratified with the gods.He is Rudra he is Siva, he is Agni, he is everything, and he hathknowledge of everything. He is Indra, he is the Wind, he is the twinAswins, and he is the lighting. He is Bhava, he is Parjanya, he isMahadeva, he is sinless. He is the Moon, he is Isana, he is Surya, he isVaruna. He is Kala, he is Antaka, he is Mrityu, he is Yama.[274] He isthe day, and he is the night. He is the fortnight, he is the month, he isthe seasons. He is the morning and evening-twilights, he is the year. Heis Dhatri, he is Vidhatri, he is the Soul of the universe, and he is thedoer of all acts in the universe. Though himself without body, it is hewho is the embodied celestial. Endued with great splendour he is adoredand praised by all the gods. He is One, he is Many, he is hundred andthousand. Brahmanas versed in the Vedas say that he hath two forms. Theseare the terrible and the auspicious. These two forms, again, aremultifarious. His auspicious forms are water, light, and the moon.Whatever is highly mysterious in the several branches of the Vedas, inthe Upanishads, in the Puranas, and in those sciences that deal with thesoul, is that God, viz., Maheswara, Mahadeva is even such. That God is,again, without birth. All the attributes of that God are not capable ofbeing enumerated by me even if, O son of Pandu, I were to recite themcontinually for a thousand years. Even unto those that are afflicted byall the evil planets, even unto those that are stained with every sin,that great protector, if they seek him, becomes gratified with them andgranteth them salvation. He granteth, and taketh away life and health andprosperity and wealth and diverse kinds of objects of desire. Theprosperity is his that is seen in Indra and other gods. He is everengaged in the good and evil of men in this world. In consequence of hissupremacy, he can always obtain whatever objects he desires. He is calledMaheswara and is the lord of even the supreme ones. In many forms of manykinds he pervadeth the universe. The mouth which that God has is in theocean. It is well-known that mouth, assuming the form of a mare’s head,drinketh the sacrificial libation in the shape of water. This god alwaysdwelleth in crematoriums. Men worship that Supreme lord in that placewhere none but the courageous can go. Many are the blazing and terribleforms of this God that men speak of and worship in the world. Many alsoare the names, of truthful import, of this Deity in all the worlds. Thosenames are founded upon his supremacy, his omnipotence, and his acts. Inthe Vedas the excellent hymn called Sata Rudriya, hath been sung inhonour of that great God called the infinite Rudra. That God is the lordof all wishes that are human and heavenly. He is omnipotent, and he isthe supreme master. Indeed, that God pervadeth the vast universe. TheBrahmanas and the Munis describe him as the First-born of all creatures.He is the First of all the gods; from his mouth was born Vayu (the wind).And since he always protecteth the creatures (of the universe) andsporteth with them, and since also he is the lord of all creatures,therefore is he called Pasupati. And since his Phallic emblem is alwayssupposed to be in the observance of the vow of Brahmacharya, and since healways gladden the world, therefore he is called Maheswara. The Rishis,the gods, the Gandharvas, and Apsaras, always worship his Phallic emblemwhich is supposed to stand upright. That worship maketh Maheswara glad.Indeed, Sankara (at such worship) becomes happy, pleased, and highlyglad. And since with respect to the past, the future, and the present,that God has many forms, he is, on that account, called Vahurupa(many-formed). Possessed of one eye he blazeth forth in effulgence, or hemay be regarded to have many eyes on every side of his body. And since,he possesseth the worlds, he is for that reason called Sarva. And sincehis form is like that of smoke, he is for that reason called Dhurjjati.And since those deities, viz., the Viswedevas are in him, he is for thatreason called Viswarupa. And since three goddesses adore and haverecourse to that Lord of the universe, viz., Firmament, Water and Earth,he is for that reason called Tryamvaka. And since he always increasethall kinds of wealth and wisheth the good of mankind in all their acts, heis for that reason called Siva. He possesseth a thousand eyes, or tenthousand eyes, and hath them on all sides. And since he protecteth thisvast universe, he is for that reason called Mahadeva. And since he isgreat and ancient and is the source of life and of its continuance, andsince his Phallic emblem is everlasting, he is for that reason calledSthanu. And since the solar and the lunar rays of light that appear inthe world are spoken of as the hair on the Three-eyed one, he is for thatreason called Vyomakesa. And since, afflicting Brahma and Indra andVaruna and Yama and Kuvera, he destroyeth them ultimately, he is for thatreason called Hara. And since, he is the Past, the Future, and thePresent, and, in fact, everything in the universe, and since he is theorigin of the past, the future, and the present, he is for that reasoncalled Bhava. The word Kapi is said to mean supreme, and Vrisha is saidto mean righteousness. The illustrious God of gods, therefore, is calledVrishakapi. And since Maheswara by means of his two eyes closed (inmeditation), created through sheer force of will a third eye on hisforehead, he is for that reason called the Three-eyed. Whatever ofunsoundness there is in the bodies of living creatures, and whatever ofsoundness there is in them, represent that God. He is the wind, the vitalairs called Prana, Apana (and the others) in the bodies of all creatures,including even those that are diseased. He who adoreth any image of thePhallic emblem of that high-souled God, always obtaineth great prosperityby that act. Downwards fiery, and half the body, that is auspiciousnessis the moon. His auspiciousness is the moon. So also half his soul isfire and half the moon. His auspicious from, full of energy, is moreblazing than the forms of the gods. Among men, his blazing and terribleform is called fire. With that auspicious form he practisethBrahmacharya. With that other terrible form he as supreme Lord devouretheverything. And since he burneth, since he is fierce, since he is enduedwith great prowess, and since he devoureth flesh and blood and marrow, heis for this called Rudra. Even such is the deity called Mahadeva, armedwith Pinaka, who, O Partha, was seen by thee engaged in slaying thy foesin advance of thy car. After thou hadst vowed to slay the ruler of theSindhus, O sinless one, Krishna showed thee this God, in thy dream,sitting on the top of that foremost of mountains. This illustrious Godproceedeth in advance of thee in battle. It is he who gave thee thoseweapons with which thou didst slay the Danavas. The hymn approved of theVedas, and called Sata-Rudriya, in honour of that God of gods, thatexcellent, famous, life-enhancing, and sacred hymn, has now, O Partha,been explained to thee. This hymn of four divisions, capable ofaccomplishing every object, is sacred, destructive of all sins, andcompetent to drive away all stains and to kill all sorrows and all fears.The men that always listen to this succeeds in vanquishing all his foesand is highly respected in the region of Rudra. The person who alwaysattentively reads or listens to the recitation of this excellent andauspicious account, appertaining to battle, of the illustrious Deity, andhe worships with devotion that illustrious Lord of the universe,obtaineth all the objects of desire, in consequence of the three-eyed Godbeing gratified with him. Go and fight, O son of Kunti, defeat is not forthee, that hast Janardana. on thy side for thy adviser and protector.’

“Sanjaya said, ‘Having addressed Arjuna in these words, the son ofParasara, O chief of the Bharatas, went away to the place he had comefrom, O chastiser of foes.’