Chapter 230

Markandeya continued, “When Skanda had bestowed these powers, Swahaappeared to him and said, ‘Thou art my natural son,–I desire that thoushalt grant exquisite happiness to me.”

“Skanda replied, ‘What sort of happiness dost thou wish to enjoy?'”

“Swaha replied, ‘O mighty being, I am the favourite daughter of Daksha,by name Swaha; and from my youthful days I have been in love withHutasana (the Fire-god); but that god, my son, does not understand myfeelings. I desire to live for ever with him (as his wife).'”

“Skanda replied, ‘From this day, lady, all the oblations that men ofvirtuous character, who swerve not from the path of virtue, will offer totheir gods or ancestors with incantation of purifying hymns by Brahmanas,shall always be offered (through Agni) coupled with the name of Swaha,and thus, excellent lady, wilt thou always live associated with Agni, thegod of fire.'”

“Markandeya continued, Thus addressed and honoured by Skanda, Swaha wasgreatly pleased; and associated with her husband Pavaka (the Fire-god),she honoured him in return.'”

“Then Brahma, the lord of all creatures, said to Mahasena, ‘Do thou goand visit thy father Mahadeva, the conqueror of Tripura. Rudra coalescingwith Agni (the Fire-god) and Uma with Swaha have combined to make theeinvincible for the well-being of all creatures. And the semen of thehigh-souled Rudra cast into the reproductive organ of Uma was thrown backupon this hill, and hence the twin Mujika and Minjika came into being. Aportion of it fell into the Blood Sea, another portion, into the rays ofthe sun, another upon the earth and thus was it distributed in fiveportions. Learned men ought to remember that these thy various andfierce-looking followers living on the flesh of animals were producedfrom the semen’. ‘Be it so,’ so saying, the high-souled Mahasena withfatherly love, honoured his father Maheswara.”

“Markandeya continued, ‘Men who are desirous of acquiring wealth, shouldworship those five classes of spirits with the sun flower, and foralleviation of diseases also worship must be rendered to them. The twinMujika and Minjika begotten by Rudra must always be respected by personsdesiring the welfare of little children; and persons who desire to havechildren born to them must always worship those female spirits who liveon human flesh and are produced in trees. Thus all Pisachas are said tobe divided into innumerable classes. And now, O king, listen to theorigin of the bells and standards of Skanda. Airavata (Indra’s elephant)is known to have had two bells of the name of Vaijayanti, and thekeen-witted Sakra had them brought to him, and personally gave them toGuha. Visakha took one of those bells and Skanda the other. The standardsof both Kartikeya and Visakha were of a red colour. That mighty godMahasena was pleased with the toys that had been given to him by thegods. Surrounded by hosts of gods and Pisachas and seated on the GoldenMountain, he looked splendid in all the grandeur of prosperity. And thatmountain covered with fine forests, also looked grand in hiscompanionship, just as the Mandara hill abounding with excellent cavesshines with the rays of the sun. The White Mountain was adorned withwhole tracts of wood-land covered with blossoming Santanaka flowers andwith forests of Karavira, Parijata, Jana and Asoke trees,–as also withwild tracts overgrown with Kadamva trees; and it abounded with herds ofcelestial deer and flocks of celestial birds. And the rumbling of cloudsserving the purpose of musical instruments sounded like the murmur of anagitated sea, and celestial Gandharvas and Apsaras began to dance. Andthere arose a great sound of joy from the merriment of all creatures.Thus the whole world with Indra himself seemed to have been transferredto the White Mountain. And all the people began to observe Skanda withsatisfaction in their looks, and they did not at all feel tired of doingso.”

Markandeya continued, “When that adorable son of the Fire-god wasanointed as leader of the celestial army, that grand and happy lord, Hara(Mahadeva) riding with Parvati in a chariot shining with sunlikerefulgence repaired to a place called Bhadravata. His excellent chariotwas drawn by a thousand lions and managed by Kala. They passed throughblank space, and seemed as if they were about to devour the sky; andstriking terror into the heart of all creatures in the mobile divisionsof the worlds, those maned beasts flitted through the air, utteringfearful growls. And that lord of all animals (Mahadeva) seated in thatchariot with Uma, looked like the sun with flames of lightningilluminating masses of clouds begirt with Indra’s bow (rainbow). He waspreceded by that adorable Lord of riches riding on the backs of humanbeings with his attendant Guhyakas riding in his beautiful car Pushpaka.And Sakra too riding on his elephant Airavata and accompanied by othergods brought up the rear of Mahadeva, the granter of boons, marching inthis way at the head of the celestial army. And the great Yaksha Amoghawith his attendants–the Jambhaka Yakshas and other Rakshasas decoratedwith garlands of flowers–obtained a place in the right wing of his army;and many gods of wonderful fighting powers in company with the Vasus andthe Rudras, also marched with the right division of his army. And theterrible-looking Yama too in company with Death marched with him.(followed by hundreds of terrible diseases); and behind him was carriedthe terrible, sharp-pointed, well-decorated trident of Siva, calledVijaya. And Varuna, the adorable lord of waters with his terriblePasa,[80] and surrounded by numerous aquatic animals, marched slowly withthe trident. And the trident Vijaya was followed by the Pattisa[81] ofRudra guarded by maces, balls, clubs and other excellent weapons. And thePattisa, O king, was followed by the bright umbrella of Rudra and theKamandalu served by the Maharshis; and on it progressed in the company ofBhrigu, Angiras and others. And behind all these rode Rudra in his whitechariot, re-assuring the gods with the exhibition of his powers. Andrivers and lakes and seas, Apsaras, Rishis, Celestials, Gandharvas andserpents, stars, planets, and the children of gods, as also many women,followed him in his train. These handsome-looking ladies proceededscattering flowers all around; and the clouds marched, having made theirobeisance to that god (Mahadeva) armed with the Pinaka bow. And some ofthem held a white umbrella over his head, and Agni (the Fire god) andVayu (the god of winds) busied themselves with two hairy fans (emblems ofroyalty). And, O king, he was followed by the glorious Indra accompaniedby the Rajarshis, and singing the praise of that god with the emblem ofthe bull. And Gauri, Vidya, Gandhari, Kesini, and the lady called Mitrain company with Savitri, all proceeded in the train of Parvati, as alsoall the Vidyas (presiding deities of all branches of knowledge) that werecreated by the learned. The Rakshasa spirit who delivers to differentbattalions the commands which are implicitly obeyed by Indra and othergods, advanced in front of the army as standard-bearer. And that foremostof Rakshasas, by name Pingala, the friend of Rudra, who is always busy inplaces where corpses are burnt, and who is agreeable to all people,marched with them merrily, at one time going ahead of the army, andfalling behind again at another, his movements being uncertain. Virtuousactions are the offerings with which the god Rudra is worshipped bymortals. He who is also called Siva, the omnipotent god, armed with thePinaka bow, is Maheswara. He is worshipped in various forms.
“The son of Krittika, the leader of the celestial army, respectful toBrahmanas, surrounded by the celestial forces, also followed that lord ofthe gods. And then Mahadeva said these weighty words to Mahasena, ‘Dothou carefully command the seventh army corps of the celestial forces.’

“Skanda replied, ‘Very well, my lord! I shall command the seventh armycorps. Now tell me quickly if there is anything else to be done.’

“Rudra said, ‘Thou shall always find me in the field of action. Bylooking up to me and by devotion to me shalt thou attain great welfare.’

“Markandeya continued, ‘With these words Maheswara received him in hisembrace, and then dismissed him. And, O great king, after the dismissalof Skanda, prodigies of various kinds occurred to disturb the equanimityof the gods.’

“The firmament with the stars was in a blaze, and the whole universe in astate of utter confusion. The earth quaked and gave forth a rumblingsound, and darkness overspread the whole world. Then observing thisterrible catastrophe, Sankara with the estimable Uma, and the celestialswith the great Maharshis, were much exercised in mind. And when they hadfallen into this state of confusion, there appeared before them a fierceand mighty host armed with various weapons, and looking like a mass ofclouds and rocks. Those terrible and countless beings, speaking differentlanguages directed their movements towards the point where Sankara andthe celestials stood. They hurled into the ranks of the celestial armyflights of arrows in all directions, masses of rock, maces, sataghnis,prasas and parighas. The celestial army was thrown into a state ofconfusion by a shower of these terrible weapons and their ranks were seento waver. The Danavas made a great havoc by cutting up their soldiers,horses, elephants, chariots and arms. And the celestial troops thenseemed as if they were about to turn their backs upon the enemy. Andnumbers of them fell, slain by the Asuras, like large trees in a forestburnt in a conflagration. Those dwellers of heaven fell with their heads,separated from their bodies, and having none to lead them in that fearfulbattle, they were slaughtered by the enemy. And then the god Purandara(Indra), the slayer of Vala, observing that they were unsteady andhard-pressed by the Asuras, tried to rally them with this speech, ‘Do notbe afraid, ye heroes, may success attend your efforts! Do ye all take upyour arms, and resolve upon manly conduct, and ye will meet with no moremisfortune, and defeat those wicked and terrible-looking Danavas. May yebe successful! Do ye fall upon the Danavas with me.’

“The dwellers of heaven were re-assured on hearing this speech fromSakra; and under his leadership, they again rushed against the Danavas.And then the thirty-three crores of gods and all the powerful Marutas andthe Sadhyas with the Vasus returned to the charge. And the arrows whichthey angrily discharged against the enemy drew a large quantity of bloodfrom the bodies of the Daityas and of their horses and elephants. Andthose sharp arrows passing through their bodies fell upon the ground,looking like so many snakes falling from the sides of a hill. And, Oking, the Daityas pierced by those arrows fell fast on all sides, lookinglike so many detached masses of clouds. Then the Danava host, struck withpanic at that charge of the celestials on the field of battle, wavered atthat shower of various weapons. Then all the gods loudly gave vent totheir joy, with arms ready to strike; and the celestial bands too struckup various airs. Thus took place that encounter, so fearful to bothsides: for all the battle-field was covered with blood and strewn withthe bodies of both gods and Asuras. But the gods were soon worsted all ona sudden, and the terrible Danavas again made a great havoc of thecelestial army. Then the Asuras, drums struck up and their shrill bugleswere sounded; and the Danava chiefs yelled their terrific war-cry.

“Then a powerful Danava, taking a huge mass of rock in his hands, cameout of that terrible Daitya army. He looked like the sun peering forthfrom against a mass of dark clouds. And, O king, the celestials,beholding that he was about to hurl that mass of rock at them, fled inconfusion. But they were pursued by Mahisha, who hurled that hillock atthem. And, O lord of the world, by the falling of that mass of rock, tenthousand warriors of the celestial army were crushed to the ground andbreathed their last. And this act of Mahisha struck terror into thehearts of the gods, and with his attendant Danavas he fell upon them likea lion attacking a herd of deer. And when Indra and the other celestialsobserved that Mahisha was advancing to the charge, they fled, leavingbehind their arms and colours. And Mahisha was greatly enraged at this,and he quickly advanced towards the chariot of Rudra; and reaching near,he seized its pole with his hands. And when Mahisha in a fit of rage hadthus seized the chariot of Rudra, all the Earth began to groan and thegreat Rishis lost their senses. And Daityas of huge proportions, lookinglike dark clouds, were boisterous with joy, thinking that victory wasassured to them. And although that adorable god (Rudra) was in thatplight, yet he did not think it worth while to kill Mahisha in battle; heremembered that Skanda would deal the deathblow to that evil-mindedAsura. And the fiery Mahisha, contemplating with satisfaction the prize(the chariot of Rudra) which he had secured, sounded his war-cry, to thegreat alarm of the gods and the joy of the Daityas. And when the godswere in that fearful predicament, the mighty Mahasena, burning withanger, and looking grand like the Sun advanced to their rescue. And thatlordly being was clad in blazing red and decked with a wreath of redflowers. And cased in armour of gold he rode in a gold-coloured chariotbright as the Sun and drawn by chestnut horses. And at his sight the armyof the daityas was suddenly dispirited on the field of battle. And, Ogreat king, the mighty Mahasena discharged a bright Sakti for thedestruction of Mahisha. That missile cut off the head of Mahisha, and hefell upon the ground and died. And his head massive as a hillock, fallingon the ground, barred the entrance to the country of the Northern Kurus,extending in length for sixteen Yojanas though at present the people ofthat country pass easily by that gate.

“It was observed both by the gods and the Danavas that Skanda hurled hissakti again and again on the field of battle, and that it returned to hishands, after killing thousands of the enemy’s forces. And the terribleDanavas fell in large numbers by the arrows of the wise Mahasena. Andthen a panic seized them, and the followers of Skanda began to slay andeat them up by thousands and drink their blood. And they joyouslyexterminated the Danavas in no time, just as the sun destroys darkness,or as fire destroys a forest, or as the winds drive away the clouds. Andin this manner the famous Skanda defeated all his enemies. And the godscame to congratulate him, and he, in turn, paid his respects toMaheswara. And that son of Krittika looked grand like the sun in all theglory of his effulgence. And when the enemy was completely defeated bySkanda and when Maheswara left the battle-field, Purandara embracedMahasena and said to him, ‘This Mahisha, who was made invincible by thefavour of Brahma hath been killed by thee. O best of warriors, the godswere like grass to him. O strong-limbed hero, thou hast removed a thornof the celestials. Thou hast killed in battle hundreds of Danavas equalin valour to Mahisha who were all hostile to us, and who used to harassus before. And thy followers too have devoured them by hundreds. Thouart, O mighty being, invincible in battle like Uma’s lord; and thisvictory shall be celebrated as thy first achievement, and thy fame shallbe undying in the three worlds. And, O strong-armed god, all the godswill yield their allegiance to thee.’ Having spoken thus to Mahasena, thehusband of Sachi left the place accompanied by the gods and with thepermission of the adorable three-eyed god (Siva). And Rudra returned toBhadravata, and the celestials too returned to their respective abodes.And Rudra spoke, addressing the gods, ‘Ye must render allegiance toSkanda just as ye do unto me.’ And that son of the Fire-god, havingkilled the Danavas hath conquered the three worlds, in one day, and hehath been worshipped by the great Rishis. The Brahmana who with dueattention readeth this story of the birth of Skanda, attaineth to greatprosperity in this world and the companionship of Skanda hereafter.”

Yudhishthira said, “O good and adorable Brahmana, I wish to know thedifferent names of that high-souled being, by which he is celebratedthroughout the three worlds.”

Vaisampayana continued, “Thus addressed by the Pandava in that assemblyof Rishis, the worshipful Markandeya of high ascetic merit replied,’Agneya (Son of Agni), Skanda (Cast-off), Diptakirti (Of blazing fame),Anamaya (Always hale), Mayuraketu (Peacock-bannered), Dharmatman (Thevirtuous-souled), Bhutesa (The lord of all creatures), Mahishardana (Theslayer of Mahisha), Kamajit (The subjugator of desires), Kamada (Thefulfiller of desires), Kanta (The handsome), Satyavak (The truthful inspeech), Bhuvaneswara (The lord of the universe), Sisu (The child),Sighra (The quick), Suchi (The pure), Chanda (The fiery), Diptavarna (Thebright-complexioned), Subhanana (Of beautiful face), Amogha (Incapable ofbeing baffled), Anagha (The sinless), Rudra (The terrible), Priya (Thefavourite), Chandranana (Of face like the moon), Dipta-sasti (The wielderof the blazing lance), Prasantatman (Of tranquil soul), Bhadrakrit (Thedoer of good), Kutamahana (The chamber of even the wicked), Shashthipriya(True favourite of Shashthi), Pavitra (The holy), Matrivatsala (Thereverencer of his mother), Kanya-bhartri (The protector of virgins),Vibhakta (Diffused over the universe), Swaheya (The son of Swaha),Revatisuta (The child of Revati), Prabhu (The Lord), Neta (The leader),Visakha (Reared up by Visakha), Naigameya (Sprang from the Veda),Suduschara (Difficult of propitiation), Suvrata (Of excellent vows),Lalita (The beautiful), Valakridanaka-priya (Fond of toys), Khacharin(The ranger of skies), Brahmacharin (The chaste), Sura (The brave),Saravanodbhava (Born in a forest of heath), Viswamitra priya (Thefavourite of Viswamitra), Devasena-priya (The lover of Devasena),Vasudeva-priya (The beloved of Vasudeva), and Priya-krit (The doer ofagreeable things)–these are the divine names of Kartikeya. Whoeverrepeateth them, undoubtedly secureth fame, wealth, and salvation.”

‘Markandeya continued, “O valiant scion of Kuru’s race, I shall now withdue devotion pray to that unrivalled, mighty, six-faced, and valiant Guhawho is worshipped by gods and Rishis, enumerating his other titles ofdistinction: do thou listen to them: Thou art devoted to Brahma, begottenof Brahma, and versed in the mysteries of Brahma. Thou art calledBrahmasaya, and thou art the foremost of those who are possessed ofBrahma. Thou art fond of Brahma, thou art austere like the Brahmanas andart versed in the great mystery of Brahma and the leader of theBrahmanas. Thou art Swaha, thou art Swadha, and thou art the holiest ofthe holy, and art invoked in hymns and celebrated as the six-flamed fire.Thou art the year, thou art the six seasons, thou art the months, the(lunar) half months, the (solar) declinations, and the cardinal points ofspace. Thou art lotus-eyed. Thou art possessed of a lily-like face. Thouhast a thousand faces and a thousand arms. Thou art the ruler of theuniverse, thou art the great Oblation, and thou art the animating spiritof all the gods and the Asuras. Thou art the great leader of armies. Thouart Prachanda (furious), thou art the Lord, and thou art the great masterand the conqueror of thine enemies. Thou art, Sahasrabhu (multiform),Sahasratusti (a thousand times content), Sahasrabhuk (devourer ofeverything), and Sahasrapad (of a thousand legs), and thou art the earthitself. Thou art possessed of infinite forms and thousand heads and greatstrength. According to thine own inclinations thou hast appeared as theson of Ganga, Swaha, Mahi, or Krittika. O six-faced god, thou dost playwith the cock and assume different forms according to thy will. Thou artDaksha. Soma, the Maruta, Dharma, Vayu, the prince of mountains, andIndra, for all time. Thou art mighty, the most eternal of all eternalthings, and the lord of all lords. Thou art the progenitor of Truth, thedestroyer of Diti’s progeny (Asuras), and the great conqueror of theenemies of the celestials. Thou art the personation of virtue and beingthyself vast and minute, thou art acquainted with the highest and lowestpoints of virtuous acts, and the mysteries of Brahma. O foremost of allgods and high-souled lord of the Universe, this whole creation isover-spread with thy energy! I have thus prayed to thee according to thebest of my power. I salute thee who art possessed of twelve eyes and manyhands. Thy remaining attributes transcend my powers of comprehension!’

The Brahmana who with due attention readeth this story of the birth ofSkanda, or relateth it unto Brahmanas, or hears it narrated by regeneratemen, attaineth to wealth, long life, fame, children, as also victory,prosperity and contentment, and the companionship of Skanda.”