Sage Vishwamitra explains how Anga territory was formed.

After Sage Vishwamitra requests King Dashratha, to let Rama and Lakshmana accompany him to the forest for destruction of the demons, the three started walking with weapons slung on their shoulders.

Soon they reached  the  confluence  of river Sarayu and  the  holy  Ganga, where they beheld several hermitages. The princes were cu­rious to know about this wonderful place. 

Sage Vishwamitra said: "Cupid was endowed with physical form in days of yore. Lord Siva was once engaged in breathtaking austerities on this very spot: and Cupid sought to distract the Lord. By a mere 'hum'-sound, and with the fire that emanated from his eye, the Lord destroyed the body of Cupid who thenceforward became bodiless. Where the limbs (anga) of his body were shed became known as Anga-territory.

Territories formed by Lord Indra

Soon they reached a terrible forest which was frightful to enter. Once again, Vishvamitra explained: "This area was once  a prosperous country. In days of yore when Indra slew the demon Vrtra who was a Brahmana by birth, he had to expiate the sin of having killed a Brahmana. The holy sages and brahmanas performed the ritual of atonement with the waters of the holy rivers. When the impurities had thus been washed away, Indra shone with his native radiance. The impurities thus washed away from Indra were deposited here. lndra was happy to be rid of them and wanted to show his gratitude to the place where they fell away. He blessed this country with prosperity and named it Malada and Karusa.

The principalities of Malada and Karusa were thenceforth prosperous and wealthy, till Tataka appeared on the scene. This  demoness  was  the  wife  of the  demon  Sunda,  and  they have a terrible son known as Marica.  Tatakii strikes terror in the hearts of the inhabitants of Malada and Karusa and has turned the prosperous and fertile country into a waste and a forest. Rama, now it is for you to get rid of this demoniacal family and to restore to this countryside the prosperity and the glory that it once had."

Demoness Taraka's previous life

Lord Rama asks Sage Vishwamitra, "How could a frail woman possess such might and such strength?" And, the sage Vishwamitra told him the whole story of Tataka which is as follows:

"Once upon a time there lived a powerful demi-god named Suketu. He had no children. Desirous of having an offspring he  engaged  himself  in  austerities.  Brahma,  the  creator,  was highly pleased with this and  conferred the boon of a daughter upon him, at the same time blessing this daughter with the strength of a thousand elephants. It is just as well that the creator did not bless Suketu with a male child! The girl was as beautiful as she was strong. Suketu gave her in marriage to a  demon, Sunda.  Of them  the terrible Marica was born.

Suketu  had  been  cursed  to  death  by  the  sage  Agastya. Tataka wished to avenge her husband's death and rushed at the sage. Agastya pronounced a curse upon Tataka also: "From now you will lose the appearance of a demi-goddess and you will roam about as a terrible demoness. "

Missiles given to Lord Rama by Sage Vishawamitra

After successful destruction of Tataka, sage Vishwamitra was highly impressed by Lord Rama. Early in the morning of the subsequent day, the sage Visvamitra lovingly spoke to Rama: "I am delighted with you, Rama, I shall therefore give you an armamentarium of the most powerful missiles with the help of which you will be able to subdue all your enemies whether they are earthlings or celestials. Here, takes charge of the following foremost among the missiles:

"Dharma cakram (cakram may mean a revolver!), Kala cakram, Vishnu cakram as also the fierce cakram of Indra. I give you the Danda cakram, as also the missile that has the power of the thunderbolt (Vajra), the Sulam (of Siva), the Brahma­ siras and another known as aisikam which is like a blade of grass. I give you the most powerful Brahma astram, the all­ destroyer, and also mace-like missiles. And here is the missile of the gandharvas which confuses and stupifies the enemy.

These other missiles are capable of putting the enemy to sleep and changing his mood from one of anger to one of peace. I also give you other missiles which can produce a shower of rain or dry up the earth, or generate unbearable heat and scorch the enemy. Also, another missile which produces in the enemy a sort of intoxication and another which will rouse his passion. This missile here has the lustre of a sun and will bedazzle the enemy. I give you all these and many more which are powerful and valuable in war with even celestials."

Lord Rama saw all these missiles in front of him. Pleased, he resolved that he would use them only when such use was called for. Saluting the sage Vishwamitra, Raima submitted: "Sir, please also instruct me in the art of countering the effect of these missiles". The sage then instructed Rama and also Lakshmana in the anti-missile system. In this connection, again, the sage gave them many more missiles with names that signify the way in which they function-some which can be seen, others which cannot be seen, some with a forward motion and others with reverse motion, some with ten 'heads', others with a hundred 'bellies', some giving the appearance of burning coal, others appearing like dense smoke. 

All these missiles and anti­ missile missiles were spread out in front of Lord Rama, awaiting his command; they lay at his feet, as it were, offering their services to him. And, he made a mental note of them and resolved to use them when their use became absolutely necessary.

Story of Vishwamitra's father and river Kosi

Visvamitra said: “Once upon a time there was a King known as Kusa who was a son of Brahma, the creator. He had four sons· Ku samba, Kusa Nabha, Asurtarajasa and Vasu. He entrusted the task of protecting the people of the kingdom to them. The four sons built four cities, Kushambi, Mahodaya (Kanauj), Dharma Ranya and Giriv raja (Rajgir) respectively. These cities were surrounded by hills. The river Sane weaving through those hills was also known as Magadhi because it flows through Magadha territory.  

Kusa Nabha had a hundred daughters born through a celestial nymph Ghritachi. When they had grown up into beautiful young women, the Wind-God approached all of them and said, ‘I wish to marry all of you. Give up the idea that you are human beings and attain longevity. Youth is evanescent, especially among humans. Become forever young and immortal, by accepting my proposal.' The girls were distressed to hear this. 'How can we accept you as our husband-you, who enters all beings? Moreover, our father is our lord and master, nay our god; he alone shall be our husband unto whom our father gives us away. ' Offended by this rebuttal the Wind-God entered them all and caused deformity of their limbs (like arthritis). 

"Thus, they approached their father Kusa Nabha with tearful eyes. The distressed King and father questioned them, 'Tell me, pray, who is the cause of this dreadful deformity of your lovely forms?"' 

"The girls narrated all that happened to their father. The King Kusa Nabha applauded the conduct of his daughters and said: 'Forbearance is indeed the greatest ornament of women as also of men-the kind of forbearance that you have shown in your conduct towards the wind-God. Forbearance is the greatest gift, the truth, the best form of worship, glory, piety, and the support of the world. ' "Soon, the King began to think of giving them away in marriage to a suitable man. "It was about the same time that there lived a great ascetic by name Chulli, who had undertaken unprecedented austerities. During this period, he was waited upon and served by a girl named Somada. The ascetic, highly pleased with her devoted service, said to her: 'I am highly pleased with your service; name a boon.' At once she replied: 'I am unmarried, and I will not marry. Grant me, therefore, the boon of a son through the power of your asceticism.' Highly pleased with this prayer, the ascetic willed that she should conceive and give birth to a son: and the cosmic (Brahmic) energy brought this about. The son thus conceived and delivered came to be known as Brahmadatta (gift of Brahmas), who became the King of Kampilya. It was to this Brahmadatta that the King Kusa Nabha gave away all his hundred daughters in marriage. During the ceremony, when Brahmadatta touched the hand of each girl, her deformity left her, and she regained her beauty and charm. 

"King Kusa Nabha now prayed for the birth of a son to him. His father Kusa blessed him saying: ‘A pious son will surely be born to you,' and immediately ascended to heaven. Soon Kusa Nabha was blessed with a son whom he christened Gadhi, in accordance with the wishes of his noble father. That Gadhi is my father, 0 Rama; and I am also called Kausika because I am a descendant of Kusa. "I also had an elder sister known as Satyavati who had been given in marriage to the sage Richika. She was highly devoted to her husband. As a result, when the sage departed from this world, she ascended bodily to heaven, and later descended on earth as a river, the Kausiki (Kosi), out of the largeness of her heart. As such she continues to be to this day, 0 Rama. I was very fond of my sister and so spent some time on the bank of Kosi. After that, I left that spot and came to Siddhashrama where, thanks to you, I have now successfully completed the most sacred rite. 

 

Story of Kartikeya's birth 

Early in the morning, the sage again heralded the dawn and urged the princes to get up and get ready to move on. Crossing the river Sone, the party marched onwards. They saw the holy river Gangl. As usual, Rima posed a question, for the benefit of the whole assembly: this time he wanted to know the story of the Gangl. The sage Vishvamitra said: "Himavan (Himalayas) married the daughter of Meru (the polar icecap) who was known as Mena. They had two daughters: the elder is Gangl and the younger is Uma. For the welfare of all the beings of the three worlds (heaven, earth, and the intervening space) the gods begged Himavan to give Ganga to them. The magnanimous Himavan, too, acceded to their request. Thus, the holy Gangl ascended to heaven and became a celestial river: later she descended on earth in the form of a purifying stream. The other daughter Uma was given by Himavan in marriage to lord Siva himself." With his curiosity whetted by this brief narration of the sublime story, Rima requested the sage to expand the narrative and give the account in greater detail. The sage, too, consented, and gave the following detailed account of the story of Uma, the consort of lord Siva, and the story of the descent of the Ganga on earth: "The lord Siva had married Uma, the daughter of Himavan. And they were engaged in enjoying conjugal pleasures for a prolonged period. The Lord's creative energy grew increasingly intense; and even the gods were afraid that the earth would not be able to support his progeny. They therefore made bold to interrupt the union of the divine couple, to offer a prayer: 'Lord, pray restrain your creative energy by your own self-control; the world will not be able to bear the full impact of your creative energy. By such self-restraint practiced by you and your consort, alone, will the worlds survive.' "The Lord at once agreed to the proposal. 'What shall we do with the energy already released?' he asked. This energy has covered the earth already. The gods sought the help of fire and wind. Fire concentrated the energy which now assumed the form of a mountain, and being blown around by the wind, it spread to a thicket of reeds-and eventually assumed the shape of Kartikeya (lord Siva's son). "Uma, the Lord's consort, however, was annoyed by the gods' interference in her union with the Lord and cursed the gods that they would never have an offspring." 

"While lord Siva and Uma returned to their austerities, the gods with Indra at their head approached Brahma, the creator, and humbly submitted: 'Lord, the divine being Siva had granted us our boon, which was to bless us with a commander: this commander can only be born of his energy. Having released this energy, lord Siva has resumed his austerities, along with Uma, his consort. Pray, consider what should be done.' "The creator Brahma replied: 'Uma's words cannot be falsified. No god can receive lord Siva's energy to give it a body. Here is the heavenly (celestial) Ganga; let the god of fire convey the Lord's energy to Ganga who will then deliver the son. Ganga will doubtless regard the child to be hers; and Uma will also lavish her affections on him. Thus, he will be the beloved of all.' 

"The gods then approached the god of fire to accomplish the commands of the Creator. The god of fire in his turn approached the celestial Ganga and prayed that she should carry the Lord's creative energy. Ganga assumed a form of ethereal beauty. Seeing this the energy melted into her. The god of fire filled her with the divine energy. "Unable to carry that divine energy for long, the holy Ganga, on the advice of the god of fire, released it on the side of the Himalayas. Where the energy flowed, everything turned into gold. Whatever the energy touched turned into gold and silver of incomparable brilliance; the mere heat of the energy turned objects at a distance into copper and iron. Even its 'impurities' became tin and lead. Thus, minerals were created on earth. "As I said before, the energy was spread among the reeds on the bank of the river Gang§. The gods gathered that energy, which became a boy. The gods ordained the deities presiding over the constellation Kritika nurse the boy with their milk; hence he came to be known as Kartikeya. He is known as Skanda because he 'flowed' with the river Gang§. "In a matter of days this divine boy grew mighty in strength and destroyed the host of demons who were harassing the gods. He became the commander of the divine hosts. "This is the story of the birth of lord Siva's son who is also known as Kumara. He who is devoted to Kartikeya will enjoy a long life, will be blessed with children and grandchildren and will eventually become one with lord Skanda."  

Story of the descent of Ganga

Rama, I shall now tell you the story of the descent of Ganga on earth. One of your own ancestors was the mighty king Sagara. He was without an heir to the throne, though he had two wives-Kesini, daughter of the king Vidarbha, and Sumati, daughter of the sage Aristanemi and sister of the divine bird GarucJa. The king undertook austerities. Pleased with him, the sage Bhrgu bestowed upon the king a strange boon: "One of your wives will give birth to one son for the perpetuation of your clan; and the other will give birth to sixty thousand sons." In the course of time, Kesini gave birth to a son christened Asamanja; and Sumati delivered an egg (in the shape of a gourd) from which sixty thousand sons emerged. Sumati preserved them in pots of ghee; they soon grew to be youthful boys. Asamanja, true to his name, proved to be a wicked boy who had dangerously sadistic tendencies and who reveled in torturing and drowning even young children. Yet, again, his own son Ansuman was pious and noble and was loved by the people. King Sagara resolved to perform the sacred horse-rite. He chose the most holy piece of ground between the Himalayas and the Vindhyas, which is regarded by sages as especially suited for the performance of holy rites and commenced the rite. The sacred horse was entrusted to the care of the valiant Ansuman, the king's grandson. Indra the chief of the gods, disguised as a ghost, however, stole the horse away at a critical point in the rite. The priests exclaimed: "0 king, catch hold of the thief and kill him; let the rite proceed to a successful conclusion; otherwise, great misfortune will result." The king sent for the sixty thousand sons and commanded them to comb the earth and find the horse; they had his permission even to dig the earth. Sixty thousand fell to their task. Not finding the horse on earth, they began to dig the earth. Seeing this wanton and ruthless destruction of the subterranean and other life, the gods and demons prayed to Brahma, the creator: "Lord, life on earth is being destroyed by these sons of Sagara. Aquatic creatures and subterranean creatures are tormented, too. Suspecting that this or that may be the enemy of the horse-rite, and here or there the horse may be hidden, they are doing great harm to living beings." 

The creator, Brahma, replied: "Earth is, as it were, the consort of lord Vishnu, the protector of the universe. The sons of Sagara who thus ravage her and her creatures will surely meet their end at the hands of the Lord who himself dwells on earth at this time in the person of Kapila, the divine sage. The breaking up of the earth, too, does take place at every age: this is nothing unusual. And they who are endowed with vision see that those thoughtless people who are guilty of crimes against the good earth are justly punished." The thirty-three gods who preside over the natural elements returned to their abodes satisfied. Sagara's sons could not find the horse, though they had searched everywhere and even dug up the earth. But the king urged them on: "Dig deep down, splitting the very earth into pieces." And so, they did. As they went right through the earth, they encountered four elephants that looked like mountains (the other way round?)-Virupaksha in the east, Mahapadma in the south, Sau Manasa in the west, and Bhadra in the north. They paid their homage to each one of these and continued their search. Finally, they proceeded in the northeasterly direction. They were frustrated and angry. At the end of the tunnel through the earth, when they emerged into the open, they saw Kapila seated in meditation. They mistook the sage for the horse-thief: for they saw the sacred horse too, peacefully grazing near the hermitage. They shouted in great anger and rushed towards the Sage. By mere utterance of 'hum' on the part of the sage Kapila of incomparable glory, all of them were reduced to ashes. In the hall of worship, the king was impatiently waiting for the sons and the horse to return. When neither returned, he dispatched his grandson Ansuman to find out what had happened. Ansuman took the same routes and met the same 'elephants' (and bowed to them) which reassured him that he would find the horse. Eventually reaching Kapila's hermitage, he saw the horse and the ashes of his uncles. While he was thinking of a suitable way in which to perform the obsequies to the departed, he saw the divine bird Garuda who advised him: "Grieve not, 0 brave one, the destruction of these your uncles by lord Kapila is just and as it should be. It is not right to use earthly water to propitiate their souls. When the divine Gangi is brought down on this earth, and when their ashes are touched by the waters of the Gangl, they will also ascend to heaven." Ansuman returned to the house of worship and with the return of the horse the king brought the rite to a conclusion. However, he could not devise a method by which the celestial river Ganga could be brought down to the earth. Sagara ruled for a long time and passed away, without accomplishing his cherished ambition of having the ashes of his sons purified by the holy Ganga. 

On king Sagara's demise, the people lovingly elected Ansuman to occupy the throne. He, for his part, engaged himself in protracted austerities over several years, to bring the Ganga down: but he passed away before the austerities bore fruit. He had a son, Dilipa by name. After the death of Ansuman, Dilipa became king. But he was so stricken with sorrow at the death of his granduncles, that he could not do anything about it. On his death, his son Bhagiratha ascended the throne. Bhagiratha repaired Mount Gokarna (Gomukh) in the Himalayas to perform intense austerities with a view to bringing Ganga down and to gaining an offspring. He performed breath-taking austerities. Brahma, pleased with his devotion, appeared before him, and granted him the boon of his choice. And Bhagiratha chose the two boons he had in mind. "Here is the Ganga," said lord Brahma, "but only lord Siva can withstand the impact of her descent upon earth." Bhagiratha now turned his devotion to lord Siva. Standing on the tip of his toe for a full year, Bhagiratha invoked the grace of lord Siva. The Lord, pleased with his devotion, appeared before him, and said: "I shall satisfy your noble wish and bear the Ganga on my head." Soon, the celestial river Ganga descended in all her power and majesty on the head of lord Siva. The matted locks of the Lord resembled the Himalayas themselves (the other way round?). Caught in the coils of the Lord's matted locks, the river tumbled down on her earthly course. The Lord let the river fall into the celestial lake Bindusara: Ganga emerged from here in three different directions, as seven streams. Bhagiratha rode in his chariot ahead of one of the streams or the mainstream. The course of the river, like the course of our lives, was smooth in some places, tortuous in other places, quiet here, tumultuous there; twisting and turning, running straight and even turning back. The waters of the Ganga, touched by the head of lord Siva himself, are extremely pure. Even they who, on account of a curse, have fallen from heaven are purified by bathing in the Ganga. Bhagiratha thus led the Gangi on the earth. They passed near the house of worship of the sage Jahnu who was engaged in a sacred rite. The waters of the Ganga inundated the house of worship. Annoyed at this, the sage drank the entire river which thus disappeared within him. On the intercession of the gods and celestials, the sage allowed Ganga to emerge from his ear! Once again Ganga followed Bhagiratha's chariot. They eventually reached the tunnel made by the sons of Sagara. Bhagiratha reached the culmination of his superhuman efforts: the holy Ganga flowed over the ashes of Sagara 's sons who were instantly purified and liberated. 

The creator Brahma congratulated Bhagiratha on achieving the end of his quest, after overcoming all obstacles by extraordinary effort. He decreed that the holy river that Bhagiratha had thus brought on to the earth would henceforth be known as Bhagirathi (the daughter of Bhagiratha.) He also decreed that whoever listens to this glorious account of Bhagiratha's unprecedented, superhuman, determined and successful attempt to achieve the task set for himself (viz., bringing the Ganga down to earth) will have all his desires fulfilled, all his sins wiped out, and will enjoy fame and longevity. Thus, the sage Vishwamitra concluded the story of Ganga. 

Dream Bharata Saw!

The next morning, the ministers of state as also the counsellors and sages assembled under the presidency of the sage Vasistha to deliberate on the immediate course of action. The ministers submitted to the assembly: "Unable to bear separation from his sons, Rima and Laksmana, king Dasaratha has ascended to heaven. Of his sons, Rama and Laksmana have gone to the forest; and Bharata and Satrughna are in their uncle's house in the kingdom of the Kekaya's. A king should immediately be nominated; for without a king, the kingdom would be destroyed. The evils of anarchy are well known to you all: the people of the kingdom cannot carry on their sacred and mundane affairs in peace, and neither righteousness nor normal trade and enjoyment of righteous pleasures is possible. Thieves and knaves will thrive; and wicked people will take the law into their own hands and assume the authority of rulers. All progress will be arrested, and no constructive activity will be undertaken. Law and order will end. Justice will not prevail. Morality will be ignored. Neither religious rites nor public entertainment will take place. There will be fear and anxiety in the hearts of all people. In fact, even ascetics and sages will be reluctant to move about freely. When anarchy rules, no one can call anything his own; just as the gigantic fish devours the small ones, the strong people will swallow the weak ones. What the eyes are to the body, the king is to the country.

Embodying in himself virtue and nobility, the king is verily the father and mother of a kingdom. 0 sage Vashistha, pray decide what should be done now." Vashistha said: "Bharata has already been nominated king. He is now in his uncle's house. Let swift messengers be dispatched immediately to bring him back." The ministers and the counsellors heartily agreed to this proposal. Vashistha thereupon called upon a few chosen messengers to proceed immediately to Kekaya territory and to convey the following message to Bharata: "Greetings to you, 0 Bharata; the sages in Ayodhya request you to return to that city at once, for an important task awaits you." Vashistha however warned them: "Do not tell Bharata of Rima's exile nor of the king's death, nor of the misfortune suffered by the great dynasty." The messengers left Ayodhya almost immediately. Crossing the river Ganga at Hastinapur, they rode farther west.  

Elsewhere, during the closing hours of that same night Bharata had a nightmare. Consequently, the next day he was in no mood to enjoy himself. Seeing him depressed, his companions endeavored their best to distract him by surrounding him with music, dance, and drama, fun and laughter; but Bharata did not pay much attention to these, absorbed as he was in brooding over his dream. When his friends questioned him, he narrated the essentials of his dream to them: "Last night I had a most terrible dream. I saw my father falling from a mountain peak into a pool of cow-dung. I saw him drink oil from his palms cupped as a receptacle. I also saw that the oceans had become dry; the moon had dropped onto earth: and everywhere the demons ruled. I saw the tusk of the royal elephant broken. I saw fierce fires instantly extinguished. Dark young women were hitting the king who was seated on an iron seat. The king, wearing crimson flowers, was driven in a southerly direction in a chariot borne by donkeys. An ugly demoness was laughing at the king. Such is the dream I had last night, during the last quarter. Either the king, or I, or Rama or Laksmana will die. For, it is said that he who dreams of a chariot driven by donkeys will see the smoke rising from a funeral pyre. Having seen this ugly dream, I feel apprehensive. Though I see no immediate cause to fear, yet there is great fear in my heart. Hence I am unable to enjoy what would otherwise delight me."

At about the same time the messengers arrived from Ayodhya. They quickly sought Bharata's presence and conveyed to him the message entrusted to them. Bharata for his part enquired in detail about the king, Rama, Lakshman, his mother's etc. To this enquiry the messengers gave an ambiguous and diplomatic answer: "All of them whose welfare you seek are well, 0 Bharata. The goddess of fortune is in your favor. Let there be no delay in your departure."