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Core-Pancharatra-Ext: Birth of Vyasa, from Parashara and Satyavati, who has Uparichara, Suptimati, Kolahala, and Adrika as part of ancestry.
Vaiśampāyana said:
There was a king named Uparicara, ever steadfast in dharma; once, while observing a vow, he set out to go hunting.
That king Vasu, the delight of the Paurava line, took possession of the delightful Cedi land at the instruction of Indra.
Indra, the wielder of the thunderbolt, directly approached the king who dwelt in a hermitage, having laid down his arms and devoted to austerity.
Thinking that this king was indeed worthy of Indraship through his austerity, Indra directly turned him away from asceticism through gentle persuasion.
Indra said:
Let this dharma not be confused on earth, O king. Protect it, for dharma, when upheld, sustains the entire world.
Uphold the observable dharma with constant devotion and composure; being established in dharma, you will attain eternal and meritorious worlds.
You, dwelling on earth, are the dear friend of me who dwells in heaven. O king, dwell in that exalted land upon the earth.
That land is rich in cattle, auspicious, very stable, abundant in wealth and grain, self-protecting, gentle, and endowed with delightful qualities of the earth.
This land indeed surpasses others, being endowed with wealth, gems, and the like; the earth here is full of riches — dwell in the Cedi land, O king of the Cedis.
The people here are virtuous, content, and noble; even among the free there is no false speech — how then can it be otherwise?
Men devoted to the service of elders are not separated by their father; they yoke our lean cows to the yoke and urge them onward.
All castes among the Cedis, O honourable one, always abide in their own dharma; nothing in the three worlds is unknown to them.
A great crystalline celestial chariot, fit for divine enjoyment, will appear for you in the sky — a sky-going vehicle granted by me.
You alone, among all mortals, mounted on the finest chariot, shall move about above — like a god in embodied form.
I bestow on you the Vaiśayantī garland made of unfading lotuses, which shall adorn you in battle, keeping you unscathed by weapons.
This will be your distinguishing mark here, O king — the garland of Indra, renowned as blessed, great, and without equal.
Vaiśampāyana said:
Indra, the slayer of Vṛtra, gave him a bamboo staff, meant to grant wishes and serve as the protector of the virtuous.
Then the king, for the worship of Indra, caused an entry ceremony to be held on earth for that staff, at the end of the year.
From that time to this very day, O king, the entry ceremony of the staff is performed by the best of kings, as instituted by him.
On the next day, its elevation is also performed by kings — adorned with canopies, perfumes, garlands, and ornaments, encircled by garlands, and done according to proper ritual.
Here, Śaṅkara is worshipped in a humorous form, having assumed it himself out of affection for the great-souled Vasu.
Having seen this auspicious worship for the god performed by the noble king Vasu, Indra, the mighty one, spoke with delight.
Those men and kings who joyfully conduct my festival and worship me as the king of the Cedis did—
They and their kingdoms shall enjoy prosperity and victory; likewise, their people will be flourishing and joyful.
Thus was King Vasu, O ruler of men, honored with affection by the great-souled Mahendra, the mighty Indra.
Those men who always conduct Śakra's festival become purified, just as by gifts like land and great sacrificial offerings.
Then Vasu, the lord of the Cedis, honored by Maghavan, ruled this earth from Cedi with righteousness and performed the Indra festival out of devotion to Indra.
He had five sons of great strength and immense energy, and the emperor anointed them as rulers over various kingdoms.
Bṛhadratha, the renowned great warrior and king of Magadha; Pratyagraha, Kuśāmba (also called Maṇivāhana), Macchilla, Yadu, and Rājanya the undefeated—
These were the sons of that royal sage of great brilliance, O king. They founded lands and cities bearing their own names. These five kings of Indra's line became founders of eternal, distinct dynasties.
The great-souled king, residing in Indra’s crystalline palace in the sky, was attended by gandharvas and apsaras. He then became famed by the name Rājoparicara.
The mountain Kolāhala, endowed with consciousness, indeed attacked the river Śuktimatī, which flowed past his city, out of desire.
But Vasu struck the mountain Kolāhala with his foot, and through the cavity made by that blow, the river flowed out.
The mountain himself begot a male and female pair in the river. Pleased by her deliverance, the river reported this to the king.
The male child born there was appointed as general and subduer of enemies by the great royal sage Vasu, and the king took the beloved girl Girikā as his wife.
Girikā, the wife of Vasu, informed him with desire at the proper time that her fertile period had arrived; she had bathed and was pure, ready for conception.
That very day, the ancestors, pleased with him, said to that wise and foremost of kings, “Hunt deer.”
The king, without disobeying the command of his ancestors, went hunting, full of desire, all the while remembering Girikā—who was exceedingly beautiful, like another incarnation of the goddess Śrī herself.
As he moved through the delightful forest, his semen was discharged, and the king collected it immediately with a tree leaf.
The lord accepted it, saying, “May my semen not be wasted in vain; may my wife’s fertile time not go fruitless.”
The best of kings, having thus thought and reflected repeatedly, understood the potency of his semen.
Observing the right time for sending the semen to his queen, he consecrated it and, seeing a swift hawk nearby, the knower of subtle dharma and truth addressed it.
O gentle one, take this semen to my house for the sake of my beloved. Deliver it quickly to Girikā, for today is her fertile time indeed.
Having taken it, the swift hawk immediately flew up with great speed and soared rapidly through the sky.
Then, as the hawk was flying with the semen, another hawk saw him and immediately chased him, suspecting he was carrying flesh.
The two hawks then fought a beak-to-beak battle in the sky, and as they fought, the semen fell into the waters of the Yamunā.
There dwelled Ādrikā, a noble apsarā known by that name, who, due to a curse from Brahmā, had taken the form of a fish and lived in the Yamunā.
Ādrikā, in the form of a fish, swiftly approached and seized the semen of Vasu, which had fallen from the hawk’s foot.
Once, O best of Bharata’s line, fishermen caught that fish, and in the tenth month, they extracted from her belly a human pair—a boy and a girl.
Considering it a wonder, they informed the king: “O king, these two humans were born in the body of the fish.”
King Uparichara then took the male child born of the two. He became a righteous king named Matsya, firm in truth.
That apsara, released from the curse, was instantly restored. As previously told by the Lord, “O auspicious one, having entered an animal womb, you shall bear two humans and attain release from the curse.”
Then, having given birth to the two who were slain by the fisherman, she shed her fish form and attained a divine form. The excellent apsara then proceeded to the path of the siddhas, sages, and celestial beings.
The maiden, her daughter named Matsyā, was known as one who bore the scent of fish. The king then gave her to the boatman saying, “Let this one be yours.” She was endowed with beauty, strength, and all virtues.
She was then known as Satyavati, and owing to her association with the fisherman, bore the scent of fish for some time, though she had a pure smile.
While she was steering the boat in water to serve her father, the sage Parashara, on pilgrimage, saw her.
Seeing her, exceedingly beautiful and desired even by siddhas, the wise sage Parashara, the foremost among sages, desired the lovely maiden, the daughter of Vasu, with a purpose.
She said, “O Lord, behold the sages standing on both shores. How can there be union between us while being seen by them?”
Thus addressed by her, the Lord and master created a mist, by which the entire region became as if enveloped in darkness.
Seeing the mist created by the supreme sage, the astonished and noble-minded maiden, bashful, spoke to him.
Know me, O Lord, to be a maiden always obedient to my father’s will. Union with you would defile my maidenhood, O sinless one.
Even if my maidenhood is spoiled, O best of Brahmins, how shall I go home, or even stay there, O wise one? Therefore, O Lord, consider this and arrange what must follow.
To her who spoke thus, the pleased best among sages said, “Having done what pleases me, you shall still remain a maiden.”
“Choose a boon too, O timid and radiant lady, whomever you desire. My favor has never been in vain, O pure-smiling one.”
Thus addressed, she chose the finest bodily fragrance as her boon. And the Lord, the master, granted her what she had desired in her heart.
Delighted after receiving the boon and adorned with the virtues of womanhood, she engaged in union with the sage of wondrous deeds.
Thus, she became renowned on earth as Gandhavati, and men on earth could smell her fragrance from a yojana away.
Thereafter, her name became widely known as Yojanagandha, and the divine Parashara returned to his own abode.
Thus, Satyavati, delighted by the unsurpassed boon, united with Parashara and immediately conceived. On the isle of Yamuna, was born the mighty son of Parashara.
He approached his mother, fixing his mind as though in austerity, and said, “Whenever remembered, I shall appear for the duties.”
Thus was Dvaipāyana born to Satyavati from Parashara. Since he was placed on an island as a child, he became known as Dvaipāyana.
Observing the receding dharma in each age, and the decreasing lifespan and strength of mortals, he, the wise one, acted accordingly in every age.
Desiring to bless Brahman and the Brahmins, he divided the Vedas; hence he is remembered as Vyāsa.
He taught the Vedas, with the Mahābhārata as the fifth, to Sumantu, Jaimini, Paila, and also his own son Śuka.
The master, foremost and boon-giving, also taught Vaiśampāyana. The recensions of the Bhārata were thus propagated separately by them.
Thus Bhīṣma, son of Śāntanu, of immeasurable brilliance, was born of Gaṅgā from the energy of a Vasu — a mighty and renowned hero.
The ancient sage Aṇī-Māṇḍavya, though not a thief, was impaled on a stake due to suspicion of theft. He became renowned as one of great fame.
Once, the great sage summoned Dharma and said this: “In my childhood, I pierced a small bird with a blade of grass.”
“That alone I remember as sin, O Dharma; I recall no other wrongdoing. Why then did my penance here meet with such a thousand-fold punishment?”
“The slaying of a Brāhmaṇa is graver than killing all beings; therefore, for this sin, you shall be born in the womb of a Śūdra.”
By that curse, even Dharma was born in a Śūdra womb as the wise and righteous Vidura — a sinless being.
Sañjaya, sage-like, was born as a charioteer from Gavalgaṇa. And from Sūrya and the maiden Kuntī, Karṇa — the great warrior — was born, bearing natural armor and a face radiant with earrings.
For the blessing of the worlds, Viṣṇu — worshiped by all — was born of Vasudeva and Devakī, appearing as one of great renown.
He is the Lord without beginning or end, the master and creator of the universe — the unmanifest, imperishable Brahman, the primordial essence beyond attributes.
He is the immutable self, the supreme source of nature, the cosmic person, the creator of the universe, established in sattva, firm and imperishable.
They call him the infinite, unmoving divine being — the supreme swan, Nārāyaṇa, the Lord, the sustainer, ageless, eternal, and the supreme imperishable.
That cosmic, all-pervading creator, the grandsire of all beings, was born among the Andhakas and Vṛṣṇis for the purpose of upholding dharma.
Skilled in weapons, of great might, and masters of all arms, Sātyaki and Kṛtavarmā, both devoted to Nārāyaṇa, were born respectively of Satyaka and Hṛdika, renowned for their mastery in weaponry.
The seed of Bharadvāja, cast into a vessel (Droṇī), grew there. From that, Droṇa was born — son of the great sage of intense austerity.
From Gautama was born a twin through a clump of reeds: Aśvatthāman’s mother and Kṛpa, of great strength. Then Aśvatthāman, the foremost among weapon-bearers, was born from Droṇa.
Likewise, Dhṛṣṭadyumna, glowing like fire itself, was born from fire during the Vaitāna sacrifice — a mighty hero armed with a bow, born for the destruction of Droṇa.
Likewise, Kṛṣṇā (Draupadī), radiant and auspicious, was born on the altar, shining in beauty and bearing the most excellent form.
Subala, disciple of Prahlāda and also called Nagnajit, was born. His daughter, who would become a destroyer of dharma, was born due to the wrath of the gods.
Śakuni, son of the king of Gāndhāra and thus called Saubala, and also the mother of Duryodhana — both were born and were skilled in worldly wisdom.
From Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana (Vyāsa) were born Dhṛtarāṣṭra, lord among men, and the mighty Pāṇḍu, both in the field (through Niyoga) of Vicitravīrya.
From Pāṇḍu were born five sons, each equal to the gods, through his two wives; among them, Yudhiṣṭhira was the eldest in virtue.
Yudhiṣṭhira was born of Dharma; Bhīma (Vṛkodara) of Vāyu; and glorious Arjuna (Dhanañjaya), the foremost of all weapon-wielders, was born of Indra.
The handsome twin brothers, Nakula and Sahadeva, were born of the Aśvins and were devoted to the service of their elders.
Likewise, a hundred sons were born to the wise Dhṛtarāṣṭra, beginning with Duryodhana; Yuyutsu and Karṇa were also among them.
Abhimanyu was born to Arjuna and Subhadrā — sister’s son of Vāsudeva (Kṛṣṇa), and grandson of the great-souled Pāṇḍu.
From the five Pāṇḍavas and Kṛṣṇā (Draupadī), five sons were born — princes endowed with beauty and skilled in all forms of weaponry.
Prativindhya was born of Yudhiṣṭhira; Sutasoma of Bhīma; Śrutakīrti of Arjuna; and Śatānīka of Nakula.
Śrutasena, a mighty warrior, was born of Sahadeva; and Ghaṭotkaca was born in the forest to Bhīma through Hiḍimbā.
Śikhaṇḍī was born as a daughter to Drupada but later attained manhood; the Yakṣa Sthūṇa transformed her into a male out of affection.
In that great war of the Kurus, there assembled hundreds of thousands of kings, all prepared for battle.
Their names are countless and cannot be fully enumerated even in tens of thousands of years; only the chief ones are mentioned here, by whom this narrative was spread.
