03.126
The story of Māndhātṛ.
Yudhiṣṭhira said;
How was Māndhātā, the tiger among kings, who is renowned in the three worlds, born from Yauvanāśva, O great Brāhman, best of kings? And how did this illustrious one attain such a supreme state? (03-126-1)
I wish to hear the deeds of that wise one, of whom the three worlds are subject, even as they are to Viṣṇu, the great-souled one. (03-126-2)
Just as you are skilled in describing the name of Māndhātṛ, whose brilliance equals Indra and whose birth is without equal in heroism, so too you are indeed able to narrate it. (03-126-3)
Lomaśa said.
Listen attentively, O king, to how the name of that great-souled king Mandhātṛ is indeed sung in the world. (03-126-4)
Yuvanāśva, a king born in the Ikṣvāku lineage, performed sacrifices with abundant gifts as offerings. (03-126-5)
Having attained a thousand aśvamedha sacrifices, and being the best among the upholders of dharma, and through other chief and various sacrifices endowed with due offerings. (03-126-6)
But that royal sage, the great-souled and steadfast one, having no offspring, entrusted the kingdom to his ministers and indeed became one who always lived in the forest. (03-126-7)
Following the procedure laid down in the śāstra, uniting himself with self, his heart parched by thirst, he entered the hermitage of Bhṛgu. (03-126-8)
On that very night, O king, the great-souled descendant of Bhṛgu, the sage, performed a sacrifice for Saudymna for the purpose of obtaining a son. (03-126-9)
O king, a large pot filled with water purified by mantras had been earlier placed and carefully prepared there. By drinking (from it), his wife would give birth to a son equal to Indra. (03-126-10)
After they placed the pot on the altar, the great sages, weary from their night vigil, slept; Saudyumni having reached them. (03-126-11)
The king, whose throat was dry, tormented by thirst and eagerly seeking water, entered the hermitage, exhausted, and requested water. (03-126-12)
Although he was exhausted and shouted with a dry throat at that time, no one heard him then, just like the cry of a bird. (03-126-13)
Then, having seen that pot full of water, the king quickly rushed, drank, and discharged the water. (03-126-14)
Having drunk the cool water, the king—who was suffering from thirst—attained relief; the wise man became very happy at that time. (03-126-15)
Then the sages, along with the kings, awoke. They all saw that pitcher completely empty of water. (03-126-16)
"Whose deed is this?" — thus all who had assembled inquired; "It is Yuvanāśva, in me," — thus the truth was indeed accepted. (03-126-17)
Bhārgava, the revered one, then said to him, "This is not proper." The waters were indeed established and gathered through austerity for the sake of a son. (03-126-18)
O royal sage of great strength and courage, I have indeed undertaken here a severe austerity, performing a sacred rite, for the sake of obtaining a son for you. (03-126-19)
He who possesses great strength, great heroism, and the power of austerity, who could, by his might, send even Indra to the abode of Yama. (3-126-20)
O king, by this method this has been accomplished by me. But the drinking of water performed by you today is indeed inappropriate. (03-126-21)
We are not able to do this otherwise because of you. Surely, this has been done by destiny, since you have acted thus. (03-126-22)
O great king, from those waters which you, in your thirst, drank with proper rites and mantras and which were filled with my ascetic power, you will beget a son of such power through your own self. (03-126-23)
We will perform your most excellent and wondrous sacrifice there, so that you may beget a son as powerful as Indra. (03-126-24)
Then, when a hundred years had been completed, a son—like another sun—burst forth from the left side of that great-souled king. (03-126-25)
The one of great brilliance emerged, and death did not enter him; Yuvanāśva the king—this became truly like a wonder. (03-126-26)
Then Śakra (Indra), of great splendor, approached wishing to see him. Then Śakra inserted an indicator (finger) into his mouth. (03-126-27)
He was named by the wielder of the thunderbolt (Indra) as Māndhātā, meaning "he will bear me," and the gods together with Indra made this his name. (03-126-28)
Having tasted the region’s milk given by Indra, that boy then grew, O king, and (there were) thirteen of the monkeys. (3-126-29)
O great king, as soon as he was meditated upon, the Vedas, divine weapons with the bow, and even the supreme Lord themselves attended him in every way. (03-126-30)
He immediately took up the bow called Ājagava, arrows made from horn, and an impenetrable armor.
O Bhārata, he, anointed by Maghavan himself, by Śakra, conquered the three worlds by righteousness, like Viṣṇu by his strides. (03-126-32)
The unobstructed wheel of that great-souled one began to turn; and the jewels themselves indeed approached the royal sage. (03-126-33)
O lord of the earth, this treasure-filled earth was offered by him through many kinds of sacrifices, with abundant gifts. (03-126-34)
O king, the conscious and splendid one, having attained abundant righteousness, obtained half of Śakra's throne, possessing immeasurable brilliance. (03-126-35)
By that wise one who was always devoted to dharma, the whole earth with cities extending to the ocean was conquered in a single day, merely by his command. (03-126-36)
O great king, by his sacrificial altars endowed with gifts, the entire earth in all four directions was covered; there was nothing left unoccupied. (03-126-37)
O great king, they declare that the great-souled one gave ten thousand padmas of cows to the Brāhmaṇas. (03-126-38)
During the twelve-year drought, he, the great-souled one, caused rain to fall for the growth of crops, in sight of the wielder of the thunderbolt (Indra). (03-126-39)
By him, the great lord of Gandhara, born of the Soma lineage, who was roaring like a great thundercloud, was struck down by arrows after being subdued. (03-126-40)
O king, the great-souled one conquered the four kinds of creatures; by his own austerity and prowess, he also established the worlds. (03-126-41)
Here is the worship place of the gods belonging to him, bearing the brilliance of Aditya. Behold it in the most sacred place at the center of Kurukshetra. (03-126-42)
O ruler of the earth, all this has been told to you—the great deeds and the distinguished birth of Māndhātṛ, as you have thoroughly asked me. (03-126-43)
