Adi Parvamu- The Story of Garuthmantha

Ugrasravana continued " As Anoora said, five hundred years passed by in Vinatha's slavery to Kadruva. The second egg of Vinatha hatched. A extremely brave and powerful Eagle(Garuthmantha) was born. He shook his wings and greeted his mother, the wind that blew from his wings shook the mountains and caused huge waves in oceans. He was like a huge mountain with wings. He bowed to his mother with respect and flew in to the openness of the sky. His body was huge and his grace was immense, all the gods and Munis(Sages) could not stand the extremely bright light that Garuthmantha emitted. They thought that the world was going to be burnt by fierce wild fire. They starting singing Hymns and songs in the praise of Lord.

Vinatha was extremely happy, she held Garuthmantha with love and hugged him. He also bowed and greeted his aunt Kadruva, but Kadruva was burning with jealousy. She couldn't stand the fact that he was so strong and powerful. She thought " How can the son of a slave be so strong?", " Come here Boy" she called with authority, " You should take care of my kids and take then on you shoulders to anywhere they want to go, all over the world. Do the work assigned to you and stay in your limits, Do you hear me?" she quoted loudly. Since his mother was a slave, he also turned in to one.

Garuthmantha did everything that Kadruva asked him to, he bore the serpents on his back and took them all over the world. He took them to various scenic places. He even took them to Surya Mandala (the territory of the Sun). The serpents could not bear the heat and they fainted and slid down Garuthmantha's back. Kadruva was angry and she prayed Indra to bring her kids to life. She scolded Garuthmantha badly and asked him to refrain from such activities without her permission.

Days passed by. Kadruva was gaining more and more pride and authority by Vinatha's submissiveness. Garuthmantha started thinking about the reason behind their slavery. He could not understand a bit, he then questioned his mother "In just a blink of an eye I can destroy a huge mountain with my beak and wings. Kadruva's sons do not possess a thousandth of my power and strength, but I still carry them on my back. Why do I have to bear all this? And why do you have to be a slave?". She explained the betting between her and Kadruva and the curse of Anoora in entirety. She said" Your brother told me that I would be relieved from slavery by you, I am living with that ray of hope. I feel so happy by seeing your face, I forget all the pain and agony. What can I do my dear, you are suffering because of me" and cried bitterly.

Garuthmantha wiped his tears and felt that his mother was suffering more than he did. One day he went to Kadruva's sons and said " I will get you anything you need from any part of this world, please relieve us of our slavery". They all consulted their mother and came with an order "Get Amrutham for us and we will let you go". Garuthmantha agreed to their demand and bowed to his mother and told her goodbye. Vinatha happily blessed her son " Go ahead my son, your wings will be protected by Wind (Vayu), your head by Fire (Agni), your body by Sun (LordSurya). All the Gods will help you succeed your goal, you will win and relieve me of this bond, Victory is yours".

" I am hungry mother, If I have to go fetch Amrutham, I will need more energy. Please show me food so I can satiate my hunger." said Garuthmantha. Vinatha said " Son, there are so many Nishadas in the middle of the Ocean, they cause troubles to human beings. Go and eat them and satisfy your hunger. But one more thing, do not eat a Brahmin". Garuthmantha asked "How would I know it is a Brahmin?", then she says " You will know it when you swallow, it will be very difficult for you to swallow". Garuthmantha flew away and reached the mid of the Ocean, he started to eat Nishadas. One among them was stuck in the throat like Vinatha said. Garuthmantha asked him to come out, the Brahmin came out and told that his wife was Nishada and he cannot come out without her. Garuthmantha agreed to get her out for the sake of the Brahmin. Except for these two he ate the rest of all Nishadas and burped, but he was not satiated. He flew in to the sky and reached Mount Gandhamadana.

Sage Kashyapa was doing penance on Mount Gandhamadana. Garuthmantha greeted him and said " Oh Great Sage! I will have to relieve my mother from slavery, I will have to fetch Amrutham and I am extremely hungry. Can you please give me some food?". Kashyapa was impressed by his son Garuthmantha and said " Your mother wanted a son like you, Very good. Nearby there is an Elephant and a Tortoise. That is no normal Elephant, it measures six Yojanas in width and twelve Yojanas in height. Similarly the Tortoise measures three Yojanas in width and length is ten Yojanas. You will be satiated with these two animals. There were two Brahmanas named Vibhavasa and Suprateeka, they were brothers. Vibhavasa deceitfully took their ancestral property instead of sharing it with his brother. Suprateeka was left penniless. " Our ancestral property should be divided equally, give it back to me" Suprateeka demanded. Vibhavasa got extremely angry and cursed Suprateeka to become an elephant. Suprateeka retaliated and gave him a curse that he become a Tortoise. They are the Elephant and Tortoise I mentioned to you, they have been wandering near mountains and lakes and have been fighting on every encounter due to their enmity. Go eat them and satiate your hunger and you will have victory".

Garuthmantha reached the place where Elephant and Tortoise wandered and held them both in each hand. He then flew above the clouds to Alamba Theertha. He flew with great speed. Alamba Theertha was beautifully filled with Kalpavrikshas which had golden creepers. There was a huge tree which had branches with hundred Yojanas length each, its name was Rohinam. She(Rohinam) invited Garuthmantha to sit on her branch and eat the Elephant and Tortoise. As Garuthmantha stepped on the branch it broke. There were ValaKhilya Sages who were doing there penance hanging upside down on the tree branch. There were sixty thousand of them and they were the size of a thumb. Their father was Sage Krathuvu and mother was Sannathi. The Valakhilya Sages lived on Sun's rays for their food and penance was their only world. Garuthmantha was worried on seeing all of them, If the branch fell down then it would cost their lives. So he pierced the branch with his beak and flew in to the sky with the Elephant and the Tortoise in his hands and the hundred Yojanas branch in his beak. He did not know where to rest the branch, so he went back to Mount Gandhamadana. Sage Kashyapa noticed him and realized what happened, he then started praying Valakhilyas and said " You are the ones who blessed me to have this son when I performed Putrakameshti. You blessed me that I would have a son who was more powerful than Indra, he is the one who will do good to the world, he has been flying with the branch in his beak so you sages don't get hurt. Please help him out".

Valakhilyas heard the plea of Prajapathi Kashyapa and they left the branch and went to Himalayas. " Fallen anywhere this branch will cause casualties. There is a NishPurusha Mountain(A mountain where there are no men) hundred Yojanas from here, it is topped with snow and ice and no one can reside on it including Lord Shiva. Throw the branch there." said Prajapathi Kashyapa.

Garuthmantha reached the NishPurusha Mountain in a few minutes, he threw the branch there. He then flew to Himalayas and ate the Elephant and the Tortoise and gained immense strength. Now its the time to go to IndraLoka( Abode of Indra). He shook his wings and the flower bearing trees on Himalayas shed their flowers on him, it was like the Gods showering flowers on him. Garuthmantha started from Himalayas and there was a rain of fire in IndraLoka. Vajrayudha seemed bleak, the eight elephants knows as Diggajas namely Airaavana, Pundareeka, Vaamana, Kumuda, Anjana, Pushpadanta, Sarwabhouma, Suprateeka. whose wives are Abhra, Kapila, Pingala, Anupama, Taamraparni, Subhradanti, Angana, Anjanaavati were all terrified. The AshtaDigpalakas were frightened by this fire storm, Indra questioned " what could be the cause of this strange hapenning?". Brihaspati replied " Garuthmantha is coming towards Indra Loka for Amrutham. Remember when Kashyapa performed Putrakameshti, you and Valakhilyas helped him. That day you were bringing Samidhas( An offering for sacred fire) based on your strength and Valakhilyas who were as small and tiny as fingers and who perform Upavasam day in and day out were carrying grass (Darbha) on their heads. You made fun of them and laughed at them, they were insulted by your behaviour. When they uttered Mantras in Kashyapa's Putrakameshti Yaga, they prayed that there should be another Indra born who is more powerful than Indra himself. When you heard this you went to Kashyapa and asked him to calm Valakhilyas anger. Kashyapa pleaded Valakhilyas and said" If Indra has been appointed by Brahma to be the Lord of Gods. It is not fair to create another Indra, it will be dual government. This is not good for the whole world. So please calm down, all you wish is the person being born should be Indra right, this will happen but please consider an amendment. Instead of becoming Devendra he will become Pakshindra ( Lord of Birds)." Somehow the Valakhilyas agreed to this. Devendra was releived then. That Pakshindra is this Garuthmantha. He is going through various difficulties to free his mother of slavery. Kadruva and her sons demanded Amrutham in order to grant freedom for Vinatha. He flew with a giant elephant and Tortoise and a branch of Rohinam which was hundred Yojanas in length. He is a Kamarupi (A person who can change his physical appearance with mystical powers). Even though he is your brother, he is more stronger than you and you cannot defeat him".

Devendra was horrified. He alerted the security guards and asked them to save Amrutham from being taken at any cost. He appointed thousands of soldiers to defend Amrutham, he built a very huge army. Everyone was alerted. In the meantime Garuthmantha landed in Indra Loka. It felt like there was a meteor shower and thousands of thunder bolts striking at the same time. The clouds got destroyed with this impact, he directly landed close to where Amrutham was kept. The army attacked Garuthmantha and started to fight him fiercely. It was as if the rats were trying to combat an elephant, he shook his wings with full force and the whole Indra Loka was shaken. The gods were worried about the commotion and Devendra was unable to control the situation. A DevaKinkara named Bhoumana came with a huge army. Garuthmantha destroyed the whole army in no time. Sadhyas came and tried to battle Garuthmantha, he chased them and sent them away towards the East Direction. Vasuvas and Rudras were chased to the Southern direction. Adityas were chased to the western direction and Ashwini Gods to the North Direction. All the Lords, Agni, Vayu, Yama, Kubera , were defeated by Garuthmantha. All the Gods were being defeated and they went to Devendra for rescue.

All the guardians of Amrutham ,Renuka, Kradhana, Hralihaka, Praruja, Ashwikuntha, Padhanaka were all torn apart by Garuthmantha's nails. Garuthmantha reached Amruthabhanda ( a pot where Amrutham is preserved). It was surrounded by fierce fire which was rising very high. Garuthmantha filled his mouth with water from all water bodies on Earth and sprayed it on the fire surrounding the Amrutham. The fire was put off. There was a Yantra which was still rotating around the Amrutham. Garuthmantha took the form of a micro organism and he went past through the Yantra and reached Amrutham. He then saw two huge serpents wound around the Amruthabhanda. They started hissing on seeing Garuthmantha, he then shook his wings and filled the eyes of serpents with dirt and held their heads with his feet. He flew in to the sky along with Amruthabhanda.

Lord Vishnu was observing all this and was very impressed and said " He got the Amrutham as intended, but he is not even taking a sip. He is very modest and honest." He appeared before Garuthmantha and asked him to ask for anything that he wanted. Garuthmantha bowed to Lord Vishnu and said " Please let me stay with you forever. You are a Purushottama and I would not want anything except being with you. If possible give me immortality without having to drink Amrutham. Life and Death are worldly and I would like to overcome them". Lord Vishnu granted Garuthmantha's wish and asked him to be his mount ( Vahana) and the flag on his chariot. In the mean time Devendra sent his Vajrayudha, which was emitting fire. Garuthmantha laughed looking at the Vajrayudha and said " Why are you emitting fire, you will fall bleak in front of me. But since I am a son of a Sage, you should not be wasted. Hence pierce in to a hair on my wing and leave right away." All the Gods were surprised by this. Devendra thought that he had no other option than to compromise. He then went to Garuthmantha and said " Dear Brother, Let us be in peace. You are immortal and no one can defeat you, you are a very brave person with immense strength. Why do you need Amrutham? If it falls in to the wrong hands then they will destroy us. I will give you anything else, please give me back the Amrutham".

Garuthmantha said " I am not taking the Amrutham for myself, it is for releiving my mother from Slavery. Kadruvas sons asked for Amrutham, I promised them I would. I dont have any other option but I do agree with you that it is very dangerous to give it to them. Let me give you an idea. I will give it to them and releive my mother, please get it from them before they can have it ." Devendra was very pleased with Garuthmantha's advice and said " I have seen your bravery and strength and also your modesty and honesty. I am extremely happy and I am willing to do anything that you want". " Me and my mother faced a lot of problems because of Kadruva, she made my mother her slave by cheating her. Hence I want her sons to become my prey. Please grant me the permission, you are the one who rules the world and I would like to ask you before I take a step." said Garuthmantha. Devendra granted his wish.

This way Garuthmantha got the Amrutham with great victory. He then called all the thousand sons of Kadruva. He made a stand of Darbhas and placed the Amrutham on it. He said " As per the agreement I brought the Amrutham. From today onwards me and my mother are no more your slaves. Lords, Agni, Vayu, Surya and Chandra are the witnesses. Take bath and purify yourself before having the Amrutham". He then bore his mother on his back and flew away. Devendra reached the place where the serpents were trying to have Amrutham and hid in a corner. All the serpents went to take a bath, Devendra took the Amruthabhanda and disappeared. All the serpents returned after having bath and found nothing. There was a commotion and then they started licking Darbhas. Their tongues split in to two, thats the reason snakes have split tongues and hence the great importance of Darbhas in Yagnas and sacred offerings.

Adi Parvamu- Betting between Vinatha and Kadruva

Ugrasravasa said " As I mentioned before Uchhaishravas was born after Amrutham. One day Uchhaishravas was wandering on the beaches of an ocean. Vinatha and Kadruva reached there for fresh air. The blue waves of the ocean were a wonderful sight, they brought in pearls and shells on to the shore. They were also bringing in a cold drizzle, the sight and feel was amazing. While enjoying all this Vinatha and Kadruva reached the place where Uchhaishravas was, it was milky white in color and was very pure.

Kadruva said to Vinatha " Hey, look at that beautiful white horse, it looks more pure than a Jasmine flower. But like Lord Chandra, the defect it has is its black tail". Vinatha said " Common Kadruva, Is your eye sight alright?.The horse looks wonderful and I don't see any problems with it. She looks the purest form and white in color all over, even the tail" and laughed. Kadruva laughed and said" Are you insulting my judgement? OK, lets have a bet". Both of them were all ready for the bet. Kadruva said " If the tail of that horse is not black, then I will become your slave, else you become my slave". Vinatha said " OK, lets do as you please, lets go and closer and have a look". Kadruva objected by saying that it was dark and they might not get a good look, so she wanted to come back the next day morning. Vinatha agreed to this and they both returned home.

Kadruva could not sleep the whole night. She called her sons and said " Sons, I have fallen in to trouble. Please help me, there is nothing that is impossible for you guys. Today me and your aunt Vinatha went to the shore and there was was a horse wandering there, I said that the horse was white except for its tail which was black and she said that it was completely white. After a long talk we placed and bet and will be going back to check the horse tomorrow morning. I know I will lose and I will have to become her slave. For her to become my slave the tail should be black, Can you guys make it black for me?"

All the sons started thinking, they felt that it was Adharma ( not being righteous). They said that they cannot do such immoral act. Kadruva was very angry and said " I took so much pain to bear you as pregnant and then I raised you. You guys are not helping me when I am trouble, You guys will burn to death in Janamejaya's Sarpa Yagam( A Yagna performed to kill serpents)." That is the reason Janamejaya performed Sarpa Yagam.

The Serpents did not listen to anything that their mother Kadruva, but Karkotaka was frightened by her words. He went and wound around the tail of Uchhaishravas. Kadruva took Vinatha and went to see the horse, the tail was black. Vinatha became a slave of Kadruva as Aruna cursed.

Adi Parvamu- SamudraMadanamu

All the Gods and Demons had a meeting on MeruParvatam to churn out Amrutham. Lord Indra was assigned as the chief for the operation. " How do we churn the ocean of milk? Where do we get the dasher(churning tool)? How can we make the dasher stand? what do we use as a rope for the dasher? what is that we do now?" All these were the question arising among the demons and gods. Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu took the responsibility of finding the appropriate apparatus for churning the Ocean of Milk.

They thought that an appropriate churning tool would be Mount Mandara. To fetch that Mount they sent AdiSesha. He being extremely strong could bring the Huge mountain which was eleven thousand Yojanas in height and eleven thousand Yojanas wide in no time. They made the Mount a dasher. AdiKurma was placed under the Mount for support so that it does not submerge. Serpent Vasuki was used as a rope for the dasher. The Demons and the Gods were extremely happy with the decisions of the apparatus. Gods held the tail of Vasuki and Demons held his head. Both of them started churning with great enthusiasm and energy. Lord Vishnu was cheering both the groups in to churning, they were all excited and started shouting happily and churned with energy. There was echoing in all directions. The earth was shook by this event. Vasuki started spitting out Poison. Clouds out of poisonous flames filled the sky. It was dark all over.

The first thing that came out was Halahala(poison). The flames coming out of it were so fierce, it would destroy all Worlds. Everyone was frightened. Lord Shiva immediately placed it in his neck instead of swallowing it. That is the reason he is called GaralaKantha (neck filled with poison). The next thing that came our was Amrutham. After that Goddess Lakshmi, Dhanvantari, Uchhaishravas, KaustubhaMani and many other valuable things emerged. Lord Vishnu acquired Lakshmi and KaustubhaMani and kept them against his chest. Lord Indra acquired Uchhaishravas. In all this commotion the Demons stole Amrutham. All their effort went in vain for Gods.

Lord Vishnu took the form of Mohini and tried to seduce the Demons. He took the Amrutham from them with deceit and gave it to the Gods. The Gods started to share it among themselves. In the meantime a Demon named Rahu came in the disguise of God and had his share of Amrutham, just before he was about to gulp it all up Lord Surya and Lord Chandra found out who he was and hinted Lord Vishnu. Just before Amrutham could go down his throat, Lord Vishnu beheaded Rahu . Since the Amrutham went past his mouth, his head became immortal. Since then he despises Lord Surya and Lord Chandra.

Since the Gods deceived them by taking away Amrutham, All the Demons went to King Mahabali. There was a very big conference and they decided that they will not have any relations with Gods anymore. They started a big war against Gods. The Gods were surrounded with the army of Demons. Lord Indra was shook by this incident. In the mean time the twins Nara-Narayana appeared. They defended the Gods and fought with Demons fiercely. Nara raised his Bow and arrow pointing towards the Demons and killed many. Narayana released his Chakra and beheaded many Demons. The land was filled with corpses of Demons. No one could stand the fight with Nara-Narayana. the rest of the Demons fell in to the Ocean to save themselves. Gods celebrated the Victory, Mount Mandara was restored to it initial location. Lord Indra was given the responsibility to safeguard Amrutham, he took it to Amaravati(the capital of Svarga).

Adi Parvamu- The Birth of Serpents

Ugrasravana said to the Munis "You have heard the story of Ruru. The reason serpents began dying in Janamejaya's Sarpa Yagam was not solely Udanka, but it was also the Mother of snakes Kadruva. Her curse shook the very existence of snakes. A mothers curse can be very lethal even to snakes. Let us hear the story of serpents".

This is the story from KritaYuga. In those days, Kasyapa Prajapati had many wives. Among them Vinatha and Kadruva were the wives who had seeked his help to obtain sons. Finally Prajapati was convinced and asked them to ask for anything they wanted. Kadruva said" I would like to have thousand sons who are Immortal, have bodies that can withstand fire and are very strong". Vinatha said" I would like to have two sons who are stronger and valiant than Kadruva's sons". Prajapati had performed penance and Putrakameshti Yagna to have sons, hence he was able to give those blessings with ease. He warned them to be very careful during pregnancy. Vinatha and Kadruva were very happy and they became pregnants. After sometime thousand eggs emerged from Kadruva's womb and two eggs emerged from Vinatha's womb. They preserved their eggs in Ghee pots. After five hundred years Kadhruva's eggs started to hatch one by one. Sesha (Naga Ananta) was the foremost, and then Vasuki. Then were born Airavata, Takshaka, Karkotaka (linked with Nala, king of Nishadha), Dhananjaya, Kalakeya (was also mentioned as an Asura clan), the serpent Mani, Purana, Pinjaraka, and Elapatra, Vamana, Nila, Anila, Kalmasha, Savala, Aryaka, Ugra, Kalasapotaka, Suramukha, Dadhimukha, Vimalapindaka, Apta, Karotaka, Samkha, Valisikha, Nisthanaka, Hemaguha, Nahusha (Nahusha was also described as a king in the Lunar Dynasty; Pururavas (first king of Lunar dynasty) -> Ayus - > Nahusha), Pingala, Vahyakarna, Hastipada, Mudgarapindaka, Kamvala Aswatara, Kaliyaka, Vritta, Samvartaka, Padma, Mahapadma, Sankhamukha, Kushmandaka, Kshemaka, Pindaraka, Karavira, Pushpadanshtraka, Vilwaka, Vilwapandara, Mushikada, Sankhasiras, Purnabhadra, Haridraka, Aparajita, Jyotika, Srivaha, Kauravya, Dhritarashtra (also mentioned as a Gandharva king), Sankhapinda, Virajas, Suvahu, Salipinda, Prabhakara, Hastipinda, Pitharaka, Sumuksha, Kaunapashana, Kuthara, Kunjara, Kumuda, Kumudaksha, Tittri, Halika, Kardama, Vahumulaka, Karkara, Akarkara, Kundodara, and Mahodara namely were thousand of them born.

Kadruva was very happy seeing her kids. Vinatha was sad, she felt inferior as her eggs did not hatch. She could'nt wait for any longer, she forcefully hatched on of her eggs. Only the upper body of the bird was formed, his lega and thighs had not formed yet. This was her son Anoora( also called a Aruna). Vinatha was devastated. She cried her heart out, but in vain. Anoora was very angry on his mother for having done this to him and he cursed Vinatha “You were jealous of Kadruva and her kids. You hatched my egg before my body completely formed; you will bear the consequences for you bad deeds. You will become a slave to Kadruva for five hundred years. No atleast take care of the other egg and let it hatch by itself. The one born out of that egg will be extremely powerful and brave. He will relieve you of Slavery". He then bid good bye to his mother and left to become a charioteer for Lord Surya. Anoora is, was and shall always be the charioteer for Lord Surya.

Adi Parvamu- The Story of Ruru

Ruru belonged to Bhrigu Vamsa( Bhrigu Dynasty). Bhrigu Maharshi was an extremely talented person. Puloma was his pregnant wife. One day Bhrigu asked her to take care of Agnihotras while he went to the river to take a dip. In the meantime a Demon named Pulomudu came there and saw her. He was mesmerized by her divine beauty and he was filled with lust and craved to possess her. He then was thinking " Is this is divine beauty Puloma whom I wanted to marry?. Who should I ask now? Oh, Let me ask Agnihotra".

Agnihotra was in a very difficult situation to answer the question of Pulomudu. He thought "If he tells the truth them Pulomudu will abduct her and take away and Bhrigu will curse for telling the truth and causing harm to his wife. If I tell a lie then I will have AsatyaDosha( A sin caused because of telling lies). What should I do now? I better take the consequences of a curse rather than lying". And he told Pulomudu that she was the wife of Bhrigu, Puloma.

Pulomudu said " I always knew she was Puloma. She was supposed to be my wife, Bhrigu never even thought about this and he married her." He took the form of a Pig and abducted her. Puloma started screaming for help, and she cried bitterly. Her tears formed a river on the way, thus forming the river Vadhusaradhi. The evil deeds of Pulomudu caused anger to the fetus inside Puloma. The fetus came out with extreme anger, he was called as Chyavana, a very powerful child. He came out with thousand times the brightness of the Sun. He was raging like a wild fierce fire. Chyavana fell on Pulomudu and he turned in to ashes. Puloma took her baby boy and returned home.

Bhrigu completed his bath and returned to the Ashram, he saw the river Vadhusara and was astonished. When he entered the house he saw his wife with a baby. She told him what happened. Bhrigu Maharshi became extremely furious asked her how Pulomudu could recognize her. Puloma said “As soon as he saw me he became lunatic, he went and asked Agni and got the information. He then broke in to the house like a Pig." Bhrigu became extremely furious and cursed Agni " You are such an evil doer. You shall be Sarva Bhakshakudu (eat anything and everything)."

Agni said “How can you do this to me, All I was doing was telling the truth. Is it a wrongful deed to tell the truth? A person who does not tell the truth or tries to hide Truth shall go to Naraka. I was afraid of AsatyaDosha and told the truth. I am the KarmaSakshi(witness of all action) for the whole world, How can I lie? You cursed me for uttering the truth. You are relieved as you are a Rishi, but I am a servant of the world and by cursing me you have harmed the world. All the offerings given to Gods and Forefathers are given to me, they receive them solely because of me.If I become Sarva Bhakshakudu, then I will become impure. And because of my impurity the day to day activities in the world will be stopped. If you wish to do this, then carry on". He then took his real form and the world became devoid of fire.

All the lamps went off at once, there was no fire anywhere. All the Yagnas were stopped, everything that needed fire was stopped abruptly including cooking. The Gods have not received offerings and they were hungry too. Everyone rushed to LordBrahma. He then realized that Bhrigu Maharshi's curse is responsible for all this commotion. He then called Agni and said “All the world has halted, please come back. You are very important for survival of all the beings. You are the source of food for Gods, and saviour of the World. If you are angry then it is very difficult for everyone. Bhrigu Maharshi cursed you to become Sarva Bhakshaka, his words wont go waste. You will remain pure, nothing can scathe your purity. You are the purest form of anything. Please come back and get the world going." He also prayed and requested Agni to come back. Agni calmed down and took his normal form, the world got back to life. LordBrahma could convince Agni but he could not make any changes to Bhrigu Maharshi's curse, that is the power of his curse. Ruru is the grandson of Bhrigu Maharshi.

Chyavana was the son of Bhrigu Maharshi, he married Sukanya, the daughter of King Sharyati and had a son Pramati. Ruru is the son of Pramati and Apsara Ghrutachi. Ruru fell in love with Pramadhvara, daughter of Menaka and Gandharva King Vishvavasa. Menaka left Pramadhvara in a forest after giving birth to her. A Muni called SthulaKesa brought her to his Ashram and raised her. She was most beautiful among others in the Ashram. Hence she was called Pramadhvara. After knowing the love of Ruru for Pramadhvara, Pramati decided to get them married. They also decided on the date and time for the ceremony.

One day Pramadhvara was playing with her friends, she accidentally steps on a snake. The snake bites her and Pramadhvara dies. Pramadhvara's friends flee the site with fear. The news spread like a wild fire, people were devastated. Great Sages like Gautama, Kanva, Kutsa, Kaushika, Shankapala, Bharadwaja, Valakhilya, Uddalaka, SwethaKethu and Maitreya were there to offer their condolenses. Pramati and Ruru were also present. Pramadhara appeared to be sleeping like a flower in spite of being dead.

Ruru was not able to stand her death, he was devastated. He went in to the forest and shouted out Pramadhvara's name and cried bitterly. The rocks were moved by his tears and they started crying too. Ruru said " Is there anyone who can make my Pramadhvara alive? Any Great doctors, saints, please come her and make her alive. I will give you all the essense of my penance. I will give you all the good Karma I did". He then started shouting " If my penance has any effect then my Pramadhvara will come back alive. If I had served my teachers well then my Pramadhvara will come back to me." He started praying to all gods, he then saw a messenger of god in the sky. The messenger said “Pramadhvara has completed her years in earth, and she went back to heaven. But I do see one remedy. And it is in your hands. If you can give half of your life span to her then she will survive" and he then vanished in to thin air.

Ruru was extremely happy and he agreed to this. He gave half of his life span to Pramadhvara and made her alive. She was happier than before. They both then got married, but he could not forgive the serpents. He made a vow to himself of ending the serpent population on earth. He took a stick and started killing the snakes; he searched every snake hole and killed every snake that he came across. One day he found a snake with two heads, Ruru immediately held his stick to kill the snake. The snake shouted " Hari Hari" like a man, Ruru stopped. The snake said “You look like a great sage to me, why are you killing all snakes? What did we do to you?” Ruru said “Now you ask me what you did? You guys bit my Pramadhvara and caused a lot of agony to me. You guys should not be allowed to live on earth. I swore to kill all snakes. You will shut your mouth with this beat" and tried to hit the snake. Before Ruru beat him the snake transformed in to a Muni. Ruru was shocked and said “Who are you? Why are you in a snake disguise?".

He said " I am Sahasrapada, I got this because I made fun of someone. KhagaMukha was an acquaintance of mine, he was performing Agnihotra one day, I threw a snake made of grass at him just to make fun. He was frightened, I laughed at him. He got furious and cursed me that I would become a non poisonous snake. I begged him to forgive me and take back the curse. But he said that I will have to stay like this until you come my way and relieve me of this curse." I have lived this life all these days and now you have come and rescued me, I am very thankful to you. Sahasrapada said " Mahamuni ( Oh great Sage), killing living beings is a beastly act, this act is only appropriate for Kshatriya, but not us Brahmin. What ever you have done is past now, please refrain from this now". Ruru stopped killing snakes from then onwards.

Adi Parvamu- The Story of Udanka

There lived a Muni (Sage) named Udanka. He was the disciple of Paila MahaMuni. He was renowned in Penance and attained great fame from his righteousness. He was in Gurukul and performed his duties as a good disciple. He greatly respected his teacher. He achieved wisdom and was virtuous. He had attained AshtaSiddhis which are Anima, Mahima, Garima, Laghima, Prapthi, Prakamyam, Ishitva and Vashitva. He was a very trustworthy disciple one can ever have. Seeing his great qualities and pious nature, Paila MahaMuni left him in charge of his house and wife when he had to go on an important work for a very long time. GuruPatni ( Paila Mahamuni's wife) had just finished her menstrual cycle and she wanted Udanka to possess her sexually. But Udanka was not inclined in such immoral activities and he stayed away from her. Later Paila returned and praised Udanka for his services rendered in his absence. He relieved Udanka and said that he had successfully completed his studies and it is time for him to get married and settle down. Udanka asked Paila what he wishes to have as GuruDakshina. Paila said that all his services were more than enough, but if he wished to give something then he should ask his wife if she needs anything. Udanka asked Gurupatni what she wanted to have. She said " King Paushya's wife Maharani Paushya has Golden Kundalas in her ears, I have desired them for a long time. If possible get them for me and mind you I need them in 4 days".

Udanka said that he will fulfill her wish and left Gurukul. He started walking through the forest alone. After a while he found a Divya Purusha ( A god like person, radiant personality) sitting on an Ox. He asked Udanka to eat the dung of the Ox. Udanka did what he was told and he received the mercy of the Divya Purusha. He then went to King Paushya. Paushya received him with great respect and honour. Udanka said " King Paushya, I have come here to ask you something. I would like to have the Golden Kundalas ( Earrings) that your queen wears. I have to give them as GuruDakshina. King Paushya said " I am honoured to have the oppurtunity to give them to a great saint like you. No one will stop you. Please tell my queen that I have asked her to give them to you". Udanka left to Antahpura( Abode of the Queen) but he did not find her there. He returned back to the King and asked him to get the Kundalas for him.

Paushya was surprised and said " The queen is inside but mind you she is a Maha Pativrata and a very sacred person. She will not be seen by people lacking Suchi ( Radiant Glow). But your are Triloka Pavana ( considered sacred and pious in all three Worlds), How can I accuse you of lacking Suchi?" Udanka thought for a while and said " Maybe, Yes. I have eaten Dung of an Ox and did not purify myslef after that. This might be the reason why I am not able to see her." He went to the east side and cleaned his legs, hands and face. He performed Aachamanam and left for Antahpuram (abode of the queen). Maharani Paushya greeted him and gave him her Golden Kundalas. She cautioned him saying " Takshaka is after these Kundalas. He is fearless and never gives up easily. His slight of hand is amazing and you will never realize when he steals". Udanka asked her not to worry and said he would be careful. He bid goodbye to the King, but the King asked him to stay for Dinner and leave. Udanka Obliged and stayed back.

While eating the meal Udanka found a strand of hair in his plate and he became furious. He cursed the King " You offered me food that is unclean, you shall become Blind". Paushya became very angry and cursed Udanka " You have given me a very big curse for a very small mistake, You will be childless and barren". Udanka got back in to senses and begged the King to take back his curse. Paushya said " Udanka, a Bramhin is harsh at words and kind at heart, but this is reverse for a Kshatriya(King), So your curse can be taken back but not mine. Please take back your curse". Udanka said that the King would regain his sight in a few days.

Udanka finally got the Kundalas for GuruPatni and was on his way back to Gurukul. On the way he saw a water pond. He put the Kundalas on the shore and went in for Aachamanam. Takshaka had been following Udanka in a disguise of Digambara all this time, as soon as Udanka went in to the water he stole the Kundalas and ran away. Udanka followed Digambara like an eagle and caught him. As soon as Udanka caught him he turned in to a snake and sled in to a snake hole along with the Kundalas. He went to Patala Loka (The lowest of the seven subterranean heavenly planets. It is inhabited by the Nagas, great serpents). Udanka realized that the snake was none other than Takshaka. Udanka also entered the snake hole and went to Patala Loka, but he could not find Takshaka. He prayed to Naga Raja ( King of Serpents). He praised and prayed Naga Raja extensively. He then saw a wonderful scene, he saw two women weaving threads which were white and black. There were six others who were rotaing a wheel with 12 spokes. Later a big horse, and then he saw a Divya Purusha riding the Horse. Udanka praised the Divya Purusha with meaningful phrases. The Divya Purusha was pleased by Udanka and said that Udanka was very pure and only spoke truth out of his heart and asked him to ask for a blessing.

Udanka said that he wants to take control of Naga Loka ( World of Serpents, also referred as Pathala Loka). Divya Purusha said " If you wish that, then blow air in the ears of this Horse". As soon as Udanka blew air in to its ears, the Horse started spitting Fire from all Nava Randras ( Nine prominent holes in the body). The fire was very wild and it spread all around Patala Loka. It was like a ghastly wild fire bringing an end to Naga Loka. All the serpents were extremely frightened. Takshaka realized the gravity of the situation and came out of hiding. He returned the Kundalas to Udanka and asked for forgiveness.

Udanka was relieved about having the Kundalas back but now his worry was about getting back to Gurukul from Patala Loka. Gurupatni wanted them in 4 days and already it was the day 4. All his efforts will go in vain if he does not give her the Kundalas as promised. Udanka was sad and was worried about this. Divya Purusha then consoled Udanka and asked him not to worry. He then asked Udanka to sit on the Horse and close his eyes and think of the place he needs to reach. Udanka reached Gurukul in no time. By the time Udanka reached GuruPatni was ready wearing a new saree and was waiting for the Kundalas. Udanka gave the Kundalas to her and asked for her blessings. Paila Mahamuni asked him what took him so long as Paushya Kingdom was very close by. Udanka explained everything that happened on his way and how he recovered the Kundalas from Takshaka. Paila Mahamuni was surprised by what Udanka told him and said that he was very lucky to have encountered all this and said "The Divya Purusha who you saw on the OX is none other than Devendra. The Ox is Airavata. The Dung that you ate is Amrutham. That is the sole reason you were able to acheive the Kundalas without any hurdle. The women who you saw in Patala are Dhata ( the creator) and Vidhata (The Ordainer of the laws of conduct for all, including the likes of yama). The white and black threads were Day and Night, the cloth was a complete day, the Wheel was a year, the 12 spokes were 12 months, the six others were six seasons, the Horse was Agnihotra. The Divya Purusha on the horse was Megha a friend of Indra. All these good things happened to you because of your loyalty towards your teacher. Paila was very happy about Udanka for giving the Kundalas and blessed him to get married and lead a happy life.

Udanka prayed to his teachers feet and left. He performed penance for a long time, but he could not forget the deciet of Takshaka. He wanted to take revenge on him. Udanka would not be satisfied until something is done to Takshaka and he suffers from his misdeeds. Udanka went to King Janamejaya and said " Oh King! Your father Parikshit was a great King. He used to treat his subjects and people like his own children. Such great person was killed by the venomous Takshaka, that too based on the words of a Bramhin. He also decieved me by taking the Kundalas that I had to give to my Gurupatni. You should avenge the murder of your father, there is only one way to do that and that is Sarpayagam( a yagna performed to Kill serpents). All the bad serpents roaming freely on earth will be destroyed including Takshaka. What if one person is bad in the entire Clan, let the whole Clan be destroyed".

Janamejaya took Udanka's word seriously and started making preperations of the Yagna. Asthika(born to a sage and a NagaKanya(snake woman)) a friend of Janamejaya stops him from this. Earlier Ruru was also in a spree to kill the snakes bu he was stopped by Sahasrapada Let us listen to Ruru's story next....

Adiparvamu - Anukramanika

Vyasa is like a vast Garden. In this garden Mahabharata is a Kalpa Vriksha( Wishing Tree). The stories are like branches, the meanings of Vedas are the shadows of the leaves, Dharmartha Kamamoksha (Principles of Dharma (Righteousness), Artha( Noble Goal), Kama ( Sensual Pleasure), Moksha( Salvation)) are flowers. The lovely songs appreciating Krishna and Arjuna are fruits. This Kalpa Vriksha provides haven for all kinds of people raning from Kids to Old people, Pandits to Ignorant, such is the greatness of this wonderful tree Mahabharata.

It is said that he completed the great epic in three years. And for publishing this great epic he sent Narada to Deva Loka ( The Land of Gods), Devala to PitruLoka ( The land of forefathers), Suka to Garuda , Gandharva, Yaksha and Rakshasa Loka, Sumantha to Naga Loka. To Publish in Nara Loka(in human society or on the planet earth) he sent Vaisampayana. Ugrasravana said that he overheard it when Vaisampayana was narrating it to Janamejaya.

Like there was the Devasura war during the end of Kritha Yuga, Rama Ravana war in Treta Yuga, there was a Kuru Pandava war at the end of Dwapara Yuga. Bhishma fought for ten days, Drona fought for five days, Karna two days, Selya half a day, Duryodhana for another half day. There was seven Akshoni Army for Pandavas and Kauravas has eleven Akshoni of Army. These eighteen Akshoni Army fought fiercely in Samanthaka Panchaka. These eighteen days the whole world was horrified in fear.

If one hears the great epic whole heartedly, then it is equivalent to listening to the four Vedas, the eighteen DharmaShastras, the eighteen Puranas and the secrets of Moksha Shastras. The Munis asked Ugrasravana to detail them with Mahabharata. They asked questions like “ What is Samathaka Panchaka? What is an Akshoni?

Ugrasravana continued “This is from the times of Thretha Yuga and Dwapara Yuga. Parasurama was angry on Kshatriyas ( The Kings). He invaded then and plundered their kingdoms twenty one times. He slew each and every Kshatriya that came to his sight with his saw. He created five ponds with the blood of Kings. He offered prayers to his forefathers with that blood. Seeing this his forefathers asked him to calm down and prayed him to stop the slaughter. The place that he created ponds of blood was called as Samanthaka Panchakam.

A conglomeration of one Chariot, one Elephant, three horses and five soldiers is a Sainyam Patti (Army Unit). Three such Units form a SenaMukha. Three SenaMukhas form a Gulmam. Three Gulmas form a Gana. Three Ganas form a Vahini. Three Vahinis form a Pruthana. Three Pruthanas form a Chamuvu. Three Chamuvus for a Aneekini. Ten Aneekinis form an Akshoni. A total of Twenty one thousand eight hundred and seventy Chariots, Elephants in equal number as Chariots, sixty five thousand six hundred and ten Horses, One lakh nine thousand three hundred and fifty Soldiers form an Akshoni.

“A huge Army of eighteen Akshonis fought fiercely for eighteen days in Kurukshetra” said Ugrasravana. He has also heard of King Janamejaya performing a Yagna which is supposed to bring prosperity to people. There was a puppy wandering in from of the Yagnasala (place where Yagna is performed). King Janamejaya’s brothers Sruthasena, Bhimasena and Ugrasena beat the puppy and sent it away. The puppy was Sarameya, who was the son of Goddess Sarama. The puppy was beaten so bad that it had wounds and was suffering from severe pain and it went and told its mother. Sarama was extremely angry by the behavior of the King. She came to Janamejaya and scolded him for the abuse of her baby boy. Sarama said “Your brothers have caused so much of pain and suffering to my son, they lost their senses and behaved like beasts beating a helpless creature. My son was not at fault. Those who ill treat the poor and needy and who are the cause of pain and suffering to the helpless will definitely get their share of sin one day”. Janamejaya was alarmed. Yagna had come to an end. The Emperor reached Hasthinapura. But he could not forget what Sarama had said. He wanted to perform Shantis (acts of peace to help alleviate curses). He started searching for a good priest who could perform these rituals. After a lot of search, he found Somasravasa, the son of SruthaSravasa. He was utterly divine and righteous person who had done great penance to obtain such divine virtues. He was born to a NagaKanya (snake woman) when Sruthasravasa was bitten by her. Janamejaya treated him with all rituals and made him his priest.

Janamejaya performed all the rituals that SomaSravasa asked him to do for Shanti. He also performed many Yagnas. He pleased many gods by performing Homas. He pleased the Bramhins by doing charities. Like his forefathers, he followed the path of Dharma and always wanted the welfare of his people. The people were very happy with him.

Adi Parvamu

Introduction

The Sacred place Naimisharanya is an abode for many Rishis and Munis. For the well being and prosperity of the whole world, Saunaka Mahamuni was performing Satra Yaga. A Yagna in which everyone gets to perform the rituals as priests. Saunaka is called as Kulapathi, which means, a Holy person who provides food and shelter for ten thousand Munis and teaches them Vedas. Sutha Mahamuni Ugrasravana came to the Yagna. Ugrasravana is the son of Romaharshana who is the disciple of Vyasa Mahamuni. He is well versed in Vedas and Puranas. When he arrived at the Yagna, everyone was so attracted by his grace that they came and surrounded him and treated him with respect and hospitality. They requested him to read them some sacred stories and Epics which give immense happiness to their souls. Ugrasravana greeted all the Munis and asked them what kind of story they would like to listen to. The Munis who were so happy just by the mere presence of him asked him to narrate something which is of immense importance and which will give good knowledge and wisdom in all aspects of life. He said he would narrate the great Epic Mahabharata which describes in detail every aspect of life, every dharma and values for all people.

Ugrasravana started his narration as follows. In the Olden times, all Vedas were at one place causing a little confusion in identifying their importance. Vyasa is the great sage who has taken the responsibility of organizing them in the righteous way. He divided them in to four Divisions namely, Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda and Adharvana Veda. He called his disciples Paila, Vaisampayana, Sumantha and Gemini and had them write the principles for these Vedas. His Holyness Veda Vyasa has written the great epic Mahabharata.

Veda Vyasa has incorporated the following great facts of the great eighteen puranas (detailed as Brahma Purana, Padma Purana, Shiva Purana, Srimadbhagavatam, Narada Purana, Markandeya Purana , Varaha Purana, Skanda Purana, Vamana Purana, Kurma Purana, Matsya Purana, Garuda Purana, Bramhanda Purana, , Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Bhavishya Purana, Linga Purana, Vishnu Purana and Agni Purana), Dharma Shastras and their Essence, Essence of Vedas, stories of Salvation, Itihasas, the stories of great sages and Kings, the principles and dharmas of chatur varnas, the greatness of Lord Sri Krishna, the great qualities of Mahabharata War heroes in his Monumental Epic of Mahabharata. It took three years for him to complete the great Epic.

People who know the essence of Dharma appreciated the scripture as an source of great principles of Dharma. Some appreciated it as great Vedanta, Neeti Shastra, Mahakavya, Lakshana Shastra, Itihasa and Purana. Like the created of the World made Continents and Sub Continents, Mahabharata has Parvas and Sub Parvas. Let me narrate them in detail.

Preface

Mahabharata is a great Epic in the Holy land of India. Everyone who is exploring the lost worlds of India ought to know the history and stories behind this sacred land. Believed as one of the ghastly wars in ancient times, Kurukshetra forms most part of the great Epic. I am here trying to translate the Mahabharata stories written in Telugu by Late Sri Puripanda Appalaswamy Garu. I have just taken this as a hobby and would like to share what I have learnt to the rest of you who are interested in these great Epics.