<
span class="kMeaningPrefix">
<
span class="kMeaningText">A
famous holy place.
this place is
situated about sixteen miles to the
north of Kāśī at a
place where the rivers Gaṅgā and Gomatī
meet.
he who visits
this place would get the
benefit of doing an Agniṣṭomayajña.
not only that,
he would lift the
prestige of
his family.
[Śloka 80, Chapter 34, Vana Parva] .
<
span class="kMeaningPrefix">MĀRKAṆḌEYA
<
span class="kMeaningText">The
son of Mṛkaṇḍu.
he was a
great devotee of Śiva.
1)
genealogy. Bhṛgu,
son of Brahmā, begot of
his wife Khyāti a
daughter named Lakṣmī and
two sons
named Dhātā and Vidhātā. Dhātā and Vidhātā
married Āyati and Niyati daughters of Mahāmeru. Dhātā begot of
his wife Āyati a
son named Prāṇa and Niyati
bore Vidhātā a
son named Mṛkaṇḍu Mārkaṇḍeya was the
son of Mṛkaṇḍu and Vedaśiras was the
son of Mārkaṇḍeya.
2)
birth. Mṛkaṇḍu did
not have sons for a
long time and so
he performed penance for
several years to
please Śiva to
get a
son. Śiva appeared
before him in
person and
asked him thus “Do
you desire to
have a
virtuous,
wise and
pious son who would live up to
sixteen years or a dullwitted
evil-
natured son who would live long?” Mṛkaṇḍu
chose the
first type and
soon a
son was
born.
he was
named Mārkaṇḍeya.
even from
boyhood Mārkaṇḍeya knew
all the Vedas and śāstras.
his pleasing manners got the
approval of
his teachers and the
boy was
liked by
one and
all. But the
parents were
sad and
whenever they looked at
their son a
gloom spread over their face. The
secret of the
short span of
his life was
hidden from
him. The
sixteenth year was
fast approaching and
one day unable to
control their grief they wept
before him. Mārkaṇḍeya
asked them the
reason why they wept. Mṛkaṇḍu with
tears running down his cheeks
told him the
story. From that
day onwards Mārkaṇḍeya
started performing penance wearing barks of trees for
his dress and
growing matted hair. The
boy was
soon engrossed in
severe austerities. The
day of
his death came and the
boy sat before the
idol of Śiva in
deep meditation. The servants of the
god of
death could
not approach Mārkaṇḍeya for the
radiation from
him was
too hot for
them. So
yama, the
god of
death,
himself came to
fetch him.
then Mārkaṇḍeya
crying loudly for
help embraced the
idol before him.
yama threw
his rope in a
loop and
it went and
circled round the
idol also.
angry Śiva
rose from the
idol and
coming down killed yama to
save the
child. From that
day onwards Śiva
got the
names Mṛtyuñjaya and Kālakāla.
after that at the
request of the devas Śiva gave
life to
yama again and
made Mārkaṇḍeya to
be of
sixteen years for
ever.
3)
penance of Mārkaṇḍeya. The Purāṇas
state that
after getting the
blessing from Śiva, Mārkaṇḍeya lived for
ten crores of
years.
while he was in
deep meditation six Manvantaras
passed away. When Mārkaṇḍeya
continued his meditation to the
seventh Manvantara
indra got frightened and
he made an
attempt to
abort the
penance of Mārkaṇḍeya.
indra sent his troops of Gandharvas, nymphs, Manmatha and Vasanta to the āśrama of Mārkaṇḍeya. The āśrama of Mārkaṇḍeya was at a
place which was on the
northern side of the Himālayas and was
famous by the
presence there of the
river Puṣpabhadrā and the
rock Citra. The agents of
indra came there and
tried to
entice him with
many temptations.
beautiful celestial maidens danced
around the āśrama. Flowers
fell from
their hair when
their waists shook by the
weight of
their heavy breasts.
enchanting girls
played with balls
here and
there. As
they played the bracelets on
their waists
fell down and the
thin garments that
hid their bodies flew up
showing an
alluring nakedness. Kāma (
god of
love)
sent his arrows at that
time against the
sage. But Mārkaṇḍeya
sat unconcerned as
rigid as a
rock and
indra accepted defeat. When
indra and
his troops
returned disappointed Mahāviṣṇu with
many sages went to Mārkaṇḍeya.
he awoke from
his meditation and
worshipped Viṣṇu.
4)
vision of Pralaya. On
one evening at
dusk Mārkaṇḍeya was
sitting at Puṣpabhadrātīra when from
somewhere a
wind began to
blow. The
wind increased in
strength and the
sky became covered with clouds. The
place resounded with peals of
thunder and
soon it began to
rain. Rains
became heavy. Rivers
became flooded and
water-
level in the oceans
rose.
everything around was
submerged in
water and Mārkaṇḍeya
alone stood
there with
his matted hair swinging in the
wind.
it was
impossible to
know the directions and Mārkaṇḍeya
started walking.
he fell into whirlpools but was the
next instant thrown up on to the
top of
surging waves.
then he saw on the
top of a
high wave a
banyan tree. On a
branch on the
north-
east of the
tree he saw an
infant lying,
devouring the
darkness by
its effulgence.
he was
attracted to the
infant by
its vital force and went
inside the
infant as
it inhaled.
inside the
belly of the
kid Mārkaṇḍeya had a
vision of the
entire universe.
he saw the
sky, the
horizon, the stars, the oceans, the mountains expanses of
land, Suras, Asuras, forests and
all that the
universe contained in
its proper set-up.
he saw passing before his eyes the
elements, the Yugas and the Manvantaras.
after some time he was
thrown out by an
exhalation of the
infant.
he stood on the
waters. The
old banyan tree was
still there. An
infant was
still lying on a
leaf on that
tree. Mārkaṇḍeya
then knew
it was Mahāviṣṇu.
he rushed to
embrace the
child; but the
child disappeared before he reached it. Mārkaṇḍeya
praised Mahāviṣṇu.
5)
Pārvatī and Parameśvara come to Mārkaṇḍeya. When Mahāviṣṇu
disappeared from
his vision he felt he was
sitting at Puṣpabhadrātīra and
he again went into
meditation. At that
time Pārvatī and Parameśvara
came that
way and appeared
before Mārkaṇḍeya. The
sage worshipped them and
they both blessed Mārkaṇḍeya and
said “Every
desire of
yours will be fulfilled.
you will never be rugous or
grey-
haired and
will live virtuous and
famous till the
end of the
world.
omniscience will be an
asset for you”.
after having said so
much Pārvatī and Parameśvara
disappeared. The Purāṇic
belief is that the
realised soul of Mārkaṇḍeya is
moving about in the
universe.
[10th Skandha, Chapters 8 to 11, Bhāgavata] . 6).
details from Mahābhārata relating to Mārkaṇḍeya. (1)
this sage shone in the
court of Dharmaputra.
[Śloka 15, Chapter 4, Sabhā Parva] .
(
ii)
he sits in the
court of Brahmā and worships
him [Śloka 12, Chapter 11, Sabhā Parva] .
(
iii)
once Mārkaṇḍeya gave Dharmopadeśa to the Pāṇḍavas.
[Chapter 25, Vana Parva] .
(
iv) Mārkaṇḍeya
sitting on the banks of the
river Payoṣṇī sang praises
about river Payoṣṇī and
king Nṛga.
[Śloka 5, Chapter 88, Vana Parva] .
(v)
once Mārkaṇḍeya
narrated to Dharmaputra stories
about Kings and Ṛṣis.
[Chapters 186 to 232, Vana Parva] .
(
vi) Mārkaṇḍeya had a
vision of the
great deluge.
[Chapter 188, Vana Parva] .
(
vii)
this sage entered the
belly of Bālamukunda.
[Śloka 100, Chapter 188, Vana Parva] .
(
viii) Mārkaṇḍeya gave a
description of Kaliyuga.
[Śloka 7, Chapter 190, Vana Parva] .
(
ix)
he described at
another time the
incarnation of
kalki.
[Śloka 93, Chapter 19, Vana Parva] .
(x)
once Mārkaṇḍeya
narrated the
story of Tripuravadha to Dharmaputra. ---
11--- .
(
xi) Mārkaṇḍeya was
also one among the
several sages
who visited Bhīṣma
lying on
his bed of arrows. ---
12--- .
(
xii) Mārkaṇḍeya learnt Sahasranāma (
thousand names) of Śiva from Naciketas and
taught the
same to Upamanyu.
[Śloka 79, Chapter 17, Anuśāsana Parva] .
(
xiii)
once Mārkaṇḍeya
discussed with Nārada topics on
many different subjects.
[Dākṣiṇātya Pāṭha, Chapter 22, Anuśāsana Parva] .
(
xiv)
once Mārkaṇḍeya
explained the evils of
taking flesh as
food. ---
15--- .
(
xv) The
name of the
wife of Mārkaṇḍeya was Dhūmorṇā.
[Śloka 4, Chapter 146, Anuśāsana Parva] .
(
xvi) Yudhiṣṭhira
worshipped Mārkaṇḍeya
also when
he worshipped great sages
before commencing the Mahāprasthāna. (Śloka
12,
chapter 1, Prasthāna Parva, M.B.).
(
xvii) Mahābhārata gives the
following synonyms for Mārkaṇḍeya:--Bhārgava, Bhārgavasattama, Bhṛgukula- śārdūla, Bhṛgunandana, Brahmarṣi and Viprarṣi.