Glimpses of The Devi Bhagavatam: 18. MAHISHASURA AND IMMORTALITY

 

INDIAN MYTHOLOGY

Glimpses of The Devi Bhagavatam:

18. MAHISHASURA AND IMMORTALITY

Days passed. Rukmini gave birth to a son. He was named Pradyumna. One day a demon called Shamvar kidnapped the charming child and gave it to his wife, Mayavati.

Krishna’s palace at Dwaraka was a well-protected bastion. The yadavas and their soldiers kept a constant vigil on it. Despite such protection could anybody kidnap a child? And who? All were puzzled.

Krishna prayed to the Divine Mother. “O Mother, such an unfortunate thing could not have happened without your knowledge, for, it is not natural happening but supernatural. You alone can come to my help and restore the child to us,” he said.

The Goddess appeared before Krishna. “Your son was stolen because of a curse. Don’t worry. When he grows up as a young man, he would return home, after destroying his demon captor,” she said.

Krishna and Rukmini consoled themselves on this assurance.

How, indeed, had the demon succeeded in taking away the child? No doubt, it was by his power of creating an illusion. This power, called Maya, can cast a spell on anybody, be he a man or a god or a demon. Rama ran after a deer, taking it to be a true golden one, because he was under the spell of Maya. For of the same reason he was unable to know where Sita had been detained. It was because of Maya again that he failed to recognize his sons, Lava and Kusa. Valmiki had to tell him that they were his sons.

When the Lord is born as a human being, he too has to be guided by many principles that govern the world of mortals. That is why even Krishna was obliged to hide from demons or destroy them through others. While the power of Maya obtained by demons is used to harm others and create problems, the same power when used by the worthy can prove quite beneficial.

The fact is, it is Maya, in some form or the other, that governs the world. And Mahadevi was the repository of this immense force.

The demon brothers, Rambho and Karambho, were quite ambitious. In order to gain some boons from the great gods, they decided to engage themselves in penance.

Karambho sat in a river and meditated; Rambho meditated after perching himself on a tree. Indra used to grow scared of anybody who meditated on the great Gods. Under his influence, a crocodile killed Karambho in the river.

When Rambho learnt of his brother’s death, he lighted a flame in front of him and decided to sacrifice himself to the god of Fire. He unsheathed his sword for the purpose.

At once the god of Fire appeared before him and said, “To take one’s own life is a grievous sin. Don’t do it. You may ask for a boon.”

“Very well. Let me have a son who cannot be killed by gods, men or demons,” said Rambho. He wanted to wreak vengeance on the gods through such a powerful son, in case he too got killed like his brother.

“Your wish is granted,” said the god of Fire and he vanished.

Rambho wandered from place to place. One day he met a young demoness. Fascinated by her, he married her. The demoness was in the habit of assuming the form of a she-buffalo when travelling.

One day when Rambho and his wife were crossing a forest, a wild buffalo saw Rambho’s wife in the form of a buffalo, and attacked her. Rambho went to her rescue, but got killed. His wife sacrificed herself in his funeral pyre.

At that time, she was an expectant mother. Out of the pyre emerged her two sons, Mahishasura and Raktabeej.

Mahishasura soon distinguished himself as an uncompromising enemy of the gods. The demons, pleased with him, made him their king. Renowned demon-heroes like Tikshur, Tamra, Asiloma, Sudarka, Vidal, Trinetra, and Kalavandhaka became his ministers and generals.

The war between the gods and demons had been continuing for a long time. Mahishasura climbed the Kanchan mountain and sat there for years meditating on Lord Brahma. When the Lord at last appeared before him, the demon asked him for the boon of immortality.

“Whoever is born must die. I cannot make you immortal. Ask me for some other boon,’’ said Brahma. “Grant me then, O Lord, that no hero among the gods or men or demons can ever vanquish me,” prayed Mahishasura. “Let it be so,” said Brahma.

When Mahishasura asked for this boon, he had in his mind the male heroes. He never imagined that there could be any possibility of a goddess or a woman or a demoness turning his enemy.

Mahishasura, now protected by Brahma’s boon, grew extremely proud. He sent an emissary to heaven.

The demon-emissary met Indra, the king of gods, and said, “I come from the mighty demon-king, Mahishasura. He proposes that you surrender your abode to him. Let all the gods live peacefully as his subjects. You may turn down the proposal only to your own peril. You ought to know that there is nobody equal to my king in strength or velour. To go and fight him would mean only one thing for you to meet your doom.”

Indra burst out, “Listen, you impudent emissary of an impudent demon! You deserve to die; but I spare you to uphold the dignity of your office. Go and tell your master that he is welcome to fight me. I have heard that he sports a pair of horns. I shall pluck them and use them in my thunder.”