Bala Kanda, Sarga 62

Meaning

Taking Śunaḥśepa with him, O jewel among men, the highly illustrious king Ambarīṣa for his part rested at Puṣkara at noon, O scion of Raghu ! (1)

Meaning

Making his way to the elder (main) Puṣkara (there being two other lakes in the vicinity of the main lake, known as the middle and the younger Puṣkara respectively), while the latter was taking rest, the highly renowned Śunaḥśepa, so the tradition goes, saw his maternal uncle*, Viśwāmitra, practising austerities with other sages. Nay, pulling a long face and looking miserable from thirst (or desire to live) and fatigue, the boy, who was sore afflicted, sank into the sage’s lap, O Rāma, and spoke as follows, so it is said : “There is no mother nor father to me; how then could there be any kinsmen or relations? (2—4)

Meaning

“Be pleased to deliver me, O gentle Sir, in the name of piety, O jewel among sages; for you are the redeemer of all as well as their benefactor. (5)

Meaning

“Pray, so arrange that the king Ambarīṣa may realize his object in the shape of a reward of his projected sacrifice, while I may be saved from death and, attaining a long life and practising austerities, ascend to the celestial plane, the highest of all the three worlds. (6)

Meaning

“With a cheerful mind indeed be you, celebrated as you are, a protector to me, a forlorn child. You ought to protect me, O pious soul, against adversity born of sin, even as a father protects his son.” (7)

Meaning

Hearing the aforesaid prayer of Śunaḥśepa and consoling him in many ways, the great ascetic, Viśwāmitra, spoke to his own sons as follows, so it is said : (8)

Meaning

“The time has just come for ensuring our good in the other world, for which fathers desirous of blessings beget sons. (9)

Meaning

“This son of a hermit, who is yet a child, seeks deliverance through me. Do him a good turn, my dear sons, by merely parting with your own life. (10)

Meaning

“You are all engaged in virtuous acts and are all devoted to duty. Taking the place of a victim at the sacrificial performance of the king Ambarīṣa, afford satisfaction to the god of fire. (11)

Meaning

“In this way not only will Śunaḥśepa find a protector in us and secure deliverance from death but the sacrifice of Ambarīṣa will also be completed without any let or hindrance. Nay, the gods will have been propitiated and my pledge of security given to him redeemed.” (12)

Meaning

Hearing the aforesaid exhortation of Viśwāmitra, O jewel among men, his sons, of whom Madhucchandā was the eldest, proudly and lightly replied as follows : (13)

Meaning

“How is it that you proceed to save another’s son, parting with your own sons, O almighty sage? We reckon this attempt of yours to be almost as sacrilegious as mixing the flesh of a dog in one’s dish.” (14)

Meaning

Hearing the aforesaid comment of his above-named sons, Viśwāmitra (a jewel among sages) proceeded to curse them (as follows), his eyes bloodshot through anger : (15)

Meaning

“This reply, given by you disregarding my exhortation, is intrepid, nay, divorced from piety, sharp and shocking too. (16)

Meaning

“Like the sons of Vasiṣṭha, therefore, you shall be born on earth among the low-born classes such as the Caṇḍālas and Muṣṭikas and, living on the flesh of dogs, drag your wretched existence for full thousand years.” (17)

Meaning

Having subjected his sons to a curse as aforesaid, Viśwāmitra, the foremost of hermits, then spoke to the wretched Śunaḥśepa as follows, ensuring protection free from disease to him by means of mystic spells : (18)

Meaning

“Scrambling to the sacrificial post sacred to Lord Viṣṇu, when you have been bound with cords of Darbha grass and adorned with a wreath of crimson flowers and bedaubed with red sandal-paste for being offered as a victim at the sacrificial performance of King Ambarīṣa, glorify through the sacred fire Indra and Lord Viṣṇu by means of glories addressed to them and then you would do well to chant the two excellent psalms invoking the two aforementioned deities, which I am presently going to teach you, O dear son of Sage Ṛcīka ! Thereby you will attain your object in the shape of deliverance from death at the projected sacrificial performance of King Ambarīṣa.” (19-20)

Meaning

Learning the aforementioned couple of psalms, as taught by Viśwāmitra, with a fully concentrated mind, Śunaḥśepa hastily spoke to the said King Ambarīṣa, a lion among kings, as follows : (21)

Meaning

“O highly intelligent monarch, O lion among kings, let us both quickly proceed to our destination. Go through the ceremony of consecration for the sacrifice, O king of kings, and conclude the sacrifice without any hitch or rub.” (22)

Meaning

Filled with joy to hear the aforesaid request of the sage’s son, Śunaḥśepa, the king Ambarīṣa quickly reached the sacrificial enclosure, shaking off all lethargy. (23)

Meaning

Having bound Śunaḥśepa, the sacrificial victim, with a cord of Darbha grass and thereby providing him with the distinctive mark of a victim and dressing him in a red attire, the king, who acted upon the advice of the superintending priest, firmly tied him to the sacrificial post. (24)

Meaning

While remaining bound, the young hermit boy duly glorified indeed the two divinities, Indra and his younger brother Lord Viṣṇu, manifested as the divine Dwarf, by means of excellent hymns. (25)

Meaning

Propitiated through the mystic psalms and filled with delight, Indra, the thousand-eyed divinity, thereupon granted the boon of a long life to Śunaḥśepa that very moment. (26)

Meaning

Nay, the said king Ambarīṣa* too, O jewel among men, duly attained, O Rāma, the manifold fruit of the sacrifice, yielded by the grace of Indra. (27)

Meaning

The great ascetic, Viśwāmitra, too, who is piety incarnate, began his austerities anew in the vicinity of the three lakes going by the name of Puṣkara for another thousand years, O jewel among men ! (28)