“Yudhishthira said, ‘O great Brahmana, how was that tiger among kings,
Mandhata, Yuvanaswa’s son, born,--even he who was the best of monarchs,
and celebrated over the three worlds? And how did he of unmeasured lustre
attain the very height of real power, since all the three worlds were as
much under his subjection, as they are under that of Vishnu of mighty
soul? I am desirous of hearing all this in connection with the life and
achievements of that sagacious monarch. I should also like to hear how
his name of Mandhata originated, belonging as it did to him who rivalled
in lustre Indra himself: and also how he of unrivalled strength was born,
for thou art skilled in the art of narrating events.’
“Lomasa said, ‘Hear with attention, O king! how the name of Mandhata
belonging to that monarch of mighty soul hath come to be celebrated
throughout all the worlds. Yuvanaswa, the ruler of the earth, was sprung
from Ikshvaku’s race. That protector of the earth performed many
sacrificial rites noted for magnificent gifts. And the most excellent of
all virtuous men performed a thousand times the ceremony of sacrificing a
horse. And he also performed other sacrifices of the highest order,
wherein he made abundant gifts. But that saintly king had no son. And he
of mighty soul and rigid vows made over to his ministers the duties of
the state, and became a constant resident of the woods. And he of
cultured soul devoted himself to the pursuits enjoined in the sacred
writ. And once upon a time, that protector of men, O king! had observed a
fast. And he was suffering from the pangs of hunger and his inner soul
seemed parched with thirst. And (in this state) he entered the hermitage
of Bhrigu. On that very night, O king of kings! the great saint who was
the delight of Bhrigu’s race, had officiated in a religious ceremony,
with the object that a son might be born to Saudyumni. O king of kings!
at the spot stood a large jar filled with water, consecrated with the
recitation of sacred hymns, and which had been previously deposited
there. And the water was endued with the virtue that the wife of
Saudyumni would by drinking the same, bring forth a god-like son. Those
mighty saints had deposited the jar on the altar and had gone to sleep,
having been fatigued by keeping up the night. And as Saudyumni passed
them by, his palate was dry, and he was suffering greatly from thirst.
And the king was very much in need of water to drink. And he entered that
hermitage and asked for drink. And becoming fatigued, he cried in feeble
voice, proceeding from a parched throat, which resembled the weak
inarticulate utterance of a bird. And his voice reached nobody’s ears.
Then the king beheld the jar filled with water. And he quickly ran
towards it, and having drunk the water, put the jar down. And as the
water was cool, and as the king had been suffering greatly from thirst,
the draught of water relieved the sagacious monarch and appeased his
thirst. Then those saints together with him of ascetic wealth, awoke from
sleep; and all of them observed that the water of the jar had gone.
Thereupon they met together and began to enquire as to who might have
done it. Then Yuvanaswa truthfully admitted that it was his act. Then the
revered son of Bhrigu spoke unto him, saying. ‘It was not proper. This
water had an occult virtue infused into it, and had been placed there
with the object that a son might be born to thee. Having performed severe
austerities, I infused the virtue of my religious acts in this water,
that a son might be born to thee. O saintly king of mighty valour and
physical strength! a son would have been born to thee of exceeding
strength and valour, and strengthened by austerities, and who would have
sent by his bravery even Indra to the abode of the god of death. It was
in this manner, O king! that this water had been prepared by me. By
drinking this water, O king, thou hast done what was not at all right.
But it is impossible now for us to turn back the accident which hath
happened. Surely what thou hast done must have been the fiat of Fate.
Since thou, O great king, being a thirst hast drunk water prepared with
sacred hymns, and filled with the virtue of my religious labours, thou
must bring forth out of thy own body a son of the character described
above. To that end we shall perform a sacrifice for thee, of wonderful
effect so that, valorous as thou art, thou wilt bring forth a son equal
to Indra. Nor with thou experience any trouble on account of the labour
pains.’ Then when one hundred years had passed away, a son shining as the
sun pierced the left side of the king endowed with a mighty soul, and
came forth. And the son was possessed of mighty strength. Nor did
Yuvanaswa die--which itself was strange. Then Indra of mighty strength
came to pay him a visit. And the deities enquired of the great Indra,
‘What is to be sucked by this boy?’ Then Indra introduced his own
forefinger into his mouth. And when the wielder of the thunderbolt said,
‘He will suck me,’ the dwellers of heaven together with Indra christened
the boy Mandhata, (literally, Me he shall suck). Then the boy having
tasted the forefinger extended by Indra, became possessed of mighty
strength, and he grew thirteen cubits, O king. And O great king! the
whole of sacred learning together with the holy science of arms, was
acquired by that masterful boy, who gained all that knowledge by the
simple and unassisted power of his thought. And all at once, the bow
celebrated under the name of Ajagava and a number of shafts made of horn,
together with an impenetrable coat of mail, came to his possession on the
very same day, O scion of Bharata’s race! And he was placed on the throne
by Indra himself and he conquered the three worlds in a righteous way, as
Vishnu did by his three strides. And the wheel of the car of that mighty
king as irresistible in its course (throughout the world). And the gems,
of their own accord, came into the possession of that saintly king. This
is the tract of land, O lord of earth, which belonged to him. It abounds
in wealth. He performed a number of sacrificial rites of various kinds,
in which abundant gratuities were paid to the priests. O king! he of
mighty force and unmeasured lustre, erected sacred piles, and performed
splendid pious deeds, and attained the position of sitting at Indra’s
side. That sagacious king of unswerving piety sent forth his fiat, and
simply by its virtue conquered the earth, together with the sea--that
source of gems--and all the cities (or [of?--JBH] the earth), O great
king! The sacrificial grounds prepared by him were to be found all over
the earth on all sides round--not a single spot, but was marked with the
same. O great king! the mighty monarch is said to have given to the
Brahmanas ten thousand padmas of kine. When there was a drought, which
continued for twelve consecutive years, the mighty king caused rain to
come down for the growth of crops, paying no heed to Indra, the wielder
of the thunder-bolt, who remained staring (at him). The mighty ruler of
the Gandhara land, born in the lunar dynasty of kings, who was terrible
like a a roaring cloud, was slain by him, who wounded him sorely with his
shafts. O king! he of cultured soul protected the four orders of people,
and by him of mighty force the worlds were kept from harm, by virtue of
his austere and righteous life. This is the spot where he, lustrous like
the sun, sacrificed to the god. Look at it! here it is, in the midst of
the field of the Kurus, situated in a tract, the holiest of all. O
preceptor of earth! requested by thee, I have thus narrated to thee the
great life of Mandhata, and also the way in which he was born, which was
a birth of an extraordinary kind.’”
Vaisampayana said, “O scion of Bharata’s race! Kunti’s son, thus
addressed by the mighty saint, Lomasa, immediately put fresh questions to
him, with regard to Somaka.”