Shree Shookdeo Jee said,--O great king! there was a Raja, named
Pounrik, in the city of Kasee, a very powerful and glorious monarch,
who assumed the appearance of Vishnù and imposed upon all people by
deceit and force; he constantly wore a yellow dress, a necklace
composed of five jewels, produced from the elements of nature, a
garland of pearls, and a garland, composed of various jewels; and
carrying about with him a shell, quoit, club and lotus, he made two
wooden hands for himself; and having placed upon a horse a wooden
sovereign of the feathered race, he went about, mounted upon it. He
called himself Basoodeo Pounrik, and caused himself to be worshipped
by all men; whatsoever Raja did not obey his order, he attacked him;
and, having fought, reduced him to subjection.
Having narrated thus much of the history, Shree Shookdeo Jee
said,--Raja! seeing and hearing of his practices, people began to say
in every country, city, village and house, “One Basoodeo has appeared
in the country of Bruj, in the family of Judoo, and he dwells in the
city of Dwarka, another has now come to Kasee, which of the two shall
we look upon and respect as the true one?” Such was the talk in every
country; when, having made some discovery, Basoodeo Pounrik came one
day into his own court, and said, “Who is Krishnù that lives at
Dwarka, whom the world calls Basoodeo? He has come upon the earth for
the sake of his worshippers, and has there assumed an appearance like
mine.” Having thus spoken, he sent for a messenger; and, entering into
very minute explanations with him, despatched him to Dwarka to Shree
Krishnù Chund Jee, saying, “Tell all persons, who are wandering about
in an appearance like mine, to relinquish that appearance and if they
do not relinquish it, prepare to fight with them.” On receiving the
order the messenger, taking leave, started from Kasee, and arrived at
the city of Dwarka; and appeared in the court of Shree Krishnù Chund
Jee. Krishnù asked him, “Who he was, and whence he had come?” He
replied, “I am a messenger of Raja Pounrik, of the city of Kasee, I am
come to deliver a message to you from my master, which, with your
permission, I will mention.” Shree Krishnù Chund granted permission.
When he had done so, the messenger standing up with joined hands,
began to say, “O great king! Basoodeo Pounrik says, ‘That he is lord
of the three worlds and creator of the universe, and asks who you are,
who having assumed his appearance, and fled from fear of Joorasindhoo,
have come to live at Dwarka; you must either immediately give over
imitating him in outward appearance and seek his protection; or he
will come and destroy you, together with all the descendants of Judoo;
and, having removed the burthens of the earth, will cherish his own
worshippers, I am Pounrik, the unseen, the invisible, the without
form; gods, sages, saints and men offer prayers, penance, sacrifice
and gifts continually to me. I, as Bruhmù, am the creator, as
Vishnù, the preserver, and as Shivù, the destroyer. In the form of a
fish I rescued the sinking Vedas, in the form of a tortoise I
supported a hill, as a boar I upheld the earth, descending upon the
earth as half man and half lion, I destroyed the demon Hirunkusyp, in
the incarnation of a dwarf, I deceived Buli, when I descended as Ram,
I destroyed the great devil, Rawun. This is my occupation, that,
whenever demons vex my worshippers, I descend upon the earth, and
remove its burthens.’”
Having narrated thus much of the history, Shree Shookdeo Jee said to
the Raja Pureechit,--O great king! the messenger of Basoodeo Pounrik
was thus speaking, and Shree Krishnù Chund, the root of joy, seated
on a jewelled throne amidst an assemblage of Judoos was listening and
laughing, when one of the descendants of Judoo exclaimed, “Has the
regent of the dead come to take thee away, that thou speakest thus; we
will kill thee, thou low wretch! Thou hast come as the go-between of a
deceitful man; if you were not an ambassador, we would certainly put
you to death, it is not right to kill a messenger.”
O great king! when the descendants of Judoo had thus spoken, Shree
Krishnù Jee, having called that messenger, explained to him and said,
“Go and tell thy Basoodeo, that Krishnù says, that he is about to
give up imitating thy appearance, and to seek an asylum with thee, be
prepared.”
On hearing these words the messenger made a salutation, and took
leave; and Shree Krishnù Chund Jee also set out with his army for the
city of Kasee. The messenger went and said to Basoodeo Pounrik, “O
great king! I have been to Dwarka, and delivered the whole of the
message you charged me with to Shree Krishnù; and on hearing it he
said, ‘Go and tell thy master to be prepared, as I am about to give up
imitating his appearance, and to seek an asylum with him.’”
O great king! whilst the ambassador was still speaking, some one came
and said, “O great king! why are you sitting thus unconcerned? Shree
Krishnù has advanced with his army.” In hearing this, Basoodeo
Pounrik came forth with his whole army in his assumed appearance; and,
proceeding onwards, came in front of Shree Krishnù Chund Jee. Another
Raja of Kasee came also with him; on both sides the armies were
arranged in battle order: the warlike instruments began to sound, the
brave, the resolute and the heroical began to fight; and cowards,
leaving the field, to run for their lives; at that time Basoodeo
Pounrik continuing to fight and being in the hands of death, went in
his assumed form in front of Shree Krishnù Chund Jee, and challenged
him. On seeing him in that counterfeit dress, the descendants of Judoo
said to Shree Krishnù Chund, “O great king! how shall we kill him in
this likeness?” Krishnù said, “It is no crime to kill a deceitful man
in that likeness.”
Having thus spoken, Huri gave the order to the quoit, Soodursun, who
went and plucked out his two wooden arms; the wooden sovereign of the
feathered race was broken at the same time, and the horse ran away;
when Basoodeo Pounrik fell Soodursun cut off his head, and threw it
away. On his head being cut off the Raja Pounrik was released from
existence; his head fell in the city of Kasee, where his seraglio was,
and his wives saw it; they wept and tore their hair, saying, “Who was
the author of this deed? You were not subject to decrepitude and were
immortal. How has your soul departed in a second?”
O great king! on hearing the lamentations of the Raja’s wives, a son
of his, named Soodukoch, came there, and seeing his father’s head,
which had been cut off, was greatly enraged and began to say, “I will
not rest without revenging myself on him who has slain my father.”
Having proceeded thus far in the narrative, Shree Shookdeo Jee,
said,--O great king! having destroyed Basoodeo Pounrik, Shree Krishnù
Chund Jee returned with all his army to Dwarka, and the Raja’s son,
with a view of revenging his father’s death, began to perform a very
difficult penance to Muhadeo Jee. When he had been engaged some days
in this penance, Muhadeo Bholanath came one day highly delighted, and
said, “Ask a boon from me.” The Raja’s son said, “O great king! grant
me this boon, that I may be revenged on Shree Krishnù for my father’s
death.” Shivù Jee replied, “Very good, if you desire revenge, adopt
this plan.” He said, “What plan?” Shivù replied, “Offer a sacrifice,
repeating the incantations of the Vedas backwards, a female devil will
come forth from the fire, who will do whatever you tell her.”
When Shivù Jee had thus spoken, the Raja’s son, O great king! sent
for brahmins, and having built an altar, and taking sesamum, ghee,
barley, sugar and other requisites for the sacrifice and mixing them
up together, began to offer sacrifice, repeating the incantations of
the Vedas backwards. At length, whilst he was engaged in the
sacrifice, a female devil, named Kritya, came forth from the hole, in
which the consecrated fire was received, who, burning all the cities
and villages, and the whole country in rear of Shree Krishnù Jee,
arrived at the city of Dwarka, and began to set the city on fire.
Seeing the city in flames, all the descendants of Judoo went in
consternation to Shree Krishnù Chund Jee, and called out, “O great
king! how shall we escape from this fire, it is burning down the whole
city?” Krishnù replied, “Be not at all alarmed, this is a female
devil, named Kritya, who has come from Kasee, I will immediately make
arrangements with regard to her.”
O great king! having thus spoken, Shree Krishnù Jee gave the order to
the quoit, Soodursun, to attack and put her to flight, and to go at
once, and set fire to the city of Kasee. On receiving Huri’s order,
the quoit, Soodursun, put to flight and destroyed Kritya, and went
forthwith, and set Kasee on fire, The inhabitants fled from place to
place in great distress; and bitterly abused Soodukoch. The quoit
returned, after having fired the city, and came, and told Krishnù.