( Parva continued)
" said, 'The Nagas after consultation arrived at the conclusion that they should do their mother's bidding, for if she failed in obtaining her desire she might withdraw her affection and burn them all. If, on the other hand, she were graciously inclined, she might free them from her curse. They said, 'We will certainly render the horse's tail black.' And it is said that they then went and became hairs in the horse's tail.
"Now the two co-wives had laid the wager. And having laid the wager, O best of Brahmanas, the two sisters and , the daughters of , proceeded in great delight along the sky to see the other side of the Ocean. And on their way they saw the Ocean, that receptacle of waters, incapable of being easily disturbed, mightily agitated all of a sudden by the wind, and roaring tremendously; abounding with fishes capable of swallowing the whale and full of makaras; containing also creatures of diverse forms counted by thousands; frightful from the presence of horrible monsters, inaccessible, deep, and terrible, the mine of all kinds of gems, the home of (the water-god), the wonderful habitations of the Nagas, the lord of rivers, the abode of the subterranean fire; the residence of the Asuras and of many dreadful creatures; the reservoir of water, not subject to decay, aromatic, and wonderful, the great source of the amrita of the celestials; immeasurable and inconceivable, containing waters that are holy, filled to the brim by many thousands of great rivers, dancing as it were in waves. Such was the Ocean, full of rolling waves, vast as the expanse of the sky, deep, of body lighted with the flames of subterranean fire, and roaring, which the sisters quickly passed over.'"
And so ends the twenty-second section in the Parva of the Adi Parva.
( Parva continued)
" said, 'Having crossed the Ocean, of swift speed, accompanied by , soon alighted near the horse. They then both beheld that foremost of steeds of great speed, with body white as the rays of the moon but having black hairs (in the tail). And observing many black hairs in the tail, put , who was deeply dejected, into slavery. And thus having lost the wager, entered into a state of slavery and became exceedingly sorry.
"In the meantime, when his time came, burst forth from the egg without (the help of his) mother, of great splendour, enkindling all the points of the universe, that mighty being endued with strength, that bird capable of assuming at will any form, of going at will everywhere, and of calling to his aid at will any measure of energy. Effulgent like a heap of fire, he shone terribly. Of lustre equal to that of the fire at the end of the Yuga, his eyes were bright like the lightning-flash. And soon after birth, that bird grew in size and increasing his body ascended the skies. Fierce and vehemently roaring, he looked as terrible as second Ocean-fire. And all the deities seeing him, sought the protection of (). And they bowed down to that deity of manifold forms seated on his seat and spake spoke unto to him these words, 'O , extend not thy your body! Wilt will thou you consume us? Lo, this huge heap of thy your flames is spreading wide!' And replied, 'O, ye you persecutors of the Asuras, it is not as ye you imagine. This is of great strength and equal to me in splendour, endued with great energy, and born to promote the joy of . Even the sight of this heap of effulgence hath has caused this delusion in you. He is the mighty son of , the destroyer of the Nagas, engaged in the well-being of the gods, and the foe of the Daityas and the Rakshasas. Be not afraid of it in the least. Come with me and see.' Thus addressed, the gods from a distance.
"The gods said, 'Thou you art a Rishi (i.e., one cognisant of all mantras), share of the largest portion in sacrifices, ever resplendent, the controller along with the Rishi wended their way towards and adored him of birds, the presiding spirit of the animate and the inanimate universe. Thou you art the destroyer of all, the creator of all; thou you art the very Hiranyagarbha; thou you art the progenitor of creation in the form of and the other Prajapatis; thou you art (the ), thou you art Hayagriva the steed necked incarnation of ; thou you art the arrow ( himself, as he became such in the hands of at the burning of Tripura); thou you art the lord of the universe; thou you art the mouth of ; thou you art the four-faced Padmaja; thou you art the Brahmana (i.e., wise), thou you art , Pavana, etc. (i.e., the presiding deity of every object in the universe). Thou you art knowledge, thou you art the illusion to which we are all subject; thou you art the all-pervading spirit; thou you art the lord of the gods; thou you art the great Truth; thou you art fearless; thou you art ever unchanged; thou you art without attributes; thou you art the energy of ; thou you art the intellectual functions; thou you art our great protector; thou you art the ocean of holiness; thou you art purity; thou you art bereft of the attributes of darkness; thou you art the possessor of the six high attributes; thou you art he who cannot be withstood in contest. From thee you have emanated all things; thou you art of excellent deeds; thou you art all that hath has not been and all that hath has been. Thou you art pure knowledge; thou you displayest display to us, as does by his rays, this animate and inanimate universe; thou you darkenest the splendour of at every moment, and thou you art the destroyer of all; thou you art all that is perishable and all that is imperishable. O thou you resplendent as , thou you burnest burn all even as in his anger burneth burns all creatures. O terrible one, thou you resistest resist even as the fire that destroys everything at the time of the Universal Dissolution. O mighty who movest move in the skies, we seek thy your protection. O lord of birds thy your energy is extraordinary, thy your splendour is that of fire, thy your brightness is like that of the lightning that no darkness can approach. Thou you reachest the very clouds, and art both the cause and the effect; the dispenser of boons and invincible in prowess. O Lord, this whole universe is rendered hot by thy your splendour, bright as the lustre of heated gold. Protect these high-souled gods, who overcome by thee you and terrified withal, are flying along the heavens in different directions on their celestial cars. O thou you best of birds, thou you Lord of all, thou you art the son of the merciful and high-souled Rishi ; therefore, be not wroth but have mercy on the universe. Thou you art Supreme. O pacify thy your anger and preserve us. At thy your voice, loud as the roar of the thunder, the ten points, the skies, the heavens, the Earth and our hearts, O bird, thou you art continuously shaking. O, diminish this thy your body resembling . At the sight of the splendour resembling that of when in wrath, our hearts lose all equanimity and quake. O thou you lord of birds, be propitious to us who solicit thy your mercy! O illustrious one, bestow on us good fortune and joy.'
And that bird of fair feathers, thus adored by the deities and diverse sections of Rishis, reduced his own energy and splendour.'"
And thus ends the twenty-third section in the Parva of the Adi Parva.
( Parva continued)
" said, 'Then hearing of and beholding his own body, that bird of beautiful feathers diminished its size.'
"And said, 'Let no creature be afraid; as ye you are in a fright at the sight of my terrible form, I shall diminish my energy.'
" continued, 'Then that bird capable of going everywhere at will, that ranger of the skies capable of calling to his aid any measure of energy, bearing on his back, wended from his father's home and arrived at his mother's side on the other shore of the great ocean. And he placed of great splendour in the eastern regions, just at a time when had resolved to burn the worlds with his fierce rays.'
" said, 'When did the revered resolve at the time to burn the worlds? What wrong was done to him by the gods that provoked his ire?'
" said, 'O sinless one, when Rahu was drinking nectar among the gods at the time of the churning of the ocean he was pointed out to the gods by and , and from that time he conceived an enmity towards those deities. And upon this Rahu sought to devour his afflictor (), became wroth, and thought, 'Oh, this enmity of Rahu towards me hath has sprung from my desire of benefiting the gods. And this dire consequence I alone have to sustain. Indeed, at this pass help I obtain not. And before the very eyes of the denizens of heaven I am going to be devoured and they brook it quietly. Therefore, for the destruction of the worlds must I strive.' And with this resolution he went to the mountains of the west.
"And from that place he began to radiate his heat around for the destruction of the world. And then the great Rishis, approaching the gods, spake spoke unto to them, 'Lo, in the middle of the night springeth springs a great heat striking terror into every heart, and destructive of the three worlds.' Then the gods, accompanied by the Rishis, wended to the , and said unto to him, 'O what is this great heat today that causeth causes such panic? hath has not yet risen, still the destruction (of the world) is obvious. O Lord, what will happen when he doth does rise?" The replied, 'Indeed, is prepared to rise today for the destruction of the world. As soon as he will appear he will burn everything into a heap of ashes. By me, however, hath has the remedy been provided beforehand. The intelligent son of is known to all by the name of . He is huge of body and of great splendour; he shall stay in front of , doing the duty of his charioteer and taking away all the energy of the former. And this will ensure the welfare of the worlds, of the Rishis, and of the dwellers in heaven.'
" continued, ', at the behest of the , did all that he was ordered to do. And rose veiled by 's person. I have told thee you now why was in wrath, and how , the brother of , was appointed as his charioteer. Hear next of that other question asked by thee you a little while ago.'"
And so ends the twenty-fourth section in the Parva of the Adi Parva.