River of Kings

The First Wave

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And a Bodhisattva lived in this country as the sole, supreme ruler of the land,

namely the illustrious Nägärcunä, who dwelt in Şädähärdvänä.

Then, he who was without foes, the donor of the Ägrähärä of Käntäkotsä, the fearless Äbhimänyu became king; he was like another Şätämänyu.

Having founded the city of Äbhimänyupurä, which he named after himself, with inestimable treasure, that illustrious king endowed it with a temple of Şivä as its crowning beauty.

Under his instruction, Çändräçäryä and others spread the knowledge of the Mähäbhäsyä, which was inaccessible at that time, across the land. (They also spread) grammar, which they composed.

During this era, the power of the Buddhists, whom the wise Bodhisattva Nägärcunä had protected, predominated in the land.

These disputants, who were opponents of the tradition, having defeated all the learned men in open debate, brought to an end the (observance of the) rites prescribed in the Niläpuränä.

While the country drifted into confusion about the customary observances, the Nägä, whose sacrificial offerings had been cut off, sent down excessive snow, destroying the people.

As heavy snow fell every year to cause distress to the Buddhists, the king, during winter, resided for six months in Därväbhisärä and other regions.

During this period, owing to some indescribable spiritual power, the Brahmans, who made votive offerings and sacrifices, were not destroyed while the Buddhists perished.

Devoting himself to Nilä, the patron of the country and ruler of the Nägä, a Brahman named Çändrädevä of the Käsyäpä lineage then began to practice austerities.

Making himself visible to him, Nilä averted the havoc of snow and promulgated once more the observances of rites according to his own Puränä.

Çändrädevä I had put an end to the upheaval of the Yäkşä in this country and Çändrädevä II had put an end to the intolerable plague of the Bhikşu.

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His son, Hiräɳyäkşä, founded a city bearing his own name. He enjoyed the land for thirty-seven years and seven months.

Hiräɳyäkulä, his son, founder of Hiräɳyutsä, and Väsukulä, the son of the latter, were rulers for sixty years each.

Then, when the land was overrun by the Mletçä hordes, his son Mihiräkulä, a man of violent deeds, who was comparable to the god of death, became king.

To the South belonged the god of Death. (But) the North, eager through rivalry to vanquish it, found an excuse and in him brought forth another god of Death.

His approach became known by the sight of vultures, crows and the like, eager to feed on those being massacred by his encircling army, to the population fleeing before him.

This royal Vetälä was surrounded day and night by thousands of murdered human beings, even in his pleasure-houses.

This enemy of mankind (who was of) terrible appearance had no pity for children, clemency towards women, or respect for the aged, none while he massacred.

He, on one occasion, having noticed that the queen was wearing a blouse of stuff made in Simhälä, which had foot-marks on the breasts worked in gold, was inflamed with rage.

“In Simhälä, cloth is manufactured bearing the mark of the king’s foot,” thus he was told by the Chamberlain who had been questioned; whereupon, he gave orders to march.

The southern ocean, when it was swelled by the streams of the juice flowing from the temples of his war-elephants, showed a desire to embrace the Yämunä.

Together with the king of Simhälä, he, by an impetuous attack, rooted out his rage originating in the sight of footmarks on his beloved.

When the demons from the palaces of Länkä saw his army in the distance, they feared another attack of Räghävä and fell to trembling.

Having installed there another king, he, with his fierce puissance, carried away cloth known as Yämuşädevä, marked with the figure of the sun.

Turning back, he dispersed the rulers of Çolä, Kärnätä and Lätä just as by his very smell the tusker in rut scatters the elephants.

After his departure, the cities with the shattered battlements, which were their girdles, complained of the rape to the ruling princes who had returned.

When he reached the gate of Käşmirä, on hearing the distressful trumpeting of a tusker who had fallen down a precipice, his hair stood on end with delight.

In his excitement to hear this, the perverse-minded man, who was in raptures, had a hundred mighty elephants forcibly hurled down.

The various wicked acts of this king have not been narrated. The touch of the sinful is pollution for the limbs, so would it be for speech to describe them; hence, his other inhumanities have not been mentioned.

Who can understand the acts of men of amazing activities and vulgar minds, since even he took to piety for the purpose of acquiring merit?

For in Şrinägärä! the foul-minded man founded the temple of Mihireşvärä and in Holädä a big city named Mihiräpurä.

The Brahmans of Gändhärä accepted from him the gifts of Ägrähärä; they no doubt, too, were of similar character as his own and were the meanest Brahmans.

The advent of clouds with the gathering darkness gladdens the peacock whereas the wild goose is happy with the clear skies of autumn; for the attraction of the donor and the donee towards each other there has to be a very close similarity of tastes.

For seventy years having enjoyed the earth, this Bhäyräväh on earth when his body was afflicted with several diseases entered the flames.

“Here is this slayer of three crores liberated who even towards himself had been pitiless”—thus had a voice, at the time when he relinquished the body, announced from the firmament.

Thus those who say this, in their view he alone is the liberal donor who had broken through cruelty by (the gifts of) Ägrähärä and such other works.

When overrun by the impious Däräd, Bhäuttä and Mletçä, this country had lost religion, he had promulgated the observance of religious conduct by settling the people from the land of the Äryä; having determined on a terrible penance he had made the burning of his own body an act of atonement; for this very reason he had given one thousand Ägrähärä in gift to the Brahmans born in the Gändhärä country at Viyäyeşvärä; then eventually upon an iron platform studded with razors, swords and knives, red hot with fire, he had boldly given up his own body; thus others state, on account of this unadulterated popular, tradition, that the cruelty of that lion-like man is irreproachable. When upon the burning of the city by the wrath of the Nägä, the Käşä had become dominant, there occurred for their destruction the incidents narrated above—so say others.

While he was diverting the river Çändräkulyä, a rock in midstream which was found impossible to remove, caused obstruction. Then to the king, who had practiced penance, the gods spoke in a dream: “a mighty Yäkşä who is a Brähmäçäri resides here in the rock; were a chaste woman to touch the rock the Yäkşä would not be able to obstruct.” The following day he caused to be done what he was told in the dream.

After numerous ladies of high family had endeavored in vain, on being eventually touched by a potter woman named Çändräväti the mighty boulder moved.

For this sin the wrathful king had thereupon slaughtered, together with their husbands, brothers and sons, three crores of women of high families.

This legend is true according to some; nevertheless the slaughter of living beings on a large scale, even though for a cause, is a felony.

Thus although wicked that the king had not been assassinated by the people in an uprising, was because he was protected by the very gods who had urged him to do that act.

When owing to the dawn of the superior merit of the subjects’ good actions the king at last perished, his son, Bäkä the righteous, was crowned king, by the citizens.

Even in his case, owing to past experience, the people remained in a state of terror, as in a pleasure-house built on a cemetery, before the royal throne.

Born from the great oppressor he became the delight of the people like the pouring rain after a day of excessive heat, dark with the clouds.

People deemed that the Law had arrived as it were from some other world and that Order had returned from a perilous journey.

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