On the advice of Krishna and Sage Vyasa, Yudhistra
proposed to perform the Ashvamedha Yaga to re-establish the rule of dharma all
over the world. The horse that was sent by Yudhistra under the protection of
the Pandavas army led by Arjuna passed through many Kingdoms for over a year
and was returning towards Hastinapur. The messengers informed King Yudhistra
about the returning of the horse and Arjuna towards Hastinapur.
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| Festive city Hastinapur! |
Excited on the news of his brother’s return, King
Yudhistra called Bhīma and said, “Oh Bhīma,
Arjuna is returning to Hastinapur with the Yaga Asva. Make arrangements to receive
him grandly and also send invitations for the yaga. Maha Sudha Poornima (Full
moon Day) is approaching. We’ll be performing the Ashvamedha Yaga on that day.
So, invite all the kings, sages, saints, our friends and relatives and the
prominent people. Make arrangements to accommodate the guests and the visitors.
Make sure the accommodation is comfortable for everyone and is also up to their
status. Make sure we have arrangements to feed the people who arrive for the
yaga. Make sure quality and sumptuous food is served. Also make arrangements for the Yaga
Sala. Take help from Nakula and Sahadeva. Also discuss with Draupathi on the
decorations of the Palace and also all over the city.”
Bhīma gathered the best architects and engineers in the
kingdom and made them work on the guest accommodation rooms and Yaga Sala. He
also made sure everything was ready before the arrival of Arjuna and the
guests. Sahadeva sent the Brahmins with gifts and treasures to invite the kings,
sages and the most prominent people. Queen Draupathi personally made sure Lord
Krishna is invited for the Yaga with all his wives and family. She even sent out special invitations for
Queen Rukmani, Queen Bama, Queen Jambavathi and other wives of Lord Krishna. Nakula
took care of the interior decoration workings and arrangements for the guest’s
rooms. The entire city was filled in festive mood, ready to welcome their
beloved archer Arjuna who is returning victoriously after winning all the
kingdoms. The people gave a warm welcome to all the kings and sages who visited
Hastinapur to grace the Yaga. The Palace was filled with lights and the whole
city was awake in nights celebrating and welcoming their friends and relatives.
The lights in the city surpassed the stars in the night sky.
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| Draupathi welcoming Queens |
King Yudhistra and Queen Draupathi personally took
care of the accommodation and facilities for the guests- the Kings and the
sages. People from other cities came for the Yaga. Lakhs and lakhs of people
visited the city and in order make sure the people are satisfied, Bhīma
and the engineers made arrangements in such a way that the dining room could accommodate 1 Lakh people at a time. Food and liquor was
served uninterruptedly to both people and Kings.
Lord Balram, Lord Krishna, Satyaki and other Yadava
elders arrived for the Yaga with their family, friends and citizens of Dwaraka.
King Yudhistra and Queen Draupathi welcomed them gladly and personally took
care of their accommodations.
While Krishna and Yudhistra were having conversation,
a messenger sent by Arjuna came in and informed- “Oh Dharmaraja! I am here to
inform you that Generalissimo Arjuna has arrived in the outskirts of
Hastinapur. He will enter the city tomorrow when the Yaga Asva enters the
city.”
The full moon day of the month of Chaitra arrived. The
auspicious day for the Ashvamedha Yaga!! Arjuna entered the city with his wives
Chitrangadha
and Ulupi and son Vabhruvahana.The Yaga Asva was walking in front of him. People
gathered on the sides of the streets and gave a warm welcome to Arjuna
showering flowers and playing musical instruments. Arjuna entered the Yaga Sala
with the horse. King Yudhistra and his brothers along with Krishna, Queen
Draupathi, Subhadra and others welcomed Arjuna gratefully. Seeking blessings
from Dhritarashtra, Gandhari, Vidhura and Kunti, Arjuna introduced Chitrangadha
and Ulupi and his son Babhruvahana to them. With the entry of the Yaga Asva
near the Yaga Vatika, the Ashvamedha Yaga commenced.
The
Yaga Vatika (the arrangement where the holy fire will be lit) was built using
golden bricks with each side extending 18 inches in length. It was built on the
shape of Garuda (Bald Eagle). Golden poles were erected around it for
adornment. 21 Oopa Stambhas (sacred wooden pole made out of the extract of
several holy trees) were erected by the saints around the Yaga Vatika. To the
Oopa Stambha in the middle, the Yaga Asva (the horse) was tied.
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| Krishna in Hastinapur! |
Sage
Vyasa conducted the Yaga with the support of his foremost disciples while his two
prominent disciples Paila and Yajnavalkya guided King Yudhistra in performing
the rituals for the Ashvamedha Yaga. King Yudhistra was the Yagamana and Queen
Draupathi was the Yagamana Patni. The saints lit the holy fire and the Yaga
begun. All the utensils and other accessories used in performing the Yaga were
made out of gold. Vedic hymns were chanted by the saints and sages assembled.
Ghee and other holy materials were offered into the holy fire.As per the
rituals, 300 creatures comprising different types of fishes, birds and other
animals were sacrificed. Yaga was reaching the end. Queen Draupathi washed the
Yaga horse in ghee and adorned it with gold jewels and ornaments. As the final
act, the Yaga Asva was cut into different pieces and Queen Draupathi and King
Yudhistra sacrificed it to the holy fire.
The saints, chanting Vedic mantras burnt the rest of the body parts and
thus with the sacrifices, the Yaga came to its conclusion.
Sage Vyasa stood up from his place and spoke, “Oh King
Yudhistra! This is a great yaga and the Yaga was completed without any
interruption. You along with your wife and brothers take the holy bath and all
your sins will be vanished.”
As per the advice of Sage Vyasa, King Yudhistra
accompanied with his wife and brothers took holy bath and cleansed their soul
and body. As it was customary, King Yudhistra and Queen Draupathi gave away
wealth to the citizens and people who attended the event. The level of charity
given by the king surpassed the donations given by any other kings in the world
and during any other Yagas that was ever held. King Yudhistra washed the feet
of the saints and sages as a sign of respect and gave one crore thousand gold
coins to those saints and sages who conducted the Yaga. He distributed all the
golden utensils that were made especially for the event, to the Brahmins who
assisted the saints.
The entire Kingdom was given to Sage Vyasa as Bhoodhana
(donating the land). Sage Vyasa was taken back at the work of King
Yudhistra and spoke, “Oh Dharmaraja! What would I do with your kingdom? Kindly
take it back and compensate in terms of gold.”
King Yudhistra not agreeing to it, replied- “Once donated it’s
donated, Oh Sage! I can not take it back and you can not return it back.”
“Oh King! It’s my land and I can do anything with it.
Consider that I am selling this land to you. Pay me in terms of gold.”- Sage
Vyasa was more firm in his decision than the King.
Unable to deny his words, King Yudhistra paid one
crore gold coins to Sage Vyasa and took back the kingdom. Sage Vyasa donated
the money to the people and to the Brahmins. He gave the rest to King
Drithirashtra, Gandhari and Kunti. They also in turn distributed the wealth to
the poor and people who were needy.
King Yudhistra gave gifts to the Kings who honored the
event. He honored the Kings with gold ornaments, diamonds, wine, elephants and
horses. Sisubala’s wife and grandson attended the event. As Sindhu Kingdom is
under King Yudhistra, he crowned the grandson of Sisubala as the King of Sindhu
Kingdom.
While King Yudhistra and Queen Draupathi were
donating, a mongoose came into the hall all wet and drenched. The mongoose was
half gold in color and half black. With the kings seated around and King Yudhistra
and Queen Draupathi was standing in the center of the hall, the mongoose spoke
in a bold voice, “Oh people! Your King Yudhistra has done a marvelous job in
performing the Yaga and has donated generously to you all. But, all
this prosperity and grand offering are nothing but pure waste.”
Everyone was astonished to see a golden mongoose and
they were astounded to see the mongoose talk.
King Yudhistra spoke, “It is not possible for a mongoose to speak in
human language. Kindly tell us who you are?”
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| Gold Mongoose |
Listening to the mongoose, King Yudhistra spoke, “Oh Saint
Jamadagni! Don’t take me wrongly. But the saints and great sages and even the
kings and people are pleased with the Yaga. What fault is it that you found? Is
it in the catering or in hospitality? Or is it in the Yaga? Or is there any
fault done by me?”
“King Dharmaraja! I did not find any fault in the Yaga
after all it was performed by the great Sage Vyasa and you followed what Sage
Vyasa told. I stated that the charity doings is a waste as it has got no
meaning. Those actions are no match to the generosity of the Brahmin Saktuprastha.”-
The mongoose spoke in an impressive voice.
King Yudhistra was clueless on the words of the
mongoose and so he enquired, “Could you explain us about the generosity of the
Brahmin?”
The mongoose continued, “Long ago, near Kurukshetra
there was famine. The famine was so terrible that people in the city didn’t
even donate food to the Brahmins who live their lives on alms. I was wandering
there by that time and found it hard to live. Since people were not donating
food, the Brahmins lived based on the Unccha vow. Now, Unccha vow is,
the Brahmins will not go to houses asking for food. Instead, they will go to
the fields where the crops have been harvested. Like birds, the Brahmins will
pick the left over grains for their food. And they don’t take more than what’s
needed for the day. They will leave the rest for the birds. Now, imagine the
left overs in the fields during famine and how much they have to work to gain
that food! And to that, think about leaving food for the birds too!”
While everyone was pondering at the life of the
Brahmins, the mongoose continued, “I once met a Brahmin named Saktuprastha.
He along with his family was picking grains from a field. After hours of hard
word, wandering all over the field, all they ended up getting was only a handful
of barley grains. He has to feed his wife, his son and his daughter-in-law with
that handful of grains. That’s going to be their one time meal for the whole
day after a long and tiring day under the hot sun. They took it home and the
wife cooked it while Saktuprastha and his son got ready for their evening
prayers. After the prayer, the whole family sat together to have food.At that
time, a guest came down to their house. Without eating, all four of them got up
and went to welcome the guest. The family welcomes him inside, the Brahmin
washes his feet and his son makes arrangements for the guest to sit and rest.
This guest was not their family member but just a passerby. The guest informs
that he has been walking for days and has not eaten anything. The Brahmin gives
his share of food to the guest. As it was only a handful of grains divided into
four, the single share didn’t satisfy the hunger of the guest and so he asks
for more. The Brahmin stood helpless.
By that time, the wife came from the Kitchen and gave
her share. She told her husband with a smiling face, “When the husband is
helpless, it’s the duty of his wife to stand by him and help him. I’m standing
by your side with your charity. A guest is equal to god and I am doing what my
husband would do in my position.”
The guest was not satisfied with that amount too and
so he asked for more. The son came with his share of food and gave to his
father and said, “I am a replica of my father, right father? As a son, it’s my
responsibility to remove the troubles of my father. Hence give my share too.”
Proud of his son’s activity, the Brahmin gave the food
to the guest. Still not satisfied, the guest asked for more. All that’s left is
only the daughter-in-law’s share. And she came with her share too. “Oh dear!
You are young women. Without proper food you have already lost your health. You
were already hungry and now you are giving your share too!” The daughter-in-law
smiled and spoke in a respectful voice, “Oh Uncle! I am a member of this family
too! And it’s my responsibility to take care of the family’s pride. As long as
I hold breath in me, I will live up to my best to take care of the family
traditions and will help the family at all cost. Kindly offer my share to the
guest and satisfy his hunger.”
The guest was satisfied after having the food. While
Saktuprastha was waiting to be of more service to the guest, the guest smiled
and re-appeared in front of them as Lord Dharma. Pleased with the behavior of
the Brahmin and his family,Lord Dharma spoke, “Oh
Saktuprastha!
I am very much satisfied at the generosity of your family members. The
humbleness and devotion that you and your family members have towards guests is
substantial. Hunger is worst of all. It will destroy your senses and decision
making. It induces desire. You and your family members conquered both hunger
and desire. All of you have abandoned desire and anger. I invite you, your
wife, son and daughter in law to heaven.”
While
he was speaking, a divine craft arrived in front of their house. Lord Dharma
spoke, “That’s the divine ride from Brahma Lok,Saktuprastha. All of you are being welcomed by Lord
Brahma himself to his world. Giving part of your wealth is not charity but
giving without sparing anything is. And you proved it to the world again. Kindly
board the car and reach for heaven.” Accordingly, Saktuprastha and his family
members climbed the craft and left for heaven.”
The
mongoose continued in a solemn tone, “Oh Dharmaraja! I watched it from the hole
in their house’s wall. I saw the water that the Brahmin used to wash the feet
of Lord Dharma. I fell in that water and astonishingly, the side that touched
the water turned to gold. The water was
pure and divine not because it was used to wash Lord Dharma’s feet but because
it was touched by the Brahmin. The water dried so soon that I was left with
half body turned gold. After that I have been to many places, Yagas and temples.
I went in search of such kind act or equally great heart. And sadly I haven’t
seen one yet. I heard of your Ashvamedha Yaga and so I came here hoping to turn
myself fully into gold. I was drenching myself with the waters that you used to
wash the feet of the saints and sages and Kings. But I am still the same!”
Everyone
assembled there were in sheer silence while the mongoose glimpsed at Krishna
who was smiling at him and continued, “Tell me, Oh King! Are you really
satisfied with the Yaga? Are you really sure that your sins are washed away
because of the charity done by you? If the sin of killing people in the war is
washed away through this Yaga then what about the sin you have done in killing
300 plus creatures for this Yaga? Will that killing be accepted as sacrifice or
sin? It’s not in the quantity of what he gives but isn’t it in the quality of
his heart when he gives, right? Without any expectations. Performing Yagas to
wash your sins, do you think it will satisfy Lord Dharma? Taking a holy dip in
Ganga is said to wash away the sins but in real, does it wash away the desires
from the heart? With a heart which desires for something every time, there’s
always a sin that the soul is attached to. Should we then work to wash away our
sins or our desires? Thinking that way, I believe, your Ashvamedha Yaga and the
donations are no match to Saktuprastha’s
charity.”
While
King Yudhistra was thinking about his acts and the words of mongoose, the
mongoose disappears. The Pandavas and other Kings stood speechless as they have
performed various Yagas in the past.
Pondered
with questions, King Yudhistra spoke, “Why would Saint Jamadagni say something like that? Kings perform Yagas.
It’s an act of washing away the sins. That’s what the rituals say and it’s been
followed for years. Even Sages have accepted that. By performing Yagas, the
Kings attain moksha. Same way, we too performed the Ashvamedha Yaga. Why
would Saint Jamadagni blame me and the Yaga? What is the reason that I fail to
see?”
Krishna
who was standing nearby watching all this came close to the King and spoke, “Oh
Dharmaraja! There’s no wrong in the way you performed the Yaga. You have done
it as per the guidance of Sage Vyasa and he has performed it as per the
rituals. In fact, your Yaga is equal to the Yaga performed by Lord Indra
himself. You follow dharma. But you failed to notice one thing. In the Yaga, of
course, as per the ritual act, you sacrificed many animals including the Yaga
horse. That’s also killing a life, right? That is also violence then, right?
Being merciful towards a soul is a divine act than performing Yaga and
sacrificing animals for a selfish act of washing our sins. Even a Yaga without
sacrifices is considered more powerful than a Yaga performed with sacrifices.
It’s all in the end, being merciful to a soul. Showing kindness to all. We can
satisfy god only by showing kindness and love towards souls. A Yaga is
considered glorious only when it is performed for the welfare of every soul on
earth, without any self-expectations and without violence. So, as per the words
of Saint Jamadagni your
Yaga was against these qualities and so his curse was lifted and so he
disappeared. Saatvika Yaga (without killing any soul) has more
glory attached to it than the Ashvamedha Yaga. And, we can’t refute it!”
Everyone
nodded in acceptance to Krishna’s words. “If that’s the case, then what can we
sacrifice in Yaga? It’s customary to sacrifice in the Yaga, right? We have to
please the devas, right?”- King Yudhistra placed his question in front of
Krishna.
Smiling
at Yudhistra, Krishna spoke, “Oh King! If it’s customary to sacrifice, why not
replace those animals with seeds or grains? Even seeds have got soul inside it,
right? To god, a soul inside a seed and a soul inside an animal and a soul
inside a human are one and the same!”
“But
Govindha, Saint Jamadagni
said that the donations have no meaning to it. Why would he say like that?
Isn’t charity the best dharma to be followed in life?”- asked Queen Draupathi.
“Oh Draupathi! He meant that your dharma is no match
to the Brahmin’s act of dharma. It’s just that donating in sumptuous quantity
expecting something is of no value compared to the act of giving a handful of food
to someone when that’s all you got and also without expecting anything in
return. The Brahmin didn’t expect anything. Anything with an act of love
without any motive is more appreciated. The greatness of donating is in the act
of generosity found in the heart of the donor.”
Understanding
the meaning of charity and dharma, King Yudhistra and Draupathi realized the
importance of donating and Yaga. King Yudhistra without any motive gave back
the Kingdoms won by them after the war, to the respective heirs of the Kings
and princes who died in the war. He crowned them Kings and gave back their
lands. And he also gave back the wealth that was acquired by Arjuna and his
army during the last one year from those who didn’t extend a friendly hand
while the horse roamed in their Kingdom. He donated wealth to people for days.
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| Sage Vyasa blessing Yudhistra |
Blessing
the Pandavas and Queen Draupathi, Sage Vyasa and his disciples left to the
forest. The Kings
returned to their Kingdoms with huge elephants carrying the gifts given to them
by King Yudhistra. He then gave donations to people in terms of land, cows, ornaments,
clothes and food grains in carts. People and the Kings were pleased and praised
King Yudhistra for his generosity. King Yudhistra honored King Balram and Krishna
with valuable gifts and their queens with ornaments and gems. He also honored
Satyaki and the other Yadavas with sumptuous gifts. Seeking blessing from King
Drithirashtra, Gandhari and Kunti and blessing the Pandavas and Draupathi,
Krishna and Balram proceeded towards Dwaraka with their Queens and Yadava clan.
With the Ashvamedha Yaga, King Yudhistra became the emperor of the great nation
and dharma was thus sustained.
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