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धृष्टबुद्धि (dhRSTabuddhi)

 
Monier Williams Cologne
English
धृष्ट—धी or धृष्ट—बुद्धि,
m.
 ‘bold-minded’,
N.
 of a man,
Cat.
पुराणम्
English
धृष्टबुद्धि / DHṚṢṬABUDDHI. A vaiśya who attained heaven by performing the fast of vaiśākha vrata. He lived in the country of Bhadrāvatī, on the bank of the River sarasvatī. The name of the king of the country was dhṛtimān. dhanapāla, a vaiśya of that country had five sons: sumanas, dyutimān, medhāvī, Sukṛta and dhṛṣṭabuddhi. The last of them turned out to be a wicked man. Going after many women, keeping company with wicked people, gambling, wandering about in search of harlots, not venerating Gods, Manes or Brāhmaṇas, wasting the money of his father, eating untouchable food, drinking liquor and such other acts, he indulged in. Once he was seen walking in the street with his hand on the shoulder of a harlot. So his father turned him out of the house. He was discarded by his relatives too. He sold the ornaments he had on his body. When that was finished the harlots also evaded him. He became a destitute having no money or clothes. When he became tired with hunger and thirst he began stealing in that city. The King's men caught him. They chained him and scourged him. Finally, he went to the forest and with a bow and arrows he lived by hunting.
dhṛṣṭabuddhi happened to reach the hermitage of kauṇḍinya. It was the month of vaiśākha. While kauṇḍinya was coming from the Ganges, having taken bath, a drop of water fell on dhṛṣṭabuddhi from the wet cloth of the hermit, and consequently his sins were washed off. He fell before the hermit and requested him to instruct him in the way of attaining heaven. The hermit advised him to observe the fast of Vaiśākhaśuklaikādaśī known as mohinī. Accordingly he observed the fast and became sinless. Invested with a divine form he entered the realm of viṣṇu. (padma purāṇa, uttara Khaṇḍa, Chapter 51).