| YouTube Channel

विश्वामित्रोपाख्यान (vizvAmitropAkhyAna)

 
Mahabharata
English
[Viśvāmitropākhyāna(ṃ)]
(“the episode relating to Viśvāmitra”): § 721b (Ānuśāsanik.). Bhīshma said: King Ajamīḍha (of Bharata's race) &gt
king Jahnu (who got Gaṅgā for his daughter) &gt
Sindhudvīpa (virtuous) &gt
R-ṛ Balākāśva &gt
Vallabha &gt
Kuśika &gt
Gādhi, who, being childless and desiring to have a son, repaired to the forest, where the beautiful Satyavatī was born to him. Cyavana's son, Ṛcīka Bhārgava, asked for her hand
but as he was poor, Gādhi required of him as a dower 1, 000 white horses having one black ear, which he obtained from Varuṇa (by thinking of them at Aśvatīrtha, on the bank of the Gaṅgā, not far from Kānyakubja). Ṛcīka granted her a boon, that she should have a son
she related this to her mother, who prevailed upon her to obtain a son also for her
having promised them both a son, he told the mother to embrace an aśvattha tree and Satyavatī an uḍumbara tree, and each of them to eat a certain caru (sacrificial offering), consecrated with hymns. The mother exchanged both the trees and the carus. Ṛcīka had placed the entire brahman-energy in Satyavatī's caru and the kshatriya-energy in that of her mother
“therefore, thy mother will give birth to an excellent brahman and thou to a terrible kshatriya.” Satyavatī prevailed upon him, that not her son, but her son's son should be such. Then, by the favour of Ṛcīka, she gave birth to Jamadagni, and the wife of Gādhi to the Brahmarshi (read brahmarshiṃ) Viśvāmitra, versed in the Vedas (brahmavādinaṃ). Viśvāmitra attained to the state of a brahman, and became the founder of a race of brahmans. Madhucchanda, etc., (), were all sons of Viśvāmitra (XIII, 4).