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सुकन्योपाख्यान (sukanyopAkhyAna)

 
Mahabharata
English
[Sukanyopākhyāna(ṃ)]
(“the episode relating to Sukanyā”). § 405 (Tīrthay.). Lomaśa related: When Cyavana, the son of the maharshi Bhṛgu practised austerities by the side of this lake, and, assuming the posture vīrasthāna, had been enveloped by an anthill, king Śaryāti came to the lake with his 4, 000 wives and his only daughter Sukanyā. The viprarshi Cyavana, seeing Sukanyā, was gladdened and spoke to her, but she did not hear him. Then Sukanyā, seeing his eyes in the anthill, pierced them with thorns from curiosity. He, becoming very angry, obstructed the excrements and urine of Śaryāti's soldiers, and Śaryāti at last discovered the cause of their distress, and only obtained deliverance therefrom by bestowing Sukanyā upon Cyavana. Then Śaryāti, with his troops, went to his city, and Sukanyā remained with Cyavana (III, 122). Once, when the Aśvins had seen Sukanyā, after she had bathed, they asked her to choose one of them for her husband, and as she refused, they entered the water together with Cyavana, and when they all came out of the tank young and beautiful they asked her to choose one of them and she choose Cyavana. Cyavana promised them to make them drinkers of soma in the presence of Indra. Then the Aśvins, highly delighted, ascended to heaven (III, 123). When Śaryāti heard that Cyavana had been turned into a youth, he came with his wife and troops to see him, and became very glad. Cyavana caused him to perform a sacrifice with Cyavana as his priest. When Cyavana was about to take up soma in order to offer it to the Aśvins, Indra forbade it, saying, that they were physicians and servants, assumed forms at pleasure, and roamed about in the world of mortals, and as Cyavana did not obey he prepared to hurl his thunderbolt at him, but Cyavana paralysed his arm and fulfilled his intention. Then he created a kṛtyā, a great Asura named Mada (description)
this rushed forth to devour Indra (III, 124), who only was delivered when he had sanctioned that the Aśvins should henceforth be entitled to the soma juice, saying that he had only intended to spread the fame of Cyavana and Śaryāti. Cyavana distributed Mada (who had been created repeatedly before) in drinks, women, gambling, and hunting.