Frustration of the Sacrifice of Daksha

Verse 1 (bhagavata.4.5.1)

मैत्रेय उवाच भवो भवान्या निधनं प्रजापते- रसत्कृताया अवगम्य नारदात् । स्वपार्षदसैन्यं च तदध्वरर्भुभि- र्विद्रावितं क्रोधमपारमादधे ॥ १ ॥

maitreya uvāca bhavo bhavānyā nidhanaṁ prajāpater asat-kṛtāyā avagamya nāradāt sva-pārṣada-sainyaṁ ca tad-adhvararbhubhir vidrāvitaṁ krodham apāram ādadhe

Sri Maitreya said: When Bhagavan Bhava (Shiva) learned from Narada of the death of Bhavani (Sati), whom Prajapati Daksha had so dishonored, and that his own attendant hosts had been driven off by the Ribhus at that sacrifice, he was overcome with limitless fury.

Verse 2 (bhagavata.4.5.2)

क्रुद्धः सुदष्टौष्ठपुटः स धूर्जटि- र्जटां तडिद्वह्निसटोग्ररोचिषम् । उत्कृत्य रुद्रः सहसोत्थितो हसन् गम्भीरनादो विससर्ज तां भुवि ॥ २ ॥

kruddhaḥ sudaṣṭauṣṭha-puṭaḥ sa dhūr-jaṭir jaṭāṁ taḍid-vahni-saṭogra-rociṣam utkṛtya rudraḥ sahasotthito hasan gambhīra-nādo visasarja tāṁ bhuvi

In fury, biting his lips, Dhurjati (Shiva), the wielder of matted locks, tore from his head a lock that blazed like lightning and fire, rose up at once, and, laughing with a deep, resounding roar, hurled it down to the earth.

Verse 3 (bhagavata.4.5.3)

ततोऽतिकायस्तनुवा स्पृशन्दिवं सहस्रबाहुर्घनरुक् त्रिसूर्यदृक् । करालदंष्ट्रो ज्वलदग्निमूर्धजः कपालमाली विविधोद्यतायुधः ॥ ३ ॥

tato ’tikāyas tanuvā spṛśan divaṁ sahasra-bāhur ghana-ruk tri-sūrya-dṛk karāla-daṁṣṭro jvalad-agni-mūrdhajaḥ kapāla-mālī vividhodyatāyudhaḥ

From it there arose a being of monstrous size, whose body touched the sky — dark as a storm-cloud, with a thousand arms, eyes bright as three suns combined, fearsome fangs, hair blazing like fire, garlanded with skulls, and bearing weapons of every kind, raised and ready.

Verse 4 (bhagavata.4.5.4)

तं किं करोमीति गृणन्तमाह बद्धाञ्जलिं भगवान् भूतनाथः । दक्षं सयज्ञं जहि मद्भटानां त्वमग्रणी रुद्र भटांशको मे ॥ ४ ॥

taṁ kiṁ karomīti gṛṇantam āha baddhāñjaliṁ bhagavān bhūta-nāthaḥ dakṣaṁ sa-yajñaṁ jahi mad-bhaṭānāṁ tvam agraṇī rudra bhaṭāṁśako me

When that being, hands folded, asked, "What shall I do?" Bhagavan Bhutanatha (Shiva) said to him: "O Rudra, you are foremost among my soldiers, born of a part of me — go and destroy Daksha along with his sacrifice."

Verse 5 (bhagavata.4.5.5)

आज्ञप्त एवं कुपितेन मन्युना स देवदेवं परिचक्रमे विभुम् । मेने तदात्मानमसङ्गरंहसा महीयसां तात सहः सहिष्णुम् ॥ ५ ॥

ājñapta evaṁ kupitena manyunā sa deva-devaṁ paricakrame vibhum mene tadātmānam asaṅga-raṁhasā mahīyasāṁ tāta sahaḥ sahiṣṇum

O dear Vidura, having received this command, he — who was himself the very personification of the Lord's own fury — circled reverently around the great god of gods, considering himself, in his boundless speed, capable of withstanding the might of even the greatest beings.

Verse 6 (bhagavata.4.5.6)

अन्वीयमानः स तु रुद्रपार्षदै- र्भृशं नदद्भिर्व्यनदत्सुभैरवम् । उद्यम्य शूलं जगदन्तकान्तकं सम्प्राद्रवद् घोषणभूषणाङ्घ्रिः ॥ ६ ॥

anvīyamānaḥ sa tu rudra-pārṣadair bhṛśaṁ nadadbhir vyanadat subhairavam udyamya śūlaṁ jagad-antakāntakaṁ samprādravad ghoṣaṇa-bhūṣaṇāṅghriḥ

Followed by the loudly roaring attendants of Rudra, he too let out a terrifying roar, and, brandishing a trident fierce enough to destroy even death itself, he rushed forward, the ornaments on his feet clanging as he ran.

Verse 7 (bhagavata.4.5.7)

अथर्त्विजो यजमानः सदस्याः ककुभ्युदीच्यां प्रसमीक्ष्य रेणुम् । तमः किमेतत्कुत एतद्रजोऽभू- दिति द्विजा द्विजपत्न्यश्च दध्युः ॥ ७ ॥

athartvijo yajamānaḥ sadasyāḥ kakubhy udīcyāṁ prasamīkṣya reṇum tamaḥ kim etat kuta etad rajo ’bhūd iti dvijā dvija-patnyaś ca dadhyuḥ

Then the priests, the sacrificer, and all the assembled members, seeing a cloud of dust rising in the northern quarter, wondered among themselves — the brahmanas and their wives alike — "What is this darkness? Where has this dust arisen from?"

Verse 8 (bhagavata.4.5.8)

वाता न वान्ति न हि सन्ति दस्यवः प्राचीनबर्हिर्जीवति होग्रदण्डः । गावो न काल्यन्त इदं कुतो रजो लोकोऽधुना किं प्रलयाय कल्पते ॥ ८ ॥

vātā na vānti na hi santi dasyavaḥ prācīna-barhir jīvati hogra-daṇḍaḥ gāvo na kālyanta idaṁ kuto rajo loko ’dhunā kiṁ pralayāya kalpate

"No wind is blowing, nor could robbers be at work, for the mighty King Prachinabarhi, of stern justice, still lives; nor are cattle being driven that raise such dust. Whence, then, does this dust come? Is the world now about to face its final dissolution?"

Verse 9 (bhagavata.4.5.9)

प्रसूतिमिश्राः स्त्रिय उद्विग्नचित्ता ऊचुर्विपाको वृजिनस्यैव तस्य । यत्पश्यन्तीनां दुहितृणां प्रजेशः सुतां सतीमवदध्यावनागाम् ॥ ९ ॥

prasūti-miśrāḥ striya udvigna-cittā ūcur vipāko vṛjinasyaiva tasya yat paśyantīnāṁ duhitṝṇāṁ prajeśaḥ sutāṁ satīm avadadhyāv anāgām

Prasuti and the other women present, their minds troubled, said: "This is surely the fruit ripening of that very sin — that the lord of creation, before the very eyes of his own daughters, brought about the death of his innocent daughter Sati."

Verse 10 (bhagavata.4.5.10)

यस्त्वन्तकाले व्युप्तजटाकलापः स्वशूलसूच्यर्पितदिग्गजेन्द्रः । वितत्य नृत्यत्युदितास्त्रदोर्ध्वजान् उच्चाट्टहासस्तनयित्नुभिन्नदिक् ॥ १० ॥

yas tv anta-kāle vyupta-jaṭā-kalāpaḥ sva-śūla-sūcy-arpita-dig-gajendraḥ vitatya nṛtyaty uditāstra-dor-dhvajān uccāṭṭa-hāsa-stanayitnu-bhinna-dik

"It must be He (Shiva) who, at the time of universal dissolution, his matted locks flying loose, pierces the great elephants guarding the directions upon the point of his trident, and dances with weapon-bearing arms raised like banners, his mighty laughter splitting the sky like thunder."

Verse 11 (bhagavata.4.5.11)

अमर्षयित्वा तमसह्यतेजसं मन्युप्लुतं दुर्निरीक्ष्यं भ्रुकुट्या । करालदंष्ट्राभिरुदस्तभागणं स्यात्स्वस्ति किं कोपयतो विधातुः ॥ ११ ॥

amarṣayitvā tam asahya-tejasaṁ manyu-plutaṁ durnirīkṣyaṁ bhru-kuṭyā karāla-daṁṣṭrābhir udasta-bhāgaṇaṁ syāt svasti kiṁ kopayato vidhātuḥ

"Having provoked to fury him whose splendor none can bear, whose form, drowned in wrath, cannot even be looked upon, whose knitted brows and fearsome fangs scatter the very stars from the sky — how could there be any safety for one who has enraged even the creator himself?"

Verse 12 (bhagavata.4.5.12)

बह्वेवमुद्विग्नदृशोच्यमाने जनेन दक्षस्य मुहुर्महात्मनः । उत्पेतुरुत्पाततमाः सहस्रशो भयावहा दिवि भूमौ च पर्यक् ॥ १२ ॥

bahv evam udvigna-dṛśocyamāne janena dakṣasya muhur mahātmanaḥ utpetur utpātatamāḥ sahasraśo bhayāvahā divi bhūmau ca paryak

While the anxious-eyed people, again and again, spoke thus among themselves, on all sides — in the sky and upon the earth — a thousand terrifying omens arose before the great-souled Daksha.

Verse 13 (bhagavata.4.5.13)

तावत्स रुद्रानुचरैर्महामखो नानायुधैर्वामनकैरुदायुधैः । पिङ्गैः पिशङ्गैर्मकरोदराननैः पर्याद्रवद्भिर्विदुरान्वरुध्यत ॥ १३ ॥

tāvat sa rudrānucarair mahā-makho nānāyudhair vāmanakair udāyudhaiḥ piṅgaiḥ piśaṅgair makarodarānanaiḥ paryādravadbhir vidurānvarudhyata

O Vidura, meanwhile that great sacrifice was surrounded by the attendants of Rudra — dwarfish beings of tawny and reddish hue, with faces and bellies like sea-monsters, bearing weapons of every kind, raised and running about on every side.

Verse 14 (bhagavata.4.5.14)

केचिद्बभञ्जुः प्राग्वंशं पत्नीशालां तथापरे । सद आग्नीध्रशालां च तद्विहारं महानसम् ॥ १४ ॥

kecid babhañjuḥ prāg-vaṁśaṁ patnī-śālāṁ tathāpare sada āgnīdhra-śālāṁ ca tad-vihāraṁ mahānasam

Some of them tore down the sacrificial hall's front pillars, others broke into the women's quarters; still others destroyed the assembly hall, the fire-priest's chamber, the pleasure pavilion, and the kitchen.

Verse 15 (bhagavata.4.5.15)

रुरुजुर्यज्ञपात्राणि तथैकेऽग्नीननाशयन् । कुण्डेष्वमूत्रयन् केचिद्बिभिदुर्वेदिमेखलाः ॥ १५ ॥

rurujur yajña-pātrāṇi tathaike ’gnīn anāśayan kuṇḍeṣv amūtrayan kecid bibhidur vedi-mekhalāḥ

They smashed the sacrificial vessels, and some extinguished the sacred fires; some urinated into the sacrificial pits, and others broke down the boundary enclosures of the altar.

Verse 16 (bhagavata.4.5.16)

अबाधन्त मुनीनन्ये एके पत्नीरतर्जयन् । अपरे जगृहुर्देवान् प्रत्यासन्नान् पलायितान् ॥ १६ ॥

abādhanta munīn anye eke patnīr atarjayan apare jagṛhur devān pratyāsannān palāyitān

Some obstructed the fleeing sages, some threatened the assembled women, while others seized the gods who were nearby and trying to run away.

Verse 17 (bhagavata.4.5.17)

भृगुं बबन्ध मणिमान् वीरभद्रः प्रजापतिम् । चण्डेशः पूषणं देवं भगं नन्दीश्वरोऽग्रहीत् ॥ १७ ॥

bhṛguṁ babandha maṇimān vīrabhadraḥ prajāpatim caṇḍeśaḥ pūṣaṇaṁ devaṁ bhagaṁ nandīśvaro ’grahīt

Manimat seized Prajapati Bhrigu; Virabhadra himself seized Daksha; Chandesha caught hold of Bhagavan Pushan; and Nandishvara laid hold of the god Bhaga.

Verse 18 (bhagavata.4.5.18)

सर्व एवर्त्विजो दृष्ट्वा सदस्याः सदिवौकसः । तैरर्द्यमानाः सुभृशं ग्रावभिर्नैकधाद्रवन् ॥ १८ ॥

sarva evartvijo dṛṣṭvā sadasyāḥ sa-divaukasaḥ tair ardyamānāḥ subhṛśaṁ grāvabhir naikadhā ’dravan

All the priests and members of the assembly, together with the gods present, seeing this, and being sorely pelted with stones, fled in every direction.

Verse 19 (bhagavata.4.5.19)

जुह्वतः स्रुवहस्तस्य श्मश्रूणि भगवान् भवः । भृगोर्लुलुञ्चे सदसि योऽहसच्छ्मश्रु दर्शयन् ॥ १९ ॥

juhvataḥ sruva-hastasya śmaśrūṇi bhagavān bhavaḥ bhṛgor luluñce sadasi yo ’hasac chmaśru darśayan

While Bhrigu, ladle still in hand, was offering oblations, the mighty follower of Bhagavan Bhava tore out his beard, mocking him — for it was Bhrigu who had smiled and shown his own beard when cursing Shiva.

Verse 20 (bhagavata.4.5.20)

भगस्य नेत्रे भगवान् पातितस्य रुषा भुवि । उज्जहार सदस्थोऽक्ष्णा यः शपन्तमसूसुचत् ॥ २० ॥

bhagasya netre bhagavān pātitasya ruṣā bhuvi ujjahāra sada-stho ’kṣṇā yaḥ śapantam asūsucat

That mighty being furiously threw Bhaga to the ground and gouged out his eyes with his own — for Bhaga, while everyone was assembled, had shown his approval to Daksha's curse with a wink of his eye.

Verse 21 (bhagavata.4.5.21)

पूष्णो ह्यपातयद्दन्तान् कालिङ्गस्य यथा बलः । शप्यमाने गरिमणि योऽहसद्दर्शयन्दतः ॥ २१ ॥

pūṣṇo hy apātayad dantān kāliṅgasya yathā balaḥ śapyamāne garimaṇi yo ’hasad darśayan dataḥ

Just as Bala once knocked out the teeth of the king of Kalinga, so Virabhadra knocked out the teeth of Pushan, who had smiled and bared his teeth while the great one (Shiva) was being cursed.

Verse 22 (bhagavata.4.5.22)

आक्रम्योरसि दक्षस्य शितधारेण हेतिना । छिन्दन्नपि तदुद्धर्तुं नाशक्नोत् त्र्यम्बकस्तदा ॥ २२ ॥

ākramyorasi dakṣasya śita-dhāreṇa hetinā chindann api tad uddhartuṁ nāśaknot tryambakas tadā

Then, mounting upon Daksha's chest and striking with a sharp-edged weapon again and again, that follower of Tryambaka (Shiva) still could not manage to sever his head.

Verse 23 (bhagavata.4.5.23)

शस्त्रैरस्त्रान्वितैरेवमनिर्भिन्नत्वचं हरः । विस्मयं परमापन्नो दध्यौ पशुपतिश्चिरम् ॥ २३ ॥

śastrair astrānvitair evam anirbhinna-tvacaṁ haraḥ vismayaṁ param āpanno dadhyau paśupatiś ciram

Unable even to pierce Daksha's skin despite every weapon and every mantra invoked, Hara's attendant, the lord of beasts (Virabhadra), fell into great astonishment and pondered for a long while.

Verse 24 (bhagavata.4.5.24)

दृष्ट्वा संज्ञपनं योगं पशूनां स पतिर्मखे । यजमानपशोः कस्य कायात्तेनाहरच्छिरः ॥ २४ ॥

dṛṣṭvā saṁjñapanaṁ yogaṁ paśūnāṁ sa patir makhe yajamāna-paśoḥ kasya kāyāt tenāharac chiraḥ

Then, noticing in the sacrificial ground the very device meant for the ritual slaying of animals, that lord (Virabhadra) used it to sever the head of Daksha, the sacrificer, from his body.

Verse 25 (bhagavata.4.5.25)

साधुवादस्तदा तेषां कर्म तत्तस्य पश्यताम् । भूतप्रेतपिशाचानां अन्येषां तद्विपर्ययः ॥ २५ ॥

sādhu-vādas tadā teṣāṁ karma tat tasya paśyatām bhūta-preta-piśācānāṁ anyeṣāṁ tad-viparyayaḥ

Witnessing this deed, the followers of Shiva — the bhutas, pretas and pishachas — cried out in joyful approval, while all the others present lamented in the very opposite way.

Verse 26 (bhagavata.4.5.26)

जुहावैतच्छिरस्तस्मिन्दक्षिणाग्नावमर्षितः । तद्देवयजनं दग्ध्वा प्रातिष्ठद् गुह्यकालयम् ॥ २६ ॥

juhāvaitac chiras tasmin dakṣiṇāgnāv amarṣitaḥ tad-deva-yajanaṁ dagdhvā prātiṣṭhad guhyakālayam

Still in fury, he cast that head as an oblation into the southern sacrificial fire; then, having burned down the whole sacrificial ground, he set out for the abode of the Guhyakas (Kailasa).