April 25 - Sargas 9 and 10.of Balakanda.
After the king Dasharatha made up his mind to perform the Yajna, his minister Sumantra shared with him what he had heard long ago from the sage Sanatkumara. The Sage had said Dasharatha will be blessed with sons when he receives and is blessed by a sage by name Rishyashringa, with rare powers.
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ऋत्विग्भिरुपदिष्टोऽयं पुरावृत्तो मया श्रुतः।
सनत्कुमारो भगवान् पूर्वं कथितवान् कथाम् ॥
Sumatra said, Oh king, thus have I heard from sages long ago, the story as foretold by the godly sage Sanatkumara eons ago.
ऋषीणां सन्निधौ राजंस्तव पुत्रागमं प्रति।
काश्यपस्य तु पुत्रोऽस्ति विभाण्डक इति श्रुतः ॥
What I have heard concerns how by the gracious presence of Rishis, oh King, you will be blessed with sons.
Sage Kashyapa's son Vibhandaka rishi -
ऋष्यशृङ्ग इति ख्यातस्तस्य पुत्रो भविष्यति।
स वने नित्यसंवृद्धो मुनिर्वचनचरः सदा ॥
will have a son by name
Rishyashringa. That son will grow up in the forest, following his father's dictates, and totally ignorant of the rest of life.
(He is born magically and has seen no other human. He has never heard or imagined about male and female genders and their mutual chemistry. Indeed a strange upbringing).
अङ्गेषु प्रथितो राजा भविष्यति महाबलः।
तस्य व्यतिक्रयाद्राज्ञो भविष्यति सुदारुणा ॥
At that time there will be a powerful king in Angadesha. As a result of his transgression of Dharma, there will be a terrible drought and famine in the kingdom.
एवमङ्गाधिपेनैव गणिकाभिऋषेः सुतः।
आनीतोऽवर्षयद् देवः शान्ता चास्यै प्रीदीयते ॥
The king wants to atone for his sin and bring rain. He is advised to find a way to bring this strange sage Rishyashringa into his kingdom. The reason is the power of his tapas so far. That is a sure way to atone for the king's misdeed and will bring rain and end the drought.
How is this to be accomplished?
His advisors hatch a plan to bring Rishyashringa without incurring the curse of Vibhandaka. They send courtesans with all resources and talents to the forest. They will go and entice the young Rishi to escape the forest and come to the kingdom.
The plan succeeds, and the details are very interesting (tenth sarga). The courtesans befriend Rishyashringa, and he thinks they are also Rishis in a different attire and with an interesting lifestyle. They give him great food he has never eaten, regale him with song and dance, and introduce him to the pleasures of the flesh. They convince him to go to their "hermitage" and bring him into the kingdom.
As soon as Rishyashringa enters the kingdom, there is rain as the gods are pleased. The king receives him with all honour, requests him to forgive his trick of enticing him here, gives his princess daughter Shanta in marriage, and manages to ensure Rishyashringa is pleased enough to entreat his enraged father and convince him not to curse the king.
Of course that sage Vibhandaka, the father, knew all along that this was the way of destiny and lets it all be.
ऋष्यशृङ्गस्तु जामाता पुत्रांस्तव विधास्यति।
सनत्कुमारकथितमेतावद् व्याहृतं मया ॥
Sumantra concludes by saying that Angadesha king Romapada's son in law Rishyashringa has to come to Dasharatha's kingdom and that will confer the king with sons. This is what Sumantra narrates as he has heard to be the sagely words of Sanatkumara.
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॥ श्रीरायजयम् ॥
