Jai Sriman Narayana !!
The great epic Mahabharath was composed by
Maharishi Veda Vyasa/Krishna Dwaipayana, son of Sage Parasara and Sathyavati, a
woman from fishermen clan. Mahabharath describes the legend of Bharatha
Dynasty. It was written in 18 Parva such as Adhi Parva,
Sabha Parva, Vana Parva, Virada Parva, Udhyoga Parva, Bhishma Parva, Drona
Parva, Karna Parva, Shalya Parva, Soupthika Parva, Stri Parva, Shanthi Parva,
Anushasana Parva, Ashwamedha Parva, Ashramavasika Parva, Musala Parva,
Mahaprasthanika Parva and Swargarohana Parva and each Parva has divided into
many Upaparva and has chapters in detail. Adhi Parva depicts
the life of King Dushyantha and his wife Shakunthala and their son
Sarvadhamanan, who was famously known as Bharatha, a righteous ruler of
Bharatha Empior.
Lord Brahma created deities, Sages and
Prajapathis. It was the beginning of the growth of human race from the
sixty daughters of Daksha Prajapathi. Pururavass, Yayathi,
Puru, Dushyantha, Bharatha, Shanthanu were born in the family of
Dithi, one of the daughters of Daksha Prajapathi.
King Janamejaya, son of King Pareekshit conducted
a grand Yagna to please the serpent Gods. There were a huge number of
Rishis & Sages were present in the magnificent Yagna, Maharishi Veda Vyasa
along with his disciple Rishi Vaishampayana and Sage Ugrasrava Sauti was also
amongst them. Rishi Vaishampayana narrated the stories of Kuru
Dynasty to King Janamejaya at the time of Naga Yagna. Later, this anecdote
was described to the Sages and Rishis assembled in Naimisharanya by Sage Sauti,
son of Sage Romaharshana/Lomaharshana, disciple of Maharishi Veda Vyasa.
Rishi Vaishampayana narrated the conversation
between Pandu & Kanthi during their stay at woodland. Kunthi was
traumatized after listening to Pandu’s command to have a child from a Brahmin
or someone superior to Pandu as Niyoga. She heartily desired to
have a child from her husband and her willingness to die with him. Kunthi
was determined to remain unblemished in her life and refused to approach anyone
for a child other than her husband. She narrated the story of a righteous
King Viyushithsva and his chaste wife Badra.
There was an honorable ruler King Vyushithasva,
he ruled his kingdom wisely for several years and the people of his Kingdom
were happy. He conducted a grand Yagna to please the deities, Lord Indra
and scholarly Brahmins were present in the Yagna. King Vyushithasva
attained highly meritorious rewards from the Yagna. In order to expand
the Kingdom and its resources, he performed an Ashwamedha Yaga, eventually he
defeated all the neighboring Kingdoms and took good control over them, the
countries came under the rule of King Vyushithasva was obliged to pay
tax. Thus, he ruled the Kingdom judiciously for several years and
conducted several Yagnas and Yagas to please the deities, the scholarly
Brahmins were presented with abundance of alms as charity during the fire
sacrifices. In this way, he attained highly commendable rewards and his Kingom
flourished with rich resources. He continued to perform admirable Yagnas
like Agnisthoma and significant Yagnas and Yagas mentioned in the Veda Sastra.
King Vyushithasva had a gorgeous wife Bhadra, she
was the most beautiful woman in the Universe. This loveliest couple
has found plentiful time in the company of each other and found immense
pleasure in the physical relationship with each other. King
Vyushithasva’s excessive physical attraction towards his wife caused severe breathlessness
consequently he passed away. Bhadra was devastated at the death of
her beloved husband. Kunthi narrated the miseries of a widow; it was
wretched life for Bhadra after the death of her husband, she desired to embrace
death and follow her husband. She pleaded her husband to allow her
to follow him after death too, revealed her helplessness to live in the absence
of him, a woman without a husband serve no purpose to the society; Bhadra cried
her heart out at the separation from her husband, she experienced the agonies
of hellish torture while she was alive. Bhadra discarded all the comforts
and adopted sacred grass as her bed, treated herself as the sinner with tears
teeming all over she waited to hear command from her deceased husband.
Bhadra wept with mounted pain and closely embraced the lifeless body of her
husband, soon she could hear a mysterious voice informed Bhadra that she would
be blessed with children, further advised Bhadra to leave the place and remain
with the lifeless body of her husband in her bed on the eighth or fourteenth
day of full moon that would provide her progeny. In this way, Bhadra
attained seven children from the lifeless body of her husband. Kunthi
praised the virtues of Pandu and consoled him that the meritorious rewards attained
would help them to have children.
