Thursday 8 January 2015

THE SLAYING OF KALAKEYAS AND NIVATA-KAVACHAS !!


After reaching the heaven under the advice of Lord Siva and Indra Arjun used to learn many kind of Vidyas. Indra taught Arjun all weapons and Arjun learned all of this very well. After realizing that Arjun is competent to use all those weapons ( Both earthly and Unearthly weapons ) Indra called Arjun and told :
“ Now, O reppresser of foes, the time hath arrived for thy paying the preceptor’s fee. Do thou promise to pay the fee; then I shall unfold unto thee what thou wilt have to perform.”
Arjun gave his promise to the King of Celestials that he will do whatever Indra wishes to do.
Then Indra told :
“Nothing is there in the three worlds that is not in thy power (to achieve ). My enemies, those Danavas, named, Nivata-Kavachas dwell in the womb of the ocean. And they number thirty million and are notorious, and all of equal forms of strength and Spleandour. Do thou slay them there, O Kunti’s son; and that will be thy preceptor’s fee.”
After saying this Indra the chief of celestials gave a highly resplendent celestial car, conducted by Matali, furnished with hair resembling the down of peacocks. Then Arjun who is having an excellent diadem took his bow - The Gandiv – which is celebrated in the three worlds and mounted on that celestial car and went for the destruction of Nivata-Kavachas.
* ARJUN VS NIVATA-KAVACHAS
When Arjun reached that city, the Danava’s rushed against him comsidering him as the Lord of Celestials himself. Then a fierce battle took place between the Invincible Dhananjaya and Nivata – Kavachas those who cannot be vanquished even by the gods themselves.
“And hearing that
rattling of the chariot like unto the rumbling
of the clouds in the sky, the Danavas ,
thinking me to be the lord of the celestials,
became agitated. And thereupon they all,
frightened at heart, stood holding in their
hands bows and arrows and swords and
javelins and axes and maces and clubs. Then
having made arrangements for the defence of
the city, the Danavas , with minds alarmed,
shut the gates, so that nothing could be
discovered. Thereupon taking my shell,
Devadatta , of tremendous roars, I again and
again winded it with exceeding cheerfulness.
And filling all the firmament, those sounds
produced echoes. Thereat mighty beings
were terrified and they hid (themselves). And
then, O Bharata, all of them adorned with
ornaments, those offsprings of Diti --the Nivata-
Kavachas --made their appearance by
thousands, donning diverse mail and taking
in their hands various weapons and equipped
with mighty iron javelins and maces and clubs
and hatchets and sabres and discs and
sataghnis and bhusundis and variegated and
ornamented swords. Then, after deliberating
much as to the course of the car, Matali began
to guide the steeds on a (piece of) level
ground, O foremost of the Bharatas. And
owing to the swiftness of those fleet coursers
conducted by him, I could see nothing--and
this was strange. Then the Danavas there
began to sound thousands of musical
instruments, dissonant and of odd shapes.
And at those sounds, fishes by hundreds and
by thousands, like unto hills, having their
senses bewildered by that noise, fled
suddenly. And mighty force flew at me, the
demons discharging sharpened shafts by
hundreds and by thousands. And then, O
Bharata, there ensued a dreadful conflict
between me and the demons, calculated to
extinguish the Nivata-Kavachas .
"Arjuna continued, 'Then, O Bharata,
vehemently rushed at me in battle in a body
the Nivata-Kavachas , equipped with arms.
And obstructing the course of the car, and
shouting loudly, those mighty charioteers,
hemming me in on all sides, covered me with
showers of shafts. Then other demons of
mighty prowess, with darts and hatchets in
their hands, began to throw at me spears and
axes. And that mighty discharge of darts, with
numerous maces and clubs incessantly hurled
fell upon my car. And other dreadful and
grim-visaged smiters among the Nivata-
Kavachas , furnished with bows and sharpened
weapons, ran at me in fight. And in the
conflict, shooting from the Gandiva sundry
swift arrows coursing straight, I pierced each
of them with ten. And they were driven back
by those stone-whetted shafts of mine.
Then, O king, in the conflict, with
diverse fleet weapons I pierced by hundreds
and by thousands (demons) bearing arms.
And, O slayer of foes, seeing me thus range
the field putting forth every exertion, the
heroic charioteer of Sakra was well-pleased.
And oppressed by those steeds and that car,
some (of them) met with annihilation; and
others desisted from fight; while (other)
Nivata-Kavachas , challenged by us in battle
and being harassed with shafts offered
opposition unto me, by (discharging) mighty
showers of arrows. Thereupon, with hundreds
and thousands of sundry fleet weapons
inspired with the mantras relating to
Brahma's weapons, I swiftly began to burn
them. And being sore pressed by me, those
mighty asuras waxing wroth afflicted me
together, by pouring torrents of clubs and
darts and swords. Then, O Bharata, I took up
that favourite weapon of the lord of the
celestials, Maghavan by name, prime and of
fiery energy and by the energy of that
weapon I cut into a thousand pieces the
Tomaras , together with the swords and the
tridents hurled by them. And having cut off
their arms I in ire pierced them each with ten
shafts. And in the field arrows were shot from
the Gandiva like unto rows of black-bees; and
this Matali admired. And their shafts also
showered upon me; but those powerful
(arrows) I cut off with my shafts. Then on
being struck the Nivata-Kavachas again
covered me on all sides with a mighty shower
of arrows. And having neutralised the force of
the arrows by excellent swift and flaming
weapons capable of baffling arms, I pierced
them by thousands. And blood began to flow
from their torn frames, even as in the rainy
season waters run down from the summits of
mountains. And on being wounded by my
fleet and straight-coursing shafts of the touch
of Indra's thunder-bolt, they became greatly
agitated. And their bodies were pierced at
hundreds of places; and the force of their
arms diminished. Then the Nivata-Kavachas
fought me by (the help of) illusion.'"
"Arjuna said, 'Then with rocks of the
proportions of trees, there commenced a
mighty shower of crags; and this exercised me
exceedingly . And in that high encounter, I
crushed (those crags) by swift-speeding
showers of arrows, issuing from Mahendra's
weapon, like unto the thunder-bolt itself. And
when the rocks had been reduced to powder,
there was generated fire; and the rocky dust
fell like unto masses of flames. And when the
showers of crags had been repelled, there
happened near me a mightier shower of
water, having currents of the proportions of
an axle. And falling from the welkin, those
thousands of powerful torrents covered the
entire firmament and the directions and the
cardinal points. And on account of the
pouring of the shower, and of the blowing of
the wind, and of roaring of the Daityas ,
nothing could be perceived. And touching
heaven and the entire earth, and incessantly
falling on the ground, the showers bewildered
me. Thereupon, I discharged that celestial
weapon which I had learnt from Indra--even
the dreadful and flaming Visoshana: and by
that the water was dried up. And, O Bharata,
when the rocky shower had been destroyed,
and the watery shower had been dried up,
the Danavas began to spread illusions of fire
and wind. Then by aqueous appliances I
extinguished the flames; and by a mighty
rock-issuing arm, resisted the fury of the
winds. And when these had been repelled,
the Danavas , irrepressible in battle, O
foremost of the Bharata, simultaneously
created various illusions.
I created for the good of the
celestials, an illusion of arms capable of
bewildering all beings. And when (their)
illusion had been dispelled, some of the
foremost amongst the Asuras, of unrivalled
prowess, again spread diverse kinds of
illusion
Then the fierce Nivata-
Kavachas assailed me. And finding my
opportunity. I began to send them to the
mansion of Yama. Thereupon, in that conflict
then raging, calculated to annihilate the
Nivata-Kavachas on a sudden, I could not see
the Danavas concealed by illusion."
"Arjuna continued, 'Remaining invisible the
Daityas began to fight with the help of
illusion. And I too fought with them, resorting
to the energy of visible weapons. And the
shafts duly discharged from the Gandiva,
began to sever their heads at those different
places where they were respectively stationed.
And thus assailed by me in the conflict, the
Nivata-Kavachas , all on a sudden withdrawing
the illusion, entered into their own city. And
when the Daityas had fled, and when all had
become visible, I there discovered hundreds
and thousands of the slain. And there I saw
by hundreds their shivered weapons,
ornaments, limbs, and mail. And the horses
could not find room for moving from one
place to another; and on a sudden with a
bound, they fell to coursing in the sky. Then
remaining invisible, the Nivata-Kavachas
covered the entire welkin with masses of
crags. And, O Bharata, other dreadful
Danavas , entering into the entrails of the
earth, took up horses' legs and chariot-wheels.
And as I was fighting, they, hard besetting my
horses with rocks, attacked me together with
(my) car. And with the crags that had fallen
and with others that were falling, the place
where I was, seemed to be a mountain
cavern.
And inspiring the Gandiva with
mantras , I, aiming at the locality of the crags,
shot sharpened iron shafts of the touch of the
thunder-bolt. And sent by the thunder, those
adamantine arrows entered into all those
illusions and into the midst of those Nivata-
Kavachas . And slaughtered by the vehemence
of the thunder, those Danavas resembling
cliffs, fell to the earth together in masses. And
entering amongst those Danavas that had
carried away the steeds of the car into the
interior of the earth, the shafts sent them into
the mansion of Yama . And that quarter was
completely covered with the Nivata-Kavachas
that had been killed or baffled, comparable
unto cliffs and lying scattered like crags. And
then no injury appeared to have been
sustained either by the horses, or by the car,
or by Matali, or by me.
After Destruction of Nivata - Kavachas the Charioteer of Indra ,Matali himself told that The powers of Arjun cant be seen even in the celestials themselves.
Then, O king, Matali addressed me
smiling, '‪#‎Not‬ in the ‪#‎celestials‬ themselves, O
Arjuna, is seen the ‪#‎prowess‬ that is seen in
‪#‎thee‬.
* ARJUN VS KALAKEYAS
After destroying Nivata -Kavachas Arjun entered the city of Kalakeyas. By seeing their city Arjun got amazed and asked about Kalakeyas to Matali. When Arjun came to know that Kalakeyas are a threat to the celestials Arjun asked Matali to take him there. When Arjun reached their city there took place a terrible battle between Arjun and Kalakeyas.
And seeing me, those sons of Diti,
wearing various kinds of attire and ornament
and accoutred in mail, flew at me with a
mighty rush. And those foremost of the
Danavas , of exceeding prowess, in wrath
attacked me with arrows and bhallas and
clubs and two-edged swords, and tomaras .
Thereat, O king, resorting to my strength of
lore, I resisted that great volley of weapons by
a mighty shower of shafts; and also
confounded them in conflict by ranging
around in my car. And being bewildered, the
Danavas began to push each other down. And
having been confounded, they rushed at one
another. And with flaming arrows, I severed
their heads by hundreds. And hard pressed by
me, the offspring of Diti, taking shelter within
(their) city, soared with it to the firmament,
resorting to the illusion proper to the
Danavas . Thereupon, O son of the Kurus,
covering the way of the Daityas , with a
mighty discharge of shafts I obstructed their
course. Then by virtue of the bestowal of the
boon, the Daityas supported themselves easily
on that sky-ranging unearthly aerial city,
going anywhere at will and like unto the sun.
And now (the city) entered unto the earth and
now it rose upwards; and at one time it went
in a crooked way and at another time it
submerged into water. At this, O represser of
foes, I assailed that mighty city, going
anywhere at will, and resembling Amaravati .
And, O best of the Bharatas, I attacked the
city containing those sons of Diti, with
multitudes of shafts, displaying celestial
weapons. And battered and broken by the
straight-coursing iron shafts, shot by me, the
city of the Asuras, O king, fell to the earth.
And they also, wounded by my iron arrows
having the speed of the thunder, began, O
monarch, to go about, being urged by destiny.
Then ascending to the sky, Matali, as if falling
in front, swiftly descended to the earth, on
that chariot of solar resplendence. Then, O
Bharata, environed me sixty thousand cars
belonging to those wrathful ones eager to
battle with me. And with sharpened shafts
graced with feathers of the vulture, I
destroyed those (cars).
Thereupon I gradually began to fix (on the
string) unearthly weapons. At this, thousands
of weapons (shot) by those wonderfully
warring charioteers, by degrees opposed my
unearthly arms and in the field I saw
hundreds and thousands of mighty (demons)
ranging on their cars, in various manoeuvres.
And being furnished with variegated mail and
standards and diverse ornaments, they
delighted my mind.
I fixed that mighty weapon which, celebrated
under the name of Raudra, is the destroyer of
all foes. Then I beheld a male person having
three heads, nine eyes, three faces, and six
arms. And his hair was flaming like fire or
the sun. And, O slayer of foes, for his dress,
he had mighty serpents, putting out their
tongues. And saying, O best of the Bharatas,
the dreadful and eternal Raudra, I being free
from fear, set it on the Gandiva; and, bowing
unto the three-eyed Sarva of immeasurable
energy, let go (the weapon), with the object of
vanquishing those foremost of the Danavas , O
Bharata. And, O lord of men, as soon as it had
been hurled, there appeared on the scene by
thousands, forms of deer, and of lions, and of
tigers, and of bears and of buffaloes, and of
serpents, and of kine, and of sarabhas, and of
elephants, and of apes in multitudes, and of
bulls, and of boars, and of cats, and of dogs,
and of spectres, and of all the Bhurundas , and
of vultures, and of Garudas, of chamaras, and
of all the leopards, and of mountains, and of
seas, and of celestials, and of sages, and of all
the Gandharvas , and of ghosts with the
Yakshas , and of the haters of the gods,
( Asuras), and of the Guhyakas in the field, and
of the Nairitas and of elephant-mouthed
sharks, and of owls, and of beings having the
forms of fishes and horses, and of beings
bearing swords and various other weapons,
and of Rakshasas wielding maces and clubs.
And on that weapon being hurled all the
universe became filled with these as well as
many others wearing various shapes. And
again and again wounded by beings of
various sights with (pieces of) flesh, fat,
bones, and marrow on their persons,--some
having three heads, and some four tusks, and
some four mouths, and some four arms,--the
Danavas met with destruction. And, then, O
Bharata, in a moment I slew all those Danavas ,
with other swarms of arrows composed of the
quintessence of stone, flaming like fire or the
sun, and possessed of the force of the
thunder-bolt.
After seeing that the Kalakeyas are vanquished by Arjun Matali addressed Arjun and told :
And having witnessed the
accomplishment of that unbearable feat
incapable of being achieved even by the
celestials themselves, Matali, the charioteer of
Sakra, paid
homage unto me; and well-pleased, with joint
hands said these words. 'The feat that hath
been achieved by thee, is ,‪#‎incapable‬ of being
borne ‪#‎even‬ by the ‪#‎gods‬, nay,--in battle, the
lord of the celestials himself cannot perform
this deed. The sky-coursing mighty city
incapable of being destroyed by the gods and
the Asuras hast thou, O hero, crushed by thy
own prowess and by the energy of asceticism.
By destroying the fierce Nivata - Kavachas and Kalakeyas Arjun fullfilled his promise to the chief of Celestials. These Danavas were incapable of being slained by the celestial themselves. Arjun vanquished all those assembled Demons who fought with the power of illussion by his might.

1 comment:

  1. Yes Arjuna is an Atimaharathi. More powerful than Indrajit and Ravana combined but the truth is that Bhishma was a mahamaharathi as he was maharathi of maharathis.

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