Apsaras in the Vāmana Purāṇa

Apsaras, “the divine women of svarga, “those who move in the waters””

The Apsaras are the divine women of svarga, famed for their beauty and for their mastery of dance and song. They dance in the court of Indra (Devendra) with the Gandharvas, and Indra sends them to break the tapas of ṛshis and kings whose power grows too great. The Vāmana Purāṇa shows them at every great gathering of the devas: they danced in the wedding procession of Bhagavān Śiva, at the abhisheka of Skanda and before Bhagavān Vishṇu in the form of Vāmana in the house of Brahmā; they welcomed the heroes who fell in battle facing the enemy; and when Nārāyaṇa Ṛshi made Urvaśī on his thigh at Badarikāśrama, it was the Apsaras, led by Rambhā, who stood before him with Manmatha and Vasanta and took her to svarga.

In the Vāmana Purāṇa, which Pulastya Maharshi tells to Nārada Maharshi, and in its Saro Māhātmya, which Romaharshaṇa tells to the brāhmaṇas of Kurujāṅgala, the Apsaras appear at almost every great event of the devas. The Purāṇa calls them skilled in dance and song, beautiful, lovely to see and tender of limb. In one passage it calls the same women devakāminīs (divine women), Apsaras and Gandharva women, who take any form at will. Rambhā goes at their head, and when the ṛshis name the best of each kind of being, they name Rambhā the best among women.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapters 6, 12, 22; Saro Māhātmya, Chapters 2, 17

At Badarikāśrama: the birth of Urvaśī

Nara and Nārāyaṇa, the sons of Dharma and the best of the ancient ṛshis, performed great tapas directed to Parabrahma at Badarikāśrama in the Himālaya, on the bank of the Gaṅgā, for the welfare of the worlds. At their fierce tapas the whole world, moving and unmoving, was shaken, and Indra grew alarmed. To break their tapas the Devarāja sent the Apsaras headed by Rambhā, and with them went Manmatha, bearing his instruments and weapons, with his companion Vasanta, the spring. They entered Badarikāśrama and roamed and sported there as they pleased, and spring filled the āśrama with flowering palāśa, karṇikāra, nīpa and aśoka.

Nārāyaṇa Ṛshi, smiling, called Kāma to come and sit by him. He honoured the Apsaras with words of welcome and seated Vasanta close to himself. Then, smiling, he took a cluster of flowers, made with it on his thigh the form of a woman beautiful in every limb, and gave it life. Manmatha, startled, wondered whether she was his own wife Rati; Vasanta, seeing her, kept the Apsaras away and became absorbed in dhyāna like a muni. Seeing Manmatha, Vasanta and the Apsaras standing charmed by her beauty, Nārāyaṇa Muni, of holy vows, said with a smile: “Kāma! Vasanta! Apsaras! This apsarā was born from my thigh. Take her with you and offer her to your Devendra.”

Trembling at the maharshi’s words, without a word in reply, Manmatha and the others took Urvaśī to svarga and told Indra the account of the two sons of Dharma. Devendra was astonished, and the account of Nara and Nārāyaṇa spread through the world of men, through Pātāla and in every direction.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapters 6–7

Pūtanā and the sons of Kratudhvaja

In the Svārocisha manvantara, Kratudhvaja, the prosperous son of Svārocisha Manu, had seven sons, each equal to fire. They went to Mahāmeru and performed tapas to Brahmā, desiring the position of Indra. Indra, the thousand-eyed, grew afraid, and turning to Pūtanā, the best of the Apsaras, he said: “O beautiful Pūtanā! Go at once to the Mahāmeru mountain. There the sons of Kratudhvaja are performing harsh tapas. Use every device you can think of, make an obstacle to their tapas and come back. May you succeed.”

Taking Indra’s command on her head, Pūtanā went quickly to the place of their tapas, where a river flowed gently near their āśrama. When the seven brothers went down to bathe, she too stepped into the water and began to bathe. At the sight of her beauty the princes’ minds were stirred and their seed fell into the water, where Śaṅkhinī, the wife of the makara (crocodile) Mahāśaṅkha, swallowed it. Fallen from their tapas, the princes went back to their kingdom, and Pūtanā went to Indra, told him all that had happened, and left. In time Śaṅkhinī gave birth to seven infants, and Brahmā (Pitāmaha) made them devas, the Maruts of that manvantara, moving on the shoulders of the wind.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 46

Rambhā and the Apsaras at Maṅkaṇa’s bath

Maṅkaṇa Muni, the mind-born son of Kaśyapa Maharshi, once set out to bathe, wearing garments of bark. Then Rambhā and other Apsaras, beautiful, lovely to see and tender of limb, came there and began to bathe with him. Seeing them, the muni’s mind was moved and his seed fell into the water. The tapasvī caught it in a kalaśa (water pot), and from it, divided into seven parts, the seven Marut-gaṇas arose, of great strength.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Saro Māhātmya, Chapter 17

On the field of battle and in Pātāla

When the devas led by Indra went out against Andhaka, the son of Hiraṇyāksha, the munis and siddhas stood in the sky sounding dundubhis (war drums) and watched that fearful battle, and the Apsaras came to welcome the foremost heroes who fell in battle facing the enemy. When Andhaka had conquered the devas headed by Indra, Rudra, Yama and Soma and went down to the city of Aśmaka in Pātāla, the Gandharvas, Vidyādharas and Apsaras went down to Pātāla and served him there.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapters 9–10

In the court of Bali

When Bali, son of Virocana, was consecrated king of the daityas, Lakshmī Devī herself came to him with Hrī, Kīrti and the other devīs, and all the Apsaras skilled in dance and song took refuge with Emperor Bali. After the devas had left svarga and Bali sat on the throne of Indra, the Gandharvas led by Viśvāvasu sang in his court, the Apsaras led by Tilottamā danced, and the yakshas, kinnaras and vidyādharas played many instruments together to delight Balirājendra.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 48; Saro Māhātmya, Chapter 2

Dancers at the festivals of the devas

  • The wedding of Bhagavān Śiva. When Bhagavān Śiva went to Kailāsa for his marriage with Devī Pārvatī, Tumburu and the Gandharvas sang with sweet voices, the kinnaras played instruments, the Apsaras danced and the munis recited stotras, and the whole host of Gandharvas followed Śūlapāṇi Phālāksha, the bearer of the trident with the eye on his forehead (Chapter 27).
  • The abhisheka of Skanda. At Kurukshetra, when Hari, Hara, Brahmā, Indra and the munis bathed Kumāra with the waters of the holy rivers and the seven seas and consecrated him leader of all the armies of the devas, the Gandharvas sang and the Apsaras danced (Chapter 31).
  • The four weddings at Hāṭakeśvara. When Viśvakarmā called Indra and the devas to the kshetra of Hāṭakeśvara, the devas, Gandharvas and Apsaras all came, and the four weddings of the maidens were arranged there (Chapter 39).
  • Before Vāmana in the house of Brahmā. At Brahmā’s prayer, Bhagavān Vishṇu remained for ever in Brahmā’s house in the Vāmana form. There groups of Apsaras, the jewels among them, dance before him; the singers of the devas sing sweet songs, the vidyādharas play auspicious instruments, and devas, dānavas and siddhas praise him with stotras (Chapter 66).

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapters 27, 31, 39, 66

Tapatī in the Vaibhrāja forest

Prince Saṃvaraṇa, hunting alone, wandered in the forest called Vaibhrāja, whose edge was full of lakes of red and white lotuses and water-lilies. There divine women, Apsaras, were always seen at play. Among them the king saw a maiden like the central gem of a necklace, and the two were drawn to each other at first sight. From excess of longing the king fainted and fell from his horse. Then the Gandharva women, who take any form at will, sprinkled water on him and revived him. The Apsaras also revived the maiden, who had fainted too, took her to her father’s house and calmed her with sweet words. She was Tapatī, the daughter of Sūrya, and when Vasishṭha Maharshi later brought her to his āśrama as Saṃvaraṇa’s bride, she told him: “Once, with the Apsaras and my attendants, I saw a young man.”

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 22

Among all beings

  • When Sūrya, struck by the fire of Bhagavān Śiva‘s eye, fell burning between the rivers Varaṇā and Asī, the ṛshis, yakshas, rākshasas, nāgas, vidyādharas, Apsaras, birds, bhūtas and pretas went together to Brahmaloka to tell Brahmā (Chapter 16).
  • When Kātyāyanī Devī stood on the highest peak of the Vindhya, resolved to slay the rākshasas, the devas, siddhas, uragas, vidyādharas, bhūtagaṇas and Apsaras forgot their troubles and stayed in her service (Chapter 19).
  • When Bhagavān Śiva swallowed Śukrācārya, Śukra saw within Śiva’s belly all the worlds from Pātāla onward, the oceans, the Ādityas, Rudras, Vasus and Viśvedevas, the hosts of yakshas, kinnaras, Gandharvas and Apsaras, the munis and the humans (Chapter 43).
  • Mount Trikūṭa, the son of Meru, which rose out of the ocean of milk, is served by Gandharvas, kinnaras, Apsaras, siddhas, cāraṇas, pannagas and vidyādharas with their wives (Chapter 58).
  • In the virāṭ form that Bhagavān Vishṇu showed at Bali‘s yajña, the lines of his body are the hosts of Apsaras (Saro Māhātmya, Chapter 10).
  • Brahmā and the devas, the ṛshis, siddhas, yakshas, Gandharvas, Apsaras and the rest serve the kshetra of Kurukshetra to keep their own positions (Saro Māhātmya, Chapter 12).
  • When Viśvāmitra‘s śāpa made the Sarasvatī flow with blood for a year, the devas, Gandharvas and Apsaras grieved greatly to see it (Saro Māhātmya, Chapter 19).

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapters 16, 19, 43, 58; Saro Māhātmya, Chapters 10, 12, 19

Rambhā and Menakā: the vrata and the liṅgas

By keeping the Nakshatra Purusha vrata of Śrī Hari, Rambhā gained beauty of form and Menakā sweet speech.

In Kurukshetra, the Gandharva Citrāṅgada and Rambhā, the jewel of the Apsaras, bound to each other in love, went for the darśana of Sthāṇu Mahādeva, worshipped him, and installed two liṅgas of Maheśvara, the giver of varas, as tokens of their love: Citrāṅgadeśvara and Rambheśvara. The Purāṇa says that those who have darśana of these liṅgas are born in a good family, with beautiful and auspicious forms.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 54; Saro Māhātmya, Chapter 25

Sources

  • Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapters 6–7, 9–10, 12, 16, 19, 22, 27, 31, 39, 43, 46, 48, 54, 58, 66
  • Vāmana Purāṇa, Saro Māhātmya, Chapters 2, 10, 12, 17, 19, 25