Cakrapāṇi of Gandakī-nagara
Cakrapāṇi was the king of Gandakī-nagara in Maithila deśa. He was the father of Sindhu, the great daitya who became the enemy of Bhagavān Gaṇeśa in his Tretā-yuga avatāra (descent) as Mayūreśvara.
His story is told in Chapters 73 and 74 of the Krīḍā Khaṇḍa of the Gaṇeśa Purāṇa. It begins with the sorrow of having no child. Through the Sauravrata, it turns into the birth of a son so powerful that he would later conquer all three worlds. After he made Sindhu king, Cakrapāṇi went to the forest for tapas (austerity).
The king and his kingdom
Cakrapāṇi ruled Gandakī-nagara, the city of the Gaṇḍakī river. It lay in Maithila deśa, the region of Mithilā, which is linked with the Gaṇḍakī and Kosi rivers in what is today northern Bihar and southern Nepal. His ministers were Sāmba and Subodha. His queen was Ugrā.
Cakrapāṇi was a capable and righteous king. Yet he and Ugrā had no son. This lack of an heir was the great sorrow of his reign. The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa says this in Chapter 73.
Śaunaka and the Sauravrata
The ṛshi Śaunaka travelled to Gandakī-nagara. Cakrapāṇi received him with great honour. Seeing that the king had no child, Śaunaka taught him the Sauravrata.
The Sauravrata is a month-long vrata (vow) to Bhagavān Sūrya. When it is kept with śraddhā (faith), it has the power to give a child of divine nature. The vrata centres on Sūryasaptamī, the seventh day of the bright fortnight, which is sacred to Bhagavān Sūrya. The account is in Chapter 73.
Cakrapāṇi and Ugrā kept the Sauravrata with complete devotion.
The unexpected result
The Sauravrata gathered great solar power. Bhagavān Sūrya gave his grace, and Ugrā conceived. But the solar tejas (radiance) in the child was so fierce that Ugrā could not bear its heat. She dropped the unborn child into the ocean.
The child Sindhu was born from the ocean. He had a red complexion, fearsome eyes and great strength. This is told in Chapter 74.
In time Sindhu came home. Cakrapāṇi and Ugrā were overjoyed to see their son. They smelled his head, a sign of a parent’s love. Sindhu bowed down at their feet. He told them of the vara (boon) from Bhagavān Sūrya that gave him mastery over all three worlds, and he asked them not to worry.
Going to the forest
Cakrapāṇi saw his son return, gifted with great power. He then made Sindhu king. He gave him the rule, the treasury and the army. Then he went to the forest for tapas.
This follows the Purāṇic pattern of vānaprastha, the forest stage of life. A man first does the duty of a householder by having a son and setting him in his place. Then he leaves the kingdom for a life of quiet contemplation. The account is in Chapter 75.
Sources
- Gaṇeśa Purāṇa, Krīḍā Khaṇḍa, Chapters 73–75