Nala of Nishadha

Nala was the king of Nishadha and the son of Vīrasena. He was known across the worlds for his beauty, his skill with horses and chariots, his good character and his dharmic rule. He loved Damayantī, and their marriage is one of the most celebrated of their age. The Mahābhārata tells his story in the Vana Parva, in the Nalopākhyāna, as an example of steadfastness in hard times.

The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa adds that Nala’s royal birth was the fruit of a Gaṇeśa vrata (a vow with set rites) that he kept in his past life. He kept the same vrata again as king. The Purāṇa says the puṇya (merit) of these two lives carried him through the dice game, the forest exile and the return of his kingdom.

The past life under Kauśika Muni

In the life before he was born as Nala, he was a poor kshatriya (a member of the warrior class). He lived in poor circumstances, without the wealth or standing that belonged to his class. He came to the āśrama (hermitage) of Kauśika Muni, received his instruction and kept the Varada Gaṇeśa Vrata with complete sincerity.

By the puṇya of this vrata, the obstacles that had gathered in his path were removed. In the next life he was born as Nala: king, horseman and beloved husband. The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa tells this in the Upāsanā Khaṇḍa, Chapter 52.

Life and character

Nala was the son of Vīrasena, king of Nishadha. He was known across the worlds for his beauty and his mastery of horses and chariots. He was thought the greatest charioteer of his age. He was also known for his personal virtue and his dharmic conduct as a king.

Damayantī was herself of great beauty and virtue. Their marriage was blessed by the devas and was among the most famous of the age. At Damayantī’s svayaṃvara (the ceremony at which a bride chooses her husband), even the devas came in the form of Nala to win her. She knew the true Nala and garlanded him. The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa tells this in the Upāsanā Khaṇḍa, Chapter 52.

The second vrata

As Nala, he carried the mark of his Gaṇeśa devotion from his past life. During his reign he kept the Varada Gaṇeśa Vrata again. The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa says this second vrata deepened the bond between him and Gaṇeśa’s grace. It also built up the store of puṇya that would carry him through his trials. (Gaṇeśa Purāṇa, Upāsanā Khaṇḍa, Chapter 52)

The trials: the dice game and the exile

The best-known part of Nala’s story is his great loss at dice to the asura Kali, who had entered the dice. In that game he lost his kingdom and his wealth. He had to leave Nishadha with Damayantī and wander in the forest in a single garment. Kali’s further tricks then drove him to leave Damayantī in the forest and wander alone. He served in secret as a charioteer in the court of a foreign king.

The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa presents these trials as a hard passage that the puṇya of two lives of Gaṇeśa devotion carried him through. Nala seemed to lose everything he loved, yet the way back to restoration was never closed for good. The Purāṇa says that Gaṇeśa’s grace, called on through the vrata, ensures that what rightly belongs to a devotee is given back. (Gaṇeśa Purāṇa, Upāsanā Khaṇḍa, Chapter 52)

The restoration

In the end Nala and Damayantī were reunited. Kali was driven out of Nala’s body, and Nala won back his kingdom in a second game of dice. His life was restored more fully than before. The Gaṇeśa Purāṇa presents this as the fruit of the puṇya of the vrata, kept over two lives.

The Mahābhārata account of Nala and Damayantī

The Mahābhārata gives the full account of Nala’s life in the Vana Parva, Chapters 52–79. The ṛshi Bṛhadaśva tells it to Yudhishṭhira, to comfort him and to give him a comparison during the Pāṇḍavas’ exile in the forest.

The svayaṃvara and the four lokapālas

At Damayantī’s svayaṃvara, the four lokapālas (guardians of the world) came wanting to marry her: Indra, Yama, Varuṇa and Agni. They took on Nala’s exact form to confuse her. Damayantī knew the true Nala by the signs of a mortal: he cast a shadow, his garland wilted, his eyes blinked and his feet touched the earth.

The lokapālas were moved by her clear judgment and her pātivratya (devotion to her husband). They gave Nala these varas (boons):

• Agni gave fire whenever he wished.
• Varuṇa gave water whenever he wished.
• Yama gave excellence in dharma and in the art of cooking.
• Indra gave excellence in tapas (austerity).

(Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapters 55–56)

Kali enters Nala and the dice game

Twelve years later, Kali entered Nala at a moment of ritual impurity and spoiled his judgment. Nala’s brother Pushkara challenged him to dice. Nala, under Kali’s hold, lost everything over many days of play: his kingdom, his treasury, his chariots and at last Nishadha itself. He and Damayantī were sent into exile with nothing. (Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapters 57–59)

Leaving Damayantī and meeting Karkoṭaka

In the forest, Kali forced Nala to leave Damayantī while she slept. This is the most painful act in the narrative. Alone, Nala came upon the great serpent Karkoṭaka, who was trapped in a fire by Nārada’s śāpa (curse). Nala rescued him. Karkoṭaka then bit Nala, and the bite changed his body into a short, dark form that no one could know as his own. This disguise protected him, and the venom also pained Kali, who lived within him. Karkoṭaka sent him to Ayodhyā and gave him garments that would bring back his true form when he was ready. (Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapters 63–64)

Service under Ṛtuparṇa as Bāhuka

Nala went to Ayodhyā and entered the service of King Ṛtuparṇa as his charioteer, under the name Bāhuka. He served for years. Ṛtuparṇa saw his great mastery of horses (the Aśvahṛdaya) but did not know who he was. (Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapter 65)

The exchange of the Akshahṛdaya and the Aśvahṛdaya

A second svayaṃvara for Damayantī was announced, and it was false. Nala drove Ṛtuparṇa from Ayodhyā to Vidarbha in a single day. On the way, Ṛtuparṇa showed the Akshahṛdaya, the science of dice, by counting the leaves of a tree at once. Nala asked to learn it in exchange for the Aśvahṛdaya. The moment Nala received the Akshahṛdaya, Kali was driven out of his body. (Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapters 71–72)

Reunion with Damayantī

Damayantī sent her companion Keśinī to find out about Bāhuka. She knew him by the varas of the lokapālas: fires appeared and water came from dry vessels. Then she met him herself. Kali left for good, and Nala took his true form again. (Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapters 73–74)

The return of Nishadha

With the Akshahṛdaya, Nala challenged Pushkara to a second game and won everything back in one sitting. Pushkara was spared. Nala and Damayantī returned to Nishadha with full honour. Bṛhadaśva then gave the Akshahṛdaya to Yudhishṭhira as a gift. (Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapters 76–79)

Sources

• Gaṇeśa Purāṇa, Upāsanā Khaṇḍa, Chapter 52
• Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapters 52–79 (including Chapters 55–56, 57–59, 63–64, 65, 71–72, 73–74 and 76–79)