Maru and Devāpi at Haridvāra

This episode comes from the Tritīyāmśa of the Kalki Purāṇa. After he has killed the rākshasī Kuṭhodarī, Bhagavān Kalki comes to Haridvāra on the bank of the Gaṅgā. A great gathering of ṛshis receives him, and with them are Maru and Devāpi. These are the two great kings who have waited in yoga through the Kali Yuga. At Kalki’s request, Maru tells the whole solar dynasty and Devāpi tells the whole lunar dynasty. Kalki then sends them to join the great Digvijaya, and Kṛtayuga appears before them.

The assembly at Haridvāra

Kalki came to Haridvāra, the great tīrtha where the Gaṅgā comes down from the mountains to the plains. He camped there for the night with his army. At dawn he went to bathe in the Gaṅgā. News of his coming had gone ahead of him. Drawn by devotion and by the knowledge that the avatāra was near, a vast gathering of the greatest ṛshis had come to the tīrtha to see him (darśana).

The text names the ṛshis who were there: Vasudevā, Atri, Vasishṭha, Gālava, Bhṛgu, Parāśara, Nārada, Aśvatthāman, Paraśurāma, Kṛpācārya, Trita, Durvāsa, Devala, Kaṇva, Veda-pramiti and Aṅgirasa. There were many more, all keeping strict vows and rich in tapas, gathered on the bank of the Gaṅgā.

With these ṛshis stood two remarkable men, Maru and Devāpi. They were the kings who had waited so long, and their coming had been foretold as the sign of the new age. Yogic power had kept them alive through the ages in the village of Kalāpa in the Himālaya. Now they knew the time had come, and they had come down with the ṛshis to meet Bhagavān Kalki at Haridvāra.

Kalki greeted them all with full respect, offering pādya, arghya and ācamana. The ṛshis sat at ease and called him Jagannātha. They prayed: “O Padmanābha! You are the form of time itself, the keeper of guṇa and karma. Brahmā and the devas praise your lotus feet. Turn your cooling glance on us and bless us.”

Kalki was full of curiosity. He looked at the two great men before him and asked the assembled ṛshis: “Who are these two powerful men who stand before you, doing tapas? What are their names? Why have they come here? Please tell me.”

Maru tells the solar dynasty

Maru was glad and full of devotion. He joined his hands and began. He called Kalki Paramātmā and said he would tell his line in full, as he was told to do.

“From your lotus-navel Brahmā rose. His son was Marīci. From Marīci came Manu. From Manu came the king of satya and vikrama (courage), Ikshvāku. From Ikshvāku’s son Yuvanāśva came Māndhātā. From Māndhātā came Purukutsa. From Purukutsa came the wise Anaraṇya. From Anaraṇya came Trasaddasyu, then Haryaśva, then Aruṇa (Tryaruṇa). From Aruṇa came Triśaṅku. From Triśaṅku came the brilliant and famous Hariścandra.”

Maru went on with the line:

  • Hariścandra, then Rohita (Harita), Bharaka, Vṛka, Asaṃañjasa, Aṃśumanta, Dilīpa, and then Bhagīratha, who brought the Gaṅgā down from the feet of Vishṇu to make the Sagara ancestors pure.
  • Then Nābha, Sindhudvīpa, Āyutāyu, Ṛtaparṇa, Sudāsa, Saudāsa, Āśmaka, Mūlaka, Daśaratha (an earlier one), Viśvasaha and Khaṭvāṅga.

“Then the great Raghu was born. His son was Aja. Aja’s son was Daśaratha. Śrī Hari himself came down as Śrī Rāma in Daśaratha’s house. It was Jagannātha himself.”

Kalki heard Rāma named and was overcome with joy. He eagerly asked Maru to tell the Rāma charitra (the life of Rāma) in detail.

The Rāma charitra

Maru told the Rāma charitra in outline. The four brothers Rāma, Lakshmaṇa, Bharata and Śatrughna were born from Daśaratha’s four wives as four amśas of Bhagavān Vishṇu. Then came, in this order:

  • their boyhood schooling with Viśvāmitra
  • the killing of the rākshasas who disturbed the yajña
  • the journey to Janaka’s court
  • the breaking of the Śiva-dhanus (bow)
  • the marriages of all four brothers to Janaka’s four daughters: Sītā, Ūrmiḷā, Māṇḍavī and Śrutakīrti
  • the meeting with Paraśurāma on the way home
  • Daśaratha’s plan to crown Rāma
  • Kaikeyī’s vara and Rāma’s exile to the forest
  • life in the āśrama at Pañcavaṭī
  • Śūrpaṇakhā’s nose being cut
  • the killing of Khara and Dūshaṇa
  • Mārīca’s trick as the golden deer
  • Sītā’s abduction by Rāvaṇa
  • the battle and death of Jaṭāyu
  • Rāma’s friendship with Sugrīva
  • the killing of Vāli
  • Hanumān’s journey to Laṅkā
  • the bridge of Nala
  • the crossing and the siege of Laṅkā
  • Indrajit killed by Lakshmaṇa
  • Kumbhakarṇa, Prahastha, Makarāksha and Vikaṭa killed
  • the great duel between Rāma and Rāvaṇa, in which the rākshasa king who had won a vara from Brahmā fell at last to Rāma’s arrows
  • Sītā’s test by fire
  • the crowning of Vibhīshaṇa
  • the return to Ayodhyā in the Pushpaka
  • Rāma’s crowning by Vasishṭha
  • the ten thousand years of Rāma’s golden reign
  • three Aśvamedha yajñas
  • Sītā’s being sent away and the Vālmīki āśrama
  • the birth of Kuśa and Lava
  • their reunion with Rāma
  • Sītā’s return into the womb of Bhūdevī
  • Rāma’s entry into the Sarayū with his brothers and close companions, and his rise to Vaikuṇṭha

From Rāma the line went on: Kuśa, Atithi, Nishadha, Nala, Nabha, Puṇḍarīka, Kshemadhanvā, Devānīka, Hīna, Pāripātra, Balāhaka, Arka, Ajānābha, Khagaṇa, Vidhṛta, Hiraṇyanābha, Pushpa, Dhruva, Syandana and Agnivarṇa. Maru ended: “It is now the one lakh years of Kali that I have waited, living in the village of Kalāpa, before coming to you.”

Devāpi tells the lunar dynasty

Kalki then said: “I know your solar dynasty. Now, who is the other great man standing beside you?” Maru named Devāpi. Kalki invited Devāpi to speak.

Devāpi joined his hands in devotion and told the lunar line. “From your lotus-navel at the end of pralaya, Brahmā rose. His son was Atri. From Atri came Candra (the Moon). Candra’s son was Budha. Budha’s son was Purūravas. Purūravas’s son was Nahusha. Nahusha’s son was Yayāti. From Yayāti and Devayānī were born Yadu and Turvaśa. From Yayāti and Śarmishṭhā were born Druhyu, Anu and Pūru. As the five elements arise in creation from the tāmasa ahaṃkāra, so Yayāti had five sons.”

The line from Pūru went: Pūru, Janamejaya, Pracinvanta, Pravīra, Manashyu, Abhayada, Urukshaya, Tryaruṇi, Pushkarāruṇi, Bṛhatkshetra, and then Hasti, who founded Hastināpura, the city named after him. Hasti had three sons: Ajamīḍha, Dvimīḍha and Purumīḍha. From Ajamīḍha came Ṛksha, Saṃvaraṇa and Kuru, the founder of the Kuru line. From Kuru came Parīkshit, whose sons were Sudhanu, Jahnu and Nishedha. From Sudhanu came Suhotra, Cyavana, Bṛhadratha, Kuśāgra, Ṛshabha, Satyajit, Pushpavanta, Jahnu, and then Bṛhadratha of the second line. He had another wife, who gave birth to the terrible Jarāsandha. From Jarāsandha came Sahadeva, Somāpi, Śrutaśravas, Suratha, Vidūratha, Sārvabhauma, Jayasena, Rathānīka, Yutāyu, Devātithi, Ṛksha, Dilīpa and Pratīpaka.

“And I, Devāpi, am the son of Pratīpaka. I gave the kingdom to Śantanu and went to live in the village of Kalāpa. There I have waited, held up by tapas, until this day.”

Kalki’s command and the divine chariots

Kalki heard both kings tell their lines in full, with eyes full of tears of mercy and joy. He smiled gently and said:

“You two, famed for your perfect dharma, will rule your own kingdoms as I command. O Maru! After I destroy the mleccha oppressors, I will make you king of Ayodhyā. O Devāpi! After I destroy the Pulkasa people who have taken over the holy lands, I will make you king of Hastināpura. I myself will be present from Mathurā to drive away all that threatens. These Śayyākarṇas, Ushṭramukhas and the various adharmic peoples will be removed, and the Kṛtayuga will be set up. Both of you, take off your ascetic clothes and tapas-robes, mount the chariots, and come with me.”

Kalki said that both men were amśas of Sūrya, Candra, Indra, Yama and Kubera, great powers in royal form. Even as he spoke, two divine chariots came down from the sky. They blazed like suns, were set with jewels, and carried celestial weapons. Viśvakarmā had built them at Indra’s command. The kings, the ṛshis and everyone present were astonished. Kalki told the two kings to mount the chariots and join the Digvijaya. The devas showered flowers and the ṛshis sang praises.

Kṛtayuga appears as a brahmacārī

As Kalki finished speaking and the assembly got ready to leave, a figure arrived who held every eye. He came as a wandering brahmacārī (a celibate student). He carried a daṇḍa (staff) and wore ascetic dress. His body glowed like molten gold and his eyes were like lotus petals. He was loka-atīta, beyond the ordinary world. The text says that by the mere touch of his body, built-up adharma was destroyed. Everyone present stood up to receive him.

Kalki himself rose and received the brahmacārī with pādya, arghya and ācamana. He asked: “Who are you? It is my great good fortune that you have come here. Tell me your name.”

The brahmacārī answered: “O Śrīnātha! I am Kṛtayuga, the age of the full measure of dharma, and I obey your command. I have come to see the glory of your avatāra in person. By your māyā, cosmic time (kshaṇa, daṇḍa, lava) moves on with its limiting conditions. The bright and dark halves of the month, day and night, the month, the season, the year and the yuga all turn, fourteen in all (the cycles of the fourteen Manus), by your grace.”

The fourteen Manus are Svāyambhuva, Svārocisha, Uttama, Tāmasa, Raivata, Cākshusha, Vaivasvata, Sāvarṇi, Dakshasāvarṇi, Brahmasāvarṇi, Dharmasāvarṇi, Rudrasāvarṇi, Vedasāvarṇi and Indrasāvarṇi. These are their names and forms.

Kṛtayuga went on: “In deva-years, Kṛtayuga is 4,000 years, Tretāyuga is 3,000 years, Dvāparayuga is 2,000 years and Kali Yuga is 1,000 years. Each yuga has a pūrvasandhyā (the dawn before it) equal to a tenth of the yuga in hundreds of years, and a paścāt-sandhyā (the dusk after it) worked out in the same way. One Manu rules for 71 yugas. The fourteen Manus together make one day of Brahmā. An equal length of time is his night. Days, nights, fortnights, months, seasons and years of this kind make up the life of Brahmā, and Brahmā lives for 100 such years before he dissolves back into you. Then you make him again from your lotus-navel.

“I am Kṛtayuga, who keeps saddharma alive. In my age, people fulfil their dharma and become kṛtakṛtya (fully accomplished). For this I am called Kṛtayuga.”

Kalki was overjoyed to hear this. He told his followers to get their forces ready for the Digvijaya march. He then moved toward Viśasana pura, the capital of Kali, to begin the decisive campaign.

Sources

  • Kalki Purāṇa, Tritīyāmśa, Chapter 3 (the assembly at Haridvāra, the solar dynasty, the Rāma charitra)
  • Kalki Purāṇa, Tritīyāmśa, Chapter 4 (the lunar dynasty, Kalki’s command, the divine chariots)
  • Kalki Purāṇa, Tritīyāmśa, Chapter 5 (Kṛtayuga appears as a brahmacārī)
  • Kalki Purāṇa, Tritīyāmśa, Chapters 3–5