Saṃvaraṇa, Tapatī and Kurukshetra

King Saṃvaraṇa of the Sūryavaṃśa (the solar lineage) married Tapatī, the daughter of Bhagavān Sūrya. Their son Kuru gave his name to Kurukshetra, the field of dharma. Chapters 22 and 23 of the Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa tell this account.

Saṃvaraṇa and Tapatī

Saṃvaraṇa was a great king of the Sūryavaṃśa. Tapatī was the daughter of Bhagavān Sūrya. Her name means “the burning one”, and it shows her solar nature. With this marriage the lineage of kings joined itself to the source of the sun. The ṛshi Vasishṭha had a part in bringing about this union. From it Kuru was born, and the most sacred dharmakshetra (field of dharma) took his name. The Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa tells this in Chapter 22.

King Kuru’s resolve

Kuru was the son of Tapatī and heir of the solar lineage. A great spiritual resolve took hold of him. He wished to turn a stretch of land into a place where dharma would stay for ever. In this kshetra (field), śrāddha (rites for the ancestors), yajña (fire ritual), tapas (austerity) and pilgrimage would bring moksha to all beings who died or performed rites there. For this he chose Samantapañcaka, a field near the river Sarasvatī, where sacred energies meet. This is told in Chapter 23.

Ploughing Samantapañcaka

To make the field holy, Kuru did something very hard. He took Rudra’s bull as his plough animal. He took Yama’s buffalo (mahisha) as his second beast. With these two animals Kuru ploughed the whole of Samantapañcaka. The bull belongs to Śiva’s power. The buffalo belongs to Yama, lord of dharma and death. The work was a great trial of body and spirit. (Chapter 23)

The offering of his own limbs

As he ploughed, Kuru made the hardest offering to Bhagavān Vishṇu. He cut pieces of his own flesh and limbs and laid them in the furrows of the field as offerings. He kept on ploughing and offering with steady resolve. In this way he made every part of the land holy with his own body. The field became full of the puṇya (merit) and tejas (radiance) of the king’s devotion.

Bhagavān Vishṇu was moved by this tapas. He appeared before Kuru and gave him a vara (a boon). The field would be called Dharmakshetra and Kurukshetra, the field of dharma and the field of Kuru. Anyone who died there, performed śrāddha there or did tapas there would be freed from the cycle of rebirth. (Chapter 23)

Pṛthūdaka Tīrtha

Chapter 23 also describes Pṛthūdaka tīrtha (sacred crossing) inside Kurukshetra. This is the place where the ṛshi Pṛthu did his cleansing rites. It is also where the Sarasvatī comes down in a specially auspicious form. The Vāmana Purāṇa says Pṛthūdaka is among the foremost tīrthas of Bhāratavarsha. In its power to give moksha it stands with Naimisha and Pushkara. A bath at Pṛthūdaka, above all on auspicious days, gives the puṇya (merit) of a thousand aśvamedha yajñas. It also lets the bather reach the realm of the pitṛs (ancestors) in complete purity. (Chapter 23)

Bhagavān Vishṇu appoints guardians

After blessing Kurukshetra, Bhagavān Vishṇu appointed divine guardians to watch over Pṛthūdaka tīrtha and keep it holy. They are:

• Sukeśī, the rākshasa king who had been taught dharma by the ṛshis (told in Chapters 11 to 13). He was now given the honour of guarding this most sacred place.
• Candra-yaksha, a yaksha of moon-like radiance, appointed to guard the tīrtha.
• Vāsuki, the great nāga king, who guards it from below the earth.

The Vāmana Purāṇa gives this appointment in Chapter 23.

Indra’s śrāddha and the gift of the pitṛs

Chapter 24 carries on with Pṛthūdaka tīrtha. Indra himself performed a great śrāddha at this place on the Mṛgaśirā amāvāsyā, the new-moon day when the moon stands in the Mṛgaśirā nakshatra (lunar mansion). The pitṛs were pleased with the offering and gave Indra a vara (a boon). Indra asked for the welfare of Svarga and for the three worlds to keep their order.

The pitṛs, kind as those who have received a proper śrāddha, also gave the celestial maiden Menā to Himavān, king of mountains, to be his queen. From the union of Himavān and Menā three daughters would be born, and their lives would shape the worlds.

Sources

• Vāmana Mahā Purāṇa, Chapters 22, 23 and 24
• Mahābhārata, Ādi Parva, Chaitraratha Parva