Śālva
Śālva was a king whom the Mahābhārata tells of in two accounts. In the Vana Parva he is the king of the Saubha kingdom and the master of the great flying city called Saubha. He was a close friend of Śiśupāla. When Kṛṣṇa killed Śiśupāla, Śālva attacked Dvārakā with the Saubha to take revenge, and Kṛṣṇa himself killed him. In the Ādi Parva he is the king of the kingdom of Śālva (Śālveya), the man Ambā had chosen in her heart as her husband. He refused to take her back after Bhīṣma carried her away.
Background and friendship with Śiśupāla
Śālva was king of the Saubha kingdom. He was a deep friend and ally of Śiśupāla, king of Cedi. Both were among the foremost kṣatriyas of their time, and both stood against Kṛṣṇa and the Yādavas.
By great tapas (austerity), Śālva had won from Śiva the wonderful vimāna (flying vehicle) called Saubha. Some accounts say it came through the craft of Mayāsura instead. The Saubha was a city in the air. It could fly at will, hide itself, and strike with terrible force.
At Yudhiṣṭhira’s Rājasūya yajña, during the agra-pūjā (the first honour), Śiśupāla abused Kṛṣṇa in public a hundred times. At the 101st offence, Kṛṣṇa sent his Sudarśana Cakra and killed Śiśupāla. Śālva saw this. He was full of grief and anger, and he swore to destroy Dvārakā and kill Kṛṣṇa to avenge his friend.
The attack on Dvārakā
Śālva made his attack while Kṛṣṇa was away from Dvārakā. The Saubha appeared in the sky above the city and rained destruction on it. Boulders, fire, trees, serpents and magical attacks fell on Dvārakā. The Yādava warriors rose to meet them at once.
- Sāmba fought Kṣemavṛddhi, Śālva’s general.
- Pradyumna killed the dānava Vivindhu.
- The rākṣasa Vegavān also entered the fight.
The powers of the Saubha made the battle very hard. It could turn invisible and then show itself again in a different place, so it was hard to strike. Śālva himself fought with great skill from the vimāna.
Kṛṣṇa’s return and Śālva’s death
Kṛṣṇa came back to Dvārakā and saw the destruction. He went after Śālva directly, and the fight between them was extraordinary. Śālva used māyā (illusion) on a grand scale. At one point he made an illusion in which Vasudeva, Kṛṣṇa’s father, was brought before Śālva as a prisoner and killed. Kṛṣṇa saw through it with his divine sight and was not deceived.
Kṛṣṇa struck the Saubha with his Kaumodakī gadā (mace) and with divine weapons. The great vimāna broke apart and fell into the ocean. Śālva was killed. Dantavakra then came forward to avenge Śālva and Śiśupāla, but Kṛṣṇa killed him too.
At the Kāśī svayaṃvara
Śālva was one of the kings gathered at the svayaṃvara (a ceremony where a princess chooses her husband) of the daughters of the king of Kāśī. Ambā, the eldest princess of Kāśī, had chosen him in her heart. She was about to place the garland on him when Bhīṣma arrived. Bhīṣma challenged all the kings and carried off all three princesses by force. Śālva was there but could not stop him. Bhīṣma defeated him in the contest.
The refusal of Ambā
Ambā told Bhīṣma of her earlier choice. Bhīṣma respected what she said and sent her to Śālva with an escort. When Ambā reached his kingdom, Śālva refused to accept her. He said that Bhīṣma had taken her, that she had been in another man’s power, even if no union had taken place, and that she had been in the keeping of the Kuru royal house. He said that to take her now would harm his own honour. He turned her away.
This refusal sealed Ambā’s sorrow. It made her situation impossible and set alight her all-consuming vow against Bhīṣma.
Sources
- Mahābhārata, Vana Parva, Chapters 14–16
- Mahābhārata, Ādi Parva, Sambhava Parva, Chapters 102–103