Elāpatra

Elāpatra is a nāga, a serpent of the Nāga race. He was present at the court of Brahmā when Kadrū cursed her serpent sons to perish in Janamejaya’s sarpa-yāga (the serpent sacrifice), and when Brahmā agreed to that śāpa (a curse).

Elāpatra alone among the nāgas had heard Brahmā’s further words: that a son of the ṛshi Jaratkāru, born of a woman also named Jaratkāru, would stop the yāga. When he told this to Vāsuki’s council, the nāgas stopped looking for ways to resist and began to prepare.

Presence at Brahmā’s court

Kadrū pronounced her śāpa on her serpent sons: “You shall perish in Janamejaya’s sarpa-yāga.” The devas were troubled and brought the matter before Brahmā. Brahmā agreed to the śāpa. He explained that many serpents had become cruel and harmful to all beings without cause, and that it was right and needed for them to be purified by the fire of the yāga. He also added a promise for the worthy among the nāgas.

Elāpatra was present in this sabhā (assembly). He heard everything, both the agreement to the śāpa and the exception. He kept this knowledge with him through the years that followed.

Vāsuki’s council

The sarpa-yāga was near. Vāsuki called a council of the great nāgas to find a way to survive. Many plans were put forward. Some advised open violence against Janamejaya’s kingdom. Others proposed to corrupt the priests, or to make the yajña fail by sabotage. Others proposed flight. The council rejected every one of these as either impractical or not permitted.

Then Elāpatra spoke. He told the council all that he had heard at Brahmā’s court, including Brahmā’s promise. A brahmarshi (a brāhmaṇa ṛshi) named Jaratkāru, of the Yāyāvara gotra (family line), had long wandered as a celibate ascetic. He would marry a woman who was also named Jaratkāru. She was in fact Vāsuki’s own sister. The son born of that marriage would stop the sarpa-yāga.

The council changes course

This news changed the council. The nāgas had been searching for a plan of resistance. Now they learned that the plan had been set since the day of Brahmā’s court. Vāsuki had kept his sister unmarried for years. Now he knew the reason.

The council turned from resistance to preparation. They would find the ṛshi Jaratkāru, bring about the marriage and make sure that Āstīka was born.

Elāpatra’s part

Elāpatra speaks only once, at the council. Nīlakaṇṭha Caturdhara, in his commentary, reads Elāpatra’s part as an example of the Purāṇic teaching that Brahmā’s word always holds the answer within the very crisis it announces.

Sources

• Mahābhārata, Ādi Parva, Āstīka Parva, Chapter 38
• Nīlakaṇṭha Caturdhara’s commentary on the Mahābhārata