Satya-tapas
Satya-tapas · satya-tapas, “the one whose tapas is truth”
Satya-tapas (also called Satya-tapa) is a great ṛshi (seer) of the Varāha Purāṇa. In an earlier birth he was a brāhmaṇa of the Bhṛgu line. Through bad company he fell to the birth of a hunter, and through the company of ṛshis he rose to be a brāhmaṇa again. He then did severe tapas (austerity) on the slopes of the Himavān.
The Purāṇa tells of a marvel in his body: when he cut his finger, only ash came out, with no blood. Bhagavān Vishṇu in the form of Varāha and Indra tested him. He passed every test through perfect truthfulness (satya). He asked for mukti (liberation), and he went to the realm of Nārāyaṇa together with his guru Āruṇi.
Former life and change
In an earlier birth, Satya-tapas was a brāhmaṇa of the Bhṛgu line, learned and virtuous. Through long company with cruel people, he was born again as a hunter (boya, also called nishāda). Even in that life, the company of ṛshis slowly changed him. The Purāṇa says that through long time and the friendship of ṛshis he became a brāhmaṇa once more, and that through Durvāsa’s teaching he shone still more brightly.
He received instruction from the great ṛshi Durvāsa. Then he went to the northern foot of the Himavān. There, by the sacred Pushpabhadrā river, beside the divine rock called Citraśilā and under the great banyan tree called Bhadramahāvaṭa, he made his āśrama and began severe tapas.
The marvel of the bhasma
One day Satya-tapas was cutting samidhas (wood for the sacred fire) with an axe. By accident he cut off the index finger of his left hand. No blood, flesh or fat came from the cut finger. Only ash (bhasma) came out. He took no notice and went on cutting. The same thing happened again. Ash poured from the wound, and the finger joined itself back and became whole as before.
A pair of kinnaras (a kinnarī and her mate) lived in the same banyan tree. They watched this wonder through the night. At dawn they flew to the realm of Indra. There they told Indra what they had seen. The devas, yakshas, gandharvas and kinnaras had gathered there, wishing to hear of any wonder that had never been seen before.
The test by Bhagavān Vishṇu and Indra
Indra was astonished at the news. He said to Bhagavān Vishṇu, “Let us go to the Himavān. A great marvel has happened there.” Bhagavān Vishṇu agreed and took the form of a Varāha (a boar). Indra took the form of a hunter. Together they came to the āśrama of Satya-tapas.
Bhagavān Vishṇu in the form of a boar showed himself to the ṛshi. At times he was seen, and at times he was hidden. Then Indra came forward with a bow and sharp arrows. He spoke to the ṛshi.
“O great muni! O generous one! Did you see a large fat boar here? I wish to kill it to feed my people.”
The ṛshi was in a hard position. He thought: “If I point out the boar, Indra will kill it. If I say nothing, Indra’s family will surely die of hunger, with his wife and children. A wounded boar has taken refuge in my āśrama. What shall I do?”
After a long moment of thought, he found a way out. He said: “The eye sees, the tongue speaks. But the eye that sees has no tongue to speak, and the tongue that speaks has not the eye to see.”
This reply was hidden in meaning but entirely true. He did not point to where the boar was, and he did not lie. So he kept the protection he had given to the animal, and he kept his word to satya. Bhagavān Vishṇu and Indra were pleased. They showed their true forms and said, “We are satisfied. Ask for a vara (a boon).”
Mukti
Satya-tapas saw Bhagavān Vishṇu and Indra in their true forms. He said: “O devas! This sight is boon enough for me. I am blessed. What greater boon can there be on earth than that you two divine rulers have appeared before me?”
He then asked for two varas.
- That whoever tells this story with devotion to brāhmaṇas on festival days will have all the gathered pāpa (sin) of those brāhmaṇas destroyed.
- That he himself reach mukti.
Both were granted. The two devas gave the auspicious vara and vanished. Satya-tapas, his purpose fulfilled, stayed in his āśrama. In his own heart he became brahmabhūta (one with Brahman).
Some time later his guru Āruṇi came to the āśrama. Āruṇi had been visiting the tīrthas (sacred places) across the whole earth. Satya-tapas honoured him with great devotion. With his inner sight Āruṇi saw that the disciple had gained siddhi (perfection) through tapas and was now ready for final liberation. He said:
“Child! You have become a siddha through tapas, a brahmabhūta. The time of your mukti has now come. Rise and come with me to the supreme abode. Once there, there is no further birth. Of this there is no doubt.”
Satya-tapas and Āruṇi meditated together on Nārāyaṇa. In their own bodies, they went up to the eternal realm.
Sources
- Varāha Purāṇa, Chapter 96