136 - Rules of expiation

Varaha said:

1. A man gets the sin of offence by doing service to me after touching a lamp.

 2. Listen to what I say in this matter. He becomes attacked by leprosy all over the body for sixty years.

3. And this will be in the house of an outcaste.

4. After undergoing this punishment, if he happens to die in my temple, he takes birth as my devotee in a sanctified family.

5. I shall tell you the expiation for touching the lamp by which the man gets release from being an outcaste.

6. On the Dvadashi in the bright fortnight of any month, he shall take food only in the fourth part of the day and sleep in the open.

7. Then by gifting a lamp he gets out of this sin, becomes purified and eligible to do me setvice.

8. Thus have I told you about the offence of touching the lamp and the way to get release from it.

9. He who touches me without bathing after going to the cremation ground commits an offence and I shall tell you what befalls him.

10. He becomes a jackal for fourteen years, an eagle for seven years wandering in the sky, in both forms eating human flesh.

11.  He becomes a goblin for fourteen years. And then for thirty years, he remains eating the remains of the dead”.

12. Hearing all this from Lord Narayana, Earth said:

I have great curiosity to know why this is so.

13. The cremation ground, O lord, is praised by Rudra. How can it be otherwise when there is this holy utterance of Shiva?

14. That great god delights there holding a bright skullbone in his hand.

15. The cremation ground is dear to Rudra particularly in the night. How is it that you decry what is praised by Rudra”?

Varaha said:

16. O goddess, listen to this story which has not been fully understood even by the ascetics.

17. After accomplishing a difficult task in Tripura,¹ and killing young and old alike and beautiful women.

1. The three cities of gold, silver and iron in the sky, air and earth built for the demons by Maya and destroyed by Shiva.

18. He got into the grip of sin as a consequence and was unable to move.

19. He lost his mind effulgence and yogic power and became discoloured.

20. He stood there in that condition surrounded by his ganas.

21. When Shiva was thought of by me, I saw him with my divine vision as completely bereft of his magical power.

22-23. Then I went there and saw the three-eyed god bereft of consciousness, knowledge and magical power. Then I asked him in a pleasing tone.

24. O Rudra, how is it that you stand here engulfed by sin. You are the creator as well as the destroyer, the source as well as manifestation.

25. You are union as well as separation, you are the repository of all and you are the sole refuge. You are the fierce god, foremost of all gods, yo1:1 are Saman and you re the various quarters.

26. Do you not know yourself surrounded by your attendant ganas. How is it that you are discoloured and swollen-eyed?

27. Tell me truly what I ask you. Contemplate on the yoga and maya of the great Vishnu. I have come here for your good.

28. At these words of mine, Shiva, regained consciousness and spoke in sweet words with his eyes burning with sin.

29. Listen to the truth, O god. Who else will come to me like this other than you Narayana, the lord of the worlds.

30. O Vishnu, godhood is attained by your favour.

31. I got yoga and Sankhya and I have become free from affliction.   By your grace, I have become like the ocean full of water.

32. O Madhava, I know you and you know me. None finds any difference between us. Brahma too is not known as different from us.

33. All this is well, O great Vishnu, the repository of maya.

34. Telling me like this, Shiva meditated for a while and spoke to me again:

35. ‘‘By your grace, O Vishnu, I destroyed Tripura (The three cities) and all the demons there.

36. But along with them I also crushed down many pregnant women children and old men in all the ten quarters. By the sin of this action, I am not able to move.

37. I have lost all my mystic and mag1cal powers and all my effulgence.  What shall I do in this state of sin?

38. Tell me, O Vishnu, what atonement I may do to purify myself and get rid of the sin”.

39. I then told the regretful Rudra to take a string of skull-bones and go to Samala.

40. He then asked me to tell him what this Samala was where he was asked to go.

41. Then I told Shiva what I meant when I told him so.

42. Samala is the cremation ground which smells rotten like the sore.

43. People who have given up all desires voluntarily remain there. Taking skull-bones you too remain there.

44. Live there with great austerity for a thousand divine years and then be eating flesh to remove your sin.

45. Eat the flesh that is dear to you of those that are killed. Live there in this way along with your ganas.

46. When the thousand years are spent in Samala, go to the

hermitage of sage Gautama.

47. While in Gautama’s hermitage you will realise yourself and be rid of your sin by the blessing of Gautama.

48. The skull-bowl on your head full of sin will be brought known by that sage out of compassion.

49. Giving the boon to Rudra in this manner, I disappeared. Rudra wandered in the sinful cremation ground.

50. Therefore it is that the cremation ground is not liked by me, being defiled by the sin of Rudra.

51. Thus have I told you about the despicable cremation ground and the person who comes to me without purification after going there.

52. I shall now tell you about the expiation to get purified of this offence.

53. For fifteen days he shall eat only once and that in the fourth part of the day, ‘sleep in the open’ wearing a single cloth and seated in Kusha grass, and in the morning should drink.

Panchagavya.

54. He then becomes freed of all sins and reaches my world.

55. Now listen to the expiation for the offence of going to the lord after eating oil-cake.

56. He becomes an owl for two years and a tortoise for three years and then he is born a man again devoted to me.

57. I shall tell you the expiation for this by which the sin is removed and liberation from Samsara is attained.

58. For one day he shall take barley cooked in cow’s urine and in the night he shall ‘sleep in the open’ in Virasana pose.

59. Such a person does not revert to samsara but reaches my world.

60. He who approaches me with pork becomes a sinful dunce and brings upon himself much misery.

61. He is tormented in hell for as many thousands of years as there are hairs on my body as the boar.

62. Another effect also I shall tell you of approaching me with pork.

63. As soon as he begins to worship me, he becomes a boar.

64. I shall tell you also about another thing which befalls such a person.

65. He becomes blind and continues to reel in samsara.

66. In the end he is born in a family of devotees, humble, cultured and effluent.

67. I shall tell you the expiation for this so as to remove the sin.

68. He shall eat fruit alone for seven days and roots alone for seven days.

69. Seven days on rice cooked in milk, seven days on butter milk and seven days on fire.¹ By this expiation he reaches my world.

1. The expression is pavakabhajanah. What it signifies is not clear. Perhaps the word is yavadakabhojanah which means feeding in barlay water.

70. O beautiful goddess, listen to the evil that accrues if one approaches me after drinking alcohol.

71. He remains poor for ten thousand years and then becomes purified to be my devotee again.

72. For a devotee of mine who is initiated, there is no expiation at all if he takes alcohol out of desire.

73. Listen to another thing which I tell you. One gets freed from the sin by taking in drink coloured like fire.²

2.  How the evil of one drink is removed by another ts not clear.

74. He who performs expiation in this way doesnot incur sin and does not fall in samsara.

75. My worshipper who eats vegetables cooked with safflower becomes a boar and is tormented in hell for fifteen years.

76. Then he is born as a dog for three years and a jackal for one year.

77. Then he becomes a purified devotee and reaches my world”.

78. Hearing these words; Earth asked Lord Hari:

79. O great god, tell me about the expiation for the sin of eating vegetables with safflower”.

Varaha said:

80. He who comes to me with vegetables mixed with safflower, gets tormented in hell for ten thousand years. I shall tell you about the expiation for this.

81. For eating vegetables with safflower, the expiation is doubtless the rite called ‘Chandrayana’. For approaching me with the same, the expiation is to live on milk for twelve days.

82. He who performs such expiation gets free from that sin and reaches my world.

83. He who approaches me wearing the cloth of another without washing becomes a dunce and has to perform expiation.

84. He who touches me and serves me in that condition becomes a deer for ten years.

85. One whole life he remains foolish and irate and then becomes my devotee again.

86. I shall tell you about the expiation for this by which the devotee traverses samsara.

87. On the Dvadashi day in the bright half of the month of Magha,

88. He shall stand in a pond calm and composed and thinking of me alone.

89. When the night comes to a close and the Sun rises he shall take panchagavya and then do service to me.

90. He who performs expiation in this way, gets free from sin and reaches my world.

91. If the devotee does not offer nine kinds of food,¹ his manes do not eat for fifteen years.

1. The expression is navannani. It may also mean fresh food’ though the plural seems to relate to number.

92. He who eats nine kinds of food without offering (to me), does not acquire any merit.

93. I shall tell you about the expiation to be performed in order to get free from this sin.

94. He shall fast for three days or at least for one day and ‘sleep in the open’. He gets purified on the fourth day.

95. After doing th is, when the sun rises, he may drink panchagavya which will purify him.

96. He who performs expiation in this manner, renounces everything and reaches my world.

97. He who offers me smoke of incense without offering sandal and flowers, doubtless takes birth as a goblin or demon.

98. Certainly he has to live in iron for twentyone years.

99. I shall tell you about the expiation by which he gets free from this sin.

100. On the Dvadashi day in the bright half of any month, alternatively on the Dashami or Ekadashi day, he shall fast.

101. When the night ends and the sun rises, he shall drink panchagavya which purifies him.

102. The manes of one who performs expiation like this get liberated.

103. He who approaches me nearing sandal, becomes a cobbler for thirteen years.

104. After that he takes birth as a boar.

105. From being the boar, he takes birth as a despicable dog and after that he becomes a man again, my devotee free from faults.

106.  He gets rel ase from samsara and reaches my world.

107.   He who performs the atonement like this, does not at all become touched by sin.

108. He who wakes me up without beating the drum, becomes deaf in one whole life.

109. I shall tell you the expiation by which the sin of not beating the drum is got rid of.

110. On the Dvadashi day in the bright half of any month he shall ‘sleep in the open’ and then he becomes free from sin.

111. O Earth, he who performs expiation like this does not commit any offence and reaches my world.

112. He who eating a lot suffers indigestion and approaches me with eructations and without taking bath,

113. Becomes a dog for one life, a monkey for one life, a goat for one life, a jackal for one life.

114. A blind man for one life and then is born as a rat and is finally born in a big family as a pure and respected devotee free from faults.

115. I shall tell you about the expiation by which the devotee becomes free from sin.

116. For three days he shall live on fire, for three days on roots, for three days on rice cooked in milk, for three days on flour.

117. Three days on air, and shall ‘sleep in the open’ for three days.

118. At daybreak he shall clean his teeth and drink panchagavya for his purification.

119. He who performs expiation like this, does not become touched by sin and reaches my world.

120. What I have told you, O goddess, is for the (true) Brahmins. This is the greatest of all narrations.

121. It is righteousness, fame and sacred practice. It is the best of qualities and the moral of all morals.

122. He who reads this everyday after rising up in the morning, liberates his manes ten generations before and ten generations after.

123. This is the healthiest of the healthy and the most auspicious of all that is auspicious. This is the gem of all gems that removes all sins.

124. The devotee who recites this with concentration of mind does not become defiled bysin even if he chances to commit an offence.

125. He who recites this after worshipping Sandhya early in the morning, reaches my world.

126. This should not be read in the midst of the wicked or amidst incompetent disciples. This shall be imparted only to my devotees.

127. I have thus tolq you about the rules of expiation about which you asked me. What else do you wish to know?