Srishti Garg

Children Stories Others

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Srishti Garg

Children Stories Others

The Eight Vasus

The Eight Vasus

5 mins
342


According to the Hindu texts, the Vasus are the eight elemental gods representing the different aspects of nature, who in some accounts are described as the attendant deities of Indra, the king god and later as Lord Vishnu's. In the Ramayana, they are stated as the children of sage Kashyap and his wife Aditi. And in the Mahabharat they are termed as sons of Manu or Brahma Prajapati. They are eight among thirty-three gods. 

The Mahabharat relates how once the eight Vasus led by Prithu, the eldest of the Vasus were enjoying themselves in the forest. They had descended from the celestial realms to see how the humans lived on earth when the wife of Prabhas, the youngest Vasu saw a majestic cow roaming in the woods. Enchanted by the beauty of the most sacred of animals, she asked her husband about the cow. 


 Prabhas said, “This is no ordinary cow, my dear. She is Nandini, a wish-fulfilling cow belonging to the great sage Vashisht, son of Varun, the god of water. She is the daughter of Kamdhenu, daughter of Daksha and the sage Kashyap. Anyone who drinks her milk would retain his youthfulness for a thousand years.” 

Mesmerized by the cow’s powers, Prabhas’s wife was instantly possessed by a desire to own the cow. In a soft, loving tone, she said, “I have a friend Jitavati, daughter of sage Ushinar. She is endowed with unparalleled intelligence but she is a mortal. I want to give her Nandini’s milk so that she lives long without being affected by the disease. You must get her for me!"

 Prabhas’s breath got stuck in his throat as he heard his wife’s wish. “But, my dear, she is sage Vashisht’s cow who obtained it for performing yagnas. She isn’t ours to possess. She belongs to the sages!” 


 But his wife was adamant. She stamped her foot in disgust and balled her hands into fists. “If you love me, you can’t deny me such a small gift.” she persisted. “Get the cow by any means!” she ordered. 

 Prabhas knew that the sage would never gift or sell him such a valuable possession. Nandini, the cow of abundance, adored by all sages for delivering what was requested of it had to be stolen. Though there would be trouble later on, he had to do it. He was in love. And so, with the help of his reluctant 

brothers he purloined the cow away. She dwelled in Vashisht's ashram, roaming freely in the forest that they had no trouble in taking her by force. 

 But later, in the evening when sage Vashisht returned to his hermitage, he found the precious cow missing. He learnt what had happened through his divine vision and cursed the eight brothers for their insolence. You will be born as humans on earth and sustain all the sufferings of mankind. 


 When the Vasus learnt of the curse inflicted on them, they fell at the sage’s feet, begging his forgiveness to retract the curse but the sage didn’t comply. Finally, he decided to tone down the curse on the seven older Vasus. They would be born on the earth but they would be freed of their mortal bondage within a year of their birth as their mother would drown them. But Prabhas, the main culprit, he’d have to suffer on the earth for a long time. The sage proclaimed, “You will spend long years on this earth suffering immensely for your misdeeds but I can give this one boon: you’d be a fearsome warrior and live a life of honour and respect as a kshatriya prince.” 


 Later, sage Vashisht's words turned out to be true as the Vasus were born on the earth as humans. But before their birth, they had persuaded Ganga, the river goddess to be their mother and drown them in her waters. She acceded and thus, in time, married King Shantanu of Hastinapur who had fallen in love with her. But there was a term of the marriage which she made him agree before she married him: that he won’t question her or any of her actions. If he did so, she’d leave him forever. The besotted king complied with her term and thus, made her his wife.  

Years passed as their children were born, seven sons one after another but Ganga, as per her promise, drowned each one of them within a year. This bewildered the king but he remained silent. Finally, there eighth son was born who was the cursed Prabhas, the chief culprit. She was about to drown him, too when the king stopped her from doing so. 


“No! Not again, Ganga!” he asked, snatching his new born son from his wife’s hands. “How can you be so heartless to drown your own children? Have you no feelings of love or affection for your son?” 

 “I do have, oh king, but I am determined to help my children attain salvation. But now, since you have stopped me from drowning this child, I will let him live since he has to endure long years on this earth. Our child is cursed, Shantanu.” she said simply, narrating the story of the curse of the eight vasus to her husband. “As per the conditions of the marriage, I have to leave you now.” 

 The king was stunned with horror. But he could not stop his wife from leaving with his son. Sensing Shantanu’s distraught, she promised to return their son to him when he was of the right age.  


 This child as he grew up was taught warcraft by Parshuram; the complexity of duty and dharma by sage Markandeya; the mental and spiritual sciences from Sanatkumar, the eldest son of Lord Brahma; politics and social sciences from Shukracharya and various shastras from Brihaspati. He returned to his father after sixteen years, tall and fair, young and handsome. He was supposed to be the king after him. But destiny had other plans for the youngest Vasu as he was forced to denounce the throne and was cursed into celibacy by a vow, he took to accommodate his father’s love for another woman. He had to undergo all mortal pain and suffering, having been abandoned at the end, lying on a bed of arrows shot by his favourite grandson, waiting for death to come to him, in a war he did not believe in. This child was none other than Bhishm, the grandfather of the Pandavas and the Kauravas. 

    

  


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