King Prithu's Appearance and Coronation :

Skandham:-4.1


Chapter-15.


Slokam- 1to 26.



(1) Maitreya said: 'Thus again churned the brahmins, this time, the arms of the king that had no son and from that did a couple take birth. (2) From that couple born said the sages conversant with the Vedas that they were very happy, knowing that it was an ['avesa'-] expansion of the Supreme Lord. (3) The sages said: 'This male is an expansion of the Supreme Lord, Vishnu, who maintains the world and this woman is Lakshmî, the Goddess of Fortune, who is an inseparable integral part of the Original Person. (4) This male then will be the first among the kings and will spread his reputation under the name of Prithu [the one of the earth] becoming widely renown as the great King. (5) This female child will enhance the beauty of her ornaments with the magnificence of her teeth as a goddess of all good qualities; she will be named Arci and is sure to attract Prithu with her great beauty. (6) He as a partial, direct representative of the Lord is born with the desire to protect the whole world and she took birth as the inseparable goddess, that is certainly very attracted to him.'


(7) Maitreya said: 'All the learned praised him, the singers of heaven chanted, the perfected ones showered flowers and the girls of heaven were dancing. (8) Filling the air vibrating conches, bugles, drums and kettledrums and alike, there gathered all the godly, the sages and the elderly of all sections of society. (9-10) Brahmâ, the master of the universe, accompanied by the godly arriving there together with all the leaders of the enlightened world, saw on the right hand of that son of Vena, the mark of Vishnu carrying the club. His two feet also showed the lotusflower and thus he was certain that he dealt with the part of the Lord that is His invincible disc; by that he would represent the Supreme Interest. (11) The brahmins attached to the rituals arranged for his coronation and thus collected the people, for his sake, from all sides the various means for performing the ceremony. (12) The rivers, seas, mountains, the serpents, the cows, the birds and the animâls; the sky, the earth and all living beings, were brought together by their different presentations. (13) He was thus crowned the Mahârâja; exquisitely dressed and fully ornamented he together with his nicely jeweled wife Arci appeared like a fire beyond compare. (14) The keeper of wealth, Kuvera, presented him a royal throne made of gold, o hero, and Varuna gave him an umbrella brilliant as the moon that constantly showered a mist of waterdrops. (15) Vayu also gave him two camâra's [whisks] made of hair, Dharma a garland that added to his name and fame, Indra gave a very valuable helmet and Yama gave him a scepter to rule the world. (16) Brahmâ armed him with spiritual knowledge, his wife Bharati, the goddess of learning [Sarasvatî] gave a transcendental necklace, the Supreme Personality [Hari, Vishnu] gave him the Sudarsana disc and His wife Lakshmî gifted him imperishable beauty and opulence. (17) Lord S'iva came with a sword decorated with ten moons and Durgâ gave a likewise shield showing a hundred moons. The moongod gifted horses of the finest breed and the demigod Visvakarma donated a very beautiful chariot. (18) Agni gave a bow made of horn, Surya arrows brilliant as sunlight, Bhumi [the goddess of the Earth] gifted slippers that empowered him with mystic union, and the gods above presented him flowers day after day. (19) The art of drama, singing the finest songs, playing musical instruments as well as the ability to make things appear and disappear, were given to him by the gods of the beyond; the great sages blessed him with the infallible and the god of the ocean produced him a conchshell. (20) The seas, mountains and rivers provided him passage for his chariot and professed bards and officials of prayer and praise presented themselves hailing him in verses. (21) Seeing them engaged in their offerings, spoke the greatly powerful son of Vena as follows, smiling with a voice as grave as the thunder of clouds. 


(22) King Prithu said: 'O dear bards, men of prayer and men of praise, your words towards me are in vain; as I am now in this world I do not show all these possible qualities. Thus why praise the shelter of me? These words should never be applied to me. (23) Therefore offer those prayers, when in some future time, the qualities of me you spoke about, can sufficiently been appreciated, o gentle reciters. The honorable ones correctly discussing the qualities of the Supreme One glorified in the scriptures, never offer those prayers to a detestable human being. (24) A man of competence manifesting in himself the exalted qualities, who causes his followers to praise him, although he is just of the temporal and therefore untrue; they thus might have been cheated by him - such a fool does not realize that the people are insulting him. (25) The powerful surely don't like themselves to be praised. Although very famous they are modest; as magnanimous of great deeds as they are, they are as well abominable. (26) O people led by praise, when we are then just now not of any fame in the world or praiseworthy of action, how then could I engage you, as if you were children, in prayers unto me?'