Canto
4
Chapter 4: Satî Quits Her Body
(1) S'rî Maitreya said: 'After saying this about the end of the body of his wife fell Lord S'iva silent. Since she of S'iva saw it the both ways of being anxious as well as being afraid of seeing her relatives, was she, being divided, unsure where to stand. (2) Denied in her desire to see her relatives she felt very sorry and shed she tears in her affliction; shaking she looked at her Bhava, the unequaled one, with anger as if she would blast him. (3) Then breathing heavily she left him, the saintly one dear to her whom she had given half of her body; from her grief and her anger being emotional she, with her heart set to her father, went to the family home in love for his embodiment, in her intelligence deluded by her womanly nature. (4) Rapidly leaving alone was Satî, who had no fear, quickly followed by Manimân and Mada with the bull Nandî in the company of the thousands of associates and Yakshas of the three eyed one [Lord S'iva]. (5) Placed on the decorated bull, were her pet bird, ball, mirror, lotus flower, white umbrella, mosquito net, garlands and other stuff taken along with her under the guidance of the music of drums, conchshells and flutes. (6) She then arrived where the sacrifice, brightened by the sounds of vedic hymns, was held that was attended by all the great sages and great minds that had come from everywhere for the offering with all its sacrificial animals, pots, clay, wood, iron, gold and the grass and skins to sit on. (7) As she arrived there was she not respected with a welcome out of fear for the performer of the sacrifice [Daksha], except by indeed her own sisters and mother, who embraced her with reverence, gladdened faces and throats choked with tears of affection. (8) But Satî, not being welcomed by her father, couldn't accept to be honored by the greetings of her sisters, mother and aunts who with due respect properly informed her and offered her gifts and a seat. (9) Seeing that her father was not having any oblations for S'iva and that the place of sacrifice was in contempt with the godhead, not receiving the Lord in the assembly of sacrifice, became Satî very angry, looking incensed as if she was going to burn the fourteen worlds with her eyes. (10) The goddess began, in the presence of all being heard, to condemn with words fused with anger, S'iva's opponents so proud with their troublesome sacrifices, meanwhile ordering his Bhûtas, who were ready to attack, to hold back. (11) The blessed one said: 'Having none in this world as his rival, there is no one embodied who is dear to him or his enemy; towards S'iva, the most beloved universal being, who is free from enmity there is, except for you, no one who would be envious. (12) Unlike you, o twice born one, he doesn't find fault in the qualities of the seekers of truth, with others he greatly magnifies any little good he finds; and with him, the greatest of all persons, it is you who finds fault. (13) This deriding of the glorious by the ones who hold the transient body for the true self is an ugly evil, that is an envy with great personalities which serves fine indeed in bringing, by the dust of those holy feet, themselves down. (14) Persons only once pronouncing from the heart the two syllables of his name, see their sinful activities immediately defeated; that S'iva, whose order is never neglected and who is of an impeccable renown, you so strangely envy. (15) Engaged at his lotus feet do the higher personalities aspiring transcendental bliss exercise their minds and of the common man he is the nectar sought fulfilling all desires; towards him, the friend of all living entities of all the three worlds, is it, of all people, you that is so. (16) Do you really think that others than you, like Brahmâ and his brahmins, do not know that this one, as being inauspicious associated with the demons, who with his scattered, matted hair of the crematorium is garlanded with skulls and is smeared with ashes, by them is called auspicious or S'iva, taking on their heads the flowers that fell from his feet? (17) One should block one's ears and go away if nothing else can be done being confronted with people irresponsibly blaspheming the controller of the religion; and if one is able, one should by force cut out the tongue of the vilifying blasphemer after which one should give up one's own life. That's the way to deal with that! (18) Therefore I shall no longer bear this body I received from you who are of blasphemy; to purify oneself from mistakenly having eaten poisonous food it is best to vomit. (19) The ways of man and the gods part when the mind, as it indeed of the great wise enjoys its own self, is not able to follow the dictates of the Veda; and standing alone in one's own duty one should then not criticize one another. (20) Verily are in the Vedas in truth activities in attachment and activities in detachment [pravritti and nivritti dharma] distinguished, so that of both the characteristics there are two choices; to do both at the same time is a contradiction and so is it that none of these activities are to the satisfaction of the one of transcendence [S'iva]. (21) O father, are not the opulences we have from you, acquired by the path of the sacrifices? In being satisfied by the foods and necessities offered, was the praising, of the one whose cause is the unmanifested, achieved by the selfrealized! (22) By this body of yours that is not to Lord S'iva in having committed these offenses, must enough be enough with such a contemptible birth; I feel deeply ashamed to be related to such a bad person by that birth; it is so shameful to belong to someone who is an offender of great personalities. (23) With this family tie with you I get very sad the moment my great Lord S'iva calls me 'daughter of Daksha', all my joy and smiles vanish immediately then; therefore I shall give up this bag of bones produced from your body.'
(24) Maitreya said: 'Speaking thus to Daksha in the arena of sacrifice, she sat down in silence on the ground facing the north and after touching water, she, dressed in saffron garments, closed her eyes finding absorption in the process of yoga. (25) Balancing the inward and outward going breath in the control of the yogic posture did she, the blameless one, lift her life's air, raising it by intelligence gradually up from the navel to the heart towards the windpipe and throat and from there to between her eyebrows. (26) Thus concentrated she, who time and again full of respect sat on the lap of the most worshipful of all saints, by the exercise of her own will, on the air and fire within her body in her wish to give it up as a result of her anger towards Daksha. (27) There one saw that, by merely thinking of nothing but the nectar of the lotus feet of her husband, the supreme spiritual teacher of the universe, the body of Satî, purified by the action, soon was ablaze of the fire that came from her absorption.
(28) From those who witnessed that there rose, resounding in the sky and earth, a tumultuous great and wondrous roaring ohhh: 'Alas, Satî the beloved goddess of the most respectable demigod, has given up her life in anger about Daksha. (29) Oh, just see the great soullessness of him, the Prajâpati of whom all the generations sprang. By his disrespect she voluntarily gave up her body; she, his own daughter Satî, worthy of our respect over and over. (30) He so hardhearted and unworthy the brahminical, will gain extensive ill fame in the world, because he in his offenses as an enemy of Lord S'iva didn't keep his own daughter from preparing herself for death!' (31) While the people were thus talking among themselves having witnessed the wondrous death of Satî, stood the attendants of S'iva with uplifted weapons up in order to kill Daksha. (32) On the impulse of seeing them approaching, Bhrigu though quickly offered oblations in the southern part of the fire, reciting hymns from the Yajur Veda against the destroyers of a sacrifice. (33) From the oblations being offered by Bhrigu manifested by the thousands the demigods named the Ribhus who by the moon [Soma] and penance had achieved great strength. (34) The ghosts and Guhyakas [guardians] being attacked by them with pieces of firewood from the fire, thus, from the glow of sheer brahminical power, fled in all directions.
Source texts:
Satî quits her body
S'rî Maitreya said: 'After saying this about the end of the body of his wife fell Lord S'iva silent. Since she of S'iva saw it the both ways of being anxious as well as being afraid of seeing her relatives, was she, being divided, unsure where to stand.The sage Maitreya said: Lord S'iva was silent after speaking to Satî, seeing her between decisions. Satî was very much anxious to see her relatives at her father's house, but at the same time she was afraid of Lord S'iva's warning. Her mind unsettled, she moved in and out of the room as a swing moves this way and that. (Vedabase)
Denied in her desire to see her relatives she felt very sorry and shed she tears in her affliction; shaking she looked at her Bhava, the unequaled one, with anger as if she would blast him.
Satî felt very sorry at being forbidden to go see her relatives at her father's house, and due to affection for them, tears fell from her eyes. Shaking and very much afflicted, she looked at her uncommon husband, Lord S'iva, as if she were going to blast him with her vision. (Vedabase)
Then breathing heavily she left him, the saintly one dear to her whom she had given half of her body; from her grief and her anger being emotional she, with her heart set to her father, went to the family home in love for his embodiment, in her intelligence deluded by her womanly nature.
Thereafter Satî left her husband, Lord S'iva, who had given her half his body due to affection. Breathing very heavily because of anger and bereavement, she went to the house of her father. This less intelligent act was due to her being a weak woman. (Vedabase)
Rapidly leaving alone was Satî, who had no fear, quickly followed by Manimân and Mada with the bull Nandî in the company of the thousands of associates and Yakshas of the three eyed one [Lord S'iva].
When they saw Satî leaving alone very rapidly, thousands of Lord S'iva's disciples, headed by Manimân and Mada, quickly followed her with his bull Nandî in front and accompanied by the Yakshas. (Vedabase)
Placed on the decorated bull, were her pet bird, ball, mirror, lotus flower, white umbrella, mosquito net, garlands and other stuff taken along with her under the guidance of the music of drums, conchshells, and flutes.
The disciples of Lord S'iva arranged for Satî to be seated on the back of a bull and gave her the bird which was her pet. They bore a lotus flower, a mirror and all such paraphernalia for her enjoyment and covered her with a great canopy. Followed by a singing party with drums, conchshells and bugles, the entire procession was as pompous as a royal parade. (Vedabase)
She then arrived where the sacrifice, brightened by the sounds of vedic hymns, was held that was attended by all the great sages and great minds that had come from everywhere for the offering with all its sacrificial animals, pots, clay, wood, iron, gold and the grass and skins to sit on.
She then reached her father's house, where the sacrifice was being performed, and entered the arena where everyone was chanting the Vedic hymns. The great sages, brâhmanas and demigods were all assembled there, and there were many sacrificial animals, as well as pots made of clay, stone, gold, grass and skin, which were all requisite for the sacrifice. (Vedabase)
As she arrived there was she not respected with a welcome out of fear for the performer of the sacrifice [Daksha], except by indeed her own sisters and mother, who embraced her with reverence, gladdened faces and throats choked with tears of affection.
When Satî, with her followers, reached the arena, because all the people assembled were afraid of Daksha, none of them received her well. No one welcomed her but her mother and sisters, who, with tears in their eyes and with glad faces, welcomed her and talked with her very pleasingly. (Vedabase)
But Satî, not being welcomed by her father, couldn't accept to be honored by the greetings of her sisters, mother and aunts who with due respect properly informed her and offered her gifts and a seat.
Although she was received by her sisters and mother, she did not reply to their words of reception, and although she was offered a seat and presents, she did not accept anything, for her father neither talked with her nor welcomed her by asking about her welfare. (Vedabase)
Seeing that her father was not having any oblations for S'iva and that the place of sacrifice was in contempt with the godhead, not receiving the Lord in the assembly of sacrifice, became Satî very angry, looking incensed as if she was going to burn the fourteen worlds with her eyes.
Present in the arena of sacrifice, Satî saw that there were no oblations for her husband, Lord S'iva. Next she realized that not only had her father failed to invite Lord S'iva, but when he saw Lord S'iva's exalted wife, Daksha did not receive her either. Thus she became greatly angry, so much so that she looked at her father as if she were going to burn him with her eyes. (Vedabase)
The goddess began, in the presence of all being heard, to condemn with words fused with anger, S'iva's opponents so proud with their troublesome sacrifices, meanwhile ordering his Bhûtas, who were ready to attack, to hold back.
The followers of Lord S'iva, the ghosts, were ready to injure or kill Daksha, but Satî stopped them by her order. She was very angry and sorrowful, and in that mood she began to condemn the process of sacrificial fruitive activities and persons who are very proud of such unnecessary and troublesome sacrifices. She especially condemned her father, speaking against him in the presence of all. (Vedabase)
The blessed one said: 'Having none in this world as his rival, there is no one embodied who is dear to him or his enemy; towards S'iva, the most beloved universal being, who is free from enmity there is, except for you, no one who would be envious.
The blessed goddess said: Lord S'iva is the most beloved of all living entities. He has no rival. No one is very dear to him, and no one is his enemy. No one but you could be envious of such a universal being, who is free from all enmity. (Vedabase)
Unlike you, o twice born one, he doesn't find fault in the qualities of the seekers of truth, with others he greatly magnifies any little good he finds; and with him, the greatest of all persons, it is you who finds fault.
Twice-born Daksha, a man like you can simply find fault in the qualities of others. Lord S'iva, however, not only finds no faults with others' qualities, but if someone has a little good quality, he magnifies it greatly. Unfortunately, you have found fault with such a great soul. (Vedabase)
This deriding of the glorious by the ones who hold the transient body for the true self is an ugly evil, that is an envy with great personalities which serves fine indeed in bringing, by the dust of those holy feet, themselves down.
It is not wonderful for persons who have accepted the transient material body as the self to engage always in deriding great souls. Such envy on the part of materialistic persons is very good because that is the way they fall down. They are diminished by the dust of the feet of great personalities. (Vedabase)
Persons only once pronouncing from the heart the two syllables of his name, see their sinful activities immediately defeated; that S'iva, whose order is never neglected and who is of an impeccable renown, you so strangely envy.
Satî continued: My dear father, you are committing the greatest offense by envying Lord S'iva, whose very name, consisting of two syllables, s'i and va, purifies one of all sinful activities. His order is never neglected. Lord S'iva is always pure, and no one but you envies him. (Vedabase)
Engaged at his lotus feet do the higher personalities aspiring transcendental bliss exercise their minds and of the common man he is the nectar sought fulfilling all desires; towards him, the friend of all living entities of all the three worlds, is it, of all people, you that is so.
You are envious of Lord S'iva, who is the friend of all living entities within the three worlds. For the common man he fulfills all desires, and because of their engagement in thinking of his lotus feet, he also blesses higher personalities who are seeking after brahmânanda [transcendental bliss]. (Vedabase)
Do you really think that others than you, like Brahmâ and his brahmins, do not know that this one, as being inauspicious associated with the demons, who with his scattered, matted hair of the crematorium is garlanded with skulls and is smeared with ashes, by them is called auspicious or S'iva, taking on their heads the flowers that fell from his feet?
Do you think that greater, more respectable personalities than you, such as Lord Brahmâ, do not know this inauspicious person who goes under the name Lord S'iva? He associates with the demons in the crematorium, his locks of hair are scattered all over his body, he is garlanded with human skulls and smeared with ashes from the crematorium, but in spite of all these inauspicious qualities, great personalities like Brahmâ honor him by accepting the flowers offered to his lotus feet and placing them with great respect on their heads. (Vedabase)Text 17:
One should block one's ears and go away if nothing else can be done being confronted with people irresponsibly blaspheming the controller of the religion; and if one is able, one should by force cut out the tongue of the vilifying blasphemer after which one should give up one's own life. That's the way to deal with that!
Satî continued: If one hears an irresponsible person blaspheme the master and controller of religion, one should block his ears and go away if unable to punish him. But if one is able to kill, then one should by force cut out the blasphemer's tongue and kill the offender, and after that one should give up his own life. (Vedabase)
Therefore I shall no longer bear this body I received from you who are of blasphemy; to purify oneself from mistakenly having eaten poisonous food it is best to vomit.
Therefore I shall no longer bear this unworthy body, which has been received from you, who have blasphemed Lord S'iva. If someone has taken food which is poisonous, the best treatment is to vomit. (Vedabase)
The ways of man and the gods part when the mind, as it indeed of the great wise enjoys its own self, is not able to follow the dictates of the Veda; and standing alone in one's own duty one should then not criticize one another.
It is better to execute one's own occupational duty than to criticize others'. Elevated transcendentalists may sometimes forgo the rules and regulations of the Vedas, since they do not need to follow them, just as the demigods travel in space whereas ordinary men travel on the surface of the earth. (Vedabase)
In the Vedas are in truth activities in attachment and activities in detachment [pravritti and nivritti dharma] distinguished, so that of both the characteristics there are two choices; to do both at the same time is a contradiction and so is it that none of these activities are to the satisfaction of the one of transcendence [S'iva].
In the Vedas there are directions for two kinds of activities--activities for those who are attached to material enjoyment and activities for those who are materially detached. In consideration of these two kinds of activities, there are two kinds of people, who have different symptoms. If one wants to see two kinds of activities in one person, that is contradictory. But both kinds of activities may be neglected by a person who is transcendentally situated. (Vedabase)O father, are not the opulences we have from you, acquired by the path of the sacrifices? In being satisfied by the foods and necessities offered, was the praising, of the one whose cause is the unmanifested, achieved by the selfrealized!
My dear father, the opulence we possess is impossible for either you or your flatterers to imagine, for persons who engage in fruitive activities by performing great sacrifices are concerned with satisfying their bodily necessities by eating foodstuff offered as a sacrifice. We can exhibit our opulences simply by desiring to do so. This can be achieved only by great personalities who are renounced, self-realized souls. (Vedabase)
With this body of yours that is not to Lord S'iva in having committed these offenses, must enough be enough with such a contemptible birth; I feel deeply ashamed to be related to such a bad person by that birth; it is so shameful to belong to someone who is an offender of great personalities.
You are an offender at the lotus feet of Lord S'iva, and unfortunately I have a body produced from yours. I am very much ashamed of our bodily relationship, and I condemn myself because my body is contaminated by a relationship with a person who is an offender at the lotus feet of the greatest personality. (Vedabase)
With this family tie with you I get very sad the moment my great Lord S'iva calls me 'daughter of Daksha', all my joy and smiles vanish immediately then; therefore I shall give up this bag of bones produced from your body.'
Because of our family relationship, when Lord S'iva addresses me as Dâkshâyanî I at once become morose, and my jolliness and my smile at once disappear. I feel very much sorry that my body, which is just like a bag, has been produced by you. I shall therefore give it up. (Vedabase)
Maitreya said: 'Speaking thus to Daksha in the arena of sacrifice, she sat down in silence on the ground facing the north and after touching water, she, dressed in saffron garments, closed her eyes finding absorption in the process of yoga.
Maitreya the sage told Vidura: O annihilator of enemies, while thus speaking to her father in the arena of sacrifice, Satî sat down on the ground and faced north. Dressed in saffron garments, she sanctified herself with water and closed her eyes to absorb herself in the process of mystic yoga. (Vedabase)
Balancing the inward and outward going breath in the control of the yogic posture did she, the blameless one, lift her life's air, raising it by intelligence gradually up from the navel to the heart towards the windpipe and throat and from there to between her eyebrows.
First of all she sat in the required sitting posture, and then she carried the life air upwards and placed it in the position of equilibrium near the navel. Then she raised her life air, mixed with intelligence, to the heart and then gradually towards the pulmonary passage and from there to between her eyebrows. (Vedabase)
Thus concentrated she, who time and again full of respect sat on the lap of the most worshipful of all saints, by the exercise of her own will,on the air and fire within her body in her wish to give it up as a result of her anger towards Daksha.
Thus, in order to give up her body, which had been so respectfully and affectionately seated on the lap of Lord S'iva, who is worshiped by great sages and saints, Satî, due to anger towards her father, began to meditate on the fiery air within the body. (Vedabase)
There one saw that, by merely thinking of nothing but the nectar of the lotus feet of her husband, the supreme spiritual teacher of the universe, the body of Satî, purified by the action, soon was ablaze of the fire that came from her absorption.
Satî concentrated all her meditation on the holy lotus feet of her husband, Lord S'iva, who is the supreme spiritual master of all the world. Thus she became completely cleansed of all taints of sin and quit her body in a blazing fire by meditation on the fiery elements. (Vedabase)
From those who witnessed that there rose, resounding in the sky and earth, a tumultuous great and wondrous roaring ohhh: 'Alas, Satî the beloved goddess of the most respectable demigod, has given up her life in anger about Daksha.
When Satî annihilated her body in anger, there was a tumultuous roar all over the universe. Why had Satî, the wife of the most respectable demigod, Lord S'iva, quit her body in such a manner? (Vedabase)
Oh, just see the great soullessness of him, the Prajâpati of whom all the generations sprang. By his disrespect she voluntarily gave up her body; she, his own daughter Satî, worthy of our respect over and over.
It was astonishing that Daksha, who was Prajâpati, the maintainer of all living entities, was so disrespectful to his own daughter, Satî, who was not only chaste but was also a great soul, that she gave up her body because of his neglect. (Vedabase)
He so hardhearted and unworthy the brahminical, will gain extensive ill fame in the world, because he in his offenses as an enemy of Lord S'iva didn't keep his own daughter from preparing herself for death!'
Daksha, who is so hardhearted that he is unworthy to be a brâhmana, will gain extensive ill fame because of his offenses to his daughter, because of not having prevented her death, and because of his great envy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. (Vedabase)
While the people were thus talking among themselves having witnessed the wondrous death of Satî, stood the attendants of S'iva with uplifted weapons up in order to kill Daksha.
While people were talking among themselves about the wonderful voluntary death of Satî, the attendants who had come with her readied themselves to kill Daksha with their weapons. (Vedabase)
On the impulse of seeing them approaching, Bhrigu though quickly offered oblations in the southern part of the fire, reciting hymns from the Yajur Veda against the destroyers of a sacrifice.
They came forward forcibly, but Bhrigu Muni saw the danger and, offering oblations into the southern side of the sacrificial fire, immediately uttered mantric hymns from the Yajur Veda by which the destroyers of yajnic performances could be killed immediately. (Vedabase)
From the oblations being offered by Bhrigu manifested by the thousands the demigods named the Ribhus who by the moon [Soma] and penance had achieved great strength.
When Bhrigu Muni offered oblations in the fire, immediately many thousands of demigods named Ribhus became manifested. All of them were powerful, having achieved strength from Soma, the moon. (Vedabase)
The ghosts and Guhyakas [guardians] being attacked by them with pieces of firewood from the fire, thus, from the glow of sheer brahminical power, fled in all directions.
When the Ribhu demigods attacked the ghosts and Guhyakas with half-burned fuel from the yajña fire, all these attendants of Satî fled in different directions and disappeared. This was possible simply because of brahma-tejas, brahminical power. (Vedabase)
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ISBN: o-91277-27-7
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