ये विष्णुद्रोहिणः सन्ति पतन्त्यत्रैव ते मुने । ये वेदनिन्दकाः सन्ति सूर्यस्य च गणेशितुः
Those who are enemies of Vishnu, O sage, fall here as well; those who revile the Vedas, the Sun, and Ganesha.
ब्राह्मणानां द्रोहिणो ये पतन्त्यत्रैव ते मुने । कामाचाराश्च ये सन्ति तप्तमुद्राङ्किताश्च ये
Those who are enemies of Brahmins, O sage, fall here as well; those who follow lustful conduct and those marked with heated seals.
त्रिशूलधारिणो ये च पतन्त्यत्रैव ते मुने । मातृपितृगुरुज्येष्ठपुराणस्मृतिनिन्दकाः
Those who bear tridents fall here as well, O sage; those who revile mother, father, teacher, elders, Purana, and Smriti.
ये धर्मदूषकाः सन्ति पतन्त्यत्रैव ते मुने । तेषामयं महाघोरः शब्दः श्रवणदारुणः
Those who corrupt dharma fall here as well, O sage; for them, a terrible sound, harsh to hear, arises.
श्रूयतेऽस्माभिरनिशं वैराग्यं यच्छ्रुतेर्भवेत् । इति तेषां वचः श्रुत्वा मुनिराट् तद्दिदृक्षया
We hear it constantly, and from hearing it, detachment arises; thus, upon hearing their words, the great sage, desiring to see,
उत्थाय चलितस्तूर्णं ययौ कुण्डसमीपतः । अवाङ्मुखो ददर्शाधस्तस्मिन्नेव क्षणे मुने
rose up and quickly went near the pit; facing downward, he saw below at that very moment, O sage,
तत्रत्यानां पापिनां तु स्वर्गाधिकमभूत्सुखम् । हसन्ति केचिद्गायन्ति नृत्यन्ति च तथापरे
For the sinners there, happiness greater than heaven appeared; some laughed, some sang, and others danced.
परस्परं रमन्ते तेऽत्युन्मत्ताः सुखवर्धनात् । मृदङ्गमुरजावीणाढक्कादुन्दुभिनिस्वनाः
They delight with each other, exceedingly intoxicated by the increase of pleasure; the sounds of mridanga, muraja, vina, dhakka, and dundubhi drums
समुद्भूतास्तु मधुराः पञ्चमस्वरभूषिताः । वसन्तवल्लीपुष्पाणां सुगन्धमरुतो ववुः
arose, sweet and adorned with the fifth note; fragrant breezes blew, carrying the scent of spring creeper flowers.
मुनिस्तु चकितो दृष्ट्वा यमदूताश्च विस्मिताः । शीघ्रं ते कथयामासुर्धर्मराजाय वेदिने
The sage was astonished to see this, and the messengers of Yama were amazed; they quickly reported it to Dharma Raja, the knower of the Vedas.
महाराज महाश्चर्यमधुनैवाभवद्विभो । स्वर्गादप्यधिकं सौख्यं कुम्भीपाकस्थपापिनाम्
O great king, a great wonder has just occurred, O lord; the sinners dwelling in Kumbhipaka are experiencing happiness greater than heaven.
निमित्तं नैव जानीमः कस्मादिदमभूद्विभो । चकिताः स्म वयं सर्वे प्राप्ता देव त्वदन्तिकम्
We do not know the cause for why this has happened, O lord; we are all bewildered and have come before you, O god.
निशम्य दूतवाणीं तां धर्मराट् शीघ्रमुत्थितः । महामहिषमारूढो ययौ ते यत्र पापिनः
Hearing that message from the messengers, Dharma Raja quickly rose; mounted on his great buffalo, he went to where the sinners were.
तां वार्तां प्रेषयामास दूतद्वारामरावतीम् । श्रुत्वा तां देवराजोऽपि प्राप्तो देवगणैः सह
He sent that news through a messenger to Amaravati; hearing it, the king of the gods also arrived with the hosts of gods.
ब्रह्मलोकात्पद्मजोऽपि वैकुण्ठाद्विष्टरश्रवाः । तत्तल्लोकाच्च दिक्पालाः समाजग्मुर्गणैः सह
From Brahmaloka, the lotus-born came, and from Vaikuntha, Vishnu with his retinue; and from their respective worlds, the guardians of the directions arrived with their hosts.
परिवार्य स्थिताः सर्वे कुम्भीपाकमितस्ततः । अपश्यंस्तद्गताञ्जीवान्स्वर्गाधिकसुखान्त्वितान्
All surrounded and stood there at Kumbhipaka; I saw those living beings within it, enjoying happiness greater than heaven.
चकिता एव ते सर्वे न विदुस्तस्य कारणम् । अहो पापस्य भोगार्थं कुण्डमेतद्विनिर्मितम्
All of them became startled and did not know the reason for it; they said, 'Ah, this pit has been made for the enjoyment of the sinful.'
तत्र सौख्यं यदा जातं तदा पापात्तु किं भयम् । उच्छिन्ना वेदमर्यादा परमेशकृता कथम्
When happiness has arisen there, then what fear can there be from sin? How could the boundaries of the Vedas, established by the Supreme Lord, be destroyed?
भगवान् स्वस्य संकल्पं वितथं कृतवान्कथम् । आश्चर्यमेतदाश्चर्यमेतदित्येव भाषिणः
How could the Blessed Lord make His own resolve come to nothing? They kept saying, 'This is a wonder, this is a wonder indeed.'
तटस्था अभवन्सर्वे न विदुस्तत्र कारणम् । एतस्मिन्नन्तरे शौरिः सम्मन्त्र्य विबुधादिभिः
All remained on the sidelines, not knowing the reason there; meanwhile, Śauri, after consulting with the gods and others,
ययौ कैश्चित्सुरगणैः सहितः शङ्करालयम् । पार्वत्या सहितं देवं कोटिकन्दर्पसुन्दरम्
went with some groups of gods to the abode of Śaṅkara, where he saw the Lord, beautiful as a myriad of Cupids, together with Pārvatī.
रमणीयतमाङ्गं तं लावण्यखनिमद्भुतम् । सदा षोडशवर्षीयं नानालङ्कारभूषितम्
He saw that wondrous form, the most lovely body, a mine of beauty, ever sixteen years old, adorned with various ornaments,
नानागणैः परिवृतं लालयन्तं परां शिवाम् । ददर्श चन्द्रमौलिं स चतुर्वेदं ननाम ह
surrounded by various hosts, caressing the supreme Śivā; he saw the moon-crested one and bowed to the Lord of the Four Vedas.
वृत्तान्तं कथयामास चमत्कृतमतिस्फुटम् । एतस्य कारणं देव न जानीमः कथञ्चन
He narrated the entire astonishing event very clearly: 'O Lord, we do not know the cause of this at all.'
वद तत्कारणं देव सर्वज्ञोऽसि यतः प्रभो । विष्णुवाक्यं तदा श्रुत्वा प्रसन्नमुखपङ्कजः
'Tell us the cause of this, O Lord, for you are all-knowing, O Master.' Hearing Viṣṇu's words, his lotus face beaming,
उवाच मधुरं वाक्यं मेघगम्भीरया गिरा । शृणु विष्णो तन्निमित्तं नाश्चर्यं त्वत्र विद्यते
he spoke sweet words in a voice deep as a cloud: 'Hear, O Viṣṇu, the reason for this; there is nothing wondrous here.'
भस्मनो महिमैवायं भस्मना किं भवेन्न हि । कुम्भीपाकं गतो द्रष्टुं दुर्वासाः शैवसम्मतः
This is indeed the greatness of ash; what is impossible for ash? Durvāsas, esteemed by the Śaivas, went to see Kumbhīpāka.
अवाङ्मुखो ददर्शाधस्तदा वायुवशाद्धरे । भालभस्मकणास्तत्र पतिता दैवयोगतः
There, facing downward by the force of the wind, he saw below; by divine arrangement, some particles of ash from his forehead fell there.
तेन जातमिदं सर्वं भस्मनो महिमा त्वयम् । इतः परं तु तत्तीर्थं पितृलोकनिवासिनाम्
Because of that, all this happened; this is the greatness of ash. From now on, that place will be a sacred ford for the dwellers of the ancestors' realm.
भविष्यति न सन्देहो यत्र स्नात्वा सुखी भवेत् । पितृतीर्थं तु तन्नाम्नाप्यत ऊर्ध्वं भविष्यति
Without doubt, whoever bathes there will become happy; from now on, it will be known by the name Pitṛtīrtha, the ancestors' ford.