Sunday 20 December 2020

THE CELESTIAL ARCHITECT BUILDS DWARAKA | VISHNU PARVA SECTION - 155 - 099

CHAPTER CLV

(THE CELESTIAL ARCHITECT BUILDS DWARAKA)

A palace in Dwaraka

Vaishampāyana said:— Krishna, seated on Garuda's back, saw the city of Dwārakā, resembling the abode of the celestials, filled with echoes on all sides, the mount Mani, sporting-houses, gardens, forests, turrets and court-yards, (1-2). 

After the arrival of Devaki's son Krishna at the city (of Dwārakā), the king of gods sent for the celestial Architect and said:—"O foremost of artizans, if you wish to do what pleases me, do you, for satisfying Krishna, make his beautiful city more exquisite. O foremost of gods, encircling it with hundreds of gardens do you build the city of Dwārakā after that of the celestials (3-5). Adorn the city of Dwāravati with all the jems that you will see in the three worlds, for the highly powerful Krishna, rising up for all the works of the gods, always plunges into the dreadful ocean of war". Thereupon repairing to the city of Dwāravati at the words of Indra Vishwakarmā adorned it after Amarāvati. Beholding the city of Dwārakā adorned by Viswakarma with all celestial materials and having accomplished all his objects the Lord Nārāyana Hari, the master of Dāshārhas and ever riding on a bird, entered there. While he entered the city of Dwārakā embellished by Vishwakarmā he saw beautiful trees (6-10). He saw that the city was encircled by ditches filled with lotus-stalks resembling the rivers Gangā (Ganges) and Sindhu (Indus), and in which were sporting the swans (11). As the sky is covered with gold-hued clouds so that city looked beautiful with sunny walls made of gold set on (the roofs of) the houses (12). Encircled with gardens resembling Nandana and Chaitraratha Dwarakā appeared beautiful like the sky stricken with clouds (13). On its eastern side shone a beautiful gate made of gold and jems and the picturesque hill Raivataka with its charming table-land, caves and yards. On the south were bushes adorned with creepers of five colours and on the west was one of the colour of a rain-bow. O king, the yellow mountain Venumān, resembling Mandara, was beautifying the north. The forests of Chitrak, Panchavarna, Pānchajanya and Sarvartuka were enhancing the beauty of the mount Raivataka (14-17). There were also the beautiful forests of Bhārgava and Pushpaka huge like the mount Meru, which were covered with creepers extending to the roots of the trees (18). There were also the forests of Shatavarta and Karavirakarambhi beautified by the trees of Ashoka, Veejaka and Mandāra. The huge forests of Chaitra, Nandana, Ramana, Bhāvana and Venumat were extending their beauty on all sides. O descendant of Bharata, on the east were the great river Mandākini adorned with Vaidurja and lotus leaves and a charming tank. Requested by Vishwakarma numberless gods and Gandharvas, for pleasing Keshava, had adorned the table-lands there. With fifty mouths, the sacred river Mandākini entered into the city of Dwārakā and gladdened the inhabitants thereof. Looking at the city of Dwārakā of incomparable beauty, encircled by ditches and walls, painted with yellow paints and embellished with sharpened Shataghnis and iron discuses Krishna saw that eight thousand cars, adorned with net-works of bells and flying banners, had made the city look beautiful like that of the celestials (19–26). He saw the firmly established city Dwārakā eight yojanas in length and twelve in breadth with double the number of colonies. That city, consisting of eight highways and sixteen crossings, was as if so made by Ushanā himself with one road, that even the women, what to speak of the Vrishnis, could easily fight there. Viswakarmā had laid out seven high roads for the arrangement of soldiers (27–29). Beholding the palaces of the illustrious Dāshārhas, in that best of cities, delightful to men, containing golden and jewelled stairs, filled with dreadful echoes and abounding in courtyards Devaki's son was highly pleased. The turrets of those palaces were adorned with flags, leaves and trees. Those palaces were adorned with golden domes resembling the summits of the mount Meru. The tops of the houses, as if covered with golden flowers and others of five colours, imitated the beauty of mountains with charming summits and caves. Filled with noise like unto the muttering of clouds and burning like forest-fire those houses, built by Viswakarmā, were looking like so many mountains and filled the sky with effulgence like the sun and moon. The city was embellished with forest trees and the noble Dāshārhas. The city of Dwārakā, adorned with cloud-like houses and the gods Vāsudeva and Indra, looked like the welkin stricken with variegated clouds. The house, built by Vishwakarma for the Divine Vāsudeva, was four yojanas in length and the same in breadth. The house of the incomparable and the greatly rich Vāsudeva was adorned with palaces and false mountains. The great Vishwakarmā built that house under Vasava's orders (30-40). Vishwakarmā made a highly beautiful golden palace huge like the highest summit of the mount Sumeru for Rukshmini. It was named Kānchana. Satyabhāmā had a yellow-coloured house adorned with flags effulgent like the clear sun and having stairs set with jewels. It was celebrated by the name of Bhagavān. That well-furnished and best of palaces, which had huge flags all around it, and which used to put on a new appearance every moment, was built for Jāmvavati. Vishwakarmā built another palace by the name of Meru, which was effulgent like burning fire and gold, and huge like the summit of the mount Kailāsha and the ocean. Keshava accomodated the accomplished daughter of the king of Gāndhāra in that house (41-48). For Bhaima was built a house by the name of Padmakula. It was of the hue of a lotus, highly effulgent and had a high and picturesque turret. O foremost of kings, Keshava, the holder of Shrānga bow, had for Lakshmanā built a house by name, Suryaprabhā in which were available all objects of desire (49-50). O descendant of Bharata, the green palace, the effulgence of which imitated the lustre of Vaidurya and which was known all over the world by the name of Para, that ornament of palaces where the great Rishis used to resort, was set apart for Vāsudeva's queen Mitravindā (51-52). That best of palaces, built by Viswakarmā like a mountain, which was spoken high of even by the gods and which was celebrated by the name of Ketumān, was intended for Keshava's queen Suvārtā (53-54). Amongst those palaces, the most beautiful and lustrous, by name Virajā, which the celestial Architect Viswakarmā built with his own hands, and which extended over a Yojana and contained jems of every description, was the court of the high-souled Keshava. In that palace of Vasudeva's were placed flags with golden standards and pennons marking the roads. Keshava, the foremost of the Yadu race, had brought there the great mountain Vaijayanta and diverse other celestial jewels (55-58). The highly powerful Viswakarmā, with the help of the Kinnaras and the great Nāgas, had brought and placed there, before the very eyes of the creatures, the well-known summit of the mount Hansakuta near the lake Indra dyumna which was sixty Tālas high and extended over half a Yojana. Viswakarmā had uprooted and brought for Krishna the golden chariot of Sumeru lying in the path of the sun and the most excellent golden summit with hundreds of lotuses known all over the three worlds (59–62). In compliance with Indra's request and in the interest of a great work Twastā had brought that highly beautiful summit containing all sorts of herbs (63). Keshava himself had carried away the Pārijāta tree and kept it in Dwaraka. While bringing it Krishna, of wonderful deeds, had to fight with the gods guarding that tree, Rafts made of gold and jems, lotuses and fragrant jewelled lotuses used to float on the water of the lakes and tanks which were dug for Krishna and adorned with trees covered with jewelled flowers and fruits and hundreds of golden lotuses. The huge Shāla, Tāla and Kadamva trees, with hundreds of branches, beautified the picturesque bank of those lakes. Vishwakarmā, for Krishna, the best of the Yadu race, had brought and planted at Dwārakā all the trees that grow on the mountains Sumeru and Himalaya. At all the boundary lines of the gardens were planted trees that yeild fruits in all the seasons and those crested with white, yellow, red, green and pink flowers. The edges and water of the delightful streams and lakes, which were in that best of cities, was on the same level. And the sandal there was like green sugar. In some of the rivers flowers used to float always; their banks were adorned with various trees and creepers and the sand was of the colour of golden sugar. The trees of the city, resorted to by maddened peacocks and coels, used to look highly beautiful. The herds of elephants, cows, buffaloes, boars, deer and birds used to live happily in that city. In this way Vishwakarmā had made in that beautiful city high golden palaces with hundreds of turrets, huge mountains, rivers, lakes, forests and gardens (64-76).

Source: https://archive.org/details/AProseEnglishTranslationOfHarivamsh

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அக்ரூரன் அக்னி அங்கிரஸ் அசமஞ்சன் அதிதி அதிரதன் அநிருத்தன் அந்தகன் அரிஷ்டன் அருந்ததி அர்ஜுனன் அனு அஜபார்ஷன் அஜமீடன் அஸ்தி ஆபவர் ஆயு ஆரியா தேவி ஆஹுகன் இந்திரன் இளை உக்ரசேனன் உக்ராயுதன் உசீநரன் உதங்கர் உத்தவர் உபரிசரவசு உமை உல்பணன் உஷை ஊர்வசி ஊர்வர் ஏகலவ்யன் ஔர்வர் கக்ஷேயு கங்கை கசியபர் கண்டரீகர் கண்டாகர்ணன் கண்டூகன் கதன் கபிலர் கமலாதேவி கம்ஸன் கருடன் கர்க்கர் கர்ணன் காதி காந்திதேவி கார்த்தவீர்யார்ஜுனன் காலநேமி காலயவனன் காலவர் காளியன் கிருஷ்ணன் குசிகன் குணகன் குணவதி கும்பாண்டன் குரோஷ்டு குவலயாபீடம் குவலாஷ்வன் கூனி கைசிகன் கைடபன் கோடவி சகடாசுரன் சக்ரதேவன் சங்கன் சததன்வன் சத்யகர்ணன் சத்யகர்மன் சத்யபாமா சத்ருக்னன் சத்வதன் சந்தனு சந்திரவதி சந்திரன் சம்பரன் சரஸ்வதி சனத்குமாரர் சன்னதி சாணூரன் சாத்யகி சாந்தீபனி சாம்பன் சால்வன் சிசுபாலன் சித்திரலேகை சித்திராங்கதன் சிருகாலன் சிவன் சுக்ரன் சுசீமுகி சுநாபன் சுனீதன் சூரன் சூரியன் சைசிராயணர் சௌதி டிம்பகன் தக்ஷன் தசரதன் தந்தவக்ரன் தமகோஷன் தரதன் தன்வந்தரி தாரை திதி திதிக்ஷு திரிசங்கு திரிவிக்ரை திருமிலன் திரையாருணன் திலீபன் திவோதாஸன் துந்து துந்துமாரன் துருவன் துர்வாசர் துஷ்யந்தன் தூம்ரவர்ணன் தேவகன் தேவகி தேவாவ்ருதன் தேனுகன் நந்தன் நந்தி நரகாசுரன் நரசிம்மன் நஹுஷன் நாரதர் நாராயணன் நாராயணி நிகும்பன் நிசுந்தன் நித்ராதேவி நீபன் பஞ்சஜனன் பத்மாவதி பத்ரன் பப்ரு பயோதன் பரசுராமர் பரதன் பரத்வாஜர் பலராமன் பலி பாணன் பார்வதி பானு பானுமதி பிரதீபன் பிரத்யும்னன் பிரபாவதி பிரமர்த்தனன் பிரம்மதத்தன் பிரம்மன் பிரலம்பன் பிரவரன் பிரஸேனன் பிரஹலாதன் பிராசேதஸ் பிராப்தி பிருது பிருதை பிருஹதாஷ்வன் பிருஹஸ்பதி பீஷ்மகன் பீஷ்மர் புதன் புரூரவன் பூதனை பூமாதேவி பூரு பூஜனி பௌண்டரகன் மதிராதேவி மது மதுமதி மயன் மனு மஹாமாத்ரன் மாயாதேவி மாயாவதி மார்க்கண்டேயர் மித்ரஸஹர் முசுகுந்தன் முரு முருகன் முஷ்டிகன் யசோதை யது யயாதி யுதிஷ்டிரன் ரஜி ராமன் ருக்மவதி ருக்மி ருக்மிணி ரேவதி ரைவதன் ரோஹிணி லவணன் வசிஷ்டர் வராகம் வருணன் வஜ்ரநாபன் வஸு வஸுதேவன் வாமனன் வாயு விகத்ரு விசக்ரன் விதர்ப்பன் விப்ராஜன் விப்ருது வியாசர் விரஜை விருஷ்ணி விஷ்ணு விஷ்வாசி விஷ்வாமித்ரர் விஷ்வாவஸு விஸ்வகர்மன் வேனன் வைசம்பாயனர் வைவஸ்வத மனு ஜயந்தன் ஜராசந்தன் ஜனமேஜயன் ஜனார்த்தனன் ஜஹ்னு ஜாம்பவான் ஜியாமோகன் ஜ்வரம் ஸகரன் ஸத்யபாமா ஸத்யவிரதன் ஸத்ராஜித் ஸத்வான் ஸஹஸ்ரதன் ஸ்ரீதாமன் ஸ்ரீதேவ ஸ்வேதகர்ணன் ஹம்சன் ஹயக்ரீவன் ஹரி ஹரியஷ்வன் ஹரிஷ்சந்திரன் ஹிரண்யகசிபு ஹிரண்யாக்ஷன்