Ramayana Simplified: Part 19: The Story of Ambarisha
Next, Maharishi Vishwamitra narrated the story of King Ambarisha who was one of the most powerful rulers of the Ishwaku dynasty. He was the son of King Mandhatri. He was a great king who ensured the welfare of the people of his kingdom. Thus he was respected by the people in the three worlds (Swarga, Prithvi (Earth), and Pathala).
King Ambarisha once started a maha yaga for the welfare of the people. Lord Indra became jealous and was afraid that King Ambarisha would replace him and become the next king of the devaloka. Thus to prevent the yaga he impounded the animal that was specifically meant for the maha yaga. Lord Indra’s intention was to prevent the yaga from taking place. Maharishi Narada reached the palace of King Ambarisha and advised to find a muni kumara (a young sage) instead of the animal to proceed on with the yaga. The king was not ready to kill a small child in the name of a yaga. But Maharishi Narada warned that there could be serious implications on the dynasty if the yaga was not conducted.
The king thus went in search of a young sage when he heard about Maharishi Riciika. He had three sons and one of his son’s name was Shunashepa. The maharishi was having financial difficulties and was having a hard time. The king on finding this out asked if the maharishi can send one of his sons along with him for the yaga. The king explained everything when the maharishi asked in detail and he also agreed to offer financial assistance to the maharishi. The maharishi became ready to send his second son, Shunashepa as the eldest one was his mother’s dearest son and the youngest one was his father’s dearest son. Shunashepa realized that he was about to be killed for the yaga and went with the king.
Thus the king and the young Shunashepa reached a place called Pushkara theertha. This was the place where an asura called Vajranabha was killed by Lord Brahma when he did tapas for the destruction of the entire community of devas. The young Shunashepa was feeling terrified at the fact that he was going to be killed within a few more hours. Meanwhile, Maharishi Vishwamitra who was Shunashepa’s uncle was passing by. Shunashepa ran to Maharishi Vishwamitra and asked for his help. Thus the maharishi asked one of his kids to go with the king instead of Shunashepa, but his kids refused to go. Maharishi Vishwamitra cursed his children: ‘You will be whirling around the world for another hundreds of births as meat eaters’. Maharishi Vishwamitra advised a few mantras (hymns) to Shunashepa which was supposed to be recited when they were about to kill him. The maharishi consoled him saying that Agnideva (the god of fire) will save him. Shunashepa thus went with the king.
The yaga began and Shunashepa was about to be killed. He was reciting the hymns that Maharishi Vishwamitra had taught him. When he was about to be killed, suddenly agnideva arose from the fire. He said that there was no need to kill an innocent boy for the purpose of gaining something. The king inquired about the implications, if the yaga didn’t move forward without killing the boy. Agnideva ensured that he would get the desired result from the yaga even without killing the young boy. The young Shunashepa thanked Agnideva for saving his life. Agnideva said that he must be really thankful to his uncle Maharishi Vishwamitra as it was the mantra that was instrumental in saving the life of young Shunashepa.
Few Insights…
We see how Maharishi Vishwamitra narrates a lot of stories to Rama and Lakshmana on the way to Mithila each conveying valuable messages and instilling dharmic values. The maharishi introduces the princes to the culture of different kingdoms, and also introduces them to their ancestors through various stories.
As a sage, did Maharishi Riciika do the right thing by sending his second son due to the fact that the other two sons were dearest to them?
No, if a couple has three children, ideally they are looked upon equally by the parents, even though there can be variations in their character. You don’t get options in that.
In this story, we come across different things which we may find difficult to accept. We must never forget that our ithihasas (Ramayana and Mahabharatha) take us through different characters and stories. We should never expect it in the form of commandments from god which are fully positive, as Hinduism has a different approach. We come across different shades of a man’s character through the stories of Ramayana and Mahabharatha and based on the stories we need to pick up the dharmic aspect each story conveys and try to incorporate it into our lives. If any character did good things, we can follow that, if the same person does anything bad, we can simply reject that. In short, the stories of Ramayana or Mahabharatha should not be read with a prejudiced mind.
This story indirectly shows how devas (here agnideva) are against the killing of an innocent boy for the sake of making the gods happy. The Isavasya Upanishad starts with this sloka:
Isavasyam idam sarvam yat kim ca jagatyam jagat,
tena tyaktena bhunjitha, ma gridhah kasyasvid dhanam
which says that the essence of ishwara (the supreme) is there in all living beings, so it may be pointless to kill a human being or an animal for the purpose of making the gods/devas happy. Thus agnideva points out that the yaga will find its effect even without killing a person or an animal.
Here, we see that Lord Indra becomes jealous of King Ambarisha and makes attempts at pulling him down. This is something which we see even now when political leaders try to get into power through any means.
