Bengali Ramayana - Bhagiratha born

[Guest guest]

Kapila said "One day in Goloka, Vishnu was

resting. Panchanan (the 5 headed form of Shiva) began

singing. Such was the melody, such was the intensity that

Vishnu began to melt. Brahma caught him into his

Kamandalu and that is how Ganga was born. Anshuman, you are

so noble, I grant you a boon. One of your

descendants will get Ganga down to Earth." Ashuman returned

with the sacrificial horse to Ayodhya.<br>Sagar was

greif stricken. He told Anshuman to look after Ayodhya;

he himself took Sanyasa and started praying to

Brahma. He dies while trying to get Ganga down.

<br>Anshuman's son was Dilip. Crowning him king, Anshuman

retired to the forests. For 10 thousand years, he prayed

and dies. His son Dilip followed suite. Dilip started

severe penances. Unsucessful, he too died. While Dilip

was in the forest, his wife, with a boon from Shiva,

gave birth to a lump of flesh.<br>She was deavstated.

What should she do? She decided to throw it in the

river. She got a wicker basket ready and on her way she

passed Rishi Vashishta's Ashrama. Vashishta told her to

leave the basket in the middle of the road.

<br>Ashtavakra muni was passing by. He bumped into the basket.

Out fell a lump of flesh, which was moving.

Ashtavakra's body was bent in 8 places. He thought someone was

teasing him. Taking some holy water in his hand, he

spinkled it on the lump and said "If you are teasing me,

you will be destroyed. But, if ur genuinely like

this, I grant you the most beautiful body". Vashishta

saw a miracle happen, instead of the lump, he saw a

wonderfully handsome young boy. He informed the queen mother.

The queen embraced her son and named him Bhagiratha.