The Three Steps of Vishnu

[Guest guest]

I thought it meet that maybe I should recount the Indian legend of

King Bali, (known more commonly as “The Three Steps of Vishnu”or “How ‘God’

won back the Cosmos from the Demon King Bali, i.e., ‘The Devil’) since it is

appropriate to the season (more or less). Around harvest time, i.e.

October, Bali, the mighty asura [demon] King (who, in Hindu legend,

willingly gifted the Universe he had won, both by force of arms and his just

Kingship, back to Vishnu, the “Preserver” aspect of the Divine) is said to

rise up from the Underworld (where he currently holds sway, waiting for his

turn at the reins again) and hang out on Earth for a few days to receive his

thanks from everyone that eats to live, for that year’s harvest, i.e. The

Devil receives his “due” (which only seems fair actually, since the

‘demonic’ comprises at least half of what we understand as reality, and is,

in fact, in a sense, the aspect of physical reality chiefly responsible for

our food supply. Hence the necessity, and, indeed, the moral obligation, to,

as I said, “give the ‘Devil’ his due”.).

 

In some ways this is rather like the Western festival of Hallowe’en,

when the dead return to commune with the living, (hence the graveyard/undead

type symbolism associated with it) so I took the trouble to type out the

story and post it here. This version of the story I lifted from Dr. Robert

Svoboda’s “The Greatness of Saturn”(Shani Mahatmya). (I might also mention

that in Indian tradition, the planet Venus is personified as a male, not a

female, figure, and his name, “Shukra-charya” literally translates as

“Semen-teacher”)

 

…Eventually, at a cosmic moment which was propitious for the asuras

(demons)and inauspicious for the devas (gods), Bali was able to conquer

Heaven. Now it was Jupiter’s turn to advise his king , Indra, to go into

hiding and bide his time until his enemy’s star should sink. Bali then

became ruler of the universe and Shukra-charya made him perform one hundred

horse sacrifices, that he might retain his new power and consolidate his new

position as Cosmic Overlord.

 

Aditi, who is the mother of all the devas, was so very distressed by

this disaster that had befallen her children, that her husband, the Rishi

Kashyapa caused her to perform a vow, accompanied by a milk fast during the

bright fortnight of the lunar month Phalguna. During the course of this vow

Vishnu appeared to her and promised to be born as her son. A portion of

Vishnu then entered into Kashyapa, who transmitted it to his wife. When

their son was born, He displayed a divine form to His parents, that they

might know the true identity of their child, and then in the next instant,

He transformed Himself into a dwarf Brahmana, as easily as an actor changes

costume. The gods and sages who conducted his post-natal ceremonies named

him Vamana. As soon as these formalities were concluded, Vamana set out for

Bali’s horse sacrifice, which was being performed at Bhrigukaccha (the

modern Bharuch) on the northern bank of the supremely holy Narmada River.

 

Vamana’s spiritual radiance so captivated the guests at the sacrifice

that they all rose as one to receive him when He arrived. As was customary,

Bali offered him a gift. Vamana responded by first praising Bali’s family

and its generosity., beginning with Bali’s grandfather Prahlada, because of

whom Vishnu appeared in the world as the Man-Lion (Nara-simha), and then

Bali’s father, who gave up his life when requested to do so by gods

disguised as holy men, though he knew them to be devas. Vamana then asked

for only three paces of land (i. e. as much land as could be covered by

three steps in any direction.)

 

King Bali protested. “ This is not much of a request. Ask for enough to

maintain you for life!”

 

Vamana replied, “No; why should I be greedy? Those who are satisfied with

what destiny brings them live happy lives, but those who remain enslaved by

their desires cannot be satisfied, even with lordship of the whole

universe.”

 

Shukra-charya, ever anxious to protect his disciple, now warned King Bali:

“This dwarf Brahmana’s request for three paces of land alone is bound to be

some sort of trick, for He is none other than Vishnu in disguise. You must

under no circumstances fulfill this request.”

 

But Bali humbly told his guru, “But, Great One , when the Preserver of the

Cosmos Himself comes to me to beg a boon from me, how can I refuse Him?”

 

Shukra-charya grew wrathful when he saw his disciple was prepared to commit

“guru droha” (deliberate defiance of the guru’s authority, a heinous

offence), so he cursed Bali to be deprived of all his earthly wealth and

glory. Bali bowed his head respectfully to his mentor and willingly accepted

that curse. Then he prepared to take the traditional oath of donation: the

promise that he would indeed give what had been requested.

 

But Shukra-charya was still determined to protect his disciple’s

interests; at the end of the oath water is poured onto the ground to make

the Earth Herself witness to the oath. Just as Bali was beginning to take

the “dana vrata”, the traditional “oath of donation”, Shukra-charya shrank

himself to miniscule size and entered the spout of the water pot, so that

when Bali tried to pour water from the pot onto the earth, nothing came out.

 

Vamana, of course, knew what was going on. He took a sharp blade of holy

darbha-grass and stuck it into the spout, poking out one of Shukra-charya’s

eyes thereby. Out onto the ground poured the water, mixed with

Shukracharya’s blood, to seal the oath.

 

Vamana had asked for as much land as He could cover in three steps, and

as soon as the oath had been sealed, He expanded His dwarf body larger and

larger, until it became the Universal Form. Bali saw within that form the

entire Cosmos. He saw the Earth in Vishnu’s feet, the Sun in His eyes, the

heavens in the crown of His head, the asuras, including himself, in Vishnu’s

lips, the fire in His face, day and night in His eyelids, water in His

semen, the sacrifice in His strides, death in His shadow, the delusive power

in His laughter, plants in His hair, and rivers in His blood vessels. Vishnu

measured the whole of the Earth with His first step, and the heavens were

nearly insufficient for His second stride. When the Lord’s foot touched the

top of heaven, His toenail cracked the Cosmic Egg and down flowed the Waters

from Beyond, which became so pure by this contact with the Lord’s feet that

it is now known as the heavenly river Ganga (the Milky Way).

 

For the third step there was nothing left to measure. The other asuras now

attacked Vishnu, infuriated at His perpetual duplicity, but Bali stopped

them, saying, “No being can overpower Time, and right now the times are not

propitious for us. In the past, when Time was in our favour, we defeated the

gods many times, and when Time is again in our favour we shall again conquer

them. Wait patiently, asuras, for the coming of that favourable Time!”

 

Then Vishnu’s mount Garuda bound King Bali with Varuna’s noose and

said, “Because you cannot grant what you promised to grant, you must now go

to the Underworld, sped onward by the curse of your guru.”

 

King Bali thereupon said to Lord Vishnu, “Please place Your third step on

my head. If I break my oath I will lose my honour, and I would rather lose

my life than my honour.”

 

Pleased at Bali’s willingness to sacrifice his own life, the Blessed Lord

placed His foot upon Bali’s head. This in itself was a great boon for Bali,

as the touch of the Lord’s foot is supremely auspicious, particularly when

it falls on one’s head.

 

It was then that Bali’s grandfather Prahlada arrived, that he might also

view the Great Lord, Whom he had first seen in the form of the Man-Lion.

Prahlada thanked Lord Vishnu for blessing his grandson by depriving him of

his wealth, and Lord Vishnu replied, “I first impoverish whomever I wish to

bless. Prosperity makes men proud and overweeningly arrogant, and makes them

despise others, including Me. Anyone who enjoys good fortune, by birth or

through efforts, in career, health, beauty, longevity, learning, or wealth,

and yet remains free from pride and haughtiness does so only by My grace.

Because this noble Bali has remained absolutely cool, calm, and collected

even in the face of his utter downfall, I promise him this, that he will be

born in the realm of the Gods and rule as their King during the next Epoch.

Until then, he will continue to rule, undying, beneath the earth in the

Kingdom of the Underworld.”

 

Singing the praises of the Blessed Lord, Bali departed for his new realm,

accompanied by his grandfather Prahlada. Shukra-charya, who was very pleased

with his disciple for having passed the test, completed Bali’s kingship

sacrifice for him, that it might be without blemish.

 

(P.S. It is said that reciting this account of Bali’s gift of the

Universe to the great Lord Vishnu, the Preserver of the Cosmos, or by

causing it to be read, at any rite being performed (such as a ritual

invocation designed to achieve an end) all the faults and defects in the

performance of said rite are corrected thereby.)

 

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