KANYAKAGUtfA 386 KANYAKUMARl

KANYAKAGWA. A place of habitation of ancient "If you visit Rsabhacala of Pandyadesa you will get the . (Chapter 9, Bhisma Parva). benefit of conducting an As'vamedhayaga. Then you KANYAKUBJA. (KANYAKUBJA). must go farther south and take a dip in Kanyatirtha. 1) General information. A city ofPuranic fame on the The touch of that water absolves you of all sins. Then banks of the river Gariga. This is the same place which visit Gokarna situated in the ocean famous in all the is now known as Kanauj. Visvamitra was the son of three worlds and worshipped by all." Gadhi, King of Kanyakubja. From this it is to be understood that ot the time of 2) Origin of this city. Once there was a great sage Kanyakumarl was part of Pandyadesa named Ku;'a who was the son of . He had of and that Gokarna was an island. his wife Vaidarbhi four sons named Kusamba, Kusa- 2) Purdnic stories about Kanyakumdri. There are several nabha, Asurtarajasa and Vasu. Kiu'a asked them each stories regarding the origin and renown of Kanya- to rule a country and so each of them built a city of kumarl in the . The most important ones are his own. Kusamba named his city Kam'ambl, Kusa- given below. nabha gave his city the name of Mahodayapura, (1) Absolver of sins. The wife of a named Asurtarajasa called his city Dharmaranya and Vasu Apaficika living in KasI became unchaste and to wash called his city Girivraja. Of these Mahodayapura, away her sin she came (o Kanyakumarl walking all city of Kusanabha, became later famous as Kanyakubja. the way and did penance (here, daily bathing in its

Bala . waters. She attained Salvation it is believed that ( Kanda, ) and 3) How Mahodayapura became Kanyakubja. KuSanabha a bath in its waters would absolve anybody of all his begot a hundred daughters of the nymph Ghrtacl. sins. (Manimekhala). Those beautiful girls were once playing in the forests (2) Cakra of Kanyakumdri'. Punyakasi, daughter of when the wind-god fell in love with them. The girls , once went to Kailasa and worshipped Siva. rejected his love and getting angry with them After three yugas Siva appeared before her and asked cursed them and made them hunchbacks. Because the her what she wanted. She rep'ied that she wanted to hundred Kanyakas (girls) became Kubjas (hunch- be merged in Siva always. Siva then said 'Three backs) at that place, the place became known as Kanya- hundred and sixtyfive days would make a year. Four kubja. lakhs and thirtythree years would make a Yuga. When the daughters returned to the palace as hunch- Krta, Treta, Dvapara and Kali are four Yugas and backs Kusanabha was greatly distressed. Weeping, the when two thousand such Yugas are over Brahma girls told him what had happened. At that time a sage finishes a day. Such thirty days make one month and named Cull was performing penance in a forest nearby. twelve months, a year for Brahma. When such hundred Somada, daughter ofUrmila, a gandharva lady, married years of Brahma are over the great deluge comes. Such nazhika Cull and they got a son named Brahmadatta. This ten deluges make a ( twentyfour minutes ) of Brahmadatta married the hundred hunchbacks of Visnu. Counting thus when you pass ten Vi snu deluges Kusanabha and the very touch of Brahmadatta trans- Siva passes a second. Then is the time for the fulfil- formed the hunchbacks into beautiful girls. ment of your desire. Till that time you sit in medita- After having given his daughters in marriage Kusanabha tion on the shores of the south seas. Your hermitage conducted a Putrakamesti yaga to get a son. In that would be known as Kanyaksetra or Tapah Sthala. Yaga Brahma appeared in person and blessed Kusanabha During your stay there you must kill all the wicked 1 and he got a son. The son was named Gadhi. Gadhi people like Banasura and give relief to the people. I got a son and a daughter. The son was named Visva- will also come and stay with you there then." mitra and the daughter, Satyavati. Rcika married Punyakasi after prostrating before Siva went to the Satyavatl. Gadhi and Visvamitra were the rulers of south seas. Taking a Japamala (necklace for prayer) in Kanyakubja. See under 'Rcika, ViSvamitra' (Sargas her hands she assumed the name Kanyakumarl, and all 32 to 34, Balakanda, Valmiki Ramayana) . started her penance. After conquering the three 4) and Kanyakubja. There was a very big lake worlds demon Bana was having a wicked rule over his in Kanyakubja. Mahavisnu once showed to people when he saw Kanyakumarl and asked her to be his Narada at that place. (See under 'Narada') . his wife. He approached her with wicked servants 5) VUvdmitra and take wine together. ViSvamitra Durmukha and Durdarsana. But Kanyakumarl flatly and Indra took wine together at Kanyakubja. (Sloka refused and in the battle that ensued, Banasura fell dead 17, Chapter 87, Vana Parva) . by the Cakrayudha (Discus) of and at that spot KANYAKUMARl (KANY^KUPA; KANYATlRTHA) is the Cakratirtha. (Skanda Purana) . 1 Mahabharata references child which from the hands ) General information. makes (3) The phantom escaped in many places to Kanyakumarl, the southern extremi- of Kariisa at the time of the birth of Sri Krsna was that ty of former Kerala and Gokarna, the northern divine lady, Kanyakumarl. (Padma Purana) . is that there boundary. It must, therefore, be surmised that these 3) The Geographical view. It said was an two holy places were very ancient ones. Vana Parva, extension of the present continent to the south and that praises Kanyakumari at many places. If any one bathes expansive land called Lamuria was later submerged in at this place one will become very famous. (Anusasana waters. There is a description of such an extended land Parva, M.B.). in some of the old literature like Cilappadikaram." Chapter eightyfive of Aranya Parva, of Bhasa Kanyakumarl which was called 'Kumari-ambadi' also speaks praisingly of Kanyakumarl and Gokarna among was the first setu; Dhanuskoti the middle setu; and other places. It says thus: Kotikkara, last setu. (Setu Purana)

i Gadhi This is found as 'Gadhi' in Mahabharata and 'Gadha' in Ramayana^