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Puranic encyclopaedia

by Vettam Mani | 1975 | 609,556 words | ISBN-10: 0842608222

This page describes the Story of Asikni included the Puranic encyclopaedia by Vettam Mani that was translated into English in 1975. The Puranas have for centuries profoundly influenced Indian life and Culture and are defined by their characteristic features (panca-lakshana, literally, ‘the five characteristics of a Purana�).

Story of Asikni

A wife of ٲṣa. ٲṣaprajāpati, son of , commenced creation with his own mind. When he found that it was not conducive to the propagation of the species he pondered over the subject once more and decided to effect it by the sexual union of the male and the female. He, therefore, married Asikni daughter of Vīraṇaprajāpati. There is a version in the seventh Skandha of Devī 岵ٲ that īṇ� was born of the left thumb of .* Then the virile ٲṣaprajāpati begot by Asikni five thousand Ჹⲹś with a view to propagating his species and the Ჹⲹś also evinced great desire to increase their number. Knowing this devarṣi 岹 of enchanting words approached them and said "Oh, Ჹⲹś, I understand you, energetic young men, are going to continue creation. Phew! You are children who have not cared to understand the ins and outs or ups and downs of this earth and then how do you think you can create people? You are all endowed with the power to move about on all sides without any obstruction and you are only fools if you do not attempt so find out the limits of this earth". Hearing this they started on a tour to different sides of the earth to find out its boundaries. Just like worms fallen into the ocean the Ჹⲹś have never returned so far.

When he found that the Ჹⲹś were lost the mighty ٲṣa begot in the daughter of īṇ� a thousand sons called Śś. They were also desirous of propagation but were also persuaded by the words of to follow the footsteps of their elder brothers. They discussed it among themselves and said "The words of the Ѳ󲹰ṣi are right. We must also follow the course taken by our brothers. It is wise to commence creation after knowing the size of the earth." They also went to different sides and never returned just like rivers falling into the ocean. The loss of the Śś infuriated ٲṣa and he cursed 岹.

Again to commence creation ٲṣa got of Asikni sixty girls. Of these ten he gave to Dharmadeva, thirteen to śⲹ貹, twentyseven to Soma and four to ṣṭԱ𳾾. Two were given to Bahuputra, two to ṅg and two to the scholar ṛśāśv. Dharmadeva’s wives were ܲԻ󲹳ī, Vasu, ۲ī, , Գ, Ѳܳٱī, ṅk, ѳܳū, and վś. Of վś were born վś𱹲. delivered the ⲹs, Maruṭva, the Marutvans and Vasu, Vasus. Գs were born of Գ. From ѳܳūٲ came ѳܳūbhimānis and from , ҳṣa and from ۲ī, 岵īٳī. (Chapter 15, ԳśԲ Parva, 1; Viṣṇu Purāṇa and Skandha 6, 岵ٲ).

*) It was Ѳ屹ṣṇ who gave ٲṣa his wife, Asikni, when ٲṣa was doing penance in Vindhya. (Ṣaṣṭa Skandha, 岵ٲ).

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