Puranic encyclopaedia
by Vettam Mani | 1975 | 609,556 words | ISBN-10: 0842608222
This page describes the Story of Rakshasa 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 Rākṣasa
A particular sect of asuras. The ancients had ordained that ṣa should not be killed at dusk. ī쾱 峾ⲹṇa, Bālakāṇḍa, Canto 22, Verse 22).
Uttararāmāyaṇa, contains the following story about the origin of ṣa. When was reciting the Vedas at the beginning of ṛtܲ he felt very hungry and certain forms emanated from his face. Those who were born from his anger assumed the form of ṣa and those from his hunger that of ۲ṣa. The ṣa turned out to be evil folk killing and eating cows and brahmins. Praheti and Heti were the first born ṣa, the latter of whom wedded , daughter of , and to them was born a son called Vidyutkeśa. He married Sālakaṭaṅkā, daughter of Ի. Though a child was born to them they forsook it in the Himālayan slopes and went their own way.
At that time Ś and ī came that way and after blessing the child returned to . The child was named Śukeśa. He married Devavatī, daughter of the Gandharva called Maṇimaya and three children were born to the couple, viz. ⲹ, Sumālī and ī. They did tapas to propitiate and when he appeared requested him thus: "We must defeat ۲ṣa Kinnaras, Gandharvas, Siddhas, վ, Yama, Kubera, , 岵 kings and daityas and Բ and we must not be defeated by any one. We must kill all enemies and they shall not kill us. We three shall never quarrel among ourselves."
granted all their prayers. The three, proud and haughty due to these boons, began roaming about consuming cows and brahmins. They asked վś첹 to build a city for them and he built for them ṅk on Mount հūṭa in the south sea. The three brothers took their abode in ṅk ⲹ, Sumālī and ī married respectively ܲԻ岹ī. ٳܳī, and ղܻ, daughters of the Gandharva woman ⲹ begot of ܲԻ岹ī seven sons called ղṣṭ վūṣa, Durṃukha, Suptaghna, Yajñakośa, Matta, and Unmatta, and also a daughter called .
To Sumālī were born of ٳܳī ten sons and also four daughters.
Four sons were born to ī of his wife ղܻ, and they became the ministers of վīṣaṇa.
Then thousands of 鲹ṣa were born as sons, grandsons, brothers, nephews, etc. to the above and they lived in ṅk, a terror to the whole world.
While the daughters of Sumālī, Vekā, ʳṣpdzٰ첹ṭ�, 첹ī and ܳīԲī were once walking in the forest they saw Kubera on a visit to in all pomp and glory. They understood that Kubera owed his pomp and glory to his being the son of վś and therefore, the next day one of the four, Kaikaśī, went to վś’s ś and prayed for children by him. Three sons called 屹ṇa, վīṣaṇa and ܳ첹ṇa and a daughter called Śū貹ṇa were born to her by վś. They secured boons by performing tapas and 屹ṇa lived in ṅk as king of the ṣa.