Vikramaditya and Shani
April – 09 – 2012 (Monday)
Vikramaditya’s story in relation to Shani
is often presented in Yakshagana in Karnataka state. The story is also narrated
in the Shri
Shani Mahatmiyam. According to the story, Vikrama was grandly
celebrating Navarathri and having debates on the Grahas
(planetary gods), one for every day. The final day it was about Sani.
The Brahmin astrologer explained Shani’s
greatness including his powers, his role in maintaining Dharma on earth. The Brahmin astrologer at the ceremony also
added that according to Vikrama’s horoscope, he has Shani’s entrance at the
12th stage, which is the worst one to have (also known as Sade Sati - seven and a half
years). However, Vikrama was not
bothered; he saw Shani as mere trouble maker who troubled his own father, the (Sun)
god, and guru (Brahaspathi).
Hence Vikrama said he is not ready to
accept Shani’s worthiness or offer his prayers. Vikrama was very proud of his
powers, especially of the complete blessings of Sri Devi. When he rejected
Shani in front of the gathering at the Navarathri celebration, Shani got angry.
He challenged Vikrama that he will make Vikrama to worship him. As Shani
disappeared in sky, Vikrama said it is a fluke and he has all the blessings to
withstand any challenge. Vikrama concludes, it was probably true what the
Brahmin has told about his horoscope; nevertheless, he denies to accept Shani’s
greatness. “Whatever is to happen will happen and whatever not to happen will
not happen” Vikrama declares and accepts Shani’s challenge.
One day a horse
trader came to his palace and said there is no one in Vikrama’s kingdom who
would be able to buy his horse. The horse was said to possess mystical powers –
it flies at one stroke and descends to earth on the second one. Like this, one
can both fly and ride on earth. Vikrama would not believe it and hence said he
wants to try before paying for the horse. The seller agrees and Vikrama sits on
the horse and beats the horse. As promised by the seller, the horse took off
with him to the sky. When Vikrama hit the horse a second time, it should have
landed back to earth, but it did not. Instead, it carried Vikrama to a far
distant land and threw him into a jungle.
Vikrama was
injured and he tried to find his way back. He thought, all this is his fate and
could not be anything else; he fails to recognize Shani in the form of horse
trader. While he was trying to find a way in the jungle, he was attacked by a
group of dacoits (bandits). They robbed him of all his jewels and beat him up
badly. Vikrama still not worried too much about the situation sees that the
robbers managed to take only his crown and jewels but not his head. As he walks
down and reaches for water in the nearby river he slipped on the mud and the
water current dragged him along for a long distance.
Vikrama manages
to reach the shore and approaches a town where he took shelter under a tree,
starving. A shopkeeper of the town, highly conscious of his money, had his shop
opposite to the tree where Vikrama was sitting. Since the day Vikrama sat under
the tree, the sales in the shop went up significantly. The shopkeeper’s greed
made him to think, having this person sitting outside makes him so much money,
and he decides to invite Vikrama to his home and offer him food. In the hope of
a long-term sales increase, he tells his daughter to marry Vikrama. After the
meal, Vikrama was given a room where he went and fell asleep. Shortly after,
the shopkeepers daughter enters. She waits beside the bed for Vikrama to wake
up. But slowly, she felt sleepy too. She took off her jewels and hung them on a
wooden wall coat rack carved and painted like a duck head. She went to sleep
next to Vikrama. When Vikrama wakes up, he notices the duck shaped coat rack
was swallowing up the girl's jewels. As he was recollecting what he saw as if
in a dream, the shopkeeper’s daughter also wakes up and notices missing jewels.
She alarms her father and says that Vikrama is a thief.
Vikrama is taken
to the local king of the realm. The kings verdict was to cut off Vikrama’s legs
and arms, and leave him in the desert to die. While struggling to move and
bleeding in the desert, a lady traveling to her new husbands home after
returning from Ujjain, where her paternal home was, noticed the dying Vikrama
and she recognized him. She told him that people where much worried in Ujjain
about his disappearance after riding on that flying horse. She requested her
in-laws to allow her to take Vikrama to her new home and tend to his injuries.
As her family were from the labourers class, Vikrama asked for some work to
repay their kindness. He said he could sit in the field and shout, that way,
making the bulls go round, separating the grains from the husks. He was not
prepared to live as a freeloader forever.
One evening
while Vikrama was at his new work, the candle went out due to a sudden breeze.
He sang Raag Deepaka to light up the candle again. But in fact, this action lit
up all the candles in the town! The town’s princess had taken a vow to marry
anyone who lights candles with Deepaka
Raaga singing. She was astonished to see this disabled man as the
source of the music but despite his appearance she decides to marry him. The
king, when he saw it's Vikrama, got very angry remembering him from the theft
charges previously and now being about to marry his own daughter. He drew his
sword to cut off Vikrama’s head. At that time, Vikrama realizes, that all this
is happening to him because of Shani’s power. When he was about to die, he
offered prayers to Shani. He accepts his mistakes and agrees that he was too
proud of his status. Shani appears and gives him his jewels, legs, arms, and
everything back. Vikrama requests Shani not to give to ordinary people like
what he has gone through. He said, a strong person like him was able to endure
it but no ordinary person will be able to. Shani agrees and promises that he
will not. Recognizing both Shani and Vikrama, the local King surrenders to his
Lord and agrees to marry off his daughter to him. At the same time, the
shopkeeper visits the palace, saying the wooden duck rack had released the
jewels from its mouth. He too offers his daughter to Vikrama. Vikrama returns
to Ujjain and lived with Shani’s blessings as
a great emperor.---------------------
Compiler : Prof. Komaragiri Venkata Ramana Rao.
Ph.D., (Retired Professor; Andhra University College of Engineering);
Astrologer-Scienitst. Durham. NC; U.S.A.: (Tatayya = Grand-father). My e-mail
address : pandit@jyothishi.com----------
I dedicate all these stories in the blog to Sri Parama Paalakas (Supreme Rulers of this entire
Universe): Bhagavan Sri Siddhi Vinayaka,
Sri Lakshmi Narayana and Sri Gouri Sankara and Sri Saraswathi and
Bhagavan Sri Venkateswara ! =========================================================
