A legendary king, son of Budha and Ila, known for his love story with the celestial nymph Urvashi, and as an originator of the sacred fires and the lunar dynasty.
पुरूरवस् (purūravas) [Printed book page 2-355] Purūravas (I) — (Aila) son of Budha and (Sudyumna
in female form) Ilā; anointed king of Pratiṣṭhāna (Pra-
yāgā) by Sudyumna when he retired to forest;
1 eager for
territory;
2 having heard of his beauty from Nārada, Ūrvaśī
Page2-356+ 47 desired to marry him; she met the king and offered to be
with him under two conditions, that he would undertake to
protect the two sheep in her custody, and never to show
himself naked except at their sexual intercourse; agreeing
to the conditions he enjoyed her company, going round the
earth, and frequenting Caitraratha and other gardens; miss-
ing Ūrvaśi, Indra asked his Gandharvas to fetch her back;
at midnight they stole the sheep, and hearing their noise she
induced Purūravas to recover them; the king who was
then naked, went as he was and fetched them back; but
Ūrvaśī seeing him naked left him; mad in love with her he
followed her naked begging her to stay on; he found her
playing in the Sarasvatī waters with five friends; on an
appeal from him she agreed to sleep with him one day every
year; but he was all anxious to have her for ever; on her
advice he prayed to the Gandharvas who gave him accom-
modation and an Agnisṭhālī; he left it on the way in a forest
and went home; meanwhile Tretāyuga had commenced; he
went to see his sthālī but found an aśvattha instead; there
in order to get at Ūrvaśī he cut off a couple of branches
(araṇi) and churned them; fire, Jātavedas came with the
three Vedas who all became his sons; by this one Veda
became three;
3 had six sons Āyu and others by Ūrvaśī;
4 finding she had gone once for all, he repented his action, got
ashamed of his position as king and devoted himself to Hari;
worshipped the Fire which was his son and reached the
Gandharva world; the story given as an example of the
evils of bad association;
5 meets Pitṛs every New Moon
day; a Kṣatriya mantravādin; ācārya of Sāmagas; originator
of three sacred fires
6 of the Ikṣvāku line but originator of
the lunar race and a Rājaṛṣi; the Ailas came into prominence
in the Tretāyuga and declined in the Kali.
7 By meditating
on the 108 names of the Devī scored success over his
enemies;
8 as a result of
tapas at the Himālayas in honour
of Janārdana, became the lord of the seven Dvīpas; slew
Keśī and other Asuras; was offered
ardhāsanam by Indra,
going to see him every day; paid more attention to Dharma
Page2-357+ 29 and incurred the displeasure of Artha and Kāma; Initiated
in
Bharatanāṭya Śāstra9 in Dvijagrāma, became the king
of Madradeśa in the Cākṣuṣa Manvantara;
10 served
Kūhu and Sinīvāli to obtain nectar from the moon for per-
forming rituals to the Pitṛs; gained his wish by the blessings
of Atri
11 and by
tapas in the Himālayas.
12 [
Footnote: 1) Bhā. IX. 1. 35, 42; Br. III. 65. 45-6; 66. 1-2, 19-22; M. 12. 15; Vā. 1. 106; Vi. IV. 1. 12 and 16.] [
Footnote: 2) Bhā. XII. 3. 9.] [
Footnote: 3) Ib. IX. 14. 15-49; Vā. 91. 1-52; Vi. IV. 6. 34-93.] [
Footnote: 4) Bhā. IX. 15. 1; 17. 1; Vā. 91. 48; Br. I. 1. 89; 2. 14.] [
Footnote: 5) Bhā. XI. 26. 3-35.] [
Footnote: 6) Br. II. 28. 1-9, 97; 32. 120; 33. 9; M. 145. 115; Vā. 56. 1, 22; 91. 48.] [
Footnote: 7) M. 12. 15; 13. 62; 273. 52-3, 65.] [
Footnote: 8) Ib. 13. 62.] [
Footnote: 9) Ib. 24. 10-33.] [
Footnote: 10) Ib. 115. 4, 7-8, 10-18.] [
Footnote: 11) Ib. 141, 1, 8-20.] [
Footnote: 12) Ib. chh. 116-17, 119; 120. 48.] [ID=8093]
