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The Romance of Urvashi and Pururava - Part 2

© Harsh Nevatia

Pururava was a married man. His wife was Aushiniri. They did not have any children and as was the custom of the time, the wife was blamed for this. So when Pururava met Urvashi he was already distanced from his wife and hence was more easily drawn towards the apsara.

He decided to live with Urvashi in the forest of Gandhmadan. He arranged for all princely comforts there as also for running the affairs of state. They spent the time in love, in discourse; Urvashi sang and danced for Pururava; the king was content to have her with him. For Urvashi this was a unique opportunity to live with mortals and to experience their joys and sufferings, while Pururava reveled in the fact that the pride of heaven and Indra's favourite was his and his alone. In fact the only discordant note in their ethereal music was the argument whether the Gods are more fortunate or mortals.

An epic has been written on this debate by the famous Hindi poet, Dinkar, a passage from which bears translation. Urvashi is praising the fire that burns in the souls of mortals.

Till there is fire in the soul, the universe is your friend. Your chariot flies in the heavens and with the clouds does play. Till there is fire in the soul, the ocean looks up to you And its infinite wealth and treasure at your feet does lay. The fierce lion passes by; the dense forests give way, Even the towering mountain peaks bow down before you. Till there is fire in the soul, great Indra pays his respects And beautiful Urvashi descends to the earth for you.

But where there are lovers there will be lovers' tiffs and Urvashi and Pururava are said to have had their share. Once Urvashi and Pururava were walking along the bank of a stream in animated conversation. Pururava noticed a maiden knee deep in water washing clothes and for a second his concentration faltered. Urvashi went into a fit of jealous rage and ran away. So maddened was she that she stepped into Kartikeya's grove. Kartikeya is the God of War and women were forbidden to enter his grove and if they did so they would be turned into a creeper. This was the fate Urvashi met. For many months Pururava searched for Urvashi. He prayed to the Gods for their favour. He recounted the numerous times he had fought shoulder to shoulder with them in their incessant war against the Demons. Kartikeya relented and gave Pururava a crimson jewel and asked him to rub a particular creeper in his grove with it. When the king did so Urvashi was freed.

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