Mahabharata - Story of Ashtavakra

Ashtavakra and Vandin

Sage Uddalaka had a disciple named Kahoda who was devoted to his guru and had acquired much knowledge and wisdom. Uddalaka was delighted by his disciple's progress and being satisfied by the service rendered decided to give his daughter Sujata in marriage to Kahoda. Sujata and Kahoda was expecting a son, who became conversant with Vedas even while he was in the womb of the mother. One day when Kahoda was giving a discourse on Vedas the son, even while it was in an embryo stage, addressed its father and told him that what he read was not correct. Thus he insulted his father in front of all his disciples and Kahoda was livid with anger. He therefore cursed the foetus saying that it will be born with eight parts of its body crooked since it did not know how how respect its own father. The child was thus born crooked and was named as Ashtavakra. The child had an uncle (son of Uddalaka) of the same age, named Swetaketu. When the pregnancy was in its tenth month, Sujata, requested Kahoda to devise some means of sustenance of the family and accordingly Kahoda went to the court of king Janaka of Mithila who was a great royal sage. Janaka in his court had a great debator named Vandin who used to engage people in debate with him and those who were defeated were killed by being drowned. Kahoda was also defeated and he was killed by Vandin. Hearing this Uddalaka told Sujata to keep it a secret from Ashtavakra and accordingly the child grew up without knowing his true father. One day when Ashtavakra was twelve years old, he was sitting on the lap of Uddalaka. Swetaketu came there and told Ashtavakra to go away because he had the first right to sit in his father's lap. Such cruel words inflicted a deep wound in the heart of the child. Ashtavakra went to his mother crying and aksed her as to who was his father. Sujata, shedding lot of tears, told her son about his father who was killed by Vandin in Janaka's court. At this Ashtavakra became very angry and he asked Swetaketu to come with him to the court of Janaka to meet Vandin. He however enticed his uncle by saying that there in the court by listening to learned Brahmins the knowledge and wisdom would increase and therefore they should go. The nephew and the uncle went to the king's place but the gate keeper would not allow children to enter the assembly of the erudites thinking them to be mere curious onlookers. Ashtavakra then met the king and told him that it is said in the scriptures that if there is no Brahmin on the way, the right of way belongs to the blind, deaf, women, carrier of burden and then king. But if there is a Brahmin he has the right of way. The king was surprised by the eloquency of a child and allowed him to enter the assembly. The gatekeeper said that he was merely carrying out the order of Vandin that lads were not allowed to enter and only learned old Brahmins would be allowed. Ashtavakra argued that he might be young in age but old in knowledge and wisdom and therefore should not be slighted. At this the gatekeeper told him to recite a verse from the vedas eulogizing the Supreme Being. Ashtavakra further argued with him saying that wisdom does not depend upon age. He even said that he would enter the assembly and would defeat Vandin by his power of knowledge and oratory. The gatekeeper was still sceptical and then Ashtavakra once again told the king that he would like to enter into a debate with Vandin and he would definitely defeat him. The king said that it was not possible for him to defeat Vandin as men of far superior knowledge and abilities had been defeated and killed by Vandin. So Ashtavakra should not risk his life. But Ashtavakra was adamant. The king Janaka therefore to test the boy asked him a few questions. They were - the significance of the thing that had thirty divisions, twelve parts, twenty four joints and three hundred and sixty spokes. Ashtavakra replied that it was the ever moving wheel (of time) that had twelve peripheries (months), twenty four joints (hours), six naves (seasons) and sixty spokes (lunar phases or pakshas - fortnights). The king was pleased and asked again, "Which two always come together ordained by Gods, snatch away like hawks and from where are they produced?" He was asking about miseries and death. Ashtavakra understood and replied that these two should not find their place in the king's house and even in the houses of his enemies and that they are produced in the one that has wind as his charioteer (the mind that races like wind, i.e. uncontrolled mind gives birth to miseries and ultimately causes death). The king further asked, "What does not close its eyes even while sleeping, what does not move after birth, what has no heart and what increases even at its own speed?" ashtavakra replied that it is the fish that does not close its eyes while sleeping, the egg after birth does not move (i.e. after its produced it remains still until hatched), a stone as no heart and a river increase in its own speed. The king was very pleased with these answers and permitted him to enter into a debate with Vandin. Ashtavakra then declared his presence and demanded that Vandin be brought in front of him and Vandin appeared, suprised that a mere boy had the audacity of calling him into a debate and then he presented his first line of thoughts. He said,  "there is one fire that takes various shapes, there is one sun that illuminates the world, there is one Lord of the celestials, Indra, and there is one Lord of the manes, Yama." Ashtavakra said, "There are two friends in celestial world, Indra and Agni, who always move together, Narada and Parvata are two celestial sages, Aswinikumaras are twins and wheels of a car are two, husband and wife form a couple." Vandin said, "Three kinds of born beings are produced by acts, three vedas are together used for performing vajapeya sacrifice, three are number of words and three are divine lights." Ashtavakra said, "Four are the ashramas, four orders perform sacrifices, four are the cardinal points, four are the legs of cows." Vandin said, "There are five fires, five sacrifices, five sacred rivers." Ashtavakra said, "There are six seasons, six senses, six stars in constellation Kirtika." Vandin uses number seven as seven domestic animals, seven wild animals, seven rishis of the yore and seven strings of Vina. Ashtavakra said on number eight that there are eight vasus, eight angles of Yupa, eight legs of an animal called Sarabha. Vandin then narrates the properties of number nine and in this way Ashtavakra takes the argument to number twelve. Vandin then mentions about thirteen islands and thirteenth lunar day and stops being unable to proceed farther. Ashtavakra provided some more examples with the number thirteen and thus won the battle.

The real significance of this battle was not playing with numbers but to prove the superiority of the concept of Advaita, i.e. one Supreme Being who pervades everything, the grand cosmic unity, that was later preached by Ashtavakra. Vandin did not accept the superiority of consciousness or Atman as the Supreme Being that pervades everything and therefore brought forward arguments from a pure materialistic standpoint, asserting the superiority of sense, sense objects, sense organs and intellect and denying consciousness. But Ashtavakra pushed him to the limit to assert that one consciousness underlying everything. When a person attains the knowledge of Self or Atman all bonds break for him and he becomes emancipated.

The assembly broke into a loud uproar as everybody was disgusted with Vandin and his ways. Brahmins began to praise Ashtavakra. Ashtavakra then said that Vandin must be killed by drowning as he had done with others who were defeated by him. At this Vandin was delighted and said that he was actually the son of Varuna, the lord of all waters. Lord Varuna had commenced a sacrifice extending for twelve years for which Vandin was entrusted to send the best of Brahmins and he did the same by sending all who were defeated by him. None of them had drowned. All of them had been happily enjoying the hospitality of king Varuna. Ashtavakra was so angry that he refused to listen and asked Janaka to drown Vandin as per agreement. Janaka said that as per the terms Vandin was in now Ashtavakra's hand and he was free to do what he wanted with him. Vandin said that he was really Varuna's son and that drowning him would help him to return to his abode. He also said that Ashtavakra's father Kahoda would appear immediately in front of him and he would be very happy with his son's accomplishments.

Then Kahoda along with all Brahmins who were drowned appeared in the king's court and everybody was amazed. Kahoda told king Janaka that it is because that a son can surpass his father in merit that a man wants to have son. His son had accomplished what he failed to do and he was proud of that. Vandin then duly worshipping the Brahmins and praising the august assembly and sacrifice of the king, entered into his realms in the water. Ashtavakra duly worshipped his father and returned to his hermitage along with his uncle. Then in presence of his mother his father asked him to enter into the water of the river Samanga. When Ashtavakra did the same all his crooked limbs became straightened and from that time onwards the river came to be known as Samanga or straightened limbs and developed purifying power. Ashtavakra became a very famous sage and his doctrine concerned unity of every being with God or the Advaita (non dualism).