Page 96 - Defending Prabhupada Words - By Harivlas Das

The path home passed through the towncenter where
there was a great sage named Animandukya Muni who
was impaled on a perpendicular sword. This form of
excruciating torture by sitting on a chula (sword) was
meted out to him by mistake because some robbers
hid in his place of meditation. When the robbers were
discovered by soldiers of the King near the Muni, the
soldiers also arrested the Muni, who was accused of being
an accomplice. Accidentally Ugrasravas stunted arm
touched AniMandukya Muni’s body as Silavati passed by
him in the darkness. Any movement of the body while
impaled causes extreme pain. Due to the pain, the Muni
cursed the person who caused the pain to die at the next
morning’s sunrise.

Silavati was grief-stricken by the unexpected curse. Due
to her unalloyed faithfulness and chastity for her husband,
she was endowed with mystical powers. She pronounced
a counter-curse that the sun should not rise on the next
day. She said, “If I have always been chaste to my husband
and have not deviated in my fidelity toward him even for a
second, let the sun not rise.” When this happened the next
day, the demigods approached the Trimurtis (Brahma, Siva
and Vishnu) and implored them to convince Silavati to
cancel her curse because of the havoc it was causing in the
universe. The Trimurtis decided to engage Anasuya devi,
the wife of the great sage Atri Muni, who equaled Silavati
in faithfulness and chastity, to speak to her. Anasuya
persuaded Silavati to withdraw her curse. Immediately her
husband died.

95

09-02-2023 17:30:20
e.indd 95
Defending Prabhupada Words inside.indd 95 09-02-2023 17:30:20
Defending Prabhupada Words insid