Trishasti Shalaka Purusa Caritra Part 1

Author(s): Hemchandracharya, Helen M Johnson
Publisher: Oriental Research Institute Vadodra

Page 264

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Then they began to rain with streams of water that were like pestles, like iron arrows, like tusks. The earth being completely filled with water, the chariots were like boats, the elephants, etc., like crocodiles. The sun seemed to go away somewhere; the mountains seemed to disappear because of the darkness of the cloud thundering like a night of destruction. On earth pure darkness and pure water appeared simultaneously like twins.
When the Cakravartin saw the prolonged, inauspicious rain, he touched with his hand the skin-jewel like a dear servant. Touched by the Cakrin's hand, the skinjewel expanded for twelve yojanas, like a cloud touched by the north wind. Together with his army, the King stayed on the skin-jewel placed on top of the water, as if on the earth on top of the dense-vapor (sheath).306 The King touched with his hand the umbrella adorned with ninety-nine thousand golden ribs of beautiful splendor, like the Ocean of Milk with coral; beautiful with a golden handle free from cracks and joints and perfectly straight, like a lotus with its stalk; affording protection against water, heat, wind, and dust; and it expanded like the skin-jewel. The King set the gem-jewel, surpassing the sky-jewel in light, on top of the umbrellahandle to dispel darkness. The box made from the umbrella and skin looked like a floating egg; from that time the legend of the Brahmanda 807 existed among the people. From the power of the steward-jewel grain sown at dawn on the skin-jewel like a good field was ready at evening. Pumpkin-gourds, greens, radishes, etc., planted at dawn came up at the end of the day, like palaces of the moon. Fruit trees, such as mango and plantain, planted at dawn bear fruit at the end of day, like enterprises of
808
306 428. See App. I.
307 433. For the formation of the universe from Brahma's egg, see Wilkins, p. 85.
308
435. I have not been able to find an explanation for this
allusion.