Table of Contents
Jaimini was listening to the birds. They continued with the story.
Links to the previous parts Part 1 and Part 2
At the cremation ground
"The woman who had come to the cremation ground was a picture of destitution. With no one to help her, she had come on her own, bringing her son with her. Her son had been bitten by a poisonous snake. Her face looked aged beyond her years. Years of servitude in the brahman's house had changed her looks. She was none other than Shaivya. She was distracted, her eyes vacant with shock and sorrow. She was continuously crying, calling out to her dead son. She saw Harishchandra there. Harishchandra also saw her. They could not recognize her. She looked at the chandala and said, "This is my son. He was his father's beloved. They used to play games together and today fate has taken the son away from his father. It has been a year since I have seen my husband. How do I inform the unfortunate father, that his son is no more?""
"Harishchandra saw the dead boy. All he could think of was his fee and the cloth that the body was covered with. It looked like a nice blanket. He thought of taking it and went near Shaivya. His matted hair, his ash-smeared stinking body, and the grief he had suffered had changed his appearance completely. He looked the body. It would be a young boy, seven eight years old. He was lying on a black cloth. His skin appeared discoloured. There were visible marks on his leg where the boy had been bitten."
"Harishchandra looked at the boy, lying on the ground and said, "It must be a very unfortunate person who has lost a son as good looking as this. What family does he belong to? Who is his father? Even in death he looks so handsome. He looks to be someone who was born in a noble family. Unless Vishvamitra cursed him or something happened, my own son would have been this old."."
"Shaivya did not hear what Harishchandra had said. She was crying, "What sin did I commit that I had to see this day? I had to bring my son's dead body, alone to the cremation ground? My husband, where are you? I am in pain, in misery and I am all alone. O Vishnu, why are you silent? Help me. What have you done to the great Harishchandra? He lost his kingdom, he lost his people, he lost his wife and son. ""
Recognition and Shared Grief
"Hearing his name being taken, Harishchandra sat on the ground. He struggled to fully grasp the identity of the grieving woman. He began looking closely at the body and recognized it as his son. "Who is this woman who is crying for the loss of her son? Is this my wife Shaivya? Is the boy on the ground, my son? "
He began crying, taking the name of Rohitasva and Shaivya. Hearing her name and her son's name being called, Shaivya saw the chandala, holding on to the corpse and crying away. She looked and recognized her husband. The moment she realized this, her grief and the shock made her lose her sense. She collapsed. Seeing her faint, Harishchandra also lost his senses. They lay there in the dust, amidst the burning pyres, near the body of Rohitasva."
Despair and the Decision
"It was some time before they both regained their senses. They looked around. Where was she? Shaivya wondered. She then saw a chandala sitting next to her. She was momentarily in shock and then realized. This was her husband. Harishchandra also understood the reality. His beloved son was no more, as Yama had said in the dream. He wanted to hug his son, but his role as a chandala was preventing him from touching the body. Even in his grief, Harishchandra was particular about dharma. He wanted to lift the boy in his arms and grieve but his duty was not letting him. Sitting there, he cried, "My son. You look as you are sleeping. Get up. This is not a place to sleep. This is a ground where the dead are brought to be cremated. You should not be here. Get up. Come to me. Remember when you used to come running to me? Who will come to me when I call out? Come, call out to me. Whom will I scold now, for climbing on my lap with dusty clothes? Why am I crying? I should not be. Afterall, I sold you and gave you away. I have no right over you. It is because of me all this is happening."
He was not able to control himself any more. He took the lifeless body in his arms.
Shaivya was looking at Harishchandra. She was wondering what had happened to the king, what had made him become a chandala? Body covered in ash, matted hair and holding a thick staff? She forgot her own grief. She was looking at the man in front of her, crying uncontrollably, holding their son. She forgot why she was there, in the cremation ground. She cried out, look at the sky, "Shame on you, the gods, that prayed to. What have you done? Why? The king who remained true to his duty, and you made him an outcaste? He lost his kingdom, his family and this is what he got as a result of that? "
Looking at her husband she said, "Take me in your arms, my husband. You are a king. I am your delicate queen. Make sure I am protected. Make sure your son is safe. Talk to me. Where is your throne? Where are your guards? Remember when kings would come to you for protection and would act as your guards. And today, see where we are! In a field on the banks of Ganges where there is nothing but death. I see bons, I see pots, I see dogs, jackals and chandalas. Where are we? It is dark. The sun has set and, in this place, now, my husband lives."
She got up and went and hugged her husband. She held on to him and began sobbing. She then said, "Is this real? Are we really here or am I in Ayodhya having a nightmare? I am confused. Please tell me all that is happening here, is not true. If this is true and this is destiny then fie on dharma, if this is what dharma leads you to. There is no point in worshipping any god or anyone for that matter. What will we get from that? This?"
Harishchandra then told her all that had happened from the time he had sold her to the present day including the nightmare. HE said, "Both of us want our son back to life. Let us pray to Yama. Let us ask him to return our son back to us. I am not sure if Yama will listen to a chandala. There is a better way, let us go where our son has gone. I cannot even do that. I have a master from whom I have to take permission. If he permits then I can. If he does not, I will be caught in cycles of life and death, living multiple low lives. I had some hope that one day Rohitasva would make a life for himself and now that hope is also lost. I am not sure what to do. If I live here, I will grieve for my son. Is that better than the low lives I will have, if I kill myself? No, it is not. Shaivya, I have made up my mind. Today, I will prepare the funeral pyre for my son. I will prepare it with my own hands. I will sit on that, holding my son. I will go where he has gone. I do not see any other option left. Go back to the house of the brahmana, Live there. As you were a king's wife once, do not show disrespect to the brahmana or his family. Serve him and when you leave this earth, maybe we will meet. If I have been good in my life, then we will meet for sure. Do forgive me if I have ever hurt you, even jokingly. If you wish, there is another option. You could join me, with our son."
Shaivya said, "I will not be able to live a life alone, after you and our son are gone. Along with you, I will also sit in the pyre and we will see what happens."
Harishchandra did not know how to react. He was sad that this is what things had come to. He agreed to have her join the pyre."
Divine Intervention and Restoration
"The sky was dark. It was middle of the night.
Harishchandra brought the wood and other material that would be needed for the funeral pyre. He built the piles of wood. He lit a torch and placed it near the pyre. He then kept the body of his son on the pyre. He then climbed up and carefully helped Shaivya on to the pyre. Once they had sat down, Harishchandra began praying. He prayed to Narayana before he would set fire to the pyre. He finished his prayer and picked up the torch. He was about to light the pyre when something happened. The dark sky changed. It suddenly began bright. From the sky, gods began descending. They came and asked Harishchandra to stop saying, “All gods and heavenly beings have come here to bless you. Vishvamitra himself has come here to be your friend. Stop what you are about to do.
Yama came forward and said, "Know me as Dharma. I am pleased with you. You are truly blessed, Harishchandra. No one else could have done what you did. You faced adversities and came out strong. You controlled your own desires, emotions and always stood by truth. " Indra said, "With your wife and son, you have earned a place in heaven which no other human has been able to achieve. Come to heaven with us. Your days of suffering are over. You have no reason to grieve. Your son is alive." The moment Indra said this, Rohitasva sat up. Harishchandra hugged his son. As soon as he held his son, all of them underwent a physical change. They were dressed in beautiful clothes and they looked divine. The cremation ground was no longer there and instead of it, stood a divine place. The site of death had changed to a place of life."
Harishchandra's Selflessness for His Subjects
"Harishchandra said, "O king of gods, I am grateful to you. I may have changed my appearance but I am still a servant of a chandala. I cannot go anywhere without his permission." The moment he said this, Yama said, "Harishchandra said, you have nothing to worry about. I had come to you as Pravira. Vishvamitra knew what was happening. You have earned a place in heaven."
Indra said. "What I am offering you is not something mortals get. Consider my offer. Come to heaven with your son and wife. You have earned that place by your own deeds and merits."
Harishchandra said, "O Indra, I am not sure how to express my gratitude. As you have bestowed upon me this privilege, I want to say something. When I left Ayodhya, the people of Ayodhya tried to stop me. They were willing to come with leaving their homes. Like I suffered, they too suffered in my absence, not knowing when I would be back or what would happen to them. The time I spent outside Ayodhya was an exile for them also. If I have earned a place in heaven then let them also ascend to heaven with me. I cannot leave those behind, who suffered for me. That is not dharma. If that is not possible, let me be where I am. I will never be happy knowing that I betrayed my people."
Indra said that was not feasible. After all it was the good deeds of the king and not the people. "You earned the state of heaven because of your deeds. While they may have suffered, what you went through, only we know. What you are asking for, is not possible Harishchandra."
Harischandra asked Indra, "What is a king when the subjects are not there? My dharma as a king is to be the protector of my people. Till I am alive, I will be with my subjects. You know me a king who did deeds not as a common person. If I have earned a position, my subjects also deserve a share. They need to accompany me also. If I have some good deeds in my list, let that be shared and distributed amongst my people. Let them come to heaven with me, even if it is for a day.". Indra agreed to this seeing the selfless nature of the king."
Ascension to Heaven
"Indra, Yama and Vishvamitra went to the city of Ayodhya along with Harishchandra, Shaivya and Rohitasva left the city of Varanasi for Ayodhya, riding chariots. Harishchandra stood there at the gates and was welcomed back to the city. He addressed the subjects. In presence of Harishchandra, Vishvamitra told the people, that because of the merits of their king, they all had earned a place in heaven. They could go to heaven along with their king. Everyone was happy to hear this. As soon as this was announced, beautiful looking chariots began to come down from the sky. There were numerous vehicles, all wonderful looking, the likes of which had never been seen on earth.
Vishvamitra greeted Harishchandra. His demeanour had changed. He was no longer stern and angry. He was very happy with Harishchandra. He took permission from Harishchandra and took Rohitasva inside the palace. He was brought before the people and it was announced that he, Rohita, would be crowned the king of Ayodhya. In the presence of the gods, Vishvamitra performed the ceremony for crowning Rohitasva. Once the ceremony was over, Harishchandra, Shaivya and the people of Ayodhya left for heaven in the chariots that had come for them.
And this, Jaimini is the story of Harishchandra. Such was his story that not only is heavens and earth, but even in other worlds, Shukracharya, the guru of the asuras, gave examples of Harishchandra saying there never was and there never will be another king like Harishchandra. This is not the end of the story. Listen as we tell you about the fight between two birds because of this."
Some more on this
Harishchandra is the ultimate archetype of truth and righteous conduct.
Shaivya’s cries are the real human response to suffering that appears undeserved.
Harishchandra's willingness to die with his son marks a renunciation of all worldly attachments. It is only after this complete abandonment that the gods descend.
"When all desires in the heart are renounced, then the mortal becomes immortal and attains Brahman." — Katha Upanishad 2.3.14
The cremation ground is a threshold between life and death. It is the place of:
- Final tests.
- Death of ego
- Dissolution of identity.
- Transformation and rebirth.
Harishchandra becomes a chandala, not as punishment, but to demonstrate that dharma transcends caste.
His insistence that his subjects too be allowed to ascend to heaven is an act of salvation. A king is not separate from his people. Dharma is public and shared.
This is a rare moment in Hindu mythology where the elite (a king) sacrifices individual moksha for collective good.
Vishvamitra turns from antagonist to friend: He was once the harshest tester of Harishchandra. His transformation shows that even adversaries are part of a divine play to uplift the soul.
This tale is all about:
- The cost of integrity.
- The trial of grief.
- The mysteries of divine justice.
- The ultimate unity of love, duty, and liberation.
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