In a forest lived a sage with his family: his wife, a son, and three daughters. From early childhood, the daughters would be busy playing with their dolls. Mandapala, the son, would stay aloof. He wanted to stay alone. So, when his sisters played with their dolls, and boys his age played chasing each other, Mandapala would go into the forests and watch birds build their nests.
One day, young Mandapala went with his family to a Shiva
temple. A dance recital was supposed to take place there. There, in the
courtyard, a courtesan had come to dance. This was the first time Mandapala was
seeing a dance recital. Everyone waited for the woman to start. The woman,
dressed in white, bowed in front of the Shiva lingam in the temple and then
bowed down before the gathered audience. She then started. Mandapala was
mesmerized. She moved like the wind, drawing the audience into the story of the
dance. Mandapala was confused. He had been taught that desire was an illusion.
The woman here was not an illusion; he felt something. His body was behaving in
a manner he had not experienced. The dance had awakened something unnamed
within him. That night, Mandapala could not sleep. He kept thinking about her.
He wanted to believe he was pure. He got up. It was the middle of the night.
All were asleep. He stepped outside his hut and started crying. He then made up
his mind: “If even a look from a woman can disturb me, then I shall not touch
another woman. So long as I live as a human, I shall keep my desires within.”
When Mandapala received his sacred thread, his parents
arranged for him to be initiated into brahmacharya. It was customary that,
after this stage, sons would take wives and continue the family line. His older
brothers were householders. Mandapala refused. He practiced and perfected the
retas-stambhana process—blocking the flow of semen. He left his parents' house
and moved to the forest of Khandava. There, in a quiet clearing, Mandapala
built a hermitage, living alone and free from all temptation. He spent his life
in meditation. He spoke to no one. Years went on like this.
One day, he thought to himself, "I have been meditating
for long. Have I attained enlightenment? What is the use of this life of
mine?" As the decades passed, he became restless. One night, he left the
forest and went north—towards the Himalayas. On the third day, he reached a
high cliff. Feeling dejected, he leapt from the cliff. He thought his death
would carry him to heaven. He suddenly found himself falling down a dark
tunnel. The messengers of Yama greeted him. They led him to a place where
floating flames moved in patterns. Mandapala heard voices coming from the
flames. “Mandapala,” the voices said, “We are your ancestors. We are trapped
here. To release us, you have to create the next link. You have denied us
water. Unless you sire children, we cannot move to heaven.” Mandapala asked,
“Is there no other way?” When denied, he said, “Then I will return.”
He awoke at the base of the mountain. Vultures were circling
over him. He was unhurt. Somehow, he had escaped. He returned to Khandava.
Mandapala sat wondering. Though his body had returned from death, his mind was
refusing to stay. He also remembered his promise. He sat down in deep
meditation. An idea came to him: “The soul does not have to remain bound to the
human body. If all that is required is to father children, why don't I become
another creature?” He remembered the koel, whose egg incubation period was
short. He transformed himself into a male koel. As a bird, he flew across the
treetops. He felt free. He sat on a tree and let out a call. He called out
again. A voice returned his call. He flew towards the sound, and then he saw
her. Perched on the branch of a tree was a female koel, wondering where the
voice was coming from. Mandapala landed near her. Both looked at each other.
And Mandapala experienced love. He was in love with her. He decided this would
be his partner. They decided to start a family and started looking around for
the best place to build a nest.
Mandapala had embraced this new life completely. He slowly
forgot his human past. He spent his days singing and helping Jarita build their
nest. He loved being with Jarita. One day, they realized that Jarita would be
laying her eggs soon. A change came about in their lives. One morning, when
Mandapala flew close to her, Jarita turned away and said, “Not now.” Mandapala
flew away. He tried again the next day. Again, she pushed him back. This
happened again and again. Mandapala was now feeling rejected. He watched
Jarita. She was focused only on the nest. Mandapala began to wander.
One day, he heard a call. He turned toward it. On a tree sat
a female koel. She seemed to be calling out to him. Mandapala learned her name
was Lapita. While Jarita had been calm, Lapita was bold. Jarita spoke rarely;
Lapita kept talking. Mandapala felt alive. He did not return to Jarita. A few
days passed, and Jarita laid four eggs. Soon, the eggs hatched. They were four
sons. She named them Jaritari, Sarisrikka, Stambhamitra, and Drona. Mandapala
was not there. He was busy with Lapita.
Jarita would feed her sons. She would leave the nest in
search of food. All the while, she would be praying to the gods, "My sons
are alone. A forest is a dangerous place. There are wild animals and snakes
that can kill my children. Please keep them safe." Soon, the sons reached
the fledgling stage. Their wings were developing and they were itching to fly.
One day, Jarita was about to leave the nest and search for food. She told her
sons she would soon go out for food and asked them to be together and be brave.
She told them not to try jumping out of the nest on their own. She was about to
leave when they felt something strange. There was smoke in the air. The forest
was on fire. Agni, with the help of Krishna and Arjuna, was burning the forest.
Mandapala had noticed this. He suddenly wondered about
Jarita. He knew he had four sons and was hoping they were safe. He decided to
go to them. Lapita called out behind him, “Where are you going?” “I have to
save them,” Mandapala said. He decided to visit Jarita but saw the tree where
they had built their nest. The base of the tree had caught fire. Not knowing
what to do, Mandapala began praying to Agni and asked him to spare Jarita and
his sons. He said, "Agni, please spare my sons. You are one who is invoked
to purify our surroundings. You are there in all of us. You are there as fire
in the sky (lightning), fire here, and the sun. No rituals are complete without
you. We all depend on you. Help me." Pleased, Agni asked what Mandapala
wanted. Mandapala said, "I have been a fool. I deserted my family, and now
I realize my mistake. My sons are very young. Please spare them." Agni
promised Mandapala he would not hurt them or Jarita.
Jarita and her sons were not aware of this. She was scared.
The tree itself was about to catch fire. She was not sure what to do. She could
fly away leaving her sons behind, but that would mean abandoning her sons. She
could not do that. Her sons could talk, but they had not learned how to fly.
They would be helpless. She asked them to be ready. They would take turns on
her back to get down from the tree. At the base, there was a mouse hole. She
would push the children into the hole and cover the mouth. That way, they would
be safe. The children said they were better off where they were. If they went
inside the mouse hole, the mouse would eat them. Jarita said that would not
happen. "There is a mouse that lives alone in the hole. I saw him come out
of the hole today. The moment he had peeped out, an eagle had swooped down from
the trees and had carried it away. So, there is no mouse in the hole. You will
be safe there." The sons said they were unsure if that would be the best
option. They told her, "We believe you. We request you, please leave us.
If we survive, that will be because of our destiny. Please go elsewhere and
raise a family. If you stay with us, you will perish yourself."
Reluctantly, Jarita flew away. Soon, the tree caught fire. The four birds began
to pray to Agni. The youngest, Drona, said to Agni, "Agni, you reside in
all of us. You are the fire that helps us digest our food. Proper digestion
leads to good life and health, and you make it possible, so you are responsible
for all life. Spare us. You are responsible for the energy of the sun, which is
the source of life on earth. Spare this tree." Agni was pleased by Drona.
He also remembered that he had promised Mandapala his sons would be spared.
Agni asked the sons if there was something they wanted from him. The sons said
they were scared of a family of wild cats that would try to attack them. Mandapala
was worried. Though he knew Agni had promised him his sons would be spared, he
was not sure what would happen. He was wondering when Lapita came there. She
asked him what he was thinking about. He told her. "Why do you worry? I am
a fool. I should not have accepted you in my life. Your hearth will be with
your wife and sons. Go away from me. Go before I push you into the fire."
Mandapala said, "I am here only because of my desire to have children. I
have been a fool. I left my family when I should not have. I am scared what may
happen to my sons. I will not stay with you any longer." Mandapala flew
away.
When the fire had finally subsided, Jarita came back and was
immensely pleased to see her sons alive. They were all together when Mandapala
arrived there. He approached Jarita and the sons, but they did not talk to him.
Mandapala said, "I am ashamed of what I did. I am back now. Let us be
together." Jarita said, "Why do you come here now? Go back to that
Lapita. You left me for her. What happened now? Why are you here?"
Mandapala said, "One has to be careful in life. One should never abandon
what is there. I was a fool to leave my family and go after another
woman."
Jarita and the sons welcomed Mandapala. Mandapala blessed
the sons to become famous in their lives.
Some more on this
Markandeya Purana does not contain the story of Mandapala.
The core story is from Mahabharata. The childhood of Mandapala is a fictional
story.
In Hindu thought, life is lived under three debts (ṛṇa or
rin):
- Deva-ṛṇa
– debt to the gods,
- Rṣi-ṛṇa
– debt to the sages, and
- Pitṛ-ṛṇa
– debt to one’s ancestors.
By not having children, Mandapala denies his ancestors the
chance to ascend to higher planes. Lineage is not just biological, it is also
spiritual continuity.
Mandapala’s decision to be reborn as a bird shows the Hindu
understanding of the soul as independent of form or species. His transformation
into a bird reflects freedom from rigid identity, and his infidelity symbolizes
how desire can divert one from one’s higher calling.
Jarita represents the role of a woman not as subservient,
but as a wise, nurturing, self-sacrificing force. She represents dharma in
action, not by words but through steadfastness, selfless parenting, restraint,
and prayer.
Lapita represents temptation.
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