Chapter summary
खण्डनपुरमाहात्म्यम् Khaṇḍana Pura Māhātmyam
The Glory of Khaṇḍanapura
**The Sadguru said:**
Both Lord Śiva and Lord Brahma possessed five faces. From this shared attribute, alas, pride was born in Brahma, the lord of the world. Having summoned all the gods, led by Śakra (Indra), to Satyaloka, Prajāpati Brahma then uttered a statement steeped in arrogance. (v.1-2)
**Brahma said:**
"O excellent gods, my very nature as the embodiment of the Vedas is widely known. Your own nature, as beings knowable through the Vedas, is also established throughout the three worlds. Rudra, Viṣṇu, as well as Śakra, Vāyu, Agni, Yama, and Ravi—all these deities are indeed worshipped by the Brāhmaṇas solely because they have been instructed by me. I too possess five faces, just like the Lord of Gaurī [Śiva], yet all the gods fail to recognize me as Maheśvara. Therefore, due to the world's neglect of me, I shall pronounce a curse: may their minds turn to heresy, abandoning the sacred path of the Vedas." (v.3-6)
**The Gods said:**
"O Hiraṇyagarbha, O Lord of Gods, you are the grandfather of the world. O Lord, please forgive this offense committed by ignorant people. Mahādeva Maheśvara was born from your very face; thus, the status of being his father also belongs to you, of this there is no doubt." (v.7-8)
**The Sadguru said:**
Having thus addressed the Creator, the gods, led by Indra, ascended to the peak of Kailāsa and recounted the pride that had arisen in Brahma. Then Rudra, the wielder of the Pināka bow, the trident-bearer, the blue-throated one, whose banner bears the bull, spoke to all the gods assembled amidst the sages. (v.9-10)
**Rudra said:**
"I am the god whose form is mantra, as established by the sages. The Sadyojāta and other sacred mantras are indeed my five faces. The Śatarudrīya hymn constitutes my very limbs, and I am also the Aṣṭamūrti [the eight-formed one]. I stand pervading the entire world, embodying the nature of ego in all beings. I shall also speak truthfully about Brahma's five-faced nature: the four Vedas are undoubtedly his four faces. But the fifth head of Brahma is the Veda of heretical doctrines. I shall remove it with my nail for the welfare of all worlds, for the protection of the Vedic path, and indeed, for the protection of Brahma himself." (v.11-14)
**The Sadguru said:**
Having declared this, Hara (Śiva), mounted on his bull, journeyed to Satyaloka and, with effortless grace, removed the fifth head of Brahma. Yet, that skull, embodying the heretical Veda, remained stuck to his hand and would not fall, causing him to wander like a heretic. Having thus incurred the grave sins of killing a Brāhmaṇa, killing a father, and killing a guru, he roamed the world naked, with the skull still clinging to his hand. (v.15-17)
Thus wandering the world like a madman, the naked Rudra eventually reached a terrible, vast forest on the southern bank of the sacred Kāverī. To secure release from her husband's curse, Bhavānī (Pārvatī) prayed to Vidhi (Brahma), who revealed that the curse would be lifted only by the filling of the skull. Even with the giving of alms by Gaurī, Lakṣmī, Vāṇī, as well as Svāhā, Svadhā, and Śacī, the skull remained stubbornly empty. Then, prayed to by all the gods, the Lord Hari Himself gave alms. Instantly, the skull became full and was released from Śiva's grasp. (v.18-21)
Immediately pleased in his heart, Lord Nīlalohita [the blue-red one, Śiva], with hands folded in reverence, praised Viṣṇu, the Supreme Person. (v.22)
**Rudra said:**
"O Nārāyaṇa, salutations to You, O wielder of the conch, discus, and mace! You are the embodiment of all gods, praised by all the Vedas. By the mere chanting of Your name, You remove sins as grave as the killing of a Brāhmaṇa. You are the friend of the world and an ocean of compassion. By the greatness of Your name alone, the formidable Hālāhala poison, though stuck in my throat, does not burn me and remains ever like an ornament. By speaking Your Tāraka mantra into the ears of the dying in Kāśī, I grant them liberation at their final hour, all due to its profound greatness. You alone are the Supreme Lord; You are the controller of all. You alone are the creator of the worlds; You alone are the protector of all people." (v.23-27)
**The Sadguru said:**
Upon Rudra's completion of his praise, Lord Nārāyaṇa, the glorious wielder of the conch and discus, whose lotus-like hand grants fearlessness, addressed him. (v.28)
**The Lord said:**
"Crores of Brāhmaṇa-killings and countless forbidden unions are immediately destroyed by the mere chanting of 'Mahādeva.' O Śiva, for You, Mahādeva, who possess such immense power, how could the sin of killing a Brāhmaṇa be incurred? This is surely a divine play, of this there is no doubt. O Deva, in order to provide for the removal of the sin of Brāhmaṇa-killing for all sinners in the world, this sacred place has been revealed by You. In this sacred place, having established and worshipped the great Liṅga, Śiraḥkhaṇḍa-Maheśvara, and Me, Kapālamocana [the liberator from the skull], may all of you sages, of pure conduct on earth, utterly destroy the sins of Brāhmaṇa-killing and all others." (v.29-33)
**The Sadguru said:**
Having spoken thus, Viṣṇu disappeared, along with Brahma and Śiva. All the gods, delighted, returned to heaven. The sages too performed the worship of both Viṣṇu and Śiva. From that time onwards in this world, the great Śiraḥkhaṇḍapura became a preeminent sacred place renowned for destroying the sin of Brāhmaṇa-killing. (v.34-35)
Thus the fifth chapter, named "The Glory of Khaṇḍanapura," in the Third Part of the Divyadeśavaibhavam, composed by Śrī Kṛṣṇapremi Mahāprabhu.
