And the gods came to the
shore of the Ocean with Ananta and addressed the Ocean, saying, 'O Ocean;
we have come to churn thy waters for obtaining nectar.' And the Ocean
replied, 'Be it so, as I shall not go without a share of it. I am able to
bear the prodigious agitation of my waters set up by the mountain.' The
gods then went to the king of tortoises and said to him, 'O Tortoise-king,
thou wilt have to hold the mountain on thy back!' The Tortoise-king agreed,
and Indra contrived to place the mountain on the former's back.
"And the gods and the Asuras made of Mandara a churning staff and Vasuki
the cord, and set about churning the deep for amrita. The Asuras held
Vasuki by the hood and the gods held him by the tail. And Ananta, who was
on the side of the gods, at intervals raised the snake's hood and suddenly
lowered it. And in consequence of the stretch Vasuki received at the hands
of the gods and the Asuras, black vapours with flames issued from his
mouth. These, turned into clouds charged with lightning, poured showers
that refreshed the tired gods. And flowers that also fell on all sides of
the celestials from the trees on the whirling Mandara, refreshed them.
"Then, O Brahmana, out of the deep came a tremendous roar like unto the
roar of the clouds at the Universal Dissolution. Diverse aquatic animals
being crushed by the great mountain gave up the ghost in the salt waters.
And many denizens of the lower regions and the world of Varuna were killed.
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