And beholding
that wonderful sight, the monarch touched the feet of Satyavati's son,
exclaiming, 'O great Rishi, nothing is miraculous in thee!' The Rishi then
cheerfully continued, 'In a certain hermitage there was an illustrious
Rishi's daughter, who, though handsome and chaste, obtained not a husband.
The maiden gratified, by severe ascetic penances, the god Sankara
(Mahadeva). The lord Sankara, gratified at her penances, told her himself,
'Ask thou the boon thou desirest.' Thus addressed, the maiden repeatedly
said unto the boon-giving Supreme Lord, 'I desire to obtain a husband
possessed of every accomplishment.' Sankara, the chief of the gods,
gratified with her, gave her the boon she asked, saying, 'Thou shall have,
amiable maiden, five husbands.' The maiden, who had succeeded in
gratifying the god, said again, 'O Sankara, I desire to have from thee
only one husband possessed of every virtue?' The god of gods, well-pleased
with her, spake again, saying, 'Thou hast, O maiden, addressed me five
full times, repeating, 'Give me a husband.' Therefore, O amiable one, it
shall even be as thou hast asked. Blessed be thou. All this, however, will
happen in a future life of thine!'
"Vyasa continued, 'O Drupada, this thy daughter of celestial beauty is
that maiden. Indeed, the faultless Krishna sprung from Prishata's race
hath been pre-ordained to become the common wife of five husbands. The
celestial Sri, having undergone severe ascetic penances, hath, for the
sake of the Pandavas, had her birth as thy daughter, in the course of thy
grand sacrifice.
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