Urvashi

Urvashi (Sanskrit: उर्वशी, romanized: Urvaśī) is the most prominent apsara (celestial nymph) in Hindu mythology, considered to be the most beautiful of all the apsaras, and an expert dancer. She is mentioned in the Vedas, Itihasa and Puranas. She is often portrayed as a 'swan maiden'.

For other uses, see Urvashi (disambiguation).

Urvashi
Urvashi leaving her husband Pururavas, a chromolithograph by Raja Ravi Varma
Devanagariउर्वशी
AffiliationApsara
AbodeSvarga
GenderFemale
Personal information
SpousePururavas
Children
DynastyChandravamsha (by marriage)

Urvashi is described to be born out of the thigh of sage Narayana and occupies a special place in the court of Indra, the king of the gods and ruler of svarga (heaven). She is famous for her marriage to Pururavas, a mortal king, whom she later abandons. Urvashi is also regarded as the mother of sages Vashishtha and Agastya.[1][2]

Etymology

The Sanskrit name "Urvaśī" can have multiple meanings. It is derived from roots—uru and aś.[3] Some believe that the name has a non-Aryan origin.[4]

According to the scripture Devi Bhagavata Purana, the apsara is known as Urvashi because she is born from the uru—'thigh'—of the divine-sage Narayana.[5] Indologist Monier Monier-Williams proposes a different etymology in which the name means 'widely pervasive' and he suggests that in its first appearances in Vedic texts Urvashi was a personification of dawn.[3]

Textual sources

Urvashi is the apsara to be specially named in the Rigveda. A dialogue between her and her husband Pururavas is mentioned in Rigveda Mandala 10. In the dialogue, Pururavas requests Urvashi not to leave him.[6][7][8] The legend of Urvashi is retold and expanded in many later Hindu scriptures, including the Shatapatha Brahmana, Brihaddevata, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Harivamsa, Vayu Purana, Vishnu Purana, Matsya Purana, Bhagavata Purana, Devi-Bhagavata Purana, Padma Purana and Skanda Purana.[7][5][9][10]

Urvashi has been dramatized and adapted by many poets and authors. Among these, the most popular one is the Vikramorvashiyam by the Sanskrit poet Kalidasa. The drama depicts the love of Urvashi and Pururavas.[9][7] Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941) has also written a poem about Urvashi.[11][12]

Legends

Birth
A relief depicting Narayana (left) and Nara (right), Deogarh, Uttar Pradesh, ca. 5th century CE

Urvashi's birth is narrated in the Devi-Bhagavata Purana. In the legend, the brothers Nara and Narayana are performing penance to please the creator god Brahma, but this makes Indra (the king of the devas) insecure about his throne and he does not want the sage to acquire divine powers. As a result, he creates multiple illusions to break their penance, but all of his tricks fail. Finally, he orders the apsaras of his court, including Rambha, Menaka, and Tilottama, to go to Nara-Narayana and distract them through seduction.[13]

Accompanied by the god of love, Kama, and his consort, Rati, the apsaras go to Nara-Narayana, and start to dance seductively in front of them. However, the sages remain unaffected by this and decide to break the pride of the apsaras. Narayana slaps his thigh, from which Urvashi emerges. Her beauty leaves Indra's apsaras matchless, and they become ashamed of their evil act. Nara and Narayana assure Indra that they would not take his throne, and gift Urvashi to him. She occupied the place of pride in Indra’s court.[14][15][13]

Birth of Vasishtha and Agastya

Urvashi is said to be the "mother" of the sages—Vasishtha and Agastya. It is narrated in the Rigveda that the gods Varuna and Mitra once perform a yajna (fire-sacrifice), when Urvashi arrives in front of them. After seeing her, they become sexually aroused and ejaculate their semen into a pitcher from which Vasishtha and Agastya are born. Similar accounts of this story appear in the Brihaddevata, Matsya Purana, and other scriptures.[16][17]

In later Hindu texts, Vashishtha is described as a Manasputra (mind-created son) of the god Brahma, who takes rebirth through Urvashi and Mitra-Varuna. The Ramayana and Mahabharata narrate that after Vashishtha dies due to the curse of king Nimi, his spirit is told by Brahma that he won't be reborn from a womb and is instructed to enter inside the body of Mitra-Varuna (combined form of Mitra and Varuna). When Mitra-Varuna sees Urvashi, they separate themselves into two bodies. Varuna desires to have a union with Urvashi and approaches her with his wish. However, she rejects it as she had already promised Mitra a union, leading Varuna to ejaculate inside a celestial pot created by Brahma. Seeing the sight, Urvashi is filled with remorse and passion, causing Mitra's seed to fall from her womb. It is then transferred into the same pot containing Varuna's seed. Vashishtha is reborn from it. Along with him, Agastya is also born.[18][19] Mitra curses Urvashi to live as a wife of a mortal man for showing infidelity.[13][17]

Wife of Pururavas
An emblem depicting Pururavas and Urvashi, 1st century BCE - 1st century CE.

The most prominent myth featuring Urvashi is about her marriage to Pururavas, a mortal king who is credited as the founder of Chandravamsha (lit. 'lunar dynasty'), a legendary dynasty in ancient India. The myth is first narrated in the Rigveda, where it is presented in the form of dialogue. The Vedic hymn begins with Urvashi being found by her husband Pururavas, who begs her to return. However, she harshly refuses, complaining that he made too much love with her, and advises him to do good deeds to ascend to heaven and reunite with her.[20] The context for this scene is provided in subsequent texts.[7] Scholars note that while in Rigveda Urvashi is portrayed as being a self-willed and unyielding woman who married Pururavas for her own desire and abandons him after giving birth to their son, the later adaptations mark her for her love for Pururavas and blame the celestial beings for their separation.[21][22]

The Post-Vedic texts attest that Urvashi falls in love with handsome and heroic Pururavas and the latter also reciprocates his feelings for her. After Urvashi is cursed to descend on the Earth and become the wife of a mortal, she marries Pururavas on some conditions, with the most important being that he would never appear naked before her apart from during coitus.[lower-alpha 2] According to Vishnu Purana and Bhagavata Purana, the marriage was due to the curse of Mitra, while in the Devi Bhagavata Purana the curse is attributed to Brahma. A few years pass and Urvashi's presence is missed in heaven. A group of Gandharvas (celestial musicians), led by Vishvashu, are instructed to bring her back to heaven. One night when Urvashi and Pururavas are busy making love, the Gandharvas abduct Urvashi's pet lambs that were tied to her bed, and hearing their cries, Urvashi rebukes Pururavas for not protecting them. In haste, Pururavas forgets that he is naked, and stands up to chase the sheep. The Gandharvas then illuminate the place with a bolt of lightning, leading to Urvashi seeing Pururavas naked. Pururavas manages to bring back the sheep but Urvashi vanishes. Grief-sickened, he searches for her across the country and finds her disguised as a swan in a lake. He supplicates her to return but she refuses. Seeing his sorrow, Urvashi reveals that she is pregnant with their child and instructs him to return to the same place the next year so that they could spend that night together. Urvashi would descend upon the earth and bore Pururavas six sons—Ayus, Shrutayus, Satyayus, Raya, Vijaya, and Jaya.[13][10] However, according to the Adi Parva of Mahabharata, the names of these six sons are Ayus, Dhimat, Amavasu and Dhridhayus, and Vanayus, and Satayus. Following Urvashi's advice, Pururavas later transforms himself into a Gandharva and is able to reunite with her in heaven.[13][23][22][20]

Other legends
Urvashi curses Arjuna, an illustration from an early 20th-century Gita Press Mahabharata.

In the Vayu Purana, the sage Agastya once arrives in Indra's court and is welcomed by a dance performance of Urvashi. In the performance, Urvashi and Jayanta, the son of Indra, look into each other's eyes in love. The distracted Urvashi misses a beat, and the dance goes haywire. Due to this, Jayanta is cursed to be born as bamboo, and Urvashi is cursed to take birth on Earth as a woman named Madhavi.[13]

Urvashi is said to have caused the birth of the sage Rishyashringa. According to the Mahabharata, Urvashi is traveling on the banks of a river, when rishi Vibhandaka, son of Kashyapa, sees her and becomes aroused by her beauty and has seminal emissions. His seed comes in contact with a doe, who turns out be an apsara cursed to remain in that form till she gives birth to a boy. She gives birth to Rishyashringa, and he is raised by his father.[13]

Another tale featuring Urvashi and a mortal prince is found in the Mahabharata.[lower-alpha 3] Arjuna, a prince belonging to Chandravamsha and the spiritual son of Indra, comes to heaven to learn under Gandharva Chitrasena. Urvashi becomes attracted to him and reaches Arjuna's residence adorned in beautiful attire. She tells him about her desire, but the latter jilts her advances, considering her to be an ancestor of his, as well as a mother, because of her past marriage to Pururavas. Urvashi tries to convince him to accept her by telling that Apsaras are free and unconfined in their choice, and they can sport with any man they wish. Arjuna still refuses and an enraged Urvashi curses him to be destitute of his manhood and to be scorned as a eunuch for one year. Indra later pacifies Arjuna that the curse would be beneficial for him during his Agyatavasa (incognito exile).[13][25]

Notes
  1. In the epic Mahabharata, the names of the sons of Pururavas are Ayus, Dhimat, Amavasu and Dhridhayus, and Vanayus, and Satayus.
  2. In the Shatapatha Brahmana, Urvashi lays down two conditions that Pururavas would make love with her regularly, but only when she consented, and he would never appear naked in front of her.[20] In the Puranas, three conditions are mentioned—Pururavas would never appear naked in front of her, he would protect her two pet sheep and she would only consume ghee (clarified butter).[13]
  3. This tale is excluded in the Critical Edition of the Mahabharata and has been regarded by scholars as a later interpolation to the epic.[24]

References
  1. Eck, Diana L. (27 March 2012). India: A Sacred Geography. Harmony/Rodale. p. 337. ISBN 978-0-385-53191-7.
  2. Gupta, Shakti M. (2002). Indian Mythology: Myths and Legends. B.R. Publishing Corporation. p. 133. ISBN 978-81-7646-276-1.
  3. Monier-Williams, Sir Monier; Leumann, Ernst; Cappeller, Carl (1899). A Sanskrit-English Dictionary: Etymologically and Philologically Arranged with Special Reference to Cognate Indo-European Languages. Motilal Banarsidass Publishing House. pp. 218, 637. ISBN 978-81-208-3105-6.
  4. Jamanadas, K. (2007). Devadasis: Ancient to Modern. Kalpaz Publications. ISBN 978-81-7835-547-4.
  5. Vemsani, Lavanya (2021). "Urvashi: Celestial Women and Earthly Heroes". Feminine Journeys of the Mahabharata. pp. 229–241. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-73165-6_12. ISBN 978-3-030-73164-9. S2CID 236730753.
  6. Varadpande, Manohar Laxman (2006). Woman in Indian Sculpture. Abhinav Publications. ISBN 978-81-7017-474-5.
  7. Gaur, R. C. (1974). "The Legend of Purūravas and Urvaśī: An Interpretation". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. 106 (2): 142–152. doi:10.1017/S0035869X00131983. JSTOR 25203565. S2CID 162234818.
  8. Pattanaik, Devdutt (20 January 2019). "Three Vedic women". Mumbai Mirror.
  9. Kantawala, S. G. (1976). "Purūravas-Urvaśī Episode: A Study in Vedico-Purāṇic Correlates". Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute. 57 (1/4): 49–58. JSTOR 41692233.
  10. Doniger, Wendy (23 February 1993). Purana Perennis: Reciprocity and Transformation in Hindu and Jaina Texts. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-0-7914-1382-1.
  11. Dalal, Roshen (2010). Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide. Penguin Books India. ISBN 978-0-14-341421-6.
  12. George, K. M. (1992). Modern Indian Literature, an Anthology: Surveys and poems. Sahitya Akademi. ISBN 978-81-7201-324-0.
  13. Mani, Vettam (1975). Puranic encyclopaedia : a comprehensive dictionary with special reference to the epic and Puranic literature. Robarts - University of Toronto. Delhi : Motilal Banarsidass. p. 811.
  14. "Birth of Urvashi - Indian Mythology". www.apamnapat.com. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  15. The Goddess in India: The Five Faces of the Eternal Feminine By Devdutt Pattanaik, Published 2000, Inner Traditions / Bear & Company, 176 pages, ISBN 0-89281-807-7 p.66
  16. Patton, Laurie L. (14 May 2014). Myth as Argument: The Brhaddevata as Canonical Commentary. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG. ISBN 978-3-11-081275-6.
  17. Goodman, Hananya (1 February 2012). Between Jerusalem and Benares: Comparative Studies in Judaism and Hinduism. SUNY Press. ISBN 978-1-4384-0437-0.
  18. Obbink, Hendrik Willem. Orientalia Rheno-traiectina. Brill Archive.
  19. Mani, Vettam (1975). Puranic encyclopaedia : a comprehensive dictionary with special reference to the epic and Puranic literature. Robarts - University of Toronto. Delhi : Motilal Banarsidass. p. 5.
  20. Leavy, Barbara Fass (July 1995). In Search of the Swan Maiden: A Narrative on Folklore and Gender. NYU Press. ISBN 978-0-8147-5100-8.
  21. Deodhar, Lalita (1988). "ON SOME PURĀṆIC DIMENSION OF THE LEGEND OF URVAŚĪ AND PURURAVAS". Bulletin of the Deccan College Research Institute. 47/48: 61–65. ISSN 0045-9801. JSTOR 42930212.
  22. Doniger, Wendy (30 September 2010). The Hindus: An Alternative History. OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-959334-7.
  23. https://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m01/m01076.htm
  24. M. A. Mehendale (1 January 2001). Interpolations In The Mahabharata. pp. 200–201.
  25. "The Mahabharata, Book 3: Vana Parva: Indralokagamana Parva: Section XLVI". www.sacred-texts.com. Retrieved 20 September 2021.

Bibliography
  • Dowson, John. A Dictionary of Hindu Mythology & Religion.
  • The Sri Mad Devi Bhagavatam: Books One Through Twelve 1923. Kessinger Publishing. 2004. ISBN 978-0-7661-8167-0.

Further reading
  • Gaur, R. C. (1974). "The Legend of Purūravas and Urvaśī: An Interpretation". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland. 106 (2): 142–152. doi:10.1017/S0035869X00131983. JSTOR 25203565. S2CID 162234818.
  • Leavy, Barbara Fass (1994). "Urvaśī and the Swan Maidens: The Runaway Wife". In Search of the Swan Maiden. NYU Press. pp. 33–63. ISBN 978-0-8147-5268-5. JSTOR j.ctt9qg995.5.
  • Wright, J. C. (1967). "Purūravas and Urvaśī". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. 30 (3): 526–547. doi:10.1017/S0041977X00132033. JSTOR 612386. S2CID 162788253.
  • Teverson, Andrew; Warwick, Alexandra; Wilson, Leigh, eds. (2015). "'Cupid, Psyche, and the "Sun-Frog"', Custom and Myth: (London: Longmans, Green and Co., 1884)". The Edinburgh Critical Edition of the Selected Writings of Andrew Lang, Volume 1: Anthropology, Fairy Tale, Folklore, The Origins of Religion, Psychical Research. Edinburgh University Press. pp. 66–78. ISBN 978-1-4744-0021-3. JSTOR 10.3366/j.ctt16r0jdk.9.
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