150 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
for whom a Kshatriya is officiating priest? How can illustrious Brahmins
ascend to heaven, after eating the food of a Chandala, and being entertained
by Vishvamitra?” These ruthless words all the Vasishthas, together with Mahodaya, uttered, their eyes inflamed with anger.” Vishvamitra who was
greatly incensed on receiving this message, by a curse doomed the sons of
Vasishtha to be reduced to ashes, and reborn as degraded outcasts (mritapah)
for seven hundred births, and Mahodaya to become a Nishada.
Knowing that this curse had taken effect Vishvamitra then, after eulogizing
Trishanku, proposed to the assembled rishis that the sacrifice should be
celebrated. To this they assented, being actuated by fear of the terrible sage’s
wrath, Vishvamitra himself officiated at the sacrifice as Yajaka; and the other
rishis as priests (ritvijah) (with other functions) performed all the ceremonies.”
In this dispute between Vasishtha and Vishvamitra, Sudas seems to have played an important part. Vasishtha was the family priest of Sudas. It was Vasishtha who performed his coronation ceremony. It was Vasishtha who helped him to win the battle against the ten kings. Notwithstanding this, Sudas removed Vasishtha from office. In his place he appointed Vishvamitra as his purohita [1] who performed yajna for Sudas. This is the first deed of Sudas which created enmity between Sudas and Vasishtha. There was another deed which Sudas committed which widened and intensified the enmity. He threw into fire Shakti the son of Vasishtha and burned him alive. The story is reported in the Satyayana Brahmana. [2] The Satyayana Brahmana does not give the reason for such an atrocious act. Some light is thrown on it by Shadgurushishya [3] in his Commentary on Katyayana’s Anukramanika to the Rig Veda. According to Shadgurushishya, a sacrifice was performed by Sudas at which there was a sort of public debate between Vishvamitra and Shakti, the son of Vasishtha and in this debate, to use the words of Shadgurushishya:
“The power and speech of Vishvamitra were completely vanquished by
Shakti, son of Vasishtha; and the son of Gadhi (Vishvamitra) being so
overcome, became dejected.”
Here is the reason why Sudas threw Shakti into fire. Obviously, Sudas did it to avenge the dishonour and disgrace caused to Vishvamitra. Nothing could avert a deadly enmity growing up between Sudas and Vasishtha.
1 There is no direct evidence for this, Tradition accepts this as correct which seems to have been based upon Rig Veda, III. 53.9. This is confirmed by Yaska in his Niruktu (II, 24) where he says, “They then relate a story. The rishi Vishvamitra was the purohita of Sudas, the son of Pijavana.”
- This is referred to by Sayana in his introduction to Rig Veda, vii.32 on the authority of the Anukramanika which is quoted by Muir, Vol. I, p, 328.
3 This is referred to by Sayana in his introduction to verses 15 and 16 of Sukta
53 of the Third Mandala of the Rig Veda, which is quoted by Muir, Vol. I, p. 343.