The sorrow of separation

The sorrow of separation from Urvashi started dominating Pururava. His body turned black and his hair became long. A stunning king started looking like a beggar. He kept searching for Urvashi for years by taking the Sangamaniya gem in his hands.


The unexpected

One day Pururava was sitting in the Ananda Udyan (name of his royal garden) with the Sangamaniya gem in his hand and weeping over his fate. Suddenly, a crow dived from the sky on Prurava and it lifted the Sangamaniya gem in his beak and flew away. In fact, the crow thought that the red gem was a piece of flesh.

This was the jewel that led Pururava to Urvashi. Therefore it was precious to him. Pururava got up and followed the crows. When he was about to shoot his arrow, the crow itself fell into the courtyard. Pururava ordered the guards to bring it and saw that an unknown arrow had killed it.

In that era, it was a tradition that an arrow should contain the name of its owner. When Pururava saw the arrow on that crow, he was stunned after reading the name written on it. It was written "Āyu, son of Pururava and Urvashi". He summoned the young man. He was like a replica of the youthful self of young Pururava. He felt as if he was looking at himself in the mirror of time.

Pururava requested to meet the guardians of that young man. Āyu introduced him to sage Chyavan and his wife Satyavati. Upon asking about Ayu, the sage couple then revealed a secret to Pururava.


The secret of Urvashi

Chyavan narrated to Pururava.

"When you and Urvashi lived in Gandhamardan, one day Urvashi came to know that she was pregnant. She was afraid that upon seeing her child she would have to leave you and go to heaven. 

The day she saw that you were seeing a Gandharva girl playing with water in the river, immediately Urvashi reached there and accused you of staring at that girl. She pretended to be angry with you and left you. 

Before entering the cursed forest, she gave birth to her child in solitude. Then she came to my ashram (hermitage) with her newborn son. After narrating her distress she told me, "Because I love Pururava so much and don't want to stay away from him, so it better he shouldn't see this child. Please make arrangements for its education and upbringing. When the time comes you have to hand over him to Pururava yourself. 

My king! She just used the period of separation to deliver the child. She abandoned her maternal instinct and left the child in my care. She did all of this because she loved you so much." 

Now Pururava asked the sage, how come he never saw Urvashi getting pregnant? 

Chyavan said on this matter that, the pregnancy cycle of an Apsara (Celestial nymph) is different from human pregnancy. They do not have to wait for 9 months to give birth to their child. Since Urvashi's curse can be fruitful only when Pururava sees the child, which she did not want. So she took this step on purpose and gave birth to their child, who was Āyu.


Pururava's realization

During her stay in Gandhamardan, Pururava often made fun of Urvashi that she loved her pride more than him. Or else She would not have left him. In return, Urvashi often smiled with sadness in her eyes and said, "You don't know". Pururava could not understand its meaning even after hearing the same answer every time. But the meaning of this answer was now understood by him.

It was a time of both happiness and sorrow for Pururava. He received his son and the heir of his kingdom but was filled with guilt by hearing the secret of his wife's sacrifice. But this was not the time to shed tears in Urvashi's grief. Once again Pururava became a shadow of the grandeur he had once imitated. He devoted himself to train his son in-state operations. When his time came to an end, he crowned Āyu as the next king of Pratishthanpur and again left for Gandhamardan. It was here that he spent his best years with his beloved wife Urvashi.

The reunion

Time moved at its own pace. Meanwhile, Asuras (Demons) waged war on heaven. Hence Devraj Indra sought help from Pururava. At the prospect of seeing Urvashi once again, Pururava was filled with a renewed vigor. He agreed to Indra's request and succeeded in defeating the demons using all his power.

Indra rejoiced at his victory, and he acknowledged that both Pururava and Urvashi set an example of a great love beyond time and that they both deserved each other. Their union was a union that crossed two worlds. Urvashi proved the power of sacrifice and Pururava proved himself worthy for heaven. Indra apologized and allowed Urvashi to meet Pururava.  The love and sacrifice of Urvashi and Pururava did not go in vain. 

But even now Urvashi was an Apsara. So she was bound by the laws of heaven and could not leave with Pururava forever. But on the other hand, now they were free from every condition and could meet with each other whenever they want voluntarily. So as long as Pururava lived, Indra allowed Urvashi to be with him on Earth. Hence they returned to Pratisthanpur together to live happily ever after. Later they both had another 5 sons named Amavasu, Vishvayu, Shrutayu, Shatayu, and Dridhayu.


The conclusion

The sources of the story of Urvashi and Pururava are, Vishnu Purana, Padma Purana, Matsya Purana, Bhagavata Purana, Mahabharata and Brihatkatha. There are many versions of this legend in these sources.

We get the story of Pururava from Rig Veda. However, the description of Urvashi is found in other poems, Vedas and Puranas including Mahabharata. But this love saga of these two given by us is from the second play "Vikramōrvaśīyam" (Urvashi Won by Valour) composed by Kalidasa, which is a mixed form of Samvada Sukta, Rig Veda and M+ahabharata. During his time, Kalidas has made significant adaptations to make this presentation more engaging.

Whatever be the source, but this great love saga of Urvashi and Pururava will remain immortal for ages.

To be continued...