What Is Kaladharma?

We saw the history of Bhrigu vamsha, the mystery behind the birth of Chyavana Maharshi, how he got that name — all that we saw in the earlier episode.

Here, Sauti asked Shaunaka Maharshi what he would like to hear. The Maharshi said, 'Tell first about the history of my own vamsha, the Bhrigu vamsha.'

Chyavana was Bhrigu's son. Chyavana's wife was Sukanya. Their son was प्रमति. Pramati's son was Ruru. Ruru's mother was an apsara called Ghritachi. Essentially, Gandharva patnis or Gandharva strees are called apsaras.

Here, a child is born to a rishi and an apsara — Pramati and Ghritachi — their son, Ruru. Ruru's wife was Pramadwara. Their son was Shunka. Shunka's son was Shaunaka Maharshi.

Now Sauti is going to narrate the incidents connected to Ruru, Shaunaka Maharshi's paternal grandfather.

Ruru became a hard enemy of serpents due to a certain reason. He also, like Uttanka, wanted to eliminate the clan of serpents. We will see how this happened.

This is connected to Pramadwara's wedding with Ruru.

Once, the apsara Menaka conceived from the Gandharva called Vishwavasu. After giving birth to a girl, Menaka abandoned that child near the ashrama of Rishi Sthoolakesha and went away. Mahabharata scolds Menaka for doing this, calling her nirdaya and निरपत्रपा. निरपत्रपा means shameless.

But then, the subsequent events wouldn’t have unfolded if Menaka had not done that. When Sthoolakesha saw the abandoned child, as brilliant as a deva kanya, his heart filled with kindness. He took the child to his ashrama and brought her up as his own daughter. He performed all the samskaras for the child as one would do for his own daughter.

She grew up into a beautiful maiden. Pramada means beautiful woman. This girl was greatest even among them — प्रमदाभ्यो वरा — so her name became Pramadwara.

One day, Ruru happened to see Pramadwara in Sthoolakesha's ashrama. He developed instant liking for her and wanted to marry her. He came back and told his father Pramati, not directly but through his friends. Pramati went and asked Sthoolakesha to give Pramadwara to his son Ruru. Sthoolakesha happily agreed and committed.

The muhurta for marriage was fixed for the next Uttara Phalguni nakshatra. But then, something unfortunate happened.

Pramadwara was playing with her friends. She accidentally stepped on a snake. The snake bit her, and she died.

There was no limit to Ruru's sadness. He became a widower even before he got married. He started crying.

Here, Mahabharata brings out something very important. Mahabharata says when Pramadwara stepped upon the snake, she was kalachodita, and the snake bit her kaladhamana. Time prompted her to step upon the snake, and the snake also bit her following kaladharma.

What is kaladharma? To be born at a certain time, and to die after some time. There is no escape from this. The snake was only an instrument in the hand of time.

Kala is the prerana shakti behind every action. Every action is time-bound. If there is no concept of time, we will all be just like logs of wood.

It is because the sun rises at a certain time that the day starts. It is because the monsoon arrives at a certain time that we are prepared for it. Everything — office, business, travel — they are all bound by time.

If the concept of time disappears, then the world also disappears. Before bringing the world into existence, the Creator says, 'Now the world will come into existence, and it will vanish after 4.32 billion years.' Without setting this end point, there is no creation.

Just like how a movie starts, it has to end after two or two and a half hours. Nothing can be open-ended. Nothing is forever.

If there is an accidental death, then the victim is under the prompt of kala, and the person who caused the accident is also under the prompt and control of kala.

Why did he cross the road at that exact point of time? Why did the driver look to the side at that exact point of time?

Here, Mahabharata is not blaming anyone — neither the girl for her carelessness, nor the snake for being cruel. Mahabharata says both were under the control of kala, and both did not have a choice.

Ramaswamy Sastry and Vighnesh Ghanapaathi