In the past a beautiful city was situated on the banks of the river Tungabhadra, in that city many people of all the varnas used to work according to their varna. A Brahmin named Atma Dev lived with his wife in the same city. Atma Dev was very knowledgeable and stunning. His wife’s name was dhundhuli, she was very quarrelsome despite being of a good family. Atmadev, Dhundali, despite having immense wealth and all amenities, did not have peace in their house. The reason for this was that they both had no children.
Both of them fasted for many years to get children. Performed many yagyas and Havan. Even after doing this, Atma Dev did not have any children. Because of this, Atma Dev started feeling very sad. He was no longer interested in anything in life. One day Atma Dev left his house in the morning and took the path of the forest. On the way, when he was thirsty, he stopped near a pond and there he took refreshment. Atmdev saw that a monk is drinking water there. Atmadev then went in front of the monk and bowed with folded hands and stood before him.
After bowing, the monk asked Atma Dev, Brahman, you are looking worried, tell me what’s causing this worry. Hearing the words of sannyasin, Atma Dev said, I have everything, there is no lack of wealth and amenities. I have only one sorrow, the sorrow of not having children. The birth of an person who does not have children is considered futile. There is no use of property without children. Because if you have children, then you can give money and wealth to them and it makes parents get happiness from it. That is why I performed many yagyas and havans, donated alms to get children, but still I have no children.
Hearing the words of Atma Dev, the monk said, “Why do you want to get more misery in this family life, Brahman Dev?” A man should try to become a ascetic, wife, son, all of these are cause of suffering in life. The comfort that a householder gets is momentary. Only a ascetic man gets eternal happiness, because that is true freedom. A householder always has to remain subordinate. That is why abandon the temptation to have children and go to your home and live your life happily. Even after explaining a lot by sannyasis, Atma Dev did not understand anything, because the temptation of getting children had overtaken his mind.
Seeing atmadeva not believing , the monk saw his fate and said , atmadeva you will not have a son for next seven births , leave this idea of getting a son and go to your home. Atma deva did not listen to the monk and stayed there and prayed the sage to help him. After some time the monk changed his mind and the monk gave a fruit to Atmdev and said, you give this fruit to your wife to eat, from which you will get a son. Tell your wife to follow these rules for a year, control your mind and never get angry and always be engaged in devotion to God. By doing this you will get a son who behaves in a friendly manner and will also be virtuous. The monk left the place after saying so, Atma Dev also took the fruit and went to his house.
After going home, Atma Dev gave the fruit given by monk to his wife Dhunduli to eat and asked her to follow all the rules laid down by the monk. Atmadev’s wife Dundhuli was very lazy, she went to her neighbor and talked about it. Dhunduli said to her neighbor friend, “how can one get a son by eating fruit ?” Having a child in the womb is a very tiresome thing. You cannot even eat the food of your choice properly, you have to suffer unbearable pain during delivery and if things go wrong during delivery, you may have to loose your life at the time of delivery.
After the birth of child, the child’s feces have to be cleaned and i have to take care of him. Children are always crying, because of that they cannot even sleep properly. That is why I think that women who do not have children are happy, or those who are widowed women are happy. Because they do not have to suffer to take care of the children and raise them. In this way, by talking nonsense with her neighbor, she fed the fruit given by her husband aatmdev to her cow.
It is about the same time that Dhundhuli’s sister comes to her house, Dhundhuli tells her all her accounts. After listening to the dhundhuli, her sister says, don’t you worry I’m pregnant too. You give some money to my husband, I will give my child to yoh as soon as the child is born, you should stay at home now, do not take go out of the house. After giving my child to you, I will tell everyone that my child has died. Then you tell everyone my child is your child and tell the same to your husband also, saying like this, both sisters work according to their plan. As time passes, a child is born to the dhundhulis sister and she brings that child and gives it to her sister. She tells the people that her child has died, then dhundhuli tells her husband, there is no milk in my breast. That is why we should bring my sister here as her child has died after birth she will feed our child.
Agreeing to the dhundhuli, Aatmdev allowed her sister to stay in his house. After the birth of the child, Atmdev celebrated in his house and completed all the rituals of the birth celebration by donating gifts to the Brahmins. Exactly three months later, the cow, which was fed by Dhundali the fruit given to her by the monk, gave birth to a child. Atmadev was astonished to see that the boy was just like humans. This thing spread among all the people and people used to come to see that child from far away. People also said, how fortunate Atmadev is, at first he had no children, but now he has two children.
The child’s ears, produced from the stomach of the cow were like a cow. That is why Atma Dev named him Gokarna the one who’s ears are like that of cows. Gokarna turned out to be a very saintly man and an ardent devotee of God, but Dhundhuli’s son Dhundhuri turned out to be extremely vicious and vile. Due to this he became a vampire, later Gokarn ji got his brother to listen to Shrimad Bhagwat Maha Purana. Due to which he was liberated from his vampire form and went to the abode of Lord Narayana. Impressed by the pious work of teaching and reciting Shrimad Bhagwat Puran to the people, Lord Sri Krishna himself took Gokarnaji to Goloka.
In this way a Brahmin named Gokarna originated from the belly of the cow and he went to the shrine of Lord Sri Krishna with the fruits of making people listen to on Srimad Bhagavat.
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Categories: Bhagwat Puran
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