Religion:Rantideva

Short description: Hindu King

Rantideva was a king who attained Moksha (liberation) by Vishnu when the devas tested him for his faith in God. He was a descendant of the Bharata Dynasty and was described as a generous being in the Hindu texts to all as he believed that God resides in everyone. In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, it is described in Drona Parva that he performed a Yajna (fire ritual) which created the Charmanvati (the modern-day Chambal river).

Legends

Birth of Charmanwati River

As Rantideva was a faithful follower of Vishnu, the king gave away to the Brahmanas his wealth and thus acquired righteous means. The king gave promises and engaged in performance of various sacrifices. As mass of animals were in desire of attaining Svarga Loka (heaven) and came by themselves to attain salvation in the Agnihotra sacrifice. The secretions of waste flowing from his kitchen from the heaps of skins deposited formed a river which came to be known as the Charmanwati (modern-day Chambal river). This is mentioned in the Drona Parva passage of the Hindu epic Mahabharata.

The Devas' test

Once Vishnu was in his abode with his wife Lakshmi when the devas arrived. Indra came forward and asked who the god's greatest devotee is. Vishnu replied, "It is definitely Ratideva." The gods refused, protesting that he couldn't be the one and that humans would only be with God when they are in need. Thus, the devas planned a test to decide whether Ratideva was a faithful devotee. During this event, Ratideva's kingdom was suffering from drought and famine. The generous king decided to give all his wealth, food and his palace to prevent the people's needs from growing. However, the deed was not sufficient enough to hold it and the people's lives became worse. The king then stayed in a forest to meditate and fast for forty-eight days to seek the blessings of Vishnu. One day, he managed to obtain food prepared with ghee and milk. As his family members were in hunger and were weak, the king still stayed sober. As he was about to eat, a Brahmin arrived at his doorstep to ask for donation. Ratideva, seeing God in him, gave a half of the food to him. As the family sat down to eat, a hungry Shudra appeared, who was given a portion of the food. After the man departed, a hunter with his dogs were starving and were in search for consumption. The king thus gave all his food to the guests and they left. Lastly, a huge Chandala (a person who cremates dead bodies) was walking nearby feebly. The king saw this and ran to the man with water. The Chandala refused to take the offer as he pointed out that he was an untouchable. Ratideva saw through the reason and boldly offered the remaining refreshment. By this act, the devas including Vishnu appeared before the king. Ratideva paid respects to the gods but was bewildered. The devas explained their previous discussion, and that they had taken the forms of the guests that had taken his refreshments. The king exclaimed that he needed no boons and only wanted others to be happy and help them to reach their goal(s), including Moksha (liberation). Vishnu then removed all his and the people's problems and blessed the king. This story is written in the Srimad Bhagavata.