Raibhya’s learned sons, Puravasu and Arvavasu, were invited to the palace of King Brihadyumna to perform a great sacrifice. Puravasu had to return to the ashrama for a while. He saw something move and shot it with an arrow. It turned out that he had killed, not an animal, but his own father, as a result of Bharadwaja’s curse. He returned to the sacrifice and told his brother what had happened. Arvavasu said, “You perform the sacrifice. I will go and perform father’s last rites and do the penance for your having killed him.” Puravasu, jealous of his brother, told everyone that Arvavasu had killed his father. Arvavasu denied his brother’s lies but no one believed him. Being not only learned but also virtuous, he did penance and asked the gods to take away his anger and to bring his father to life again, so his brother’s sins were washed off.
Raibhya’s Sons
