In the ancient age of the world, when the boundaries between the realms of mortals and the abodes of the gods were thin, there ruled a king of immense virtue and bravery named Pururavas. He was the son of Budha, the deity of the planet Mercury, and Ila, the child of Manu, making him the founder of the illustrious Aila or Lunar dynasty. His capital was the magnificent city of Pratishthana, situated at the sacred confluence of the Ganges and the Yamuna rivers, a place known today as Jhusi in Prayagraj. Pururavas was not merely a king of men; he was a hero whose fame reached the heavens, often invited by Indra, the king of the gods, to assist in the battles against the Asuras. It was during one such return from the celestial heights that the course of his life was forever altered.
While traveling through the clouds in his golden chariot, Pururavas heard a piercing cry for help. Turning his gaze, he saw the demon Keshin abducting two beautiful women. One of them was Urvashi, the most exquisite of all the Apsaras, who had been created from the thigh of the sage Narayana to humble the pride of the gods. Driven by his warrior spirit and an immediate, overwhelming attraction, Pururavas pursued the demon and, in a fierce aerial skirmish, defeated him. He rescued Urvashi and her companion, Chitralekha, returning them safely to the celestial gardens. In that brief moment of rescue, a spark of love was ignited between the mortal king and the immortal nymph—a love that defied the natural order of the universe.
Urvashi, weary of the structured and often cold life in Indra’s court, found herself enchanted by the courage and the physical presence of Pururavas. However, an Apsara cannot simply leave the heavens. The opportunity for her to descend to Earth came through a series of divine mishaps. According to some accounts, she was cursed by the sage Bharata during a performance in heaven because her mind wandered toward Pururavas, causing her to flub her lines in a sacred play. According to others, she simply chose to leave. Regardless of the catalyst, she appeared before Pururavas in the groves of Pratishthana, her beauty illuminating the forest like a thousand moons. She agreed to become his wife and live among mortals, but she did so with a heavy heart, knowing that the union of a god and a human is always fragile. She imposed three unbreakable conditions: First, Pururavas must never allow her to see him naked. Second, he must take care of her two pet rams as if they were his own children, never letting them be stolen or harmed. Third, they were to consume only clarified butter (ghee) as their sustenance.
Pururavas, blinded by his devotion, readily agreed to these terms. For many years, the king and the nymph lived in a state of unparalleled bliss in the palace at Pratishthana. The king neglected his royal duties, and the gardens of the capital bloomed with flowers from other worlds. They walked along the banks of the Yamuna, and the people of the kingdom marveled at the radiance of their queen. During this time, they had several sons, the eldest being Ayu, who would later carry on the lineage of the Lunar dynasty. However, the heavens were not content. The Gandharvas, the celestial musicians and companions of the Apsaras, felt the void left by Urvashi's absence. They missed her dance and her song, and Indra himself felt that such a divine treasure should not be possessed by a mere mortal for so long. They plotted to bring her back to the celestial fold by forcing a breach of the conditions she had set.
One night, as the couple lay in the darkness of their chamber, the Gandharvas stole into the palace and abducted one of the pet rams. The animal bleated piteously, waking Urvashi. She cried out to the king, accusing him of failing in his duty to protect her 'children.' Pururavas, hearing her distress and the cry of the ram, forgot himself in his haste to prove his valor. He leaped from the bed, grabbing his sword, and gave chase in the pitch blackness. He did not pause to clothe himself, believing the darkness would shield him from Urvashi's sight. This was the moment the Gandharvas had waited for. They unleashed a blinding flash of lightning that illuminated the room with the brilliance of the midday sun. In that sudden, sharp light, Urvashi saw her husband standing naked before her. The conditions were shattered. True to her word and bound by the laws of her kind, Urvashi vanished instantly, leaving the king standing alone in the silent, dark chamber with only the stolen ram bleating in the distance.