Revati

Revati, within Hinduism, is the daughter of King Kakudmi and the wife of Balarama, the elder brother of Krishna. Her account is given within a number of Puranic texts such as the Mahābhārata and Bhagavata Purana (also known as Srimad Bhagavatam).

Meeting with Brahma

Revati was the only daughter of King Kakudmi (sometimes called Kakudmin, or Raivata), a powerful monarch who ruled Kusasthali, a prosperous and advanced kingdom under the sea, and who also controlled large tracts of land, including Anarta kingdom. Feeling that no human could prove to be good enough to marry his lovely and talented daughter, King Kakudmi took Revati with him to Brahma-loka (the plane of existence where Brahma, the Creator, resides) to ask Brahma's advice about finding a suitable husband for Revati.

When they arrived, Brahma was listening to a musical performance by the Gandharvas, so they waited patiently until the performance was finished. Then, Kakudmi bowed humbly, made his request and presented his shortlist of candidates. Brahma laughed loudly, and explained that time runs differently on different planes of existence, and that during the short time they had waited in Brahma-loka to see him, 27 "catur"-yugas (a cycle of four yugas, totalling 108 yugas, or Ages of Man) had passed on earth (see time dilation theory). Brahma said to Kakudmi, "O King, all those whom you may have decided within the core of your heart to accept as your son-in-law have passed away in the course of time. Twenty-seven catur-yugas have already passed. Those upon whom you may have already decided are now gone, and so are their sons, grandsons and other descendants. You cannot even hear about their names. [ [http://bhagavata.org/canto9/chapter3.html Bhag-P, 9.3.32] (see texts 29-32)] You must therefore bestow this virgin gem (i.e. Revati) upon some other husband, for you are now alone, and your friends, your ministers, servants, wives, kinsmen, armies, and treasures, have long since been swept away by the hand of time." [ [http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/vp/vp093.htm "Vishnu-Purana"] (see "Book IV, chap I")]

King Kakudmi was overcome with astonishment and alarm at this news. [ [http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/vp/vp093.htm "Vishnu-Purana"] (see "Book IV, chap I")] However, Brahma comforted him, and added that Vishnu, the Preserver, was currently incarnate on earth in the forms of Krishna and Balarama, and he recommended Balarama as a worthy husband for Revati.

Kakudmi and Revati then returned to earth, which they regarded as having left only just a short while ago. They were shocked by the changes that had taken place. Not only had the landscape and environment changed, but over the intervening 27 "catur"-yugas, in the cycles of human spiritual and cultural evolution, mankind was at a lower level of development than in their own time (see Ages of Man). The Srimad Bhagavatam describes that they found the race of men had become "dwindled in stature, reduced in vigour, and enfeebled in intellect."

Marriage to Balarama

Daughter and father found Balarama and proposed the marriage. Because she was from an earlier yuga, Revati was far taller and larger than her husband-to-be, but Balarama, "beholding the damsel of excessively lofty height," tapped his plough (his characteristic weapon) on her head and she shrunk to the normal height of people in that yuga. The marriage was then duly celebrated.

Revati was fond of drinking wine in Balarama's presence, although neither of them ever lost their senses through intoxication. Revati bore her husband two sons, Nisatha and Ulmuka. Both her sons were killed in the Yadu fratricidical war, after which Balarama also ended his earthly incarnation in meditation by the sea. [ [http://vedabase.net/sb/11/30/26/en1 Bhag-P 11.30.26] ] At his funeral ceremony, Revati ascended onto his funeral pyre and was immolated with him.

Time Dilation in other cultures

Similar stories also exist in the Middle East, appearing in the Arabian Nights.

In English myths, there is the tale of the ancient Briton King Herla, [ [http://www.maryjones.us/ctexts/map1.html King Herla and the Wild Hunt] ] from "De Nugis Curialium". King Herla spends three days in the dwarf kingdom, and returns only to discover that many centuries had elapsed.

In Ireland, the most famous story is the legend where the bard Oisín is taken to Tír na nÓg. The Voyage of Bran is also similar to this story.

The Japanese have the story of Urashima Tarō, a fisherman who visits the Dragon King and his daughter in Ryūgū-jō (or the "Dragon Palace"), located beneath the ocean.

Intriguingly, the Dragon King and his daughter are inhabitants of a kingdom beneath the ocean. Note the similarity to King Kakudmi and his daughter Revati, who are inhabitants of Kusasthali, also located in the ocean depths.

A Japanese sci-fi author, Aritsune Toyoda, explained that such phenomena is caused by the Twin paradox derived from Albert Einstein's Theory of Relativity.

ee also

*Balarama
*Yuga
*Time Dilation

Notes and references

External links

* [http://srimadbhagavatam.com/9/3/en2 Srimad Bhagavatam]
* [http://www.mythfolklore.net/india/encyclopedia/revati.htm www.mythfolklore.net]
* [http://www.mypurohith.com/encyclopedia/EnclopR2.asp www.mypurohith.com/encyclopedia]