In the Satya Yuga, the city of Kanchanawati stood near the banks of the Narmada river. King Malayketu ruled this city. On the western side of the river lay a desert called Baluhata, where a Pakar tree grew in the sand. A kite named Chilho lived on the branches of this tree, and a jackal named Siyari lived in the hollow of its trunk. The two animals were close friends. One day, they watched the women of the city gather below the tree to observe a strict nirjala vrat and perform the puja of Jimutvahan. Watching them, the kite and the jackal decided they would also keep the vrat together. Later that afternoon, a merchant's son died in the city, and his family cremated him near the tree.
In some regions, families tell that the tree in the desert was a Semar tree.
When night fell, a severe storm blew through the desert. Rain fell and the wind howled. The jackal sat in the hollow trunk, shivering in the cold. Unable to bear her hunger, she crept down, abandoned her vrat, and ate the remains of the burnt corpse. The kite saw this from above and scolded her friend for breaking the vrat. The kite stayed in the branches, endured her hunger through the storm, and finished her vrat the next morning.
When their animal lives ended, the two friends were reborn as human sisters in the house of a Brahmin named Bhaskar. The kite was born as the elder sister and was named Sheelwati. The jackal was born as the younger sister and was named Kapuravati. They grew up and were married. Sheelwati married a man named Buddhisen. Kapuravati married King Malayketu of Kanchanawati and went to live in the palace as his queen. Because she had kept her vrat on the tree, Sheelwati was blessed with seven healthy sons. Kapuravati still carried the weight of her broken vrat, and every son she gave birth to died as soon as he was born.
Years passed, and Sheelwati's seven sons grew into young men who went to work in the court of King Malayketu. Queen Kapuravati saw them in the palace every day. She looked at her sister's living sons and remembered her own dead children. Envy took hold of her mind. Driven by this envy, she convinced the king to execute the seven brothers. The king had them beheaded. Kapuravati packed their severed heads into seven containers, covered them with red cloth, and sent them to her elder sister's house to cause her grief.
Jimutvahan knew of Sheelwati's devotion from her past life on the tree. He went to the execution site, crafted seven heads out of clay, attached them to the bodies of the boys, and sprinkled them with Amrit. The seven sons came back to life at once and walked home to their mother. When Sheelwati received the seven containers from the queen, she opened them and found that the severed heads inside had turned into fruits.
In some regions, families tell that the heads in the containers had turned into sweets.
Kapuravati waited in the palace to hear the news of her sister's grief, but heard instead that the boys were alive. Shocked, she rushed to Sheelwati's house and demanded to know how the boys had survived. By the grace of Jimutvahan, Sheelwati remembered their past lives. She reminded Kapuravati of their time in the desert, the night in the Pakar tree, and how Kapuravati had eaten the corpse while she herself kept the vrat. Overcome with guilt and shock, Kapuravati died on the spot. The king later performed her last rites under the same Pakar tree.
The one who saved the boys, Jimutvahan, was a Gandharva prince, the son of King Shalivahan. He had no desire to rule and left his kingdom to serve his aging father in the forest. One day, while walking near the sea, he heard an old Naga mother crying. Her son, Shankhachuda, was meant to be eaten that day by Garuda, the mount of Vishnu ji. The Naga king Vasuki had made a pact to leave one snake a day on a rock so that Garuda would not destroy all the snakes at once. Jimutvahan felt pity for the mother and decided to take the boy's place.
He took the red cloth from Shankhachuda, wrapped it around himself, and lay down on the rock. Garuda flew down, grabbed Jimutvahan in his claws, and carried him to a mountain peak. As he prepared to eat, Garuda saw that his prey was completely calm, neither crying nor fighting. Garuda stopped and asked who he was. Jimutvahan told him his name and the story of the Naga mother. Moved by this sacrifice, Garuda released Jimutvahan, promised he would never eat the Nagas again, and brought all the dead snakes back to life. From that day, Jimutvahan was known as the protector of children.
In parts of Uttar Pradesh and Nepal, families read a different katha. After the Kurukshetra war ended, Ashwatthama sought revenge for his father's death. He fired the Brahmastra weapon to destroy the womb of Uttara and end the Pandava family line. Shri Krishna entered Uttara's womb in a micro-form and protected the unborn child. The child was born alive and grew up to become King Parikshit. Because his life was saved by this grace, he was called Jivitputrika. Mothers in these regions keep the vrat to ask Shri Krishna to protect their children from harm.
Just as Jimutvahan and Shri Krishna protected the children in the story, and just as the kite's children were granted long life, may the children of all mothers who observe this vrat and listen to this katha be protected, blessed with long life, and remain free from all troubles and sorrows.
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