Markandeya says- ‘Nabhag was the son of King Dishta. One day, he saw a beautiful woman who was the daughter of a Vaishya. He was very enchanted by her beauty and wanted to marry her. He went to the Vaishya and expressed his desire. The Vaishya was terrified at the prospect of facing the wrath of the king. He said- ‘You belong to a royal family whereas I am a poor man. There is no match between both of us. Why do you insist on marrying my daughter?’
Nabhag was not amused at the Vaishya’s reply. He threatened to give up his life if he was not married. The Vaishya went to the king and narrated the whole story. The king consulted his ministers and the Brahmins. The Brahmin said- ‘Prince Nabhag should first marry a woman within his own caste, only then he can marry the Vaishya’s daughter otherwise he would be committing a grave sin.
Nabhag was not satisfied by the Brahmins’ decision. He decided to forcibly abduct the Vaishya’s daughter. The Vaishya went to the king and sought his help. The king gave death punishment to Nabhag. Hearing of this punishment, Nabhag went into hiding. The royal army went in search of him and finally found him. Then a tough battle was fought and ultimately, Nabhag was victorious. The king himself came forward to fight with Nabhag. As the battle was going on, sage Narada appeared and requested the king to stop fighting. He said- ‘O king! Please stop this battle. Being a Kshatriya, it is not proper for you to fight a battle with a Vaishya, which your son has become after abducting a Vaishya girl. He is not entitled to fight with you.’