Gayatri Vedanta Yoga US / Mahabaratha 1:3

SECTION LXIV
(Adivansavatarana Parva continued)
"Janamejaya said, 'O Brahmana, those thou hast named and those thou hastnot named, I wish to hear of them in detail, as also of other kings bythousands. And, O thou of great good fortune, it behoveth thee to tell mein full the object for which those Maharathas, equal unto the celestialsthemselves, were born on earth.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'It hath been heard by us, O monarch, that what thouaskest is a mystery even to the gods. I shall, however, speak of it untothee, after bowing down (to the self-born). The son of Jamadagni(Parasurama), after twenty-one times making the earth bereft ofKshatriyas wended to that best of mountains Mahendra and there began hisascetic penances. And at that time when the earth was bereft ofKshatriyas, the Kshatriya ladies, desirous of offspring, used to come, Omonarch, to the Brahmanas and Brahmanas of rigid vows had connection withthem during the womanly season alone, but never, O king, lustfully andout of season. And Kshatriya ladies by thousands conceived from suchconnection with Brahmanas. Then, O monarch, were born many Kshatriyas ofgreater energy, boys and girls, so that the Kshatriya race, might thrive.And thus sprang the Kshatriya race from Kshatriya ladies by Brahmanas ofascetic penances. And the new generation, blessed with long life, beganto thrive in virtue. And thus were the four orders having Brahmanas attheir head re-established. And every man at that time went in unto hiswife during her season and never from lust and out of season. And, O bullof the Bharata race, in the same way, other creatures also, even thoseborn in the race of birds went in unto their wives during the seasonalone. And, O protector of the earth, hundreds of thousands of creatureswere born, and all were virtuous and began to multiply in virtue, allbeing free from sorrow and disease. And, O thou of the elephant's tread,this wide earth having the ocean for her boundaries, with her mountainsand woods and towns, was once more governed by the Kshatriyas. And whenthe earth began to be again governed virtuously by the Kshatriyas, theother orders having Brahmanas for their first were filled with great joy.And the kings giving up all vices born of lust and anger and justlyawarding punishments to those that deserved them protected the earth. Andhe of a hundred sacrifices, possessed also of a thousand eyes, beholdingthat the Kshatriya monarchs ruled so virtuously, poured down vivifyingshowers at proper times and places and blessed all creatures. Then, Oking, no one of immature years died, and none knew a woman beforeattaining to age. And thus, O bull of the Bharata race, the earth, to thevery coasts of the ocean, became filled with men that were alllong-lived. The Kshatriyas performed great sacrifices bestowing muchwealth. And the Brahmanas also all studied the Vedas with their branchesand the Upanishads. And, O king, no Brahmana in those days ever sold theVedas (i.e., taught for money) or ever read aloud the Vedas in thepresence of a Sudra. The Vaisyas, with the help of bullocks, caused theearth to be tilled. And they never yoked the cattle themselves. And theyfed with care all cattle that were lean. And men never milked kine aslong as the calves drank only the milk of their dams (without havingtaken to grass or any other food). And no merchant in those days eversold his articles by false scales. And, O tiger among men, all persons,holding to the ways of virtue, did everything with eyes set upon virtue.And, O monarch, all the orders were mindful of their own respectiveduties. Thus, O tiger among men, virtue in those days never sustained anydiminution. And, O bull of the Bharata race, both kine and women gavebirth to their offspring at the proper time. And trees bore flowers andfruit duly according to the seasons. And thus, O king, the krita agehaving then duly set in, the whole earth was filled with numerouscreatures.
"And, O bull of the Bharata race, when such was the blessed state of theterrestrial world, the Asuras, O lord of men, began to be born in kinglylines. And the sons of Diti (Daityas) being repeatedly defeated in war bythe sons of Aditi (celestials) and deprived also of sovereignty andheaven, began to be incarnated on the earth. And, O king, the Asurasbeing possessed of great powers, and desirous of sovereignty began to beborn on earth amongst various creatures, such as kine, horses, asses,camels, buffaloes, among creatures such as Rakshasas and others, andamong elephants and deer. And, O protector of the earth, owing to thosealready born and to those that were being born, the earth becameincapable of supporting herself. And amongst the sons of Diti and ofDanu, cast out of heaven, some were born on the earth as kings of greatpride and insolence. Possessed of great energy, they covered the earth invarious shapes. Capable of oppressing all foes, they filled the earthhaving the ocean for its boundaries. And by their strength they began tooppress Brahmanas and Kshatriyas and Vaisyas and Sudras and all othercreatures also. Terrifying and killing all creatures, they traversed theearth, O king, in bands of hundreds and thousands. Devoid of truth andvirtue, proud of their strength, and intoxicated with (the wine of)insolence, they even insulted the great Rishis in their hermitages.
"And the earth, thus oppressed by the mighty Asuras endued with greatstrength and energy and possessed of abundant means, began to think ofwaiting on Brahman. The united strength of the creatures (such as Sesha,the Tortoise, and the huge Elephant), and of many Seshas too, becamecapable of supporting the earth with her mountains, burdened as she waswith the weight of the Danavas. And then, O king, the earth, oppressedwith weight and afflicted with fear, sought the protection of theGrandsire of all creatures. And she beheld the divine Brahman--theCreator of the worlds who knoweth no deterioration--surrounded by thegods, Brahmanas, and great Rishis, of exceeding good fortune, and adoredby delighted Gandharvas and Apsaras always engaged in the service of thecelestials. And the Earth, desirous of protection, then representedeverything to him, in the presence, O Bharata, of all the Regents of theworlds. But, O king, the Earth's object had been known beforehand to theOmniscient, Self-create, and Supreme Lord. And, O Bharata, Creator as heis of the universe, why should he not know fully what is in the minds ofhis creatures including the very gods and the Asuras? O king, the Lord ofthe Earth, the Creator of all creatures, also called Isa, Sambhu,Prajapati, then spake unto her. And Brahman said, 'O holder of wealth,for the accomplishment of the object for which thou hast approached me, Ishall appoint all the dwellers in the heavens.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Having said so unto the Earth, O king, thedivine Brahman bade her farewell. And the Creator then commanded all thegods saying, 'To ease the Earth of her burden, go ye and have your birthsin her according to your respective parts and seek ye strife (with theAsuras already born there)'. And the Creator of all, summoning also allthe tribes of the Gandharvas and the Apsaras, spake unto them these wordsof deep import, 'Go ye and be born amongst men according to yourrespective parts in forms that ye like.'
"And all the gods with Indra, on hearing these words of the Lord of thecelestials--words that were true, desirable under the circumstances, andfraught with benefit,--accepted them. And they all having resolved tocome down on earth in their respected parts, then went to Narayana, theslayer of all foes, at Vaikunth--the one who has the discus and the macein his hands, who is clad in purple, who is of great splendour, who haththe lotus on his navel, who is the slayer of the foes of the gods, who isof eyes looking down upon his wide chest (in yoga attitude), who is thelord of the Prajapati himself, the sovereign of all the gods, of mightystrength, who hath the mark of the auspicious whirl on his breast, who isthe mover of every one's faculties and who is adored by all the gods.Him, Indra the most exalted of persons, addressed, saying, "Beincarnate." And Hari replied,--'Let it be.'"

SECTION LXV
(Sambhava Parva)
"Vaisampayana said, 'Then Indra had a consultation with Narayana aboutthe latter's descent on the earth from heaven with all the gods accordingto their respective parts. And, having commanded all the dwellers inheaven, Indra returned from the abode of Narayana. And the dwellers inheaven gradually became incarnate on earth for the destruction of theAsuras and for the welfare of the three worlds. And then, O tiger amongkings, the celestials had their births, according as they pleased, in theraces of Brahmarshis and royal sages. And they slew the Danavas,Rakshasas, Gandharvas and Snakes, other man-eaters, and many othercreatures. And, O bull in the Bharata race, the Danavas, Rakshasas andGandharvas and Snakes, could not slay the incarnate celestials even intheir infancy, so strong they were.'
"Janamejaya said, 'I desire to hear from the beginning of the births ofthe gods, the Danavas, the Gandharvas, the Apsaras, men, Yakshas andRakshasas. Therefore, it behoveth thee to tell me about the births of allcreatures.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'Indeed, I shall, having bowed down to theSelf-create, tell thee in detail the origin of the celestials and othercreatures. It is known that Brahman hath six spiritual sons, viz.,Marichi, Atri, Angiras, Pulastya, Pulaha and Kratu. And Marichi's son isKasyapa, and from Kasyapa have sprung these creatures. Unto Daksha (oneof the Prajapatis) were born thirteen daughters of great good fortune.The daughters of Daksha are, O tiger among men and prince of the Bharatarace, Aditi, Diti, Danu, Kala, Danayu, Sinhika, Krodha, Pradha, Viswa,Vinata, Kapila, Muni, and Kadru. The sons and grandsons of these, giftedwith great energy, are countless. From Aditi have sprung the twelveAdityas who are the lords of the universe. And, O Bharata, as they areaccording to their names, I shall recount them to thee. They are Dhatri,Mitra, Aryaman, Sakra, Varuna, Ansa, Vaga, Vivaswat, Usha, Savitri,Tvashtri, and Vishnu. The youngest, however, is superior to them all inmerit. Diti had one son called Hiranyakasipu. And the illustriousHiranyakasipu had five sons, all famous throughout the world. The eldestof them all was Prahlada, the next was Sahradha; the third was Anuhrada;and after him were Sivi and Vashkala. And, O Bharata, it is knowneverywhere that Prahlada had three sons. They were Virochana, Kumbha, andNikumbha. And unto Virochana was born a son, Vali, of great prowess. Andthe son of Vali is known to be the great Asura, Vana. And blessed withgood fortune, Vana was a follower of Rudra, and was known also by thename of Mahakala. And Danu had forty sons, O Bharata! The eldest of themall was Viprachitti of great fame Samvara, and Namuchi and Pauloman;Asiloman, and Kesi and Durjaya; Ayahsiras, Aswasiras, and the powerfulAswasanku; also Gaganamardhan, and Vegavat, and he called Ketumat;Swarbhanu, Aswa, Aswapati, Vrishaparvan, and then Ajaka; and Aswagriva,and Sukshama, and Tuhunda of great strength, Ekapada, and Ekachakra,Virupaksha, Mahodara, and Nichandra, and Nikumbha, Kupata, and thenKapata; Sarabha, and Sulabha, Surya, and then Chandramas; these in therace of Danu are stated to be well-known. The Surya and Chandramas (theSun and the Moon) of the celestials are other persons, and not the sonsof Danu as mentioned above. The following ten, gifted with great strengthand vigour, were also, O king, born in the race of Danu;--Ekaksha,Amritapa of heroic courage, Pralamva and Naraka, Vatrapi, Satrutapana,and Satha, the great Asura; Gavishtha, and Vanayu, and the Danava calledDirghajiva. And, O Bharata, the sons and the grandsons of these wereknown to be countless. And Sinhika gave birth to Rahu, the persecutor ofthe Sun and the Moon, and to three others, Suchandra, Chandrahantri, andChandrapramardana. And the countless progeny of Krura (krodha) were ascrooked and wicked as herself. And the tribe was wrathful, of crookeddeeds, and persecutors of their foes. And Danayu also had four sons whowere bulls among the Asuras. They were Vikshara, Vala, Vira, and Vritrathe great Asura. And the sons of Kala were all like Yama himself andsmiter of all foes. And they were of great energy, and oppressors of allfoes. And the sons of Kala were Vinasana and Krodha, and thenKrodhahantri, and Krodhasatru. And there were many others among the sonsof Kala. And Sukra, the son of a Rishi, was the chief priest of theAsuras. And the celebrated Sukra had four sons who were priests of theAsuras. And they were Tashtadhara and Atri, and two others of fiercedeeds. They were like the Sun himself in energy, and set their hearts onacquiring the regions of Brahman.
"Thus hath been recited by me, as heard in the Purana, of progeny of thegods and the Asuras, both of great strength and energy. I am incapable, Oking, of counting the descendants of these, countless as they are, arenot much known to fame.
"And the sons of Vinata were Tarkhya and Arishtanemi, and Garuda andAruna, and Aruni and Varuni. And Sesha or Ananta, Vasuki, Takshaka,Kumara, and Kulika are known to be the sons of Kadru; and Bhimasena,Ugrasena, Suparna, Varuna, Gopati, and Dhritarashtra, and Suryavarchasthe seventh, Satyavachas, Arkaparna, Prayuta, Bhima, and Chitrarathaknown to fame, of great learning, and a controller of his passions, andthen Kalisiras, and, O king, Parjanya, the fourteenth in the list, Kali,the fifteenth, and Narada, the sixteenth--these Devas and Gandharvas areknown to be the sons of Muni (Daksha's daughter as mentioned before). Ishall recount many others, O Bharata! Anavadya Manu, Vansa, Asura,Marganapria, Anupa, Subhaga, Vasi, were the daughters brought forth byPradha, Siddha, and Purna, and Varhin, and Purnayus of great fame,Brahmacharin, Ratiguna, and Suparna who was the seventh; Viswavasu,Bhanu, and Suchandra who was the tenth, were also the sons of Pradha. Allthese were celestial Gandharvas. And it is also known that this Pradha ofgreat fortune, through the celestial Rishi (Kasyapa, her husband),brought forth the sacred of the Apsaras, Alamvusha, Misrakesi,Vidyutparna, Tilottama, Aruna, Rakshita, Rambha, Manorama, Kesini,Suvahu, Surata, Suraja, and Supria were the daughters, and Ativahu andthe celebrated Haha and Huhu, and Tumvuru were the sons--the best ofGandharvas--of Pradha and Amrita. The Brahmanas, kine, Gandharvas, andApsaras, were born of Kapila as stated in the Purana.
"Thus hath been recited to thee by me the birth of all creatures duly--ofGandharvas and Apsaras, of Snakes, Suparnas, Rudras, and Maruts; of kineand of Brahmanas blessed with great good fortune, and of sacred deeds.And this account (if read) extendeth the span of life, is sacred, worthyof all praise, and giveth pleasure to the ear. It should be always heardand recited to others, in a proper frame of mind.
"He who duly readeth this account of the birth of all high-souledcreatures in the presence of the gods and Brahmanas, obtaineth largeprogeny, good fortune, and fame, and attaineth also to excellent worldshereafter.'"

SECTION LXVI
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'It is known that the spiritual sons of Brahman werethe six great Rishis (already mentioned). There was another of the nameof Sthanu. And the sons of Sthanu, gifted with great energy, were, it isknown, eleven. They were Mrigavayadha, Sarpa, Niriti of great fame:Ajaikapat, Ahivradhna, and Pinaki, the oppressor of foes; Dahana andIswara, and Kapali of great splendour; and Sthanu, and the illustriousBharga. These are called the eleven Rudras. It hath been already said,that Marichi, Angiras. Atri, Pulastya, Pulaha, and Kratu--these six greatRishis of great energy--are the sons of Brahman. It is well-known in theworld that Angiras's sons are three,--Vrihaspati, Utathya, and Samvarta,all of rigid vows. And, O king, it is said that the sons of Atri arenumerous. And, being great Rishis, they are all conversant with theVedas, crowned with ascetic success, and of souls in perfect peace. And,O tiger among kings, the sons of Pulastya of great wisdom are Rakshasas,Monkeys, Kinnaras (half-men and half-horses), and Yakshas. And, O king,the son of Pulaha were, it is said, the Salabhas (the winged insects),the lions, the Kimpurushas (half-lions and half-men), the tigers, bears,and wolves. And the sons of Kratu, sacred as sacrifices, are thecompanions of Surya, (the Valikhilyas), known in three worlds and devotedto truth and vows. And, O protector of the Earth, the illustrious RishiDaksha, of soul in complete peace, and of great asceticism, sprung fromthe right toe of Brahman. And from the left toe of Brahman sprang thewife of the high-souled Daksha. And the Muni begat upon her fiftydaughters; and all those daughters were of faultless features and limbsand of eyes like lotus-petals. And the lord Daksha, not having any sons,made those daughters his Putrikas (so that their sons might belong bothto himself and to their husbands). And Daksha bestowed, according to thesacred ordinance, ten of his daughters on Dharma, twenty-seven on Chandra(the Moon), and thirteen on Kasyapa. Listen as I recount the wives ofDharma according to their names. They are ten in all--Kirti, Lakshmi,Dhriti, Medha, Pushti, Sraddha, Kria, Buddhi, Lajja, and Mali. These arethe wives of Dharma as appointed by the Self-create. It is known alsothroughout the world that the wives of Soma (Moon) are twenty-seven. Andthe wives of Soma, all of sacred vows, are employed in indicating time;and they are the Nakshatras and the Yoginis and they became so forassisting the courses of the worlds.
"And Brahman had another son named Manu. And Manu had a son of the nameof Prajapati. And the sons of Prajapati were eight and were called Vasuswhom I shall name in detail. They were Dhara, Dhruva, Soma, Aha, Anila,Anala, Pratyusha, and Prabhasa. These eight are known as the Vasus. Ofthese, Dhara and the truth-knowing Dhruva were born of Dhumra; Chandramas(Soma) and Swasana (Anila) were born of the intelligent Swasa; Aha wasthe son of Rata: and Hutasana (Anala) of Sandilya; and Pratyusha andPrabhasa were the sons of Prabhata. And Dhara had two sons, Dravina andHuta-havya-vaha. And the son of Dhruva is the illustrious Kala (Time),the destroyer of the worlds. And Soma's son is the resplendent Varchas.And Varchas begot upon his wife Manohara three sons--Sisira, and Ramana.And the son of Aha were Jyotih, Sama, Santa, and also Muni. And the sonof Agni is the handsome Kumara born in a forest of reeds. And, he is alsocalled Kartikeya because he was reared by Krittika and others. And, afterKartikeya, there were born his three brothers Sakha, Visakha, Naigameya.And the wife of Anila is Siva, and Siva's son were Manojava andAvijnataagati. These two were the sons of Anila. The son of Pratyusha,you must know, is the Rishi named Devala; and Devala had two sons whowere both exceedingly forgiving and of great mental power. And the sisterof Vrihaspati, the first of women, uttering the sacred truth, engaged inascetic penances, roamed over the whole earth; and she became the wife ofPrabhasa, the eighth Vasu. And she brought forth the illustriousViswakarman, the founder of all arts. And he was the originator of athousand arts, the engineer of the immortals, the maker of all kinds ofornaments, and the first of artists. And he it was who constructed thecelestial cars of the gods, and mankind are enabled to live inconsequence of the inventions of that illustrious one. And he isworshipped, for that reason, by men. And he is eternal and immutable,this Viswakarman.
"And the illustrious Dharma, the dispenser of all happiness, assuming ahuman countenance, came out through the right breast of Brahman. AndAhasta (Dharma) hath three excellent sons capable of charming everycreature. And they are Sama, Kama, Harsha (Peace, Desire, and Joy). Andby their energy they are supporting the worlds. And the wife of Kama isRati, of Sama is Prapti; and the wife of Harsha is Nanda. And upon them,indeed, are the worlds made to depend.
"And the son of Marichi is Kasyapa. And Kasyapa's offspring are the godsand the Asuras. And, therefore, is Kasyapa, the Father of the worlds. AndTvashtri, of the form of Vadava (a mare), became the wife of Savitri. Andshe gave birth, in the skies, to two greatly fortunate twins, the Aswins.And, O king, the sons of Aditi are twelve with Indra heading them all.And the youngest of them all was Vishnu upon whom the worlds depend.
"These are the thirty-three gods (the eight Vasus, the eleven Rudras, thetwelve Adityas, Prajapati, and Vashatkara). I shall now recount theirprogeny according to their Pakshas, Kulas, and Ganas. The Rudras, theSaddhyas, the Maruts, the Vasus, the Bhargavas, and the Viswedevas areeach reckoned as a Paksha. Garuda the son of Vinata and the mighty Arunaalso, and the illustrious Vrihaspati are reckoned among the Adityas. Thetwin Aswins, all annual plants, and all inferior animals, are reckonedamong the Guhyakas.
"These are the Ganas of the gods recited to thee, O king! This recitationwashes men of all sins.
"The illustrious Bhrigu came out, ripping open the breast of Brahman. Thelearned Sukra is Bhrigu's son. And the learned Sukra becoming a planetand engaged according to the command of the Self-existent in pouring andwithholding rain, and in dispensing and remitting calamities, traverses,for sustaining the lives of all the creatures in the three worlds,through the skies. And the learned Sukra, of great intelligence andwisdom, of rigid vows, leading the life of a Brahmacharin, dividedhimself in twain by power of asceticism, and became the spiritual guideof both the Daityas and the gods. And after Sukra was thus employed byBrahman in seeking the welfare (of the gods and the Asuras), Bhrigu begotanother excellent son. This was Chyavana who was like the blazing sun, ofvirtuous soul, and of great fame. And he came out of his mother's womb inanger and became the cause of his mother's release, O king (from thehands of the Rakshasas). And Arushi, the daughter of Manu, became thewife of the wise Chyavana. And, on her was begotten Aurva of greatreputation. And he came out, ripping open the thigh of Arushi. And Aurvabegot Richika. And Richika even in his boyhood became possessed of greatpower and energy, and of every virtue. And Richika begot Jamadagni. Andthe high-souled Jamadagni had four sons. And the youngest of them all wasRama (Parasurama). And Rama was superior to all his brothers in thepossession of good qualities. And he was skilful in all weapons, andbecame the slayer of the Kshatriyas. And he had his passions undercomplete control. And Aurva had a hundred sons with Jamadagni the eldest.And these hundred sons had offspring by thousands spread over this earth.
"And Brahman had two other sons, viz., Dhatri and Vidhatri who stayedwith Manu. Their sister is the auspicious Lakshmi having her abode amidlotuses. And the spiritual sons of Lakshmi are the sky-ranging horses.And the daughter born of Sukra, named Divi, became the eldest wife ofVaruna. Of her were born a son named Vala and a daughter named Sura(wine), to the joy of the gods. And Adharma (Sin) was born when creatures(from want of food) began to devour one another. And Adharma alwaysdestroys every creature. And Adharma hath Niriti for his wife, whence theRakshasas who are called Nairitas (offspring of Niriti). And she hathalso three other cruel sons always engaged in sinful deeds. They areBhaya (fear), Mahabhaya (terror), and Mrityu (Death) who is alwaysengaged in slaying every created thing. And, as he is all-destroying, hehath no wife, and no son. And Tamra brought forth five daughters knownthroughout the worlds. They are Kaki (crow), Syeni (hawk), Phasi (hen),Dhritarashtri (goose), and Suki (parrot). And Kaki brought forth thecrows; Syeni, the hawks, the cocks and vultures, Dhritarashtri, all ducksand swans; and she also brought forth all Chakravakas; and the fair Suki,of amiable qualities, and possessing all auspicious signs brought forthall the parrots. And Krodha gave birth to nine daughters, all of wrathfuldisposition. And their names were Mrigi, Mrigamanda, Hari, Bhadramana,Matangi, Sarduli, Sweta, Surabhi, and the agreeable Surasa blessed withevery virtue. And, O foremost of men, the offspring of Mrigi are allanimals of the deer species. And the offspring of Mrigamanda are allanimals of the bear species and those called Srimara (sweet-footed). AndBhadramana begot the celestial elephants, Airavata. And the offspring ofHari are all animals of the simian species endued with great activity, soalso all the horses. And those animals also, that are called Go-langula(the cow-tailed), are said to be the offspring of Hari. And Sarduli begotlions and tigers in numbers, and also leopards and all other stronganimals. And, O king, the offspring of Matangi are all the elephants. AndSweta begat the large elephant known by the name of Sweta, endued withgreat speed. And, O king, Surabhi gave birth to two daughters, theamiable Rohini and the far-famed Gandharvi. And, O Bharata, she had alsotwo other daughters named Vimala and Anala. From Rohini have sprung allkine, and from Gandharvi all animals of the horse species. And Analabegat the seven kinds of trees yielding pulpy fruits. (They are the date,the palm, the hintala, the tali, the little date, the nut, and thecocoanut.) And she had also another daughter called Suki (the mother ofthe parrot species). And Surasa bore a son called Kanka (a species oflong-feathered birds). And Syeni, the wife of Aruna, gave birth to twosons of great energy and strength, named Sampati and the mighty Jatayu.Surasa also bore the Nagas, and Kadru, the Punnagas (snakes). And Vinatahad two sons Garuda and Aruna, known far and wide. And, O king of men, Oforemost of intelligent persons, thus hath the genealogy of all theprincipal creatures been fully described by me. By listening to this, aman is fully cleansed of all his sins, and acquireth great knowledge, andfinally attaineth to the first of states in after-life!'"

SECTION LXVII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Janamejaya said, 'O worshipful one, I wish to hear from thee in detailabout the birth, among men, of the gods, the Danavas, the Gandharvas, theRakshasas, the lions, the tigers, and the other animals, the snakes, thebirds, and in fact, of all creatures. I wish also to hear about the actsand achievements of those, in due order, after they became incarnate inhuman forms.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'O king of men, I shall first tell thee all aboutthose celestials and Danavas that were born among men--The first ofDanavas, who was known by the name of Viprachitti, became that bull amongmen, noted as Jarasandha. And, O king, that son of Diti, who was known asHiranyakasipu, was known in this world among men as the powerfulSisupala. He who had been known as Samhlada, the younger brother ofPrahlada, became among men the famous Salya, that bull amongst Valhikas.The spirited Anuhlada who had been the youngest became noted in the worldas Dhrishtaketu. And, O king, that son of Diti who had been known as Sivibecame on earth the famous monarch Druma. And he who was known as thegreat Asura Vashkala became on earth the great Bhagadatta. The five greatAsuras gifted with great energy, Ayahsira, Aswasira, the spiritedAysanku, Gaganamurdhan, and Vegavat, were all born in the royal line ofKekaya and all became great monarchs. That other Asura of mighty energywho was known by the name of Ketumat became on earth the monarchAmitaujas of terrible deeds. That great Asura who was known as Swarbhanubecame on earth the monarch Ugrasena of fierce deeds. That great Asurawho was known as Aswa became on earth the monarch Asoka of exceedingenergy and invincible in battle. And, O king, the younger brother of Aswawho was known as Aswapati, a son of Diti, became on earth the mightymonarch Hardikya. The great and fortunate Asura who was known asVrishaparvan became noted on earth as king Dirghaprajna. And, O king, theyounger brother of Vrishaparvan who was known by the name of Ajaka becamenoted on earth as king Salwa. The powerful and mighty Asura who was knownas Aswagriva became noted on earth as king Rochamana. And, O king, theAsura who was known as Sukshma, endued with great intelligence and whoseachievements also were great, became on earth the famous kingVrihadratha. And that first of Asuras who was known by the name ofTuhunda, became noted on earth as the monarch, Senavindu. That Asura ofgreat strength who was known as Ishupa became the monarch Nagnajita offamous prowess. The great Asura who was known as Ekachakra became notedon earth as Pritivindhya. The great Asura Virupaksha capable ofdisplaying various modes of fight became noted on earth as kingChitravarman. The first of Danavas, the heroic Hara, who humbled thepride of all foes became on earth the famous and fortunate Suvahu. TheAsura Suhtra of great energy and the destroyer of foemen, became noted onearth as the fortunate monarch, Munjakesa. That Asura of greatintelligence called Nikumbha, who was never vanquished in battle was bornon earth as king Devadhipa, the first among monarchs. That great Asuraknown amongst the sons of Diti by the name of Sarabha became on earth theroyal sage called Paurava. And, O king, the great Asura of exceedingenergy, the fortunate Kupatha, was born on earth as the famous monarchSuparswa. The great Asura, O king, who was called Kratha, was born onearth as the royal sage Parvateya of form resplendent like a goldenmountain. He amongst the Asura who was known as Salabha the second,became on earth the monarch Prahlada in the country of the Valhikas. Theforemost, among the sons of Diti known by the name of Chandra andhandsome as the lord of the stars himself, became on earth noted asChandravarman, the king of the Kamvojas. That bull amongst the Danavaswho was known by the name of Arka became on earth, O king, the royal sageRishika. That best of Asuras who was known as Mritapa became on earth, Obest of kings, the monarch, Pascimanupaka. That great Asura of surpassingenergy known as Garishtha became noted on earth as king Drumasena. Thegreat Asura who was known as Mayura became noted on earth as the monarchViswa. He who was the younger brother of Mayura and called Suparna becamenoted on earth as the monarch, Kalakirti. The mighty Asura who was knownas Chandrahantri became on earth the royal sage Sunaka. The great Asurawho was called Chandravinasana became noted on earth as the monarch,Janaki. That bull amongst the Danavas, O prince of the Kuru race, who wascalled Dhirghajihva, became noted on earth as Kasiraja. The Graha who wasbrought forth by Sinhika and who persecuted the Sun and the Moon becamenoted on earth as the monarch Kratha. The eldest of the four sons ofDanayu, who was known by the name of Vikshara, became known on earth thespirited monarch, Vasumitra. The second brother of Vikshara, the greatAsura, was born on earth as the king of the country, called Pandya. Thatbest of Asuras who was known by the name of Valina became on earth themonarch Paundramatsyaka. And, O king, that great Asura who was known asVritra became on earth the royal sage known by the name of Manimat. ThatAsura who was the younger brother of Vritra and known as Krodhahantribecame noted on earth as king Danda. That other Asura who was known bythe name Krodhavardhana became noted on earth as the monarch, Dandadhara.The eight sons of the Kaleyas that were born on earth all became greatkings endued with the prowess of tigers. The eldest of them all becameking Jayatsena in Magadha. The second of them, in prowess, like Indra,became noted on earth as Aparajita. The third of them, endued with greatenergy and power of producing deception, was born on earth as the king ofthe Nishadas gifted with great prowess. That other amongst them who wasknown as the fourth was noted on earth as Srenimat, that best of royalsages. That great Asura amongst them who was the fifth, became noted onearth as king Mahanjas, the oppressor of enemies. That great Asurapossessing great intelligence who was the sixth of them became noted onearth as Abhiru, that best of royal sages. The seventh of them becameknown throughout earth, from the centre to the sea, as king Samudrasenawell acquainted with the truths of the scriptures. The eighth of theKaleyas known as Vrihat became on earth a virtuous king ever engaged inthe good of all creatures. The mighty Danava known by the name of Kukshibecame on earth as Parvatiya from his brightness as of a golden mountain.The mighty Asura Krathana gifted with great energy became noted on earthas the monarch Suryaksha. The great Asura of handsome features known bythe name of Surya, became on earth the monarch of the Valhikas by nameDarada, that foremost of all kings. And, O king, from the tribe of Asurascalled Krodhavasa, of whom I have already spoken to thee, were born manyheroic kings on earth. Madraka, and Karnaveshta, Siddhartha, and alsoKitaka; Suvira, and Suvahu, and Mahavira, and also Valhika, Kratha,Vichitra, Suratha, and the handsome king Nila; and Chiravasa, andBhumipala; and Dantavakra, and he who was called Durjaya; that tigeramongst kings named Rukmi; and king Janamejaya, Ashada, and Vayuvega, andalso Bhuritejas; Ekalavya, and Sumitra, Vatadhana, and also Gomukha; thetribe of kings called the Karushakas, and also Khemadhurti; Srutayu, andUdvaha, and also Vrihatsena; Kshema, Ugratirtha, the king of theKalingas; and Matimat, and he was known as king Iswara; these first ofkings were all born of the Asura class called Krodhavasa.
"There was also born on earth a mighty Asura known amongst the Danavas bythe name of Kalanemi, endued with great strength, of grand achievements,and blessed with a large share of prosperity. He became the mighty son ofUgrasena and was known on earth by the name of Kansa. And he who wasknown among the Asuras by the name of Devaka and was besides in splendourlike unto Indra himself, was born on earth as the foremost king of theGandharvas. And, O monarch, know thou that Drona, the son of Bharadwaja,not born of any woman, sprung from a portion of the celestial RishiVrihaspati of grand achievements. And he was the prince of all bowmen,conversant with all weapons, of mighty achievements, of great energy.Thou shouldst know he was also well-acquainted with the Vedas and thescience of arms. And he was of wonderful deeds and the pride of his race.And, O king, his son the heroic Aswatthaman, of eyes like thelotus-petals, gifted with surpassing energy, and the terror of all foes,the great oppressor of all enemies, was born on earth, of the unitedportions of Mahadeva, Yama, Kama, and Krodha. And from the curse ofVasishtha and the command also of Indra, the eight Vasus were born ofGanga by her husband Santanu. The youngest of them was Bhishma, thedispeller of the fears of the Kurus, gifted with great intelligence,conversant with the Vedas, the first speakers, and the thinner of theenemy's ranks. And possessed of mighty energy and the first of allpersons acquainted with weapons, he encountered the illustrious Ramahimself, the son of Jamadagni of the Bhrigu race. And, O king, thatBrahman sage who, on earth, was known by the name of Kripa and was theembodiment of all manliness was born of the tribe of the Rudras. And themighty chariot-fighter and king who on earth was known by the name ofSakuni, that crusher of foes, thou shouldst know, O king, was Dwaparahimself (the third yuga). And he who was Satyaki of sure aim, thatupholder of the pride of Vrishni race, that oppressor of foes, begottenof the portion of gods called the Maruts. And that royal sage Drupada whoon earth was a monarch, the first among all persons bearing arms, wasalso born of the same tribe of the celestials. And, O king, thou shouldstalso know that Kritavarman, that prince among men, of deeds unsurpassedby any one, and the foremost of all bulls amongst Kshatriyas, was born ofthe portion of the same celestials. And that royal sage also, Virata byname, the scorcher of the kingdoms of others, and the great oppressor ofall foes, was born of the portion of the same gods. That son of Arishtawho was known by the name of Hansa, was born in the Kuru race and becamethe monarch of the Gandharvas. He who was known as Dhritarashtra born ofthe seed of Krishna-Dwaipayana, and gifted with long arms and greatenergy, also a monarch, of the prophetic eye, became blind in consequenceof the fault of his mother and the wrath of the Rishi. His youngerbrother who was possessed of great strength and was really a great beingknown as Pandu, devoted to truth and virtue, was Purity's self. And, Oking, thou shouldst know that he who was known on earth as Vidura, whowas the first of all virtuous men, who was the god of Justice himself,was the excellent and greatly fortunate son of the Rishi Atri. Theevil-minded and wicked king Duryodhana, the destroyer of the fair fame ofthe Kurus, was born of a portion of Kali on earth. He it was who causedall creatures to be slain and the earth to be wasted; and he it was whofanned the flame of hostility that ultimately consumed all. They who hadbeen the sons of Pulastya (the Rakshasas) were born on earth among men ofDuryodhana's brothers, that century of wicked individuals commencing withDuhasasana as their first. And, O bull among the Bharata princes,Durmukha, Duhsaha, and others whose names I do not mention, who alwayssupported Duryodhana (in all his schemes), were, indeed, the sons ofPulastya. And over and above these hundred, Dhritarashtra had one sonnamed Yuyutsu born of a Vaisya wife.'
"Janamejaya said, 'O illustrious one, tell me the names ofDhritarashtra's sons according to the order of their birth beginning fromthe eldest.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'O king, they are as follows: Duryodhana, andYuyutsu, and also Duhsasana; Duhsaha and Duhshala, and then Durmukha;Vivinsati, and Vikarna, Jalasandha, Sulochna, Vinda and Anuvinda,Durdharsha, Suvahu, Dushpradharshana; Durmarshana, and Dushkarna, andKarna; Chitra and Vipachitra, Chitraksha, Charuchitra, and Angada,Durmada, and Dushpradharsha, Vivitsu, Vikata, Sama; Urananabha, andPadmanabha, Nanda and Upanandaka; Sanapati, Sushena, Kundodara; Mahodara;Chitravahu, and Chitravarman, Suvarman, Durvirochana; Ayovahu, Mahavahu,Chitrachapa and Sukundala, Bhimavega, Bhimavala, Valaki, Bhimavikrama,Ugrayudha, Bhimaeara, Kanakayu, Dridhayudha, Dridhavarman, DridhakshatraSomakirti, Anadara; Jarasandha, Dridhasandha, Satyasandha, Sahasravaeh;Ugrasravas, Ugrasena, and Kshemamurti; Aprajita, Panditaka, Visalaksha,Duradhara, Dridhahasta, and Suhasta, Vatavega, and Suvarchasa;Adityaketu, Vahvasin, Nagadatta and Anuyaina; Nishangi, Kuvachi, Dandi,Dandadhara, Dhanugraha; Ugra, Bhimaratha, Vira, Viravahu, Alolupa;Abhaya, and Raudrakarman, also he who was Dridharatha; Anadhrishya,Kundaveda, Viravi, Dhirghalochana; Dirghavahu; Mahavahu; Vyudhoru,Kanakangana; Kundaja and Chitraka. There was also a daughter namedDuhsala who was over and above the hundred. And Yuyutsu who wasDhritarashtra's son by a Vaisya wife, was also over and above thehundred. Thus, O king, have I recited the names of the hundred sons andalso that of the daughter (of Dhritarashtra). Thou hast now known theirnames according to the order of their births. All of them were heroes andgreat car-warriors, and skilled in the art of warfare. Besides, all ofthem were versed in the Vedas, and, O king, all of them had got throughthe scriptures. All of them were mighty in attack and defence, and allwere graced with learning. And, O monarch, all of them had wives suitableto them in grace and accomplishments. And, O king, when the time came,the Kaurava monarch bestowed his daughter Duhsala on Jayadratha, the kingof the Sindhus, agreeably to the counsels of Sakuni.
"And, O monarch, learn that king Yudhishthira was a portion of Dharma;that Bhimasena was of the deity of wind; that Arjuna was of Indra, thechief of the celestials; and that Nakula and Sahadeva, the handsomestbeings among all creatures, and unrivalled for beauty on earth, weresimilarly portions of the twin Aswins. And he who was known as the mightyVarchas, the son of Soma, became Abhimanyu of wonderful deeds, the son ofArjuna. And before his incarnation, O king, the god Soma had said thesewords to the celestials, 'I cannot give (part with) my son. He is dearerto me than life itself. Let this be the compact and let it be nottransgressed. The destruction of the Asuras on earth is the work of thecelestials, and, therefore, it is our work as well. Let this Varchas,therefore, go thither, but let him not stay there long. Nara, whosecompanion is Narayana, will be born as Indra's son and indeed, will beknown as Arjuna, the mighty son of Pandu. This boy of mine shall be hisson and become a mighty car-warrior in his boyhood. And let him, ye bestof immortals, stay on earth for sixteen years. And when he attaineth tohis sixteenth year, the battle shall take place in which all who are bornof your portions shall achieve the destruction of mighty warriors. But acertain encounter shall take place without both Nara and Narayana (takingany part in it). And, indeed, your portions, ye celestials, shall fight,having made that disposition of the forces which is known by the name ofthe Chakra-vyuha. And my son shall compel all foes to retreat before him.The boy of mighty arms having penetrated the impenetrable array, shallrange within it fearlessly and send a fourth part of the hostile force,in course of half a day, unto the regions of the king of the dead. Thenwhen numberless heroes and mighty car-warriors will return to the chargetowards the close of the day, my boy of mighty arms, shall reappearbefore me. And he shall beget one heroic son in his line, who shallcontinue the almost extinct Bharata race.' Hearing these words of Soma,the dwellers in heaven replied, 'So be it.' And then all togetherapplauded and worshipped (Soma) the king of stars. Thus, O king, have Irecited to thee the (particulars of the) birth of thy father's father.
"Know also, O monarch, that the mighty car-warrior Dhrishtadyumna was aportion of Agni. And know also that Sikhandin, who was at first a female,was (the incarnation of) a Rakshasa. And, O bull in Bharata's race, theywho became the five sons of Draupadi, those bulls amongst the Bharataprinces, were the celestials known as the Viswas. Their names werePritivindhya, Sutasoma, Srutakirti, Satanika, Nakula, and Srutasena,endued with mighty energy.
"Sura, the foremost of the Yadus, was the father of Vasudeva. He had adaughter called Pritha, who for her beauty, was unrivalled on earth. AndSura, having promised in the presence of fire that he would give hisfirstborn child to Kuntibhoja, the son of his paternal aunt, who waswithout offspring, gave his daughter unto the monarch in expectation ofhis favours. Kuntibhoja thereupon made her his daughter. And she became,thenceforth, in the house of her (adoptive) father, engaged in attendingupon Brahmanas and guests. One day she had to wait upon the wrathfulascetic of rigid vows, Durvasa by name, acquainted with truth and fullyconversant with the mysteries of religion. And Pritha with all possiblecare gratified the wrathful Rishi with soul under complete control. Theholy one, gratified with the attentions bestowed on him by the maiden,told her, 'I am satisfied, O fortunate one, with thee! By this mantra(that I am about to give thee), thou shall be able to summon (to thyside) whatever celestials thou likest. And, by their grace, shall thoualso obtain children.' Thus addressed, the girl (a little while after),seized with curiosity, summoned, during the period of her maiden-hood,the god Surya. And the lord of light thereupon made her conceive andbegot on her a son who became the first of all wielders of weapons. Fromfear of relatives she brought forth in secrecy that child who had comeout with ear-rings and coat of mail. And he was gifted with the beauty ofa celestial infant, and in splendour was like unto the maker of dayhimself. And every part of his body was symmetrical and well-adorned. AndKunti cast the handsome child into the water. But the child thus throwninto the water was taken up by the excellent husband of Radha and givenby him to his wife to be adopted by her as their son. And the couple gavehim the name of Vasusena, by which appellation the child soon becameknown all over the land. And, as he grew up, he became very strong andexcelled in all weapons. The first of all successful persons, he soonmastered the sciences. And when the intelligent one having truth for hisstrength recited the Vedas, there was nothing he would not then give tothe Brahmanas. At that time Indra, the originator of all things, moved bythe desire of benefiting his own son Arjuna, assumed the guise of aBrahmana, came to him, and begged of the hero his ear-rings and naturalarmour. And the hero taking off his ear-rings and armour gave them untothe Brahmana. And Sakra (accepting the gift) presented to the giver adart, surprised (at his open handedness), and addressed him in thesewords, 'O invincible one, amongst the celestials, Asuras, men,Gandharvas, Nagas, and Rakshasas, he at whom thou hurlest (this weapon),that one shall certainly be slain.' And the son of Surya was at firstknown in the world by the name of Vasusena. But, for his deeds, hesubsequently came to be called Karna. And because that hero of great famehad taken off his natural armour, therefore was he--the first son ofPritha--called Kama. And, O best of kings, the hero began to grow up inthe Suta caste. And, O king, know thou that Kama--the first of allexalted men--the foremost of all wielders of weapons--the slayer offoes--and the best portion of the maker of day--was the friend andcounsellor of Duryodhana. And he, called Vasudeva, endued with greatvalour, was among men a portion of him called Narayana--the god ofgods--eternal. And Valadeva of exceeding strength was a portion of theNaga, Sesha. And, O monarch, know that Pradyumna of great energy wasSanatkumara. And in this way the portion of various other dwellers inheaven became exalted men in the race of Vasudeva, increasing the glorythereof. And, O king, the portions of the tribe of Apsaras which I havementioned already, also became incarnate on earth according to Indra'scommands--And sixteen thousand portions of those goddesses became, Oking, in this world of men, the wives of Vasudeva. And a portion of Sriherself became incarnate on earth, for the gratification of Narayana, inthe line of Bhishmaka. And she was by name the chaste Rukmini. And thefaultless Draupadi, slender-waisted like the wasp, was born of a portionof Sachi (the queen of the celestials), in the line of Drupada. And shewas neither low nor tall in stature. And she was of the fragrance of theblue lotus, of eyes large as lotus-petals, of thighs fair and round, ofdense masses of black curly hair. And endued with every auspiciousfeature and of complexion like that of the emerald, she became thecharmer of the hearts of five foremost of men. And the two goddessesSiddhi and Dhriti became the mothers of those five, and were called Kuntiand Madri. And she who was Mati became the daughter (Gandhari) of Suvala.
"Thus, O king, have I recited to thee all about the incarnation,according to their respective portions, of the gods, the Asuras, theGandharvas, the Apsaras, and of the Rakshasas. They who were born onearth as monarchs invincible in battle, those high-souled ones who wereborn in the wide extended line of the Yadus, they who were born as mightymonarchs in other lines, they who were born as Brahmanas and Kshatriyasand Vaisyas, have all been recited by me duly. And this account of theincarnation (of superior beings according to their respective portions)capable of bestowing wealth, fame, offspring, long life, and success,should always be listened to in a proper frame of mind. And havinglistened to this account of incarnation, according to their portions, ofgods, Gandharvas, and Rakshasas, the hearer becoming acquainted with thecreation, preservation, and destruction of the universe and acquiringwisdom, is never cast down even under the most engrossing sorrows.'"

SECTION LXVIII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Janamejaya said, 'O Brahmana, I have, indeed, heard from thee thisaccount of the incarnation, according to their portions, of the gods, theDanavas, the Rakshasas, and also of the Gandharvas and the Apsaras. Ihowever, again desire to hear of the dynasty of the Kurus from the verybeginning. Therefore, O Brahmana, speak of this in the presence of allthese regenerate Rishis.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'O exalted one of Bharata's race, the founder of thePaurava line was Dushmanta gifted with great energy. And he was theprotector of the earth bounded by the four seas. And that king had fullsway over four quarters of this world. And he was the lord also ofvarious regions in the midst of the sea. And that great oppressor of allfoes had sway over the countries even of the Mlechchhas.
"And during his rule there were no men of mixed castes, no tillers of thesoil (for the land, of itself, yielded produce), no workers of mines (forthe surface of the earth yielded in abundance), and no sinful men. Allwere virtuous, and did everything from virtuous motives, O tiger amongmen. There was no fear of thieves, O dear one, no fear of famine, no fearoff disease. And all four orders took pleasure in doing their respectiveduties and never performed religious acts for obtaining fruition ofdesires. And his subjects, depending upon him, never entertained anyfear. And Parjanya (Indra) poured showers at the proper time, and theproduce of the fields was always pulpy and juicy. And the earth was fullof all kinds of wealth and all kinds of animals. And the Brahmanas werealways engaged in their duties and they were always truthful. And theyouthful monarch was endued with wonderful prowess and a physical framehard as the thunderbolt, so that he could, taking up the mountain Mandarawith its forests and bushes, support it on his arms. And he waswell-skilled in four kinds of encounters with the mace (hurling it atfoes at a distance, striking at those that are near, whirling it in themidst of many, and driving the foe before). And he was skilled also inthe use of all kinds of weapons and in riding elephants and horses. Andin strength he was like unto Vishnu, in splendour like unto the maker ofday, in gravity like unto the ocean, and in patience, like unto theearth. And the monarch was loved by all his subjects, and he ruled hiscontented people virtuously.'"

SECTION LXIX
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Janamejaya said, 'I desire to hear from thee about the birth and life ofthe high-souled Bharata and of the origin of Sakuntala. And, O holy one,I also desire to hear all about Dushmanta--that lion among men--and howthe hero obtained Sakuntala. It behoveth thee, O knower of truth and thefirst of all intelligent men, to tell me everything.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'Once on a time (king Dushmanta) of mighty arms,accompanied by a large force, went into the forest. And he took with himhundreds of horses and elephants. And the force that accompanied themonarch was of four kinds (foot-soldiers, car-warriors, cavalry, andelephants)--heroes armed with swords and darts and bearing in their handsmaces and stout clubs. And surrounded by hundreds of warriors with lancesand spears in their hands, the monarch set out on his journey. And withthe leonine roars of the warriors and the notes of conchs and sound ofdrums, with the rattle of the car-wheels and shrieks of huge elephants,all mingling with the neighing of horses and the clash of weapons of thevariously armed attendants in diverse dresses, there arose a deafeningtumult while the king was on his march. And ladies gifted with greatbeauty beheld from the terraces of goodly mansions that heroic monarch,the achiever of his own fame. And the ladies saw that he was like untoSakra, the slayer of his enemies, capable of repulsing the elephants offoes--And they believed that he was the wielder of the thunderbolthimself. And they said, 'This is that tiger among men who in battle isequal unto the Vasus in prowess, and in consequence of the might of whosearms no foes are left.' And saying this, the ladies from affectiongratified the monarch by showering flowers on his head. And followed byforemost of Brahmanas uttering blessings all the way, the king in greatgladness of heart went towards the forest, eager for slaying the deer.And many Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas, and Sudras, followed the monarchwho was like unto the king of the celestials seated on the back of aproud elephant. The citizens and other classes followed the monarch forsome distance. And they at last refrained from going farther at thecommand of the king. And the king, then, ascending his chariot of wingedspeed, filled the whole earth and even the heavens, with the rattle ofhis chariot wheels. And, as he went, he saw around him a forest like untoNandana itself (the celestial garden). And it was full of Vilwa, Arka,Khadira (catechu), Kapittha (wood-apple) and Dhava trees. And he saw thatthe soil was uneven and scattered over with blocks of stone loosened fromthe neighbouring cliffs. And he saw that it was without water and withouthuman beings and lay extended for many Yojanas around. And it was full ofdeer, and lions, and other terrible beasts of prey.
"And king Dushmanta, that tiger among men, assisted by his followers andthe warriors in his train, agitated that forest, killing numerousanimals. And Dushmanta, piercing them with his arrows, felled numeroustigers that were within shooting range. And the king wounded many thatwere too distant, and killed many that were too near with his heavysword. And that foremost of all wielders of darts killed many by hurlinghis darts at them. And well-conversant with the art of whirling the mace,the king of immeasurable prowess fearlessly wandered over the forest. Andthe king roamed about, killing the denizens of the wilderness sometimeswith his sword and sometimes by fast-descending blows of his mace andheavy club.
"And when the forest was so disturbed by the king possessed of wonderfulenergy and by the warriors in his train delighting in warlike sports, thelions began to desert it in numbers. And herds of animals deprived oftheir leaders, from fear and anxiety began to utter loud cries as theyfled in all directions. And fatigued with running, they began to falldown on all sides, unable to slake their thirst, having reachedriver-beds that were perfectly dry. And many so falling were eaten up bythe hungry warriors. While others were eaten up after having been dulyquartered and roasted in fires lit up by them. And many strong elephants,maddened with the wounds they received and alarmed beyond measure, fledwith trunks raised on high. And those wild elephants, betraying the usualsymptoms of alarm by urinating and ejecting the contents of theirstomachs and vomiting blood in large quantities, trampled, as they ran,many warriors to death. And that forest which had been full of animals,was by the king with his bands of followers and with sharp weapons soonmade bereft of lions and tigers and other monarchs of the wilderness.'"

SECTION LXX
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'Then the king with his followers, having killedthousands of animals, entered another forest with a view to hunting. Andattended by a single follower and fatigued with hunger and thirst, hecame upon a large desert on the frontiers of the forest. And havingcrossed this herbless plain, the king came upon another forest full ofthe retreats of ascetics, beautiful to look at, delightful to the heartand of cool agreeable breezes. And it was full of trees covered withblossoms, the soil overgrown with the softest and greenest grass,extending for many miles around, and echoing with the sweet notes ofwinged warblers. And it resounded with the notes of the male Kokila andof the shrill cicala. And it was full of magnificent trees withoutstretched branches forming a shady canopy overhead. And the beeshovered over flowery creepers all around. And there were beautiful bowersin every place. And there was no tree without fruits, none that hadprickles on it, none that had no bees swarming around it. And the wholeforest resounded with the melody of winged choristers. And it was deckedwith the flowers of every season. And there were refreshing shades ofblossoming trees.
"Such was the delicious and excellent forest that the great bowmanentered. And trees with branches beautified with clusters began to wavegently at the soft breeze and rain their flowers over the monarch's head.And the trees, clad in their flowery attires of all colours, withsweet-throated warblers perched on them, stood there in rows with headstouching the very heavens. And around their branches hanging down withthe weight of flowers the bees tempted by the honey hummed in sweetchorus. And the king, endued with great energy, beholding innumerablespots covered with bowers of creepers decked with clusters of flowers,from excess of gladness, became very much charmed. And the forest wasexceedingly beautiful in consequence of those trees ranged around withflowery branches twining with each other and looking like so manyrainbows for gaudiness and variety of colour. And it was the resort ofbands of Siddhas, of the Charanas, of tribes of Gandharvas, and Apsaras,of monkeys and Kinnaras drunk with delight. Delicious cool, and fragrantbreezes, conveying the fragrance from fresh flowers, blew in alldirections as if they had come there to sport with the trees. And theking saw that charming forest gifted with such beauties. And it wassituated in a delta of the river, and the cluster of high trees standingtogether lent the place the look of a gaudy pole erected to Indra'shonour.
"And in that forest which was the resort of ever cheerful birds, themonarch saw a delightful and charming retreat of ascetics. And there weremany trees around it. And the sacred fire was burning within it. And theking worshipped that unrivalled retreat. And he saw seated in it numerousYotis, Valakhilyas and other Munis. And it was adorned with many chamberscontaining sacrificial fire. And the flowers dropping from the trees hadformed a thick carpet spread over the ground. And the spot lookedexceedingly beautiful with those tall trees of large trunks. And by itflowed, O king, the sacred and transparent Malini with every species ofwater-fowl playing on its bosom. And that stream infused gladness intothe hearts of the ascetics who resorted to it for purposes of ablutions.And the king beheld on its banks many innocent animals of the deerspecies and was exceedingly delighted with all that he saw.
"And the monarch, the course of whose chariot no foe could obstruct, thenentered that asylum which was like unto the region of the celestials,being exceedingly beautiful all over. And the king saw that it stood onthe margin of the sacred stream which was like the mother of all theliving creatures residing in its vicinage. And on its bank sported theChakravaka, and waves of milkwhite foam. And there stood also thehabitations of Kinnaras. And monkeys and bears too disported themselvesin numbers. And there lived also holy ascetics engaged in studies andmeditation. And there could be seen also elephants and tigers and snakes.And it was on the banks of that stream that the excellent asylum of theillustrious Kasyapa stood, offering a home to numerous Rishis of greatascetic merit. And beholding that river, and also the asylum washed bythat river which was studded with many islands and which possessed banksof so much beauty,--an asylum like unto that of Nara and Narayana lavedby the water of the Ganga--the king resolved to enter into that sacredabode. And that bull among men, desirous of beholding the great Rishi ofascetic wealth, the illustrious Kanwa of the race of Kasyapa, one whopossessed every virtue and who, for his splendour, could be gazed at withdifficulty, approached that forest resounding with the notes of maddenedpeacocks and like unto the gardens of the great Gandharva, Chitraratha,himself. And halting his army consisting of flags, cavalry, infantry, andelephants at the entrance of the forest, the monarch spoke as follows, 'Ishall go to behold the mighty ascetic of Kasyapa's race, one who iswithout darkness. Stay ye here until my return!'
"And the king having entered that forest which was like unto Indra'sgarden, soon forgot his hunger and thirst. And he was pleased beyondmeasure. And the monarch, laying aside all signs of royalty, entered thatexcellent asylum with but his minister and his priest, desirous ofbeholding that Rishi who was an indestructible mass of ascetic merit. Andthe king saw that the asylum was like unto the region of Brahman. Herewere bees sweetly humming and there were winged warblers of variousspecies pouring forth their melodies. At particular places that tigeramong men heard the chanting of Rik hymns by first-rate Brahmanasaccording to the just rules of intonation. Other places again were gracedwith Brahmanas acquainted with ordinances of sacrifice, of the Angas andof the hymns of the Yajurveda. Other places again were filled with theharmonious strains of Saman hymns sung by vow-observing Rishis. At otherplaces the asylum was decked with Brahmanas learned in the Atharvan Veda.At other places again Brahmanas learned in the Atharvan Veda and thosecapable of chanting the sacrificial hymns of the Saman were reciting theSamhitas according to the just rules of voice. And at other places again,other Brahmanas well-acquainted with the science of orthoepy werereciting mantras of other kinds. In fact, that sacred retreat resoundingwith these holy notes was like unto a second region of Brahman himself.And there were many Brahmanas skilled in the art of making sacrificialplatforms and in the rules of Krama in sacrifices, conversant with logicand the mental sciences, and possessing a complete knowledge of theVedas. There were those also who were fully acquainted with the meaningsof all kinds of expressions; those that were conversant with all specialrites, those also that were followers of Moksha-Dharma; those again thatwere well-skilled in establishing propositions; rejecting superfluouscauses, and drawing right conclusions. There were those having aknowledge of the science of words (grammar), of prosody, of Nirukta;those again that were conversant with astrology and learned in theproperties of matter and the fruits of sacrificial rites, possessing aknowledge of causes and effects, capable of understanding the cries ofbirds and monkeys, well-read in large treatises, and skilled in varioussciences. And the king, as he proceeded, heard their voices. And theretreat resounded also with voice of men capable of charming humanhearts. And the slayer of hostile heroes also saw around him learnedBrahmanas of rigid vows engaged in Japa (the repeated muttering of thenames of gods) and Homa (burnt-offering). And the king wondered much onbeholding the beautiful carpets which those Brahmanas offered to himrespectfully. And that best of monarchs, at the sight of the rites withwhich those Brahmanas worshipped the gods and the great Rishis, thoughtwithin himself that he was in the region of Brahman. And the more theking saw that auspicious and sacred asylum of Kasyapa protected by thatRishi's ascetic virtues and possessing all the requisites of a holyretreat, the more he desired to see it. In fact, he was not satisfiedwith his short survey. And the slayer of heroes at last, accompanied byhis minister and his priest, entered that charming and sacred retreat ofKasyapa inhabited all around by Rishis of ascetic wealth and exaltedvows.'"

SECTION LXXI
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'The monarch then, as he proceeded, left even hisreduced retinue at the entrance of the hermitage. And entering quitealone he saw not the Rishi (Kanwa) of rigid vows. And not seeing theRishi and finding that the abode was empty, he called loudly, saying,'What ho, who is here?' And the sound of his voice was echoed back. Andhearing the sound of his voice, there came out of the Rishi's abode amaiden beautiful as Sri herself but dressed as an ascetic's daughter. Andthe black-eyed fair one, as she saw king Dushmanta, bade him welcome andreceived him duly. And, showing him due respect by the offer of a seat,water to wash his feet, and Arghya, she enquired about the monarch'shealth and peace. And having worshipped the king and asked him about hishealth and peace, the maiden reverentially asked, 'What must be done, Oking! I await your commands.' The king, duly worshipped by her, said untothat maiden of faultless features and sweet speech, 'I have come toworship the highly-blessed Rishi Kanwa. Tell me, O amiable and beautifulone, where has the illustrious Rishi gone?'
"Sakuntala then answered, 'My illustrious father hath gone away from theasylum to fetch fruit. Wait but a moment and thou wilt see him when hearrives.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'The king not seeing the Rishi and addressedthus by her, beheld that the maiden was exceedingly beautiful and enduedwith perfect symmetry of shape. And he saw that she was of sweet smiles.And she stood decked with the beauty of her faultless features, herascetic penances, and her humility. And he saw that she was in the bloomof youth. He therefore asked her, 'Who art thou? And whose daughter, Obeautiful one? Why hast thou come into the woods also? O handsome one,gifted with so much beauty and such virtues, whence hast thou come? Ocharming one, at the very first glance hast thou stolen my heart! Idesire to learn all about thee; therefore tell me all.' And thusaddressed by the monarch, the maiden smilingly replied in these sweetwords, 'O Dushmanta, I am the daughter of the virtuous, wise,high-souled, and illustrious ascetic Kanwa.'
"Dushmanta, hearing this, replied, 'The universally-worshipped andhighly-blessed Rishi is one whose seed hath been drawn up. Even Dharmahimself might fall off from his course but an ascetic of rigid vows cannever fall off so. Therefore, O thou of the fairest complexion, how hastthou been born as his daughter? This great doubt of mine it behoveth theeto dispel.'
"Sakuntala then replied, 'Hear, O king, what I have learnt regarding allthat befell me of old and how I became the daughter of the Muni. Once ona time, a Rishi came here and asked about my birth. All that theillustrious one (Kanwa) told him, hear now from me, O king!
"My father Kanwa, in answer to that Rishi's enquiries, said, 'Viswamitra,of old, having been engaged in the austerest penances alarmed Indra, thechief of the celestials, who thought that the mighty ascetic of blazingenergy would, by his penances, hurl him down from his high seat inheaven.' Indra, thus alarmed, summoned Menaka and told her, 'Thou, OMenaka, art the first of celestial Apsaras. Therefore, O amiable one, dome this service. Hear what I say. This great ascetic Viswamitra like untothe Sun in splendour, is engaged in the most severe of penances. My heartis trembling with fear. Indeed, O slender-waisted Menaka, this is thybusiness. Thou must see that Viswamitra of soul rapt in contemplation andengaged in the austerest penances, who might hurl me down from my seat.Go and tempt him and frustrating his continued austerities accomplish mygood. Win him away from his penances, O beautiful one, by tempting himwith thy beauty, youth, agreeableness, arts, smiles and speech.' Hearingall this, Menaka replied, 'The illustrious Viswamitra is endued withgreat energy and is a mighty ascetic. He is very short-tempered too, asis known to thee. The energy, penances, and wrath of the high-souled onehave made even thee anxious. Why should I not also be anxious? He it waswho made even the illustrious Vasishtha bear the pangs of witnessing thepremature death of his children. He it was who, though at first born asKshatriya, subsequently became a Brahmana by virtue of his asceticpenances. He it was who, for purposes of his ablutions, created a deepriver that can with difficulty be forded, and which sacred stream isknown by the name of the Kausiki. It was Viswamitra whose wife, in aseason of distress, was maintained by the royal sage Matanga (Trisanku)who was then living under a father's curse as a hunter. It was Viswamitrawho, on returning after the famine was over, changed the name of thestream having his asylum from Kausik into Para. It was Viswamitra who inreturn for the services of Matanga, himself became the latter's priestfor purposes of a sacrifice. The lord of the celestials himself wentthrough fear to drink the Soma juice. It was Viswamitra who in angercreated a second world and numerous stars beginning with Sravana. He itwas who granted protection to Trisanku smarting under a superior's curse.I am frightened to approach him of such deeds. Tell me, O Indra, themeans that should be adopted so that I may not be burnt by his wrath. Hecan burn the three worlds by his splendour, can, by a stamp (of hisfoot), cause the earth to quake. He can sever the great Meru from theearth and hurl it to any distance. He can go round the ten points of theearth in a moment. How can a woman like me even touch such a one full ofascetic virtues, like unto a blazing fire, and having his passions undercomplete control? His mouth is like unto a blazing fire; the pupils ofhis eyes are like the Sun and the Moon; his tongue is like unto Yamahimself. How shall, O chief of the celestials, a woman like me even touchhim? At the thought of his prowess Yama, Soma, the great Rishis, theSaddhyas, the Viswas, Valakhilyas, are terrified! How can a woman like megaze at him without alarm? Commanded, however, by thee, O king of thecelestials, I shall somehow approach that Rishi. But, O chief of thegods, devise thou some plan whereby protected by thee, I may safely moveabout that Rishi. I think that when I begin to play before the Rishi,Marut (the god of wind) had better go there and rob me of my dress, andManmatha (the god of love) had also, at thy command, better help me then.Let also Marut on that occasion bear thither fragrance from the woods totempt the Rishi.' Saying this and seeing that all she had spoken abouthad been duly provided, Menaka went to the retreat of the great Kausika.'"

SECTION LXXII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
Kanwa continued, 'And Sakra, thus addressed by her, then commanded himwho could approach every place (viz., the god of the wind) to be presentwith Menaka at the time she would be before the Rishi. And the timid andbeautiful Menaka then entered the retreat and saw there Viswamitra whohad burnt, by his penances, all his sins, and was engaged still inascetic penances. And saluting the Rishi, she then began to sport beforehim. And just at that time Marut robbed her of her garments that werewhite as the Moon. And she thereupon ran, as if in great bashfulness, tocatch hold of her attire, and as if she was exceedingly annoyed withMarut. And she did all this before the very eyes of Viswamitra who wasendued with energy like that of fire. And Viswamitra saw her in thatattitude. And beholding her divested of her robes, he saw that she was offaultless feature. And that best of Munis saw that she was exceedinglyhandsome, with no marks of age on her person. And beholding her beautyand accomplishments that bull amongst Rishis was possessed with lust andmade a sign that he desired her companionship. And he invited heraccordingly, and she also of faultless features expressed her acceptanceof the invitation. And they then passed a long time there in each other'scompany. And sporting with each other, just as they pleased, for a longtime as if it were only a single day, the Rishi begat on Menaka adaughter named Sakuntala. And Menaka (as her conception advanced) went tothe banks of the river Malini coursing along a valley of the charmingmountains of Himavat. And there she gave birth to that daughter. And sheleft the new-born infant on the bank of that river and went away. Andbeholding the new-born infant lying in that forest destitute of humanbeings but abounding with lions and tigers, a number of vultures sataround to protect it from harm. No Rakshasas or carnivorous animals tookits life. Those vultures protected the daughter of Menaka. I went thereto perform my ablution and beheld the infant lying in the solitude of thewilderness surrounded by vultures. Bringing her hither I have made her mydaughter. Indeed, the maker of the body, the protector of life, the giverof food, are all three, fathers in their order, according to thescriptures. And because she was surrounded in the solitude of thewilderness, by Sakuntas (birds), therefore, hath she been named by meSakuntala (bird-protected). O Brahman, learn that it is thus thatSakuntala hath become my daughter. And the faultless Sakuntala alsoregards me as her father.'
"This is what my father had said unto the Rishi, having been asked byhim. O king of men, it is thus that thou must know I am the daughter ofKanwa. And not knowing my real father, I regard Kanwa as my father. Thushave I told thee, O king, all that hath been heard by me regarding mybirth!'"

SECTION LXXIII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana continued, 'King Dushmanta, hearing all this, said,'Well-spoken, O princess, this that thou hast said! Be my wife, Obeautiful one! What shall I do for thee? Golden garlands, robes,ear-rings of gold, white and handsome pearls, from various countries,golden coins, finest carpets, I shall present thee this very day. Let thewhole of my kingdom be thine today, O beautiful one! Come to me, O timidone, wedding me, O beautiful one, according to the Gandharva form. O thouof tapering thighs, of all forms of marriage, the Gandharva one isregarded as the first.'
"Sakuntala, hearing this, said, 'O king, my father hath gone away fromthis asylum to bring fruit. Wait but a moment; he will bestow me on thee.'
"Dushmanta replied, 'O beautiful and faultless one, I desire that thoushouldst be my life's companion. Know thou that I exist for thee, and myheart is in thee. One is certainly one's own friend, and one certainlymay depend upon one's own self. Therefore, according to the ordinance,thou canst certainly bestow thyself. There are, in all, eight kinds ofmarriages. These are Brahma, Daiva, Arsha, Prajapatya, Asura, Gandharva,Rakshasa, and Paisacha, the eighth. Manu, the son of the self-create,hath spoken of the appropriateness of all these forms according to theirorder. Know, O faultless one, that the first four of these are fit forBrahmanas, and the first six for Kshatriyas. As regards kings, even theRakshasa form is permissible. The Asura form is permitted to Vaisyas andSudras. Of the first five the three are proper, the other two beingimproper. The Paisacha and the Asura forms should never be practised.These are the institutes of religion, and one should act according tothem. The Gandharva and the Rakshasa form are consistent with thepractices of Kshatriyas. Thou needst not entertain the least fear. Thereis not the least doubt that either according to any one of theselast-mentioned forms, or according to a union of both of them, ourwedding may take place. O thou of the fairest complexion, full of desireI am, thou also in a similar mood mayst become my wife according to theGandharva form.'
"Sakuntala, having listened to all this, answered, 'If this be the coursesanctioned by religion, if, indeed, I am my own disposer, hear, O thouforemost one of Puru's race, what my terms are. Promise truly to give mewhat I ask thee. The son that shall be begotten on me shall become thyheir-apparent. This, O king, is my fixed resolve. O Dushmanta, if thougrant this, then let our union take place.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'The monarch, without taking time to consider atonce told her, 'Let it be so. I will even take thee, O thou of agreeablesmiles, with me to my capital. I tell thee truly. O beautiful one, thoudeservest all this.' And so saying, that first of kings wedded thehandsome Sakuntala of graceful gait, and knew her as a husband. Andassuring her duly, he went away, telling her repeatedly, 'I shall sendthee, for thy escort, my troops of four classes. Indeed, it is even thusthat I shall take thee to my capital, O thou of sweet smiles!"
"Vaisampayana continued, 'O Janamejaya, having promised so unto her, theking went away. And as he retraced his way homewards, he began to thinkof Kasyapa. And he asked himself, 'What will the illustrious ascetic say,after he has known all?' Thinking of this, he entered his capital.
"The moment the king had left, Kanwa arrived at his abode. But Sakuntala,from a sense of shame, did not go out to receive her father. That greatascetic, however, possessed of spiritual knowledge, knew all. Indeedbeholding everything with his spiritual eye, the illustrious one waspleased, and addressing her, said, 'Amiable one, what hath been done bythee today in secret, without, having waited for me--viz., intercoursewith a man--hath not been destructive of thy virtue. Indeed, unionaccording to the Gandharva form, of a wishful woman with a man of sensualdesire, without mantras of any kind, it is said, is the best forKshatriyas. That best of men, Dushmanta, is also high-souled andvirtuous. Thou hast, O Sakuntala, accepted him for thy husband. The sonthat shall be born of thee shall be mighty and illustrious in this world.And he shall have sway over the sea. And the forces of that illustriousking of kings, while he goeth out against his foes shall be irresistible.'
"Sakuntala then approached her fatigued father and washed his feet. Andtaking down the load he had with him and placing the fruits in properorder, she told him, 'It behoveth thee to give thy grace to thatDushmanta whom I have accepted for my husband, as well as his ministers!'
"Kanwa replied, 'O thou of the fairest complexion, for thy sake I aminclined to bless him. But receive from me, O blessed one, the boon thatthou desirest.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Sakuntala, thereupon, moved by desire ofbenefiting Dushmanta, asked the boon that the Paurava monarchs might everbe virtuous and never deprived of their thrones.'"

SECTION LXXIV
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'After Dushmanta had left the asylum having madethose promises unto Sakuntala, the latter of tapering thighs broughtforth a boy of immeasurable energy. And when the child was three yearsold, he became in splendour like the blazing fire. And, O Janamejaya, hewas possessed of beauty and magnanimity and every accomplishment. Andthat first of virtuous men, Kanwa, caused all the rites of religion to beperformed in respect of that intelligent child thriving day by day. Andthe boy gifted with pearly teeth and shining locks, capable of slayinglions even then, with all auspicious signs on his palm, and broadexpansive forehead, grew up in beauty and strength. And like unto acelestial child in splendour, he began to grow up rapidly. And when hewas only six years of age, endued with great strength he used to seizeand bind to the trees that stood around that asylum, lions and tigers andbears and buffaloes and elephants. And he rode on some animals, andpursued others in sportive mood. The dwellers at Kanwa's asylum thereuponbestowed on him a name. And they said, because he seizes and restrains ananimals however strong, let him, be called Sarvadamana (the subduer ofall). And it was thus that the boy came to be named Sarvadamana, enduedas he was with prowess, and energy and strength. And the Rishi seeing theboy and marking also his extraordinary acts, told Sakuntala that the timehad come for his installation as the heir-apparent. And beholding thestrength of the boy, Kanwa commanded his disciples, saying, 'Bear yewithout delay this Sakuntala with her son from this abode to that of herhusband, blessed with every auspicious sign. Women should not live longin the houses of their paternal or maternal relations. Such residence isdestructive of their reputation, their good conduct, their virtue.Therefore, delay not in bearing her hence.' These disciples of the Rishithereupon, saying 'So be it,' went towards the city named after anelephant (Hastinapura) with Sakuntala and her son ahead of them. And thenshe of fair eye-brows, taking with her that boy of celestial beauty,endued with eyes like lotus petals, left the woods where she had beenfirst known by Dushmanta. And having approached the king, she with herboy resembling in splendour the rising sun was introduced to him. And thedisciples of the Rishi having introduced her, returned to the asylum. AndSakuntala having worshipped the king according to proper form, told him,'This is thy son, O king! Let him be installed as thy heir-apparent. Oking, this child, like unto a celestial, hath been begotten by thee uponme. Therefore, O best of men, fulfil now the promise thou gavest me. Callto mind, O thou of great good fortune, the agreement thou hadst made onthe occasion of thy union with me in the asylum of Kanwa.'
"The king, hearing these her words, and remembering everything said, 'Ido not remember anything. Who art thou, O wicked woman in ascetic guise?I do not remember having any connection with thee in respect of Dharma,Kama and Arthas. Go or stay or do as thou pleasest.' Thus addressed byhim, the fair-coloured innocent one became abashed. Grief deprived her ofconsciousness and she stood for a time like an wooden post. Soon,however, her eyes became red like copper and her lips began to quiver.And the glances she now and then cast upon the king seemed to burn thelatter. Her rising wrath however, and the fire of her asceticism, sheextinguished within herself by an extraordinary effort. Collecting herthoughts in a moment, her heart possessed with sorrow and rage, she thusaddressed her lord in anger, looking at him, 'Knowing everything, Omonarch, how canst thou, like an inferior person, thus say that thouknowest it not? Thy heart is a witness to the truth or falsehood of thismatter. Therefore, speak truly without degrading thyself. He who beingone thing representeth himself as another thing to others, is like athief and a robber of his own self. Of what sin is he not capable? Thouthinkest that thou alone hast knowledge of thy deed. But knowest thou notthat the Ancient, Omniscient one (Narayana) liveth in thy heart? Heknoweth all thy sins, and thou sinnest in His presence. He that sinsthinks that none observes him. But he is observed by the gods and by Himalso who is in every heart. The Sun, the Moon, the Air, the Fire, theEarth, the Sky, Water, the heart, Yama, the day, the night, bothtwilights, and Dharma, all witness the acts of man. Yama, the son ofSurya, takes no account of the sins of him with whom Narayana the witnessof all acts, is gratified. But he with whom Narayana is not gratified istortured for his sins by Yama. Him who degradeth himself by representinghis self falsely, the gods never bless. Even his own soul blesseth himnot. I am a wife devoted to my husband. I have come of my own accord, itis true. But do not, on that account, treat me with disrespect. I am thywife and, therefore, deserve to be treated respectfully. Wilt thou nottreat me so, because I have come hither of my own accord? In the presenceof so many, why dost thou treat me like an ordinary woman? I am notcertainly crying in the wilderness. Dost thou not hear me? But if thourefuse to do what I supplicate thee for, O Dushmanta, thy head thismoment shall burst into a hundred pieces! The husband entering the wombof the wife cometh out himself in the form of the son. Therefore is thewife called by those cognisant of the Vedas as Jaya (she of whom one isborn). And the son that is so born unto persons cognisant of the VedicMantras rescueth the spirits of deceased ancestors. And because the sonrescueth ancestors from the hell call Put, therefore, hath he been calledby the Self-create himself as Puttra (the rescuer from Put). By a son oneconquereth the three worlds. By a son's son, one enjoyeth eternity. Andby a grandson's son great-grand-fathers enjoy everlasting happiness. Sheis a true wife who is skilful in household affairs. She is a true wifewho hath borne a son. She is a true wife whose heart is devoted to herlord. She is a true wife who knoweth none but her lord. The wife is aman's half. The wife is the first of friends. The wife is the root ofreligion, profit, and desire. The wife is the root of salvation. Theythat have wives can perform religious acts. They that have wives can leaddomestic lives. They that have wives have the means to be cheerful. Theythat have wives can achieve good fortune. Sweet-speeched wives arefriends on occasions of joy. They are as fathers on occasions ofreligious acts. They are mothers in sickness and woe. Even in the deepwoods to a traveller a wife is his refreshment and solace. He that hath awife is trusted by all. A wife, therefore, is one's most valuablepossession. Even when the husband leaving this world goeth into theregion of Yama, it is the devoted wife that accompanies him thither. Awife going before waits for the husband. But if the husband goeth before,the chaste wife followeth close. For these reasons, O king, doth marriageexist. The husband enjoyth the companionship of the wife both in this andin the other worlds. It hath been said by learned persons that one ishimself born as one's son. Therefore, a man whose wife hath borne a sonshould look upon her as his mother. Beholding the face of the son onehath begotten upon his wife, like his own face in a mirror, one feelethas happy as a virtuous man, on attaining to heaven. Men scorched bymental grief, or suffering under bodily pain, feel as much refreshed inthe companionship of their wives as a perspiring person in a cool bath.No man, even in anger, should ever do anything that is disagreeable tohis wife, seeing that happiness, joy, and virtue,--everything dependethon the wife. A wife is the sacred field in which the husband is bornhimself. Even Rishis cannot create creatures without women. Whathappiness is greater than what the father feeleth when the son runningtowards him, even though his body be covered with dust, claspeth hislimbs? Why then dost thou treat with indifference such a son, who hathapproached thee himself and who casteth wistful glances towards thee forclimbing thy knees? Even ants support their own eggs without destroyingthem; then why shouldst not thou, a virtuous man that thou art, supportthy own child? The touch of soft sandal paste, of women, of (cool) wateris not so agreeable as the touch of one's own infant son locked in one'sembrace. As a Brahmana is the foremost of all bipeds, a cow, the foremostof all quadrupeds, a protector, the foremost of all superiors, so is theson the foremost of all objects, agreeable to the touch. Let, therefore,this handsome child touch thee in embrace. There is nothing in the worldmore agreeable to the touch than the embrace of one's son. O chastiser offoes, I have brought forth this child, O monarch, capable of dispellingall thy sorrows after bearing him in my womb for full three years. Omonarch of Puru's race, 'He shall perform a hundredhorse-sacrifices'--these were the words uttered from the sky when I wasin the lying-in room. Indeed, men going into places remote from theirhomes take up there others' children on their laps and smelling theirheads feel great happiness. Thou knowest that Brahmanas repeat theseVedic mantras on the occasion of the consecrating rites of infancy.--Thouart born, O son, of my body! Thou art sprung from my heart. Thou artmyself in the form of a son. Live thou to a hundred years! My lifedependeth on thee, and the continuation of my race also, on thee.Therefore, O son, live thou in great happiness to a hundred years. Hehath sprung from thy body, this second being from thee! Behold thyself inthy son, as thou beholdest thy image in the clear lake. As thesacrificial fire is kindled from the domestic one, so hath this onesprung from thee. Though one, thou hast divided thyself. In course ofhunting while engaged in pursuit of the deer, I was approached by thee, Oking, I who was then a virgin in the asylum of my father. Urvasi,Purvachitti, Sahajanya, Menaka, Viswachi and Ghritachi, these are the sixforemost of Apsaras. Amongst them again, Menaka, born of Brahman, is thefirst. Descending from heaven on Earth, after intercourse withViswamitra, she gave birth to me. That celebrated Apsara, Menaka, broughtme forth in a valley of Himavat. Bereft of all affection, she went away,cast me there as if I were the child of somebody else. What sinful actdid I do, of old, in some other life that I was in infancy cast away bymy parents and at present am cast away by thee! Put away by thee, I amready to return to the refuge of my father. But it behoveth thee not tocast off this child who is thy own.'
"Hearing all this, Dushmanta said, 'O Sakuntala, I do not know havingbegot upon thee this son. Women generally speak untruths. Who shallbelieve in thy words? Destitute of all affection, the lewd Menaka is thymother, and she cast thee off on the surface of the Himavat as one throwsaway, after the worship is over, the flowery offering made to his gods.Thy father too of the Kshatriya race, the lustful Viswamitra, who wastempted to become a Brahmana, is destitute of all affection. However,Menaka is the first of Apsaras, and thy father also is the first ofRishis. Being their daughter, why dost thou speak like a lewd woman? Thywords deserve no credit. Art thou not ashamed to speak them, especiallybefore me? Go hence, O wicked woman in ascetic guise. Where is thatforemost of great Rishis, where also is that Apsara Menaka? And why artthou, low as thou art, in the guise of an ascetic? Thy child too is grownup. Thou sayest he is a boy, but he is very strong. How hath he soongrown like a Sala sprout? Thy birth is low. Thou speakest like a lewdwoman. Lustfully hast thou been begotten by Menaka. O woman of asceticguise, all that thou sayest is quite unknown to me. I don't know thee. Gowithersoever thou choosest.'
"Sakuntala replied, 'Thou seest, O king, the fault of others, even thoughthey be as small as a mustard seed. But seeing, thou noticest not thy ownfaults even though they be as large as the Vilwa fruit. Menaka is one ofthe celestials. Indeed, Menaka is reckoned as the first of celestials. Mybirth, therefore, O Dushmanta, is far higher than thine. Thou walkestupon the Earth, O king, but I roam in the skies! Behold, the differencebetween ourselves is as that between (the mountain) Meru and a mustardseed! Behold my power, O king! I can repair to the abodes of Indra,Kuvera, Yama, and Varuna! The saying is true which I shall refer tobefore thee, O sinless one! I refer to it for example's sake and not fromevil motives. Therefore, it behoveth thee to pardon me after thou hastheard it. An ugly person considereth himself handsomer than others untilhe sees his own face in the mirror. But when he sees his own ugly face inthe mirror, it is then that he perceiveth the difference between himselfand others. He that is really handsome never taunts anybody. And he thatalways talketh evil becometh a reviler. And as the swine always look fordirt and filth even when in the midst of a flower-garden, so the wickedalways choose the evil out of both evil and good that others speak.Those, however, that are wise, on hearing the speeches of others that areintermixed with both good and evil, accept only what is good, like geesethat always extract the milk only, though it be mixed with water. As thehonest are always pained at speaking ill of others, so do the wickedalways rejoice in doing the same thing. As the honest always feelpleasure in showing regard for the old, so do the wicked always takedelight in aspersing the good. The honest are happy in not seeking forfaults. The wicked are happy in seeking for them. The wicked ever speakill of the honest. But the latter never injure the former, even ifinjured by them. What can be more ridiculous in the world than that thosethat are themselves wicked should represent the really honest as wicked?When even atheists are annoyed with those that have fallen off from truthand virtue and who are really like angry snakes of virulent poison, whatshall I say of myself who am nurtured in faith? He that having begotten ason who is his own image, regardeth him not, never attaineth to theworlds he coveteth, and verily the gods destroy his good fortune andpossessions. The Pitris have said that the son continueth the race andthe line and is, therefore, the best of all religious acts. Therefore,none should abandon a son. Manu hath said that there are five kinds ofsons; those begotten by one's self upon his own wife, those obtained (asgift) from others, those purchased for a consideration, those reared withaffection and those begotten upon other women than upon wedded wives.Sons support the religion and achievements of men, enhance their joys,and rescue deceased ancestors from hell. It behoveth thee not, therefore,O tiger among kings, to abandon a son who is such. Therefore, O lord ofEarth, cherish thy own self, truth, and virtue by cherishing thy son. Olion among monarchs, it behoveth thee not to support this deceitfulness.The dedication of a tank is more meritorious than that of a hundredwells. A sacrifice again is more meritorious than the dedication of atank. A son is more meritorious than a sacrifice. Truth is moremeritorious than a hundred sons. A hundred horse-sacrifices had once beenweighed against Truth, and Truth was found heavier than a hundredhorse-sacrifices. O king, Truth, I ween, may be equal to the study of,the entire Vedas and ablutions in all holy places. There is no virtueequal to Truth: there is nothing superior to Truth. O king, Truth is Godhimself; Truth is the highest vow. Therefore, violate not thy pledge, Omonarch! Let Truth and thee be even united. If thou placest no credit inmy words, I shall of my own accord go hence. Indeed, thy companionshipshould be avoided. But thou, O Dushmanta, that when thou art gone, thisson of mine shall rule the whole Earth surrounded by the four seas andadorned with the king of the mountains."
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Sakuntala having spoken to the monarch in thiswise, left his presence. But as soon as she had left, a voice from theskies, emanating from no visible shape, thus spoke unto Dushmanta as hewas sitting surrounded by his occasional and household priests, hispreceptors, and ministers. And the voice said, 'The mother is but thesheath of flesh; the son sprung from the father is the father himself.Therefore, O Dushmanta, cherish thy son, and insult not Sakuntala. O bestof men, the son, who is but a form of one's own seed, rescueth(ancestors) from the region of Yama. Thou art the progenitor of this boy.Sakuntala hath spoken the truth. The husband, dividing his body in twain,is born of his wife in the form of son. Therefore, O Dushmanta, cherish,O monarch, thy son born of Sakuntala. To live by forsaking one's livingson is a great, misfortune. Therefore, O thou of Puru's race, cherish thyhigh-souled son born of Sakuntala--And because this child is to becherished by thee even at our word, therefore shall this thy son be knownby the name of Bharata (the cherished).' Hearing these words uttered bythe dwellers in heaven, the monarch of Puru's race became overjoyed andspoke as follows unto his priests and ministers, 'Hear ye these wordsuttered by the celestial messenger? I myself know this one to be my son.If I had taken him as my son on the strength of Sakuntala's words alone,my people would have been suspicious and my son also would not have beenregarded as pure.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'The monarch, then, O thou of Bharata's race,seeing the purity of his son established by the celestial messenger,became exceedingly glad. And he took unto him that son with joy. And theking with a joyous heart then performed all those rites upon his son thata father should perform. And the king smelt his child's head and huggedhim with affection. And the Brahmanas began to utter blessings upon himand the bards began to applaud him. And the monarch then experienced thegreat delight that one feeleth at the touch of one's son. And Dushmantaalso received mat wife of his with affection. And he told her thesewords, pacifying her affectionately, 'O goddess, my union with the? tookplace privately Therefore, I was thinking of how best to establish thypurity. My people might think that we were only lustfully united and notas husband and wife, and therefore, this son that I would have installedas my heir apparent would only have been regarded as one of impure birth.And dearest, every hard word thou hast uttered in thy anger, have I, Olarge-eyed one, forgiven thee. Thou art my dearest!' And the royal sageDushmanta, having spoken thus unto his dear wife, O Bharata, received herwith offerings of perfume, food, and drink. And king Dushmanta, then,bestowed the name of Bharata upon his child, and formally installed himas the heir apparent. And the famous and bright wheels of Bharata's car,invincible and like unto the wheels of the cars owned by the gods,traversed every region, filling the whole Earth with their rattle. Andthe son of Dushmanta reduced to subjection all kings of the Earth. And heruled virtuously and earned great fame. And that monarch of great prowesswas known by the titles of Chakravarti and Sarvabhauma. And he performedmany sacrifices like Sakra, the lord of the Maruts. And Kanwa was thechief priest at those sacrifices, in which the offerings to Brahmanaswere great. And the blessed monarch performed both the cow and thehorse-sacrifices. And Bharata gave unto Kanwa a thousand gold coins asthe sacerdotal fee. It is that Bharata from whom have emanated so manymighty achievements. It is from him that the great race called after himin his race are called after him. And in the Bharata race there have beenborn many godlike monarchs gifted with great energy, and like untoBrahman himself. Their number cannot be counted. But, O thou of Bharata'srace, I shall name the principal ones that were blessed with great goodfortune, like unto the gods, and devoted to truth and honesty.'"

SECTION LXXV
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'Hear now, as I recite the recorded genealogy, thatis sacred and subservient to religion, profit and pleasure, of theseroyal sages--Daksha, the lord of creation, Manu, the son of Surya,Bharata, Ruru, Puru, and Ajamidha. I shall also recite to thee, O sinlessone, the genealogies of the Yadavas and of the Kurus and of the king ofthe Bharata line. These genealogies are sacred and their recitation is agreat act of propitiation. That recitation conferreth wealth, fame andlong life. And, O sinless one, all these I have named shone in theirsplendour and were equal unto the great Rishis in energy.
"Prachetas had ten sons who were all devoted to asceticism and possessedof every virtue. They burnt, of old, by the fire emanating from theirmouths, several plants of poisonous and innumerable large trees that hadcovered the Earth and became a source of great discomfort to man. Afterthese ten, was born another named Daksha. It is from Daksha that allcreatures have sprung. Therefore is he, O tiger among men, called theGrandfather. Born of Prachetas the Muni Daksha, uniting himself withVirini, begat a thousand sons of rigid vows, all like himself. And Naradataught these thousand sons of Daksha the excellent philosophy of Sankhyaas a means of salvation. And, O Janamejaya, the lord of creation, Daksha,then, from the desire of making creatures, begat fifty daughters. And hemade all of them his appointed daughters (so that their sons might be hissons also for the performance of all religious acts). And he bestowed tenof his daughters on Dharma, and thirteen on Kasyapa. And he gavetwenty-seven to Chandra, who are all engaged in indicating time. AndKasyapa, the son of Marichi, begat on the eldest of his thirteen wives,the Adityas, the celestials endued with great energy and having Indra astheir head and also Vivaswat (the Sun). And of Vivaswat was born the lordYama. And Martanda (Vivaswat) also begat another son after Yama, giftedwith great intelligence and named Manu. And Manu was endued with greatwisdom and devoted to virtue. And he became the progenitor of a line. Andin Manu's race have been born all human beings, who have, therefore, beencalled Manavas. And it is of Manu that all men including Brahmanas,Kshatriyas, and others have been descended, and are, therefore, allcalled Manavas. Subsequently, O monarch, the Brahmanas became united withthe Kshatriyas. And those sons of Manu that were Brahmanas devotedthemselves to the study of the Vedas. And Manu begat ten other childrennamed Vena, Dhrishnu, Narishyan, Nabhaga, Ikshvaku, Karusha, Saryati, theeighth, a daughter named Ila, Prishadhru the ninth, and Nabhagarishta,the tenth. They all betook themselves to the practices of Kshatriyas.Besides these, Manu had fifty other sons on Earth. But we heard that theyall perished, quarrelling with one another. The learned Pururavas wasborn of Ila. It hath been heard by us that Ila was both his mother andfather. And the great Pururavas had sway over thirteen islands of thesea. And, though a human being, he was always surrounded by companionsthat were superhuman. And Pururavas intoxicated with power quarrelledwith the Brahmanas and little caring for their anger robbed them of theirwealth. Beholding all this Sanatkumara came from the region of Brahmanand gave him good counsel, which was, however, rejected by Pururavas.Then the wrath of the great Rishis was excited, and the avariciousmonarch, who intoxicated with power, had lost his reason, was immediatelydestroyed by their curse.
"It was Pururavas who first brought from the region of the Gandharvas thethree kinds of fire (for sacrificial purpose). And he brought thence, theApsara Urvasi also. And the son of Ila begat upon Urvasi six sons whowere called Ayus, Dhimat, Amavasu and Dhridhayus, and Vanayus, andSatayus. And it is said that Ayus begat four sons named Nahusha,Vriddhasarman, Rajingaya, and Anenas, on the daughter of Swarbhanu. And,O monarch, Nahusha, of all the sons of Ayus, being gifted with greatintelligence and prowess ruled his extensive kingdom virtuously. And kingNahusha supported evenly the Pitris, the celestials, the Rishis, theBrahmanas, the Gandharvas, the Nagas, the Rakshasas, the Kshatriyas, andthe Vaisyas. And he suppressed all robber-gangs with a mighty hand. Buthe made the Rishis pay tribute and carry him on their backs like bests ofburden. And, conquering the very gods by the beauty of his person, hisasceticism, prowess, and energy, he ruled as if he were Indra himself.And Nahusha begat six sons, all of sweet speech, named Yati, Yayati,Sanyati, Ayati, and Dhruva. Yati betaking himself to asceticism became aMuni like unto Brahman himself. Yayati became a monarch of great prowessand virtue. He ruled the whole Earth, performed numerous sacrifices,worshipped the Pitris with great reverence, and always respected thegods. And he brought the whole world under his sway and was nevervanquished by any foe. And the sons of Yayati were all great bowmen andresplendent with every virtue. And, O king, they were begotten upon (histwo wives) Devayani and Sarmishtha. And of Devayani were born Yadu andTurvasu, and of Sarmishtha were born Drahyu, Anu, and Puru. And, O king,having virtuously ruled his subjects for a long time, Yayati was attackedwith a hideous decrepitude destroying his personal beauty. And attackedby decrepitude, the monarch then spoke, O Bharata, unto his sons Yadu andPuru and Turvasu and Drahyu and Anu these words, 'Ye dear sons, I wish tobe a young man and to gratify my appetites in the company of young women.Do you help me therein.' To him his eldest son born of Devayani thensaid, 'What needest thou, O king? Dost thou want to have your youth?'Yayati then told him, 'Accept thou my decrepitude, O son! With thy youthI would enjoy myself. During the time of a great sacrifice I have beencursed by the Muni Usanas (Sukra). O son, I would enjoy myself with youryouth. Take any of you this my decrepitude and with my body rule ye mykingdom. I would enjoy myself with a renovated body. Therefore, ye mysons, take ye my decrepitude.' But none of his sons accepted hisdecrepitude. Then his youngest son Puru said unto him, 'O king, enjoythyself thou once again with a renovated body and returned youth! I shalltake thy decrepitude and at thy command rule thy kingdom.' Thusaddressed, the royal sage, by virtue of his ascetic power thentransferred his own decrepitude unto that high-souled son of his and withthe youth of Puru became a youth; while with the monarch's age Puru ruledhis kingdom.
"Then, after a thousand years had passed away, Yayati, that tiger amongkings, remained as strong and powerful as a tiger. And he enjoyed for along time the companionship of his two wives. And in the gardens ofChitraratha (the king of Gandharvas), the king also enjoyed the companyof the Apsara Viswachi. But even after all this, the great king found hisappetites unsatiated. The king, then recollected the following truthscontained in the Puranas, 'Truly, one's appetites are never satiated byenjoyment. On the other hand, like sacrificial butter poured into thefire, they flame up with indulgence. Even if one enjoyed the whole Earthwith its wealth, diamonds and gold, animals and women, one may not yet besatiated. It is only when man doth not commit any sin in respect of anyliving thing, in thought, deed, or speech, it is then that he attainethto purity as that of Brahman. When one feareth nothing, when one is notfeared by anything, when one wisheth for nothing, when one injurethnothing, it is then that one attaineth to the purity of Brahman.' Thewise monarch seeing this and satisfied that one's appetites are neversatiated, set his mind at rest by meditation, and took back from his sonhis own decrepitude. And giving him back his youth, though his ownappetites were unsatiated, and installing him on the throne, he spokeunto Puru thus, 'Thou art my true heir, thou art my true son by whom myrace is to be continued. In the world shall my race be known by thy name.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Then that tiger among kings, having installedhis son Puru on the throne, went away to the mount of Bhrigu for devotinghimself to asceticism. And, having acquired great ascetic merit, afterlong years, he succumbed to the inevitable influence of Time. He left hishuman body by observing the vow of fasting, and ascended to heaven withhis wives.'"

SECTION LXXVI
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Janamejaya said, 'O thou of the wealth of asceticism, tell me how ourancestor Yayati, who is the tenth from Prajapati, obtained for a wife theunobtainable daughter of Sukra. I desire to hear of it in detail. Tell mealso, one after another, of those monarchs separately who were thefounders of dynasties.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'The monarch Yayati was in splendour like unto Indrahimself. I will tell thee, in reply to thy question, O Janamejaya, howboth Sukra and Vrishaparvan bestowed upon him, with due rites, theirdaughters, and how his union took place with Devayani in special.
"Between the celestials and the Asuras, there happened, of yore, frequentencounters for the sovereignty of the three worlds with everything inthem. The gods, then, from desire of victory, installed the son ofAngiras (Vrihaspati) as their priest to conduct their sacrifices; whiletheir opponents installed the learned Usanas as their priest for the samepurpose. And between those two Brahmanas there are always much boastfulrivalry. Those Danavas assembled for encounter that were slain by thegods were all revived by the seer Sukra by the power of his knowledge.And then starting again, into life,--these fought with the gods. TheAsuras also slew on the field of battle many of the celestials. But theopen-minded Vrihaspati could not revive them, because he knew not thescience called Sanjivani (re-vivification) which Kavya endued with greatenergy knew so well. And the gods were, therefore, in great sorrow. Andthe gods, in great anxiety of heart and entertaining a fear of thelearned Usanas, then went to Kacha, the eldest son of Vrihaspati, andspoke unto him, saying, 'We pay court to thee, be kind to us and do us aservice that we regard as very great. That knowledge which resides inSukra, that Brahmana of immeasurable prowess, make thy own as soon asthou canst. Thou shalt find the Brahmana in the court of Vrishaparvan. Healways protects the Danavas but never us, their opponents. Thou art hisjunior in age, and, therefore, capable of adoring him with reverence.Thou canst also adore Devayani, the favourite daughter of thathigh-souled Brahmana. Indeed, thou alone art capable of propitiating themboth by worship. There is none else that can do so. By gratifyingDevayani with thy conduct, liberality, sweetness, and general behaviour,thou canst certainly obtain that knowledge.' The son of Vrihaspati, thussolicited by the gods, said 'So be it, and went to where Vrishaparvanwas. Kacha, thus sent by the gods, soon went to the capital of the chiefof the Asuras, and beheld Sukra there. And beholding him, he thus spokeunto him, 'Accept me as thy disciple. I am the grandson of the RishiAngiras and son of Vrihaspati. By name I am known as Kacha. Thyselfbecoming my preceptor, I shall practise the Brahmacharya mode of life fora thousand years. Command me, then, O Brahmana!'
"Sukra (hearing this) said, 'Welcome art thou, O Kacha! I accept thyspeech. I will treat thee with regard; for by so doing, it is Vrihaspatiwho will be regarded.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Kacha commanded by Kavya or Usanas himself,called also Sukra, then said, 'So be it,' and took the vow he had spokenof. And, O Bharata, accepting the vow of which he had spoken, at theproper time, Kacha began to conciliate regardfully both his preceptor and(his daughter) Devayani. Indeed, he began to conciliate both. And as hewas young, by singing and dancing and playing on different kinds ofinstruments, he soon gratified Devayani who was herself in her youth.And, O Bharata, with his whole heart set upon it, he soon gratified themaiden Devayani who was then a young lady, by presents of flowers andfruits and services rendered with alacrity. And Devayani also with hersongs and sweetness of manners used, while they were alone, to attendupon that youth carrying out his vow. And when five hundred years hadthus passed of Kacha's vow, the Danavas came to learn his intention. Andhaving no compunctions about slaying a Brahmana, they became very angrywith him. And one day they saw Kacha in a solitary part of the woodsengaged in tending (his preceptor's) kine. They then slew Kacha fromtheir hatred of Vrihaspati and also from their desire of protecting theknowledge of reviving the dead from being conveyed by him. And havingslain him, they hacked his body into pieces and gave them to be devouredby jackals and wolves. And (when twilight came) the kine returned to thefold without him who tended them. And Devayani, seeing the kine returnedfrom the woods without Kacha, spoke, O Bharata, unto her father thus:
'Thy evening-fire hath been kindled. The Sun also hath set, O father! Thekine have returned without him who tendeth them. Kacha is, indeed, not tobe seen. It is plain that Kacha hath been lost, or is dead. Truly do Isay, O father, that without him I will not live.'
"Sukra hearing this said, I will revive him by saying, 'Let this onecome.' Then having recourse to the science of reviving the dead, Sukrasummoned Kacha. And summoned by his preceptor, Kacha appeared before himin the gladness of heart tearing by virtue of his preceptor's science thebodies of the wolves (that had devoured him). And asked about the causeof his delay, he thus spoke unto Bhargava's daughter. Indeed, asked bythat Brahman's daughter, he told her, 'I was dead. O thou of puremanners, burdened with sacrificial fuel, Kusa grass, and logs of wood, Iwas coming towards our abode. I sat under a banian tree. The kine also,having been brought together, were staying under the shade of that samebanian tree. The Asuras, beholding me, asked 'Who art thou?' They heardme answer, 'I am the son of Vrihaspati.' As soon as I said this, theDanavas slew me, and hacking my body into pieces gave my remains tojackals and wolves. And they then went home in the gladness of heart. Oamiable one, summoned by the high-souled Bhargava, I after all comebefore thee fully revived.'
"On another occasion, asked by Devayani, the Brahmana Kacha went into thewoods. And as he was roving about for gathering flowers, the Danavasbeheld him. They again slew him, and pounding him into a paste they mixedit with the water of the ocean. Finding him long still (in coming), themaiden again represented the matter unto her father. And summoned againby the Brahmana with the aid of his science, Kacha appearing before hispreceptor and his daughter told everything as it had happened. Thenslaying him for the third time and burning him and reducing him to ashes,the Asuras gave those ashes to the preceptor himself, mixing them withhis wine. And Devayani again spoke unto her father, saying, 'O father,Kacha was sent to gather flowers. But he is not to be seen. It is plainhe hath been lost, or has died. I tell thee truly, I would not livewithout him.'
"Sukra hearing this said, 'O daughter, the son of Vrihaspati hath gone tothe region of the dead. Though revived by my science, he is thus slainfrequently. What, indeed, am I to do? O Devayani, do not grieve, do notcry. One like thee should not grieve for one that is mortal. Thou artindeed, O daughter, in consequence of my prowess, worshipped thrice a dayduring the ordained hours of prayer, by Brahmanas, the gods with Indra,the Vasus, the Aswins, the Asuras, in fact, by the whole universe. It isimpossible to keep him alive, for revived by me he is often killed.' Toall this Devayani replied, 'Why shall I, O father, not grieve for himwhose grandfather is old Angiras himself, whose father is Vrihaspati whois an ocean of ascetic merit, who is the grandson of a Rishi and the sonalso of a Rishi? He himself too was a Brahmacharin and an ascetic; alwayswakeful and skilled in everything. I will starve and follow the way Kachahas gone. The handsome Kacha is, O father, dear unto me.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'The great Rishi Kavya, then, afflicted by whatDevayani said, cried in anger, 'Certainly, the Asuras seek to injure me,for they slay my disciple that stayeth with me. These followers of Rudradesire to divest me of my character as a Brahmana by making meparticipate in their crime. Truly, this crime hath a terrible end. Thecrime of slaying a Brahmana would even burn Indra himself.' Having saidthis, the Brahmana Sukra, urged by Devayani, began to summon Kacha whohad entered the jaws of Death. But Kacha, summoned with the aid ofscience, and afraid of the consequence to his preceptor, feebly repliedfrom within the stomach of his preceptor, saying, 'Be graceful unto me, Olord! I am Kacha that worshippeth thee. Behave unto me as to thy owndearly-loved son.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Sukra then said, 'By what path, O Brahmana,hast thou entered my stomach, where thou stayest now? Leaving the Asurasthis very moment, I shall go over to the gods." Kacha replied, 'By thygrace, memory hath not failed me. Indeed, I do recollect everything as ithath happened. My ascetic virtues have not been destroyed. It is,therefore, that I am able to bear this almost insufferable pain. O Kavya,slain by the Asuras and burnt and reduced to powder, I have been given tothee with thy wine. When thou art present, O Brahmana, the art of theAsuras will never be able to vanquish, the science of the Brahmana.'
"Hearing this, Sukra said, 'O daughter, what good can I do to thee? It iswith my death that Kacha can get his life back. O Devayani, Kacha is evenwithin me. There is no other way of his coming out except by ripping openmy stomach.' Devayani replied, 'Both evils shall, like fire, burn me! Thedeath of Kacha and thy own death are to me the same! The death of Kachawould deprive me of life. If thou also diest, I shall not be able to bearmy life.' Then Sukra said, 'O son of Vrihaspati, thou art, indeed, onealready crowned with success, because Devayani regards thee so well.Accept the science that I will today impart to thee, if, indeed, thou benot Indra in the form of Kacha. None can come out of my stomach withlife. A Brahmana, however, must not be slain, therefore, accept thou thescience I impart to thee. Start thou into life as my son. And possessedof the knowledge received from me, and revived by me, take care that, oncoming out of my body, thou dost act gracefully.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Receiving the science imparted to him by hispreceptor the handsome Kacha, ripped open his stomach, came out like themoon at evening on the fifteenth day of the bright fort-night. Andbeholding the remains of his preceptor lying like a heap of penances,Kacha revived him, aided by the science he had learned. Worshipping himwith regard, Kacha said unto his preceptor, 'Him who poureth the nectarof knowledge into one's ears, even as thou hast done into those of myselfwho was void of knowledge, him do I regard both as my father and mother.And remembering the immense service done by him, who is there soungrateful as to injure him? They that, having acquired knowledge, injuretheir preceptor who is always an object of worship, who is the giver ofknowledge, who is the most precious of all precious objects on Earth,come to be hated on Earth and finally go to the regions of the sinful.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'The learned Sukra, having been deceived whileunder the influence of wine, and remembering the total loss ofconsciousness that is one of the terrible consequences of drink, andbeholding too before him the handsome Kacha whom he had, in a state ofunconsciousness, drunk with his wine, then thought of effecting a reformin the manners of Brahmanas. The high-souled Usanas rising up from theground in anger, then spoke as follows: "The wretched Brahmana who fromthis day, unable to resist the temptation, will drink wine shall beregarded as having lost his virtue, shall be reckoned to have committedthe sin of slaying a Brahmana, shall be hated both in this and the otherworlds. I set this limit to the conduct and dignity of Brahmanaseverywhere. Let the honest, let Brahmanas, let those with regard fortheir superiors, let the gods, let the three worlds, listen!' Having saidthese words that high-souled one, that ascetic of ascetics, thensummoning the Danavas who had been deprived by fate of the good sense,told them these words, Ye foolish Danavas, know ye that Kacha hathobtained his wishes. He will henceforth dwell with me. Having obtainedthe valuable knowledge of reviving the dead, that Brahmana hath, indeed,become in prowess even as Brahman himself!'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Bhargava having said so much cut short hisspeech. The Danavas were surprised and went away to their homes. Kacha,too, having stayed with his preceptor for a full thousand years, thenprepared to return to the abode of the celestials, after having obtainedhis preceptor's permission.'"

SECTION LXXVII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'After the expiry of the period of his vow, Kacha,having obtained his preceptor's leave, was about to return to the abodeof the celestials, when Devayani, addressing him, said, 'O grandson ofthe Rishi Angiras, in conduct and birth, in learning, asceticism andhumility, thou shinest most brightly. As the celebrated Rishi Angiras ishonoured and regarded by my father, so is thy father regarded andworshipped by me. O thou of ascetic wealth, knowing this, listen to whatI say. Recollect my conduct towards thee during the period of thy vow(Brahmacharya). Thy vow hath now been over. It behoveth thee to fix thyaffections on me. O accept my hand duly with ordained mantras.'
"Kacha replied, 'Thou art to me an object of regard and worship even asthy father! O thou of faultless features, thou art, indeed, even anobject of greater reverence! Thou art dearer than life to the high-souledBhargava, O amiable one! As the daughter of my preceptor, thou art everworthy of my worship! As my preceptor Sukra, thy father, is everdeserving of my regards, so art thou, O Devayani! Therefore, it behoveththee not to say so.' Hearing this, Devayani replied, 'Thou, too, art theson of my father's preceptor's son. Therefore, O best of Brahmanas, thouart deserving of my regards and worship. O Kacha, when thou wert slain somany times by the Asuras, recollect today the affection I showed forthee. Remembering my friendship and affection for thee, and, indeed, mydevoted regard also, O virtuous one, it behoveth thee not to abandon mewithout any fault. I am truly devoted to thee.'
"Hearing all this, Kacha said, 'O thou of virtuous vows, do not urge meinto such a sinful course. O thou of fair eye-brows, be gracious unto me.Beautiful one, thou art to me an object of greater regard than mypreceptor. Full of virtuous resolves, O large-eyed one, of face ashandsome, as moon, the place where thou hadst resided, viz., the body ofKavya, hath also been my abode. Thou art truly my sister. Amiable one,happily have we passed the days that we have been together. There isperfect good understanding between us. I ask thy leave to return to myabode. Therefore, bless me so that my journey may be safe. I must beremembered by thee, when thou recallest me in connection with topics ofconversation, as one that hath not transgressed virtue. Always attendupon my preceptor with readiness and singleness of heart.' To all this,Devaniya answered, 'Solicited, by me, if, indeed, thou truly refusest tomake me thy wife, then, O Kacha, this thy knowledge shall not bear fruit.'
"Hearing this, Kacha said, 'I have refused thy request only because thouart the daughter of my preceptor, and not because thou hast any fault.Nor hath my preceptor in this respect issued any command. Curse me if itplease thee. I have told thee what the behaviour should be of a Rishi. Ido not deserve thy curse, O Devayani. But yet thou hast cursed me! Thouhast acted under the influence of passion and not from a sense of duty.Therefore, thy desire will not be fulfilled. No Rishi's son shall everaccept thy hand in marriage. Thou hast said that my knowledge shall notbear fruit. Let it be so. But in respect of him it shall bear fruit towhom I may impart it.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'That first of Brahmanas, Kacha, having said sounto Devayani speedily wended his way unto the abode of the chief of thecelestials. Beholding him arrived, the celestials with Indra ahead,having first worshipped him, spoke unto him as follows, 'Thou hastindeed, performed an act of great benefit for us. Wonderful hath been thyachievement! Thy fame shall never die! Thou shall be a sharer with us insacrificial offerings.'"

SECTION LXXVIII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'The dwellers in heaven became exceedingly glad inwelcoming Kacha who had mastered the wonderful science. And, O bull ofBharata's race, the celestials then learnt that science from Kacha andconsidered their object already achieved. And assembling together, theyspoke unto him of a hundred sacrifices, saying, 'The time hath come forshowing prowess. Slay thy foes, O Purandara!' And thus addressed,Maghavat, then accompanied by the celestials, set out, saying, 'So beit.' But on his way he saw a number of damsels. These maidens weresporting in a lake in the gardens of the Gandharva Chitraratha. Changinghimself into wind, he soon mixed up the garments of those maidens whichthey had laid on the bank. A little while after, the maidens, getting upfrom the water, approached their garments that had, indeed, got mixed upwith one another. And it so happened that from the intermingled heap, thegarments of Devayani were appropriated by Sarmishtha, the daughter ofVrishaparvan, from ignorance that it was not hers. And, O king,thereupon, between them, Devayani and Sarmishtha, then ensued a dispute.And Devayani said, 'O daughter of the Asura (chief), why dost thou takemy attire, being, as thou art, my disciple? As thou art destitute of goodbehaviour, nothing good can happen to thee!' Sarmishtha, however, quicklyreplied, 'Thy father occupying a lower seat, always adoreth with downcastlooks, like a hired chanter of praises, my father, whether he sitteth athis ease or reclineth at full length! Thou art the daughter of one thatchanteth the praises of others, of one that accepteth alms. I am thedaughter of one who is adored, of one who bestoweth alms instead of everaccepting them! Beggar-woman as thou art, thou art free to strike thybreast, to use ill words, to vow enmity to me, to give way to thy wrath.Acceptress of alms, thou weepest tears of anger in vain! If so minded, Ican harm thee, but thou canst not. Thou desirest to quarrel. But knowthou that I do not reckon thee as my equal!'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Hearing these words, Devayani becameexceedingly angry and began to pull at her clothes. Sarmishtha thereuponthrew her into a well and went home. Indeed, the wicked Sarmishthabelieving that Devayani was dead, bent her steps home-wards in a wrathfulmood.
"After Sarmishtha had left, Yayati the son of Nahusha soon came to thatspot. The king had been out a-hunting. The couple of horses harnessed tohis car and the other single horse with him were all fatigued. And theking himself was thirsty. And the son of Nahusha saw a well that was by.And he saw that it was dry. But in looking down into it, he saw a maidenwho in splendour was like a blazing fire. And beholding her within it,the blessed king addressed that girl of the complexion of the celestials,soothing her with sweet words. And he said, 'Who art thou, O fair one, ofnails bright as burnished copper, and with ear-rings decked withcelestial gems? Thou seemest to be greatly perturbed. Why dost thou weepin affliction? How, indeed, hast thou fallen into this well covered withcreepers and long grass? And, O slender-waisted girl, answer me trulywhose daughter thou art.
"Devayani then replied, 'I am the daughter of Sukra who brings back intolife the Asuras slain by the gods. He doth not know what hath befallenme. This is my right hand, O king, with nails bright as burnished copper.Thou art well-born; I ask thee, to take and raise me up! I know thou artof good behaviour, of great prowess, and of wide fame! It behoveth thee,therefore, to raise me from this well.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'King Yayati, learning that she was a Brahmana'sdaughter, raised her from that well by catching hold of her right hand.And the monarch promptly raising her from the pit and squinting to hertapering thighs, sweetly and courteously returned to his capital.
"When the son of Nahusha had gone away, Devayani of faultless features,afflicted with grief, then spoke unto her maid, Ghurnika by name, who mether then. And she said, 'O Ghurnika, go thou quickly and speak to myfather without loss of time of everything as it hath happened. I shallnot now enter the city of Vrishaparvan.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Ghurnika, thus commanded, repaired quickly tothe mansion, of the Asura chief, where she saw Kavya and spoke unto himwith her perception dimmed by anger. And she said, 'I tell thee, O greatBrahmana, that Devayani hath been ill-used, O fortunate one, in theforest by Sarmishtha, the daughter of Vrishaparvan.' And Kavya, hearingthat his daughter had been ill-used by Sarmishtha speedily went out witha heavy heart, seeking her in the woods. And when he found her in thewoods, he clasped her with affection and spoke unto her with voice chokedwith grief, 'O daughter, the weal or woe that befalleth people is alwaysdue to their own faults. Thou hast therefore some fault, I ween, whichhath been expiated thus.' Hearing this Devayani replied, 'Be it a penaltyor not, listen to me with attention. O, hear that all Sarmishtha, thedaughter of Vrishaparvan, hath said unto me. Really hath she said thatthou art only the hired chanter of the praises of the Asura king! Eventhus hath she--that Sarmishtha, Vrishaparvan's daughter,--spoken to me,with reddened eyes, these piercing and cruel words, 'Thou art thedaughter of one that ever chanteth for hire the praises of others, of onethat asketh for charities, of one that accepteth alms; whereas I am thedaughter of one that receiveth adorations, of one that giveth, of onethat never accepteth anything as gift!' These have been the wordsrepeatedly spoken unto me by the proud Sarmishtha, the daughter ofVrishaparvan, with eyes red with anger. If, O father, I am really thedaughter of a hired chanter of praises, of one that accepteth gifts, Imust offer my adorations in the hope of obtaining her grace! Oh, of thisI have already told her!'
"Sukra replied, 'Thou art, O Devayani, no daughter of a hired adorer, ofone that asketh for alms and accepteth gifts. Thou art the daughter ofone that adores none, but of one that is adored by all! Vrishaparvanhimself knoweth it, and Indra, and king Yayati too. That inconceivableBrahma, that unopposable Godhead, is my strength! The self-create,himself, gratified by me, hath said that I am for aye the lord of thatwhich is in all things on Earth or in Heaven! I tell thee truly that itis I who pour rain for the good of creatures and who nourish the annualplants that sustain all living things!'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'It was by such sweet words of excellent importthat the father endeavoured to pacify his daughter afflicted with woe andoppressed by anger.'"

SECTION LXXIX
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Sukra continued, 'Know, then, O Devayani, that he that mindeth not theevil speeches of others, conquereth everything! The wise say that he is atrue charioteer who without slackening holdeth tightly the reins of hishorses. He, therefore, is the true man that subdueth, without indulgingin his rising wrath. Know thou, O Devayani, that by him is everythingconquered, who calmly subdueth his rising anger. He is regarded as a manwho by having recourse to forgiveness, shaketh off his rising anger likea snake casting off its slough He that suppresseth his anger, he thatregardeth not the evil speeches of others, he that becometh not angry,though there be cause, certainly acquireth the four objects for which welive (viz., virtue, profit, desire, and salvation) Between him thatperformeth without fatigue sacrifices every month for a hundred years,and him that never feeleth angry at anything, he that feeleth not wrathis certainly the higher. Boys and girls, unable to distinguish betweenright and wrong, quarrel with each other. The wise never imitate them.'Devayani, on hearing this speech of her father, said, 'O father, I know,also what the difference is between anger and forgiveness as regards thepower of each. But when a disciple behaveth disrespectfully, he shouldnever be forgiven by the preceptor if the latter is really desirous ofbenefiting the former. Therefore, I do not desire to live any longer in acountry where evil behaviour is at a premium. The wise man desirous ofgood, should not dwell among those sinfully inclined men who always speakill of good behaviour and high birth. But there should one live,--indeed,that hath been said to be the best of dwelling places,--where goodbehaviour and purity of birth are known and respected. The cruel wordsuttered by Vrishaparvan's daughter burn my heart even as men, desirous ofkindling a fire, burn the dry fuel. I do not think anything moremiserable for a man in the three worlds than to adore one's enemiesblessed with good fortune, himself possessing none. It hath been indeedsaid by the learned that for such a man even death would be better.'"

SECTION LXXX
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'Then Kavya, the foremost of Bhrigu's line, becameangry himself. And approaching Vrishaparvan where the latter was seated,began to address him without weighing his words, 'O king,' he said,'sinful acts do not, like the Earth, bear fruit immediately! Butgradually and secretly do they extirpate their doers. Such fruit visitetheither in one's own self, one's son, or one's grandson. Sins must beartheir fruit. Like rich food they can never be digested. And because yeslew the Brahmana Kacha, the grandson of Angiras, who was virtuous,acquainted with the precepts of religion, and attentive to his duties,while residing in my abode, even for this act of slaughter--and for themal-treatment of my daughter too, know, O Vrishaparvan, I shall leavethee and thy relatives! Indeed, O king, for this, I can no longer staywith thee! Dost thou, O Asura chief, think that I am a raving liar? Thoumakest light of thy offence without seeking to correct it!'.
"Vrishaparvan then said, 'O son of Bhrigu, never have I attributed wantof virtue, of falsehood, to thee. Indeed, virtue and truth ever dwell inthee. Be kind to me! O Bhargava, if, leaving us, thou really goest hence,we shall then go into the depths of the ocean. Indeed, there is nothingelse for us to do.'
"Sukra then replied, 'Ye Asuras, whether ye go into the depths of theocean or fly away to all directions. I care little. I am unable to bearmy daughter's grief. My daughter is ever dear to me. My life dependeth onher. Seek ye to please her. As Vrihaspati ever seeketh the good of Indra,so do I always seek thine by my ascetic merits.'
"Vrishaparvan then said, 'O Bhargava, thou art the absolute master ofwhatever is possessed by the Asura chiefs in this world-their elephants,kine and horses, and even my humble self!'
"Sukra then answered, 'If it is true, O great Asura, that I am the lordof all the wealth of the Asuras, then go and gratify Devayani.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'when the great Kavya was so addressed byVrishaparvan, he then went to Devayani and told her all. Devayani,however, quickly replied, 'O Bhargava, if thou art truly the lord of theAsura king himself and of all his wealth, then let the king himself cometo me and say so in my presence.' Vrishaparvan then approached Devayaniand told her, 'O Devayani of sweet smiles, whatever thou desirest I amwilling to give thee, however difficult it may be to grant the same.'Devayani answered, 'I desire Sarmishtha with a thousand maids to wait onme! She must also follow me to where my father may give me away.'
"Vrishaparvan then commanded a maid-servant in attendance on him, saying,'Go and quickly bring Sarmishtha hither. Let her also accomplish whatDevayani wisheth.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'The maid-servant then repaired to Sarmishthaand told her, 'O amiable Sarmishtha, rise and follow me. Accomplish thegood of thy relatives. Urged by Devayani, the Brahmana (Sukra) is on thepoint of leaving his disciples (the Asuras). O sinless one, thou must dowhat Devayani wisheth.' Sarmishtha replied, 'I shall cheerfully do whatDevayani wisheth. Urged by Devayani Sukra is calling me. Both Sukra andDevayani must not leave the Asuras through my fault.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Commanded by her father, then, Sarmishtha,accompanied by a thousand maidens, soon came, in a palanquin, out of herfather's excellent mansion. And approaching Devayani she said, 'With mythousand maids, I am thy waiting-maid! And I shall follow thee where thyfather may give thee away.' Devayani replied, 'I am the daughter of onewho chanteth the praises of thy father, and who beggeth and acceptethalms; thou, on the other hand, art the daughter of one who is adored. Howcanst thou be my waiting-maid?'
"Sarmishtha answered, 'One must by all means contribute to the happinessof one's afflicted relatives. Therefore shall I follow thee wherever thyfather may give thee away.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'When Sarmishtha thus promised to be Devayani'swaiting-maid the latter, O king, then spoke unto her father thus, 'O bestof all excellent Brahmanas, I am gratified. I shall now enter the Asuracapital! I now know that thy science and power of knowledge are notfutile!'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'That best of Brahmanas, of great reputation,thus addressed by his daughter, then, entered the Asura capital in thegladness of his heart. And the Danavas worshipped him with greatreverence.'"

SECTION LXXXI
(Sambhava Parva continued)
Vaisampayana said, 'After some length of time, O best of monarchs,Devayani of the fairest complexion went into the same woods for purposesof pleasure. And accompanied by Sarmishtha with her thousand maids shereached the same spot and began to wander freely. And waited upon by allthose companions she felt supremely happy. And sporting with lighthearts, they began drinking the honey in flowers, eating various kinds offruit and biting some. And just at that time, king Yayati, the son ofNahusha, again came there tired and thirsty, in course of his wanderings,in search of deer. And the king saw Devayani and Sarmishtha, and thoseother maidens also, all decked with celestial ornaments and full ofvoluptuous languor in consequence of the flower-honey they drank. AndDevayani of sweet smiles, unrivalled for beauty and possessed of thefairest complexion amongst them all, was reclining at her ease. And shewas waited upon by Sarmishtha who was gently kneading her feet.
"And Yayati seeing all this, said, 'O amiable ones, I would ask you bothyour names and parentage. It seems that these two thousand maids wait onyou two.' 'Hearing the monarch, Devayani then answered, 'Listen to me, Obest of men. Know that I am the daughter of Sukra, the spiritual guide ofthe Asuras. This my companion is my waiting-maid. She attendeth on mewherever I go. She is Sarmishtha, the daughter of the Asura kingVrishaparvan.'
"Yayati then asked, 'I am curious to know why is this thy companion offair eye-brows, this maiden of the fairest complexion, the daughter ofthe Asura chief thy waiting-maid!' Devayani replied, 'O best of king,everything resulteth from Fate. Knowing this also to be the result ofFate, wonder not at it. Thy feature and attire are both like a king's.Thy speech also is fair and correct as that of the Vedas. Tell me thyname, whence thou art and whose son also.'
"The monarch replied, 'During my vow of Brahmacharya, the whole Vedasentered my ears. I am known as Yayati, a king's son and myself a king.'Devayani then enquired, 'O king, what hast thou come here for? Is it togather lotuses or to angle or to hunt?' Yayati said, 'O amiable one,thirsty from the pursuit of deer, I have come hither in search of water.I am very much fatigued. I await but your commands to leave this spot.'
"Devayani answered, 'With my two thousand damsels and my waiting-maidSarmishtha, I wait but your commands. Prosperity to thee. Be thou myfriend and lord.'
"Yayati, thereupon, replied, 'Beautiful one, I do not deserve thee. Thouart the daughter of Sukra far superior to me. Thy father cannot bestowthee even on a great king.' To this Devayani replied, 'Brahmanas hadbefore this been united with the Kshatriyas, and Kshatriyas withBrahmanas. Thou art the son of a Rishi and thyself a Rishi. Therefore, Oson of Nahusha, marry me.' Yayati, however, replied, 'O thou of thehandsomest features, the four orders have, indeed, sprung from one body.But their duties and purity are not the same, the Brahmana being trulysuperior to all.' Devayani answered, 'This hand of mine hath never beentouched before by any man save thee. Therefore, do I accept thee for mylord. How, indeed, shall any other man touch my hand which had beforebeen touched by thyself who art a Rishi? Yayati then said, 'The wise knowthat a Brahmana is more to be avoided than an angry snake of virulentpoison, or a blazing fire of spreading flames.' Devayani then told themonarch, 'O bull amongst men, why dost thou, indeed, say that Brahmanashould be more avoided than an angry snake of virulent poison or ablazing fire of spreading flames?' The monarch answered, 'The snakekilleth only one. The sharpest weapon slayeth but a single person. TheBrahmana, when angry destroyeth whole cities and kingdoms! Therefore, Otimid one, do I deem a Brahmana as more to be avoided than either. Icannot hence wed thee, O amiable one, unless thy father bestoweth thee onme. Devayani then said, 'Thou art, indeed, chosen by me. And, O king, itis understood that thou wilt accept me if my father bestoweth me on thee.Thou needst not fear to accept my poor self bestowed on thee. Thou dostnot, indeed, ask for me.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'After this, Devayani quickly sent a maidservantto her father. The maid represented to Sukra everything as it hadhappened. And as soon as he had heard all, Bhargava came and saw Yayati.And beholding Bhargava come, Yayati worshipped and adored that Brahmana,and stood with joined palms in expectation of his commands.'
"And Devayani then said, 'This O father, is the son of Nahusha. He tookhold of my hand, when I was in distress. I bow to thee. Bestow me uponhim. I shall not wed any other person in the world.' Sukra exclaimed, 'Othou of splendid courage, thou hast, indeed, been accepted as her lord bythis my dear daughter. I bestow her on thee. Therefore, O son of Nahusha,accept her as thy wife.'
"Yayati then said, 'I solicit the boon, O Brahmana, that by so doing, thesin of begetting a half-breed might not touch me.' Sukra, however,assured him by saying, 'I shall absolve thee from the sin. Ask thou theboon that thou desirest. Fear not to wed her. I grant thee absolution.Maintain virtuously thy wife--the slender-waisted Devayani. Transports ofhappiness be thine in her company. This other maiden, Vrishaparvan'sdaughter, Sarmishtha should ever be regarded by thee. But thou shall notsummon her to thy bed.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Thus addressed by Sukra, Yayati then walkedround the Brahmana. And the king then went through the auspiciousceremony of marriage according to the rites of the scriptures. And havingreceived from Sukra this rich treasure of the excellent Devayani withSarmishtha and those two thousand maidens, and duly honoured also bySukra himself and the Asuras, the best of monarchs, then, commanded bythe high-souled Bhargava, returned to his capital with a joyous heart.'"

SECTION LXXXII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'Yayati then, on returning to his capital which waslike unto the city of Indra, entered his inner apartments and establishedthere his bride Devayani. And the monarch, directed by Devayani,established Vrishaparvan's daughter Sarmishtha in a mansion especiallyerected near the artificial woods of Asokas in his gardens. And the kingsurrounded Vrishaparvan's daughter Sarmishtha with a thousand maids andhonoured her by making every arrangement for her food and garments. Butit was with Devayani that the royal son of Nahusha sported like acelestial for many years in joy and bliss. And when her season came, thefair Devayani conceived. And she brought forth as her first child a fineboy. And when a thousand years had passed away, Vrishaparvan's daughterSarmishtha having attained to puberty saw that her season had come. Shebecame anxious and said to herself, 'My season hath arrived. But I havenot yet chosen a husband. O, what hath happened, what should I do? How amI to obtain the fruition of my wishes? Devayani hath become mother. Myyouth is doomed to pass away in vain. Shall I choose him also for myhusband whom Devayani hath chosen? This is, indeed, my resolve: thatmonarch should give me a son. Will not the virtuous one grant me aprivate interview?'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'While Sarmishtha was thus busy with herthoughts, the king wandering listlessly came to that very wood of Asokas,and beholding Sarmishtha before him, stood there in silence. ThenSarmishtha of sweet smiles seeing the monarch before her with nobody towitness what might pass, approached him and said with joined palms, 'Oson of Nahusha, no one can behold the ladies that dwell in the innerapartments of Soma, of Indra, of Vishnu, of Yama, of Varuna, and of thee!Thou knowest, O king, that I am both handsome and well-born. I solicitthee, O king! My season hath arrived. See that it goeth not in vain.'
"Yayati answered, 'Well do I know that honour of birth is thine, born asthou art in the proud race of the Danavas. Thou art also gifted withbeauty. I do not, indeed, see even the speck of a fault in thy feature.But Usanas commanded me, while I was united with Devayani, that nevershould Vrishaparvan's daughter he summoned to my bed.'
"Sarmishtha then said, 'It hath been said, O king, that it is not sinfulto lie on the occasion of a joke, in respect of women sought to beenjoyed, on occasions of marriage, in peril of immediate death and of theloss of one's whole fortune. Lying is excusable on these five occasions.O king, it is not true that he is fallen who speaks not the truth whenasked. Both Devayani and myself have been called hither as companions toserve the same purpose. When, therefore, thou hadst said that you wouldstconfine thyself to one only amongst as, that was a lie thou hadstspoken.' Yayati replied, 'A king should ever be a model in the eyes ofhis people. That monarch certainly meets with destruction who speaks anuntruth. As for myself, I dare not speak an untruth even if the greatestloss threatens me!' Sarmishtha answered, 'O monarch, one may look uponher friend's husband as her own. One's friend's marriage is the same asone's own. Thou hast been chosen by my friend as her husband. Thou art asmuch my husband, therefore.' Yayati then said, 'It is, indeed my vowalways to grant what one asketh. As thou askest me, tell me then what Iam to do.' Sarmishtha then said, 'Absolve me, O king, from sin. Protectmy virtue. Becoming a mother by thee, let me practise the highest virtuein this world. It is said, O king, that a wife, a slave, and a son cannever earn wealth for themselves. What they earn always belongeth to himwho owneth them. I am, indeed, the slave of Devayani. Thou art Devayani'smaster and lord. Thou art, therefore, O king, my master and lord as muchas Devayani's! I solicit thee! O, fulfil my wishes!'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Thus addressed by Sarmishtha, the monarch waspersuaded into the truth of all she spoke. He therefore, honouredSarmishtha by protecting her virtue. And they passed some time together.And taking affectionate farewell of each other, they then parted, eachreturning to whence he or she had come.
"And it came to pass that Sarmishtha of sweet smiles and fair eyebrowsconceived in consequence of that connection of hers with that best ofmonarchs. And, O king, that lotus-eyed lady then in due course of timebrought forth a son of the splendour of a celestial child and of eyeslike-lotus-petals.'"

SECTION LXXXIII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'When Devayani of sweet smiles heard of the birth ofthis child, she became jealous, and O Bharata, Sarmishtha became anobject of her unpleasant reflections. And Devayani, repairing to her,addressed her thus, 'O thou of fair eye-brows, what sin is this thou hastcommitted by yielding to the influence of lust?' Sarmishtha replied, 'Acertain Rishi of virtuous soul and fully conversant with the Vedas cameto me. Capable of granting boons he was solicited by me to grant mywishes that were based on considerations of virtue. O thou of sweetsmiles, I would not seek the sinful fulfilment of my desires. I tell theetruly that this child of mine is by that Rishi!' Devayani answered, 'Itis all right if that be the case, O timid one! But if the lineage, name,and family of that Brahmana be known to thee, I should like to hearthem.' Sarmishtha replied, 'O thou of sweet smiles, in asceticism andenergy, that Rishi is resplendent like the Sun himself. Beholding him, Ihad not, any need to make these enquiries--' Devayani then said, 'If thisis true, if indeed, thou hast obtained thy child from such a superiorBrahmana, then, O Sarmishtha, I have no cause of anger.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Having thus talked and laughed with each other,they separated, Devayani returning to the palace with the knowledgeimparted to her by Sarmishtha. And, O king, Yayati also begot on Devayanitwo sons called Yadu and Turvasu, who were like Indra and Vishnu. AndSarmishtha, the daughter of Vrishaparvan, became through the royal sagethe mother of three sons in all, named Drahyu, Anu, and Puru.
"And, O king, it so came to pass that one day Devayani of sweet smiles,accompanied by Yayati, went into a solitary part of the woods, (in theking's extensive park). And there she saw three children of celestialbeauty playing with perfect trustfulness. And Devayani asked in surprise,'Whose children are they, O king, who are so handsome and so like untothe children of the celestials? In splendour and beauty they are likethee, I should think.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'And Devayani without waiting for a reply fromthe king, asked the children themselves, 'Ye children, what is yourlineage? Who is your father? Answer me truly. I desire to know all.'Those children then pointed at the king (with their forefingers) andspoke of Sarmishtha as their mother.
"And having so said, the children approached the king to clasp his knees.But the king dared not caress them in the presence of Devayani. The boysthen left the place, and made towards their mother, weeping in grief. Andthe king, at this conduct of the boys, became very much abashed. ButDevayani, marking the affection of the children for the king learnt thesecret and addressing Sarmishtha, said, 'How hast thou dared to do me aninjury, being, as thou art, dependent on me? Dost thou not fear to haverecourse once more to that Asura custom of thine?'
"Sarmishtha said, 'O thou of sweet smiles, all that I told thee of aRishi is perfectly true. I have acted rightly and according to theprecepts of virtue, and therefore, do I not fear thee. When thou hadstchosen the king for thy husband, I, too, chose him as mine. O beautifulone, a friend's husband is, according to usage, one's own husband aswell. Thou art the daughter of a Brahmana and, therefore, deservest myworship and regard. But dost thou not know that this royal sage is heldby me in greater esteem still?'
"Vaisampayana said, 'Devayani then, hearing those words of hers,exclaimed, O king, thus, 'Thou hast wronged me, O monarch! I shall notlive here any longer.' And saying this, she quickly rose, with tearfuleyes, to go to her father. And the king was grieved to see her thus, andalarmed greatly, followed in her foot-steps, endeavouring to appease herwrath. But Devayani, with eyes red with anger, would not desist. Speakingnot a word to the king, with eyes bathed in tears, she soon reached theside of her father Usanas, the son of Kavi. And beholding her father, shestood before him, after due salutations. And Yayati also, immediatelyafter, saluted and worshipped Bhargava.'
"And Devayani said, 'O father, virtue hath been vanquished by vice. Thelow have risen, and the high have fallen. I have been offended again bySarmishtha, the daughter of Vrishaparvan. Three sons have been begottenupon her by this king Yayati. But, O father, being luckless I have gotonly two sons! O son of Bhrigu, this king is renowned for his knowledgeof the precepts of religion. But, O Kavya, I tell thee that he hathdeviated from the path of rectitude.'
"Sukra, hearing all this, said, 'O monarch, since thou hast made vice thybeloved pursuit, though fully acquainted with the precepts of religion,invincible decrepitude shall paralyse thee!' Yayati answered, 'Adorableone, I was solicited by the daughter of the Danava king to fructify herseason. I did it from a sense of virtue and not from other motives. Thatmale person, who being solicited by a woman in her season doth not granther wishes, is called, O Brahmana, by those conversant with the Vedas, aslayer of the embryo. He who, solicited in secret by a woman full ofdesire and in season, goeth not in unto her, loseth virtue and is calledby the learned a killer of the embryo, O son of Bhrigu, for thesereasons, and anxious to avoid sin, I went into Sarmishtha.' Sukra thenreplied, 'Thou art dependent on me. Thou shouldst have awaited mycommand. Having acted falsely in the matter of thy duty, O son ofNahusha, thou hast been guilty of the sin of theft.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Yayati, the son of Nahusha, thus cursed by theangry Usanas, was then divested of his youth and immediately overcome bydecrepitude. And Yayati said, 'O son of Bhrigu, I have not yet beensatiated with youth or with Devayani. Therefore, O Brahmana, be gracefulunto me so that decrepitude might not touch me.' Sukra then answered, 'Inever speak an untruth. Even now, O king, art thou attacked bydecrepitude. But if thou likest, thou art competent to transfer this thydecrepitude to another.' Yayati said, 'O Brahmana, let it be commanded bythee that that son of mine who giveth me his youth shall enjoy mykingdom, and shall achieve both virtue and fame.' Sukra replied, 'O sonof Nahusha, thinking of me thou mayst transfer this thy decrepitude towhomsoever thou likest. That son who shall give thee his youth shallbecome thy successor to the throne. He shall also have long life, widefame, and numerous progeny!'"

SECTION LXXXIV
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'Yayati, then, overcome with decrepitude, returned tohis capital and summoning his eldest son Yadu who was also the mostaccomplished, addressed him thus, 'Dear child, from the curse of Kavyacalled also Usanas, decrepitude and wrinkles and whiteness of hair havecome over me. But I have not been gratified yet with the enjoyment ofyouth. Do thou, O Yadu, take this my weakness along with my decrepitude.I shall enjoy with thy youth. And when a full thousand years will haveelapsed, returning to thee thy youth, I shall take back my weakness withthis decrepitude!'
"Yadu replied, 'There are innumerable inconveniences in decrepitude, inrespect of drinking and eating. Therefore, O king, I shall not take thydecrepitude. This is, indeed, my determination. White hair on the head,cheerlessness and relaxation of the nerves, wrinkles all over the body,deformities, weakness of the limbs, emaciation, incapacity to work,defeat at the hands of friends and companions--these are the consequencesof decrepitude. Therefore, O king, I desire not to take it. O king, thouhast many sons some of whom are dearer to thee. Thou art acquainted withthe precepts of virtue. Ask some other son of thine to take thydecrepitude.
"Yayati replied, 'Thou art sprung from my heart, O son, but thou givestme not thy youth. Therefore, thy children shall never be kings.' And hecontinued, addressing another son of his, 'O Turvasu, take thou thisweakness of mine along with my decrepitude. With thy youth, O son, I liketo enjoy the pleasure of life. After the lapse of a full thousand years Ishall give back to thee thy youth, and take back from thee my weaknessand decrepitude.'
"Turvasu replied, 'I do not like decrepitude, O father, it takes away allappetites and enjoyments, strength and beauty of person, intellect, andeven life.' Yayati said to him, 'Thou art sprung from my heart, O son!But thou givest me not thy youth! Therefore, O Turvasu, thy race shall beextinct. Wretch, thou shall be the king of those whose practices andprecepts are impure, amongst whom men of inferior blood procreatechildren upon women of blue blood, who live on meat, who are mean, whohesitate not to appropriate the wives of their superiors, whose practicesare those of birds and beasts, who are sinful, and non-Aryan.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'Yayati, having thus cursed his son Turvasu, then,addressed Sarmishtha's son Drahyu thus, 'O Drahyu, take thou for athousand years my decrepitude destructive of complexion and personalbeauty and give me thy youth. When a thousand years have passed away, Ishall return thee thy youth and take back my own weakness, anddecrepitude.' To this Drahyu replied, 'O king, one that is decrepit cannever enjoy elephants and cars and horses and women. Even his voicebecometh hoarse. Therefore, I do not desire (to take) thy decrepitude.'Yayati said to him, 'Thou art sprung from my heart, O son! But thourefusest to give me thy youth. Therefore, thy most cherished desiresshall never be fulfilled. Thou shalt be king only in name, of that regionwhere there are no roads for (the passage of) horses and cars andelephants, and good vehicles, and asses, and goats and bullocks, andpalanquins; where there is swimming only by rafts and floats.' Yayatinext addressed Anu and said, 'O Anu, take my weakness and decrepitude. Ishall with thy youth enjoy the pleasures of life for a thousand years.'To this Anu replied, 'Those that are decrepit always eat like childrenand are always impure. They cannot pour libations upon fire in propertimes. Therefore, I do not like to take thy decrepitude.' Yayati said tohim, 'Thou art sprung from my heart, thou givest not thy youth. Thoufindest so many faults in decrepitude. Therefore, decrepitude shallovercome thee! And, O Anu, thy progeny also as soon as they attain toyouth, shall die. And thou shalt also not be able to perform sacrificesbefore fire.'
"Yayati at last turned to his youngest child, Puru, and addressing himsaid, 'Thou art, O Puru, my youngest son! But thou shall be the first ofall! Decrepitude, wrinkles, and whiteness of hair have come over me inconsequence of the curse of Kavya called also Usanas. I have not yethowever, been satiated with my youth. O Puru, take thou this my weaknessand decrepitude! With thy youth I shall enjoy for some years thepleasures of life. And when a thousand years have passed away, I shallgive back to thee thy youth and take back my own decrepitude.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'Thus addressed by the king, Puru answered withhumility, 'I shall do, O monarch, as thou bidest me. I shall take, Oking, thy weakness and decrepitude. Take thou my youth and enjoy as thoulistest the pleasures of life. Covered with thy decrepitude and becomingold, I shall, as thou commandest, continue to live, giving thee myyouth.' Yayati then said, 'O Puru, I have been gratified with thee. Andbeing gratified, I tell thee that the people in thy kingdom shall haveall their desires fulfilled.'
"And having said this, the great ascetic Yayati, then thinking of Kavya,transferred his decrepitude unto the body of the high-souled Puru.'"

SECTION LXXXV
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'The excellent monarch Yayati, the son of Nahusha,having received Puru's youth, became exceedingly gratified. And with ithe once more began to indulge in his favourite pursuits to the fullextent of his desires and to the limit of his powers, according toseasons, so as to derive the greatest pleasure therefrom. And, O king, innothing that he did, he acted against the precepts of his religion asbehoved him well. He gratified the gods by his sacrifices; the pitris, bySraddhas; the poor, by his charities; all excellent Brahmanas, byfulfilling their desires; all persons entitled to the rites ofhospitality, with food and drink; the Vaisyas, by protection; and theSudras, by kindness. And the king repressed all criminals by properpunishments. And Yayati, gratifying all sections of his subjects,protected them virtuously like another Indra. And the monarch possessedof the prowess of a lion, with youth and every object of enjoyment undercontrol, enjoyed unlimited happiness without transgressing the preceptsof religion. And the king became very happy in thus being able to enjoyall the excellent objects of his desires. And he was only sorry when hethought that those thousand years would come to an end. And havingobtained youth for a thousand years, the king acquainted with themysteries of time, and watching proper Kalas and Kashthas sported with(the celestial damsel) Viswachi, sometimes in the beautiful garden ofIndra, sometimes in Alaka (the city of Kuvera), and sometimes on thesummit of the mountain Meru on the north. And when the virtuous monarchsaw that the thousand years were full, he summoned his son, Puru, andaddressed him thus, 'O oppressor of foes, with thy youth, O son, I haveenjoyed the pleasures of life, each according to its season to the fullextent of my desires, to the limit of my powers. Our desires, however,are never gratified by indulgence. On the other hand, with indulgence,they only flame up like fire with libations of sacrificial butter. If asingle person were owner of everything on Earth--all her yields of paddyand barley, her silver, gold, and gems, her animals and women, he wouldnot still be content. Thirst of enjoyment, therefore, should be given up.Indeed, true happiness belongeth to them that have cast off their thirstfor worldly objects--a thirst which is difficult to be thrown off by thewicked and the sinful, which faileth not with the failing life, and whichis truly the fatal disease of man. My heart hath for a full thousandyears been fixed upon the objects of desires. My thirst for these,however, increaseth day by day without abating. Therefore, I shall castit off, and fixing my mind on Brahma I shall pass the rest of my dayswith the innocent deer in the forest peacefully and with no heart for anyworldly objects. And O Puru, I have been exceedingly gratified with thee!Prosperity be thine! Receive back this thy youth! Receive thou also mykingdom. Thou art, indeed, that son of mine who has done me the greatestservices.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Then Yayati, the son of Nahusha, received backhis decrepitude. And his son Puru received back his own youth. And Yayatiwas desirous of installing Puru, his youngest son, on the throne. But thefour orders, with the Brahmanas at their head, then addressed the monarchthus, 'O king, how shall thou bestow thy kingdom on Puru, passing overthy eldest son Yadu born of Devayani, and, therefore, the grandson of thegreat Sukra? Indeed, Yadu is thy eldest son; after him hath been bornTurvasu; and of Sarmishtha's sons, the first is Drahyu, then Anu and thenPuru. How doth the youngest deserve the throne, passing all his elderbrothers over? This we represent to thee! O, conform to virtuouspractice.'
"Yayati then said, 'Ye four orders with Brahmanas at their head, hear mywords as to why my kingdom should not be given to my eldest son. Mycommands have been disobeyed by my eldest son, Yadu. The wise say that heis no son who disobeyeth his father. That son, however, who doth thebidding of his parents, who seeketh their good, who is agreeable to them,is indeed, the best of sons. I have been disregarded by Yadu and byTurvasu, too. Much I have been disregarded by Drahyu and by Anu also. ByPuru alone hath my word been obeyed. By him have I been much regarded.Therefore, the youngest shall be my heir. He took my decrepitude. Indeed,Puru is my friend. He did what was so agreeable to me. It hath also beencommanded by Sukra himself, the son of Kavi, that, that son of mine whoshould obey me will become king after me and bring the whole Earth underhis sway. I, therefore, beseech thee, let Puru be installed on thethrone.'
"The people then said, 'True it is, O king, that, that son who isaccomplished and who seeketh the good of his parents, deservethprosperity even if he be the youngest. Therefore, doth Puru, who hathdone the good, deserve the crown. And as Sukra himself hath commanded it,we have nothing to say to it.'
"Vaisampayana continued., 'The son of Nahusha, thus addressed by thecontented people, then installed his son, Puru, on the throne. And havingbestowed his kingdom on Puru, the monarch performed the initiatoryceremonies for retiring into the woods. And soon after he left hiscapital, followed by Brahmanas and ascetics.
"The sons of Yadu are known by the name of the Yadavas: while those ofTurvasu have come to be called the Yavanas. And the sons of Drahyu arethe Bhojas, while those of Anu, the Mlechchhas. The progeny of Puru,however, are the Pauravas, amongst whom, O monarch, thou art born, inorder to rule for a thousand years with thy passions under completecontrol.'"

SECTION LXXXVI
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'King Yayati, the son of Nahusha, having thusinstalled his dear son on the throne, became exceedingly happy, andentered into the woods to lead the life of a hermit. And having lived forsome time into forest in the company of Brahmanas, observing many rigidvows, eating fruits and roots, patiently bearing privations of all sorts,the monarch at last ascended to heaven. And having ascended to heaven helived there in bliss. But soon, however, he was hurled down by Indra. Andit hath been heard by me, O king, that, though hurled from heaven,Yayati, without reaching the surface of the Earth, stayed in thefirmament. I have heard that some time after he again entered the regionof the celestials in company with Vasuman, Ashtaka, Pratarddana, andSivi.'
"Janamejaya said, 'I desire to hear from thee in detail why Yayati,having first obtained admission into heaven, was hurled therefrom, andwhy also he gained re-admittance. Let all this, O Brahmana, be narratedby thee in the presence of these regenerate sages. Yayati, lord of Earth,was, indeed, like the chief of the celestials. The progenitor of theextensive race of the Kurus, he was of the splendour of the Sun. I desireto hear in full the story of his life both in heaven and on Earth, as hewas illustrious, and of world-wide celebrity and of wonderfulachievements.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'Indeed, I shall recite to thee the excellent storyof Yayati's adventures on Earth and in heaven. That story is sacred anddestroyeth the sins of those that hear it.
"King Yayati, the son of Nahusha, having installed his youngest son,Puru, on the throne after casting his sons with Yadu for their eldestamongst the Mlechchhas, entered the forest to lead the life of a hermit.And the king eating fruits and roots lived for some time in the forest.Having his mind and passions under complete control, the king gratifiedby sacrifices the Pitris and the gods. And he poured libations ofclarified butter upon the fire according to the rites prescribed forthose leading the Vanaprastha mode of life. And the illustrious oneentertained guests and strangers with the fruit of the forest andclarified butter, while he himself supported life by gleaning scatteredcorn seeds. And the king; led this sort of life for a full thousandyears. And observing the vow of silence and with mind under completecontrol he passed one full year, living upon air alone and without sleep.And he passed another year practising the severest austerities in themidst of four fires around and the Sun overhead. And, living upon airalone, he stood erect upon one leg for six months. And the king of sacreddeeds ascended to heaven, covering heaven as well as the Earth (with thefame of his achievements).'"

SECTION LXXXVII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'While that king of kings dwelt in heaven--the homeof the celestials, he was reverenced by the gods, the Sadhyas, theMaruts, and the Vasus. Of sacred deeds, and mind under complete control,the monarch used to repair now and then from the abode of the celestialsunto the region of Brahman. And it hath been heard by me that he dweltfor a long time in heaven.
"One day that best of kings, Yayati, went to Indra and there in course ofconversation the lord of Earth was asked by Indra as follows:
'What didst thou say, O king, when thy son Puru took thy decrepitude onEarth and when thou gavest him thy kingdom?'
"Yayati answered, 'I told him that the whole country between the riversGanga and Yamuna was his. That is, indeed, the central region of theEarth, while the out-lying regions are to be the dominions of thybrothers. I also told him that those without anger were ever superior tothose under its sway, those disposed to forgive were ever superior to theunforgiving. Man is superior to the lower animals. Among men again thelearned are superior to the un-learned. If wronged, thou shouldst notwrong in return. One's wrath, if disregarded, burneth one's own self; buthe that regardeth it not taketh away all the virtues of him thatexhibiteh it. Never shouldst thou pain others by cruel speeches. Neversubdue thy foes by despicable means; and never utter such scorching andsinful words as may torture others. He that pricketh as if with thornsmen by means of hard and cruel words, thou must know, ever carrieth inhis mouth the Rakshasas. Prosperity and luck fly away at his very sight.Thou shouldst ever keep the virtuous before thee as thy models; thoushouldst ever with retrospective eye compare thy acts with those of thevirtuous; thou shouldst ever disregard the hard words of the wicked. Thoushouldst ever make the conduct of the wise the model upon which thou artto act thyself. The man hurt by the arrows of cruel speech hurled fromone's lips, weepeth day and night. Indeed, these strike at the core ofthe body. Therefore the wise never fling these arrows at others. There isnothing in the three worlds by which thou canst worship and adore thedeities better than by kindness, friendship, charity and sweet speechesunto all. Therefore, shouldst thou always utter words that soothe, andnot those that scorch. And thou shouldst regard those that deserve, thyregards, and shouldst always give but never beg!"'

SECTION LXXXVIII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'Alter this Indra again asked Yayati, 'Thou didstretire into the woods, O king, after accomplishing all thy duties. OYayati, son of Nahusha, I would ask thee to whom thou art equal inascetic austerities.' Yayati answered, 'O Vasava, I do not, in the matterof ascetic austerities, behold my equal among men, the celestials, theGandharvas, and the great Rishis.' Indra then said, 'O monarch, becausethou disregardest those that are thy superiors, thy equals, and even thyinferiors, without, in fact, knowing their real merits, thy virtues havesuffered diminution and thou must fall from heaven.' Yayati then said, 'OSakra, if, indeed, my virtues have really sustained diminution and I muston that account fall down from heaven, I desire, O chief of thecelestials, that I may at least fall among the virtuous and the honest.'Indra replied, 'O king, thou shall fall among those that are virtuous andwise, and thou shall acquire also much renown. And after this experienceof thine, O Yayati, never again disregard those that are thy superiors oreven thy equals.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Upon this, Yayati fell from the region of thecelestials. And as he was falling, he was beheld by that foremost ofroyal sages, viz., Ashtaka, the protector of his own religion. Ashtakabeholding him, enquired, 'Who art thou, O youth of a beauty equal to thatof Indra, in splendour blazing as the fire, thus falling from on high?Art thou that foremost of sky-ranging bodies--the sun--emerging from,dark masses of clouds? Beholding thee falling from the solar course,possessed of immeasurable energy and the splendour of fire or the sun,every one is curious as to what it is that is so falling, and is,besides, deprived of consciousness! Beholding thee in the path of thecelestials, possessed of energy like that of Sakra, or Surya, or Vishnu,we have approached thee to ascertain the truth. If thou hast first askedus who we were, we would never have been guilty of the incivility ofasking thee first. We now ask thee who thou art and why thou approachesthither. Let thy fears be dispelled; let thy woes and afflictions cease.Thou art now in the presence of the virtuous and the wise. Even Sakrahimself--the slayer of Vala--cannot here do thee any injury. O thou ofthe prowess of the chief of the celestials, the wise and the virtuous arethe support of their brethren in grief. Here there are none but the wiseand virtuous like thee assembled together. Therefore, stay thou here inpeace. Fire alone hath power to give heat. The Earth alone hath power toinfuse life into the seed. The sun alone hath power to illuminateeverything. So the guest alone hath power to command the virtuous and thewise.'"

SECTION LXXXIX
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Yayati said, 'I am Yayati, the son of Nahusha and the father of Puru.Cast off from the region of the celestials and of Siddhas and Rishis forhaving disregarded every creature, I am falling down, my righteousnesshaving sustained diminution. In years I am older than you; therefore, Ihave not saluted you first. Indeed, the Brahmanas always reverence himwho is older in years or superior in learning or in ascetic merit.'
"Ashtaka then replied, 'Thou sayest, O monarch, that he who is older inyears is worthy of regard. But it is said that he is truly worthy ofworship who is superior in learning and ascetic merit.'
"Yayati replied to this, 'It is said that sin destroyeth the merits offour virtuous acts. Vanity containeth the element of that which leadethto hell. The virtuous never follow in the footsteps of the vicious. Theyact in such a way that their religious merit always increaseth. I myselfhad great religious merit, but all that, however, is gone. I willscarcely be able to regain it even by my best exertions. Beholding myfate, he that is bent upon (achieving) his own good, will certainlysuppress vanity. He who having acquired great wealth performethmeritorious sacrifices, who having acquired all kinds of learningremaineth humble, and who having studied the entire Vedas devotethhimself to asceticism with a heart withdrawn from all mundane enjoyments,goeth to heaven. None should exult in having acquired great wealth. Noneshould be vain of having studied the entire Vedas. In the world men areof different dispositions. Destiny is supreme. Both power and exertionare all fruitless. Knowing Destiny to be all-powerful, the wise, whatevertheir portions may be, should neither exult nor grieve. When creaturesknow that their weal and woe are dependent on Destiny and not on theirown exertion or power, they should neither grieve nor exult, rememberingthat Destiny is all powerful. The wise should ever live contented,neither grieving at woe nor exulting at weal. When Destiny is supreme,both grief and exultation are unbecoming. O Ashtaka, I never suffermyself to be overcome by fear, nor do I ever entertain grief, knowing forcertain that I shall be in the world what the great disposer of all hathordained. Insects and worms, all oviparous creatures, vegetableexistences, all crawling animals, vermin, the fish in the water, stones,grass, wood--in fact, all created things, when they are freed from theeffects of their acts, are united with the Supreme Soul. Happiness andmisery are both transient. Therefore, O Ashtaka, why should I grieve? Wecan never know how we are to act in order to avoid misery. Therefore,none should grieve for misery.'
"Possessed of every virtue, king Yayati who was the maternal grandfatherof Ashtaka, while staying in the welkin, at the conclusion of his speech,was again questioned by Ashtaka. The latter said, 'O king of kings, tellme, in detail, of all those regions that thou hast visited and enjoyed,as well as the period for which thou hast enjoyed each. Thou speakest ofthe precepts of religion even like the clever masters acquainted with theacts and sayings of great beings!' Yayati replied, 'I was a great king onEarth, owning the whole world for my dominion. Leaving it, I acquired bydint of religious merit many high regions. There I dwelt for a fullthousand years, and then I attained to a very high region the abode ofIndra, of extraordinary beauty having a thousand gates, and extendingover a hundred yojanas all round. There too, I dwelt a full thousandyears and then attained to a higher region still. That is the region ofperfect beatitude, where decay never exists, the region, viz., that ofthe Creator and the Lord of Earth, so difficult of attainment. There alsoI dwelt for a full thousand years, and then attained to another very highregion viz., that of the god of gods (Vishnu) where, too, I had lived inhappiness. Indeed, I dwelt in various regions, adored by all thecelestials, and possessed of prowess and splendour equal unto those ofthe celestials themselves. Capable of assuming any form at will, I livedfor a million years in the gardens of Nandana sporting with the Apsarasand beholding numberless beautiful trees clad in flowery vesture andsending forth delicious perfume all round. And after many, many years hadelapsed, while still residing there in enjoyment of perfect beatitude,the celestial messenger of grim visage, one day, in a loud and deepvoice, thrice shouted to me--Ruined! Ruined! Ruined!--O lion among kings,this much do I remember. I was then fallen from Nandana, my religiousmerits gone! I heard in the skies, O king, the voices of the celestialsexclaiming in grief,--Alas! What a misfortune! Yayati, with his religiousmerits destroyed, though virtuous and of sacred deeds, is falling!--Andas I was falling, I asked them loudly, 'Where, ye celestials, are thosewise ones amongst whom I am to fall?' They pointed out to me this sacredsacrificial region belonging to you. Beholding the curls of smokeblackening the atmosphere and smelling the perfume of clarified butterpoured incessantly upon fire, and guided thereby, I am approaching thisregion of yours, glad at heart that I come amongst you.'"

SECTION XC
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Ashtaka said, 'Capable of assuming any form at will, thou hast lived fora million years in the gardens of Nandana. For what cause, O foremost ofthose that flourished in the Krita age, hast thou been compelled to leavethat region and come hither?' Yayati answered, 'As kinsmen, friends, andrelatives forsake, in this world, those whose wealth disappears so, inthe other world, the celestials with Indra as their chief, forsake himwho hath lost his righteousness.' Ashtaka said, 'I am extremely anxiousto know how in the other world men can lose virtue. Tell me also, O king,what regions are attainable by what courses of action. Thou artacquainted, I know, with the acts and sayings of great beings."
"Yayati answered, 'O pious one, they that speak of their own merits aredoomed to suffer the hell called Bhauma. Though really emaciated andlean, they appear to grow on Earth (in the shape of their sons andgrandsons) only to become food for vultures, dogs, and jackals.Therefore, O king, this highly censurable and wicked vice should berepressed. I have now, O king, told thee all. Tell me what more I shallsay.'
"Ashtaka said, 'When life is destroyed with age, vultures, peacocks,insects, and worms eat up the human body. Where doth man then reside? Howdoth he also come back to life? I have never heard of any hell calledBhauma on Earth!'
"Yayati answered, 'After the dissolution of the body, man, according tohis acts, re-entereth the womb of his mother and stayeth there in anindistinct form, and soon after assuming a distinct and visible shapereappeareth in the world and walketh on its surface. This is thatEarth-hell (Bhauma) where he falleth, for he beholdeth not thetermination of his existence and acteth not towards his emancipation.Some dwell for sixty thousand years, some, for eighty-thousand years inheaven, and then they fall. And as they fall, they are attacked bycertain Rakshasas in the form of sons, grandsons, and other relatives,that withdraw their hearts from acting for their own emancipation.'
"Ashtaka asked, 'For what sin are beings, when they fall from heaven,attacked by these fierce and sharp-toothed Rakshasas? Why are they notreduced to annihilation? How do they again enter the womb, furnished withsenses?'
"Yayati answered, 'After falling from heaven, the being becometh asubtile substance living in water. This water becometh the semen whenceis the seed of vitality. Thence entering the mother's womb in the womanlyseason, it developeth into the embryo and next into visible life like thefruit from the flower. Entering trees, plants, and other vegetablesubstances, water, air, earth, and space, that same watery seed of lifeassumeth the quadrupedal or bipedal form. This is the case with allcreatures that you see.'
"Ashtaka said, 'O tell me, I ask thee because I have my doubts. Doth abeing that hath received a human form enter the womb in its own shape orin some other? How doth it also acquire its distinct and visible shape,eyes and ears and consciousness as well? Questioned by me, O, explain itall! Thou art, O father, one acquainted with the acts and sayings ofgreat beings.' Yayati answered, 'According to the merits of one's acts,the being that in a subtile form co-inheres in the seed that is droppedinto the womb is attracted by the atmospheric force for purposes ofre-birth. It then developeth there in course of time; first it becomesthe embryo, and is next provided with the visible physical organism.Coming out of the womb in due course of time, it becometh conscious ofits existence as man, and with his ears becometh sensible of sound; withhis eyes, of colour and form; with his nose, of scent; with his tongue,of taste; by his whole body, of touch; and by his mind, of ideas. It isthus, O Ashtaka, that the gross and visible body developeth from thesubtile essence.'
"Ashtaka asked, 'After death, the body is burnt, or otherwise destroyed.Reduced to nothing upon such dissolution, by what principle is onerevived?' Yayati said, 'O lion among kings, the person that dies assumesa subtil form; and retaining consciousness of all his acts as in a dream,he enters some other form with a speed quicker than that of air itself.The virtuous attain to a superior, and the vicious to an inferior form ofexistence. The vicious become worms and insects. I have nothing more tosay, O thou of great and pure soul! I have told thee how beings are born,after development of embryonic forms, as four-footed, six-footedcreatures and others with more feet. What more wilt thou ask me?'
"Ashtaka said, 'How, O father, do men attain to those superior regionswhence there is no return to earthly life? Is it by asceticism or byknowledge? How also can one gradually attain to felicitous regions? Askedby me, O answer it in full.'
"Yayati answered, 'The wise say that for men there are seven gatesthrough which admission may be gained into Heaven. There are asceticism,benevolence, tranquillity of mind, self-command, modesty, simplicity, andkindness to all creatures. The wise also say that a person loseth allthese in consequence of vanity. That man who having acquired knowledgeregardeth himself as learned, and with his learning destroyed thereputation of others, never attaineth to regions of indestructiblefelicity. That knowledge also doth not make its possessor competent toattain to Brahma. Study, taciturnity, worship before fire, andsacrifices, these four remove all fear. When, however, these are mixedwith vanity, instead of removing it, they cause fear. The wise shouldnever exult at (receiving) honours nor should they grieve at insults. Forit is the wise alone that honour the wise; the wicked never act like thevirtuous. I have given away so much--I have performed so manysacrifices,--I have studied so much,--I have observed these vows,--suchvanity is the root of fear. Therefore, thou must not indulge in suchfeelings. Those learned men who accept as their support the unchangeable,inconceivable Brahma alone that ever showereth blessings on personsvirtuous like thee, enjoy perfect peace here and hereafter.'"

SECTION XCI
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Ashtaka said, 'Those cognisant of the Vedas differ in opinion as to howthe followers of each of the four modes of life, viz., Grihasthas,Bhikshus, Brahmacharins, and Vanaprashthas, should conduct themselves inorder to acquire religious merit."
"Yayati answered, 'These are what a Brahmacharin must do. While dwellingin the abode of his preceptor, he must receive lessons only when hispreceptor summons him to do so; he must attend to the service of hispreceptor without waiting for the latter's command; he must rise from hisbed before his preceptor riseth, and go to bed after his preceptor hathgone to bed. He must be humble, must have his passions under completecontrol, must be patient, vigilant, and devoted to studies. It is thenonly that he can achieve success. It hath been said in the oldestUpanishad that a grihastha, acquiring wealth by honest means, shouldperform sacrifices; he should always give something in charity, shouldperform the rites of hospitality unto all arriving at his abode, andshould never use anything without giving a portion thereof to others. AMuni, without search for woods, depending on his own vigour, shouldabstain from all vicious acts, should give away something in charity,should never inflict pain on any creature. It is then only that he canachieve success. He, indeed, is a true Bhikshu who doth not supporthimself by any manual arts, who possesseth numerous accomplishments, whohath his passions under complete control, who is unconnected with worldlyconcerns, who sleepeth not under the shelter of a householder's roof, whois without wife, and who going a little way every day, travelleth over alarge extent of the country. A learned man should adopt the Vanaprasthamode of life after performance of the necessary rites, when he hath beenable to control his appetites for enjoyment and desire of acquiringvaluable possessions. When one dieth in the woods while leading theVanaprastha mode of life, he maketh his ancestors and the successors,numbering ten generations including himself, mix with the Divine essence.'
"Ashtaka asked, 'How many kinds of Munis are there (observers of the vowof the silence)?'
"Yayati answered, 'He is, indeed, a Muni who, though dwelling in thewoods, hath an inhabited place near, or who, though dwelling in aninhabited place, hath the woods near.'
"Ashtaka enquired what is meant by Muni.' Yayati replied, 'A Muniwithdrawing himself from all worldly objects liveth in the woods. Andthough he might never seek to surround himself with those objects thatare procurable in an inhabited place, he might yet obtain them all byvirtue of his ascetic power. He may truly be said to dwell in the woodshaving an inhabited place near to himself. Again a wise man withdrawnfrom all earthly objects, might live in a hamlet leading the life of ahermit. He may never exhibit the pride of family, birth or learning. Cladin the scantiest robes, he may yet regard himself as attired in therichest vestments. He may rest content with food just enough for thesupport of life. Such a person, though dwelling in an inhabited place,liveth yet in the woods.
"The person again, who, with passions under complete control, adopteththe vow of silence, refraining from action and entertaining no desire,achieveth success. Why shouldst thou not, indeed, reverence the man wholiveth on clean food, who refraineth from ever injuring others, whoseheart is ever pure, who stands in the splendour of ascetic attributes,who is free from the leaden weight of desire, who abstaineth from injuryeven when sanctioned by religion? Emaciated by austerities and reduced inflesh, marrow and blood, such a one conquereth not only this but thehighest world. And when the Muni sits in yoga meditation, becomingindifferent to happiness and misery, honour and insult, he then leaveththe world and enjoyeth communion with Brahma. When the Muni taketh foodlike wine and other animals, i. e., without providing for it beforehandand without any relish (like a sleeping infant feeding on the mother'slap), then like the all-pervading spirit he becometh identified with thewhole universe and attaineth to salvation.'"

SECTION XCII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Ashtaka asked, 'Who amongst these, O king, both exerting constantly likethe Sun and the Moon, first attaineth to communion with Brahma, theascetic or the man of knowledge?'
"Yayati answered, 'The wise, with the help of the Vedas and of Knowledge,having ascertained the visible universe to be illusory, instantlyrealises the Supreme Spirit as the sole existent independent essence.While they that devote themselves to Yoga meditation take time to acquirethe same knowledge, for it is by practice alone that these latter divestthemselves of the consciousness of quality. Hence the wise attain tosalvation first. Then again if the person devoted to Yoga find notsufficient time in one life to attain success, being led astray by theattractions of the world, in his next life he is benefited by theprogress already achieved, for he devoteth himself regretfully to thepursuit of success. But the man of knowledge ever beholdeth theindestructible unity, and, is, therefore, though steeped in worldlyenjoyments, never affected by them at heart. Therefore, there is nothingto impede his salvation. He, however, who faileth to attain to knowledge,should yet devote himself to piety as dependent on action (sacrifices&c.). But he that devoteth himself to such piety, moved thereto by desireof salvation, can never achieve success. His sacrifices bear no fruit andpartake of the nature of cruelty. Piety which is dependent on action thatproceedeth not from the desire of fruit, is, in case of such men Yogaitself.'
"Ashtaka said, 'O king, thou lookest like a young man; thou art handsomeand decked with a celestial garland. Thy splendour is great! Whence dostthou come and where dost thou go? Whose messenger art thou? Art thougoing down into the Earth?'
"Yayati said, 'Fallen from heaven upon the loss of all my religiousmerits, I am doomed to enter the Earth-hell. Indeed, I shall go thereafter I have finished my discourse with you. Even now the regents of thepoints of the universe command me to hasten thither. And, O king, I haveobtained it as a boon from Indra that though fall I must upon the earth,yet I should fall amidst the wise and the virtuous. Ye are all wise andvirtuous that are assembled here.'
"Ashtaka said, 'Thou art acquainted with everything. I ask thee, O king,are there any regions for myself to enjoy in heaven or in the firmament?If there be, then, thou shalt not fall, though falling.'
"Yayati answered, 'O king, there are as many regions for thee to enjoy inheaven even as the number of kine and horses on Earth with the animals inthe wilderness and on the hills.'
"Ashtaka said, 'If there are worlds for me to enjoy, as fruits of myreligious merits, in heaven, O king, I give them all unto thee.Therefore, though falling, thou shalt not fall. O, take thou soon allthose, wherever they be, in heaven or in the firmament. Let thy sorrowcease.'
"Yayati answered, 'O best of kings, a Brahma-knowing Brahmana alone cantake in gift, but not one like ourselves. And, O monarch, I myself havegiven away to Brahmanas as one should. Let no man who, is not a Brahmanaand let not the wife of a learned Brahmana ever live in infamy byaccepting gifts. While on earth, I ever desired to perform virtuous acts.Having never done so before, how shall I now accept a gift?'
"Pratardana who was amongst them asked, 'O thou of the handsomest form, Iam Pratardana by name. I ask thee if there are any worlds for me to enjoyas fruits of my religious merits, in heaven or the firmament? Answer me,thou art acquainted with everything.'
"Yayati said, 'O king, numberless worlds, full of felicity, effulgentlike the solar disc, and where woe can never dwell, await thee. If thoudwellest in each but for seven days, they would not yet be exhausted.'
"Pratardana said, 'These then I give unto thee. Therefore, thoughfalling, thou must not fall. Let the worlds that are mine be thine,whether they be in the firmament or heaven. O, soon take them. Let thywoes cease.'
"Yayati answered, 'O monarch, no king of equal energy should ever desireto receive as gift the religious merits of another king acquired by Yogaausterities. And no king who is afflicted with calamity through the fatesshould, if wise, act in a censurable way. A king keeping his eye fixedfor ever on virtue should walk along the path of virtue like myself and,knowing what his duties are, should not act so meanly as thou directest.When others desirous of acquiring religious merits do not accept gifts,how can I do what they themselves do not? On the conclusion of thisspeech, that best of kings, Yayati, was then addressed by Vasumat in thefollowing words.'"

SECTION XCIII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vasumat said, 'I am Vasumat, the son of Oshadaswa. I would ask thee, Oking, whether there are any worlds for me to enjoy as fruits of myreligious merits, in heaven or the firmament. Thou art, O high-souledone, acquainted with all holy regions.'
"Yayati answered, 'There are as many regions for thee to enjoy in heavenas the number of places in the firmament, the Earth and the ten points ofthe universe illumined by the Sun.'
"Vasumat then said, 'I give them to thee. Let those regions that are forme be thine. Therefore, though falling, thou shall not fall. If to acceptthem as gift be improper for thee, then, O monarch, buy them for a straw?'
"Yayati answered, 'I do not remember having ever bought and sold anythingunfairly. This has never been done by other kings. How shall I thereforedo it?'
"Vasumat said, 'If buying them, O king, be regarded by thee as improper,then take them as gilt from me. For myself I answer that I will never goto those regions that are for me. Let them, therefore, be thine.'
"Sivi then addressed the king thus, I am, O king, Sivi by name, the sonof Usinara. O father, are there in the firmament or in heaven any worldsfor me to enjoy? Thou knowest every region that one may enjoy as thefruit of his religious merit.'
"Yayati said, 'Thou hast never, by speech or in mind, disregarded thehonest and the virtuous that applied to thee. There are infinite worldsfor thee to enjoy in heaven, all blazing like lightning.' Sivi then said,'If thou regardest their purchase as improper, I give them to thee. Takethem all, O king! I shall never take them, viz., those regions where thewise never feel the least disquiet.'
Yayati answered, 'O Sivi, thou hast indeed, obtained for thyself,possessed of the prowess of Indra, infinite worlds. But I do not desireto enjoy regions given to me by others. Therefore, I accept not thy gift.'
"Ashtaka then said, 'O king, each of us has expressed his desire to givethee worlds that each of us has acquired by his religious merits. Thouacceptest not them. But leaving them for thee, we shall descend into theEarth-hell.'
"Yayati answered, 'Ye all are truth-loving and wise. Give me that which Ideserve. I shall not be able to do what I have never done before.'
"Ashtaka then said, 'Whose are those five golden cars that we see? Do menthat repair to these regions of everlasting bliss ride in them?'
"Yayati answered, 'Those five golden cars displayed in glory, and blazingas fire, would indeed, carry you to regions of bliss.'
"Ashtaka said, 'O king, ride on those cars thyself and repair to heaven.We can wait. We follow thee in time.'
"Yayati said, 'We can now all go together. Indeed, all of us haveconquered heaven. Behold, the glorious path to heaven becomes visible."
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Then all those excellent monarchs riding inthose cars set out for heaven for gaining admittance into it,illuminating the whole firmament by the glory of their virtues.'
"Then Ashtaka, breaking the silence asked, 'I had always thought thatIndra was my especial friend, and that I, of all others, should firstobtain admittance into heaven. But how is it that Usinara's son, Sivihath already left us behind?'
"Yayati answered, 'This Usinara's son had given all he possessed forattaining to the region of Brahman. Therefore, is he the foremost amongus. Besides, Sivi's liberality, asceticism, truth, virtue, modesty,forgiveness, amiability, desire of performing good acts, have been sogreat that none can measure them!'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'After this, Ashtaka, impelled by curiosity,again asked his maternal grandfather resembling Indra himself, saying, 'Oking, I ask thee, tell me truly, whence thou art, who thou art, and whoseson? Is there any other Brahmana or Kshatriya who hath done what thoudidst on earth?' Yayati answered, 'I tell thee truly, I am Yayati, theson of Nahusha and the father of Puru. I was lord of all the Earth. Yeare my relatives; I tell thee truly, I am the maternal grandfather of youall. Having conquered the whole earth, I gave clothes to Brahmanas andalso a hundred handsome horses fit for sacrificial offering. For suchacts of virtue, the gods became propitious to those that perform them. Ialso gave to Brahmanas this whole earth with her horses and elephants andkine and gold all kinds of wealth, along with a hundred Arbudas ofexcellent milch cows. Both the earth and the firmament exist owing to mytruth and virtue; fire yet burneth in the world of men owing to my truthand virtue. Never hath a word spoken by me been untrue. It is for thisthat the wise adore Truth. O Ashtaka, all I have told thee, Pratardana,and Vasumat, is Truth itself. I know it for certain that the gods and theRishis and all the mansions of the blessed are adorable only because ofTruth that characteriseth them all. He that will without malice duly readunto good Brahmanas his account of our ascension to heaven shall himselfattain to the same worlds with us.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'It was thus that the illustrious king Yayati ofhigh achievements, rescued by his collateral descendants, ascended toheaven, leaving the earth and covering the three worlds with the fame ofhis deeds.'"

SECTION XCIV
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Janamejaya said, 'O adorable one, I desire to hear the histories ofthose kings who were descended from Puru. O tell me of each as he waspossessed of prowess and achievements. I have, indeed, heard that inPuru's line there was not a single one who was wanting in good behaviourand prowess, or who was without sons. O thou of ascetic wealth, I desireto hear the histories in detail of those famous monarchs endued withlearning and all accomplishments.'
"Vaisampayana said, 'Asked by thee, I shall tell thee all about theheroic-kings in Puru's line, all equal unto Indra in prowess, possessinggreat affluence and commanding the respect of all for theiraccomplishments.
"Puru had by his wife Paushti three sons, Pravira, Iswara, and Raudraswa,all of whom were mighty car-warriors. Amongst them, Pravira was theperpetuator of the dynasty. Pravira had by his wife Suraseni a son namedManasyu. And the latter of eyes like lotus-petals had his sway over thewhole Earth bounded by the four seas. And Manasyu had for his wifeSauviri. And he begat upon her three sons called Sakta, Sahana, andVagmi. And they were heroes in battle and mighty car-warriors. Theintelligent and virtuous Kaudraswa begat upon the Apsara Misrakesi tensons who were all great bowmen. And they all grew up into heroes,performing numerous sacrifices in honour of the gods. And they all hadsons, were learned in all branches of knowledge and ever devoted tovirtue. They are Richeyu, and Kaksreyu and Vrikeyu of great prowess;Sthandileyu, and Vaneyu, and Jaleyu of great fame; Tejeyu of greatstrength and intelligence; and Satyeyu of the prowess of Indra; Dharmeyu,and Sannateyu the tenth of the prowess of the celestials. Amongst themall, Richeyu became the sole monarch of the whole earth and was known bythe name of Anadhrishti. And in prowess he was like unto Vasava amongstthe celestials. And Anadhristi had a son of the name of Matinara whobecame a famous and virtuous king and performed the Rajasuya and thehorse-sacrifice. And Matinara had four sons of immeasurable prowess,viz., Tansu, Mahan, Atiratha, and Druhyu of immeasurable glory. (Amongstthem, Tansu of great prowess became the perpetrator of Puru's line). Andhe subjugated the whole earth and acquired great fame and splendour. AndTansu begat a son of great prowess named Ilina. And he became theforemost of all conquerors and brought the whole world under hissubjection. And Ilina begat upon his wife Rathantara five sons withDushmanta at their head, all equal in might unto the five elements. Theywere Dushmanta, Sura, Bhima, Pravasu, and Vasu. And, O Janamejaya, theeldest of them, Dushmanta, became king. And Dushmanta had by his wifeSakuntala an intelligent son named Bharata who became king. And Bharatagave his name to the race of which he was the founder. And it is from himthat the fame of that dynasty hath spread so wide. And Bharata begat uponhis three wives nine sons in all. But none of them were like their fatherand so Bharata was not at all pleased with them. Their mothers,therefore, became angry and slew them all. The procreation of children byBharata, therefore, became vain. The monarch then performed a greatsacrifice and through the grace of Bharadwaja obtained a son namedBhumanyu. And then Bharata, the great descendant of Puru, regardinghimself as really possessing a son, installed, O foremost one ofBharata's race, that son as his heir-apparent. And Bhumanyu begat uponhis wife, Pushkarini six sons named Suhotra, Suhotri, Suhavih, Sujeya,Diviratha and Kichika. The eldest of them all, Suhotra, obtained thethrone and performed many Rajasuyas and horse-sacrifices. And Suhotrabrought under his sway the whole earth surrounded by her belt of seas andfull of elephants, kine and horses, and all her wealth of gems of gold.And the earth afflicted with the weight of numberless human beings andelephants, horses, and cats, was, as it were, about to sink. And duringthe virtuous reign of Suhotra the surface of the whole earth was dottedall over with hundreds and thousands, of sacrificial stakes. And the lordof the earth, Suhotra, begat, upon his wife Aikshaki three sons, viz.,Ajamidha, Sumidha, and Purumidha. The eldest of them, Ajamidha, was theperpetuator of the royal line. And he begat six sons,--Riksha was born ofthe womb of Dhumini, Dushmanta and Parameshthin, of Nili, and Jahnu, Jalaand Rupina were born in that of Kesini. All the tribes of the Panchalasare descended from Dushmanta and Parameshthin. And the Kushikas are thesons of Jahnu of immeasurable prowess. And Riksha who was older than bothJala and Rupina became king. And Riksha begat Samvarana, the perpetuatorof the royal line. And, O king, it hath been heard by us that whileSamvarana, the son of Riksha, was ruling the earth, there happened agreat loss of people from famine, pestilence, drought, and disease. Andthe Bharata princes were beaten by the troops of enemies. And thePanchalas setting out to invade the whole earth with their four kinds oftroops soon brought the whole earth under their sway. And with their tenAkshauhinis the king of the Panchalas defeated the Bharata prince.Samvarana then with his wife and ministers, sons and relatives, fled infear, and took shelter in the forest on the banks of the Sindhu extendingto the foot of the mountains. There the Bharatas lived for a fullthousand years, within their fort. And after they had lived there athousand years, one day the illustrious Rishi Vasishtha approached theexiled Bharatas, who, on going out, saluted the Rishi and worshipped himby the offer of Arghya. And entertaining him with reverence, theyrepresented everything unto that illustrious Rishi. And after he wasseated on his seat, the king himself approached the Rishi and addressedhim, saying, 'Be thou our priest, O illustrious one! We will endeavour toregain our kingdom.' And Vasishtha answered the Bharatas by saying, 'Om'(the sign of consent). It hath been heard by us that Vasishtha theninstalled the Bharata prince in the sovereignty of all the Kshatriyas onearth, making by virtue of his Mantras this descendant of Puru theveritable horns of the wild bull or the tusks of the wild elephants. Andthe king retook the capital that had been taken away from him and oncemore made all monarchs pay tribute to him. The powerful Samvarana, thusinstalled once more in the actual sovereignty of the whole earth,performed many sacrifices at which the presents to the Brahmanas weregreat.
"Samvarana begat upon his wife, Tapati, the daughter of Surya, a sonnamed Kuru. This Kuru was exceedingly virtuous, and therefore, he wasinstalled on the throne by his people. It is after his name that thefield called Kuru-jangala has become so famous in the world. Devoted toasceticism, he made that field (Kurukshetra) sacred by practisingasceticism there. And it has been heard by us that Kuru's highlyintelligent wife, Vahini, brought forth five sons, viz., Avikshit,Bhavishyanta, Chaitraratha, Muni and the celebrated Janamejaya. AndAvikshit begat Parikshit the powerful, Savalaswa, Adhiraja, Viraja,Salmali of great physical strength, Uchaihsravas, Bhangakara and Jitarithe eighth. In the race of these were born, as the fruit of their piousacts seven mighty car-warriors with Janamejaya at their head. And untoParikshit were born sons who were all acquainted with (the secrets of)religion and profit. And they were named Kakshasena and Ugrasena, andChitrasena endued with great energy, and Indrasena and Sushena andBhimasena. And the sons of Janamejaya were all endued with great strengthand became celebrated all over the world. And they were Dhritarashtra whowas the eldest, and Pandu and Valhika, and Nishadha endued with greatenergy, and then the mighty Jamvunada, and then Kundodara and Padati andthen Vasati the eighth. And they were all proficient in morality andprofit and were kind to all creatures. Among them Dhritarashtra becameking. And Dhritarashtra had eight sons, viz., Kundika, Hasti, Vitarka,Kratha the fifth, Havihsravas, Indrabha, and Bhumanyu the invincible, andDhritarashtra had many grandsons, of whom three only were famous. Theywere, O king, Pratipa, Dharmanetra, Sunetra. Among these three, Pratipabecame unrivalled on earth. And, O bull in Bharata's race, Pratipa begatthree sons, viz., Devapi, Santanu, and the mighty car-warrior Valhika.The eldest Devapi adopted the ascetic course of life, impelled thereto bythe desire of benefiting his brothers. And the kingdom was obtained bySantanu and the mighty car-warrior Valhika.
"O monarch, besides, there were born in the race of Bharata numberlessother excellent monarchs endued with great energy and like unto thecelestial Rishis themselves in virtue and ascetic power. And so also inthe race of Manu were born many mighty car-warriors like unto thecelestials themselves, who by their number swelled the Aila dynasty intogigantic proportions.'"

SECTION XCV
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Janamejaya said, 'O Brahmana, I have now heard from thee this greathistory of my ancestors. I had also heard from thee about the greatmonarchs that were born in this line. But I have not been gratified, thischarming account being so short. Therefore, be pleased, O Brahmana, torecite the delightful narrative just in detail commencing from Manu, thelord of creation. Who is there that will not be charmed with such anaccount, as it is sacred? The fame of these monarchs increased by theirwisdom, virtue, accomplishments, and high character, hath so swelled asto cover the three worlds. Having listened to the history, sweet asnectar, of their liberality, prowess, physical strength, mental vigour,energy, and perseverance, I have not been satiated!'
"Vaisampayana said, 'Hear then, O monarch, as I recite in full theauspicious account of thy own race just as I had heard it from Dwaipayanabefore.
"Daksha begat Aditi, and Aditi begat Vivaswat, and Vivaswat begat Manu,and Manu begat Ha and Ha begat Pururavas. And Pururavas begat Ayus, andAyus begat Nahusha, and Nahusha begat Yayati. And Yayati had two wives,viz., Devayani, the daughter of Usanas, and Sarmishtha the daughter ofVrishaparvan. Here occurs a sloka regarding (Yayati's) descendants,'Devayani gave birth to Yadu and Turvasu; and Vrishaparvan's daughter,Sarmishtha gave birth to Druhyu, Anu, and Puru., And the descendants ofYadu are the Yadavas and of Puru are the Pauravas. And Puru had a wife ofthe name of Kausalya, on whom he begat a son named Janamejaya whoperformed three horse-sacrifices and a sacrifice called Viswajit. Andthen he entered into the woods. And Janamejaya had married Ananta, thedaughter of Madhava, and begat upon her a son called Prachinwat. And theprince was so called because he had conquered all the eastern countriesup to the very confines of the region where the Sun rises. And Prachinwatmarried Asmaki, a daughter of the Yadavas and begat upon her a son namedSanyati. And Sanyati married Varangi, the daughter of Drishadwata andbegat upon her a son named Ahayanti. And Ahayanti married Bhanumati, thedaughter of Kritavirya and begat upon her a son named Sarvabhauma. AndSarvabhauma married Sunanda, the daughter of the Kekaya prince, havingobtained her by force. And he begat upon her a son named Jayatsena, whomarried Susrava, the daughter of the Vidarbha king and begat upon herAvachina, And Avachina also married another princess of Vidarbha, Maryadaby name. And he begat on her a son named Arihan. And Arihan married Angiand begat on her Mahabhauma. And Mahabhauma married Suyajna, the daughterof Prasenajit. And of her was born Ayutanayi. And he was so calledbecause he had performed a sacrifice at which the fat of an Ayuta (tenthousands) of male beings was required. And Ayutanayi took for a wifeKama, the daughter of Prithusravas. And by her was born a son namedAkrodhana, who took to wife Karambha, the daughter of the king ofKalinga. And of her was born Devatithi, and Devatithi took for his wifeMaryada, the princess of Videha. And of her was born a son named Arihan.And Arihan took to wife Sudeva, the princess of Anga, and upon her hebegat a son named Riksha. And Riksha married Jwala, the daughter ofTakshaka, and he begat upon her a son of the name of Matinara, whoperformed on the bank of Saraswati the twelve years' sacrifice said to beso efficacious. On conclusion of the sacrifice, Saraswati appeared inperson before the king and chose him for husband. And he begat upon her ason named Tansu. Here occurs a sloka descriptive of Tansu's descendants.
"Tansu was born of Saraswati by Matinara. And Tansu himself begat a sonnamed Ilina on his wife, the princess Kalingi.
"Ilina begat on his wife Rathantari five sons, of whom Dushmanta was theeldest. And Dushmanta took to wife Sakuntala, the daughter of Viswamitra.And he begat on her a son named Bharata. Here occurs two slokas about(Dushmanta's) descendants.
"The mother is but the sheath of flesh in which the father begets theson. Indeed the father himself is the son. Therefore, O Dushmanta,support thy son and insult not Sakuntala. O god among men, the fatherhimself becoming the son rescueth himself from hell. Sakuntala hath trulysaid that thou art the author of this child's being.
"It is for this (i.e., because the king supported his child after hearingthe above speech of the celestial messenger) that Sakuntala's son came tobe called Bharata (the supported). And Bharata married Sunanda, thedaughter of Sarvasena, the king of Kasi, and begat upon her the son namedBhumanyu. And Bhumanyu married Vijaya, the daughter of Dasarha. And hebegat upon her a son Suhotra who married Suvarna, the daughter ofIkshvaku. To her was born a son named Hasti who founded this city, whichhas, therefore, been called Hastinapura. And Hasti married Yasodhara, theprincess of Trigarta. And of her was born a son named Vikunthana who tookfor a wife Sudeva, the princess of Dasarha. And by her was born a sonnamed Ajamidha. And Ajamidha had four wives named Raikeyi, Gandhari,Visala and Riksha. And he begat on them two thousand and four hundredsons. But amongst them all, Samvarana became the perpetuator of thedynasty. And Samvarana took for his wife Tapati, the daughter ofVivaswat. And of her was born Kuru, who married Subhangi, the princess ofDasarha. And he begat on her a son named Viduratha, who took to wifeSupriya, the daughter of the Madhavas. And he begat upon her a son namedAnaswan. And Anaswan married Amrita, the daughter of the Madhavas. And ofher was born a son named Parikshit, who took for his wife Suvasa, thedaughter of the Vahudas, and begat upon her a son named Bhimasena. AndBhimasena married Kumari, the princess of Kekaya and begat upon herPratisravas whose son was Pratipa. And Pratipa married Sunanda, thedaughter of Sivi, and begat upon her three sons, viz., Devapi, Santanuand Valhika. And Devapi, while still a boy, entered the woods as ahermit. And Santanu became king. Here occurs a sloka in respect ofSantanu.
"Those old men that were touched by this monarch not only felt anindescribable sensation of pleasure but also became restored to youth.Therefore, this monarch was called Santanu.
"And Santanu married Ganga, who bore him a son Devavrata who wasafterwards called Bhishma. And Bhishma, moved by the desire of doing goodto his father, got him married to Satyavati who was also calledGandhakali. And in her maidenhood she had a son by Parasara, namedDwaipayana. And upon her Santanu begat two other sons named Chitrangadaand Vichitravirya. And before they attained to majority, Chitrangada hadbeen slain by the Gandharvas. But Vichitravirya became king, and marriedthe two daughters of the king of Kasi, named Amvika and Amvalika. ButVichitravirya died childless. Then Satyavati began to think as to how thedynasty of Dushmanta might be perpetuated. Then she recollected the RishiDwaipayana. The latter coming before her, asked, 'What are thy commands?''She said, 'Thy brother Vichitravirya hath gone to heaven childless.Beget virtuous children for him.' Dwaipayana, consenting to this, begatthree children, viz., Dhritarashtra, Pandu, and Vidura. KingDhritarashtra had a hundred sons by his wife, Gandhari in consequence ofthe boon granted by Dwaipayana. And amongst those hundred sons ofDhritarashtra, four became celebrated. They are Duryodhana, Duhsasana,Vikarna, and Chitrasena. And Pandu had two jewels of wives, viz., Kunti,also called Pritha, and Madri. One day Pandu, while out a-hunting, saw adeer covering its mate. That was really a Rishi in the form of a deer.Seeing the deer in that attitude, he killed it with his arrows, beforeits desire was gratified. Pierced with the king's arrow, the deer quicklychanged its form and became a Rishi, and said unto Pandu, 'O Pandu, thouart virtuous and acquainted also with the pleasure derived from thegratification of one's desire. My desire unsatisfied, thou hast slain me!Therefore, thou also, when so engaged and before thou art gratified,shalt die!' Pandu, hearing this curse, became pale, and from that timewould not go in unto his wives. And he told them these words, 'Through myown fault, I have been cursed! But I have heard that for the childlessthere are no regions hereafter.' Therefore, he solicited Kunti to haveoffspring raised for him. And Kunti said, 'Let it be', So she raised upoffspring. By Dharma she had Yudhishthira; by Maruta, Bhima: and bySakra, Arjuna. And Pandu, well-pleased with her, said, 'This thy co-wifeis also childless. Therefore, cause her also to bear children.' Kuntisaying, 'So be it,' imparted unto Madri the mantra of invocation. And onMadri were raised by the twin Aswins, the twins Nakula and Sahadeva. And(one day) Pandu, beholding Madri decked with ornaments, had his desirekindled. And, as soon as he touched her, he died. Madri ascended thefuneral pyre with her lord. And she said unto Kunti, 'Let these twins ofmine be brought up by thee with affection.' After some time those fivePandavas were taken by the ascetics of the woods to Hastinapura and thereintroduced to Bhishma and Vidura. And after introducing them, theascetics disappeared in the very sight of all. And after the conclusionof the speech of those ascetics, flowers were showered down upon thespot, and the celestial drums also were beaten in the skies. The Pandavaswere then taken (by Bhishma). They then represented the death of theirfather and performed his last honours duly. And as they were brought upthere, Duryodhana became exceedingly jealous of them. And the sinfulDuryodhana acting like Rakshasa tried various means to drive them away.But what must be can never be frustrated. So all Duryodhana's effortsproved futile. Then Dhritarashtra sent them, by an act of deception toVaranavata, and they went there willingly. There an endeavour was made toburn them to death; but it proved abortive owing to the warning counselsof Vidura. After that the Pandavas slew Hidimva, and then they went to atown called Ekachakra. There also they slew a Rakshasa of the name ofVaka and then went to Panchala. And there obtaining Draupadi for a wifethey returned to Hastinapura. And there they dwelt for some time in peaceand begat children. And Yudhishthira begat Prativindhya; Bhima, Sutasoma;Arjuna, Srutakriti; Nakula, Satanika; and Sahadeva, Srutakarman. Besidesthese, Yudhishthira, having obtained for his wife Devika, the daughter ofGovasana of the Saivya tribe, in a self-choice ceremony, begat upon her ason named Yaudheya. And Bhima also obtaining for a wife Valandhara, thedaughter of the king of Kasi, offered his own prowess as dower and begatupon her a son named Sarvaga. And Arjuna also, repairing to Dwaravati,brought away by force Subhadra. the sweet-speeched sister of Vasudeva,and returned in happiness to Hastinapura. And he begat upon her a sonnamed Abhimanyu endued with all accomplishments and dear to Vasudevahimself. And Nakula obtaining for his wife Karenumati, the princess ofChedi, begat upon her a son named Niramitra. And Sahadeva also marriedVijaya, the daughter of Dyutimat, the king of Madra, obtaining her in aself-choice ceremony and begat upon her a son named Suhotra. AndBhimasena had some time before begat upon Hidimva a son namedGhatotkacha. These are the eleven sons of the Pandavas. Amongst them all,Abhimanyu was the perpetuator of the family. He married Uttara, thedaughter of Virata, who brought forth a dead child whom Kunti took up onher lap at the command of Vasudeva who said, 'I will revive this child ofsix months.' And though born before time, having been burnt by the fireof (Aswatthaman's weapon) and, therefore, deprived of strength and energyhe was revived by Vasudeva and endued with strength, energy and prowess.And after reviving him, Vasudeva said, 'Because this child hath been bornin an extinct race, therefore, he shall be called Parikshit'. AndParikshit married Madravati, thy mother, O king, and thou art born toher, O Janamejaya! Thou hast also begotten two sons on thy wifeVapushtama, named Satanika and Sankukarna. And Satanika also hathbegotten one son named Aswamedhadatta upon the princess of Videha.
"Thus have I, O king, recited the history of the descendants of Puru andof the Pandavas. This excellent, virtue-increasing, and sacred historyshould ever be listened to by vow-observing Brahmanas, by Kshatriyasdevoted to the practices of their order and ready to protect theirsubjects; by Vaisyas with attention, and by Sudras with reverence, whosechief occupation is to wait upon the three other orders. Brahmanasconversant in the Vedas and other persons, who with attention andreverence recite this sacred history or listen to it when recited,conquer the heavens and attain to the abode of the blessed. They are alsoalways respected and adored by the gods, Brahamanas, and other men. Thisholy history of Bharata hath been composed by the sacred and illustriousVyasa. Veda-knowing Brahmanas and other persons who with reverence andwithout malice hear it recited, earn great religious merits and conquerthe heavens. Though sinning, they are not disregarded by any one. Hereoccurs a sloka, 'This (Bharata) is equal unto the Vedas: it is holy andexcellent. It bestoweth wealth, fame, and life. Therefore, it should belistened to by men with rapt attention.'"

SECTION XCVI
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'There was a king known by the name of Mahabhishaborn in the race of Ikshvaku. He was the lord of all the earth, and wastruthful (in speech) and of true prowess. By a thousand horse-sacrificesand a hundred Rajasuyas he had gratified the chief of the celestials andultimately attained to heaven.
"One day the celestials had assembled together and were worshippingBrahman. Many royal sages and king Mahabhisha also were present on thespot. And Ganga, the queen of rivers, also came there to pay heradorations to the Grandsire. And her garments white as the beams of themoon was displaced by the action of the wind. And as her person becameexposed, the celestials bent down their heads. But the royal sageMahabhisha rudely stared at the queen of rivers. And Mahabhisha was forthis cursed by Brahman, who said, 'Wretch, as thou hast forgotten thyselfat the sight of Ganga, thou shalt be re-born on earth. But thou shallagain and again attain to these regions. And she, too, shall be born inthe world of men and shall do thee injuries. But when thy wrath shall beprovoked, thou shalt then be freed from my curse.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'King Mahabhisha then recollecting all themonarchs and ascetics on earth, wished to be born as son to Pratipa ofgreat prowess. And the queen of rivers, too, seeing king Mahabhisha losehis firmness, went away, thinking of him wishfully. And on her way, shesaw those dwellers in heaven, the Vasus, also pursuing the same path. Andthe queen of rivers beholding them in the predicament, asked them, 'Whylook ye so dejected? Ye dwellers in heaven, is everything right withyou?' Those celestials, the Vasus, answered her, saying, 'O queen ofrivers, we have been cursed, for a venial fault, by the illustriousVasishtha in anger. The foremost of excellent Rishis, Vasishtha, had beenengaged in his twilight adorations and seated as he was, he could not beseen by us. We crossed him in ignorance. Therefore, in wrath he hathcursed us, saying, Be ye born among men!' It is beyond our power tofrustrate what hath been said by that utterance of Brahma. Therefore, Oriver, thyself becoming a human female make us the Vasus, thy children. Oamiable one, we are unwilling to enter the womb of any human female.'Thus addressed, the queen of rivers told them, 'Be it so and asked them,'On earth, who is that foremost of men whom ye will make your father?'
"The Vasus replied, 'On earth, unto Pratipa shall be born a son, Santanu,who will be a king of world-wide fame.' Ganga then said, 'Ye celestials,that is exactly my wish which ye sinless ones have expressed. I shall,indeed, do good to that Santanu. That is also your desire as justexpressed.' The Vasus then said, 'It behoveth thee to throw thy childrenafter birth, into the water, so that, O thou of three courses (celestial,terrestrial, and subterranean) we may be rescued soon without having tolive on earth for any length of time.' Ganga then answered, 'I shall dowhat ye desire. But in order that his intercourse with me may not beentirely fruitless, provide ye that one son at least may live.' The Vasusthen replied, 'We shall each contribute an eighth part of our respectiveenergies With the sum thereof, thou shall have one son according to thyand his wishes. But this son shall not begat any children on earth.Therefore, that son of thine endued with great energy, shall bechildless.'
"The Vasus, making this arrangement with Ganga, went away without Waitingto the place they liked.'"

SECTION XCVII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said. 'There was a king of the name of Pratipa, who waskind to all creatures. He spent many years in ascetic penances at thesource of the river Ganga. The accomplished and lovely Ganga, one day,assuming the form of a beautiful female, and rising from the waters, madeup to the monarch. The celestial maiden, endued with ravishing beauty,approached the royal sage engaged in ascetic austerities, and sat uponhis right thigh that was, for manly strength, a veritable Sala tree. Whenthe maiden of handsome face had so sat upon his lap, the monarch saidunto her, 'O amiable one, what dost thou desire? What shall I do?' Thedamsel answered, 'I desire thee, O king, for my husband! O foremost oneof the Kurus, be mine! To refuse a woman coming of her own accord isnever applauded by the wise.' Pratipa answered, 'O thou of the fairestcomplexion, moved by lust, I never go in unto others' wives or women thatare not of my order. This, indeed, is my virtuous vow.' The maidenrejoined, 'I am not inauspicious or ugly. I am every way worthy of beingenjoyed. I am a celestial maiden of rare beauty; I desire thee for myhusband. Refuse me not, O king.' To this Pratipa answered, 'I am, 'Odamsel, abstaining from that course to which thou wouldst incite me. If Ibreak my vow, sin will overwhelm and kill me. O thou of the fairestcomplexion, thou hast embraced me, sitting on my right thigh. But, Otimid one, know that this is the seat for daughters and daughters-in-law.The left lap is for the wife, but thou hast not accepted that. Therefore,O best of women, I cannot enjoy thee as an object of desire. Be mydaughter-in-law. I accept thee for my son!'
"The damsel then said, 'O virtuous one, let it be as thou sayest. Let mebe united with thy son. From my respect for thee, I shall be a wife ofthe celebrated Bharata race. Ye (of the Bharata race) are the refuge ofall the monarchs on earth! I am incapable of numbering the virtues ofthis race even within a hundred years. The greatness and goodness of manycelebrated monarchs of this race are limitless. O lord of all, let it beunderstood now that when I become thy daughter-in-law, thy son shall notbe able to judge of the propriety of my acts. Living thus with thy son, Ishall do good to him and increase his happiness. And he shall finallyattain to heaven in consequence of the sons I shall bear him, and of hisvirtues and good conduct.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'O king, having said so, the celestial damseldisappeared then and there. And the king, too, waited for the birth ofhis son in order to fulfil his promise.'
"About this time Pratipa, that light of the Kuru race, that bull amongstKshatriyas, was engaged, along with his wife, in austerities from desireof offspring. And when they had grown old, a son was born unto them. Thiswas no other than Mahabhisha. And the child was called Santanu because hewas born when his father had controlled his passions by ascetic penances.And the best of Kurus, Santanu, knowing that region of indestructiblebliss can be acquired by one's deeds alone, became devoted to virtue.When Santanu grew up into a youth, Pratipa addressed him and said, 'Sometime ago, O Santanu, a celestial damsel came to me for thy good. If thoumeetest that fair-complexioned one in secret and if she solicit thee forchildren, accept her as thy wife. And, O sinless one, judge not of thepropriety or impropriety of her action and ask not who she is, or whoseor whence, but accept her as thy wife at my command!'" Vaisampayanacontinued, 'Pratipa, having thus commanded his son Santanu and installedhim on his throne, retired into the woods. And king Santanu endued withgreat intelligence and equal unto Indra himself in splendour, becameaddicted to hunting and passed much of his time in the woods. And thebest of monarchs always slew deer and buffaloes. And one day, as he waswandering along the bank of the Ganges, he came upon a region frequentedby Siddhas and Charanas. And there he saw a lovely maiden of blazingbeauty and like unto another Sri herself; of faultless and pearly teethand decked with celestial ornaments, and attired in garments of finetexture that resembled in splendour the filaments of the lotus. And themonarch, on beholding that damsel, became surprised, and his rapturesproduced instant horripilation. With steadfast gaze he seemed to bedrinking her charms, but repeated draughts failed to quench his thirst.The damsel also beholding the monarch of blazing splendour moving aboutin great agitation, was moved herself and experienced an affection forhim. She gazed and gazed and longed to gaze on him evermore. The monarchthen in soft words addressed her and said, 'O slender-waisted one, bethou a goddess or the daughter of a Danava, be thou of the race of theGandharvas, or Apsaras, be thou of the Yakshas or the Nagas, or be thouof human origin, O thou of celestial beauty, I solicit thee to be mywife!'"

SECTION XCVIII
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'The maiden then, hearing those soft and sweet wordsof the smiling monarch, and remembering her promise to the Vasus,addressed the king in reply. Of faultless features, the damsel sending athrill of pleasure into the heart by every word she uttered, said, 'Oking, I shall become thy wife and obey thy commands. But, O monarch, thoumust not interfere with me in anything I do, be it agreeable ordisagreeable. Nor shall thou ever address me unkindly. As long as thoushalt behave kindly I promise to live with thee. But I shall certainlyleave thee the moment thou interferest with me or speakest to me anunkind word.' The king answered, 'Be it so.' And thereupon the damselobtaining that excellent monarch, that foremost one of the Bharata racefor her husband, became highly pleased. And king Santanu also, obtainingher for his wife, enjoyed to the full the pleasure of her company. Andadhering to his promise, he refrained from asking her anything. And thelord of earth, Santanu, became exceedingly gratified with her conduct,beauty, magnanimity, and attention to his comforts. And the goddess Gangaalso, of three courses (celestial, terrestrial, and subterranean)assuming a human form of superior complexion and endued with celestialbeauty, lived happily as the wife of Santanu, having as the fruit of hervirtuous acts, obtained for her husband, that tiger among kings equalunto Indra himself in splendour. And she gratified the king by herattractiveness and affection, by her wiles and love, by her music anddance, and became herself gratified. And the monarch was so enrapturedwith his beautiful wife that months, seasons, and years rolled on withouthis being conscious of them. And the king, while thus enjoying himselfwith his wife, had eight children born unto him who in beauty were likethe very celestials themselves. But, O Bharata, those children, one afteranother, as soon as they were born, were thrown into the river by Gangawho said, 'This is for thy good.' And the children sank to rise no more.The king, however, could not be pleased with such conduct. But he spokenot a word about it lest his wife should leave him. But when the eighthchild was born, and when his wife as before was about to throw itsmilingly into the river, the king with a sorrowful countenance anddesirous of saving it from destruction, addressed her and said, 'Kill itnot! Who art thou and whose? Why dost thou kill thy own children?Murderess of thy sons, the load of thy sins is great!'" His wife, thusaddressed, replied, 'O thou desirous of offspring, thou hast alreadybecome the first of those that have children. I shall not destroy thischild of thine. But according to our agreement, the period of my staywith thee is at an end. I am Ganga, the daughter of Jahnu. I am everworshipped by the great sages; I have lived with thee so long foraccomplishing the purposes of the celestials. The eight illustrious Vasusendued with great energy had, from Vasishtha's curse, to assume humanforms. On earth, besides thee, there was none else to deserve the honourof being their begetter. There is no woman also on earth except one likeme, a celestial of human form, to become their mother. I assumed a humanform to bring them forth. Thou also, having become the father of theeight Vasus, hast acquired many regions of perennial bliss. It was alsoagreed between myself and the Vasus that I should free them from theirhuman forms as soon as they would be born. I have thus freed them fromthe curse of the Rishi Apava. Blest be thou; I leave thee, O king! Butrear thou this child of rigid vows. That I should live with thee so longwas the promise I gave to the Vasus. And let this child be calledGangadatta.'"

SECTION XCIX
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Santanu asked, 'What was the fault of the Vasus and who was Apava,through whose curse the Vasus had to be born among men? What also haththis child of thine, Gangadatta, done for which he shall have to liveamong men? Why also were the Vasus, the lords of the three worlds,condemned to be born amongst men? O daughter of Jahnu, tell me all.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Thus addressed, the celestial daughter ofJahnu, Ganga, then replied unto the monarch, her husband, that bullamongst men, saying, 'O best of Bharata's race, he who was obtained asson by Varuna was called Vasishtha, the Muni who afterwards came to beknown as Apava. He had his asylum on the breast of the king of mountainscalled Meru. The spot was sacred and abounded with birds and beasts. Andthere bloomed at all times of the year flowers of every season. And, Obest of Bharata's race, that foremost of virtuous men, the son of Varuna,practised his ascetic penances in those woods abounding with sweet rootsand water.
"Daksha had a daughter known by the name of Surabhi, who, O bull ofBharata's race, for benefiting the world, brought forth, by herconnection with Kasyapa, a daughter (Nandini) in the form of a cow. Thatforemost of all kine, Nandini, was the cow of plenty (capable of grantingevery desire). The virtuous son of Varuna obtained Nandini for his Homarites. And Nandini, dwelling in that hermitage which was adored by Munis,roamed about fearlessly in those sacred and delightful woods.
"One day, O bull of Bharata's race, there came into those woods adored bythe gods and celestial Rishis, the Vasus with Prithu at their head. Andwandering there with their wives, they enjoyed themselves in thosedelightful woods and mountains. And as they wandered there, theslender-waisted wife of one of the Vasus, O thou of the prowess of Indra,saw in those woods Nandini, the cow of plenty. And seeing that cowpossessing the wealth of all accomplishments, large eyes, full udders,fine tail, beautiful hoofs, and every other auspicious sign, and yieldingmuch milk, she showed the animal to her husband Dyu. O thou of theprowess of the first of elephants, when Dyu was shown that cow, he beganto admire her several qualities and addressing his wife, said, 'Oblack-eyed girl of fair thighs, this excellent cow belongeth to thatRishi whose is this delightful asylum. O slender-waisted one, that mortalwho drinketh the sweet milk of this cow remaineth in unchanged youth forten thousand years.' O best of monarchs, hearing this, theslender-waisted goddess of faultless features then addressed her lord ofblazing splendour and said, 'There is on earth a friend of mine, Jitavatiby name, possessed of great beauty and youth. She is the daughter of thatgod among men, the royal sage Usinara, endued with intelligence anddevoted to truth. I desire to have this cow, O illustrious one, with hercalf for that friend of mine. Therefore, O best of celestials, bring thatcow so that my friend drinking of her milk may alone become on earth freefrom disease and decrepitude. O illustrious and blameless one, itbehoveth thee to grant me this desire of mine. There is nothing thatwould be more agreeable to me.' On hearing these words of his wife, Dyu,moved by the desire of humouring her, stole that cow, aided by hisbrothers Prithu and the others. Indeed, Dyu, commanded by his lotus-eyedwife, did her bidding, forgetting at the moment the high ascetic meritsof the Rishi who owned her. He did not think at the time that he wasgoing to fall by committing the sin of stealing the cow.
"When the son of Varuna returned to his asylum in the evening with fruitshe had collected, he beheld not the cow with her calf there. He began tosearch for them in the woods, but when the great ascetic of superiorintelligence found not his cow on search, he saw by his ascetic visionthat she had been stolen by the Vasus. His wrath was instantly kindledand he cursed the Vasus, saying, 'Because the Vasus have stolen my cow ofsweet milk and handsome tail, therefore, shall they certainly be born onearth!'
"O thou bull of Bharata's race, the illustrious Rishi Apava thus cursedthe Vasus in wrath. And having cursed them, the illustrious one set hisheart once more on ascetic meditation. And after that Brahmarshi of greatpower and ascetic wealth had thus in wrath cursed the Vasus, the latter,O king, coming to know of it, speedily came into his asylum. Andaddressing the Rishi, O bull among kings, they endeavoured to pacify him.But they failed, O tiger among men, to obtain grace from Apava--thatRishi conversant, with all rules of virtue. The virtuous Apava, however,said, 'Ye Vasus, with Dhava and others, ye have been cursed by me. But yeshall be freed from my curse within a year of your birth among men. Buthe for whose deed ye have been cursed by me he, viz., Dyu, shall for hissinful act, have to dwell on earth for a length of time. I shall not makefutile the words I have uttered in wrath. Dyu, though dwelling on Earth,shall not beget children. He shall, however, be virtuous and conversantwith the scriptures. He shall be an obedient son to his father, but heshall have to abstain from the pleasure of female companionship.'
"Thus addressing the Vasus, the great Rishi went away. The Vasus thentogether came to me. And, O king, the begged of me the boon that as soonas they would be born, I should throw them into the water. And, O best ofkings, I did as they desired, in order to free them from their earthlylife. And O best of kings, from the Rishi's curse, this one only, viz.,Dyu, himself, is to live on earth for some time.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Having said this, the goddess disappeared thenand there. And taking with her the child, she went away to the region shechose. And that child of Santanu was named both Gangeya and Devavrata andexcelled his father in all accomplishments.
"Santanu, after the disappearance of his wife, returned to his capitalwith a sorrowful heart. I shall now recount to thee the many virtues andthe great good fortune of the illustrious king Santanu of the Bharatarace. Indeed, it is this splendid history that is called theMahabharata.'"

SECTION C
(Sambhava Parva continued )
"Vaisampayana said, 'The monarch Santanu, the most adored of the gods androyal sages, was known in all the worlds for his wisdom, virtues, andtruthfulness (of speech). The qualities of self-control, liberality,forgiveness, intelligence, modesty, patience and superior energy everdwelt in that bull among men, viz., Santanu, that great being endued withthese accomplishments and conversant with both religion and profit, themonarch was at once the protector of the Bharata race and all humanbeings. His neck was marked with (three) lines, like a conch-shell; hisshoulders were broad, and he resembled in prowess an infuriated elephant.It would seem that all the auspicious signs of royalty dwelt in hisperson, considering that to be their fittest abode. Men, seeing thebehaviour of that monarch of great achievements came to know that virtuewas ever superior to pleasure and profit. These were the attributes thatdwelt in that great being--that bull among men--Santanu. And truly therewas never a king like Santanu. All the kings of the earth, beholding himdevoted to virtue, bestowed upon that foremost of virtuous men the titleof King of kings. And all the kings of the earth during the time of thatlord-protector of the Bharata race, were without woe and fear and anxietyof any kind. And they all slept in peace, rising from bed every morningafter happy dreams. And owing to that monarch of splendid achievementsresembling Indra himself in energy, all the kings of the earth becamevirtuous and devoted to liberality, religious acts and sacrifices. Andwhen the earth was ruled by Santanu and other monarchs like him, thereligious merits of every order increased very greatly. The Kshatriyasserved the Brahmanas; the Vaisyas waited upon the Kshatriyas, and theSudras adoring the Brahmanas and the Kshatriyas, waited upon the Vaisyas.And Santanu residing in Hastinapura, the delightful capital of the Kurus,ruled the whole earth bounded by seas. He was truthful and guileless, andlike the king of the celestials himself conversant with the dictates ofvirtue. And from the combination in him of liberality, religion andasceticism, he acquired a great good fortune. He was free from anger andmalice, and was handsome in person like Soma himself. In splendour he waslike the Sun and in impetuosity of valour like Vayu. In wrath he was likeYama, and in patience like the Earth. And, O king, while Santanu ruledthe earth, no deer, boars, birds, or other animals were needlessly slain.In his dominions the great virtue of kindness to all creatures prevailed,and the king himself, with the soul of mercy, and void of desire andwrath, extended equal protection unto all creatures. Then sacrifices inhonour of the gods, the Rishis, and Pitris commenced, and no creature wasdeprived of life sinfully. And Santanu was the king and father of all--ofthose that were miserable and those that had no protectors, of birds andbeasts, in fact, of every created thing. And during the rule of the bestof Kurus--of that king of kings--speech became united with truth, and theminds of men were directed towards liberality and virtue. And Santanu,having enjoyed domestic felicity for six and thirty years, retired intothe woods.
"And Santanu's son, the Vasu born of Ganga, named Devavrata resembledSantanu himself in personal beauty, in habits and behaviour, and inlearning. And in all branches of knowledge worldly or spiritual his skillwas very great. His strength and energy were extraordinary. He became amighty car-warrior. In fact he was a great king.
"One day, while pursuing along the banks of the Ganges a deer that he hadstruck with his arrow, king Santanu observed that the river had becomeshallow. On observing this, that bull among men, viz., Santanu, began toreflect upon this strange phenomenon. He mentally asked why that first ofrivers ran out so quickly as before. And while seeking for a cause, theillustrious monarch beheld that a youth of great comeliness, well-builtand amiable person, like Indra himself, had, by his keen celestialweapon, checked the flow of the river. And the king, beholding thisextraordinary feat of the river Ganga having been checked in her coursenear where that youth stood, became very much surprised. This youth wasno other than Santanu's son himself. But as Santanu had seen his son onlyonce a few moments after his birth, he had not sufficient recollection toidentify that infant with the youth before his eyes. The youth, however,seeing his father, knew him at once, but instead of disclosing himself,he clouded the king's perception by his celestial powers of illusion anddisappeared in his very sight.
"King Santanu, wondering much at what he saw and imagining the youth tobe his own son then addressed Ganga and said, 'Show me that child.' Gangathus addressed, assuming a beautiful form, and holding the boy deckedwith ornaments in her right arm, showed him to Santanu. And Santanu didnot recognise that beautiful female bedecked with ornaments and attiredin fine robes of white, although he had known her before. And Ganga said,'O tiger among men, that eighth son whom thou hadst some time beforebegat upon me is this. Know that this excellent child is conversant withall weapons, O monarch, take him now. I have reared him with care. And gohome, O tiger among men, taking him with thee. Endued with superiorintelligence, he has studied with Vasishtha the entire Vedas with theirbranches. Skilled in all weapons and a mighty bowman, he is like Indra inbattle. And, O Bharata, both the gods and the Asuras look upon him withfavour. Whatever branches of knowledge are known to Usanas, this oneknoweth completely. And so is he the master of all those Sastras that theson of Angiras (Vrihaspati) adored by the gods and the Asuras, knoweth.And all the weapons known to the powerful and invincible Rama, the son ofJamadagni are known to this thy illustrious son of mighty arms. O king ofsuperior courage, take this thy own heroic child given unto thee by me.He is a mighty bowman and conversant with the interpretation of alltreatises on the duties of a king.' Thus commanded by Ganga, Santanu tookhis child resembling the Sun himself in glory and returned to hiscapital. And having reached his city that was like unto the celestialcapital, that monarch of Puru's line regarded himself greatly fortunate.And having summoned all the Pauravas together, for the protection of hiskingdom he installed his son as his heir-apparent. And O bull ofBharata's race, the prince soon gratified by his behaviour his father andthe other members of the Paurava race: in fact, all the subjects of thekingdom. And the king of incomparable prowess lived happily with that sonof his.
"Four years had thus passed away, when the king one day went into thewoods on the bank of the Yamuna. And while the king was rambling there,he perceived a sweet scent coming from an unknown direction. And themonarch, impelled by the desire of ascertaining the cause, wanderedhither and thither. And in course of his ramble, he beheld a black-eyedmaiden of celestial beauty, the daughter of a fisherman. The kingaddressing her, said, 'Who art thou, and whose daughter? What dost thoudo here, O timid one?' She answered, 'Blest be thou! I am the daughter ofthe chief of the fishermen. At his command, I am engaged for religiousmerit, in rowing passengers across this river in my boat.' And Santanu,beholding that maiden of celestial form endued with beauty, amiableness,and such fragrance, desired her for his wife. And repairing unto herfather, the king solicited his consent to the proposed match. But thechief of the fishermen replied to the monarch, saying, 'O king, as soonas my daughter of superior complexion was born, it was of course,understood that she should be bestowed upon a husband. But listen to thedesire I have cherished all along in my heart. O sinless one, thou arttruthful: if thou desirest to obtain this maiden as a gift from me, give,me then this pledge. If, indeed, thou givest the pledge, I will of coursebestow my daughter upon thee for truly I can never obtain a husband forher equal to thee.'
"Santanu, hearing this, replied, 'When I have heard of the pledge thouaskest, I shall then say whether I would be able to grant it. If it iscapable of being granted, I shall certainly grant it. Otherwise how shallI grant it.' The fisherman said, 'O king, what I ask of thee is this: theson born of this maiden shall be installed by thee on thy throne and noneelse shall thou make thy successor.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'O Bharata, when Santanu heard this, he felt noinclination to grant such a boon, though the fire of desire sorely burnthim within. The king with his heart afflicted by desire returned toHastinapura, thinking all the way of the fisherman's daughter. And havingreturned home, the monarch passed his time in sorrowful meditation. Oneday, Devavrata approaching his afflicted father said, 'All is prosperitywith thee; all chiefs obey thee; then how is it that thou grievest thus?Absorbed in thy own thoughts, thou speakest not a word to me in reply.Thou goest not out on horse-back now; thou lookest pale and emaciated,having lost all animation. I wish to know the disease thou sufferestfrom, so that I may endeavour to apply a remedy.' Thus addressed by hisson, Santanu answered, 'Thou sayest truly, O son, that I have becomemelancholy. I will also tell thee why I am so. O thou of Bharata's line,thou art the only scion of this our large race. Thou art always engagedin sports of arms and achievements of prowess. But, O son, I am alwaysthinking of the instability of human life. If any danger overtake thee, Ochild of Ganga, the result is that we become sonless. Truly thou aloneart to me as a century of sons. I do not, therefore, desire to wed again.I only desire and pray that prosperity may ever attend thee so that ourdynasty may be perpetuated. The wise say that he that hath one son hathno son. Sacrifices before fire and the knowledge of the three Vedasyield, it is true, everlasting religious merit, but all these, in pointof religious merit, do not, come up to a sixteenth part of the religiousmerit attainable on the birth of a son. Indeed, in this respect, there ishardly any difference between men and the lower animals. O wise one, I donot entertain a shadow of doubt that one attains to heaven in consequenceof his having begotten a son. The Vedas which constitute the root of thePuranas and are regarded as authoritative even by the gods, containnumerous proof of this. O thou of Bharata's race, thou art a hero ofexcitable temper, who is always engaged in the exercise of arms. It isvery probable that thou wilt be slain on the field of battle. If it sohappen, what then will be the state of the Bharata dynasty, It is thisthought that hath made me so melancholy. I have now told thee fully thecauses of my sorrow.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Devavrata who was endued with greatintelligence, having ascertained all this from the king, reflected withinhimself for a while. He then went to the old minister devoted to hisfather's welfare and asked him about the cause of the king's grief. Obull of Bharata's race, when the prince questioned the minister, thelatter told him about the boon that was demanded by the chief of thefishermen in respect of his daughter Gandhavati. Then Devavrata,accompanied by many Kshatriya chiefs of venerable age, personallyrepaired to the chief of the fishermen and begged of him his daughter onbehalf of the king. The chief of the fishermen received him with dueadorations, and, O thou of Bharata's race, when the prince took his seatin the court of the chief, the latter addressed him and said, 'O bullamong the Bharatas, thou art the first of all wielders of weapons and theonly son of Santanu. Thy power is great. But I have something to tellthee. If the bride's father was Indra himself, even then he would have torepent of rejecting such an exceedingly honourable and desirable proposalof marriage. The great man of whose seed this celebrated maiden namedSatyavati was born, is, indeed, equal to you in virtue. He hath spoken tome on many occasions of the virtues of thy father and told me that, theking alone is worthy of (marrying) Satyavati. Let me tell you that I haveeven rejected the solicitations of that best of Brahmarshis--thecelestial sage Asita--who, too, had often asked for Satyavati's hand inmarriage. I have only one word to say on the part of this maiden. In thematter of the proposed marriage there is one great objection founded onthe fact of a rival in the person of a co-wife's son. O oppressor of allfoes, he hath no security, even if he be an Asura or a Gandharva, whohath a rival in thee. There is this only objection to the proposedmarriage, and nothing else. Blest be thou! But this is all I have to sayin the matter of the bestowal or otherwise, of Satyavati.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'O thou of Bharata's race, Devavrata, havingheard these words, and moved by the desire of benefiting his father thusanswered in the hearing of the assembled chiefs, 'O foremost of truthfulmen, listen to the vow I utter! The man has not been or will not be born,who will have the courage to take such a vow! I shall accomplish all thatthou demandest! The son that may be born of this maiden shall be ourking.' Thus addressed, the chief of the fishermen, impelled by desire ofsovereignty (for his daughter's son), to achieve the almost impossible,then said, 'O thou of virtuous soul, thou art come hither as full agenton behalf of thy father Santanu of immeasurable glory; be thou also thesole manager on my behalf in the matter of the bestowal of this mydaughter. But, O amiable one, there is something else to be said,something else to be reflected upon by thee. O suppressor of foes, thosethat have daughters, from the very nature of their obligations, must saywhat I say. O thou that art devoted to truth, the promise thou hast givenin the presence of these chiefs for the benefit of Satyavati, hath,indeed, been worthy of thee. O thou of mighty arms, I have not the leastdoubt of its ever being violated by thee. But I have my doubts in respectof the children thou mayst beget.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'O king, the son of Ganga, devoted to truth,having ascertained the scruples of the chief of the fishermen, then said,moved thereto by the desire of benefiting his father, 'Chief offishermen, thou best of men, listen to what I say in the presence ofthese assembled kings. Ye kings, I have already relinquished my right tothe throne, I shall now settle the matter of my children. O fisherman,from this day I adopt the vow of Brahmacharya (study and meditation incelibacy). If I die sonless, I shall yet attain to regions of perennialbliss in heaven!'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Upon these words of the son of Ganga, the hairon the fisherman's body stood on end from glee, and he replied, 'I bestowmy daughter!' Immediately after, the Apsaras and the gods with diversetribes of Rishis began to rain down flowers from the firmament upon thehead of Devavrata and exclaimed, 'This one is Bhishma (the terrible).'Bhishma then, to serve his father, addressed the illustrious damsel andsaid, 'O mother, ascend this chariot, and let us go unto our house.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Having said this, Bhishma helped the beautifulmaiden into his chariot. On arriving with her at Hastinapura, he toldSantanu everything as it had happened. And the assembled kings, jointlyand individually, applauded his extraordinary act and said, 'He is reallyBhishma (the terrible)!' And Santanu also, hearing of the extraordinaryachievements of his son, became highly gratified and bestowed upon thehigh-souled prince the boon of death at will, saying, 'Death shall nevercome to thee as long as thou desirest to live. Truly death shall approachthee, O sinless one, having first obtained thy command.'"