Mahabharata: Volume 8 (26 page)

Vaishampayana said, ‘Maharshi Krishna Dvaipayana again spoke these words, deep in purport, to Ajatashatru Kounteya. “O son!
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O great king! O Yudhishthira! These brothers of yours dwelt in the forest like ascetics. Their desires that they cherished then must be satisfied. O best of the Bharata lineage! Let these maharathas get what they want. O Partha! Rule the earth, like Yayati, the son of Nahusha. You dwelt in the forest like ascetics and were full of sorrow. But that misery is over and these tigers among men must obtain happiness. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! With your brothers, enjoy dharma, artha and kama. O lord of the earth! After having experienced that, do what you wish to do. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! O Kounteya! You must first free yourself of the debts to guests, ancestors and gods. Only then will you go to heaven. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! Perform the sarvamedha and ashvamedha sacrifices. O great king! After that, you will go towards the supreme objective. Engage your brothers in all the sacrifices, with abundant donations. O Pandaveya! After that, you will obtain unsurpassed fame. O tiger among men! O descendant of the Kuru lineage! We know what you will say. But listen to my words about how a king acts, so as not to deviate from dharma. O Yudhishthira! O lord of men! Those who know about dharma have determined that a person who takes away someone else’s property should be fined exactly the same amount. A king who follows the sacred texts, resorts to intelligence and, considering the time and the place, punishes bandits in this way, is right. A king who levies a tax of one-sixth, but does not protect the kingdom, obtains one-fourth of the kingdom’s sins. Listen to how a king does not deviate from dharma. If he punishes in accordance with the dharma laid down in the sacred texts, if he does not fall prey to desire and anger, if he treats everyone equally, like a father, he has no reason to be scared. O immensely radiant one! When it is the time for undertaking a task, if a king is afflicted by destiny and distracted, not undertaking the task, this is not regarded as a transgression.
However, enemies must be punished, either immediately, or after proper reflection. There must be no alliances with the wicked, nor must the kingdom be sold.
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O Yudhishthira! Brave ones, aryas and those who are learned must be treated well. In particular, those who possess cattle and those who possess riches must be protected. Those who are extremely learned must be employed in all tasks connected with dharma. An accomplished one
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does not repose his faith on any single individual, no matter how many qualities he possesses. A king who does not protect, is insolent, proud and arrogant, and is also envious, is said to be one who is uncontrolled. When a king is struck by destiny and all the unprotected subjects are robbed by bandits, this is a sin devolving on the king. O Yudhishthira! If a task is performed with good advice, is based on good policy and is undertaken with enterprise, in accordance with the prescribed rites, that is not adharma. When something is undertaken, depending on destiny, it may, or may not, succeed. However, if there is enterprise, no sin touches the king.

‘“O tiger among kings! A story is recounted about this. O king! This is an ancient account about rajarshi Hayagriva. He was brave and unblemished in his deeds. O Yudhishthira! Having killed many enemies in a battle, he was himself slain. The brave one was without any aides and was defeated. Having done all that could be done to restrain the enemy and having protected men, he resorted to the best of yoga. Having performed deeds in that excellent battle, he obtained fame. Vajigriva
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now finds delight in the world of the gods. In the battle, he was mangled by assassins armed with weapons and attacked by bandits. But he was ready to give himself up. The great-souled Ashvagriva was devoted to his duties. He perfected his soul and finds delight in the world of the gods. The bow was his sacrificial stake. The bowstring was the rope. The arrow was
the smaller ladle. The sword was the larger ladle. Blood was the clarified butter. The chariot, which could go anywhere at will, was the sacrificial altar. The battle was the fire. The best of horses were the four officiating priests. Having offered his enemies and himself as oblations into that sacrificial fire, the spirited lion among kings became free from all sins. Like taking a bath at the end of a sacrifice, he offered his life in the battle. Vajigriva finds delight in the world of the gods. Earlier, he protected the kingdom with intelligence and policy. The great-souled one performed sacrifices and then gave himself up. The spirited one pervaded all the worlds with his fame. Vajigriva finds delight in the world of the gods. He obtained divine and human success. He used the rod and protected the earth, resorting to yoga. That is the reason the great-souled king Hayagriva, who followed dharma in his conduct, finds delight in the world of heaven. He was learned. He renounced. He was faithful. He was grateful. Having performed deeds, he gave up the world of men. There are worlds for those who are intelligent, learned and revered. Having given up his body, the king obtained those. He acquired the Vedas well. He studied. The great-souled one protected the kingdom well. He established the four varnas in their own dharma. Vajigriva finds delight in the world of the gods. Having been victorious in battles, having protected the subjects, having drunk soma, having satisfied the best of brahmanas, having sustained the subjects with the use of the rod and having been destroyed in the battle, he delights in the world of the gods. His conduct was praiseworthy. Virtuous and learned men, themselves deserving honour, show him reverence. He conquered heaven and went to the world meant for heroes. The great-souled one, the performer of auspicious deeds, obtained success.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘On hearing Dvaipayana’s words and on seeing that Dhananjaya was angry, Kounteya Yudhishthira took
Vyasa’s permission and replied in these words. “Ruling over this kingdom and its many separate objects of desire do not please my mind now. The sorrow is making me tremble. O sage! On hearing the lamentations of the women who have lost their brave husbands and sons, I can find no peace.” Having been thus addressed, Vyasa, supreme among those who know about yoga and knew about dharma, accomplished in the Vedas, spoke the following words in reply to the immensely wise Yudhishthira.

‘“A man does not obtain anything through deeds or thought, or by giving anything.
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Everything that a man obtains progressively in the course of time has been ordained by the creator in successive arrangements. If it is not time, man is incapable of obtaining anything in particular, even by studying learned texts. Even a fool is capable of obtaining riches. Time determines the success of acts. When it is a time of adversity, crafts, mantras and herbs yield no fruits. When the right time arrives and it is a time for prosperity, it is these which ensure success. It is because of time that winds blow swiftly. It is because of time that rain is generated in the clouds. It is because of time that waterbodies have lotuses in them. It is because of time that trees flourish in the forest. It is because of time that the night is dark and cool. It is because of time that the disc of the moon becomes full. When it is not time, there are no flowers or fruits in trees. When it is not time, rivers do not flow with force. When it is not time, birds, serpents, small animals, elephants and large predatory beasts on mountains do not become crazy.
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When it is not time, women do not conceive. When it is not time, winter, summer and the monsoons do not arrive. When it is not time, one does not die, nor is one born. When it is not time, a child does not begin to speak. When it is not time, youth does not arrive. When it is not time, seeds do not sprout. When it is not time, the sun does not appear. When it is not time, it does not set behind Mount Asta. When it is not time, the moon does not wax and wane, nor do the large waves of the ocean ebb and rise.

‘“O Yudhishthira! On this, there is an ancient history that is
recounted. In great grief, King Senajit sang a song.
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All mortals are touched by this extremely difficult revolution. All men are ripened by time and die. O king! Some men kill others, and in turn, those men are slain by others. O king! This is the understanding of the worlds. But no one is killed and no one kills. Some think there are killers. Others think that there are no killers. The creation and destruction of beings is determined by their nature. When prosperity is destroyed and one’s wife, son or father dies, one cries out in grief. One reflects on this sorrow and acts accordingly. O stupid one! Why do you sorrow? Why do you grieve, since you will also be grieved over? Consider the sorrow amidst all the sorrows and the fear amidst all fears. This body is not mine. Nothing in the earth is mine. He who realizes that what is mine also belongs to others is not confounded. There are thousands of reasons for sorrow and hundreds of reasons for joy. From one day to another, the foolish are submerged in this, but not the one who is learned. In the course of time, there are separate reasons for affection and aversion and beings are whirled around in unhappiness and in happiness. There is only unhappiness and no happiness. This is sometimes perceived. However, unhappiness results from desire and happiness results from unhappiness. There is unhappiness at the end of happiness and happiness at the end of unhappiness. One cannot obtain unhappiness all the time. Nor can one obtain happiness all the time. There is unhappiness at the end of happiness. There is happiness at the end of unhappiness. Therefore, anyone who desires eternal happiness should discard these opposite sentiments. When there is sorrow or torment, when one is senseless with grief, one must abandon the root of that grief, like severing a limb of the body. Whether it is happiness or unhappiness, whether it is pleasant or unpleasant, the one who is unvanquished in his heart will regard this as something that was bound to happen. If you do something that is only a little unpleasant towards your wives or your sons, you will know who, whose, why and how.
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Those who are
the greatest fools in this world and those who have obtained supreme intelligence are the ones who are in the midst of happiness. Suffering is for those who are in the middle. O Yudhishthira! This is what the immensely wise Senajit said. He knew about cause and effect in this world, about dharma and about happiness and unhappiness. He who delights in the sorrow of someone else will never be happy. There is no end to sorrows, since there is a succession of them. Happiness and unhappiness, existence and non-existence, gain and loss and death and life touch everyone on this earth in turn. One with fortitude is not delighted or angry at this. For a king, it is said that fighting and protection are like the consecration at a sacrifice, appropriate use of the rod is yoga, the renunciation of wealth is the dakshina in a sacrifice and complete knowledge is the purification. By governing the kingdom with intelligence and policy, by controlling selfishness in the soul, by performing sacrifices and by roaming through all the worlds as someone immersed in dharma, after casting aside a body, a great-souled one
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finds delight in the world of the gods. Being victorious in battle, protecting the kingdom, drinking soma, making the subjects prosper, upholding subjects with the rod of chastisement and dying in a battle, he finds delight in the world of the gods. Having studied all the Vedas and the sacred texts, having protected the kingdom well and having established the four varnas in their own dharma, the king purifies his soul and finds delight in the world of the gods. When a king has ascended to heaven, if men, inhabitants of the city and the country and advisers bow down before his conduct, he is the best of kings.”’

‘Yudhishthira said, “Abhimanyu was a child and was killed. So were the sons of Droupadi, Dhrishtadyumna and the two lords of the earth, Virata and Drupada. In the battle, so were
Vasushena,
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knowledgeable about dharma, King Dhrishtaketu and other kings who had come from many countries. I am unable to free myself from the sorrow of having caused the slaughter of my relatives. I am tormented. Because of my fierce greed for the kingdom, I have brought about the destruction of my own lineage. I played on Gangeya’s
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lap and rolled around there. Because of my greed for the kingdom, I have brought him down. I saw him whirled around by Partha’s
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arrows, trembling as if he had been struck by thunder, but glancing only towards Shikhandi. The tall grandfather, lion among men, was like an aged lion. When I saw him covered by sharp arrows, my mind was distressed. Because of the arrows, he fell down from his chariot. He sat down, facing the east, whirled around like a mountain. At that time, I was overcome by dejection. With a bow and arrows in his hand, Kouravya fought for many days with Bhargava, in a great battle in Kurukshetra.
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For the sake of the maidens, in Varanasi, the brave son of the river had single-handedly fought a battle against the assembled kshatriya kings.
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With the power of his weapons, he had scorched the unassailable king and emperor, Ugrayudha.
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He has been brought down by me in the battle. He could himself decide on his time of death. Using his arrows, he did not bring down Panchala Shikhandi, but was brought down by Arjuna. O supreme among sages!
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When I saw him lying down on the ground, covered in blood, a terrible fever overcame me. As children, we were protected and reared by him. I was wicked and greedy for the kingdom. I have slain my senior. For the sake of a temporary kingdom, I have foolishly killed him.

‘“The great archer, the preceptor, was worshipped by all the kings. I advanced against him in the battle and wickedly lied to him about his son.
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My limbs burn because the preceptor told me, ‘O king! Tell me truthfully whether my son is alive.’ Expecting that I would speak the truth, the brahmana asked me. I lied, by hiding the fact that it was an elephant. Because of my extreme avarice for the kingdom, I was evil and caused the death of my preceptor. In the battle, I put a cloak on the truth. I told my preceptor, ‘Ashvatthama has been killed,’ though it was an elephant that had been brought down. Having perpetrated such a terrible deed, what worlds will I go to now?

‘“Karna did not retreat from the battle and I caused him to be killed. He was my fierce elder brother. Who is more evil-acting than me?

‘“Abhimanyu was a child. He was like a lion born in the mountains. In my greed, I made him penetrate the formation that was protected by Drona. I have been as guilty as one who kills a foetus. Since then, I have not been able to glance at Bibhatsu or Pundarikaksha Krishna. I feel extremely sorry for Droupadi. Her five sons have been killed. She is oppressed by grief and is like the earth when it has lost five mountains. I have my share in the sins. I am the destroyer of the earth. Seated here, I will dry up my body. Know that I am the slayer of my seniors. I will fast to death here, so that I am not reborn as a destroyer of the lineage.
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I will not eat or drink anything. O one who is rich in austerities! Right here, I will dry up my beloved breath of life. Go wherever you wish and grant me this permission. I seek everyone’s leave, so that I can cast aside this body.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Partha was distracted because of sorrow on account of his relatives. Vyasa, supreme among sages, restrained
him and said, “O great king! You should not indulge in this excessive sorrow. O lord! I am telling you again that all this was destiny. The union and separation of living beings is certain. They are like bubbles in the water, which are there, and then are not there. Everything ends in destruction. They rise, accumulate and then fall. Union ends in dissolution. Death is the end of life. Laziness brings temporary happiness, but ends in sorrow. Industry may seem to lead to sorrow, but gives rise to happiness. Affluence, prosperity, modesty, fortitude and success are based on industriousness. Well-wishers do not ensure happiness. Ill-wishers do not ensure sorrow. Wisdom does not ensure artha. Nor is happiness ensured by wealth. O Kounteya! You have been created by the creator for tasks. Undertake them. O king! Success results from that. Otherwise, you will not have control over your atman.”’