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wrath, he would, if he saw thee, have burnt thy sinful self today. Thou shouldst not, O Sakra, do like this again. The Brahmanas |
should be regarded by thee. See that thou dost not, with thy sons and counsellors, meet with destruction, afflicted by the might |
of the Brahmanas. Thou thinkest that thou art an immortal and that, therefore, art at liberty to proceed in this way. Do not, |
however, disregard the Brahmanas. Know that there is nothing unattainable by penance.' |
"Bhishma continued, 'Hearing these words of the high-souled Vipula, Sakra without saying anything, and overwhelmed with |
shame, made himself invisible. A moment after he had gone away, Devasarman of high ascetic merit, having accomplished the |
sacrifice he had intended to perform, came back to his own asylum. When his preceptor came back, Vipula, who had done an |
agreeable deed, gave, unto him his wife of faultless beauty whom he had successfully protected against the machinations of |
Indra. Of tranquil soul and full of reverence for his preceptor, Vipula respectfully saluted him and stood in his presence with a |
fearless heart. After his preceptor had rested a while and when he was seated with his wife on the same seat, Vipula represented |
unto him everything that Sakra had done. Hearing these words of Vipula, that foremost of Munis, endued with great prowess, |
became highly gratified with him for his conduct and disposition, his penances, and his observances. Observing Vipula's |
conduct towards himself--his preceptor--and his devotion also, and noting his steadiness in virtue, the puissant Devasarman |
exclaimed, "Excellent, excellent!' The righteous-souled Devasarman, receiving his virtuous disciple with a sincere welcome, |
honoured him with a boon. Indeed, Vipula, steady in virtue obtained from his preceptor the boon that he would never swerve or |
fall away from righteousness. Dismissed by his preceptor he left his abode and practised the most severe austerities. |
Devasarman also, of severe penances, with his spouse, began from that day to live in those solitary woods, perfectly fearless of |
him who had slain Vala and Vritra.'" |
SECTION XLII |
"Bhishma said, 'Having accomplished his preceptor's behest, Vipula practised the most severe penances. Possessed of great |
energy, he at last regarded himself as endued with sufficient ascetic merit, Priding himself upon the feat he had achieved, he |
wandered fearlessly and contentedly over the earth, O monarch, regarded by all as one possessed of great fame for what he had |
done. The puissant Bhargava regarded that he had conquered both the worlds by that feat of his as also by his severe penances. |
After some time had passed away, O delighter of the Kurus, the occasion came for a ceremony of gifts to take place with |
respect to the sister of Ruchi. Abundant wealth and corn were to be given away in it.[276] Meanwhile, a certain celestial |
damsel endued with great beauty, was journeying through the skies. From her body as she coursed through the welkin, some |
flowers dropped down on the earth. Those flowers possessed of celestial fragrance fell on a spot not far from the retreat of |
Ruchi's husband. As the flowers lay scattered on the ground, they were picked up by Ruchi of beautiful eyes. Soon after an |
invitation came to Ruchi from the country of the Angas. The sister, referred to above, of Ruchi, named Prabhavati, was the |
spouse of Chitraratha, the ruler of the Angas. Ruchi, of very superior complexion, having attached those flowers to her hair, |
went to the palace of the king of the Angas in answer to the invitation she had received. Beholding those flowers on her hair |
the queen of the Angas, possessed of beautiful eyes, urged her sister to obtain some for her. Ruchi, of beautiful face, speedily |
informed her husband of that request of her sister. The Rishi accepted the prayer of his sister-in-law. Summoning Vipula into |
his presence Devasarman of severe penances commanded his disciple to bring him some flowers of the same kind, saying, 'Go, |
go!' Accepting without hesitation the behest of his preceptor, the great ascetic Vipula, O king, answered, 'So be it!' and then |
proceeded to that spot whence the lady Ruchi had picked up the flowers that were coveted by her sister. Arrived at that spot |
where the flowers (picked up by Ruchi) had fallen from the welkin, Vipula saw some others still lying scattered. They were all |
as fresh as if they had been newly plucked from the plants whereon they had grown. None of them had drooped in the least. He |
took up those celestial flowers of great beauty. Possessed of celestial fragrance, O Bharata, Vipula got them there as the result |
of his severe penances. The accomplisher of his preceptor's behest, having obtained them, he felt great delight and set out |
speedily for the city of Champa adorned with festoons of Champaka flowers. As he proceeded, he saw on his way a human |
couple moving in a circle hand in hand. One of them made a rapid step and thereby destroyed the cadence of the movement. |
For this reason, O king, a dispute arose between them. Indeed, one of them charged the other, saying, 'Thou hast made a |
quicker step!' The other answered, 'No, verily', as each maintained his own opinion obstinately, each, O king, asserted what the |
other denied, and denied what the other asserted. While thus disputing with each other with great assurance, an oath was then |
heard among them. Indeed, each of them suddenly named Vipula in what they uttered. The oath each of them took was even |
this, 'That one amongst us two who speaketh falsely, shall in the next world, meet with the end which will be the regenerate |
Vipula's!' Hearing these words of theirs, Vipula's face became very cheerless. He began to reflect, saying unto himself, 'I have |
undergone severe penances. The dispute between this couple is hot. To me, again, it is painful. What is the sin of which I have |
been guilty that both these persons should refer to my end in the next world as the most painful one among those reserved for |
all creatures?' Thinking in this strain, Vipula, O best of monarchs, hung down his head, and with a cheerless mind began to |
recollect what sin he had done. Proceeding a little way he beheld six other men playing with dice made of gold and silver. |
Engaged in play, those individuals seemed to him to be so excited that the hair on their bodies stood on end. They also (upon a |
dispute having arisen among them) were heard by Vipula to take the same oath that he had already heard the first couple to |
take. Indeed, their words had reference in the same way to Vipula, 'He amongst us who, led by cupidity, will act in an improper |
way, shall meet with that end which is reserved for Vipula in the next world!' Hearing these words, however, Vipula, although |
he strove earnestly to recollect failed to remember any transgression of his from even his earliest years, O thou of Kuru's race. |
Verily he began to burn like a fire placed in the midst of another fire. Hearing that curse, his mind burnt with grief. In this state |
of anxiety a long time elapsed. At last he recollected the manner in which he had acted in protecting his preceptor's wife from |
the machinations of Indra. 'I had penetrated the body of that lady, placing limb within limb, face within face, Although I had |
acted in this way, I did not yet tell my preceptor the truth!' Even this was the transgression. O thou of Kuru's race which Vipula |
recollected in himself. Indeed, O blessed monarch, without doubt that was the transgression which he had actually committed. |
Coming to the city of Champa, he gave the flowers to his preceptor. Devoted to superiors and seniors, he worshipped his |
preceptor in due form.'" |
SECTION XLIII |
"Bhishma said, 'Beholding his disciple returned from his mission, Devasarman of great energy addressed him in words which I |
shall recite to thee O king!' |
"Davasarman said, 'What hast thou seen, O Vipula, in course of thy progress, O disciple, through the great forest' 'They whom |
thou hast seen knew thee, O Vipula. I, as also my spouse Ruchi, know how thou hadst acted in the matter of protecting Ruchi.' |
"Vipula said, 'O regenerate Rishi, who are those two whom I first saw? Who also are those other six whom I saw subsequently? |
All of them know me: who, indeed, are they to whom thou alludest in thy speech to me?' |
"Devasarman said, The first couple, O regenerate one, whom thou sawest, are Day and Night. They are ceaselessly moving like |
a circle. Both of them know the transgression of which thou hast been guilty, those other men (six in number) whom, O learned |
Brahmana, thou sawest playing cheerfully at dice, are the six Seasons. They also are acquainted with thy transgressions. |
Having committed a sin in secrecy, no sinful man should cherish the assuring thought that his transgression is known only to |
himself and not to any one else. When a man perpetrates a sinful deed in secret, the Seasons as also Day and Night behold it |
always. Those regions that are reserved for the sinful shall be thine (for what thou hast done) What thou hadst done thou didst |
not tell me. That thy sin was not known to any one, was thy belief, and this conviction had filled thee with joy. Thou didst not |
inform the preceptor of the whole truth, choosing to hide from him a material portion. The Seasons, and Day and Night, whom |
thou hast heard speak in that strain, thought it proper to remind thee of thy transgression. Day and Night and the Seasons are |
ever conversant of all the good and the bad deeds that are in a man. They spoke to thee in that way, O regenerate one, because |
they have full knowledge of what thou hadst done but which thou hadst not the courage to inform me of, fearing thou hadst |
done wrong. For this reason those regions that are reserved for the sinful will be thine as much. Thou didst not tell me what |
thou hadst done. Thou weft fully capable, O regenerate one, of protecting my spouse whose disposition by nature, is sinful. In |
doing what thou didst, thou didst not commit any sin. I was, for this, gratified with thee! O best of Brahmanas, if I had known |
thee to have acted wickedly, I would without hesitation, have cursed thee. Women become united with men. Such union is very |
desirable with men. Thou hadst, however, protected my wife in a different spirit. If thou hadst acted otherwise, a curse would |
have been uttered upon thee. Even this is what I think. Thou hadst O son, protected my spouse. The manner in which thou didst |
it hath now become known to me as if thou hadst thyself informed me of it. I have, O son, become gratified with thee. Relieved |
of all anxiety, thou shalt go to heaven!' Having said these words unto Vipula, the great Rishi Devasarman, ascended to heaven |
with his wife and his disciple and began to pass his time there in great happiness. In course of conversation, O king, on a |
former occasion, the great ascetic Markandeya had narrated to me this history on the banks of the Ganga. I, therefore, recite to |
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