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"Bhishma continued, 'Thus addressed by those denizens of ascetic retreats, Krishna, the delighter of Devaki paid due honours |
unto all those Rishis. Filled with delight, those Rishis once more addressed Krishna, saying, 'O slayer of Madhu, do Thou |
repeatedly show Thyself to us at all times! O puissant one, Heaven itself cannot rejoice us so much as a right of Thyself |
Everything that was said by the illustrious Bhava (regarding Thyself) is true. O crusher of foes, we have told Thee all about |
that mystery. Thou art Thyself conversant with the truth of every topic. Since, however, asked by us, it pleased Thee to ask us |
in return, we have, for that reason, recited everything (about the discourse of Bhava with Uma) to Thee for only pleasing Thee. |
There is nothing in the three worlds that is unknown to Thee. Thou art fully conversant with the birth and origin of all things, |
indeed, with everything that operates as a cause (for the production of other objects). In consequence of the lightness of our |
character, we are unable to bear (within ourselves the knowledge of) any mystery (without disclosing it).[583] Indeed, in Thy |
presence, O puissant one, we indulge in incoherences from the lightness of our hearts. There is no wonderful thing that is |
unknown to Thee! Whatever is on earth, and whatever is in heaven, all is known to Thee! We take our leave of Thee, O |
Krishna, for returning to our respective abodes Mayst Thou increase in intelligence and prosperity! O sire, Thou wilt soon get a |
son like unto Thee or even more distinguished than Thyself. He will be endued with great energy and splendour. He will |
achieve great feats, and become possessed of puissance as great as Thine!'[584] |
"Bhishma continued, 'After this, the great Rishis bowed unto that god of gods, that scion of Yadu's race, that foremost of all |
Beings. They then circumambulated Him and taking His leave, departed. As regards Narayana, who is endued with prosperity |
and blazing effulgence, He returned to Dwaraka after having duly observed that vow of His. His spouse Rukmini conceived, |
and on the expiration of the tenth month a son was born of her, possessed of heroism and honoured by all for his highly |
wonderful accomplishments. He is identical with that Kama (Desire) which exists in every creature and which pervades every |
existent condition. Indeed, he moves within the hearts of both gods and Asuras. This Krishna is that foremost of all persons. |
Even he, endued with the hue of the clouds is that four-handed Vasudeva. Through affection He has attached himself to the |
Pandavas, and you also, ye sons of Pandu, have attached yourselves to Him. Achievements, Prosperity, Intelligence, and the |
path that leads to heaven, are all there where this one, viz., the illustrious Vishnu of three steps, is. He is the three and thirty |
gods with Indra at their head. There is no doubt in this. He is the one Ancient God. He is the foremost of all gods. He is the |
refuge of all creatures. He. is without beginning and without destruction. He is unmanifest. He is the high-souled slayer of |
Madhu. Endued with mighty energy, He has taken birth (among men) for accomplishing the purpose of the gods. Verily, this |
Madhava is the expounder of the most difficult truths relating to Profit or Wealth, and he is also their achiever. O son of Pritha, |
the victory thou hast obtained over thy enemies, thy unrivalled achievements, the dominion thou hast acquired over the whole |
earth, are all due to thy side having been taken up by Narayana. The fact of thy having got the inconceivable Narayana for thy |
protector and refuge, enabled thee to become an Adharyu (chief sacrificer) for pouring multitudes of kings as libations on the |
blazing fire of battle. This Krishna was thy great sacrificial ladle resembling the all-destroying fire that appears at the end of |
the Yuga. Duryodhana, with his sons, brothers and kinsmen, was much to be pitied inasmuch as, moved by wrath, he made war |
with Hari and the wielder of Gandiva. Many sons of Diti, many foremost of Danavas, of huge bodies and vast strength, have |
perished in the fire of Krishna's discus like insects in a forest conflagration. How incapable then must human beings be of |
battling against that Krishna,--human beings who, O tiger among men, are destitute of strength and might! As regards Jaya, he |
is a mighty Yogin resembling the all-destroying Yuga-fire in energy. Capable of drawing the bow equally with both hands, he |
is always in the van of fight. With his energy, O king, he has slain all the troops of Suyodhana. Listen to me as I tell thee what |
Mahadeva having the bovine bull for the device on his standard had recited unto the ascetics on the breast of the Himavat. His |
utterances constitute a Purana. The advancement of greatness, energy, strength, prowess, puissance, humility, and lineage that |
are in Arjuna can come up to only a third part of the measure in which those attributes reside in Krishna. Who is there that can |
transcend Krishna in these attributes? Whether that is possible or not, listen (and judge). There where the illustrious Krishna is, |
there is unrivalled Excellence.[585] As regards ourselves, we are persons of little understanding. Dependent upon the will of |
others, we are exceedingly unfortunate. Knowingly we betook ourselves to the eternal path of death. Thou, however, art |
devoted to sincerity of conduct. Having formerly pledged thyself against taking thy kingdom, thou didst not take it, desirous of |
maintaining thy pledge.[586] O king, thou makest too much of the slaughter of thy kinsmen and friends in battle (brought |
about, as thou believest, by thyself). Thou shouldst remember, however, O chastiser of foes, that it is not right to violate a |
pledge.[587] All those who have fallen on the field of battle have really been slain by Time. Verily, all of us have been slain by |
Time. Time is, indeed, all-powerful. Thou art fully conversant with the puissance of Time. Afflicted by Time, it does not |
behove thee to grieve. Know that Krishna Himself, otherwise called Hari, is that Time with blood-red eyes and with club in |
hand. For these reasons, O son of Kunti, it does not behove thee to grieve for thy (slain) kinsfolk. Be thou always free, O |
delighter of the Kurus, from grief. Thou hast heard of the glory and greatness of Madhava as recited by me. That is sufficient |
for enabling a good man to understand Him. Having heard the words of Vyasa as also of Narada endued with great |
intelligence, I have discoursed to thee on the adorableness of Krishna. I have myself added; from my own knowledge, |
something to that discourse. Verily, I have discoursed also on the surpassing puissance of Krishna as recited by Mahadeva, |
unto that conclave of Rishis (on the breast of the Himavat). The discourse too between Maheswara and the daughter of |
Himavat, O Bharata, has been recited by me to thee. He who will bear in mind that discourse when emanating from a foremost |
person, he who will listen to it, and he who will recite it (for other people's hearing), is sure to win what is highly beneficial. |
That man will find all his wishes fulfilled. Departing from this world he will ascend to Heaven. There is no doubt in this. That |
man who, desirous of obtaining what is beneficial for himself, should devote himself to Janardana. O king of the Kurus, it |
behoves thee also to always bear in mind those incidents of duty and righteousness which were declared by Maheswara. if thou |
conduct thyself according to those precepts, if thou bear the rod of chastisement rightly, if thou protect thy subjects properly, |
thou mayst be sure of attaining to heaven. It behoves thee, O king, to protect thy subjects always according to the dictates of |
righteousness. The stout rod of chastisement which the king bears has been said to be the embodiment of his righteousness or |
merit.[588] Hearing this discourse, fraught with righteousness, between Sankara and Uma, that I have recited in the presence of |
this righteous conclave, one should worship with reverence that god having the bovine bull for the device on his banner. One |
that becomes even desirous of listening to that discourse should worship Mahadeva with reverence. Verily, the person that |
wishes to obtain what is beneficial for him, should adore Mahadeva with a pure heart. Even this is the command of the faultless |
and high-souled Narada. Even he has commanded such worship of the great god, O son of Pandu, do thou obey that command |
of Narada. O puissant king, even these are the wonderful incidents that occurred on the sacred breast of the Himavat respecting |
Vasudeva and Sthanu, O son of Kunti. Those occurrences flowed from the very nature of those high-souled deities. Vasudeva, |
accompanied by the wielder of Gandiva, practised eternal penances in the retreat of Vadari for ten thousand years.[589] Verily, |
Vasudeva and Dhananjaya, both of eyes like lotus-petals, underwent severe austerities for the duration of three whole Yugas. I |
have learnt this from Narada and Vyasa, O king. The lotus-eyed and mighty-armed Vasudeva, while yet a child (in human |
form) achieved the great feat of slaying Kansa for the relief of his kinsmen. I do not venture, O son of Kunti, to enumerate the |
feats of this Ancient and Eternal Being, O Yudhishthira. Without doubt, O son, high and great benefits will be reaped by thee |
who ownest that foremost of all persons, viz., Vasudeva, for thy friend. I grieve for the wicked Duryodhana in respect of even |
the next world to which he has gone. It was for him that the whole earth has been depopulated with her seeds and elephants. |
Indeed, through the fault of Duryodhana, of Karna, of Sakuni, and of Duhsasana numbering the fourth, that the Kurus have |
perished. |
"Vaisampayana continued, 'While that foremost of men, viz., the son of Ganga, addressed him in this strain, the Kuru king |
(Yudhishthira) remained entirely silent in the midst of those high-souled persons (who had assembled together for listening to |
the discourses of Bhishma). All the kings with Dhritarashtra amongst them became filled with wonder upon hearing the words |
of the Kuru grandsire. In their minds they worshipped Krishna and then turned towards him with hands joined in reverence. |
The Rishis also with Narada at their head, accepted and applauded the words of Bhishma and approved of them joyfully. These |
were the wonderful discourses recited by Bhishma which Pandu's son (Yudhishthira) with all his brothers heard with joy. Some |
time after, when king (Yudhishthira) saw that Ganga's son who had given away abundant wealth as presents unto the |
Brahmanas in the sacrifices performed by him, had rested and become refreshed, the intelligent king once more asked him as |
follows.'" |
SECTION CXLIX |
"Vaisampayana said, 'Having heard all the duties in their entirety and all those sacred acts and objects that cleanse human |
beings of their sins. Yudhishthira once more addressed the son of Santanu in the following words.' |
"Yudhishthira said, "Who may be said to be the one god in the world? Who may be said to be the one object which is our sole |
refuge? Who is he by worshipping whom or hymning whose praises human being would get what is beneficial? What religion |
is that which, according to thy judgment, is the foremost of all religions? What are those Mantras by reciting which a living |
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