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end, as also of all creatures whose birth follows their wish.'" |
SECTION CLIX |
"Yudhishthira said, 'Do thou tell us, O slayer of Madhu, what the prosperity is that attaches to the worship of the Brahmanas. |
Thou art well-conversant with this topic. Verily, our grandsire knows thee.' |
"Vasudeva said, 'Hear, O king, with rapt attention to me, O chief of Bharata's race, as I recite to thee what the merits of the |
Brahmanas are, in accordance with truth, O foremost one of Kuru's race! Once on a time while I was seated at Dwaravati, O |
delighter of the Kurus, my son Pradyumna, enraged by certain Brahmanas, came to me and said, 'O slayer of Madhu, what |
merit attaches to the worship of the Brahmanas? Whence is their lordship derived both here and hereafter? O giver of honours, |
what rewards are won by constantly Worshipping the Brahmanas? Do thou kindly explain this clearly to me, for my mind is |
disturbed by doubts in respect of this.' When these words were addressed to me by Pradyumna, I answered him as follows, Do |
thou hear, O king, with close attention, what those words were, 'O child of Rukmin, listen to me as I tell thee what the |
prosperity is that one may win by worshipping the Brahmanas. When one sets oneself to the acquisition of the well-known |
aggregate of three (viz., Righteousness, Wealth, and Pleasure), or to the achievement of Emancipation, or to that of fame and |
prosperity, or to the treatment and cure of disease, or to the worship of the deities and the Pitris, one should take care to gratify |
the regenerate ones. They are each a king Soma (that sheds such agreeable light in the firmament.) They are dispensers of |
happiness and misery. O child of Rukmini, whether in this or in the next world, O son, everything agreeable has its origin in |
the Brahmanas. I have no doubt in this! From the worship of the Brahmanas flow mighty achievements and fame and strength. |
The denizens of all the worlds, and the Regents of the universe, are all worshippers of Brahmanas. How then, O son, can we |
disregard them, filled with the idea that we are lords of the earth? O mighty-armed one, do not suffer thy wrath to embrace the |
Brahmanas as its object. In this as also in the next world, Brahmanas are regarded as beings. They have direct knowledge of |
everything in the universe. Verily, they are capable of reducing everything into ashes, if angry. They are capable of creating |
other worlds and other Regents of worlds (than those that exist). Why then should not persons who are possessed of energy and |
correct knowledge behave with obedience and respect towards them? Formerly, in my house, O son, dwelt the Brahmana |
Durvasa whose complexion was green and tawny. Clad in rags, he had a stick made of the Vilwa tree.[615] His beard was long |
and he was exceedingly emaciated. He was taller in stature than the tallest man on earth. Wandering over all the worlds, viz., |
that which belongs to human beings and those that are for the deities and other superior beings, even this was the verse which |
he sang constantly among assemblies and in public squares. 'Who is there that would cause the Brahmana Durvasa to dwell in |
his house, doing the duties of hospitality towards him? He becomes enraged with every one if he finds even the slightest |
transgression? Hearing this regarding my disposition, who is there that will give me refuge? Indeed, he that would give me |
shelter as a guest should not do anything to anger me!' When I saw that no one ventured to give him shelter in his house. I |
invited him and caused him to take up his residence in my abode. On certain days he would eat the food sufficient for the needs |
of thousands of persons. On certain other days he would eat very little. On some days he would go out of my house and would |
not return. He would sometimes laugh without any ostensible reason and sometimes cry as causelessly. At that time there was |
nobody on earth that was equal to him in years. One day, entering the quarters assigned to him he burnt all the beds and |
coverlets and all the well-adorned damsels that were there for serving him. Doing this, he went out. Of highly praiseworthy |
vows, he met me shortly after this and addressing me, said, 'O Krishna, I wish to eat frumenty without delay!' Having |
understood his mind previously, I had set my servants to prepare every kind of food and drink. Indeed, many excellent viands |
had been kept ready. As soon as I was asked, I caused hot frumenty to be brought and offered to the ascetic. Having eaten |
some, he quickly said unto me, 'Do thou, O Krishna, take some of this frumenty and smear all thy limbs with it!' Without any |
scruple I did as directed. Indeed, with the remnant of that frumenty I smeared my body and head. The ascetic at that time saw |
thy mother of sweet face standing near. Laughing the while, he smeared her body also with that frumenty. The ascetic then |
caused thy mother, whose body was smeared over with frumenty, to be yoked unto a car without any delay. Ascending that car |
he set out of my house. Endued with great intelligence, that Brahmana blazed with effulgence like fire, and struck, in my |
presence, my Rukmini endued with youth, as if she were an animal destined to drag the cars of human beings. Beholding this, I |
did not feel the slightest grief born of malice or the desire to injure the Rishi. Indeed, having yoked Rukmini to the car, he went |
out, desirous of proceeding along the high road of the city. Seeing that extraordinary sight, some Dasarhas, filled with wrath, |
addressed one another and began to converse in this way, 'Who else is there on earth that would draw breath after having yoked |
Rukmini to a car! Verily, let the world be filled with Brahmanas only! Let no other orders take birth here. The poison of a |
virulent snake is exceedingly keen. Keener than poison is a Brahmana. There is no physician for a person that has been bitten |
or burnt by the virulent snake of a Brahmana, 'As the irresistible Durvasa proceeded on the car, Rukmini tottered on the road |
and frequently fell down. At this the regenerate Rishi became angry and began to urge Rukmini on by striking her with the |
whip. At last, filled with a towering passion, the Brahmana leapt down from the car, and fled towards the south, running on |
foot, over a pathless ground. Beholding that foremost of Brahmanas flying along the pathless ground, we followed him, |
although we were smeared with frumenty, exclaiming behind him, 'Be gratified with us, O holy one! Endued with great energy, |
the Brahmana, seeing me, said, 'O mighty-armed Krishna, thou hast subdued wrath by the strength of thy nature? O thou of |
excellent vows, I have not found the slightest fault in thee! O Govinda, I have been highly gratified with thee. Do thou solicit |
the fruition of such wishes as thou pleasest! Behold duly, O son, what the puissance is of myself when I become gratified with |
any one. As long as deities and human beings will continue to entertain a liking for food, so long will every one among them |
cherish the same liking for thee that they cherish for their food! As long, again, as there will be Righteousness in the several |
world, so long will the fame of thy achievements last! Indeed, thy distinction will last so long in the three worlds! O Janardana, |
agreeable thou shalt be to all persons! Whatever articles of thine have been broken or burnt or otherwise destroyed (by me), |
thou shalt see restored, O Janardana, to their former state or they will reappear even in a better form! As long, again, O thou of |
unfading glory, as thou wilt wish to live, so long wilt thou have no fear of death assailing thee through such parts of thy body |
as have been smeared with the frumenty I gave thee! O son, why didst thou not smear that frumenty on the soles of thy feet as |
well? By not doing it, thou have acted in a way that is not approved by me! Even these were the words that he said, well- |
pleased with me on that occasion. After he had ceased speaking, I saw that my body became endued with great beauty and |
splendour. Unto Rukmini also, the Rishi, well-pleased with her, said, 'O beautiful lady, thou shalt be the foremost one of thy |
sex in fame, and great glory and achievements will be thine. Decrepitude or disease or loss of complexion will never be thine! |
Every one will see thee engaged in waiting upon Krishna, possessed as thou already art with a fragrant odour which is always |
present in thee. Thou shalt become the foremost of all spouses, numbering sixteen thousand, O Kesava. At last, when the time |
comes for thy departure from the world, thou shalt attain to the inseparable companionship of Krishna hereafter!' Having said |
these words unto thy mother, the Rishi once more addressed me and uttering following words, left the spot. Indeed, the Rishi |
Durvasa, blazing like a fire, said, 'O Kesava, let thy understanding be always disposed even thus towards the Brahmana!' Verily |
after uttering these words, that Brahmana disappeared there and then before my eyes. After his disappearance I took to the |
observance of the vow of uttering certain Mantras silently without being heard by anybody. Verily, from that day I resolved to |
accomplish whatever behests I should receive from the Brahmanas. Having adopted this vow, O son, along with thy mother, |
both of us, with hearts filled with joy re-entered our palace, Entering our house I saw that everything which the Rishi had |
broken or burnt had reappeared and become new. Beholding those new articles, which had besides become more durable, I |
became filled with wonder. Verily, O son of Rukmini, from that day forth I have always worshipped the Brahmanas in my |
mind! Even this, O chief of Bharata's race, is what I said on that occasion regarding the greatness of those Brahmanas who are |
the foremost of their order. Do thou also, O son of Kunti, worship the highly blessed Brahmanas every day with gifts of wealth |
and kine, O puissant one! It was in this way that I acquired the prosperity I enjoy, the prosperity that is born of the grace of |
Brahmanas. Whatever, again, Bhishma has said of me, O chief of the Bharatas, is all true!'" |
SECTION CLX |
"Yudhishthira said, 'It behoveth thee, O slayer of Madhu, to expound to me that knowledge which thou hast acquired through |
the grace of Durvasa! O foremost of all persons endued with intelligence, I desire to know everything about the high |
blessedness and all the names of that high-souled one truly and in detail![616] |
"Vasudeva said, 'I shall recite to thee the good that I have acquired and the fame that I have won through the grace of that high- |
souled one. Verily, I shall discourse to thee on the topic, after having bowed unto Kapardin. O king, listen to me as I recite to |
thee that Sata-rudriya which I repeat; with restrained senses, every morning after rising from bed. The great lord of all |
creatures, viz., the Grandsire Brahman himself, endued with wealth of penances, composed those Mantras, after having |
observed especial penances for some time. O sire it is Sankara who created all the creatures in the universe, mobile and |
immobile. There is no being that is higher, O monarch, than Mahadeva. Verily, he is the highest of all beings in the three |
worlds. There is no one who is capable of standing before that high-souled Being. Indeed, there is no Being in the three worlds |
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