Mahabharata: Volume 8

by Debroy, Bibek

  ‘“The vulture said, ‘This place is full of the spirits of the dead and is frequented by yakshas and rakshasas. It is a terrible and desolate spot and echoes with the screeches of owls. It is fierce and extremely horrible, with a complexion like that of dark and blue clouds. Abandon the corpse and decide to perform the funeral rites. As long as the sun has not set and as long as the directions are clear, abandon him and decide to perform the funeral rites. Hawks are shrieking in harsh tones. Jackals are screaming in fierce tones. Lions are roaring and the sun is about to set. The blue smoke from funeral pyres is imparting a hue to the trees. Hungry beings are finding delight in this cremation ground. In this extremely terrible spot, all of them are brave and energetic. They are malformed and subsist on flesh. They will attack you. Go far away from this spot in the forest. There is fear here. He is like a piece of wood and must be abandoned. Tolerate the jackal’s words. If you deviate from knowledge and listen to the futile and false words of the jackal, all of you will be destroyed.’

  ‘“The jackal said, ‘Remain here. As long as the sun is shining, there is nothing to be scared about. Driven by affection for your son, as long as you have hope, remain here. Without any fear, confidently weep over him. Confidently, look at him with affection. As long as the sun is here, remain here. What is the point to the words of that predator?161 If you accept the fierce and wild words of the vulture, you will delude your own selves and your son will indeed have no future.’”

  ‘Bhishma said, “The vulture said the sun had set. The jackal said that it had not set. They were both hungry and addressed the relatives of the dead person. O king! Both the vulture and the jackal were accomplished in attaining their own objectives. They were hungry, thirsty and exhausted and spoke, seeking support in the sacred texts. Both the jackal and the bird were knowledgeable and learned. Their words were like amrita. They162 stood up and left. Then they were overcome by sorrow and misery and wept and remained. They163 were skilled in attaining their own objective. They were accomplished in speaking respectfully. Both of them spoke about knowledge and learning. The relatives were confused and remained there. At that time, Shankara approached. The wielder of the trident spoke these words to the men. ‘I am the one who grants boons.’ Having been thus addressed, those miserable ones bowed down and remained standing there. They said, ‘All of us have been deprived of our single son. We desire his life. You should grant us life by granting that our son becomes alive.’ Having been thus addressed, the illustrious one filled his hand with water and granted the child a lifespan of one hundred years. The illustrious one, the wielder of pinaka who was engaged in the welfare of all beings, also granted the jackal and the vulture the boon that they should no longer suffer from hunger. They were full of joy at this great benefit and bowed down to the god. O lord! They were delighted and happy that their objectives had been accomplished and stood there. Through a long period of faith and certain and firm devotion, and through the grace of the god of the gods, fruits are swiftly obtained. Behold the god’s decision and the determination of the relatives. The tears of the miserable and weeping ones were wiped away. Behold. Certain in their pursuit and through the favours of Shankara, the miserable ones obtained happiness in a short period of time. At their son coming to life again, they were amazed and delighted. O best among the Bharata lineage! All of this was possible because of Shankara’s favours. O king! They heard from Bhava164 about how sorrow can be countered. Taking their son with them, they were filled with joy and entered their city. This is the intelligence that has been indicated for the four varnas. This is the auspicious history, full of dharma, artha and moksha. If a man hears this, he obtains delight in this world and in the next.”’

  Chapter 1478(150)

  ‘Bhishma said, “On this, an ancient history is recounted. O best among the Bharata lineage! This is a conversation between a shalmali tree165 and the wind. There was a gigantic tree on the slopes of the Himalayas. It had grown for many years and possessed a trunk, branches and foliage. O mighty-armed one! Crazy elephants, afflicted by heat and oppressed by exhaustion, would rest there. So would other kinds of animals. The tree was dense with foliage and was a nalva166 in circumference. It was covered with fruits and flowers and frequented by parrots and sharika birds. This was beautiful and supreme among trees. Merchants in search of riches, ascetics, residents of the forest and travellers along the path would rest under it. O bull among the Bharata lineage! Narada saw the large trunk and the branches that extended in every direction. He approached and said, ‘You are beautiful. You are handsome. O shalmali! O best among trees! You always please us. O son!167 Birds, animals and elephants have always cheerfully resided under your delicate shade. Your branches, larger branches and trunk are gigantic. Under no circumstance do I see any of these being shattered by the wind. O son! Is the wind your affectionate well-wisher? It is certain that the wind always protects you in this forest. The wind uproots large and small trees from their places. Its force dislodges the peaks of mountains. With its fragrant and sacred scent, the wind even dries up the nether regions and also the lakes, the rivers and the oceans. There is no doubt that the wind protects you as a friend. That is the reason you have these many branches, leaves and flowers. O tree! O son! It is seen to be beautiful that these birds sport and find pleasure in you. Their delicate voices can be separately heard. When it is the time for flowering, one can hear these extremely beautiful sounds. The elephants, the adornments of their herds, also take delight. O shalmali! They are afflicted by the heat and find joy on seeking refuge with you. In that way, other kinds of animals are also radiant near you. Those who are in search of riches seek refuge. O tree! You are as resplendent as Mount Meru. There are brahmanas, successful ascetics, hermits and mendicants. I think that your shelter is like heaven. The wind goes everywhere and is fierce. O shalmali! There is no doubt that it protects you because you are a relative or a friend. O shalmali! When the wind approaches you, perhaps you bow down supremely and say, “I belong to you.” That is the reason the wind always protects you. I have not seen a tree or a firm mountain that has not been shattered by the wind. It is my view that there is nothing like this on earth. O shalmali! But then again, for some reason, you and your family are always protected by the wind. That is the reason you stand, free from fear.’

  ‘“The shalmali replied, ‘O brahmana! The wind is not my friend, my relative, or my well-wisher. Nor is the wind my supreme lord that it should protect me. O Narada! My energy and strength are more terrible than that of the wind. The wind cannot even attain one-eighteenth of my force of life. When the strong wind arrives and destroys trees, mountains and everything else, I resist it with my force. The wind does the shattering,168 but has been shattered by me many times. O devarshi! That is the reason I am not terrified of even an enraged wind.’

  ‘“Narada said, ‘O shalmali! There is no doubt that you look at this in a contrary way. There is nothing anywhere that has a strength that is equal to the wind’s strength. Indra, Yama, Vaishravana169 and Varuna, the lord of the waters, are not the wind’s equal, not to speak of a tree. O shalmali! When any living being moves on this earth, everywhere, it is the illustrious wind, the lord, who makes the breath of life move. When it exerts itself properly, it reassures all living beings. When it is not properly exerted, men move in perverse ways. This is the nature of the wind and it is the supreme upholder of all life. You do not worship someone who should be worshipped. What can this be, other than lack of intelligence? You have no substance. You are evil in your intelligence. You only speak a lot. O shalmali! Since you have spoken in this false way, I am enraged with you. My anger has been roused at what you have said. I will myself tell the wind about the many wicked words you have spoken. There are other trees that are stronger still—sandalwood, spandana,170 shala,171 sarala,172 devadaru,173 cane and reeds. They are cleansed in their souls and do not evil-mindedly speak about the wind in this way. They know their own strengths and that of the wind. That is the reason those supreme tre
es bow down before the wind. You are deluded and do not know about the wind’s infinite strength.’”’

  Chapter 1479(151)

  ‘Bhishma said, “O Indra among kings! Having spoken in this way, Narada, knowledgeable about the brahman, went and told the wind everything that the shalmali had said. ‘There is a shalmali tree and its followers on the slopes of the Himalayas. It has a gigantic trunk and many branches. O wind! It shows you disrespect. It spoke many words of irreverence towards you. O wind! O lord! It is not appropriate that I should repeat those words before you. O wind! I know that you are the supreme upholder of all living beings. You are best and the greatest. In your rage, you are like Vaivasvata.’174 Having heard these words of Narada, the wind went to the shalmali and angrily spoke these words. ‘O shalmali! You have spoken disrespectful words before Narada. I am the wind. I will show you my influence and my own strength. I know who you are. O tree! You are known to me. The lord, the grandfather,175 ended his act of creation with you. Because he ended with you, he showed you favours. O evil-minded one! O worst among trees! That is what has protected you against my valour. Since you have disrespected me as any other natural force, I will show myself to you, so that you know who I am.’ Having been thus addressed, the shalmali tree seemed to smile when it replied. ‘O wind! Go to the woods and show your enraged self to your own self. Release your anger towards me. What will you do in your rage? O wind! I would not have been frightened of you, even if you had been the lord of beings.’ Having been thus addressed, the wind said that it would exhibit its energy the next day.

  ‘“It was night and the shalmali thought about what should be done. It saw that it was not the equal of the wind. ‘I spoke inappropriate words about the wind to Narada. I cannot match the wind in strength. It is stronger than me. Narada was right when he said that the wind is always strong. There is no doubt that I am weaker than other trees. However, I do not think there is any other tree that is my equal in intelligence. By resorting to that intelligence, I can free myself from the fear that comes from the wind. There is no doubt that if the trees in the forest used their intelligence, they would always be able to save themselves from any injury on account of the enraged wind. But they are foolish and do not know the wind. Unlike me, they do not know how the angry wind blows.’ Having made up its mind, the shalmali began to shake itself. It itself cast off its trunk, branches and smaller branches. It cast off its branches, leaves and flowers. Having done this, the tree waited for morning and for the approach of the wind. The wind blew and angrily brought down large trees. It came to the spot where the shalmali was standing. It was without leaves and the tips of the branches had fallen down. The flowers had fallen down. The wind glanced at it and smiling, cheerfully spoke these words to the shalmali tree, which was without any branches. ‘O shalmali! In my anger, I would have done exactly this to you and brought down all your branches. You have done this yourself. You are without flowers and the tips of your branches. Your buds and foliage have been destroyed. Through your own evil intelligence, you have come under the subjugation of my valour.’ Addressed in these words by the wind, the shalmali tree was ashamed. It remembered the words that Narada had spoken to it and was tormented.

  ‘“O tiger among kings! In this way, if a weak person engages in hostilities with someone who is stronger, he is foolish and will be tormented like the shalmali tree. Therefore, a weak person should have enmity with someone who is superior in strength. If he engages in such enmity, he will sorrow, like the shalmali tree. Even against those who cause grievous injury, great-souled ones do not display their enmity. O great king! Instead, they exhibit their strength gradually and gently. A man without intelligence should not act in enmity towards someone who lives by his intelligence. An intelligent person’s intelligence is like a fire raging through dry grass. O king! Among men, there is nothing that is equal to intelligence. O Indra among kings! One might think that there is nothing that is equal to strength. O Indra among kings! O slayer of enemies! You have thus seen that one must tolerate the foolish, the dumb, the deaf and those who are superior in strength. O immensely radiant one! O king! The eleven and seven akshouhinis176 were not equal in strength to the great-souled Arjuna. The illustrious Pandava, the son of the chastiser of Paka, roamed around and slew and shattered them in the battle. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! You have been told about rajadharma and apad dharma in detail. O great king! What shall I tell you about next?”’

  Chapter 1480(152)

  ‘Yudhishthira said, “O bull among the Bharata lineage! I wish to hear about the true nature of evil’s foundation and about how sin propagates.”

  ‘Bhishma replied, “O lord of men! Hear about the foundation of evil. Greed alone is the great grasper. Evil is propagated by greed. It is from this that evil, adharma and supreme misery flow. This is the foundation for misdeeds and makes people commit sin. Anger results from greed. Desire results from greed. Confusion and delusion result from greed and so do pride, arrogance, malice and lack of forgiveness. Modesty is abandoned. Prosperity is destroyed and dharma decays. Anxiety and lack of wisdom—all of these result from greed. There are also lack of fairness, lack of reflection and the performance of perverse deeds. One becomes learned in deceit and is proud of one’s beauty and prosperity. One is distrustful of all beings. One is crooked towards all beings. One acts injuriously towards all beings. One behaves inappropriately towards all beings. One steals the property of others. One ravishes other people’s wives. There is violence in words and thought. There is violence in criticizing. There is turbulence in one’s groin and belly. There is the terrible turbulence that is associated with death. There is the violence of envy. The strong impulse to lie is extremely difficult to give up. It is difficult to withstand the impulse of passions. It is impossible to withstand the impulse to hear bad words and boasting. One is malicious, wicked and perpetrates evil deeds. One is rash in every kind of deed and action. At birth, childhood and youth, a man cannot give up the consequences of the deeds that he has done. Though he decays, these do not decay. O extender of the Kuru lineage! One is incapable of satisfying greed through acquisitions. It is always like an ocean, incapable of being filled by deep-flowing rivers. Greed is not satisfied. Nor is desire satiated. O king! Its true nature is not known by the gods, the gandharvas, the asuras, the great serpents and all the large numbers of other beings. One who conquers greed and delusion conquers his soul. O Kouravya! Insolence, hatred, criticism, maligning and malice—these are found in greedy people who have not perfected their souls. There are those who are extremely learned, the repositories of the extremely great sacred texts. They can sever doubt. But on this, even they can have limited intelligence and are afflicted. They become addicted to hatred and anger and are cast out by those who are good in conduct. Though they are harsh inside, their words may be sweet. They are like pits that have been covered with grass. Though they hold up the flag,177 they are inferior and against dharma. They steal from the universe. They resort to the strength of arguments and follow many different kinds of paths. But because they base themselves on greed and ignorance, they destroy every kind of path. If evil-souled ones, driven primarily by greed, take over dharma, they deform it. But that practice tends to be established. O Kouravya! Arrogance, anger, pride, laziness, delight, sorrow, extreme vanity—these are seen among the greedy and the ignorant. Know that they have not been instructed. They are always full of greed. Ask those who have been instructed. I will tell you about the ones who are auspicious in their vows. They do not have any fear about their conduct. Nor do they fear the world hereafter. They find no delight in flesh, nor are they addicted to the agreeable and the disagreeable. Good conduct is agreeable to them. Self-control is established in them. They are beyond happiness and unhappiness. They are devoted to the truth and the ultimate. Though they are compassionate, they are neither givers, nor receivers. They are always devoted to the ancestors, the gods and guests. They always exert, in every kind of way. They follow every kind of dharma. O
descendant of the Bharata lineage! They are engaged in the welfare of all beings. They are prepared to give up everything. Having reached the ultimate shore of dharma, they are incapable of being dislodged and moved from their conduct, which was fashioned by virtuous people in ancient times. They are based on the path of virtue and are not frightened, fickle or fierce. They are beyond desire and anger. They are without a sense of ownership and without a sense of the ego. They are good in their vows and firm in their honour. O Yudhishthira! You should worship them and ask them. They do not seek cattle or fame, only dharma. They do perform the functions of the body, because that is necessary. But they do not know fear, anger, fickleness and sorrow. They do not fly the flag of dharma and there is nothing that is secret among them. They do not suffer from greed and delusion. They are upright and devoted to the truth. O Kounteya! You should find delight in them. Their minds are attentive. They find no delight in acquisitions. Nor do they grieve if there are no acquisitions. They are without sense of ownership and without sense of ego. They are based on the truth and look on everything equally. O son! Gain and lack of gain, happiness and unhappiness, pleasant and unpleasant, death and life—these are the same to them, because they are firm in their valour. They are full of intelligence and base themselves on the truth. They are extremely powerful. Attentively and according to your capacity, you should do what brings them happiness and is agreeable. Words used in conversation may be good or bad. Like that, through the working of destiny, all beings may have qualities.”’178

  Chapter 1481(153)

  ‘Yudhishthira said, “O grandfather! You have said that greed is the foundation of everything that is injurious. O father!179 I wish to hear about the true nature of ignorance.”