Mahabharata: Volume 8

by Debroy, Bibek

  Chapter 1521(193)

  ‘Yudhishthira asked, “O grandfather! What answer was given then by the brahmana or the king? Tell me this. In accordance with what you have described, what were their ends? What was the conversation between them? What transpired and what did they do there?”

  ‘Bhishma replied, “He183 accepted the agreement and worshipped Dharma, Yama, Time, Death and Heaven, as they deserved to be honoured. He worshipped all the other bulls among brahmanas who had assembled there. He bowed his head down and honoured all of them. He then spoke to the king in these words. ‘O rajarshi! United with the fruits, go to the sacred regions. With your permission, I will devote myself to japa once again. O immensely strong one! O lord of the earth! The goddess184 granted me a boon earlier—that my devotion to japa would always remain.’ The king replied, ‘O brahmana! If you are devoted to japa and if your success has been rendered futile, then go with my half and let the fruits of japa remain with you.’185 The brahmana said, ‘In the presence of all these people, you have made great efforts.186 Therefore, let us be equal and go wherever our ends take us.’

  ‘“Knowing what they had decided, the lord of the thirty gods came there, with all those who had forms of gods, the guardians of the worlds, the Sadhyas, the Vishvadevas, the Maruts, the large stellar bodies, the rivers, the mountains, the oceans, the many tirthas, the austerities, the various rites of the Vedas, the hymns, Sarasvati, Narada, Parvata, Vishvavasu, the Hahas, the Huhus,187 the gandharva Chitrasena with a large number of his family members, the serpents, the successful sages, Prajapati, the god of the gods and the unfathomable and thousand-headed Vishnu. Musical instruments like drums and trumpets were sounded in the sky. Celestial flowers were showered down on those great-souled ones. Large numbers of apsaras danced around in every direction.

  ‘“Heaven appeared there in personified form and spoke these words. ‘O brahmana! You are immensely fortunate and have become successful. O king! You have also become successful.’ O king! Having done what was proper towards each other, those two188 prepared to withdraw themselves from all material objects. They established prana, apana, udana, samana and vyana in their minds and turned their minds towards prana and apana. They concentrated these at the tips of their noses and below their eyebrows. Using their minds, they gently held them there. They rendered their bodies immobile and were fixed and controlled in their looks. Having seated and controlled themselves in that way, they sent their atmans upwards. A great and blazing mass of energy penetrated the crown of the great-souled brahmana’s head and went up to heaven. Great sounds of lamentation arose in all the directions. Worshipped by everyone, that energy entered the brahman. O lord of the earth! The grandfather advanced and welcomed that mass of energy, which was as tall as a man. He again spoke these supreme and sweet words. ‘There is no doubt that japakas obtain the same fruits as yogis. The fruits of yoga are directly evident. However, japakas are superior, because I advance to welcome them. Dwell with me.’ Having said this, he again imparted consciousness189 and without any anxiety, the brahmana entered into his190 mouth. Like that tiger among brahmanas, the king, following the prescribed rites, also entered into the illustrious grandfather.

  ‘“The gods worshipped Svayambhu and spoke these words. ‘We have made exertions to come to accomplish the objectives of the japaka. You have made them191 equal in honour and equal in obtaining the fruits. We have witnessed the great fruits obtained by yogis and japakas. They can go wherever they wish, passing over all the worlds.’ Brahma replied, ‘If a person follows the rites and reads the great sacred texts, or the auspicious ones that follow the sacred texts, he also goes to my world.192 If someone follows yoga in accordance with the prescribed rites, there is no doubt that, after death, he will obtain my worlds. I will now go. To accomplish your objectives, all of you also return to your places.’ Having said this, the god disappeared. Having taken his leave earlier, all the gods also returned to their own abodes. O king! All those great-souled ones honoured Dharma and, delighted in their minds, followed him at the rear. These are said to be the fruits and ends obtained by japakas. O great king! This is what I have heard. What else do you wish to hear?”’

  Chapter 1522(194)

  ‘Yudhishthira asked, “What are the fruits obtained through the yoga of knowledge, the Vedas and rituals? How can the atman in beings be known? O grandfather! Tell me this.”

  ‘Bhishma replied, “In this connection, an ancient history is recounted. This is a conversation between Prajapati Manu and maharshi Brihaspati. Prajapati was supreme on earth and maharshi Brihaspati was foremost amongst the large number of devarshis. In ancient times, the student bowed down before the preceptor193 and asked him a question. ‘What is the cause?194 Where have mantras and ordinances come from? What are the fruits that brahmanas say are attached to knowledge? O illustrious one! Tell me accurately, what are the things that mantras and sounds are not able to reveal? There are those who know about artha, the sacred texts, the subsequent sacred texts195 and mantras. They perform many supreme sacrifices, at which, they give away cows. What are the great fruits that flow from these? Where are they found? From where have the earth, those on earth, the wind, the sky, aquatic creatures, water, heaven and the residents of heaven originated? O illustrious one! Tell me this ancient account. Men desire and exert for knowledge and their inclination turns towards what they know. But I have no knowledge of that supreme and ancient one.196 Therefore, how can I avoid being false in my inclinations? I have studied the large material of the Rig Veda, the Sama Veda, the Yajur Veda, prosody, the paths of the nakshatras, nirukta,197 grammar, samkalpa198and shiksha.199 But I still do not know about the element that is in all nature. You should tell me everything, about the fruits that follow from knowledge and deeds and about how an embodied being gives up a body and again enters another body.’

  ‘“Manu said, ‘Anything that is agreeable is said to represent happiness. Similarly, anything disagreeable is said to represent unhappiness. I will obtain happiness from this and not from that—one performs all rites and rituals because of such sentiments. However, those who are engaged in the pursuit of knowledge serve neither happiness, nor unhappiness. Prosody and the yoga of action are because of this desire in the soul. However, if someone is freed from this, he attains the supreme. In the pursuit of happiness, a man engages in many things along the path of action. But he does not go towards the supreme. By freeing oneself from acts, one obtains the supreme. He is without desire and certainly obtains the supreme brahman. Subjects have been created through the mind and through deeds. These are the two virtuous paths, revered by everyone. Acts are seen to have outcomes that are both eternal and temporary. To obtain the eternal, there is no method other than renouncing any desire in the mind. When the night is over and the atman is no longer enveloped in darkness, the eye can lead the atman. Similarly, when a person has the qualities of jnana and vijnana, he can see which inauspicious deeds need to be avoided. When men know, they avoid snakes, the pointed ends of kusha and wells. In their folly, stupid people fall down there. In that way, behold the superior fruits of knowledge. The complete utterance of mantras, sacrifices performed according to the prescribed ordinances, the giving of dakshina, the donation of food and contemplation in the mind—these five are said to be the fruits the atman obtains through action. The Vedas say that deeds have qualities in them.200 Mantras form the foundations of deeds and mantras also possess these. It is evident that rituals must also have them. Fruits originate in the mind and the embodied being enjoys them. In the world of action, auspicious and sacred sounds, forms, taste, touch and scent can be successfully obtained as fruits. When acts are performed through the body, they are also enjoyed through the body. The body is the frame for happiness. The body is also the frame for unhappiness. However, if any tasks are performed through words, all of them are also enjoyed through words. Whatever acts are performed through the mind, it is the mind alone that enjoys them. Whatever quality and category of action a person desire
s and acts accordingly, the fruits of his action are also like that. Those qualities become attached and he enjoys the fruits of those auspicious and inauspicious deeds. Like a fish that swims against the tide, one has to confront the deeds one has committed earlier. The embodied being is satisfied because of his good deeds and is not satisfied because of his bad deeds. I will now tell you about the supreme one. Listen to me. He is the one from whom everything in the universe has originated. It is through knowing him that one can overcome everything. He cannot be expressed through mantras and words. He is distinct from the many kinds of tastes and scent and sound, touch and form. He is incapable of being understood by the senses. He is the one who is not manifest. He is without complexion. He is the single one. He has created the five kinds of beings.201 He is not female, male, or neuter. He does not exist. But nor does he not exist. Men who know about the brahman can behold him. Know that he is Akshara, without decay.’”’

  Chapter 1523(195)

  ‘“Manu said, ‘Wind originated in Akshara. Energy originated in wind. Water originated in energy. The universe originated in water. Everything in the universe originated from the universe. All these bodies eventually enter into the water first.202 From the water, they then progressively go to energy, wind and space. The enlightened ones who obtain the supreme do not have to return from space. There is no heat, cold, mildness, sharpness, sourness, astringency, sweetness, bitterness, sound, scent or form in that supreme state. One does not feel touch. The tongue does not feel taste. The nose does not feel scent. The ears do not hear sound. In that supreme state, the eyes do not see form. Men who are learned about adhyatma accept that state. The tongue withdraws from taste, the nose from scent, the ears from hearing, the skin from touch and the eyes from the qualities of form. In that supreme state, such a person beholds his own natural state. It has been said that the doer, the act, the facilitators for an act, the inclination, the reasons behind the act and the methods are the soul.203 But the true doer is the one who pervades everything in the world, just as the mantras have stated. He is the reason behind everything. He is behind the supreme objective. He is the cause. Everything else is an effect. Because of the good and bad deeds performed, a man obtains the good and the bad, sometimes in contradiction to each other. Because of his own deeds, the good and the bad reside in the body, and knowledge is also bound down there.204 When a lamp is lit, the lamp illuminates everything that is in front. The senses are like lamps on trees. When ignited with knowledge, they illuminate everything. The many advisers of a king cite different reasons, but also come together. Those five in the body205 are also subservient to supreme knowledge. The flames of the fire, the force of the wind, the rays of the sun and the water in the rivers repeatedly come and go. Like that, embodied beings repeatedly come and go in different bodies. When a person grasps an axe and cuts wood, he sees neither smoke nor fire inside it. Like that, by severing the body, the stomach, the hands and the feet, one cannot see the other one. When wood is rubbed against another piece of wood, one can see both smoke and fire. Like that, a person with excellent intelligence and wisdom, can control his senses to see the supreme in his own natural state. When one is dreaming, one can see one’s own body lying down on the ground, as if it is separate from one’s own self. Like that, a person with hearing and the others senses, excellent in his mind and in his intelligence, sees himself going from one body into another body. The supreme in the body206 is not subject to birth, growth, decay and destruction. Unseen, it goes through a process of transition and passes from one body into another body. The eye cannot behold the form of the atman. It cannot be felt by anyone through touch. It does not perform any acts. No one can see it. But it sees them. When a lamp is lit, it assumes a form because of the fire and the heat. That which is inside is also seen to assume form and qualities from the body. Unseen, a man gives up his body and enters another body. He casts aside the body formed of the great elements, but still resorts to a form constituted by them. He enters the body of wind, fire, water, space and earth in every way. Depending on their action, hearing and the other senses resort to the five different qualities. The ear is for space, smell is for the earth and sight is for energy and fire. Sweat and taste are said to resort to water. The quality of touch has the property of wind. The objects of the senses, and the five senses themselves, dwell in the five great elements. All of them follow the mind. The mind follows intelligence and the mind follows one’s nature. Whatever good and bad deeds may have been performed are received in one’s own body. They follow the lead of the mind, just as aquatic creatures follow a favourable current. When a moving object comes into the range of vision, even if it is extremely small, it seems to assume a large form. In the path of intelligence, one can see one’s supreme form in one’s own form.’”’

  Chapter 1524(196)

  ‘“Manu said, ‘When the senses are collected together and obtain their qualities, they remember what has been done a long time ago. When the senses are collected together later, through the use of the intelligence, one comprehends one’s supreme nature. When all the objects of the senses are simultaneously controlled and, over time, one uses one’s strength to prevent them from wandering around, the intelligent person understands himself to be the single supreme embodied being.207 One passes through the three—rajas, tamas and sattva—and the three qualities and forms of knowledge. In that way, the embodied being penetrates the senses, like wind entering a kindled fire. The eyes cannot see the form of the atman. Touch cannot comprehend it. It is beyond the senses to fathom it. The ears cannot comprehend the soul through hearing. Whichever sense comprehends it is destroyed.208 Hearing and the other senses cannot fathom the atman on their own. The kshetrajna knows everything, sees everything and witnesses. No man has seen the other side of the Himalayas, or the dark side of the moon. But this doesn’t mean that they don’t exist. In that way, the atman exists in a subtle way in all beings and is based in knowledge. Something that has not been seen earlier and something that has not been heard of earlier is not necessarily non-existent. Even if one looks, one doesn’t always see the universe in the moon. It is like that for those who are not fixed on the final objective. The learned see that form is created and form is also destroyed. Through their intelligence, they can understand the motion of the sun.209 With the lamp of intelligence, the extremely learned see what is far away. Through their intelligence, they can immediately investigate what should be known. Indeed, nothing can be accomplished without the use of means. Fishermen kill fish by using nets that are made out of strings. Deer are used to capture other deer, birds for other birds and elephants for other elephants. In that way, what needs to be known can be seen through knowledge. As an example, only a snake can see a snake’s legs. Through knowledge, inside the body, one can see what is based in the body and deserves to be known. One will not be able to comprehend the senses through the use of the senses. In that way, what is beyond intelligence cannot be understood through the use of supreme intelligence. On the fifteenth day of the dark lunar fortnight, even a subtle form of the moon cannot be seen. That does not mean that it has been destroyed. Know that the embodied being is like that. On the fifteenth day of the dark lunar fortnight, the faint form of the moon is not evident in the sky. In that way, when it is separated from its body, its own body cannot comprehend the soul. Having attained another position, the moon begins to shine again. In that way, having obtained another body, the soul is resplendent again. The birth, growth and decay of the moon can immediately be seen. But the soul is not like that. The birth, growth and decay of the body should also be accepted like that. Even in its dark state, the moon possesses a form. One does not see darkness seize the moon and release it. In that way, the release and entering of the soul cannot be seen.210 Darkness is seen when it approaches the moon and the sun.211 In that way, the soul can be understood as separate from the body. When the moon and the sun have been freed, Rahu can no longer be seen.212 In that way, when it has been separated from the body, the soul can n
o longer be comprehended. Even on the fifteenth day of the dark lunar fortnight, the nakshatras are still united with the moon. In that way, though it has been separated from the body, the fruits of acts performed are still united with it.’”’

  Chapter 1525(197)

  ‘“Manu said, ‘When the manifest body is asleep, consciousness roams around in his dreams. Like that, consciousness is separated from knowledge and the senses after death. There are both existence and non-existence.213 When the water is clear, the eyes can see the image in it. In that way, when the senses are clear, knowledge can be used to see what should be known. When the water is agitated, the image cannot be seen. In that way, when the senses are agitated, knowledge cannot be used to see what should be known. Lack of intelligence leads to lack of wisdom. Lack of intelligence taints the mind. When the mind is tainted, the five which are based in the mind214 are also tainted. If one is immersed in material objects, one is ignorant and not satisfied. One does not see. Though the atman is pure, not being able to see, it circles around in material objects. Because of the sins, a man’s thirst is never satisfied. The thirst is conquered only when one has destroyed the sins. The attachment to material objects has a tendency to perpetuate. The mind hankers for what one should not desire, and the supreme is not obtained. To obtain knowledge, a man must destroy his wicked deeds. When the sight is clear, one sees the atman in one’s own self. If the senses are not controlled, one is miserable. When they are restrained, one is happy. Therefore, one must use one’s atman to sever that attachment one has for objects of the senses. The mind is above the senses and the intelligence is above that. Knowledge is above intelligence and the supreme215 is above knowledge. The soul originates in what is not manifest. Knowledge comes from the soul. Intelligence comes from knowledge. The mind comes from intelligence. The virtuous see that the mind is united with hearing and the other senses and sounds and the like. He who casts aside sounds and the like and everything that is manifest is freed from everything that is natural and ordinary. Having been freed, he enjoys immortality. When the sun rises, it creates a circle of rays. When it sets, it withdraws what it had itself created. In that way, the atman enters the body and spreads the rays of the senses, obtaining the qualities of the five senses. But when it sets, it restrains them. A person is repeatedly conveyed along the path of action. Though there is dharma in the soul, he grows old, having obtained the fruits of these deeds. If a person withdraws, material objects also withdraw from him. If a person has beheld the supreme, he abandons objects of desire and desire also leaves him. When the intelligence has rid itself of qualities associated with action and has immersed itself in the mind, there is destruction216 and one obtains the brahman. This is not something that can be touched, heard, tasted, seen or smelt. This is beyond debate. It is only the spirit that can penetrate that supreme being. Everything created by the mind can be drawn back into it. The mind can be withdrawn into intelligence. Intelligence can be withdrawn into knowledge. Knowledge can be withdrawn into the supreme. The senses cannot ensure the mind’s success. The mind cannot understand intelligence. Intelligence cannot comprehend what is not manifest. The subtle soul can alone see.’”’