The Sanskrit Epics

by Delphi Classics

  “‘“There are two kinds of creatures on Earth, O lord of Earth, viz., mobile and immobile. Of these that are mobile are superior. That high knowledge, O king, which exists in persons conversant with Brahma, and that which occurs in the Vedas, and that which is found in other scriptures, and that in Yoga, and that which may be seen in the diverse Puranas, are all, O monarch, to be found in Sankhya philosophy.569 Whatever knowledge is seen to exist in high histories, whatever knowledge occurs, O king, in the sciences appertaining to the acquisition of wealth as approved by the wise, whatever other knowledge exists in this world, — all these, — flow, O high-souled monarch, from the high knowledge that occurs among the Sankhyas. Tranquillity of soul, high puissance, all subtile knowledge of which the scriptures speak, penances of subtile force, and all kinds of felicity, O king, have all been duly ordained in the Sankhya system. Failing to acquire, O son of Pritha, that complete knowledge which is recommended by their system, the Sankhyas attain to the status of deities and pass many years in felicity. Lording it over the celestials as they will, they fall, upon the expiration of the allotted period, among learned Brahmanas and Yatis.570 Casting off this body, those regenerate ones that follow the Sankhya system enter into the superior state of Brahma like the celestials entering into the firmament by devoting themselves wholly to that adorable system which is theirs and which is worshipped by all wise men. Those regenerate persons that are devoted to the acquisition of that knowledge which is recommended in the Sankhya system, even if they fail to attain to eminence, are never seen to fall among intermediate creatures, or to sink into the status of sinful men. That high-souled person who is fully conversant with the vast, high, ancient, ocean-like, and immeasurable Sankhya system that is pure and liberal and agreeable, becomes, O king, equal to Narayana. I have now told thee, O god among men, the truth about the Sankhya system. It is the embodiment of Narayana, of the universe as it exists from the remotest time.571 When the time of Creation comes, He causes the Creation to start into life, and when the time comes for destruction, He swallows up everything. Having withdrawn everything into his own body he goes to sleep, — that inner Soul of the universe.”’“572

  SECTION CCCIII

  “‘YUDHISHTHIRA SAID, “WHAT is that which is called Undeteriorating and by attaining to which no one has to come back? What, again, is that which is called Deteriorating, and by attaining to which one has to return once more? O slayer of foes, I ask thee the distinction that exists, O thou of mighty arms, between the Deteriorating and the Undeteriorating ones for understanding them both truly, O delighter of the Kurus. Brahmanas conversant with the Vedas speak of thee as an Ocean of knowledge. Highly-blessed Rishis and Yatis of high souls do the same. Thou hast very few days to live. When the Sun turns from the southern path for entering into the northern, thou shalt attain to thy high end. When thou shalt leave us, from whom shall we hear of all that is beneficial for us? Thou art the lamp of Kuru’s race. Indeed thou art always blazing with the light of knowledge. O perpetuator of Kuru’s race, I desire, therefore to hear all this from thee. Listening to thy discourses that are always sweet like nectar, my curiosity, without being satiated is always increasing!”

  “‘Bhishma said, “I shall, in this connection, relate to thee the old narrative of the discourse that took place between Vasishtha and king Karala of Janaka’s race. Once on a time when that foremost of Rishis, viz., Vasishtha, endued with the effulgence of the Sun, was seated at his ease, king Janaka asked him about that highest knowledge which is for our supreme good. Highly proficient in that department of knowledge which is concerned with the Soul and possessed of certain conclusions in respect of all branches of that science,573 as Maitravaruni, that foremost of Rishis, was seated the king approaching him with joined hands, asked him in humble words, well pronounced and sweet and destitute of all controversial spirit, the question, — O holy one, I desire to hear, of Supreme and Eternal Brahma by attaining to which men of wisdom have not to come back. I desire also to know that which is called Destructible and That into which this universe enters when destroyed. Indeed, what is That which is said to be indestructible, suspicious, beneficial and free from evil of every kind?

  “‘“Vasishtha said, ‘Hear, O lord of Earth, as to how this universe is destroyed, and, of That which was never destroyed and which will never be destroyed at any time. Twelve thousand years, (according to the measure of the celestials), make a Yuga, four such Yugas taken a thousand times, make a Kalpa which measures one day of Brahman.574 Brahman’s night also, O king, is of the same measure. When Brahman himself is destroyed,575 Sambhu of formless soul and to whom the Yuga attributes of Anima, Laghima, &c, naturally inhere, awakes, and once more creates that First or Eldest of all creatures, possessed of vast proportions, of infinite deeds, endued with form, and identifiable with the universe. That Sambhu is otherwise called Isana (the lord of everything). He is pure Effulgence, and transcends all deterioration, having his hands and feet stretching in all directions, with eyes and head and mouth everywhere, and with ears also in every place. That Being exists, overwhelming the entire universe. The eldest-born Being is called Hiranyagarbha. This holy one has (in the Vedanta) been called the Understanding. In the Yuga scriptures He is called the Great, and Virinchi, and the Unborn. In the Sankhya scriptures, He is indicated by diverse name, and regarded as having Infinity for his Soul. Of diverse forms and constituting the soul of the universe, He is regarded as One and Indestructible. The three worlds of infinite ingredients have been created by Him without assistance from any source and have been overwhelmed by him. In consequence of His manifold forms, He is said to be of universal form. Undergoing modifications He creates Himself by Himself. Endued with mighty energy, He first creates Consciousness and that Great Being called Prajapati endued with Consciousness. The Manifest (or Hiranyagarbha) is created from the Unmanifest. This is called by the learned the Creation of Knowledge. The creation of Mahan (or Virat) and Consciousness, by Hiranyagarbha, is the creation of Ignorance.576 Ascription of attributes (worthy of worship) and the destruction thereof, called respectively by the names of Ignorance and Knowledge by persons learned by the interpretation of the Srutis, then arose, referring to this, that, or the other of the three (viz., Akshara, Hiranyagarbha, or Virat).577 Know, O king, that the creation of the (subtile) elements from consciousness is the third.578 In all kinds of consciousness is the fourth creation which flows modification of the third. This fourth creation comprises Wind and Light and Space and Water and Earth, with their properties of sound, touch, form, taste and scent. This aggregate of ten arose, without doubt, at the same time. The fifth creation, O monarch, is that which has arisen from combination of the primal elements (named above). This comprises the ear, the skin, the eyes, the tongue, and the nose forming the fifth, and speech, and the two hands, and the two legs, and the lower duct, and the organs of generation. The first five of these constitute the organs of knowledge, and the last five the organs of action. All these, with mind, arose simultaneously O king. These constitute the four and twenty topics that exist in the forms of all living creatures. By understanding these properly, Brahmanas possessed of insight into the truth have never to yield to sorrow. In the three worlds a combination of these, called body, is possessed by all embodied creatures. Indeed, O king a combination of those is known as such in deities and men and Danavas, and Yakshas and spirits and Gandharvas and Kinnaras and great snakes, and Charanas and Pisachas, in celestial Rishis and Rakshasas, in biting flies, and worms, and gnats, and vermin born of filth and rats, and dogs and Swapakas and Chaineyas and Chandalas and Pukkasas in elephants and steeds and asses and tigers, and trees and kine. Whatever other creatures exist in water or space or on earth, for there is no other place in which creatures exist as we have heard, have this combination. All these, O sire, included within the class called Manifest, are seen to be destroyed day after day. Hence, all creatures produced by union of these four and twenty are said to be destructible.

  “‘“This then is the
Indestructible. And since the universe, which is made up of Manifest and Unmanifest, meets with destruction, therefore, it is said to be Destructible. The very Being called Mahan who is the eldest-born is always spoken of as an instance of the Destructible. I have now told thee, O monarch, all that thou hadst asked me. Transcending the four and twenty topics already adverted to is the twenty-fifth called Vishnu. That Vishnu in consequence of the absence of all attributes, is not a topic (of knowledge) though as then which pervades all the topics, he has been called so by the wise. Since that which is destructible has caused all this that is Manifest, therefore, all this is endued with form. The twenty-fourth, which is Prakriti, is said to preside over all this (which has sprung from her modifications). The twenty-fifth, which is Vishnu, is formless and, therefore, cannot be said to preside over the universe.579 It is that Unmanifest (Prakriti), which, when endued with body (in consequence of union with Chit) dwells in the hearts of all creatures endued with body. As regards eternal Chetana (the Indestructible), although he is without attributes and without form, yet he (in consequence of a union with Prakriti) assumes all forms. Uniting with Prakriti which has the attributes of birth and death, he also assumes the attributes of birth and death. And in consequence of such union he becomes an object of perception and though in reality divested of all attributes yet he comes to be invested therewith. It is in this way that the Mahan-Soul (Hiranyagarbha), becoming united with Prakriti and invested with Ignorance, undergoes modifications and becomes conscious of Self. Uniting with the attributes of Sattwa and Rajas and Tamas, he becomes identified with diverse creatures belonging to diverse orders of Being, in consequence of his forgetfulness and his waiting upon Ignorance. In consequence of his birth and destruction arising from the fact of his dwelling in upon with Prakriti, he thinks himself to be no other than what he apparently is. Regarding himself as this or that, he follows the attributes of Sattwa, Rajas, and Tamas. Under the influence of Tamas, he attains to diverse kinds of conditions that are affected by Tamas. Under the influence of Rajas and Sattwa, he attains similarly to conditions that are affected by Rajas and Sattwa. There are three colours in all, viz., White, Red, and Dark. All those colours appertain to Prakriti (so that He it is who becomes White or Red or Dark according as the nature of the Prakriti with which is He becomes identified for the time being). Through Tamas one goes to hell. Through Rajas one attains to and remains in the status of humanity. Through Sattwa, people ascend to the regions of the deities and become sharers of great felicity. By adhering to sin continuously one sinks into the intermediate order of beings. By acting both righteously and sinfully one attains to the status of the deities. In this way the twenty-fifth, viz., Akshara (the Indestructible), the wise say, by union with the unmanifest (Prakriti), becomes transformed into Kshara (destructible). By means of knowledge however, the Indestructible becomes displayed in His true nature.’”’“

  SECTION CCCIV

  “‘“VASISHTHA SAID, ‘THUS in consequence of his forgetfulness the Soul follows ignorance and obtains thousands of bodies one after another. He attains to thousands of births among the intermediate orders and sometimes among the very gods in consequence of his union with (particular) attributes and the puissance of attributes.580 From the status of humanity, he goes to heaven and from heaven he comes back to humanity, and from humanity he sinks into hell for many long years. As the worm that fabricates the cocoon shuts itself, completely on every side by means of the threads it weaves itself, even so the Soul, though in reality transcending all attributes, invests himself on every side with attributes (and deprives himself of liberty).581 Though transcending (in his real nature) both happiness and misery, it is thus that he subjects himself to happiness and misery. It is thus also that, though transcending all diseases, the Soul regards himself to be afflicted by headache and opthalmia and toothache and affections of the throat and abdominal dropsy, and burning thirst, and enlargement of glands, and cholera, and vitiligo, and leprosy, and burns, and asthma and phthisis, and epilepsy, and whatever other diseases of diverse kinds are seen in the bodies of embodied creatures. Regarding himself, through error, as born among thousands of creatures in the intermediate orders of being, and sometimes among the gods, he endures misery and enjoys the fruits of his good deeds. Invested with Ignorance he regards himself as robed sometimes in white cloth and sometimes in full dress consisting of four pieces or as lying on floors (instead of on beds or bedsteads) or with hands and feet contracted like those of frogs or as seated upright in the attitude of ascetic contemplation, or as clad in rags or as lying or sitting under the canopy of heaven or within mansions built of bricks and stone or on rugged stones or on ashes or bare stones or on the bare earth or on beds or on battlefields or in water or in mire or on wooden planks or on diverse kinds of beds; or impelled by desire of fruits, he regards himself as clad in a scant piece of cloth made of grass or as totally nude or as robed in silk or in skin of the black antelope or in cloth made of flax or in sheep-skin or in tiger-skin or in lion-skin or in fabric of hemp, or in barks of birch or in cloths made of the produce of prickly plants, or in vestures made of threads woven by worms or of torn rags or in diverse other kinds of cloth too numerous to mention. The soul regards himself also as wearing diverse kinds of ornaments and gems, or as eating diverse kinds of food. He regards himself as sometimes eating at intervals of one night, or once at the same hour every day, or as at the fourth, the sixth, and the eighth hour every day, or as once in six or seven or eight nights, or as once in ten or twelve day, or as once in a month, of as eating only roots, or fruits, or as subsisting upon air or water alone, or on cakes of sesame husk, or curds or cowdung, or the urine of the cow or potherbs or flowers or moss or raw food, or as subsisting on fallen leaves of trees or fruits that have fallen down and lay scattered on the ground, or diverse other kinds of food, impelled by the desire of winning (ascetic) success. The Soul regards himself as adopting the observance of Chandrayana according to the rites ordained in the scriptures, or diverse other vows and observance, and the courses of duty prescribed for the four modes of life, and even derelictions of duty, and the duties of other subsidiary modes of life included in the four principal ones, and even diverse kinds of practices that distinguish the wicked and sinful. The Soul regards himself as enjoying retired spots and delightful shades of mountains and the cool vicinity of spring and fountain and solitary river banks and secluded forests, and sacred spots dedicated to the deities, and lakes and waters withdrawn from the busy hunts of men, and lone mountain caves affording the accommodation that houses and mansions afford. The Soul regards himself as employed in the recitation of different kinds of hidden Mantras or as observing different vows and rules and diverse kinds of penances, and sacrifices of many kinds, and rites of diverse sorts. The Soul regards himself as adopting sometimes the way of traders and merchants and the practices of Brahmanas and Kshatriyas and Vaisyas and Sudras, and gifts of diverse kinds unto those that are destitute or blind or helpless. In consequence of his being invested with Ignorance, the Soul adopts different attributes of Sattwa and Rajas and Tamas, and Righteousness and Wealth and pleasure. Under the influence of Prakriti the Soul, undergoing modification himself, observes and adopts and practices all these and regards himself as such. Indeed, the Soul regards himself as employed in the utterance of the sacred mantras Swaha and Swadha and Vashat, and in bowing unto those he regards as his Superiors; in officiating in the sacrifices of others, in teaching pupils, making gifts and accepting them; in performing sacrifices and studying the scriptures, and doing all other acts and rites of this kind. The Soul regards himself as concerned with birth and death and disputes and slaughter. All these, the learned say, constitute the path of acts good and bad. It is the goddess Prakriti who causes birth and death. When the time approaches for universal Destruction, all existent objects and attributes are withdrawn by the Supreme Soul which then exists alone like the Sun withdrawing at evening all his rays; and when the time comes for Creation He once more creates and spr
eads them out like the Sun shedding and spreading out his rays when morning comes. Even thus the Soul, for the sake of sport, repeatedly regards himself invested with all these conditions, which are his own forms and attributes, infinite in number, and agreeable to himself. It is this way that the Soul, though really transcending the three attributes, becomes attached to the path of acts and creates by modification Prakriti invested with the attributes of birth and death and identical with all acts and conditions which are characterised by the three attributes of Sattwa, Rajas, and Tamas. Arrived at the path of action, the Soul regards particular acts to be endued with particular characteristics and productive of particular ends. O monarch, the whole of this universe has been blinded by Prakriti and all things have been diversely overwhelmed (through Prakriti) by the attributes of Rajas and Tamas. It is in consequence of the Soul being invested by Prakriti that these pairs of opposites productive of happiness and woe, repeatedly come. It is in consequence of this Ignorance that Jiva regards these sorrows to be his and imagines them as pursuing him. Indeed, O monarch, through that Ignorance it is that Jiva imagines he should anyhow cross those sorrows, and that he should, going into the regions of the gods, enjoy the felicity that awaits all his good acts. It is through Ignorance that he thinks he should enjoy and endure these delights and these woes here in this world. Through Ignorance Jiva thinks,— “I should secure my happiness. By continually doing good acts, I may have happiness in this life till its close and I shall be happy in all my future lives. Though, again the (evil) acts I do in this life unending sorrow may become mine. The status of humanity is fraught with great misery, for from it one sinks into hell. From hell, it will take many long years before I can come back to the status of humanity. From humanity I shall attain to the status of the gods. From that superior status I shall have to come back again to humanity and thence to sink into hell once more!” — One who always regards this combination of the primal elements and the senses, with the Chit’s reflection in it, to be thus invested with the characteristics of the Soul, has repeatedly to wander among gods and human beings and to sink into hell. Being always invested with the idea of meum, Jiva has to make a round of such births. Millions upon millions of births have to be gone through by Jiva in the successive forms he assumes, all of which are liable to death. He who does acts in this way, which are all fraught with good and bad fruits, has in the three worlds to assume successive forms and to enjoy and endure fruits corresponding therewith. It is Prakriti that causes acts fraught with good and bad acts; and it is Prakriti that enjoys and endures the fruits thereof in the three worlds. Indeed, Prakriti follows the course of acts. The status of the intermediate beings, of humanity, and of the gods as well, — these three fields, — should be known as originating in Prakriti and has been said to be destitute of all attributes. Her existence is affirmed only in consequence of her acts (beginning with Mahat). After the same manner, Purusha (or Soul), though without attributes himself, has his existence affirmed in consequence of the acts which the body does when it receives his reflection. Although the Soul is not subject to modifications of any kind and is the active principle that sets Prakriti in motion, yet entering a body that is united with the senses of knowledge and action, he regards all the acts of those senses as his own. The five senses of knowledge beginning with the ear, and those of action beginning with speech, uniting with the attributes of Sattwa and Rajas and Tamas, become engaged in numerous objects. Jiva imagines that it is he who does the acts of his life and that the senses of knowledge and acts belong to him, although in reality he has no senses. Indeed, though unequipt with body, he imagines that he has a body. Though destitute of attributes, he regards himself as endued therewith, and though transcending Time, imagines himself to be under Time’s control. Though destitute of understanding, he still regards himself as endued therewith, and though transcending the (four and twenty) topics, regards himself as one included among them. Though deathless, he still regards himself as liable to death, and though motionless regards himself to be endued with motion. Though not possessed of a material case, he still regards himself as possessed of one; and though unborn, he still regards himself as invested with birth. Though transcending penances, he still regards as engaged in penances, and though he has no end (after which to strive), he still regards himself as liable to attain to ends (of diverse kinds). Though not endued with motion and birth, he still regards himself as endued with both, and though transcending fear, still regards himself as liable to fear. Though Indestructible, he still regards himself Destructible. Invested with Ignorance, the Soul thus thinks of himself.’”’“