Read Mahabharata: Volume 8 Online
Authors: Bibek Debroy
‘Bhima said, “O king! Your understanding has become clouded, just like a scholar of the Vedas who has limited intelligence and recites passages from the Vedas, without realizing their true purport. O bull among the Bharata lineage! If you had made up your mind to be lazy and censure the dharma of kings, then what has been gained from this destruction of the sons of Dhritarashtra? Forgiveness, compassion, pity and non-violence—with the exception of you, there is no one who treads the path of kshatriyas who is tied down by these. Had we got to know that your intentions would be of this type, we would never have picked up our weapons and killed anyone. We would have roamed around and sustained ourselves through begging, until it was time to free ourselves from our bodies. This terrible battle between the kings would not have taken place. The wise ones have said that everything is meant to
sustain life. Everything, mobile and immobile, is food to sustain life. Therefore, anyone who stands in the way of obtaining the kingdom must be slain. Those who are wise and learned about the dharma of kshatriyas have said this. Those killed by us were wicked. They stood in the way of the kingdom. O Yudhishthira! Having slain them, we should follow dharma and enjoy the earth. We are like a man digging a well, who stops in his task before having reached the water, and is therefore only covered in mud. We are acting like someone who climbs a tall tree for honey, but falls down and dies before he has been able to obtain it. We are acting like a man who sets out on a great journey with high hopes, but who despairs and returns. O supreme among the Kuru lineage! We are acting like a man who slays his enemies and then kills himself. We are acting like someone who is hungry, but having obtained food, does not eat it because he does not feel like it. We are acting like someone who is driven by desire, but having obtained a beautiful woman, does not perform the act. However, we are the ones who should be censured. We are the ones who are limited in our intelligence. O king! O descendant of the Bharata lineage! We have followed you, merely because you are the eldest. We possess the strength of arms. We are accomplished in our learning. We are spirited. But because we follow the words of a eunuch, we are like ones who are incapacitated. We are the refuge of those who do not have a refuge. However, our prosperity will be destroyed and our objectives will be unsuccessful. When people see us in this way, what will they think of us? It has been instructed that renunciation should be resorted to in times of distress, by someone who has been overtaken by old age, or by someone who has been defeated by his enemies. Those who are accomplished in wisdom do not recommend renunciation in a situation like this. Those who are subtle in discernment think that this is a transgression of dharma. Therefore, how can you resort to a state that is not recommended for you? You should censure it too, and not faithfully accept it.
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Men who are without prosperity and riches, those who are atheists, have propounded this view about the learning in the Vedas. This is
falsehood in the garb of truth. If a man who is capable resorts to this state of shaving his head, he is deluding himself. He is resorting to false dharma. Though he subsists, he does not live. Then again, though he is capable of sustaining sons, grandsons, gods, rishis, guests and ancestors, he decides to lead a solitary life of happiness in the forest. Even animals, boars and birds cannot obtain heaven in this way. People do not say that this is an auspicious way of life. O king! If one could obtain success only through sannyasa, then mountains and trees would have swiftly obtained success. They are always seen not to cause injury towards others and are based on sannyasa. They have no possessions and always live on their own. If success can be obtained through one’s own fortune
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and not that of others, one should undertake action. There can be no success without action. Aquatic creatures have no one but themselves to sustain. If that is the criterion, they would obtain success. Notice that everyone in this universe is preoccupied with his own tasks. Therefore, one should act. There can be no success without action.”’
‘Arjuna said, “O bull among the Bharata lineage! On this, an ancient history is recounted, the conversation between the ascetics and Shakra. Some brahmanas abandoned their homes and went to the forest. They had still not developed beards.
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Though they were born in good lineages, they were stupid and followed the wrong path. They thought that they were following dharma and decided to observe brahmacharya. They abandoned their homes and their fathers. Indra took pity on them. Adopting the form of a golden bird, the illustrious one came to them and said, ‘Men who eat leftover food perform an extremely difficult task. The lives of those who
perform such meritorious acts should be praised. They are foremost among those who follow dharma and obtain the best of success and objectives.’
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‘“The rishis replied, ‘Aha! This bird is praising those who eat leftover food. It must be praising us, since we subsist on leftover food.’
‘“The bird said, ‘I am not praising you. You are covered in mud and dust. You are wicked ones who eat impure food. You are not the ones who eat leftover food.’
‘“The rishis replied, ‘We think that the path that we are following is the best. O bird! Tell us what is beneficial. We have great faith in you.’
‘“The bird said, ‘If you do not doubt me and do not cause a division in your own selves,
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then I will speak words that are truly beneficial.’
‘“The rishis replied, ‘O father!
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We will listen to your words. You know about different paths. O one with dharma in your soul! Instruct us. We wish to be taught by you.’
‘“The bird said, ‘The cow is the best among quadrupeds and gold the best among metals. Mantras are the best among words and brahmanas the best among bipeds. Mantras determine the sacraments for a brahmana as long as he lives, from the time of birth to the time when he dies and is at the cremation ground. The rites of the Vedas are the supreme path towards heaven. All deeds are said to become successful through mantras. In this world, the firm words of the Vedas signify success, depending on the months, half-months, seasons, the sun, the moon and the stars.
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In this life, all beings are attached to action in accordance with this. This
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is sacred and the greatest stage
of life and is the field for success. What path is followed by men who censure action? They are stupid, evil and are deprived of artha. Those foolish ones subsist, but have abandoned the eternal path followed by the lineage of the gods, the lineage of the ancestors and the lineage of Brahma.
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They traverse a path not approved by the sacred texts. O ascetics! Therefore, this is the asceticism you should endeavour to follow. The offering of shares to the eternal lineages of the gods, the ancestors and Brahma and servitude to preceptors are said to be the most difficult of tasks. Having performed such difficult tasks, the gods obtained supreme prosperity. That is the reason I am telling you that the burden of a householder is an extremely difficult one to take up. There is no doubt that this is the best form of austerity for beings. It forms the base. Everything is established on the rules prescribed for a family. O brahmanas! Those who are not selfish and those who have gone beyond opposite sentiments say that this is the best form of asceticism. People say that going to the forest is a middling kind of asceticism. Those who live on leftovers and following the rites, morning and evening, divide up the food among relatives, attain an end that is extremely difficult to obtain. They first give to guests, gods, ancestors and relatives. They then eat the remnants and are said to be those who live on leftovers. They are established in their own dharma. They are excellent in their vows and are truthful. They become the preceptors of the worlds and are revered by everyone. They do not suffer from envy. They attain the world of heaven, Shakra’s heaven. Those people perform extremely difficult deeds and dwell there for an eternal number of years.’
‘“On hearing his words, which were full of dharma and artha, they abandoned the path of non-believers
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and resorted to the dharma of householders.
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O one who cannot be assailed! Therefore, you should also resort to eternal patience. O supreme among men! With all the enemies slain, rule over the entire earth.”’
Vaishampayana said, ‘On hearing Arjuna’s words, Nakula glanced towards the king, who was supreme among those who upheld all forms of dharma. The immensely wise one was broad in the chest and mighty-armed.
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His eyes were coppery red and he was temperate in speech. The scorcher of enemies spoke these words to his brother. “The gods established their fires in Vishakhayupa.
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O great king! Know that the gods decided to base themselves on action. O king! The ancestors gave life to both believers and non-believers. However, consider that they performed deeds in accordance with the prescribed rites. Know that those who censure the Vedas
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have been dislodged and are extreme non-believers. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! A brahmana who abandons what is stated in the Vedas, despite all his action, does not attain the path of the gods and the vault of heaven. O lord of men! There are brahmanas who are learned and have carefully determined everything stated in the Vedas. Listen. They say that this
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is the best stage of life. Wealth must be acquired in accordance with dharma and must be given away in the best of sacrifices. O great king! A man who thus perfects his soul is said to be one who truly renounces. However, a person who ignores this source of happiness is established on a higher plane, in the sense that he abandons his own self.
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O great king! O lord! That is a
tamasa
kind of renouncing.
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There may be a sage who does not have an abode. He roams around and finds refuge at the root of
a tree. He does not cook and is always engaged in yoga. O Partha! He is one who renounces, but is a mendicant.
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O lord of the earth! There may be a brahmana who disregards anger and delight and does not indulge in passions. He studies the Vedas. But such a person who renounces only serves his preceptor.
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O king! The learned ones have considered all the ashramas
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on a scale and have said that three of them on one side are equal to the stage of being a householder on the other. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Having considered, the maharshis, who know about the objectives of the worlds, determined that this was the path towards artha, kama and heaven. O bull among the Bharata lineage! Someone who acts in accordance with these sentiments is one who truly renounces. Like a foolish person, he does not abandon his house and head for the forest. There are also those false ones, who are like bird-catchers trying to catch dharma. But because they cannot get rid of desire, the king of death
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binds them around the neck with the noose of death. It is said that action done through pride does not lead to fruits. Tranquility, self-control, austerities, generosity, truthfulness, cleanliness, honesty, sacrifices, fortitude and dharma are always spoken of as the rites followed by rishis. Acts undertaken for the sake of gods, ancestors and guests are praised. O great king! In this mode of life, the three fruits are obtained.
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One who follows this, observed by the brahmanas, and does not deviate, is one who renounces and never confronts catastrophe in anything. O king! The unblemished Prajapati
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created beings. The one who is tranquil in his soul thought that they would worship him with sacrifices and perform sacrifices, with many kinds of
gifts. Creepers, trees, herbs, animals fit to be sacrificed and oblations and other objects required for sacrifices were also created for the sake of sacrifices. The task of performing a sacrifice constrains those who are in the householder stage.
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That is the reason the status of being a householder is a difficult task to perform and is not easy to obtain. O great king! There are householders who possess animals and grain, but do not sacrifice. Eternal sin awaits them. Some rishis say that studying is a sacrifice, others that knowledge is a sacrifice. There are others who perform great sacrifices in their minds. O king! There are brahmanas who become one with the brahman by adhering to the path that involves the act of giving. The residents of heaven envy them. O lord of men! There are many kinds of jewels that have been collected. By not giving them away in a sacrifice, you are thinking like a non-believer. For someone who has a family, I do not see any renouncement except through
ashvamedha,
rajasuya or
sarvamedha
.
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O father!
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There are also other sacrifices revered by brahmanas. O great king! Perform those, like Shakra, the lord of the gods. When a king commits the sin of being distracted, bandits plunder. When the subjects have no refuge, the king is said to be overcome by kali.
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O lord of the earth! If we do not give away horses, cattle, servant maids, adorned she-elephants, villages, countries, fields and houses to brahmanas, our consciousness will be destroyed by selfishness and we will be like kings overcome by kali. Kings who do not give and do not offer refuge obtain their share of sin. They enjoy unhappiness, never happiness. If you do not perform a great sacrifice, if you do not sacrifice to the ancestors, if you do not bathe in the waters of tirthas and instead depart, to roam around, you will face destruction, like a cloud that is dispersed and blown away by the wind. You will be dislodged from both the worlds
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and be stationed between them. One who casts aside all attachment in his mind, internal and external,
is one who truly renounces, not one who simply goes away. O great king! A brahmana who follows these rites prescribed for brahmanas is never dislodged.
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The prosperous enemies have been swiftly slain in the battle, like the army of the daityas against Shakra. O Partha! Devoted to your own dharma, why should you grieve? O king! This is what has earlier been recommended in the sacred texts and practised by the righteous. You have conquered the earth through the valour and dharma of kshatriyas. O Indra among men! You know about mantras! Give it away and you will ascend the vault of heaven. O Partha! You should not sorrow now.”’