The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Translated into English Prose: Adi Parva
Religion
The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Translated into English Prose: Adi Parva
Epic literature, Sanskrit
O son, I would enjoy myself with your youth. Take any of
you this my decrepitude and with my body rule ye my kingdom. I would
enjoy myself with a renovated body. Therefore, ye my sons, take ye my
decrepitude." But none of his sons accepted his decrepitude. Then his
youngest son Puru said unto him, "O king, enjoy thyself thou once again
with a renovated body and returned youth! I shall take thy decrepitude
and at thy command rule thy kingdom." Thus addressed, the royal sage, by
virtue of his ascetic power then transferred his own decrepitude unto
that high-souled son of his and with the youth of Puru became a youth;
while with the monarch's age Puru ruled his kingdom.
"'Then, after a thousand years had passed away, Yayati, that tiger among
kings, remained as strong and powerful as a tiger. And he enjoyed for a
long time the companionship of his two wives. And in the gardens of
Chitraratha (the king of Gandharvas), the king also enjoyed the company of
the Apsara Viswachi. But even after all this, the great king found his
appetites unsatiated. The king, then recollected the following truths
contained in the Puranas, "Truly, one's appetites are never satiated by
enjoyment. On the other hand, like sacrificial butter poured into the fire,
they flame up with indulgence. Even if one enjoyed the whole Earth with
its wealth, diamonds and gold, animals and women, one may not yet be
satiated. It is only when man doth not commit any sin in respect of any
living thing, in thought, deed, or speech, it is then that he attaineth to
purity as that of Brahman. When one feareth nothing, when one is not
feared by anything, when one wisheth for nothing, when one injureth
nothing, it is then that one attaineth to the purity of Brahman." The wise
monarch seeing this and satisfied that one's appetites are never satiated,
set his mind at rest by meditation, and took back from his son his own
decrepitude. And giving him back his youth, though his own appetites were
unsatiated, and installing him on the throne, he spoke unto Puru thus,
"Thou art my true heir, thou art my true son by whom my race is to be
continued. In the world shall my race be known by thy name."'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Then that tiger among kings, having installed
his son Puru on the throne, went away to the mount of Bhrigu for devoting
himself to asceticism. And, having acquired great ascetic merit, after
long years, he succumbed to the inevitable influence of Time. He left his
human body by observing the vow of fasting, and ascended to heaven with
his wives.'"
SECTION LXXVI
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Janamejaya said, 'O thou of the wealth of asceticism, tell me how our
ancestor Yayati, who is the tenth from Prajapati, obtained for a wife the
unobtainable daughter of Sukra. I desire to hear of it in detail. Tell me
also, one after another, of those monarchs separately who were the
founders of dynasties.'
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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