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
"'And thus on account of wealth those two fools, Supritika and Vibhavasu,
from each other's curse, have become an elephant and a tortoise
respectively. Owing to their wrath, they have both become inferior animals.
And they are engaged in hostilities with each other, proud of their
excessive strength and the weight of their bodies. And in this lake those
two beings of huge bodies are engaged in acts according to their former
hostility. Look here, one amongst them, the handsome elephant of huge body,
is even now approaching. Hearing his roar, the tortoise also of huge body,
living within the waters, cometh out, agitating the lake violently. And
seeing him the elephant, curling his trunk, rusheth into the water. And
endued with great energy, with motion of his tusks and fore-part of his
trunk and tail and feet, he agitates the water of the lake abounding with
fishes. And the tortoise also of great strength, with upraised head,
cometh forward for an encounter. And the elephant is six yojanas in height
and twice that measure in circumference. And the height of the tortoise
also is three yojanas and his circumference ten. Eat thou up both of them
that are madly engaged in the encounter and bent upon slaying each other,
and then accomplish the task that thou desirest. Eating that fierce
elephant which looketh like a huge mountain and resembleth a mass of dark
clouds, bring thou amrita.'"
Sauti continued, "Having said so unto Garuda, he (Kasyapa) blessed him,
saying, 'Blest be thou when thou art in combat with the gods. Let water
pitchers filled to the brim, Brahmanas, kine, and other auspicious objects,
bless thee, thou oviparous one. And, O thou of great strength, when thou
art engaged with the gods in combat, let the Riks, the Yajus, the Samas,
the sacred sacrificial butter, all the mysteries (Upanishads), constitute
thy strength.'
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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