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Bell & Howell IntOnnation and Luming 300 North Zaeb Road. Ann Arbor. MI 48106-1346 USA
UMf 800-521..Q600
Ancillary Stories in the Sanskrit Mah8bh8rata
Barbara Gombach
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
2000
UMI Number: 9956353
Copyright 2000 by Gombach, Barbara Claire All rights reserved.
UMf UUI Uicrofonn 9958353 Copyright 2000 by Bell & Howell Information and Leaming Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17. United States Code.
Bell & Howell Infonnation and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1348 Ann Arbor. MI48106-1346
C2000
Barbara Claire Gombach All Rights Reserved
ABSTRACT Ancillary Stories in the Sanskrit Mah.bh.rata Barbara Gombach The MahabhSrata was compiled in North India during a time of lively
debate
in
brahmanica1
boundaries of canon
(§ruti)
intellectual
in Hindu
circles
about
the
religious traditions.
The
indigenous tradition recognizes the epic as history (jtih8sa) and as
authoritative
religious
knowledge
discourse produced by humans.
two
(sm~tj)J
forms
of
This dissertation argues that the
Mahabharata became religiously authoritative chiefly through the 1 abors
of
brahman
i nte1l ectua1 s
who
were
responsi b1 e
an
The primary
editorial process scholars do not understand well. intent of that process, however,
for
becomes evident when we isolate
for study the remarkable body of story material that constitutes nearly half of the epic. In examining the ancillary stories, I show that they serve the rhetori ca 1
functi on of
maki ng
the epi c
p resented as authori tat i ve i nformat ion, interprets the Pandava-Kaurava war. namely the
resultant epic,
authoritative
(sm~tj).
a
anci 11 ary
part i cu 1 ar
is
into
smrtj.
They
as sacred history,
The i nterpretati on
then declared to
be
are that
i tse1 f,
religiously
Whether or not the characters or themes of story were
in
fact anci ent,
compi 1 ers consi stent1 y presented them that way.
the
epi CiS
Based on thi s
prominent feature of the epicls ancillary stories. I conclude that it was a vehicle by which brahman intellectuals gained legitimacy for new practices such as bhakti, pilgrimage. and ahj'!'saby arguing that they are fully congruent with §ruti. if properly understood.
CONTENTS I.
History of Scholarship on Ancillary Stories in the Sanskrit Mah~bh8rata A.
1
Introduction 1. Chapter Overview and Framework of the Study 2. Narrative Context of the Ancillary Tales 3. Survey of the Ancillary Tales in the
1 1 12 23
Mah8bh~rata
B.
Major Trends in Western Scholarship on Ancillary Tales in the Mahabharata 30
c.
The Mah8bh.rata as a Coherent Whole: Review of Research 1. Ancillary Tales in the Indian Intellectual Tradition in Sanskrit 2. Western Interpretations of the Mahabh8rata as a Coherent Whole a. Antecedents of Current Approaches b. Western Scholarship Since World War II 3. Research on Forms and Processes of Oral Transmission of the Mahabh~rata
60
Review of the Literature on Ancillary Tales in the Sanskrit Mahabh~rata
68
Focus of the Study
83
D. E.
II. Ancillary Stories. the Indian Intellectual Tradition, and Strategies for Vedacization
40 40 44 44 51
104
A.
Introduction
104
B.
Story Types and the Indian Intellectual Tradition 1. The Mah.bharata's Terms for Stories 2. Story Terms in Vedic Literature 3. itihasa and Interpretive Methods 4. Story Types and the Indian Intellectual Tradition
109 109 113 122
c.
123
Story to smrti: Strategies for Vedacization 136 1. Views the Relationship Between ~ruti and smrti 139 2. Eight Strategies of Vedacization 141
on
i
D.
The Mah.bh6rata in Sansk~it 1. Toward a Cultural Histo~y o~ Classical Sansk~it: Implications ~or Studying the Mah.bh.rata 2. Using the C~itical Edition o~ the Mah.bh.rata a. The Critical Edition. the Histo~y o~ Religions, and Resea~ch on Ancillary Narratives b. Manuscript Biases
159
E.
Conventions Adopted
162
F.
Limits
o~
~or
the Study
the Study
B.
C. D. E. F•
G. H.
I .
J.
K. L.
M. N.
o. P.
Rationale ~or Selection adi parvan sabh.parvan .ranyakaparvan vi r.taparvan udyogaparvan bhi smaparvan dronaparvan karnaparvan §a 7yaparvan sauptikaparvan striparvan §6ntjparvan and anu§8sanaparvan .§vamedhikaparvan 6§ramav.sjkaparvan mausa7aparvan. mah6prasth.njkaparvan. and svarg8roha~aparvan
IV. $.ntiparvan Story Cluster on Nonviolence
V.
146
152 152
163
III. Major Themes of the Mah.bh.rata's Ancillary Stories A.
146
167 167
170 185
193 203 204 213 216 219 221 223 224 224 230 240 241 243
A.
Rationale for Selection
243
B.
Preview of Themes ;n the ahims. Cluster
246
c.
The ahims6 Stories in Detail
274
343
Conclusion
Bibliography
353
;;
Appendix: A.
Synopses of Ancillary Stories in Their Mahabh~rata Context Synopses 1• ~di parvan 2• sabh.parvan 3•
~ranyakaparvan
4.
virataparvan udyogaparvan bh:I smaparvan dronaparvan karnaparvan §a 7yaparvan sauptikaparvan striparvan §antiparvan anu§asanaparvan a§vamedhi kaparvan a§ramavasikaparvan mausa7aparvan mahaprasthanikaparvan
5. 6. 7. 8.
9• 10. 11 •
12. 13. 14.
15. 16. 17. 18.
svar9aroha~aparvan
;; ;
1
2 2
58 69 142 144 168
174 182 191
213 217 220 351
437 459 463 464 465
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This
study
was conceived
in
discussion w i t h
Barbara
S t o l e r M i 1 l e r , and i t b e n e f i t t e d g r e a t l y from h e r scholarship. Her own f a s c i n a t i o n w i t h t h e Mahabharata and her
personal
encouragement i n s p i r e d me t o p e r s i s t i n e x p l o r i n g t h e e p i c ' s thicket o f stories.
She brought S a n s k r i t a1 i v e f o r me, and
her keen a t t e n t i v e n e s s t o i t s s u b t l e t i e s i n s p i r e s me s t i 11
I
gratefully
commi t t e e . chapter
Prof.
thank John
the
members
Stratton
inval uabl e
and provided
of
my
dissertation
Hawley
s c r u t i n i zed
each
e d i t o r i a1
comments.
H is
questions always challenged me t o sharpen m y t h i n k i n g , o f t e n s t i m u l a t e d others t h a t opened new avenues o f study.
and
I
am p r i v i 1eged t o have worked w i t h him and t o have b e n e f i t t e d
from
his
intellectual
acuity,
his
sensitivity
to
lived
and h i s magnanimous nature.
re1 ig i ous t r a d i t i o n s ,
P r o f . Gary Tubb shared h i s v a s t know1edge o f t h e Sanskrit 1it e r a r y
tradition,
and
helped focus
my c o n s i d e r a t i o n
in d i genous in t e l l e c t u a l t r a d i t i o n s in ancient South Asi a.
of H is
comments and q u e s t i ons on an e a r l ie r d r a f t o f t h e d i s s e r t a t i o n were
critical
in
my
efforts
to
finalize
the
work,
and
c o n t r i b u t e d g r e a t l y t o helping me shape a program o f f u t u r e research. P r o f . Mary McGeet s groundi ng i n ancient S a n s k r i t t e x t s and contemporary
H i ndu r i t u a l
practice
brought
a
dimension to m y consideration o f t h e Mahabharata*
speci a1 Her own
broad
scho1 arl y
interests
and
her
ski 11
in
aski ng
fresh
questions of India's ancient texts set an enviable exa.ple for any scholar who works with documentary history. Prof. Rachel Fell MeDer.ott's observations about topics not discussed
in
the
dissertation
also
stimulated
me
to
articulate .ore clearly what I regard as the .ost fundamental question my analysis raises:
What role has the
Mah.bh.ra~a
played in intellectual debates about the relationship between §ru1:i and smr'tj. and what more can we 1 earn about the worki ngs
of canon formation in Hindu traditions? Prof. Ryuichi Abe's questions about .y work provoked new questions about
its possible broader significance
for
the
study of South Asian epic traditions. FinallYJ I thank .y family and friends for their support and encouragement.
Richard Weinstein, my husband. has been a
comrade in these 1 abors.
He has always been wi 11 i ng ei ther to
talk through my ideas about the epic and its universe. or to occupy
himself
dissertation.
otherwise His
while
constant
I
wrote
support,
and his
edited
the
intellectual
curiosity, and his unfailing good cheer have sustained me.
v
1
CHAPTER 1 HISTORY OF SCHOLARSHIP ON ANCILLARY STORIES IN THE SANSKRIT MAH~BH~RATA A.
Introduction Chapter Overview and Framework of the Study
1.
In
seventh
described
the
Sarasvati.
century epic
the
he
north knew
goddess
of
Indi a. as
an
the poet auspicious
learning. 1
The
eanabhatta shower
of
images
of
plenitude. sacrality, and shared wisdom this metaphor evokes encapsul ate qual; ti es that the Mah8bh8rata acqui red as the fabric of its war story was interwoven with hundreds of other stories.
Those other
stories,
which I collectively
ancillary stories, are the subject of this dissertation.
label As
I will show in subsequent chapters. the ancillary tales in the Mahabhara1:a
diverse.
(hereafter
Despite all
abbrevi ated
as
their variety.
Mbh)
are
extremely
the epic consistently
presents them as information from or about the past. as viewed from
the
vantage
poi nt of the
great
war.
Through
thei r
topics, characters. locations, and through explicit narrative statements about them. time and again the ancillary stories describe. explain. or elaborate upon the circumstances of the Bh3rata war by reference to an
1cakre
punyam
as
sarasvatya
i magi ned sacred
yo
varsam
iva
t radi t ion.
bharatam.
Harsacari-ta 1.3·, cited by Ram Karan Sharma. Elemen1:s of Poetry in 1:he Mahabh8ra1:a. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. 1966.
reprinted with the addition of an index. 1988. 5.
2
t h a t these n a r r a t i v e elements are a p r i n c i p a l means by which t h e Mbh became a r e l i g i o u s l y a u t h o r i t a t i v e work (smrti).
The
anti 11a r y s t o r i e s are n o t t h e o n l y way t h e epic accomplishes
t h i s task,
b u t they a r e an extremely important one.
s e c t i o n E o f t h i s chapter f o r a b r i e f
(See
discussion o f o t h e r
methods used t o make t h e e p i c s m r ti. ) The e p i c uses eleven d i f f e r e n t words t o r e f e r t o i t s s t o r i es, t h e terms ftfhasa and samvada b e i ng t h e most common. Often t h e y a r e narrated d i r e c t l y t o one o f t h e c h a r a c t e r s i n v o l v e d i n i t s c e n t r a l drama o-F f r a t r i c i d a l war. specific, epic's
To
be
anci 1 l a r y s t o r i e s a r e n a r r a t i v e s from o r about t h e
imagined past whose t e l l i n g
i s prompted by
surrounding t h e Pandava-Kaurava war. ' *
events
They range from p i t h y
proverbs t o lengthy s t o r i e s about former kings, from t a l e s o f dei t i es t o r e p o r t e d l y verbatim conversati ons o f venerable r, s is *
o f another age,
from cautionary animal f a b l e s t o q u o t a t i o n s
from o t h e r smrtis. vast m a j o r i t y o f
But s h o r t o r long, simple o r e s o t e r i c , t h e ancillary stories
a r e t o l d t o teach
the
meaning o f a t e r r i b l e war. The Mbh g i v e s us no equivalent f o r t h e phrase a n c i l l a r y story.
I have adopted i t f o r several reasons.
(1)
I n one
respect, t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n s p r i ngs from t h e observation t h a t t h e Mbh i n t e n t i o n a l l y preserved a vocabulary o f s t o r y terms that
seemed o l d .
Although
i t may
well
be impossible t o
r e c o n s t r u c t more than a sketchy h i s t o r y o f each term (as my discussion
in
Chapter
2
w i 11 show),
the
vocabulary
was
3
nevertheless
widely
current,
believed to pre-date the epic.
usually
in
Vedic
literature
We are meant to associate the
appellations and the general contents of these stories, I will argue,
wi th the anci ent,
Vedism.
I do not mean to imply that one could in theory trace
each of the Mbh's itih.sas, a
text
enduri ng and sacred tradi ti on of
in
the
Vedic
sa~v.das • •khy.nas.
corpus.
In
fact,
composition of some of the ep;c's
I
and so on to
think that
"old" stories was
likely inspired by the epic itself.
(Biardeau
the very
has argued
this, for example, for the Na7op.khy.na story.) In the religious and historical climate of North India at the product i on of sm,:"'f: j
the tu rn of the fi rst mi 11 enn i um, 1 i terature
was
a
very
acti ve
enterpri se.
We
know
from
philosophical materials that the idea of the Veda as canonical knowledge was already well-established. but the boundaries of that canon were a matter of debate. conducted
through the
product i on
In part, that debate was of
smr'f:i
rel i gi ous1 y
authoritative works composed by humans -- which made various claims (§rut j) •
about
its
own
relationship
to
canonical
material
Stori es that the Mbh presents as hi stori cal
inc 1 uded to demonstrate to its audi ences that the epi c indeed legitimately sm:'f:i.
are ;s
As a group these stories establish
a claim that the Mbh's teachings are a further unfolding of Vedic knowledge, but this feature only emerges when they are studied collectively. As I discuss briefly in the introduction to section 0 of
4
this chapter and as I demonstrate in Chapters 3 and 4, subject matter per se is not what the stori es have in common, although a number of common themes are apparent and are important to explore (see Chapter 4).
Instead. the stories as a whole
purport to expl ai n what happens as the Pandava-Kaurava war unfolds by reference to an imagined sacred history in order to make the epic an authoritative source of that very history. In
particular,
the
epic
interprets
events
and
personal
experi ences of i ndi vi dual s affected by the war usi ng ei ght hermeneutical strategies (see Chapter 2, in particular section C)
that make the Mbh seem anci ent and fully congruent with the
authoritative Vedic tradition. demonstrate
the
; mportant
Here I am most interested to
rol e
anci 11 ary
stori es
accomplishing that purpose for the epic, and so commona 1 ; ties
of story
contents than
on
pl ay
~ocus
;n
less on
commona 1 it i es
of
rhetorical intent that the stories serve in this particular literary work. (2) When uSing the term ancillary I mean to signal both a sense of subordinate status and auxiliary functions stories.
the
~or
As discussed in this chapter. another impetus for
this study was the view that since the Indian tradition has ins; sted that these
stori es are
cannot set them aside. provide
any
overt
integral
to the epi c.
we
But since that tradition does not
discussion
of
the
process
of
epic
composition other than the Mbh's own several accounts, we must look to more general
indigenous theoretical formulations to
5
ascertai n how the presence of anci 11 ary stori es was understood in ancient times.
On this matter I propose a model (Chapter
2) based on hierarchical conceptions of main and subordinate relationships, and drawn from the intellectual tradition of Further
N8~ya§.S1:ra.
agai nst
the
1 arge
work is
body
requi red
of evi dence the
present to us, but the model
to test
the
model
anci 11 ary stori es
is promising since it derives
from the cultural and historical milieu in which the epiC was composed. Because of the relative paucity of scholarship on the ancillary stories in the Mbh, this chapter initially focuses on descri bi ng the major trends in Western schol arshi p that account for such a lack of interest.
As long as scholars held
fast to the view that the epic was essentially a war story bloated wi th subsequent accret ions of mo re or 1 ess
random
mythological, theological, legendary, and didactic materials, the substories held little interest for Western interpreters. Indeed, the peculiar consequence of that general view was that most of the contents of the Mbh -- namely the nearly fifty percent
of
it
represented
consi dered i mmateri a l t o an
by
ancillary
stories
adequate understandi ng
were of the
epic. Turning to the evidence from the literate intellectual tradition of Sanskrit scholars, I note that ancillary stories have not been studied closely, consi dered
integral
to
although they have long been
the epi c
as
one
component of
its
6
di dacti c materi al.
Many Western schol ars never questi oned the
assumpt i on
overt 1 y
that
; nterpo 1 at ions" contrast, have
and
therefore
i nfl uenti al
quest i oned
di dact; c
Ind; an
the
epi c ' s
of
port ions 1 ; mi ted
i ntell ectual s own
were
n
interest.
1 ate
In
never seemed to
assert ions
that
its
multifaceted instructional material in effect defines the Mbh. Not only does it all belong there. it is the Mbh. Indian interpreters. the epic's status as starting point of analysis.
For many
has been the
smr~j
The ancillary stories are in one
sense a record of traditional history (itih.sa). in another, just one of the epic's pedagogical devices. vi
rtu~
of thei r
In addition. by
i ncl usi on i n a work call ed the fi fth
they have sacramenta 1 powers;
to hear and to
Veda.
know them i s
meritorious in itself. 2 They are a potential means to achieve salvation. My
work
on
the
Mbh
stems
from
my
interest
in
understanding more precisely how a work so long accepted as carrying great religious authority
(sm~~j)
came to be so while
embracing ideas and practices that were patently (from the perspective
of
Vedism)
nontraditional
during
centuri es of the common era when the epi c present form.
the
early
was taki ng
its
If we take seriously traditional Indian views
of the Mbh as a coherent whole, we must come to terms with its
2kar~-:,al!' vedami dal!' vi dv .... §ravayi tvarthama§nute/l . 1 .205ab ya~cemam
trnuyannityamarsam §raddhasamanvitahl sa di rgh·amayu~ kirt; I!' ca sva·rgatil!' c.pnuyannara~1 11 .1 .207
1
anci 11 ary narrat i ve mater; a 1 .
In doi ng so. as the present
study shows. I conclude that in fact this story material was crucial to the brahmanical project of making the epic into
smrti.
The way in which the epic employs the idea of the Veda
as canonical knowledge also locates the Mbh project within a segment of the anci ent
I ndi an i nte 11 ectua 1
asserted an organic unfolding of
§ru~i
to
tradi t; on
sm:~j,
that
rather than
a sharp break between the two kinds of knowledge. Only when Western scholars began to study the Mbh as a coherent whole did questions about the role of the ancillary stories arise. as a
In this chapter. I trace this view of the epic
coherent whole from
its initial
Joseph Dah1mann in the 19th century,
bold formulation
by
through its handful of
more circumspect advocates. to current supporters.
Although
no major contemporary scholar accepts Dah1mann's thesis that the epic was composed full-blown, much contemporary Western interpretation proceeds from an assumption that the Mbh does make sense as a whole. ana 1 ysi s.
Using distinctly different methods of
those interpreters are cl ari fyi ng the structural
principles that underlie the composition of the Sanskrit Mbh. These various newer interpretations. under way now for approximately extensive
fifty
study
of
years. topics
periphery of epic studies.
Mbh
have
received
have
set
the
previously
stage
relegated
for to
more the
Mythological underpinnings of the
particularly
Dumezi1. Biardeau, and Hi1tebeite1.
extended
treatment
from
Other materials, such as
8
the ancillary stories r~jadharma
and lengthy didactic passages
(e.g .•
and fIIoksadharma sections of the §.n'tiparvan), have
only quite recently received serious attention from European and American scholars.
By reviewing the major approaches that
support a unitary view of the epic. I locate the current study of ancillary stories in the broader context of Mbh studies. Just
as
there
is
still
no
definitive
resolution
to
the
cont roversy over the degree of i nterna 1 coherence exhi bi ted by the
Sanskri t
Mbh.
there
is
1 i kewi se
no
consensus
on
the
questi on of the integral versus peri pheral status of anci 11 ary stories in the epic.
As I attempt to show. in the past fifty
years the wei ght of preference has shi fted somewhat
toward
approaching the Mbh as an intelligible whole. Scho1 arship funct ions
of the
that
bears
anci 11 ary
di rect 1 y stori es
upon
in
the
the
roles
Mbh
is
and
rather
1 i mi ted, qui te di verse, but neverthe 1 ess ri ch and provocat i ve. As I indicate, only Madeleine Biardeau. Robert Goldman, James Fitzgerald. Wendy Doniger (0' Flaherty) specifically
explored
how
and
why
J
and Ian Proudfoot have
particular
subta1es
groups of them interact with the Bharata frame story. concl usi ons show that multiple.
General
the uses
principles
of stori es in of
composition
Their
the Mbh that
or
are
might
explain how and why subtales occur where they do in the Mbh have yet to be articulated (although the techniques of oralformulaic analysis are promising in this regard).
To date,
the relatively small amount of scholarship available suggests
9
that no single interpretation adequately explains every case. Each story or story cluster must be examined in its immediate context to understand ; ts rol e
in
re1 ati on to the general
themes and narrative structure of the Mbh.
In Chapter 3 I
discuss the major themes of ancillary stories in each of the epi c' s ei ghteen maj or sect ions (parvan). showi ng how they vary from section to section. Subta 1 es are interspersed th roughout the cr; t; ca 1 text of the Mbh. itself comprised of 78.200 verses and prose sections in ei ghteen major "books" (parvans). (the
Hariva~§a.
as well as an appendi x
called a khi7a); in total. the epic contains
nearly 2.000 chapters (adhy.yas).
The tales may be long or
short. 3 clustered together
often the case)
sing1y.4
(as i s
Their subject matter varies widely.
or
told
but virtually
all concern the activities and experiences of deities. sages. royal figures. heroes. or heroines -- just as one might expect in epic literature. S 3For example. the well-known story of Na1a is told in 29 chapters and more than 800 verses. The tale of Jantu. a young prince sacrificed to produce 100 sons for his father, is told in a mere 19 verses.
~he sage Markandeya successively relates six tales in book three; the trouo1es of Indra. king of the gods. and his wife ~aci are the topic of a story in book five. SA tale may. in its own right. present the most significant highlights of a king's career (e.g .• the story of Rama) J a particular exploit of a deity (e.g., how and why Indra. king of the gods. destroyed Saubha. city of the demon king, ~alva), or the biography of a crucial epic character (e.g .• the story of Amb •• proximate cause of death of the beloved Bhisma). As I endeavor to show, however. the stories not only lend meaning to the epic as a whole. but are also
10
Unti 1
fai r1 y
recent 1 y,
there
were
three
general
categori es of scho1 ar1 y thought about the epi c' s anci 11 ary stori es.
The fi rst group consi sts of Indi an scho1 ars who
attempt to gl ean hi stori ca 1
i nformati on from the epi c,
the
second consists of scholars who focus on the didactic intent of the Mbh,
and the thi rd group includes scho1 ars who use
porti ons of the anci 11ary materi a1 to advance 1 arger arguments about the nature of epic, its historical background, and/or its larger religious significance in the development of Hindu traditions.
Each group is discussed below.
A strong current of scho1 arshi pin Indi a regards the epi c as history and concerns itself with reconstructing economic, political,
social,
and
religious
facts
from
it.
These
scholars have paid no special attention to the secondary tales since they
consider
all
contents
sources of historical evidence.
as
legitimate
potential
Beyond the acknowledgment of
its existence, there will be no further examination of this scholarship in the present study. internal
coherence of the
functions.
My interest focuses on the
Sanskrit Mbh and its
rhetorical
To pursue these concerns, I prefer to begin with
the epic in its current form,
that is, a textual
(and oral)
tradition preserved relatively intact since at least the 5th century
C.E.
Given
that
starting
point,
part and parcel of its rhetorical project.
the
purported
11
historicity of Mbh events is not an immediate concern. 6 An
influential
strand
of
the
brahman
intellectual
tradition has emphasized the overall didactic intent of the
Mbh and shows less concern about the demonstrable veracity of its contents in terms of modern notions of historical fact. This second group seems not to have singled out the ancillary stories for analysis per se, but evaluates them along with the other narrative portions to derive general conclusions about what the epic teaches. In the West, some of the tales have been much admired as independent stories, but they were long considered incidental to the so-called main or core story of the BhBrata war, therefore Europe
and
recently.
recei ved Ameri ca scholars
1 i ttl e pri or
attenti on to
such
the
as
Mbh scho1 ars
from
1940s
and
and
Madeleine
in
More
1950s.
A1f
Biardeau,
Hi1tebeite1, James Fitzgerald, and Ian Proudfoot have begun to explore the re1 evance of
certai n anci 11 ary stori es to
the
6Historians have profitably worked with the MBh to inform thei r understandi n9 of anci ent Indi an hi story. They study the epic. however, from an historiographic point of view -- as presenting a particular view of the past. Romi1a Thapar, for example, regards the epic as a literary crystallization of an heroic ideal. In her view, it records the transition between two kinds of society in ancient India, one characterized by tribal chiefdoms and the other by a state system with monarchy as the norm ("Hi stori an and the Epi c, If Anna 7s of the Bhandarkar Orienta7
Research
Institute,
60(1979),
p.
201).
Her method. which focuses on clarifying assumptions about the past that can be detected in the epic, is far richer than methods which focus on the MBh's historicity per se. See also her study From Lineage to State. Socia7 Formation in the MidFirst Millennium B.C. in the Ganga Val7ey. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1990, on the nature of early Indian society during the mid-first millennium B.C.E.
12
Bharata tale of internecine war and its aftermath.
Others.
following Georges Dumezil. have studied some of the episodes as variants of prototypical Indo-European independent tales. Both groups of scholars have studied certain ancillary stories in order to understand the epic as a whole (even though their conclusions may be radically different,
e.g.,
Biardeau and
Dumezil), and therefore I have grouped them together here in order to discuss the range of scholarship on ancillary stories which I consider most significant in contemporary Mbh studies. This chapter surveys the ancillary
stories
textual/contextual Chapter
Mbh.
intellectual
2
in
latter two positions on the
order
to
develop
historical
and
arguments about their importance to the considers
tradition
of
what
ancient
the
indigenous
India
tells
us
Indian about
ancillary stories, and outlines eight hermeneutical strategies employed to make the epic
sm~~j.
In Chapter 3 I discuss the
ancillary stories in each parvan to show their tendency to address particular topics.
Chapter 4 analyzes the context and
content of a cluster of stories from the
§.n~iparvan
on
ahi~s.
(nonviolence) in order to demonstrate how they are integral to the Mbhrs rhetorical project, and as such are neither random nor casual
insertions.
The appendix contains a summary of
each ancillary story. indicates where it occurs, who tells it, and who hears it. 2.
Narrative Context of the Ancillary Tales
Before reviewing the occurrences of ancillary stories in
t h e major booksD i t may be useful t o
out1 i n e t h e
genera1
contents of t h e Mbh. Like many good s t o r i e s D t h e Mbh opens i n t h e m i d s t of action
--
actual l y s a t a pause i n t h e a c t i o n .
brahmans
has
been
performi ng
a
A group of
particular
(dv3daSavarsika s a t t r a ) i n t h e Naimisa Forest.
ritual
During one o f
t h e regular breaks i n t h e lengthy series o f r i t e s ( t h e f u l l r i t u a l w i I T occupy t h e brahmans f o r twelve years) UgraGravas a r r i v e s has
come
from
a
s a c r i f ice { sarpa avenge
his
storytelling s a c r i f iceD
Exchangi ng g r e e t i ngs ritual
sattra)
father's
session
UgraGravas
in
a
t h e y l e a r n t h a t he different
sortD a
undertaken by K i ng Janamej aya t o
death
sessions
of
t h e bard
by
snake
bite*
between the
rites
had
heard
from
V a i Sampayanas t h e r e c i t a t i o n o f the Mbh.
Dur
the
another
The epic
snake bard
explains
Ugragravas, is t h e composition o f VyZsa {Krsna Dvai payanal, * . . who
had
1istened
approvi n g l y
as
h is
student
Vai 6ampayana
r e c i t e d t h e s t o r y j f o r he t o l d i t j u s t as Vyasa himself
had
f i r s t done so t o t h e warm approval o f the gods and brahman seers.
Fo11owi ng t h e r e c i t a t i o n a t Janame~aya's s a c r i f i c e ,
UgraSravas had undertaken a lengthy p i lgrimage, i n c l u d i n g i n h i s it i nerary t h e b a t t l e f i e l d Samantapahcaka
which was t h e
'we l a t e r l e a r n t h a t t h e k i n g e s f a t h e r * P a r i k s i t * has been cursed t o d i e from a b i t e by Taksaka, c h i e f * o f t h e The snakes, because he had r u d e l y i n s u l t e d a c e r t a i n hermi t g r i evi ng Janamejaya determi nes t o seek revengeD i n p a r t i c u l a r because t h e snake was n o t content merely t o execute t h e curse* b u t had b r i b e d a brahmin who otherwise intended t o heal t h e b i t t e n king.
.
14
si te
of the great
Naimisa Forest.
Bharata war, 8 arri vi ng
at
1 ast
and
Dh~tara~~ra,
the
Hearing this, the sages immediately ask to
hear Vyasa's praiseworthy account of the Bharatas, composed
;n
revealed
to
human
beings
which he
after
pandu and Vidura had died (1.1.58).
his
sons
Ugra~ravas
obliges. The framework
story of
is
three
under
way,
distinct
carefully narrative
listener is imaginatively placed
anchored
in
Each
occasions.
in the solemn company of
UgraAravas and hi saudi ence of pri ests who performed Janamejaya's
snake
sacrifice,
the
as
well
as
in
Janamejaya and the venerable group of brahmans.
Ki ng
those
of
As the epic
continues and one is drawn by shifts of narrator to more and more
ancient
times
and
events,
the
audience
returns
Janamejaya's snake sacrifice at transitions in the story.
to The
frame story of the king's sacrifice is thus part of the action of the epic, but not only because as he heard it on that occasion. grandson of Arjuna.
Ugra~ravas
tells the story
Janamej aya is the great
one of the epic's great heroes.
hence
Janamejaya is also a member of the BhKrata lineage. The direct narration of
Ugra~ravas
begins, establishing
a style of summary and elaboration of major story segments that is characteristic of the entire Mbh and indicative of its origins in oral composition.
He lists the contents of the
BIt was also the place where Para.urama had in an earlier age exterminated every living male warrior (k~atriya) in an act of vengeance.
15
epi c
in one hundred secti ons (commonl y
referred to as the
minor books), and continues with a brief summary of the full story
in whi ch
ei ghteen
the one
secti ons
Ug ra§ ravas
(the
exp 1 a ins
hundred
books are
"major books"). the
subsumed
Then,
ci rcumstances
in
under
detai 1 ,
1 eadi ng
up
to
Janamejaya's sacrificial session, both why his father died of a snake bite and all about
~stika,
the brahman who rescued the
snakes from total massacre at that sacrifice. Prompted by a detail
just
1 .53.30b),
as
request to tell
they
Ugra~ravas
were
told
the Mbh stories in
full
e.g .•
Mbh
(ya~h~~atham,
describes the arrival of Vyasa and his
students in Janamejaya's sacrificial compound, and thereafter we hear the story directly from
Vai~ampKyana.
The Mbh is, from Janamejaya's perspective, the story of his ancestors.
From Vy8sa's perspective -- its author -- it
is the story of his descendants and thus with the genealogy of the clan.
begins
Vai~ampayana
The extraordinary births of
Satyavati and her son Vyasa are desc ri bed,
fo 11 owed by an
abbreviated account of the parentage -- a mixture of human and divi ne
-- of major
intertwined
are
composition
gives
characters
human
and
several
vi rtua 11 yanni hi 1 ated
in
the
divine
concerns
explanations
Janamej aya' s
story.
for
fami 1 y.
So closely that the
On
Vyasa's war
that
the di vi ne
level. the war occurred because the earth. overburdened with creatures, implored the gods to relieve her acute distress. In
response,
they
agreed
to
be
reborn
inhuman
form
to
forcibly
reduce
the
numbers
of
creatures
draining
her
resources, and hence t h e g r e a t Bharata war. O n t h e human l e v e l ,
c r i s i s o f succession.
t h e war occurred i n t h e wake o f
a
The problem was r o o t e d i n a unique
predicament o f t h e Bharata c l a n :
I t s ma1e members began t o
experience g r e a t d i f f i c u l t i e s i n producing male h e i r s .
They
r e s o r t e d t o v a r i o u s measures t o amel i o r a t e t h e problem, b u t t h e s i t u a t i o n became c r i tical when VySsa * s grandsons ( t h e f i v e
.
PSndava b r o t h e r s who in c l uded Janamejaya s g r e a t grandfather, .
.
Arjuna, on one s i d e and the one hundred O h a r t a r a s t r a brothers, o r Kauravas,
on t h e other)
both claimed t h e r i g h t t o r u l e .
Much o f t h e e p i c t s drama d e r i v e s from t h e n o t i o n , unfolded i n n a r r a t i v e form, t h a t t h e ' t r u e * k i n g must p r o v e h i m s e l f worthy t o r u l e by f o r c e o f character as we1 1 as arms. Once Vai dampayana has i n t r o d u c e d VySsa i n h i s dual r o l e as
composer
and
key
participant
in
the
BhSrata
Janamejaya prompts him t o r e l a t e t h e o r i g i n s of
tale,
a l l beings,
f o r now he understands t h a t h i s fami 1y drama is a1so a cosmic one.
V a i Sampayana describes t h e o r i g i n s o f t h e gods,
humans, and o t h e r classes o f beings,
demons,
focusing h i s account on
t h e human 1ineage o f t h e l u n a r dynasty stemming from Ila/IlZS, one o f Manu V a i v a s v a t a ' s ( t h e f i r s t mant s ) c h i l d r e n , and then more n a r r o w l y on t h e Paurava dynasty and i t s Kuru component,
..
'.
t h e DhSrtarSstras and PSndavas.
Thus t h e n a r r a t i v e cycles
back i n t i m e from t h e accounts o f Vyasats and h i s mother's
b i r t h s t o t h e v e r y o r i g i n s o f t h e cosmos,
q u i c k l y forward
17
again some six generations to the origins of the Puru clan (the
story
Bharata)
I
of
back
Duhsanta agai n
and
for
~akuntal.,
more detai 1 ed
parents stori es
of of
King Puru' s
ancestors PurDravas/Urva§i and hi s father Yayati. then rapi d1 y forward for a somewhat longer account of pertinent events in Satyavati's generation. the most detailed
It is as if the narrator approaches
chronological
account
of the
imlftediate
events leading up to the war only after several
narrative
advances and retreats, circling back a bit farther each tilfte for a
closeup of some segment of the
fami ly story
before
settling down for a more detailed focus on the Kaurava dynasty per se, beginning with the story of King Pratipa (Mbh 1.91.1).
At this pOint.
vai.a~p.yana
is narrating book seven of the one
hundred "minor books," titled the origins (sambhavaparvan).1 Wi th Prati pa we detect the earl y S1 gns of troub 1 e perpetuating the lineage.
1n
Only when he is quite old and after
many acts of penance for the purpose of obtaining a son is ~amtanu
born.
goddess
Ga~ga.
When
~amtanu
Iftatures.
hi s
queen.
the ri ver
drowns in turn seven of the sons born to them.
Grief-stricken. he implores her not to kill the eighth son. The child. Devavrata. is allowed to live. but
Ga~ga
disappears
with him and he only rejoins his father as a young adult.
~he recursive structure of the MBh is a fascinating and important topic in its own right. See Christopher Minkowski. "Snakes. Sattras and the Mahabh.rata." ; n Arvi nd Sharma. ed .• Essays on the Mah.bh.rata (Leiden: E. J. Brill. 1991). 384400 and "Janamej aya • s Sattra and R; tual Structure." Journa 7 'the American Orienta7 Society 109, no. 3 (1989): 401-420.
0"
18
learned i n t h e Vedas and mighty i n b a t t l e . Bhisma.
Soon he vows never
He i s t h e mighty
t o have c h i l d r e n so t h a t
his
father might marry S a t y a v a t i , who has i n s i s t e d as a c o n d i t i o n of
t h e marriage t h a t her son must i n h e r i t t h e r u l e o f t h e
k i ngdom. Satyavati childless. widows,
and
Samtanu
One o f t h e sons.
have
two
sons,
Vicitravirya,
but
both
die
leaves behind two
and S a t y a v a t i determines t h a t t h e dynasty can o n l y
continue i f t h e y have sons.
Bhisma steadfast1 y refuses t o
break h i s c e l i b a c y vow i n o r d e r t o f a t h e r he3 r s , b u t he and Satyavati agree t h a t V y m ,
her p r e m a r i t a l
son.
w i 11 s u i t
t h e i r needs. A1though Vyasa does rescue t h e dynasty from e x t i n c t i on by f a t h e r i n g t h r e e sons,
each one s u f f e r s an impairment t h a t
compromises h i s f i t n e s s t o r u l e .
D h r t a r Z.s t r a i s born b l i n d
because h i s mother, Ambi kZ, was t o o f r i g h t e n e d by t h e s i g h t o f the
ugly
Vyasa
intercourse
.
to
open
her
eyes
while
they
had
sexual
PSndu is born excessi v e l y p a l e because AmbSl i kS
blanched i n t e r r o r a t t h e s i g h t o f Vyasa.
I n s t e a d o f obeying
S a t y a v a t i ' s command t o bear a second son b y Vyasa,
AmbSlik3
sends a servant t o him as a s u b s t i t u t e and Vidura
i s born.
l o y a l and wise b u t unable t o become k i n g because h i s mother is not o f the w a r r i o r class.
.
Although VySsa f a t h e r s t h e h e i r s . Bhisma r a i s e s them and serves as r e g e n t d u r i n g t h e i r childhood. t h e throne,
.
PSndu succeeds t o
t h e most acceptable r u l e r o f t h e t h r e e b r o t h e r s .
19 I n due course he m a r r i e s two princesses,
K u n t i and MZEdri
.
Bhisma arranges D h r t a r S.s't r a l s marriage t o Gandhari. Eventually,
PSndu forsakes h i s kingdom t o 1i v e w i t h h i s *
wives i n t h e f o r e s t . mating w i t h a doe.
Once day w h i l e h u n t i n g he shoots a buck The buck
- an a s c e t i c
.
curses Pandu t o d i e i n j u s t t h e same way.
i n animal form
--
Fortunately, Kunti
has t h e means t o counter t h i s new t h r e a t t o t h e c o n t i n u a t i o n of t h e dynasty.
Well b e f o r e her marriage, she had d u t i f u l l y
attended t h e i11-tempered sage Durvasas.
I n r e t u r n , he t a u g h t
her a s p e l l by which she c o u l d invoke any god t o g i v e h e r a child.
I n d u l g i n g her c u r i o s i t y . she t e s t e d i t s e c r e t l y on t h e
sun god (Surya) Unknown t o her,
and b o r e a son,
Karna,
whom she abandoned.
he was rescued by a l o w l y c h a r i o t d r i v e r who
r a i s e d Karna as h i s own. knows such a s p e l l .
K u n t i reveals t o PZndu . * o n l y t h a t she
Three times she accedes t o h i s u r g i n g
t h a t she use t h e s p e l l and t h r e e sons a r e born: (son o f Dharma), Indra).
Bhima (son
of
VZyu),
Y u d h i* s* t h i r a
and Arjuna
(son
Pandu .
When Madri complains t h a t she has no sons,
convinces K u n t i t o use t h e s p e l l i n h e r behalf,
of
and M a o r i
bears two sons, named Nakula and Sahadeva, by t h e t w i n ASvi ns. Meanwhile, Hearing t h a t
Gandhari
has been pregnant f o r
K u n t i has g i v e n b i r t h ,
which emerges as a b a l l o f f l e s h . hundred and one p a r t s ,
.
years.
she aborts her
fetus,
V y S s a separates i t in t o one
and e v e n t u a l l y one hundred sons,
Duryodhana as t h e e l d e s t , I n time,
two
with
and one daughter are born.
Pandu succumbs t o h i s l u s t f o r Madri and d i e s .
20 Madri entrusts her sons to Kunti's care and immolates herself on his funeral
pyre.
Kunti
returns to the palace with her
sons. and the cousins are instructed in the martial arts by Dro~a,
whom
Bhi~ma
Kunti's
Kar~a,
engages to teach them.
premarital
son,
whom
Among his pupils is Duryodhana
and
his
brothers befriend. As they grow, hostilities build between the two groups of cousins.
Duryodhana,
in
part; cul ar,
harbors
intense envy
toward the pandavas.
He urges his father to exile them so
that
consolidate
DUiyodhana
can
kingdom.
Dh~tarastra
under~tand
that
he
his
hesitates,
wants
them
but
to
influence soon
leave.
over
the
the
Pandavas
They
depart.
Meanwhile, Ouryodhana executes a secret plan to kill them on their journey.
Vidura cleverly warns them of the plot. and
they escape a fire set to kill them. Allowing
Duryodhana
to
think
them
dead.
they
travel
disguised as ascetics and begin to perform the good deeds that will forge their characters as just and virtuous kings.
Still
disguised as brahmans, they make their way to the city of King Drupada where a great crowd is assembling for a special event. Oraupadi, Drupada's daughter,
will
select her husband:
The
man who can string a great bow and hit a designated target. Here the brothers meet
K~~~a
; mportant all yin the war to
for the first time, come and a
their most
cousi n
Arj una wi ns the competi t i on and the pa-:'c:tavas wi n
of
Kunti.
a
bri de.
Hearing that they are alive, Dhrtarastra summons them back to
H a s t i napura.
.
The PSndavas now accept D h r t a r a* s* t r a t s o f f e r
of h a l f t h e
kingdom, and they b u i l d a new c a p i t a l a t Indraprastha.
Years
pass d u r i n g which,
among other events, Arjuna endures a yearÃ
long, self-imposed
e x i l e f u l l o f adventures.
...
w i t h Krsna a l s o deepens. Pandavas: * .
H i s friendship
A number o f c h i l d r e n are born t o t h e
Oraupadi has a son by each o f t h e f i v e brothers,
and Arjuna w i t h h i s j u n i o r wives f a t h e r s several sons who w i 11 be important a1lies. Abhimanyu,
He marries Krsna's s i s t e r , Subhadra, and * . *
grandfather o f Janamejaya, i s born.
The second major book o f t h e epic begins w i t h t h e events t h a t s e t t h e f i n a l stage f o r war.
Yudhisthi r a undertakes t h e *
s o l emn rajasOya ceremonies t o e s t a b l ish h i msel f as universal soverei gn,
1egi t i m a t e r u l e r o f t h e known world.
Duryodhana
.
challenges him t o a rigged d i c e game i n which Yudhisthi ra * stakes
and
possessions, Draupadi
.
loses
everythi ng:
h i s brothers,
himself,
his
kingdom,
all
his
and t h e i r common wife,
Humi 1i a t e d by t h e v i c t o r s i n t h e s i t e of the f u l l
communi t y o f ma1e e l ders.
Draupadi vows revenge.
The PSndavas, honori ng Yudhi s .t h i r a s promi se t o go in t o .* e x i le f o r t h i r t e e n years, depart f o r t h e f o r e s t w i t h Draupadi They undergo many p r i v a t i o n s and dangerous e x p l o i t s .
Arjuna
goes alone on a pilgrimage t o h i s f a t h e r ' s d i v i n e c i t y , the
others
make t h e i r
own d i f f i c u l t
pilgrimage
and
i n t o the
H i ma1ayas where they are eventual ly r e u n i t e d w i t h Arjuna.
experiences of
.
The
these twelve years occasion many anci 1 l a r y
tales.
.
The Pandavas and Draupadi pass t h e i r t h i r t e e n t h year of . e x i 1e i n t h e c i t y o f V i r a t a where t h e k i n g gives h i s daughter
Uttara
i n
marriage
to
Abhimanyu,
Arjunafs
son.
After
successful l y completing t h e i r f i n a l year o f e x i le incogni t o , the
Pandavas *
return
to
claim
the
kingdom
as
agreed.
Duryodhana is more determi ned t h a n ever t o r u l e unchal lenged, and he r e s i s t s p r o d i g i o u s e f f o r t s t o dissuade him from t h e decision
--
i n c l u d i n g Krsna's attempts t o n e g o t i a t e and h i s ..*
s t a r t 1 i n g r e v e l a t i o n t h a t he i s an i n c a r n a t i o n o f t h e god
- that
Visnu .
The
w i ll l e a d i n e v i t a b l y t o war.
four
battle
books a r e
an
unremittingly
gruesome
p o r t i o n o f t h e Mbh.
The war s t o r y i s s t r u c t u r e d around t h e
leadershi p o f
Kaurava
four
general s
.
Bhisma,
general, " f i g h t s f o r t e n days b e f o r e he f a 1 1s. teacher o f a l l t h e w a r r i o r s , in f i v e days. PSndavas .* Arjuna
-
--
the
first
Drona, beloved
i s defeated and k i l l e d by t h e
Karna t a k e s charge f o r two days before
s t i 11 n o t knowing t h a t Karna i s h i s e l d e s t b r o t h e r
k i l l s him.
-
Salya i s defeated by Y u d h i.s.t h i r a i n one day, t h e
e i g h t e e n t h day o f b a t t l e .
The mind-numbing v i o l e n c e o f t h e
war i s p o i g n a n t l y personalized by a n a r r a t i v e technique
in
which t h e b a r d Samjaya r e l a t e s t h e e n t i r e account t o t h e b l ind k i n g D h r t a r a*s t r a i n h i s camp. t h e gods a s p e c i a l scene a t w i l l ,
The n a r r a t o r has received from
a b i l i t y t o view t h e e n t i r e b a t t l e f i e l d
i n panorama o r c l o s e focus.
Thereafter,
i n a hideous
coda t o t h e violence,
three
*
23 Kaurava w a r r i o r s
slip
i n t o the
Pandava .. camp a t
massacre a1 1 t h e remai n i ng troops,
..
On1y t h e f i v e PZndavas,
sons.
night
and
in c l u d i ng Draupadi ' s f i v e
Krsna, and one a1 1y (Satyaki ) . * '
survive. Reconci 1ia t i o n s f o l l o w .
..
b u t Yudhi s t h i r a ,
i n particular,
i s deeply despondent and d i s i n c l i n e d t o assume h i s hard-won
In two 1engthy d i d a c t i c books, Yudhi s. .t h i r a receives
k i ngshi p.
d e t a i 1ed i n s t r u c t i o n from t h e dying BhZsma on dharma, complex,
subtle,
the
and comprehensive r u l e s o f conduct by which
t h e Mbh would have us be1ieve t h a t a1 1 people should 1ive.
As
k i ng, Yudhi s. t h i r a is special 1y charged t o safeguard dharma and m u s t t h e r e f o r e be f u l l y informed o f i t s i n t r i c a c i e s . last
At
Bhisma d i e s
i n s t a l 1ed as k i ng.
..
and Yudhisthi r a
Pari k s i t, h e i r t o t h e dynasty.
.
dead, b u t Krsna . . miraculously r e v i v e s him. peaceful
and
prepares
prosperous
reign
.
be
i s born
A f t e r many years o f
Yudhi s ,t h i r a
kingdom and r e t i r e s t o a f o r e s t hermitage.
to
renounces
the
S t i l l more sorrow
fol l o w s as Vai 6ampayana next t e l l s o f the v i o l e n t death o f Krsna * . . and h i s c l a n .
..
The g r i e v i n g PSndavas and Draupadi then
make t h e i r f i n a l journey, which culminates i n a joyous reunion o f a1 1 t h e s l a i n w a r r i o r s i n heaven. 3.
Survey o f the Anci 1l a r y Tales in t h e Mahabharata
Every book o f t h e epic (i n c l u d i ng t h e appended Harivamsa) except
the
last
three
contain
ancillary
stories.
If
we
consider a t r a d i t i o n a l t h r e e - f o l d d i v i s i o n o f t h e epic i n t o themati c s e c t i o n s 1abel l e d kulabheda (books one through f i v e .
24 chroni cl i ng
the
fragmentati on
of
the
cl an
into
opposi ng
camps), yuddha (books six through ten, relating the course of the war),
and jaya (books eleven through eighteen,
telling
about the Pandava's victory and the aftermath of the war), we find ancillary stories in every section except the very end of jaya.
namel y
books si xteen,
seventeen and
ei ghteen J
whi ch
conta i n none. 10 I find no definitive explanation for this clustering, but we should note that ancillary stories are clustered in very different ways throughout the epic.
In Chapter 3 I discuss
major themes of the ancillary stories in each parvan (book), and show that another.
these broad
themes vary from
one parvan to
Why the stories cluster more densely in the
stories),
~ra,!yaka
anu{;~sana
parvans
(50 stories). (84 stories)
~8n'ti
(158
is not at all
~di
(45
stories).
and
obvious.
We
would need to know a great deal more about the history of epic manuscri pts to specu1 ate on thi s questi on wi th any confi dence. Di d certai n manuscri pt
porti ons ci rcul ate more extensi vel y
than others and thus become more heavily interpolated?
Even
if this would help explain different degrees of interpolation,
10 At present I have no OP1 n1 on about why these three sections contain no ancillary stories. nor have I found any scholarship that addresses this part of the epic. It seems especially curious to me since the last section of the epic, the Harivam§a, identifies itself as a long ancillary story, called i't{h~sa and pur~na. If the Harivam§a is a late addition to the epic. as 'many scholars seem to assume, yet still employs ancillary stories, why would not the last three books of the Mbh, also said to be late additions, also use them?
25 it would still beg the question of why such might have been the case to begi n wi th.
Were the battl e books consi dered more
inauspicious than some other sections? established, it would not account
~or
Even if this could be why the three closing
books of the epic are similarly lacking in ancillary stories. And if the slaughter i tse 1 f
were so repugnant,
why was it
described in such detail?
In my view. the most productive
line
question
of
inquiry
for
this
understanding of the structural
may
lie
in
a
better
relationship between Vedic
ritual and the Mbhts narrative structure.
The relevant work
of Michael Witzel and Christopher Minkowski on this subject, showing how organizational principles
o~
Vedic rituals have
influenced the development of narrative forms,
is discussed
below in Chapter 3. The stories in the first portion of the Mbh, are plentiful
and diverse.
The
Robert Go 1 dman has analyzed. 11 ancillary material
(book one),
~di parvan
instance. contains a large part of the
Bh~gu
ku7abheda,
for
story cycle that
As I di scuss in Chapter 3, the
in this section of the epic is tightly
structured in an apparent attempt to show that the brahman Bhargava cl an and common. drawn
in
the
k!!a'triya
cl an have a
great deal
in
There I suggest that these family similarities are order
to
interpret
the
personal
experi ences and
events of the Mbh war story in very traditional (i.e., Vedic) l1Goldman, Robert, Gods. Pries'ts. and Warriors: The Bhrgus of 'the Mah.bh6rata, New York: Columbia Univ. Press, 1977.
26 re1i g i o u s terms, helping t o s u b s t a n t i a t e t h e e p i c ' s claim t h a t
The
second book n a r r a t e s t h e dramatic
.
events
i n the
assembly ha1l t h a t lead t o t h e PSndavas *
exi l e .
nine
re1a t i v e l y
anci 11a r y
stories,
including
a
There a r e brief
descri p t i on o f t h e assembly ha11s o f t h e d e i t i es Yama, Varuna, Kubera,
and Brahma by t h e sage NZrada,
who e x t o l s the h a l l
b u i l t "for Y u d h i*s t h i r a as p a r t o f t h e a c t i v i t i e s undertaken f o r
the rajasaya ceremony.
An example o f t h e s h o r t e s t s t o r y i n
the c r i t i c a l t e x t . c o n s i s t i n g of two verses, occurs a t 2.55.911
("Kavyaqs Wisdomm) as 5.37.16,
(1.107.32,
well
and 5.126.48).
as
at
three
other
places
It appears i n a c l u s t e r o f
three t a l e s which Vidura t e l l s i n a v a i n e f f o r t t o dissuade
,. from engaging i n t h e f a t e f u l d i c e game t h a t s e t s Yudhisthira up one o f t h e key dharmic d i lemmas o f t h e e p i c :
the staking
of Draupadi as wagered goods. By c o n t r a s t , t h e t h i r d book, Sranyakaparvan, is extreme1y r i c h i n subtales own r i g h t
--
Rsyasrnga. suggests
-
several
o f them long treasured i n t h e i r
i n c l u d i n g t h e s t o r i e s o f Nala, RSma, S a v i t r i , and My
that
Sranyakaparvan
discussion the
.
(ie.
two
,
of
these
largest Loma6afs
stories
story
i n Chapter
clusters
p i lgrimage
in
stories
3
the and
%ol dman concl uded t h a t t h e BhSrgava materi a1 probably shows t h e myth-making a c t i v i t y o f an h i s t o r i c a l p r i e s t l y clan, the Bhargavas, t h a t played a s i g n i f i c a n t r o l e i n e d i t i n g t h e epic. H i s work addressed t h e ambivalent r e 1a t i onshi p between Bhargavas and k s a t r i y a s , b u t d i d not draw s p e c i f i c para1l e l s c l a n o f PUru. as I do i n chapter 3. w i t h t h e ksat*a
27
.
MarkandeyaE . s s t u r y session) are c o n t e x t u a l ized i n t h e e p i c t o argue two d i s t i n c t p o i n t s
.
LomaSa s s t o r i e s establ ish t h e
p r a c t i c e o f p i lgrimage as a p o t e n t means o f a t t a i n i n g moksa. MZIrkandeya s s t o r i e s a r e used t o re-def ine who is a brahman by . a s s e r t i ng t h a t anyone who acts dharmical 1y i s one. The vfrStaparvan (book 4)
t e l l s d- events d u r i n g t h e
Pandavas .
f ina1 year o f e x i 1e m l t s s i na1 e anci 11a r y s t o r y is
actual 7 y
a
capsule
reference
to
four
stories
which
c o 1 1 e c t i v e l y c a 1 1 Vamous f a i t h f u l wivestt [4.20.7-20.13).
I It
i s one small example o f a common use o f these s t o r i e s i n the
Mbh, f o r i t shows how anci 1 l a r y s t o r i e s enable characters t o appeal-
authori t a t i ve1y
to
tradition
when
questions
a r i se
concerning i n t e r p r e t a t i a n s o f dharma* The stories,
udyogaparvaa
(book
5)
c o n t a i ns
i n c l u d i n g a dense s e r i e s of
c r u c i a1 moment in t h e drama,
that
f i fteen
anci 11ary
ten that cluster a t a
is,
the f i n a l
e f f o r t to dissuade Duryodhana from goi ng t o war.
,
concerted
The s t o r i e s
i1 l u s t r a t e a major f u n c t i o n o f anci 1 l a c y m a t e r i a l i n t h e e p i c s
name1y e x h o r t i ng characters t o base t h e i r behavior on 1essons learned From t h e past. With
the
exception
of
the
dronaparvm
$a ?yaparvang t h e b a t t l e books (BhZsmas Drona, c o n t a i n re1a t i v e l y few a n d 1l a r y s t o r i e s . o f Abhimanyu (son o f Arjuna and Subhadra,
the
drunaparvan,
.
the
and
Karna,
the
s a l ya)
Fu1l o w i ng t h e death Krsnaf s s i s t e r ) i n a
*
.
sage NSrada attempts t o
console the
g r i e v i ng Yudhi s . t h i r a by emphasi z i ng t h e inevi tab4 1it y o f death
28 through a l o n g s e r i e s o f s t o r i e s about v a r i o u s kings.
j3
At
t h e end o f t h e book0 a f t e r Rrona's d e a t h J V y U a reveals t o Arjuna t h a t S i v a h i m s e l f has been f i g h t i n g near him throughout t h e dayJ and reviews t h e f e a t s of t h a t d e i t y . The
strzparvan
(book
1l)J
which
presents
the
.
reconci 1ia t * on o f t h e Pandavas w i t h D h r t a r s .s.t r a and WndharZ *
and a 1engthy d e s c r i p t i o n of t h e h o r r o r s o f t h e corpse-strewn b a t t l e f i e l d s c o n t a i n s on1y one anci11ary s t o r y -
It seems t o
be
story
unique
in
the
critical
text
as
the
only
c o n d udes w i t h an a1 1e g o r i c a l in t e r p r e t a t i on of
it s e l f
that
.
The
" i s narrated by akhymaOwhich I c a l l Y h e brahman i n t h e p i t J
Vidura t o Q h r t a r a*s't r a a t 11.5.1-6.12. The & a n t i and afluSasaflaparvans (books 12 and 13) c o n s i s t af
extensi ve conversations between Bhisma and Yudhi s* .t h i r a .
The S a n t j opens w i t h a lengthy session o f argumentation [some 100 chapters)
that
he should n o t
abandon t h e kingdom and r e t i r e t o t h e f o r e s t *
ArjunaJ BhZma,
Nakula
to
Sahadeva
convince Yudhisthi ra *
KrsnaO and Vyasa j o i n a group o f sages on e
m
.
.
t h e banks o f t h e Ganges t o convince Y u d h i s t h i r a t h a t he must
accept h i s responsi b i 1it y t o serve as k i ng
.
To underscore h i s
arguments v i r t u a l 1y every speaker employs a s t o r y meant t o exhort casts off
cajole
..
o r warn Yudhi s t h i ra.
At l a s t
Yudhi s t. h i r a
h i s g r i e f and a n x i e t y and agrees t o b e i n s t a l l e d as
I3~he c r i t i . c a 1 t e x t omits t h e l e n g t h y s e c t i o n (which I have c a l l ed ltAkampanafs g r i e f t ' ] from t h e d r ~ n a p a r v a n ~ but includes i t i n t h e santiparvan a t 12.29-12.31' and 12.24812.250.
k i ng
. Thereafter
.
..
Krsna sends Yudhi s t h i r a t o q u e s t i on BhZ sma . m
--
s t i 11 1 y i ng on t h e b a t t l e f i e l d awai t i n 0 h i s chosen moment o f death
--
on t h e f o u r branches of
arthaJ kama,
and ntoksa)
As
knowledge ( t h a t i s l dharntas
t h e i r dialogue progressesI
a
..
simple p a t t e r n emerges i n which Yudhi s t h i r a poses a question and 8hCsma rep1ies by c i t i ng an "anti ent h i s t o r y "
pirratanaJ e*g.,
12.24-2],'4
Mbh
itself
often
a
( ftjhasa
discourse
between two d i st3 nguished f i g u r e s such as sages, a k i n g and a rs i I a respected asura and a d e i t y J and so on. *
I n t h i s wayJ
4
throughout t h e Sant i and anuS8sanaparvam stage as t h e v e h j c l e f o r
s t o r i es t a k e center
..
i n s t r u c t i n g king Y u d h i s t h i r a
tn
a n c i ent 1ore.
The aSvamedhfka parvan c o n t a i ns only e l even anci 11a r y tales, a very small number by comparison w i t h t h e previous two parvans.
.
Here t h e Pgndavas make t h e necessary p r e p a r a t i arts t o .
conduct an aSvamedha r i t e (horse s a c r i f i c e ) turns to t h e work s t o r i es
are
of
r u l i n g h i s kingdom-
p r i n c i p a l 1y
concerned
with
.
as Yudhi s. t h i ra
the
The a n c i l l a r y relationship
I4sanskrit i s t Dan4 e l I n g a l 1s regards t h i s o r a l - f o r m u l a i c expression as a Mbh c l icheI t h a t is a formula t h a t is frozen. tie has found t h a t t h e fo1 lowing ha1f gloka occurs 108 times i n t h e epi c : atrapyudaharantzmamft fhasam pur&tanam. Qani e l H H. I n g a l 1s and Daniel H. H. I n g a l I s s T h e Mahabharata: S t y 1 is t i c Study, Computer Anal y s i s and Concordance, R e Journal o f South Asian L i t e r a t u r e 20, no. 1 (1985): 1 7 ~ 4 6r e ~p r i n t e d i n Essays an t h e Mah8bh3rataJ A r v i nd Sharma, ed ( L e i den : E 8 J. B r i l l J 1991)J 32Can i t be mere coincidence t h a t t h e t e x t u a l t r a & t i o n records e x a c t l y 108 such uses? One r a t h e r suspects t h a t t h e inc1usion o f t h i s auspicious and u b i q u i t o u s number poi n t s t o c a r e f u l edi t o r i a1 work o n l y now revealed through t h e I n g a l l s ' workO
a
r
.
,
30
between knowledge and action (especially ritual
action).
a
topic also of great importance in the previous two parvans. As
discussed
i n
Chapter
3.
on the
whole they
appear
to
authorize a range of practices as effective and appropriate means
of
gaining
spiritual
merit,
from
elaborate
Vedic
sacrifices to the most modest offering of a handful of grain. The a§ramavasika parvan (book 15) contains the last two ancillary stories of the epic. for books 16 through 18 contain none.
This segment describes the departure of
Dh~tar.~~ra.
Gandhari and Kunti for a forest retreat where they die some years
1 ater
ina
forest
'fi re.
The
stori es
are
rather
unremarkable. and repeat two themes known from elsewhere in the Mbh:
that
k~atriyas
can succeed in performing tapas just
as brahmans can, and that principal characters of the epic reenact timeless cosmic dramas. B.
Major Trends in Western Scholarship on Ancillary Tales in
the Epic It may seem unnecessary to review epic scholarship that implicitly rejects the thesis that ancillary stories are a meani ngful
el ement of the Bharata narrative.
discussed below,
In fact.
as
before World War II hardly any European or
American scholar considered the epic to be a coherent whole except insofar as it preserved an ancient war story at its "core."
Why not begin with 'the few who argued that the epic
was more than a repository for highly valued but nevertheless assorted stories. fables. myths. maxims, rules, and treatises
31
accumulated under one roof over many centuries? view
of
the
Mbh
as
a
miscellaneous
Because the
hodgepodge
remains
virtually unexamined outside of a relatively small circle of scholars.
That circle does not even appear to include many
scholars of Hindu traditions working on non-epic topics, much less Indo1ogists at large. The situation is best illustrated by reference to some widely used, well respected introductory materials on Hindu traditions: '" the Mahabharata ... is essentially a story of warriors and kings, of heroic exploits and martial strugg1 es. Even before it passed into pri estl y hands, however, it had become much more than this. Material of all sorts, sometimes amounting to whole books, was inserted into the framework of the original story, changing the epic narra~ive into an encyclopedia of literature and legend. . .. the Mahabharata '" has gathered a veri tab1 e encyclopedia around the epiC story of the rivalry between the Kauravas, led by Duryodhana. and their cousins the Pandavas, led by Yudhisthira ... When in the course of the growth of the Mahabharata, the poem was being transformed into an early form of the epic, two principal processes had been in operation: the bardic enlargement of the ori gi na1 ball ad-cyc1 e re1 ati ng to the KuruBharatas. and lre Krishnaite redaction of the bardic material. The epic lay open to insertions and interpolations As a conglomerate of bardic on two scores. stori es. 1 egends, and lore. it di d not have the inner and formal i ntegri ty that a planned poem would have. Even when these clustered around the 15Thomas J. Hopkins, The Hindu Religious Tradition, Encino, California: Dickenson Publishing Co., 1971, 87. 16Sources oT Indian Tradition, Volume 1. Second edition. Edited and revised by Ainslie T. Embree, Columbia University Press, 1988. 277-278.
32
core of the story of the war between the Kauravas and Pandavas, the general structure remained loose .... The Mahabharata, however great at times its poetic power, is not carefully and consciously unified and wrought. 17 The
poi nt
here
is not
to cri ti ci ze these
i ndi vi dua 1
scholars for promulgating views of the Mbh that dominated epic scholarship in the West for many years.
They may well stand
behind those views because they SiMply do not agree with the conclusions of more
recent scholarship.
Not to take
any
notice of work that seriously challenges the "encyclopedia" view of the epic,
however,
is a stance worth questioning.
None of the introductory works quoted acknowledges that both Georges
Dumezi 1
and
Madel ei ne
Bi ardeau
--
for
all
thei r
disagreements on how to understand the Mbh -- have put forth detailed and systematic theories that posit a high degree of internal
consistency
for
the
epic,
notwithstanding
real
problems of textual corruption, emendation. and so on, along wi th many.
many unanswered questi ons about the process of
composition.
Nor do they refer to the body of scholarship
that appl ies techniques of oral-formulaic analysis Indian epics.
to
the
Because the volumes cited do not even register
debate on the matter, it seems reasonable to conclude that the position so harshly stated by Hermann 01denberg has yet to be subjected to widespread re-assessment. although it has been
17 J • A. B. van Buitenen, liThe Indian Epics," in Edward C. Dimock, Jr., et a1., The Literatures of India: An Introduction (Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 1978), 52. 54.
33
cons; derabl y modul ated by subsequent schol ars. 18 then.
Assuming,
that a maj ori ty of scholars whose work touches upon
studies of Hindu traditions do not question this longstanding approach. it seems prudent to devote some attention to it. A few ancillary stories did receive widespread notice in the West in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
They were
treated as independent stories that were appreciated for their intrinsic English
literary
meritr
translation
of
Charles the
Wilkins
Aakuntala
published
story
in
an
1795.
Trans 1 at ions into French and German fo 11 owed some 30 years 1 ater. t9
Franz Bopp' 5 text and Lati n trans1 ati on of' the Nal a
story was published in 1819 and soon translated into German and Eng 1 i sh .20
Generat i cns of students in the West have begun
their study of Sanskrit with the Nala story. However charmi ng they may
have found the
tales,
many
1SIIThe Mahabharata began its ex; stence as a si mpl e epic narrative. It became. in the course of centuries. the most monstrous chaos. II As quoted by V. S. Sukthankar. "The Mahabharata and Its Critics." On ~he Meaning of the Mahllbharata, T. C. Parekh Memorial Fund Publication 1 (Bombay: Asiatic Society of Bombay. 1957). 1. See Hermann Oldenburg, Das Mahabharata: seine En~s~ehung, sein Inha7t6 seine Form, Gottingen: Vandenhoeck und Ruprecht. 1922. 19 The German translation of the classical poet Kalidasa's on Wi 11 i am Jones I Engl ish transl ati on of 1789) recei ved consi derably more attenti on in Germany than the MBh story. On this and other plays of Kalidasa, see Barbara Stol er Mi 11 er, ed.. Theater of Memory: The Plays of K1l1 id.sa, New York: Columbia University Press. 1984. $akunta , . (based
20Moriz Winternitz. History of Indian Literature. 3 vols., trans. from the German into Engl i sh with add;tions by Subhadra Jha (Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass. 1967. vol. 3. Part 1), 382383.
34 scholars o f t h e Mbh have regarded them as i n c i d e n t a l t o t h e so-called
main s t o r y o f
the
Bharata war.
E.
W.
Hopkins
"It appears t o be a heterogeneous
concluded about t h e epic:
c o l l e c t i on o f s t r i ngs wound about a nucl eus almost l o s t s i g h t
of.
The nucleus,
however,
J.
is a s t o r y .
A.
B.
van
Buitenen considered many o f t h e t a l e s extraneous t o t h e main s t o r y , preserved i n some cases t o j u s t i f y troublesome matters
(as t h e myth o f t h e f i v e I n d r a s p u r p o r t s t o j u s t i f y Pandavas .
the
polyandry (Mbh 1 -1891 ) , in o t h e r s f o r t h e i r appeal
as good s t o r i e s . 22 Such
opi n i ons
about
the
r e s t r i c t e d function
of
the
anci 1l a r y t a l e s i n t h e Mbh d e r i v e from a s c h o l a r l y t r e n d t h a t has
emphasized
the
d i d a c t i c portions o f
dichotomy the epic.
between
the
narrative
and
W r i t i n g i n t h e 1830s and
1840s. Chri s t i a n Lassen, t h e f ir s t Western scholar t o consider
t h e e p i c as a whole,
was a l s o t h e f i r s t t o a s s e r t t h a t t h e
e p i c is rep1ete w i t h d i d a c t i c in t e r p o l a t i ons.
H i s in t e r e s t s
i n u s i n g t h e epic t o r e c o n s t r u c t a n c i e n t h i s t o r y and ethnology were t o be echoed by many subsequent scholars. For t h e next f i f t y years, e p i c scholarship was dominated by e f f o r t s a t h i s t o r i c a l r e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f a d i f f e r e n t s o r t .
' E . W. Hopkins, The Great Epic o f India: I t s Character and O r i g i n (Calcutta: Punthi Pustak, (1901 1 , 1969), 363. "J. A. 6 van Buitenen, trans., I n t r o d u c t i o n t o The Mahabharata, 1. The Book o f t h e Beginning (Chicago: Uni v e r s i t y o f Chicago Press, 19731, x i ii - x x i i ii I n t r o d u c t i o n t o The Mahabharata, 2, The Book of the F o r e s t (Chicago: U n i v e r s i t y o f Chicago Press, 1975). 182.
Led by two scholars named Adol-f Holtzmann. t h i s work p r i m a r i l y sought t o account f o r t h e perceived moral c o n t r a d i c t i o n s i n
the s t o r y .
How,
they wondered
in p a r t i c u l ar,
.
supposedly righteous PZndavas and t h e i r a1l y , *
could Krsna, ..*
the have
committed such u n j u s t acts i n t h e name o f v i c t o r y and law? rather
ingenious
studies.
@
@
inversi on
theorytE resul t e d
I t claimed t h a t t h e Kauravas were t h e
from
A
their
'original
'
heroes o f t h e e p i c as a Buddhi s t work, 1a t e r reworked t o laud
. .
Krsna and t h e .
Pandavas when * *
.
e l e v a t e t h e worship o f V i snu. p o i nted out,
sectarian brahmins sought
to
Even though, as H i 1t e b e i t e l has
Oldenberg d i s c r e d i ted the elaborate theory by
..
n o t i ng t h e para1le l s between t h e Pandava-Kaurava conf 1ic t and t h e V e d i c deva-asura opposi ti on, one must a t least acknowl edge t h e Holtzmannsr work as t h e f i r s t t o grant Krsna an important * . * r o l e in t h e e p i c s composi t i onal h i s t o r y .23 theory, as we1 1 , i s the view t h a t added over
many
centuries
Impl ic i t i n t h e i r
supplementary* m a t e r i a l was
primari l y
t o serve
c o n f l i c t i ng
s e c t a r i an in t e r e s t s . I n 1901, t h e American e p i c scholar E.W. Hopki ns pub1ished h i s i n f l u e n t i a l work The Great Epic o f I n d i a t o stand against e a r l ie r t h e o r e t i c a l conclusions and t o argue t h a t d i scussi ons of
content can o n l y be based upon such o b j e c t i v e c r i t e r i a as
m e t r i c a l analysi s, a thorough study o f what today i s sometimes c a l l ed t h e in t e r t e x t (i.e.,
d i r e c t o r indi r e c t references t o
,
#*Krsna and t h e MahZbharata. (A B i ographical Essay), Annals o f the Bhandarkar O r i e n t a l Research I n s t i t u t e , 60 ( 1 9 7 9 ) : 70-71 "AI f
H i 1t e b e i t e l
.
36
other literature).
and references to philosophical
Each topic was addressed in
learned detail.
schools.
The wei ght of
evidence. concluded Hopkins. points to an epic whose elements were composed by many poets Hopkins.
too.
the
in distinct time periods.
supplementary
narrative
porti ons of the epi c were interpol ati ons into a
and I
For
didactic
core' account
of an historical war: This story is in its details so abhorrent to the writers of the epic that they make every effort to whitewash the heroes, at one time explaining that what they did would have been wicked if i t had not been done by divinely inspired heroes; at another frankly stating that the heroes did wrong. It is not then probable that had the writers intended to write a moral tale they would have bui 1t on such material. Hence the tale exist~~ as such before it became the nucleus of a sermon. Although he distanced himself from ear1ier scholars who had constructed complex theories of the Mbh's composition, in the end Hopkins also supported a view of composition based on a seri es of compet i ng sectari an interests.
Hi sown chronology
of the epic's composition has been widely accepted. perhaps in large
part
because
vers i fi cat i on and 1 i terature
and
hi s
of
his
carefu 1
phi 1 osophi cal
thorough
scholarship
deli neat i on of school s
on
the Sanskri t
of di fferent
peri ods
apparently known to the epic poets: ... we may tentatively assume as approximate dates of the whole work in its different stages: Bharata 24Hopkins. The Great Epic of India. 363. The passage also contains a veiled rebuke of Joseph Dah1mann's theory. discussed below, which Hopkins had openly and harshly criticized elsewhere in this work and others.
(Kuru) l a y s , perhaps combined i n t o one, b u t w i t h no A Mahabharata evidence o f an e p i c b e f o r e 400 B.C. t a l e w i t h Pandu heroes, l a y s and legends combined by t h e Puranic diaskeuasts, Krishna as a demigod (no evidence o f d i d a c t i c form o r o f K r i s h n a t s d i v i n e supremacy), 400-200 B.C. Remaking o f t h e e p i c w i t h Krishna as a1 1-god, i n t r u s i o n o f masses o f d i d a c t i c matter, a d d i t i o n o f Puranic m a t e r i a l old and new; m u l t i p l i c a t i o n o f e x p l o i t s . 200 B.C. t o 100-200 A.D. The l a s t books added w i t h t h e in t r o d u c t i o n t o t h e f ir s t book, t h e swol 1en Anucasana separated from Canti and recognized as a separate book, 200-400 A. D. ; a n d f i n a l l y 400 A.D. + : occasi ona1 a m p l i f i c a t * ons
...
The great d i v i d e between n a r r a t i v e and d i d a c t i c p o r t i o n s o f t h e e p i c was maintained i n t h e next generation o f scholars, n o t a b l y by Hermann Oldenberg and Moriz W i n t e r n i t z who worked in t h e 1920s and 1930s.
The two held fundamental 1y d i f f e r e n t
v i e w s o f t h e o r i g i n s and development o f t h e Mbh, b u t n e i t h e r
regarded t h e e p i c as a coherent whole.
As Sukthankar has
noted, "Oldenberg has a1ways contended t h a t t h e ' o r i g i n a l ' o f t h e Mahabhanita was composed o f short p o e t i c a l pieces j o i n e d
t o g e t h e r by connecti ng 1inks in prose. W i n t e r n i t z shared Hopki ns ' "anal y t i c theory,
"
b u t he1d t o
a form o f Hol tzmann's i n v e r s i o n theory t h a t was c r i t i c i z e d by a number o f major scholars,
For W i n t e r n i t z ,
i n c l u d i n g Hopki ns and Oldenberg.
t h e Pandavas were f o r e i g n iwaders who were ..
o r i g i n a l l y t h e v i 1l a i n s o f t h e poetf s s t o r y .
When t h e human
. .
Krsna became a d e i t y i n a process o f euhemeri zation.
reworked t h e
2 5 ~ o pns, ki
poem,
i n s e r t i n g various
The Great Epic of India,
^ ~ u k t h a n k a r , On t h e Meaning o f the
sections t o
devotees glorify
.
V i snu 27
.
The general p o s i t i o n t h a t n a r r a t i ve and d i d a c t i c p o r t i o n s of t h e Mbh a r e c h r o n o l o g i c a l l y and/or t h e m a t i c a l l y d i s t i n c t has
been challenged
scholars,
as w i l l
i n various ways by some contemporary
be shown below.
Some e p i c scholars do
support it, however, as apparently do many o t h e r I n d o l o g i s t s .
3 . A . B. van Buitenen, a major t r a n s l a t o r and in t e r p r e t e r o f t h e Mbh, h e l d a l s o t h a t t h e work c o n s i s t e d o f
a central
story
g r e a t 1y expanded w i t h secondary a c c r e t i o n s .
But h i s view was
an in t e r e s t i ng h y b r i d o f h i s t o r i c i s t p o s i t i o n s (represented by Hopki ns and ~i n t e r n i t
~ and ) o r~ ganic
ones,
represented by
S y l v a i n Levi and V i t t o r e ~ i s a n i *f ~ o r he concluded t h a t t h e e p i c developed i n i t i a l l y i n a manner c o n s i s t e n t w i t h t h e basic framework
of
the
t a l e.
Each
performance
was
probabl y
elaborated o r a b b r e v i a t e d according t o expl i c i t techniques o f o r a l composition.
I n 1a t e r stages o f devel opment , however,
van Buitenen b e l i e v e d t h a t t h e b a r d i c m a t e r i a l was reworked
'*see Hopkins, Great Epic o f I n d i a , Preface and Moriz W i n t e r n i t z , "Genesi s des MahSbharata, f J W n e r Z e i t s c h r f f t fur d i e Kunde des Morgenlandes 14 (1900): 51-77. Hopkins' and W i n t e r n i t z ' s views on Dahlmann's work c i t e d here show t h e d i f f e r e n c e s between t h e i r general understandi ng o f t h e Mbh and h i s i n t h e i r own words. ' ~ t t o rie P i sani , "The Rise o f t h e Mahabharata, " i n A V o l u m e o f Eastern and Jndfan Studies Presented t o Professor F. W . ThomasJ S. M. K a t r e and P. K . Code, eds., M I A Extract Series, 1. Bombay: Karnatak Pub1i s h i n g House (1939) : 166-176. and Syl v a i n L e v i , "Tato Jayam U d i r a y e t " in Commemorative Essays Presented t o S i r R. G. Bhandarkar, 99-106. Poona: Bhandarkar O r i e n t a l Research I n s t i t u t e . 1917 .
.
39
many times. these
The tone of his analysis suggests that he thought
later
reworkings
recognizable
principles
did of
not
proceed
according
composition.
Van
to
Buitenen
summarized his view as follows: Thus the Bharata of 24. 000 couplets grew to The Mahabharata of 100.000. The original story was in the first phase of compilation expanded from wi thi n. in the second phase mythol ogi zed. in the third phase brahminized. One might even discern a fourth phase. after the epic was fi rst written down. when this collection of manuscripts became. as it were. a library to which new books could be added. Almost any text of "Hindu lt inspir:ation could be included in this expanding library.3D Commenting on the widely held view that the eighteen volume Sanskrit Mbh was compiled over the course of eight centuries (400 B.C.E. - 400 C.E.), he said, "Such a dating ....
is of
course absurd from the poi nt of vi ew of a si ngl e l i terary work. as
It makes sense when we look upon the text not so much
one
opus
but as
a l i brary
of opera .... 31
Clearly
van
Buitenen concluded, as many had before him. that the epic is at best a loosely structured. eclectic assortment of volumes. Hi stori an Romi 1 a Thapar a1 so accepts the basi c premi se of narrative and didactic layers. that is, that the bardic epic was
converted
into
sacred
literature,
at
wh i ch
time
discussions about ethical norms and definitions of sacred and temporal authority were interpolated into it.
30 van
She has further
Buitenen, Introduction, The Book of the Beginning.
xxiii. 31 I bid., xxv .
40
supported the distinction by arguing that society is depicted differently in the two layers:
in the narrative layers as
tribal chiefdoms and in the didactic as monarchical. her analysis preserves the traditional support to it from a take
into account
which
may
include
fresh angle.
possible oral the
intent
While
dichotomy and lends
it does not
sufficiently
compositional
strategies.
to
make
composition appear more or less archaic.
portions
of
the
Pertinent literature
on oral composition is reviewed later in this chapter insofar as it contributes approaches to Mbh studies that have yet to be fully exploited.
c.
The Mah6bh.rata as a Coherent Whole: 1.
Review of Research
Ancillary Tales in the Indian Intellectual Tradition
in Sanskrit Although the historicist position dominated European and American epic scholarship for a good portion of this century and in certain ways remains an
important trend.
the Indian
; nte 11 ectua 1 tradi t ion in Sanskri t has for centuri es taken ; ts cue from the Mbh itself. a
story
and
a
The epic proclaims itself to be both
comprehensive.
coherent,
and
authoritative
presentation of duty and law: We want to hear the collection (samhit.) of the wonderworker Vyasa which is joined to the fo'ur Ved1f. legitimate (dharmya). and warding off the danger of evil. thi s
Having arranged the eternal Veda. Satyavati's son made hal y hi story (itih6sa) by means of hi s austeri ti es 32vedai~caturbhih samitBm vyasasyadbhutakarmanah/
sa~hita~ ~rotumicchamo dharmya~
papabhayapahBml/1:1:19
( tapas)
.
and c e l ibacy (brahmacarya) 33
I t is s t a r t 1 ing t o note, as H i 1t e b e i t e l so p l a i n l y s t a t e d
t h e matter, t h a t u n t i l V.
S. Sukthankar i n 1942 attempted t o
l o c a t e Mbh studies w i t h i n the I n d i a n t r a d i t i o n , "there had up t o t h i s p o i n t been no r e a l e f f o r t t o place t h e Mahabharata i n the
direct
line
tradition.^^^
of
India's
own
In f a c t f o r centuries,
literate
religious
Sanskrit scholars
in
I n d i a have held t h a t s t o r y and sermon complement each other in the
epic,
v i ew. 3ii
thereby
imp1i c i t l y
contesting
the
historicis t
Thei r in t e r p r e t a t i ons have o f t e n been grounded in t h e
p r e m i s e t h a t t h e Mbh i s p r i m a r i l y a d i d a c t i c work.
In other
words, i t i s t r a d i t i o n a l h i s t o r y ( i t i h s ~ a with ) ~ ~ a purpose: t o help 1isteners achieve m e r i t and t o provide them w i t h an inexhausti b l e source o f gui dance on every major human concern,
u s u a l 1 y conceptual ized in four ( m a t e r i a l gain),
kma (desire),
Late i n the 19th century,
c a t e g o r i es:
dharma,
artha
and moksa (salvation). Georg Buhler established,
on
t h e basi s o f independent 1it e r a r y and in s c r i p t i o n a l evi dence, t h a t the Mbh w a s considered s m r t i (sacred t r a d i t i o n ) as e a r l y ^taPasa brahmcaryena vyasya vedam sanStanam/ it i hasamimam cakre punyam satyavati su*ah//1.1.52 "t4-i 1 tebei t e l
,
"Krsna ... and t h e Mahabharata, tt 95.
hi s summary o f opinions from t h e commentarial t r a d i t i o n draws heavi 1y upon the discussion i n James Leo Fitzgerald, The Moksa Anthology o f the Great Bharata: an i n i t i a l survey o f Ph. D. s t r u c t u r a l issues, themes, and r h e t o r i c a l strategies. Thesis. Univ. o f Chicago, 1980, Ch. I .
he
term iti-ha-ass 1i t e r a l l y means "thus i t was
.**
42 as the fourth century and that "about A. D. 500 it certai nly did not differ essentially in size and in character from the p resent text ... 37
therefore, that the Mbh of
It is certain,
some 100,000 verses, which manuscripts only permit us to date back
to
the
13th
century,
had
by
then
exi sted
in
some
the
Mbh,
equivalent lengthy form for eight centuries. Predati ng all Kumari 1 a
IS
the avai 1 abl e
commentari es on
Tan'travar't'ti ka (ca. 8th century) is a commentary on
the su'tras of the PDrva Mim&'!'sa school contai ns numerous
of phi 1 osophy.
It
references to and some di scussi on of the
general characterization of the Mbh. 38
Presenting guidelines
for i nterpreti ng the text, Kum3ri 1 a appl i ed general pri nci pl es considered appropriate for understanding the Vedas.
Starting
with the assumption that the Mbh is a didactic work intended for the religious instruction of all Hindus (i.e.,
the four
classes), he explains that the contents should not simply be taken
1 i terall y.
(prescriptive,
Rather, narrative)
pedagogical methods. that
peop1 e
i nstructi on,
the
1 earn others
most
vari ous often
types
of
reflect
passages different
According to Kumarila, VyRsa understood in
di fferent
wi th
ways.
accompanyi ng
others th rough i 11 ust rat ion.
some
through
exp1 anati ons,
di rect sti 11
For Kum&ri 1 a. narrat i ve port ions
31 G . Buhler and J. Kirste, "Indian Studies. No. II. Contributions to the History of the Mahabharata." Sitzungsberich'te der Phi 7osophisch-Historischen Classe der Kaiser7ichen Akademie der Wissenscha''ten 127 (1892): 1-58.
38Relevant selections are cited in Buhler and Kirste.
of t h e e p i c (which he c a l l e d upSkhySnas) p r i m a r i l y teach i n one
way
what
didactic
passages
(e.g.,
rajadharma
moksadharma s e c t i o n s ) teach in another. 38 an occasional
and
Aside from t h a t ,
passage may simp1y p r o v i d e entertainment
function t o p r a i s e a p a r t i c u l a r deity,
or
r a t h e r than i n s t r u c t .
Thi s general approach t o t h e Mbh as a coherent who1e w i t h d i d a c t i c purpose was shared by l a t e r S a n s k r i t scholars,
as
The in f 1u e n t i a1 Vedanta s c h o l a r Sartkara ( 9 t h c e n t u r y )
we1 1.
o f t e n quoted t h e Mbh as s m r t i and c l e a r l y regarded i t as a vehicle
for
commentators century)
widespread Madhva
each
described
d i f f e r e n t terms. distinct
but
the
equally
Mbh
.
and
N i 1akantha
interpretive
valid
h i s t o r i c a l , moral,
Sukthankar,
V.S.
(17 t h
chief
editor
e n t e r p r i se
in
held that there are
levels
of
meaning
that
.
and transcendental 40 of
the
Pune
critical
chided Western scholars f o r r e f u s i n g t o respect t h e
M b h r s dual smrtf.
century)
Madhva, f o r example,
expl a i n t h e Mbh:
edition,
(1 3 t h
instruction.
a l s o considered i t t o be m a i n l y a d i d a c t i c work,
a1though
three
religious
status
i n the
I n d i a n t r a d i t i o n as
i t f h a s a and
Surely t h e e p i c i s something more than
an unvarnished statement o f f a c t s , i n short, a f a c t i t i v e h istory I s i t n o t pass* ng strange that, notwi t h s t a n d i ng t h e repeated and dogged
.. . .
' s e e Buhler and K i r s t e , 6-8 f o r t h e r e l e v a n t passage and a translation o f it.
he meaning o f
t h e Bharata..
.*'
From Madhvafs commentary
o n t h e Mbh (Mahabharatatparyam'rnaya) as t r a n s l a t e d by Klaus Klostermei e r in A Survey o f Hinduism (A1bany, New York: U n i v e r s i t y o f New York Press, 1989). 78.
State
44
attempts of Western savants to demonstrate that our Mahabhara~a is but an unintelligible conglomerate of di sjoi nted pi eces, wi thout any meani ng as a whole, the epic should always have occupied in Indian antiquity an eminent position and uniformly enjoyed the highest reputation? 1 Admonishing
Dahlmann
for
his
too-narrowly
drawn
cone 1 usi on that the epi c "was composed wi th the avowed and exclusive object of expounding all the different aspects of Hindu Law [i.e .• dharma1. in the widest sense of the term not omitting
even
its
historical
and
archaic
features
and
oddi ties," Sukthankar remi nded scho1 ars that the conti nui ng popular appeal of the epic clearly indicated not only that it was coherent and comprehensible, but accessible, as wel1. 42
2.
Western Interpretations of the Mah6bh.rata as a Coherent Whole a.
Antecedents of Current Approaches
Contemporary epic research does not much concern itself wi th efforts to reveal
a core.
The prodigious efforts of
earlier generations of scholars were ultimately judged to be arbitrary for the most part and were laid to rest with the producti on of a cri ti cal edi ti on.
Although pub1 i cati on of the
Pune critical edition is often used as a convenient landmark signalling new directions in epiC scholarship, at least three other roughl y si mu1taneous trends ; n research converged to inaugurate a new chapter in the hi story of epi c studi es. 41Sukthankar, On ~he Meaning of ~he Mah.bh.ra~a, 28-
29. 42 Ibid ., 23.
(See
45 Chapter 2 for a discussion of the critical edition.) The three
trends
I
di scuss
in
the remai nder
of
thi s
chapter are the new comparative mythology (in particular, the work of St i g Wi kander and Georges Dumezi 1 ), the work of French Indo10gists (discussed briefly and in particular, the work of Madeleine
who
Biardeau)
disagree
with
structuralist
approaches, and research based on oral-formulaic theories of narrative composition. Biardeau's
is
Of the three trends in research. only
directly
related
to
my
work
on
the
Mbh's
ancillary stories because she has written specifically about the relationship of seemingly digressive portions of the epic (i .e., the story of Na1a and Damayanti at 3.48.35-3.78.17) to the war story. to
demonstrate
In general. I discuss these trends in research that
despi te
thei r
fundamenta11 y
approaches to understandi ng the Mbh.
a 11
di fferent
proceed from
the
assumption that all of its contents must be taken into account for a proper appreciation of its meanings. Parti cu1 ar1 y
;n
Europe
and
the
Un; ted
States.
epi c
research now largely concerns itself with narrative structure and questi ons of the Mbh ' s re1 ati onshi p to other Indo-European and Indian religious structures. 43 As Hiltebeite1 has noted, newer work draws heavi 1 y
upon anc; ent and class; ca 1
Indi an
re 1 i gi ous mater; a 1 s to show how the Mbh ; s structured by myth
43 For a thorough hi stori ca 1 rev; ew of ep; c research vi s-avis the figure of Krsna, see Hi1tebeite1, "Krsna and the Mahabharata," 66-107." .
46 and by brahmanic ritua1. 44 view that,
Much of the research supports the
by and large, the Mbh is a coherent work.
Wikander and Georges Dumezil, on the one hand,
Stig
and several
French Indologists on the other initiated and have remained extremely influential
in researches on narrative structure.
Their contributions are discussed below. As
Hiltebeite1
has
pointed
out.
archaeological
excavations undertaken since 1947 at many sites mentioned in the Mbh have also helped to steer research in the West away from
questi ons
of
the
hi stori ci ty
of
the
war
and
other
information contained in the Mbh.
The sites provide evidence
of
Gray
a
shared
approximately
culture 1000
to
(Painted 500
B.C.E.
dwell i ngs that appear throughout
Ware) The
dating
modest
from
mud
the si tes make it
wall rather
difficult to conclude that basic descriptions in the epic are based
in
historical
fact.
Indraprastha
and
HKstinapura
existed, but they were not the grand cities described in the Mbh. 45
Fi na 11 y,
epi c
scho 1 arsh i p
ideas from old quarters. by
comparison 44 I bid.,
with
the
has
been cha 11 enged
by
new
Once the Mbh was believed to suffer Homeric
epics
when
methods
and
1 01 -1 08 .
45 Ibid .• 100-101.
See also John Brockington. The Sanskrit Leiden: Brill, 1998. For an excellent set of essays assessing the current state of conversations among archaeologists, linguists. philologists, and historians about the early history of South Asia. see George Erdosy, ed .• The Epics.
Indo-Aryans 0'F Ancient South Asia: Language, Material Culture and Ethnicity. Berlin and New York: Walter de Gruyter, 1995.
47
i nterpretati ons from cl assi ca 1 studi es were appl i ed to it. The burgeoning scholarship on oral traditional literature reinvigorated Homeric and other literary studies following the introduction of the Parry-Lord theory, and Mbh studies have also begun to yield rich fruits from the widening scope of its application. The roots of interpretive approaches that focus on the Mbh as a coherent if extremely complex whole can be traced to
the 19th century.
Although the historicist position held sway
in Europe and America until the late 1940s. a minority view first
emerged
Dahlmann.
in the
highly
controversial
work of Joseph
In a direct challenge to prevailing views in 1895,
he asserted that
the Mbh was composed in
the 5th century
B.C.E. by a single poet who interwove narrative and didactic elements to communicate fundamental moral, legal, and ethical pri nci pl es
of
Brahmi n
soci ety
to
new groups.
Fitzgerald
outlines Oahlmann's main argument 46 as follows: Dah 1 mann saw the di dact; c di a 1 ogues contained ; n Bhisma's instruction to Yudhisthira as typical representatives of the products of a tradition of di dacti c rhapsodi sts. A central feature of thi s tradition, according to Dahlmann, was its use of narrative material for the presentation and inculation [sic] of the new. post-Vedic behavioral norms (dharma) and the new philosophical and religious ideals formulated in Samkhya and Yoga and bhak'ti for new, non-Brahminic. "popular" audiences under the general cultural aegis of the Ksatiryas [sic]. Out of this narrative-didactic tradition of
46 0ahl mann publ i shed two books on the Mbh. Das Mah.bh8ra'ta a7s Epos und Rechtsbuch, Berlin: Dames. 1895 and Die Genesis des Mahabhara'ta. Berlin: Dames, 1899.
48
dharma, yoga, and bhakti emerged the Great 8hara~a as a grand, encyclopedic collection of pieces (itihasa-samvada-s) woven, along with numerous small, purely epic legends, into and around the newly invented epic saga of the five Pandavas. The five Pandavas symbolically represented and glorified the Pancalas, who had actually replaced the old Kurus as the pre-elilinent power in Northcentral India through a struggle which had initiated a powerful new federation of princes and a new political order. The Kurus had themselves replaced the ancient Bharatas, whose name remained presti gi ous in epi c lore, and to whose name and genealogy both the Kurus and the Pancalas were assimilated. The grand cultural monument which resulted was the "Great Bharata,lI which enshrined a new Panca 1 a po 1 it i ca 1 order, a new, more broad 1 y based religious outlook, and a new, complex, narrative and didactic national rhetoricj each aspect sUlilming up within itself the Vedic fast which it was in the process of transcending.,,4 Furthermore,
Dahlmann argued that the poet selectively
used epic lore to promulgate a new philosophy of release from worldly suffering Sa~khya
valid
means of an
consistent with early doctrines of
Relying on inference and Vedic revelation as
Yoga.
provided
(mok~a)
knowledge,
alternative
the to
new philosophy,
the
authority
Promot i ng the va 1 ue of i nteri or vi rtue for absol ute
re1 i ance on
Vedi c
important
el ements
of
the
effect,
the
Vedas.
it eli mi nated the need
sacri fi ce,
i ncreasi ng its appea 1 to non-brahmans. were
J
of
in
thus
measurabl y
Both dharma and bhakti
phi losophy
of
moksa,
and
Dahlmann careful explicated the text of the Mbh to support these assertions. U
47 Fi tzgera 1 d,
The moksa anthology of the Great BhKrata
36-37. 48 Ibi
d., 38-39.
I
49 Dah1mann's
fresh
and
provocative
perspectives
on
the
structure and function of the Mbh were soon overshadowed by scathing criticism of his
historical
thesis,
that is.
his
contention that the entire epic was redacted by one person in the 5th century B.C.E.
With due notice of his exaggerated
positions on the epic's homogeneity and authorship. Dah1mann today
holds
a
scho1 arshi p. ~g
respected Others
approach to the epi c
place
have
as a
in
the
supported
history
Dahlmann's
of
Mbh
general
coherent who1 e whi 1 e di stanci ng
themselves from his historical thesis and moderating his view of unitary authorship. Sylvain Levi
held that the Mbh coherently develops and
e1 aborates certai n pri nci pl es bri 11 i ant 1 y "i 11 umi nated" in the Bhagavadgit•• a section of the Mbh which he regarded as the thematic core or nucleus of the epic. 50 dominated the Sanskrit Mbh:
For him. two themes
k~a'triya dharma 51 and its
in Indian society. and devotion to
Kr~~a.
ro1 e
guarantor of victory
and prosperity. The historicist position still held sway during World War
49Sukthankar wrote that Dah1mann. tI • • • of all the foreign critics of the Mahabharata may be said to approach nearest to any real understand; ng of the Great Epi c of Indi a. II liThe Mahabharata and its Cri ti cs t i l in V. S. Sukthankar. On 'the Meaning of the Mahabharata, 19. 50 Levi. "Tato Jayam Udi rayet.
II
102.
51 The composite sacred and secular duties of the warrior cl ass regarded as comp1 ementary to the obl i gati ons of pri est1 y (brahman). agriculturalist/trader (vai§ya) , and servant (§Ddra) c1 asses.
50 II • Aga i
as
i ndi cated
ina
1939
art i c 1 e
by
nst the tide of scho 1 ar 1 y opi n ion.
theory
most
Winternitz
authoritatively
rested
on
the
Vi ttore
he argued that the
represented
faulty
Pi san i .52
by
Hopkins
application
of
methods derived from the study of Homeric epics.
and
critical
The Mbh is
not the accidental product of numerous redactions of a poem about warri ors • he argued. but rather. 1 ike the 11 i ad • tithe definitive fixing
up by writing of rhapsodic
pre-existing
materials made by poets who have added their own creations and disposed the whole according
to a
pre-established design.
correcti ng -- accordi ng to thei I"" own taste and capaci ty -- the giving
unevennesses.
a
uni form
Furthermore. Pisani observed.
colour
and
so
on ... 53
in the attempt to dissect the
epic. most scholars entirely lost sight of Vyasa's Mbh and its enduring significance to the Indian tradition. 54 Since the late 1930s. epic scholarship has turned away from a search for an ur-Mahabh8rata. responding in part to the emergence of
the
new compa .... at i ve
mythology
(based
on
the
theory and methods of Georges Dumezi1). and new theories of the processes of composition of oral narrative poetry based on the
researches
of
developments helped
Milman
Parry
to encourage
and
Albert
the earlier
Lord.
Both
trend
toward
52pi san i. "The Ri se of the Mahabharata. tt 53 Ibid .•
173.
54" • " they have gi ven the history of the materi a 1 sand have thought that they were gi vi ng the hi story of the poem ... II Ibid .• 170.
51
approaching t h e Mbh as a complex but coherent whole.
Each
devel opment is d i scussed be1ow. b.
Western Scholarship Since World War
II
European and American s t u d i e s o f t h e Mbh developed i n t h e of
framework
cornparati ve
Indo-European
re1ig i ous
s t u d i es,
themselves born o f t h e eighteenth century development o f t h e concept o f an Indo-European l anguage fami 1y.
The convi c t i on
t h a t a common Indo-European t r a d i t i o n u n d e r l i e s Indo-European re1ig i ous systems
produced t h e
"
n a t u r i s t M t h e o r i es o f
Mu1 l e r and o t h e r s which dominated 19th century
comparative myth01ogy, 1900s.
A1 f r e d Ludwig,
but
were
discredited
Max
studies
by the
of
early
f o r example, understood t h e Mbh as a
s o l a r myth. By the l a t e 1940s, Dumezi 1 had f u l l y a r t i c u l a t e d a new
model f o r Indo-European studies,
rooted i n t h e concept of
a
t r i p a r t i t e ideology t h a t he argued was r e f l e c t e d i n both t h e t h e o l ogi es and t h e s t r a t i f ied soci a1 systems o f communities d e r i ved from t h e Indo-European
1anguage f ami 1 y
.
I t became
c l e a r t h a t t h e Mbh s i g n i f i c a n t l y r e f l e c t e d t h e Indo-European ideology
in
1947
when
Stig
W i kander
demonstrated
how
e x t e n s i v e l y major Vedic d i v i n i t i e s had been gstransposed"o n t o t h e Pandavas
.
W i kander ' s and Durnezi 1 ' s work in i ti a11y demonstrated t h e
essenti a1l y mythological character o f t h e epic, fresh
theoretical
and
method01ogi cal
European and epi c studies.
and provided
approaches
to
Indo-
The3 r work explores t h e c o n t e n t i o n
52
that
"Indo-European
religion
and
mythology
reflect
the
pervasive structural pattern of the basic social hierarchy of the Indo-Europeans. consisting of three functional (a)
priests;
warriors;
(b)
agri cul tural i sts) ... 55
(c)
classes:
producers (cattle-breeders.
Accordi ng to Dumezi 1. the central mati f
of Indo-European ideology is the conception that "the world and society can live only through the harmonious collaboration of the three stratified functions of sovereignty. force, and fecundi ty ... 56 Wi kander and Dumezi 1 subjected the Mbh to ext.ensive reanalysis as part of their project to determine how archaic Indo-European
themes
converge
and di verge
in the
Indi an.
Roman. Scandinavian, Celtic. and Germanic traditions. 57 For pa~~avas.
the
Mbh.
Wi kander
and
Dumezi 1
showed
that
the
through their divine fathers (i.e .• Dharma. Indra.
Vayu. and the twin
A~vins).
duplicate the group of gods in
earl y Vedi c mythology who
represent the three functi ons of
administration
sacred.
of
abundance/fertility.
the
Subsequently.
physical they
force.
and
attempted
to
55Edgar C. Polome, "Introduction," in Edgar C. Polome. editor. Homage to Georges Dumezjl. Journal of Indo-European Studies. Monograph No.3, 1982. 7. 56Georges Dumezi 1, Destiny of the Warrior. Alf Hiltebeitel. trans .• Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1970, 4.
57 C . Scott Littleton. author of the first major study of Dumezi 1 in Engl ish. summari zes hi s thesi sin If' Je ne sui spas . structuraliste': Some Fundamental Differences between Dumezi 1 and levi-Strauss, II Journal of Asian Studies 34, No. 1 (November 1974), 152.
demonstrate t h a t t h e archaic mytholoqy paragVedic
--
-- a blend o f
V e d k and
was a v i r t u a l template for the c o n s t r u c t i o n o f
t h e BhSrata e p i c .
DumezilS
building
upon
Wikanderls
study
of
the
tptransposit i on1* o f those s t r u c t u r e s from Vedi c myth01ogy t o epi c
heroes
..
Pandavas) ,58
and
herwi nes
brought
an
( p a r t i c u la r ly
espeei a1 1y
Oraupadi
rich
and
and
the
s t i m u l a t i ng
in t e r p r e t a t i u n t o a r a t h e r t i r e d o l d problem o f t h e e p i c * t h a t is a
Draupad% s
Draupad5 s
p o l yandry
marriage
Indian
only
PZIndavass .. m i sunderstands
.
speci a1 p r i z e (ie. equal l y J and (2)
in
Xn
when
the* r
the b r i d e )
polyandry
Pandava brothers was
either
tradition.
i s condoned
fraternal
..
marriage t o t h e f i v e
accepted m a t t e r - o f - f a c t l y subsequent
The
(7)
the e p i c
the
story
KuntT,
r e p o r t about
tale
not
or
itself
mother
of
of
in the the
having won
a
and t e l I s them t o share i t
Vyasa invokes two myths t o plexplainrt t h e
speci a1 c i rcumstances t h a t s a n c t i o n t h i s o r d i n a r i 1y forbidden union { V h e anxious maidens
1 - 1 5 7 -6-14;
18§*41-4 and V h e
''t4i I t e b e i t e l traces W i kander s and Dumezi I * s work on these f ig w e s as f o l I ows: (I) S t i g W i kander , lpPandavasagan och Mahabharatas myt iska f o r u t s a t t n i ngarD11 Re 1 i g i a n ach Bfbe 7 VX ( l 9 4 ? ) , 27039~ i n Dumezi 1 Jupiter Mars Quirinus X W m Exp7ication de t e x t s indiens e t l a t i n . Paris: Presses U n i v e r s i t a i r e s de FranceJ 1948; (2) Georges Dumezils Mythe e t egmpee, I : i j d e o 7 0 ~ f edes t r o i s fonctions dans 7es epopees des peuples indo-eur~peens~ P a r t I , 31-257 CttLa Terre soulageett) Paris: Gallimards 1908; (3) *'The Drama o f t h e Waf1d : Bal der, Hoder Loki *' in â‚ nar Haugen, ed. and t r a n s . Gads a f t h e Ancient Northmen* Berkeley: University o f C a l i f o r n i a Press* 1973, 49-66; and ( 4 ) Mythe e t epopee, 111: H i s t a i r e s romaines. Paris: Gallimarda 1973# 2 6 3 4 1 {''La geste de Pub1ico1at*)
.
54
f i v e former Indras,
f f
1 . 1 8 Q 9 1-39)
.
I n short,
he inTorms t h e
two f a m i l i e s t h a t DraupadZ i s a goddess, and t h e r e f o r e exempt from t h e r u l e s t h a t apply t o human conduct Many scholars have regarded t h e polyandry as ethno3ogical datum.
According t o
E.
Hopkinsa f o r example,
W.
since the
p r a c t i c e was known t o be common i n northernmost areas o f the subconti nent on the f r i nges o f brahmani c c i v i 1iz a t ion a since
--
u n l i k e t h e Kurus
e a r l ie r brahmanical probably
indicate
--
and
..
t h e PZndavas are unknown i n
1it e r a t u r e B t h e provisional
e p i c references
acceptance
of
a
to
it
m a r r i age
p r a c t i c e used by a group (i .em, t h e PSndavas) . rather recently
.
admi t t e d t o brahmanic soci e t y 59 t h e polyandry a l l e g o r i c a l l y .
Other scholars in t e r p r e t e d
As mentioned e a r l i e r ,
i n the
l a t e 19th century, A l f r e d Ludwig, f o r example, understood t h e e n t i r e e p i c as a grand s o l a r myth i n which Draupadf symbol ized t h e e a r t h and her f i v e husbands t h e seasons* I n a more contemporary vein, Romi 1a Thapar has cautioned
agai n s t simp1e h i s t o r i ca1 o r e t h n o l o g i c a l in t e r p r e t a t i ons by p o i n t i ng o u t
that
three
d ifferent
marri age systems
occur
w i t h i n t h e f a m i l y a and V h i s seems h i g h l y improbable i n a soci ety where marri age r u l es were general 1y very c a r e f u l 1y observed.
ft
The
Pandu/Madr5/KuntZ ,.
marri ages Follow
the
of
.
DhrtarSstraIGandhar5 ,
common
exogamous p a t t e r n
marri age among G arts I o f equal s t a t u s t o extend a1 1iances. polyandry occurs i n t h e next generation, ' ' ~ o ~ ns, ki
and of The
as does a cross-
The Great Epic o f I n d f a , 376*
55 (K~~~a's
cousin marriage when Arjuna weds Subhadra his maternal uncle's daughter.
sister),
This diversity may suggest an
effort to adjust conflicting kinship systems among different clans -- a possible rhetorical device -- but it is
doubt~u1
that it simply records social practice. 50 For Dumezil (following Wikander), Draupadi's marriage is an essenti a1 key to understandi ng the Indo-European mytho1ogem underlying the Mbh.
In his analysis.
she comp1elnents t:he
trifunctiona1
of
other
group
brothers
goddesses comp 1 ement gods. 81
as
Indo-Iranian
Draupadi is but one var; ety of
the Indo-Iranian goddess (Armaiti, Anahita,
Sarasvati, Vac)
upon whom the trifunctiona1 theology o~ two goddesses (~aci, and ~ri)
Indra's wife,
Wikander, the marriage
was transposed. 62
re~lects
by
a
single
goddess,
confined to any of the three operates,
wi thi n
them
all .
and
the situat:ion in earlier Indo-
Iranian mythology in which lithe team of the completed
For Oumezi 1
who
~unctions,
Her
~unctional
ideologically
gods is is
not
but is situated. and
nature
is
thus
synthet:ic
.. 63
60Thapar, "Hi stori an and the Epi c." 207. 610umezi1, Jupi~er, Mars, Quirinus IV. 50-52 (translating Wikander) and 75-76; also My~he et Epopee, I, 103-24. The Ritual of Ba~~7e: Krishna in (Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 1976). 147. Hi1tebeite1 argues that ~ri cannot readily be equated wi th the Indo-I ran; an goddess because she interacts differently with the male gods who represent the three functions. 62See Alf Hiltebeit:el.
'the Mahabh4rata ..
630umezi 1, Destiny of the Warrior. 74.
Dumezi 1 s
work
has
inF1uenced
j ncreasi ng1y
Mbh
scholarship, even though i t has y e t t o be s e r i o u s l y integrated in t o Indo1o g i c a l s t u d i es a t 1arge m B 4
Made1e i ne B i ardeaus f o r
one,
that
has
.
Pandavas
accepted
the
hypothesis
incarnate
the
threefold
Draupad2
structure
of
and
the
the
three
f unct ions, b u t has d i sputed Dumezi 1 ' s anal yses and compari sons
on other matters.
Her work on t h e Mbh@perhaps more than any
ather scholar s, exemplifies t h e contrast between e a r l y and l a t e 20th century e p i c s c h o l a r s h i p m I n marked c o n t r a s t w i t h t h e work o f W i n t e r n i tzs Hopkins the
Mbh
as
a r t +cu1a t e s
a the
Vnite
and 01denberg, she approaches
mythiques*65 which
structures
of
bhakti
systematically
(Yhe
re1 ig i on
of
dev~tion~ one ~ )o ~ f t h e major c u r r e n t s o f Hindu t r a d i t i o n s * Her work on t h e e p i c has an e n t i r e l y d i f f e r e n t focus from Dumezi 1 ' s. of
He examines Vedic and e p i c 1it e r a t u r e f o r remnants
Indo-European
myth,
interested t o
e v i dence compares w i t h the Ce1t i c, Roman
know
haw t h e
Indian
Scandi navi an, and so
ons as we11 as t o understand t h e unique adaptations o f IndoEuropean mythology i n t h e broad I n d i a n context.
But Bi ardeau
seems general 1y d i s i n c l ined t o engage i n such a comparative
6 4 ~ aan r assessment o f t h e s i t u a t i o n see A1 f H i 1tebei te1 , rSDumezi 1 and I n d i a n Studies, if Journa7 o f Asfan S t u d i e s 24$ No. 1 (November 1974), 129-1 37. Indo1o g i s t s who have- incorporated Dumezi 1 a s general t h e o r i es and method01ogy in t o t h e i r work inc1ude A 1 f H i 1t e b e i t e 1 and Bruce L i ncol n. C r i t i c s in c l ude Paul T h i eme and Jan Gonda. %a l de1 e i ne 6$at-deh, at€tud de myth01o g i e h i ndoue: Bhakti e t avatara, ** BUT 7 e t i n de 1 W x ? l e Francaim? drExtreme Q r i i m t 63 (1976): 111-263 and 65 (1978): 87-238.
e n t e r p r i s e 8 p r e f e r r i n g ( a t l e a s t w i t h respect t o her work on t h e Mbh] t o examine i n d e t a j 1 how t h e Hindu conceptions o f b h a k t i were formulated i n t h e u$#df?fsa&# elaborated i n t h e
MbhI
and
fully
articulated
in
the
Put-Sms. 66
some
of
Biardeaurs work on t h e Mbh w i 11 be considered i n subsequent chapters o f t h i s study s i n c e i t r e l a t e s d i r e c t l y t o the study of t h e anci 1l a r y s t o r i es. I n h i s s c h o l a r s h ~ pon t h e e p i c s A l f H i 1t e b e i t e l has gone f a r beyond B i ardeau i n engagi ng and extendi ng Dumezi 1 * s work. A number o f f e a t u r e s o f t h e Mbh's s t o r y are,
traceable
to
transposition
Indo-European of
sources.
traits
mythi c
of
he has observed8
They certain
include
the
Indo-European
.
dei t i es onto Draupad5 and t h e Psndavas; t h e transposi t i on o f an Indo-European eschatol o g i ca1 myth in t o t h e h e r o i c domai n in t h e epic drama; t h e correspondences between t h e Mbh n a r r a t i ve and the Norse B a t t l e of variants
of
(YaySti I
MadhavT #
Brave1l i r ; t h e i n c l u s i o n o f I n d i a n
Indo-European Vasu
prototypical
Upari cara} ; and
independent the
tales
inc1usi on
of
episodes t h a t appear t o be I n d i a n v a r i a n t s o f heroic gestes in v d v i ng w a r r i o r s and champions (e. Q., t h e death of Bh<sma on
a bed o f arrows8 and t h e a n n i h i l a t i o n ~f g i ~ u p a l a.67 ) 6 6 ~ o an r e x c e l l e n t discussion o f some o f Biardeauts c m t r i b u t i ens t o t h e study of H i ndui smI see A1 f H i 1tebei td 's review o f t h r e e o f her works i n "Towards a Coherent Study o f H i nduism, R e ? i g f ~ u Studies s Revfew No. 3 ( J u l y 1Q83) : 206212.
" ~ f1 H-i 1t e b e i t e 1 *'Bf0thers8 F r i endss and Chat-ioteers: Para1 l e l Episodes i n t h e I r i s h and Indian Epicss i n Edgar C. Po1ome, edi t o r 8 Hemage to Geurges Dumezf 7. Journal o f Indo@
@
58 H;ltebeitel's favor; ng several
own
work
of the
has
bolstered
the
arguments
foregoi ng 1 inks between the
European and Indian traditions, although he does not accept
Dumezil1s
conclusions.
He
seriously
Indo~lways
questions
Dumezi 1 's concept of transposi ti on insofar as it presumes that the Mbh's chief heroes and heroines are essentially "copies" of
Indo-European
models
present.
Scandinavian myth of the Ragnarok.
For Hiltebeitel. the Indo-
Parik~it.
and the Mbh's understanding of the epic crisis must in
the
the
parallels
contextualized
in
in
example.
European
be
lie
for
the
figures
sacrificial
of
Abhimanyu
ideology
of
and
the
Br3:hmanas..
The Mbh does not see the Indo-European ideal ruler
in
the
quite
Hi 1 tebei tel. 68 comparative
same
way
as
the
other
epics
do.
says
Even so. hi s work shows how profoundl y the new
mythology
has
benefitted
and
influenced
Mbh
studies. To a great extent for the past twenty years.
Dumezi 1 ,
Biardeau. and Hi1tebeitel have continued their productive work on
the
epic
in
dialogue
with
each
si gni fi cant work is a1 so under way. exami ned
the
§Sn't i parvan,
contents arguing
of that
But
other .
.James Fi tzgera 1 d has
the moksadharma sect i on this
other
"anthology"
European Studies Monographs. 3 (Washington: for the Study of Man. 1982). 86.
of
the
reformulates
D.C.
Institute
68 5ee • for examp1 e. liThe Mah.bh.ra'ta and Hi ndu Eschatology," His'tory of Religions 12, No.2 (1972-1973): 95135 and Ri'tual of Battle.
59
traditional ideas in new ways. the
composers
of the
In contrast to the sect i on
moksadharma
used
Upani~adS.
rhetori ca 1
strategies designed to persuade a broad. popular audience of the significance of old brahmanic (i.e .• about salvation. 69
ideas
Upani~adic)
Fitzgerald argues that the section serves
an important function in the larger epic. not so much because of its contents but because it effectively uses the situation of
Bhi~ma's
comprehensive instruction to
(the king
Yudhi~~hira
and paradigmatic human being) to advance the larger purposes of
the
that
Mbh.
salvation
to
promu1 gate
brahmani c
the
framework
of
conceptual
system.
Wi th
within
varn8§ramadharma
is.
matter of thematic coherence.
vi ews
on
normative
the
respect
to
the
Fitzgerald has further argued
that the theme of §oka (grief) is carefully elaborated in the Bharata story withi n the context of Hi ndu noti ons of §lIn1:i (peace, pacification). posi t i on that the I
wi 11
consi der
These arguments support his general
§~n1:iparvan
is an integral part of the epi c.
Fi tzgera 1 diS
vi ews at
greater
1 ength
in
section 0 below. The work of Ian Proudfoot is especially relevant for my work on the Mbh's ancillary stories. for he is the only person I
am
aware of
who has
pub 1 i shed
an
ana 1 ysi s
of
subjected to the rigors of lower textual criticism. heavi 1 y
upon
hi s
work
in
Chapter
4.
and
relevance to mine in section 0 below. 69Fitzgera1d, The Moksa Anthology, 363.
a
story I draw
summarize
its
60 3.
Research on Forms and Processes of Oral Transmission of the Mbh
The following review of 1 iterature on oral composition of the Mbh is presented here to highlight the second principal method by which contemporary scholars have been contesting an 01 der view of the Mbh as a patchwork of diverse materi a1 s without much internal consistency.
The first method. the new
comparative mythology. was discussed in the preceding section. The
analysis
dissertation
did
of
epic
not
use
material
undertaken
oral-formulaic
for
methods.
this The
discussion of those methods here as they have been applied to the
Indian
epics
is
primarily
intended
to
show
how
contemporary scholarship has been using methods far distant from traditional
Indian intellectual approaches to the Mbh.
methods which give us other ways to understand how and why the ancillary stories are integral to the epic. As one noted scholar of oral traditions has observed. two streams of research on oral traditions in religion have tended to run parallel to each other in this century. one concerned directly or indirectly with issues of historical continuity. the other with the forms and processes of oral transmission. Dumezi 1
I
S
work
addresses the
former
issue.
The Ameri can
classicist Milman Parry introduced general approaches to the 1 atter issue .10
In order better to understand how the Homeri c
JOMargaret Mills, "Oral Tradition." in Mircea E1iade, general editor, Encyc70pedia of Religion, New York: Macmillan and London: Collier Macmillan, 1987.
61
epics might have been orally composed and transmitted. Parry and his student Albert B. Lord studied the contemporary oral epic
tradition
of Yugoslavia.
Their
theory
--
initially
outlined by Parry and fully articulated and further developed after his death by Lord -- is discussed at length in Lord's book The Singer
0'
Tales.
Parry; n; ti all y theor; zed that the Homer; c epi cs were the creations of many generations of bards who composed within a particular poetic tradition.
Each drew upon a familiar stock
of idiomatic language to compose a unique poem modeled on a traditional narrative framework. he postulated. was oral.
The process of composition.
Subsequently, he and Lord conducted
fieldwork in Yugoslavia to prove Parry's hypothesis. Today scholars agree that while Parry did not prove that Homer himself was an oral poet. he did show that the style of the Homeric epics is typical of oral poetry.
Some cautiously
note that it is possible that Homer composed in writing using a
style
from
oral
tradition.
My
discussion
below
of
scholarship on the Mbh as oral poetry will show that the same is likely for the Mbh. Parry
and
Lord's
oral-formulaic
research on the worki ngs of oral
theory
transmi ssi on
stimulated innumerous
1 i terary and rel i gi ous tradi ti ons far afi e1 d of anci ent Greece and modern Yugoslavia.
Anglo-Saxon poetry. Latin devotional
poetry. the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. and New World Christian and Seneca oral traditions are among the materials
62
re-examined in the wake of Mbh
research
studies on
have
oral
and Lord's new theory.
Pa~ry
yet to be
tradi t ions.
revolutionized
but
a
small
by
group
scholars has used the approach in interesting ways. whole. their work shows that the Sanskrit epics. epics.
are
rooted
in
oral
composition,
necessarily oral productions. states
the
matter:
nIt
is
even
recent
of
epi c
On the
like other though
not
As Brockington so succinctly clear
that
the
traditional
phraseology does not disappear immediately [when] writing is employed and that the diction of a written work continues to show formulaic patterns. ,,71
Of
course. scholars have long known that the Mbh textual
tradition
in some way derived
f~om
an
oral
one.
Mur~ay
Emeneau proposed in 1958 that many oral recitations had been
a
synthesi zed
into
R8mllya'!B at
a very
uni fi ed text earl y
date.1 2
in
both
The
the Mbh and
fi rst to
app1 y
the the
Parry-Lord theory to Indian epics was N. Sen who published a study of the passages
Ramaya~a
in 1966. concluding that a number of the
are formu1 ai c
71Brockington.
in
acco~dance
The Sanskrj1: Epics.
wi th
the
Parry-Lord
103.
72Murray B. Emeneau. nOral Poets of South India: The Todas. 1I Journal of American Fo7klore 71 (1958): 313-14. A similar theory, called the Ijeder-theorie. was proposed for the Homeric epics in 1715 and explo~ed at length in the 19th century. It regarded the Iliad and Odyssey as compilations of shorter songs woven together by the compiler. According to Albert B. Lord. it was subsequently discredited because "the di ssectors could not agree on where to use the scalpel. II (The 5i nger of Ta les,
10).
63
theory.13 R.
K.
Sharma studied
of
parvans
the
Mbh.
oral
8di.
poetic techniques in
IIra'!yaka.
and
bh:i sma. 14
three He
catalogued a variety of typical poetic expressions and found that simi 1 es are by far the most common fi gure of speech. Furthermore, the similes are drawn from a traditional stock of expressions. strongly suggesting that the Mbh's compilers drew heavily upon oral poetic formulae. IS
Particularly interesting
for the present study is Sharma' s fi ndi ng that liThe si mi 1 es are simple, mostly collected from the spheres of Vedic gods. nature. and items of materi a 1 cul ture. ,,76
References to I ndra
as the object of comparison are by far the most common. with 247 occurrences, with similar (155)
I
often.
Yama
(104)
I
Brahma
re~erences
(12)
I
to SOrya (164). Agni
and so on.
occurri ng 1 ess
In other words, Sharma's work confirms in specific
terms the view that traditional fixed formulae were one of the essential building blocks of Mbh composition. his
work
shows
that
the
epic's
compilers
FurtherMore. drew
heavily
(although not exclusively) upon Vedic deities as objects of comparison in similes. the particular figure of speech that 13Nabaneeta Sen, "Comparat i ve Studi es in Oral Epi c Poet ry and the V3lm:iki Ramayana: A Report on the Balakanda," Journal of ~he American Oriental Society 86 (1966): 397~409. 74Sharma.
E7ements of Poetry in the Mahllbh~rata.
75Sharma's conclusions in this regard support the earlier work of five scholars whose work he cites on p. 168: Hopkins, Sukthankar. Kane. Belvalkar. and Renou. 16 Ibi d.
J
9.
64 predominates in the three parvans studied by Sharma. Several Russian scholars published studies on the Mbh in the 1970s which examine another crucial composition:
dimension of oral
the use of set themes.
Although they have not
been t ran s 1 ated into Eng 1 i sh , J. W.
de Jong, Wendy Don i ger
Q'F1aherty,
have
and
John
Brockington
summarized
their
research and findings. 71 Pave 1 Gri nster r
S
work on the
Mbh
is by far the most
extensi ve study of its ora1-forlftu1 ai c character.
App1 yi ng the
Parry-Lord theory, he concluded that 75 percent of the battle books,
percent
60
of the other
narrat i ve,
and
percentage of the didactic portions are formulaic. explains, features
Grinster's 1 ed
hi m to
ancillary materia1. 7a
analysis support
of 'the Pi sani t s
Mbh's
a
As de Jong
oral
vi ew on
sma 11 er
the
poetic epi c' 5
Compositional techniques of oral poetry
lend themselves to the very uses of narrative one finds in the
Mbh.
Epic poets punctuate the main narrative at appropriate
junctures traditional
with
material
selected
from
a
lore. include didactic material
large
stock
of
from the bardic
tradition, stories associated with pilgrimage sites to which they may have traveled, quotable sDtra verses, and so on. 79 77 J. W: de Jong. It Recent Russi an Pub 1 i cat ions on the Indian Epic," Adyar Library Bulletin 39 (1975): 1-42. Wendy Doniger O'F1aherty, "The Mah&bharata" Religious Studies Review 4, No. 1 (January 1978): 19-28. and John Brocki ngton. The Sanskrit Epics. 104ff. 78 p ; san;, 79 de Jong,
172-173. 33.
65
The re1a t i onshi p between t e x t u a l and o r a l t r a d i t i o n s is as complex and c o n t r o v e r s i a l a t o p i c among Mbh scholars as among
those
of
other
oral
traditions.
G r i nster
f ir m l y
r e j e c t e d t h e view t h a t t h e Mbh may be a w r i t t e n i m i t a t i o n o f o r a l versions o f t h e epic,
although manuscripts o f i t were
c l ear 1y subjected t o v a r i ous changes. While t h e
Mbh undoubtedly
written tradition,
shows t h e
influence
of
a
G r i n s t e r claims t h a t "both epics [Mbh and
Ratnayanal e x i sted a1 ready as f u l l y completed poems in t h e o r a l
stage
of
their
composition.
There
is
no
basis
for
concl u d i ng t h a t s e c t i o n s of t h e Mbh which do seem t o be 1a t e r (e. g
., anu6mnaparvaft) appeared f o r t h e f i r s t time in w r i t t e n G r i nster
r e d a c t i ons.
v e r s i ons e x i sted, others. it
can
argued
instead
that
para11e l
oral
each in c l u d i ng materi a1 m i s s i ng from t h e
The process o f combining them i n t o t h e Mbh as we know
be
viewed
as
compositional p r a c t i c e s .
entirely
consistent
with
oral
G r i n s t e r does support a v e r s i o n of
t h e t h e s i s t h a t t h e e x i s t i n g Sanskrit t e x t i s an e l a b o r a t i o n
.
o f a s h o r t e r n a r r a t i v e f o c u s i ng on the Pandava-Kaurava b a t t l e m With
Sukthankar,
Goldman,
and
others
he
holds
that
the
enlargement occurred a t t h e hands o f t h e Bhargavas, b u t i n a more organic and c o n s i s t e n t manner than has been t r a d i t i onal l y assumed by Western scholars. Croatian case,
. ..
I n Lord's words about t h e Serbo-
t h e p i c t u r e t h a t emerges i s n o t r e a l l y
one o f c o n f l i c t between preserver o f t r a d i t i o n and c r e a t i v e "bid.,
29.
66 artist; it is rather one of the preservation of tradition by the constant re-creation of it. well and tru 1 y reto 1 d .. ,,8t
The ideal is a true story
Ora 11 y t ransmi tted works natura 11 y
incorporate new elements with old, and Grinster's work helps draw
attention
to
questions
of
where
how
and
th; s
incorporation occurs -- to focus on the craft and techniques of oral
composition
by
understanding
the principles
that
underlie the complex whole rather than vainly attempting to i sol ate and peel away val uab1 e e1 ements that have been more or less skillfully woven into a whole cloth. More than 15 years ago, the American Sanskritist Daniel H.
H.
Ingalls
undertook the daunting
task of
concordance to the critical edition of the Mbh. oral-epic
style,
phenomena that poetry.
he
he
had developed
theories
preparing a Studying its
about
regards as characteri stic of
various
the
Mbh's
In particular, his work examines phenomena he calls
polarization and freezing. I2
Polarization is defined as the
tendency for certain word-types to occur in a limited number of posi tions ; n a verse. position.
Frozen word-types appear in only one
Usi ng computer anal yses
patterns of portions of the text, scenes
in
books
si x
and
seven
to
study the
metri cal
his trial runs on battle "show
a
strong
sty1 i stic
similarity in meter, polarization, and frequency of formulas
Bt Lord ,
29.
82 Inga11 sand 1nga 11 s, "The Mahabharata: Computer Analysis, and Concordance."
Sty1 i sti c Study,
67 and c1 i ches .. II occur.
Interestingly,
however,
certain differences
The passages Ingalls examined from the
bhi~maparvan
extensively use a specific group of frozen words and formulas that
hardly
occur
in
or
are
entirely
absent
from
the
Ingalls believes that these differences can best
dro~aparvan.
be exp1 ai ned if the ep; sodes "were recorded 'from two di fferent reciters
of
epic
poetry,
probably
with
one
another. both trained in basically the sante tradition,
but
each having his individual and c 1 i ches, thei rs ... 83
style, his own favorite formulas
just as the modern Serb; an reci ters each have This
tentative.
contemporary
conclusion
is
very intriguing,
but
only
It lends credence to speculation that one or more
oral compositions of the epic may have indeed been compiled into a
great
(mah~)
Bhllrata.
Cl earl y,
the cri ti cal
tool s
which Ingalls is developing and the promising analyses he has al ready undertaken wi 11 ora 1 -formu 1 a i c
s; gn; fi cantl y enhance study of the
character
of
the
Mbh,
as
we 11
as
help
to
distinguish between oral and non-oral material in the critical text. The
contributions
of
research
on
the
oral-formulaic
character of the Mbh lend considerable support to the general claim that the ancillary stories are in some ways ; ntegra 1 structural features
to
the epi c.
integrity such
as
83 Ibi d., 39 .
the
to
Th is research
the
mixture
epic of
by
or many -demonst rates
demonstrating
narrative
and
a
that
didactic
68
material. inclusion of stories that en the surface appear to be only tangentially
related to
frami ng and emboxi ng,
and so on.
formulaic compositions.
a
main story.
are all
the use of
typi cal
of ora1-
The question of how they are integral
has been explored to some degree, and it is clear that it has more than one answer. Let us now
conside~
research that directly bears on the
Mbh's ancillary stories.
D.
Revi ew of the
Li te~ature
on
Anci 11 ary Tal es
in
the
Sanskrit Mah6bh6rata Only Madeleine Biardeau. Ian Proudfoot, Robert Goldman. and Wendy Doniger (O'F1aherty) have directly addressed the possibility ancillary
of
an
stories
integral, and
the
organic Mbh's
war
relationship
between
narrative.
James
Fitzgerald's work includes ancillary material as one element in hi s
arguments about
1 arger themes
in the Mbh.
I
summarize the relevant work of each of these scholars,
wi 11 and
suggest how it relates to my work on ancillary stories. It is important to bear in mind that relatively little work has yet
been done
on the anci 11 ary
compositional units of the Mbh.
stori es as major
The work of the four scholars
discussed below is rich and detailed. and each one draws large conclusions about the epic from a close focus on small amounts of ancillary material.
None of them. however, would assert
that their conclusions should be generalized to the ancillary stories as a group.
Here I want to discuss their work without
69 giving the impression that it is necessarily indicative of the i nterpretati on of other anci 11 ary stori es.
Thei r i nterpreti ve
methods are very instructive. and their conclusions contribute a great deal to our understanding of this complex epic. but a great deal of close study of the remaining ancillary material has yet to be done.
For that reason.
we must refrain from
assumi ng that the; r work tell s us much about anci 11 ary stor; es they have not studied. As will be seen in the following review of scholarship on ancillary stories. agenda.
this material
seems to serve no
single
For Goldman. the Bhargava stor;es tell us about the
myth-~aking
project of a group of brahmans.
For Proudfoot. a
group of stories on ahims. shows how a section of the Mbh was an arena for debate about the nature and meaning of sacrifice For
(yajna).
Biardeau.
the
lengthy
story
of
Nala
and
Damayanti was composed for the Mbh in order to hi ghl i ght a mythological theme only cryptically alluded to in the PandavaKaurava story. namely the need for a divine-royal alliance to protect a Queen who is Earth incarnate.
For Don;ger. stories
about snakes and horses in the Mbh's 6diparvan explore the theme of threatened sacrifices by means of a mythology common to Vedic sacrificial ritual.
§Sntiparvan
(the
For Fitzgerald. stories in the
moksadharma ideas
section)
about
moksa
brahmans
presenting
Upani~ads
to new audiences in new ways.
were
composed
familiar
from
by the
When these very di verse stud; es are cons; dered in the
70
1 i ght of my
own
general
revi ew
of the
anc; 11 ary
stori es
(Chapter 3) and my examination of additional stories in the ahimsll c1 uster
Proudfoot has
studi ed
(Chapter 4).
they do
broadly support my finding that the ancillary stories exhibit some general identify
characteristics.
certain
conf1 i cts as
characters
They tend. with
Vedic
mu 1 t i forms of the anci ent
for
example,
deities. devllsura
to
explain confl i ct.
promote long-revered individuals as role models. or describe places in terms of their associations with ancient events. Although we must allow that further study of specific groups of ancillary stories -- for they do tend to cluster in groups. as I have noted -- might contradict or raise important exceptions to my broad characterization. the other research on particular ancillary stories and story clusters discussed in the remainder of this section can be viewed as illustrations of purposeful efforts to understand or explain the Mbh war in a traditional religious wi thi n the Upani~adic
religious context.
context
is
anci 11 ary
Vedic stori es
The epic claims that the
religion, range
although
from
references
Vedi c
through
materials -- a great historical expanse.
indeed.
~g
More precisely. the ancillary stories are the means by which the epic draws upon the prestige of the Veda to establish its own authority.
In Chapter 2. particularly in section C. I discuss the common formal
aspects of ancillary stories.
namely how they
function rhetorically in the Mbh to make the story of a clan
71
war i n t o an a u t h o r i t a t i v e re1i g i o u s work ( s m r t f ) , sometimes i n t h e process i n t r o d u c i n g new re1i g i o u s ideas and p r a c t i c e s by making them appear t o be ancient.
Before considering those
formal dimensions o f t h e s t o r i e s ,
I w i l l summarize
however,
t h e c u r r e n t scholarship t h a t gives us close s t u d i e s o f some o f t h i s vast body o f s t o n e s . I n t w o essays on Nala and ~ a m a ~ a n t i ' Biardeau * argued t h a t t h e s t o r y i s "far more than an engaging echo o f themes c e n t r a l t o the Bharata t a l e , o r a mere analogy used t o examine Yudhi s. t h i r a t s predicament. sometimes
subtle
--
She enumerated t h e mu1t i p l e
correspondences,
opposi t i ons,
-and
i n v e r s i o n s between t h e two n a r r a t i v e s , arguing t h a t t h e Nala s t o r y was i n s p i r e d by i t s e p i c context i n the ffranyakaparvan, n o t in t e r p o l ated from an independent t a l e .
I n particular,
s a i d Biardeau, t h e Nala s t o r y focuses square1y on t h e c r i s i s
o f kingship and i n t e n t i o n a l l y mutes, b u t does n o t ignore, the l a r g e r cosmic c r i s i s t h a t marks t h e Mbh.
As a r e s u l t , the
theme o f
power
the r e l a t i o n s h i p between royal
and d i v i n e
p r o t e c t i o n t h a t so dominates t h e Mbh i n the characters of the PSndavas, degree
..
Visnu and Krsna (Visnuls
set
nalopakhyana
aside
.
in
composer
a
.
the to
Nala
avatara)
story.
explore
a
i s t o a great
This key
allows
purpose
of
the the
r o y a l / d i v i ne a1 1iance, name1y p r o t e c t i o n o f t h e queen as Earth incarnate, she who i s b o t h t h e i n s t i g a t o r and t h e stakes o f
adel el e i ne B i ardeau,
W a l a e t Damayanti : Heros â ‚ ¬ques, " I n d o - I r a n i a n Journal 27 (1984) : 247-274 and 28 (1985) : 1-34.
72 roya 1 contests.
be
they di ce games
or wars.
Through
an
extended compari son and contrast between the characters of Damayanti and Draupadi, this up3khyllna as a
Biardeau makes a case for regarding
story composed in and
order to deepen its symbolic resonance.
for the epic in
The story functions
effectively as an independent tale, but. concluded Biardeau. a
thorough study of
the remarkabl e character of Damayanti
presents to the Mbh's
audi ences a di mensi on of Draupadi' s
character only hinted at obliquely throughout the epic. namely her association with Kr:-~~a by means of the epithet Krsna. 15 Appreciation presupposes
of
the
audi ences
complex who
symbolism
grasp
the
of
such
detai 1 ed
a
and
tale artful
texturing Biardeau has explicated. notwithstanding the fact that
so
many
people
in
India
and
outside
of
it
have
appreciated the story for many centuries as a good yarn about the troubles of a devoted king and queen. Bi ardeau I s particular
approach
mythological
to the
Mbh focuses
themes
(i
n
on di scern i ng
particular.
the
eschatological crisis of the end of an era) which she believes lend overall coherence to the narrative.
Her interpretation
of the na10pllkhyana lends further weight to her basic view of 85See A1 f Hi 1 tebei te 1, "The Two Krsnas on One Chari ot : Upanisadic Imagery and Epic Mythology," 'His'tory of Re7igions 24 ('984): 1-26 and IITwo Krsnas, Three Krsr\as, Four Krsnas. More Krsnas: Dark Interact'fo'ns in the Mahabharata," .}oui-na 1 of Soutli Asian Literature 20 (1985): 71-77, reprinted in Arvind Sharma, ed., Essays on the Mahllbhllra'ta, Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1985, pp. 101-109 on the mythology underlying the Mbhls associated characters Krsna Vasudeva. Krsna Dvaipayana (i .e., Vyasa). and Krsna (Draupaai).
t h e epic.
The degree t o which N a l a f s s t o r y both echoes the
..
PZndava-Kaurava s t o r y and h i gh1 ig h t s a re1igious dimension o f i t otherwise presented c r y p t i c a l l y and obl i q u e l y i n t h e e p i c
shows t h e forethought t h a t accompanied both t h e c r a f t i n g of ancillary
material
and
its
p r e c i s e placement
i n the
Mbh
s t o r y . 86 A s a s p e c i f i c case, Biardeau' s analysis o f t h e Na1a s t o r y
does n o t o v e r t l y l e n d support t o m y t h e s i s t h a t t h e anci 1l a r y m a t e r i a l i n the e p i c general l y serves t o antiquate t h e Mbh by in t e r p r e t i ng the Pandava-Kaurava s t r u g g l e in Vedi c terms.
.
one
respect,
perspective
because of
the
Biardeau Puranas
devotionalism { b h a k t i ) ,
views
and
the
Mbh
developments
from in
In the
Hindu
we can understand why she does n o t
general l y concern h e r s e l f w i t h c o n t i n u i t i e s between Vedic and epi c materi a1
.
The na lopakhyana does warrant exami n a t i on from
t h i s l a t t e r p o i n t of view, and I out1 ine some possi b i 1 it i e s i n my b r i e f moment,
discussion o f
I
comparison
w i 11
of
only
the
For
the
Biardeauts discussion
and
the s t o r y
note t h a t
ascetic
and
i n Chapter 4.
sacrificial
dimensions
of
Damayanti 's and Draupadi * s behaviors suggest t o m e t h a t t h e Nala s t o r y
should be f u r t h e r
studied
in a
subcategory
of
' ~ na discussion about t h e i n t e r a c t i o n o f o r a l and w r i t t e n Mbh t r a d i t i o n s , I a n Proudfoot wrote, "Scholars who have i n t e r n a l i z e d t h e epic i d i o m and meter w i l l have been capable o f g i v i n g shape t o new m a t e r i a l as required. " AhimsS and a MahabhBrata Story: The Devetopment o f t h e S t o r y ' o f Tu7adhara i n the Mahabharata i n Connection w i t h Non-violence. Cow P r o t e c t i o n and S a c r i f i c e , Asian Studies Monographs, new Faculty o f Asian Studies, A u s t r a l i a n s e r i e s , 9 (Canberra: National Uni v e r s i t y , lQ8?), 39.
74
a n c i 1 1a r y materi a l t h a t seems t o be associ a t e d w i t h 1a t e Vedi c f o r m u l a t i o n s o f t h e i n t e r n a l ized s a c r i f i c e , and t h e a s c e t i c as s a c r i f i c e r par excellence. T h i s b r i n g s u s t o a discussion o f I a n Proudfoot,
the
second scholar who has undertaken d o s e s t u d y o f a n d ll a r y m a t e r i a l i n the epic. how
the
Mbh
U n l i k e Biardeau who so a b l y focused on
consistently
explores
the
theme
of
cosmic
d i s s o l u t i o n Cpra7aya) and t h e r o l e s o f k s a t r f y a , brahman, and
..
d e i t y (Visnu/Krsna) ..* the
ways
distinct
i n t h a t process, Proudfoot has attended t o
i n which views on
t h e Mbh1s a n c i l l a r y
material
r e 1 i g i o u s matters o f
preserves
deep concern.
I
d i s c u s s Proudfootes a n a l y s i s o f t h i s s t o r y c l u s t e r i n Chapter 3.
I n particular,
Proudfoot has used t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n
(which 6iardeau shuns)
t o unpack a s e t o f
stories i n the
S S n t f p a r v a n on t h e t o p i c o f nonviolence { a h i m s a }
shows us a group o f
a
acceptabl e
middle on1y
Proudfoot
s t o r i e s worked and reworked over time,
some a r g u i n g f o r animal seeking
.
sacrifice,
ground
under
on
some a g a i n s t it. o t h e r s
which
r e s t r ic t e d
animal
condi t i ons
sacrifice
.
i s
Proudfo a t
i d e n t i f i e s what appear t o be a group o f brahman i n t e r p o l a t o r s u s i n g s t o r i e s t o argue t h e i r d i f f e r e n t p o i n t s o f view about Biardeau shows us a composer(s?)
ah-.
i n s p i r e d by what
...
appeared t o be t h e deep s i g n i f icance o f Krsna ' s a l l iance w i t h t h e Pandavas, who used t h e Na1a s t o r y t o t u r n t h e audiencest m
.
a t t e n t i on t o t h e
r o le o f
.
Yudhi s t h i r a ' s
unfortunate w i fe.
75
Draupadi in the cosmic drama represented by the Mbh war. These close studies of two very different examples of anci 11 ary
materi a l i n
the
epi c
show
how
cha 11 engi ng
the
project of understanding this material
is.
I summarize the
work in this section principally to review the small number of existing
studies
that
explicitly
consider
material functions in the epic as a whole.
how
ancillary
As it happens,
these two studies also suggest the diversity of this material. a topic I address in Chapter 3 when summarizing the contents of ancillary stories in individual books (parvans) of the Mbh. There are a
number of other instances of stari es 1 i ke the which
na7op~khyllna
are fairly
lengthy and
very satisfying
stories apart from their epic context.
There are also other
cases of story clusters like the
stories that seem to
ahi~s~
allow us sustained glimpses into important controversies in Hindu religious traditions. As it also happens. both the nalop6khy8na and the ahi,!,S8 stories
that
Proudfoot
has
analyzed
betray
brahmanical
concerns about sacrificial ritual (yajna), albeit in extremely different
ways.
sacrificial
ritual
As
I
will
show
in
Chapters
3
and
4,
is one of the topics that characterize
1 arge segments of the epi c' s anci 11 ary mater; a1. and those topics are familiar to us chiefly from Vedic literature. Robert Go1dman's extension of V. S. Sukthankar's theory about what the latter called known to epic scholars.
Bh~guization
of the Mbh is well
I discuss his work again in Chapter
3 in t h e context o f a discussion o f anci 1l a r y material in t h e
Atoh's adiparvan, b u t summarize i t here as major scholarship t h a t takes some anci 1l a r y material i n t o s e r i o u s account when drawing conclusions about t h e Mbh. Goldman i s o l a t e d what he c a l l s t h e Bhargava corpus o f myths i n t h e Mbh,
namely those s t o r i e s s c a t t e r e d throughout
t h e e p i c (books 1, 3. 12. and 13) t h a t recount t h e e x p l o i t s o f o f brahman r s . i s and
p r i n c i p a l male members o f the f a m i l y
p r i e s t s descended -From t h e eponymous r* s i Bhrgu:
Aurva,
Â
Jzmadagnya,
Sukra.
and ~ ~ a v a n a . ~The ' e p i c r e f e r s t o these
s t o n e s as the upakhyana o f Aurva. t h e sqmvada o f Cyavana and KuSi ka.
as I define them.
V.
of
and
this
RSma
material
S.
t h e c a r f t a of
Sukra,
and
A1 1 a r e anci 11ary s t o r i e s
Sukthankar had noted t h e recurrence speculated
that
the
epic
had
been
transformed from a k s a t r i y a war s t o r y t o a brahmanical t r a c t p r i n c i p a l 1y a t t h e hands o f brahmans who considered themselves members
of
hypothesis
the
BhSrgava
through
s t o r i e s i n the epic,
a
study
Go1dman of
the
tested
this
BhZrgava f a m i l y
b u t a l s o included some m a t e r i a l on h k r a
f r o m t h e Matsya Purana.
t h i s corpus,
close
g o t r a . 88
He i d e n t i f i e d some unique features of
i n c l u d i n g a marked focus on death,
violence,
sorcery, intermarri age w i t h other varnas, h o s t i 1it y toward t h e gods,
and a penchant f o r decidedly nonbrahmanic a c t i v i t i e s . %oI dman , Gods. P r i e s t s and W a r r i o r s .
' v . S. Sukthankar, "Epic Studies 6. The Bhrgus and t h e BhZrata : A Text-Hi s t o r i c a l Study, " Anna 1s o f t h e Bhandarkw O r i e n t a 7 Research I n s t i t u t e 18 (1936-1 9 3 7 ) : 1-76.
77 Through his detai led analysis of these themes
in the myth
cycle, Goldman attaches special significance to one important aspect of
the
Bh3rgava
material
that
Sukthankar
did
not
address, namely the significance of the R3ma J3madagnya myth. This singular character, a murderous brahman who behaves like a
k~atriya,
was
created
the
by
epi c
redactors.
suggests
Go 1 dman, to represent "the shi ft ; n provenance of the poem from the hands of the sutas, the bards and panegyrists of the princely
courts,
Bh:9uS ... 89 si gnal
to
those
For Goldman.
that
brahmans
of
its
new
custodians.
the
the Bhr:-g u material is the editorial
had
sei zed
from
k~atriyas
the
n
control of the past. and wi th it the authori tati ve vehi c1 e for social The
J
moral, and spiritual dogma. the MahlJbhlJrata itself. n90
conflicts
that
suffuse
these
myths,
says
Goldman,
represent" ... a struggle for status and a strong uncertainty as to the proper varna of the Bh-:-gus. It who had perhaps become so i nf1 uenti a1 through association with some ru1 i ng group that they could assert their status as legitimate brahmans. 91 Although conclusions
I
about
do
not
find
Sukthankar's
putative Bh&rgava
and
redactors
Goldman'S convincing.
Goldman very effectively marshalled evidence for the internal coherence
of
the
Bh3rgava
stori es
as
a
cohesi ve
eyel e.
Goldman showed that this material must have been worked over 89Goldman. Gods. Priests, and Warrjors, 90 Ib i d .,
140.
9t I bid.. 1 43 -1 46 .
139.
78 quite purposefully in its epic context. the anci 11 ary materi a1
As my discussion of
in Chapter 3 wi 11
show,
however,
I
think the rhetorical intent was very different.
It was not
founded
on
historians
( sDtas)
and
agonistic
relations with
competitor
estab 1 i shed brahmani ca 1 1 i neages.
Instead,
I
conclude that an examination of all of the ancillary stories in t.he lldiparvan shows that the parvan's overall purpose is to establish behavioral equivalence and consanguinity between the k~a~riya
Pauravas
(the
clan
descended
from
generat ions removed from his descendants, thei r
cousi n
rival s)
and the brahman
POru,
nine
the Pandavas and
Bhargavas.
The
two
groups are presented as kin who also behave in similar ways. The rhetorical effect is to assert for the epic's audiences that. the Mbh's war of kings and princes may be understood as a re-enactment of ancient sacred history.
These relationships
are set forth in the adiparvan within the frame of two Vedic rituals, the
sarpasattra of brahmans in
the Naimisa forest
that. opens the story, and the sarpasattra of Janamejaya that concludes its preliminaries. lldiparvan closes Kha':1~ava
with
a
mass
As discussed in Chapter 3, the slaughter
of animals
in
the
Forest, often i denti fi ed in the Vedas as the 1 ocati on
of an aetiologica1 sattra ritual. U
The Bhargava stories,
I
will argue, playa role in the epic's presentation of itself as
smr~i. ,
92 For work on the sattra ri tual s i n the Mbh, see Chri stopher Mi nkowski , "Janamejaya' s sattra and R; tual Structure," and "Snakes, Sattras, and the Mahllbh.rata."
79
Wendy Doni ger (0' F1 aherty' s) work on anci 11 ary stori es in the
~di parvan
not on 1 y
argues for an integral
re 1 at i onsh i p
between such stories and the Bharata story. but also shows how firmly this section of the epic is rooted in Vedic imagery.93 Doniger's
principal
interest
is
to
show
the
underlying
structure of the epic's stories (which she calls myths) about snakes and horses, and in particular to show the fundamental i ntegri ty of the l#diparvan.
She argues that
Janamejaya's
snake sacrifice sets the stage for the other sacrifice. the ritual battle of the Bharatas. theme
of
mythology
threatened (horses,
The 8diparvan explores the
sacrifices snakes,
mythology of Vedic sacrifices.
through
birds,
dogs)
abundant common
animal to
the
The lIdiparvan contrasts the
"bad" snake sacri fi ce of Janamej aya wi th the "good" sacri fi ce of the a!;vamedh i kaparvan.
horse
In complex ways,
the
stories -- perhaps appropriately given the epic's setting at the turning from the dv8para to the
era -- dwell on the
k~li
dark aspects of hollow victories, incomplete sacrifices, and morally ambiguous actions. Scho1 ars have frui tfu11 y
anal yzed other ept sodes from
various perspectives, but none explicitly argues -- as this study
does
that
the
stories
as
a
group
contribute
93wendy 0' F1 aherty, "Horses and Snakes in the Adi Parvan of the Mahabhmrata," in Aspects of India: Essays in Honor of Edward Cameron Dimockl Jr., Margaret Case, and N. Gerald Barrier, eds. (New Delhi: Manohar, 1986), 16-44.
s u b s t a n t i a l 1y t o t h e o v e r a l l b r i e f l y noted e a r l i e r ,
coherence OF t h e epic. 94
As
i n h i s d i s s e r t a t i a n on t h e moksadhartna
s e c t i o n o f t h e Sifntiparvan,
F i t z g e r a l d shows how t h e s e c t i o n
i s integrated i n t o the epic,
as we1 1 as how i t augments t h e
e p i c ' s treatment a f t h e n a r r a t i v e and d o c t r i na1 theme o f Soka. A1 though F i t z g e r a l d exami nes t h e c o n t e n t s and placement
o f an e n t i r e subsection o f one papvan,
he argues t h a t t h e
segment i s princigsaT1y a s t r i n g o f a n c i 1 l a r y s t o r i e s g i v e n n a r r a t ive c o n t i n u t t y t h r o u g h t h e questi on-and-answer of
B h i sma s
extended
conversati on
f ramewark
Yudhi s . thir a m
with
F i t z g e r a l d regards t h e e n t i r e segment a s an anthology which has n e i t h e r a s p e c i f i c d o c t r i n a l p o i n t 09 vjew ( p . 1 8 S ) , apparent t h e m a t i c c o n t i n u i t y [p. ideas
.
F it z g e r a l d
argues
176),
any
n o r any genuinely new
howevers t h a t
the
tn~ksadharma
antho1ogy reformul ated r a t h e r fami I ia r Upani sadi c views about moksa and " a r t i c u l a t e d them i n a r a d i c a l l y d i f f e r e n t manner,
in
a
radically
aud ience
natures
. for
different
Its the
c o n t e x t s and
innavationss muksadharma
then, uses
for
were both
a
much wider
rhetorical
exhortative
in
and
exposi t o r y r h e t o r i c t o persuade a presumabl y somewhat c r i t i c a l
''see S t u a r t H. 81ackburn, Ylomesti c a t i ng t h e Cosmos: H i s t o r y and S t r u c t u r e i n a F o l k t a l e from 1 n d i a s r TJourna7 o f A s i a n Studies 45# no. 3 (May 1986) : 527-543 f o r an infarmative d i s c u s s i o n o f t h e m o t i f OF t h e wagering s i s t e r s (Kadru and V i n a t z i n t h e Mbb) i n f o u r South Asian l i t e r a r y and perfbrrnance contexts. See a1so Brad Wei ss, W e d i a t j o n s i n t h e Myth o f S a v i t r i ,~WIV'#~B? o f the A m e r i c a n Academy u f R e l i g i o n 53 (June W85) : 259-270. 95 t z g e~ r a ?i d, The Moksa Anthology,
359.
81
audiencecs) o f t h e a u t h o r i t y o f the4 r teachings on moksa. FitzgeraldJ t h i s brahmans
audience
a popular
or
i s
a
pub1i c
new
one
for
For
traditional
audience p r e v i o u s l y
denied
access t o t h i s knowledge. 96 As Proudfootts work suggests and as I argue i n Chapter 48 there
i s
more
evidence
Sant f p a ~ v a n than
for
F it z g e r a l d
thematic
has
coherence
warranted.
in found
He
the no
thematic c o n t i n u i ty, b u t argued t h a t t h e maksadharma s e c t i m o f t h e parvan i s noteworthy f o r fami 1ia r ideas about moksa.
i t s novel p r e s e n t a t i o n o f
In c o n t r a s t * I argue t h a t themes
o f s a c r i f i c e s dharma8 and ahfmss a r e c a r e f u l 1y interwoven i n
a t l e a s t a small s e c i t o n o f t h e maksadharmaparvan, reveal i n 9 a debate in progress
-
The interweavi ng o f themes o f s a c r i f ic e
and dharma i n t h e ahimsa c l u s t e r does not a t a1 1 c o n t r a d i c t
Fi t z g e r a l d s @
arguments
about
the
rhetorical
strategies
On the c o n t r a r y , my work
emp3oyed i n t h e moksadharmaparvan.
supports h i s observations about t h e broad persuasive in t e n t of the
material.
d i fFerent
v i ews
A
key
about
difference, the
however,
intended
F i t z g e r a l d envi s i ons pr3 n c i pa11y
lies
audi ences.
in
our
Whereas
a general pub1ic audience
inc1 u d i rig women and &ncfras presumably who1 1y unfami 1i a r w i t h
e s o t e r i c Vedic t o p i c s ,
I a l s o p o s t u l a t e a learned and v e r y
t r a d i t i ona1 brahmanical audience n o t inc1ined t o accept l a t e Vedi c conceptions such as ahfms&
in t e r n a l ized s a c r i T i ce
so ons as presented i n t h e &Intiparvan. g 6 ~ b i d . ,361 f f .
and
82
Before
closing
this
review
of
major
scholarship
on
ancillary tales, I will discuss one representative example of contemporary Indian scholarship on the epic that prominently features analysis of ancillary stories. wish principally to note a typical
With this example I
feature of modern Indian
scholarship on the Mbh that concerns itself with explicating major themes in the epic. Bhattacharya's
book
on
I
have chosen for di scussi on
The",es
It addresses
two
and
Structures
themes
identifies as central to the epic:
which
fn
the
P. the
author
the topic of lust (k.ma)
with its attendant quest for immortality and the theme of the disqualified eldest (the phrasing of which suggests borrowing from van Buitenen, who I believe first used the phrase).
Most
striking in Bhattacharya's treatment of these themes is the effort1 ess way in whi ch he moves back and forth from anci 11 ary material to the Bharata story with no question at all about possible layering of epic material or strata of composition. He accepts compositional units just as they are associated wi th storyte 11 ers in the epi c Vyasa.
The meri t
I
namely ~aut i, Va i ~al!lp.yana, and
of thi s approach,
so di fferent from the
analytical approaches typical of Western scholars, is that it yields gems of insight about thematic congruence that seem to echo throughout the epic narrative. From Bhattacharya's angle of vision, 97pradip Mah~bh.ra1:a:
Co., 1989.
the narrative and
Bhattacharya, The",es and Structure jn the A Study of the Adi parvan, Calcutta: Dasgupta and
d i d a c t i c m a t e r i a l are shown t o f i t c o m f o r t a b l y i n t o the e p i c when,
f o r example,
quest
for
conquered.
h i s a n a l y s i s leads him t o concludes @'The
immortality
@lg8
is
fruitless
unless
lust
i s
The epic i s j u s t as 1iice1y t o present e s o t e r i c
Upanisadic-style d i s c ~ u r s e son statements such as t h i s as i t i s to supply dramatic r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s i n , e x p e r i ences o f YayZti
E.
f o r example,
samtanu , Kaca, PSndu .*
the
and others -in t h e
Focus o f the Study During t h e c e n t u r i e s when t h e Mbh was b e i n g cornpi led,
efforts
c o n t i nued
+n
unders.tand t h e Vedas, f i r s t millennium.
brahmanical
inte11e c t u a l
arcane
Brian K . Smith has shown,
by
to
a1 ready a n c i e n t by t h e middle o f t h e
t h e l a t e Vedic m a t e r i a l o f t h e BrShmanas
hopelessly
c i re1es
many
Indologists
---
f o r example,
how
l o n g considered represented
a
coherent attempt t o val o r i ze t h e Vedi c canon #'by homo1ogi z i ng jt
to
the
Usi ng t h e
highest
parts
of
the
BrhaddevataJ Patton
hierarchical
has
universe. d 9
demonstrated a
s i m i 1a r
process under way a t l e a s t several c e n t u r i e s l a t e r . 1QO
g 9 ~ a u r i e L. Patton, ivBeyond t h e Myth o f Origins: N a r r a t i v e Phi 1osophi z i n g in Vedic Commentary, '' in Shl om0 E l i derman and Ben-Ami S c h a r f s t e i n, eds , M y t h s and F i c t i o n s {Leiden: E. 3 - 6 r < 1 1 J 19931, 25OS f n 48. S m i t h ' s arguments appear i n B r i a n K . Smith, Ref7ectians on Resemb7ance, R i t u a l and R e T i g i o n , New York: Oxford U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1989.
.
"O~aurie L Patton , Myth as Argument Canmica7 CommentaryJ 8 e r l i n and New York: 1996.
The Brhaddwata as wal t e k de Gruyter,
84
The deities.
Brhaddeva1:~
is
a
commentary
whi ch
indexes
Vedi c
Muneo Tokunaga has shown that its core dates to the
4th century B.C.E., and that two major expansions followed, one in the 1st-5th centuries C.E. when i1:ih6sa material was added,
and
a
second
in
the
7th-11 th
commentaria1 material was included. l01
centuri es
when
Patton describes the
text as follows: . .. the Brhaddeva1:6 enumerates for each verse of the Rg-veda the deity which properly Ube10ngs ll to it -~ and thus, by implication, the appropriate use of man1:ras in ritual. The text also relates a number of narratives to complete the picture, stori es wh; ch detail the c; rculllstances in wh i ch that man1:ra was spoken to the deity. Such narrati ves interrupt the i ndi ces of meters and deities in an anonymous fashion. Without excuse. and without apology, they are inc~rded as necessary parts of the indices themselves.! Building
upon
Brhaddevat~
Tokunaga's
uses
stori es
work. to
she
argue
has
that
shown Vedi c
how
the
man1:ra
is
transcendental. In other words, stories perform the work of .. exegesi s. 103 They are told in such a way that they IIprove ll how
effi caci ous
Vedic
man1:ras
transcendental power appear self-evident.
are,
making
Says Patton, IIThese
stori es anchor the '!g-veda -- not wi th cosmogoni c about the order
their
and creati on of the uni verse
stori es
-- but wi th
stories about the ways in which Vedic words work. both within 101Muneo Brhaddeva1:~'
Tokunaga. tiThe Texts and Legends of the (Ph.D. dissertation, Harvard University. 1979).
102Lauri e L. Patton. "Beyond th~ Myth of Ori gi ns." 240. l03 See Patton. Ibid. for an analysis of two tales which demonstrates the phenomenon.
85
the rea 1 m of sacr; fi ce and wi thout ... 104 The central
hypothesis of this dissertation is that a
significant number of the ancillary stories in the Sanskrit Mbh function in the epic similarly to the narrative material
in the Brhaddevat..
Through a discussion of the themes that
predominate in the ancillary material of each parvan (Chapter 3)
and
through
analysis of a
particular set
of ancillary
stories in the narrative context of the epic's §6ntiparvan (Chapter 4), I argue that the ancillary stories were included largely in order to make the particular story of the PKndavaKaurava war appear to reflect very traditional
brahmanica1
ideas while actually sympathetically exploring some concepts (e.g.,
that
ahi~s.)
brahmanica1
thought,
understanding. previously
were or
Patton
regarded
in
either
reformulations
has
as
fact
shown
that
1 itt1e more
innovations of
traditional
narrat i ve
than
to
materi a 1
pleasant
stories
actually functions to argue for an elevated status of Vedic mantra
materi a1
in
the
by
Br:haddevat8
mantra is transcendental.
demonstrati ng
that
In a similar way. 1 attempt to show
that the Mbh's ancillary stories do the work of making the epic into smrti. strategi es
to
The epic's brahman compilers used various
present
canon; ca 1 Vedas,
thei r
and the
work as
strategi c
harmoni ous
placement
wi th
the
of anci 11 ary
stories which are themselves often declared to report ancient knowledge is one of the principal means by which the epic was 104 Ib i d.. 249.
86
made i n t o s m r t L
Although w e
certainty
how
when
or
this
cannot determine w i t h
process
began,
the
any
process
o b v i o u s l y presumes an e x i s t i n g body o f carioni ca1 m a t e r i a1
.
Just as some brahmans worked t o make t h e &-ahmanas canonical [per
8 r i an
~ mthl" i 1
and
others
expended
considerable
i n t e l l e c t u a l e W a r t t a prove t h e transcendental power o f Rg Vedic mantras ( p e r
Patton) t o g i v e t h e m a t e r i a l a t i m e l e s s
a u t h o r i t y s so,
d i d some brahmans manipulate t h e e p i c t o
too,
make t h e s t o r y appear already o l d by t h e t i m e o f i t s f i r s t telling.
For t h e e p i c s I b e l i e v e t h a t a good p a r t o f t h i s
work was accompl i s h e d by t h e s e l e c t i o n , sometimes
composit3on
of
new)
material
placement o f in
the
farm
(and of
anci 11a r y s t a r * es A1though t h e r e 1a t i o n s h i p between t h e Vedic canon ( S r u t i ) and s m r t i works i s o f t e n regarded as f a i r l y s t r a i g h t f o r w a r d s i t i s a c t u a l l y q u i t e complex.
My work on t h e Mbh c o n t r i b u t e s
to a r e - c o n s i d e r a t i o n o f t h a t r e l a t i o n s h i p as a m a t t e r f o r h i s t o r i c a l i n v e s t i g a t i o n l and I discuss i t b r i e f l y i n s e c t i o n C o f Chapter 2.
I choase t o examine m a t e r i a l from t h e & a n t i p a r v a n i n Chapter 4 m a i n l y t o add t o what I r e g a r d as some o f t h e most p r o d u c t i v e c u r r e n t schol a r s h i p on anci 1I a r y s t o r i es in the M6h.
I have c o n c l uded from my survey o f the e p i c f s anci 11ary
m a t e r i a l (Chapter 3 ) t h a t i t s appeal t o Vedic a u t h o r i t y i s a
'%mith, Re?i g i o n .
Ref7ectiens
an
Resemblance,
Ritud,
and
.
87 c h a r a c t e r i s t i c feature of t h e m a j o r i t y o f s t o r i e s *
Even so,
the n a r r a t i v e s draw upon t h e p r e s t i g e o f t h e Vedas j n many ways:
by f e a t u r i ng a u t h o r i t a t i v e r s f s and d e i t i e s
sometimes
u s i n g them t o argue t h a t a concept o r p r a c t i c e such as ahimsa
i s sanctioned by t r a d i t i o n ;
by drawing a n a l o g i e s between t h e
.
Kuru-Pandava s t r u g g l e and Vedic myths such as t h e d a i vasura confl ict;
by s t r u c t u r i n g
techniques developed
the
epic
i n Vedic
narrative
sacrificial
accord
ritual
emboxi ng} ; and by showcasi ng fami 1ia r i t y w i t h
(such as
in t e l 1e c t u a l
t o o l s developed among t h e t r a d i t i anal brahmani c a l e l ite,
such
as r u l e s o f Mfmamsa argumentation. Furthermores
as
d i scussed
ear1 ie r
in
this
chapter,
r e 1a t i v e l y 1it t l e s c h o l a r l y a t t e n t i o n has been devoted t o t h i s extremely d i v e r s e m a t e r i a l .
I t seemed p r u d e n t
t o t a k e up
a n c i 1l a r y s t o r i e s t h a t have a1 ready been s u b j e c t t o c l o s e s c r u t i n y i n t h e excel l e n t s t u d i e s o f James F i t z g e r a l d and I a n Proudfout
because
my
anal y s i s
amp1 if ic a t i o n
mod* Fi c a t i ons of
in
ProudFoot ' s
F itzgeral d s
approach
cone1usions.
F i t z g e r a l d ins4 s t s t h a t t h e s t o r i e s present a
@
and
suggests
re-working o f o l d m a t e r i a l f o r a general pub1 i c audience.
But
because t h e s t o r i e s b e t r a y
the
Vedic s a c r i f i c i a1 w o r l d 1a r g e l y
1o s t
on
--
such d e t a i l e d knawledge o f
know1edge t h a t waul d presumably be
popul a r
audi ences
--
and
show
clear
c o n t i n u i t i e s between t h e e p i c and l a t e Vedic r e - f o r m u l a t i u n s of
middle
Vedic
thinking
about
sacrificial
p a r t i c u l a r # I add another audience t o t h e mix.
ritual
in
1 conclude
88 that the epic's ancillary stories suggest that some brahmans were using
the
epic
to convince
brahmans of the re 1 i g; ous meri t ideas:
other,
more
traditional
of what were for them new
pilgrimage, and sp;ritual practices that did
ahi~sa,
not entail patronage of Vedic sacrifices.
Fitzgerald's own
anal ysi s
support
of
the
1 ends
mok~adharmaparvan
conclusion, even though,
as noted earlier.
to
thi s
he draws a very
different conclusion. Proudfoot's
rigorous
application
of
criticism to one ancillary story of the
lower
textual
",ok~adharmaparvan,
that is. the Tuladhara/Jajali narrative, raises some important points.
He demonstrates that this single story of 186 verses
tol din
fi ve chapters (adhy6yas)
chapter
of
13
verses
was
and
1 inked wi th
substantially
a
reworked
si xth twice,
includes six further interpolations varying in length from one verse to 40 verses. and in add;tion contains eight separate segments which represent contaminations such as marginal and ; nterl i near manuscri pt annotati ons 1 ater incorporated into the text.
The
fact
that
Proudfoot
devoted
his
doctoral
dissertation to less than 200 verses of a critical text nearly 500 times longer than that shows both the challenges of close study
of
the
ancillary
stories,
and
the
dimensions
of
scholarly work yet to be done on them. Proudfoot's work also cautions us never to take at face val ue the i ntegri ty of a di screte epi sode of the Mbh. text-critical
microscopiC
analysis
reveals
Hi s
significant
89 i nterpo 1 at ions in the Tul adhara/ Jaj ali
epi sode,
that we must not be beguiled by the critical
suggest i ng
edition
into
thinking that such detective work has been fully accomplished in its production. work is also an excellent caution about the
Proud~oot·s
limits
o~
my own work on the Mbh.
elected to take the critical
To conduct my research. I
edition at face value and to
survey the ancillary stories just as it presents them to us. Because I used a critically edited text, I could assume with a
rather hi gh degree of confi dence that these very stori es
occur
in
the
particular
manuscript tradition. are good tools
~or
(see Chapter 2, critical regard
it as an
tool.
Let
us
they
do
throughout
the
Some disagree that critical editions
studying the history of religions in India
section D).
edition
order
but scholars who use the Mbh's
(including many whose work ; mportant • usefu 1.
I
draw
and genera 11 y
now take the Tu1adhara/Jaja1 i
upon)
re 1 i ab 1 e
story
as
an
example. My approach to the ancillary stories shows that this one occurs in a dense cluster of tales. all of which touch upon ah i ms8
in
some way.
conste11 at; on
I
of themes
show that --
dharma,
Tu 1 adhara/ Jaj ali sacri fi ce,
has
ar1:ha,
a
and
ahi,!,sa -- whi ch are a1 so worked over in qui te di sti nct ways in
the larger cluster.
Furthermore. the story cluster presents
contesting viewpoints about the relationship between the four concepts and practices they explore, just as Tu1adhara/Jaja1i
90 encodes
a
di spute
about
sacrificial context. see that a
the
propri ety
ki 11 i ng
ina
By examining the stories as a group, we
range of i rreconci 1 ab 1 e
equally credible.
of
vi ews are presented as
But we also see that in each case, proper
understandi ng of the Vedas
(as espoused by the characters
themselves, of course) clinches the argument. Proudfoot • s
approach
does
not
negate
any
of
my
conclusions about the story cluster, but his work shows that i ndi vi dual anci 11 ary stori es themsel ves may have been both lightly and heavily re-worked over time.
It shows how the
Tuladhara/JBjali story took the form we find in the critical edition, and demonstrates that its focus changed over ti.e. It did not initially advocate
and only came to include
ahi~s.,
concerns about sacri fi ci al ri tual some ti me after the ori gi nal story was reworked to advocate ah i '!Is •.
Furthermore, the story
betrays the hand of several editors,
each wi th a
different
ideological stance, sometimes apologist, sometimes challenger of traditional notions.
Without a doubt. no treatment of an
individual ancillary story can claim to be truly exhaustive without the application of lower textual criticism. For
my
present
purposes,
Proudfoot's
analysis
very
effectively shows -- albeit for one story out of hundreds -that
the Mbh text tradition
was,
over
time,
a
locus
for
recording differences of opinion among learned brahmans about contentious religious matters such as the definition of the practice of ahjmsS.
91
In studyi ng the anci 11 ary stori es I
wi 11 refrai n from
making judgments about a putative core text.
Proudfoot and
others have defended Sukthankar's critical edition project by asserting that it only represents the earliest common written text that available manuscripts permitted the editorial team to recover.
Unfortunate confusion resulted from Sukthankar's
remarks that
the cri ti cal
represents the
earl i est
recoverable written version of an oral performance.
Whereas
many scholars
edi ti on
(including Franklin Edgerton.
who edited the
sabhaparvan) are quite convinced that the critical edition is
a text that actually existed, notwithstanding likely editorial errors, Sukthankar and others thought it must be a copy
of
an
oral
performance
variations in the text. such
th i ng
as
a
because
there
are
written so
many
As Proudfoot has noted, there is no
prototypi ca lora 1
reci tat ion
since
each
performance is unique, and if the epic were the record of an oral performance, the text-critical and
its
claim
to
treat
the
project would be bogus,
whole
tradition
would
be
; nva 1 ; d .106 Sukthankar's failure to distinguish between the epic's oral and written traditions does not detract from the value of the text critical prOject.
As mentioned elsewhere, because my
interests lie with the text record of anci1lar¥ stories and the
ro 1 e
they
play
in
present i ng
the
epi c
as
Veda,
106proud'foot, Ahims. and a Itfahabhllrata Story, 37-39.
the
92 critical edition is an appropriate tool for my work. I07 Nor in the d i ssertat i on do whether historically the Mbh
I
take up the question of
should be characterized as
martial epic to which religious and philosophical accrued.
a
material
The methods I employ do not permit such conclusions.
and so the dissertation does not speak to arguments for or aga i nst
an
Ur-text . 108
The
very
name
of
the
epic's
traditional author. Vyasa ("compi1er"). and its own narrative account
of
its
origins.
however.
forthrightly
posit
process of successive oral elaborations of a story.
some
I do not
assume that the Mbh's presentation of itself as a story told. then re-to1d at greater length. tells us anything about its history
as
a
tex't. 109
It
may
do
so.
but
I
interested in attending to those possibilities.
am
not I
here
examine
narrati ve e1 ements of the text as presented in extant Sanskri t manuscri pts of the epi c.
That
the war of cousi ns
is
the
dramatic center of those texts is the only "core" notion to which I have subscribed in undertaking this analysis.
Too
t07proudfoot. Ahi,!,sS. 31 ff. t08 V • S. Sukthankar was accused of hav; n9 ; nappropr; ate 1 y foi sted just such a creature onto the extant manuscri pt tradition of the epic. and an anomalous creature in the genus of oral traditions. to boot. Hi s statement of what the critical edition is. and is not, in his view. appears in the Prolegomena to volume one of the critical edition. 109 1 n fact at 1 east one scho 1 ar has a rgued that. in the analysis of given passages. the critical edition shows the Mbh's history to be much more complex than previously suspected. See I an Proudfoot. "Interpret i ng Mahabharata Episodes as Sources for the History of Ideas," Annals of 'the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute 60 (1919): 51-52.
93 1 ittl e exami n a t i on o f formal
,
internal t e x t u a l evidence (e. g
,
m e t r i c a l and s t y l is t i c features) has been completed t o g i v e us In
much confidence i n broad t h e o r i e s about t h e MbWs h i s t o r y t h i s respect,
the c r i t i c a l
e d $ t i o n was an e s s e n t i a l
first
step, f o l lowed by some e f f o r t s t o study t h e i n t e r n a l evidence. D a d e l I n g a l 1s * pa3 n s t a k i ng work on s t y l is t i c analyses,
under
w a y f o r more than a decade* i s perhaps t h e b e s t example.
I w i I T argue t h a t t h e Mbh i s purposeful 1y heterogeneous,
n o t accidental l y so, also
argue
that
as many scholars have concluded. although
it
is
I w i 11
--
heterogenous
and
i n t e n t i o n a l 1y so by v i r t u e o f i t s claims t o encompass a1 1
--
knowledge s t r a t e g i es
i t does n o t l a c k 4 nternal coherence*
employed
by
Mbh* s
the
anonymous
The v e r y
compi 1e r s
to
demonstrate t h a t i t i s smrti requi red t h e i n c l u s i o n o f every t y p e o f 1it e r a t u r e recogni zed by brahmani c a l e l i t e s as b e a r i ng sacred author* t y *
Stories
and discuurses,
seemingly bewi l d e r i n g v a r i e t y , critical
edition
a11
in
are meant t o b e t h e r e -
demonstrates
this
conclusively
for
their The the
t e x t u a l t r a d i t i o n , and t h e testimony o f modern-day Hindus, a t 1 east, corroborates t h e c1aim f o r the o r a l t r a d i t i o n .
The Great
BhZWata
--
that
narrative o f
verses which e x i s t e d by t h e 5 t h century C.E. v i r t u a l l y the
some
100,000
and has remained
same l e n g t h f o r nearly 1500 years
--
was t h e
product o f perhaps a centuries-long e f f o r t by some segments of brahmanical
r e l i g i o u s e l i t e s t o make sense o f t h e i r
most
cherished re1i g i o u s t r a d i t i o n s i n a world so changed fram t h e
94
pastoral society in which those traditions had developed as to be unrecognizable.
The impetus for the continuing renewal of
tradition is evident in every religion.
The particular course
it took in India with respect to the emergence of what today we call Hindu traditions from Vedic religion is a process that I think the Mbh can help us understand. The maki ng of the Mbh by its anonymous compi 1 ers was par1: of
a
larger
process
Vedacization. 110
that
Sheldon
Pollock
has
called
The term may be slightly infelicitous, but
his arguments are strong and sound. religious project of the
Mima~sa
Pollock has shown how the
school of Indian philosophy
came to dominate brahmanical intellectual thought during the very centuries when the Mbh was being compiled. aim
of
the
Mimamsa
thinkers
was
transcendental nature of the Vedas.
to
The primary
demonstrate
To do so,
the
they argued
that the Vedas have no beginning. no author, and no historical content.
Pollock
consequent effects on
states jtjh~sa
his
hypothesis
regarding
the
as follows:
when 1:he Vedas were empti ed of thei r "referential intention. II other sorts of Brahmanical intellectual practices seeking to legitimate their truth-claims had perforce to conform to this special model of what counts as knowledge, and so to suppress the evi dence of thei r own hi stori cal existence -- a suppression that took place in the
ttOSheldon Pol lock, IfMimamsa and the Problem of Hi story in Traditional India," Journa7 of the American Orien1:al Socie1:y 109, no. 4 (1989): 603-610 and "From Discourse of Ritual to Discourse of Power in Sanskrit Culture." Journa7 of Ritual Studies 4, no. 2 (1990): 315-45.
95 case of i'tih.sa, "hi story, As Pollock argues.
II
i tse1 f. ltl
eventua 11 y Mi ma'!lsa hermeneut i cs so
domi nated i nte 11 ectua 1 di scourse, and the proposi t i on that the Vedas are knowledge and.truth itself apparently came to be so widely accepted in brahmanic intellectual circles, that other disciplines,
such as
i-tih.sa,
simply had to accommodate
they sought legitimacy in brahmanica1 terms. 112 resist granting to Pollock
affords
undeni able. 1l3
Mima~s.
it,
the all but total
its
extraordinary
if
Even if we
hegemony which
influence
seems
And the ironic result was that the canonical
works which purported to be historical in some sense -- for, of course, the genre of deny
thei r
own
jtih.sapur.~a
hi stori ci ty
in
order
survived -- sought to to
estab1 i sh
thei r
veracity. Wi th Pollock' 5 ana 1 ysi sin mi nd, I argue that close study of the narrati ve el ements anci 11 ary to the Par:--c:tava-Kaurava war story will action. the Mbh,
reveal the process of Vedacization of the Mbh in
I focus narrowly on the Sanskrit textual tradition of and do not here extend my arguments to the epic's
distinct performance and vernacular traditions,
The corpus
of ancillary stories in the Mbh's critical edition is so large that I could not hope in this work to demonstrate that all of 11' Ibid .• 609. 112 Ibid
113 But
.
I
610.
Pollock reports, "As one famous contemporary real enemy: Mimamsa has only one Mimamsaka told me, Buddhism." In "From Ri tua1' of Di scourse, II 342, note 51.
96 t h e m support my hypothesi s.
such was t h e purpose
--
1 o n l y intend t o show t h a t
and a c r u c i a l l y important one
i n c l u d i n g some o f t h e s t o r i e s . words,
M y primary
--
of
aim8 i n other
i s t o support t h e c l a i m t h a t a n d l l a r y s t o r i e s were
i n s e r t e d a t p a r t i c u l a r junctures
i n t h e Sanskrit t e x t
for
d i s c e r n i b l e reasons having t o do w i t h purposeful e f f o r t s t o make t h e Mbh a r e l i g i o u s l y
a u t h o r i t a t i v e work.
net t h e r random8 merely serendipi tous,
They
are
nor digress4ve in t h e
p e j o r a t i v e sense o f t h a t word By, so t o speak, observing Vedaci z a t i o n i n a c t i o n i n t h e S a n s k r i t hfbh8 one witnesses t h e process of canon formation i n t h e Hindu t r a d i t i o n .
I t must be noted t h a t t h e Mbh and t h e
Ramayana are t r a d i t i o n a l 1y c l a s s i f i e d as s w t i .
t o a l a r g e category
of
They belong
r e l i g i o u s m a t e r i a l which,
although
a u t h o r i t a t 4 ve8 i s nevertheless d i s t i n ~ ushed i from t h e Vedas 8 wh
For t h e moment 8 1 simply note t h a t a1though
1 1 4 ~ S U S ~ ~ Ci n ~ #f a c t , t h a t w h i l e Vedacization i s a primary r h e t o r i c a l purpose8 t h e r e are others which a1so e x p l a i n t h e i n c l u s i o n o f some s t o r i e s Yet even when a s t o r y of several verses i s recounted8 o r an anonymous q 8 t h 8 invoked which seems t o serve no mare s u b t l e purpose than an appeal t o a u t h o r i t y 8 one o f t e n nates t h a t such a s t o r y has been used i n much t h e same way i n V e d k t e x t s s t h u s suggesting precedence, i f n o t o v e r t sty1 is t $c im i t a t 3 on o f Vedic material I do n o t mean t o imply t h a t t h e o r i g i n s o f t h e MbWs s t o r i e s and n a r r a t i v e techniques are t h e Vedas. Although i t i s impossible i n our c u r r e n t s t a t e o f knowledge t o reconstruct t h e f u l l 4 n t e r t e x t o f the Mbhss s t o r i e s 8 common sense alone8 i f not analogy t o t h e operation o f o t h e r and l a t e r o r a l t r a d i t i o n s , should persuade us o f t h e probable existence o f some common stock, a f borrowing from extra-brahmani c s t a r y t r a d i t i ons8 and I am o n l y making an argument about t h e reasons o t h e r sources fur borrowing from and i m i t a t h g Vedic 1it e r a t u r e when such c a n t a c t is detectable i n t h e S a n s k r i t Mbh. A great deal e l s e about t h e Mbhl s s t o r y sources w i 11 here remai n unexplored
97
the Mbh, like other
texts such as the Pur.nas. was not
smr~j
thought to contain sacred knowledge as it had been heard and recorded in the Vedas more narrowly defined as the brahma~as.
ara~yakas.
consi stent with primarily
as
and
upanj~adS.
Vedic knowledge reformulations
unavai 1 abl e Vedi c
texts.
smr~j
was nevertheless
because it was
of
And as
repetition of sacred knowledge.
the
sa~hitas.
understood
content
of
other.
reformul ati on rather than
smr~j
could be told outside
the circles of twice-born men. the groups to whom hearing and studyi ng §rutj were restricted.
The project of our anonymous
compilers. then. was to make the Bharata into
sm~~j.
Here some remarks are in order about the other ways in which
the
tradition.
epic
allies
itself
specifically
with
Vedic
I mention them throughout the dissertation. but I
do not treat them systematically because each is such a large topic in itself.
Although I must relegate these other markers
of how the epi c presents i tse 1 f as
sm~~ j
to the background of
my discussion of ancillary stories for heuristic reasons. it is important to note that they are part of a full appreciation of how thoroughgoi ng was the proj ect of maki ng the epi c Vedic
sacrificial
significant ways. setting:
practice
marks
the
epic
in
sm~'t i
.
very
The story is narrated in a double ritual
the twelve-year sacrificial session in the Naimisa
Forest. and Janamej aya' s snake sacri fi ce.
Vedi c roya 1 ri tua 1 s
texture the action of the war story. in particular a r.jasDya and
an
a§vamedha.
As
Chri stopher
Mi nkowski
has
shown.
98 sometimes t h e v e r y s t r u c t u r e o f t h e e p i c n a r r a t i v e i m i t a t e s As A l f H i l t e b e i t e l has shown,
Vedic r i t u a l s t r u c t u r e .
the
Mbh e s t a b l i s h e s analogies between war and s a c r i f i c e i n t h e sense
of
ritual
Srauta
Sastrayajtia: addi t i on,
5.1 39.29)
p a r t ic u l a r
(ranayajfta: in
many
n a r r a t i ve
5.57.12;
and
5.154.4
compl ex
segments
of
ways. 6'I the
epic
and 1n are
p a t t e r n e d on p a r t i c u l a r r i t u a l s, namely t h e sabhaparvan on t h e raJasUya r i t u a l
and t h e sauptikaparvan on the myth o f t h e
d e s t r u c t i o n o f Daksags s a c r i f ice. Mythology i s another means by which t h e epic i s marked as congruent w i t h Vedic knowledge.
Some o f t h e r s i s prominent i n
Vedic l i t e r a t u r e a r e important f i g u r e s o f a u t h o r i t y i n t h e epic.
C e r t a i n d e i t i e s such as Brahma and I n d r a who a r e known
f r o m Vedic
l i t e r a t u r e a r e prominent
i n t h e Mbh.
Certai n
mythological m o t i f s such as t h e devSsura c o n f l i c t a r e o f t e n invoked t o e x p l a i n t h e a c t i o n o f t h e e p i c or t o l e g i t i m a t e a d v i c e given t o i t s c h a r a c t e r s . We a l s o f i n d i n t h e e p i c statements reported as d i r e c t q u o t a t i o n s from S r u t f ,
and t h e e p i c i t s e l f i s c a l l e d a Veda.
I t a l s o quotes n a r r a t i v e m a t e r i a l i t l a b e l s sa-da,
akhyana,
and so on, terms w i t h d i r e c t associ a t i on t o Vedic 1it e r a t u r e . The
realm
of
general
re1ig i ous
practice
general ly
associated w i t h t h e Upani sads a l s o t e x t u r e s t h e e p i c through, for
example,
its
extensive
use
of
the
dialogic
form
of
' ^nkowski ~i , Vanamejaya s S a t t r a and R i t u a l S t r u c t u r e .
'"~ 1t e b ie i t e l l
Ritua7 o f Battle.
lr
99 in s t r u c t i on.
Bhisma and
and t h e his
f rami ng o f
grandson
the
..
Yudhisthira
r e 1a t i onshi p as
that
of
between guru
to
student. M i s c e l l aneous b u t s i g n i f i c a n t o t h e r mechani sms by which
e p i c and Veda a r e associated i n c l u d e VySsat s dual compiler o f t h e Vedas and composer o f t h e Mbh.
.
1 ineage o f r.s f s . h i s b i r t h i n t h e Vasistha * t h e Vedic t r a d i t i o n , both
re1ig i ousl y
r o l e as
By v i r t u e o f
Vyasa i s hei r t o
b u t he a l s o composes t h e epic. which i s
authoritative
and
avai 1abl e
to
people
excluded by b i r t h from access t o Vedic knowledge. F i n a l l y . t h e a n t i q u i t y o f t h e Kuru f a m i l y ( P a r i k s i t a s ) thought t o have been q u i t e prominent i n t h e l a t e R g Vedic and post
Rg
Vedic
period,
and
i t s general
regard as
a
core
orthoprax group shows t h a t t h e e p i c ' s s t o r y i s keenly aware o f t h e Vedic m i l i e u . 117 There i s no evidence undertook
thei r
task.
t o e s t a b l i s h why e p i c compilers Indologists
commonly
say
that
brahmani sm was much beleaguered i n l a t e Vedic times, i t s world view and i t s constituency threatened by compel 1ing a1t e r n a t i ve v i ews : Buddhi sm, J a i n i sm and o t h e r Sramana movements. popul a r devotional movements focused on in d i v i dual d e i t i e s (many argue
."
t h a t Krsna was drawn i n t o t h e Mbh's o r b i t from such an e x t r a brahmani c a l
source),
foreign
ideas
encountered
in
urban
' s e e t h e w o r k o f Michael W i t z e l , especi a11y "Traci ng t h e Vedi c D i a1ects, l1 Dialectes dans Jes J f t t e r a t u r e s indoPans: L 1I n s t it u t de aryennes, ed. C o l e t t e Cail I a t . 97-265. C i v i l i s a t i o n Indienne. 1989:
100 centers located at the crossroads of international commerce, on trade routes that made their way through North India, and so on.
Forced to
religious
elite
popularize,
latched
onto
some
say,
stories
the
with
brahmanical
broad
popular
appeal. infused them with their own values, added a little of this and a bit of that for entertainment and didactic value, and so grew the Mbh. I want to stress that.
for the purposes of my central
argument, it is unnecessary to establish such broader motives because my analysis is based on the epic in its current form. achi eved
some
knowledge.
it
1500 years is
ago.
impossible
In
to
our present
establish
what
state of initially
stimulated composition of the Mbh in any case. Yet when one turns to more frankly speculative matters about the epic. the process of compilation that I argue for points toward the possibility of motives different from those now common 1 y
ascri bed to the epi CiS compi 1ers .
As
noted
above. it seems to me that there was considerably more method in the Mbh's development than many Western scholars (until very recent times) have wanted to allow.
Based on what we
know about how religious traditions maintain their vita1;ty generation
after
generation,
I
hold
that
the
work
of
Vedacization most likely occurred from within the tradition, and was performed by
1 earned brahmans who were themse 1 ves
trying to make sense of new ideas without entirely abandoning what they understood to be the means and purposes of living
101
according to their conception of dharma. selecting the thei r
work
probably
Kuru-pa~~ava
(and
why that
unknowable,
as
Perhaps instead of
conflict as a likely candidate for confl i ct well).
; nstead of another those
early
is
compilers
understood the story they heard of an old, troubled dynasty in terms of their own world view. one in which human effort was indeed fraught with peril, and one's spiritual and civic life successfully
nego~iated
only by serious and sustained efforts
to understand the elements and consequences of right action, or dharma. I n any
case,
a
sustained exami nat i on
of
the
epi c ' s
ancillary stories, both in broad thematic terms (Chapter 3) and in close study of a specific cluster of them (Chapter 4) shows great
interest
; nand
i nt i mate
knowl edge
of
Vedi c
mythology, Vedic sacrificial practice (yajfla), conventions of brahmanical intellectual expression
(Mima~sa
argumentation),
and command of the contents of §rut:i 1 i terature (the four Vedas. particularly sDt:ras and §8st:ras).
But it ;s also clear
from the subject matter, sequencing. and tone of some of the stories that they are used in arguments for the antiquity of certain practices believe
are
not
(ahj~s.,
part
of
pilgrimage, bhakt:i) that scholars Vedic
brahmanical
orthopraxy.
Sometimes (e.g., Chapter 4) the ancillary stories juxtapose opposing viewpoints,
thereby
legitimating
disagreement
on
religious matters by casting them as age-old and venerable disputes.
102
The
vision
Mbh's
is
a
presents are inconclusive. won i n a
war that
1 ed
dark
one.
The
solutions
it
Its heroes wonder what they have
them
to ki 11
thei r
dearest
fami 1 y
members, to witness the death of every child who would have inherited their bitterly compromised rule -- every child save one mi racu 1 ous 1 y
rev; ved
after
bei ng
sti 11 born
and
to
question whether human society itself is not inherently selfdestructive.
When
the
anci llary
stories
are
taken
into
account, the epic emerges as a profound public record of the co 11 ect i ve efforts of brahmans to expose and explore thei r own doubts, and they do so in the idioms most influential in their own intellectual circles. the epi c
The more commonly heard views of
as the product of a
rat i ona 1 i ze
its
pract ices
increasingly skeptical
world
threatened el i te graspi ng to and
presupposi t ions
to
an
inadequately account for this
richly textured narrative material. In my view, the expert care taken to compose the Mbh and its consistent attention (through the ancillary stories) to a far-distant,
sacred
history
signals
an
intellectual
elite
engaged in extended and vigorous debate about the meaning of that hi story. Mima~sa
We know that the terms of debate as di ctated by
conventions held sway
for many centuries in public
intellectual circles while the nature of popular religious expression section 4).
in
India
changed
dramatically
(see Chapter
2,
A specific set of rules dictated the form of
intellectual arguments, and specific hermeneutical procedures
103
were widely applied to scriptural and secular material alike. At the same time. the Vedas def i ned what constituted knowl edge in public intellectual circles. so one was often obliged to contest that knowledge. conform to it, or appear to conform to it,
in
order
to
be
taken
seriously
in
the
remarkable
"discourse of power" that so strongly marked public culture in India
from
approximately
300-1000
There were certainTy other very heard.
of
the
common
i nfl uenti a1
voi ces to
but it is the voices of the traditional
intellectual elite
era. 118 be
brahmanica1
in the form of a prodigious amount of
textual material in Sanskrit -- resonating so strongly that it is difficult to hear others well. I n the next chapter, I exami ne evi dence from the Sanskri t intellectual intellectuals
tradition used
to
the
support
Mbh's
my
dense
claim web
of
that
stories
contemplate profound hUMan dilemMas in cosmological There I suggest that the conventions of
Mima~s.
brahman to
terms.
argumentation
and hegemonic conceptions of knowledge and truth based on the canonical status of the Vedas largely defined the terms by which they could engage in public discourse about tradition and its ultimate meanings.
And,
in some way that we do not
yet understand, the Mbh became an arena for that discourse.
118 See Sheldon Pollock's body of work on this topic as cited in the bibliography.
104
CHAPTER 2 ANCILLARY STORIES, THE INDIAN INTELLECTUAL TRADITION, AND STRATEGIES FOR VEDACIZATION A. Introduction In Chapter 1
I
observed that the Indian
intellectual
tradition has for centuries accepted the Mbh as a coherent whole.
The
estab1 i shed
production of a critical that
the
enti re
contains ancillary stories.
extant
edition
corpus
of the
o'f
text
rnanuscri pts
Miscellaneous external evidence
of inscriptions and Sanskrit literary works shows that a Mbh story existed as early as the fifth century C.E., and that it was as. long an epic as we have today. In
this
indigenous
chapter Indian
I
will
discuss
intellectual
what
support
the
tradition
lends
to
understandi ng the phenomenon of anci 11 ary stori es in the epi c. As we will see, the tradition supplies some general prinCiples to explain why the epic is regarded as a coherent whole (see section on Mimams3 below). composition
that
irnp1ies
It describes a model of literary an
organiC
relationship
ancillary and main stories in the Mbh. Na~ya§astra)
The model
between
(from the
derives from a literary source external to the
epic. but historically proxirnate to it. In addition to discussing general principles and a model for
the
epic's
narrative
structure,
I
will
consider
the
occurrences of some of the epic's terms 'for stories in earlier Vedic texts and in technical Sanskrit literature dating back
105
at 1 east as far as the fourth century B. C. E. these latter
§~stra
Even though
materials disagree among themselves about
the precise meanings of the terms. they provide some external evidence for the existence of story traditions prior to the composition of the Mbh.
Beyond confirming that many types of
stories were recognized by intellectuals in ancient India, Sanskrit literary texts tell us little else that is helpful in understanding the stories' particular significance in their
Mbh context. Only
when
we
consider
the
traditionally applied to Vedic
hermeneutical
strategies
do we find clues about
tex~s
how and why ancillary stories feature so prominently in the
Mbh as chapter,
a
hi story or itih~sa
saga
was
the
(itih.sa). basis
of
As one
I
of
exegetical methods applied to Vedic materials.
show five
in
thi s
standard
We do not know
when or why the method became defunct, but Sheldon Pollock's work indirectly suggests that the Vedic
ai~ih&sika
school of
interpretation must have died out by the time the intellectual process
of
representi ng
timeless was completed.
the
Vedi c
canon
as
eternal
and
SDtra literature (currently dated
approxi mate 1 y to the seventh century B. C. E.) i ndi cates that by then the Vedas were already regarded as eternal.
It must have
taken some time. however, for this representation of the Vedas to take hold in the tradition, as suggested by the fact that in
approximately
Brhaddevat.
using
the
4th
itih.sa
century
B.C.E.
materials
to
we
further
find
the
develop
arguments f o r t h e Veda as transcendental the
Mbh
emerged as
an
influential
.'
Centuri es 1a t e r ,
compendium o f
sacred
knowledge, proclaiming it s e l f t o be b o t h h i s t o r i c a l ( f t i h - ) and canonical
( t h e Veda o f Krsna) , and widely respected as , .
such. An h i s t o r i c a l Veda i s a c o n t r a d i c t i o n i n terms according to
Hindu
conceptions
of
history
and
t r a d i t i o n has embraced t h e Mbh as both. study,
we a t t e n d t o how t h e e p i c
scripture,
yet
the
If, as I do i n t h i s
(through
i t s composers,
compilers and redactors) represents i t s component p a r t s , the apparent
paradox
r e s o l ves
it s e l f
.
In
orthodox
Hindu
conceptions, Vedic r e v e l a t i o n is e t e r n a l and t i me1ess, and by definition
the
authoritative.
contents Once
such
of
the
canon
views were
are
true
established
in
and the
t r a d i ti on, brahman inte11e c t u a l s developed speci f ic s t r a t e g i e s
t o accommodate subsequent developments in re1ig i ous thought. For reasons t h a t s c h o l a r s such as Sheldon Pollock, Holdrege and B r i a n K .
Smith have discussed,
Barbara
innovation and
substantive r e - f o r m u l a t i o n s of f a m i l i a r concepts had no hope o f being accepted by t h e status quo brahmanical e l i t e unless persuasi ve arguments were made denyi ng t h e i r o r i g i nal it y and a s s e r t i ng t h e i r c o n f o r m i t y t o recogni zabl y Vedic precedents. 2 s e e Patton, Myth a s Argument. 'pol lock, r%imamsZ and t h e Problem o f H i story," and "The Theory o f P r a c t i c e ' a n d t h e P r a c t i c e o f Theory i n I n d i a n I n t e l l e c t u a l H i s t o r y . " Journal o f the American Oriental S o c i e t y 1 0 5 , no. 3 (1985): 499-519; Barbara Holdrege, Veda and Torah: Transcending t h e T e x t u a l i t y o f Scripture, New York:
107
No form of discourse. including history, was exempt from this pressure if it sought currency in brahmanica1 circles.
intellectual
Pollock remarks.
when the Vedas were empt i ed of thei r .. referent i a 1 intention" other sorts of Brahmanica1 intellectual practices seeking to legitimate their truth-claims had perforce to conform to this special model of what counts as knowledge, and so to suppress the evidence of their own hi stori cal exi stence -- a suppressi on t~at took p1 ace in the case of it:ihllsa. "history," itself. Later in this chapter I will use a formulation developed by Brian K. Smith to review seven strategies commonly employed to this day in order to accomplish the work of establishing Vedic pedigree for religious material in brahman intellectual circles.
Sanskrit texts do not explicitly delineate these
strategies, rather they have been inferred by modern scholars from their studies of categories such as the fifth Veda. In Chapters 3 and 4
I
argue that we can detect those
strategi es at work in the way anci 11 ary stori es were se1 ected. composed, and positioned in the Mbh for the purpose of making the
Bharata
war
story
re1 igious1y
authoritative.
After
examining the ancillary stories of each parvan as a unit and by studying a particularly dense cluster of stories on ahims8 (a concept not found
in Vedism until
late Vedic times).
1
conclude that the stories are one of the principal means by whi ch the epi c' s
composerS and compi 1 ers gave the Itfbh its
State University of New York Press,
Rer7ect:ions on Resemblance l
1996;
Brian K.
Smith,
Rit:ual. and Religion.
3po11ock. "Mimamsa and the Problem of History," 609.
108
texture as
smr~j.
Following a review of the hermeneutical strategies that help to explain the occurrence of many ancillary stories in the epic, I consider the significance of the Mbh as a Sanskrit text.
In
Chapter 1
I
delftonstrated the colftpl exi ty of the
matter in my review of literature on the Mbh as both an oral and a written text. as
smf~j
work
as
I showed that the epic has been regarded
since at least the fifth century C.E., and that the smrtj
contai ned much
the
same
bul k of
anci 11 ary
stories as the oldest recoverable manuscript, which we cannot trace
back
farther
than
the
13th century.
Neverthel ess,
whether orally transmitted or preserved in texts, the Mbh1s ancillary stories have been integral to it as scripture for at least 1500 years. But is it significant that the Mbh has been preserved in Sanskrit for so many centuries? (e.g., Sheldon Pollock,
Yes, it is.
Ashok Aklujkar,
Recent research
John Kelly,
Madhav
Deshpande) has brought fresh attention to the socio-cultural significance of the classical Sanskrit literary tradition as a
unique cultural
phenomenon.
I
will
discuss
below
the
implications of some of that research for this study because I bel i eve that composi ng and transmi tti ng the Mbh in Sanskri t was a necessary aspect of its self-presentation as sacred knowledge.
sm:~j,
as
In one respect, one might justify the study
of the Mbh in Sanskrit silftply on the grounds of the existence of
a
manuscript
tradition
throughout
the
subcontinent.
109
Through my di scussi on of
research
1 ater
in
thi 5
chapter,
however, I mean to suggest that the Mbh must also be studied in Sanskrit because its preservation in this "sacred" language is
constitutive
of
its
enormous
significance
to
Hindu
traditions as a scripture. This chapter closes with a discussion of the critical edition of the Mbh, the major tool I study.
used to undertake this
Although controversial when it first became available.
as I will discuss, virtually every major scholar of the epics uses
it,
with
due
acknowledgment
of
its
strengths
and
weaknesses.
I conclude with a discussion of its utility for
studies
the
of
epi c' s
anci 11 ary
stori es
despi te
its
shortcomings. B.
Story Types and the Indian Intellectual Tradition 1.
The Mbh's Terms for Stories
This study concerns itself with portions of the Mbh, that flesh out, so to speak, the narrative of the P3ndava-Kaurava war
J
transformi ng it into the great epi c and a
smr:t:i
work.
This study catalogs the stories, indicates where they occur in the critical edition, and summarizes them (see Appendix).
It
examines the major themes addressed by the ancillary stories in each parvan (section) of the epic
(Chap~er
3).
and shows
how dominant are the appeals to Vedic authority, even when the subject matter is something we know to have become important to the Vedic tradition very late in its long history (e.g .• ah j '!ISll) •
Th is
study
also
argues
that
a
sample
set
of
110
ancillary
stories
(drawn
from
the
§Sntiparvan)
gives
one
example of how they sometimes explore different points of view about a
particular topic while claiming that each view is
legitimate because it is reportedly traceable to some ancient Vedic authority. To say that the Mbh contains numerous stories is to risk obfuscat i ng an
important feature of those narrati ves .
The
epic itself uses a set of ter.s that would suggest the stories are not
all
i"tih3sa.
sa'!'vllda.
gathll.
gi"t1l 6
a1 ike. purll'!a -- and to a
nidar§ana. and §7oka --
lesser extent carita. are used repeatedly to
identify individual ancillary stories. Na 1 a and Savi tri • for example. stor; es of Pu10man and Garuda and Tapati
are
are call ed
upllkhyllna.
The
ka are designated llkhyllna, those of
kathll,
and
the ta 1 e
of
RAyali~"'ga.
The Bhagavadgitll is not the only segment of the epi c
carita.
to be call ed a song. point
~sti
The ta 1 es of Rama,
of
view,
for
nor ;
5
Arjuna's
it anci 11 ary from a failure
of
nerve
narrati ve prompts
a
revelation of Krsna as divine -- a matter quite central to the epic's
royal
conflict.
Other
gitlls
include
the
small
VicakhnugitS in the §3ntiparvan. which I discuss in Chapter 4.
Vi rtua11 y everyone of the numerous stori es in the §lIntiparvan and
anu§llsanaparvan
(books twelve and thi rteen)
is
call ed
sa~v8da and presented in dialogue form. 4 4In fact. when viewed from the angle of ancillary narratives as I define them. virtually all of the §llnti and anu§3sanaparvans and more than half of the third book.
These terms do n o t r e f e r t o d i s t i n c t l i t e r a r y genres. 5 The a v a i l a b l e evidence (discussed below) about how t h e y were
d e f i n e d i s r e l a t i v e l y slender and w i d e l y scattered
I t does
seem to indi cate however, t h a t d i s t i n c t i ons were made between some o f these s t o r y t y p e s s although t h e r e was disagreement about t h e i r d e f i n i t i o n s and i n some cases more t h a n a 1i t t l e o v e r l a p i n t h e i r usage i n S a n s k r i t l i t e r a t u r e p r e d a t i n g the epic.
Paucity o f evMence r e q u i r e s a t e n t a t i v e cone1usion i n
t h i s case, however, f o r we cannot even be c e r t a j n t h a t these v a r i OUS terms are coordi nate in t h e i r usage.
As w i 7 1 be shown
1 a t e r i n t h j s chapter3 several may indeed have been technical 1 it e r a r y terms {e. g.
,
Skhyana)
but others
(kathdf] seem t o
have functioned more g e n e r i c a l l y, much as t h e word s t o r y does i n English. T h i s sketchy evidence i s
a1 1 t h e more i n t e t - e s t i n g
in
l i g h t o f t h e f a c t t h a t t h e Mbh sometimes appears t o c o n f l a t e i t s use o f these various terms f o r s t o r i e s * notwithstanding t h e f a c t t h a t t h e d i s t i n c t i o n s among them wece n o t e n t i r e l y
el ear in Vedic and S a s t r i c 1it e r a t u r e .
In numerous
instances3
more than one o f t h e terms i s used t o i d e n t i f y a p a r t i c u l a r
a r a n y a k a p a r v a n , can be regarded as anci 11a r y !
'I focus here on t h e terms as a p p l i e d t o i n d i v i d u a l s t o r i e s i n t h e Mbh, l e a v i ng aside discussion o f r e l a t e d terms such as i t i h & s a p u r a n a which some t h i n k r e f e r r e d t o a p a r t i cu1a r co1I e c t i 06 o f 1egends3 and others consider a p o s s i b l e e a r l i e r version o f t h e Mbh. For a summary d i scussian a T t h i s matte^, see Ram Gopal The H i s t o r y and Princip7es o f V e d i c I n t e r p r e t a t i o n (New De1h i : Concept Pub1is h i n g Co. , 1983), 40-53-
112 substory. There are at least two possible reasons for this apparent conflation of terms.
Metrical considerations may be one.
If
the di fferences between 6khy6na and cari'ta. for instance. were not obvious to popular audiences (after all. even though the manuscripts were
read
and
performed
the
general
before
recited.
the
public,
was
Mbh
so
to
cOlllmonly
speak,
not
excl us; vel y to e1 i te audi enees), the bards m; ght have used the words ; nterehangeably for
the sake of vari ety and
out
epic's
is
of
metrical necessity a10ne. 6 Consistent
with
the
dictuIII
that
it
the
repository of all knowledge (Mbh 1.56.33), however, it is also quite possible that its redactors took care to appropriate every commonly known medium of instruction. wi sdom
in
the
form
of
oft-told
stori es,
be it or
popular
rather
more
esoteric knowledge drawn from the §ru'ti literature restricted to twice-born males who had been duly initiated into Vedic study.
That such may be the case is suggested by the epic's
reference to itse1 f as an upani!!!ad. ~khy6na.
ka'th6. the kr:!!'!a-veda,
up6khy8na, and i'tih8sa. 1
68arend
van
Nooten.
"The
~1 oka
in
the
Sabhaparvan. 11 (1968): The Great Epic of India. 191-
Journal of the Oriental Inst:itute of Baroda 17. no. 4
353-362, and E. W. Hopkins. 356.
7atropanisadam punyam krsnadvaipayano 'bravit/l.l.191a karsnam vedamimalll vidva~§ravayitvarthama§nute/1.56.17c bharatakhyanavistaram/1.2.29b ~rutva tvi damupCIkhyanaRl §rBvyaRlanyanna rocate/1. 2 .236abb itihasottamRdasmajjRyante kavibuddhayah/1.2.237ab ya~ katha~ vYRSaSa~panna~/1.53.28c .
113 Most of the terms are found greater part
of whi ch schol ars
in Vedi c
date
1 i terature,
pri or to the
compilation of the Mbh around the 4th century B.C.E. of the terms Jain
(cari~a.
literature
gatha)
roughly
compilation of the Mbh.
the
i ni ti a1 Several
are also found in Buddhist and
contemporaneous
with
the
initial
In order to understand better the
broader 1 i terary context of the epi c' s ri ch vocabu1 ary for the concept of narrative, let us to turn to a discussion of the use of the various terms in early Sanskrit literature. 2.
Story Terms in Vedic Literature
Stories -- variously labeled -- are fairly widespread in the Vedic
sa~hitas,
br.hma~as
• •ra~yakas, and
upani~adS.
The
quest i on of how to interpret them provoked heated debate among scholars early in this century, controversies that have been usefully summarized in several publications I draw upon for part of the following discussion. 8
Of greatest relevance to
the
here,
matter
under
consideration
however,
is
the
conclusion that the uses of the most common terms for story were somewhat vague and i mpreci se by the time the Mbh was being compiled.
If ever the terms had represented distinct
genres of literature (such as biography, epigram, short story, and so on), these distinctions were greatly blurred. perhaps by late Vedic times.
8Jan Gonda. A
History
of
Vedic Literature (Samhitas and BrahmanasJ. Indian Literature.' vol. I, Wiesbaden:
Harrassow; tz 1975; Tokunaga, liThe Text and Legends of S,:haddevat•• II and Patton, Myth as Argument.
the
114
It cannot therefore be argued that the epi c
redactors
were sel f-consci ous1 y conf1 ati ng an assortment of di sti nct 1 i terary gen res into a sort of super-genre we today ca 11 epi c. As I pointed out earlier in this chapter, they seem to have taken care to draw into thei r definition of the Mbh as i'tih6sa every other maj or story type -- however imperfect 1 y understood and in so doing may well have been expanding older notions In any case,
by the twin acts of labelling the
Mbh as every type of story in turn, and by incorporating (as it seems) every known story type into the Mbh, they were at the very least presenting the epic as traditional par excellence.
fundamental
And here,
rhetorical
narrative
it seems to me, we see at work a
strategy of the epic redactors.
By
drawing into its orbit every conceivable variety of ancient materi a1,
the
Mbh
became
old
as
well
as
authoritati vee
Antiquating the epic was an important task for reasons very fami 1 i ar
to
scho1 ars
who
study
the
mechani sms
formation in various religious traditions.
of
canon
In India, however,
the process by which religious material became authoritative was
of
necessity
further
obscured
requi rement that canoni cal materi al
by
the
particular
must a1 so appear to be
ahistorical or timeless, a process which Sheldon Pollock has 1 abell ed
Vedaci zati on. 9
With this
rhetorical
strategy
in
9Clear1y a notion of historical material which includes di vi ne actors, mi racul ous bi rths of innumerable ki nd, and many other extra-ordi nary occurrences can hardl y be sa i d to conform to modern Western not; ons of hi story. That the events occurred (and will occur) repeatedly in just the same way as
115 mind. let us turn to a survey of the uses of the epic's terms for story in earlier literature. a)
jtih~sa.
Scholars of the Veda have concluded that the
vari ous terms for story used there are. "more or 1 ess synonymous ... 10
The term
common of those
in
that appear
in Gonda' 5
itih8sa
the ritual
words.
is the most
and exegetical
literature, but its precise meaning was a matter of debate among commentators. 1t the
B~haddevata.
Gonda provi des a
a com.entary on the
~g
useful examp1 e
Veda whose compilation
probably historically coincided with that of the Mbh. sOkta of the
tradition),
,!g
Veda might be called
sa~v.da
from
itih6sa
A given
(history.
(dialogue or conversation), or
or
n~r.§amsI
( 1 audatory tale). 12 Patton has noted (comment i ng on a study by Emil Sieg) that both terms are used much more regularly in Vedic commentaries such as Vaska's
Niruk~a
(circa 500 B.C.E.)
the phenomenal world courses eternally through four temporal cycles also reminds us that quite another view of the history of the cosmos underlies the epic. Sheldon Pollock, in particular, takes up the matter of how the workings of the Sanskrit intellectual tradition led to the erasure of historical reference to a degree apparently unparalleled in any culture. See "Mimamsa and the Problem of History," and "From Discourse of Ritua1." lUGonda, Vedic Li'tera~ure, 127.
He cites Emil Sieg, Die
Sagensto-F-Fe des Rgveda und die Indische
I~ih.sa-tradi~ion
I
(Stuttgart: Wissenschaft1iche Buchgesel1schaft. 1902), 17. 33, and Paul Horsch, Die vedische G~th~- und $7oka-Li~eratur (Bern: Francke Verlag, 1966), 12, 52, 284ff, 308ff. 1'The 1 i tera 1 mean i ng of the word i t j hllsa is "thus indeed it was." 12Gonda cites Brhaddevat8 3. 155f (on RV 1 . 126) and 5. 163 (on RV 7.33) as examples in Vedic Literature, 200.
116 B~haddevata
and the
(compiled in three layers:
4th century
B.C.E., 1st-5th century C.E., 7th-11th century C.E.) than in Vedi e l i terature per se.13
She specul ates that the earl i er
literature employed the stories, usually in ritual contexts, without
for
concern
identification
of
their
types.
Commentators were engaged in the work of systemati zi ng earl; er materi al, with
and were therefore understandably more concerned
categorizing and
labeling
the types of material
they
di scussed. 14 A 1 though the Sat:apat:ha Brah"'B,!s contains many stori es, it
rare 1 y
1 abe 1 s
them by story type.
Some of the occasi ana 1
references to .khyana (~B 11.1.6.9),
(aB
j'tjh8sa
11.1.6.9;
13.4.3.12-13) and pura'!a ($B 13.4.3.12-13) give the impression that each was regarded as a distinct genre, but just as in the ~g
Veda,
one finds several of the terms applied to the same
passage. b)
8khy8na
(derived from
the verb 8khy8,
"to
tell").
According to Gonda. the ~unat:'Aepa legend at Ajtareya Br8hmana 7.13-18 is the earl i est exampl e of a Perhaps the best known,
however,
(somet i mes
as
trans 1 ated
assoc i ated wi th the
story call ed
6khy8na.
is the p8riplavam 8khy8na
.. revo 1 vi ng
a§vamedha ri te .
tal elf)
which
Gonda explains it as
follows: Ouri ng the year 13 Si eg,
in
whi ch the horse
Die Sagensto'F'fe des ~gveds.
14patton. Myth as Argument, 208.
was
is
wander; ng
117 about[.l the hotar. seated on a cushion wrought of gold threads[,] is invited by the adhvaryu to tell this tale in order to raise the royal sacrificer to a higher state ega 13.4,3). This akhy.na consists of ten stereotyped accounts of kings. their people, thei r Vedas. etc., the wordi ng of each account being, as far as possible, identical. Each discourse lasts for one day, the whole series for ten days. After a series is over the cycle is to be repeate~ in the same order ... ti 11 the return of the horse. c) pura'!a.
The task of traci ng the uses of thi s term
which literally means 'old' or 'ancient' -- through pre-epic literature was begun provocatively by Ludo Rocher,
but only
tentative conclusions can be drawn regarding its use in much of the Sanskrit 1 iterature predati ng the Pur.l!as themselves .16 Rocher argued for a unique use of the term in the There
it
referred
i mmemori a 1 ."
1 ate Vedi c
to
thi ngs
but repeatedl y times,
however,
tli n
exi stence
renewed and the
~g
Veda.
from
ti me
regenerated. 17
term seems to
have become
synonymous with others meaning simply "old" or "ancient. If several itih~sa
Br.hma~as
and
and
~ra~yakas,
generally
seems
By
In
it is conjoined with the term
to
refer to
a
body of story
15Gonda. Vedic Literature, 415. Gonda ci tes P. E. Dumont, Louva in, 1937) , 39; R. D. Karmarkar, "The pariplava (Revolving Cycle of Legends) at the Atvamedha," Anna 7s of the Bhandarkar Orienta 7 Research Institute 33 ( 1952), 26; and Horsch. Vedi sche Gath.- und ~ 70ka L j tteratur, 20. Karmarkar adds that no telling of the story cycle itself has been preserved (pp. 26-27). L ' A~vamedha
e
t6 Ludo Rocher, liThe Wi ener Ze i tschr i Ft Fur
Meani ng of Purana ; n the Kunde
Sudas i ens' 20
Rgveda,"
( 1977)':
6-24.
Thomas B. Coburn, "The Study of the Puranas and the Study of Religion," Re7igious Studies 16 (1980): ~42-343. 17Rocher, "The Meaning of Pura~a." 6. 12.
118
materi a 1 .18 sa~v~da.
d)
In Vedic literature. this is a very common
term for a conversation or dialogue. such dialogues occur in the
~g
More than twenty-five These were the subject
Veda.
of scholarly debate on and off for nearly fifty years.19
commentators on the ,!g Veda (V3ska,
centuries, traditional Saunaka.
Sa:ya~a)
For
explained these
hymns by telling
stories
about them (itihasa) rather than describing their employment in parti cul ar times these
ri tual s. 20
di a 1 ogues
Gonda notes
have been
that in
vari ousl y
more modern
interpreted
as
magical charms, as satires on human relations, and as esoteric a 1 1 ego r i es . 2t
construed.
However it
is
e1 se
clear
such
that
the
di a 1 ogues may term
have
samv.da
has
been had
particular associations with early Vedic literature for many, many centuries in India. e)
g~thS.
n.ra~a,!,si.
§
70ka (bri ef Quotati ons).
Jan Gonda
classifies g8thas (sung verses) with verses, occurring from the
sa~hitas
onward. which developed into special groups of
metrical verses.
According to the Satapatha
were to
wi th
be
sung
instrumental
Sr.hma~a,
accompaniment.
they
G8th~s
appear in the Taittireya, the oldest Brllhma,!a, but they are
18Gonda,
Vedic Literature, 407-408.
19 See Patton, of the debates.
20Gonda,
Myth as Argument,
Vedic Literature,
21 Ibi d.. 200.
Chapter 6 for a summary
199-200.
119
very infrequent in the oldest books of the
Aj~areya.
a 1 so concluded that they tended to acqui re a meani ng duri n9 the course of development from
Gonda
more secu 1 ar
samhj1:lls
to
brlIhmanas: Whereas the poets of the Rgveda (except mandala X) apply the term g41:h3 to hieratic compositi'ons it came in course of ti me to assume a more or 1ess profane (or rather. non-hieratic) character -- at ~B. 13.1.5.6 etc. 9.~h.s are in praise of a sacrificer who has given donations, waged a war and won a battle -- and, often in connexion [sic] with original literary texts, to be used in opposihion to the fcas and other man~ras of the sa~hj~3s. The
verses
we re
anonymou s ,
but
clearly
regarded
as
authoritative by the time the Br.hma~as were compi1ed. 23
1oka, Gonda notes, was also somet i mes vi rtua 11 y synonymous with glfthlf. 24 These brief quotations occur in the The term
§
brlIhmatyas. but not numerous,
i n the
claims Gonda,
in
sa,!,h j tas,
and they
become more
later 1iterature. 25
accept Gonda's conclusion that the §lokas serve to
we
If fl
exp1ain.
i 11 ustrate, or corroborate an opi ni on of the compi 1 er. 22Gonda,
can
II
it is
Vedj c L j tera1:ure, 405.
23 Ibid ., 40~.
24A much more fami 1 i ar use of the word § 70ka refers to the most common meter of Sanskrit epic and classical poetry. $loka meter consi sts of four quarter verses of ei ght syllables each. I refer here to a much 1 ess common use of the work to designate a quotation one character utters to another. 25Gonda does not supply examples, but see P. H. Joshi. and Gathas Quoted in the Brahmana Literature," .Journal of 1:he Orjen~a7 Research Ins~jtute of "Baroda 21, no. 4 (June 1972): 291-298. and by the same author, under the same title, a second article with additional references in .Journa1 of ~he Orienta7 Research Institute of Baroda 22, no. 3 (March 1973): 250-255. "~lokas
f a i r l y clear t h a t
the rather
l i m i t e d use o f
t h i s term t o
designate a s t o r y i n t h e Mbh serves t h e same purposes. 26 F i nal 1y, Gonda quotes O l denberg in id e n t i f y i ng a t y p e o f g a t h a which
does
not
occur
as
such
in
the
Mbh,
namely
nara6ams3, o r eulogies o f kings, other prominent men and/or especially
generous
sacrificial
patrons.
1it e r a r y
These
pieces are p a r t i c u l a r l y i n t r i g u i n g f o r t h e i r r e l a t i o n s h i p t o
mantra literature. 1 -3.2.6.
I n a t r a n s l a t i o n o f T a f t t f r e y a Brahmans
Gonda w r i t e s ,
"the i m p u r i t y (impure p o r t i o n s ) o f the
brahman (the Veda) became t h e gSthas and naraSa*sis.
The
verse acknowledges these s t o r y types as t h e s t u f f o f brahman y e t subordinates them t o t h e mantra p o r t i o n s o f t h e Veda.
--
They a r e organical l y r e l a t e d t o t h e sacred verses
a scant
reference o f g r e a t i n t e r e s t f o r my argument about t h e nature o f anci 1l a r y (subordinate?)
reasons
that
are
s t o r i e s i n t h e Mbh
unclear,
d i s t i ngui shed as impure,
they
are
-
also
yet,
for
carefully
a1though probably not inauspi c i ous
since t h e Veda does r e t a i n them i n i t s r e p e r t o i r e .
e)
carita.
adventures o r
The exploits,
term is
carita,
referring
known from
Vedic
to
heroic
lit e r a t u r e ,
i n c l u d i n g the Rg Veda, but must have had much wider currency. This
is
indicated,
for
example,
by
such
works
as
the
^ h e word Sloka used i n t h e sense o f a type o f s t o r y occurs, f o r example, a t 3.2.19. There a brahman quotes (chants) t o Yudhi s t h i r a verses a t t r i b u t e d t o t h e h i g h l y revered K i ng ~ a n a k a : "~onda, Vedic L i t e r a t u r e , 406.
121
Buddhacarita from the earl y centuri es of the common era. stori es focus on
the 1 i ves of ki ngs
and
pri nces,
Such
and
the
examples from the Mbh take exemplary men as their subjects. g) n j dar§ana.
As a term for stori es. n j dar§ana refers to
fables that seem to have been popular stories.
Their didactic
function seems to be inherent, for the word 1 iterally means to "point out, II or "indicate. If and hence.
to "instruct...
As
indicated in my brief discussion of this term in section 4c below,
the
story
type seems to
have derived
from
popular
culture. Asi de from the Bhagavadgi t., di scourse
of
discourse
to
Krsna
to Arjuna,
Arjuna
which
and
the
purports
to
the well-known
Anugit6,
a
second
recapitulate
and
elaborate upon Krsna's teachings, the Mbh knows only a handful of
stori es
references ~atapatha
si mi 1 arl y in
desi gnated
pre-epi c
1 i terature
as
"songs ... 28
(Ta j tti riya
The
few
Br.hmat;'a 3,
Br.hmat;'a 3 and 4, V6jasaneyi Sa~hjt. 30, ~pas~amba
DharmasDtra)
suggest that these were metrical
associated with a sage, about them.
~~i,
or deity,
compositions
either uttered by or
The Mbh contains one example in which a
git.
emphasizing the importance of faith is attributed to Brahm.
(12.256.7-15).
A second git6,
al so call ed an
itih.sa,
is
attributed to a King Vicakhnu who objected to animal sacrifice as contrary to Vedic
precepts
(12.257.1-11).
Nilkantan's
28 For a di scussion of git.s see Ratnam Ni 1 kantan. Git.s in the Mah.bh.rata and the Pur.~as, Delhi: Nag Publishers, 1989.
122
conel usi on that these compos; ti ons "do not bear any speci al significance and are called gitas only to honour the main interlocutor or to gi ve importance to the subject matter" does seem to hold for the Mbh. Z9
3.
i~jh.sa
and Interpretive Methods
India's own intellectual tradition categorizes the Mbh in two ways.
It belongs to a class of authoritative religious
works called
sm~~i
regarded
traditional
as
(see discussion in Chapter 1). and it also history
(itih.sa).
We
know from
references in Vaska' s Ni rukta (ca. 500 B. C. E.) that one method of interpreting time
were
~g
Vedic hymns and mantras. which by Vaska's
considered
archaic.
narratives for explication. 30 strategy from the
Br.hma~as
the purportedly historical
entailed
show that the itih8sa would supply circumstances in which a hymn or Vi~vKmitra
mantras pra i si ng
ri vers
wanted
Ni rukta ment ions
eleven
(thought
to
itih.sa
Examples of this hermeneutical
group of mantras was uttered (e.g .•
however.
using
that such
be a
he
stor i es .
to
uttered certain cross). 31
The
The
St:haddevat ••
few centuri es younger
than the
Nirukta) contains approximately fifty such stories recounted
29 Ibid .•
46.
30 The other school s of i nterpretati on, namel y VKji'ii ka (ritualist). Nairukta (etymological), Parivrajaka (mystical). and Na i dana ( 1 egendary. poss i b 1 y based on a co 11 ect i on of etiological legends called the Nid8na) are summarized in Ram Gopal. The History and Principles of Vedic Interpretation. 31 Gopa 1,
39.
123
to expl i cate parti cul ar ~g Vedi c mantras. 32 Here
I
must
note
that
some.
part i cu 1 ar
j
B:haddeva~4
appear in the Mbh (e.g .• the
t j hlfsa
tales mentioned
but
not
all,
of
the
in the Ni rukta and the Dev.pi-Sa~tanu
and
Trita stories). and they are not consistently identified in the
epi c
as
itihlfsa.
I
do
not
mean
to
imply
by
this
discussion that the same stories necessarily appear in both Vedic exegetical and epic works, although that is sometimes the case.~
Rather, I wish to pOint out that the intellectual
toolbox of Vedic brahmans included an interpretive approach, a i t i h~si ka,
that
credi ted
explanatory
power
Br:haddevata,
in
in
certai n
stori es,
understandi ng
particular,
the
itihlfsa,
with
Vedas. 34
shows the method
The
in operation
duri ng the tinae when the early campi lation of the Mbh was underway. terms like
further itjh~sa
suggesting that the technical meaning of were very current in brahman intellectual
circles well into the early centuries of the common era.
Let
us now consider what is known about the Mbh's story terms from the
broader Sanskrit
literary tradition
in
the centuries
around the beginning of the common era. 4.
Story Types and the Indian Intellectual Tradition
32See my di scussi on of Lauri e Patton' sand Tokunaga's work on the B~haddevat~ in Chapter 1.
Muneo
33 It is Gopal IS opi ni on (p. 52) that the Mbh contai ns most of the itih4sa stori es menti oned in the Brhaddevat.. I suspect that the Critical Edition rejected some of them. but I have not yet given the matter careful attention. 34Gopal, Chapter 4.
124
In
this
section
intellectual
I
will
tradition
understanding
the
of
epic's
anci 11 ary narrati ves..
review
what
brahmans
use
of
so
the
post-Vedic
contributes
many
terms
for
to its
Unfortunate1 y, extant texts do not tell
us much that is helpful, and therefore MY conclusions about the si gni fi cance of thi s
stri ki ng feature of the anci 11 ary
stories must rely almost exclusively on what can be deduced from Vedic literature. There are four bodies of theory in classical
Sanskrit
literature to which we can turn: are concerned with the interpretation of Vedic ritual. (b) the Na~ya§astra,
(e)
the classical treatise on dramatic criticism,
a7a~kara§astra,
a genre devoted to the study of poetics,
and (d) vyllkara'!a. the sci ence of grammar. 35 As I discussed in Chapter 1, Mbh scholarship in the West has long focused primarily on the epic as a popular work. traditions of recitation, performance, and ritual
developed
around the epic certainly attest to its popularity. wi sh
here
to
focus
on
dimension of the Mbh, lives of brahmans. many
modern
a
di fferent
namely
its
and much
role in the
The
1 ess
But I studi ed
intellectual
The epic played a role in what strikes
scho1 ars
in the
West
as
a
radi ca 1
change
in
35 I than k Prof. Gary Tubb for th is formu 1 at i on of the available classical Sanskrit literature, and for his generous help in checking most of the textual references mentioned in this section in order to confirm the paucity of references to story types. Note that the N8't:ya§8s'tra is among the works that considers itself a fift~ Veda.
125
religious
world
views
from
Vedism to
the
multiple
traditions of the first millennium of the common era. contend that
the
Mbh
shows us
how its
anonymous
Hindu But I
brahman
compilers forged links between the old and the new in their own efforts to comprehend changing religious sensibilities. My study of the Mbh's ancillary stories shows deep and broad resonances with Vedism, but the stories are only part of the epic's project to represent itself as smrti and hence fully harmonious with the Vedas. in a discussion
o~
Later in this chapter, I show this
the particular strategies employed to make
the epic appear ancient and consistent with the Vedas.
To get
a sense of how it was possible to produce a work that both identifies itself closely with the Vedas and yet contradicts some of their most fundamental tenets about access to salvific knowledge, it is useful to understand a few basic features of the broader intellectual culture in which the Mbh participated during its formation and transmission as an oral text.
As we
will see below, the Indian intellectual tradition supplies the very tools that made it possible to produce an epic that has served such diverse purposes and audiences in Indian culture. (a) mi m~mslf.
One of the most i nfl uent i a 1 deve 1 opments
in the intellectual life of ancient India was the codification and
subsequent
interpretation.
dissemination I
of
mim~~s.
principles
of
di scuss mimllmsll theory here in order to
explain why I think it is appropriate to look to the brahman i ntell ectual
tradi ti on
and its
vast 'Ils'tra
1 i terature
for
126
models of understanding and interpreting the Mbh as a brahman intellectual product. As V. K. Chari explains, The Mimasakas were a school of exegetes who were concerned wi th the correct determi nat; on of the meaning of the Vedic texts and with the settlement of dubious or problematic passages in them. Their method included not only the fixing of the meaning of particular words -- verbs, names of sacrifices, and so forth -- but primarily also the larger task of deter.; n; ng the i .port of sentences i n the 1; ght of th'S6 overall purpose or intent of the Vedi c texts. After
some
codi fi ed B . C. E.
centuries,
in
.Ja; mi n;
and wi de 1 y
IS
the
interpretive
Mi,!,1I,!,slI§6stras
accepted
philosophical debates. 31
as
in
principles approxi mate1 y
the grounds
for
were 200
subsequent
Rival theories and schools abounded,
but at 1 east three basi c e1 ements of mim8"!s6 thought permeated intellectual
l;fe
for
centuries
thereafter.
Mimamsakas
asserted that Ja i mi n i 's
ru 1 es of i nterpretat ion app 1 i ed to
every type of materi a 1 .
The ru1 es of i nterpretati on were
regarded as universal (i.e., they applied to all intellectual products), and so the ground was 1 ai d for thei r app 1 i cat i on to every literary form. and
secular
literature.
The rules applied equally to scripture
material,
poetry
and
philosophy,
law
and
As Chari explains,
Their observations about the nature of language and the procedures they set up for the interpretation of verba 1 texts were seen to possess a genera 1 36 V . K. Chari. Sanskrit Criticism (Hono1 ul u: of Hawaii Press, 1990). 162.
31 Ibid .
r
162-163.
University
127
validity for all types of discourse. Although they claimed a special status of infallibility for the words of the Scri ptures. they admi tted that the validity ascribed to the Vedic word was in no way different from that demanded of ordinary discourse. The language of the Vedas was the same as that of common parlance and subject to the same conventions and canons of log i c as the other; 3rtherwi se. we would not even comprehend the Vedas. In addition.
trttm.'!'sll rules for proper and persuasive
argumentation were widely adopted.
Premises and conclusions
might
but
differ.
and
certainly
did.
intellectuals
schoo 1 ed to present arguments in preci se 1 y structure. and
I
were
the same formal
Such well-turned arguments have five components.
gi ve
an
examp1 e
in
Chapter
4
of
a
story
in
the
§~n~iparvan that follOWS these conventions. 39
Also enormously influential was the unity of meaning.
mim.ms~
concept of
As Chari explains. "A unified utterance is
one that presupposes a single consistent motive or purpose; it represents an integral idea.,, 40
Si nce mimll!!,sll developed from
the exegetical tradition of Vedic interpretation. there was clearly
a
desire
to
guard
against
the
possibility
of
conflicting meanings by postulating that every compOSition is coherent. its sentences and sentence groups combining to form a
"commonness
of purpose ... 41
Many
interpretive
problems
38 I bid.. 163. 39 As Prof. Gary Tubb has observed. pentads are an important means of organizing knowledge in other §llstras. as well, such as N.~ya§llstra.
40Chari 41 Ibi d.
I
176.
128
followed from this principle; nevertheless. as Chari explains: "The concept is widely accepted in all branches of inquiry in India.
and even the literary critics.
maintaining
the
value
of
polysemy.
who had a stake
especially of
in
poetic
suggestion. had to recognize this princip1e."U In summary,
m.im.~s.
common intellectual
thought laid the groundwork for a
culture in ancient India that
differences of region.
religious tradition. political unit.
i nte1l ectua1 di sci p1 i ne. and school s of thought. of
spanned
The contents
show that canons of critical method were shared in
§Ss~ra
virtually every quarter.
Arguments about law. literature or
ph i losophy were idea 11 y adduced ina sing 1 e convent i ona 1 form. and
hermeneutic
practice
was
heavi 1y
prone
to
interpret
internal contradictions and inconsistencies in such a way as
to articulate an overarching coherence.
In 1 i ght of these
shared conventions, surely we can postulate that the Mbh as a literary product should be viewed through these interpretive lenses, as well. must
I
stress
that
in
di scussi ng
the
importance
of
mimSmsS interpretive principles for understanding the Mbh as smr'ti
I
mimSmsS
sharply from
di scussed.
achi eve the
distinguish
the
the
widespread
phi 1 osophi cal cultural
schools
phenomenon
of
just
The Mbh's cl ai m that anyone who hears it wi 11 same benefi ts
twice-born
men
gai n from
Vedi c
sacrifices directly contradicts Mimamsaka understandings of 42 Ibi d.
129
competency (adhik.ra) to realize such spiritual benefits.
For
them and others (e.g., Advaita Vedantins), competency is based on
her-ed i ty ,
k~atriya,
and only twi ce-born members of
the brahman.
and vai§ya classes have the capacity to acquire the
necessary know1 edge and
ski 11 s .•3
Mimal!'sakas guarded
wi th
great care the twice-born right of accessibility to the Veda, and would also presumably have resisted the kind of equivalent potency that the Mbh grants to bhakti, pilgrimage. and so on. But
less
restrictive
interpretations
of
the
notion
of
competency were current as early as the first century C.E .• notions that attributed such ability to natural causes such as intelligence and motivation}4 evident in the Mbh.
This latter view is clearly
The epic explores the issue both in some
of its ancillary stories as well as in its core plot, for it asks, Who has the right to rule the kingdom when legitimacy cannot be ascertai ned by the ru1 ebooks?·S Furthermore. if we may consi der Kumari 1 a to be a re1 i ab1 e indicator. the
Mima~sakas
were wholly intent on justifying,
rationalizing, and preserving the authority of the Vedas and Vedic ritual, and would therefore presumably have vigorously resisted the process of Vedacization I explore for the epic.
43 Wi 1 helm Ha1bfass, Tradj't,ion Explorations in Indian Though~ (Albany: New York Press, 1991), 66-74.
and ReFlection: State University of
U1bid. 45 Ibid ., 67. Ha1bfass thinks the oldest extant source addressing this alternate view is the K.'t,y.yana ~rauta SD't.ra.
130
For
them,
arguments
that
universalized to everyday
apply
to
the
Veda
cannot
be
contexts~
While mi",.",sll interpretive
principles
help us
locate
indigenous hermeneutical grounds for understanding the epic. other §lfs'tras yield other kinds of inforlllation relevant to this study of ancillary stories.
Next I turn to technical
literature on drama for some clues about how the Sanskriteducated elite may have understood the ancillary stories as structura 1
components
of
the
1 i terary
phenomenon
of
the
Sanskri t Mbh. (b)
Na~ya§.s'tra.
The Da§arDpa of
Dhana~jaya
has been
widely used in India as a reference work for the theory of n3~ya§lls'tra. 46
The work does not contai n speci fi c references
to story types, but in its explication of plot structure in drama; t does provi de an i ndi genous theory of the rel ati onshi p between main and subordinate plot lines. Dhana~jaya
examples
of
gi ves
the
Rlfm.ya'!a
well-composed
principles of
n.~ya§.stra
stories are
and
the
(kath6)
admirably in
Brhatkathll
in
which
the
evidence.
He
expl ai ns that drama is cl assi f; ed in three ways: (na~a).
by hero
sentiment (rasa), and subject matter (vastu).
components
of
the
subject
matter
are
as
main
Formal
theme
and
subordi nate, as well as themes based on legends (itihllsa) ,
46 prof . Gary Tubb, personal communication, February 9, George C. o. Haas, trans.. The Da~arOpa: A Treat i se on Hindu Dramaturgy by Dhanamjaya, Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1999.
1962.
.
131 ~
themes invented by the poet (u'tp8dyam) two. H to
The five formal
include
elements of a drama's plot also seem
reference to registers interchangeable.
principle~
The
episodes according to their 1 engthy ep i sodes
or themes that mi x the
plot that
are~
in
di sti ngui shes
N8~ya§8s'tra
length~
and
(pa't8k8)
of a
differentiating between
shorter ones
(prakari) ,
but
including both in its codification of the elements of plot. 48 The N.!ya§.s'tra does not address the structure of the Mbh
per see
Its theory -- widely known in India since the second
or third century C.E., and perhaps earlier -- suggests that the general concept of a literary work consisting of main and subsidiary narrative elements in a coherent whole was quite familiar to literary theorists in ancient India. in Chapter
1~
As I showed
for more than half a century Western scholarship
on the Mbh was dominated by approaches that first stripped the epic of all but its
pa~~ava-Kaurava
war
story~
then labored to
explain how, why, if, when, and by whom the many thousands of exci sed
verses
N8~ya§~s'tra
had
been
inserted.
The
evi dence
of
the
suggests a much more organic model of development
of the multi-layered epic.
The text does not directly address
the Mbh and its evidence is therefore still indirect, yet it is
both
historically
and
culturally
proximate
to
the
composition of the Mbh. Next
we
47 Haas ~
48 I bid. ~
turn
7-8. 7. 9.
to two
other
maj or
bodi es
of
Sanskri t
132
1i t e r a t u r e f o r i n f o r m a t i o n on some o f t h e eleven s t o r y types I n general,
included i n t h e Mbh.
i t appears t h a t t h e r e was
1 iv e l y d i sagreement about t h e p r e c i se d i f f erences among those
.
People educated in S a n s k r i t 1 it e r a t u r e ( # f s t a ) were
terms. clearly
aware
of
this
terminology
consensus on d e f i n i t i o n s .
despite
the
lack
of
Since w e know t h a t t h e c1 a s s i c a l
S a n s k r i t 1it e r a r y genres o f alamkiPaSastra and natyagastra existed
in
the
first
century
C.E.
elaborated u n t i l t h e f o u r t h century,
continued
but
to
be
perhaps i t s h o u l d be no
s u r p r i s e t h a t c r i t i c a l mention o f what appears t o b e s t o r y genres was a1so i n f l u x when t h e Mbh was t a k i n g shape. 49
As
I observed e a r l i e r ,
to
perhaps those f a c t s are s u f f i c i e n t
concl ude t h a t t h e W h , too. and
substantiated
its
displayed i t s learned c h a r a c t e r
claim t o fullness
of
knowledge
by
r e f e r e n c i n g v i r t u a l l y every type o f s t o r y recogni zed by t h e in t e l 1ectual e l it e . I t should be noted t h a t t h e term 3khyakik3 does not. occur
in t h e epic.
I t might we1 1 be absent because,
s e c t i o n ( c ) below,
i t was never i n v e r s e form and m a y have
been regarded as an o r i g i n a l composition. arguments
I make
as n o t e d i n
in
this
study,
the
According t o t h e epic
consistently
represents it s e l f as r e c o u n t i n g o l d s t o r i e s , not as p r e s e n t i n g new ones ( r e c a l l t h a t VySsa i s a c o m p i l e r ) . seems
logical
that
It t h e r e f o r e
a s t o r y type a s s o c i a t e d w i t h
original
'see Edward C. Dirnock, Jr., e t a1. , The L i t e r a t u r e s o f A n I n t r o d u c t i o n , Chicago: U d v . o f Chicago Press. 1974, 1978, f o r surveys on these matters.
India:
compositions would be avoided. synonymous
term w a s a1though
in
katha.
and
therefore
case we might expect t o
i n that
occasionally
with
It i s also possible t h a t the
the
epic,
i f only
for
not
used,
see i t employed
metrical
variety.
Surely much more could be s a i d about t h e preservation o f such r i c h terminology f o r t h e Mbhls anci 11a r y s t o r i e s , but f u r t h e r
study i s r e q u i r e d i n order t o do so. Bhoj a ' s Srftgmapraka~a(ca
(c) a JamkaraSastra.
.
11t h
century) is t h e o l d e s t avai 1able and 1 a r g e s t encyclopedia on
.''
Sanskri t p o e t i c s ( &my=)
Raghavan s survey of @
the
text
d i scusses t h e terms katha, akhySyik& a k h y w upakhyma, and n i d a r ~ a n a . ~ ' H e notes t h a t on these t o p i c s Bhoja generally
borrowed from BhSmaha (7th-8th century).
The terms k a t h 3 and
akhyayfka are regarded as v i r t u a l l y synonymous.
In a kathS,
someone other than t h e "herow i s s a i d t o recount the s t o r y , b u t generally he does n a r r a t e t h e akhyayfka.
composed
in
Sanskrit,
Apabhramsa
or
A katha may be
Prakrit
and
is
d i s t i n g u i s h e d from akhy3yika by the absence i n t h e former o f t w o particular
.
metres (vaktra and apavaktra) 52
Whereas a
k a t h 5 might be w r i t t e n in e i t h e r verse o r prose, an SkhySyika
is never i n verse form. verse on akhyayfka by p r o f 1999.
'v. 1978.
.
Gary Tubb,
Raghavan,
I n an i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f a disputed
.
Dandin ( l a t e 7 t h century). personal communication,
Bhoja @s Srftgara PrakaSa,
Raghavan
February 9,
Madras :
I n d i a,
134 concludes that this story type must have been distinctively understood as "sub-stories or illustrative stories which the poet himself introduces here and there during the course of the ma i n narrat i ve . ,,53 Bhoja
defi nes
~khy~na
as
a
dramati zed
up6khy6na.
explaining that it is recited or sung as well as enacted. examples of
up~k.hyllna
are drawn
from the Mbh:
Savitri. and sixteen kings stories.
His
the Nal a,
Raghavan notes that Bhoja
clearly indicates the existence of texts containing 6khY6nas that were employed in recitation.
It is possible that 6khySna
1 i terature
1 ike the
consi sted of stori es
ap~khy6nas
Bhoja
refers to. but with direction for interpretation through song and gesture. 54 Njdar§anas are clearly didactic stories meant to teach
r; ght from wrong. mentions
the
Not
all
Panca~an~ra
as
are animal one
stori es,
example
of
but the
Bhoja genre.
Although we find just a handful of examples of this term in the Mbh. the epic contains many stories of this type. 55
Harry
Fa 1 k has argued that a small number of parti cul ar stori es from the fifth.
tenth.
twelfth. and thirteenth books of the Mbh
53Ibid .• 597. 54 I bi d..
599.
55Ta 1 es 1 abell ed ni dar§ana occur in the Mbh at 1.69.5, 5.133.29. 8.28.8, and 12.117.1.
135
were sources for the P~iica1:antra narrati ves. 56 (d)
The sci ence of grammar (vy6karaf!a) took shape over
many centuries in ancient India.
..
Astadhy~yi.
Panini's .
The oldest extant treatise,
dates to the 5th-4th century B.C.E. and
is credited with the codification of classical Sanskrit, often also referred to as paninian Sanskrit.
It teaches rules for
Vedic (chandas) grammar presented as exceptions to the rules for
c1 ass; cal
grammarian Mah~bh~~a,
Sanskri t ..
Patanja1i
In
the
composed
a
2nd
commentary
which provides a critique both of
work of Katyayana (3rd century B.C.E.). di sci pl i ne purposes
that
here
provoked it
is
much
commentary since, along with
to
pa~ini's
entitled
the
P.~ini
work,
rely
on
aphorisms,
provided basic rules for grammatical analysis, veryauthoritative. 51
the
and the
Grammar was a lively
schol ar1 y
sufficient
B. C. E.,
century
but
for
my
Patanjali's it not only but was also
All we can glean from this branch of
the i nte11 ectua1 tradi tion on the subj ect of anci 11 ary stori es are scant references to four groups of individuals who were considered expert in Another
c i tat i on
8khy4na and
6khy~na,
seems
to
.khyayi ka when
akhy6yika. itihasa, and puraf!a.
refer
to
a
di st i nct i on
between
Pataiij ali gi ves two examp 1 es of
each story type to illustrate grammatical rules concerning how to form a
word that
means,
for examp1 e,
"the story
about
56Harry Fa1 k, Que 17en des Paticatantra, Frei burger Bei trage zur Indo10gie 12, Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1978 as cited by John Brockington, Sanskrit Epics, 497. 57Chari, 162.
136
Yayati " four
.
(ie.,
story
Beyond the association o f
Ywata)
traditions
with
distinct
groups
of
these
experts,
however, we can p o s i t l i t t l e e l s e except t h a t t h e m a t e r i a l s t h e y represent must have been wide1 y current f o r q u i t e a l o n g
time. C.
Story t o smrtJ:
S t r a t e g i e s for Vedacization
I n the preceding s e c t i o n I showed t h a t whi 1e some o f t h e
Mbhts terms texts,
for
a n c w a r y stories
can be traced t o Vedic
t h e extant t e x t s o f t h e learned Sanskrit t r a d i t i o n do
not add much t o our knowledge o f p r e c i s e l y what these terms meant i n ancient India.
I did, however, argue t h a t a uniform
set o f premi ses about hermeneuti c a l enterpri ses was developed j u s t before t h e beginning o f t h e common era, and held sway f o r many c e n t u r i es also
.
(Nor have they d i sappeared t o t h i s day. )
s u g ~ e s t e d t h a t t r e a t i s e s on drama s e t norms o f
I
plot
development which, i f appl i e d t o t h e Mbh, make i t possible t o posi t
an
indi genous conception
o f an organi c
between i t s war s t o r y and anci 1 l a r y t a l e s .
re1a t i onshi p
I poi nted out t h a t
a1though t h e I n d i a n t r a d i t i o n expl i c i t l y distinguishes t h e Mbh f r o m dramatic works,
identify
a
theory
the Natya6astra a t l e a s t enables us t o of
literary
contemporary w i t h the epic,
composition
and (2)
(1)
that
i s
accords w e l l w i t h t h e
evidence t h a t t h e epic a t times betrays c a r e f u l ,
s u b t l e and
apparently purposeful e f f o r t s t o i n t e r r e l a t e epi sodes o f i t s ^1n a personal communication (February 9, 19991, Gary Tubb d i scusses t h e two c i t a t i o n s f rorn the Mahabhasya which provide commentary on Panini 4.2.60 and 4.3.87.
137 war story with seemingly independent tales. In this section I will consider hermeneutical strategies of a different sort,
namely those techn i ques scho 1 ars have vari ous ways in whi ch post-Vedi c
deduced by exami ni ng the literature aligns K.
Smi th t s
itse1~
with the Vedas.
out 1 i ne for thi s
I will follow Brian
di scussi on because it i s
economical and comprehensive."
both
I will also discuss different
conceptions of the relationship between §ruti and smrti in ancient
Indian
intellectual
traditions
considered the boundaries between
to
show that
thena to be fluid,
some while
others did not. Smith
has
written
two
definitions of Hinduism. 60
books
that
explore
In the first book. his definition
hinges on the relationship of Hindus to the Veda: is the religion of those humans who create. transform
traditions
with
legitimizing
Thi s i s preci se1 y
work
is
the
Mbh.
There
amp1 e
I1Hinduism
perpetuate. and
reference
authori ty of the Veda, 1161 in
working
evi dence
to
the
what I see at from
Indi a' s
scholarly tradition to support Smith's view of the central ro 1 e
of the Veda • s authori ty • but questi ons remain -- and
Smith explores them -- about whether the definition stands firm when tested against the complex lived realities of Hindu S9 Smi th • Refl ect ions, 21 -26.
60 They are the book previously cited and Classifying the Universe: The Ancient Indian Varna System and the Origins of Caste, New York: Ox~ord Uni versfty Press. 1994. 61Smi th.
Reflections, 13-14.
138
orthopraxy .. Smith's working definition might totter in the swirling currents post-classical religious traditions in India, but at a minimum it captures superbly the import of the production of a great deal of Sanskrit literature by intellectual elites in ancient India . Notwithstanding the bulk of textual evidence across the centuries that asserts the preeminent sacred authority of the Vedas, it is patently obvious that most Hindu practices and doctrines bear few traces of the actual subject matter of the Veda.
Smith asks: If, then, the content of the Veda is by and large irrelevant to post-Vedic Hindus. in what possible sense can Hi ndui sm depend on Vedi c authori ty for its legitimacy and integrity as a religion? And how do Hindus, from our point of view, transform their traditions over time without, from their point of view, diverging from the aimple repetition of the eternal truth of the Veda?
The concept of the Veda in Hindu traditions is elastic, for it has at times accommodated both the compos it i on of "new" Vedas (such as
Upani~ads),
and has permitted religious literature
technically categorized as
sm~ti
to serve as the functional
equ iva 1 ent of the Veda (§ru'tj) .. 63
Smi th i denti fi es seven ways
in which
Veda
smrti
is equated with
in
Hindu
traditions,
thereby becomi ng invested wi th the authori ty of the canoni ca 1 • 62 Ibi d . , 21. "Playing by the Rules: ~astra and in Anna Libera Dallapicola, ed . , Shastric Traditions in Indian Art (Stuttgart: Stenier, 1989), 301-312.
63Sheldon Pollock, Sanskrit Literature,"
139
eternal, transcendent Veda. 64 strategies in its own project
The Mbh employs all of these o~
becoming authoritative, as I
will discuss shortly. 1.
Views on the Relationship Between §ruti and smrti
Before considering the specific methods brahmans used to make the epic smrti, let us consider briefly how inte11ec-tua1s
understood the relationship between and smrti.
~rut:j,
or the Vedic canon,
Historically this was a contentious topic, and one
very relevant to broad considerations of how religious change was understood within the Vedic and Hindu traditions.
The
matter is a vast and complicated one, given the long history of these traditions and their prodigious literatures.
Here I
wi 11 draw upon Halbfass IS compari son of the thought of two influential
figures.
Kumari1a (7th century)
and Bhartrhari
(5th century) to approach the question of how conceptions of religious canon developed in ancient India. 65 Sa~kara's
illustrates a
(7th
century)
thought,
conservative strain
Ha1bfass
of opinion on
shows,
religious
He recogni zes as legitimate only systems
plurality.
accept the Veda. and the Veda alone,
as authoritative.
that He
even rejected the Bhagavata and Pancaratra movements because they
accepted
authority.
non-
or
extra-Vedic
As Halbfass observes.
sources
~a"kara
of
religious
used the restrictive
principle of vedamalatva to evaluate the permissible limits of 845mi th.
Re.,7ec'tions. 20-29.
65 Ha 1bfass.
Tradition and Re"'ec'tion.
140
religious plurality. 'this principle
Articulated by the
holds
that
lithe
Veda
PDrvamima~sa
is the
school.
criterion
and
measure of legitimacy and orthodoxy."" But ~a~kara's view.
as Ha1bfass notes.
is net the only
conservative understanding of religious pluralism in ancient India.
Kumari1a.
Sa.-.kara.
although ultimately as
neverthe1 ess
philosophical
views
afforded
such
as
uncompromising as
some measure of
Buddhist
and
uti 1 i ty
to
which.
he
Jain
argued. distorted elements of Vedic thought. Strikingly different and also influential were the views of
Bhart~har;
draw
a
on this topic.
stri ct
border
tradi 'ti ons
of
"brahman's
unfolding
soci a1
natural
and
basi s ... 67
For
human
Unlike Kumari1a. he "does not
between thought into
wor1 d
Bhart~har;.
the and
the as
uncreated exeges; s.
world; its
it
II
Veda
and
Hi s
Veda
extends
under1 yi ng
the is
into the
structure and
the authors of the traditions of
smrri and exegesi s "carry out and conti nue what is inherent in brahman ; tse1 f. ,,88
These bri ef references to Bhartrhari I s vi ews are intended here primarily to illustrate -- without documenting in detail --
the poi nt
that
it
is
understand the Mbh ' s
uses
emerged
the
from
within
66 Ibi d.. 59. 67 I bid.
J
37.
68 I bi d .
I
38.
possi b1 e
and
qui te
of the Veda as tradition
a
itself.
1 egi t i mate
to
strategy which and
one
quite
141 cons i stent wi th certain vi ews of the Veda whi ch, hotly debated,
a 1 though
were squarely within the mainstreall of the
brahmanical
intellectual
proclamation
as
the
tradition.
fifth
Veda
The
would
Mbh's
surely
objectionable to thinkers such as Kumar;la and drew heavily upon concepts from
Parvamttm.~s.J
self-
have
been
~a"'kara
who
but for those
who understood the Veda as Bhartrhari did, such a claim would be quite acceptable. 2.
Eight Strategies of Vedacization.
As noted ear.1 i er in thi s identified
seven
chapter,
hermeneutical
Bri an K.
strategies
5lfti th has
by which
Hindu
traditions linked new religious works to the Vedic canon.
I
review each of those strategies below. and propose an eighth one employed by the Mbh.
I have borrowed the parenthetical
terms used to encapsul ate each strategy (i. e.. restatement.
recovery,
recapitulation.
reversal.
reducti on.
refl ecti on,
reproduction.
replacement) from Brian K. Smith.
and have added the eighth one to provide a set of short-hand references.
The terminology is not drawn from Sanskrit.
It
refers only to the group of strategies Smith has deduced from his own textual studies." 1.
Sm~ti
is the Veda, or §ruti (reflection).
As noted
in Chapter 1. the Mbh openly asserts that it is Veda (namely. the Veda of Krsna). an upanisad. and a samhit. (the term used ... . . to refer to the verse portions of the four Vedas). 69Smith. Re'F1ections, 29.
VyBsa also
142 c l a i m s t h a t t h e Mbh i s equal t o t h e Vedas (1.56.15-16),
for
exampl el and 6 a l y a J i n r e c o u n t i ng a p a r t i c u l a r upakhyBna about Indra,
claims t h a t i t i s equal
t o t h e Vedas
Smith notes t h a t many o f t h e Pur-s
5.18.16).
Ramayana desi gnate themsel ves a
(vedasammfta, as we1 1 as t h e
f if t h Veda.
The p r a c t i ce
seems t o have continued i n t o t h e beginning o f
the
second
millennium C.E.
In my opinion, t h e e p i c ' s a n d ll a r y s t o r i e s p a r t i c u l a r l y r e f l e c t t h i s strategy whi ch
i n s o f a r as they supply one means by
recogni zabl y Vedic
deities,
r,s f s ,
demons and
other
A s I argue i n
c h a r a c t e r s become p a r t o f t h e Mbh's universe.
my d i scussi on o f t h e aranyakaparvan i n Chapter 3, f o r example,
.. p i 1 grimage s t o r i e s t r a n s f o r m t h e t e r r a i n he wal ks Markandeya's
..
w i t h t h e Pandavas by marking i t as t e r r i t o r y i n which a1 l manner o f Vedic r i t e s were performed i n ages p a s t . 2.
Smrtf i s based on t h e Veda (restatement).
indicates, p r a c t i c e s .lQ
this
strategy
i s
evident
in
a
As Smith
variety
of
I t requi r e s t h a t c o n f o r m i t y w i t h Vedic passages
be established, o r t h a t t h e author o f t h e s m r t i be e s t a b l i s h e d as an a u t h o r i t y on t h e Vedas.
accomplishes t h i s work,
The f i g u r e o f VyZsa i n t h e Mbh
f o r he i s s a i d t o compose t h e Mbh
a f t e r completing t h e t a s k o f compi 1 i n g t h e Vedas (see c i t a t i o n i n Chapter 1 ) , and i s c o n s i s t e n t l y represented as conversant with Srutf.
I n addition,
a n c i l l a r y s t o r i e s p o p u l a t e t h e Mbh
w i t h a whole c a s t o f r s f s , i n c l u d i n g most o f t h e venerable men Â
¥
mi t h , Reflections,
22-24.
143
whose fami 1 i es transmi tted thei r eterna 1
Veda
Vi~vamitra,
Agastya. l1
to
the
human
communi ty.
A~giras,
Bharadvaja.
i ntui ted knowl edge of the for
examp 1 e,
Vasi~~ha,
Bh!"gu.
Ka§yapa.
and
Smith notes a very significant implication of this
strategy, which may help us appreciate why Vyasa is so pivotal in the Mbh as both author and main actor. treated not so
much
as a
"The Veda here is
set of texts but
as a
body of
knowledge that is incorporated in certain individuals who have memorized and mastered it."n
3.
Smrti is based on a lost Veda (recovery).73
The
handful of examp1 es from the Mbh's anci 11 ary stori es whi ch use such
a
claim
to
assertion should
justify
the
authority
not surprise us.
of
a
particular
In the Tu1adhara/Jaja1i
story whi ch 1 di scuss in Chapter 4,
Tu1adhara cl ai ms that
brahmans perform a degenerate sacrifice when they kill animals for
ritual
sacrifice,
purposes. but
that
Tul adhara (12.255.5-8).
The Vedas actua 11 y practice
the
proper
only
now
an i ma 1
recovered
by
L i kewi se in the "Conversati on between
Kapi1a and the Cow." the about
is
proscri be
~~i
Kapila teaches lost knowledge
performance of Vedic
ritual
through
the
71See John E. Mitchiner, Traditions of 1:he Seven Rsis , Delhi: Motila1 Banarsidass. 1982 for a study of this tOP1C in Vedic, epic, and Puranic literature. 72Smith. ReF7ections, 23. 73Al1 of the one-word parenthetical labels for the hermeneutic strategies discussed in this section are Smith's (p. 29) except this one. which I have supplied since he did not.
144
practice of
(12.260.5-12.262.45).
ahi~s.
The ritual
examples. as well.
The respected
argument (7th century) 4.
(7th-3rd centuries B.C.E.) yield some
sD~ras
J
Mima~saka
Kumari1a used the
as di d the Pur6,!as .14
Smr~f
texts are simplified forms of the Veda
Thi s
strategy of assi mi 1 ati on to the Veda ; s
(reducti on) .
particularly prominent in the epic's §8ntiparvan account of There we
the process of Vy&sa's composition of the work. 1 earn
that
Vyasa
pared down
an
even more vol um; nous
Mbh
initially composed for the gods. but abridged so that humans could understand and learn from it. the
Bh8gavata
and
Devi
Bh.gava1:a
Other smrtis. including Pur8'!as.
a 1 so
represent
themselves as abridgments of the Veda." 5.
561,:1: j
en 1 arges
the Veda (reproduct ion) .
In
addition to claiming that smr1:i simplifies the Veda. sometimes it is said to amplify and clarify it.
This strategy is very
widely attested in the Pur.'!Bs and also appears in the Mbh. An often-cited example is the statement in the .diparvan that the
Krsna
is a
Veda
work accessible to women,
§Odras
others, persons not otherwise permitted to hear Veda.
and
Another
example is the "Conversation between Kapi1a and the Cow" in whi ch
the
(ahjms~)
truth only
about
becomes
a
parti cu1 ar
clear
through
262.45) .
14 5mi th , ReF7 ect j ons, 24-25. 75 Ibi d.,
25.
sacr; fi ci a1 dialogue
practi ce (12.260.5-
145
Smrt:j
6. (recapitulation).
is
of
the
essence
When Krsna tell s
syllable om in the Vedas, essence
the
Veda,
of
Veda
the
Arj una that he
is the
he claims that he himself is the
and
by
extensi on
impl i es
that
hi s
teaching, promulgated in the epic. ;s equally authoritative. Sm; th fi nds thi s ci tes
instances
Pur~~asJ
as
from
well
including the 7.
strategy to be espec; all y wi despread
as
Bhagavat:a,
the
from
Tjruv~ymoli
South
Nllradiya,
Indian
and
bhakt:i
and
Skanda
sources.
of Namma1var.
The Veda ; s based on smft:i (reversal).
Thi s i s
one strategy for Vedacization that I have thus far not located as an overt statement in the Mbh.
Kr~~a
does seem to imply
it, however. when he tells Arjuna that those who scrupulously follow Vedic injunctions (t:rayidharma) without realizing that he
(K~~~a)
receives
all
sacrifices
are constantly
reborn
because any merit they gain is eventually exhausted.
due to
their failure to apprehend things properly (6.31.15-31.26). Insofar as Krsna both embodies knowledge and teaches Arjuna how to realize it. the epic here suggests that Veda is based on smrt:i. Smi th notes that the c1 ailft is not uncommon in other smrt:i texts (e.g .• Mat:sya
8.
Pur.~a.
Skanda
Pur.~a.
N.radiya
Pur.~a).
Smrti substitutes for the Veda (replacement).
I would add this one more strategy to Smith's list. for the
Mbh often tells its audiences that by hearing it recited. by undertaking the pilgrimages it describes,
by performing the
146
ascetic practices it advocates, or by worshipping
Kr~~a
as it
recommends. they can gain just as much merit as if they had performed some number of Vedic sacrifices. Mbh
1.56. 15-16
where
Va i ta'!'p3yana
See, for example.
te 11 s
Janamej aya
Vy3sa's epic is just as efficacious as the Veda. of
the
epic
has
generally
been
interpreted
that
This feature as
a
clever
technique for bypassing Vedic authority altogether. or a way of claiming the superiority of extra-Vedic practices, but I think it is best understood as yet another means of enlivening §rutj.
The foregoing enumeration of strategies employed to make the Mbh a Hindu
sm~~j
anci l1ary stories
give us a much clearer sense of how the
function
in the
Mbh.
Only through
the
painstaking work of lower textual criticism w;ll we truly be able to advance the archaeological project of understanding how and when
(in relative chronological
terms)
stories may have been threaded into whole cloth. and very important dimension of the
sm~tj-making
any of the But a final p~oject
of
our epic compilers only comes into focus when we consider what it might mean that the Mbh has been preserved in Sanskrit.
I
turn to that discussion in the next section. D.
The Mahabharata in Sanskrit 1.
Toward a Cultural History of Classical Sanskrit:
Implications for Studying the Mbh A number of facts about the nature of post-Vedic/early classical
Sanskrit
have
now
been
generally
established
147 f 01 1owi ng some s i x t y years o f schol a r l y debate: 76
a)
Ancient
South Asia
situation o f t r u e diglossia.
presented a
1i n g u i s t i c
S a n s k r i t and the P r a k r i t s were
mutually i n t e l l i g i b l e , perhaps as e a r l y as Rg Vedic times, and remained so we1 1 i n t o t h e middle c e n t u r i e s o f the common era.
b) These languages were used i n various r e g i s t e r s rangi ng from more formal and " c o r r e c t " w r i t t e n expressions (as d e f i n e d by grammarians) , which themselves v a r i e d depending on
1 it e r a r y genres,
t o spoken expressi on,
which a1 so exhi b i t e d
.
1 earned (67stabhasa) and c o l l o q u i a l forms ( lokabhasa) * *
c) While
Pataftjali
seemed
to
say
. , I n fact
brahmans spoke S a n s k r i t c o r r e c t l y ( S f s t a )
that
only
education,
not class, was t h e most important determinant o f who spoke t h e language c o r r e c t l y and who d i d not.
d)
Sanskrit
assumed
a
position
of
particular
p r e s t i g e i n a n c i e n t South Asia by approximately t h e century
C.E.
when
it
was
used f o r
purposes throughout t h e subconti nent
.
a variety
of
fifth
secular
I t s adoption as a "1 ink
^tiere I summarize t h e work o f Hans H e i n r i c h Hock and in t h e Pre-Is1 ami c Rajeshwari Pandhari pande, tlSanskri t Soci 01 ingui s t i c Context o f South Asi a. " I n t e r n a t iona 1 Journa 1 of the Sociology of Language, Vol. 16 (Aspects of S o c i o l i n g u i s t i c s i n South Asia, ed. by B r a j B. Kachru and S. M. Sridhar). 11-25 and "The S o c i o l i n g u i s t i c P o s i t i o n o f S a n s k r i t i n Pre-Muslim South Asia," Studies i n Language Learning 1, no. 2 (Special i s s u e on Dimensions of B i 1 i nguat ism: Theory and Case Studies, ed. by Braj B. Kachru, 105-138). Urbana: Univ. o f I l l i n o i s .
148
1 anguage lt77 seems to have been sti mu1 ated by three factors: a situation of extreme diversity of vernaculars; the emergence of non- Indo-Aryan 1 anguages as rndi a;
and the exi stence ; n
1 i terary 1 anguages in South
North
Indi a
of other 1; terary
languages. namely pali and other Pr&krits used by Buddhists, and Ardham&gadhi. Jaina Pr3krits. and so on. used by Jains. While it is unclear precisely what accounts for the emergence of Sanskrit as a link language in these circumstances, there is no question that it "became the unchallenged major, most prestigious language, at least in literary and official use, in the diglossic panorama of pre-Muslim South Asia."n The concept of Sanskri t
as a l i nk 1 anguage in ancient
South Asia effectively accounts for a phenomenon that has long been
known,
scho1 ars to
but yi e1 d
the
arguments
1 ong-hel d
among re1; gi ous communi ti es
it
marShals
vi ews about the
a 1 so
requi re
re1 ati onshi ps
in the centur; es precedi ng and
following the beginning of the common era.
As the situation
now appears, Sanskrit was able to fulfill a linking function across many miles and for many centuries in South Asia because it had
already acquired considerable prestige through the
grammar panini
had composed
in
late Vedic times.
His own
Northwest dialect was more archaic than Central and Eastern 77The phrase was coi ned by Jean Fi 11 i ozat. "Sanskri t as a Link Language, II Sanskrit Studies Abroad. 10-18. (Cultural Forum 15.1). New Delhi: Ministry of Education and Social Welfare. Government of India, 1972. 78 Hoc k
and Pandharipande. liThe Sociolinguistic Position of Sanskrit in Pre-Muslim South Asia." 124.
149
ones,
and was regarded as superior i n h i s time.
Because he
happened t o c o d i f y a d i a1e c t a l ready considered p r e s t i g i o u s , h i s grammar was thereby even more in f 1u e n t i a l the
advantages
that
standardization
.
I n addition t o
afforded t o
Sanskrit,
PZni n i ' s grammatical t r e a t i s e , along w i t h those o f KStyayana and Patafij a l i, s i g n i f i cant1y in f 1uenced s t y 1 is t i c conventions i n crucial
l i t e r a r y genres,
such as m e t r i c s ,
astronomy,
and
p o e t i c s . 78 Whatever PSni n i may have intended w i t h h i s grammar,
by
f o c u s i n g on producing a t o o l t h a t would ensure an e l it e who
.
c o u l d speak p r o p e r S a n s k r i t ( 6 i s t a ) and would preserve proper understanding o f Vedic (chandas)i a language more
wtdely
modern than Vedic,
disseminated
because
p r e s t i g i o u s by
virtue of
benefitted
its
d i a1 e c t
by
he l a i d t h e f o u n d a t i o n f o r
it
capable o f was
codified,
i t s association
independent
b e i n g more
reputation
with as
highly
Vedic, a
and
singular
."
Furthermore,
as a p r a c t i c a l matter,
S a n s k r i t was a good
candidate t o s e r v e as a l i n k language because i t s grammars f a c i 1it a t e d 1anguage
t r a i n i ng o f
Once secular and t e c h n i c a l began t o emerge,
g r e a t numbers o f
peopl e.
1it e r a t u r e in c l a s s i c a l S a n s k r i t
t h e language had a cosmopol it a n qua1it y t h a t
Metadi s c u r s i ve h h n Kel 1y , "What Was S a n s k r i t For? S t r a t e g i e s i n Ancient I n d i a , " i n Jan E. M. Houben, ed., Contrfbutions t o the History I d e o l o g y and S t a t u s o f Sanskrit: o f t h e S a n s k r i t Language (Leiden, E. J. B r i 11, 1996). 87107.
150 added
to
its
appeal.
Had
jealous preserve of an
Sanskri t
been
regarded
insular elite (e.g .•
as the
brahmans).
it
could not have served the public functions to which it was increasingly put from approximately 300 to 1000 C.E. It is precisely such views of agonistic relationships between brahmans and others that have begun to give way in scholarship
on
ancient
development of pal i
I
India.
Comparisons
of
the
early
Ardhamagadhi and pre-cl assi cal! cl assi cal
materials in Sanskrit give us instead a picture of a society in North
India without
communities.
between
religious
Certainly philosophical. doctrinal. and other
sorts of disputes practices
rigid boundaries
which
are recorded.
in
theory
But except
requi red strict
for
monastic
adherence to
a
prescribed Buddhist, Jain or Hindu behavioral code, religious pract ices
of
these
tradi t ions
mutually exclusive and in
were
not
concei ved
hostile opposition.a 1
of
as
Yet these
very assumptions cut across a great deal of scholarship on ancient South Asia. including some on the epic. If we discussion
now in
turn
mind.
back we
to
the
can begin
composition in a different light. socia-cultural
factors
that
Mbh
to
with
the
see the
~oregoi
work of its
Consi deri ng the
brought
ng
Sanskri t
broader to
such
prominence in ancient India. it is somewhat easier to imagine
81 See • for example, Ashok Aklujkar. liThe Early Hi story of Sanskrit as a Supreme Language." in Jan E. M. Houben, ed .•
Ideology and Status of Sanskri1:: Contribu1:ions to the History oT the Sanskrit Language (Leiden: E. J. Brill. 1996), 80.
, 51
how
the
epic
could
both
hearken
back
to
the
Veda
so
insistently and yet also appeal to people for whom most of the ritual
tradition of Vedism was quite irrelevant.
tradition began at a
The Mbh
time roughly contemporaneous with the
production of the 1 ate
Upanj~ads,
sO'tra and
Vedllltga texts.
Vedism was by then ancient, but still very vital for some in North India. as witnessed most directly by the very production of literary tools meant to interpret the texts. The Mbh developed in an intellectual and social climate that
1)
appears to have included institutional structures for
the production and circulation of Sanskrit works, 2) witnessed the development grammatically
of di a1 ects distinct
acknow1 edged to culture
that
be so,
greatly
(pre- and
from and
3)
respected
Vedic
c1 assi ca 1
Sanskrit) but
(chandas) ,
part i ci pated i n a Sanskrit
works,
not
1 i terary and
that
broadly equated knowledge of proper Sanskrit with spiritual accomp1ishment. H I have attempted in this section to put the matter of the epi CiS composi ti on cultural context.
and transmi ssi on
ina somewhat
broader
For some Indologists, it strains credulity
to conclude that the Mbh's thoroughgoing representation as
smrti by means I record in these chapters was much more than a transparently self-serving act of an educated elite, and one accomplished relatively late in the development of this oral tradition.
But if we consider the emerging sociolinguistic
82 Ibi d.. 70-82.
152 history of Sanskrit between the 4th/5th centuries B.C.E. and the early centuries C.E.
we see how the tools developed to
J
perpetuate and enliven an ancient ritual tradition became the means by which a cosmopolitan culture emerged, crafting. in a metaphori ca 1 sense, its own new 1 anguage by re-assemb 1 i ng some of the structures and vocabul ari es of Vedi sm.
The hegemony of
Sanskrit in ancient South Asia is another part of the Mbh's story.
That hegemony is far from the only story in pre-Muslim
South Asia, but the better we understand it. the better we can understand
other
narratives
that
may
have
succeeded
in
ignoring, subverting, or otherwise contesting it. 2.
close
I
Using the Critical Edition of the thi s
chapter wi th
a
Mah.bh~rata
Mbh ' s
di scussi on of the
critical edition, the principal tool used in this study.83 summarize
the
major
scholarly
production of the critical
debates
surrounding
consider
more
the
edition even though almost every
major scholar of the epic now uses it extensively. will
I
specifically
some
of
the
Here I technical
limitations of the critical edition as a way of indicating some of the limitations of my own study. a.
The Critical Edition, the History of Religions, and
Research on Ancillary Narratives The critical edition of the Mbh was completed in 1959 at the Bhandarkar Ori ental
Research
Insti tute in
Pune,
Indi a
a3 See Brockington, The Sanskrit Epics, 56-63 for a brief history of the critical edition project.
153 under
the
general
editorship
following his death, S. K.
of
V.
S.
Sukthankar
Belvalkar and P.
and,
L. Vaidya.
An
English translation project, begun by J. A. B. van Buitenen at the University of Chicago in the 1960s, is still
under way,
taken up by a new generation of American scholars following van Buitenen's death in 1978. Much controversy greeted the publication of the critical edition. monumental criteria
Some
schol ars
contribution of
textual
lauded to
the
epic
criticism.
editori al
studies Others
team
based
for
on
excoriated
a
sound the
international group of translators for its orientalist bias, name 1 y, the ; nappropri ate app 1 i cat i on of text cri ti ca 1 methods developed in the West to an oral tradition.
Since others have
published excellent summaries of the debate, I will focus here only
upon
aspects
of
it
relevant
to my decision
to
rely
principally upon the critical edition in my own work. 84 84 For summaries of the debate, see Wendy Doniger O'Flaherty, Re1igious Studies Review 4, no. 1, 22 ff., and Proudfoot, Ahims. and a Mah.bh.rata Story. Primary sources for the debate "itself are V. S. Sukthankar's Prolegomenon in volume 1 of the critical text, The Mahabharata For the First time critical7y edited. 19 vals. Edited by V. S. Sukthankar, s. K. Belvalkar, and P. L. Vaidya. Poona: Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, 1933-1966; Sylvain Levi. "Review of The Maha-Bharata, for the first time critically edited by Vishnu S. Sukthankar," Journa1 Asiatique225, no. 2 (Oct.-Dec. 1934); Madel ei ne Bi ardeau. "Some More Consi derati ons about Textual Criticism," Purllna 10, no. 2 (July 1968): 115-123; Madel ei ne Bi ardeau, tiThe 'Story of Arj una K3rtavi rya wi thout Reconstruction," Pur6na 12, 2 (July 1970): 286-303; V. M. 8edekar. "Principles cif Mahabharata Textual Criticism: The Need for a Restatement," Purana 11, no. 2 (July 1969): 210228; and Purana passim. where much of the sustained debate is recorded. Biardeau's strong objections to text-historical interpretations of the epics are part of her larger l
154 A1 though all
major scho1 arshi p on the Mbh as text --
except for the work of Georges Dumezil and Madeleine Biardeau -- produced since the publication of the critical edition has drawn
heavi 1 y
upon the cri t i ca 1 apparatus.
its ut i 1 i ty
is
conditioned by the specific aims of a given research project. The
nature
of
the
interaction
between
oral
and
written
transmissions of a narrative like the Mbh is so complex -- and for the Mbh as yet so i ndi sti net -- that one must proceed wi th caution and be circumspect in drawing broad conc1usions. a5 Thomas Coburn has astutely observed that historians of religion have a particular interest in the debate about "the possibility. and the significance. of critical smrt j
1 i terature."
for
thi s.
strong protests to critical formulated
by
Sylvain
Levi
he notes.
;s
editions of
the crux of the
editions perhaps most clearly and
genera 11 y shared by proponents
of
Madeleine
Biardeau.
but
st ructu ra 1 i st methods. 86
theoreti cal work on the Purllnas, developed in "Etudes de Mythologie Hindoue." Bulletin de 1 'Ecole Francaise d'Extreme Orien~ 54 (1968): 19-45; 55 (1969): 59-105; 58 (1971): 17-89. and comptes-rendue of "Conferences de Mlle. Madeleine Bi ardeau." Annuaire de 1 'Ecole Pratiques des Hautes E~udes. Section des Sciences Religieuses 77 (1969-70): 168-73; 78 (1970-71): 151-61; 79 (1971-72): 139-46. 85 For a lucid analysis of the value of textual criticism using a critical edition to help clarify hypotheses about written and oral transmission of epics in India. see Sheldon Pollockrs essay "The Ra",.yana Text and the Critical Edition," ; n The Ramllyana of V.,mi ki . . An Epic o'F Ancient India. Volume I: 8111akanda. Introducti on and trans1 ati on by Robert P.
Goldman (Prlnceton: 93.
Princeton University Press. 1984). 82-
86T homas B. Coburn. "The Study of the Pura,:,as and the Study of Religion." 346.
155
Biardeau and others are troubled because the text-historical project ipso
Fac~o
ignores or supplants the authority of the
learned brahmans who, in local settings. make
smr~i
normative
by including various stories in their repertoire of tradition. A scholar who then argues, based on text-historical analyses, that any of these stories accepted by a community of believers is
not
authentic,
or
rather
not
original,
risks
being
considered either hopelessly arrogant or laughably irrelevant. Furthermore.
text critical
methods
must
always
guard
against the pitfalls of orthogenetic arguments, that is. the basi c assumpti on that we can trace phenomena to thei r putative or; g; ns by postul ati ng a dom; nant i nf1 uence
(such as Vedi c
origins, for example), and that if we establish such links we have effect i ve 1 y th is type
of
exp 1 ai ned a
argument is,
phenomenon. 81
b ri ef1 y
better (and the more authentic).
stated,
A coral 1 ary of the
older.
the
As noted in Chapter 1 of
this study, such views dominated scholarship on the Mbh early in this century, contributing to the peculiar situation in which nearly half of the epic -- namely, its ancillary stories was considered superfluous.
The situation began to change
in the 1960s with the emergence of new scholarship on the epic that took seri ous account of hi therto ignored materi a1 (myths. 87 0avi d L. Gitomer has criticized such approaches which. he argues, domi nate modern scho 1 arsh i p on the Vedi c ori gi ns of Sanskrit drama in .. 'Whither the Thick Sweetness o'f Thei r Passion?' The Search for Vedic Origins of Sanskrit Drama." in Laurie L. Patton, ed., Au~horjty, Anxje~y and Canon. Essays in Vedic Interpre~atjon. 171-200. Albany: State University of New York. 1994.
156
in particular).
But earlier attitudes.
largely unexamined.
continue in force today outside of a relatively small circle of epic scholars. It is what
smrti means that matters for 8i ardeau and
other structuralists. of
versions of a
They derive meaning from the ensemble
myth
or other narrative.
not from
what
structuralists regard as the ultimately arbitrary process of attributing layering
differences
and/or
local
or
inconsistencies
diversity of beliefs.
to
historical Such
vi ews.
Coburn notes. speak to a longstanding cluster of theoretical and methodological debates which have been particularly acute in
th.e
course).
history
of
debates
religions
which
(and
ultimately
other turn
disciplines, on
the
of
perceived
incompatibility of faith and reason." Disagreements over the propriety of developing critical editions of Indian religious texts should not be reduced to thorny questions of epistemology although. as Coburn notes. we do well to attend to that dimension of the debate in order to understand its larger import. hi stor i ca 1 proj ect pu rposes ,
at
1 east.
It seems to me that the text-
is at once di fferent rather more modest
from and. than
for
cri tics
my
1 ; ke
Biardeau have asserted." 88Coburn I 349ff. 89 1n fact a number of American scholars who make use of the Mbh in their research seem quite comfortable using the critical edition without limiting themselves to it. Alf Hiltebeitel broke ground in this regard. perhaps. in his work The Ritual of Battle. where he steers a course midway between
157 Anyone seeking to study the living tradition of the Mbh woul d surel y
not
begi n wi th
texts.
The critical
should not be regarded as an instance of an oral
edition
tradition
which was. most emphatically, performed across the length and breadth of India for many centuries, The
critical
edition
is
transmission of the Mbh.
a
guide
and continuing today. only
to
the
written
a Mode of transmission which has
preserved features of ; ts roots in oral poetry and perhaps even
continued
to
be
revised
based
on
some continuing interaction with oral performances. gO
manner
of
The model s for study of oral performances of the Mbh (the analogy to Biardeau's local brahmans) found in fieldwork.
are most effectively
Alf Hiltebeitel and William Sax are two
scholars thus engaged in examining very different expressions of the Mbh tradition as understood by communities in India today.91 structural and text-historical profitably from each.
methodologies.
drawing
90 A number of scho 1 ars have poi nted to the 1 i ke 1 i hood that oral and written Mbh traditions continued to develop alongside each other for many centuri es. See, for exampl e. Pi sani. "The Rise of the Mahabharata." Pavel Grinster's work (in Russian) as summarized by de Jong. "Recent Russian Publications"; Proudfoot. Ah i msll and a Mahllbhllrata Story; and Po 11 ock. liThe R~m.ya,!a Text. ,', R.",.ya'!a. 69.
91Some of the results of Hiltebeitel's extensive field work on the firewalking cult of Draupadi in South India ;s available in The Cu7t of Draupadi. Chicago: Univ. of Chicago Press. 1988-91. Sax's work on the Pandavlila in Garhwal is di scussed i n "Who's Who in the PlIndav' Li 7n tl in The Gods at Play: Lil. in South Asia, ed. William S. Sax, 131-155. New York. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1995. and "Ritual and Performance in the Pandaval i 1 a of Uttarkhand." in Essays on
158
Manuscri pts practi cal
terms
of
the
our
Mbh.
on1 y
on
means
the of
other
hand.
are
in
conducti ng
hi stori cal
inquiry into the development of the Mbh textual
tradition.
The epigraphic evidence is scanty. and no indigenous histories of
j~ihasa
1 i ttl e
and other story literature survive. and therefore
independent
textual
or materi a1
assist in studying ancillary stories.
evi dence exi sts
to
Because we lack such
sources. the critical edition is the only comprehensive tool for studyi ng the anci 11 ary stori es in the textual tradi t i on of the Mbh. 92 Perhaps the most compelling arguments in favor of using the critical edition for my research is its effectiveness as a tool
for close study of the ancillary narrative material.
The scholars who have used it effectively to examine ancillary stori es in some way are A1 f
Hi 1 tebei te 1. James Fi tzgera 1 d.
Christopher Minkowski. and Ian Proudfoot.
(See Chapter 1 for
my discussion of their work on the Mbh.) The
present study
not only relies
upon
the critical
edition of the Mbh. it Simply could not have pursued its main argument without a critical ~he
edition of the text.
MahSbharata. ed. Arvind Sharma. 274-295. 1 991 .
Leiden:
However E.
J.
B rill.
92 The earliest known manuscript fragment of the Mbh dates to the 13th century. If the epic was written down earlier. no manuscri pt has survi ved. A1 though compari sons wi th other epics are at best only suggestive. note that the probable date of the earliest available Ramayana manuscript is A.D. 1020. Pollack states that a single temple inscription in Cambodia dated circa A.D. 600 mentions the presentation of a R.m.yana codex (The R8m.yaIJa of Va7111i ki. Vol 1. 83). .
159
fragmentary a given family of manuscripts. however economical Kashmi ri
recensi ons and however
critical
edition
assures
us
pro 1 i x southern ones.
that
the
vast
majority
the of
ancillary stories are just as central to the epic as its war story. b.
Manuscript Biases
It is no exaggeration to say that the production of the critical
edition
Bhandarkar
of
Oriental
the
Mbh
Research
under
the
auspices
Institute
in
monumental task and a singular accomplishment.
Pune
of was
the a
Nearly fifty
years were required to collect the manuscripts used in its preparation.
Accardi ng to
Brocki ngton
I
734
manuscripts collected were ultimately used."
of the 1.259
Now that it has
been avai 1 abl e for more than thi rty years, a better assessment of its strengths and weaknesses has emerged. U Because of the difficulties associated with locating and comparing
manuscripts
in
India.
no
census
of
available
manuscri pts was ever undertaken for thi s proj ect. decided
to
group
manuscripts
according
to
It was
Northern
and
Southern recensions, then into nine categories. mostly based on the scripts in which they were written:
~arada.
Nepali.
93Srocki ngton. 58. 94Th ; s secti on summari zes the arguments of John Dunham. "Manuscripts used in the Critical Edition of the Mah.bh~ra1:a: A Survey and Discussion." Journal of Sou1:h Asian Li1:era1:ure 20. no. 1 (1985): 1-15. Reprinted in Essays on 1:he Mahabharata. ed. Arvind Sharma. 1-18. Leiden: E. J. Brill. 1991.
160
Maithili,
Bengali. Devanagari with commentaries,
without commentaries,
Telugu.
manuscripts in Uriya,
Kanna~a,
Grantha,
Devanagari
and Ma1aya1am.
or Nandinagari were used.
No It
is not known why. It is worth noting here that Proudfoot's examination of ahjms3 stories in the
Sukthankar's
§.n~jparvan
scheme.
suggests a modification of
Proudfoot
would
rearrange
the
manuscripts into three "clan" groups. based jointly on script and geographi c
1 ocati on as follows:
Bengali,
Devan3gari,
and
(2)
(1l
Te1ugu
~Brada,
and
Maithili,
Grantha,
(3)
Mal aya1 am. 95 General editor V. S. Sukthankar created the category of ~arada
manuscripts because they derived
~rom
Kashmir.
This
grouping contains manuscripts primarily, but not exclusively, in the Devanagari script, and reflects Sukthankar's own bias ; n favor of Kashmi r as the 10cati on of the "purest" versi on of the Mbh. 96
The available parvans
in this group seem to be
shorter, on the whole, and they show a tendency to resist the addition of readings from
non-~arada
manuscripts.
In other
respects, it is a heterogeneous group of manuscripts. It is also the case that the Devanagari manuscripts used outnumber the sum total of all other manuscripts. drawn from allover India,
that
They were
indicating another imbalance in
95proudfoot, Ahi",§. and a Mah.bh.ra~a S~ory, p. 179. Note no Nepali manuscripts were used in compiling the
§8n~jparvan.
960unham, 2.
161
categori zi ng manuscri pts si nee those in other scri pts were quite
localized
(e.g .•
all
but
four
of
manuscripts utilized came from Kera1a). noti ng.
however,
that Proudfoot' 5
Ma1aya1am
Here it is worth
work on
supports the validity of this grouping.
the
the
§.n1:iparvan
He says, "Here is
confirmation of Sukthankar'S impression that the Devanagari texts
have
historically
transmitters
by
virtue
played of
the
a
role
as
cross-cultural
inter-regional
role
of
Devanagari ... 97 Hi sto ri ans are also troub 1 ed by the fact
that
it
is
impossible to know whether the manuscripts of anyone group used for the critical edition are representative, or whether the groups actually derive from archetypes.
Sukthankar and
his team constituted groups of manuscripts to reflect a range of available Telugu or Bengali manuscripts, for example, based presumably
on
subjective
judgments
about
the
range
of
variability within each group. These concerns add up to caution about any conclusions one might want to draw by tracking certain features across, for example. Ma1ay.1am manuscripts.
The critical apparatus of
the text has made it possible to examine such variation. but one would certainly not stop with the critical edition. given the points Dunham raises. For the reasons noted above. some scholars are reluctant to claim that this critical edition reconstructs a 97proudfoot, Ahims6 and a Mah8bh8ra1:a Story, 179.
version
162
that hypothetically existed at a particular time and place. But Sukthankar and Edgerton (who edited the
were
sabh~parvan)
confident that all manuscripts derived from one written text -- a conf1ation of previously existing versions -archetype
the critical
Proudfoot's work on the
edition
very closely approximates. supports this conclusion.
§.n~iparvan
E.
Conventions Adopted for the Study
In
subsequent
chapters
anci 11 ary stori es in the Mbh.
I
which
often
refer
to
part; cul ar
Summari es of every story in the
critical edition are recorded in the Appendix. I have included the following information:
In each case.
the verse ranges
of each story (i .e., where each begins and ends in the text); a
citation
~khy~na,
the
indicating
sa~v.da.
story's
how
i~ih~sa.
audience;
the
story
is
labelled
(e.g.,
and so on); the story's narrator;
and
a
brief
note
explaining
the
circumstances under which each story is told. The story titles. which appear with quotation marks when referred
to
in
Chapters
3
and
Appendix. are my own inventions. story titles Those
can
be
(e.g .•
4.
by my
as
titles
in
the
The Mbh provides its own
na7op.khy.na) in
i denti fi ed
and
relatively few cases.
i nc1 usi on
of the t i t1 e
in
Sanskrit bracketed next to the title given in English. I have attempted to bring the stories from the background to the foreground of the Mbh by also including in italics a summary account of the narrati ve precedi ng and succeed; ng each i ndi vi dua 1
story or
story cluster.
I
hope readers
wi 11
163
thereby find it easier to understand where a story occurs with respect
to
the
Bharata
war
plot.
The
ancillary
story
summaries can, of course. be read through with only a general understanding of the events that occur in each parvan. F.
Limits of the Study
As this study conducts its exa.ination of the ancillary stories, it shows how certain themes recur in them to bind the fami 1 y tragedy of the Pauravas to representati ons of the past. The stories interpret specific events as repetitions of the conflict.
dev~sura
unfamiliar
practices
They as
identify
ancient,
apparently
forgotten
new
and They
ones.
homo 1 ogi ze the experi ences of maj or characters to my tho log i ca 1 figures and sacralize the locales of the fratricidal war by analogy to sacrificial arenas and tirthas.
Chapter 4 contains
a detailed discussion of one grouping of stories which I call the
.
ahjms~
dharma,
cluster.
ahj~s~.
There I show how the related themes of
and sacrifice provide a frame within which a
conversation in story form unfolds, a conversation in which di fferent vi ews
about the
rel ati onshi ps among
those
three
concepts are juxtaposed. In
the
process
of
maki ng
a
case
for
the
di screte
rhetorical functions of the stories in a larger brahmanical project of making the epic authoritative,
I will say little
that is stri ctl y hi stori cal about the process by whi ch the Mbh became canoni cal.
Other schol ars -- pri nci pall y Ian Proudfoot
-- have shown just how intensively interpolated a text the Mbh
164
is.
He has ski 11 full y unpacked just one anci 11 ary story, that
of Tu 1 Kdhara and Jaj ali
(12.252-256),
and
I
summar; ze hi s
conclusions about its _u1tip1e layers in Chapter 4. most part,
however,
For the
this kind of archaeological work still
remains to be done with the Mbh.
Until it is undertaken, even
Proudfoot 's concl usi on cannot be tested wi th other c1 usters of interpolated Tu 1 3dhara t s subsequent
stories,
namely
the
conclusion
that
once
story was re-worked to focus on sacri fi ce , i nterpo 1 at ions
in some
way addressed
that
all same
topic. In Chapter 4 I am mainly concerned to show that sometimes the Mbh's compilers skillfully and systematically wove a set of stories together in an apparent attempt to layout, thereby va 1 i date. a range of di fferi ng vi ews. however,
that
I
do
not
assume
such
I must add.
editorial
work
necessarily done by multiple hands or over long periods time.
and
was o~
Surely Proudfoot's work on the Tu1adhara/Jaja1i story
demonstrates both of those circumstances for that story.
The
different
the
interests
interpolated
sections
and of
attitudes Tuladhara
represented make
imagine a single editor doing all the work.
it
by
difficult
to
And what we know
of larger currents in the religious climate of North India at the turn of the first millennium supports the v4ew that SOMe of the; nterpo1 ati ons are hi stori call y much 1 ater than others. Nevertheless, I do not infer from the small but extremely rich case of the ahjmsa cl uster that all anci llary stori es were
165
interpolated into the epic. However the
Mbh
came to
be
assembled.
we
cannot
and
shou1 d not di scount the possi bi 1 i ty that some of the anci 11 ary material
was
inspired by the epic
edition
makes
clear
what
determined for only small
some
itse1f. 9S scholars
The critical had
previously
segments of the Mbh.
It quotes
other works. it contai ns materi a1 found e1 sewhere for whi ch we cannot
determine
which
work
may
be
the
source.
and
it
preserves maxims and epigrams that were probably part of some oral stock of traditional lore.
But no matter how heavily the
authors/compilers of the Mbh drew upon other sources. we must grant that sometimes the epic itself may have stimulated the composition of ancillary stories. Biardeau's Chapter
1)
analysis of
presents
the
the
most
Nala
story
detailed
(discussed
argument
for
in an
ancillary story inspired by its epic context that I have so far encountered.
The most provocative argument in favor of
this possibility that I have encountered is van Buitenen's claim that the
Bhagavadgi~~
was composed in and for the Mbh.
and was not an independent story 1 ater inserted into the epi c.
98 In stark contrast to Proudfoot's anal ysi s of the TuHldhara/J3ja1i story, for example. see Biardeau's close study of the na 1op~khy~na. wh i ch I summari zed in Chapter 1. She makes a strong case for the possibility that the story was inspired by the circumstances of the Mbh. and composed by an epi c poet for the very context of the ~ranyakaparvan in whi ch we find it. .
166
as many scholars have thought. 99
Starting from the premise
that the Gi'tll was composed speci fi call y
to hi gh 1 i ght
and
exami ne "the dharilli c di 1 emma of a war whi ch was both just and pernicious." van Buitenen shows how its arguments could have emerged
frOIll
the
religious
concerns
that
dominated
the
centuri es just pri or to the comillon era ,100 The current state of scho1 arshi p on the anci 11 ary stori es and the considerable restrictions on our knowledge of exactly how the Mbh was compiled combine to limit my conclusions about what sorts of i nformati on the anci 11 ary stori es can add to what we already know about the Mbh.
Through the parvan-by-
parvan survey of theilles in the anci 11 ary stori es ; n Chapter 3.
and the close study of a set of stories in Chapter 4. I will show that this material furnished the principal means by which brahmans created a religiously authoritative work
(sm~ti).
99 J . A. B. van Suitenen. translator and editor, "Introduction." The Bhagavadgitll in the Mahllbhllrata. Text and Trans7ation. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 1981. 100Ibid •• 5.
167
CHAPTER 3 MAJOR THEMES OF THE MAHABHARATA'S ANCILLARY STORIES A.
Rationale for Selection This chapter discusses the major themes of the ancillary
stories in each book of the Mbh.
It shows that the ancillary
stories are distributed very unevenly in the epic. most dense1 yin ofi ve
parvans:
adiparvan.
They occur
.ra'!yakaparvan,
§:Jntiparvan, anu§.sanaparvan, and 8§vamedhikaparvan.
In other
parvans they constitute a significantly smaller proportion of
the tota 1 number of verses I a 1 though those small er proportions vary from 30 percent (udyogaparvan) to 1 ess than 1 percent (vi r~~aparvan).
They are enti re1 y absent from the epi c' s 1 ast
three sections. A1 though in many cases, as di scussed below, the anci 11 ary stories are one of the allies itself with The
stories
deities.
may
§ru~i,
principal
conflicts
devSsura conflict,
the
epic
they do so in many different ways.
identify
explain
means by which
central as
characters
mu1tiforms
of
with the
Vedic ancient
promote long-revered individuals as role
model s. or descri be p1 aces in terms of thei r associ at; ons wi th ancient events known from Vedic texts. Precisely how the Mbh's compilers accomplished this also varied from parvan to parvan.
My discussion of the :Jdiparvan
be low argues, for example, that the anci 11 ary materi a l i n that segment of the epic is used to attribute certain behaviors to the Bharata clan which. although shocking and anomalous, are also
reportedly
characteristic
of
the
venerable
clan
of
168
Bhargavas, known from Vedic times.
sabhllparvan,
the
interwoven.
by
contrast.
But ancillary stories in
are
not
nearl y
so
1:i ghtl y
There are on 1 y si x of them. and for the most part
they assert the cosmic significance of and ancient precedents for the situation in which the rival cousins find themselves. Based on my examination of the stories in each parvan. I do not think it is possible to assert much definitively about those who compiled the epic.
We have only Ian Proudfoot's
work on a segment of the §an1:iparvan to argue that the work must have been done over time by people with very different interests in the epi c materi a 1 .
Obvi ous 1 y it is unwi se to
generalize from such a small segment to the entire Mbh. vi ew.
a
di fferent
ki nd
of
textua 1
work
is
In my
requi red
to
estab1 i sh whether one. two. or many individuals worked through a gi ven parvan.
What emerges from the follow; ng rev; ew of
stories. however. is the conclusion that this material is for the most part crafted to fi t
parvan.
the context of its ; mmedi ate
The general thrust of stories in one parvan does not
carryover to others. dro,}aparvan
combi ne
For example. ancillary stories in the to
focus
on
~i
how
va
i nf1 uenced
the
battle. and they homologize the war to the ancient devllsuram conflict with such
consistent
stori es. its
~iva
as a participant.
attention
to
~iva
No other parvan gives through
its
ancillary
Neverthe1 ess. every other parvan 1 i kewi se represents
stories
"hi stori calli
as
consonant
events
with
sancti oned
precepts. by
the
practices.
Veda.
The
and
themes
explored d i f f e r from parvan t o parvan, but t h e hermeneutical s t r a t e g i e s and i n t e n t a r e t h e same. I n t h i s chapter
I focus on how t h e e p i c f s c o m p i l e r s used
anci 1la r y s t o r i es t o make t h e e n t i r e epic an a u t h o r i t a t i ve
.
source o f r e l i g i o u s knowledge (smrtf)
I n doing so,
I must
n o t e t h a t some o f t h e s t o r i e s do n o t appear t o s e r v e those purposes.
I n Chapter 1.
I briefly
s e c t i o n 0 , f o r example,
d i scuss t h e s t o r y o f Na1a and Damayanti i n t h e aranyakaparvan (3.49.35-3.78.17).
There I p o i n t o u t t h a t t h e s t o r y does n o t
seem t o support m y t h e s i s t h a t a n c i l l a r y m a t e r i a l a n t i q u a t e s the
epic
by
equating i t s events and Although
.
in t e r p r e t i ng t h e
Pandava-Kaurava
struggle
i t s a c t o r s w i t h sacred
by
tradition.
I a l s o suggest t h a t t h e s t o r y might be shown t o
resonate w i t h
1 a t e Vedi c f o r m a l a t i ons o f
the
in t e r n a l ized
s a c r i f i c e and t h e a s c e t i c as s a c r i f i c e r par exce7 7ence. how t h a t might be so i s n o t r e a d i l y obvious.
Although t h e numbers
a r e r e 1a t i v e l y small, t h e r e a r e o t h e r cases o f s t o r i e s t h a t do n o t seem t o support my t h e s i s .
They include, f o r example, t h e
occasional f a b l e introduced as common know1edge w i t h phrases such as "They say t h a t a man once.. Spat Goldm a t 2.55.11 -55. I ? ) .
." (e.g..
"The B i r d s t h a t
A 1 though I do n o t t a k e up these
and o t h e r cases i n t h e d i s s e r t a t i o n ,
they do r a i s e i m p o r t a n t
questions f o r f u r t h e r study. The d i s c u s s i o n
below a l s o
c l u s t e r i n thematic u n i t s .
shows t h a t
stories
usually
The c l u s t e r s vary i n l e n g t h from
groups o f t h r e e o r f o u r t o groups o f n e a r l y twenty,
although
170
t h e r e a r e o n l y a handful subject
of
these l e n g t h i e r c l u s t e r s .
matter o f s t o r y clusters varies
widely,
The
as we1 1,
r a n g i n g from t h e importance of supporting brahmans and t h e practice
of
ahimsa
to
p i 1grimage
tales
explaining
the
s i g n i f icance of p a r t i c u 1a r sacred p l aces. adfparvan
8.
first
The
book
of
the
i s structurally the
Mbh
The dual r i t u a l framework i n which t h e
complex of t h e epic.
.
.
Pandavas ' s t o r y w i 11 be recounted is 1a i d o u t (ie. ritual
in
the
Naimisa
sacrifice),
and
the
Forest
genealogy
and of
,
Saunaka * s
Janamejayags
the
v i r t u a l l y back t o t h e b e g i n n i n g o f time.
are t o l d ,
most
clan
is
snake
narrated
Other genealogies
as we1 l, p r i n c i p a l 1y t h a t o f t h e BhSrgava c l a n of
brahmans w i t h whom t h e Paurava k s a t r i y a s i n t e r m a r r y .
When t h e
genealogy focuses on t h e o r i g i n s o f t h e Paurava c l a n ,
their
c l o s e r e 1a t i o n s h i p w i t h d e i t i e s throughout t h e generations becomes c l ear.
Once we hear t h e d e t a i 1s o f t h e b i r t h s o f t h e
Pandava . and Kaurava cousins,
the s t o r y o f
their
youthful
r i v a l r y unfolds, from t h e i r e a r l y t r a i n i n g i n weaponry, t o t h e near-murder
of
the
Pandavas
and
their
mother
Kunti
by
Duryodhana, a s e r i e s o f subsequent adventures i n t h e f o r e s t a f t e r t h e y escape death, and t h e i r marriage t o Draupadi. parvan closes when,
i n a c u r i o u s episode,
The
.
t h e PZhdavas s e t
..
f i r e ( f o r t h e sake o f t h e god Agni) t o t h e Khandava F o r e s t on t h e R i v e r YamunS, t h e p o r t i o n o f the kingdom given t o them by
.
D h r t a r a s.t r a i n an e f f o r t t o separate t h e r i v a l cousins.
The
171
Sdiparvan ends on t h i s v i o l e n t note, but, o f course,
greater
v i o l e n c e i s y e t t o come. The adiparvan c o n t a i ns f o r t y - f i v e anci 11a r y s t o r i es. b u t two o f them ("King Ambuvica and H i s M i n i s t e r . and YSunda and UpasundaW which occur near t h e parvan) concern one o f t h r e e t o p i c s : clan,
t h e Bhargavas;
Pauravas; (name1y,
2)
A1 1
Mahakarni end o f
the
1) t h e d e v i a n t brahman
t h e defective
k s a t r i y a clan,
the
and 3) o b j e c t i onabl e p r a c t i c e s these groups share genocidal s a c r i f ic e and varnasamkara,
o r m i x i ng o f
c l asses through in t e r m a r r i age). The genocidal s a c r i f i c e s which mark these two groups a r e occasioned i n some way by t h e fundamental need t o bear sons. a need which brahman and ksatrfya males share i n t h e e p i c We 7 tanschauung.
practice
of
The
need
for
varnasamk3ra.
sons
As
we
also shall
motivates see
their
below,
the
adiparvan anci 11a r y m a t e r i a l i s organized t o e x p l o r e each o f these t h r e e themes i n t u r n .
w i t h t h a t o f genocidal s a c r i f i c e
framing t h e who1 e a n c i 1 l a r y corpus.
Let us examine how each
o f t h e t o p i c s i s explored t h r o u g h adiparvan s u b s t o r i e s . Theme 1:
The Bharaavas
The f a c t t h a t t h e very f i r s t a n c i l l a r y s t o r y i n t h e Mbh concerns t h e Bh3rgava Rama Jamadagnya is in d i c a t i ve of s i g n i f i c a n c e o f t h i s m a t e r i a l i n t h e epic.
the
Theepic material
.
o f t h i s brahmani c a l clan. s a i d t o descend from t h e r s i Bhrgu, has
long
observed,
fascinated
scholars
who,
as
Robert
Goldman
has
focused 1ess on t h e uncharacteri s t i c behavi o r s o f
172
these brahmans than on the possibl e si gni fi cance of the enmity between brahmans and
k~atriyas
which the material (especially
the biography of RBma Jamadagnya) conveys.l V. S.
Sukthankar,
chi ef
edi tor
of
the
Mbh I S
cri t i ca 1
edition and epic scholar, was the first to take note of the quantity of Bhlrgava material in the Mbh, and he proposed that the Mbh per se resulted from the redaction of a martial epic at .the
hands of redactors who were
themse1 ves Bh3r"gavas. 2
Although I am not among them, many scholars and students of the epic accept Sukthankar's theory as virtually fact. 3 an excellent study of the epic's Bhargava material,
In
Robert
Goldman deepened and broadened Sukthankar's insight to r"eveal a stunningly sophisticated myth-making project at work, one fundamenta 1
to
the
structu re
of the
fu 11 y
real i zed
Mbh.
Goldman's conclusions were mOr"e tentative than Sukthankarts, but
were
formu 1 ated
along
the
same
general
1 i nes.
The
Bhargava corpus, he speculated, may represent the myths of a clan (non-Aryan or nonvedic) "sanskritized or brought into the brahmanical fold at an early date." 4
I draw upon Goldman's
work in the discussion of the Bhargava corpus that follows 1Goldman, Gods. Pries~s, and Warriors. 2Sukthankar. "The Bhrgus and the Bharata. 11 3Christopher Minkowski has questioned the Bhargava redaction thesis on very pragmatic grounds. It seems to him unlikely that if a single group of brahmans had marked the epic so strongly with its personal history, the Mbh would not have enjoyed the extraordinary popularity it has. 4Go 1dman, 145.
173 because his insightful explication of the complex structure and
themes
of
the
BhBrgava
corpus
is
pertinent
to
understanding the role of ancillary stories in the .diparvan whether or not one shares his frankly speculative views about the function of the cycle in the composition of the Mbh. BhKrgava material clusters principally in the but
is
a 1 so (the
~ra~yaka
found
in
forest
four book,
other
sect ions
covering
the
~diparvan,
of the period
epi c:
of
the
PKndavas' exi 1 e), §6nt j parvan (the twelfth book, whi ch records the lengthy conversation on kingship between the dyi ng
Bhi~ma),
Yudhi~~hira
anu§6sanaparvan (the thi rteenth book, whi ch
continues that conversation),
and .'vamedhikaparvan,
recounts
horse sacrifice).
Arjuna's
and
successful
(which
With
two
exceptions ("The Lineage of PDru," in which the histories of the
Bhargava
and
POru
clans
relationships of King Yayati, and
~armi
the
~diparvan
converge
Devayani
sthA [daughter of the asura
secti on.
Bhargava material
It compri ses near1 y
in
the
[daughter of
V~~aparvan]
amorous Bh~gul,
and flAurva lf )
is clustered in its opening one-thi rd
of
the anci 11 ary
stories contained in the parvan (see stories 1 through 13). As Goldman has so effectively shown, the Mbh presents the Bh~gus
in all their anomalous,
often horrific, glory.
They
are fully legitimate brahmans, recognized as such from their appearance
in
Vedic
literature
brahmans in nearly every way.
onward.
but
unorthoprax
They are violent, being known
as masters of the sci ence of weaponry (dhanurveda, a
ski 1 1
174
ordinarily
the
provenance
of
k~atrjyas)i
and
for
their
inclination toward violent sacrifices, they engage in the much frowned-upon practice of
var~asa~k.ra,
or mixing of classes,
by marryi ng k!!atriyas; they have a strong penchant for hosti 1 e
relations with the gods; and they have the special ability to resurrect the dead. 5 The Bh3rgava materi a1 in the
~diparvan
is most concerned
with their apparent preference for vengeance.
As mentioned
earlier, the very first ancillary story in the epic is a brief conspectus of males of the
the Bhargava Rama Jamadagnya I S S 1 aughter
k~atriya
of
class twenty-one times over in order to
avenge his father's death at their hands.
The eighteen-day
Mbh war occurred at the very place where R3ma killed them. The third story introduces the Bhargava
Utta~ka
how he came to seek revenge against the means of a genocidal sacrifice.
and explains
race of snakes by
We also meet the Bhargava
Ru ru , who had to be vi gorous 1 y dissuaded from hi s
plan to
destroy the snakes after one killed the woman he wanted to marry. We quickly see that our storytellers mean to say more than that the Bhargavas and the Paurava clan of
k~atriyas
have
51 note in passing that Krsna, who sing1ehanded1y rescued the Pu ru 1 i neage from exti netfon by revi vi ng Pari ksi t, its sole stillborn heir, after the Mbh war, is, according to the epic, a descendant of Bhrgu Yadu. son of the Bhargava Devayani and the ksa~riya Yayati: I am not aware of any scholarship, including' Goldman's work. that takes account of this epic fact, perhaps because the ancestral tie to Bhrgu is of minor concern. in Krsna mythology and devotion outside of the epic.
175
many behaviors i n common.
I t i s t h e BhZrgava Uttarlka who
wakens i n t h e k s a t r f y a Janamejaya a d e s i r e t o perform t h e s a r p a s a t t r a o r snake s a c r i f i c e t h a t w i 11 destroy h i s 'father
Pari k s i t ' s
murderer.
That
Janamejaya's
sacrifice
accompl ish Uttartka' s o w n revenge i s p l a i n l y s t a t e d . a l s o l e a r n i n t h e adiparvan o f brahmans and ksatrfyas married t h e
Bhargava
.
family t i e s
f r o m whose
cousins Krsna VSsudeva and Kunti.
But we
between these
Janamej ayal s ancestor,
Devayani
w i l l
K i ng Yayati
son,
mother of
Yadu,
the
,
the
.
PZndavas. .
descended. The way i n which t h e Bhargava m a t e r i a l i s woven I n t o t h e f a b r i c o f t h e adiparvan e f f e c t i v e l y demonstrates how essenti a l this
material
is
to
the e p i c ' s
L i t e r a l l y from t h e beginning,
core
rhetorical
the adi's
project.
redactors use t h e
Bhargava m a t e r i a l t o t e l l t h e i r audiences t h a t n o t only are these d e v i a n t brahmans very much 1ike the Paurava clan, name1y t h e w a r r i n g BhSratas and Kurus, both
have
engaged
varnasamkara
--
in
both descended from PUru
genoci da1
s l aughter,
both
--
practice
b u t t h e two groups are substantfa 7 7y a 7 ike
because they a r e a lso biologics 7 1y r e l a t e d .
In other words, t h e choice and p a t t e r n i ng o f most o f t h e s t o r y materi a1 in t h e H i p a r v a n purpose1y forges behavioral and b i o l o g i c a l 1i n k s between a deviant b u t o l d and venerable
c l a n o f brahmans. and a d e f e c t i v e b u t e q u a l l y l e g i t i m a t e c l a n of
ksatrfyas.
Let
us
now
turn
r e p r e s e n t a t i on o f these ksatriyas.
to
the
adiparvants
176
Theme 2:
The Paurava
k~atriyas
The second set of ancillary stories in the (stori es 14 through 25) k~atriya
i denti fi es the core defect of the
clan descended from POru.
produce sons. sections.
8diparvan
namely its inability to
The stories can be further subdivided into two
The first subgroup (stories 14 through 21) proceeds
diachronically by presenting the genealogy of the POru clan up to Satyavatifs generation (great grandmother of the warring cousins) when the problem over lack of progeny reaches crisis proportions.
Here the problem is not tied to the Mbh war
overtly, but is disclosed through the sequencing of stories. That
is,
the
listeners
are
not
explicitly told
dynasty will become extinct when Arjuna's grandson. is
sti 11 born
fo11 owi ng
the war.
i mperati ve for the Mbh war Earth") as
a
means to
We
that
the
Parik~it,
1 earn of the
di vi ne
("Why the Warri ors Were Born on
rel i eve Earth s I
terri b1 e
burden
of
excess creatu res. and so the comi ng genocide is sanct i oned and cast as the disposal of asuras who have overcrowded the earth. This first subgroup closes with two stories of King Yay3ti, the
k~atriya
who
all i es
marr; age to DevayBni.
wi th
the
BhKrgavas
through
hi s
The second subgroup of k!?atriya stori es
(stories 22 through 25) presents the crisis synchronically: There will be no heirs to the PDru dynasty. to his father King that the sons of the ki ngdom.
~a~tanu
~a~tanu's
that he will
Bhisma has vowed
remain celibate so
second wife. Satyavati. may inherit
But both of those sons di e chi 1 dl ess.
Thi s
177
subgroup o f s t o r i e s explains how t h e immediate c r i s i s arose. Theme 3:
varnasamkara
The t h i r d
set
of
ancillary
stories
i n the
adiparvan
expl ores t h e j u s t i f i c a t i o n "For a p r a c t i c e t h a t w i 11 amel i o r a t e the e f f e c t s o f t h e v i o l e n t behaviors o f both Bhargavas and Pauravas :
varnasamkara, o r m i x i ng o f el asses through marriage
and o t h e r sexual a1 1iances.
The immediate concern o f t h i s
group o f anci ll a r y s t o r i e s ( s t o r i e s 26 through 40) is t o f i n d a s o l u t i o n t o the ksatriya c l a n ' s l a c k o f heirs.
Bhisma t e l l s
t h e f i r s t t h r e e s t o r i e s t o e s t a b l i s h dharmic precedents f o r t h e p r a c t i c e t h e Pauravas w i l l they
-will
SatyavatZ * s
recruit two
a
soon employ.
brahman
w i dowed
to
father
I n t h i s case, children
d a u g h t e r s 4 n-1 aw.
with
Convinced
by
B h i s m a ' s e v i dence, Satyavati w i 1l en1 is t her son Vyasa f o r t h e task,
born t o her and t h e brahman ParSsara before she was
marri ed. The s o l u t i o n i s e f f e c t i v e i n the short term, problem recurs w i t h the next generation.
a c t he has committed,
intercourse with
again,
the practice o f an
Because o f a c r u e l
King FSndu i s cursed t o d i e i f he has
sexual
through
but the
h i s wives
Kunti
and Madr5.
varnasamkSra i s invoked,
exchange o f
stories
between
Pandu *
this and
( s t o r i es 31 through 34) which e s t a b l i s h i t s l e g i t i m a c y . result,
Kunti
bears
five
sons
fathered
by
four
Once time Kunti As a gods.
Meanwhi 1e, Vyasa must i n t e r v e n e t o gestate by a r t i f ic i a1 means t h e sons born as an aborted b a l l of
f l e s h t o Gandhari and
I 78 DhrtarZstr-a (the o t h e r p o t e n t i a1 Paurava h e i r ) The f o l l o w i n g concern
m i raculous
benef ic i a1 e f f e c t s
three
stories
birthsl of
and
(stories seem
. through
35
meant
varnasamkara a1 1iances
to
.
The
desi r e f o r revenge agai n s t h i s f r i end-turned-enemy
genocidal
M ' h war.
Oraupadf I s
unusual
of
We
the chie f
l e a r n through
marriage
h i gh1y
Moti vated by K i ng Drupada ' s
s a c r i f i c i a1 f ir e a r e recounted.
two
highlight
6 i khandin from a
auspicious b i r t h s o f t h e t w i ns DraupadZ and
s a c r i f ice produces
37)
to
five
Dronal t h e
protagoni s t s another men
is
in
story
the that
actually
r e l a t i o n s h i p among d e i t i e s reborn as humans (story 36).
a
And
we a r e remi nded t h a t t h e remarkable Pandavas a r e t h e r e s u l t o f t h e h i g h l y auspicious i n t e r c o u r s e o f d i v h e men w + t h a human woman ( s t o r y 37). The
final
( s t o r i e s 38-40)
three
stories
of
the
varnasamkara
group
e s t a b l i s h t h a t p r a c t i c e as c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o f
t h e Pauravas by reveal ing t h a t Pandu s g r a n d f a t h e r s ParaSara, tool
was born o f a brahman male and a k s a t r f y a woman.
A
Bhsrgava s t o r y f o l l o w s {lfAurvas*) i n which those brahmans are n e a r l y exterminated wealth.
by k s a t r i y a s envious o f
the
brahmansB
The s t o r y i s t o l d t o dissuade ParaSara from seeking
revenge f o r h i s f a t h e r g s death. s t o r i e s closes with t h e
The segment o f varnasamkara
s t o r y o f another
k s a t r i y a lineage
rescued by t h e sexual union o f a brahman w i t h a k s a t r f y a woman (story 40). The l a s t a n d 1l a r y s t o r y o f the adiparvan g i v e s a f i n a l
179 spin to the theme of violent sacrifice so prevalent at every level
of this first section of the Mbh.
burn; ng of the
Kha,:,~ava
forest
It concerns
by Arjuna and
K~~~a.
the
an act
presented as a sacrificial conflagration performed for Agni's benefit with Indra's overt OPPOSition, but covert support. has a
happy outcome for Arj una.
Hi s father,
Indra,
It
is so
pleased with his performance that he promises to give Arjuna his divine weapons when the time comes for him to use them. The i nci dent occasi ons the story of the asceti c Mandapal a who, for
1 ack
of male progeny,
formidable
ascetic
producti on of sons, "sons. II
cannot
practices he
is
reap the
(story
reborn
45).
as a bi rd
fru its of To and
his
expedite has
four
They are among the si x bei ngs who constitute the sol e
surviving group of the great Khandava fire. The story is extremel y curi ous scho 1 arl y
attent ion.
o · Fl aherty
I
and has recei ved some
has taken
not ice of
its
extraordinary resonance with adiparvan themes of violence and sacrifice in her own demonstration of the unification of the
adiparvan around a cluster of inversions and oppositions that tie the epic firmly to complex Vedic motifs.& But
it
is
Ni nkowski
who
has
provi ded
the
strongest
evidence for the formal cohesiveness of the 8diparvan in his study of the ritual structure of the Vedic sattra.
And, as it
6A1 f Hi 1 tebei tel. liThe Burni ng of the Forest Myth, II in Bardwell L. Smith, editor, Hinduism: New Essays in the History of Re1igions (Leiden: Brill, 1976), 208-224; Madel ei ne Bi ardeau, Comptes-rendus 79; 0 t Fl aherty, "Horses and Snakes. It
180
turns out. the shocking closing of the parvan. the burning of the
Kha~~ava
forest, is an important key to understanding the
narrative work under way in this first book of the epic. 1 Structural
Correspondence
of
Vedic
Ritual
and
Epic
Narrative The preceding discussion of the themes and contents of the .diparvanls anc;11ary material antecedents. the
device
shows a variety of Vedic
There; s no doubt that the epi c 's compi 1 ers used of
ancillary
stories
to
weave
common
Vedic
characters, themes, and concepts tightly into the fabric of the BhKrata war story.
In the .diparvan in particular. they
worked the materi a 1 so that the i d i osyncraci es of one troub 1 ed clan are re-fashioned into a portrayal of that clan as actors in an ever-recurring cosmic drama. Vyasa.
the
compi 1 er
te 11 i n9 and composers
who
both
Through the character of
i nit i ates
is one of its many central
signaled
rhetor i ca 1 intent:
both
their
purpose
the
story I s
actors. and
fi rst
the epi CiS their
chief
to make the Mbh smr:1: i. thereby ant i quat i n9
and legitimizing practices and beliefs which developed within the brahman intellectual elite. but which in fact challenged some of its traditional views.
Who could better legitimize
the epi c than Vyasa. the person who compi 1 ed the Vedas and therefore stands as a supremely authoritative figure? In addition to using characters. themes.
and concepts
selected from the Vedic corpus. however. the epicls compilers 7Mi nkowski. "Janamej aya IS Sat1:ra and Ri tua1 Structure."
181 also imitated its ritual structures in the very architecture of their composition. epic's
storytelling
As Mi nkowski 's work has shown. is
organized
according
to
the
the same
principles as those that structure Vedic sattra rituals. Let us
recall
that the tw; n ri tua 1
frames of the Mbh
narrative are sattras. a particular type of Vedic sacrifice. The one being performed by the brahmans (including the ~aunaka)
Bh~gu
in Naimi~a Forest as the Mbh opens is a twelve-year
.
or dv.da{;av.rsi . ka sattra descri bed in the Paifcavim§a Br.hmana and
various
§rauta
references). days
of
(see
su~ras
Minkowski,
p.
416
for
Sattras are soma sacrifices with twelve or more
soma
pressi ngs .
The
Naimisa
rite
belongs
to
a
subgroup of sattras called s.mavatsarikas which last for one year or longer (Minkowski, p. 413).
They are elaborate soma
rites,
and
for
they
consi st
of
istis
sacrifices) as well as soma rites.
pa§uyajnas
(animal
The Naimisa location is
significant, as well, for according to the
Pancavj~sa Br.hma~a
it was brahmans of that forest who first performed the rite. Naimisa Forest is also mentioned
in other Vedic texts as a
place where sattras are performed (Minkowski, p. 418). Ugra§ravas, the bard who visits the Naimisa Forest seers as the Mbh opens. tell s them the sto ry of anothe r sattra whi ch he has recently attended: sarpasa~~ra.
Janamejaya's snake sacrifice, or
There he heard the tale of the great war which
the Naimi sa yajam.nas prevai 1
upon him to repeat to them.
Accordi ng to §rauta texts. sarpasattras 1 ast for one year (see
M i n b w s k i , p . 413 f o r t e x t u a l r e f e r e n c e s ) .
that the
characteristic
feature o f
M i nkowski expl a i ns
this r i t e i s that
the
number OF r e p e t i t i o n s o f Samaveda veraes in t h e s t u t r a s i n g i ng i s F i x e d a t t e n f o r a1 1 s t o t r a s on every day, except f o r t h e f j r s t and 1a s t , where i t i s f i x e d a t 1e S and t h e v i s w a t * o r peak day, where i t i s f i x e d a t 12. The nukber t e n d e r i v e s from t h e resemblance o f t h e number I 0 ( d a s a t i ) t o t h e verb ' t o p i t e n (dam&) which snakes so chat-acteri s t i c a 1 1y do. Minkowski a l s o notes t h a t t h e b e n e f i t s o f t h i s Srauta r i t e were
similar
t o those o f
other
s a r p a s a t t r a one would vanquish death
cattl e
as we1 1 as
in t e r e s t i ng f a r
protection
rites.
Through
the
w i n worlds and sons and
From serpents.
Especi a1 ly
our purposes i s t h e a e t i o l o g i c a l n a r r a t i v e
Tound in Baudhayana Srauta Sutra 17.18 and PaficavimSa Brahmans 25.15.2-4.
There we l e a r n t h a t
Vhe f i r s t
s a r p a s a t t m was
performed by serpents themselves* who g a h e d t h e * r p o i son and became b i t e r s [damSuka)
as a r e s u l t o f i t e g fJQ u s t as t h e
Vedic r i t u a l t e x t s p r e s e n t two k i nds o f sarpasattras, so, t o o s does t h e Mbh present one s a t t r a performed f o r t y p i c a l r i t u a l ends
(the
Naimisa
ritual),
and
another
performed
d e s t r u c t i v e i n t e n t (Janamejayals snake s a c r i f i c e ) . Xdiparvan opens
in
the
Na4rnisa
Forest
and closes
with
That t h e in
the
Khandava F o r e s t f u r t h e r suggests t h a t t h e Mbh8s two s a t t r a s serve
to
knit
the
levels
of
epic
4 n t e n t i m a 1 1y p a t t e r n e d who1e which
narrative
some o f
into
an
i t s audiences
183
s h o d d associ a t e w i t h Vedic p r a c t i ce.
Mi nkowski notes t h a t
t h e Baudhwana S r a u t a S u t r a " l o c a t e s t h e s i t e f o r t h e o r i g i n a l
a synonym f o r Indraprastha ,
.
sarpasattra a t Khmdavaprastha,
..
And t h e Khandava Forest, .
t h e c a p i t a l c i t y o f t h e Pandavas."
w e must add, is t h e home o f t h e snake Taksaka, K i ng P a r i k s i t.
forest
"is
Furthermore,
regularly
who has k i 11ed
M i nkowski notes t h a t t h i s very
identified
as
a
location
for
an
a e t i 01 o g i c a l s a t t r a . Once he e s t a b l i s h e d so c l e a r l y t h e Vedic antecedents o f t h e Mbht s r i t u a l frame s t o r i e s , M i nkowski a l s o showed t h a t t h e n a r r a t ive technique o f s u s t a i ned embeddi ng so c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o f t h e e p i c was a c t u a l ly adopted from t h e formal s t r u c t u r e o f Vedic r i t u a l s . accompl ished col l ections
The embedding i n Vedic r i t u a l s t r u c t u r e i s in
of
dis t inctive t o
three
ways:
small e r
large
rites,
themselves;
some
but rites
rites
are
in c l ude
not
only
activities
betray a
geometric
symmetry (e.g., according t o t h e Brahmanas, year-long s a t t r a s a r e arranged so t h a t t h e two six-month segments m i r r o r each other);
and y a m s i n c l u d e segments i n which t h e performance
o f one component is in t e r r u p t e d t o accompl ish another r i t e b e f o r e r e t u r n i n g t o complete t h e p r e v i o u s one. 11 My study o f t h e anci ll a r y s t o r i e s i n t h e adfparvan i n particular,
and
the
Mbh
as a
whole,
support
Minkowski's
general observati ons about t h e technique o f embedding employed
184
by the
epi c.
It
woul d
requi re
a
much
full er
demonstrate the process at work in the epic. the
must
~dj parvan
suffi ce
here
to
study
to
One example from
suggest
how
it
was
accomplished. The pau§yaparvan opens with a story about Janamejaya and hi s
brothers
happened
("Saralll.· s
along
when
unidentified ritual not joi n in, reason.
and
hi s
Pup"). the
in Kuruksetra.
brothers
of
brothers
Saram.' s
were
Janamej aya
Janamej aya was
much
attendi ng
for no
pursui t
of hi s guru' s gi ft.
other stori es
about
an
apparent
to succumb to an
a 1 armed.
but found
brahman to perform an expiatory ritual for him. following this episode. we hear of
puppi es
Although Janamejaya did
beat the puppy
so Saram3 cursed
unseen danger.
One
Utta~ka's
a
Immediately adventures in
It is followed by a seri es of
Bh&rgavas.
and we
abruptl y
return to
Janamejaya's own story two parvans later. just before the last Bhargava story in this Story of Jaratk&ru"). ancillary stories.
initial
cluster is recounted
(liThe
By simply followi ng the sequence of
we note the same tendency, as Minkowski
would phrase it. to interrupt a set of stories on one topic (Janamejaya)
with
a
set
of
related. subject (Bh&rgavas).
stories
on
a
different.
but
It may well be possible, with
further study. to demonstrate how this technique of embedding was employed to interpolate narrative material into the epic. It may even be possible to deduce some operational principles for doing so, but that would require detailed examination of
sel ected
anci 11ary
s t o r i es
and
thei r
speci f i c
n a r r a t i ve
contexts.
The
sabhaparvan
is
entirely
.
episodes i n Y u d h i s* t h i r a ' s career.
devoted
to
The f i r s t
two
crucial
event
i s his
successful performance o f t h e r a j a s w r i t u a l , through which he is consecrated u n i versa1
soverei gn
.
The second
event,
f o ?l o w i ng w i t h i n days o f t h e r i t u a l , i s t h e d i s a s t r o u s game o f
d i c e w i t h Sakuni , Duryodhana's uncle and h i s proxy f o r t h e game.
When Yudhi s. .t h i r a is trounced in t h e competi t i on,
he
loses a l l o f h i s possessions, as w e l l as t h e r i g h t t o r u l e f o r t h i r t e e n years.
.
A s t h e book closes, t h e PSndavas leave t h e i r
kingdom f o r twelve years o f e x i l e i n t h e f o r e s t , a f t e r which they must l i v e i n c o g n i t o f o r one year. I n t h e in t r o d u c t i on t o h i s t r a n s l a t i on o f t h e sabhaparvan
and i n a separate a r t i c l e on t h e t o p i c ,
t h a t t h e Vedic bookf s events.
rajas-
ritual
van Buitenen showed
supplied t h e model
"The Assembl y Hal 1 ,
f o r the
he said, *'i s s t r u c t u r a l 1y
an epic dramatization o f t h e Vedic r i t u a l
.'
The authors o f
t h i s book o f t h e e p i c knew a1 1 the elements o f t h e r i t u a l
'.
The s t o r y o f Yudhisthi r a t s rajaexactly m i r r o r the r i t u a l ,
.
and i t s aftermath does n o t
as van Buitenen shows,
f o r the
"3. A. B. van Bui tenen, I n t r o d u c t i o n , The Mahabharata 1, Also "On t h e S t r u c t u r e o f t h e Sabhaparvan o f t h e Mahabharata,'* i n J. Ensink and P. Gaeffke, eds., India Maim: Congratu 7atory Volume Presented t o Jm Gun& ( Lei den: B r i 11 , 1972). 68-74. The Vedic r i t u a l i s d e t a i l e d and discussed i n J C. Heesterman, The A n c i e n t Indian Royal Consecration. The Hague: Thesi s U t r e c h t , 1957. 6.
.
186
emphases given t o s e v e r a l aspects o f t h e e p i c t s t e l l ing ( i n p a r t i c u l a r t h e conquest of t h e worlds and t h e d i c i n g match) a r e necessary b u t b r i e f and undramatic elements o f t h e r i t u a l as described i n Vedic manuals.
Furthermore,
as van Buitenen
notes, t h e Mbh uses t h e r i t u a l t o bestow u n i v e r s a l s o v e r e i g n t y
.
. ra. on Yudhisthi
I n t h e Vedic r i t u a l , however,
t h e r3Jasaya
o n l y serves t o i n s t a l l a new king;
i t i s t h e a6vamedha r i t e
w h i c h bestows u n i versa1 s o v e r e i gnty
.
Van But tenen be1 ieved
t h a t t h i s d i s t i n c t i o n was merely a t e c h n i c a l i t y t o t h e e p i c authors i f , i n f a c t . t h e y knew i t . h e said,
The raTjasffyats importance,
l a y more i n t h e dramatic p o s s i b i 1 i t i e s i t o f f e r e d
t h a n i n t h e uses t o which i t had been p u t f o r r e a l k i n g s . 13 By showing how t h e r i t u a l s t r u c t u r e d t h e sabhaparvan, van
Bui tenen demonstrated an under1y i ng coherence t o t h i s segment of t h e e p i c which s c h o l a r s had n o t previous1y been w i 11i ng t o grant it.
I n p a r t i c u l a r . Yudhi s t h i r a w ssudden and d i s a s t r o u s
compulsion t o gamble had l o n g been regarded as a m y s t e r i o u s contradiction i n h i s character.
For van Bui tenen.
however,
t h e r i t u a l was a p a r t i c u l a r s o r t o f t o o l i n t h e hands o f t h e e p i c authors.
I t enabled them t o resolve one problem. on1y t o
show how i t s r e s o l u t i o n 1 ed t o new ones.
The rajasaya u n f o l d s
dramatically
epic.
but
predictably
in
the
..
Yudhi s t h i r a
encounters d i f f ic u l t i e s , b u t overcomes them t o near s u c c e s s f u l completion o f
the
ritual.
Van
Bui tenen ' s
in t e r p r e t a t i on
..
i1luminates t h e d i c e game as a requirement o f Y u d h i s t h i r a ' s
ritual
.
Rather t h a n dropping t h e d i c i n g o r t r e a t i n g i t as p e r f u n c t o r i l y as do t h e r i t u a l manuals, t h e authors have seized upon t h e d i c i n g r i t e o f t h e Vedic ceremony as a r i t u a l l y l e g i t i m a t e , even prescribed way o f swinging the doubt from Yudhi s t h i r a t s apparently unassai 1a b l e p o s i t i o n t o the c l a i m s o f t h e Kauravas. I n a surprising twist,
t h e Kauravas win t h e
r i g h t t o rule
.
w h i l e Yudhi s t* h i r a is in t h e v e r y a c t o f demonstrati ng, through
r i t u a l , h i s s u p e r i o r f i t n e s s t o serve as emperor. The s i x a n c i 1 l a r y s t o r i e s found i n t h e m i d s t o f t h i s intensel y dramatic
purposes. Assembl y
situation
serve d i s t i net
.
Hal 1
the
by
important
Van Bui tenen himsel f showed how t h e f ir s t one, "The of
the
Dei t i es,
"
establ ishes
n e a r l y - b u i l t h a l l as t h e axis mundi. 1I
and
precise
indication
c o n f i g u r a t i o n o f t h e cosmos
.. . .
of
Yudhi s .t h i r a a s
Van Buitenen explains: its
position
in
the
i t i s included i n and made a
s t r u c t u r a l component o f cosmi c space. "I6
NSrada s s t o r y o f
.
t h e assembly h a l l o f t h e gods makes d e a r t h a t Y u d h i.s t h i r a ' s ha1 1 i s a c r u c i a l piece of Kubera,
Yama,
cosmic f u r n i t u r e .
I n d r a and Varuna,
quadrants
of
the
southern,
universe.
BrahmZes anchors t h e zenith, and Yudhi s. t h i r a f s the
I n a s u b s i d i a r y story,
and western
occupy
northern,
nadi r .
eastern
respecti v e l Y,
The h a l l s o f
the
NSrada t e l l s t h e s t o r y o f King
Hari Scandra, r e s i d e n t o f I n d r a s heaven, who just so happened
188 to
have a t t a i n e d t h a t
r 3 ~ a s U y ar i t u a l
e x a l t e d p o s i t i o n b y performing t h e
.
These t w u s t o r i e s f u n c t i o n t o r a i s e t h e stakes of outcome
of
the
.
impending war.
Y u d h i.s t h i r a
is
the
no
mere
u n i versa1 sovereign whose r u l e w i 11 l a s t u n t i 1 another k i n g emerges t o chal'lenQe h i s pawer.
On him depends t h e s t a b i 1it y
o f t h e u n i v e r s e since h * s realm anchors t h e t e r r e s t r i a l node o f t h e cosmos.
And h i s r i t u a l s have t h e pawer t o g a i n him
access t o o t h e r cosmic q u a r t e r s , an a b i 1it y e x h i b i t e d by o n l y a
few o t h e r
k s a t ~ i y a s , such
as
King H a r i k a n d r a .
These
s t o r i e s p r o v i d e two examples of how t h e M6h systematical 1y infuses
the
characters
r e 1 igious s i g n i f i c a n c e
and
events
of
the
f a r beyond t h e t r a g i c ,
war
Mbh
with
b u t o t h e r w i se
general I y p r e d i c t a b l e , consequences o f s i m i 1a r c i v i 1 wars. The s t o r y of those
Mbh
Jarasamdha
ancillary
<11Jar8samdhatt) i s t y p i c a l
stories
that
seem
pragmatic n a r r a t i v e as r h e t o r i c a l import. Krsna wants t o .*
to
have
has
i n f o r m Y u d h i s t h i r a t h a t he has a r i v a l
pointed
out
that
,..
the
Krsna,
dead
another
chariot
echo
subsequent
BhZma,
Jarasamdha and t h e e x i t o f king's
much
With t h i s s t o r y ,
dispose o f b e f o r e a s s e r t i n g h i s own s o v e r e i g n t y . Buitenen
as
of
to
But van
killing
of
and Arjuna on t h e
element
of
the
Vedic
rajasuya, namely t h e c h a r i o t d r i v e taken by t h e king/yajamana a f t e r subduing a
ksatriya s t a t i o n e d i n one sector o f t h e
s a c r i f i c i a l c o r n p ~ u n d . ~I~t i s important t u bear i n mind t h a t
189 t h e sabhaparvan does not s t r i c t l y rep1icate o r simply describe t h e Vedic r i t u a l , b u t r a t h e r * as van Buitenen has shown, t h e r i t u a l supplied t h e model f o r composition o f t h i s p o r t i o n o f t h e e p i c . 18 The
third
ancillary
story
i n the
('The
sabhaparvan
Confl ic t Between Agni and Sahadevatt} is invoked t o expl a i n why
..
o n l y Sahadeva encountered d i f f i c u l t i e s when t h e Pandavas set
out t o conquer t h e f o u r corners o f t h e e a r t h i n p r e p a r a t i o n far
Y u d h i s.t h ? r a * s r a ~ a s o y a .
In
this
case*
Vai6ampSyana
expl a i ns t o Janamejaya why Agni gave Sahadeva so much t r o u b l e . Sahadeva and e p i scide :
Janamejaya share
W h y is A g p i
t h e same confusion
i n the
t h e embodi ed s a c r i T i ce, 4 n t e r f e r i ng
w i t h a c t i o n s Sahadeva must perfarm as p a r t OF h i s b r o t h e r f s s a c r i f i c e s t h e rSjasl?ya? Agni g i v e s h i s own explanation t o Sahadeva a t 1 2 . 2 8 . 3 0 f f , but t h e sathaparvan authors seemed t o feel
the
need
far
d i stress4 ng behavior, expl anation,
an
even
fuller
explanation
of
this
underscori ng and expandi ng Agni s own
and hence supply t h e s t o r y .
The f o u r t h a n d 1l a r y s t o r y
{ T h e Hypocr it i c a l Goose1*)
seems to be a c l e a r example o f a stuck f a b l e from t h e o r a l It i s
t r a d i t i o n a p p l i e d t o a p a r t i c u l a r s i t u a t i o n i n t h e Mbh.
c a l l ed a gatha, perhaps because i t concludes w i t h a q u o t a t i o n a f what t h e b i r d s i n t h e s t o r y s a j d t o t h e goose.
rajasUya g e t s under way,
AS t h e
..
Yudhi s t h i r a g upon consul t i ng w i t h
%an Bui tenen, lfOn the S t r u c t u r e o f t h e Sabhaparvan, 70.
69-
I90 BhZsmas s i n g l e s o u t Krsna f o r s p e c i a l honor by o f f e r i n g .* t h e r i t u a l guest g i f t * offended
him
The o t h e r kings present are deeply
and $igupala a r t i cu1 ates t h e i r vigorous object4 ons.
He focuses on Bh?smas who he says should know b e t t e r t h a n t o
honor such
a r e l a t i v e l y in f e r i o r
b e r a t i ng Bhisma,
sf ~upZS1a
and unknown person.
In
compares h i m t o the hypocri t i ca1
goose whose betrayal o f h i s f o l lawers i s punished by death, once h i s deception
i s discovered.
Clearlys the
invoked t o i n s u l t and warn Bhisma against g i v i n g what
story
js
65 SupSla
regards as poor advice*
S i h p S 1a asserts t h a t t h e t a 1e o f t h e h y p o c r i t i c a l gooses preserved by those who r e a l l y understand dharma* a p p l i e s t o BhZ sma because he spreads f a 1 se in t e r p r e t a t i m s o f dharma.
Not o n l y does BhZsma p r a i s e Krsna . as a learned man even though he i s (according t o SiSupSla) a cow-ki 1l e r s a woman-ki 1l e r y
and has v i o l a t e d dharma i n h i s treatment o f brahmans,
but
.
E3hZsma himsel f has abducted a woman promised i n marriage t o another, and has a1so f a i 1ed t o f u l f i11 t h e mast bas* c d u t y o f producing a son (2.38.5-38.2Q). How can such opposite p o i n t s o f view on dharma as those espoused by
s i aupala
and Bh2sina c o - e x i s t
as l e g i t i m a t e and
sanctioned i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s o f behavioral i n j u n c t i o n s s a i d t o be based on the Vedas? questions
This
small
I w i l l n o t address here.
episode r a i s e s
large
1 w i 11 only note t h a t i t
s i g n a l s one o f the unresolved tensions i n t h e e p i c y namely an apparent1y
urireconci 1ed
c o n f l ic t
between
ksatrfydharma
as
a r t i cu1ated by characters 1ike $ i SupW a and Duryodhana~ and the
bhakti
stance
centered,
of
CourseJ on t h e
figure
of
~. r. s na. * The f i f t h anci 11ary s t o r y
which I have c a l l ed ttK2Evya* s
W i sdom *@ presents three very abbrevi ated t a 1es which V i dura
t h i r a about j u s t how dangerous Duryodhana uses t o warn Yudhi s *
is.
They i n d i c a t e a very common use o f anci 1l a r y n a r r a t i v e s
in t h e Mbh, name1y t o exhort someone t o a d i f f i cu1t course of
action.
..
I n t h i s caseJ Vidura t r i e s t o convi nce Yudhisthi r a t o
repudiate ~ u r y o d h a n aand ha1t t h e d i s a s t r o u s d i c e game. SO*
To do
Vidura invokes a respected sage, Kavya, whose advice waul d
g i v e Yudhi s t. h i r a a l a r g e r perspective on h i s own s i t u a t i o n . Vidura also c i t e s a
s i t u a t i o n s i m i l a r t o Y u d h i*s. t h i r a 8 s i n
which the asuras ignored KSvyaVs advice and s u f f e r e d f o r i t . The s i x t h and f i n a l anci 1l a r y s t o r y i n t h e sabhaparvan i s '@TheExchange
Between Prahl ada
and KaSyapa, **
which V i dura
t e l l s a t t h e most extraordinary moment i n t h e sabhaparvan. Draupadi
. t h i r a had dragged in t o the assembl y ha11 a f t e r Yudhi s
lost everything# has posed a question t h a t no one can answer: Once Yudhi s . t h i r a had gambled away h i s own freedom had he t o stake and lose her (Oraupad5 I ?
what r i g h t
M i r a c u l o u s l y ~t h e
Uauravas had been unable t o s t r i p o f f her c l o t h i n g , and w i t h t h i s outrage BhTma swore t o
kill
Our-yodhana and d r i n k h i s
%ee Davi d G i tomet- * I K i ng Duryodhana: The MahSbharataVs D i scowse o f S i n n i n g and V i r t u e i n Epic and DramaJ Jaurna f af the Amerfcan Q r i e n t a l Socfety 112 no. 2 (1992) : 222-232 Tor a discussion o f t h i s matter. @
@
192
blood.
Immedi atel y
thereafter,
Vi dura stepped
forward
to
demand that Draupadi' s questi on be answered. and warned of the consequences of not doing so by telling the story of Prahlada and
Ka~yapa.
The story, although addressed to the full
assembly,
is
without question meant to exhort Dhrtarastra to put a stop to the situation,
for
it tells of a
afrai d to tell
hi s
son
father
(Vi rocana)
(Prahlada)
an uncomfortabl e
Virocana's rival Sudhanvan is better than he. father,
Kasyapa.
who
is
truth:
Prah1ada's own
advises him to speak plainly to his son.
Once again, an ancillary story serves to elevate the troubles of one family to a matter of cosmic importance.
The story
presents the di ffi cul ti es of the par:-<:Iava-Kaurava ri val ry as an instance
of
(represented
the by
ever-raging Prah13da
battle
and
between
Virocana)
the
and
asuras de vas
the
(represented by Sudhanvan). This small but very diverse set of ancillary stories in the sabh.parvan illustrates some of the principal features of this material in the epic.
Most of the ancillary stories seem
consciously intended to invest this story of a civil war with cosmic
meaning
thought.
as
mi s'fortu nes
cou 1 d
articulated
1 i tera 11 y
The conf1 i ct in whi ch
universe.
between
significance
in
Vedic
"The Assembly Hall of the Deities" alerts us that
Yudh i sth i ra ' s
shou 1 d
and
be
understood
gods
and
as a
delRons
hi s
sk; rmi sh (It Exchange
destabi 1 i ze
fam; 1 y
is
embroi 1 ed
in the eterna 1 Between
the
battle
Prah 1 ada
and
193
.
Ka6yapav1 )
.
Yudhi s. t h i r a
has
the
p o t e n t i a1
to
achieve
e x t r a o r d i n a r y f a v o r w i t h t h e gods d u r i n g t h e s t r u g g l e ("King HariGcandraf'). b u t he must understand t h a t h i s a c t i o n s w i l l have
rami f ic a t i ons
W i sdom" )
far
beyond
h is
own
fami 1y
("Kavyaf s
.
Other s t o r i e s i n t h i s book draw upon a stock o f legend and f a b l e which seem v e r y we1 1 known t o t h e e p i c t s audiences. both t o e x c o r i a t e and to educate ( " H y p o c r i t i c a l
Goose,
"
and
"The B i r d s That Spat Goldt'). C l e a r l y t h e anci 1 l a r y s t o r i e s in t h e sabhaparvan a r e p u t t o q u i t e d i f f e r e n t use t h a n those i n t h e adfparvan. whole,
On t h e
the s a w s t o r i e s e x p l a i n t h e s i t u a t i o n i n which the
PSndavas and Kauravas f ind themsel ves by a s c r i b i ng cosmi c 0
.
s i gni f icance t o i t and reveal ing a n c i e n t precedents f o r i t
.
Just as i n t h e 9di. t h e assumption u n d e r l y i n g t h e use o f t h e stories
i s that
t h e p a s t explains
t h e present,
but
what
requires e x p l a n a t i o n i s d i c t a t e d by t h e u n f o l d i n g war s t o r y
a n d perhaps t h e i n t e r e s t s o f d i f f e r e n t e p i c compilers. D.
Wanyakaparvan
.
T h i s p a r v a n t e l l s o f t h e Pandavase twelve-year e x i 1 e.
They move from hermitage t o hermi tage,
many d i scornforts and some dangers. rescued i n s h o r t order. with
a female demon
important a l l y father,
Vayu.
forest
encounteri ng
Draupadi is abducted, b u t
Bhima begins a sexual r e l a t i o n s h i p
and f a t h e r s a
i n t h e war.
Wma
child
who w i l l
be
an
a l s o meets h i s d i v i n e
and b r o t h e r Hanuman -in a t r i a l o f s t r e n g t h .
194 Yudhi~~hirats
his ancestor.
character is tested in a trial of knowledge with Nahu~a
Ki ng
who.
Yudhisthira in the form of a proves hi s process.
mett1 e
under a
cu rse,
boa constrictor.
meets
Yudhisthira
and rescues Bhima from the snake in the
While Arjuna journeys to Indrats heaven to acquire
divine weapons that the hi s
wh i 1 e
wi fe and
four
Pa~~avas
will need in the coming war,
brothers are gui ded on
a
pi 1 gri mage
to
sacred si tes in llryaVarta. 20 The parvan contai os fi fty anci 11 ary stori es represent about
55
percent of
its
contents.
'I
and they
Thei r
broad
themes are Quite different from those in the lldiparvan. where intensive clustering of ancillary stories is also found.
One
story group focuses on the importance of supporting brahmans, another presents the tal es associ ated wi th site the par:-e;tavas visit,
and a third group
each pi 1 gri mage is told in one
storyte 11 i ng sessi on in Kamyaka Forest near the end of the forest exile.
A fourth group of stories occurs in an argument
between Draupadi and
Yudhi~~hira
about the relative merits of
aggressive action versus patience.
Each one adduces stories
to lend weight to his or her position during the course of the argument. The lldiparvan t s
anci 11 ary stori es large1 y
function to
20There i s another occasi on when a pi 1 gri mage journey parallels an extended episode of martial acts in the epic. namely when Ba1arama undertakes a pilgrimage along the Sarasvati Ri ver wh i 1 e the Mbh war is bei ng waged. See my discussion of the §alyaparvan in this chapter for some brief remarks.
195
c h a r a c t e r i ze t h e k s a t r f y a c l an whose f o r t u n e s we f o l 1ow i n t h e e p i c i n i n t i m a t e r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h Bhargava brahmans, and t o e s t a b l ish t h a t
thei r difficulties
d i s c o m f i t us, consonant
however much t h e i r mutual t r o u b l e s shock and
w it h
eternal
cosmic processes.
s t o r i e s a r e more d i v e r s e , s i n g l e p o i n t o f view. c i rcumstances :
a r e p r o p e r l y understood as The
aranyaka* s
l e s s intended t o persuade us of
a
Most o f the s t o n e s c l u s t e r under t h r e e
Lomasaw s
p i 1 grimage
t a l es
t o 1d
.
to
the
..
s s t o r y t e l l ing sessi on w i t h t h e Pandavas Pandavas, Mmkandeya' * i n D v a i t a F o r e s t , and f o u r s t o r i e s t o l d i n t h e course o f an argument between Rraupadi and Yudhi s t h i r a . below, the
As I w i 11 discuss
.
both t h e Lomasa and Mmkandeya groups o f s t o r i e s show *
Mbh's
editors
at
work,
making a case,
in
the
former
instance, t h a t p i l g r i m a g e is a p o t e n t means o f acqui r i n g t h e know1edge and s p i r i t u a l m e r i t which c o n t r i b u t e t o achi e v i ng m o k s a , and,
i n t h e l a t t e r instance,
who a c t s d h a r m i c a l l y .
t h a t a brahman i s anyone
(This l a t t e r position i s traceable t o
t h e e a r l y Upanisads, and i s t h e r e f o r e p a r t o f Vedic thought. ) P i l o r i m a a e Tales
.
The s t o r i e s Lomasa t e l l s as he leads Yudhi s t h i r a . Bhima, Nakul a, Sahadeva, and Draupadi on a p i 1g r i mage c i r c u i t through t h e Himalayas ( s t o r i e s 14 through 33) c o n s t i t u t e 40 percent o f the
ancillary
material
in
this
parvan.
Thei r
r e 1 ig i ous
a c t i v i t y seems intended t o para11e l A r j u n a gs p i lg r i mage, f o r it
is
Indra
who
sends
Lornasa t o
the
i n s t r u c t i o n t h a t they t r a v e l with the
.
PSndavas *
with
the
r s* i w h i l e Arjuna i s
196
away.
The expl i c i t purpose of t h e i r pilgrimage,
tapas f o r
t o g i r d themselves through We
3.89.18).
practice
of
further
note the
pilgrimage
performance o f
Vedic
i s
an
however,
t h e coming war
(Mbh
MtWs a s s e r t i o n t h a t effective
sacrifices,
for
those
the
alternative who
is
lack
to the
..
requi s i t e f in a n d a1 resources (as t h e Pandavas c e r t a i n l y do, after
having
lost
their
kingdom),
and
can
be
even
more
benefi c i a1 than s a c r i f ices (Mbh 3.80.35-40). Most s t r i k i n g about t h i s c l u s t e r o f s t o r i e s i s how i t
.
seems t o represent f o r t h e Pandavas an evocation of characters and events t h a t populate e a r l i e r Vedic 1it e r a t u r e .
Through
LomaSaBs s t o r i e s , these k s a t r i y a s journey t o p l aces where gods and demons have waged t h e i r e t e r n a l b a t t l e , where famous kings have commi s s i oned e l a b o r a t e s a c r i f ices,
and where 1egendary
r s, f s earned t h e esteem o f t h e PSndavas1 ancestors. '
for
the
epic,
the
cumulative e f f e c t
of
these
And so,
pilgrimage
..
n a r r a t i v e s i s t o deepen t h e Pandavas* fami 1ia r i t y w i t h and respect f o r values which a r e presented, on t h e one hand,
as
fully
as
consonant
w i t h a n c i e n t ways,
and,
on t h e
other,
producing spi r i t u a l b e n e f i t s t h a t s u b s t i t u t e f o r some o f those ancient ways.
No matter,
i t seems,
t h a t t h e PSndavas do n o t .'
prepare f o r war by undertaki ng elaborate s a c r i f i c e s (which i n t h e i r impoverishment t h e y have no means t o conduct i n any
case).
They g a i n m e r i t through t h e i r arduous and reverent
journey, a journey recommended by I n d r a himself, and one t h a t transforms the-ir p e r c e p t i o n o f t h e i r physical environment by
197
making i t come a l i v e w i t h t h e past. I think,
It i s f o r these reasons,
t h a t t h e Mbh's compilers t r o u b l e d t o enumerate such
a wealth of s t o r i e s when t h e y might have e l e c t e d t o abbreviate
t h i s p o r t i o n o f t h e parvan. have presented a
Arjunar s adventures might seem t o
more dramatic
opportuni t y
for
narrative
devel opment (and he does recount h i s own adventures a t 3.163after
3.171
anci 1 l a r y another
being
r e u n i t e d with
stories o f
way
d i gressi ve
the to
epic's anchor
compilers thei r
representations o f t h e p a s t consonant v iews
--
family).
t h e pilgrimage appear
i n which materi a1
his
w i t h precepts,
practices.
to
the
reveal
yet
used seemingly
story
--
But
secure1y
to
i n t h e compi l e r s r
and " h i s t o r i c a l l * events
sanctioned by t h e Veda. The Session w i t h Markandeva . These t h i r t e e n anci 1 l a r y s t o r i e s c o n s t i t u t e 26 percent o f t h e parvan1 s s t o r y m a t e r i a1 t h e pilgrimage t a l e s episodes o f d e i t i e s , explicitly
.
They are superf i c i a1 1y a k i n t o
i n general content, r s i s and famous kings. #
i d e n t i f i e d as one s t o r y t y p e
upakhyanas , two kathas, t h r e e undesignated).
for
they
recount
Most of them are or
another
(four
one itih-a.
one samvada, one gatha,
I n t h i s way,
they c o n t r a s t w i t h t h e
p i lgrimage s t o r i e s , most o f which t h e e p i c does n o t e x p l i c i t l y label
as
any
particular
story
type,
but
this
may
be
insignificant. The MZrkandeya s t o r y structure,
cluster
seems t o
have a
unique
f o r t h e r e t h e r e l a t i o n s o f brahmans w i t h d e i t i e s
198
and w i t h k s a t r f y a s are expl ored 1ike f a c e t s o f a s i ng1e jewel a11 t o t h e purpose,
,
of a s s e r t i n g t h e i r profound
I be1 ieve,
mutual interdependence The
s t o r i es
Yudhi s t. h i r a ' s
.
f01 1ow
encounter
with
h is
ancestor, K i rig Nahusa, whom Agastya had cursed t o remain a boa c o n s t r i c t o r u n t i 1 he found sameone t o answer h i s questions correctly. encounter,
The
stakes a r e
although u n t i l
danger t o h i s b r o t h e r *
high
far
in
this
t h e end he i s o n l y aware o f t h e
Oharma requires t h a t he rescue h i s
ancestor and r e t u r n him t o heaven, Bhima,
.
Y u d h i.s t h i r a
whom t h e snake w i l l
f a i 1s t h i s t e s t o f knowledge.
b u t he must a l s o rescue
.
presumably k i 11 i f Yudh*sthira And t h e t r u t h t h a t Yudhisthi ra * .
u t t e r s i s t h a t brahmans a r e known by t h e i r deeds, not by t h e i r b i r t h (Mbh 3.177.15-23). The view t h a t conduct i s t h e t r u e determi n m t o f varna i s q u i t e Fami 1 i a r
to t h e e p i c s b u t o f course anathema t o e a r l y
Vedic v i e w s { c h a l I enged in 1a t e Vedi c times by t h e Upanfsads). The Mbh' s compi l e r s present i t as a s o r t o f h i gher know1edge
t o which
presumably
few
a r e privy,
but
Oharma@sown
son
l i t e v a l l y saves b a t h h i s ancestor and h i s s i b 1 i n g by u t t e r i n g it.
.
It seems t o m e t h a t Markandeyals s t o r y c l u s t e r follows d i r e c t l y from t h i s a s s e r t i o n o f Yudhi s t h i r a t s,
4 nterveni ng parvan C3.179)
.
a1though t h e
t e l l s us t h a t a f t e r t h e in c i d e n t
..
w i t h Nahusa, t h e Pandavas moved t o Ovaita F o r e s t on t h e banks o f t h e SarasvatZ River, and t h e r e were v i s i t e d by Markandeya. * .
199
I think
is
it
no
coincidence
that
identi fied as a Bhsrgava {Mbh 3 l8l.Sl),
a
brahman* hefe
recounts t o a k s a t r i y a
.
of t h e Paru c l a n {Yudhisthira and h i s fami 1y) a series o f s t o r i e s ir~ which t h e behavior o f brahinans , paradigmatic human r o l e models8 i s examined.
I n the f i r s t
section o f t h i s
chapter (on t h e &fiparvan s t o r i es) , I discussed t h e BhZIrgavas and Pauravas, anomalous clans o f brahmans and ksatr+yas whose
own behavior i n the e p i c c a l l s i n t o questian t r a d i t i o n a l d e f in i t i o n s o f proper behavior f o r t h e i r respecti ve warnas.
..
Through Markandeya s s t o r i es, a 0hSrgava places the issue of
the
effects of
traditional
Vedic
good
and bad conduct
mainstream.
.
With
squarely
the
voice
jn
the
of
the
..
i1I u s t r i OMS brahmarsi Markandeya* who has 1ived 1anger than *
anyone e l se except BrahmS [Mbh 3 I 8 6 2 )
t h e epic ' s compi lers
selected t h i r t e e n s t o r i e s on the nature o f conduct (karma)* o r a c t i ons, whi ch they presented as trad4 ti anal 1ore (upakhyana8
itfhasa* etc.
)
.
A s a group t h e s t o r i e s address the reciprocal
r e l a t i o n s OT brahmans w i t h d e i t i e s and w i t h ksatrfyas. can be schematized as f o l lows.
(The number o f t h e story is
noted i n brackets.) tapas aakes brahmans invincible [I]
. brahaan helps ksatriya [2] . deity helps brahaan 131; brahma~helps deity [4]; brahman helps deities [S] . brahaan prevails i n conflict with ksatriya [6]; . brahaan helps ksatriya [ I ] ; ksatriya helps brahman [8]
. fa11en brahman helps brahaan [Â 4 101
They
200
. brahmaa helps deities [I? 1;
bratiwa helps deities LIZ]; deity disguised as bratiam kelps d e i t i e s [I31
The rough symmetry of t h e s t o r y c l u s t e r t o p i c s suggests t h a t t h e e p i c as compi l e r s have used the technique o f embedding
that
Witzel
and M i nkowski
p r i n c i p1es o f Vedic r i t u a l
associated
with
the
structural
The s t r u c t u r e o f t h i s c l u s t e r
warrants more extensive study than 1 w i 11 undertake heres b u t a few p o i n t s may be noted. W5th the exception o f one s t o r y a t t h e center o f
.
the
a1 1 twelve o f t h e s t o r i e s recount
c l u s t e r (mandokapakhyana)
t h e mutual assistance o f brahmans and k s a t r i y a s , brahmans and
dei t i es
or
brahmans
and
brahmans.
Thi s
general
theme
resonates s t r o n g l y i n t h e Sranyakapar~an~ f o r n o t only do some o f t h e parvanas in t r o d u c t o r y anci 11ary s t o r i es address t h e importance o f
supporti ng brahmans (Vanakal s Advice on t h e
Dangers o f Passion, o f Brahmans
"
Vhaumyaas Advi ce Concerni ng t h e Support
and etBali and t h e Brahmans1'), b u t i t opens w i t h
..
episodes i n which Yudhisthi r a expresses shame and anguish a t his inability t o
followed forest*
support t h e throng OF brahmans t h a t
h i s party
.
from
Indraprastha t o
t h e edge o f
has the
.
MSrkandeya appears t o recount t o t h e PZndavas a s e t
o f t r a d i t i o n a l s t o r i e s on a broadly t r a d i t i o n a l t o p i c :
the
Wn t h e O r i g i n o f t h e L i t e r a r y Device 2 ' ~ i c h a e 1W i t z e l o f t h e 'Frame S t o r y e i n Old Xndian Literature,'' i n Harry Fa1 k s ed.# Hfnduismus und Buddhismus. F e s t s c h r i f t fur- U7rfch S c h e i d e r [ F r e i burg: Hedwi g Fa1k s 1987), 3 B O - 4 l 4 ; M i chael W itzel ItJB Pul pa1an5 : The S t r u c t u r e o f a Brahmans Ta1e st1 in D r . B e R . Sbarma F e l i c i t a t i o n Voluine ( T i r u p a t i * I n d i a : 189-216; M i nkowski Kendri ya Sanskri t Vidyapeethas 1Q86) Janamejayal s S a t t r a and R i tua1 Structure.
201
e a r t h 1y
and
cosmic
benefits
r e l a t i o n s h i p s w i t h others.
brahmans
OF
positive
But t h e immediate context o f h i s
.
t h i r a t h a t re-deFi nes s t o r i es contains a d i s c l o s u r e by Yudhi s . who brahmans are.
On t h e n a r r a t i v e l e v e l , the message here
.
may be t h a t the Pandavas can d i s t i n g u i s h themselves from the4 r Kaurava
contestants
for
power
if
they
demonstrate
their
s u p e r i o r i t y by emu1a t i ng t h e behavior o f c e r t a i n brahmans the rhetorical level, that
moral
conduct,
and
in
exc1u s i ve
b i r t h - r i ght
venerable
r. s. f ,
lore,
these s t o r i e s seem intended t o a s s e r t
s p i r it u a l
codified
authority
rules
of
of
s i ng1e
a
derive
dharma,
f ram
and
c1ass.
and s t r u c t u r e d t o ideas
actually
no older
that
not
Voiced
s c h d ars
l a t e Vedic
the
by
a
traditional
mimic t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n o f
contemporary
than
v i rtuous
are
i d e n t i f i e d as various types o f
r i t u a l s,
On
be13 eve
(Upanisadic)
age-old to
times
be are
presented as j u s t as o l d as they can p o s s i b l y be. Yudhi s. t. h i r a s and Draunad:
s Araument
Another group o f f o u r s t o r i e s contained i n t h i s parvan p r o v i d e s s t i 11 another example o f t h e r h e t o r i c a l f u n c t i o n s o f a n d 11a r y materi a1 Prahl ada P a t i ence,
and tf
h is
epi c
in t h e Grandson,
("The
Conversat ion between
Bal i Vai rocana,
tt
''Kagyapa
on
'@The Capri c i ous D e i t y Dhztr , and V a t e , Chance and
Human Agency
lt
1
.
Thi s ~ r o u pis s i m i 1a r t o another
in t h e
adfparvan t o l d d u r i ng t h e course o f an argument between PZndu and Kunt5.
Here4 Draupad:
..
urges Yudhi s t h i r a t o seek revenge
agai n s t t h e Kauravas immediately,
b u t Yudhi s t i r a advocates
patience.
She appeals t o the author4 t y o f Brhaspati , the
much-admi red asura Prahl ada, and Yudhi sthi r a ' s r e t o r t re1ies
'.
on t h e sage KaSyapa. resolved
The disagreement i s n o t
explicitly
.
a1though of course Yudhi s t h i r a t s p o s i t i o n prevai 1s
since the b r o t h e r s do l i v e out the4 r f u l l thirteen-year e x i l e , as they had agreed t o do* M i scel 1aneous Stories
Some o f t h e best known a n d 11a r y stories o f t h e Mbh occur in t h i s parvan:
t h e s t o r i e s o f Ma1a and DamayantZ a o f RZfma
DSSarathas and o f SavitrZ.
A1 1 three are t o l d t o console
Yudhisthira i n h i s t i m e o f hardship and p r i v a t i o n *
Others
have considered t h e s i g n i f i c a n c e o f these s t o r i e s i n the epic Each i s a r i c h and marvelous s t o r y r ig h t
,
the
narrative
subtly elaborating
unfolding war note,
someti mes apparent1y quest*oni ng
presentation
of
s t o r y J but I w i l l
however,
that
as
i n i t s own
a
ideas
and
events
in
not discuss them here.
group
they
seem
to
the
f
explore
i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s OF Draupadi s behavior i n the e p i c on a cosmic
I eve1
.
The s t o r i es o f 1 o n ~ - s u f f e rng i women [OamayantZ ,
Savi t r i }
t o my
m i nd
transmute
Draupadi s
experi ence
Sitas into
2 2 ~the n Na1a s t o r y : B i ardeau, W a l a e t Oarnayanti , Heros Morton Smith "The Story o f Nala i n t h e Epiquestf; R . MahabhZrata, t1 Journa 1 o f the U r i e n t a 7 I n s t i t u t e of Baruda 9 # No. 4 [June 1960) : 357-386* On t h e RZfma s t o r y : V . S. Sukthankar 'rEpic Studies VEIL The Rama Episode [RamopakhySna) and t h e Rarnayana*@' i n A V d u m e of Studfes Presented t e P r o f . P. W . Kane oh h f s 6 f s t Ojrthdays eds. S M. Katre and ?. V . Gade 4 7 2 ~ 4 8 7Poona: ~ Oriental Book Agency 1941 ; J. A. 0 . van Bui tenen * * I n t r o d u c t on, i i n The Mahabharata, The Book o f t h e Fofestm On the S a v i t r i story: Brad Weiss Wedi ations i n t h e M y t h o f SSvi t r Z ''
.
203 mani f e s t a t i o n s o f goddesses ' r o l e s d u r i ng t h e dangerous time o f t r a n s i t i o n between world eras. The s t o r y summaries i n Chapter 3 i n c l u d e several this
parvan
that
do
not
fit
the
working
from
definition
of
anci 1l a r y s t o r i e s I use i n t h i s study (Whima's Slaying o f the Demon K i rani r a w and "How Arjuna Acqui red D i v i ne Weaponsw). have noted them.
I
however, because i t i s so important to bear
i n m i n d t h a t o n l y context determines what
i s o r i s n o t an
Vai Sampayana cat 1s h i s account o f A r juna ' s
anci 11ary s t o r y .
adventures a k a t h a ( 3 . 3 9 . 1 ~ and 3.39.8b),
as does Vidura when
.
he t e l l s D h r t a r a s t r a o f Bhimats e x p l o i t s ( 3 . 1 2 . 2 ) .
This f a c t
reminds us t h a t t h e Mbh was c a r e f u l l y composed from a vast stock o f o r a l materi a1
.
That i t achieved a r e l a t i v e l y f i x e d
form b e t r a y i n g an i n t e n s i v e and consistent e f f o r t t o make i t appear
as
a composition
fully
congruent
with
be1i e f s and
p r a c t i c e s o f t i m e l e s s a u t h o r i t y i s what i n t e r e s t s me most i n t h i s study.
E.
vf rataparvan
The v i r a t a p a r v a n covers the one year p e r i o d d u r i n g which Draupadi and t h e PSndavas must 1i v e i n c o g n i t o .
I t contains
on1y one a n d 11a r y s t o r y , whi ch I have c a l l ed "Famous Fai t h f u l Wives." A s i n t h e case o f some other anci 1 l a r y s t o r i e s , t h i s very
b r i e f one o f seven verses occurs when one character (Bhima) i s t r y i n g t o persuade another (Draupadi) t o a c e r t a i n course o f action.
..
The PSndavas a r e 1iving i n d i s g u i s e as servants o f
204 K i ng V i r Z t a .
Draupadi has been humi li a t e d by Kicaka, marshal
of K i ng V i r Z t a t s army. by
k i ll-i ng Kicaka,
When she demands t h a t Bhima avenge h e r
Bhima t r i e s
t o - dissuade h e r w i t h
the
examples o f f o u r o t h e r v i r t u o u s and f a i t h f u l women who had s a c r i f iced great1y f o r t h e i r husbands: NZdSyani , S i t &
and LopamudrS.
SukanyZ,
Indrasena t h is
But Draupadi r e j e c t s
appeal t o stridharma and i n s i s t s t h a t ksatrfyadharma demands t h a t Bhima address t h i s e s c a l a t i n g danger t o h e r t o t h e i r family
--
before i t i s t o o l a t e .
- and
thus
Bhima r e l e n t s and
k i l l s Kicaka. This story,
more an a l l u s i o n t o f o u r o t h e r s t o r i e s t h a n
a f u l l n a r r a t i v e , shows once a g a i n t h e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c tendency o f t h e Mbh t o appeal t o t r a d i t i o n when questions r e q u i r i n g an in t e r p r e t a t i o n o f dharma a r i se.
counsel s patience,
Bhima (uncharacteri s t i c a l ly)
f o r t h e t h i r t e e n t h year has n e a r l y ended.
Draupadi r e t o r t s t h a t i t i s n o t h e r behavior b u t Kicaka's t h a t is a t iissue, and t h e r e f o r e Bhima must act. F
.
udyogaparvan
The e n t i r e udyogaparvan i s concerned w i t h n e g o t i a t i o n s between Duryodhana and t h e PSndavas over t h e r e s t o r a t i o n o f half
the
kingdom
anci 11a r y s t o n e s ,
to
the
..
PSndavas.
I t c o n t a i ns
fourteen
t e n o f w h i ch a r e c l u s t e r e d in an extended
argument w i t h Duryodhana about h i s d e s i r e t o go t o war. ancillary
stories
categories,
in
this
book
discussed below.
D i ssuadi na Duryodhana
fall
into
four
The broad
205
In a final collective effort to dissuade Duryodhana from going to war, Kanva, Narada.
Bhi~ma,
Vidura,
and Kunti speak in turn,
K~~~a.
:~i
Rama Jamadagnya. the
although of
course ultimately to no avail. When
the Kauravas
servi ng as an envoy)
assembl ed
to
hear
report the Pandavas'
(who
Sa~jaya
is
demands and the
strength of their forces, the male elders united to convince Duryodhana (and arguments
Kar~a)
unfold
in
once
to
interrupted
that war would be disastrous. an
extended
give
Krsna
story-telling an
Their
session.
opportunity
to
seek
permission from the pandavas to make a formal plea for peace. and once again when Duryodhana storms out of the assembly. Bhi ~ma tell s the fi rst story. IfNara and the group; s sti 1 1 di gesti ng underscore that warning,
Sa~j
Bhi~ma
Naraya~a
aya' s strong words.
I" wh; 1 e As if to
reveals through a story about
Brahma that Arjuna and Krsna are in fact the asura-sl ayers Nara and
Naraya~a.
They had helped Indra defeat the asuras
and had now been reborn to destroy the Kurus.
Yet again. in
the stroke of a story, we are told that the impending battle is not unique, but part of the eternal oscillation of dharma and
adharma
mythol ogi zed
demons and deities. Once agai n, c 1 aim that
in
ever-recurr; ng
Once again, the battle will
the dei ti es wi 11 the
the
Pandavas
are
wi n.
battl e
of
be joined.
Duryodhana rejects the
anyth i ng
but
ordi nary
human
enemies, and so other influential voices take up the case. Vidura makes the second attempt to dissuade Duryodhana
206
w i t h a simple, c a u t i o n a r y f a b l e ("The Fowlerw) and a r e p o r t o f a personal experience meant t o d e t e r Duryodhana from c o v e t i ng ) what was u n a t t a i nab1e t o him ("The Honey o f Immortal ityl@
The
assembly
of
elders
disbanded
...
reconvened t o hear Krsna's p l e a f o r peace. Jzmadagnya t o l d o f
the
for
a
time,
.
then
Fol lowing it, Rama
k i n g whose excessive p r i d e n e a r l y
destroyed him ('%tory o f Dambhodbhavanm). Here t h e behavior of
former
kings
i s
invoked
to
warn
Duryodhana
against
commi tti ng t h e same m i stakes. The r* s' i
Kanva f o l l o w s w i t h
"The Story o f
M a t a l i ," a
curious t a l e o f snakes and b i r d s i n which t h e mighty Garuda acknowledges
.
V i snu ' s
superiority.
Through
this
story,
Duryodhana is equated w i t h Garuda, who must acquiesce a1though t e c h n i c a l l y wronged by I n d r a when t h a t d e i t y granted a s p e c i a l
.
This s t o r y appears t o be
p a r t o f an e f f o r t t o account f o r
Krsnats importance i n t h e .
favor t o h i s charioteer,
Matal i
..
e p i c , f o r i t c l e a r 1y suggests t h a t Visnu's might i s formidable a
in d i v i ne a f f a i rs,
.
so how much moreso in human ones?
Next, Narada t e l l s t h e very long (eighteen adhyayas) and q u i t e complex s t o r y o f GZlava,
a bratmacarin who s e t s o f f on
a long quest i n an e f f o r t t o f i n d a p a r t i c u l a r g u r u ' s g i f t (800 white horses, each w i t h one black ear) t o end h i s s e r v i c e
t o the a s c e t i c V i 6vami t r a . great d i f f i c u l t i e s ,
Gal avass stubbornness 1eads t o
b u t u l t i m a t e l y t o a qua1 if i e d success.
Nevertheless, N3rada uses t h e s t o r y i n h i s attempt t o dissuade Duryodhana from a s i m i l a r l y stubborn course o f a c t i o n .
207 The concerns o f t h i s
although
they
are
s t o r y a r e anything b u t m a r t i a l ,
distinctly
royal,
and
therefore
its
appl ic a t i o n t o t h e immediate s i t u a t i o n w i t h Duryodhana i s not
.
r e a d i 1y obvious 23 Galava
and
I t may be,
Duryodhana,
the
however, t h a t by associating epic
authors
invited
an
in t e r p r e t a t i o n of Duryodhanat s a c t i v i t i e s t h a t is a t odds w i t h t h e strong disapproval heaped upon him i n t h i s segment o f t h e
narrative.
Some
o b s e r v a t i ons
about
G 3 l ava * s
story
w i 1l
in d i cate t h e d i r e c t i on o f in t e r p r e t a t i o n I suggest *
We note i n t h e s t o r y t h a t t h e b r a h a c a r i n Gaiava o n l y o b t a i n s t h e needed guru's g i f t by i n s t i g a t i n g and supervising a s e r i e s o f sexual r e l a t i o n s h i p s between t h e p r i n c e s s Madhavi
.
(ancestor o f t h e Kauravas and PZndavas) and f o u r kings. t h e process,
Madhavi ensures t h e c o n t i n u a t i o n of
In
the l u n a r
dynasty, f o r i t i s her f o u r sons who w i 11 e v e n t u a l l y a s s i s t her f a t h e r and t h e i r grandfather, Yayati , t o r e t a i n h i s place i n heaven.
Despite V i 6v-i
t r a v s annoyance w i t h GZlava, i t i s
t h e brahmacarin1 s p e r s i stence t h a t ensures an important and p r o d u c t i ve outcome.
Gal ava o b t a i ns most o f t h e hard-to-f ind
g u r u ' s g i f t , b u t he does so through a l l i a n c e s w i t h ksatrfyas who,
i n exchange Clearly,
for
the
horses
GZlava seeks,
get
sons.
t h i s s t o r y r e q u i r e s much more c a r e f u l study t o
determine why and how i t came t o be included i n t h i s c l u s t e r . King. A1 f Dumezi I, The D e s t i n y o f a trans. Chicago: U n i v e r s i t y o f Chicago Press. 1973. O r i g i n a l l y pub1 ished as p a r t t h r e e o f Mythe e t Epopee, v o ? . 2: Types Epiques Indo-Europeens: Un Heros, un Sorcfer, un Roi. E d i t i o n s Gallimard, 1971. %eorges
H i 1t e b e i t e l
,
208 I n t e l l ing it. Narada has associated Duryodhana w i t h GSlava.
and on t h e face o f i t rebukes both men f o r t h e i r stubbornness. Y e t Gal ava performs a c r u c i a1 s e r v i c e t o r o y a l t y i n t h e s t o r y
and, r e c i p r o c a l l y , gift.
r o y a l t y enables him t o o b t a i n h i s g u r u ' s
Are t h e e p i c s authors perhaps g i v i n g us another way t o
look
at
Gal ava?
Duryodhana' s
association
with
Are t h e y suggesti ng t h a t Duryodhana' s e l ders,
1 ike
ViSvZmitra,
r o l e through
this
f i n d him a convenient v e h i c l e f o r d i f f i c u l t b u t
necessary work ( t r a n s f e r o f k i ngshi p ) whi ch invol ves 1ia i sons between a p r i n c e s s (Draupadz) and some k i n g s ( t h e PZndavas). . work from which t h e y want t o d i s s o c i a t e themselves l e s t t h e y incur i m p u r i t y ?
I n t h e background OF t h e s t o r y 1 i e t h e issues
varnasamkara [ t h r o u g h V i 6vSmi t r a * s parentage)
of
and o t h e r
i r r e g u l a r p r a c t i c e s associated w i t h Bhargavas and Pauravas which would c e r t a i n l y bear c l o s e r examination.
...
Fol lowing Narada's s t o r y , Krsna t e n s two. done,
he
i n c l udes
Duryodhana t h a t he,
B h o j a t s Son").
one
personal
Krsna, .,.
His
e x p e r i ence.
As Vidura had He
warns
i s a dangerous adversary ("King
second
story
("The
Binding
of
the
danavasw) i s a c t u a l l y an appeal t o t h e e l d e r s t o i n t e r c e d e and
s t o p t h e coming b a t t l e , j u s t as P r a j Z p a t i d i d w i t h t h e demons and the gods. The session w i t h Duryodhana d o s e s w i t h Kunti ' s words t o Krsna, 9
.
'
words
he
w i l l
carry
to
her
sons
in
her
behalf.
A1 though they a r e n o t d i r e c t l y addressed t o Duryodhana, he i s meant t o hear them.
K u n t i t e l l s b o t h s t o r i e s whi l e she g i v e s
209
.
The f i r s t s t o r y
Krsna a message speci f i c a l l y f o r Yudhi s t, h i r a . * * .
("Earning t h e Right t o Rulem) gives t h e example o f Mucukunda, who
p r e f e r r e d t o win
r e c e i v i n g i t as Between Vidura
kingship through
a gift. and
Her
battle
The second s t o r y Sonm) i s
clearly
rather
than
("Conversation meant
to
rouse
Yudhi s t.h i r a t s f i g h t i n g spi r it. Consol ino Dhrtarastra * . Two o f t h e anci N a r y
stories i n the
udyogaparvan a r e
..
narrated t o Dhrtarastra by Vidura whi l e t h e aging k i n g 1i e s awake t h e n i g h t before t h e f i n a l counci 1 t h a t w i 11 decide i f w a r w i 11 be declared.
Both s t o r i e s a r e i d e n t i f i e d as a n c i e n t
h i s t o r i es, i t i h 3 s a puratana. The f ir s t s t o r y , Sudhanvan, of
'* n a r r a t e s
"The Conversati on Between V i rocana and a d i spute about t h e re1a t i v e s u p e r i o r i t y
d e i t i e s and demons.
Vidura a l s o t o l d t h e same s t o r y
another form d u r i ng the d i c i n g match (2.61 -56-61 - 8 0 ) .
in The
r i v a l s t a k e t h e i r dispute t o t h e a s w a Prahlada, known f o r h i s scrupulous
honesty,
and he
affirms,
s u p e r i o r i t y OF brahmans over demons.
i n this
version,
the
I n t e l l ing the s t o r y ,
..
Vidura exhorts Dhrtarastra t o be such a f a t h e r himself, t h a t is,
one who does n o t a l low a f f e c t i o n t o sway him from t h e
truth.
..
I n t h e f o l 1owi ng chapter, V i dura t e l l s D h r t a r a s t r a t h e
s t o r y "The Conversati on Between Atreya and t h e Sadhyas,
t*
in
.
which a group o f d e i t i e s seeks w i sdom from a r s i d i sgui sed as
a swan.
.
The rsi t e l l s them t h a t everyone should s t e a d f a s t l y
pursue dharma,
.
as Vidura exhorts D h r t a r a s t r a t o do by g i v i n g
21 0
t h e PSndavas a f a i r share of t h e kingdom.
Both s t o r i e s p o i n t
..
t h e d i s t r e s s e d D h r t a r a s t r a t o t h e d i s t a n t p a s t f o r guidance. As w i t h so many o t h e r a n c i l l a r y s t o r i e s i n t h e epic. advise t h e k i n g t o r e l y upon time-honored
these
moral t r u t h s ,
or
dharma, which have guided even d e i t i e s who needed advice. The two remaining a n c i l l a r y s t o n e s i n t h e udyogaparvan a r e exampl es o f another c h a r a c t e r i s t i c r h e t o r i c a l f u n c t i o n o f these n a r r a t i v e s i n t h e epic.
Both serve t o j u s t i f y
expl a i n d e c i sions t h a t a r e m o r a l l y ambiguous. the
Madras,
upakhyana,
tells to
the
"The
Story
of
Pandavas . and
.
Salya, king o f
Indrats
Krsna *
v
just
and
Victory," after
an
he
has
w i 11i n g l y agreed t o h e l p defeat Karna i n t h e coming b a t t l e .
(6a1ya w i 11 serve as Karna's c h a r i o t e e r , b u t w i 11 be1 it t l e him m e r c i l e s s l y t o ensure t h a t he l o s e s h i s confidence on t h e
battl e f ie l d. )
6a1ya
I n r e a s s u r i ng tones,
.
t e l l s t h e PSndavas
n o t t o worry, and t o bear i n mind t h a t t h e i r d i f f i c u l t i e s have d i v i n e precedents:
No l e s s a couple t h a n
I n d r a and Saci
s u f f e r e d d i f f i c u l t i e s i n t h e i r time. S a l y a t s account
of
Indrals
murder
of
Vrtra
and
the
brahman T r i 3 i r a s a d r o i t l y 1inks these crimes w i t h a subsequent usurpation o f I n d r a ' s r o l e as k i n g o f t h e gods by t h e human k i ng, Nahusa.
The gods had o n l y meant Nahusa t o serve as k i n g
o f t h e gods u n t i l t h e t r o u b l e over I n d r a t s murders could be
resolved and t h a t r i g h t f u l d i v i n e k i n g r e s t o r e d t o h i s throne.
.
But Nahusa g o t o u t o f hand, so t h e gods now had two problems t o solve.
W i t h V i snu s ass3 stance, a
I n d r a was f in a l 1y absolved
21 1
of h i s gui 1t. a p l a n was concocted t o depose Nahusa, and I n d r a w a s r e s t o r e d t o h i s throne. W e have here,
o f course,
a m i n i a t u r e v e r s i o n o f t h e Mbh
war, enacted on t h e cosmic stage. of
For t h e immediate purposes
Salya -is cast as Visnu,
t h e udyagaparvan,
without whose
assi stance I n d r a can n e i t h e r decei ve and destroy V r t r a nor regain
his
kingdom.
Yudhi s *t h i r a
beleaguered I n d r a and Saci, Vrtra,
and
Draupadi
o f course.
authors
of
the
Vedic mythology, udyogaparvan
have
the
Karna i s t h e asura
and Duryodhana t h e u p s t a r t Nahusa.
enormous s t o r e of
are
Drawing upon t h e
both e a r l y and 1ate. deftly
turned
the
Sal y a ' s
cheerful consent t o engage i n an i g n o b l e deception in t o y e t another a c t i n t h e cosmic b a t t l e o f demons and d e i t i e s which the e p i c i s audiences apparently knew so w e 1 1 .
..
Visnu
collude
to
defeat
their
enemies,
I f I n d r a and
suffering
ill
consequences which the performance o f an a p p r o p r i ate s a c r i f ice can expiate,
t h e t r o u b l i n g behavior o f good people can be
understood on t h e same model. confusing,
Dharma i s s u b t l e ,
and o f t e n d i f f i c u l t t o discern.
c o n f i d e n t l y guided,
But one can be
Salya assures h i s audience,
t h i s story o f I n d r a t s victory,
sometimes
by hearing
which measures up t o t h e Veda
{Mbh 5.18.16b).
The udyogaparvan c l oses w i t h a 1 engthy
story
of
~ r a b ~ . * ' It i s
prompted
by
upakhyana , t h e
Bhismans s t a r t l i n g
h he s t o r y contains a gita quoted by Bhxsma, which he a t t r i b u t e s t o t h e sage Marutta. Bhisma uses i t t o j u s t i f y r e f u s i ng a d i r e c t request o f h i s own guru, Rama Jmadagnya
--
212
announcement
that
he
engage
w i l l
any
warrior
except
S i khandin/%, daughter o f Orupada and s i s t e r o f Draupadi , who had become a man through a boon from Siva.
6 i khandi n, he t o l d
t h e Kauravas, was t h e very same Amba whom he had abducted w i t h her
two
sisters
Vicitravirya.
long
ago
as
brides
"for
his
brother
Although she had sworn t o k i 11 Bhisma f o r t h e
m i sfortune t h a t b e f e l l h e r To11owi ng t h e abducti on,
Bhisma
t o l d the Kauravas he would never v i o l a t e h i s vow n o t t o k i l l a woman. Although t h e n a r r a t i v e m o t i v a t i o n f o r t h i s s t o r y , so t o speak, i s t h e same as t h a t f o r t h e s t o r y OF I n d r a t s v i c t o r y , t h e two s t o r i e s are q u i t e d i f f e r e n t . t h e occasion f o r a flashback, character. In
Bhisma' s s t o r y provides
and confirms h i s t r u l y awesome
By honoring h i s vow. Bhisma w i l l i n v i t e h i s death.
a way,
the
story
heightens t h e
tragic
irony
sworn by a promi se t o h i s f a t h e r t o remain c e l ibate. who
w i l l
ksatriyadharma by enemy.
ultimately refusing
this
He is a w a r r i o r and householder
fundamental 1y c o n f l i c t e d man.
warrior
of
reject
to
fight
the
very
He i s a
essence
S i khandin,
his
of
sworn
He is a man born t o r u l e who abjures t h a t r i g h t o u t o f
deference t o a f a t h e r b l i n d e d by l u s t , b u t he is a would-be king
who
w i 11
prove
instruction
that
Yudhisthi ra, *
dharma incarnate.
Bhisma,
he
himself will,
a d u t y upheld a t
on
a
repository
his
deathbed,
precious impart
to
The dharma o f a man such as
t h e expense o f
a very s e r i ous transgression,
of
indeed
h i s own 1 i f e ,
is
213 surely
one
the
epic
compilers
wanted
their
audience
to
contemplate deeply, for it humanizes the anguish of choice and helps one
look squarely at its consequences and attend to
their echo from life to life. G.
bhi !!",aparvan
One can hardly discuss the
bhi~maparvan,
sometimes also
referred to as the first battle book, without saying something about the
8hagavadg~ til.
The Gi til i s an anc ill ary story as I Kr~~a
define them because the esoteric knowledge
conveys to
Arjuna therein is said to have an ancient lineage. transmitted from Vi vasvat to Manu to
Ik~vaku.
K~~r:'a
then to
(6.26.1).
Like other ancillary stories, it also gives insight into the cosmic meaning of the war, for it is, of course. a revelation of
K~~~a's
divinity to Arjuna, as well as esoteric instruction
meant to resolve the warrior's terrible dilemma. to fi ght and not to ki 11 fami 1 y members. obligation,
he will
violate the other.
;f
Obliged both
he chooses one
The Git:. instructs
Arjuna -- and the epic's audiences -- in the higher meaning of his terrible deeds. behave in this
It assures him that if he can manage to
situation as Krsna advises him to,
he will
behave dharmica11y in the "true" sense of duty. We should also note that the Mbh contains other gitlls, but
they
are
a
rather
Bhagavadgi til is un i que.
di verse
group
of
passages. 25
The
By the evi dence of i nte 11 ectua 1 s such
25Umesh Chandra Bhattacharj ee. "The Gi til Literature and Its Relation with Brahma-Vidyll." The Indian Historica1 Quarterly 2 (1926): 537-546; 761-771.
214 as
the Vedanti ns
~a"'kara.
Bhaskara.
and
R&manuja.
it
has
enjoyed independent authority as a religious text for many centuries.
Furthermore,
few
other
works
Bu i tenen has ca 11 ed "the suprascho 1 ast i c
have
what
van
or suprasectari an
re 1 evance of the Gi ta. ,,2S But havi ng made these remarks about the speci a 1 character of the
we
Bhagavadgita,
should
also
note
that
it
other
important things in common with many of the epic's ancillary stori es.
Van
teachings a
Bui tenen
k~a~rjya
poi nted
lineage.
out
Kr:-~~a
that
gives
hi s
It has been passed down from
Vi vasvat to Manu to I ksv&ku
Fu rthermore,
(6.26. 1 ) .
it is
ancient knowledge which was lost for a time, but now recovered Thus the Gi t8 is one examp 1 e of the use of the
(6.26.2-3) .27
hermeneutical strategy of recovery outlined in Chapter 2.
It
allowed
of
the
epic's
compilers
to
introduce
new
ways
understandi ng the nature and purposes of human exi stence whi 1 e denying their
novelty with
the claim that
they
recovered
valuable knowledge. Aside from the Bhagavadgita, the five ancillary stories contai ned
in
understanding
thi s of
parvan
the
do
general
stories in the epic as a whole. three
techniques
previously
not add
rhetorical
27 Ibi d.,
12.
new to
purposes
of
our the
As discussed below, they use observed
pedigree for the epic. 26 van Bu i tenen,
anythi ng
.. I nt roduct ion, II 6.
to
establish
Vedic
215 The dev3sura Confl ic t A r j una t e l l s t h e f i r s t , b r i e f s t o r y o f t h r e e verses a f t e r
.
Y u d h i s t h i r a has Arjuna
balked a t t h e s i g h t
o f the
Kaurava army.
reassures h i s b r o t h e r by r e c a l l i n g a s t o r y he once
heard about Brahma, who. w i t h t h e asuras,
when I n d r a was preparing f o r b a t t l e
had assured I n d r a t h a t t r u t h i s s u p e r i o r t o
might. V i snu-Kf. sna * . ' s A l l ies W i 1 1 T r i umnh
..
Two o f
.
Visnu,
the
bhismaparvan s t o r i e s
explaining t h a t
..
V i snu 's m a r t i a l career.
wins,
t h e Mbh war
identify
..
Kfsna
with
i s b u t one episode
in
..
Because he i s superior, V i snu always
and hence t h e outcome o f t h e Mbh war
i s a
foregone
concl u s i on.
.. f i r s t s t o r y t o Yudhi s .t h i ra.
The f ir s t v i g n e t t e o f t h i s type ( W i c t o r y Fol 1ows Krsna" ) '
f o l lows immediately a f t e r Arjuna's
.
H e reminds Yudhi s t h i r a t h a t they must w i n because,
gods,
t h e i r dharma i s superior and because Visnu, '
wins,
i s on t h e i r side.
1ike t h e
who always
Bhisma t e l l s Duryodhana t h e second e
.
s t o r y o f t h i s t y p e ("Why t h e PSndavas Could Not Be Defeatedw), .
..
expl a i n i ng t h a t t h e Pandavas are successful 1y vanqui s h i ng the
Kauravas f o r one reason:
..
Their b a t t l e i s Visnu's f u l fi1lment
o f an o l d promise t o Brahma t h a t he r e - e s t a b l i s h
dharma on
e a r t h when necessary.
R e v i v i na Foraotten ksatriyadharma
The
two
remaining
stories
explain
unusual
acts
by
c l a i m i n g t h a t t h e y stem from ancient b u t f o r g o t t e n p r a c t i c e s
216
Thus they are further examp1 es of the
of k!!atriyadharma.
hermeneutical strategy of recovery noted in Chapter 2. The fi rst case ; s a ben; gn one ("Payi ng One' s Respects Before Battle").
Before the battle commenced,
Yudhisthira
descended from his chariot and walked up to the Kaurava battle lines, formally requesting the permission of his teachers and family members to fight with them.
The Pandavas were amazed
and puzzled by this act. but Krsna applauded practice
that
assured
victory.
We
i~
are
as an ancient not
told
how
Yudhisthira came to know of the practice. The
second
Statement of Arj una to he1 p
case
is
k~atrj yadharma"
~i
more ) .
di sturbi ng
("B~haspati
•s
When the moment arri ved for
khandi n ki 11 Bhi ~ma. Arj una hes; tated to ki 11
his own grandfather.
Krsna reassured him that he would incur
no sin in doing so, and told how this lesson long ago:
A
k~a~riya
B~haspati
had taught Indra
must kill any enemy in times
of war. no matter who the enemy might be.
With this tacit
encouragement to act like Indra, Arjuna and Sikhandin killed Bhisma. H.
dro,}aparvan
The dro,}aparvan covers days e1 even through fi fteen of the eighteen-day war, commanded the
and describes the time during which
Kaurava arm; es.
Four of the
si x
Dro~a
anci 11 ary
stories found there are told to explain events that occur during
~he
battle as the result of a boon Siva granted to
someone long ago.
Another story accounts for a
particular
21 7
t u r n o f events by reference t o t h e devasura c o n f l i c t .
The
s i x t h s t o r y i s a c t u a l l y a verse, a git3 a t t r i b u t e d t o VSlmiki
,
which i s s a i d t o j u s t i f y merciless k i l l i n g o f an enemy. The predominant focus
on S i v a t h a t t h e s t o r i e s i n t h e
dronaparvan b e t r a y is unique t o t h i s segment o f t h e e p i c .
The
cumulative e f f e c t o f t h e s t o r i e s i s t o show $ i v a f s profound i n f l u e n c e on t h e b a t t l e .
He i s t h e o r i g i n a l source o f t h e
armor that makes Drona i n v i s i b l e ( " I n d r a g s Armorm). end, Drona i s deceived i n t o l e t t i n g down h i s guard, then i s he k i l l e d . )
(In the and on1y
S i v a g s boon t o a h u m i l i a t e d k s a t r i y a
reaches f u l f i l l m e n t d u r i n g t h i s b a t t l e when t h e Kaurava a l l y
.
BhUri 6ravas i nexpl icab1y succeeds in humi 1ia t i ng t h e Pandava a11y Satyaki
("Why BhOri Sravas Humi 1iated Satyaki If)
.
Vyasa
reported t h e f a c t t h a t ASvatthaman, Arjuna, and Krsna had a l l .
worshipped
6iva
in
many
past
lives
to
*
a
explain
why
ASvatthZman ' s in f a l 1ib l e narayana weapon had f a i 1ed t o k i 11 Bhima ("Why t h e narayana Weapon F a i 1edft)
.
A1though it i s n o t
e x p l i c i t l y stated, t h i s s t o r y imp1i e s t h a t Siva w i ll not a l l o w
h i s devotees t o k i 11 each other. contradicts the l a t t e r story,
*%va on t h e B a t t l e f i e l d "
however, by r e v e a l i n g t h a t t h e
stranger who stayed c l o s e t o Arjuna throughout t h e f i f t e e n t h
day o f
t h e war,
and who
encountered, was a c t u a l 1y
k i l l e d every
Kaurava w a r r i o r
S i va, determi ned t o p r o t e c t
he
A r juna.
The devasura c o n f l i c t i s a1so invoked through two o f t h e anci 11a r y s t o r i es t o expl a i n why v a r i o u s combatants a r e o r a r e not s t r u c k down as t h e Mbh war continues.
Krsna t e l l s Arjuna a
*
.
218
the fi rst story ("The va i snava Weapon") after he has stepped ;n
front
of Arjuna
va i snava weapon
that
to protect
him
from
Bhagadatta hu r 1 ed
the
blow of
at Ar j una.
explains that this is his very own weapon,
first
the
Krsna given to
goddess Earth's son. Naraka, to protect him from both sets of combatants in the dev.sura conflict.
Krsna recogn i zed the
weapon, and knew that it would kill Arjuna. The story "Indra's Armor," mentioned above, account for Orona's invulnerability in battle.
is told to Orona wears
the very armor Aiva had given Indra in order to ensure his success in the dev.sura conflict with
V~tra.
despite the fact
that Vrtra was ~iva's devotee. Siva's role in the Mbh has often received attention from scho 1 ars interested to exami ne the apparent 1 y sectari an natu re of the epic.
The e1 evati on of Krsna from
k~atriya
hero to
deity in the epic has occasioned many scholarly works. Siva'S role has proven harder to understand.
But
For the most
part, scholars have assumed that sections of the Mbh like the dro'!aparvan reflect the work of editors sympathetic to ~aivite
devotiona1ism. the epi c 's
Hi1tebeite1. however, in detailed studies of
my tho logy,
has argued
that
it portrays
subtle and interdependent relationship between than has generally been recognized. 28
~iva
a
more
and Visnu
With support from both
28 See Hiltebeite1. Ri'tua7 of Ba'tf:7e, and his series of articles published in Purus.rf:ha. (See the bibliography of th is di ssertat i on for detai l s.) Also. Jacques Scheuer. "~i va dans 1 e Mahabharata: l ' Hi stoi re 0' AmbK/~i khandi n." Puru§.rf:ha 2 (1975): 67-86. ..
219 Oumezi 1 I sand Bi ardeau' s historically from
work -- the
former
the Mbh to Indo-European
mythology,
1 atter 1 ooki ng forward from the epi c to the rejects views of the Mbh as either a ~a i vi te
work. 29
Notwithstanding
1 ooki ng back
Pura':las -- he
Vai~~avite.
the
fact
the
K~~~aite
that
the
or
Mbh
contains many interpolations that do appear to be sectarian. it consistently portrays
Vi~~u
and
~iva
as complementary. the
latter portrayed as a pervader. the former as an outsider who work together in complex ways to preside over the Mbh war. envisioned
as
a
potentially
destructive
sacrifice. 30
The
anci 11 ary stori es about ~i va ; n the dr0f;taparvan do not in isolation suggest a great deal. special
relationship
between
but they do point toward a
Dro~a
himself and
aiva which
woul d certai n1 y bear closer study. 31 I .
The
kar'!aparvan kar~aparvan
covers
events
on
the
seventeenth days of the Mbh war. during which genera 1 of Duryodhana' s army.
sixteenth Kar~a
and
serves as
The anci 11 ary stori es are found
29Georges Dumezi 1. The Stakes of the Warrior. trans. by David Weeks, ed. with an introduction by Jaan Puhve1. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. 1983. Originally published as part one of My~he et Epopee, vo7. 2: Types Epjques Indo-Europeens: Un Heros, un Sorcjer , un Raj. Editions Ga11imard. 1971. 30Hiltebeitel. Ritual of Ba't~1e, Chs. 12 and 14. 31Although he has not discussed any possible relationship between Orona and $iva. Hi1tebeite1 has examined the deaths of the four Kaurava generals (Bhisma, Orona. Karna. and $a1ya) in the Mbh's battle books for what those deaths ·revea1 about the representation of Yudhisthira as a prototypical flawed king.
220 i n four e l usters, each.
v a r y i n g i n l e n g t h from two t o e i g h t s t o r i e s
Three o f those c l u s t e r s a r e speci f i c a l l y concerned w i t h
S a l y a ' s unusual agreement t o serve as Karna's c h a r i o t e e r . The f i r s t group o f anci 11a r y s t o r i es ("How BrahrnS Became Rudrals Charioteerm and "Karna and Rama Jamadagnya's Weapons of
6 i vaw) are speci f ic a l l y
invoked in Duryodhana*s attempt t o
persuade t h e k S a t r i y a k i n g 6a1ya t o be c h a r i o t e e r f o r t h e sUta Karna.
I f Brahma,
s u p e r i o r t o a l l t h e gods,
d r i v e a subordinate's c h a r i o t ( 6 i v a )
had agreed t o
i n order t o d e f e a t t h e
asura Tmaka, sure1y Salya c o u l d serve t h e cause by p l a y i n g t h is
a l l -important,
but
subservi ent,
role
for
Karna.
Duryodhana also p l a n t s doubt about Karna's l o w s t a t u s through t h e s t o r y "Karna and Rama Jamadagnya's Weapons o f Siva,
It
in
which 6 i v a teaches Rama t h e use o f h i s c e l e s t i a l weapons f o r t h e dev&wra
R-a
conflict.
Rama,
i n turn,
teaches Karna.
Would
r e a l l y have t a u g h t a mere sOta t o w i e l d such weapons,
Duryodhana asks?
6alya r e l u c t a n t l y agrees t o h e l p Kama, b u t
on1 y when he i s given permission t o say whatever he pleases t o
Karna. The b u l k o f t h e anci 11a r y s t o r i e s i n t h i s parvan a r e p a r t
of
an
exchange o f
Msdrakas Excoriated,
.
i n s u l t s between
"
and Karna
"The S t o r y o f t h e Crow,
F r o m D h r t a r a s t r a l s Court8').
and t h e y contai n a
Salya
"
("The
and tlStories
Most o f them a r e c a l l e d kathas,
number o f derogatory s t e r e o t y p e s about
S a l y a ' s people (MSdrakas and VShikas) t h a t a r e presented as
common k n o w l e d g d 2
Salya r e t o r t s w i t h one s t o r y i n which he
compares Karna w i t h an arrogant crow who i s p u t i n h i s place. The t h i r d c l u s t e r o f s t o r i e s ("The Signs o f Dharmae8)i s
..
i n an e f f o r t t o calm A r j u n a f s murderous rage a t t o l d by Krsna . Yudhisthi r a over an i n s u l t . * '
The s t o r i e s show t h a t dharma
cannot be understood as a s e t o f r u l e s t h a t apply t o any and all
situations,
but
a
virtue
which
dictates
different
behaviors i n di W e r e n t s i t u a t i o n s .
The Salyaparvan takes p l a c e on the eighteenth and f i n a l day of t h e war, w i t h t h e ksatriya Salya s e r v i n g as marshal of t h e dwindl ing Kaurava army. ancillary stones.
The parvan c o n t a i n s two types o f
Most notable i s a l e n g t h y set o f twenty-
f i v e s t o r i e s which Ba1ar3ma (Krsna's b r o t h e r ) t e l l s about t h e *.. p i 1g r i mage he has j u s t completed a1ong t h e Sarasvati River There i s a l s o one verse,
.
c a l l e d a gita,
which p u r p o r t e d l y
quotes t h e rs7 . USanas on t h e dangers o f
reckless w a r r i o r s
(1 i k e Duryodhana) 6al arama s p i 1g r i mage s t o r i es are not a u n i que occurrence
.
i n t h e epic, f o r MSrkandeya t e l l s a lengthy s e t - o f them i n t h e Sranyakaparvan.
Bal arama s s t o r i e s d i f f e r from Markandeya . . 's
i n a t l e a s t two ways.
The bard Vaisampayana narrates them t o
Janamejaya, so they a r e consciously placed a t the outermost n a r r a t i v e frame o f t h e s t o r y .
They a l s o concern a c i r c u i t
"see H i l t e b e i t e l , Ritual o f B a t t l e , Ch. 10, f o r an in t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e extreme emphasis on t h e impure t r a i t s o f Salyats people.
222
around
one
sacred
geographically
river,
much
more
the
Sarasvati,
restricted
and
than
hence
the
are
1engthy
.
p i l g r i m a g e c i r c u i t t h e Pandavas undertake w i t h LomaSa i n t h e . f o r e s t book. Bal armats p i 1g r i mage concludes immedi a t e 1y before t h e denouement o f t h e Mbh war.
Refusing t o t a k e s i d e s i n t h e
c o n f l ic t , he had departed t h e scene b e f o r e t h e war broke out, and o n l y now r e t u r n s t o witness t h e f i n a l Duryodhana and Bhima.
b a t t l e between
I t i s a t B a l a r Z h a t s suggestion t h a t
Bhima w a l ks t o Kuruksetra, w i t h Duryodhana f o l 1owi ng behind,
t o conduct t h e f i n a l hand-to-hand
combat o f t h e war.
The a s s o c i a t i o n s o f Kuruksetra w i t h a s a c r i f i c i a l a r e o v e r t i n t h e epic,
arena
b u t most o f i t s audiences probably do
n o t need reminding t h a t t h i s i s t h e b l o o d y ground o f another Rama s work, name1y Rama J3madagnya1s e a r l ie r extermi n a t i o n o f
the k s a t r i y a ma1es.
Perhaps t h i s scene has been constructed
as a symbolic g a t h e r i n g o r re-assembly
p o r t i o n s o f Visnu (Balarama,
o f t h e v a r i o u s reborn
Rama Jamadagnya and Krsna) w i t h
those o f Siva f o r t h e concluding s a c r i f i c i a l a c t o f t h e war. The p i 1g r i mage m i g h t t h e n be v i ewed e i t h e r as e q u i v a l e n t t o a purificatory act follow,
i n p r e p a r a t i o n f o r t h e gruesome r i t u a l t o
o r as a p r a c t i c e equivalent t o p r i e s t l y r i t u a l ,
for
Balar3macsp i l g r i m a g e i s under way a t t h e same t i m e as t h e war is b e i ng waged.
The p i l g r i m a g e s t o r y c l u s t e r perhaps shows
h he deeper s i g n i f icance o f t h e a c t s o f t h e t h r e e Ramas i n t h e Mbh has y e t t o be f u l l y explored, b u t see H i l t e b e i t e l , R f t u a l o f Battle, 74-76.
223 t h e e p i c r s composers/compi 1e r s broaden4 ng t h e d e f i n i t i on o f sacrificial may
p r a c t i c e i n y e t another way.
have done so by e l a b o r a t i n g
I n t h i s case, t h e y
upon Vedic
references t o
.
V i snugs steps i n connection w i t h s a c r i f i c e t o gain approval
f o r a p r a c t i c e (pilgrimage) t h a t i n l a t e Vedic times came t o be seen by some as a s u b s t i t u t e f o r s a c r i f i c i a l performance. K
.
saupt f kaparvan
We note i n the sauptfkaparvan t h e same tendency noted i n o t h e r parvans t o couple a s h o r t adage o r two w i t h a longer s t o r y t o e x p l a i n some shocking event. in t h i s parvan caneern A6vattharnan
The two s t o r i e s found
s murder o f the s1eepi ng
.. d u r i ng t h e n i g h t f o l l o w i ng Duryodhanar s fi na1 defeat. Pandavas "ASvatthSmanrs Ragett i s t h e o n l y case o f an anci l l a r y s t o r y I have found i n t h e Hbh t h a t one o f i t s characters t e l l s
to h i msel f .
.
Once he decided t o k i 11 t h e Pandavas by d e c e i t
Asvatthaman r e e d 1ected some ancient verses ( g Y t 2 f ) advocati ng r u t h 1ess behavior toward an enemy. explains
the
e s s e n t i a l l y an
act
to
... A f t e r t h e s1aughter, Krsna
Y u d h i.. sthira
by
describing
it
as
imitation o f 6 i v a v s v i o l e n t disruption o f a
c e r t a i n s a c r i f i c e a t the j u n c t u r e between t h e k r t a and dvapara eras
(rfHow ASvatthSman
K i 1l e d
Ohrstadyumna .
and DraupadZ s
.
Chi 1d r e n f @ ) A s in t h e sabhaparvanl t h e anci 1l a r y s t o r i e s here s i g n a l
a p a t t e r n * ng o f n a r r a t i v e m a t e r i a l on t h e model of a speci f i e ritual
b u t $ n t h i s case a mythical one:
Daksal s s a c r i f i c e .
t h e destruction o f
As H i 1t e b e i t e 1 has shown in some d e t a i 1
t h e e p i c authors o f t h i s p o r t i o n o f t h e Mbh a r e q u i t e fami l i a r w i t h an ideology o f s a c r i f i c e found i n t h e Brahmanas. 34 strzparvan
L.
The str2parvan t e l l s o f e f f o r t s t o cons01e DhrtarSstra and t h e women o f h i s c o u r t immediate1y f o 1 lowing t h e war. contains a s i n g l e anci 1lary s t o r y , tells
DhrtarZstra i n
an
attempt
It
an 3'khyana which Vidura to
console
him over
his
3 asses.
V h e Brahman
+ n the
P i t e 1 i s a dark s t o r y about a brahman
who c l i n g s t o h i s hopes f o r l i f e when he i s trapped i n a p i t i n a dangerous f o r e s t i n the
.
I t resembles anci 1l a r y s t o r i e s found
agvamedhfkaparvan
e l sewhere,
whi eh
are
14 o f
(book
coup1ed
in t e r p r e t a t i on (upamana}.
the epic),
with
an
but
not
a1 1egori ca1
I n t h i s case t h e n a r r a t o r ,
V i dura,
explains t h a t t h e s t o r y i s about entrapment i n samsara.
The
parvan
..
Dhrtarzstra
and
includes the
an
extended
..
PZndavas
are
scene
reconciled
in un
which the
..
b a t t l e f i e l d * GandhSri curses Krsna t o k i 11 h i s own k i n s and funeral
r i t e s a r e conducted f o r a1 1 o f t h e dead warriors,
inc1 udi ng Karna, now revealed as KuntZ * s son
M
.
rn
Gant fparvan and- anugasanaparvan
I n t h e beginning o f t h e sWntfparvans t h e s u r v i v o r s spend a p e r i o d o f mourning on t h e banks o f t h e Ganges River a f t e r 3 4 t i i 1t e b e i t e 1 , R f t u a 7 o f B a t t l e , Chapter 12. See also Ruth Katz, "The Saupti ka Episode i n t h e S t r u c t u r e o f the Mahabhsrata, st Journa 7 o f South A s i a n L f t e r a t u r e 20, no. 1 ( 1 985 1 : 109-24. Reprinted i n Essays on the MahabhSrata* ed. E. J . B r i l l * 1QQ1. Arvind SHafmas 130-149. Leiden:
225 performi ng
funeral
Yudhi s .t h i r a
is
rites
deeply
for
the4 r
despondent
and
dead elders
relatives and
fami 1y
members attempt t o console himB u r g i n g him to take up h i s
d u t i e s as k i n g *
E v e n t u a l l y B he does so (12.38.27-3Cl)w
When
he asks Vyasa t o t e l l h i rn i n d e t a i I about t h e d u t i e5 o f k i ngs and other
social
in s t r u c t i on.
c l a s s e s a Vyasa sends
him t o BhTsma
for
Thei r extended session c a n t i nues through t h e
remainder o f t h e Santfparvan and most o f t h e anusasanaparvan. The
conversati on
ends
in
the
anuSasanaparvan a t
13. $52.
.
Yudhisthi r a goes back t o t h e c i t y w i t h i n s t r u c t i o n s t o r e t u r n
.
at t h e hour Bh5sma has chosen f o r h i s death. h i s entourage do so,
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and
perform funeral r i t e s f a r BhismaB make
appropriate o f f e r i n g s a t t h e Ganges River, and r e t u r n home* Nowhere i n t h e hfbh are anci 1l a r y s t o r i e s c l u s t e r e d more densely
than
in
these
two
parvansB and
nowhere
i s
the
desi gnat* on o f them as anci e n t { h i s ) s t u r i es ( i t ihasa puratana)
more pronounced.
In
factB this
material
dominates
both
parvans t o such an e x t e n t t h a t they would be much s h o r t e r
w4thout i t :
68 percent o f t h e &anti- and 65 percent o f t h e
anusasanaparvan i s s t o r y materi a1.
For t h a t reason a
I w i 11
d i scuss t h e i r anci 1l a r y s t o r i e s together i n t h i s s e c t i o n
The
enti r e
conversati on
..
and
anu&asanaparvans consi s t
o r r a t h e r an in s t r u c t i onal d i alogue,
Yudhisthi r a and b a t t l e f ie l &
Hntj
BhZsma as *
the
latter
l i e s dying
of
a
between on
the
Aside from t h e canversati on, 1it t l e occurs *
The
anugasanaparvan c1oses w i t h Bhismal s f u n e r a l r i t e s
.
226
Only one s c h o l a r 3 James
Fitzgerald,
has
undertaken a
.
L i k e others
c l ose study o f $ant fparvan n a r r a t i ve materi a1 35 b e f o r e him,
he d i s t i n g u i s h e d t h i s p a t e n t l y d i d a c t i c material n t h e M&hs b u t I
from much o f t h e o t h e r anci 1l a r y m a t e r i a l
b e l i e v e t h a t m y p r e s e n t a t i o n oT t h e m a t e r i a l shows t h a t t h i s distinction observations
is
not
about
really the
applicable.
stories
4n
Some
these
general
parvans
w i l l
i11u s t r a t e t h i s concl us+an.
As
was
the
case
particularly
in
the
adfparvan
and
aranyakaparvan where anci 11a r y s t o r i e s a1so appear in 1arge numbers,
the stories
here address
s u b j e c t matter o f t h e parvan.
and e n r i c h
the
genera1
That is f the adfpat-van s t o r i e s
as a who1e n e u t r a l ize c e r t a i n anomal O U S ~ inauspi c i ousf even v i o l e n t p r a c t i c e s by showing t h a t they are w i t h i n t h e purview o f Vedi c p r a c t i ce
.
are nevertheless
S a c r i F i ces conducted toward v i 01ent ends 1e g i t i mate.
Mixed c l a s s
marriages
are
undesi r a b l e f b u t acceptable f o r t h e purpose o f producing sons who w i 1 1 rnai n t a i n t h e i r ancestors i n heaven t h r o u g h t h e i r own
s a c r i f i ces eternal,
.
Pandava Fami 1y * .
c o n f 1ic t has precedent
f r a t e r n a l r i v a l r y o f demons and d e i t i e s
t h e warld-shattering
v i o l e n c e OF t h e coming war
in t h e
I n short i s i n the
adiparvan so thorough1y hedged found w i t h anci e n t precedents as t o appear comprehensible, armyaka
The
Pandavas * "
s t o r ies
(and t h e e p i c
i f n o t normal of
.
p i 1grimage
transform
the
audi ences ? ) understandi ng o f
the
t z g e r a l ds The W k s a Anthol agy *
227
p h y s i c a l space they h h a b i t by making i t come a1 i v e w i t h t h e
.
past.
MZ8rkandeyanss t o r i e s
when considered i n t h e immediate
c o n t e x t o f what has r e c e n t l y happened t o t h e Pandavas when .* t h e y hear him,
seem t o r e i n f o r c e e a r l i e r nations o f proper
r e 1a t i onshi ps between d e i t i es, brahmans and k s a t r i y a s s b u t i n
.
f a c t recommend t h a t t h e Pxndavas shod d themselves behave 1 ike * genuine brahmans, so t o speak* as opposed t o s t r i c t l y orthodox ones who c l a f m r i g h t s and p r i v i l e g e s based an b i r t h alone= I n t h e S a n t f p a ~ v a nwe find the new k i ng Yudhi s *t h i r a b e i ng in s t r u c t e d i n e x c r u c i a t i n g d e t a i 1 by h i s grandfather* BhZsma,
a k s a t ~ i y awho has h i m s e l f behaved 1ike a brahman i n c r u c i a l ways d a r i n g h i s l i f e . answer
style
d i scip l e
of
The i n s t r u c t i o n
Upanisadic
$9
i n the question-and-
exchanges
t h e questions o f t h e student
between
guru
and
prompting sometimes
I engthya d e t a i l e d and e s o t e r i c responses from a teacher who possesses v a s t and s u b t l e know1edge T h i r t y o f t h e Santiparvant s 158 s t o r i e s are t o l d before
.
Bhisma's and Yudhi s *t h i r a as exchange begi ns
They a r e s t o r i e s
t o l d by o t h e r respected f i g u r e s such as Vyasa and Krsnas and * * . t h e y 4 nc1ude a 1inked s e t o f seventeen s t o r i e s i n which t h e same H a k a {verse) through 2 5 ) .
i s repeated a f t e r
Q
[This p a r t i c u l a r n a r r a t i v e technique i s unique
among t h e Mbhf s s t o r y Krsna . * .
each s t o r y ( s t o r i e s
attempts
to
materials. 1
console
repeating s t o r i e s the
the
Through these grieving
s t o r i esa
Yudhisthi . . ra
by
r s i Narada once t o l d t o King Srfijaya s
f a 1 lowing t h e death o f t h a t k i ng's son.
228
..
i3hZ sma s in s t r u c t i on t o Yudhi s t h i r a is de1 ivered a1most exc1usivel y i n s t o r y form.
InitiallyI
he u t t e r s a s e r i e s o f
h i g h l y a u t h o r i t a t i v e q u o t a t i o n s from Usanass B r h a s p a t i * Manu and King M a r u t t a regarding aspects o f a k i n g f s duty ( s t o r i e s 30 through 37).
He then e x p l a i n s t h e o r i g i n s o f s o v e r e i g n t y
and i t s cosmic context [ s t o r i e s 38 through 4 4 ) . a l o n g s e r i e s of
s t a r i e s on t h e nuts and b o l t s o f r u 1 i n g a
k i ngdom ( s t o r i e s 46 through 6 4 )
which c o n s t i t u t e s t h e c o r e o f
t h e rajadhatwa subsecti an o f t h i s parvan. h a l f of
Approximate1 y one-
t h e s t o r i e s i n t h e n e x t subsection (on apadcfharma)
provide
advice
about
proper
behavi o r
c i rcumstances [ s t o r i e s 69 through 76). (77
There f u 1 lows
through
1i n g e r i n g
85)
seem
concerns,
to
bear
such
extreme
The remai n i ng s t o r i es
directly
as
under
on
expiating
.
Yudhisthirafs
sins
and
the
consequences a f harmi ng one* s f r i e n d s . W it h
anci l l a r y
the
moksadharma
story
topics
s p i r i t u a l 15 b e r a t i o n .
subsecti on
turn
to
the
of
the
matter
parvan#
of
the
achieving
The general val ues o f t h e renunci a n t gs
1 ife a r e promoted ( a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s ,
performance o f mental
s a c r i f ices* 1iv i ng w i t h o u t m a t e r i a1 possessions)
.
A number o f
s t o r i e s about King Janaka* t h e wise k i n g who renaunced h i s k i ngdom and a t t a i ned mdcsa, a r e t o 1d (e. g. 1 0 2 , 123* 138 and 139).
,
s t o r i e s 56,
91 ,
Through h i s f i g u r e in p a r t i c u l a r and
t h r o u g h many o f t h e s t o r i e s i n general I t h e impression i s
.
g i v e n t h a t k s a t r i y a s (1 ike Yudhi s t h i r a ) a r e perFect1y e n t i t l e d to
r e c e i ve
esoteric
know1edge,
perfect1 y
capable
of
understanding i t i f they p e r s i s t i n t h e i r e f f o r t s t o do so and
thereby
perfectly
able
to
achieve
moksa
without
necessarily being reborn. This segment a l s o contains two i n t r i g u i n g c l u s t e r s o f s t o r i e s 124-
s t o r i e s about I n d r a and V a l i n { s t o r i e s 103-108; 126)
and a s e t o f
Chapter 4.
s t o r i e s on ahimsa, which I discuss
The & f n t f p a r v a n d o s e s w i t h a group o f anci 1l a r y
s t o r i es whi ch in t e r t w %nes myth01ogy o f with
in
VyXsals
family
history,
si va and V i snu,4USray~na
i n particular
t h e b i r t h and
sp* r i t u a l career o f h i s sons 6ukra. 38 The stories.
anusasanaparvan
As
c o n t a i ns
a groups *hey
e i ghty-four
anci 11a r y
b e t r a y a much more consistent
concern w i t h very t r a d i t i o n a l brahmanical p o i n t s o f view than t h e s t o r i e s i n any o t h e r parvan.
T h i r t y o f t h e s t o r i e s (31-
60) e x t o l the m e r i t s o f speci f i e o f f e r i n g s made t o brahmans as
p a r t of sacrj f ic i a1 r ites : c a t t 1e lampsJ and so on.
go1d
T h i s s e c t i o n on g i f t - g i v i n g i s introduced
w i t h a s t o r y about t h e o b l i g a t i o n of
t a brahmans.
umbrel 1as, sandal s,
ksatriyas t u give g i f t s
They f o l l o w f a i r l y s h o r t l y a f t e r a group o f
s t o r i e s on the s u p e r i o r i t y o f brahmans and t h e importance o f shawing reverence t o them ( s t o r i e s 18-24). with
another
set
of
stories
The parvan clcmes
asserting that
k s a t r i y a s are
3 6 ~ eWendy e D m i g e r J awEchaeso f t h e Mahabharata: Why i s a P a r r o t the Navrator o f t h e Bhagavata Purana and t h e Devibhagavata Purana? pt in Wendy Doni ger , eki Purana Recfproc~ t y and Transformat ian i n Hfndu and Jaina Perem i s . T e x t s (New York: S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y o f Mew York PressJ W93), 31-57 f o r a discussion o f t h e in t e r t e x t u a l i t y o f t h e Mbh and Bhagavata Purana based an these segments o f t h e epic.
.
230 subordinate t o brahmanss and t h e b e n e f i t s o f showing reverence For them [ s t o r i es 75-84)
.
But t h e a n c i l l a r y s t o r i e s i n t h i s parvan are n o t u n i v o c a l in t h e * r a t t e n t i on t o more o r t h o p r a x b r a h a n i ca1 concerns.
one
story,
the
Bhargava Manas
a t t a i n a pa*icul ascetic
practice
teaches
Bhagiratha how t o
a r realm t h a t can o n l y be achieved through (story
63).
Subsequent1y ,
BrahmZI
BhagT r a t h a how he achieved such a d < f f i c d t f e a t .
story
asserts
In
that
f a s t i ng y i e l ds
asks
The n e x t
b e n e f i t s equivale n t
to
s a c r i f i c i a l performances ( s t o r y 6 4 ) and a t h i r d c l a i m s t h a t ahfmsa i s t h e supreme means f o r a t t a i n i n g moksa ( s t o r y 651, And
finallyl
another
story
tells
of
asceticism over g i f t - g i v i ng ( s t o r y 68)
the
superiority
There i s no r e a d i 1y
d i s c e r n i b l e p a t t e r n i n t h e sequence o f t h e s t o r i e s anu&asanaparvans b y c o n t r a s t , f o r exampl e N
.
of
i n the
w i t h t h e adiparvan.
Sgvamedh i kaparvan
The e l even a n c i 11a r y s t o r i e s in t h i s parvan do n o t begi n
to compare w i t h t h e numbers discussed p r e v i o u s l y in t h e Santiand anu&asanaparvans, b u t t h e s t o r i e s do address many o f t h e same themes so e x h a u s t i v e l y examined i n those s e c t i o n s .
In
p a r t i c u l a r s t h e s t o r i e s here c o n t i riue t o consider t h e r e 1a t i v e importance o f know1edge and r i t u a l a c t i o n l
t h e p r o p r ie t y o f
s a c r i f i c e as an e x p r e s s i o n o f dharmic b e h a v i o r s and t h e v e r y efficacy o f sacrifice. The parvanss e l even anci I I a r y s t o r i e s a r e presented be1ow i n three
groups*
The
first
group c o n t a i n s
six
stories,
231
i n c l u d i n g t h e anugZt&
which i s a c t u a l l y a c l u s t e r o f twelve
most o f them c a l l ed anci ent h i s t o r i es ( i t i h a s a
substori es,
As
puratana).
fabulously
a
whole,
successful
this
group
sacri f i c e
uses t h e
as
a
presenti ng views on the r e 1a t i onshi p [ o r knowledge and a c t i o n . story
OF Uttahka,
story o f
springboard
a
for
conf 1 i c t ) between
The second category contains only t h e
which
seems here
p r i n c i p a l 1y meant
to
...
i l l u s t r a t e t h a t Krsna i s regarded as an a u t h o r i t a t i v e f i g u r e by
even
the
mast
scrupulous1y
conventional
oT
menl
thus
reassuri ng us t h a t Krsnar s t e a c h i ngs f u l l y conform t o anci e n t *
a
.
wisdom.
The t h j r d group i n t h i s parvan i s a chain o f f o u r
stories
that
to
seems
encapsulate
the
sort
of
meta-
conversati on on dharma, s a c r i f i c e , and non-viol ence presented in the $ a n t i p a r w a n t s
ahimsa , c l u s t e r (discussed i n Chapter 4)
.
Sacri f i ce , Act ion and Know1edge The n a r r a t j v e 1 ine o f t h i s parvan i s s t r a i g h t f o r w a r d .
At
..
long l a s t , Yudhisthi r a i s prepared t o t u r n t o t h e business OF r u 1 ing h i s kingdom.
He immediately faces a p r a c t i c a l problem.
The Pzndavas a r e impoverished. ..
to
conduct
the
requisite
They have no wealth w i t h which
sacrifices,
in
particular
the
..
asvamedha, which seems t o be required t o seal Yudhisthi r a @ s
c l a i m t o u n i v e r s a l sovereignty. identifjed,
and
the
Pandavas .
A source of
set
of9
ready funds is
to
collect
it.
...
Meanwhile, Krsna r e t u r n s t o h i s own kingdom, then comes back t o H a s t i napura t o attend t h e aSvameciha. born dead
...
Pari k s i t is then
b u t m i raculousl y rev$ved by Krsna j u s t before t h e
232
.
Pzndavas . r e t u r n w i t h t h e goods t h e y need f o r t h e i r s a c r i f i c e s . The agvamedha begins, i t wanders
horse as
Arjuna
i s dispatched t o p r o t e c t t h e
the earth f o r the r i t u a l l y obligatory
year, and t h e asvamedha i s a t l e n g t h successfu11y concluded. Since t h e parvan i s dominated by events surrounding an a&vamec#har i t u a l , i t is na s u r p r * se t h a t t h e anci 11a r y s t o r i e s contained t h e r e i n are,
toog
They b e g i n when Vyasa proposes
.
t h e s o l u t $ o n t o Yudhi s t h i r a t s f inanci a1 problems (**The Story of
King
Maruttan' and
MaruttaIf ) which
.
the
"The
Story
of
Brhaspati
and
King
Vyasa t e l I s two s t o r i e s o f another s a c r i f i c e a t fees
were
so
large
that
the
brahman
deities
conducting i t simply c o u l d n o t c a r r y them a1 1 home from t h e s a c r i f i c i a l arena i n t h e HimZtlayas.
VyZsa e x p l a i n s t h a t t h e
l e f t o v e r s s t i 11 1i e around f o r t h e t a k i n g .
A r i v a l r y between
d i v i ne brahman b r o t h e r s , Brhaspati and Samvarta* threatened t o d i s r u p t t h a t s a c r i f ices b u t t h e
ensured it s peaceful progress
cl ever yajamana, K i ng Marutta, Another r iva1 r y brewed j u s t
beneath t h e s u r f a c e o f those events* one between I n d r a * k i n g of
the
gadss
and
Marutta,
a
human
k i n g whom
p r e v i o u s l y n o t been a b l e to subjugate. smoothed over.
Indra
had
T h i s r i v a l r y , too, was
The message o f these s t o r i e s seems t o be t h a t
s a c r i f i c e i s an e f f e c t i v e means o f seducing and n e u t r a l i z i n g one s enemi es. The
muting
of
royal
rivalry
i n
one
story
seems
to
occasion another s t o r y i n which such c o n f l i c t i s managed by
..
applying a 1 it e r a r y d e v i c e s f o r n e x t Krsna t e l l s Y u d h i s t h i r a *
a
*
233
of "The Battle Between Indra and Vrtra. 1I
This story employs
a techn i que we have seen on 1 yonce before, three times in the
for own
storytellers
V~tra
Krsna
an allegory (upam.na)
lingering inner conflict; he still has his
Yudhi~~hira's
demons to
as we shall see.
~§vamedhjkaparvan,
declares the story of Indra and
but it is used
conquer.
Wi th
interpret the
thi s
narrati ve,
mythological
the
epi c' s
verity of Indra's
characteristic political and personal rivalries as symbolic of a
human
dilemma
salvation
that
depended
relationship
preoccupied them.
upon
between
a
proper
knowledge
In their
understanding
and
action.
world, of
For
the them.
Yudhisthira's sacrifice. like Marutta's, was interesting and important precisely because without proper understanding of sacrificial
action,
a
sacrificer
spiritual benefit from it. the spiritual
could
not
hope
to
gain
When Krsna turns our attention to
impact of action (of which sacrifice is,
of
course, paradigmatic), it is then easier to understand why the stories so quickly focus on esoteric matters. Indeed.
the very next
set of s1:ori es
("The Brahman's
Teachings to Krsna on ltIoksadharma lf and "Conversation Between a
Marri ed
teachings
Brahman to
bhagavadgit~.
Coupl eft)
Arjuna
on
the
is
the
same
With the first story,
anugi ta, subject K~~~a
presented matter
as
as the
repeats to Arjuna
what he himself learned from a brahman named
Ka~yapa.
The
subject of the relationship between action and knowledge is taken up once again, but the brahman explains that one who
234
understands them properly -- through the practice of yoga -will appreciate their role in the operations of the cosmos, and will see no real conflict between them. Krsna concludes with a report of a lengthy conversation between a brahman and his wife. also on the subject of the rel ati onshi p between acts and
knowl edge.
highlights an inherent problem with husband,
whom
we are
told
She very ni cel y
mok~adharma.
is virtually
on
She asks her the
brink
of
realizing brahman, what that will mean for her fortunes after death.
The contradiction is clear.
It is said that women
attain the same realm (7oka) as their husbands when they die. What the wife does not ask -- but what is stunningly obvious here
is
mok~adharma,
knowl edge
how
this
teaching
squares
with
those
of
which assert that only those who achieve advanced
(through yoga,
for
exampl e)
attai n brahman.
In
other words, the teachings are contradictory when viewed from the vantage of women's prospects for salvation. The learned spouse sidesteps this awkward question, but it
does
lead
to
a
unique
set
of
stories
in
which
he
systematically lists five Vedic sacrifices and explains that the priests (all hotfS. in this case) are the ten parts of the body, the seven sensory organs. the fi ve breaths. and four abstract concepts. from the
Brahma~as.
The methodology is strikingly familiar and the content is equally esoteric.
But thi s story cl uster becomes even more compl ex when the brahman continues with five
more stories addressed to
his
235
wife.
One s t o r y
(ttConversation Between an adhvaryu and a
y a t f s ' ) e f f e c t i v e l y d i smi sses the e t h i c a l
problem o f animal
s a c r i f i c e w i t h t h e a s s e r t i o n t h a t t h e atman i s beyond t h e dual it y o f 1if e and death*
Twa other s t o r + e s t e l l o f w a r r i o r s
who t u r n t o yoga (tlConversation Between Arjuna K2IrtavTrya and t h e Oceans8and **The Story o f the Royal Sage Alarkas'}, and two more t e l l
of
k i n g s who
come t o understand t h a t
brahaan i s t r u e severe* g n t y
tfConversation
[ * * K ing Ambari sat s
realizing
Versestt and
Brahman and K i ng Janakats1.
Between a
Thi s
.*.
cornpl 4 cated s t o r y c l u s t e r G oses I w i t h Krsna s d e d a r a t i o n t h a t t h e e n t i r e d i a l o g u e between the brahman and h i s wife
i s an
a1 l e g o r y i n which t h e brahman i s h i s (Krsnat . . . s) mind and t h e
..
w i f e is h i s (Krsna's)
The
next
("Conversati on
understandi ng*
story Between
that a
Guru
Krsna .*. and
relates D i scip le
to on
Arjuna
brahmantf)
continues t h e general p o i n t o f view expressed i n t h e anugita, i n which moksadhaiwa i s promoted asD among o t h e r t h i n g s D t h e means t o a proper understandi ng o f t h e r e 1a t i onshi p between r i t u a l acts and know1edge.
When concl uded, t h i s s t o r y , too,
is a1 1egori zed.
Thjs
first
group
of
ancillary
stories
in
the
..
agvamedhikaparvan, thenD takes t h e occasion o f Yudhi s t h i r a t s impendi ng s a c r i f ice t o s i gnal cantroversi es about t h e benef it s
o f performing r i t u a l s as prescribed i n t h e Vedas,
t o suggest
much broader d e f i n i t i o n s o f dharma t h a t were being debated i n t h e c e n t u r i e s b e f o r e t h e common e r a D and t o p u t them a1 1 i n
236
Krsnass ... moutha F i r m l y e s t a b l i s h i n g him by t h i s p o i n t i n t h e Mbh n a r r a t i v e as a god wha had demonstrated h i s concern t h a t
humans must understand these d i f f i c u l t m a t t e r s ifthey a r e t o a t t a i n moksa. Uttahka s S t o r y The seventh anci 11a r y s t o r y in th=i s parvan (tfUttafikaDt}is inc1uded t o e l a b o r a t e on t h e career o f t h e a s c e t i c lJttahka#
.. .
whom Krsna encounters on h i s t ~ j p back home-
..
chal lenges Krsna t o prove t h a t he i s Visnu, e
m
*
v i s i on and a boon.
and i s granted a
En t h e e p i c , Janamejaya expresses s u r p r i s e
...
t h a t t h e a s c e t i c Uttahka had cha1 1enged Krsna.
tells
the
young
I n e W e c t he
boy
Vai Sampayana
Uttat?kats s t o r y s showing
him t o
be
scrupu1ous1y a t t e n t i v e t o t h e r u l e s o f dharmas a t one p o i n t b e i ng qui t e w i I 1 ing t o d i e r a t h e r than v i 01a t e i t
.
I f such a
.
formidable man accepted Krsna as V i Snua the s t o r y seems t o * . * say, sure1y Krsna is genui ne. m
e
*
i n h i s biography
to
Thereafter, V a i Sampayana f i11s
explain t o
Janamejaya
just
who
this
.
presumptuous c h a l l e n g e r o f Krsna was* * . The C r i t i taue o f Yudhi s. t* h i r a t s asvamedha R i t e The f i n a l
graup o f s t o r i e s i n t h i s parvan occurs j u s t
b e f o r e t h e c o n c l u s i o n o f t h e agvamedha r i t u a l
.
Fi r s t , a half-
go1den mongoose appears (tfThe Mongoose s Storyr1) and r id i cu1es Yudhi s t h i r a s e l a b o r a t e s a c r i f i c e as i n e f f e c t u a l by t e l l ing t h e s t o r y o f an i n f i n i t e l y more e f f e c t i v e o f f e r i n g : handful o f
g r a i n o f f e r e d by poor brahmans*
That
a simple simple,
generous o f f e r 4 ng had caused t h e inangoose t o t u r n ha1f golden.
237 Janamejaya
is
startled
to
hear
this
indictment
of
..
Yudhi s t h i r a ' s s a c r i f i c e and argues w i t h Vai SampZiyana when the e l d e r cautions t h e boy n o t t o overvalue s a c r i f i c e as a means t o r e a l izing moksa*
Heari ng the boy% p r o t e s t s ,
Vai SampSiyana
t o l d another s t o r y ( V n d r a 8 s S a c r i f i c e t t ) warning him not t o presume t o be so know1edgeabl e.
Ordi nary m o r t a l s C f C i ng Vasu,
i n t h i s case) c o u r t danger i f they t h i n k themselves qua1i f i e d t o determine t h e r e l a t i v e s u p e r i o r i t y o f animal and vegetable s a c r i f 5 ces then
Janamej aya demurred and asked Vai gampayana how,
one might determine the s p e c i f i c b e n e f i t s OF s a c r i f i c e .
Vai Bampayana
rep1 ied
with
a
story
(ppStory o f
Agastya s
S a c r i f i c e s p )i n which Agastya demonstrated how he could usurp Indrays role sacri f i c e neglecting, Agastya,
as
e a r t h p s protector
through
the
power
of
compel 1ing t h a t d e i t y t o resume d u t i e s he had been presumably l e s t he be shown t o be replaceable.
i t should be noted, accomplished t h i s by adhering t o
p r i n c i p1es o f nonviolence i n conducting h i s r i t u a l A t that point,
.
Janamejaya was s u f f ic i e n t l y chastened t o
. .
ask Vai sampayana t o reveal the t r u e i d e n t i t y o f t h e mongoose. Vai Sampayana expl a i ned through another s t o r y (#'The I d e n t i t y o f t h e Mongoosesf) t h a t Dharma had once spoi 1ed some m i 1k intended fat-
sacrifice
temperament
in
order
to
test
the
r* ,s i
Jamadagnj ' s
The ancestors f o r whom t h a t s a c r i f i c i a1 o f f e r i n g
had been intended had cursed Dharma t o become a mongoose who would
not
be
freed
from
this
curse
d i srespect f o r dharma d u r i ng another
until
he
s a c r i f ice.
expressed I n other
238
words,
he must publicly
ridicule and humiliate
himself
in
order to lift the curse. These stories present. in my opinion. a full co-optation of two arguments against sacrifice which are included (among other places) in the §lfntiparvan story c1 uster on ahi'!'s.. fi rst
;s
the
argument
(set
forth
in
the
The
Tu1 adhara/ Jaj ali
story) that elaborate (and costly) public sacrifices such as the a§vamedha are i neffect; ve, but simp1 e acts are potenti all y powerful if performed with sincerity.
The mongoose's affront
to dharma whi ch repeats thi s argument is presented here as the release mechanism of a curse ensuing from his own insult to the venerab 1 e i nst i tut; on of sacr i fi ce.
Thus is a devastat i ng
critique of sacrifice neutralized through presentation as a peccadillo of Dharma. who is righteousness mi sch i ef of dei ties fundamentally are. great harm is done.
is
incarnate.
part and parce 1 of the way
The
th i ngs
If they insult religious institutions. no according to this story cluster, and so
one probably need not be unduly troubled by criticisms of the sacrifice. The
second
institution
of
argument
against
sacrifice
the
alluded
to
vigorously argued in the §.ntiparvan's the indictment of animal sacrifice. Agastya I
5
traditional here
is
(Vedic) one
ahi~s.c1uster.
vai§a~payana's
also namely
story of
sacri fi ce demonstrates wi thout any fuss the power of
non-ani ma 1
sacri fi ces.
Agastya
nonviolent sacrifice to get
must
elect
to
the participation
perform
of
a
deities.
239
r s. i s ,
and
so
on,
in
his
ritual
attempt
to
curb
Indraps
d e v a s t a t i n g m i sbehavior* so he apparent1y has a choice between v i o l e n t and n o n v i o l e n t r i t e s .
Y e t t h e r e i s no question b u t
that h is act i s efficacious.
We are shown t h a t t h e e s s e n t i a l
f u n c t i o n s which t h e m a r t i a t
I n d r a performs f o r t h e u n i v e r s e
c o u l d easi 1y be replaced by t h e o p e r a t i o n s o f s a c r i f ices
nonviolence
agai R suggesti ng t h a t b o t h methods work.
The
s t o r y of I n d r a t s s a c r i f i c e warns against drawing cone1usions about t h e
r e 1a t i ve super?o r i t y o f ani ma1 versus vegjetabl e
sacri fice.
I n f l u e n t i a l v o i c e s can be heard an b o t h s i d e s of
the
argument,
so
it
i s
best
to
suspend
judgment
and
acknowledge a p l a c e f o r both. These
stories
occur
in
t h e performative
arena
of
a
p a r t i c u l a r l y e l a b o r a t e Vedic r j t u a l t h a t i s meant t o cap t h e r e - e s t a b l ishment o f order f o l 1owi ng t h e b1oody #&#I war.
(And
1et us remember t h a t t h e aSvamedha e n t a i 1s t h e s1aughter o f a horse. 1 Could t h e r e be a more f o r c e f u l statement than t h i s of
t h e perdurance of ancient p r a c t i c e s ? But whi 1e t h i s group o f s t o r i e s c l e v e r l y underscores t h e c e n t r a l r o l e o f s a c r i f i c e whi l e appeari ng t o undermi ne it, w e must n o t e t h a t t h i n g s have changed, however l o u d l y t h e M M t s
r h e t o r i c shouts otherwise.
I n t h i s set o f stories, nonviolent
s a c r i f i c e i s every b i t as l e g i t i m a t e as animal s a c r i f i c e , occasi anal 1y p r e f e r a b l e t o i t ("Agastyat s S a c r i f i ce*') everyday
behavi o r s o f
devout
peopl e
(e.
Q.
,
the
.
and The
destit u t e
brahman in t h e mongoose~ss t o r y ) are p o t e n t i a1 1y every b i t as
240
powerFu1 as t h e grandest s a c r i f i c e .
No less a d e i t y t h a n
Dharma has sanctioned t h a t p o s i t i o n .
A s w i t h t h e previous
p o i n t about s a c r i * i c e ,
here, t o o D we f i nd t h e range o f a p t i ons
broadened* Both aSvamedhas and a s i m p l e o f f e r 4 ng o f a h a n d f u l o f g r a i n have t h e i r place.
Finally, t h i s story cluster also
declares
the
a
truce
between
ascetics
who
bypassed
the
perfarmanee o f saer* f i c e t o a t t a i n moksa and t h e brahmans who be1ieved
s a c r i f i ces
are
required
to
reach
sa1v a t * on.
V a i gampsyana chat 1 enges JanameJ ayags a s s e r t i on t h a t s a c r i f ic e
i s supreme through h i s s t o r y o f I n d r a t s s a c r < f i c e i n which even an assembly o f
agree
the most respected in d i v i dual s cannot t h i s small segment o f agva~edhfkaparvan
A1 1 i n a1 1
s t o r i es d i sp1ays t h e inc1u s i ve a t t i tudes so c h a r a c t e r i s t i c of c l a s s i c a l and l a t e r Hindu t r a d i t i o n s * 8Mramavasi kaparvm
0.
This
parvan
contains
two
anc$llary
stories
of
an
..
unremarkable n a t u r e .
It covers t h e d e p a r t u r e o f D h r t a r a s t r a D
Gsndhar?,
for a forest
and KuntZ
r e t r e a t where
they w i l l
devote t h e remai nder o f t h e i r 1ives to a s c e t i c p r a c t i ces.
.
Psndavas pay a v i s i t t o themD and s e v e r a l t h r e e mendicants d i e i n a f o r e s t f i r e .
The
years l a t e r t h e
The parvan closes w i t h
.
t h e PZndavas p e r f u r m i ng f u n e r a l r i t e s f o r t h e t h r e e e l d e r s an t h e banks o f t h e Ganges River. NSrada t e l l s
the f i r s t
story
{ k a t h a ) d u r i n g a group
d i s c u s s i o n o f dharma t h a t takes p l a c e on t h e banks o f t h e Ganges whi l e a v a s t company from t h e c o u r t accompanies t h e
241
three e l d e r s t o t h e i r hermitage.
5 t o r i e s o f V i r t u o u s K i ngs1*
summari zes the achievements o f f i v e k i n g s s a1 l o f whom now dwel l in I n d r a *s heaven practicesm about
thanks t o t h e i r d i 1igent
ascetic
This s t o r y seems meant t o remove any question
whether
ksatrfyas
can
have
as
much
success
from
performing tapas as brahmans do. VySsa t e l l s t h e Vidurafs
.
'*MandavyaRs Curse
second story,
B i r t h s t t some
time
Tater
when
he comes
and
to
the
hermitage w h i l e t h e Pandavas a r e v i s i t i n g t h e i r mother. '
He
.
reports Viduraf s death,
and t e l l s t h e s t a r y o f V i d w a ' s true
i d e n t i t y as t h e d e i t y Oharma# born on earth because of curse.
a
As w$th sa many o t h e r anci M a r y s t o r i e s  t h i s one r e -
in t e r p r e t s t h e biography o f t h e wise V i dura as a mani f e s t a t i o n
of
dharma
i n human
time,
resulting
happened among t h e gods l o n g ago.
from
something
that
Yet again t h e characters
and circumstances o f t h e Mbh a r e denied any r e a l uniqueness. Time1ess cosmic dramas a r e perpetual 1y re-enacted w i t h t h e same
cast.
The
present
i s
stripped
of
navelty
when
in s i s t e n t l y and c o n s i s t e n t l y in t e r p r e t e d as a r e p r i se of t h e
past.
mausa lapar vans mahaprasthanf kaparvan and
P
svargarohanaparvan The 1a s t three s e c t i ons o f t h e Mbh contai n- no anci 11a r y
...
The ~ a u s a l a p a r v a nt e l l s o f t h e slaughter OF Krsna's
stories clan,
the
survi vors
.
Vrsnisg ..*
and
A r j u n a e s assistance
to
the
.
few
The mahaprasthanfkaparvan tell s o f t h e PSndavas .
242 j o u r n e y toward M t
kingship
to
Meru fo1 1owi ng t h e i r d e c i s i o n t o re1inqui sh
Pari k s i t s
sale
heir
to
the
dynasty.
On1y
.
Yudhi s t. h i r a s u r v i ves t h e journeys and t h e svargarahanaparvan t e l l s of h i s experiences i n I n d r a g s heavens and h i s eventual reunion w i t h DhrtarZfstra and h i s brothevs I n t h e next c h a p t e r 8 I present a d e t a i 1ed analysi s o f one c l u s t e r o f s t o r h s From t h e Santfparvam process o f
Vedacizat$an a t
work
in
There I show t h e
stories
that
present
d i W e r e n t poi n t s o f v i ew on t h e same general t o p i c ( a h f ~ s a )
u s i ng t h e same s e t o f hermeneutical s t r a t e g i e s toward t h e same end:
t o argue t h a t a gjven p o i n t o f view i s a u t h o r i t a t i v e
because i t conforms t o t h e Veda.
243
CHAPTER 4 §~NTIPARVAN
1.
STORY CLUSTER ON NONVIOLENCE
Rationale for Selection In
this
chapter
{;8n1:jparvan.
They
I
examine
nine
stories
from
ill ustrate three features of the
the Mbh ' s
ancillary stories that I find particularly significant. (1 ) The passages show the themat i c inter 1 ocki n9 of stori es so characteri sti c of much of the Mbh' s anci 11 ary materi al. and my analysis thereby disputes the view that stories have been randomly interpolated into the epic.
We shall presently see
that most of the stories address three concepts which help to defi ne what we understand as Hi ndu tradi ti cns: and
sacri fi ce.
The stori es address
ahj'!'s., dharma
the cC?ncepts
in
very
di fferent ways.
They are presented as confl i cti ng and as
harmon i ous.
top; cs
as
for
debate
presuppositions about the nature
and
as
of real ity.
unexami ned But
however
differently they are perceived in a given story. they serve as the broad topics that help to explain the clustering of the stories.
In several cases
(Ku~~adh&ra
and Satyavat), a story
addresses only two of the themes. and I attempt to explain why that may be so.
They are further linked by their overt or
indirect treatment of the role of artha (motive and profit) as an indicator of dharma. (2) ancillary
Collectively material
the stories
functions
as
show
how some
commentary
in
of
the
the
way
244
different authoritative pOints of view are presented side by side --
in this case.
on the relationship between ahi'!'slI.
dharma. and sacrifice.
The story of Kapila and the cow pits
in open debate a proponent of efficacy
and
purposes
subordinates all By
of
an older Vedi c
sacrifice
against
a
rsi
who
religious practice to the renouncer ideal.
the time the Mbh was compiled.
this
debate itself was
probably not new. but neither was it resolved. this
vi ew of the
In addition to
example of explicit contestation within a
story.
the
cluster as a whole seems to gather together the main arguments and vari at ions thereof on the quest i on of whether or when killing is dharmic behavior. In di scussi ng a segment of the stori es of Tul adhara/ J3jali and Kapila. I present evidence of the use of Mimamsa rules of debate to structure conversations between principal characters. concerning erudition
This how
the
illustrates Mbh's
presumably
points
compilers
for
the
made
in
Chapter
demonstrated
appreCiation
of
2
their other
intellectuals -- as they advanced opinions about what was and was not authoritative (i.e. consistent with §ruti) practice. ( 3)
The ana 1 ysi s presented here also extends the work of
Ian Proudfoot. 1 who has publ ished the most detai led case study of ancillary material to date.
His work directly confronts
the matter of interpolation in technical text-critical terms. It also provi des a method for pursui ng more i ntens i ve study of lproudfoot. Ahi,!,SlI and a Mahabharata S~ory.
245
these s t o r i e s i n t h e future. Thi s
of
c o n s t e l 1a t i o n
s t o r i es
- at
m u l t i v o c a l character o f the e p i c forms
--
demonstrates
that
least i n i t s written
as a s p i r i t e d conversation among
should be regarded
brahman in t e l 1e c t u a l s rather t h a n a hopeless cacaphony feature
of
different
the but
re1a t i o n s h i p s
story cluster, authoritative
among
the
.
Thi s
namely
i t s presentation o f
p o i n t s of
view on t h e proper
re1igious
practices,
may
itself
intended as a f u r t h e r marker o f t h e e p i c as smrti.
be
Throughout
.
t h e Smtiparvan, Yudhi s t h i r a repeatedly asks Bh5sma t o c l a r i f y t h e meaning o f Vedic i n j u n c t i o n s .
.
. says Sometimes Yudhisthira
t h a t c e r t a i n p r e s c r i p t i o n s seem c o n t r a d i c t o r y t o him.
At
other times he asks Bhisma which of a range o f p r a c t i c e s t h e Vedas regard as superi or.
Whatever t h e question,
however,
t h e i r conversati on is always about t h e a u t h o r i t a t i ve views and practices,
whether Bhi sma must c l a r i f y o r c o r r e c t somethi ng
Y u d h i.s.t h i r a has heard, first
time.
discussion,
Through then,
or e x p l a i n something t o him f o r this
overarching
topic
of
the
their
t h e i n f o r m a t i o n t h a t o f t e n s t r i kes us as
.thi r a c o n t r a d i c t o r y i s nevertheless a1 1 t r a n s m i t t e d t o Yudhi s as
authoritative
traditional
canonical)
religious
know1edge. The coherence o f t h i s s t o r y c l u s t e r derives i n p a r t from i t s adherence t o p a r t i c u l a r r u l e s o f discourse developed by
.
Mim5ms3
t h i nkers
(but
i n t e l l e c t u a l discourse),
employed
widely
in
brahmanieal
i n p a r t from i t s e x p l o r a t i o n o f t h e
246 in t e r r e l a t e d themes o f ahfmsa, dharma, and s a c r i f ice, b u t a1so
from it s consi s t e n t use o f speci f ic hermeneuti c a l s t r a t e g i e s t o present i t s e l f as smrti by e s t a b l i s h i n g i t s congruence w i t h T h i s p a r t i c u l a r group o f s t o r i e s
t h e Veda (see Chapter 2).
a1so uses t h r e e techniques o f composi t i on (contextual iz a t i on,
cl u s t e r i ng and coherence) t h a t demonstrate under1y i ng p a t t e r n s f o r t h e i n c l u s i o n o f a n c i l l a r y s t o r i e s i n t h e epic. B.
Preview of Themes in t h e ahimsa C l u s t e r As t h e SSntiparvan opens, t h e fami l y i s a t t e m p t i n g
t o come t o terms w i t h t h e enormity o f t h e war j u s t ended.
A
p e r i o d o f mourning has begun, f o l lowing performance o f f u n e r a l r i t e s f o r t h e dead warriors.
. ra, Yudhi'sthi
The drama h e n c e f o r t h focuses on
who declares e a r l y i n t h e parvan t h a t he w i 11
renounce t h e k i n g s h i p he has j u s t secured i n f a v o r o f t h e 1i f e of
renunciant.
a
p r in c ipal
massive
.
Y u d h i s* t h i r a l s
focus o f t h e parvan.
The
identity
f ir s t t h i rty-seven
remai nder
d e t a i 1s
is
the
adhyayas o f
the
crisis
the
exhaustive
in s t r u c t i o n i n k i n g s h i p Yudhi s* .t h i r a r e c e i v e s from Bhisma once
he decides t o t a k e up t h e d u t i e s o f k i n g .
The i n s t r u c t i o n
begins a t 12.56. The b u l k o f t h e
parvan r e c o r d s an e x t e n s i v e conversati on
..
between Y u d h i s t h i r a and Bhisma i n which the former p l a y s t h e r o l e o f interlocutor.
The conversation i s n o t p r i v a t e , as was
...
A r j u n a l s and Krsnals t a l k on t h e Kuruksetra b a t t l e f i e l d , b u t Yudhi s t h i r a l s b r o t h e r s , w i f e , and t h e o t h e r s u r v i v o r s who have
.
assembled i n a mourning p a r t y a r e r a r e l y more than s i l e n t
247
witnesses.
The e n t i r e parvan,
then.
takes t h e form o f
a
conversation between guru and 6isya, yet b o t h r o l e s are played by k s a t r i y a males whose re1a t i onshi p i s consangui n a l :
are grandfather (by 1e v i r a t e ) and grandson.
they
Thei r interchange
b r i n g s together i n t h e character o f t h e tormented Yudhisthira " personal , domesti c, p o l it i c a l , and s o t e r i 01o g i c a l concerns. A 1 though a t t h e o u t s e t o f t h e parvan Yudhi s t h i r a himself
posits
the
domestic
immediate
or
as
problem
communal
the
obligations
incompatibility
and
the
pursuit
of of
ernanci p a t i on, t h e parvan holds t h i s s e t o f apparent1y mutual 1y e x c l u s i v e goals up t o
i t s audience f o r
Yudhi s . t. h i r a re1u c t a n t l y
intense s c r u t i n y . 2
comes t o accept t h a t
on1y
through
performance o f h i s d u t i e s can he u l t i m a t e l y transcend t h e mundane worl d. Furthermore,
68
percent
of
the
parvan c o n s i s t s
of
s t o n e s , most o f them termed samvada, o r conversation. a s t o r y t y p e we1 1-documented in t h e Vedas.
Thi s c u r i o u s f a c t warrants
c l o s e r consideration than I w i 11 g i v e i t here.
Scholars seem
t o have become so accustomed t o t h e designation of Santi- and anu^ana-
parvans as d i d a c t i c t h a t t h e n a r r a t i v e q u a l i t y o f
these two lengthy p o r t i o n s o f t h e epic has been v i r t u a l l y ignored.
Many scholars have understandably questioned whether
t h i s materi a1 c o u l d ever r e a l is t i c a l l y have been in t e g r a l t o
*see P a t r i c k 01i v e l l e . The fsrama System: The H i s t o r y and Hermeneutics o f a Re7 i g i o u s I n s t i t u t i o n , New York: Oxford U n i v e r s i t y Press. 1993, f o r a study o f how t h e Hindu t r a d i t i o n developed t o g i v e both views a p l a c e i n t h e 1i v e s of humans.
the
oral
tradition
of
the
Mbh,
even
though
the
critical
e d i t i o n makes c l e a r t h a t i t -is indeed c e n t r a l t o t h e t e x t u a l Whatever e l s e m a y be s a i d about t h e H n t i -
tradition.
and
anuSasana- p a r v a n s , t h e i r c o n t e n t s convey t h e impression t h a t
.
a1 1 of Y u d h i s t h i r a t s questions were asked and answered long, long
ago,
making
tradition
an
inexhaustible
reserve
of
precious knowl edge.
.
From adhySya 1 2 . 5 6 onward, Yudhi s. t h i r a t s q u e s t i o n s prompt a r e p l y from Bhisma which i s almost i n v a r i a b l y an h i s t o r i c a l n a r r a t i v e ( i t i h a s a ) recounti ng another conversati on (. samvSda) on t h e
same
topic
that
took
place
respected and a u t h o r i t a t i v e f igures way
Bhisma
appears
merely
to
long ago
between two
- usual 1y ma1e. \ n
relate
a
t r a d i t i o n a l 1e a r n i n g t o h i s grandson, o r ,
vast
t h is
quantity
of
rather, t o b r i n g t o
bear t h e c o n s i d e r a b l e weight o f t r a d i t i o n a l knowledge on what
..
to
Yudhisthira
seems
confusions.
The new k i n g poses no question t h a t another has
n o t asked,
rajadharma
as
his
unique
doubts
and
n o r any t h a t cannot be answered by r e f e r e n c e t o
anci e n t knowl edge. The
regard
h t i and s m W a r e indeed comprehensive.
&antiparvan
is
(12.1-12.128).
moksadharma ( 1 2 . 1 6 8 - 1 2 . 3 5 3 ) .
structured apaddharma
in
three
sections:
(12.129-12.167),
and
The f ir s t s e c t i o n emphasi zes t h e
f a r t h e most predominant form o f response from Bhisma i n b o t h t h e SSnti- and anuSasana- parvans i s an a n c i e n t s t o r y { 7 t fhasa puratana) Bhisma' s in i t i a1 responses to Yudhi s t h i r a t s q u e s t i o n ( 1 2 . 5 6 - 6 8 ) a r e mainly quoted verses a t t r i b u t e d t o v a r i o u s n o t a b l e f i g u r e s such as Usanas, NBrayana, B r h a s p a t i , o r Manu.
.
249 mu1 ti faceted duti es of a
ki ng, the second addresses proper
behavior in exceptional circumstances, and the third concerns the pursuit of release from the cycle of birth and rebirth. That each
topi c i s consi dered
appropri ate
for
di scussi on
between a new king and the venerable elder who instructs him may
itself
s;gna1
attempts
to
harmonize
or
reconcile
householder and renouncer values. A1 most mi dway through the 185 adhyllyas of the mok!!adharma segment of the parvan occurs a cluster of nine stories on the subject of nonviolence
The topi c i s
(ahi,,!sll).
introduced
immediately following what is perhaps the longest ancillary tale in the critical edition. consisting of 618 verses in 23 adhyayas:
the ancient account
discourse to his own son,
(j~ih~sa
~uka,
puratana) of Vy3sa's
regarding the beginning and
end of creation.
My footnote to the story (12.224.6-246.15)
1; sts
correspondences
the
close
between
segments
of
the
di scourse as it appears
in Mbh manuscri pts and the Brahma
Pur~t}a,
Purll,,!B,
Bt:hannaradiya
and
.
Manusmrti.
The
correspondences suggest some currency of 1 arge segments of the extended story in other widely circulated Sanskrit materia1s. 4 Even granting the practical value of choosing to discuss 4It is not clear to me whether citations of the intertext of Mbh passages was an edi tori a1 desi deratum of the text critical project. The citations strike me as irregular, and thei r ; nc1 usi on may therefore have depended on practi cal factors such as a gi ven edi tor IS fam; 1 i ari ty wi th other Sanskrit materials, and the time available to editorial assi stants to he 1 pin veri fyi ng such references, g; ven the extraordinary demands of this massive text critical project upon the entire editorial staff.
250
here a cluster of stories whose interpretation builds upon existing scholarship on
~ncillary
stories. it may well seem
arbitrary to begin a detailed discussion of stories on mi dway through the fi nal
segment of the §8n'tiparvan.
choice is somewhat arbitrary, but not random. will
discuss
below)
Ian
ahims~
Proudfoot
exam; ned a story recogni zed as the
has
The
Since (as I
already
carefully
locus c lassjcus of the
ahi~s~
ideal and convincingly argued that it encodes disputes
among
brahmans,
it
is
quite
legitimate
to
test
his
i nterpretati on on conti guous stori es that address the same topic. But why begin my discussion with VyKsa's discourse when it appears to contain nothing about nonviolence per se, even though
a
nu.ber
o'f
explicitly address
the stories that
topic?
immediately In
brief,
following I
begin
it
there
because internal cues (discussed below) suggest that Vyasa's discourse provided the framework to launch a discussion of nonviolence,
even
though
that
discourse
itself
represent two successive levels of interpretation.
seems
to
Whether
and how this fact might signify interpolated material is an important matter we shall soon consider. 2.
Preview of Themes in the
ahi~s.
Story Cluster
This section discusses the development o'f themes in the ahi~s~
story cluster in advance of more detailed discussions
of the individual stories in the next section of this chapter. It shows that while the stories are linked by treatment of the
251 t o p i c s s a c r i f i c e , dharma,
and shim, t h e y present d i f f e r e n t
p o i n t s o f view in a s o r t o f meta-debate in s t o r y form.
I w i 11
r e t u r n t o t h i s p o i n t i n concluding remarks a t t h e end o f t h i s chapter. The f o l l o w i n g t a b l e 1 is t s t h e c o n t e n t s o f t h e story
cluster,
Summaries
of
i n d i c a t i n g where
the
stories
appear
they
occur
in
t h e Appendix
in
ahimsa
the and
Mbh.
are
f u r t h e r abbrevi ated here.
$ a n t iparvan S t o r y C l u s t e r on ahimm What Vyasa s a i d t o Suka 12.224.6-246.15 S t o r y o f King A v i kampaka 12.248.7-250.41 2a. The B i r t h o f Death 12.248.1 1-248.37 Conversati on between Tul adhara and J S j a l i 12.253.1*256.22 3a. Nahusa's Slaughter o f a Cow and a B u l l 12 -254.46-254.48 12.257.1-257.11 Song o f King Vicakhnu Story o f C i rakarin 12.258.2-258.75 Conversati on between K i ng Dyumatsena and P r i nee Satyavat 12.259.2-259.35 Conversation between K a p i l a and t h e Cow (a r s i named SyDmaraSmi i n d i sgui se) 12.26015-262.45 How Kundadhara B e n e f i t t e d a Devotee 12.263.2-263.55 S t o r y o f a Brahman Who Led t h e u-ha Way o f L i f e 12.264.2-264.19
.
The ahimsa c l u s t e r occurs as Yudhi s t h i r a i s s t r u g g l i n g t o come t o terms w i t h t h e g r e a t 1osses caused by t h e Mahabharata war.
He asks Bhisma a v a r i e t y o f questions t h a t i n d i c a t e h i s
e f f o r t s t o understand t h e u l t i m a t e purposes o f human 1if e , and i t s r e l a t i o n s h i p t o moksa ( s t a t e o f re1ease f ram t h e c y c l e of rebirth)
.
.
A1 though 6h:sma
counsel s equanimity,
..
Yudhi s t h i r a
c l e a r l y remains unable t o fathom how and why he should 1 i v e through t h e t r a g i c a f t e r m a t h o f war.
At
one p o i n t i n t h e
course o f h i s agonized q u e s t i o n i n g (12.224),
Yudhi s t h i r a asks
..
252 Bhisma,
i n effect,
t o s t a r t a t t h e beginning and e x p l a i n t o
h i m t h e d e t a i 1s o f c r e a t i o n and destruction,
ends o f a11 1i v i n g beings; broadest
context.
i n short,
To do
t o discuss dharma i n i t s
.
so,
t h e o r i g i n s and
Yudhisthira
asks
Bhisma
to
elaborate upon h i s previous account of a conversation between Bhrgu and Bharadvaja on t h e same subject. what Vyma had t o l d h i s o w n son, v e r y same q u e s t i ons
Suka, when he had asked t h e
.
A s t h e summary o f t h i s s t o r y
[see Appendix)
V y m a t s discourse a t 12.224.6-246.15 context o f cosmi c operati ons, in c l udi ng
moksa,
Bhisma then repeats
advocacy
indicates,
sets human d u t y i n t h e
d i scusses means f o r achi e v i ng
of
know1edge
over
action,
thus
echoi ng t h e c o n t r a s t between renunciation and domestic duty
that
opens
d i scourse,
dharma,
the
The
Santfparvan.
however,
shows
that
its
structure
of
VySsats
principal
concern
is
and t h a t t h e p r a c t i c e o f ahimsa i s regarded as one
expression o f
it.
The f i r s t t h r e e adhyayas focus on t h e
nature o f Brahma and the f u n c t i o n i n g of the universe, b u t t h e
remai n i ng 21 a d h y m s are p r i n c i p a l l y devoted t o a discussion o f t h e conduct and d u t i e s o f brahmans, and how they can a t t a i n moksa.
The o b l i g a t i o n s o f
each o f
the
four
-ramas
are
enumerated, and i t becomes c l e a r t h a t i n order t o r e a l i z e t h e supreme s t a t e o f brahman, t h e p r a c t i c e o f ahimsa i s requi r e d (12.237.19-20). T h i s d i scourse i1l u s t r a t e s t h e hermeneutical s t r a t e g y of
restatement i n which smrti
i s s a i d t o be based on t h e Veda
253
(see Chapter 2).
The a s s e r t i o n t h a t ahimsa i s r e q u i r e d t o
a t t a i n brahman i s r e p o r t e d as i n s t r u c t i o n by t h e Veda-knowing Vyasa
to
his
own
son,
but
also
as
a
repetition
of
a
c o n v e r s a t i o n between two members o f t h e special group o f seven r s i s , p o r t r a y e d i n Vedic and e p i c 1i t e r a t u r e as paragons o f s p i r it u a l achi evement
.
The s t o r y a n t i q u a t e s and 1e g i ti mates
t h e p r a c t i c e o f ahimss by p u t t i n g i t i n t o t h e mouths o f two
men deeply respected f o r t h e i r understanding o f t h e Vedas.
.
Fol 1owing t h i s account, Yudhi s t* h i r a b r i ngs t h e m a t t e r o f c r e a t i on and d e s t r u c t i on t o t h e human p l ane, a s k i ng Bhisma why g r e a t kings,
i n particular,
died.
This i s t h e
c o n t e x t o f t h e 'ahimsa s t o r y e l u s t e r . f o l lows,
occurring
on
the
o b s e r v a t i o n t h a t everyone, The
story
of
a b r u p t l y a t 12.248.7,
King
heels
immediate
A group o f e i g h t s t o r i e s
..
of
Yudhisthi r a t s
bitter
no m a t t e r how i1l u s t r i ous, d i e s . Avi kampaka
is
introduced
rather
w i t h o u t any obvious r e l a t i o n s h i p t o the
preceding extensive discourse between Vyasa and f u k a on t h e subject o f dharma i n i t s cosmic c o n t e x t .
t h e n i n e s t o r i e s as a group,
Yet when we consider
i t becomes c l e a r t h a t dharma i s
indeed t h e subject , and t h e speci f ic question a t issue in each
s t o r y beginning w i t h t h a t o f King Avi kampaka i s whether when
-
--
or
k i 11i n g i s j u s t i f i e d n 5 W h i l e t h e t o p i c o f dharma i s
preeminent
i n VySsats
introduced
when
Vy3sa
discourse, enumerates
that of to
his
ahfmsa i s o n l y son
%he s t o r y Yiow Kundadhara B e n e f i t t e d a 12.263 i s an exception. 1 t i s discussed below.
the
ideal
Devoteew a t
254
characteristics of the individual who is focused on realizing
brahman. ;n
In a more detailed discussion of Vyasa's discourse
the next
somewhat
section
tenuous
of
th is
thematic
chapter,
I
relationship
wi 11
address
the
between
Vyasa's
discourse and the subsequent stories on nonviolence.
There I
wi 11 concl ude that there are two possi bl e expl anat ions for th is
rather weak
inserted
to
1 ink.
1 engthen
Ei ther
1 ater
i nterpo 1 at ions
Vyllsa 's di scourse on dharma.
were
in
the
process weakening an earl ier and more di rect narrative flow of discussion
about
kings,
dharma
and
ahi"!s.,
or
the
eight
stories on ahims. were interpolated (over a period of time) into Bhisma's discourse to
Yudhi~~hira
on emancipation, which
begi ns after Vyasa' s di scourse at adhyllya 12.247 and conti nues for three adhy8yas fo 11 owi ng the story of the uifcha vOw at 12.265.
In
a
subtle
refraction
of
imagery,
Yudhi~thira,
feeling victimized by the obligation to rule over a
now
kingdom
savaged by his own violence while he grieves over his personal losses of
sons
and other
beloved
fami 1 y members,
hears
a
series of stories beginning at 12.248 which consider in turn the poi nts of vi ew of
vi ct i ms and vi ct i mi zers
in act.s
of
murder. both within and outside of ritual contexts. The stories begin wit.h a king (Avikampaka), a warrior by birth. inconsolable over the death of his own young son, whom the sage Narada attempts to console by explaining how Death (Mrtyu) came to exist.
Ironically, Death herself resists the
255 t o k i 11 humans on a
work f o r which Brahma has c r e a t e d h e r :
r e g u l a r b a s i s so t h a t E a r t h ' s burden o f excess p o p u l a t i o n w i 11 be r e 1 ieved.
As discussed
i n greater detai 1 i n t h e next
s e c t i o n o f t h i s chapter, t h e q u e s t i o n o f whether o r n o t Death i s r i g h t t o k i l l dominates t h e s t o r y . Following
the
account
of
the
birth
d i scussi on o f dharma i s f u r t h e r d e l im a t e d .
of
Death,
the
When Yudhi s t h i r a
remarks t h a t many people have doubts about i t s t r u e nature, Bhi sma rep1 ies t h a t t h e r e a r e f o u r dharma: people
t h e Vedas, t r a d i t i o n ( s m r t i ) , (saefacm)
and
( a r t h a ) (12.251.3). departure quartet,
namely
precedent
the
purpose
The f o u r t h
from t h e more t y p i c a l
(apaddharma)
(artha)
i n d i c a t o r s ( 7aksana) of * *
resorting
i n times
for
proper
to
t h e behavior o f good or
motive
of
an
act
indi c a t o r
is
a s i gni f i c a n t
element
of
this
one's
own
familiar
good
judgment
o f d i s t r e s s when t h e r e i s
no c l e a r
behavior, @
as a l e g i t i m a t e
By
substituting
i n d i c a t o r o f dharma,
motive
however,
compi 1e n s / i n t e r p o l a t o r s have p r o v i d e d a hinge t o
the
1i n k t h e
f o r each one i n some w a y t u r n s on
subsequent seven s t o r i e s ,
t h e q u e s t i o n o f proper a t t i t u d e o r motive f o r some behavior which
i s
at
issue,
behavior
that
entails
s t o r i e s examine t h e f a 1 l o w i n g problem:
killing.
The
The Vedas seem t o
'P. V . Kane, H i s t o r y o f DharmaiSastra, A n c i e n t and Medieva 7 R e l i g i o u s and C i v i 7 Law i n J n d f a , Poona: Bhandarkar O r i e n t a l Research I n s t i t u t e , 1962-1975. [2nd ed. rev* sed and enlarged. 3 %he s t o r y except ion.
of
.
Kundadhara,
discussed
below,
is
an
256
enjoin physical
violence.
standard in venerab1 e
for
the slaughter of animals
ri tua1
tradi ti ons.
Yet some
is
peop1 e
whose spiritual accomplishments are deeply respected say that vi 01 ence must be eschewed to real i ze the supreme spi ri tua1 goal.
How can it
requires us to
be that proper
per~orm
behavi or (dharma)
whi ch
rituals entailing violence seems to
demand both violence and nonviolence? The first dharmic dilemma in the cluster considered the propriety of killing on the broadest imaginable scale: ri ght that Death hersel f
shou1 d
ki 11?
was it
A second di 1 emma is
presented in the story of Tu1adh&ra and Jaja1i (see Appendix for
a
summary).
and
concerns the propri ety of sacri fi ci a 1
murder.
Thi s i s a
top; c
return
after stor; es
to whi ch stori es seven and
fi ve and
domestic and political
realms.
si x (1
explore murder
;n
ni ne the
discuss the Tu1adh&ra/
Jaja1i episode in the next section of this chapter. but here only review how the story furthers the discussion of broader themes
characteri zi ng
relationship of dharma.
the
story
cluster.
ahims. and sacrifice.)
name 1 y
the
During the
course of the narrative, Tu1adhara declares outright that any livelihood entailing injury to living beings is unacceptable. including animal slaughter for performance of Vedic rituals. Jaj ali cannot comprehend how the sacr i fi ci a 1 system (wh i ch was thought to undergird the very functioning of the universe) could be sustained otherwise. until Tul&dh3ra presents four alternative
(and
nonviolent)
methods
of
sacrificial
257
performance.
As
other brahmans,
i t happens,
none requi r e s t h e service o f
and so they have t h e added v i r t u e o f being
amenable t o performance w i t h o u t recourse t o s a c r i f i c i a l fees for p r o f e s s i o n a l brahmans. During
his
impassioned
plea
to
Jajali
mistreatment o f humans and animals (12.254.37-49).
against TuladhSra
tell s a s t o r y about King Nahusa, who once sinned by k i l l i n g a cow and a b u l l
.
The r,s* f s expiated h i s s i n by d i v i d i ng i t in t o
101 p a r t s and d i s t r i b u t i n g i t among 1 i v i n g beings.
In this
b r i e f three-verse story, c a t t l e slaughter i s presented as most
grave,
f o r as a r e s u l t t h e r* s* j s refuse t o serve a t Nahusa's
sacri f ices.
Immediately
f o 1 l o w i ng t h i s
story,
Tuladhara
s t e r n 1 y rebukes J S j a l i f o r m i n d l e s s l y i m i t a t i n g t h e p r a c t i c e s
o f a n c i e n t times. establ ishes
that
A t one stroke,
dharma,
t h e small s t o r y of Nahusa
i n particular
i t s expression
in
proper r i t u a l p r a c t i c e , p r o h i b i t s animal slaughter while i t archai c i zes t h e p r a c t i c e o f ahims3 by r e l e g a t i ng 4 t a t l e a s t t o t h e t i m e o f a k i n g who r u l e d twelve generations p r i o r t o
the Mbh war.
Although t h e s t o r y i n t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n i s
s i l e n t on t h e t o p i c o f motive, Nahusa's i n t e n t i o n s were good, q u i c k l y e x p i a t e h i s sin.
t h i s mini-story
perhaps we may i n f e r t h a t i f misguided,
since t h e rsis .
It i s tempting t o speculate t h a t
attracted t o t h e t e x t t h e t e l l i n g of
the
conversation between Kapi l a and a cow a t 12 - 2 6 0 . 5 since there Nahusat s p r e p a r a t i o n s t o s a c r i f ice a c o w as a h o s p i t a l it y r i t e occasion heated debate about t h e u l t i m a t e f o r t h e d e i t y Tvastr * . *
258 value
of
the
householder
dharma,
which
entails
animal
s a c r i f ice. The n e x t case which,
l i k e t h e s t o r y o f TulSdhSra and
J S j a l i, openly equates dharma, s h o r t s t o r y of
King Vicakhnu.
being slaughtered f o r
ahimsS and s a c r i f i c e ,
i s the
Hearing t h e c r i e s o f c a t t l e
s a c r i f i c e , t h e k i n g claims no l e s s an
a u t h o r i t y than Manu, t h e 1awgiver, t o decl are t h a t s a c r i f i c e s should be performed without animal slaughter.
The k i n g d e f t l y
.
adds t h a t Visnu s presence a t each s a c r i f i c e (signaled by the use
of
a milk
and
rice
oblation
impropriety o f animal s a c r i f i c e .
[payasa]) confirms
the
There i s no dharmic dilemma
here, b u t r a t h e r a straightforward a s s e r t i o n t h a t t h e Vedas do n o t p r e s c r i b e animal
slaughter.
It has been p r a c t i c e d by
brahmans whose judgment is deep1y f 1awed. The f i f t h and s i x t h s t o r i e s i n t h e group examine t h e case f o r ahims3 o u t s i d e o f t h e cosmic and S r a u t a s a c r i f i c a l arenas,
arguably extendi ng t h e d i scussion f ir s t t o t h e domestic, t h e p u b l i c sphere,
then
i n order t o g e n e r a l i z e t h e p r a c t i c e o f
ahimsa t o every sector, extending t h e concept beyond Srauta r i t u a l s e t t i n g s on which t h e c r i t i q u e o f t h e TulSdhSra, Nahusa
and V i cakhnu s t o r i e s focus. The s t o r y o f C i r a k a r i n i s t h e f i f t h i n t h e s e r i e s (see t h e Appendix For a summary). s t a r k and d i s t u r b i ng:
The dharmic d i 1emma i t poses is
should a son obey h i s f a t h e r by k i 11 i n g
h i s mother, o r disobey him because m a t r i c i d e i s abhorrent and because t h e son b e l i e v e s her blameless?
I n other words, can
259
someth i ng
that seems
so
wrong be
ri ght •
although
on
the
legitimate authority of a spiritually accomplished father? It is very difficult to imagine that we are not meant to compare Cirak3rin's story with two others in which violence predominates. both of which occur elsewhere in the epic:
the
story of Indra and Aha1ya and that of Renuka and Jamadagnya. And
perhaps we
are therefore meant
to
consi der
its
very
di fferent message as advocat i ng a fu 11 y dharmi cal ternat i ve to their more grisly prescriptions. 8 comparisons
further
here.
but
I will not explore these merely
that
note
an
interpolator's decision to cast a fresh eye on the theme of just 1 y murdered wi ves through Aha1 yll may present a
the characters of Indra
further means whereby standard
and
vi ews
about dharma are challenged through Mbh narratives. In this story. Gautama's son, Cirakarin, agonizes long days when his father commands that he kill
his mother.
He
carefully weighs his obligations to both parents. and simply cannot bri ng hi mse1 f father's
initial
commi tted an
to ki 11
insistence
hi smother. that
unpardonable offense,
Contrary to hi s
Cirakarin's
mother
Ci rakari n comes
to
had the
independent conclusion that she believed she was doing her
&when Aha1ya unwittingly had sexual intercourse with Indra (who came to her forest home disguised as her husband. the ascetic Gautama). Gautama killed her on the spot for this transgression, then punished Indra. Renuka, mother of R3ma Jamadagnya, offended her husband by glancing at a handsome king who had stared at her while she was bathing. Jamadagni demanded that hi s son lop off her head, whi ch Rama di d. without a moment's hesitation.
260 duty,
and
therefore
could
not
be
blamed
disguised as her husband, had seduced her.
because
Indra,
Gautama belatedly
reaches a similar conclusion, but on different grounds.
He
reasons that he had behaved dharmically toward a guest and his wife could therefore not be blamed for being deceived.
Unlike
other accounts of the story of Gautama and Ahalya which turn on the paramount importance of women r S that
of
Renuka
and
-Jamadagnya
whi ch
sexual fi de 1 i ty and turns
on
the
son f s
unhesitating (and thus laudable) obedience toward his father, Cirakarinrs dharmic dilemma is resolved by appeal to motive (art:ha).
Because hi s mother meant to act dharmi call y, reasons
her son, he is justified in failing to obey his fatherrs order and consequently in refraining from violence. Sacrificial performance is a theme of the Cirakarin story in a very interesting way.
The occasion for Cirakarin's and
his mother's difficulties actually stems from the requirements of domestic ritual. namely the guest reception.
In discussing
the story below, I will argue that Cirakarin's story resolves his dilemma by leading its audience to conclude that
ahjms~
actually safeguards tradition.
The boy's inclination to stay
his
father
hand
buys
time
for
his
to
re-interpret
the
difficult situation as an enactment of the time-honored ritual of guest reception. We shoul d
note
that the
contain either the word
ahjms~
story of Ci rakari n does nor a synonym for it.
not
As in
the story of Dyumatsena which follows it, we will see that a
261 door is left open, so to speak. at the end of the story to permit the possibility of violence.
When the story reaches a
happy resolution. it closes with a speech Gautama makes to his son counseling extreme reluctance among other things. to harm a friend or punish a family member. story cluster. i nsi stence
In the context of the
its closing verses remind us of how Brahm.'s
that
Death
ki 11
~iva's
relinquished. through The sixth story.
peop1 e
is
moderated.
but
not
arguments against killing.
that of Ki ng Dyumatsena and his son
Satyavat, concerns capital punishment. argues e1 oquent1 y that hi s
In it the king's son
father has recourse to numerous
appropriate punishments other than death for those who commit various crimes.
Satyavat implicitly equates dharma and ahims6
as the story opens. should
be
He says.
considered
naitadbhavi1:umarhati
dharma"
"It cannot be that (vadho
/12.2S9.4cd).
n6ma
For
him
ki 11; ng
bhaveddharmo
there
is
no
dilemma to resolve. Satyavat's argument gains force from the explicit point that his father has humane alternatives. ones that would not entail figurative death to those dependent upon the criminal. namely children, spouse. and parents.
He also takes pains to
insist that punishment be equitably meted out: should
be
punished
in
proportion
to
their
brahmans. too. crimes.
As
discussed below, the story echoes the debate between BrahmB and Siva. Ouri n9 the course of the argument,
the ki ng adopts a
262 point of view that represents a compromise between his and his son's
diametrically
Dyumatsena claims
opposite
that
people
openly stating that when
a
opinions imitate
a
(12.259.27ff). king's
king exercises
behavior ..
self-restraint.
dharma prevails and crime automatically declines. even though it could not be expected to disappear altogether during this. the
He concedes that in the
ka7jyuga.
puni shment was not
elftpl oyed.
and
that
kf1:ayuga.
capital
contemporary
ki ngs
shou 1 d emu 1 ate pract ices from those ti mes as much as possi b 1 e. Lending weight to his son's arguments. Dyumatsena Quotes the venerable synonym
figures for
of
Srahma)
the
Grandfather
(pjt8maha.
and
Manu.
of
compassion toward human beings. fully
capitulate
to
his
both
whom
often
a
advocated
Although Dyumatsena does not
son's
views.
his
opinion
is
significantly moderated by the end of the story. which closes wi th
hi s
concessi on
that
ci rcumstances
weighed in determining punishment.
must
be
careful 1 y
and with a reference to
Manu's compassion. Through the imagery of elder and younger in debate, the story seems to reflect an effort to come to terms with the full
impl ications
of
the
practice of
ahj'!'s..
giving
due
consideration to its practical implications. but without fully embrac i ng punishment
it.
A1 though
serves
as
a
he
in it i all y
necessary
argues 'that capi ta 1 deterrent
to
crime.
Dyumatsena 1 ater concedes that thi ngs are so bad in these days of the
ka 7 j yuga
that
the deterrent.
a 1 though
commonplace.
263
seems i neffecti ve (12.259.20). by
describing
as
He also moderates hi s posi ti on
compassionate
12.259.35c;
(anukamp:Jr1:ham
k:Jru'!ya§:i tas 12.259. 30c) two of the three fi gures he ci tes as
authorities for the ideal behavior of kings.
behavior which
obviates the need for capital punishment. This story. more so that any other in the group. shows how the Mbh cl usters together stori es on important topi cs that are far from univocal. son's view on
ahj~s.,
conduct affai rs
Here. Dyumatsena is respectful of his but not fully convinced to adopt it to
of state.
Satyavat causes hi s
father to
reconsider how he governs, and Dyumatsena marshals arguments that tacitly acknowledge longstanding scriptural authority-at 1 east for compassi onate ru 1 e wh i ch. never resort to violence.
if successful.
need
And so. perhaps, behind this story
we can imagine an interpolator who is attempting to proffer a compromise between more traditional
views in which violence
had a legitimate place and newer views in which it did not. The topic of motive or intention (artha) is not at all prominent in this story. although there is a brief reference to it when
Dyumatsena asserts:
"Good
(ki ngs)
who wi sh to
terrify do not kill criminals willingly.,,9 Once the Dyumatsena story was juxtaposed wi th that of Brahm3/Death and Gautama/Cirakarin, the debate engaged in the first
story
(where
9v i t r a s y a ma n du~k:tin//12.259.25a
ultimately
ah .
Death
sukrto
na
acquiesces
to
her
k3madghnanti
264 "father's" command to kill) was taken up between fathers and children (especially sons) twice more. debate occurs
indirectly:
In the first case, the
Ci rakari n del i berates alone and
concludes that his mother should not be killed, as does his father Gautama once his anger and jealousy subside.
In the
next story. Oyumatsena and Satyavat debate face-to-face, and the story concludes wi th the ki ng moderat i ng hi 5
own vi ew
without fully accepting his son's arguments against violence. The Birth of Death, present a each.
Ci rakar-i n J
and Dyumatsena stori es
middle-of-the-road position
the
principal
authority
all
on nonviolence.
figure
(Brahma,
In
Gautama,
Dyumatsena) modifies his position on violence to a greater or 1 esser degree whi 1 e
reservi ng the ri ght to exerci se it in
certain circumstances. The stories
narrative in
which
c1 uster Vedic
sacrifice
discussion of the propriety of slaughter.
The
fact
ahims/l conc1 udes
on
that
is
ahi~s8J
the
the
with
occasion
specifically.
stori es
of
two
for
a
ritual
Ci rakari n
(on
matricide) and Dyumatsena (on capital punishment) are flanked by stori es about §rauta ri tes suggests a techn; que of emboxi ng
that
characteri zes
both
the
structure
of
sacrificial
performance as described in the ritual sutras of the Vedas, and the stories employed in
Br.hma~a
texts to help elucidate
the meaning and purposes of Vedic sacrifices. 10
10 5ee Mi nkowski , "Janamejaya1s Sattra Structure," and Witzel, UJB PulpD1ani."
Here we see
and
Ritual
265
a man* p u l a t i o n o f n a r r a t i v e materi a1 i n t h e e p i c t h a t seems t o b e t r a y knowl edge of simi 1a r techniques used t o s t r u c t u r e Vedic
We simply do n o t know i f t h e compilers a c t u a l l y
material.
employed t h e technique o f emboxing i n o r d e r t o Vedacize t h e Perhaps a l l we can say i s t h a t i t s use suggests one o f
Mbh.
two t h i n g s :
E i t h e r t h e technique was so common a f e a t u r e o f
o r a l composition i n South Asia t h a t i t p r o v i d e d as ready a t o o l for
e p i c compi l e r s and i n t e r p o l a t o r s a s i t had f o r the
compilers of Mbh
were
t h e Vedic corpus,
well
acquainted
o r t h a t t h e compilers o f t h e
with
the
technique
knowl edge OF Vedic composi t i anal s t r a t e g i es
from
their
.
The seventh s t o r y , a conversation between t h e r. s , i Kapila
and a cow, a1so presents a face-to-face argument.
This time,
K i n g Nahusa i s about t o perform a domestic r i t u a l i n which he w i 1 1 k i 11 a cow t o f u l f i11 h o s p i t a l it y r i t e s toward t h e dei t y
...
Tvastr.
The yati Kapila a r r i v e s t o p r o t e s t t h e impending
slaughter.
Suddenly,
.,
a r s i named SyCimaraSmi enters the body
o f t h e s a c r i f i c i a l cow and begins t o argue v o c i f e r o u s l y w i t h
Kapi 1 a.
The course o f the argument i s d e t a i l e d i n the n e x t
s e c t i o n o f t h i s chapter.
disguised
r s. f
initially
For now, argues
I w i 11 n o t e o n l y t h a t t h e strongly
in
favor
of
t r a d i t i o n a l Vedic p r a c t i c e ( i n c l u d i n g animal s a c r i f i c e ) , b u t e v e n t u a l l y expresses grave doubt as t o whether Vedic p r a c t i c e can
a c t u a l ly
ensure the
real iz a t i on story
as
of
.
moksa.
SyCImaraSmi,
designated
in
excellence,
f i n a l l y humbly asks Kapi l a t o teach him the t r u e
a
rsi, ,
or
Veda-knower
par
266 re1a t i onshi p between the r e a l i z a t i o n o f moksa. apparent
one.
practice o f
I n t h i s story,
Syumarasmi
contradictory,
thinks
domesti c
dharma
and
the dilemma i s only an
the Vedas
confusing and
but Kapila shows t h i s i s o n l y so f o r those o f
1im i ted understandi ng
.
Whoever
pursues t h e dharma o f
renunci ant w i 11 come t o understand the proper between dharma,
s a c r i f i c e and ahimsS.
For him,
the
re1ationshi p is a
ahi-
fundamental expression o f dharma, and t h e r e f o r e k i 11ing can never be considered dharmic. A1though
the
story
begi ns w i t h
the
declaration
that
Nahusai s planned animal sacri f i c e i s r i g h t and proper, by i t s conclusion Kapi l a has made a convincing case t h a t long ago people who t r u l y understood Vedic r i t u a l s and conducted them proper1y ( d u r i ng the f i r s t k-a,
o r eon, understood as a k i nd
o f golden age o f re1igious p r a c t i c e ) were a1so character! zed by t h e i r p r a c t i c e o f ahimsa.
In t h i s way t h e s t o r y uses t h e
i n t e r p r e t i v e strategy o f recovery o f l o s t
knowledge o f the
Veda t o c l a i m t h a t Kapi l a f s understanding o f these matters i s correct.
In t h i s story, one o f t h e animal v i c t i m s i d e n t i f i e d most c l o s e l y w i t h Vedic s a c r i f i c e
( a cow) and a f i g u r e
.
(a r s 0
whose compatriots f i r s t a r t i c u l a t e d the e t e r n a l Vedas t o human audiences together question what i s f a r them t h e very basis of comprehensi on, t h e very ground o f exi stence, know1edge it s e l f : t h e Veda. Here t h e r h e t o r i c a l s t y l e i s not censorious (as i n t h e
267 story of
Nahu~a)
act ion) .
or exhortatory (urgi ng a parti cul ar course of
Rather,
the
passage bri ngs . to
mi nd
Upan i ~adi c
debating sessions in which arguments are challenged point for poi nt
until
the opponent
(here
Syamara~mi)
is
reduced
to
confusion and admits defeat by requesting special instruction that
wi 11
1 ead
discussion.
to
true
understand; ng
of the top; c
under
Here the story exhibits use of the interpretive
strategy of reproduct ion, for the di a 1 ogue (sa"!v8da) c 1 ari fi es meaning in the Veda. Thi s story presents a more di rect attack on the practi ce of animal
slaughter for sacrifice than the preceding ones.
Its concern with nonviolence is much narrower than that of the Bi rth of
Death,
the Tul adhBra/ Jaj ali.
Satyavat stories.
and
the
Dyumatsena/
Ritual animal slaughter is here emblematic
of gross mi sunder-standi ng of what the Vedas enjoi n.
Fo11 owi ng
on the heels of the Dyumatsena story, it does betray a much less
optimistic
domest i eli fe (ty~gadharma).
view
the
(g~rhasthyadharma)
spiritual
possibilities
of
than of the renunci ant's 1 i fe
Despite the segment of the story which states
that the pursuit of ~§ramas
of
mok~a
is open to individuals in all four
(12.262.27), overall it subordinates the domestic to
the renunciant life,
for the acquisition of knowledge which
leads to realization of brahman requires full concentration and dedicated effort.
In this respect, the tone of the story
is fully consistent with the attitudes about the superiority of renunciation so strongly expressed in VyBsa's discourse.
268
K a p i l a f s s t o r y a l s o has a aspect
of
the
much d i f f e r e n t
TuladharaIJajal i
story
i m p o r t than it
s u p e r f ic i a1 1y
I w i 1I discuss below how Tu13dh3ra1s debate w i t h
resembles.
J a j a l i cloaks it s e l f i n t r a d i t i o n a l imagery, vocabulary, narrative
style
to
present
the
novel
view
that
s a c r i f i c e does n o t e n t a i l s l a u g h t e r o f animals. story
the
equates
the
sacrifice o f
cows w i t h
and
proper
The Kapi l a
the
fundamental
m i sunderstandi ng o f t h e meanings o f t h e Veda t h a t p r e v e n t s
people f r o m a c h i e v i n g
-a.
The t o p i c o f artha, m o t i v e o r a t t i t u d e , story.
suffuses t h i s
The debate between Kapi 1a and t h e cow/sage begi ns when
Kapi 1a- chal 1enges sanction
cow
SyOmara6mi * s
sacrifice
contradiction.
by
statement pointing
that
out
an
the
Vedas
apparent
The Vedas s a n c t i o n both a c t i o n and i n a c t i o n ,
so how can one know which d e c l a r a t i o n s apply t o whom, when?"
and
This p u z z l e i n t r o d u c e s a discussion o f t h e r o l e of
mot ive in s a c r i f ic i a1 performance.
Synmarasmi defends
the
o l d e r view t h a t s a c r i f i c e s a r e performed i n o r d e r t o a t t a i n heaven, and Kapi 1a argues t h a t performing s a c r i f ices does n o t h e l p one
realize
continue t o pursue
the
p r a c t i c e s o f domestic l i f e t h a t r e q u i r e such r i t u a l s ?
As
brahman,
so why
Kapi 1a in s i s t e n t l y equates a c t i o n w i t h r i t u a l performance and the
fruits
of
such
action
with
transient
outcomes,
How i s one t o understand t h e
SyUmaraSmits confidence fades.
' e v a v i d i t v a sarvarthanarabhedi t i v a i d i kam/ naramedi t i canyatra n a i s t h i kS Srdyate 6 r u t i h//12.260.15
.
269
contradictory injunctions of the Veda. he begins to wonder? Continuing to insist that the Vedas are authoritative. Kapi1a SyDmara~mi
then i nstructs
in
proper understandi ng of them.
which can only be attained by yogic practice. '2 yogic
practice
performance.
but
is
perfectly
consistent
its motive
is
Furthermore.
with
di fferent.
sacrificial
The
exemplary
behavior of men of former times (sad.c.ra) demonstrates that pu rsu it of the knowl edge of brahlllan is the on 1 y way to atta in mok~a
(12.262.4-12).
Subordinating sacrifice to yoga.
action
(equated with
ri tua 1 performance) to knowl edge. and the domest i e l i fe to the renunci ant • s.
Kapi 1 a
teaches
SyOmara~mi
that such
is
true
understanding of the Vedas. As
with
previous stories
in
the
ahi,!,S6 cluster.
the
Kapi 1 a/SyDmara&mi conversat ion re 1 i es on a rei nterpretat i on of tradition. here presented as a restoration of practices and points of view of an earlier and better time. traditional lore remains intact.
The wisdom of
One need only be reminded of
it. and one should understand that (in this case) Kapi1a like
Tuladhara
or
is
Brahm3
disputant's misunderstanding. on1 your
For the Mbh.
correcting
his
The Vedas are indeed eternal;
apprehensi on of thei r
adjustment.
merely
; tis
truths thi s
requi res
occasi ona1
parti cui ar anci 11 ary
12vedah pram8nam lok8nBm na vedah prsthatahkrtah/12.262.1ab· · E~~~yone·c~nsfders the Vedas authoritative. The Vedas are not renounced.
270
s t o r y (samvada) t h a t c l a r i f i e s confusion about Vedic p r a c t i c e , by r e s t o r i ng supposedl y 1o s t know1edge.
The e i g h t h story, t h a t of Kundadhara s boon t o an unnamed .* brahman,
makes
no menti on
of
ahfmsa.
It c o n t r a s t s t h e
a t t a i nment o f dharma w i t h t h e a c q u i s i t i o n o f wealth, advancing
t h e view t h a t t h e two a r e mutual l y c o n t r a d i c t o r y , and c l e a r l y implying t h a t
r i t u a l s which
require the
(paid)
services o f
professional
brahmans a r e worse than
ineffectual ; they are
destructive.
ce I t does n o t d i s t i ngui sh between animal s a c r i fi
and o t h e r k i nds, a1though i t , 1ike t h e precedi ng Kapi la s t o r y , c l e a r l y regards ascetic p r a c t i ce as t h e on1y means t o u l t i mate s p i r it u a l achievement,
name1y m o k s a .
T h i s passage 1ik e l y has t h e same agenda as t h e re-worked
Tul adhara
story
( d i scussed
be1ow)
4n
which
perform r i t u a l s f o r pay a r e c r i t i c i z e d .
brahmans
who
The greedy brahman
..
c a l c u l a t e s t o select a d e i t y (KundadhSra) who has never been worshi pped before, and who w i 11 thus presumabl y be so g r a t e f u l f o r t h e brahman s a t t e n t i o n s t h a t he w i 11 hasten t o g r a n t t h e
boon of v a s t riches, enabling t h e brahman t o undertake t h e s a c r i f ices which w i 11 achieve h i s r e a l o b j e c t i v e : But Kundadhara has a mind o f h i s own. .* t o g i v e t h e brahman t h e garden-variety crave so desperate1y
.
dharma.
He does n o t want
r e s u l t s he happens t o
Instead, Kundadhara . is determi ned to
g i v e t h e brahman something o f t r u e value:
dharma.
In a t u r n o f s t o r y both comical and mischievously a n t i brahmani c a l , t h e r e c i p i e n t f a i 1s t o recogni ze t h a t he * s been
271
given t h e v e r y t h i n g he wanted,
and without t h e i n t e r i m s t e p
of a c q u i r i n g r i c h e s t o secure h i s desi red outcome.
t o g i v e up altogether. deity,
Ifhe cannot
is
nothing
i n f l u e n c e an obscure
what hope does he have o f gaining any
he concludes,
other d e i t y ' s a t t e n t i o n ? there
He decides
left
O f f he goes t o t h e f o r e s t , t h i n k i n g
to
do
but
live
as
a
renunciant.
.
Kundadhzra* s boon works d e s p i t e t h e brahman * s ignorance,
of
course, and gradually h i s a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e meets w i t h g r e a t
success. KundadhSrafs story * .
p l a y s upon t h e theme o f
a r t h a by
c o n t r a s t i ng i t s more concrete meani ng o f wealth o r p r o f i t w i t h i t s more
abstract
meaning o f
attitude
or
brahman * s u l t i m a t e goal is p r a i seworthy.
motive.
The
Unfortunately,
he
f a i 1s t o understand t h a t t h e o n l y means by which he t h i n k s he can a t t a i n i t , namely m a t e r i a l wealth, w i l l a c t u a l l y lead t o h i s destruction.
Only a f t e r long years o f s p i r i t u a l p r a c t i c e
does Kundadhma grant him a v i s i o n o f those kings who had .. presumably
spent t h e i r
conduct s a c r i f i c e s .
l i v e s amassing wealth,
i n part t o
Now they wal low i n he1 1 because t h e y
never overcame t h e i r desi res, here equated w i t h materi a1 gai n. The f a c t t h a t t h i s s t o r y does not f u r t h e r develop t h e t w i n themes o f interpolated manuscri p t s
.
shim- and dharma may suggest
after
the
reworked t o
ahimsa and s a c r i f ice.
ah7msa
material
interweave the
was
that
i t was
added
themes o f
and
dharma,
It betrays a strong1y anti-orthoprax
a t t i t u d e i n i t s dim v i e w o f t h e supposed m e r i t s of s a c r i f i c i a l
272 practice associated with material wealth.
It stops short of
stating outright that such sacrifices are pointless. at best. The imagery of mighty kings trapped in hell and a world full of people blinded by their desires speaks powerfully.
In that
sense. all humans are victims. or potentially so, since they are at the mercy of dei ties. 13
Nevertheless,
the story is
si 1 ent
1 ink
vi 01 ence
regardi ng
any
exp1 i ci t
between
and
sacrifice. making it difficult to assert with any confidence that it intends to denigrate animal sacrifice. per se. A second element of this story further suggests that it may be a unique interpolation. story
does
the
brahman
Only at the very end of the
understand
engi ne-ered hi s spi ri tual development.
how
Kundadhara
has
The deity says. "No one
is dharmic unless permitted (to be so) by the gods."'4 stating a point of view evident nowhere else in this story cluster. The story ends wi th
astra i ghtforward statement about
the
incompatibility of dharma and material wealth (dhana). making the entire narrative seem firmly rooted in renouncer ideals. I
discuss the story below. but draw no firm conclusions about
its apparently anomalous position in the story cluster. The ninth and final story of the
ahj~s6cluster
another brahman, this time one named Satya.
concerns
He 1 i ves very
abstemiously by gleaning grains left lying in the fields after
t3 eta irlokah susamruddha devanam manusadbhayam/ tathaiva devavacanadvighna~ kurvanti Sarva~~//12.263.47 14 na
devai rananujnata':' katcidbhavati dharmi ka~/12. 263. 48ab
a harvest.
[His w i f e and r e l u c t a n t p a r t n e r i n t h i s a s c e t i c
l i f e makes o n l y a b r i e f appearance i n t h e s t o r y . ) Y u d h i*s* t h i r a g s question
t o ahisma
(12.264.1)
makes
it
c l e a r t h a t t h i s s t o r y 8 once i n t e r p o l a t e d a was a1so framed t o c o n t r a s t dharma and a r t h a ( i n t h e sense of materj a1 gai n) somewhat d i f f e r e n t l y than is done i n KundadhSra8s story. *
but Here
..
Yudhi s t h i r a seeks t o 1earn which s a c r i f 3 ce is perfarmed s a l e l y w i t h a motive o f dharma* n o t p r o s p e r i t y (sukha]
i n mind.
The p r o p r i e t y o f v i o l e n t versus nonv* 01 ent saw4 f ice {represented as animal slaughter) takes center stage i n t h i s n a r r a t i Ve8 u n l iice t h e p r e v i o u s s t 0 f y 8 and i n t h a t regard i t i s more a k i n t o t h e cunversatjon between Kapi 1a and t h e cow.
The
dilemma o f whether to k i 11 o r not t o k i 11 i s presented as repeated t e s t s o f a good man who i s committed t o nonviolence. Even
a
goddess
s a c r i f i c e s D but
tries the
to
convince
repeated
him
efforts
to
perform
to
sway
animal
him
from
rtonvidence t u r n out to be a t e s t by none o t h e r than t h e god Dharma h i msel f
.
Satya, who r e g u l a r l y o f f e r e d s a c r i F i c e s o f f r u i t s , and so
on, t o V i snu, . . was a model o f nonviolent behavior. deer who 1 i v e d nearby approached him t o
One day,
a
say t h a t Satya was n o t
conducting h i s s a c r i f i c e s p r o p e r l y a and should s a c r i f i c e him, the deer [who was a c t u a l l y Oharma i n d i s g u i s e ) .
The goddess
SSvi t r 5 j o i n e d them t o suppart the d e e r ' s i n s i s t e n t requesta b u t s t i 11 Satya refused t o k i 11 i t .
A f t e r she disappeared,
twice more t h e deer asked t o be s a c r i f i c e d .
With i t s f i n a l
274
plea. the deer granted Satya a vision of the apsarases and g~ndharvas
in heaven, when it sought to join them.
resolve weakened.
Satya's
Just then, the deer assumed its true form
and repeated to Satya injunctions against animal
sacrifice.
Although his merit decreased because of this momentary doubt, Satya was
re-confi rmed
in
hi s
commitment
ahims. after
to
Dharma himself assisted him in the proper performance of a sacrifice. Wi th
th is
story,
the
equation
of dharma,
ah j ms8 and
sacri fi ce is compl ete as dharma is personi fi ed toward ends: who,
two
to rescue the potential victim (a deer) from a brahman even
in
an advanced state of spi ri tua 1
pract ice,
is
nearly persuaded that animal sacrifice can be beneficial, and to demonstrate proper ritual performance in person.
Although
we real; ze there was no ri sk that Dharma hi mse 1 f
wou 1 d be
ritually murdered. the essential relationship between
ahj~s8
and dharma deftly strikes home as we realize what was at stake in Satya's decision. The story provides another example of the hermeneutical strategy Bri an Sm; th ca 11 s restatement (see Chapter 2), for it is
only
Dharma's
personified sacri fi ce.
that
undisputed confirms
status
the
as
religious
illegitimacy
of
If a fi gure respected as conversant with
duty animal ~ruti
asserts that a practice is good. it must be so.
c.
The ahims8 Stories in Detail In this section of the chapter, I discuss the stories in
275
the
c1u s t e r
in
greater
detai 1
.
Each
one
expresses
a
p a r t i c u l a r p o i n t o f view about t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p o f dharma, ahfmsa and s a c r i f i c e i n an e f f o r t t o set f o r t h i t s opinion
about
whetheriwhen
k i 11ing
is
dharmi c
s p e c i f i c question i s explored i n t h e consi d e r a t i on o f
t h e re1a t i ve
a
reconciled.
set
of
prevai 1 s i n t h e endfor,
know1edge and
As a group* t h e s t o r i e s
that
are
not
ultimately
The r h e t o r i c a l e f f e c t o f t h e c o l l e c t i o n i s a
l e g i t i m i z e d range o f
options,
opinions
This
l a r g e r context o f a
importance o f
a c t i o n f o r t h e attainment o f moksa. juxtapose
behavior.
views r a t h e r than a s i n g l e one t h a t The chorus o f opinions stand as c r e d i b l e
as we w i l l
see,
each s t o r y employs t h e same
broad s t r a t e g y t o draw i t s conc1usions~ I n each case, proper understanding of t h e Vedas c l i n c h e s t h e argument* narrative o f
It i s t h e
Vyasats conversation w i t h h i s son suka t h a t
frames an understanding o f t h e i n t e r r e l a t i o n s h i p o f t h e s e t o f opi n i ons on nonvi 01ence and dharma i n t h e abimsa c1u s t e r What Vyasa Sai d t o Su ka
r 12.224.6-246.
.
151
Let us r e c a l 1 f o r a moment t h a t muksa i s t h e broad t o p i c o f t h e s e c t i o n o f t h e gsntfparvan i n which t h e a h f m s a c l u s t e r
appears.
J u s t before t h e conversation between VySsa and Suka,
.
t3Ksrna and Y u d h i s t h i r a have been discussing t h e p u r s u i t o f
..
moksa as a means by which Yudhi s t h i r a can cope w i t h intense despa+r he f e e l s i n t h e aftermath o f war.
the
Bhisma has
I 5 ~ snoted e a r l i e r , t h e s t o r y o f KundadhSra exception because i t does n o t address ahimsa.'
is
an
276 recent1y
p o i nted
out
that
other
k i ngs
have
successfu11y He has j u s t
pursued maksa ( s t o r y of Janaka, 12-211-12.212}.
.
t o l d Yudhisthi r a a s e r i e s a f s t o r i e s about Xndra,
king o f the
gads, who had 1earned about maksa from vanquished l e a d e r s ( t h e Oaitya PrahlZda and t h e
asuras Namuci and V a l i
215-37 and 12.216.2-218.381.
[12.215.3-
He has t o l d two o t h e r s t o r + e s
.
about Formidab1e psis who a t t a i n e d t h e s t a t e o f brahman and
exhi b i t e d qua1it i es o f se1f - c o n t r o l
,
equanf m i ty, and so on
t h a t a r e a c t u a l 1y exemplary u f t h e renunci a n t [I2.2224 2 2231 , Nonviolence i s l i s t e d among those q u a l i t i e s , but n o t s i n g l e d o u t f o r any p a r t i c u l a r a t t e n t i o n [12.220 and 12.222 ]
.
The lengthy s t o r y o f VySsafs conversation w i t h h i s son Suka c o n t i nues t h e discussion about moksa and brahman. t h e s t o r i e s immediately preceding i t , however,
Un1ike
i t begins by
p l a c i n g t h e p u r s u i t o f maksa i n t h e broadest possible c o n t e x t , namely t h e very o r i g i n s o f t h e cosmos. The c o n v e r s a t i m a f Vyasa and h k a is one o f t h e l o n g e s t anci I 1a r y s t o r i e s i n t h e Mbh, consi s t i ng o f t h i r t e e n adhyayas * Its
length
and
complexity
probably
warrant
an
entire
monograph, b u t I w i l l here discuss t h e ~ e n e r a lcourse of
its
n a r r a t i v e p r i n c i p a l l y to p o i n t o u t t h a t i t does n o t have an o r g a n i c connect3 on w i t h t h e ahimsa s t o r y I t i s not
cl uster.
c l e a r t o me whether t h e vyasa&ka
dialogue
preceded t h e in t e r p o l a t i on o f t h e ahfmsa c l u s t e r (which it s e l f w a s c e r t a i n l y i n t e r p o l a t e d in segments over
a period o f time)
o r whether t h e s t o r y it s e l f was subsequent1 y in t e r p o l a t e d t a
277
reinforce
the
1egi t i mate1y
view
pursue
that
kings
moksadharma
appropriate f o r
renouncers
f u l f i11ed t h e i r
duties i n the
aSramas )
(like
Y u d h i *s, t h i r a )
(wh ich
andfor
was
could
arguabl y
twice-born
on1y
men who
had
brahmacSrin and househol der
.
I n t h e former
case,
the
~y~sa/Suka story in t e r p o l a t e
p r o v i ded a convenient p l ace t o
because i t does r e f e r t o t h e p r a c t i c e ,
might have s t o r i es
ahi-
but p r i n c i p a l l y as a
c h a r a c t e r i s t i c behavior o f t h e renouncer (12.237.19-20). t h e e p i c continues on t h e s u b j e c t of
S i nce
r e a l i z i ng brahman v i a
renunci a t i on w i t h v i r t u a l 1y no reference t o a h i m s a a t 12.247, f o l l o w i n g the d o s e o f t h e vy3sa/6uka dialogue and immediately preceding the s t o r y o f King Avi kampaka, and t h e n returns t o t h e t o p i c f o r t h r e e adhySyas f o l l o w i n g the n i n t h s t o r y o f t h e t h e r e i s some basis f o r conjecture
ahfmsa c l u s t e r a t 12.265,
that
the Vyaa
ahimsa
s t o r y predates
In
stones.
moksadharmaparvan
that
might
efforts to
case,
have
interpolate the
this
presented
section a
more
of
the
or
less
c o n s i s t e n t argument t h a t Yudhisthi . . r a could o n l y pursue moksa gradually. classical
This
i s t h e argument
formulation
of
familiar
to
varna6ramadharma:
us from t h e only
after
f u l f i l l i n g the d u t i e s unique t o t h e f i r s t two stages o f l i f e may
a
twice-born
responsi b i 1i t i e s .
Hindu This i s ,
male
turn
o f course,
away
from
domestic
p e r f e c t l y consistent
w i t h Bhisma*s s p e c i f i c purpose i n h i s e n t i r e conversation w i t h Yudhisthi ra,
namely
to
dissuade
him
from
abandoning
his
278
kingdom to become a renunciant. Some
of
arguments.
the
stories
ahi_s6
A few
suggest
develop
outr i ght that
very
different
the 1 i fe
of the
renunciant is far superior to that of the householder (e.g., Kapila
Ku~~adhara),
and
clearly
implying
that
certain
individuals with the requisite spiritual ability should elect the renouncer's lifestyle, and may do so on Vedic authority. Several
of
the
characteristics householder, (especially renunciant
other of
the
literally ahj~s.)
stories ideal
instead
assimilate
renunciant
to
domesticating practices
otherwise
the and
only
Cirakarin,
Vi cakhnu ,
On the other hand, if we ignore the
Vyasa/~uka
(e. g ••
Tuladhara,
associated
major ideal val ues
with
the
and
the
uficha vow).
dialogue
for a moment, the more i mmedi ate context of the ahjms6 stori es is
ki ngs
Namuci.
and warri or and Vali)
who
dei ti es
(i f
achieved
a
we can
so 1 abel
Indra,
balanced view of
fortunes and misfortunes by focusing on moksadharma.
their
In these
stori es the model of the renunci ant is harmoni zed with that of the king.
The focus is more decidedly upon how to achieve
peace of mind in the world,
so to speak.
the underlying problem in all of the
This is precisely
ahi~s6
exception of the very brief stories of
stories with the
Nahu~a
and Vicakhnu.
It would require a much more detailed examination of the Vyasa/~uka
case
for
dialogue than I will undertake here to make a good the
relative
chronology
of
ahi_s6 stories
with
279
respect t o those immediately surrounding them t h a t deal w i t h r e a l i z i n g brahman through moksadharma.
For now,
I w i 11 o n l y
show how t h e dialogue u n f o l d s toward an i n t r o d u c t i o n o f t h e for the i n t e r p o l a t o r who may have been keeping
t o p i c o f ahan
eye
out
for
just
such
an
opportunity
to
add
ahfmsa
material. As i t opens, t h e s t o r y q u i c k l y establ i s h e s t h a t 6uka i s extremely learned, b u t t h a t h i s father Vyasa i s a formidable L i ke h k a , Yudhi s . .t h i ra has asked about
a u t h o r i t y on dharma. the origins o f
a1 l
creatures,
and so Vyasa
begins w i t h
a
r a t h e r extensive account o f t h e mythology o f t h e waking and sleeping cycles o f Brahma as t h e fundamental s t r u c t u r e o f t i m e i n t h e cosmos.
This mythology, o f course, e x p l a i n s how t h e
universe can appear t o be so d i v e r s e as t i m e unfolds though t h e yogas,
w h i l e remaining coherent when understood as t h e
r e g u l a r r o t a t i o n o f day and n i g h t f o r Brahma. B r a h m a r s r o l e as c r e a t o r ,
Vyasa e x p l a i n s
and t h e r e g r e t t a b l e consequences
among humans who have f i x e d upon one element o r another o f that
creation without
understand! no how
through Brahma's experi ence.
it
becomes who1e
I n t h i s d i scussi on (12.225).
Vyssa notes t h e f a m i 1i a r concept o f the progressive c o r r u p t i on and fragmentation o f dharma from t h e k r t a t o t h e kaliyuga.
VySsa (12.227ff).
then
discourses
Among
those
on
duties,
the
as
dharma we might
of
brahmans
expect,
i s
280
knowledge o f t h e t h r e e Vedas (12.227.1-2).
i s an u n f a i 1ing guide i n t h e d i f f i c u l t undertaking
says VyZsa, of
And knowledge,
r e a l i z i n g brahman (12.228 and 12.229). Suka s e i z e s on t h i s c l a i m about knowledge t o ask about
it s re1a t i o n s h i p t o a c t s (karman)
by adhering t o t h e nivrtti
instead
the
Hereafter
d i r e c t i o n , then another. definition
of
the
Does one acqui r e knowledge
pravrtti (knowledge through a c t i o n )
(knowledge
(12.229.2).
.
of
action)
dialogue
path,
turns
he
first
in
or
asks one
I n i t i a l l y , VyZsa f u r t h e r narrows h i s
ideal
brahman
by
asserting
that
the
renouncer c o m m i t t e d t o knowl edge o f brahman but. a1so steeped i n knowledge o f t h e Vedas i s on a p a r w i t h Svayambhu h i m s e l f (12.229.25).
Such
(12.230.1-2). position
a
person
Subsequently,
by
saying
that
pursues however,
acts
lead
knowl edge 1eads t o moksa (1 2.233.6-7)
knowledge
acts
he c o n t r a d i c t s t h i s
only
.
via
to
rebirth,
but
When 6uka t w i ce asks
h i s father
t o e x p l a i n why t h e Vedas appear t o e n j o i n both
performing
acts
and
not
performing
them
(12.234.3
and
12.234.10-1 1 ) , Vyasa expl a i ns by r e f e r e n c e t o t h e c l a s s i c a l formul a t i on o f
varna6ramdharma:
one must prepare onesel f t o
r e a l i ze brahman by performing t h e d u t i e s o f each a6rama i n t u r n . 17 T h e r e a f t e r , Vyasa explains t h e d u t i e s o f t h e householder stage (12.235).
t h e n t h e renouncer
(12.237).
I n the l a t t e r
' c a t u s p a d i hi n i h S r e n i brahmanyesS p r a t i s t h a t a / et3ma6fi t y a nihShenih brahma lbke *inahZyate//12.234.15 a
281 s e c t i o n we f i n d t h e o n l y e x p l i c i t mention o f ahimsa i n t h i s dialogue
(12.237.19-20).
discussion
turns
to
presumably
understands
(12.237-241 )
.
regards as
superior,
renouncer
In
more
subsequent
esoteric
because
of
He then discourses
ideal
duties
(1 2.242-243)
that
adhyws,
matters
his
which
advanced
on a s e t conform
the hka
knowledge
of
duties
closely
to
he the
b e f o r e agai n addressi ng more
e s o t e r i c m a t t e r s such as adhyatma ( 1 2.244-246). As n o t e d e a r l i e r , t h e adhyaya f o l l o w i n g t h e d i s c o u r s e o f Vyasa
and
ancillary
Suka
provides
story
(12.247).
no
real
transition
There.
Bhisma
to
the
enumerates
p r o p e r t i e s o f t h e f i v e elements and t h e f i v e senses, that this.
next the
claiming
t o o . was something VySsa t o l d h k a .
The S t o r y of
K i ng A v i kam~aka[ 12.248.7-250.41
1
There i s l i t t l e t o n o t e about t h i s s t o r y except t h a t i t seems t o r e t u r n Y u d h i s t h i r a a b r u p t l y t o t h e s u b j e c t t h a t had 8
.
preoccupi ed him in e a r l ie r adhy8fyas o f t h e moksadharmaparvan, name1y
an
emphasi zed mighty
understandi ng through
k i n g who
of
death.
K i ng Avi kampaka' s
ruled i n t h e best
Its
inevi t a b i 1i t y
e x p e r i ence, of
all
for
is
t h is
p o s s i b l e times
(krtayuga) s u f f e r e d t h e numbing l o s s o f h i s son i n b a t t l e , as
.
had Y u d h i s t h i r a . his grief,
the
Searching f o r a way t o come t o terms w i t h k i n g met t h e
.
r, s i Narada,
who attempted t o
console him by e x p l a i n i n g why death i s i n e v i t a b l e . The B i r t h o f Death f12.248.11-248.371 Through NSradaf s words,
Bhisma t e l l s o f t h e o r i g i n o f
282 Death.
focusi ng
on
her extreme
re1 uctance to ki 11
for
no
reason, other than that Brahma created her to kill humans in a
detached
way
and
(12.248.11-248.37).
without Only
showing
after
long
favoritism years
of
to
any
ascetic
practice, coupled with Brahma's promise that in performing her duty she would incur no sin, did Death at last begin to do that for which she was created. This story presents two viewpoints on violence that most assuredly
reflect del iberations
animal sacrifice.
about the
advi sabi 1 ity
of
If the story is considered in isolation.
there is no firm basis for such an interpretation.
Only when
set in its larger Mbh context does this narrative of Death's rebel 1 i ousness and $; va IS echoi ng protest become part of a much broader deliberation on violence and its alternatives. When Brahma set creation in motion, he made no provision for
overpopulation.
creatures.
and
Earth,
The
universe
suffering
begged Brahma for relief.
became
under the
glutted
growing
with
burden,
And so he created Death in the form
of' a woman.
For Brahma, the death of creatures was the means to a compassionate end.
It was out of consideration for Earth that
he devi sed the sol uti on of
Death.
But Death herselof was
deeply shocked by BrahmK's instructions.
Unwil1;ng to concede
the greater good which he claimed, she insistently focused on the immediate consequence rather than the ultimate purpose of the violence:
Creatures were to be undeserving victims of
283
vi 01 ence at her hands. should she harm them?
They had done her no harm,
so why
Only after a very long time did Death
accede to Brahma's wishes, and then for two reasons: Long and arduous
had brought her to some sense of acceptance of
~apas
her dut i es
and Brahm3 had assu red her that she wou 1d i ncu r no
I
sin for performing them. One cannot help but recall here Arjuna's dilemma, to some extent similarly resolved. instruction and
(What
revelation to Arjuna.
achieves through ascet;c practices.) acknowl edges
the
attributing it
ki ng' s
gri ef over
to a misplaced
Avikampana.
both
Death
individual
lives
necessari 1 y
to incur si n.
is
and
accomplishes through
K~~~a
Death
however,
here
Narada's story deftly his
son • s
deat h
wh i 1 e
sense of compassion.
~;va
conclude
regrettable,
and
Like
that
loss
to
kill
that
Hei ther real i zes that
of
Brahma t s
ultimate concern for the Earth requires that her burden be alleviated pai nfull y
by wei gh
destroying her
some
down.
of
the
Brahm3
is
creatures
pati ent wi th
limited understanding. but uncompromising: be reborn, as ~iva requests.
who
so
thei r
Those who die may
but die they must.
And Death
herself is given all the t;me she needs, through asceticism. to reach a state in which she accepts her responsibility, but accept it she must. Although in this story it is quite clear that Brahma's position wins out. we should not hastily dismiss its other formidable
characters.
Surely
the
compilers
valorize
284
Avikampana's expression of the unique value of his son's life by
attributing
Siva.
similar sympathies
to that
Although Brahma quickly neutralizes
fearsome ~iva's
deity.
objections
to death. Death herself forcefully resists her role, as if to contest Narada's sage claim that death is inevitable. return
to
these
observations
Proudfoot l s i nterpretati on
of
below the
in
story
of
We will
discussing
Ian
Tul adhara
and
Jajali. and postpone discussion of how this episode (in which everyone reluctantly concedes Brahm.'s position on violence) relates to subsequent ones. Implicit
in
Narada's
story
is
the
notion
that
what
appears needlessly cruel, objectionable, and even sinful is in fact an ultimate act of compassion. one which serves a cosmic purpose.
BrahmS's view is consistent with the older Vedic
concept; on of c i rcu 1 ar 1 i fe processes wh i ch undergi rds the Vedic
sacrificial
respected.
system.
Here
it
is contrasted with
but ultimately subordinate.
point of view which
focuses on the intrinsiC value of individual will
see below.
this
juxtaposition
a
lives.
As we
of conflicting
values
governs the gradually unfolding consideration of the necessity for and purposes of violence taken up in subsequent stories. The Conversation Between Tuladh3ra and J3jali. Nahusa's Slaughter of a Cow and a Bull. and the Song of King Vicakhnu [12.253-12.257.111
I will discuss the next three stories in the context of the Tul adh3ra and
Jajal i
epi sode
because
Ian
Proudfoot IS
285
extensive work on t h i s segment of t h e ahimsa c l u s t e r has shown them t o be c l o s e l y related.
I w i 11 summarize Proudfoot's arguments a t some l e n g t h here,
f o r he i s t h e o n l y scholar who has examined a substory
in i t s Mbh frame by r i gorousl y appl y i ng standard p r i n c i p l es o f
lower t e x t c r i t i c i s m .
The r e s u l t o f h i s work (which used t h e
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n without a c c e p t i ng i t s conclusions a t face value) was a c a r e f u l r e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f t h e growth o f t h e s t o r y w i t h o u t recourse t o higher c r i t i c i s m .
.
Proudfoot concluded t h a t t h e s t o r y o f Tul adhara/Jajal i now f i v e
adhyayas
adhyaya.
I t addressed the problem posed by Yudhi s t h i r a i n
12.252,
in
length,
i n i t i a l l y consisted
of
one
..
name1y
the d i f f i c u l t y
s e t t i ng up a c o n f l i c t ( 1 2 . 2 5 3 ) ,
o f comprehending dharma, proposing a s o l u t i o n ,
by
taught
and p r e s e n t i ng a resol u t i on C 12.256)
by Tul SdhSra (12.254).
.
The s t o r y explores "the tension between a c t i v e and passive participation i n
1if e ,
re1igious-moral
but also a
tension
between t h e values o f an urban and commercial c l a s s and t h e values o f t h e domi nant non-commerci a1 o r non-urban c l asses. Through
the
f igure
Yudhi s . t h i r a ts
of
Tul Sahara,
observation
that
the one
story cannot
acknowledges adequate1y
understand dharma, and t h e r e f o r e proposes t h a t one shoul d 1ive
as Tu1Sdh3ra 1ives,
imparti a1 1y
.
w i thout
in t e r e s t
in
consequences o f behavior o r how o t h e r s might perceive i t . %roudfoot,
A h imsa and a Mahabharata Story, 108.
the As
286 we shall see below in the discussion of verses 12.255.1-40. Tuladh&ra1s adlnonition to the ascetic Jaja1i
that he adopt
Tuladh8ra's attitude in this regard provides the occasion for an
interpolation
structured
according
requi rements and
lends we; ght to the
general
matter
subject
nonviolence
was
a
of
this
source
of
to
formal
Mimalns8
conc1 usion that the
cluster
contention
of
stories
among
on
brahman
intellectuals. In the narrative. Tul&dhara is contrasted with J8ja1i, who,
although an ascetic,
is nevertheless ignorant "of the
meaninglessness of action. lltt §Snt:i
In the
end,
Jajali
attains
(understood as a state of non-attachment whi ch cannot be
apprehended intellectually) after
listening to Tu1adhara's
exposition on the subtleties of dharlna. The paradox of the
attached asceti c
and the detached
merchant was central to the tale in its initial formulation: "The composer dismantles this paradox by arguing that it is the manner of Jaja1i's acting as an individual and the manner of Tuladhara's participation in social 1i'fe which is critical, not the forms of thei r behavi or. "lO As might be expected, Proudfoot only presents a relative chrono logy
of
the
story I
S
lnu1 tip 1 e
1 ayers I
for
i nterna 1
evidence can do no more, and external evidence for locating these
stories
historically
19 I bid.,
102.
20 I b ; d..
1 04 .
is
to date
nonexistent.
The
287 reconstructed or; gi na1 cons; sts of a mere 33 verses (i nc1 udi ng three which are actually half verses) of the 186 accepted by the critical edition. 21
Its style is expository.
its prose
denotative. and its verbs are often in the optative mood. Proudfoot has shown that subsequent interpolations were The first one added 53 verses or
of very different kinds.
verse portions. principally to adhy.ya 253 (253.12-51) of the critical edition.
It is more verbose. observes Proudfoot,
with a 1ivel ier style which contrasts with the more restrained tone of the earl i er story, and a tendency toward word-play which contrasts with the expository nature of the original story.22 With this first interpolation, shifts
to
Jaja1i.
and the
the focus of the story
interpolator
equating it consistently with dharma. 23
champions
ahims.,
What was construed
as 1 audab1 e i ndi fference in the 01 der story is a1 tered through this first interpolation to portray entails compassion and altruism.
ahj~s.
as a value which
Although the "new" value of
ah j ,!,S3 ; s presented as consi stent wi th Tu ladhara I s character. he is in truth only the nominal
The Story of
Nahu~a
t
s
hero of this re-worked story.
Sl aughter
of a
Cow and a
Bu 11
[12.254.46-254.48]. The
Nahu~a
story occurs
21 Ib id.,
97-103.
22 I bi d..
1 47-1 48 .
23 I bid..
113.
in
the context of
a
passage
288
whi ch,
(254.37-49)
e v i 1 practice,
"
Proudfoot e x p l a i ns,
serves " t o exempl if y
u s i ng cSharmaSastra-1 ike materi a1
.
W i eked acts
par excellence a r e those which cause i n j u r y , and i n j u r i e s t o
.
c a t t l e are t h e worst acts o f a1 3 24
Proudfoot does not comment on t h e occurrence o f the Nahusa s t o r y i n t h i s context.
From the context, however, i t
seems t h a t Nahusa was unaware 0° t h e t e r r i b l e consequences o f cattle-killing,
and t h e r e f o r e m o t i v e ( a r t h a ) i s n o t a f a c t o r
in t h i s s t o r y except i n s o f a r as t h e passage imp1i e s t h a t even
w e l l -meani ng behavior (which Tul adhSra a t t r i b u t e s t o J S j a l i i n verse 257.49) can be t e r r i b l y d e s t r u c t i v e .
Even t h e r, s f s and
a s c e t i c s were imperi l e d by h i s deed, and so they i n f l i c t e d 101 diseases on Nahusa which they dispersed t o h i s descendants and all
other
creatures
in
punishment.
They
also
boycotted
Nahusa 's s a c r i f i c e s , e f f e c t i v e l y p r e v e n t i ng him from accruing any f u r t h e r m e r i t o r f u l f i l l i n g h i s o b l i g a t i o n s t o d e i t i e s , ancestors, and subjects.
The passage emphasi zes t h e t e r r i b l e
s u f f e r i n g which v i c t i m s o f v i o l e n c e endure, whether human o r animal. The f a c t t h a t t h e passage culminates i n t h e s t o r y o f Nahusa 's transgression
seems
to
slaughter i s t h e most d i r e o f
violent
however,
qua1 it a t i v e l y d i f f e r e n t
listed,
for
all,
including
suggest
from
fUahusats
that
acts.
s a c r i f ic i a 1 It i s
t h e other act,
are
not,
behaviors labelled
The s t o r y o f Nahusa i s presented t o J S j a l i as one example
of
activities
are
fami 1ia r
but
neverthel ess
J a j a l i (and presumably through him t h e e p i c ' s
objectionable. audi ences)
that
are apparent1y unaware o f j u s t
how d e s t r u c t i v e
seemi n g l y o r d i nary acts o f c r u e l t y and bodi 1y i n j u r y are. Accompl ished as he was, Nahusa was perhaps best known f o r h i s misdeeds i n association w i t h Indra.
i n t h e aftermath seduce Sac:
of
Made king o f t h e gods
I n d r a f s brahmanicide,
Nahusa t r i e d
to
and was subsequently deposed through an e l a b o r a t e
t r i c k which l e d Agastya t o curse him, transforming him i n t o a boa c o n s t r i c t o r
.
The o b j e c t i o n a b l e cow s a c r i f i c e a11udes
f u r t h e r t o c o n f l i c t s w i t h Indra, o f f e r e d t o Tvastr, * .
f o r Nahusa's s a c r i f i c e w a s
who had created both T r i 6 i ras and V r t r a ,
t w o o f I n d r a 8 s most formidable foes.
appearance i n t h e Mbh a t 3.173-3.178
Nahusa also makes an w h i l e under h i s curse.
He i s t h e boa who captures t h e Pandavas and w i l l n o t r e l e a s e them u n t i 1 they solve c e r t a i n r i d d l e s . The r h e t o r i c a l force o f Nahusal s s t o r y in the Mbh passage
at
12.254
is
not
at
all
obvious.
It
has no
apparent
h e r e I d i f f e r w i t h Proudfoot, who speculates t h a t t h e in t e r p o l a t o r o f 254.37-49 probably " d i d n o t consider t h a t s a c r i f ice i n v o l v e d i n j u r y , and only i n c i d e n t a l l y mentions s a c r i f i c a l r i t u a l s (p. 149). It seems odd t h a t t h e r s f s would punish a n o n r i t u a l offense by r e f u s i n g t o o f f i c i a t e a t Nahusa's r i t u a l s t h e r e a f t e r . Furthermore, t h e s t o r y o f Kapi 1a and t h e cow a t 12.260.5-262.45 takes p l a c e as Nahusa I s about t o s l a u g h t e r a cow t o honor t h e god Tvastr, suggesting a s t o c k e p i sode o f Nahusa' s biography (a1 though8*one n o t prominent in Mbb myth01ogy) '
.
290 relationship to the segment of the the
passage echoes.
particularly
unique
Nor does about
M.navadharma~.stra
there seem to
Nahusa's
here.
be anyth i n9
biography
indicate why he was selected for mention as a
which
that
would
fetus-killer
If anything. that designation seems to s;gna1 a degree
of censure of Nahusa at odds with the more typical estimations of
hi s
career.
He
is most
often a
formi dab 1 e
man whose
arrogance leads to his downfall. and in this respect is like many another king or sage whose power threatens the supremacy of the gods.
Perhaps it is
Nahu~a's
notoriety as Indra's nemesis that
is the most cogent in this context.
In a sense. Indra is the
divine transgressor par excellence (a role later taken over by
Si va. but in di fferent ways).
He fl aunts sexual
mores by
seducing married women in elaborate ruses, and ritual ones by committing the most heinous of crimes. murder of brahmans. a certain extent.
Nahu~a
To
is his human double, seducing a god's
wife (Saci) and -- at least in the passage under discussion -murdering that most sacred of creatures. a cow. those reasons
Nahu~a
Perhaps for
here represents a human transgressor of
ahims. whose shocking deeds we are meant to regard with due caution. As Proudfoot shows, the interpolations do not end here. Subsequent additions betray rather more limited concerns than the one
di scussed
above.
The
segment at 254.37-49,
for
exampl e, seems to have been i nspi red by the M.navadharma'.stra
291 or
a
work
very
obj ect i onab 1 e particular,
much
like
acts wh i ch
cows. calves,
it. U
cause
It
harm to
and bulls.
story (told in three verses) of
delineates 1 i vi ng
various
th i ngs.
in
It also contains the
Nahu~als
slaughter of a cow
and a bull, previously discussed. A Brahman Challenges His Peers:
Interpolation and Re-
interpretation of the Vedic Sacrifice Yet
another
passage
in
the
Tu 1 adara/ Jaj ali
di a 1 ogue
(12.255.1-40) specifically debates the relationship between ahimsSand sacrifice. a
n.sti ka.
or
sacrifice.
Here, Jajali accuses Tuladhara of being
n; hi 1 i st, who
den; es the va 1 i di ty
of Vedi c
In his reply, Tuladhara effectively reinterprets
the older sacrificial model, arguing that sacrifices need not enta i 1 ki 11 i ng.
He proposes
an i ma 1 sacr i ofi ce.
Although Proudfoot regards the arguments as
in turn four a1ternati ves to
contrived. the passage is in fact an excellent example of the Mbh I
S
uses of forma 1 argumentat ion,
and therefore warrants
closer consideration here. Narrative Uses of Mimamsa Rules of Debate Mima~sa
of
a
proper
u~~arapaksa
the
rules of argumentation set forth five components
or
argument: siddh.n~a,
and
topic of the discussion
sa~gaTj. (vj~aya),
One begins by stating and
aspect of the topic at issue in the argument one states the opponent1s view(s)
the particular
(sa~§aya).
(pDrvapak~a),
Next,
followed by
26proudfoot, Ahims. and a Mah.bh.ra1:a S1:ory, 122.
292
the
position
to
(u'ttarapak!!a or
be
upheld
in
siddhanta).
the body
of
the
argument
Finally, there should be some
indication of the consistency or coherence of the position which has been defended
(sa~ga~i).
So widely used was this structure of argumentation that it has been called the measuring standard for all subsequent philosophical, legal. and scientific literature in Sanskrit. l1 Codified
in
Jamini's
Mim.~slf
SD~ras
by approximately
the
second century B.C.E. the principles of interpretation were developed by Vedic exegetes. but were regarded as valid for any and every form of discourse. 28
It should be no surprise,
then, to find that narrative material
in Sanskrit, too,
is
sometimes structured in the same way. The passage i nterpo 1 ated into the Jaj ali
story (i. e .•
into the re-worked Tul adhara story) occurs at 12.255.1-40. Wi th the except i on of verses 35-36ab.
36c-f.
37,
and 38ab
which were probably added at a later t;me, the entire passage seems to represent a coherent whole. 29 Following the transitional verse at 254.51c. the passage
21Wi nternitz. History of Indian Literature, Vol. III, Part II, 473-474. zaChari, Sanskrit Criticism, 163-164. 29proudfoot suggests that the subsequent interpolation of 36cf, 37 and 38ab into the longer passage merely glosses the fourth alternative to animal sacrifice which Tu1adhara discussed. Indeed it does seem to elaborate the householder'S offering mentioned by Tul.dhara at 255.34, 38cd-39 by explaining that one only requires a cow and a wife to perform a sacrifice successfully.
293 in adhy6ya 12.255 opens wi th Jaj ali • s
accusat i on that
the
dharma of non-injury which Tu1adhXra espouses would bring the universe to a standstill. the says
PDrvapak~a.
that
In verses 2 and 3a. JXja1i states
or opponent's view. in positive terms when he
sacrifice
is dependent
upon
plants and
cattle.
Tuladhara subsequently states this view in negative terms at 12.255.5cd-7~
Tu1adhara retorts that in fact he upholds the sacrifice ( 12 .255. 4-Sab) . aspect
of
He then states the sB'!'§aya.
the
topic
at
issue
in
the
the
spec; fi c
argument:
constitutes proper ritual acts (12.255.5cd-7ab).
what
Brahmans are
ignorant of what the Vedas actually say, and therefore they perform
sacrifice. a materialistic activity in which
k~atrjya
they focus on 1 y
on the
gi fts they wi 11
recei ve for
thei r
services. There follows the position wi 11
upho1 d
(12.255. 7c-f-8) .
says
(~~stranjdar§anam)
reei tati on,
and
the
(uttarapak~a)
he. Tu1adhara,
The i nstructi on of the Veda
that
oblations
paja.
offeri ng of
(havis).
p1 atns const i tute
proper
worship. Tu1adhara posi ti ons as argument
further the
unfolds.
elaborates
utt:arapak~a
He
or
and
contrasts
siddhllnta
emphasizes
the
the
two
segment of the point
that
the
sacri fi cer lsi ntenti on or atti tude (.tmllnalll) in performi ng the sacrifice -- which Tuladhara himself exemplifies -- is the key to its outcome
(12.255.9-16).
Idea11 y.
one shou1 d
remai n
294
indifferent to the outcome of the sacrificial performance, and merely make proper offerings to the gods with no thought of reward.
Those who do focus on the gains to be achieved and
sacrifice
animals
purpose of the Theirs is a
in
the
ri tual s
process
and wi 11
degenerate rite
misunderstand
the
true
suffer the consequences.
in which gain them only evil
karman (255.9-16).
As the argument continues. Tuladhara next presents four alternatives to the greedy. degenerate. impure rituals he has called
k~atrfya
sacrifice.
The first alternative (255.17-20)
prai ses those who offer truth and restrai nt. notes,
As Proudfoot
nBy defining the purpose of the sacrifice to be the
satisfying of the appetites of the gods, Tuladhara is able to suggest that thi s can be accomp1 i shed through the noncorporea1 sacrificial offerings of truth and restraint.,,30 The second alternative is to offer plants as oblations (255.21-27).
yield
Tuladhara reasons that in fact such offerings
precisely
creatures attai n crucial.
the
same
heaven.
result
as
animal
In this case,
too,
sacrifices: attitude is
By electing to offer plants instead of animals. a
yajamSna signals his benevolent attitude toward creatures and
demonstrates his conscious rejection of the kinds of sacrifice which have the attainment of heaven as their (selfish) goal. Such
an
act
proves
the
spiritual
superiority
of
such
a
sacrificer, and. as a consequence of such proficiency. "his
295 benevol ence toward 1 i vi ng creatures wi 11 In other words,
be effi cac; ous. ,,31
presumably by setting an example for living
creatures through thei r behavior. the ideal dvjja prov; des the occasion for an alternative route to heaven. one which does not entail creatures' death as sacrificial victims. The third alternative is ",ental performance of animal sacrifices
(12.255.28-33).
Its
performance
should
be
restricted to those who are so spiritually advanced that they will nat be reborn. on 1 y
perform
Others of lesser accomplishment should
sacr; fi ces
in
whi ch
pl ants
are
offered
as
oblations. Finally, Tuladhara proposes what he espouses as the most widely applicable means of sacrifice:
the offering of a grain
cake by the brahman householder via g.rhapstys or domestic rites (12.255.38cd). The
formal
connectedness)
requi renrent
as a
of
feature of a
ss,!,gat:i
(coherence
well-rounded argument
presented indirectly in this passage.
if degree of individual
is
The composer. through
Tuladhara. outlines the four alternatives to debased sacrifice as
or
spiritual
k~a~rjya
attainment
alone would recommend performance of one or another of them. By systematically contrasting these acceptable practices with ~raut:a
rites characteri zed
in
the
passage as viol ent
and
selfishly motivated. and by stating that each alternative is actively approved of by gods or ancestors. the composer uses
296
another
Mimamsa
(combination)
to
interpretive
strategy
called
knit
coherent
whole
into
a
upasa~h.ra
sacrificial
practices plucked from disparate -- but authoritative -- §ruti and smrti sources. U
.
As Proudfoot shows. and as I summarize in the following sect ion. each of Tu 1adhara I s a l ternat i ves can be shown resonate with specific practices mentioned in 'ruti or literature.
to
sm~ti
As we shall see, however. the interp01ator has
set forth some very nontraditional views by claiming they are long-forgotten truths,
echoing the strategy of Vedacization
Brian Smith calls recovery (see Chapter 2). Di scussi on
o~
12.255.1-40:
the Interpol ator' s Use of the
Vedic Intertext Structurally estab 1 i shed ru1 es
the o~
passage
at
argumentati on
citing an opposing position,
12.255.1-40 by stati ng
justifying the
a
follows posi ti on,
position,
and
presenting the whole as consistent and coherent.
32 The concept o~ upasamh.ra is set forth in pada 3.3.1-5 of Badar8yana ' s Uttara Mimkms6 SOtras (circa 5th century), a text which attempted to explain the Upanisads in a systematic way. There. upasamhara provides a strategy ~or use during meditation to make 'sense o~ insights about brahman found in disparate Upani6adic contexts. According to Clooney, the concept of upasamh6ra was developed based upon Mimamsa rules which permitted Vedic ritualists of one school o~ performance to borrow performance detai 1 s from other school s. Hi s exce 11 ent art; c 1 e on Adva ita Vedanta uses of POrva Mi mamsa pri nci p1es ill ustrates the use of several concepts fundamental to intellectual argumentation in ancient India. See Francis X. Clooney, S.J., "Binding the Text: Vedanta as Philosophy and Commentary I " in Jeffrey R.. Ti mm I ed.. Texts j n Context: Traditiona7 Hermeneu~ics in South Asia. Albany: SUNY Press,
1992.
297 The interpol ator has el ected to structure the passage along very conventional lines of argumentation.
Furthermore,
he (since presumably the interpolators were male, given what is known about access to Vedic knowledge during the period when the Mbh was being compiled, and in subsequent centuries) has apparently been careful to ground his propositions in the
Upani !!ads
and
Brllhllla '! as ,
gi vi ng
Tu ladhara' s
arguments the
further appearance of being quite conventional. has noted.
however,
As Proudfoot
each of Tuladhara's putative authentic
ritual practices is both old and new.
Verses 17-20 (promoting
truth and restraint as sacrifical offerings) echo Ch8ndogya Upani~ad
5.19.2 which.
like the Mbh passage,
trp (to become satisfied or
play with forms of the verb root to be pleased with),
includes word-
and advocates
internalized sacrifice.
While the Chllndogya passage shows how such sacrifices would satisfy the yajamllna, the Mbh passage stresses how they would sat i sfy the gods. 33 The naenta 1 sacri fi ce advocated
in 255.28-33 genera 11 y
conforms to procedures described in the ~atapatha Br8hma~a, although of course that text concerns i tsel f wi th i nterpreti ng rituals
physically
performed,
not
mentally
rehearsed,
as
Tuladhara advocates. The
procedures
for
g6rhapa1:ya offeri ngs
255. 34-39 are fu 11 yin accord wi th
dharma~lIstra
descri bed at prescri pt ions.
and Proudfoot cites Manu 3.93 and 3.83 in evidence.
There is.
298 however.
one
key
difference:
In
traditional
terms
the
householder rites were conceived as adjunct or complements to the
yajna
which
required
brahman
priests
as
officiants.
Tu13dhKra promotes the solitary householder rite as a fullfledged substitute for the §rauta rites. The interpolator similarly adds a twist to the well-known Vedic concept of the devay.na and
pi~fy.na
pantha, the routes
which determine whether or not an individual will be reborn. to
Upani~ads,
one who understands the esoteric meaning of the
sacrifice wil" be reborn.
the
Pra§na
According
Chll'!t!0gya
I
at death, follow the devay.na path, never to
The souls of those of lesser spiritual attainment
will follow the
pi~fyana,
or the path of the fathers, and be
reborn once their accumulated merit has been expended.
As
Proudfoot notes. The interpolation modifies this Upanisadic model somewhat by positing return and non~return for sou 1 s fo 11 owi ng the devaYllna panthan... In his reV1 S1 on, it is the ki nd of sacri fi ce one makes which determines that one will follow the devayllna panthan. Thi s cri 'teri on is more concrete than that of the Upani sadi c teJ\ts, whi ch look rather at spiritual advancement. Furthermore. the interpolator contradicts by denying that the followers of the
upan;~adic
pjt~y.na
notions
-- who should
use plants as their sacrificial offerings (255.32) -- should sponsor sacri fi ces
and
make gi fts
perform good deeds (255.34).
34proudfoot, 130 .
to
brahmans as
well
as
299 Rhetorical Intentions Several things can be inferred about this interpolator. Fi rst,
he
di sp1 ays
broad
know1 edge
of
§ru'ti
and
smr'ti
material, indicating that he was very likely a brahMan.
Both
types of material seem equally authoritative. suggesting that he has chosen sources
to ground
hi s
arguments in wi del y
accepted
something we would expect of an intellectual who
offers new wine in old skins. To assert that somewhat radical ideas are dressed in old clothing so as to appear conventional is more speculative, but the multiple ways
just outlined in which the
interpolator
takes liberties with conceptions basic to the late Vedic view of the sacrificial system do seem to indicate purposeful reformu 1 at ions rather than 1 ongstandi ng, a 1 ternat ; ve vi ews wh i ch might be attributable to regional differences in practice and conceptualization. whi ch
The interpolator is communicating with an
audi ence
for
the
Vedi c
sacri fi ci a1
system has
meani ng,
and in the service of the argument p1 aced
some
in the
mouth of Tu1adhara, seems to want to convince them that the tradition can, indeed, comfortably accommodate views that are quite at variance with conservative ritualist conceptions of such basic institutions as the sacrifice. The
fact
that
the
interpolator
chose
to
structure
Tu1adh3ra's presentation of his case in terms of conventional debating techniques not only shows his own familiarity with them,
but
also
underscores
the
possibility
that
he
was
300
addressing himself to those who would likewise recognize his ability to engage in discourse on equal terms.
In short. why
bother constructing an argument in a way that only certain elites would appreciate unless it was meant to catch their attention? Finally, this analysis of the interpolation allows me to make
a
rather
obvious
but
nonetheless
important
point.
Insofar as it shows Vedacization at work. the passage should serve as a caution against conflating form and content.
Here
is one small example of how the Mbh's editors and redactors took
pains
to
archaicize
the
epic.
Yet
only
a
close
examination of how they did so can help us achieve a more sat i sfactory understandi ng of preci se 1 y how the transi t ion from Vedism to Hindu traditions proper occurred from within the tradition. Proudfoot concluded that this interpolator of 255.1-40 sought of
J
two
through Tuladhara's argument, to produce a synthesis views
brahmanical
which
elite)
orthodoxy
would
(i.e.,
accept:
the
Those
who
conservative uphold
the
practice of Vedic sacrifice and the related view of life in the other world,
and those
who
championed ahjms6 and
its
consequent emphasis on the value of individual lives, thereby rejecting traditional conceptions of Vedic sacrifice. 35 interpol ator
wanted
to
rei nterpret
rejecting the practice altogether. 35 I bid., 131.
the
sacri fi ce
The
wi thout
In particular. he wanted
301 to attack the so-called
k!!atriya sacrifice,
here equating
animal sacri fice with §rauta rites in general to condemn a group Proudfoot refers to as brahmanic professionals, namely. that subset of brahman priests who achieved wealth and status in
the
performance
alternatives regard.
of
Tu1adhara
publ i c
r; tual s. 36
advocated
are
The
particular
significant
in
this
All can be performed by the yajamlfna without recourse Furthermore. observes Proudfoot,
... it seems that the interpolator was consciously aiming at comprehensiveness in his prescription of forms of private religious practice. He provides for the mature religious activity of a brahman, whether he remains a householder unt i 1 death or retires from society to adopt the vanaprastha mode of existence. Thus he promotes a complete brahmanic religious life alternative to that of the depraved public practitioners. The lines of debate thus separate two social groups: private brahmans, on whose side 37the composer writes; and brahmanic profess i ana 15. . The brahmagi tlf
Another interpolation of interest is the brahmagita. a ga1:ha which occurs at 256.21-22ab. 7-15ab. 38
Proudfoot's observations on the verses of Brahm. give a plausible
interpretation
of
how
ancillary
stories
sometimes have served important cosmetic purposes. case,
an
editor
36 Ibid .,
discomfited
by
the
story
of
may
In thi s a
vaj§ya
132-134.
31 Ibid .• 133. 38Note that Proudfoot wou 1 d canst i tute the text ina slightly different sequence than the Poona edition presents, placing verses 21-22ab ahead of verse 7 as a prologue.
{Tuladhara) who bested a brahman ( J S j a l i ) on h i s own ground, so
to
speak
(i .e.,
the
prestige
of
supplied some presumably stock verses
moral
superiority),
from Brahma on t h e
c e n t r a l i t y o f f a i t h (6raddha) i n order t o b l u n t t h e j a r r i n g r o l e reversal
.
Proudfoot explains:
The sole, emphatic mention o f Sraddha i n t h e uncontaminated t e x t f a l l s a t t h e climax of" t h e s t o r y . TulSdhara, a vaisya, has been proved r i g h t i n h i s s p i r i t u a l advice t o a brahman, and then t h e b i r d s under1i n e t h i s merchant s superior moral in c l uding f a i t h . Thi s unpal a t a b l e qua1it i e s , stanza f u r t h e r humbled t h e brahman J a j a l i . A t the same time i t supplied an offended t r a n s m i t t e r o f t h e t e x t w i t h t h e means t o deal w i t h t h i s anomaly. By emphasizing t h e paramountcy o f t h e v i r t u e o f f a i t h , and by doing so on self-proclaimed orthodox grounds e x t r i n s i c t o t h e epi sode, t h e in t e r p o l a t o r leg4 t i m i zes Tuladhara i n a way which s h o r t - c i r c u i t s t h e tensions o f t h i s confrontation w i t h J S j a l i 39 This small i n t e r p o l a t i o n underscores what e d i t o r s o f t h e Pune c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n have observed about t h e general process o f emendation
they
detected
Despi t e it s c e n t u r i es of been a very
in
the
manuscript
t r a d i t i o n . 40
compi 1a t i on, t h e r e appears t o have
s t r o n g tendency t o
r e t a i n everything
process o f copyi ng manuscripts o f t h e Mbh.
in
the
Passages t h a t were
shocking o r unacceptable i n some way do n o t seem ever t o have been excised.
Rather, they were glossed o r made t h e basis f o r
f u r t h e r interpol a t i on.
The predominant copyi ng e r r o r s were in
t h e nature o f haplox Jegomena and i n c l u s i o n o f commentarial
"v. S . Sukthankar, "Proleg~mena,~~ i n Vol. I, The Adiparvan, The Mahabharata, c r i t i c a l l y ed. by V. S. Sukthankar and others, 19 vol s. (Poona: Bhandarkar O r i e n t a l Research I n s t i t u t e , 1933-66). i - c x .
303
m a t e r i a l i n t o t h e body o f t h e t e x t .
Whatever found i t s way
i n t o manuscripts o f t h e Mbh had a very strong tendency t o be r e t a i n e d i n t h e f u t u r e process o f transmission,
however odd
the content may have seemed t o copyists. The small case o f t h e 6rahmagitS gatha, then, i11u s t r a t e s another feature function
as
of
the a n c i l l a r y
commentary,
as
stories.
means
of
At
times t h e y
explaining
(or
j u s t i f y i n g ? ) t r o u b l i n g o r puzzling passages i n t h e t e x t . The vicakhnugi t3 The f i n a l i n t e r p o l a t i o n i n t o t h e Tuladhara episode was appended t o
the
conclusion
~ r o u d f o o t . ~ ' It i s the
of
the
episode,
according
to
i t f h S s a c a l l e d t h e vicakhnugita,
or
t h e song o f Vicakhnu a t 257.1-1 1.
Thi s in t e r p o l a t i on may w e 1 1 have been added subsequent t o t h e i n t e r p o l a t i o n a t 255.1-40,
proper forms o f s a c r i f ice. this
one
claims
il l egi t i m a t e .
that
invol ves v i 01ence,
concentrates on
But unl ike t h e former a d d i t i o n ,
Vedic
Three reasons
f o r it, too,
animal
sacrifice
a r e given:
Animal
which Manu expressly f o r b i d s :
is
wholly
sacrifice i t causes
i n j u r y t o c a t t l e , which no compassionate person can condone;
and
it
is
used t o
justify
meat-eating,
behavior c o n t r a d i c t s Vedic p r e s c r i p t i o n .
even though
such
Only t h e f r u i t s and
f 1owers o f c e r t a i n t r e e s and m i 1k - p o r n dge a r e appropri a t e
s a c r i f i c i a l offerings,
.
ones i n accord w i t h Visnu's c e n t r a l
' ~ r o u d f o o,t A h i m s a and a Mahabharata Story, 141 4 2 ~ b i d . ,146.
.
304
importance in the sacrifice. As Proudfoot observes, ... the interpolator's first and continuing concern is that the practices he supports are not recognized a$ orthodox. He writes against a background of dispute over what the Vedas enjoin. We see here no conflict between orthodox and heterodox traditions, but rival claims to orthodoxy just i f~ ed. by 43di vergent i nterpretat ions of Vedi c prescrlptlon. Furthermore. the interpolator develops the brief case for his claim by reference to recognized sources of Vedic authority: Vedic
injunctions,
Visnu's
presence
in
tradition, and the practice of good men.~~
the
sacrifice,
By this argument.
vegetarianism is presented as legitimate Vedic practice, and animal
sacrifice
as degenerate,
misguided Vedic practice.
Th is bri ef i nterpo 1 at i on of eleven verses revea 1 s another facet of brahmanical contestation.
Rather than the apologist
of the interpolation at 255.1-40 who derogates §rauta rites in favor of to
all
g~rhapatya
twice-born
vicakhnugit~
its
individuals,
the
interpolator
gives no quarter to animal sacrifice.
proponents
sacrificial
practices which he regards as accessible
as
practice
n.s~jka,
falls
boldly outside
charging of
the
of
the
He labels that
their
IIrya
fold
altogether, and seeks to establish non-meat sacrifices as the sole proper form of Vedic ritual performance. Summary of Proudfoot's Findings and Their Relevance
~3Ibid., 142.
U 1bid .
305 I have attempted. although in summary 'form. to do justice to Proudfoot1s careful and detailed analysis of the Tu13dh3ra story. of
He has shown how two maj or i nterpo 1 at ions and a number
mi nor
ones
orientations. alteration. of what
a
tell
tal e
of
changi ng
i deol ogi cal
The focus of the story changed with each major Initially, the narrative highlighted the virtues
Proudfoot
has
termed
abnegat i ve
detachment,
wi th
uncompromising admiration for Tuladh3ra's disinterested mode of behavior. story
shi fted
With the first interpolation, the theme of the to
advocacy
of
ahimSlr.
Proudfoot
detects
evi dence of careful work on the interpol ator' s part to respect a
story_
good
didactic
The
speeches
editor did
in
the
not elaborate
mouths
of
the
by
putting
characters
he
encountered. but rather developed hi s new theme by means of an enhanced story line.
Once the narrative had been reworked in
this
evidence
way.
internal
suggests
that
no
subsequent
interpol ati ons returned to the theme of the earl i er story. other words. once re-focused on Proudfoot detects a
ahj~s.,
In
the story remained so.
separate trend ; n whi ch "the cow
rises to prominence as an object of ahims. on later levels. n45 Onl y ; n the vicakhnugif:. do the themes of non-i njury ; n the sacrifice and injury to cattle intersect. although the former had been 1 atter
;n
referred the
to in
or; g; na 1
the story.
fi rst i nterpo 1 ati on, It
is not
and
the
clear from
the
internal evidence of the passages at 254.37-48 and 255.1-40 45 I bid.. 1 46 -1 47 .
306 whether they are contemporaneous presentat ions of two si des of a
controversy
(i .e ••
254.37-48
presenting the
position
of
brahmans with sacerdotal functions and 255.1-40 the position of
pri vate
brahmans) •
or
whether
the
vi ews
expounded
in
254.37-48 should be regarded as historically prior to those articulated in 255.1-40. U
A third trend Proudfoot identified is most provocative: "As a ru 1 e. the 1 ater the segment of the text. the more 1 i ke 1 y it
is
to
be
outcomes ... 41
preoccupied with
sacrificial
Nei ther the ori gi na 1 story of
subsequent interpol ati on
at
253.12-51
procedures
Tu 1 adh8ra
in
and
nor the
whi ch
J3j a1 i
becomes the main character and ahims6 is introduced -- shows any concern with the mechanics and outcomes of the sacrifice. Yet
all
subsequent
accretions
of
any
length
have
some
discussion of sacrifice. and often make it a central issue. as in. for example. passages 255.1-34. 255. 38cd-40. 255. 36cd-38ab and the
vjcakhnugit~.
254.25-26. permi t
a
The only exceptions are 254.16-19 and
Internal evidence. Proudfoot concludes. does not determi nati on of whether or not those si x verses
precede or antedate 255.1-40.··
In the other cases. however.
sacrifice is always the topic. Turning to the frankly speculative matter of explaining what such findings might mean for an intellectual history of
.6 Ibi d..
148-149.
47 Ibi d..
150.
CB1bid .• 149-150.
307 the Mbh's text tradition, Proudfoot has been cautious. admirable
reserve
deduct ions
based
follows on
from
formal
his
insistence
or structura 1
critical text are credible. in any case.
that
evi dence
in
His only the
How might we. even
provisionally, understand his finding that "from the time of 255.1-40 onwards, the custodians of the tradition were closely
interested in the sacrifice in a way earlier transmitters had Proudfoot interpolations sacri fi ce
has
indicating
ei ther
predate
further
intensified the
ancestral
shown
that
the
concern
with
the
text.
or
can
be
attributed to the last interpolation preceding the compilation of the ancestral text. Gi ven that the ancestra 1 text can be pushed back into the past only so far as the survival of collateral lines of manuscript descent will allow. the burgeon i ng interest in sacr i fi ce cou 1 d concei vably be roughly contemporaneous with the onset of a more scrupulous preservation of the text or a more prolific copy-making ,rich has kept collateral versions from dying out. Although the analysis of one story. however dense and complex, is hardly a sufficient basis for drawing conclusions about the epic's text tradition as a
whole,
it does suggest that the
wri tten tradi t i on was bei ng formul ated at a sacri fi ce was
the
focus
of
intense
concern
ti me when the in
rel i gi ous
discourse. Proudfoot's analysiS of the Tuladhara episode can only
49 I bid.. 1 57 . 50 Ibi d.
308
po;nt out this apparent coincidence. two very important points: institution in many-sided
Yet;t does illustrate
" ... that the sacrifice was a key
brahma~ic
status equations ... [and]
the transformation of the Mahabharata textual tradition" from a concern wi th "a merchant' s values and 1 i festyl e" to interest in br.hma~ic prestige and the sacrifice. 51 Tuladhara/Jajali and the Story of King Avikampaka Proudfoot's detailed study of the Tuladhara/Jajali story shows how very complex the process of Mbh compilation was. Consi deri ng on1 y the other anci 11 ary stor; es connected to that epi sode
(Nahu~a,
note that a story.
the brahmagit6, and the
§rauta ri tua1
Animal
slaughter
vicakhnugit6).
is the occasi on occurs
in
both
for each the
we
short
Nahusa
and
Vicakhnu stories. and is regarded as a recent perversion of sacrificial practice. Despite these general similarities, however. each story seems to serve a different purpose in the Mbh.
Nahusa's story
culminates a set of examples of people deluded into thinking violence is natural and acceptably commonplace.
He is swiftly
punished, but swiftly forgiven, suggesting that this story has
a principally hortatory intent. As Proudfoot has suggested, the brahmagit6 was probably interpolated by an editor who found the moral superiority of a vai§ya to a brahman rather too much to bear. authoritative 51 Ibid .
declaration
of
Tu1adhara's
An external
superiority
was
309
wanted,
one that would downplay his class and emphasize a
general virtue, in this case, faith. Finally. condemnation
vjcakhnugit.
the of
animal
; nterpo 1 ator seeks
contains
sacrifice.
to estab 1 ish
As
explicit
an
noted
above,
vegetari an ism as
authoritatively Vedic sacrificial practice.
its
the on 1 y
Here it will not
do simply to sidestep §rauta rites as the practice of greedy brahmans -- whose authenticity as brahmans is not questioned, even so.
Rather,
the composer of the
vi cakhnugi t8 places
animal sacrifice completely beyond the pale of .rya practice. We detect not an apologist but a notions of orthodoxy. the
interpolator
bold challenger of older
Proudfoot reasonably speculates that
actually
promotes
innovations
pract ice couched as ; ntri ns; ca 11 y Vedi c, for
in
ritual
he notes that
nei ther of the offer; ngs descri bed (mi 1 k porri dge and flowers) was typi ca 1 of earl i er
§rauta or gllrhapatya ri tua 1 s. 52
The
vicakhnugit. confidently throws down the gauntlet, signaling open confrontation among brahmans rather than artful efforts at accommodation. The Story of Cirakarin (12.258.2-75)53 As noted in section two of this chapter, nestled in the center of the story cluster under
disc~ssion
are two stories
about sons, Cirakarin and Dyumatsena, which are distinct from 52 Ibi d., 142-143.
53 T his story is discussed in V. M. Bedekar, "The Legend of Cirakarin in the Skanda Mahapurana and the Mahabharata (A Comparative Study)." Purll.,!a 4. no. 1 (1962): 197-214.
310
t h e o t h e r s because they exami ne t h e case f o r aMmH n o t i n the n a r r a t i v e realms o f cosmic o r s a c r i f i c i a l a c t i v i t y , b u t i n the domestic and pub1ic/pol it i c a l spheres. Whereas
i n the
story o f
the
b i r t h o f Death we were
presented w i t h a daughter who d e f i e d her "father s d i r e c t i v e t o k i 11 b u t u l t i m a t e l y acquiesced,
i n t h e s t o r y o f C i r a k a r i n we
f i n d a human son w h o simply disappears f o r a time r a t h e r than obey h i s f a t h e r ' s order t o k i l l h-is mother. r e t u r n s home, mind, that
h i s father,
concluding, his
wife's
By t h e time he
t h e sage Gautama, has changed h i s
as h i s son had a f t e r c a r e f u l adultery
(with t h e
disguised
reflection, Indra)
was
justified. A s a1so noted i n s e c t i o n two o f t h i s chapter, t h e t h r e a t
o f v i 01ence in t h e s t o r y and i t s r e s o l u t i o n i n nonviolence i s
made a1 1 t h e more dramatic by t h e unmi stakabl e associ a t * on w i t h o t h e r s t o r i e s o f v i o l e n c e toward women.
In b e t t e r known
v e r s i o n s o f t h e s t o r y o f AhalySqs seduction by Indra, t h e son does n o t p l a y a r o l e and Gautama curses her himself.
the career through
of
this
the
Surely
ksatriya Rama Jamadagnya echoes l o u d l y
story,
although
the
contrast
between
his
instantaneous obedience o f h i s f a t h e r ' s command t o k i 11 h i s mother, Renuka, i s i n s t a r k c o n t r a s t t o C i r a k Z r i n f s u l t i m a t e , i f s i lent,
defiance o f h i s f a t h e r t s command.
Perhaps we a r e a l s o meant t o keep Yudhisthi . r a in mind here, t h e man hearing these s t o r i e s who has committed v i o l e n t
acts
against
members o f
his
own
family
with
the
utmost
311
reluctance and anguish. Ci rakari n,
like Rama, he fights and kills.
he deli berates long
Like
and hard before he deci des
anything. This story continues exploration of the proposition that motive (artha) is an indicator of dharmic behavior.
Like the
story of Tu1adhara and Jaja1i, it argues that outward behavior alone does not constitute dharma.
Motive is the key.
As
noted also in section two above. Cirakarin is presented with a
dharmi c di 1 emma.
mother.
In
To obey hi s
such
an
intimate
father. setting,
he must ki 11 the
hi s
listener
is
predisposed toward a nonviolent resolution of the problem on visceral emotional grounds. story.
there
hardly
seems
Given the circumstances of the to
be
any
need
to
justify
Cirakarin's hesitation, however prone to obey his father he wou 1 d
otherwi se
be.
Whereas
a l i stener
mi ght
be
very
skeptical about conceding arguments against animal sacrifice because such practice was arguably essential for the efficacy of certain
§rau'ta
rituals,
when
the
interpolators
analogy from domestic life, the tables are turned. of the argument immediately shifts. ahi~sa
seems right and natural.
use an The onus
In the domestic analogy,
What requires justification
is disobedience, not refraining from killing. The Cirakarin story. then, adds some emotional punch to the attitude championed in the preceding story of Tu1adhara and Jaja1 i .
It impl icit1y critici zes those who follow the
rules of dharmic behavior without reflecting on their actions
312
and the meaning o f them. t h i s story genuine
Note t h a t Bhisma t e l I s Yudhi s 't h i r a m
i n the context of a lengthy exchange about the
difficulties
in t e n t ioned
efforts
one to
encounters
the
in
comprehend dharma.
most
well-
Speci f ic a l l y ,
Yudhisthi . r a asked i f one should take time t o decide one's duty when
uncertainties
deci s i vel y
.
arise,
or
should
act
quickly
and
C i rakSri n s rebel 1ious behavior
is n o t merely
i t is commended by h i s 'father,
w h o in t h e end
t o l e r a t e d here,
regrets h i s own hasty reaction. The who1e t h r u s t o f the ahfms5 c l u s t e r , i n my opinion, i s t o c r i t i c i z e b l i n d adherence t o t r a d i t i o n a l p r a c t i c e s and t o
a1 l o w room f o r r e s p e c t f u l questioning o f received w i sdom.
The
s t o r y o f C i r a k a r i n as adapted t o t h e in t e r p o l a t o r ' s purposes here
in
the
Mbh
c i rcumscri bed. father,
suggests
how
brahmanical
debates
were
The son does have a t h i n g o r two t o teach h i s
but h i s f i r m disagreement
i s rooted i n a d i f f e r e n t
understandi ng o f t r a d i t i o n which he t h i nks through responsibly and a r t i c u l a t e s r e s p e c t f u l l y .
As we s h a l l see,
t h e same tone
o f l o y a l opposition prevai 1s i n t h e next s t o r y i n t h e ahfmsa c l u s t e r , t h a t o f Dyumatsena. Let mother's
us
turn
motive
now
to
tartha)
the
for
story's
her
exploration
behavior.
W e
of
note
the with
i n t e r e s t but without s u r p r i s e t h a t t h e mother h e r s e l f i s not given her own voice i n the story. the offending event has occurred, CirakZrin.
The s t o r y begins j u s t a f t e r w i t h Gautama's command t o
Here t h e mother i s p r i n c i p a l l y t h e f o i l
for a
313
conf1 i ct between
father
and
appealing to our emotions.
son.
She
is
a
vehicle
for
Who, after all. would not reco;l
at the prospect of matricide?
But she is also the potential
victim, despite the fact that Cirakarin's anxieties dominate the story. Of course precisely what
the
killing
Yudhi~~hira
of
beloved
'family
members
has just partiCipated in as
is
Bhi~ma
tell s these stori es. and the interpol ators seem to have chosen a narrative moment to press their ease for
ahj~sS
and horror over the a1 ternati ve are rawest. self-recriminations
powerfully
dispose
when guilt
Yudhi 5thi ra' s
every
listener
to
sympathize with Cirakarin's hesitation. The story actually presents two justifications for the mother' s behavi or..
Thi s par"'t of the narrat i ve seems uni que to
thi stell i ng in the Mbh,
1 eadi ng us to specu1 ate about the
interpol ators' reasons for suppl yi ng a1 ternati ve exp1 anati ons. Cirakarin exonerates his mother and implicitly blames Indra. argui ng that
she bel i eved
she was behavi ng properl y
5i nee
Indra was disguised as her husband (12.258.37-39). Gautama, however, excuses his wife, from bl ame. guest,
Gautama
When
Indra,
Indra vi S1 ted Gautama' s
treated hi m as
he wou1 d
guest. with 'full rites of hospitality.
and himself
hermi tage as
any
other
a
brahman
Since Indra had been
we 1 comed ; n and had a ri ght to expect proper treatment. Aha 1 y& could not be blamed for the god's actions.
And lndra could
not be blamed 'for being blinded by her beauty (12.258.44-48).
314
We wi 11
return to Gautama' s
j usti fi cati on
on the basi s
of
domestic ritual proprieties below. The fact that the story presents different reasons for the mother's blamelessness seems to be an innovation inspired by its interpolation following the Tu1Kdhara/Jajali story.5~ Father and Cirakarin
son reach blames a
thei r
lndra.
concl usi ons
by
step further
i ndependentl y.
implication. by
for
Gautama
goes
refraini ng
anyone.
a 1 though he does not blame hi mse 1 f
hast i 1 y
(12.258.47).
In thi sway.
he
is
his
from
but
deceit.
censuri ng
for acti ng too remi ni scent
of
Tu1&dhara, who fulfills his obligations (as Gautama has done toward his guest). but who is detached from the consequences of those performances. to
reach
this
Gautama. of course. requ; res some time
conclusion,
but
in
the
hands
of
the
interpolators he is a very different character. indeed, from the self-righteous Gautama of other te11ings of this story. who curses his wife without a regret.
second thought or subsequent
And even though his son showed the way (so to speak)
to this admirable new attitude toward violence. Gautama is perhaps a superior exponent of it since he bears no lingering resentment toward any of the part; es i nvo 1 ved .
As in the
story of Tu1adhara and JKjali, the virtues of self-restraint, equanimity, and the performance of duties without concern for the benefits are presented as superior.
540bvious1y a much more detailed study of Gautama/Aha1ya stories would be required to support this hypothesis.
315
Thus far in discussing this story I have concentrated on ar~ha.
how it relates the themes of dharma and the secti on previ ewi ng themes Cirakarin's
actions.
the
As stated in
in the cl uster.
story
actually
by
prai si ng
suggests
that
nonv; 01 ence is a si gn if; cant support of ri tua 1. not host i 1 e to it.
Let us turn to the story's use of the guest reception
ritual to explore this statement. Technically,
Gautama
and
Ahalya
are
di ctates of haspi ta 1 i ty ri tes (or guest
obliged
by
the
reception in Vedi c
ritual literature) to show their respect and welcome for their important guest (Indra disguised as a brahman) by giving him whatever he wishes to have.
In this telling. although Indra
appeared to Aha 1 ya as her own husband wi th whom she wou 1 d obviously and properly consent to sexual intercourse. he had been duly welcomed by Gautama as a guest.
That the deity took
advantage of the situation was actually no great surprise to Gautama
when
interpolator
he of
thought this
about
story
it.
offers
Ultimately. a
the
justification
of
nonvi 01 ence by representi n9 everyone's behavi or as appropri ate and very conventionally dharmic:
Ahalya has behaved properly
toward the man she thought was her husband. Gautama behaved so toward the deity he thought was a brahman guest.
and
Indra
simply did the kind of unfortunate thing one must be prepared for guests -- especially divine guests -- to do.
The only
fault lay with Gauta.a for too hastily ordering his son to kill.
Rather than
censu~e
his son for disobeying him, Gautama
316
applauds his restraint. motivated
that
Si nce an i mpu 1 se to
restraint,
ahims6
is
here
perfectly congruent with traditional behaviors. conclude that it is a basic safeguard of them.
non-vi 01 ence presented
as
We might even Cirak8rin's
delay, fueled by his impulse to non-violence, give his father time
to
understand
why the
ci rcumstances
di d
not warrant
violence. As Stephanie Jamison has noted, Hospitality, the appropriate behavior between host and guest. is a theme that infuses Sanskri t 1 i terature and as a cultural behavior remains crucial to the present day. The duties of a host are set forth quite extensively in the official dharma and grhya manuals, and this codification of hostly behavior can be traced back to earlier texts like the AV, as in AV IX.6, entitled by Whi tney "Exal ti ng the entertai nment of guests." It is also a constantly recurring motif literary texts in Sanskrit and other Indic languages.
\f
Hospitality r;tes in which the wife of the yajamana participates are also part and parcel Jamison
has
shown. H
The
guest
o'f §rau'ta ritual, reception
enacted
Cirakarin's story is at the core of the hospitality rite.
as in One
is required to offer water to wash the guest's feet and rinse the mouth, to offer a seat, and food.
It is abundantly clear
from many stories contained in the Mbh alone that the host is expected to comply promptly and cheerfully with anything the 55Stephanie Jamison, Women,
Ritua7
Sacri'ficed Wi"e/Sacri'ficer's Wi"e: and Hospit:a7it:y in Ancient: India, New York:
Oxford University Press, 1996, 157. 56 Her work Sacri'Ficed Wi'fe/Sacrificer's Wi'fe shows, among other things, how integral the wife's association with hospitality is to Vedic ritual, even though her required participation in §raut:a rites is highly circumscribed.
31 7
guest wantsa regardless o f t h e hardship o r hami 1i a t i o n i t may entai1
.
Considerable m e r i t f o r
t h e host
one r i s k s o f f e n d i n g a d e i t y i n disguise
--
$9
a t stakea and
a dangerous move
under any c i rcumstances.
I n the C i r a k a r i n s t o r y j t h e h o s p i t a l i t y r i t e goes we1 1 u n t i 1 Gautama discovers t h a t Indra, t h e guest/stranger, had sexual i n t e r c o u r s e w i t h h i s wife.
determining t o kii 11 h i s w i f e j
has
fie explodes i n rage,
as i f she had commjtted an By refraining
egregious offense, b u t Indra had done nothing
from violencej h i s son r e s t o r e s t h e proper t o n e t o the r i t e 8 and buys same t i m e f o r cammand. nonvi 01 ent
h i s +ather t o reconsider h i s rash
The u n f o l d i n g drama demonstrates t h a t the son's behavior
camp1iance w i t h
guest
is
the
same
demands which
as
the
u n q u e s t i ~ nng i
represents t h e
ideal
enactment of t h e r i t e e I n r h e t o r i ca1 terms, t h e denouement o f t h e s t o r y proclaims se1f - r e s t r a i n t as t h e model behavior o f a host. That r e s t r a i n t is never speci f i c a l l y 1abel ed ahfmss, b u t
the
threatened
matricide
leaves
no doubt
about
what
is
regarded as t h e obverse o f se1f - r e s t r a i n t * I n marked c o n t r a s t t o t h e preceding s t ~ r h s ,t h i s one
shows a harmonious r e 1a t i m s h i p between dharma, and a t l e a s t domestic r i t u a l
.
nonv+olence
The s t o r y does n o t employ any
o f t h e techniques o f persuasion we see i n o t h e r p a r t s o f t h i s
5 7 ~ a ison n i r e v i ews a number o f these episodes in Sacriffced b 8 157-1 69.
W f fe/Sacri f i c e r % W i t
s t o r y c1u s t e r .
It
lacks overt
appeals
to
authoritative
pronouncements o f d e i t i e s and psisl quotes no l o n g - f o r g o t t e n * re1 igious
practices
sanctioned
e x h o r t a t i o n and d i sp1ays of abilities*
Xts
mani p u l a t i on
of
audi ences
that
by
the
the s t o r y t e l le r s
persuasive power comes character there
is
Vedas,
and art
organ4 c
in t e l 1e c t u a l
chiefly
s i t u a t i on t o
from
its
c o n v i nce
it s
r e 1a t i onshi p
dharma* n o r w i o l ence and t h e OMig a t * on t a perform Just
after
t h e s t o r y t s dramatic
avoids
resolution
between
t it u a l s
.
i n which
f a t h e r and son a r e reeonci l e d , Gautama quotes t h r e e verses i d e n t i f i e d as gathas. 58 L i k e t h e c l a s i n g verses o f t h e Dyumatsena s t o r y which f d 1ows, these anonymous maxims moderate C i r k s r i n * s r e f u s a l t o
k i l l h i s mother.
Does o u r s t o r y t e l l e r thereby r e t r e a t a few
steps from t h e inflammatory ram4 f i c a t i o n s o f h i s s t o r y ?
Se1f-
c o n t r o l l whether 3n word (Gautama) o r a c t (C4rakZrin)a i m p l i e s t h e t o l e r a n c e of
a d m i t t e d l y outrageous a c t s when t h e y
c i rcumscribed by r it u a 1
are
But our s t o r y t e l l e r seems t o r e t r e a t
from t h e more r a d i c a l stance t h a t would extend such t o l e r a n c e t o every conceivable c i rcumstance.
Thi s e x p l o r a t i on of t h e
p r i n c i p l e OF nonviolence in t h e domestic realm concludes w i t h
gaths&capyabravi dwidv~n~autamau mm fsat tamah/ c fraksr isu dh.fresu gunuddeSasam~~ray~t//12.2~8.65 cirena d t r a m ba&hnZy&ccirena ca krtam t y a j e t / cf reha h i krtam a i t r a m cirak dharahamarhati//66 rage darpe ca kane ca drohe * pap@ ca karman f / apriye cafva kartavye c i r a k a r i pra&asyate)/67 bandhDnZIm subrdJIm ca i va bhrtyanam s t ~ f . j a n a s y aca/ avyaktesvapar&dhesu c i rakak: pra&asyate//68
319 qualified acceptance of it.
The
g3th~s
ci rcumstances call for restrai nt,
i ndi cate that most
but in utteri ng them the
repentant Gautama reserves the right to inflict punishment in some circumstances, and cloaks himself in anonymous verities to justify the position. Dyumatsena/Satyavat (12.259.2-35) As pointed out in section two of this chapter, the story of Dyumatsena clearly shows that the
ahj~s.
differences of opinion on the general narrative form.
cluster reveals
topics addressed
in
This interpolator builds on the theme of
parents and chi ldren in conf1 ict over what constitutes dharmic behavior. On the
one
hand
thi s
story is
bolder than
that
of
Cirakarin, for here the father and son openly debate their positions.
On the other hand,
however,
nonviolence quite narrowly as capital
the story defi nes
punishment.
Neither
Satyavat nor his father Dyumatsena suggests that other forms of
physical
behavior.
punishment
should
not
be
used
to
regulate
In the previous two stories, nonviolence is defined
more broadly, being equated with matriCide in the Cirak8rin story and overtly generalized from cow slaughter in contexts
to
general
mistreatment
of
all
animals
ritual in
the
Tuladhara story. Satyavat openl y protests hi s father's i mmi nent use of capital punishment. that he does
It is clear from Dyumatsena's response
not di sti ngui sh
ki 11 i ng
from other
ki nds
of
320 c r i m i na1 puni shment puni shments
--
.
Satyavat
s h o r t o f death
rep1ies t h a t
-- a r e appropriate
crimes, accord* ng t o dharmi c p r e s c r i p t i o n . inc1udi ng
brahmans*
should
any number
be
punished,
of
t o individual
Every ofFender, he
in s i s t s *
k i 11in9 a person u n f a i r l y punishes the innocent,
but
namely t h e
fami 1y members o f a {ma1 e) c r i m i na1 who re1y on h i s support, and
i s t h e r e f o r e wrong*
Dyumatsena i n s i s t s
that
without
c a p i t a l punishment t h e r e would be nu d e t e r r e n t f o r those who break
the
law,
although
he
goes
on
to
despair
of
its
ef f e c t i veness in t h e k a 7 fyugpa s i nee t e r r i b1e crimes c u n t i nue t o pro1if e r a t e as well
When Satyavat suggests t h a t h i s f a t h e r m i g h t
use these c r i m i n a l s as s a c r i f $ c i a I animals ( s i n c e
presumably
they
would
be
spiritually
r e h a b i l i t a t e d by t h e a c t o f s a c r i f i c e ) , h i s position. en j a y
cleansed
and
thus
Dyumatsena moderates
F i r s t he p o i n t s o u t t h a t good kings c h n o t
k i 11ing c r i m i na1s
( 1 2.259
25a)
b u t then
he
repeats
longstanding views about k i n g s h i p i n South Asia8 which h o l d t h a t a good k i n g compels l a w f u l behavior i n h i s kingdom by h i s personal example aloneSome se1f - c r i t i c i sm seems t o be imp1i e d here*
The s t o r y
concl udes w i t h Dyumatsenaf s presentation o f two appeal s t o anci ent author* t y brahman and from
He repeats i n s t r u c t i o n he received from a Brahma h i m s e l f
Although a
k i n g should
s t r i v e t o r u l e through nonviolence as was done d u r i n g t h e k r t a y u g a a i t was permi s s j b l e t o r e s o r t t o puni shment w i t h due
consi d e r a t i on o f c i rcumstances if t h a t behavi o r f a i 1ed.
In
321 closing,
he
refers
to
Manu
whose
sense
of
compassion
(anukamp8rtham 12.259.35c) was also a model for kings. It
seems
curi ous
that
Dyumatsena shoul d
add
to
the
authoritative advice of Brahm& and a brahman by also including a reference to Manu. seems to
need
Since advice from Brahm. himself hardly
underscori ng,
the passage
at
12.259.35
is
possibly the work of an interpolator attempting to patch up a passage which,
through
Dyumatsena's final
words at
verse
12.259.34, clearly refuses to relinquish the king's ultimate right to use violence.
Juxtaposed with the device of Brahm.,
the reference to Manu seems to all ude to the conversation between Brahm. and
~iva
12. 249 . 1 -22 . creatures,
~iva
in the story of the birth of Death at
implores
referring to his
Brahm& not
to
be angry with
own feeling of compassion for
them,59 and aski ng Brahm. to be compassi onate hi mse 1 f. 60 Although the reference to Manu's compassion at 12.259.35 does not by itself convince us that a later interpolator has attempted
to make
Satyavat' s
vi ews
on capi ta 1
puni shment
prevail -- if literally at the last moment of the story -more specific references to Manu in the story cluster as a whol e
suggest
that
he
is
proponent of nonvi 01 ence.
by The
thi s
time
recogni zed
vicakhnugit.,
for
explicitly credits Manu with this view at 12.257.5. 59 t •
drstv.
jagatprabho/12:~49.2ed
mama
m&
as
a
example, By adding kupyasal!'
60up.yamanyam sampa~ya praj.n.m hitak.myay./ yatheme j an'taval:' sarve ni varteranparal!'tapa/ /12/249.1 Oed
322 one verse to the end of the story. the interpolator seems to have echoed the debate between Brahma and giva concerning the necessi ty of death
whi ch a
previ ous te 11 er had
chosen
to
conclude with Dyumatsena. like Brahm •• reserving the right to use violence for particular, important ends. The story of Dyumatsena and Satyavat,
then,
shows the
kind of debate about the limits of nonviolence we can readily ; magi ne bei ng waged alllOng brahman i nte 11 ectua 1 s (and doubt 1 ess others) in the early centuries of the common era.
The first
level of story (i.e., the narrative without the closing verse about Manu) suggests a sympathetic but moderate position on ahims3.
Even if one could accept that rituals performed by
householders -- ones that did not entail animal sacrifice were
acceptable
alternatives
to
public
sacrifices
that
required the paid services of brahmans, it was still extremely difficult to imagine a society in which there was never any need
for
violence
social order. to
which
capital
punishment)
to
maintain
One might concede that it was a desirable goal
rulers
difficult to
(e.g.,
should
imagine a
aspire,
but
in
practice
world that could function
it
was
normally
without it. The
moderate
tone
of
the
fi rst
1 eve 1
narrat; ve
of
Dyumatsena/Sat.yavat contrasts wi th t.he more open 1 y cri t i ca 1 tone of the expanded Tu l.dhara/ Jaj ali radi ca 1 ant i - §rauta stance of the there
are
no
overt
textual
story.
and the
vi cakhnugi 1:6.
clues
to
argue
more
A1 though the
case
323
persuasively,
.
,
(ie
i t seems
1ikety t h a t the second l e v e l
story
the n a r r a t i v e w i t h t h e e l o s i ng verse about Manu],
was
accompl ished by an edj t o r o r interpol a t a r convi nced o f the desi r a b j 1it y o f abimsit construed very broadly, and one who was working t h i s section o f t h e epic t o strengthen t h e case f o r t h e practice*
Kapila and t h e cow t12.260.5-262.451 The story o f Kapi 1a and t h e cow returns t h e d i scussi on o f ahiinsa t o the s a c r i f i c j a l arena, grhya
rites,
not
but t h i s time t o t h e world o f
The
Srauta-
discussants are two
stock
characters i n t h e s a c r i f i c i a1 universe$ a caw and a r s f . a
.
The
drama i s more marked, and perhaps the stakes i n t h e argument are a b i t higher since t h e two contest t h e very foundation o f t h e world view t h a t d e f i n e s them* As
noted i n s e c t i o n 3 o f t h j s chapter,
the narrative
format OF open debate t i e s t h e concept o f ahfmsit t o a d i r e c t and focused debate
about
the
r e l a t i v e s u p e r i a r i t y of
domestic and t h e renunciant modes o f 1i f e .
The s t o r y
constructed
without
as
an
in s i der/outsider
stories {e.g.,
a
fntra
muras
debate,
the is the
o r soci a1 h i e r a r c h i c a l tensions OF precedi ng
a a m f l i c t between parent and c h i I d i n the
B i r t h o f Death, C i rakSri n and Ryumatsena s t o r i e s , o r o f vaisya
and brahman i n t h e Tul adhSra/Jajal i n a r r a t i v e ]
.
Because the
cow is actual 1y a r* .s f named SyUmara6rni i n d i sgui se, t h i s s t o r y is framed as a debate among r e l a t i v e equals.
Like
the
argument
between
TuladhZra
and
Jajali
at
324
W . 2 5 5 . l -do1 t h i s one has a1 1 o f t h e elements p r e s c r i b e d by M5 mzmsa
r u 1es
interpolator s a c r i T i ce.
.
As
had no
we
shall
interest
see
below,
however,
i n promoting
a new
this
kind
of
He seems i n s t e a d to want t o minimize t h e r o l e o f
s a c r i f i c i a1 a c t * v i t y , and t o e s t a b l ish t h e renouncer ' s v a l ues as a n c i e n t and conventional 1 y Vedic. shows
brahmans u s i n g t h e i r
Once agai nI
faci l i t y with
t h i s story
t h e methods
and
c o n t e n t s o f Vedic knowledae to challenge t h e w o r l d view
in
which S r a u t a and grhya r i t e s were paramount. The s t o r y presents a v e r y fami 1ia r and very bas4 c t e n s i o n a? Hindu t r a d j t i o n s ,
a t t e n t i on a va1 ues
namely
one t h a t has received much
that
between
householder
and
scholarly renouncer
That t h e s e l i f e s t y l e s a r e grounded i n t h e &%pama
system i s accepted by b o t h d i s p u t a n t s i n t h e Kapi l a s t o r y . Thei r d i sagreement centers on t h e r e 1a t i v e eFf icacy o f a c t i o n ( p a r t i c u l a r l y r i t u a l p r a c t i c e ) and knowledge.
I n t h i s story,
ahfmsa is presented as in t e g r a l t o t h e renouncer ' s i d e a l ogy, and
indeed n o n i n j i i r y
is
known t o
have been p a r t o f
that
''~rnong t h e scholars who have engaged t h i s s u b j e c t a r e Louis Dumont I **World Renund a t i o n i n I n d i a n Re1i g i o n s *'' C o n t r f b u t f u n s ta I n d i a n S o c i o l a ~ y4 (1960): 33-62; Stanley Tambi ah Wur 7d Conqueror and Wor ?d RenouncerI Cambri dge : The Cambri dge Uni v e r s i t y Press, 1Q76; Jan Heesterman I V r a h m i n, R i t u a l and Renounceratsi n The I n n e r C m f l f c t u f T r a d i t i o n : Essays f n I n d i a n R i t u a l 8 Kingship, and S o c i ~ t y , ed* Jan Heesterman I 26-44. Chicago : U n i v e r s i t y o f Chicago Press I 1985; B r i a n K - Smith, Ref7ections on Resemblance, Ritua7 and R e ? i g f o n ; Romi 1a Thapar a *tHouseholders and Renouncers in t h e 6r-ahmanical and Buddhist T r a d i t i ~ n s i n~T. ~ ~N. Madan, ed., Hay o f Lf f e : M n g 8 Househa I d e r , Renouncer (New De1h i : V i kas P u b l i c a t i o n s , 1982)# 273-298; and P a t r i c k O 1 i v e l l e I The Agrama
System.
ideol ogy s i nee a t 1east Upani sadi c times.
Syl3maraSmi ,
defender
of
a n i ma1
s a c r i f ic e
and
the
c e n t r a l it y of Vedic r i t u a l s , argues t h a t s a c r i f i c i a1 a c t i v i t y i s a c t u a l l y nonviolentD b u t s i n c e he deFers t o t h e renouncer as t h e s t o r y unfolds,
h i s views do n o t c a r r y t h e day.
This s t o r y i s o f an e n t i r e l y d i f f e r e n t o r d e r than the precedi ng two ( C i r a k a r i n and Dyuinatsena) , a1though i t concerns dharmaD ahfms& (motive).
a 1 itnited e x t e n t
and t o
artha
As a r h e t o r i c a l piece, i t shows the s u p e r i o r i t y o f
b u t only as a component o f t h e broader
ahimsa,
ideal.
sacrifice,
I n other words,
renouncer
t h e s t o r y does n o t promote ahfmsZ p e r
se, although i t values
the
p r a c t i c e as
one aspect
of
a
p a r t i c u l a r 1if e s t y l e. Anyone who t r u l y understands t h e Vedas it t e l l s
us,
knows t h a t
ritual
practice i s essentially a
stepping stone t o t h e knowledge which leads t o moksa.
Such a
person p r a c t i c e s ahimsa (and e x h i b i t s o t h e r t r a i t s such as compassion and t r u t h f u l n e s s ) as a n a t u r a l consequence of t h i s true
know1edge.
I n ancient times,
people experienced no
conf 1ic t whatsoever between r i t u a l a c t i o n and know1edge. scrupulously
observed
Vedic p r e s c r i p t i o n s whi 1e
focused on t h e u l t i m a t e goal o f maksa.
They
remai r t i ng
And so should every
t r u e brahman, says Kapila.
.
I t should be noted t h a t Y u d h i s t h i r a ' s
question a t the
in t r o d u c t i on o f t h i s d i alogue 1ocates i t squarely w i t h i n a
1 ongstandi ng debate, ( garhapatya)
or
the
He asks Bhzsma whether the domestic 1if e renunci a n t
( tyifgadharma)
is
superior
(12.260-2)
0
A s i n the story o f C i r a k z r i n
t h e s e t t i n g i s domestic and
t h e n a r r a t i v e tension develops around a standard h o s p i t a l i t y r i t e n t h e guest reception-
..'
The d e i t y Tvastr a r r i v e s f o r a
and K i ng Nahusa prepares t o welcome him w i t h a t y p i c a l
visit
service t o an honored guest: t o feed t h e god.
IUahusa w i 11 r i t u a l 1y k i 11 a cow
The y a t i K a p i l a happens alongs i s shocked a t
t h e imminent slaughterJ and p r o t e s t s .
Just then
.
the
r ,s i
Sy~mara6mi e n t e r s the cowss body and t h e two venerable men launch i n t o a heated debate.
In t h e remainder o f t h e s t o r y * host {Nahusa) and guest (Tvastr) f a 1 1 away as t h e argument i t s e l f takes c e n t e r stage . and holds i t t o the end o f t h e s t o r y *
The s t o r y ends when
SyUmar6mi d e f e r s t o Kapi l a ns superior understandi rig of Veda
the
b u t does n o t r e t u r n t o t h e scene o f t h e o r i g i n a l a c t i o n
t o consider consequences o f t h e in t e r r u p t e d hospi t a l i t y r i t e . The domestic r i t u a l merely seems t o provide t h e occasion f o r the
.
rsi-as-cow .
and
Kapila
to
argue
about
the
relative
s u p e r i o r i t y o f t h e householder and t h e renouncer dharmas* Early
challenges
his
opponent t o i d e n t i f y a dharma s u p e r i o r t o ahimsz (1 2.260
17).
H e asserts
on
in
that
the
discussions
i f dharma
(which
Kapila
d i c t a t e s t h e d e t a i 1s of
s a c r i f ic i a1 performances) were easy t o comprehend t h e r e would be no d i f f i cu1t y
i n understandi ng seemi ng1y
contradi ctory
pronouncements o f the Vedas such as '@actttand "do n o t a c t t * (12.260.15).
327 SyUmaraSmi
rep1i e s
a
with
rehearsal
of
numerous
conventional assertions o f S r u t f an t h e subject o f s a c r i f i c e ( I 2 260 18-260. )
.
P a r t i c u l a r an5ma1s have been designated as
s u i t a b l e f o r s a c r i f i c e a he Saysa and t h e r e i s no other means than s a c r i f i c e f o r a t t a i n i n g t h e next world.
Furthermore, one
who performs r i t u a l s w i t h t h e proper a t t i t u d e simply does n o t harm any creature [although animals a r e k i I l e d i n t h e process) (12.260.30).
Gjven t h e s t r a $ g h t f a r w a r d manner i n wh$ch t h 4 s
apparent1y se1f -contradi c t o r y remark is uttered, we may assume t h a t t h e s t o r y dates f r a m a t i m e when t h e n o t i o n that r i t u a l ani ma1 slaughter was fpso fact0 n a n v i o l ent had a1 ready gained currency 4 n orthoprax c i r c 1es. Kapi l a ,
however* d ~ e sn o t want t o argue t h e narrower He i s bent on undercutting t h e hauseholder
t a p i c o f ahims& * dharma
wholesale,
and
so
responds
to
Sy~mara6mi w i t h
d i sti n c t i vely Advai t a VedSnta farmu1a t i on o f
a t t a i n i n g muksa:
benef it s
transient.
t h e means t o
Renouncers pursue t h e path of
knowledge t o
and they succeed
There a r e s
a t t a i n brahman (12.261 . I - 2 ) indeeda
a
to
Whys then
p e r f ormi ng
s a c r i f ices
but
they
are
should t h e renouncer bother t o perform
them when they w i 11 n o t h e l p him achieve h i s goal? SyOmara&mi
rep1ies
wit h
a
formulation
that
Patrick
.
01 iwe11e has 1abel ed t h e c1ass* ca1 varna&ramadha~mascheme 62
Attainment of
b r a h ~ a nhinges on t h e householder;
i t i s the
householder who s u s t a i ns t h e universe by bearing c h i ldren, 62~1ive11e,The XSrama System
by
328
maintaining the funeral rites that support ancestors. and by supporting
the
householder.
deities
the
through
other
stages
sacrifice. of
life.
Without
the
including
the
renouncer, would not be possible. At this stage o¥ the argument. it seems clear that Kapila and SyDmara§mi
are advocating different conceptions of the
renouncer's life style.
Kapila defends an understanding of
the renouncer not as a stage of life of a twice-born male (the classical
formulation
of
opt i ona 1 1 i fe long career
the
6§rama
system),
but
as
an
(the pre-class i ca 1 formu 1 at ion) .63
It is impossible to draw from this juxtaposition of views any conclusions about the relative date of the Kapila story. It is striking that the older view (Kapi1a's) carries the day, but we cannot conclude from this observation that the story dates
from
a
var~a§ramadharma
c. e.)
time
when
the
classical
formulation
of
was being introduced (circa 1st-2nd century
because we would thereby
be
assumi ng that
the
pre-
classical understanding of s§ramas as optional vocations was wholly supplanted. shows that
Textual
evi dence from the 11 th century
such was not the case. U
In fact,
01 ive1le has
poi nted out that several medi eva 1 thea 1 ogi ans accepted the
63 Ibi d. 64 The yatidharmasamuccaya of Vadava Praka§a is one such text, and it later came to hold an authoritative pOSition in the $ri -Vai Anava community on the subject of ascetic behavior. Patrick Olivelle. Rules and Regulations Brahmanica7 Asce1:icism (Albany: State University of New York Press,
0'
1995). 8.
329 older view. Kapi1a goes on to give some details regarding the proper behavior, or good conduct. of renouncers. these
are
the
marks of
a
brahman,
He asserts that
clear 1 y
imp 1 yi ng
that
scrupulous performance of sacrifices does not determine who is and is not a brahman (12.261.35). SYD.ara~mi
then confesses to utter confusion.
How can
the Vedas be authoritative when they contradict themselves. he asks, and humbly asks Kapila to be his teacher (12.261.36-38). Kapi1a goes on to characterize knowledge and yoga as rudders. of sorts, that keep one on course through the shoals of Vedic prescription
(12.261 .45ff).
Without
these guides,
1 i ab 1 e to founder in unproducti ve byways, How,
"tamas. ~ru-tj
I
S
then,
instruction
action and
mok~a
asks on
SyOmara§mi, the
is
characteri zed by
is one to
relationship
one
understand
between
(ritual)
(12.261.61)?
Kapi1a l s reply to this question gives us another example of how new ideas were substituted
for traditional
ones by
simply asserting that the new actually predated the old.
He
talks about brahmans and kings who, long ago, effortlessly and effectively exhibited the traits and activities characteristic of superior men (sad6c.ra).
Only later were these behaviors
parceled into four .'ramas when individuals became unable to encompass
them
all
(12.262. 7-262. 19) .
Kapi 1 a's
argument
clearly implies that no scriptural reason exists to warrant confining renunciation to a certain time of life.
When one
330
becomes
a
renouncer
ndi v i dual
strengths
is
entirely
ar weaknesses
dependent
upon
(1 2 * 2 6 2 . 3 0 ) .
onels also
It
fa1 lows t h a t t h e r e f s no inherent c o n f l i c t between the d u t i e s o f a householder and the e f f o r t s o f the renouncer t o r e a l i z e
brahman.
What was possible i n ages past i s s u r e l y p o s s i b l e
todayD according t o Kapi 1 a t s statement o f the matter* By now, SyUmaraSmi seems t o have grasped Kapi1a8s p o i n t
of t h e renouncer are superior t o those OF t h e
t h a t t h e goals
householder^ f o r he asks which o f them achieves the highest heaven.
Without
househa1der a greater
d i smi s s i ng
Kapi 1a
b1iss
states
(sukha
the
that
f2,262.33).
achi eveinents
the
renunci ant
But
of
achi eves
SyUmaraSmi * s
questi on makes p1a i n t h a t he i s st4 11 doubtful
the
T i na1
Since t h e
u l t i m a t e goal o f a1 1 twice-born men i s maksaD i s i t true,
he
wonders* t h a t n e i t h e r af those dharmas i s superior t o t h e other
(12.262.34-35)?
( 1 2.262.36-45)
,,
In t h e c l o s i n g verses o f t h i s s t o r y
Kapi 1a once
agai n
asserts
that
know1edge
( j f i a n a ) i s superior t o acts {karrnanf)* f o r the l a t t e r cleans
the bodyD b u t t h e former i s t h e highest path ( i real iz a t i on o f
bratman)
One who
leads t o
understands the proper
r e 1a t i onshi p between acts and know1edge e x h i b i t s qua1it i es o f t h e renunci ant [ inc1udi ng ahfmsz { 12.262 37) )
.
On1y such a
person t r u l y understands the Vedas
The
style
of
the
Kapila
narrative
is
more a k i n
to
segments o f t h e TuladhSr-a s t o r y than t o t h e s t o r i e s preceding or fo1 h w i ng i t
.
In p a r t i c u l a r a t h e extended debate between
331 Kapila and SyOmara6.i seems to borrow from the milieu of the
Upani~ads.
imaginative
like the debate between Jajali and
Tuladhara at 12.255.1-40. discussed earlier in this chapter. Fi nal1 y. comment.
Kapi 1 a' s
appearance
in
thi s
story
deserves
His identification as a yati places hi. in a group
of individuals Vedic world
known from
view
performance. 65
centered
the on
Upani~ads
the
who contested the
primacy
of
sacrificial
That Kapi 1 a may have been known to the Mbh as
a renouncer par excellence is suggested by the fact that the
BaudhSyana
G,:hya§asasotra
procedure of renunciation.
i dent i fi es
him
wi th
a
speci a 1
In this sense, it is tempting to
regard him as a particularly authoritative proponent of the renunciant life he successfully argues for in this Mbh story. Unfortunately. there is not evidence that the epic figure is actually the same Kapila. How Kundadhara Benefitted a Devotee [263.2-263.55] This tale expresses a point of view very similar to the story
of
Kapi 1 a
and
the
cow
insofar
as
it
renunci ant 1 i festyl e over that of the househol der.
val ues
the
Thi s poi nt
is evident from the portrayal of the destitute brahman, who initially persists in trying to win favor from the gods in the form of materi al Only
when
he
weal th he wi 11
achieves
an
use to fund
advanced
state
Irauta ri tes. of
spiritual
development does a deity teach him that Irauta rites as he 65patri ck 01 i vell e menti ons in passi ng secti on 4.16 of the text, labeled kapi7asamny8savidhi, in The ~Irama System. 87, note 44. .
[ t h e brahman) p r e v i o u s l y understood them a r e f u t i 1e, and t h a t only t h e gods can s e t one on t h e p r o p e r p a t h t o moksa. o t h e r s t o r i e s i n t h i s c1u s t e r 8 however asserts t h a t bhakti practices misguided reasons
--
--
Unlike
t h e Kundadhara t a 1 e
even when undertaken f o r
a r e humansg o n l y hope o f being steered,
d e s p i t e themselves8 toward t r u e dharma.
I n addition t o i t s
.
s i 1ence on t h e t o p i c of ahfmsa8 Kundadhara * s s t o r y introduces a new element:
bhaktf o r devotional practices.
..
Kundadharaqs s t o r y is more a k i n t o t h a t o f Tuladhara and J a j a l i i n t h a t n a r r a t i v e development a l o n e makes t h e case f o r t h e super* a r i t y o f dharma through bhakti.
Kundadhzra never * .
t r i e s t o convince t h e deluded brahman o f a n y t h i n g * y e t because t h e brahman has pleased him w i t h v a r i o u s o f f e r i ngs8 t h i s m i nor
d e i t y g r a n t s t h e brahman t h e means t o r e a l i z e t h e t r u t h f o r himself. Nor does t h e s t o r y t s composer seem t o fee1 any need t o convince
his
audiences
that
l e g i t i m a t e ancient p r a c t i c e s
bhakti
or
asceticism
are
Instead, Yudhi 6 t h i f a qs q u e s t i o n ftihasa
is
s i mpl y presented as an appropri a t e 1y in s t r u c t i v e rep1y
to
i s framed
..
so t h a t BhTsma's
Yudhi s t h i r a ' s question :
recounting o f t h i s
When t h e Vedas teach a b ~ u tdharma8
a r t h a and ka&nd8 which do t h e y regard as s u p e r i o r ?
I n i t s p o r t r a y a l o f d e i t i e s * t h i s t a l e seems t o r e f l e c t a mix o f o l d e r and newer views.
O n t h e one hand8 w e f i n d
Kundadh2ira1s .. remark t h a t d e i t i e s i n some way c o n t r o l humans8 f e e d i ng t h e * r des3 r e s and t h u s d i s t r a c t i n g them from s p i r i t u a l
333 p u r s u i t s i n which they might r i v a l t h e gods w i t h t h e * r powers. On
the
other
handB d e i t i e s
are
gracious
and
tolerant,
generously rewarding people when they a r e good and punishing them when they are n o t
.
1ike Kundadhara, who behaves much 1ike
an unappreciatedB i n d u l g e n t parent who c l e a r s charge's genuine accomplishments,
a path f o r h i s
and p a t i e n t l y w a i t s f o r an
expression o f the g r a t i t u d e due him. Here t h e play on t h e concept o f artha i s apparent.
The
gods graciously bestow m a t e r i a l weal t h B b u t i t does people no good
j
n t h e end.
Even when t h e brahman has a t t a i n e d true
wealth i n t h e form o f enviable s p i r i t u a l accomplishments, i s proudest o f t h e f a c t t h a t h i s new-found passi b l e f o r him t o bestow wealth a t w i 1 1
.
he
powers make i t
His own motive has
been t o g a i n wealth f o r performing s a c r i f i c e s s b u t it was h i s devotional behavior t h a t won him a t r e a s u r e he d i d not even r e a l ize he possessed:
dharma.
The s t o r y derives Further charm from t h e brahmanes choice
..
o f Kundadhara as h i s o b j e c t o f devotions f o r t h i s c l o u d d e i t y
was a c t u a l l y c h i e f attendant t o Kubera,
god o f wealth.
The
o v e r t p l a y upon t h e n o t i o n s o f m a t e r i a l and s p i r i t u a l wealth in
this
story
seem t o
imply
a
critique
of
traditional
s a c r i f i c i a l p r a c t i c e s and motives very much i n keep-ing w i t h the
renouncer
ideal
.
Through
the
double
mechanisms
of
.
Yudhi s t h i r a f s question, which prompts Bhhma t o t a l k f u r t h e r about h i s knowledge o f t h e Vedas,
h is
response
as
itfhasa
and BhZsmals d e s i ~ n a t i o no f
puratana
(ancient
h istory),
334
Kundadhara's unfavorable view of sacrifice as productive of ultimately undesirable benefits and the positive benefits of bhak~j
are both validated as traditional stances.
Story
of
a
Brahman
Who
Led
the
uncha
Way
of
Life
[12.264.2-264.19]
As noted in secti on B of thi 5 chapter. thi s story employs the
hermeneutical
particular
strategy
practice
(in
of
this
restatement
case,
animal
in
which
sacrifice)
a is
condemned as misguided on the authority of a learned figure (in this case. the god Dharma). The story opens with a description of an ascetic brahman named Satya, who worships of vegetable matter.
Vi~~u
through sacrificial offerings
Two figures (a
r~j
disguised as a deer
and the goddess Savitri) try to convince the brahman that he will attain his desired goal (heaven) if only he would perforM an
animal
animal
sacrifice.
sacrifice
is
This plot development implies a
legitimate
alternative
form
sacrifice. just not one Satya has elected to perform.
that of But
then we learn that the whole episode is actually a test of Satya's
commitment
to
nonviolence.
for
Dharma
incarnate
asserts that in fact animal sacrifice does gain one access to heaven. but thi s i s a practice of brahman.
ahj~sa
transi ent benefi t.
On1 y through the
does one attain the permanent state of
The story uses the fi gure of Dharma to teach proper
understanding of sacrificial efficacy. echoing points of view advanced by Tuladhara and Kapila that the practice of
ahj~sa
335
is t h e o n l y way t o r e a l i z e permanent b e n e f i t s from r i t u a l T r a d i t i o n a l animal s a c r i f i c e remains an o p t i o n
performance. in
theory,
but
forms
sacrifice
of
presented as f a r more e f f e c t i v e . t e c h n i c a l 1y
1egi timate,
but
based
Again,
truly
on
ahimsS are
both options are
knowledgable
persons
recommend o n l y one o f them.
..
L i ke t h e s t o r y o f K u n d a d h m t o a c e r t a i n extent SatyaFs s t o r y a s s i m i l a t e s devotional p r a c t i c e s t o t h e renouncer mode o f 1if e .
Recall t h a t t h e brahman thought h i s pQja o f f e r i n g s
.
t o Kundadhara were i n e f f e c t i v e ,
b u t i n f a c t they earned him
dharma, which enabled him t o p e r s i s t i n h i s a s c e t i c practices. The brahman viewed bhaktf and a s c e t i c i s m as mutual 1 y exclusive p r a c t i ces,
b u t Kundadharas s behavior showed t h a t devotional * *
practices
are
expertise.
a
step
toward
spiritaul
.
Satyaes choice o f
as
first
For Satya, worship of Visnu . and a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e
go hand-in-hand.
others,
necessary
Dharma f u n c t i o n s i n t h e s t o r y t o r a t i f y re1i g i o u s p r a c t i c e s
characteri s t i c
of
as
superior
truth-speakers
t o any
(satyvadi n
12.264.19).
Concl u s i on By c o n s i d e r i n g these s t o r i e s about ahImsS as a group,
have t r i e d t o do two things:
I
i11u s t r a t e some o f the primary
techni ques by which anci 11ary n a r r a t i v e materi a1 became p a r t o f t h e f a b r i c o f t h e Mbh, and demonstrate Vedacization i n a c t i o n by examining a s e r i e s o f s t o r i e s addressing t h e core concepts o f dharma,
ahims&
and s a c r i f i c e .
Throughout t h i s
336 chapter I have i n d i c a t e d how s t o r i e s use t h e hermeneutical s t r a t e g i es o f Vedaci z a t i on d i scussed in Chapter 2. this
chapter
with
discussion
a
of
three
I clOBB
techniques
of
composition t h a t I have i n f e r r e d from t h i s s t u d y o f one set o f anci 11a r y
stories:
.
c l u s t e r i ng,
and
Each is d i scussed be1ow.
coherence. 1
c o n t e x t u a l iz a t i on.
Contextual iz a t i on
The
story
cluster
on
ahfmsa
i s
located,
as
noted
p r e v i o u s l y , i n t h e segment o f t h e e p i c where i t s i n c l u s i o n i s perhaps more s t a r t l i n g than
any o t h e r
p o s s i b l e e x c e p t i o n o f t h e b a t t l e parvans.
location,
with the
As t h e 63ntiparvan
.
opens, Yudhi s t h i r a , who was perhaps t h e s i n g l e most r e l u c t a n t
combatant i n t h e v a s t armies o f Pandava and Kaurava w a r r i o r s and who was subsequently equal 1y r e 1u c t a n t t o assume h i s hard-
won k i n g s h i p , has j u s t p a r t i c i p a t e d in a bloodbath equated by
t h e e p i c compi 1e r s w i t h RZma Jamadagnya's repeated slaughter o f the
ksatriyas.
..
As Y u d h i s t h i r a and t h e o t h e r s u r v i v o r s
s t r u g g l e t o f i n d reasons t o t a k e up t h e i r v a r i o u s d u t i e s i n the fractured
kingdom,
h i s own grandfather
(who
has a l s o
p a r t i c i p a t e d r e 1u c t a n t l y i n t h e war on b e h a l f o f Yudhi s t h i r a *s adversaries) arguments
recounts a s e r i e s
for
and
against
ir o n i c a l l y be1a t e d hour.
Y u d h i.s. t h i r a B sa t t e n t i o n
o f s t o r i e s which amass t h e
ahimsa
at
a
tragically
and
The s u b j e c t o f nonvi 01 ence captures
- and our own - now a s perhaps never
before, s i nce audiences hearing t h e e p i c t a l e have so r e c e n t l y imagi n a t i v e l y e x p e r i enced t h e a1t e r n a t i ve.
The t o p i c is on1y
337
one
of
many
raised
pacification and
in
the
cooling off which
pursues with the young king.
as
§6ntiparvan
Bhisma
part
so
of
the
assiduously
And since the analogy between
the Mbh war and Vedic sacrifice has been explicitly drawn at several points earlier in the narrative, compilers who developed the
ahi~s.
the
that
epic
fully
intended
it ;s as if those
theme at this juncture in
the
horror
of
violence,
generalized by careful analogy from the controlled conditions of the sacrificial enclosure to the uninhibited arena of the Kuruk~etra
battlefield, be fresh in its audiences' minds when
the subject of ahi,!,sa in various spheres was raised. conte~t
The
of the anci 11 ary stori es is. therefore, nei ther random
nor whimsical,
as many scholars have suggested.
And even
though there is every indication from Proudfootrs work that the clusters were built in a series of interpolations. interweaving discernably
was
just
meaningful
that: places
insertion in
the
of
existing
stories
the at
narrative.
resulting in the mutual enrichment of both elements. 2.
Clustering
The practice of grouping ancillary stories in the Mbh enabled its cORlpilers to accoRlp1ish in narrative form what commentaries often accomplish in narrative writing:
to set
forth and examine various arguments on a contentious topic. This chapter has built upon Ian Proudfootrs analysis of the layering of the Tu1adhara story to reflect the development of views about the concept of nonviolence.
Within the Tuladhara
338
story.
I
have ana 1 yzed verses
12.255. 1-40 to show that a
segment of the story Proudfoot consi ders lIa straw manlf is actual 1 y structured accordi ng to formal rul es of argumentati on codified by
Mim.~s.
scholars
philosophical and theological
and widely
used
literature.
in Sanskrit
In my view, this
finding both supports Proudfoot's finding that Mbh narrative material
retains
older
formulations
of
the
concept
of
nonv; 01 ence even as i t ; ntroduces newer ones. and extends that finding.
Proudfoot showed how the Tuladhara story records a
variety
of
ci rcl es.
points
of
view
contested
within
brahmanical
In the segment that i ncl udes the formally structured
argument. Tuladhara advances a minority critique of brahmans who enrich themselves by conducting public sacrifices. argues
that
dharma
can
be
fulfilled
more
and
thoroughly
by
recourse to private ceremonies that any twice-born male can and should conduct.
My finding suggests one way (familiar to
historians of religion)
in which such minority views were
advanced in ancient India, namely by engaging the status quo on its own terms.
Brahmans who could demonstrate facility
with the intellectual tools prized by their adversaries might hope to get a Quarters clustering
they
better heari ng sought
ancillary
to
for thei r
influence.
stories,
then,
vi ews in the very The may
technique have
sophisticated rationale than previously thought.
a
of more
Perhaps some
of those brahmans most intent on reforming their tradition from within used manuscripts of the Mbh to argue their points
339
through n a r r a t i v e re-presentations and expansions a t junctures i n the s t o r y which seemed t o them a1ready t o have introduced a given t o p i c .
I f so, we might imagine a brahman d u p l i c a t i n g
(perhaps a t t h e behest o f a prince,
or guild) a
merchant,
manuscript segment a t hand, re-working t h e s t o r y of TuladhSra and JZfjal i p r e c i s e l y because he d i d be1ieve t h a t
domestic
s a c r i f i c e s were a t l e a s t as potent enactments o f dharma as the elaborate pub1ic s a c r i f i c e s whose performance presumably the vast m a j o r i t y of And w e might
twice-born men could n o t a f f o r d t o secure.
imagine t h i s manuscript
c i r c u l a t e d to other
brahmans who, although they might use t h e manuscripts as bases f o r oral i n s t r u c t i o n
- through s t o r i e s - about
dharma, would
themsel ves recogni ze s i gns of more sophi s t i cated s t r u c t u r i ng o f the n a r r a t i v e , and be persuaded by i t . 3. Coherence I n m y e f f o r t t o extend a p o r t i o n o f Proudfoot's work i n
this chapter,
I have
attempted
to
show
how
a
group
of
anci 11ary s t o r i es on t h e general t o p i c o f ahimm a c t u a l 1y sets out i n n a r r a t i v e form t h e major arguments f o r and against nonviolence, w i t h t h e preponderance o f opt nion advocating i t . The epic never takes t h e (what might s e e m t o us l o g i c a l ) step o f concluding t h a t ,
i n l i g h t o f t h e favorable v a l u a t i o n o f
ahimsa, t h e Mbh war should never have been fought.
And indeed
f o l l o w i n g t h e l a s t s t o r y o f the shim d u s t e r , t h e subject o f Yudhi s ,t h i r a ps abruptly
to
and moksa,
Bhi smal s the
conversati on
returns
overarching subject
of
the
rather third
segment o f t h e $antiparvan i n which t h e ahims3 s t o r i e s appear. Neverthel ess, as Ihave argued, t h e a h f m s a s t o r i e s b e t r a y e .
a general s t r u c t u r e i n which s t o n e s about human crimes o f v i o l e n c e ( m a t r i c i d e and c a p i t a l puni shment) a r e preceded by stories,
on t h e one hand,
about d i v i n e v i o l e n c e (Death and
Brahma) and, on t h e other,
s a c r i f i c i a l v i o l e n c e performed i n
t h e be1i e f t h a t animal s a c r i f i c e w a s human a c t i v i t y r e q u i r e d t o fuel
The s t r u c t u r e of t h e
cosmic f u n c t i o n i n g .
MmsS
e l u s t e r l o o s e l y para1 l e l s t h a t o f t h e Mbh i t s e l f , i n which t h e human drama o f war i s nested i n complex s p a t i a l and temporal frames.
The dharmic issues r a i s e d by t h e war echo backward
and forward i n t i m e i n t h e Mbh, and a r e m u l t i p l y r e f r a c t e d i n events t h a t occur i n t h e d i v i n e and human realms.
In this
case, t h e emboxing seems meant t o suggest t h a t conclusions drawn regarding ahimsa i n t h e s a c r i f i c a l applicable
to
other
realms of
concl usion
i s perfectly
realm a r e e q u a l l y
human experience.
consi s t e n t w i t h
the
Mbhl s
Such
a
larger
p r o j e c t o f making t h e e p i c smrti.
In a l a r g e r sense, I t h i n k t h e a h i m s a c l u s t e r explores
.
t h e same q u e s t i o n t h a t under1ies Yudhi s t h i r a t s and Bhismaf s extended c o n v e r s a t i o n a t t h e d o s e o f t h e war: seek n e c e s s i t a t e means we abhor?
Do t h e ends we
Because t h i n g s t u r n o u t as
t h e y do, t h e answer { f o r t h e e p i c ) i s yes,
sometimes they do.
The cousins go t o war, t h e mai n combatants k i l1 fami l y members and beloved teachers, t o rule,
, demonstrate t h e i r f i t n e s s t h e Psndavas a
Y u d h i s t h i r a becomes king,
and t h e i r d i v i n e a l l y .
341
Krsna, rescues t h e i r dynasty from e x t i n c t i on by m i r a c u l ousl y * . * r e v i v i ng P a r i k s i t, t h e i r s o l e h e i r , who is s t i 11b o r n because o f a curse s e t i n motion by t h e circumstances o f t h e war. In
the
aftermath
of
war,
however,
long
and
solemn
d e l ib e r a t i o n s a r e r e q u i r e d t o c a l c u l a t e t h e value o f what has been gained, and t o determine in what sense t h e war was moral
as we1 1 as necessary.
Bhisma b r i n g s t o t h a t d i s c u s s i o n t h e
prodigious
tradition,
weight
of
claiming
to
the
epic's
audiences t h a t a l l o f Y u d h i s t h i r a e s questions were asked and answered l o n g ago by o t h e r s who a r e widely renowned, and o f t e n deeply respected.
prescription
Â¥fo m o r a l i t y
7 e g i ti mate ones,
other.
There i s no s i n g l e standard o f o r simple (dharma),
we
learn,
but
many
even though t h e y sometimes c o n t r a d i c t each
Many o f t h e ahfmsa s t o r i e s conclude t h a t i t i s a pre-
eminent value,
b u t when we c o n s i d e r t h e c l u s t e r as a whole, w e
must accept t h a t v i o l e n c e i n c e r t a i n c i rcumstances tolerated.
Likewise,
is
t o be
Bhisma argues i n a hundred ways t h a t
.
Yudhi s .t h i r a cannot renounce h i s k i ngshi p and undertake what seems t o h i m t h e o n l y v i a b l e course o f a c t i o n . renunci a t i on is a p p r o p r i ate, ways,
.
And in c e r t a i n
1 i v e as i f he were a renunciant w i t h o u t
a k i n g can
re1 inqui s h i ng
says Bhisma
For some,
h is
responsi b i 1it i es
to
the
world.
sometimes, renunci a t i o n is a1t o g e t h e r i n a p p r o p r i a t e .
But And so,
t h e epic seems t o say, Y u d h i s*t h i r a could n e i t h e r have avoided w h a t w a s done n o r how i t was done because o f t h e p a r t i c u l a r
circumstances o f
the situation.
The e p i c takes
pains t o
342
justify
t h e war
by a r t i c u l a t i n g
i t s many resonances with
sacred h i s t o r y , w h i l e a t t h e same t i m e a s s e r t * ng t h a t what i s
permi s s i b l e others.
in
some
circumstances
is
not
permi s s i b l e
in
I n t h i s sense I t h i n k t h e ahimsS c l u s t e r i s presented
as analogous w i t h t h e e p i c ' s s a c r i f i c e o f b a t t l e .
Although
t h e predominant viewpoint o f t h e s t o r i e s in the ahfmsa c l u s t e r
adovcates nonviolence and sanctioned p r a c t i c e ,
argues
for
its
antiquity
as
a
we are t o l d t h a t sometimes t h e use o f
v i o l e n c e is necessary and proper (e. g. , **The 8 i r t h o f Death, " "Conversati on between King Dyumatsena and P r i nee Satyavat. " )
Li kewi se, B h i smal s lengthy i n s t r u c t i o n o f Yudhi s t h i r a urges v
him,
now t h a t he has set h i s weapons aside,
t o t u r n t o the
m a n y q u o t i d i a n d u t i e s o f kingship, and t o p u t t h e t e r r i b l e war
into p e r s p e c t i v e as a t r a g i c and rare necessity.
343 CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION
Both traditional
scholarship
in
India
and
modern-day
popular culture there have understood the Mbh as a coherent whole.
Anandavardhana
provides
one
example
from
intellectual tradition to illustrate those views. has
shown
how that
noted ninth century C.E.
the
Gary Tubb
aesthetician
interpreted the epi c as a poem structured to evoke §6n1:a r6sa, the aesthet i c front,
A.
K.
mood
of tranqui 1 i ty. t
Ramanujan
contested
On the
the trend
contemporary of
Western
interpretation of the epic by point;ng out that the main. complex, many-storied plot of this enormous epic is remembered and recalled in great detail by most traditional Hindus. Such recall is possible because it is a structured work. In a largely oral tradition. one learns one's major literary works as one learns a language -- in bits and pieces that fit together and make a whole in the 1 earner IS mi nd. because th,y are parts that reflect an underlying structure. As Ramanujan went on to argue. the variety of stories that seem to interrupt the action of the Mbh in fact serve clear narrative functions. Thi s study was i nspi red by such pers; stent ; ndigenous Indian views of the Mbh as a structured and coherent whole. 1Gary Tubb. u$6n1:arasa in the Mah8bh6ra1:a," in Essays on the Mahabh6rata, ed. Arvind Sharma, 171-203. Leiden: E. J. Brill. 1991.
2A. K. Ramanujan, "Repetition in the Mah.bh.ra1:a," in Arvind Sharma, Essays on 1:he Mah6bh.ra1:a, ed. Arvind Sharma, (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1991), 420-421.
344 In
particular.
I
sought
to
understand
appreci ati on of the Mbh mi ght be rather
neglected
constitutes
material
almost
half
schol arl y
enhanced by studyi ng the
ancillary
of the
how
epic's
stories critical
that text.
I
demonstrated from textual and inscriptional evidence that the epic's profusion of stories told by. to, and about the main actors in its drama of war have been part of the Mbh for at 1 east 1.500 years. 3
I
then sought to understand
if these
materials are anything more than a mass of sometimes charming, sometimes distracting, generally peculiar bits of narrative, as much scholarly opinion in the West has held. When we bri ng the stage.
epi CiS anci 11 ary stori es to
center
it becomes clear that they are a principal means by
which the epic's compilers put flesh to the bones of their assert i on that the Mbh is smr:"ti, Vedas) and the Veda of
K~~~a,
vedasammi f:a
a fifth Veda.
(equa 1 to the
A I have shown,
the stories as a group explain the events of a war by homology to events. persons, and p1aces from the past.
That history --
a sacred history that the epic asserts has canonical authority -- ;s constantly evoked and enlivened through the stories.
3Buh1 er and Ki rste, "Indi an S1:udi es," 24-26 gi ves a convenient summary of inscriptional evidence from the midfi fth century C. E. ; ndi cat; ng that the epi c was by then regarded as smrti. Thi 5 materi al evi dence i ncl udes early Gurjara inscriptions of MaharBjadhiraja Oadda II, the grant of the TraikOtaka king Dahrasena. and the grants of Parivrajaka kings of Central India. A land grant of King ~arvan.tha of Uchchaka1pa from the mid-fifth century C.E .• for example, states that the Mbh consi sts of 100, 000 verses and was compiled (sa~hjt.) by Vyasa.
345
The circumstances in which the warring Kaurava cousins find themselves are interpreted as multi-faceted reprises of the past.
Characters act as deities once did, the warriors tread
ground commemorated as sites of ancient and potent rituals. and instructional dialogues are reported as repetitions of age-old conversations. unique
datum
of
a
Through the ancillary stories,
fratricidal
war
is
re-imagined
the
as
a
terrifying eschatological crisis whose every instant, or so it seems.
can be expl ai ned by reference to sacred tradi ti on.
Thus I have argued that these stories contribute to a larger project
of
making
the
epic
both
old
and
religiously
authoritative. In establishing that ancillary stories make the epic a Veda. I also conclude that this been a
purposeful
sm~~i-making
; ntell ectua 1 proj ect.
effort must have How e1 se can
reasonab 1 y account for the many i ndi cators of an elite that we find in its stories? the
preceding
chapters,
we
educated
As I have noted throughout
scriptures
are
quoted.
detailed
knowledge of Vedic rituals is evident. esoteric doctrines are elaborated. formal rules of argumentation are employed (i.e .• from
mim.~sa).
apparent
even
intended
to
pilgrimage)
and when
broad and deep the
advocate that
is
a in
display
of
practice fact
knowledge of Vedism
not
that
(e.g., known
knowledge
bha«ti. from
is
seems
ahi~s••
early/middle
Vedism. The rich vocabulary for story
in the Mbh is,
I
have
346
argued, a further indicator of the rhetorical intent of its compilers.
Some
literature: up~khy~na.
o~
its terms are known from earlier §ruti
akhy.na.
f~ih.sa.
sa~v.da,
gath..
pur.~a.
Other story terms signal proverbs (nidar§ana) or
quotat ions (§ 1oka) attri buted to dei ti es or revered ancestors. A few seem to indicate popular story genres (kath •• carita). and one is hardly known prior to the epic Eight specific hermeneutical
(gi~.).
strategies were discussed
(Chapter 2) to further demonstrate the underlying principles through which the epic was made a Veda. I
have
also
considered
aspects
of
the
religious.
historical and cultural context of North India in the early centuries of the common era in order to question why and how such
a
scri pture-maki ng project was
conc1 usi ons are
much more
undertaken.
specul ative because we
Here
my
know so
1 i ttl e about the intellectual s who accompl i shed thi s work, and how, precisely. they did so. the Mbh became
smr~j
I have said a bit more about why
in my discussion of the importance of the
Sanskri t 1 anguage in anci ant North Indi a. and in my di scussi on of the fate of hi story; tsel f as an i ntell ectua 1 di sci pl i ne in brahmanical circles. We
should
thi nk
of
the
Mbh
as
the
product
of
an
intellectual and religious milieu in the early centuries of the common era
when the defi n; ti on of the canon was much
contested.
remarks ; n
My
Chapter
2 about
the di fference
between Kumari la and Bhartrhari • 5 were; ntended to suggest the
347
outl i nes
of thi smatter.
In
thi s
study
I
wi sh
onl y
to
conclude that the Mbh may well have developed in circles of Bhart~hari
intellectuals who thought, as
did, that §ruti was
a profoundl y dynami c concept, a constant unfo 1 di ng of brahman. Hi s thi nki ng on such matters contrasts sharpl y wi th m£",_'!'sakas like Kumarila, for example, for whom in a real sense the Vedic canon
was
closed.
developments
in
Both
ancient
religious thought.
thinkers North
represent
Indian
mainstreaM
philosophical
and
My work lends support to the conclusion
that the epic developed as smrti froM within this capacious religious tradition. Sure 1 y
the changes in
re 1 i gi ous pract ice
between the
Vedic ritual tradition and the Hindu traditions of the early centuri es of the common era occurred partl yin response to external circumstances. conclude,
as
Nevertheless.
is cOM.only done,
it is inadequate to
that the Mbh was developed
principally in a defensive reaction of brahmans who felt their influence waning in the face of rival practices of BuddhisM, Jainism, and other such movements.
This study adds to the
case that Hinduism in the early common era was a moderni zi ng practices
through
(ahim§.,
established
ones.
attempts bhakti,
to
expl ai n
pilgrimage)
Scholars have
tradition
new concepts in
terms
of
and old,
explored conceptions
of
religious canon in various religious traditions that function si mi 1 arl y.
Thi s
understanding
of
study of the Mbh contri butes to a the
dynamic
nature
of
canon
in
better Hindu
348 traditions.
Through homology to the prototype of the Vedic the Mbh helped to accommodate religious change
(§ru~i),
canon
by adducing arguments to illustrate that its contents echoed,
repeated,
elaborated,
restated, and clarified through human
agency (that is, Vy3sa) religious thinking of an earlier time. It is important for the present study to establish that what I
broad1 y term anci 11 ary stori es have been consi dered the
Mbh
integral
to
in
intellectual
as
well
as
popular
circles.
I establish this because, in my view, scholars have
not adequately come to terms wi th the sign i fi cance of the epic's textual history, per se.
The Mbh was conceived in an
oral milieu and has been vital to Indian oral traditions for many centuri es.
But there is further need to di st i ngui sh
between the literary and oral traditions of epic transmission if we are to differentiate the functions and the reception of
the Mbh in di fferent Quarters of Indi an soci ety.
As Ramanujan
noted, for example, the more strictly didactic portions of the epi c (i ncl udi ng the Bhagavadgit., the Sanatsujatiya. on)
II
are
not
reci ted
as
part
of
the
story
in
and so
the
ora 1
traditions or in the endless reworkings and abridgements in the mother-tongues, ; n oral and wri tten tradi ti ons ... 4
And yet
for the Sanskrit textual tradition, the critical edition of the Mbh demonstrates without question that the vast majority of
ancillary
citations,
or
material philosophical
4Ramanjuan, 421.
whether
stories,
discourses
authoritative
-- appear
in
every
349 recension.
By demonstrati ng
an
overarchi ng
hermeneuti cal
project at work in the Mbh, I have shown that the epic was an important intellectual
and popular work
in
the historical
development of Hindu traditions. I further took up this distinction in the dissertation when
I
argued
that
if
we take
into
account
all
of
the
ancillary material attested in the Mbh l s manuscript tradition, per
se, we must conclude that brahmans used the written Mbh to
record their own changing views of tradition. 5
Their purpose
in compiling the Mbh was to craft a canonical work that
articulated
thei r
di fferi ng
vi ews
legitimately consistent with traditional
of
(smf~j)
what
knowledge
was
(~ru~j).
When we turn the spot1 i ght on the Mbh's anci 11 ary materi a1. we see that it was the principal means by which the Bh&rata story was explained in traditional terms.
Whether or not a given
ancillary story or its characters and themes can in fact be shown to have been ancient, the epic's compilers consistently
5James Fitzgerald has made perhaps the most cogent arguments for the wi despread vi ew that the Mbh of 100,000 verses was probably compi led to re-articu1ate traditional brahmanica1 views at a time when they were being broadly challenged in North India by other religious ideas from Buddhism. Jainis •• devotional groups, and so on. See "The Moksa Antho logy of the Great Bharata" and .. I ndi a's Fi fth Veda: The'Mah&bharata's Presentation of Itself," Journal of Sou~h Asian Lj~era~ure 20 (1985): 125-140, reprinted in Essays on 1:he Mah.bhlfra1:a, ed. Arvind Sharma, 150-170. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1991. I contend that the needs of new generations of b rahmans to understand thei r re 1 i gi ous t radi t ion wou 1 d be sufficient stimulus for the development of new scripture like the Mbh. so I disagree with Fitzgerald and others who hold that the stimulus came not from within the tradition but in response to its various critics.
350
presented them that way.
For reasons I discussed in Chapters
1 and 2, when the Mbh was being compiled, truth and knowledge were def; ned; n brahman; ca 1 i nte1l ectual ci rcl es by the Vedas, themselves characterized as without beginning, authorless. and ahistorical.
In order to be accepted as legitilllate knowledge,
the Mbh was therefore required to explain its authorship (by Vyasa).
its or; gi ns (as a
story composed and tol d by Vyasa
during a particular ritual), account of a
and ·its historical content (an
dynastic struggle) in ways that bolstered its
truth claims as Vedic knowledge.
Sheldon Pollock has coined
the term Vedaci zati on to descri be the general worki ngs of th; s process
in the Sanskri t
i nte 11 ectua 1 tradi t ion.
as 1
have
about
the
discussed. I
have
sai d
nothi ng
;n
thi s
di ssertat i on
composition of what I generally refer to as the intellectual envi ronment in whi ch I mai ntai n that the Mbh developed except that ; twas, in my vi ew, brahmans who pres i ded over the epi c • s compos; ti on.
The
explication. toward
an
..atter
In a sense.
certai n1 y
why
ultimate destination
developed
a
manuscript and
conti nued
further
I have only taken a few steps here
perhaps impossible -- to reach: and
warrants
that will
length and breadth of India.
difficult --
a full understanding of how
tradition 'for
be
of
the
Mbh
centuries across
in much
Sanskrit of the
Although it was brahmans who
were traditionally charged to preserve and perpetuate their religious traditions, we know that others (kings. bards, etc.)
sure1y
played
extremely
important
roles
in
that
complex
process. 6 I n t h e d i s s e r t a t i o n I use t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n o f t h e
Sanskrit
M6h
to
summarize
the
material
often
considered
superfluous t o t h e c e n t r a l p l o t o f t h e Pandava-Kaurava war. *
1isted,
Each such passage i s
location i n the c r i t i c a l
summarized,
e d i t i o n noted.
and i t s precise No comprehensive
catalog o f t h i s m a t e r i a l has been undertaken t o date, nor has any scholar pub1ished an exami n a t i o n based on a consideration of the m a t e r i a l as a whole.
In
addition
to
a
discussion
of
the
utility
of
the
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n f o r t h e t a s k o f c a t a l o g i n g and analyzing story material,
I consider i n Chapter 2 t h e e p i c f s use of
various S a n s k r i t terms t o designate t h e anci 11a r y m a t e r i a l The
vocabulary
itihasa,
katha,
is
rich:
akhyana,
nidarSana, pwana, ,
sense o f q u o t a t i o n ) ,
upakhyma.
carfta,
samvada,
gatha, Siloka
.
git&
( i n the
My d i scussion o f t h i s matter
in the context o f t h e Sanskrit in t e l 1ectual t r a d i t i o n argues
t h a t a clearer p i c t u r e o f the W
s i d e o l o g i c a l p r o j e c t as
smrtf i n t h e making i s evident i n t h e e p i c ' s use of a n c i l l a r y stones. I n Chapter 3, t h e d i s s e r t a t i o n surveys t h e major features of
the
ancillary
material,
and
i1 l u s t r a t e s
r h e t o r i c a l f u n c t i o n s (as out1 ined i n Chapter 2)
its
.
various
A discrete
'1 thank Prof. John S t r a t t o n Haw1ey f o r p o i n t i n g o u t t h i s s i 1ence, and o t h e r s in my work t h a t warrant comment (personal communication, May 10, 1999).
352 set of stories from the
§.n~iparvan
is analyzed in Chapter 4
to argue that ancillary stories were selected and positioned and
poss i b 1 y
Bhagavadgi~.
created. for
as
Bi ardeau
discernible
has
argued
rhetorical.
and
for
the
perhaps
ideological reasons. Overall. the ancillary material in the Sanskrit Mbh is part and parcel of efforts in brahman intellectual circles to continue. during the early centuries of the common era (and probably well into its middle ones and beyond). the project of re-articulating brahmanical values meant to be understood as traditional.
yet substantially different from the religious
values of the far distant Vedic sacrificial religion.
BIBLIOGRAPHY Primary Sources
. .
The Mahabharata for t h e f i r s t time C r i t ica 7 7y E d i t e d . Eds V S . Sukthankar, e t a t . 19 v o l s . Poona: Bhandarkar O r i e n t a l Research I n s t i t u t e , 1933-1 966.
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APPENDIX
SYNOPSES O F ANCILLARY STORIES I N THEIR MAHABHXRATA CONTEXTS Thi s Appendix c o n t a i ns a summary o f each anci 11a r y s t o r y i n t h e Mbh.
citations
All
a r e t o verses
i n the c r i t i c a l
edition.
.
The PSndava-Kaurava frame s t o r y i s presented i n summary form i n it a l i c i zed t e x t t o enable t h e r e a d e r t o a s c e r t a i n t h e c o n t e x t o f each s t o r y .
Every a n c i l l a r y s t o r y i s f o o t n o t e d t o
.
i n d i c a t e if o r how i t i s l a b e l l e d i n t h e c r i t i c a l t e x t (ie., as itihasa,
samvada, kath&
and so on).
Subsections o f each
p a r v a n are a l s o i n d i c a t e d by t h e S a n s k r i t t i t l e s used i n t h e
c r i t i c a l edition.
When more t h a n one t e r m i s a p p l i e d t o t h e
s t o r y , a1 1 r e l e v a n t verses a r e i n c l u d e d i n t h e footnote. t h e most p a r t ,
For
t h e s t o r y t i t l e s are my own i n v e n t i o n s .
t h e c r i t i c a l edit-ion supplies a story t i t l e ,
When
I include i t i n
brackets a f t e r t h e t i t 1 e i n E n g l i s h (e. g., "The Story o f Nala" [ na Jopakhyanam]
.
I i n d i c a t e t h e verse l o c a t i o n o f each s t o r y
i n brackets f o l l o w i n g t h e s t o r y t i t l e . t h e s t o r y t i t l e Samantapaftcaka, where t h e Mbh war w a s fought, that
the s t o r y
i s
located
F o r example, f o l l o w i n g
which
refers t o the
t h e numbers 1 .2.1-2.12 i n the
first
{adiparvan), second adhyaya (chapter),
book o f
place
indicate the
Mbh
and ranges from v e r s e
1 t o 12. Further notations audience o f each s t o r y . twice-repeated s t o r y
id e n t i f y both
t h e narrator
and
the
Although t h e Mbh was composed a s a
- that
is, Ugrasravas r e l a t e d i t t o t h e
2
Naimisa Forest seers just as he had heard
(who
Vai~a~payana
had learned it from Vyasa) tell it to Janamejaya at his snake sacrifice -- many of its characters also tell stories. vari ety of characters who do matter, therefore I
so
is i tsel f
an
The
; nteresti ng
have ind;cated who tells and who hears
each story.
In every case. the narrations of Ugra§ravas and
Vai~ampayana
are, of course. ;mplicit.
A.
Synopses
1.
~di
parvan [anukrama~iparvaJ
A.
List of contents
B.
Summaries of books
[1.1]
[parvasa~grahaparvaJ
[1.2]
The Mbh battlefield, Samantapancaka1 [1.2.1-2.12]
1.
Narrator: Audience: As
the
Ugra6ravas Naimisa forest seers
participan~s
in
the
sarpasattra
being
conducted in the Naimisa Forest sat at their 7eisure, the bard Ugra§ravas, who had recent1y arrived in their midst aFter a visit to the battleground of the entertain and educate them. OT the Mbh.
Mah~bh~rata
war, oFFered to
They asked to hear the FuJ 7 story
Ugra!;ravas initia tly summarized it, presenting it
in the broadest possib7e context by beginning with a brieF account: of creation and the genea70gy of 7iving beings which 7ed to the 1 i neage of the Kuru clan. method
0" composing the epic,
He exp 1a j ned VycJsa' S
as we71 as its transmission.
l§u~rasa yadi vo vipra bruvata~ca katha Aubhahl samantapaftcakakhya~
ca trotumarhatha sattam.~111.2.2
He
3
'then summarized 'the even'ts great
cost
in
pre7iminaries l
human
1 eadi ng
Jives.
up 'to 'the war I
Once
he
and its
conc7uded
these
'the brahmans inquired how Saman'tapancaka l
the
batt7eFie7d on which the war was wagedl had received its name.
Between the Treta and Dvapara eras. the warrior-brahman Para~urama
si nglehandedly exterminated the enti re
k!!atriya
race twenty-one times in order to avenge his fatherrs murder at the hands of a blood, then
k~a'triya.
o~fered
He filled
~ive
lakes with their
those bloody oblations to his ancestors.
Only when his ancestors appeared before him was he convinced to stop.
Thereafter. the area was known as Samantapancaka.
At the· juncture of the Dvapara and Ka1i eras, the war between the eighteen armies of Kurus and Pandavas was fought in that same sacred area.
c.
The section about Pau~ya [pausyaparvanj2 [1.3.1-3.195] 1.
Sarama's pup3 [1.3.1-3.19] Narrator:
Ugra~ravas
Audience:
Naimisa forest seers
.
lIt is debatab1 e whether thi s adhy.ya (un1 ike the pau10maparva and .stika, that follow it) is itself an ancillary story or should be regarded as part of the skeletal narrati ve of the Pandava-Kaurava war story. Because it addresses Janamejayar's partial motivation for conducting a snake sacrifice, it maybe considered an extension of post-war events. that is. the activities of King Janamejaya, the sole heir of the lunar dynasty clan. On the other hand, the Mbh indicates that this section recounts the greatness of Utta~ka (a Bhargava sage). suggesting that epic redactors included it here for its BhKrgava content, nestled in the ~rame of the story about Janamejaya that follows at 1.3.1-19. 3ugra~ravas began his full retelling of the Mah.bh.rata with the following incident from Janamejaya's youth.
4
Janamejaya and his three brothers were attending a ritual in
Kuruk~etra
when along came a pup of Sarama's brood.
The brothers beat the dog without apparent cause. so Sarama cu rsed
Janamej aya to
succumb to
an
unseen
danger.
Much
alarmed, Janamejaya sought a priest to expiate the wrongdOing. He
fi na 11 y
found
rituals for him.
who
performed
the
necessary
Janamejaya set off, conquered the city of
and returned triumphant to Hastinapura.
Tak~a~ila,
met
Soma~ravas,
Utta~ka.
There he
who told Janamejaya how his father had died by a
bite from the snake
Tak~aka,
and remained unavenged.
Dhaumya ~yoda and his students' [1.3.19-3.177]
2.
Narrator:
Ugra§ravas
Audience:
Naimisa forest seers
This Saram.'s PUPI
story and
Fo170ws
introduces
immediately Uttaltka
l
From
the
man
that who
of wi 7 7
convince Janamejaya to undertake the snake sacriFice at which that
young
man
First
heard
the
Mbh
l
the
story
of his
ancestors. One day, Dhaumya instructed his student hole in a dike. the plug.
To do so,
Aru~i
began
Eventually, Dhaumya went to find him.
to
leak.
to plug a
was forced to use his body as
greet his teacher properly when called. dike
Aru~i
Well-pleased
Aru~i
with
Obliged to
stood up and the his
student's
~There 'follows in the cri t i cal ed; ti on -- wi thout any transitional language -- the stories of three students of the guru Dhaumya ~yoda: Upamanyu, Aruni and Veda. The story of Uttanka follows them. .
5
obedience, Ohaumya sent him off with a blessing. On another occasion,
Dhaumya sent his student Upamanyu
off to herd cows, insisting that Upamanyu offer to his teacher any alms he would receive.
In successive short episodes,
Dhaumya forbade
from
his
student
going
on
an
additional
begging round to feed himself. from drinking the milk of the cows he was herdi n9, and 'from dri nki ng the excess mi 1 k spi 11 ed by their calves when suckling. eating the leaves of a Stumbling about,
Starving, Upamanyu resorted to
plant that caused him to go blind.
he fell
into a well
and was instructed by
Dhaumya to sing the praises of the A§vins in order to regain his sight. food.
He did so, and the Atvins appeared, offering him
Because Upamanyu steadfastly refused to eat it without
first offering it to his teacher, they restored his sight and he earned the blessing of his teacher. Veda, after long years of dutiful service in his guru'S dwelling, completed his trial and earned Dhaumya's blessing. Veda took up the householder life and, two ki ngs Janamejaya and
Pau~ya
some time later, the
approached hi m to serve as
their preceptor. One day, when Veda was away performing a sacrifice for a patron, his wife approached his student,
Utta~ka,
that
her
he
menstrual
have
sexual
peri od
perform this duty.
si nee
intercourse her
Utta~ka
with
husband was
not
to demand
following avai 1 ab1 e
her to
resisted and earned a boon from
6
Veda. including release from the service of his guru. S When before
asked to provide the customary guru's gift
Utta~ka
departi ng.
requested.
She
Veda asked
sai d
to
bri ng for
Utta~ka
a
whatever
hi s
particular
pair
earrings. which he then set off to obtain from King queen.
On his way.
sat a large man.
Utta~ka
wi fe of
Pau~ya's
encountered a large bull on which
Ordered to eat the bull's dung (and told
that his teacher had once done the same),
Utta~ka
He then
reach; ng
continued on his way.
and upon
complied. Pau~ya
•s
kingdom. made his request for the earrings. Pau?ya permitted when he heard of hi s
Utta~ka
quest.
to enter the women's quarters but Uttar\ka
unable to find the queen there.
returned to him.
Realizing that
Utta~ka
must
be in a state of impurity (the faithful queen would only be visible to someone who was pure).
Pau~ya
instructed him to
cleanse himself properly after his meal of bull dung. queen then gave the earrings to Tak~aka.
Utta~ka.
uncl ean
food
and
cursed
retorted with a curse that the cause
warning him that
king of the snakes, coveted the jewelry.
Trying to depart hurriedly from ate
The
Pau~ya
Utta~ka
of the problem,
Pau~ya's
palace,
to go bl i nd.
remain barren.
Utta~ka
modi fi ed hi s
Utta~ka Pau~ya
Discovering curse and
~hen he asks Veda what he should bring as a guru's gift, Utta"'ka ci tes an anonymous say; ng about the dangers of i gnori ng dharma (1.3.94) whi ch corresponds with verse 2.111 in Manu. This is one of the much less common instances in the Mbh in which only a single verse from Manu occurs. rather than a cluster.
7 Pau~ya's
declared
the spoilage as
invalid because he had not, in fact. caused had claimed.
Pau~ya
On his way Uttaflka next encountered an ascetic.
When he
put the earrings on the ground to take a drink of water, the ascetic grabbed them,
assum;ng his true form as Taksaka as
soon as Uttaflka caught the fleeing thief.
Taksaka escaped
into a cleft in the ground that suddenly opened up.
Uttaflka
followed close behind, uttering warm praises of snakes. In the underworld, weavi ng.
thei r
Impressed by
si x
Utta~ka
came upon two women who were
assi stants.
and
a
words of praise.
Utta~kats
very
handsome
man.
the man granted him
the favor of gaining power over the snakes.
As ;nstructed by
him, Uttaflka blew into the anus of a horse that happened to be nearby. caUSing billowing flames that drove the snakes from their lairs.
The frightened Taksaka returned the earrings to
Uttaflka. Reachi ng hi 5 guru I was
about
to
curse
S
home in the ni ck of ti me (Veda I s wi fe
hi 1ft for
1 ateness).
Utta"'ka
asked
hi s
teacher to exp1 ai n hi s strange encounters and 1 earned that Agni
and
Tak~aka.
Indra had helped Uttaflka
set
out
him along the way. for
Hastinapura
Enraged
where
Janamej aya and convi nced hi m to undertake the (snake sacrifice) to avenge
Tak~akats
the king (the murder of his father.
he
at met
sarpasattra
offenses against both
Parik~it)
and the brahman
(theft of the earrings). The
Frame
story of .Janamejaya cont j nues
From
1.3. 177-
3.1g5.
The sect ion about Pau1ama [pau 70maparvaj [ 1 -4-1 2 ]
Do
I * cYavana6 [1.5.1-1.7*26]
Narrator:
Ugra$ravas
Audience:
Saunaka and t h e Naimisa f o r e s t seers
h m a k a asked UgraSravas to r e l a t e t h e 7 fneage o f the
fts
wfth
Bhrgus
related s t o d e s ,
beginning
with
how
Bhrgu s son Cyavana get h i s name. Bhrgues w i f e Puloma conceived a son pregnancy,
Bhrgu
left
home
to
attend
a
O u r h g her
rajasl7ya
(royal
consecrati on) and whi l e he was away, t h e demon Pu1oman entered t h e hermitage.
Inflamed w i t h l o v e 8 he determined t o abduct
Pulom& b u t f i r s t questioned Agni (who was i n t h e form o f the ritual fire].
Was PulomZ not r i g h t f u l 1y h i s {Pulomanf S ) w i f e
since he had chosen her before she was b e t r o t h e d t o Bhrgu? Agni w a s unable t o deny the t r u t h o f t h i s c l a i m s so o f f went Puloman w i t h Pulorna i n h i s grasp. womb* hence t h e name Cyavana.
demon turned t o ashes
The baby f e 1 I
From her
With one look a t t h e c h i I d , t h e
.
When q u e s t i oned by Bhrgu, Pulom2I revealed Agni s r o l e i n t h e abduction8 t h e r e f o r e the f i r e was cursed t o e a t anything
(whether
pure
or
impure).
Angri 1y
p r o d a i m i ng
h is
truthfu1ness8 Agni withdrew from t h e t h r e e worlds8 d i s r u p t i n g ' 3 mam vamgamaham brahmanargavam t e mahZltmune/ n i gad~mi*kathayuktam p u r ~ n ~ ~ r a y a s a r n y u k t a m5.6 ~/l.
evamesa p u r a v r t t a it 4 haso gni &Spajah/ pulomasya vin&Sa&ca cyavanasya ca sambhavah//l.7.26
9
a1 1 t h e s a c r i Tices.
Brahma summoned Agni
a
andl
t o appease
him, declared t h a t e v e r y t h i n g Agni touched would h e n c e f o r t h be purified. 2.
R U ~ U ' [I '8.1-12*5]
Narrator:
Ugragravas
Audience:
saunaka and t h e IUaimisa f o r e s t seers
One day
Rufus
of
grandson
Cyavana,
PramadvarS i n t h e hermitage o f SthUlakeSa.
saw
the
young
I t happened t h a t
she was t h e daughter o f t h e apsaras Menaka and t h e k i n g o f t h e g a n d h a ~ v a srescued ~ by t h e brahman near h i s hermitage when her mother
abandoned h e r
at
birth.
Seeing
that
his
son was
l ~ v e s t r u c k ,Ruruf s f a t h e r immediately arranged f o r t h e two t o marry* Shortly
before
the
weddi ng
took
p l acea
PramadvarS
c a r e l e s s l y stepped an a sleeping snake and d i e d i n s t a n t l y o f i t s venomous b i t e . celestial
The g r i e f - s t r i c k e n Ruru was advised by t h e
QevadOta t h a t she could be r e v i v e d o n l y
granted her h a l f o f h i s own l i f e s p a n . and t h e y were
married*
i f Ruru
He d i d so w i l l i r i g l y N
b u t he a l s o vowed t o
destroy the
snakes. Walking i n t h e f o r e s t one daya Ruru saw a 1i z a r d and s t r u c k i t hard w i t h h i s s t a f f .
was, a f t e r a1 1
The 1izard p o i n t e d o u t t h a t he
a 1 izard and n o t a snake.
Furthermore, he was
a c t u a l ly a seer (a1 so named Ruru) under a brahmanrs curse.
'tasya brahmanruroh sarvam c a r i tam b h a r i t e j asah1 3 v i starena pravaksgm?i tac6hrnu tva*ma&esatah//I Dee
..
As
10
a child. he had playfully frightened a brahman friend with a straw snake while the brahman was engaged in ritual activity. For his offense. he was cursed to become a reptile until he woul d one day see the Bhargava Ruru.
Recovering his true
form. the brahman reminded Ruru of the crucial between brahmans and own duties.
k~atriyas.
K~atriyas
brahmans (like
~stika)
hear the tale of
differences
He urged Ruru to hold to his
(like Janamejaya) may massacre snakes; must protect them.
~stika.
When he asked to
the Bhargava Ruru was told that he
would hear it from another brahman.
He then went off to find
his father and demanded that he tell the entire story. E.
The section about ~stika [.stikaparvaJ 8 [1.13.1-53.36] Narrator:
Ugra§ravas
Audience:
~aunaka
Ugra§ravas to1d
and the Naimisa forest seers
~stika's
story in brier, then in ru11
detail when Saunaka requested it. Ka§yapa had two wives named KadrO and Vinata. daughters of Prajapati.
Granted a boon. KadrO chose 1.000 snakes for
8~rosyasi tvam ruro sarvamastikacaritam mahat/ brahmananam Kathayatam .. . i tyuktvantaradh'iyatah/ . /1 .12.3
pita casya
tadakhyana~ pr~ta~ sarva~
nyavedayat/1.12.5cd
ityakhyana~ mayastika~ yathavatkirtita~
tava/1.53.25ab
astikasya kavervipra
§rimaccaritamadita~/1.53.26cd
~rotum;cchamya§esena
kathametam manoramam/
astikasya
pura~asya brahma~asya ya§asvina~//1.13.5
itihasamimam vrddhah puranam paricak§ate/ krsnadvaipayanaproktam naimisaranyavasinah//1.13.6 ., . . ...
11 sons and VinatS chose two sons s u p e r i o r t o Kadrdf s i n s t r e n g t h and beauty.
A f t e r some time, KadrU bore 1,000 eggs and VinatS
bore t w o .
A11 o-f
A f t e r 500 years,
t h e eggs were p l a c e d i n steaming pots.
Kadrd's eggs hatched,
b u t VinatSTt s d i d not,
so she i m p a t i e n t l y broke one egg t o f i n d a son ha1f grown.
He
cursed her t o be t h e s l a v e o f KadrO f o r 500 years and advised her t o w a i t p a t i e n t l y f o r
t h e b i r t h o f her second son,
who
w o u l d f r e e her from slavery. Churning o f t h e oceang [1.15.4-18.11
1.
Narrator:
UgraSravas
Audience:
Saunaka and t h e Naimi sa f o r e s t seers
UgraSravas c o n t i n u e d h i s s t o r y by e x p l a i n i n g t h a t w h i l e KadrQ and V f n a t a were t o g e t h e r one day, a l o n g came t h e horse U c c h a i h h v a s , sprung from t h e churned ocean.
k a k a asked
t o hear how t h e c h u r n i n g o f t h e ocean happened,
and how t h e
horse was born i n that process.
The gods gathered on M t . Meru t o determine how t h e y might o b t a i n soma.
.
Visnu advised t h a t t h e gods and asuras must
c o l l a b o r a t e t o churn t h e ocean,
the
top.
At
..
V i snu * s
command,
f o r c i n g t h e soma t o r i s e t o the
cosmic
serpent
Ananta
At % e i t h e r UgraSravas nor faunaka c a l l s t h i s a s t o r y . it s concl u s i on, Ugrasravas says, "1 have recounted t o you fully.. IS For a discussion o f Rgvedic and BrShmana r e n d i t i o n s o f t h e soma-steal i n g p o r t i o n s of t h i s s t o r y , see Mahesh Mehta, "The E v o l u t i o n o f t h e Suparna Saga i n t h e Mahabhgrata, lf Journal of t h e O r i e n t a l I n s t i t u t e o f Baroda 21 (1971): 41-65.
.
12
uprooted Mt.
Mandara for
use as the
churni ng pol e. to
The
snake VKsuki agreed to serve as the rope, so the gods held on to his tail and the asuras held on to his head. after
causing
effort,
considerable
several
goddesses
jewel, the horse
destruction emerged,
Ucchai~§ravas,
Vi snu took the
form
of a
with
along
Eventually, this
wi th
a
massive preci ous
and finally the soma itself.
seductive woman
wi 11 ; ng1 y handed the sOllla over to hi m.
and
the
The gods began to
drink it before the asuras could retrieve it, and a battle ensued.
asuras
fierce
The gods triumphed and found a safe hiding
place for the remaining soma.
The bard then returned to his story of KadrU and Vinat •. [1.18.2] KadrD initiated a wager in which she and Vinata were to guess the color of Ucchaih§ravas. winner's slave.
The loser would become the
Unknown to Vinata, KadrD ordered her sons to
disguise themselves as black hairs in the horse's tail so that she might win the bet.
Because they resisted her, she cursed
them to burn to death in Janamejaya's snake sacrifice.
When
the snakes relented and disguised themselves as black hairs in the horse's tail,
Vinata lost the wager and became KadrD's
servant. lOEditors of the critical edition note that the account of the churning of the ocean as presented in the Mbh closely resembles that in the Matsyapur.na, as follows: Mbh 1.16.1835 and 1. 16.37-40 are found a 1 most verbat i m ; n Ma'tsyapur8na 249.69-82, 250.1-4, and 251.5-8 (~nand.~rama edition). They a 1 so note that a 11 of adhyllya 1 . 17 is found almost verbat i m ; n Matsyapurll~a 251.9-36.
Meanwhi 1e,
Garuda
v i s i t e d h i s mother, sake,
f in a l 1y
hatched
now enslaved by Kadrd.
he w a s o f t e n e n l i s t e d t o f u l f i l l
demands.
One day,
and
occasi o n a l l y
For h i s mother's
t h e snakes'
various
exasperated w i t h these o b l ig a t i ons. Garuda
l e a r n e d t h a t t h e snakes would s e t him and h i s mother f r e e i f he w o u l d f e t c h soma f o r them.
Before a l l o w i n g him t o depart,
V i nata advised him never t o
k i 11 a brahman i n hunting f o r
food While
taking
his
first
meal
along
the
a c c i d e n t a l l y swallowed a brahman and h i s w i f e a l o n g w i t h a whole t r i b e o f N i sadas.
way,
Garuda
(a NisSda).
He released t h e two, b u t
remained hungry. 2.
The s t o r y o f S u p r a t i ka and V i bhavasul'
Narrator :
Kagyapa
Audience:
Garuda
F l y i n g up
into t h e sky, Garuda
f a t h e r , Ka&yapa, and sought h i s h e l p to
[I. 25.10-
encountered
his
locate more food.
In
he c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y story. I t begins, however, w i t h a f a i r l y t y p i c a l s t o c k phrase: Ssid vibhSvasur m a maharsih kopano bhrsam/l. 25.lOab i ) (There was a g r e a t , extremely w r a t h f u l r s i n a m e d ~bhavasu Editors o f t h e c r i t i c a l edition note t h a t a cluster o f verses a t t h e b e g i n n i n g o f adhyaya 25 a r e comparable t o verses in t h e Suparnadhyaya ( e d i t e d by Grube) as f o l 1ows. Compare. r e s p e c t i v e l y ; Mbh1.25.1, 1.25.2, 1 . 2 5 . 3 , 1.25.5, 1.25.10 w i t h Suparnadhyaya 18.2, 18.4, 18.5, 18.6, and 13.1f. Additional verses occur when t h e n a r r a t i v e r e t u r n s t o Garuda's s t o r y a t Mbh 1.26.2, 1.29.19, 1.29.23, and 1.30.12" w h i c h a r e comparable, r e s p e c t i v e l y , t o SuparnadhySya 13.4, 27.6. 2 8 . 2 , and 3 0 - 5 .
.
14
response 6 his
Fa~her
~o7d
him
~he
Following
s~orY6
then said 6
"Ea't 'them."
The ascetic Supratika constantly brother
Vibhavasu
to
divide
up
their
peste~ed
common
his elder p~operty.
Reaching the point of exasperation, Vibhavasu one day lectured hi s
brother on
di vi s; on
J
Suprati ka
the dangers
that would ensue
from
and cursed hi m to become an el ephant. cursed
hi 5
brother
to
become
a
such
a
In turn
J
tortoi se.
Thereafter. the two quarrel ed ceaselessl yin the very 1 ake near where Ka§yapa and The bard
Garu~a
re~urned
~o
were conversing.
the
s~ory
of Garufi/a.
[1.25.26-
1.26.47] As he swooped down upon the elephant and torto i se J
Garu~a
snapped off a tree branch to which the Valakhilyas (a group of tiny brahmans) clung. but quickly caught it in his beak. Ka~yapa
r
At
s request, the brahmans 1 eft the branch so that Garuda
would not harm them.
Ka§yapa then told his son where
deposi t the branch wi thout endangeri ng other brahmans.
to At
last J Garuda was able to finish his meal. Vari ous portents
occurred J
and the gods
Garuda was determined to steal the soma.
1 earned
that
They prepared for
battle. 3.
Indra's "twinll12 [1.27.1-27.35] Narrator:
Ugra§ravas
12etadicchamyaha~ srotum pura~e yadi pa~hyate/1.27.3cd
15
Audience:
$aunaka and the Naimisa forest seers
The sages were curious 'to know how Ka§yapa came to have such an extraordinary son.
Long ago. Ka§yapa undertook a sacrifice to obtain a son. Indra. the Va1akhi1yas and all the gods were instructed to gather firewood for the event.
Returning with a huge load.
Indra came upon the ti ny VK1akhi 1yas transporti ng -- with difficulty
a
single
leaf.
His
contemptuous
laughter
angered them so much that they performed their own sacrifice. chanting various spells to ensure that a rival to Indra would be born. When he learned of their intention.
lndra sought help
To mitigate the situation.
Ka§yapa convinced
from
Ka~yapa.
the
Valakhilyas
(patatri~.mindra
to
permit
1.27.20a)
that be
an
Indra
produced
of
the
birds
instead.
The
Valakhilyas acceded to his request. and turned their ritual over to Ka§yapa to complete as he wished. Meanwhile. Ka'yapa's wife. Vi nat •• had been wishing for a son and Ka~yapa
performed all
the proper ri tua 1 s
to ensure
it.
informed her that she would bear two sons. Aruna and
Garuda.
He also reassured Indra that the two would be his
helpers (sah.yau.
1.27.30c). not his rivals.
Here the narrative returns to the adventures of Garuda. [1.28-30]
In a fierce battle.
Garu~a
overcame all the gods.
He
then confronted two deadly snakes guarding the soma, blinded
16
them,
and sto1 e
Garu~a's
the 1 i Qui d.
impressed witn
feat that he requested his friendship.
were reconci 1 ed,
Garu~a
soma
back the
When they
requested of Indra that henceforth the
snakes become his food. take
Indra was so
In return, he agreed that Indra could
as soon
as
Garuda wou 1 d
set
it
down
anywhere. Garuda returned to the snakes and secured his mother's release from slavery.
Setting down the soma.
he suggested
that the snakes bathe and prepare to drink it.
Whi 1 e they
were gone, Indra retrieved the soma.
Next, continued 4.
Ugra§ravas wi~h
the
snakes
by
name,
then
additiona1 stories about them.
Stories of KadrO's children 13 [1.32.1-35.13] Narrator:
Ugrajravas
Audience:
~aunaka
~e~a,
the
listed
behavior
of
the eldest snake-son of KadrO. disgusted at his
mother
undertake austeri ties. mastery. asked that her on his head.
and the Naimisa Forest seers
~e~a
and
Brahma,
siblings. impressed
left with
them his
to
self-
become earth's support by carrying
He has done so ever since.
vasuki. second-born of KadrO. was most concerned to avert his mother's curse upon her children.
He deliberated various
plans with his brothers. but none seemed satisfactory.
One
brother, Elapatra. had overheard a conversation between the
13 The critical edition gives no title for this ancillary
story.
17
gods and
BrahmB at the time of
1 earned what wou 1 d be thei r Jaratkaru would have a son name.
That
sol uti on,
son
then
wou 1 d was
I
KadrD's curse.
means of escape: (~stika)
halt
There
he
the ascet i c
by a woman of the same
Janamej aya '5
sacri fi ce.
for the snakes to guard thei r
The si ster
Jaratk2ru until the appropriate time.
Saunaka then asked to hear how Jaratk6ru got his name, and Ugra§ravas responded by explaining how the sage Jaratk6ru was convinced to take a wiFe.
That story is inserted between
the two te7lings of the story of King Pariksit. Pariksit14 [1.36.1-46.32]
5.
Narrator:
Ugra~ravas
Audience:
~aunaka
and the Naimisa forest seers
This story Tollows immediately aFter Ugra§ravas' brieF remarks that Jaratk6ru, (i.e.,
one
who
ascet i c ism and
emaciates wandered
whose name means decayed-doer the
the
body),
earth
practiced
wi thout
the
strict
s lightest
interest in Finding a wiFe. King
Parik~it.
bowman on earth. i n the
forest
descendant of the Kurus. was the greatest
One day, he was forced to search long hours
for a
deer
he had shot.
and
regarded thi 5
unusual occurrence as a portent of his own death. into the forest, silence.
Parik~it
Drawn deep
came upon a hermit under a vow of
Because the ascetic would not tell Pariksit whether
14The critical edition gives no title for this ancillary story.
18
or not he had seen the deer,
P a r i k s i t draped a dead snake
- an extremely
around h i s neck
disrespectful act.
Srrtgin, t h e a s c e t i c ' s v o l a t i 1e son, f l e w i n t o a rage when he heard t h a t h i s f a t h e r had been i n s u l t e d i n t h i s way.
He
cursed Pari k s i t t o d i e from t h e snakebite o-F Taksaka w i t h i n seven days.
Learning OF h i s
son's
curse,
the
ascetic
disapproved and l e c t u r e d h i s son on the inappropriateness o f such behavior f o r brahmans, protected them.
e s p e c i a l l y toward t h e king who
Unable t o d e t e r h i s son, he s e n t a messenger
t o warn Pari k s i t . I n t h e f o l 1owi ng days, t h e remorseful P a r i k s i t made every e f f o r t t o p r o t e c t himself day,
.
Kasyapa a r r i v e d on t h e seventh
having learned o f t h e curse and knowing t h a t he could
cure Pari k s i t , t h u s preventing h i s death.
H e s e t o u t for t h e
c o u r t o f Pari k s i t, b u t i n an encounter w i t h Taksaka along t h e way,
he was convi need t o t u r n back and r e f r a i n from a s s i s t i n g
t h e king. and,
KaSyapa r e a l i z e d t h a t P a r i k s i t was d e s t i n e d t o die,
i n any case,
Taksaka had of-fered Ka6yapa considerable
wealth i f he would t u r n back. I n t h e k i n g t s palace, P a r i k s i t accepted a g i f t o f f r u i t s proffered
by
a
group
of
ascetics
(snakes
in
disguise).
Taksaka h i d h i m s e l f i n s i d e a piece o f the f r u i t i n t h e form o f a worm,
and b i t
Pari ks-it 's death,
Pariksit
as he was d e s t i n e d t o do.
At
.
h i s son Janamejaya was marri ed t o Vapustam&
daughter o f t h e k i n g o f t h e K U i s ,
and became k i n g .
19
(a)
The story of Jaratkaru 15 [1.41.1-44.22] Narrator: Audi ence:
Ugra6ravas aaunaka and the Naimi sa forest seers
Wandering through the world performing his austerities. Jaratkaru
one
day
came
perilously in a cave. would fall
upon
his
own
ancestors
hanging
They explained that. before long, they
and be killed.
Moved by compassi on.
Jaratkaru
offered his assistance. The
asceti cs
become extinct.
exp1 ai ned that thei r
and
could only be
1 i ne
rescued
descendant, Jaratkaru, would bear a son.
was if
about to
thei r
sole
Not realizing who he
was. they only asked that Jaratkaru inform their descendant of this predicament. Disclosing his identity. the distressed Jaratkaru agreed to marry. namesake. the
but only
if he could find
a woman
who was
his
After considerable searching, JaratkBru finally met
snakes who
offered
thei r
si ster
JaratkBru
to
him
in
marriage. Once they were married. Jaratkaru told his wife that if ever she displeased him, he would leave her.
One day. he fell
asleep in her lap and did not awaken as the sun set.
Should
she rouse him to perform the appropriate ritual. or leave him undisturbed and allow him to violate his obligations?
She
15 This story is told while that of Pariksit is being recounted. The introductory phrase etasminneva k87e tu (in the meantime) at 1.41.a strongly suggests that they are to be regarded as parallel stories.
20
wakened her husband,
but instead of being grateful,
he was
angry, claiming that the sun would not dare to set while he was as 1 eep .
The ascet i c
already pregnant with
abandoned his wi fe,
~stika.
In due course.
but she was
~stika
was born
and grew to be learned and virtuous.
$aunaka,
re~erring ~o
asked Ugra§ravas what: Janalllejaya father
Pariksi~'s
demise.
~elling
Vai§amp6yana's
of
had been 'told
~o
Mbh, his
abou~
Ugra§ravas concluded 'the
Asti ka by recounting 'the events 7eading up
~he
s~ory
of
.lanalllejaya's
sacrifice along with 'the det:ails of the sacriFice itselF, an even~
at which the careers of
Janamejaya story
This portion of
in~ersec't.
bu't
Parjk~jt.
o'f
Janamejaya's
Utta~ka,
sacriFice
From
the
ins'tead of
Xs~Lka, ~he
and
Tak~aka,
~ale
repea~s
~he
level
of
narra~ive
$aunaka's.
That
is,
7isteners who have heard 'the story 'from the point of view of Bh~gu
concerns (i. e., how and why
the snakes)
now hear
it
Xs~i ka
was born
From the poin't
~o
rescue
of view of Kuru
concerns (i.e., how and why Janamejaya became determined to destroy the snakes). 6.
Pariksit (re-told) [1.45.1-46.32] Narrator:
Ugra~ravas
Audience:
~aunaka
and the Naimisa forest seers
Pari ksi t was an ; 11 ustri ous ki ng. renowned for hi s good government,
who
ru 1 ed
well
for
si xty
years.
One
day,
indulging his fondness for hunting, he shot a deer and had to pursue it through the forest.
Eventually he came upon a sage
21
observing a vow of silence and inquired about the deer. sage made no reply.
The
Hungry and tired. the king became enraged
and insulted the ascetic by draping a dead snake around his neck. Upon hearing of this insult to his father,
the sage's
hot-headed son, ~~~gin. cursed Pariksit to die of a snakebite from Taksaka
in
seven days.
The sage sent
a
warn i ng
to
Pariksit. On the seventh day, who was hurrying to When
Ka~yapa
Tak~aka
Par;k~it's
intercepted the sage
Ka~yapa
palace in order to protect him.
explained that he was traveling there in the hope
of obtaining wealth for his services.
Tak~aka
riches he desired and sent him away.
(Later. a hidden witness
woul d testi fy to the arrangement between
gave him all the
Tak~aka
and
Ka~yapa.)
The snake proceeded to King Pariksit in disguise, and killed him with his venomous bite.
At 1.47
~he
narrative returns to the 1eve7 of
~stika's
s'tory.
When Janamejaya had heard this entire story. he swore to avenge his father by performing a snake sacrifice.
As the
preparations got underway, one of the learned men constructing the sacrificial altar interpreted an omen to mean that the sacri fi ce wou 1 d
be
interrupted
by
a
brahman.
Janamej aya
ordered that no strangers be permitted to enter. The sacrifice got underway. and snakes began to fall into the fi re to thei r death.
Tak~aka,
however J sought refuge wi th
22
Indra.
Seeing
his
family
members
JaratkSru t o c a l l upon her son, S s t i k a .
dying,
VZsuki
urged
She d i d so, d i v u l g i n g
t o X s t i k a t h a t he was born t o f r e e t h e snakes from Kadrdls curse,
and he s e t o u t t o h a l t Janamejaya's s a c r i f i c e .
A t t h e p e r i m e t e r o f t h e s a c r i f i c i a1 arena, S s t i k a p r a i sed
t h e k i n g f s s a c r i f i c e so warmly t h a t Janamejaya granted him a boon.
Just a t t h e moment when Taksaka was about t o fa1 1 i n t o
-
t h e "Fi r e (compel l e d by t h e awesome power o f a s a c r i f ice w e 1 1 performed),
S s t i k a declared t h a t ,
s a d f ice should be ha1ted. h i s word.
as a f a v o r t o him,
the
Janamejaya was o b l iged t o keep
He stopped t h e s a c r i f i c e and gave generous fees t o
a1 1 t h e p a r t i c i p a t i n g brahmans.
Astika returned t o h i s family
t o r e p o r t h i s success. F. Genealogy o f t h e f i r s t generations
[ a d i v a ~ ~ a t a r a ~ a ~ a r [v1 a S4.1-1.61 ]'~ 1.
.102]
..
Vasu U p a r i c a r a and t h e b i r t h o f Krsna Dvaipayana
''perhaps i t should be noted t h a t t h e e d i t o r s t choice o f l a b e l f o r t h e parvan i s n o t found i n any manuscript although i n t h e v a s t m a j o r i t y o f cases, t h e preponderance of evidence from manuscri p t colophons d i c t a t e d t h e subhead! nos. The c r i t i c a l notes on p. 281 o f volume one o f t h e c r i t i c a l f o l 1ows : "The name e d i t i o n expl a i n t h e m a t t e r as adfvam63vatarana ( o r 0t-a) does n o t occur in t h e colophons o f any o f t h e 'MsS. h i t h e r t o c o l 1ated; i t 1 ikewi se f i n d s no mention i n t h e summary of t h e Adiparvan g i v e n i n t h e Parvasamgraha (1 .2.72-94) ; b u t c f . 1 . 2 . 3 4 [which uses t h e terw. I n t h e MSS. which do mention t h e name of t h e Subparvan i n t h e i r colophons, t h i s s e c t i o n i s general ly c a l l e d am6avataranaparva a t t h e end o f t h e adhy. corresponding t o our adhy. 58 f o r which, however, t h e r e appears t o be no MS. authority. this
23 (Vyasa)l1
[1 .51.1-57.15]
Narrator:
Vai§a~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
This story begins the detai led recounting of the Mbh by
ta7e
explaining
the
circumstances
storyteller/protagonist Vy8sa's birth.
the
It Follows one of the
most Famous verses in the Mbh, which claims that the story is the sum total of knowledge (1.56.33).
There once was a king of the Cedis named Vasu Uparicara. When. after many years of ruling his kingdom. he retired to the forest to undertake austerities, that the ki ng would try
Indra became concerned
to usurp hi s
posi ti on
;n
heaven.
Offering him a celestial chariot, a protective lotus garland and a bamboo pole.
Indra convinced the king to take up the
affairs of his kingdom once again. One day. a river located near Vasu·s palace presented her twins to the king in gratitude for his unwitting kindness to her.
He made the boy chief of his army and married the girl. While off hunting on a certain day, Vasu thought of his
wife and ejaculated onto the ground. carry the semen to hi s
He enlisted a bird to
wi fe, but the bi rd was attacked en
route and dropped the semen into the Yamuna River.
There a
fish (actually an apsaras living under a curse) swallowed it. Months later the fish was caught and human twins were cut from
l1 The
story.
critical edition gives no title for this ancillary
24
her body.
The boy was to become King Matsya and the girl was
Satyavati.
Because Satyavati smelled like a fish. Vasu left
her to live among the fishermen. where she occupied herself by operating a ferry on the Yamuna River. One day, the sage Para§ara boarded the ferry and wanted to have sexual intercourse with the beautiful young woman. Concerned
for
her
vi rgi n i ty and the consequences
of thi 5
liaison, Satyavati hesitated to consent. but Para§ara agreed Her son,
that henceforth she would no longer smell fishy. Dvaipayana. was born the very next day.
There
'follows
a
listing
o'f the
births
o'f
the
main
protagonists o'f the Bh6rata war. Why the warri ors were born on earth ts
2.
[1.58. 1-
59.7]
Narrator:
Vai~a~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
Janamejaya asked
Vai§a~p.yana
to explain why these
extraordinary men were born. Vai§a~payana
J3madagnya's
slaughter
briefly of
the
told
how,
k~atrjyas,
following the
earth
repopu 1 ated wi th chi 1 dren born of brahman fathers and mothers.
Rama was
k~atrj ya
Generations continued to be born for hundreds of
thousands of years, until at one time the asuras also began to be born on earth.
Eventually, the earth was no longer able to
fBrahaSya khalvidam rajandevanamiti nah trutam/ tattu te kathaYi~yami namask~tva svaya~bhuve//1.58.3
25 sustai n the
burden
of so many
creatures.
She
approached
Brahma for assistance. and he instructed all the gods to be born on earth in order to rid her of the demons. A't
Janattlejaya's
reques't,
Vai§a'!'Pllyana
origin of all beings Frottl Brahma.
G.
narra'ted the
[1.59.7-61.102]
Section on origins [sambhavaparvani 9 [1.62.1-123.78] This sec'tion begins wi'th an account
0"
the bir1:h
0"
Brahmll's six sons.
1. The story of Sakuntal. [~akunta10pakhyanam]~ [1 . 62 . 1 -69 . 51 ] Narrator:
Vai~a~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
19Editors of the critical edition note that this section contains one verse (1.59.12) comparable to Brhaddeva~6 5.144. although they do not presume to conclude which is the earlier. The verse lists the children of Daksa. 20 Thi s story beg; ns when Janamejaya asks how the Kuru dynasty began. The stories of Sakuntala and Yayat; (which follows it in the critical edition) are one of very few instances where the editors note Significant disagreements about their placement in the manuscript tradition. They have followed the order of Northern recensi on lI'Ianuscri pts and the Javanese Mbh instead of the Southern recension, which places Yayati before Sakuntal •. See volume 1. p. 282 of the critical edition for details. The ~akunta 1 a story i s the f; rst instance of a phenomenon that recurs throughout the Mbh. namely the occurrence of small clusters of ,lokas comparable to verses in Manu. This case is most intriguing. All of the verses are uttered by ~akuntala in the dramatic confrontation scene in which Duhsanata pretends not to recognize her. She quotes Svayambhu'in one case (1 .68.38). but otherwi se the utterances are unatt ri buted. 1 eadi ng us to wonder whether they are lI'Ieant to be her own words, or if their source was thought to be so obvious as not to require citation. The correspondences are as follows: Mbh 1 .68.25. 1.68.26. 1.68.28, 1.68 . 29. 1.68.30, 1.68.36. and 1.68.38 comparable respectively to Manu 8.84. 4.255. 8.85, 8.86. 8.92ab. 9.8, and 9.138.
26
Janamejaya asked how t h e Kuru dynasty began. Vaisampayana
.
, and Sakuntala. Duhsanta
on a
began
with
the
story
of
King
.
One day, t h e I n d r a - l i k e Duhsanta went
hunting expedition w i t h
his
retinue.
After
killing
numerous animals, the k i n g ventured deep i n t o the f o r e s t . came
upon
a
Recognizing
hermitage as
it
the
weapons and entered it.
encircled
dwelling
of
by
the
Kanva,
Malini
He
River.
he removed h i s
The sage w a s n o t there, b u t Ouhsanta * .
encountered a b e a u t i f u l young woman t h e r e whom he engaged i n conversati on. a.
fiakuntala s s t o r y o f her b i rth2' 11 -65.18-
66.171 Narrator:
6akuntal a
Audience:
Duhsanta *
Sakuntala
explained
Â
that
she
was
the
daughter o f t h e apsaras Menaka and t h e a s c e t i c V i S v m t r a . I n d r a had e n l i s t e d MenakS t o seduce Vi6vSmitra and d e t e r him f r o m h i s considerable accompl ishments i n ascetic p r a c t i c e s .
With I n d r a ' s
help, Menaka succeeded.
bore $akuntaIS,
She became pregnant,
and l e f t her on t h e bank o f the Malin? where
Kanva found her.
.
Duhsanta, .
overcome w i t h desi re,
convi nced Sakuntal S t o
m a r r y him i n t h e gandharva way, by mutual consent.
She agreed
.
t o do so i f any son she bore would be Duhsantaf s successor.
' y a t h ~ y a m ~ ~ a rmahyam no yatha cedamabhOtpura/ . rajanyathatattvkm yathasmi duhi t a muneh//1 - 6 5 . 18 6rnu
27
he
When
returned
to
the
hermitage,
Kanva
expressed
his
approval o f t h e i r m a r r i a g e and t o l d Sakuntal s she would bear
a son. S a k u n t a l ~and h e r son l i v e d w i t h Kanva f o r
s i x years
u n t i l t h e sage decided t h a t i t was time f o r h e r and t h e boy t o go t o
..
Duhsantats kingdom. .*
When Duhsanta pretended n o t t o
Sakuntal a upbraided him f o r f a i 1ing to o f f e r
recogni ze her,
p r o p e r honors t o h i s w i f e and son.
Duhsanta c h a l l e n g e d her. . a
and she continued t o argue strenuously f o r h e r t r u t h f u l n e s s .
.
(1) I n s t r u c t i o n t o ~ u h s a n t a[ ~ I .69.5-69.201 ~
Narrator:
h k u n t a la
Audi ence :
Duh6anta
In a c c e p t h i s son,
her
e f f o r t s t o convince t h e Icing
Sakunta7a recounts a s t r i n g o f maxims
c o n t r a s t s t h e behavfor o f u g l y and handsome men,
to
that
s t u p i d and
7 n t e 7 7 i g e n t m e n . good and e v i l m e n ,
leading t o her a s s e r t i o n
that one should n o t r e j e c t a son.
She t h e n c i t e s Manu t o
d e f i n e t h e word 'son.
'
Sakuntala presented a s e r i e s o f c o n t r a s t s
intended t o
convince t h e k i n g t o c o n f r o n t h i s own f a u l t s and acknowledge h i s mistake.
The maxims { n i d a r g a n a ) she c i t e d concerned an
ugl y m a n who deludes h i m s e l f i n t o t h i n k i n g he i s handsome, t h e difference
between
a
fool
who
listens
to
gossip
and
an
i n t e l 1igent man who does not, and t h e c o n t r a s t between people
who reproach o t h e r s and people who do not.
She then reminded
t h e king how c r u c i a l sons a r e t o dharma, and described t h e s i x t y p e s o f sons, As
according t o Manu.
she was about t o
pretend t h a t
leave Ouhsanta (who continued t o +.
he d i d not
know her),
a voice
confirmed a l l t h a t 6 a k u n t a l ~had said.
from t h e sky
Relieved t h a t her
id e n t i t y had been unquesti onabl y conf irmed by
an a u t h o r i t y
welcomed h i s w i f e and h i s acceptable to h i s subjects, Duhsanta .. son,
Bharata 2
.
.
The
story
of
Yayat i
Narrator:
Vai SampZSyana
Audi ence:
Janamejaya
[yayStyu~flnam$3
Vai6ampayana t h e n t o l d s t o r i e s which t a k e t h e genealogy
of
the
Mbh ' s heroes back
to
the generation
of
Duhsanta , 's g r e a t g r a n d f a t h e r . A t one ti me,
t h e gods were losing t h e i r perenni a1 b a t t l e
w i t h the asuras f o r c o n t r o l o f t h e universe.
They approached
Kaca, eldest son o f Orhaspati , and asked h i m t o o b t a i n from U6anas Kavya, a BhZWgava and c h i e f p r i e s t o f t h e asuras. h i s secret f o r r e v i v i n g t h e dead.
U6anas accepted Kaca as h i s
student, and Kaca served h i s teacher w e l l * A f t e r f i v e hundred years,
t h e asuras discovered Kaca i n
h hi s s t o r y is recounted when Janamejaya asks t o hear how h i s ancestor Yayati married OevaySni i n t h e course of Vai 6ampSyanaVs d i scourse on t h e PUru 1ineage. e d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note t h a t t h e YayZti s t o r y recurs almost verbatim i n t h e Matsyapurana, adhyayas 2542, a t e x t which, according t o t h e editors', most c l o s e l y conforms t o t h e KSSmiri group o f manuscripts of t h e Mbh.
29 t h e hermitage o f
USanas and murdered him.
DevaySni,
the
sage ' s daughter. was much d i s t r e s s e d a t h i s d i sappearance, b u t
Usanas e a s i l y brought him back t o l i f e . a second time,
When t h e y k i l l e d him
t h e asuras p l a c e d Kacat s ashes i n Usanas* cup
o f wine so t h a t t h e p r i e s t i n g e s t e d him. Agai n DevayanZ pleaded w i t h her f a t h e r t o r e s t o r e Kaca t o 1 if e .
I n o r d e r t o do so,
h i m s e l f must d i e ,
however,
Usanas r e a l ized t h a t
he
so he t a u g h t t h e a p p r o p r i a t e s p e l l t o Kaca
who, when he b u r s t f o r t h f r o m h i s teacher's b e l l y , s p e l l t o r e v i v e Usanas.
used t h e
A f t e r f u l f i1 1ing h i s promi se t o s e r v e
U$anas f o r one thousand years,
Kaca prepared t o r e t u r n to t h e
gods w i t h t h e knowledge t h e y had sought. DevayZni , who had fa1 1en in l o v e w i t h him. implored Kaca t o marry her.
When he r e f u s e d ( p o i n t i n g out t h a t he was now
her b r o t h e r s i n c e he had been "bornw from USanast body), cursed him t o f i n d h i s magical
knowledge i n e f f e c t i v e .
she He
cursed her as we1 1 , saying t h a t she would never achieve her d e s i r e o f marrying a brahman.
Kaca returned t o t h e gods and
t a u g h t them t h e s p e l l . One day.
I n d r a had s e t o u t t o continue t h e b a t t l e w i t h
the asuras w h e n he came upon a group o f women b a t h i n g i n t h e woods.
.
. Among them were DevayZni and garmi stha,
t h e demon k i n g Vrsaparvan. . the
women's
clothes
to
S t i r r i n g up a breeze. I n d r a caused be
mixed
Sarmistha . o f s t e a l i n g her s k i r t ,
.
daughter of
up.
DevaySni
and an argument
accused ensued.
Enraged, Sarmi s. t h a threw Devayani i n t o a we1 1 and l e f t h e r f o r
dead. Along came Yayati on a h u n t i n g expedition.
He rescued
t h e brahman woman from t h e we1 1 and headed f o r home.
about
the
insult
to
his
daughter,
Devayani,
Hearing
USanas Sukra
threatened t o withdraw h i s s e r v i c e s from t h e asuras unless
.
k i ng,
their
Vrsaparvan.
would
Devayani ' s
grant
w i sh
that
.
Sarmi s t h a become her servant. 24 Some time
later,
Oevayani
and
..
Sarmistha happened t o
r e t u r n t o t h e same area i n t h e f o r e s t w i t h a l a r g e r e t i n u e . K i ng YayZti
again happened t o pass by.
When Devayani urged
him t o marry her,
he agreed on t h e c o n d i t i o n t h a t her f a t h e r
g r a n t permission.
Her f a t h e r d i d so. i n s t r u c t i n g Yayati never
.
t o have sexual i n t e r c o u r s e w i t h Sarmistha. .
and t h e two were
married.
day,
.
S a r m i s t h ~decided to choose YSyati
for
her
husband.
Despite h i s promise t o Devayani ' s f a t h e r , she convi nced Yayati t h a t t h e i r union was l a w f u l .
Since he had married Devay5ni ,
.
argued, h i s w i f e qs servants a u t o m a t i c a l l y became h i s Sarmi stha . property.
He
and
$arimstha
were,
in
effect,
married.
Convinced by her arguments, Yayati had i n t e r c o u r s e w i t h her.
In time. and POru.
she bore t h r e e o f h i s sons i n secret:
Druhyu.
Meanwhi l e , Yayati had two sons by Devayani :
.
Anu
Yadu
~ n h i s speech t h r e a t e n i ng t o desert Vrsaparvan Sukra u t t e r s two ha1f - H o k a s which are comparable t o verses i n Manu on t h e inevi t a b i 1 it y o f wrongdoi ng bearing f r u i t : Mbh 1 .75.2ab and 1.75.2cd a r e comparabl e t o Manu 4.172ab and 4. 173ab. respecti v e l y
.
31
and Turvasu. Eventually,
Devay3ni
complained to her father.
learned ~ukra
of
the
deception
and
cursed Yayati to become old
immediately, but granted him the ability to exchange his age for youth if one of his sons would agree to it. Yay3ti proposed to each of his sons that they assume his old age for 1.000 years. do so. king.
Only the youngest. POru. agreed to
In gratitude. Yayati declared that PDru would become When the time had elapsed, POru was anointed king and
Yayati departed for the forest. The 1 atter days of Yayat i
3.
[ uttaraY8y~tamJ25
[1 .81 . 1-88.26] Narrator:
Vai~a~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
This story
abou~
Yay8tj's experience in heaven
Tollows that of his experiences on earth.
When Yay&ti
had dwelled in the forest for some time.
intent upon his ascetic practices. he went to heaven. he
stayed
for
a
long
conversat i on wi th Indra.
time
until
one
When Yayat i
day
he
There
fell
into
c 1 aimed that he was
superior in austerities even to the gods, Indra declared his merit expended and Yayati fell back to earth. Yay3ti
happened
to
fall
among
a
group of
ksatriyas
25tasya vistirnaya~asah satyakirtermah3tmanah/ carita~ ~rotumicchami 'd;v; ceha ca sarva~a~I/1.81.8 hanta te kathay;syami yayBteruttaram katham/ divi ceha ca punYarth.~ sarvapapapra~a~inim//1.81.9
32 performing a r i t u a l .
Y a y a t i and t h e k s a t r f y a Astaka he1d a .
1engthy conversation i n which Yayati e x p l a i ned such wei g h t y matters as how
m e r i t becomes expended,
how t h e dead
are
reborn, t h e p o s s i b i 1 it y o f knowing o n e ' s former b i r t h s ,
and
proper behavior f o r householders,
students , and renouncers.
.,
Astaka, f o l l o w e d by t h r e e o t h e r k s a t r i y a s ,
Y a y s t i , which he refused.
offered
gifts t o
F i v e c h a r i o t s appeared t o c a r r y t h e
group t o heaven, and finaTTy Yayati r e v e a l e d t h a t he was t h e maternal grandfather (by h i s daughter Madhavi , whose s t o r y has y e t t o be t o l d i n t h e ZdfparvaN o f a1 1 four. 4.
H e r o i c Paurava k i ngs2' [ I .89.1-89.551 Narrator:
Vai gampayana
Audience:
Janamejaya
The chapter narrates a genea logy o f Paurava kings
with
only
briefest
the
of
notes
on
their
accomp 1 ishments, except f o r t h e story o f K i n g Samvarana.
When
Samvarana was
king,
a
series
of
d i s a s t e r s occurred i n h i s kingdom, c u l m i n a t i n g i n an a t t a c k by t h e PSficalas which rousted Samvarana f r o m h i s kingdom.
He
1 ived w i t h t h e remnants o f h i s c o u r t i n a f o r e s t near t h e
Indus River f o r many years. t o 1i v e w i t h them,
number o f years,
Eventually t h e r.s i Vasistha . . came e
and was accorded e v e r y honor.
After
a
Samvarana asked t h e sage t o serve as t h e i r
26tesam p r a t h i t a v r t t a n a m rajflam v i j fianaAZl inam/ c a r i tam Srotumi cchami ' v i starena tapodhana//l .89.3 The u s e o f t h e word c a r f t a leads us t o expect much f u l l e r n a r r a t i v e than a c t u a l l y occurs i n t h i s adhy3yai which i s more o f a catalog than a c e l e b r a t i o n o f e x p l o i t s .
33 priest.
He d i d so, and Samvarana recaptured h i s kingdom.
5.
Janamejaya8s 1ineage i n b r i e f 2 ? [IS O . 1-90.961 Narrator :
Vai Sampayana
Audi ence:
Janamejaya
The first s i x t y verses o f the chapter contain a genea 7ogfca 7
straightforward ancestors.
toJ&
1isting
'.
Once Pandu i s mentioned,
of
Janamejaya 's
t h e following s t o r y i s
The passage È included here because o f the use o f t h e
term katha,
although Janamejaya may well be r e f e r r i n g t o t h e
larger context o f this sub-parvan
i n w h i c h h i s ancestry
is
recounted. Because he k i 1l e d a deer who was
having
i n t e r c o u r s e w i t h a doe, PSndu was cursed t o d i e should he ever * . again have children
by
intercourse his
with
wives
surrogate f a t h e r s .
Kunti
a woman. and
Thereafter
Madri
with
he
deities
had as
.
Pandu d i e d when he t r i e d t o have sexual
intercourse w i t h Madri.
H i s T i ve sons narrow1y escaped b e i ng
burned t o death, won Oraupadz as t h e i r common w i f e in PSficS1a, and themselves
had remarkable sons.
Their o n l y
h e i r was
. .
s t i l l b o r n , b u t Krsna r e v i v e d him and named him Pari k s i t . i n turn,
He,
f a t h e r e d Janamejaya.
6.
Gartga's c h i l d r e n and t h e e x t i n c t i o n o f
lineage [1.91.1-96.591
PUru's
a. King ~ a h ~ b!az8 h i [ I .91.1-91.223 Narrator :
Vai SampZyana
Audi ence :
Janamejaya
The n a r r a t i ves,
h e r e t o f o r e d i a c h r o n i c since
o r i g i n s have been discussed as t h e sequence of generations, now
shift
failure
focus
to
t o produce
reproductive.
t h e dynasty's
h e a l t h y male h e i r s
Sections 1.92-1.97
synchronic terms.
immanent demise
set
who a r e
themselves
forth t h e c r i s i s
in
W e learn how i t has happened t h a t t h e on 1y
s u r v i v i n g male h e i r ,
Bhisma, refuses t o f a t h e r c h i l d r e n .
One day the r i v e r GamS came t o v i s i t Brahma. wind
from a
1i f t e d her s k i r t ,
averted t h e i r eyes.
all
present
except
For t h i s i n d i s c r e t i o n ,
MahSbhi sa t o be reborn as a mortal
.
When the
King Mahabhisa Brahrna cursed
M b h i sa decided t h a t he
would be reborn as t h e son of King Pratipa.
After 1eavi ng BrahmZ ' s court, Gartga encountered t h e e i ght Vasus whom Vasistha had cursed t o be born i n *
a human womb.
They were concerned t o be born t o a pure woman, Ga-8
t o serve as t h e i r mother.
P r a t i p a would be t h e i r father.
and asked
She agreed, decl at-i ng t h a t The Vasus i n s i s t e d , however,
t h a t she drown them immediately a f t e r b i r t h so t h a t they might
q u i c k l y r e t u r n t o heaven.
After
they agreed to c o n t r i b u t e
one-ei ghth of themselves t o a son who must himself never bear
c h i 1dren,
GartgZ concl uded t h e arrangement.
h hi s a n d 1l a r y s t o r y i s introduced in the c r i t i c a l t e x t merely w i t h the phrase raJas2t (once t h e r e was a king) a t l.9l.lb.
35
b. Ki ng Pratipa29 [1.92.1-93.46] Narrator:
Vai§a~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
One
day.
Gaflga
appeared
to
Pratipa
as
beautiful maiden while he was praying by the riverside. rejected
her
advances,
Samtanu instead.
propos; ng
Gaftga agreed,
that
she
marry
hi s
~amtanu
but only if
a He
son
would
never question her actions. In hunter.
t. i me
~amtanu
was
born and
grew to
be
a
renowned
His father told him to expect that a beautiful woman
would someday approach him. and so she did one day as ~amtanu hunted along the river Gaftga.
When he agreed never to prevent
anyt.hing she might try to do,
Ga~ga
agreed to marry him.
They
had eight sons, seven of whom she drowned with no protest from ~amtanu.
He stopped her. however. as she was about to drown
the ei ghth. so Gaflga told hi m of her agreement wi th the Vasus. She named their son Gaflgadatta (gift of the Ganges) leaving
before
~amtanu.
(1 )
Gaflg3 I s
story
of
Vasi stha I S
curse30
[1 . 93 . 1 -93 . 46] Narrator:
Gaflga
Audience:
Samtanu
Sam~anu
asked
Ga~g.
why
~he
Vasus had to
29 The critical edition gives no title for this ancillary
story. 30etadakhyaya sa devi tatraivantaradhiyata/1.93.43ab
36
be born on e a r t h ,
and w h y one was requi red t o
7 ive a
long
7 ife.
The
great
sage
Vasistha, *
remarkable cow c a l l e d Kamadhenu.
son
of
Varuna, *
owned
a
It happened t h a t t h e Vasus
..
and t h e i r wives were v i s i t i n g Vasi s t h a ' s hermitage when one o f the wives saw t h e cow.
Her husband agreed t o steal i t so t h a t
a mortal f r i e n d o f hers might d r i n k i t s m i 1 k. known t o r e s u l t i n 100,000 years o f youth and good h e a l t h .
Learning t h a t t h e
Vasus had taken h i s cow, Vasistha . . cursed them t o be born as
mortals.
.
When they t r i e d t o apologize, Vas-istha . declared t h a t
Dyaus, who had actual l y s t o l e n t h e cow,
for many years. The
must remain on e a r t h
The o t h e r s could stay f o r a short time.
remaining
sections
of
this
chapter
relate
the
circumstances surroundTng t h e b i r t h s o f m a n y o f t h e c e n t r a l actors i n t h e B h m t a war s t o r y :
..
Bhismafl Pandu, D h r t a r a .s,t r a f l
V i d u r a , t h e ones hundred Kauravas, the f i v e Pandavas, *
.
Drupada, and K r p a .
Drona,
T h e i r 7 i f e s t o r i e s a r e inc 7uded insofar as
t h e events concern t h e i r e f f o r t s t o bear sons, t h e r e f o r e some
a t t e n t i o n i s given t o t h e s t o r i e s o f Amba?fka, Ambfka, Amb9, Kunt2, M3dr2, and Gandhari"
.
c. Satptanu and h i s sons3' [ 1 .94.1-96.591 Narrator:
Vai 6ampayana
Audi ence:
Janamej aya
Samtanu was a k i ng v i r t u a l 1y p e r f e c t in every
^ m a h a b h ~ ~ ~ca a mnrpaterbharatasya yaSasvi nah/ y a s y e t i h ~ s odyutimanmahabharatamucyate//1.~3.46
37
way.
His kingdom prospered gloriously under his rule.
One
day. as he was hunting, he walked downstream along the bank of the Ganges and noticed that the river's flow became very weak. Then he noticed a very handsome young man who had dammed the ~a~tanu
river's flow with arrows.
did not recognize his own
son -- whom he had not seen since the child was an infant -but the boy knew him. ~amtanu
Tricking his father,
then realized who he must be.
he disappeared.
He asked the river to
make the boy reappear, but Samtanu did not recognize her when .
--
she appeared before him as a beautiful woman. that this was their
son~
Ga~ga
explained
and sent the boy to live with his
father. A few years 1 ater,
~a~tanu
was roami ng through the forest
when he not iced a wonderfu 1 smell.
Fo 11 owi ng it, he found
that it emanated from a beautiful young woman named Satyavati who lived among fishing people. ~amtanu
was
smi tten
and
i mmedi ate 1 y
sought
out
Satyavati's father to request that he be permitted to marry her.
The father readi 1 y agreed, but on the condi t i on that any
son she bore would be made king. consider the offer.
Samtanu returned home to
He was extremely reluctant to agree to
this condition. but found himself despondent at the thought of losing Satyavati. When sorrow,
he
Devavrata
1 earned
the
reason
for
hi s
himself
visited
the
fisherwoman's
father I s
father
and
promised to remain celibate so that no rival to Satyavati's
38
son would
ever
renunci a t i on,
be born.
Devavrata
For was
this
extraordinary
thereafter
known
act
as
of
Bhisma
(dreadful ) In
time
Satyavati
and
C i t rztigada and V i c i t r a v i r y a
.
Samtanu
had
two
sons,
named
A f t e r he became k i ng , C i trangada
was k i 1l e d i n a b a t t l e w i t h t h e gandharva k i n g who was a l so named C i t rartgada
.
When t h e young V i c i t r a v z r y a reached m a t u r i t y , Bhisma, who had been r u l i n g i n h i s name, decided t h a t t h e young man should marry and assume t h e throne. the
three
daughters
svayamvara.
of
the
W i t h Satyavati s
Bhisma happened t o l e a r n t h a t KS6i
king
consent,
were
holding
a
Bhisma went t o w i n
those women f o r V i c i t r a v i r y a . A r r i v i n g amidst
a great
assembly,
Bhisma s t a t e d
that
among t h e many t y p e s o f m a r r i a g e p e r m i t t e d to k s a t r f y a s was
marriage by abduction. o f f on h i s c h a r i o t ,
pursuit.
H e grabbed t h e t h r e e women and sped
w i t h thousands o f p r i n c e s i n f r u i t l e s s
He triumphed i n combat w i t h King Salva,
s e c r e t l y b e t r o t h e d t o one o f t h e daughters (ArnbZf),
who was and then
r e t u r n e d home. As weddi ng p r e p a r a t i ons g o t underway, Amba d i s c l osed t h a t she and King h l v a had s e c r e t l y chosen t o marry each o t h e r , and demanded t h a t consulted t h e
she be
local
r e t u r n e d t o her
brahmans,
then sent
father.
Bhisma
Amba back t o
her
father. Ambi ka and Ambali ka m a r r i e d V i c i t r a v i r y a and a1 1 1i v e d
quite
happily
consumption.
for
seven
years,
until
the
king
died
of
There were no male h e i r s t o continue PUruts
l i n e a g e , except Bhisma. d
.A
dynasty threatened and emergency measures3'
[ I .97.1-102.231 Narrator:
Vai 6ampayana
Audi ence :
Janamej aya
With both o f her
sons dead,
Satyavati
was
f r a n t i c t o ensure a male h e i r who would maintain r i t e s "for Peru ' s ancestral 1ine.
She begged Bhisma t o f a t h e r c h i 1dren
w i t h V i c i t r a v i r y a f s widows,
b u t he refused t o break h i s word.
S a t y a v a t i argued t h a t s u r e l y
apaddharma ( t h e
dharma which
appl ies in emergency s i t u a t i o n s ) must apply in t h i s case, Bhisma used a s e r i e s o f s t o r i e s t o reveal an a l t e r n a t i v e and
a
dharmically
acceptable
--
solution.
was
It
but
-the
t r a d i t i o n o f brahmans who f a t h e r e d sons w i t h k s a t r i y a women.
( a ) Precedents
for
varnasamkara,
or
mixed
c l a s s marri ages33 [I.Q8.1-98.33]
^ h i s s t o r y f o l lows d i r e c t l y from t h e n a r r a t i v e o f t h e preceding one. 33~amtanorapisamtana~yatha syadaksayam bhuvi / tatte dharmam pravaksyami ks~tram sanZtanam//l. 97.25
rSJfi
Note t h a t t h e technique o f c l u s t e r i n g s h o r t s t o r i e s employed i n t h i s s e c t i o n o f t h e adfparvan i s used a t other c r i t i c a l j unctures in t h e Mahabharata: when Vidura pleads w i t h Yudhisthi r a t o h a l t t h e d i c e game (sa6haparvan), when e f f o r t s a r e underway t o dissuade Duryodhana from going t o war w i t h t h e Pandavas ( udyogaparvan), and when Yudhi s t h i r a must be d i ssuaded from renouncing k i n g s h i p (mat$parvan).
Narrator:
Bhzsma
Audi ence:
Satyavati the
Through
Satyavat2
became convinced t h a t
f o 7 lowing
stories,
three
her p r e m a r i t a l
son,
Krsna * .
Dva ipayana (born t o h e r and a brahman), could r f g h t f u7 l y serve t o continue t h e l i n e a g e .
(a) Rama Jamadagnya and t h e r e v i v a l o f t h e k s a t r i y a c l a s s M [1.98.1-98.51
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Satyavati
A f t e r t h e BhSrgava RZma Jmadagnya had slaughtered t h e
ksatriyas
f a t h e r s murder,
no k s a t r i y a men remai ned a1 ive.
t h e w a r r i o r class,
twenty-one
times
to
avenge
his
To r e v i v e
brahman men m a r r i e d k s a t r i y a women,
and
gradual 1y t h e i r numbers were rep1e n i shed. (b) Why 0%rghatamas was b l ind35 ( 1 .98.698-16] Narrator:
B h i sma
Audi ence :
Satyavati
The brahman Erghatamas was cursed by Brhaspati t o be b o r n b l ind when he o b j e c t e d t h a t Brhaspati had raped D i rghatamas *
he
critical
mother (Brhaspati
's
s i s t e r - i n-1 aw)
e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r
whi 1 e
t h i s o r the
fol 1owi ng anci 11a r y s t o r y .
he e d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n n o t e t h a t v e r s i o n s o f t h i s s t o r y a r e discussed i n W. K i r f e l , . pp 526f f Paficalaksana,
.
.
Purana Paha
41
she was pregnant with him. (e) Dirghatamas'
k~atriya
sons [1.98.17-
98.33]
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Satyavati
Dirghatamas' own cruel sons threw him into the Ganges when he grew old. but he was rescued by a king named Sal; n.
The brahman agreed to father sons for Sal in, but
the queen sent a nurse in her place who bore eleven sons by
Dirghatamas.
Eventually. the queen bore one son.
A~ga.
with
the old but virile sage. 7. Vidura cursed36 [1.101.1-101.28]
Narrator:
Vaita~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
When
Vaj§a~p.yana
children, Vi dura 6 was be reborn a ADdra.
ac~ua71y
explained that one o-F Vy8sa's Dharma cursed
by a brahman to
Janamejaya asked to hear why Vjdura had
been cursed. Once there was a brahman ascetic named
Ma~~avya
who used
to maintain a vow of silence while performing penances under the tree in front of his hermitage.
One day,
some thieves
arrived and hastily hid their recently-stolen goods in the ascetic's hermitage.
When officials in pursuit of the thieves
questioned the ascetic.
he maintained his vow and would not
36 The critical edition gives no title for this ancillary story.
42 The o f f i c i a l s a r r e s t e d t h e a s c e t i c as a p o t e n t i a l
speak.
conspi r a t o r and t h e k i ng condemned h i m t o death.
S t a r v i ng and
t h e a s c e t i c lingered when he was t i e d t o a
i n great pain,
stake i n punishment. and granted him a
The k i n g discovered t h a t he was a yogi n reprieve.
When at
length the
brahman
achieved dharmaloka, he learned from Dharma t h a t h i s u n f a i r punishment was
due t o h i s own former
cruelty t o
insects.
Angered because he thought h i s punishment d i d n o t f i t h i s crime,
t h e a s c e t i c cursed Oharma t o b e born on e a r t h as a
SOdra, a1though a wise and righteous one. 8.
The
c o n t i n u i ng c r i s i s
progeny
of
[1.111.33-
113.221
.
a. ~ a r a d a n d a ~ a n ~1 .33-111.361 [ I i .~I 1 Narrator:
Pandu
Audi ence:
Kunti
When M he had sexual
for
searched
'
a
.
u became king, he was cursed t o d i e i f
i n t e r c o u r s e w i t h e i t h e r o f h i s wives, and so he some o t h e r
w a y t o have
sons.
He t r i e d
to
convince h i s w i f e Kunti t o f i n d a brahman who wou7d make her
pregnant.
husband
The f o l l o w i n g and
wife
series o f
appea7ing
to
four
s t o r i e s shows
tradition
t o argue
the
their
respective p o s i t i o n s .
The k s a t r i y a Sgradandayani was ordered by her * e l d e r s t o bear a c h i l d w i t h a brahman.
She performed a1 1 t h e
a p p r o p r i a t e r i t u a l s and stood i n a crossroads a t n i g h t i n
..
%nu
..
k u n t i katham cemam fiaradandayanim p r a t i /1.111.33ab
43 She was successful and
order t o s e l e c t an appropriate f a t h e r . t h e y had t h r e e sons.
b
. Vyusi tXSva
and ehadraa8 [I .112.6-112.341
Narrator:
Kunti
Audi ence :
PSndu
Kuntf
.
.
r e p l i e d t o Pandu
w i t h another a n c i e n t
story.
There once w a s an Indra o f kings who surpassed Consumed w i t h 1u s t f o r
a1 1 mortal s "i h i s accompl ishments. h i s w i f e Bhadra KSksivati, heir.
I n her g r i e f ,
h i s corpse.
King VyusiGfSva died w i t h o u t an
Bhadra bemoaned h i s death and c l u n g t o
The dead k i n g granted h e r a boon t o bear sons
through h i s dead body.
T h e i r sons were t h e three Salvas and
t h e f o u r Madras.
c
Svetaketurs
[I .113.1-201
Narrator:
PSndu ..
Audi ence :
Kunti
In response,
Pandu
argued
that,
un7ike
in
former times, wives were no longer autonomous and were o b l iged t o obey t h e i r husbands n
a 7 7 things.
H e c i t e d t h e f o 7 lowing
two stories.
Long ago, women were f r e e t o do whatever they
" i m a m ca tZvaddharmyam tvam pauranim Srnu me katham/ i 1 1 2.6 p a r i Srutam v i S S l Sksa k i r t a y i s y ~ my&mafiam//l. h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s anci ll a r y It i s , however, described a s a r e p l y (vacanam) story. informed by t h e law (dharmasamyuktam) a t 1.112.1.
pleased.
L i k e animals, t h e y were f a i t h l e s s t o the4 r husbands
w i t h a u t f e a r o f r e p r i sa1
.
One day, Svetaketu,
+n
h i s father s
presence, watched h i s mother b e i n g l e d away by a brahman who desi red her.
Uddal akas
The outraged Svetaketu objected, b u t h i s f a t h e r , defended
Neverthe1ess,
the
practice
as
f u l ly
dharmic
.
Svetaketu d e c l ared t h a t henceforth it woul d b e
a s i n for women to be u n f a i t h f u l t o t h e i r husbands,
a s4n t o
seduce a chaste w< f e s and a s i n t o refuse to conceive a ch3 I d if ordered by one's husband.
d mKing ~ a l r n ~ ~ a ~ [1g113.21-113.22] ~ d a ~ ' Narrator :
PSndu
Audi ence:
KuntZ
SaudSsa t o 1 d h i s w i Te, Madayant<, t o concei ve a chiId.
She d u t i f u l l y went t o t h e brahman Vasi s. t.h a and b o r e
a son. H.
Section on t h e f i r e i n t h e l a c house
[3atu~rhadahaparvaJ tL124-lg138]
I.
Secti an on t h e sl a y i ng o f H i d i mba [hidimbavadhaparva]
[ I -139-1 ,1421
J.
Section on t h e s l a y i n g o f Baka [bakavadhaparva]
[ I -143-1.153] K.
Section about C i t r a t h a [ c a i t r a r a t h a p a r v a ] [I a 1541,1731
"TO in t r o d w e t t t i s s t o r y PSndu merely says i t f nae S r u t a m (we have heard t h a t * . . ) a t 1 . 1 1 ~ ~ 2 1 d .
45
1.
Story of Draupadi's birth 41 [1.154.1-155.52] Narrator:
A certain unnamed brahman
Audience:
Kunti and the pandavas .
.
The epic describes this as one among many stories
(katha:)
P~ndavas
whi 7e
1 iving
in
One day the seer Bharadvaja saw the apsaras
Gh~taci
on
to Id
'to
Kunt.i
and
the
Ekacakr~.
the bank of the
Ga~ga.
The wind lifted her skirt and. seeing
her nude. the ascetic ejaculated.
He placed the semen in a
pot. from which Orona was born. Bharadvaja's friend. King Drupada. became
P:~ata.
also had a son. named
The boys played and studied together until Drupada
king.
When
Orona heard
that
Rama Jamadagnya
was
abandoning his kingdom to enter the forest. he approached him to request his wealth.
Replying that he had only his body or
his weapons to offer. Orona chose to receive the secret of his weapons. Shortly thereafter. Drupada snubbed Orona. who resolved somehow to get
back at
him.
When
.
Bhisma secured Orona' 5 .
services to teach his grandsons the art of weaponry. they had to agree to do whatever mastery of weapons.
Dro~a
asked of them upon achieving
In due course. to fulfill
his request.
they defeated Drupada and brought hi m before Orona.
Orona
relegated him to the southern bank of the Ganges.
41 kathayamasa tatsarva~ draupadis81!'bhaval!' tada/1 .153 .12cd
I n s u l t e d i n t u r n , Drupada searched Tor brahmans who would help him bear a son to exact revenge upon Drona.
Finding ones
t h e appropriate s a c r i F i ce was performed and t w i n c h i l d r e n emerged from t h e f ir e a1t a r :
. .
Dhrstadyumna and Draupadi
Narrator :
Vyasa
Audience:
KuntZ and t h e Pandavas * *
Vyasa
a h a v f s g t e d t h e Psndavas *
in
.
Ekacakra.
Among the many s t o r f e s he t d d was t h e fa7 ?owin9 one* There once l i v e d a b e a u t i f u l young woman, g r e a t seer, who was unabl e t o f ind a husband. she undertook t o o b t a i n one so impressed !!ha b e f o r e her and granted her a boon.
daughter o f a
The a u s t e r i t i e s t h a t he appeared
F i v e times she s a i d t h a t
she wanted a husband who possessed a l l v i r t u e s .
Because she
had asked f i v e t i m e s s S i v a declared t h a t i n her next b i r t h she
would
have
Five
husbands.
She was
reborn
as
Rrupadals
.
daughter, destined t o marry t h e PSndavas.
3.
The s t o r y o f T a p a t i ftapatyopakhynam]43 [ 1 .160.1-
Narrator :
The gandharva AhgSraparna
4 2 ~ yn tl h e phrase asf t t a p t w a n e kacidrseh kmya mahatmanah ( t h e r e once was a young g i r l who l i v e d * i n a f o r e s t o f a s c e t i c i sm, the daughter o f a g r e a t - s p i r it e d r s i .I introduces t h i s s t o r y a t 1.157.6ab. It i s r e - t d d a t B j . 1 8 9 *
.
43evamuktahsa gandharvah kuntiputram dhanamjayaml v i SrutZm e r i su 1okesu 66ZSvayamasa v a i kath&m//l* 160.3
.
hanta t e kathayi sysmi kathsrnetsm manoramam/ y a t hav ada k h i I am partha dha rmy am dhamabh r t a m v a r a / / l . 160.4
47 Audience:
.
Arjuna8 t h e PZndavas and KuntT .
When t h e Pandavas s e t o u t fa^ t h e Paficala kin~dotn, * * they were a t t a c k e d by a gandharva.
A f t e r a b a t t l e they were
reconci l e d and Arjuna fnqufred why t h e gandharva r e f e r r e d t o t h e Pandavas a s Tapatya. * . When h i s daughter Tapati came o f age, husband f o r her.
t h e sun sought a
He selected t h e Kuru k i n g Samvarana, a g r e a t
devotee o f S a v i t r .
One day, whi 1e h u n t i n g i n a mountainside
f o r e s t , Samvarana came upon Tapat5 and f e l l in l o v e i n s t a n t l y . She f e l t t h e same toward him8 b u t i n s i s t e d t h a t he must ask her F a t h e r f o r
For twelve
days
Samvarana remained on t h e mountain p r o p i t i a t
The
great
seer
permission t o marry her.
Vasi stha, ..
i n t u i t * ng
Samvarana s
w i sh,
visited
Savi t r and o b t a i n e d h i s permission f o r t h e marriage. For t w e l v e years t h e couple remained t o g e t h e r an mauntai n
whi 1e
Samvaranars
kingdom d e t e r i o r a t e d
from
the his
.
neglect.
F i n a l l y , Vasi stha brought t h e two back t o t h e c i t y
and p r o s p e r i t y was r e s t o r e d t o t h e kingdom. 4.
..
The s t o r y o f Vasistha [ ~ a s i s .t h o p a k h y a n a m ] ~ ~ [l 9164.1-172.17]
Narrator:
The gandharva Ahgaraparna
Audience:
Arjuna,
Intrigued
by
..
t h e Pandavas and KuntZ
references
to
.
V a s f ,s t h a f s s k i l l s ,
Arjuna asked t o hear more about hfm. There once was a p r i nce named. V i SvZfrni t r a who loved t o
.
44i dam v a s i stham2RkhyZnam pwanam par4 c a k ? a t e / l * * .
165.2 ab l
48
hunt. to
Roaming t h e f o r e s t one dayl
the
hermitage of
.
Vasistha .
he became t h i r s t y and went
to
rest.
happened t h a t
It
.
Vasistha . had a wonderful cow named Nandi who granted whatever
.
t h e sage wanted. ViSvamitra,
the
When Vasistha refused t o g i v e t h e cow t o . ksatriya t r i e d t o
enraged cow c r e a t e d an army t h a t forces*
take
it forcibly.
The
averpowered V i Svami t r a ' s
The p r i nee was so overwhelmed t h a t he abandoned a11
k s a t r f y a d u t i e s and p r i v i leges.
He undertook t h e most severe
a u s t e r i t i e s and was eventually transformed i n t o a brahman. One day8 a c e r t a i n Iksvaku k i n g named KalmSsapZda was
..
hunting along a narrow path when he encountered Vasistha's e l d e s t sonB g a k t i
.
The k i ng demanded t h a t S a k t i step o f f the
path t o l e t him b y 8 b u t the boy refused.
When t h e k i n g beat
him, Sakti cursed KalmSsapZida t o become a raksasa8 an eater o f human f l e s h .
When t h e king was no longer able t o r e s i s t the
..
power o f t h e curseB he a t e each o f t h e 100 sons o f Vasistha, urged on
by
his
fatherl
ViSvamitra.
The
grief-stricken
..
Vasi stha t r i e d t h r e e times t o k i 1I himself 8 b u t t h e elements he chose { f i r e and water) refused t o comply. Vasistha 6
wandered
about
for
some
time,
eventually
r e t u r n i n g t o h i s hermitage where he learned from h i s daughterin-1 aw AdrSyant? t h a t she had been c a r r y i n g S a k t i s c h i I d f o r
twelve years.
Hearing t h i s and r e j o i c i n g t h a t h i s lineage
..
would c o n t i nue through t h i s
grandson
Vasi stha
Kalm3sapada from h i s curse. *
The g r a t e f u l k i n g returned t o
freed
.
K i ng
Ayodhy& b u t n o t beFore securing a promise t h a t Vasi stha . would
49 father
a son f o r
KalmZIsapadats queen c a r r i e d
Kalm2KsapZda.
.
Vasi s t* h a ' s c h i l d f o r t w e l v e years, her son,
then f o r c e d t h e b i r t h o f
t h e r o y a l seer Asmaka.
Meanwhile,
AdrSyati
bore her son,
ParaSara,
who would
...
f a t h e r Krsna Dvai payana by Satyavati , and hence become t h e b i 01o g i c a l f a t h e r o f f a t h e r had died, him,
.
PSndu. .
When Paragara 1earned how h i s
he wanted t o destroy t h e world.
To d i ssuade
h i s grandfather t o l d him the s t o r y o f Aurva.
a. The s t o r y o f Aurva [aurvopakhymmJ [169.11171 .23]
Narrator:
Vasi stha
Audi ence :
Parafiara
There once was a k i n g named K r t a v i r y a who was a p a t r o n o f the Bhrgus.
that they needed money.
A f t e r he died,
h i s r e l a t i v e s found
They knew how wealthy t h e Bhrgus were
and t h e r e f o r e demanded money from them. gave up t h e i r r i c h e s , b u t o t h e r s h i d them.
Some o f t h e Bhrgus When t h e k s a t r i y a s
d i scovered t h a t some Bhrgus had withheld t h e i r treasures, they s l aughtered every
Bhrgu t h e y
could f i nd,
in c l u d i ng unborn
c h i Idren. One o f the Bhrgu women h i d her f e t u s
i n her t h i g h t o
When she was d i scovered,
t h e ma1e c h i l d ,
escape d e t e c t i o n .
Aurva, b u r s t f o r t h f r a m h e r t h i g h and b l inded t h e ksatrfya men w h o had intended t o k i 11 h i m
.
They p l eaded f o r mercy and t h e
c h i ld r e s t o r e d t h e i r eyesi ght, o r d e r t o destroy t h e world.
but undertook a u s t e r i t i e s in
Explaining t h a t t h e Bhrgus had
50 purposely
courted
their
destruction
in
order
heaven, Aurva's ancestors begged him t o d e s i s t .
to
achieve
So t h a t h i s
word would n o t be impotent, a t t h e i r suggestion he channel l e d t h e f i r e o f h i s rage i n t o t h e depths o f t h e ocean's waters
where, i n t h e form o f a h o r s e ' s head, i t would f o r e v e r consume t h e waters.
.
Vasi s t h a ' s s t o r y proved e f f e c t i v e , f o r ParaSara decided n o t t o destroy t h e world.
Instead, 1ike Janamejaya, h i s g r e a t
g r e a t grandson, he undertook a s a c r i f i c e t o b u r n t h e faksasas since h i s father
had been eaten by one. t h i s sacrifice,
convi need t o ha1t
He was f i n a l l y
as we1 1 , by a group of
r a k s a s a s who begged him n o t t o k i 11 innocent demons.
5.
Why Vasi s t h a impregnated K i ng Kal masapadats w i fe45
[ I . l?3.1-173.24] Narrator:
Gandharva
Audience:
Arjuna, t h e Pandavas and K u n t i .
asked
Arjuna
i n s t r u c t e d h i s wife
While under
.
how
it
happened
to have sexua 1 intercourse
that
a
king
.
w i t h Vasistha.
6akti ' s curse, King Kalmasapada roamed t h e
f o r e s t as a rSksasa.
He came upon a brahman and h i s w i f e
engaged i n sexual i n t e r c o u r s e and devoured t h e man d e s p i t e t h e woman's pleading. t o become pregnant,
Because he had i n t e r f e r e d w i t h her e f f o r t s she cursed Kalmasapada t o d i e in s t a n t l y i f
he t r i e d t o have i n t e r c o u r s e w i t h h i s w i f e .
Furthermore, t h e
l h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y
story.
51
king's line would continue through a son born to his wife and to the sage Vas; ~~ha.
And so,
once rel eased from
~akti'
curse. the king sent his wife to Vasistha to fulfill
s
this
curse. L. Section on Draupadi's self-choice (of a husband) {draupadisvaya~varaparva]
1.
[1.174-1.189]
The story of the five Indras (pancendrop.khy.nalll] 46 [1. 1 89 . 1 -189 49] a
Narrator:
VyKsa
Audience:
Drupada
When Drupada resis"ted 'the proposed po1yandry of Draupadi and the
P.~~avas,
Vy.sa told him the Fol7owing story
in private.
Once. long ago, Yama became so engrossed in a particular ritual that he ceased to perform his duties as Death.
When
people stopped dying, the gods complained to Brahm3 that there was no longer any difference between mortals and immortals. Reassured by Brahm., they went to the sacrificial arena to await the completion of Yama's ritual. golden lotus floating down the Ganges, ; nvest; gate. river.
He
found a
beaut i fu 1
When they saw a
Indra went upstream to woman standi ng
i n the
As she cried, each tear became a golden lotus.
To
explain her distress. she led Indra to a young man playing dice in the Himalayas.
When Indra tried to get his attention,
the man paralyzed Indra with his gaze,
then showed him four
46 pura va; naimi~ara~ye devah satramupasate/1.189.1ab
52
other I n d r a s who had been imprisoned i n a mountain peak for s i m i 1a r d i s p l a y s o f s e l f -i mportance.
The man t h e n announced
t h a t a1 1 f i v e must be reborn on earth,
b u t granted t h e i r two
requests:
Vayu,
Ahins,
t o be f a t h e r e d by Dharma,
Indra,
and t h e
and t o have t h e goddess $ r i as t h e i r common w i f e .
Vy3sa then granted t o Drupada a v i s i o n in which he saw
S r i and t h e f i v e Jndras. 2.
$ivals
boon t o t h e a s c e t i c maiden47 [1.189.41-
189.493 Narrator :
Vyasa
Audi ence :
Drupada
Vyasa
then
recounted
to
Drupada
in
brief
the
f o l l o w i n g s t o r y t h a t he had told t o t h e Pandavas a t 1.157. * . There once was a b e a u t i f u l hermit g i r l who c o d d n o t f i nd a husband.
She performed such remarkable a u s t e r i t i e s t o Siva
t h a t he appeared b e f o r e her and o f f e r e d her a boon.
Four
times s h e repeated her request f o r a husband, so S i va declared t h a t she would have f i v e husbands.
Draupadi was t h a t woman,
destined t o be the w i f e of t h e f i v e PSndavas. *
M. Section on t h e wedding [ v a i v a h i k a p a r v a [ l .190-1.1911 N . Section on V i d u r a ' s a r r i v a l
[vfduwmanaparvaJ
[I .192-1.1981
..
4 7 ~ s i t t a p o v a nk ea c i drseh kanya mahatmanah/l. 189.41 Only t h e common v e r b asit (there was) s i g n a l s t h i s s t o r y Note t h a t t h e s t o r y a l s o occurs a t
i n the c r i t i c a l edition. 1.157.
1
. King Ambuvica
and h i s m i n i s t e r ,
MahZkarnj48
[ I .lQ6.17-196.25]
Narrator: Audience:
Kama The Kaurava counselors,
Drona,
.
V i dura,
After
Bhisma,
Duryodhana, and O h r t a r Z s t r a t h e marriage
of
t h e Pandavas and * .
Drupada *sdaughter Draupadi , word reached Drupada ' s c o u r t t h a t t h e brothers and t h e i r mother f i r e i n t h e lac house
- thought
t o have d i e d i n t h e
- were a l i v e and we1 1 .
Dhrtaratra 'S
counselors gathered t o d i s c u s s t h e i r r e a c t i o n s , and t o weigh t h e news about t h e new a7 l i a n c e brought about by t h e marriage Bhisma and Drona urged t h a t t h e kingdom be
with Draupadi.
d f v i d e d among t h e Kauravas strongly that
cousins.
.
and Pandavas,
but
Kama
argued
t h e time was r i g h t t o b a t t l e w i t h t h e r i v a 7
H e t o l d t h e f o 7 Towing s t o r y t o support h i s view t h a t
Duryodhana's c l a i m t o t h e t h r o n e should not be challenged. There incompetent everything.
once that
was he
a
king
r e l i e d on
named
Ambuvica
who
was
h i s m i n i s t e r Mahakarni
so for
The greedy m i n i s t e r managed t o g a i n c o n t r o l o f
everything, b u t s t i 11 c o u l d n o t manage t o d e p r i v e t h e k i n g o f h i s kingdom.
Only f a t e determines who s h a l l be king,
and no
e f f o r t can a l t e r i t . 0. The s e c t i o n on o b t a i n i n g a kingdom [ r S j y a ? a m b W a r v a \
[ I 01991
his anci 1 l a r y s t o r y i s introduced merely w i t h t h e phrase Ssidrajagrhe raja ( t h e r e once was a k i n g i n Rajagrha) at 1.19627~.
P. T h e secton on A r j u n a ' s f o r e s t - d w e l l i n g
[arjunavanav#saparvaJ [ I -200-2101 1
.
Sunda and upasunda4' [1.201.1-204.261 Narrator:
NSrada
Audi ence : Narada
The Pandavas *
related
the f o l l o w i n g story
to warn
the
Pandavas . o f the dangers o f having a common wife.
There once were two a s u r a brothers, Sunda and Upasunda, who were inseparable.
One day, they both resolved t o conquer
t h e universe through a u s t e r i t i e s .
many temptations,
A1though t h e gods t r i e d
n o t h i ng c o u l d deter them.
appeared before them t o o f f e r a boon.
Brahma himsel f
He granted them s k i l l
i n magic and weapons, b u t r e f u s e d t o grant them immortal i t y because they had undertaken t h e i r vows f o r sel f ish reasons. Instead, he granted t h a t no person o r being excent the other could
kill
either
one.
Thus
v i r t u a l ly
in v i n c i b l e ,
the
b r o t h e r s set about conquering t h e world. When a t 1ength t h e gods implored BrahmS t o p u t a stop t o t h e d e s t r u c t i v e conquest o f Sunda and Upasunda, Brahma ordered V i 6vakarman t o c r e a t e a b e a u t i f u l woman.
T i lottama and i n s t r u c t e d h e r
Brahma named her
t o create s t r i f e between t h e
brothers. One day, T i l o t t a m a appeared t o the two b r o t h e r s as they relaxed i n the f o r e s t s o f t h e Vindhya mountains. her irnmediately and began t o argue over her.
..
Both desired Soon they had
^ ~ r n ume v i starenemami t ihasam puratanam/I -201 . I ab
clubbed each other t o death.
..
Fo 7 lowing t h i s s t o r y , t h e Pandavas agreed that none wou 7d i n t e r f e r e w i t h a n o t h e r ' s p r i v a c y whi l e a l o n e w i t h Draupadi. A b r o t h e r who might do so m u s t r i v e alone i n
the f o r e s t f o r
t w e l v e months. Q . Section on t h e abduction o f Subhadra
[subhadraharanaparva} [ 1- 2 11-21 2 1 R. Section on t h e c a r r y i n g o f the wedding g i f t
[haranaharikaparva]
[I. 2131
.
Section on t h e burning o f t h e KhSndava Forest *
S.
.
[khandavadahaparva] . [I,214-2251 When D h r t a r a*s t r a learned t h a t t h e Pandavas and Kunti r
Ã
were alive, he j o y o u s l y Taking t h e advice of
Â
welcomed them back t o t h e kingdom*
Wdura,
Bhisma,
Drona and
to
giving
Content,
t h e region c a l l e d Khandava, .
in
the
r e .
p a r t i t i o n e d t h e kingdom, they s e t t l e d
one-half
Krsna,
he
.
Pandavas. with
t h e i r capita7 a t I n d r a p r a s t h a . 1
.
The Sarrtgaka b i rdsN [I. 220.1-225.41 Narrator:
Vai Sampayana
Audi ence :
Janame j aya
.
One day, A r j u n a and Krsna went on an o u t i n g a long O t a t t e ssarvam yathSvrttam kathayi syami b h a r a t a / l . 220.4cd E d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note t h a t t h i s s t o r y i s discussed by E. Sieg 1n Sagenstoffe des Rgveda8 pp. 44ff. For a discussion o f how t h i s epi sode b e t r a y s knowledge o f t h e Rgveda, Yajurveda and other samhitasJ see Ram Gopal, Wedi'c Sources o f t h e hrttgaka ~egend o f t h e MahabharataJeq Journal o f the Ganganatha Jha Research I n s t i t u t e , v o l . 25, 1969, pp. 397-401
.
56 They encountered a brahman, actua 1 l y Agni
t h e Y a m River. in disguise,
who demanded t h a t Arjuna
Khanda . va Forest. Indra I
s
friend
completing
who
would
"mealw o f
his
they
help him consume the
..
must
and Krsna use
rain
defeat
t o prevent
the f o r e s t .
Taksaka,
from
Agnf
With weapons
from
Varuna, Arjuna and K #r s n a ob 1 i g i n g l y s laughtered v i r t u a 7 7y a 1 1 . * inhabitants impunity.
of
the
Among
forest,
the s i x
and
A ~ n f destroyed
survivors o f the
with
it
f i r e were f o u r
birds, f l e d g l i n g brothers. The a s c e t i c Mandapal a, despi t e r igorous p r a c t i ce, reached t h e world o f t h e ancestors b u t d i d n o t f i n d h i s reward there. The
gods
explained
that
he
had
failed
to
produce
sons.
Considering t h e p o s s i b l e remedies, he decided t o become a b i r d so t h a t he might produce sons quick7 y .
He became a garfigaka
.
b i r d i n t h e Khandava f o r e s t , mated w i t h a female named J a r i t a , t h e n abandoned her f o r another female.
Lapit&
as soon as the
eggs were l a i d .
.
. forest, When Agni began t o burn the KhSndava
Mandapala
p r a i sed Agn-i and earned t h e favor o f p r o t e c t i o n f o r h i s sons.
As t h e f ir e raged unchecked, J a r i t a became extreme1 y a1armed. She was unaware t h a t
her c h i l d r e n were not i n danger,
and
be1ieved she faced an impossible d i 1emma since she was unable t o c a r r y them t o s a f e t y . t h e y would d i e .
I f she abandoned t h e f l e d g l i n g s ,
I f she stayed,
she h e r s e l f would p e r i s h .
A f t e r repeated attempts t o convince t h e b i rds t o h i d e i n a r a t hole on t h e f o r e s t f l o o r .
J a r i t a l e f t them.
57
When the fire approached. each of the birds propitiated Agni,
who
Meanwh i 1 e.
told
them
of
despi te Agn i ' s
his
promise
promi se.
to
Mandapal a
their
father.
cont i nued
to
worry about his sons. After the fire had passed. Jarita and Mandapala hurried to thei r sons.
Mandapal a
berated hi s wi fe for bei ng angry
with him.
and his sons forgave him for his transgression.
Mandapala
then
le~t
Khandava
with
his
family
and
went
elsewhere to live. Indra was so impressed with Arjuna's success in clearing 'the Forest For Agni that he oFFered to give a 11 of his weapons
to Arjuna
a~
the appropriate time.
book OT the Mbh.
Here concludes the First
2.
Secti on on t h e assembly ha11 [ sabhaparvan] Section on t h e assembly h a l l [2.1-2.111
A.
1.
Assembly h a l l s o f t h e d e i t i e s s 2 c2.7.1-11.421 Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
The PZndavas and a 1arge assembly o f
..
k i ngs The r o y a 7 seer Narada a r r i v e d i n Indt-aprastha just
as the PSndavas were t a k i n g possession o f t h e i r newly-but 7 t ., assembJy
ha77.
.
Yudhisthfra
asked
if,
in
his
extensive
In response0
t r a v e l s , Marada had ever seen a simi7ar h a l l .
t h e seer d e s c r i b e d t h e assemb 7y ha 7 7s o f f i v e d e i t i e s : Yam, Varunaf Kubera,
Indra
Indrat
and B r a h m .
s c e l e s t i a1 ha11 was one hundred yojanas 1ong and
one hundred f if t y wide.
I t contai ned numerous attendants
(in c l udi ng 1esser d e i t i e s ,
seers,
a p s a r m s and gandharvas)
and w a s f i 1l e d w i t h n a t u r a l and a r c h i t e c t u r a l wonders.
Yama's h a l l , described as more than one hundred yojanas 1ong and wide, was bui 1t by V i Svakarman, t h e d i v i ne a r c h i t e c t . i t housed a
Perfectly comfortable and wonderful l y f r a g r a n t ,
.
l a r g e group o f "famous kings ( i n c l u d i n g Pandu), *
( p f t r s ) , many ascetics, V i Svakarman
water.
bui 1t
gandharvas, and a p s a r a s e s . Varuna' s gleaming w h i t e
F i l l e d with birds,
l a r g e and comfortable.
t h e ancestors
flowers and t r e e s ,
ha11 under
it, too,
was
Many snakes attended Varuna there,
'etatsarvam yathatattvam devarse vadatastava/ Srotumi cchama sahi tah param kautuhal am h i nah//2.7.17
as
59
we 11
as the
da i tyas
and
the oceans.
d8navas.
numerous other bodi es of water
I
ri vers
and
creatures of the mountai ns and
the waters. and numerous apsar.ses and gandharvas. Kubera built his own hall. one hundred yojanas long and seventy wi de.
Vari ous trees and
flowers adorned
it.
and
apsar8ses, gandharvas. and yak!!as in countless numbers dwelled
there. BrahmS's
assembly
hall
was
virtually
impossible
to
describe because it changed appearance from one moment to the next.
Its
ascertain.
structure
and
dimensions
were
impossible
to
The planets. winds. seasons as well as the Vedas
and other sacred literatures. chants and songs. divisions of time,
and so on. dwelled there in embodied form along with
many ascetics and seers. King Hari~candra~ [2.11.52-11.71]
2.
Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
Pandavas and a large assembly of kings
When N.rada mentioned that seer~
resided
particularly
in
asked
Indra's
a
Hari§candra~
assembly
to hear about hi",_
ha 11, (It
k~atriya
Yudhisthira was
indeed a
singu1ar achievement For a king to achieve such an exalted place.)
As i t happened.
that king had achieved his place in
Indra's heaven through perFormance of a
rajasDya ritual and
through his dharmic behavior as a king.
Hari§candra was a king who, after conquering the world, 53etatte vi stare~okta~ yanmal!' tva~ pari p~cchasi /2 . 11 . 71 ab
60 performed
rajasUya
the
s a c r i f ice
was
(royal
successful 1y
consecration) concl uded,
and
Han' 6candra was a model u n i versa1 soverei gn
Narada r e p o r t e d t h a t ,
ritual
.
The
thereafter
.
on h e a r i n g t h i s s t o r y ,
Pandu had * *
.
expressed t o Narada t h e w i sh t h a t Yudhi s t h i r a a1 so perform t h e
rSJ'asUya. 8 . Section on mantra [mantraparvd
[2.12.2.17]
1. ~ a r ~ s a ~ d[2.16.10-17-27] h a ~ ~
Narrator:
Krsna * . *
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i ra, A r j m a ,
As
..
Y u d h i s't h i r a
contemplated
8
rajasffya
he
sought
counse l o r s
.
Krsna * , '
Jarasamdha8
a king
the
advice
exp7ained who
of
that
was a l r e a d y
Bhima
performance
Krsna, * * . his
who t h i s powerful k i n g was,
among
chief
universal
Yudhisthira, , who knew nothing about Jarasamdha,
of
a
other
rival
was
sovereign. asked Krsna * * ,
and so Krsna t o w t h e f o l lowing * * .
s t o r y b e f o r e u r g i n g Y u d h i s t h i r a t o cha 7 lenge Jarasamdha t o f
b a t t 7e.
.
King Brhadratha o f Magadha married t w i n daughters o f t h e k i n g o f t h e KaSis and promised never t o o f f e n d them.
passed, b u t no son was born.
One day,
Years
t h e king learned t h a t
t h e seer Candakausi ka was nearby and went w i t h h i s wives t o * @
o f f e r v a r i o u s g i f t s t o him. k i n g a boon.
The g r a t e f u l seer o f f e r e d t h e
A s he considered t h e k i n g ' s problem,
fell i n t o t h e s e e r ' s l a p .
..
a mango
Candakausi ka p u t a s p e l l on t h e
f r u i t and t o l d t h e k i ng t h a t i t would bestow sons.
So as not
to offend e i t h e r wife, Brhadratha o f f e r e d t h e mango t o both. They s p l i t it, a t e it, and both became pregnant.
Eventually
I n t h e i r distress, they s e n t t h e two
each bore a h a l f c h i l d .
halves t o be abandoned i n a nearby crossroads. The demoness Jars,
always hungry f o r human f l e s h ,
found
t h e bodies and t i e d t h e two bundles together so t h a t she might The halves fused immedi ate1y, and the
c a r r y them more easi ly.
i n f a n t boy c r i e d so l o u d l y t h a t the k i n g and h i s queens w e n t out t o
investigate.
The demoness assumed human
presented the boy t o h i s f a t h e r .
The boy,
form and
named Jarasamdha,
thrived.
.
. again came t o Magadha and Some time l a t e r , CandakauSika w a s welcomed warmly by t h e king.
The seer e x p l a i ned t h a t
JarSsamdha would be a mighty r u l e r , Sndra
himself.
The d e l i g h t e d king
incapable o f defeat anointed h i s
son
by and
r e t i red w i t h h i s wives t o t h e forest t o perform a u s t e r i t i e s . Jarmamdha was t h e sol e b a r r i e r . m m And so, explai ned Krsna,
.
t o Yudhi s t h i r a t s c l a i m upon universal sovereignty.
Only Bhima
could defeat him. C. Section on t h e k i 11 ing o f JarSsamdha [jarasamdhaparva]
12.18-2-22] D.
Section on t h e conquest o f the f o u r d i r e c t i o n s [dfgviJayaparvaJ
12.23-2.291
62 1
. The conf 1 ic t
between Agni and sahadevaS5[2.28.16-
28.251 Narrator :
VaiSampZyana
Audi ence :
Janamej aya
VaiSampayana described the course o f each o f the Pandavafs t r a v e l s as they s e t out t o conquer t h e known world in
four
directions
before
Yucfhisthira ' s performance * *
culminating
o f the
r aj asUya
conquered t h e n o r t h , Bhisma the east, Nakula t h e w e s t .
their
favored
r i tua 7 .
in
A r juna
Sahadeva t h e south, and
Sahadevafs progress was h a l t e d i n Mahismati,
where a great f i r e broke o u t i n h i s army.
Agni
victory
Mila,
king
It was c l e a r t h a t
o f Mahismati.
Janamejaya
asked
VafSampayana t o e x p l a i n why Agni assfsted King Mi1a.
Once upon a time,
Agni
,
disguised
as a brahman,
caught chasing women i n King N U a t s domain.
was
Agni was enraged
b y t h e k i nggs reprimand, b u t was appeased when t h e king bowed b e f o r e him, and so t h e d e i t y offered a boon. boon t h a t h i s troops would always be secure.
M i l a chose the Thereafter,
any
attackers were burned i n t h e i r attempt t o conquer Mahismati. Because Agni had a1so granted a boon t o t h e women o f Nils's
ki ngdom, they enjoyed compl e t e freedom and were not requi red t o remain secluded i n women's quarters. Because o f t h e boon, encircled by f i r e when
Sahadeva,
too,
found h i s troops
he attempted t o conquer
Mahismati.
%he c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y story.
63 Sahadeva p r o p i t i a t e d Agnj and t h e god was appeased. surrendered w i t h o u t f u r t h e r struggle,
N i l a then
and Sahadeva proceeded
w i t h h i s conquest. E . The s e c t i o n on t h e rajasaya r i t u a l
[rajasUyaparvaJ
12.30-2-32] The s e c t i o n on t h e b r i n g i n g o f a guest g i f t
F
[arghSbh iharanaparva]
[ 2 .33-2-36]
S i !Sup~la[SiSupalaparva]
G . The s e c t i o n on the k i 1 1 ing o f
L2.37-2.421 1
.
The hypocri t i c a l goose"
Narrator:
$16upai a
Audience:
Bhisma,
the
12.38.29-38.401
.
PSndavas,
and t h e kings
and
brahmans assembled f o r Yudhi s t h i r a 8 s rajasaya. As
underway,
.
Yudh i s t h i r a ' s ceremony o f
a
great
assembly
of
roya 1 consecration got
witnesses
gathered.
When
...
Y u d h ,f s, t h i r a p a i d special honor t o Krsna by o f f e r i n g him t h e f i r s t guest g i f t , on b e h a l f
K i n g 6 i s u m a o f the Cedis s t r o n g l y objected
o f many o f those present.
As he ranted against
Bhfsma 'For p e r m i t t i n g Krsna t o be so honored, * a .
the
fo7 7uwing
story
to
insult,
challenge,
& & m a told
and
threaten
Bhismars infamous dharmic behavior. Once an adherence
to
old
goose
dharma
to
l i v e d by the
the
birds
seashore, i n
the
preaching
area.
In
^gathamapyatra gayanti ye purZnavi do j anah/ bhisma yam t a m ca t e samyakkathiyi s y m i bh&rata//2.38.39 a n t d t m a h i v i n i h i t e r a u s i p a t r a r a t h a v i tatham/ andabhaksanamaguci t e karma vscamati Sayate//2.38.40
..
. .
64
appreciation,
they would b r i n g him f i s h t o e a t .
When t h e
t r u s t i n g b i r d s l e f t t h e i r unhatched eggs i n h i s care,
goose ate them, as w e l l . suspi c i ous.
the
Eventually, one o f t h e b i r d s became
He observed t h e goose e a t i ng t h e eggs, whereupon
a1 1 t h e b i r d s j o i n e d i n k i 11ing t h e goose. So would Bhisma be k i 1l e d by t h e other k i n g s present,
warned $i6up5la,
f o r supporting Krsna. .
Bhisma then boldly demanded t h a t t h e d i s g r u n t Ted kings challenge Krsna open l y . * * *
.,.
Krsna beheaded him.
S i ~ u p a l ad i d so on t h e i r beha I f , and
The ceremony was then concluded without
d i s r u p t ion. H . The s e c t i o n on t h e d i c e game [cfyOtaparvaJ 12.43-2.651
As Duryodhana observed t h e e x t r a o r d i n a r y splendors o f Y u d h i* s, t h i r a r s consecration h a ? ? , h i s envy redoubled.
When he
returned home, h i s unc l e Sakun i suggested t h a t t h e on l y way t o
.
d e f e a t Yudhisthfra was t o cha7 lenge him t o a d i c i n g match a t *
.
which Sakuni, a master gambler, would w i n Y u d h i s t h i r a ' s wealth
and possessions for
Duryodhana.
r e luctant
to
consent
the
At
7ength O h r t a r a s t r a gave
challenge,
which
.
Yudhi s. t h i r a
accepted. 1. Kavyats wisdod7 [2.55.3-55.171
he c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n does n o t g i v e a t i t l e for these anci ll a r y s t o r i e s . Two o f them, however, a r e reported as quotations o f Kavya's own words w i t h t h e phrase Srnu kavyam airam mama a t 2.55.3d. The passage a t 2.55.9-17 recurs several times i n t h e Mbh.: 1.107.32 (a v a r i a t i o n ) ; and 5.37.16; 5.126.48. E d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n also note i t s occurrences i n t h e f o l l o w i ng t e x t s : (vat-. ) Skandapurma, Ka6i khanda 1 3 . 9 0 , ( v a r ) P a k a t a n t r a 3.81 , HitopadeSa 1 . I 15, Ganakya6ktaka 31 (ed Haeber 1i n ) , and (var. )
.
.
65
Narrator:
Vidura
Audience:
Yudhisthira and those assembled at the dicing match
This section presents a cluster of very brief stories. two them to warn
attribu~ed
Yudhi~~hira
is, and to plead with
to the wise K.vya.
Vidura uses
about just how dangerous Duryodhana
Yudhj~~hira
to halt the dicing game.
a. The Mead drinker [2.55.3-55.8] like
a
drunken
man
who
is
obl i vi OU$
to the
consequences of his actions. Duryodhana's recklessness would lead to his downfall. b. Kavya's advice to the demons [2.55.9-55.11] Counseling the demons to abandon their leader. Jambha. when he reckl essl y persi sted in antagoni zi ng the gods. Kavya recommended an escalating series of remedies:
abandon
a man to save a family. a family to save a village. a village to
save
the
country.
and
Yudhi sthi ra
should
take
; gnored and
stri ke down
the
the
earth
to
save
advi ce whi ch
Duryodhana
one's
the
i mmedi ately
soul.
asuras
had
instead of
being drawn into his dangerous games through the dicing. c. The birds that spat gold
[2.55.11-55.17]
A man discovered wild birds that spat gold. took them into his house. thus destroyi ng what
He
but strangled them out of greed,
he caul d
have
1 i ved on
forever.
So
shou 1 d Yudh; sth i ra be caut i ous of betrayi ng h; s fam; 1 y for the $~rngadharapaddhati
1462.
66 prospect o f immediate g a i n in h i s d i c e match w i t h Sakuni The
2.
exchange
between
Prahl Sda
and
.
~ a f ~ a ~ a "
[2.61.56-61.801 Narrator :
V i dura
Audi ence:
Yudhi s. *t h i r a and t h o s e assembled a t t h e d i c i n g match
When Y u d h i s t h i r a had l o s t everything i n the d i c i n g Draupadi
match,
was
dragged
into
the
Duryodhana 's i n s i s t e n c e , and hum7 7 i a t e d . strip
her
restored.
of
clothing,
At
that point
but her
at
gambling
ha7 7
Duh-na
tried to
was
garment
miraculous7y
Vidura reminded t h e assembly t h a t
Draupadi 's quest ion remained unanswered:
.
Had Yudhisthira the '
r i g h t t o stake her d u r i n g t h e match a f t e r he had l o s t his own
freedom?
a77
Vidura warned ominously t h a t g u i l t would be incurred
around
for
f ai 7 fng
concerning the Taw.
to
reso 7ve
DraupadJ Is
quest ion
He t o l d the fo7 7 o w i n g s t o r y t o underscore
t h e m a t t e r of g u i l t .
Prahlada, k i n g o f t h e Dai tyas, had a son named V i rocana. V i rocana and Sudhanvan m g i rasa q u a r r e l ed
jealous1 y over a
woman, each b e t t i n g h i s l i f e t h a t K i n g Prahlada would name him
the
better
truthfully;
man.
Sudhanvan i n s i s t e d
that
Prahlada
e i t h e r a f a l s e statement o r a refusal
speak
t o speak
- a t rapyudaharantimami t i hasam purZItanam/ p r a h l adasya c a samvadam muner3rtgi rasasya ca//2.61.58 Two verses i n t h i s s t o r y a r e s l i g h t v a r i a t i o n s on verses from t h e Manusmrtf. They concern t h e consequences o f e r r o r s i n i n t e r p r e t i n g dharma. Verse 2.61.69 i s s i m i l a r t o Manu 8.12; verse 2.61.71 t o Manu 8.10.
would b r i n g I n d r a t s t h u n d e r b o l t crashing down onto t h e k i n g f s head,
s h a t t e r i n g i t i n t o 100 pieces. The d i s t r a u g h t Prahl Sda went s t r a i g h t t o Kasyapa.
he asked, t o a man who refuses t o
happens i n t h e n e x t world,
decide a q u e s t i o n o f dharma,
o r decides wrongly?
resolve
thousand o f 1 oosen
.
a question Varuna's
Anyone
destruction generations,
of
who
of
dharma w i 11
nooses,
be yoked
r e q u i r i n g as
expl a i ns
h i s offerings
Kasyapa
One who f a i 1s
d e s c r i bed t h e consequences, d i r e i n both cases. to
What
with
many
years
in c o r r e c t l y
dharma t o the
ancestors
one to
suffers
for
seven
and t o h i s progeny f o r seven.
Prahlada then returned t o h i s son,
Virocana,
and s a i d
t h a t Sudhanvan was b e t t e r t h a n Virocana j u s t as Ahgiras was better
than
Prahl ada.
For
this
he
earned
Sudhanvants
b l essi ng. And so, warned Vidura, everyone in -the assembly ha 7 7 who
had
heard
Draupadifs
question
l e g i t i m a t e l y stake Draupadi
--
(i.e.,
could
h i s property
Yudhisthira
- once
he had
l o s t h i s own freedom?) should heed the tale. A lthough OraupadI
continued t o press
whether o r not she was rpwonM properly, w i t h o u t a s a t i s f a c t o r y answer.
t h e question of
t h e question remained
.
Fina 7 7y, D h r t a r 3 s t r a ended t h e
stalemate by o f f e r i n g t h r e e boons t o Draupadi-.
She chose
.
Y u d h .i s t h i r a s freedom, t h a t o f t h e other b r o t h e r s , and refused
t h e third boon.
I.
The s e c t i o n on t h e c o n t i n u a t i o n o f t h e d i c e game
[anudyOtaparva] [ 2 . 6 6 - 2 . 7 2 1 The
Pandavas ,
returned
to
fndraprastha,
but
when
.
Duryodhana cha 7 7enged Yudhisthira t o a second d i c i n g match, he agreed.
This time t h e stakes were t h i r t e e n years o f e x i l e .
.
Yuahisthira l o s t t h e game, and t h e Pandavas prepared t o leave *
the c i t y . Here ends t h e sabhaparvan.
69
S e c t i an about t h e f o r e s t faranyakaparvan] The s e c t i o n about t h e f o r e s t [aranyakaparvanl 13.1-
A.
3.111 1.
Janaka's
advice
on
dangers
the
of
passions
[3.2.19-2.391 Narrator:
saunaka (a brahman)
Audience:
Yudhi s t. h i r a
A group
.
of
6rahmans and
a
throng o f
people
had
f o 7 Towed the Pandavas i n t o the f o r e s t when they s e t o u t f r o m I T .
Indraprastha t o begin their e x i l e .
Y u d h i s t h i r a convinced t h e
people o f the town to r e t u r n there, b u t a number o f brahmans
remained,
despite
.
Yudhf s t* h i r a 's
shamed assert i o n
simp7y could n o t feed them as he should.
that
he
One o f t h e brahmans
urged him t o take h e a r t , d i s c o u r s i n g on the v i r t u e s of poverty and t h e means
t o c u l t i v a t i n g equanimity.
He quoted King
Janaka on the dangers o f passionate attachment. The brahman Saunaka quoted verses a t t r i b u t e d
to
King
Janaka on the v i r t u e s o f calming mental and p h y s i c a l pain. Janaka observed t h a t mental anguish leads t o p h y s i c a l pain, and t h a t
love (sneha) u n d e r l i e s both.
One who c u l t i v a t e s
i n s i g h t w i l l achieve freedom from a l l attachments. 2.
Dhaumya ' s
advi ce
concerni ng
the
support
5g~r~yat8 cabhi m dhasyami janakena yatha p w a / ~ t m a v y a k s t h a n a k a rg~i t a h 61oka rnahStmanS//3.2.19
of
brahmans''
[3.3.1-3.121
Narrator:
Ohaumya
Audience:
Y u d h i s t h i r a and the other Pandavas
.
.
When t h e Pandavas s e t
out
a
from t h e kingdom f o r
t h e i r t h i r t e e n years o f e x i l e , Y u d h f,s.t h i r a consulted Dhaumya, t h e family p r i e s t ,
f o r advice concerning how t o t r e a t t h e many
brahmans who had f o l l o w e d them i n t o t h e f o r e s t unbidden.
He
could not abandon them, but he a l s o had no means t o support them.
A f t e r t h e c r e a t u r e s o f t h e e a r t h were created, t h e y had no means o f sustenance and s u f f e r e d g r e a t 1y from hunger.
sun,
The
absorbing heat and impregnating t h e earth, was born as
t h e p l a n t s which feed t h e e a r t h ' s c r e a t u r e s .
..
L i k e g r e a t k i n g s b e f o r e h i m , Y u d h i s t h i r a m u s t undertake austerities,
p r o p i t i a t i n g t h e sun t o feed h i s p a r t y and t h e
brahmans d u r i ng t h e i r e x i 1 e. When t h e y
entered t h e
forest,
the
PandavasF .. visitors
.,.
i n c 7uded Krsna, who explained why he had been absent f r o m t h e
.
d f s a s t r o u s d i c i n g match8 and hlarkandeya.
...
Once Krsna 7 e f t and
t h e people o f Indraprastha had been convinced t o r e t u r n home,
the Pandavas s e t t l e d down near Lake Dvaitavana, .* 3.
The
conversation
between
Indra
and t h e
cow
The c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y Vai sampwana merel y d e s c r i b e s i t as kalsadrsam .. vacah ( 3 . 3 . 1 3 b ) , b r ' w o r d s a p p r o p r i a t e t o t h e occasion.
story.
surabhi6' [3.10.6-10.19J Narrator:
Vyasa
Audience:
D h r t a r Z's.t r a
*.
D h r t a r a s t r a had s e n t away h i s b r o t h e r and t r u s t e d a d v i s o r , Vidura, when Vidura s t e a d f a s t ly opposed Duryodhana ' s d e s t r u c t i v e wishes.
Vidura went t o t h e Pandavas i n t h e e a r l y
days o f t h e i r e x i le, b u t D h r t a r a s*t r a c a t led him back and t h e t w o w e r e reconci led.
..
O h r t a r a s t r a began t o r e g r e t p e r m i t t i n g
t h e d f c i n g match t o occur and w o r r i e d t h a t t h e Pandavas would ,
indeed
triumph
over
his
beloved
Duryodhana.
Meanwhile,
b u t Vyma Duryodhana and Karna s e t o u t t o k i 7 1 t h e Pandavas, , magica 7 ly ?earned o f their i n t e n t and stopped them. went
to
D h r t w i ? *s, t r a
situation.
to
attempt
to
settle
the
He then dangerous
D h r t a r a's* t r a defended h i s a c t i o n s by saying he
cou 7d n o t deny anything t o h i s be loved son.
Vyasa agreed t h a t
t h e emotional attachment t o a son i s p o w e r f u l , and t o l d t h e f o 7 Towing s t o r y t o underscore t h a t acknowledgment.
One day, Concerned
I n d r a heard t h e cow Surabhi c r y i n g p i t e o u s l y .
about
d i s t r e s s e d her.
this
unusual
behavi o r ,
I n d r a asked
what
Surabhi explained t h a t she could n o t bear t o
see one of h e r weak c h i l d r e n b e i ng prodded t o drag a plough he
could b a r e l y p u l l . f r o m Surabhi
.
H i s i n t e n s e s u f f e r i n g evoked s t r o n g p i t y
I n d r a was s t a r t l e d t h a t t h e cow c o u l d spare
such concern f o r one among so many, b u t i n sympathy he caused
' a t r a t e v a r t a y i syanri mahadakhy8namuttamam/ surabhya^cai va samvadami ndrasya ca v i s8m pate//3.10.6
.
a great r a i n s t o r m which f o r c e d t h e farmer t o s t o p ploughing.
Vyasa
remarked
that
just
as
tenderness toward Duryodhana,
Dhrtarastra
felt
a
special
he f e l t s i m i 1a r l y toward t h e
s u f f e r i n g Pandavas. * 0
B . The s e c t i o n on t h e k i 11ing o f K i r m i r a
1.
Bhimats s l a y i n g of t h e demon ~ i r m i r a ' [3.12.1~
Narrator:
V i dura
Audience:
DhrtarSstra
.
T h i s epfsode i s d e a r l y not an a n c f 1 7 a r y s t o r y as d e f i n e d for t h e purposes o f t h i s study, b u t i t is presented a s an o f t - r e p e a t e d
noteworthy
for
t a l e o f Bhima's deed (karma) and t h e r e f o r e the similarfty
i n style o f presentation
to
other stories. C . The s e c t i o n on Kai r S t a f k a i r a t a p a r v a ] t3.13-3.421
1. Krsnats former l i v e s " ' . *
Narrator: Audi ence:
[3.13.8-13-40]
A r juna
Krsna, t h e Pandavas, Bhoj as, Vrsni s , and
..
.
.
a
Andhakas Krsna, ' * *
who had been absent from t h e d i d n g match.
" ~ r n u bhimasya karmedamati manusakarmanah/ Srutap~rvammay3 tesam k a t h m t e s u punah punah//3.12.2
.
@
tatrwrausamaham c a i t a t k a r m a bhimasya bharata/ bmhmananbm k a t h a y a t ~ mye tatr-ansamagat3h//3.12.74 3samkruddham kefiavam d r s t v a pt3rvadehesu p h a l gunah/ k i 6tayamasa karma& szi-iyaki rtermahathanah//3.13 ;8
..
sought out t h e Pandavas i n the f o r e s t when
exf
7e.
his
he heard of their
When he threatened violence against t h e Kauravas i n
rage,
Arjuna
appeased him by b r i e f l y
cataloguing h i s
e x p l o i t s i n 'Former l i v e s .
. ..
Arjuna a1 1uded to many o f Krsna's adventures i n former 1 i v e s w i t h a b r i e f mention o f each episode.
I n c l u d e d among
them were e x t r a o r d i nary achievements as an a s c e t i c, slaughter
..
o f t h e da7tyas and danavas.
h i s e x p l o i t s as Visnu,
and h i s
dissolution of t h e universe at t h e end o f a c y c l e o f time. Krsna then d e c l a r e d t h a t he and Arjuna were one and t h e same. a
*
.
Nara and NSrSyana.
-
The
2.
story
of
the
killing
of
Saubha
[saubhavadhopaphy~am] [3.15-3.23 ]
.
3. Markandeya s associ a t i ons"
Narrator: Audi ence :
13.26.7-26.171
.
MSrkandeya Yudhi s. *t h i ra,
the
PZndavas .
and
thei r
near
Lake
company The
..
Pandavas
setttled
at
length
Dva7tavanaI where they planned t o 7 i v e o u t t h e i r f o r e s t exi Jew
.
One day, Markandeya came t o v i s i t , made a short speech t o
..
Yudhisthira u r g i n g him t o forbear exf 7e u n t i 1 t h e time came t o triumph over t h e KauravasI then departed as unexpected7y as he
had come. When Markandeya . arrived.
.
Y u d h i s t h i r a asked him w h y he
his episode i s n o t a s t o r y , per se, b u t a s e t o f associations Markandeya made when he r e a l i z e d t h a t t h e PSndavas in t h e i r ex?le reminded him o f RZma Dagaratha.
'.
74
seemed to be smi 1ing a t t h e i r troubles.
Markandeya e x p l a i ned * *
t h a t he had immediately been remi nded o f Rama, who had a1so remained t r u e t o h i s word despite t h e i n j u s t i c e of h i s e x i l e H e mentioned o t h e r kings who had p r o f i t e d
f r u m h i s kingdom.
f r o m t h e i r s t r i c t adherence t o dharma,
and urged Yudhi s .t h i r a
t o bear w i t h t h e course s e t out before him so t h a t he might triumph i n t h e end. 4
Bal i and the b r a h t n a n ~[3.27.12-27.131 ~~ Narrator;
Baka DSlbhya, a brahman
Audience:
Yudh-i s* t h i ra,
.
t h e Pandavas,
and t h e i r
attendant brahmans The Pandawas were Joined near Lake OvaHavana by an * . ever
increasing
number
of
brahmans,
whose
presence
was
regarded as a c r e d i t t o t h e Pandavas' unwavering suppart o f Ã
t h e i r r i t u a 1 practices.
‡
A c e r t a i n brahman named Baka Oalbhya
c o m m e n t e d w i t h g r a t i f i c a t i o n on the mutua 7 support of brahmans and k s a t r i y a s which he observed i n t h a t place,
and b r i e f l y
c i t e d the case o f the asura BaJi t o i1I u s t r a t e the importance
o f such m u t u a l i t y .
Bal i, son o f the asura V i rocana, had no r ival as long as he d u t i f u l l y supported the brahmans.
When he neglected them,
h i s fortunes decl ined. 5. The conversati on between Prahl ada and h i s grandson,
5 ~ h i bsr i e f e s t summary o f a s t o r y i s t o l d t o il l u s t r a t e a p o i n t made about the importance o f brahman support f o r ksatriyas.
[a. 29.1-29.351
Bal i Vai rocanaM Narrator:
Draupadi
Audi ence:
PSndavas
As t h e e x i
..
les s e t t l e d down
in t h e f o r e s t , Oraupadi
'.
b i t t e r l y berated Y u d h i s t h i r a f o r t h e d i f f i c u l t conditions t h e
fami ly now endured.
She c r i t i c i z e d him for not being more
aggressive w i t h t h e i r enemies, and t o l d t h e f o 7 lowing s t o r y t o argue t h a t both revenge
and forgiveness have t h e i r proper
place.
One day. whether
Ball
forgiveness
asked h i s or
venerable
revenge
was
asura
grandfather
superior.
Prahl ada
explained t h a t one must f o r g i v e o r punish, circumstances.
depending upon
O n e who always f o r g i v e s w i l l earn no respect
and w i l l f i n d t h a t people t a k e advantage o f him.
One who i s
always p u n i t i v e w i 11 a1so earn d i srespect, dangerous enemies. and w i 11 s u f f e r t h e l o s s o f f a m i l y and f r i e n d s . Thus.
.
argued Draupadi, Yudhi s t h i r a must recogni ze t h a t
t h e t i m e f o r f o r g i v e n e s s had passed and the t i m e for revenge
w a s a t hand.
6. KaSyapa on p a t i ence6I [3.30.35-30.461 Narrator:
Yudhi s t h i r a
Audi ence :
Rraupadi
a
.
In r e p l y t o Draupadi *s s t o r y a d v o c a t i n g revenge, ^atraPyudaharanti mami t i hasam purStanam/ p r a h l Sdasya ca samvadam bal e r v a i kcanasya ca//
3.29.1
" a t r ~ ~ y u d a h a r a n t i m gatha a n i tyam ksamavatSm/ * , kSfyapena mahatman~//3.30.35 g i t a h ksamavata krsne
.
76 Y u d h i s. t h i r a enumerated t h e p f t f a 7 7s o f anger and t h e b e n e f i t s of controlling i t .
He a l s o quoted t h e sage Kasyapa on the
v i r t u e s of p a t i e n c e .
KaSyapa had p r a i s e d patience above a t 1 e l se, e q u a t i ng i t w it h
dharma
and
the
Vedas
themsel ves
.
The
reward
for
p r a c t i c i n g t h i s v i r t u e was a realm f a r superior t o that which brahmans and a s c e t i c s achi eve. 7. The c a p r i c i ous d e i t y
Narrator :
Draupadi
Audience :
Yudhi s t h i r a
As
the
hat^^^
[3.31.20-31.371
..
discussion
continued,
Draupadi
gave
the
f o l l o w i n g account o f t h e u t t e r helplessness o f l i v i n g beings i n t h e face o f t h e a r b i t r a r y c o n t r o 7 exercised over them by
Dhatr.
Mere puppets i n h i s game, l i v i n g beings a r e a t h i s
mercy.
Dhatr , s a i d Draupadi , exerci sed complete and a r b i t r a r y c o n t r o l over a l l control, deity
.
l i v i n g beings.
and no 1 i v i n g t h i n g can
Good and e v i l
are i n his
influence t h i s capricious
Draupadi r e v i 1ed t h i s c r u e l behavior.
,.
Yudhisthfra
chided
DraupadI
for
her
opinion,
continued t o a s s e r t t h e wisdom o f adhering t o dharma.
8 . Fate, chance and human agency6Â [3.33.1-33.581 Narrator:
Draupadi
" n i t i m b r h a s p a t i proktam bhratrnme 'grShayatpura/ tesam &amkathyama6rausamahametattada grhe//3.33.57
. .
and
77
Audience:
..
Yudhi s t h i r a
A s t h e i r d i s c u s s i o n cont inueds Draupadi moderated her
earlier
words
paraphrased brothers
--
to
the
advocate
p ~ f m a c y of
he
had
learned
She
f a t h e r teach t o her
lessons she had heard her Iessans
actfa?.
from
a
brahman,
but
u 7timate 7y f r o m Brhaspatf himse I f . Every 1i v i n g being cannot be avui ded*
acts,
explained
DraupadZ a
and
it
Even t h a t which appears t o r e s u l t from
l u c k a r chance i s t h e r e s u l t u f p r i o r actions.
What Ohatr
determines, she s a i d 8 i s merely the f r u i t o f actions a l ready performeda although
that
which
occurs
combination o f chances f a t e 8 and action. said
D r a u ~ a d %t~ hat
succeeds o r f a j l s ,
one
should
act,
results
From
some
It i s importants
because whether
one
nothjng can be gained without making an
effort. The
argument
between
DraupadY
and
Yudh f s ,t h i ra
i n t e n s i f i d s and Bh3na ~ o i n e di n t u advucate t h a t t h e y ga to war,
notwithstanding
.
Yudhisthfra # s prumise
to
remain
in
..
Vyasa a r r i v e d ta counsel Y u d h i s t h f r a t o send Arjuna
hidfng.
o f f a lone t o u b t a f n d f v f n e weapons from I n d r a . D m T h e s e c t i o n on t r a v e l to Xndrafs world
[indra70kabhfgamanaparva] I
13.43-3-79]
. How A r j una acqui r e d d i v i ne weaPondu [3.39.7
-7B. 291
7obhagavah~rotumi cchami parthasySkl istakarmanahl v* starena kathametam yathast ranyupd abdhavan)/3.39.
1
Narrator :
Vai SampSyana
Audience:
Janamejaya
Although not an anci17ary s t o r y as d e f i n e d f o r purposes o f t h i s study, designation
as
a
t h i s episode
&atha a t
3%l c
the
i s n a t e w ~ r t h yf o r and
39.86.
To 7d
its to
Janamejaya, i t c f ~ e srepresent a s t a r y o f t h e p a s t , as does, o f course, Uai6aapiVyana ls e n t f r e neci t a t i o n o f t h e Mahabharata t o him. 2 . Na1a s s t o r y ( n a 7opakhyma]
13.49.35-78.171
Narrator:
The seer Brhada6va
Audi ence:
Yudhi s *t h i ra, t h e Pzndavas, and Draupadi .
.
Whi 7e Ar3una was away securfng weapons from Xncira,
the other P2fndawas remained i n t h e f o r e s t . *
Ff we years passed.
..
A t m e p d n t when Bhima a g a i n urged Y u d h i s t h f r a
to go to war
w i t h o u t delay and c r i t i c i z e d him f o r having sent Arjuna away,
the
seer
BrhadaSva
arrived.
Recounting
his
troubles,
Yucfhf s. *t h f r a asked t h e rsg . . i f anyone had ever been as misera6 1e
as he w a s , prompting Brhadasva t o te77 t h e f4377t?wing s t o r y . The handsome and v i r t u o u s Nala was k i n g o f t h e Njsada. T h e r e was a l s o a k i n g i n Vidarbha named B h h a who had t h r e e
sons and a b e a u t i f u l daughter,
Damayanti,
a11 o f wham were
born through a boon f r o m a brahman seer named Oamana'
'hi starenaham4 cchmni
Nala
n a l asya sumah~tmartah/ c a r i t a i n v a d a t ~ mSrestha tanmamakhyatumar~as~//3.49~43
..
it i hasami mam capi k a l in~Sanamucyate/3.78.1Oab
79
and Damayanti were widely praised for their appearance and character,
and eventually each fell
in
love with the other
from these oral reports alone. One day, the lovesick Nala sat in the forest near the women r S quarters in Vi darbha.
There he caught a beauti ful
go 1 den goose wh i ch offered to praise Na 1 a to Damayanti if Na 1 a would release it.
He did so, and the goosel5 words were so
effective that Damayanti restlessly cried and brooded.
The
ki ng recogn; zed that ; twas t; me to ho 1 d a svaya'!'vara for her. The ki ngs of the earth
gathered
in Vi darbha for
event, along with the world guardians (Indra,
Varu~a.
the
Vama)
and Agni. who had overheard Indra discussing the event with Narada. On thei r way to Vi darbha, the gods spotted Na 1 a and asked him to be their envoy.
He agreed. not knowing the task. but
could not retract his promise once made. palace unseen
W;th the gods' help,
he entered
the
and told Damayanti
proposal.
When she declared her love for
of thei r
him alone,
Na1a
begged her to choose one of the gods lest he risk death from their displeasure.
Damayanti
suggested that Na1a would be
spared any pun i shment if the gods would svaya~vara
along with everyone else.
si mp 1 y
attend her
There she would choose
Na1a. The gods di d appear there. but they confused Damayanti by taking on Nala's form so that she could not distinguish among the five.
In desperation. she performed an act of truth and
80
the gods
resumed
choose Nala.
thei r
own forms
so that Damayanti
mi ght
After granting boons to Nala, they returned to
heaven. On their return trip. the gods encountered Dv3para and Ka1i. neither of whom realized that they were too late for Damayanti's
svaya~vara.
Ka1i. in a jealous rage, decided to
possess Na1a and deprive him of his kingdom. years of vigilance,
After twelve
Kali was able to possess Nala when the
king became vulnerable through ritual pollution. At Kali's instigation, Na1a's brother
Pu~kara
challenged
him to a dice game with disastrous consequences.
Nala lost
the entire kingdom. After sending her two children to Vidarbha. fo 11 owed
Na 1 a
--
shunned
outskirts of the city.
by
order
of
Damayanti
Puskara
to
t:he
Bereft even of his sale article of
clothing when it was carried off by the dice disguised as two b;rds.
Nala
Vidarbha.
urged
Damayanti
to
return
to
her
father
in
She refused, but as she slept Nala cut her skirt in
half to clothe himself, and set off alone. When she awoke,
Damayanti was distraught.
She cursed
whomever had cursed Nala to suffer even more than the king. Dashing about mindlessly, she suddenly fell prey to a hungry boa constrictor.
A hunter traveling through the forest heard
her screams and killed the boa, rescuing Damayanti. was overcome with lust.
Soon he
On the strength of her fidelity to
Nala, the angry Damayanti cursed him to drop dead.
The hunter
81
died on the spot. Wandering
aimlessly
through
the
forest,
calling
repeatedly to Nala, Damayanti talked to animals and mountains as she walked for three days appar it ion,
a
hermi tage
and
three nights.
appeared before
her,
Like an
and
she was
reassured that she would find Nala and that his kingdom would be restored. but the hermitage quickly disappeared. Traveling onward,
Damayanti encountered an a§oka tree
which she begged to free her from her sorrow.
Eventually. she
was taken in by a caravan traveling to the king of the Cedis. One night. as the travelers camped in a lovely wooded area, they were trampled by a herd of elephants whose route to a lotus pond they had unwittingly obstructed.
Appalled by the
tragedy and convi nced that she had brought thi s mi sfortune upon them because she had rejected the gods at her svaya'!'vara. Damayanti went on alone unti 1 she reached the town of the Cedis.
Finding her way to the royal palace. she was spotted
from a terrace by the king's mother and questioned.
At the
queen mother' s ; nvi tati on. Damayanti agreed to stay unt i 1 Na 1 a was found, but only if she was treated properly.
And so she
became chambermaid of Sunanda, the king's sister. Once Nala had finally abandoned Damayanti, he came upon a large forest fire and heard a creature calling piteously to him.
It was a snake named
Karko~aka,
cursed for an offense to
a brahman and unabl e to move from its spot. him,
the
snake
bit
him.
Nala
was
When Nal a rescued
transformed
into
a
82
hunchback.
The snake's venom thereafter caused Nala no pain,
but Kali suffered intensely from it for the remaining time of his possession of Nala. The snake advi sed Na 1 a
to travel
to Ayodhya where he
could acquire skill in dicing from King gave to Nala a
divine
appearance at will.
~tupar~a.
Karkotaka
cloak by which he could regain
his
With reassurances from the snake that he
would regain his family and kingdom, Nala set out for AyodhyK. Nala reached Ayodhya in ten days. and presented himself to King
~tupar~a
as a skilled horseman and cook named Bahuka.
The king welcomed him into his service. When Na 1 a
and Damayanti
numerous brahmans out brahman palace. n
named
Sudeva
di sappeared.
to search found
for
Damayanti
Ki ng
them. in
Eventually, the
At the request of the king's mother,
the whole sad story. woman's niece. mother's sister.
Shima sent
Cedi
a
ki ng' s
Sudeva told
Damayanti then learned that she was the
The woman who had taken her in was her own That night, Damayanti returned to Vidarbha.
With her return, efforts to find Nala were intensified, and the brahmans were g; ven a message from Damayanti wi th instructions to give the message to anyone whom they suspected might be Nala.
72Editors of the critical edition note that some of the verses in 3.65.7-25 correspond closely -- sometimes repeating verbat i m -- verses of adhy.yas 18, 19, 21, and 29 of the RSmayana's sundarak.nda (Gorresi 0 edi t; on) . In the M8habh8ra~a. the section contains Sudeva's description of the filthy and emaciated Damayanti in disguise.
83
After Quite some time, one of the brahmans returned to report to
Damayanti
that
he
had found
Ayodhya who responded to the message. be
Na 1 a,
she
announce to
a
defor_ed man
in
Realizing that it must
sent the brahman Sudeva back to Ayodhya to
~tuparr:'a
that.
si nce no one knew whether
husband was dead or alive, she would hold another
her
svaya~vara
in one dayls time. Because
wi shed
~tuparr:'a
to attend
the event,
Bahuka
agreed to the difficult task of getting him there speedily. Joined by Na1a's).
Var~~eya
they
set
d ri vi ng the ho rses . ~tupar~a
(now
~tupar~a's
out
for
charioteer, but formerly
Vidarbha
with
As they f1 ew past
counted its nuts in an instant.
a
Nala
skillfully tree,
vi bhi 'taka
The incredulous Na1a
ins i sted that they stop so that he m; ght check the count. When he confirmed the kingls tally, Nala proposed that they exchange the secret knowledge of their special talents. wou 1 d teach the ki ng the secret of the horses i f
He
~tupar~a
would teach him the secret of counting, which would give Nala ski 11
in di ci ng.
At the moment Na 1 a
acqui red
~tupar')a r
s
secret knowledge, Ka1i sprang from his body and entered the vibh:Itaka tree.
When they arrived in Vidarbha, surprised
to
Damayanti 's
see ruse.
them,
From the
Damayanti suspected that servant
Ke~ini
for
in
King Bhima was greatly
fact
sound
he
was
unaware
of the chari ot
Na1a had arrived.
of
alone,
She sent
to determine if Bahuka was, indeed, Nala.
her She
84 t e s t e d him f u r t h e r by a r r a n g i n g t o t a s t e meat he had cooked. Convinced o f h i s i d e n t i t y by t h i s and by t h e f a c t t h a t he wept bitterly
upon
seeing
his
children.
Damayanti
had
Bahuka
brought t o her. When she c o n f r o n t e d him,
B3huka f in a l 1y admitted t h a t he
was Nala and t o l d her o f h i s possession. her plans f o r purity.
Nala
reconciled.
a svayamvara, resumed
h-is
He complained about
b u t t h e gods own
form
and
attested t o her the
family
was
He then t a u g h t Rtuparna h i s s e c r e t knowledge o f
horses b e f o r e t h e k i n g r e t u r n e d t o AyodhyX. I n a month's time, N a l a r e t u r n e d t o Nisadha t o challenge
h i s brother,
PuSkara,
t o a game o f d i c e .
k i ngdom and Nala won t h e match.
They wagered t h e
He forgave h i s brother, t h e n
r u l ed peaceful 1 y f o r years.
.
After t e ?7 fng Ha l a ' s s t o r y ,
B r h a d a h a t o I d Y u d h i s* t h i r a
t h e secret o f t h e d i c e , t h e n l e f t .
The Pmdavas missed Arjuna '
.
g r e a t l y , but soon Narada a r r i v e d .
Y u d h f s* t h i r a immediately
inquired about t h e value of undertaking a pilgrimage. E. The s e c t i o n on the c i r c u i t o f p i l g r i m a g e s i t e s
[tirthayatraparva] 1.
[3.80-3.1533
The m e r i t s o f p i l g r i m a g e [3.80.5-83.1141'~ Narrator:
NSrada
Audience:
Yudhisthira,
Y u d h i's* t h i r a
.
inquired
t h e Pandavas and Draupadi * about
the
benefits
of
^ ~ r n ur aj annavahi t o y a t h a bhismena b h a r a t a / sarvahetadupa6rutam//3.80.11 p d a s t y a s y a sak-dvai
a
85 p i 7grimage t o t h e sacred t i r t h a s .
Marada enumerated them by
q u o t i n g a c o n v e r s a t i o n between B h m and t h e seer Pu7astya on
the same q u e s t i o n . a. The b e n e f i t s o f p i 7 *rimage74 l3.80.11-83.961 Narrator :
Pul a s t y a
Audi ence :
Bhi sma
Once whi le Bhisma was o b s e r v i ng a vow, the
great
precepts
seer
Pulastya
concerning
the
and
inquired
benefits
p i 1 grimage t o t h e major t i r t h a s .
to
about be
the
gained
he saw dharmic
a
from
P u l a s t y a responded w i t h a
catalogue o f sacred s i t e s and the s p e c i f i c b e n e f i t s t o be achieved by v i s i t i n g each one.
I n some cases, t h e l e n g t h o f
t i m e one should remain and t h e s p e c i f i c r i t u a l t o be performed
t h e r e were a1so p r e s c r i bed.
..
A f t e r t e 7 l i n g t h i s s t o r y , Narada i n s t r u c t e d the Pandavas t o undertake a p i l g r i m a g e w i t h t h e sage L o m a , who would soon
a r r i v e t o v i s i t them.
A f t e r Narada l e f t .
Y u d h i s t h i r a asked
t h e p r i e s t Dhaumya where e l s e they might go t o await A r j u n a f s return.
Dhaumya recommended t h e Naimisa Forest and began t o
7 i s t pilgrimages
in
each o f
the
four
directions.
As
he
concluded h i s d e s c r i p t i o n s , LomaSa a r r i v e d w i t h a message from
Indra.
U n t i 1 Arjuna returned t o them,
t h e Pandavas , should
spend t h e i r t i m e i n pilgrimage w i t h LomaSa.
And so they s e t
o u t toward t h e e a s t .
"idam d e v a r s i c a r i tam s a r v a t i r t h a r t h a s a m s r i tam/ yah p a t h e t k a l pamutthkya sarvapapai h pramucyate//3.83.101
86 2.
The f a t e o f t h e daityas and danavas"
[3.92.1-
92.161
Narrator:
LomaSa
Audi ence :
Yudhi sth-i and Draupad? ' . ra, t h e PSndavas .
'.
Yudhisthira
asked
the
seer
why
his
enemies
prospered, despite t h e i r v i o l a t i o n s o f dharma.
Long ago,
t h e gods
- observers
o f dharma
- performed
v a r i ous a u s t e r i t i es (i ncl u d i ng v i s i t i ng t h e sacred f o r d s ) and prospered.
The dai tyas and danavas abandoned dharma.
They
were eventual 1y overcome by p r i de and soon reaped d e s t r u c t i on.
J u s t as d e i t i e s and famous k i n g s had won fame and t r e a s u r e
.
through p i lgrimage, so would t h e Pandavas, expl a i ned LomaSa. 3. Gaya ~ m a r t a r a ~ a s [3.93.16-93.271 "
Narrator:
$amatha, a brahman
Audi ence :
Yudhi s t* h i r a , t h e PSndavas , Draupadi and ' t h e i r p i 1grimage compani ons
The
travelers
arrived
in
Nafmisa
Forest,
then
traveled on t o Lake Gayasiras where hundreds and hundreds o f brahmans were engaged in ri t u a 7s.
One o f those b r a b a n s t o Id
the f o 7 7owing s t o r y . There was a k s a t r i y a seer named Gaya who performed such
7spura devayuge c a i va drstam sarvam may3 vibho/ arocayansuriE dharmam dharmam t a t y a j ir e * surah//
3.92.6
Note t h a t t h i s i s a c t u a l l y a d e s c r i p t i o n o f something Loma6a had witnessed i n a p r e v i o u s age, i n t r o d u c e d w i t h t h e term pur3 ( l o n g ago).
..
760unyani yasya karmani t a n + me Srnu bharata/3.93.17cd
87
a
large
and
successfu1
sacrifice
that
the
ritual
blocked o u t every o t h e r sound i n t h e t h r e e worlds.
chants People
sang o f h i s g e n e r o s i t y 3 wonder4 n g how other s a c r i T i c e s c o u l d p o s s i b l y tempt t h e godsD who must be F u l l y sated by Gayar s e x t r a o r d i nary o F f e r %ng
.
The Pandawas then journeyed t o t h e hermftage o f Agastya* 4.
The s t o r y of Agastya
[agastyopakhyanam]
L3.94.1-
108m19]
a. Vatapi and t h e b i r t h o f Agastyaf s sonr7 [3.94.197,271 Narrator: Audi ence:
LomaSa
.
.
Yudhi s t h i r a * t h e PSndavas and DraupadZ
.
A t Agastya 9s h e ~ m i t a g eYudhisthi ~ , ra f n q u i r e d w h y Agastya had destroyed VStapi t h e r e .
Once i n the c i t y o f Manimatz t h e r e 1 i v e d a d a i t y a named I l w a l a and h i s younger b r o t h e r VatSpi.
Xlvala had t h e power
to r e v i v e t h e deads so whenever a brahman angered him he would change h i s b r o t h e r i n t o cooked g o a t D feed him t o t h e brahman3
then r e v i v e himD t h u s k i 11ing whomever had eaten VatZEpi
l
Around the same t i m e s Agastya happened t o encounter h i s ancestors i n a cave. w i thout
progeny
to
Hung upside down# they s u f f e r e d b a d l y
sustain
them
comfortably
w it h
proper
r i t u a l s , so they b e g ~ e dAgastya t a produce a sonAgastya searched b u t found no woman s u i t a b l e t o marry*
"i lv a l o
nama d a i t e y a SsZtkauravanandana/3 - 9 4 . 4 a b
88 He
therefore
desi fable Lopamudra.
assembled
elements
a
perfect
from v a r i o u s
female
chi I d ,
taking
and named her
creatures,
Agastya took h e r t o t h e k i n g o f Vidarbha f o r care
and safekeepi ng whi 1e she grew
When she matured,
Agastya
r e t u r n e d t o Vidarbha t o c l a i m LopSmudra f o r h i s w i f e *
The
k i ng was ambivalent # b u t LopamudrS urged t h e k i ng and queen t a
p e r m i t her marriage.
She served her husband d u t ~ f u l l y 1i v i n g
w i t h o u t complaint t h e austere 1i f e o f a f o r e s t h e r m i t . When
Agastya
impregnate h i s wife,
fhally
decided
that
it
was
time
to
Lopamudra requested t h a t they b o t h have
jewels and l u x u r i o u s garments, as we1 1 as a splendid1y adorned bed8 t o conceive a c h i 1d.
To please h i s w i f e , Agastya s e t o u t
t o request t h e necessary wealth from a r i c h king.
Each o f t h e
t h r e e he approached (&-utarvan , Vadhryagva , and Trasadasyu Paurukutsa) was more than w i 1 1ing t o be generous, b u t none had an incame t h a t exceeded h i s expenses-
Agastya was u n w i l l i n g
t o cause shortages i n t h e i r kingdoms, so t h e four men s e t o u t
t o g e t h e r t o beg r i c h e s from t h e wealthy I l v a l a . As had become h i s custom
I l v a l a received h i s guests by
o f f e r i n g them Vatapi as cooked meat. r e a d i 1y and digested i t immedi ate1 y Vatspi back t o l i f e ,
to him and t h e three k i n g s * sexual
cancei ved.
intercourse Seven
.
When I 1va1a summoned
noth$ng happened.
Accedi ng t o Agastya s demand,
had
Agastya a t e t h e food
Returning t o Lopamudraj Agastya
with
years
11va1a p r o v i ded t r e a s u r e s
her
later,
and
.
a
superior
son
(also
known
Drdhasyu
was as
89
Idhmavsha] was born. b s How Agastya assisted i n t h e b a t t l e o f t h e gads
and a ~ u f a s[3-98-1-108019] ~~ Narrator: Audi ence:
LamaSa
.
Yudhi s t* h i fa, t h e Pandavas and DraupadZ e
Y u d h i s* t h f m asked t o hear mare about Agastya 's
Once,
l o n g age, t h e demons ( w i t h V r t r a as t h e i r l e a d e r ]
threatened t h e gads.
BrahmZ advised them t o p r o p i t i a t e t h e
seer Dadhica and request from hfm h i s bones.
Once given, they
should be fashioned in t a a thunderbolt w j t h which I n d r a cou1d k i l l Vrtra. When t h e b a t t l e g o t underway, t h e gods panicked and ran Even I n d r a t s courage fa1 tefed,
away.
d e s p i t e h i s new weapon.
When V i snu F o r t i f i e d I n d r a w i t h h i s own t e j a s , t h e o t h e r gods #
and many brahman seers d i d
succeeded i n k i 11+ng V r t r a ,
so,
as w e l l .
Although
Indra
o u t o f f e a r he ran o f f t o hide i n
a lake. A1 though many demons were k i 1led, some o f V r t r a ps a1 I i e s
( t h e Kal eyas] escaped and h i d deep in t h e ocean. they would
return
to
e a r t h and mere4 l e s s l y
asceti cs , determi ned t o destroy the earth.
Each n i g h t , k i 11
brahman
liermi tages were
1 it t e r e d w i t h d i s f i g u r e d corpses and t h e remai as o f d* srupted
78bbCIyaevzhami cchZmi maharsestasya dhf matah1 * v i staram ~ r o t u m a g ~ s t y a s y da v i jottama//3 karmanatn
98.1 cd
90
sacrifices.
The gads appealed t o Visnua . who advised them t o
convince Agastya t o d r y up t h e ocean so t h a t they might k i l l t h e remai n i ng demons. t h e gods p r a i sed h i s we1 l-known
Hurryi ng t o Agastya a accompl ishments a
inc1u d i rtg
how he had subdued the V i ndhya
mountai ns. ( 1 ) Agastya and t h e V i ndhya mountai nsIg [3.102.7
-
102.15iJ
Narrator: Audi ence :
Lomaila
.
Yudhi s t h i r a a t h e
..
PSndavas a
and
DraupadZ
.
Y u d h f s t h i f a asked to hear i n detaf 7 h o w t h e Vindhya had g r a m t o such h e i g h t s .
One day
n o t i c i n g t h a t t h e sun c i rcumambu1ated M t .
Meru
t w i c e each days t h e Vindhya mountain asked t h a t t h e sun do t h e same to him.
S a v i t r explained t h a t he was o n l y f o l l o w i n g the
p a t h prescribed f o r him by BrahmS.
The angry Vindhya began t o
grow u n t i l i t obstructed t h e paths o f t h e sunJ moon, stars.
and
When i t refused t o s t o p s t h e gods begged Agastya t o
iritervene.
Approachi ng the mountai n, Agastya expl a i ned t h a t he had busi ness i n t h e south.
t o pass. north.
The mountain m u s t remain l a w u n t i l Agastya r e t u r n e d
Vindhya agreed and has remained low ever since because
he story.
He demanded t h a t t h e V i ndhya a1 low him
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n d l l a r y
91
Agastya has yet t o r e t u r n to t h e north. Here t h e n a r r a t f v e r e t u r n s
the
t o t h e meetfng between
gods and Agastya.
F l a t t e r e d by t h e gadst p r a i s e J Agastya agreed t o d r i n k t h e ocean d r y so t h a t they might destroy t h e demons.
When
they were f i n i shed and asked Agastya t o restore t h e water,
he
explained t h a t he had digested t h e 1i q u i d and they must T i nd another way t o r e f i l l t h e ocean. The gods conferred w i t h f3rahmZ about a means t o replace but 8rahmZ assured them t h a t i n time i t wauld be
t h e waters
normal again, due t o t h e a c t i o n s o f King BhagTratha. ( 2 ) King sagara8@[3~104.3-108.19J
Narrator:
Lomaga
Audience:
Yudhi s. t h +ra, the PZndavas and .
.
.
Draupad5 Y u d h f*s t h f r a a s k e d what B r a h a meant by t h e remark
that
King
BhagYratha
wodd
return
the
ocean
to
narma 7cyw
There once was an XksvZku M n g named Sagara w h o had t w o beautiful performed
wives,
Vaidarbhi
rigorous
f o l l o w i ng boons:
and
austerities
s a i by& to
Siva
The
sonless
who
granted
king the
one o f Sagarats wives would bear 60,000 sons
w h o would d i e tagether# t h e o t h e r would bear Sagarags h e i r -
In time,
Vaidarbhi aborted a pumpkin and 6ai bya bore a
92 son.
When t h e k i n g moved t o d i s c a r d t h e gourd,
a celestial
voice advised him t o p l a c e each o f t h e pumpkin seeds i n a separate ghee-f i11ed p o t . sons were born. destructive
Soon, 60,000 c r u e l and t r o u b l esome
The gods asked Brahma t o re1 ieve them o f t h e
burden
counseled patience.
of
the
60,000
children,
but
Brahma
Soon enough a1 1 would b r i n g about t h e i r
own death.
Some sacri f i c e ,
time
King Sagara
undertook an
aSvantedha
b u t t h e horse d i sappeared under the watchful eyes
o f his 60,000 horse.
later.
sons.
Sagara commanded them t o search f o r t h e
They f i n a l l y l o c a t e d a c l e f t i n t h e e a r t h which they
had not p r e v i o u s l y searched. ( k i 11 ing many
underworld
When t h e y dug deeply i n t o i t
creatures
in
t h e process),
f i n a l l y found t h e horse g r a z i n g near t h e seer Kapila.
they
Rushing
t o grab t h e horse, t h e y were burned t o death i n an i n s t a n t by
Kapi 1 a s f e r o c i ous gaze. NSrada, Sagara.
who had witnessed t h i s event,
reported i t t o
He summoned h i s grandson Amsumat and t o l d him t h a t he
had banished t h e 60,000
sons f o r f a i 1 i n g t o f i n d t h e horse,
j u s t as he had banished Amsumat's f a t h e r ,
(a)
K i ng
Sagara ' s
Asamafijas. son,
~samarijas''
[3.106.9-106.161 Narrator:
Loma6a
.
.
Audi ence: Yudhi s t h i r a , the Pandavas and ' e t a t t e sarvamakhyStam yatha p u t r o mahatmans/ pauranam h i takamena sagarena v i v a s i tah//3.106.16
. .
93
Draupadi
.
Yudhisthira
asked
why
Sagara
had
banished h i s own son. A s a m a f i j a s . Sagarar s son Asamafijas was j u s t as troublesome as h i s 60,000 brothers.
He would r e g u l a r l y drown innocent people by
t h r o w i n g them i n t o t h e r i v e r .
To p r o t e c t h i s s u b j e c t s ,
the
k i n g banished h i s son from t h e c i t y .
Here t h e n a r r a t i v e returns t o t h e story o f King Sagara. A t h i s grandfather ' s request, Amsumat agreed t o r e t r i eve
t h e horse. horse
to
A f t e r p r o p i t i a t i n g Kapi l a , the
sacrificial
successful 1y concl uded.
compound
I n time,
AmSumat r e t u r n e d t h e and
the
ritual
was
Amsumat r u l e d t h e k i ngdom,
f o l l o w e d by h i s son D i l i p a and h i s grandson Bhagiratha. When he became king,
Bhagiratha learned t h a t h i s 60,000
ancestors had f a i l e d t o reach heaven because o f t h e i r offense agai n s t Kapi 1a.
He undertook a u s t e r i t i es t o p r o p i t i a t e t h e
Ganges i n o r d e r t o remedy t h e s i t u a t i o n .
I f she would agree
t o bathe t h e i r remains, t h e 60,000 would reach heaven. B h a g i r a t h a succeeded
in
obtaining
his
boon
from
the
Ganges, b u t she would o n l y descend i f S i v a would p r o t e c t t h e e a r t h by c a t c h i n g her on h i s head as she f e l l .
I n time,
Bhagiratha a l s o succeeded i n o b t a i n i n g t h i s boon f r o m Siva. As she f l o w e d onto t h e e a r t h , Bhagiratha d i r e c t e d Gartga t o t h e
ocean, w h i c h then f i l l e d up w i t h h e r waters,
simultaneously
p u r i f y i n g h i s ancestors t o d w e l l i n t h e n e x t world. 5.
Stones a t Mt.
HemakOta (3.109.5-109.201
Narrator:
Lomaga
Audience:
Yudhi s t. h i ra,
.
the PSndavas and Draupadi *
a. Story o f ~ . .s a b h a[3.109.5-109.10] ~~ Narrator: Audi ence:
Lomasa
. Yudhisthira ..
Yudhi s. t h i ra, the Pmdavas and Draupadi .
.
Rsabha, .
On r e a c h i n g Mt.
asked why
lands7 ides occurred and clouds f 7 7 1ed the sky when even one word was spoken aloud t h e r e .
.
The aged and cantankerous ascetic Rsabha became ir r it a t e d by t h e sound o f peopl e fs voices.
throw rocks i f anyone spoke,
He commanded the mountain t o
and the wind t o b r i n g a r a i n
cloud. b. The inaccessi b i 1it y o f M t
. ~sabha" . [3.109.11-
109.141 Narrator: Audience :
LumaSa
LomaSa
.
Yudhi s *t h i ra, the PSndavas and Draupadi * '
continued
with
the
fol lowing
story
immediately a f t e r t e 7 7 i n g the p r e v i o u s one, Once when the gods t r a v e l e d t o the Nanda River, t h e y were followed.
Displeased by t h i s
inaccessi b l e
Thereafter,
by
creating
prying,
obstacles
they made t h e in
the
area
mountai ns.
anyone who had not undertaken s t r i c t
penances
could neither look a t t h e mountain nor climb i t . ^yatha~rutami dam parvamasmSbhir a n karSana/ tadekagramana r aj anni bodha gadato mama//3.109.6 " h e word pura ( l o n g ago) introduces t h i s b r i e f tale a t 3.109.11b.
95
The
6.
story
Rsya6 . . ~ h g a [r~~a~rfi~apakhyanam]~~
of
[3.110.6-113.25] Narrator:
LomaSa
Audience:
Yudhisthira,
..
Trave7 h g on,
.
t h e Pandavas and RraupadL
t h e p a r t y reached t h e KauSfkZ Rfver.
There Yudhisthira asked ta h e a r t h e s t o r y o f RSyaSrhga, .
whose
f a t h e r f s her-mf tage was nearby*
.
One day,
w h i l e b a t h i n g i n a l a k e J VibbSndaka .
apsaras UrvaSi and e j a c u l a t e d in t o t h e water. from t h e r i ver son* Rgyagrfiga.
saw t h e
A doe, d r i n k i ng
became pregnant and gave b i r t h t o V i bhzndaka . . 's The boy grew up i n t h e f o r e s t and never saw
any human being except h i s f a t h e r . A t t h a t time,
Afiga w a s r u l e d by a king, named Lomapsda,
who t r e a t e d brahmans so b a d l y t h a t they deserted him. withdrew t h e r a i n s from Ahgal t h e drought.
Indra
and t h e k i n g sought a way t o end
One brahman t o l d him t h a t he must 1u r e RSyagrhga
t o t h e kingdom. A n o l d courtesan agreed t o seduce RSyaSrhga*
She had a
b e a u t i f u l hermitage b u i l t on a r a f t , took her daughter a l o n g
.
hermitage. on i t J and anchored t h e b o a t near VibhSndakaRs . L u r i n g RSyaSrhga (who thought ascetic)
,
she was a very unusual male
t h e daughter f e d h i III d e l i d o u s f r u i t s and 1iquor,
84etanme bhagavansarvam v i s t a r e n a yathstathami vaktumarhasi S u ~ r ~ s o r 6 & y a & r h g a s cestitam/[3.110.10 ya
.
â‚ even verses o f t h i s s t o r y correspond c l o s e l y w i t h verses i n Jataka (Fausboll e d i t i o n ) vo1 5, no. 526. Two o+ t h o s e a l s o occur i n a manuscript o f verses (3.110.15 and 3.111.11) t h e PadmapurZFnaJ according t o t h e e d i t o r s o f t h e Mbh.
96 dressed him in l u x u r i o u s garments
k-i ssed* teased* and played
w i t h RSyaikrftga t o arouse h i s d e s i r e f o r her# only t o l e a v e * d e c l a r i n g t h a t she must attend t o her s a c r i f i c i a l d u t i e s * When Vibhandaka questioned h i s lave-sick sonJ he warned * .
MyaSrtiga t h a t t h e person he had encountered was a dangerous demon.
Vibhandaka set * .
off
t a F i n d her.
Meanwhi l e s t h e
easi 1y 1ured R6yaSrhga o n t ~t h e boat
courtesan returned
t o o k him t o t h e palace a t Ahga.
Soan
and
the r a i n s began t o
fall, and soon t h e k i n g married h i s daughter h n t ~t o t h e hermit boy.
.
When V i bhandaka Final l y r e a l ized t h a t h i s son must be i n . Ahga,
he found himse1F honored a t every stage o f h i s journey
to t h e
palace.
RSyaSrrtga t o
His
remain
anger was
appeased,
i n t h e palace u n t i l
and
he
allowed
a son was burn.
Thereafter# RSyaSrftga returned w i t h h i s w i f e t o h i s f a t h e r f s hermitage t o resume an a s c e t i c l j f e The p a r t y a g a i n
set a f f t o c a n t i m e t h e piTgrimage,
reachfng t h e mouth o f the Ganges a t the ocean, then t ~ a v ei ? ng a7
m the ~ shore to the kfngdtm o f t h e Ka7 i h ~ a s . 7.
Where
Rudra
stole
a
share
of
the
sacrifice
[3*114*7-114.12]85 Narrator:
Lammka
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i ra, t h e PZndavas and DraupadZ
At
.
..
Kal i h g a Loma6a t o l d t h e s t o r y o f how Rudra had
%he s t o r y i s introduced simply w i t h the phrase a t r a f v a ( i n t h i s same place) a t 3-114m7a.
97 there
stolen the
sacrificial
sacrifice in times past. praised him.
animal
as
his
share of
The gods rebuked him.
the
but 1 ater
Thereafter he released the animal and traveled
the devaysna (path of the deities) to other realms.
Because
the deities were frightened by him. they decided that Rudra waul d
recei ve the choi cest share of the sacr; fi ce
in the
future. The
party
8.
trave 7ed to
then
The story
Mt.
of Kartavi rya
Mahendra
to
sf:ay
the
[kllrtavi ryoPllkhYllnamj86
[3.115.7-117.18] Narrator:
The hermit Akrtavrana . .
Audience:
Yudhi~~hira.
the
and Draupadi
Pa~~avas
When the party arrived at Mt. Mahendra, they 7earned rhat Rllma Jllmadagnya wou7d arrive the next day. asked
~o
hear the story
o~
his slaying of the
Yudhisthira
k~a~rjya.
The great king Gadhi went to live in the forest. his beautiful daughter Satyavati was born.
There
When the Bhargava
Rcika wanted to marry her. her father explained that family custom horses.
required that a
suitor deliver one thousand white
each with a bl ack ear.
He offered to exempt
the
brahman from this payment. but Rcika easily obtained them from
86bhavananugato viram jamadagnyam mahabalam/ pratyak~adar~i sarvasya PDrvav~ttasya karmanah//3.115.7 This ancillary tale is introduced merely with the phrase mah6nSsit (there was in Kanyakubja a great man [; . e.. ki ng]) at 3. 115.9.
kanyakubje
98
.
Varuna . When Rcika's father visited the couple, he was so pleased with Satyavati that he granted her a boon. both she and
her mother
be granted
She asked that
a son.
The
Bhargava
instructed her to embrace an udumbara tree and her mother an tree during their fertile periods.
a§va~~ha
The
women
embraced
the
wrong
trees,
so
Satyavati' s
father-in-la1lll declared that her son would be a brahman who would live as a
k~a'trjya,
would 1 ive as a brahman.
her mother's son a
who
k~atrjya
Satyavati begged for a postponement,
and i t was agreed that her grandson would live as a In time. Satyavati's son Jamadagni was born. be a master of weapons and Vedic learning.
k~atrjya.
He grew to
He married RenukB
and they raised fi ve sons i n the hermi tage.
Rllma was the
youngest. One day,
Re~uka
went off alone to bathe and happened to
see Ki ng Ci traratha bath i ng happ; 1 y wi th hi s wi fe.
Renuka
des; red
became
enraged.
him.
and when
she
returned
home
Jamadagni
He ordered his sons to kill her. but they did not,
so he cursed them to lose their minds. R3ma returned home a bit later. that he kill his mother,
When Jamadagn; demanded
RBma immediately cut off her head.
Jamadagni praised his obedience and offered him a boon.
Rama
chose the restoration of his mother's life and his brothers' sanity. as well as absolution of impurity for the murder. One day. the Bhargava Kllrtavirya stormed the hermitage,
99 abducted a calf and destroyed some t r e e s . o f t h e ofFense,
When RSma l e a r n e d
he b a t t l e d w i t h KartavZrya and c u t o f f h i s
I n revenges KZErtavT r y a ' s sans murdered Jamadagni one
arms.
day when Rams was away from t h e hermitage. A f t e r performi ng h i s +ather I s f u n e r a l , RSma swore t o k i 11 a1 1
the ksatriyas.
f i1ling
five
1akes
He slaughtered t h e m twenty-one
times,
the4 r
b1ood.
at
Samantapaficaka
w it h
F f n a l I y # Ramass g r a n d f a t h e r s R c Z k a , convi nced h i m t o s t o p h i s murderous slaughter.
He presented t h e e a r t h to t h e brahmans
and t h e r e a f t e r 1ived a1one on M t . Mahendra After
paying
due
honor
to W m a
a r r f v e d , t h e p a r t y headed south,
Jamadagnya
when
he
v f s i t f n g varfeus p i ?grimage
s i t e s and performing a u s t e r i t i e s d o n g t h e way. Q
.
The s t o r y OF Sukanya [ s ~ k a n ~ o ~ ~ k h y ~ n a m ] ~ ~
l3.121.23-325.10J Narrator :
LomaSa
Audience:
Yudhisthira,
..
the Pzndavas and Draupadi .
When t h e group arr$ved a t M t .
VafdtWya, near
the
NarmadiZ Rfver, Y u d h f s t h f ~ aasked t o hear t h e story o f Cyavma w t m marcfed Sukanya f n t h a t place.
Bhrgu had a son named Cyavana who occupied h i m s e l f w i t h demand4 ng a u s t e r i t i e s
near
the
Harmads R i v e r .
He
stood
a b s o l u t e l y s t i l l f o r so many years t h a t e v e n t u a l l y an a n t h i l l covered h i s e n t i r e body. ''etatsarvam
S t i l l he continued h i s meditat4on.
y a t h S v ~ t t a m ~ k h y z bhagav~nmaina/3.121.23cd tu
100
One day, King aaryati came into the vicinity on an outing with
a
huge
Sukanya.
retinue that
included his
daughter
Wandering about alone. she happened upon the anthi"
and noti ced two fl i ckeri ng Curious,
beautiful
she
fireflies.
1; ghts (Cyavana' s
poked them with The
a
thorn.
eyes)
thinking
enraged Cyavana cursed the
in
it.
they were
ki ng' senti re
escort of soldiers with constipation. The king knew that someth i ng was ami ss .
When Sukanya
mentioned to him what she had done. the king hurried to the anth ill
and
begged Cyavana' s
prank.
Cyavana requested·Sukanya for his wife,
gladly agreed.
forgi veness for
the
innocent
and Saryati
Sukanya 1 ived happi ly with Cyavana in the
forest and quickly earned his devotion. One day, the
A~vins
after she had bathed. was.
happened to see the naked Sukanya
They hurried to her to find out who she
They asked her to choose one of them for her husband.
but she explained firmly that she was devoted to Cyavana. persistent gods insisted that she take them to Cyavana. she did so. the
A~vins
The When
declared that they would make Cyavana
young. then Sukany8 must choose among the three of them. At the A§vi ns ' river with them.
instruct ions.
Cyavana jumped
into
the
When the three emerged. Sukanya could not
distinguish one from the other. she chose correct 1 y.
In
Her mind intent on Cyavana,
grati tude for bei ng
restored
to
youth, Cyavana stated that he would conduct a sacrifice and offer soma to the
A~vins
(who heretofore had been denied that
101
pri vi 1 ege} . When
Sary3ti
heard
the
good
news
rejuvenation. he hurried to the hermitage.
about
Cyavana's
Cyavana instructed
him to assemble everything necessary for the sacrifice. ~aryati
willingly did so.
On an auspicious day.
the sacrifice got underway.
Cyavana was about to offer a cup of soma to the appeared and lodged a strong protest. A~vi
and
A~vi
As
ns. Indra
He poi nted out that the
ns were not enti t 1 ed to dri nk sOllla because they associ ated
with humans. then threatened to hurl his weapon, the vajra. at Cyavana if he proceeded. Unperturbed, Cyavana continued the ritual. 1 i fted hi s
arm to st ri ke at Cyavana,
When Indra
he became paralyzed.
Cyavana uttered vari ous chants and there arose a
huge and
terrifying asura named Mada who rushed toward Indra.
Indra
relented. disclosing that he had. in fact, ordained that this shoul d
happen.
liquor,
women.
Cyavana di stri buted dice.
and the
hunt.
the fi erce Mada over and continued
to
live
happily in the forest with Sukanya. Following
~his
story, the party traveled on, hearing From
Loma§a the signiFicant events of the places they encountered as they approached the
Yamun6 River.
travel brought them to Kuruk~etra.
7a ter be waged.
This portion of their
where the great war would
10. ~ a " d h 3 t ~[3.126.1-126-431 ~' Narrator:
LomaSa
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i ra, t h e PSndavas and haupad2 *
When
group
the
.
.
amived
at
the
Yamun2I
River#
Y u d h i S t h f r a asked t o h e a r t h e s t o r y o f M m d h a t r , who had a7so worsh fpped there.
King
YuvanZISva
was
generous
in
his
s a c r i f i c e s and much admi r e d by h i s subjectsI
performance
of
b u t many years
w e n t by and he remained ~ t t i l d l e s s ~F i n a l l y one day,
he l e f t
h i s k i ngdoin and r e t i r e d t o t h e f a r e s t L a t e one n i g h t , h e r m i t a g e o f Bhrgu.
t h e t e r r i b l y t h i r s t y k i n g entered the As
i t happenedg t h a t
very evening a
hermit had mixed a p o t i o n intended tu make Yuvana6vaqs wife Oesperately t h i f s t y and f i n d i n g no one about t o
pregnant.
o f f e r h i m w a t e r g YuvanSfiva found t h e p o t i o n ,
drank i t g and
fell asleep. Since t h e h e r m i t s c a u l d n o t undo t h e s p e l l c a s t over t h e p o t i o n , YuvanS&va became pregnant.
A f t e r one hundred years,
h i s I e f t s i de sp1 it open and a ma1e c h i 1d emerged.
I n d r a came
t o v i s i t and p u t h i s f i n g e r i n t a t h e b a b y f i s mouthI
saying
m s m a y a m dhasyatityevam ('3.12627a)
and so
t h e c h i I d gs name became MZindhZtr. and w a s
p a r t i cu1a r 1y
(he w i l l suck me),
He grew to be a m i g h t y k i n g
remembered f o r
end* ng a
t w e l ve-year
e t a t t e sarvamZSkhyStam mandhatuScaritam mahat/ j anma cSgryam mahipxl a yanmZSm tvam p a r i prcchasi //3 126.43
103
drought w i t h t h e a i d o f I n d r a . 1I
. The
s t o r y o f Jantu [jantapakhyanam]8q l 3 . 3 27.1
-
128.19]
Narrator:
LomaSa
A u d i ence:
Yudhi s t h i ra* t h e Pgndavas and DraupadZ
.
..
Y u d h i,s.t h f r a asked t o hear about Kfng Somalea w h a ,
7 f k e Mandhatar, had p w f o r m e d ritua 1s m a p t h e Yamma R f v e r .
There once was a ktng named Somaka w h o had 100 wives grew o l d t r y i n g t o f a t h e r Jantu) was born.
sons,
He
and e v e n t u a l l y one {named
The 100 wives fussed over Jantu c o n s t a n t l y
u n t i l Somaka became exasperated.
How,
he asked h i s p r i e s t ,
might he o b t a i n 100 sons so t h a t he and h i s wives need n o t worry so much about t h e h e a l t h and we1 1-being o f t h e i t- s i n g l e The p r i e s t recommended t h a t Somaka s a c r i f i ce t h e 1ife of
son.
Jantu i n a s p e c i a l r i t u a l =
I f a11 o f t h e k i ngls wives waul d
i n h a l e t h e smoke from t h e o f f e r i n g ,
they would a11 become
pregnant and Jantu would be reborn from t h e same motherSomaka r e a d i l y agreed and although h i s g r i e v i n g wives tried
to
prevent
Jantu s
successful 1y cone1uded.
immol at4 on,
the
sacrifice
was
J a n t u was reborn as t h e e l d e s t o f 100
f i n e sons.
Many years l a t e r , Somaka died and d i scovereci t h a t h i s p r i e s t was sufYering i n he11 f o r having per+ormed t h e wicked
104
ritual.
When Dharma i n s i s t e d t h a t the p r i e s t must s u f f e r f u l l
term f o r h i s wrongdoing,
Somaka chose t o remain i n he1 1 w i t h
h h 3 arguing t h a t he shared equal 1y i n t h e f r u i t s o f t h e deed.
Eventually8 t h e two men achieved a higher w o r l d t o g e t h e r The party rested a7ongsfde the Yamma R i v e r f o r s e v e r a l
days. 12. The hawk and t h e pigeon [ ~ y e n a k a p ~ t ~ y a m ] 9 ~
[3.l3O.l6-l3Im32] Narrator:
LomaSa
Audience:
and DraupadZ Yudhi s *t h i ra, t h e Pandavas .
.
..
lomaga t o I d t h f s s t o r y unprampted when the Pzndavas reached t h e t z r t h a near t h e Jar&
Upaja 7s and Y a m M R7vet-s
where USinara undertook t h e sacrf f i c e described f n t h e s t o r y .
h d r a and Agni decided t o t e s t King $i b t t o determi rm if indeed3 he was equal t o t h e gads.
a hawk and Agnj t h a t o f a dove*
h d r a assumed t h e f o r m of The dove f l e w t o King $i bi
w h i l e he was conducting a s a c r i f i c e ,
s a t on h i s knee
begged %i b i to p r o t e c t him from t h e hawk.
and
The hawk p r o t e s t e d
vociferous1y; t h e dove was h i 9 r i g h t f u l food, and by d e p r i v j n g
the hawk o f i t cmly
the
s ib i
hawk's
would v i d a t e dharma by j e o p a r d i z i n g n o t
survival,
descendantss as w e l l
but
that
of
his
family
and
s i n c e t h e hawk would d i e and be u n a b l e
t o p r o t e c t him.
s ib i
remained t r u e t o h i s promise o f r e f u g e and o f f e r e d
g o ~ hcer i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s anci 1 l a r y story.
105 t o obtain any o t h e r food f o r t h e hawk. t h a t S i b i would c u t off t h e weight
of
h i s own flesh
t h e dove.
s u b s t i t u t e f o r t h e dove.
The
identities
and
i n an amount equal t o
hawk would
accept
i t as
a
As S i b i c u t pieces o f h i s own flesh,
t h e dove c o n t i nued t o outweigh them. whole body on t h e scale.
F i n a l l y , they agreed
F i n a l ly,
S i b i p l aced h i s
I n d r a and Agn3 revealed t h e i r t r u e
proclaimed
that
$ibi
would
henceforth
be
renowned f o r h i s devotion t o dharma.
Narrator :
Lomafa
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i ra, the PSndavas and DraupadZ * .
When t h e group a r r i v e d in &etaketuts
hermitage,
LomaSa told t h e fol lowing s t o r y about Svetaketu 's family.
The guru Uddalaka, f a t h e r o f Svetaketu, had many pupi l s,
b u t Kahoda was t h e best among them.
Recogni z i ng h i s promise,
Udd5l aka married h i s daughter Suj S t S t o Kahoda.
When SujatS
became pregnant,
the f e t u s
be1it t l e d h i s
f a t h e r ' s l e a r n i n g i n f r o n t o f Kahoda's students.
For t h i s
i n s u l t , Kahoda cursed him t o be born aStSvakra, o r e i g h t - f o l d crooked.
Just before t h e c h i l d w a s born, Sujata became concerned about her husband's meager l i f e s t y l e and begged him t o secure wealth f o r t h e c h i l d t s sake. King Jan-
Hoping t o receive patronage from
Kahoda went t o h i s c o u r t t o engage i n debate w i t h
^tatsarvam me 1ornafia famsa tattvam/1.132.5cd The phrase t a s k i n k a J e ( a t t h a t time) introduces t h e s t o r y a t 3.132.3a.
t h e low-born drowned him,
b u t s k i 1l f u l
Bandin.
Kahoda l o s t and Bandin
as he d i d every brahman whom he defeated by h i s
knowledge and q u i c k w i t .
The f a m i l y kept t h i s i n f o r m a t i o n from Astavakra who grew . up t h i n k i n g t h a t Uddalaka ( h i s grandfather) was h i s father and
Svetaketu ( h i s uncle) was h i s b r o t h e r .
One day when Astavakra ..
i n a f i t o f anger, t o l d him t h a t
w a s t e n years o l d , Svetaketu,
.
Uddalaka w a s n o t h i s f a t h e r .
When Astavakra 1earned the t r u t h
from h i s mother, he s e t out w i t h 6vetaketu f o r Janaka's c o u r t in order t o d e f e a t Bandin.
Along t h e way,
Astavakra encountered Janaka on the road .
..
and convinced him t o l e t Astavakra and 6vetaketu pass by and
c a n t inue on gatekeeper
t h e i r way.
a t Janaka's
After court
--
some d i f f i c u l t y w i t h
the
who had been entrusted t o
a1 1ow on1y e l d e r and 1earned brahmans t o e n t e r
- Astavakra . '
and Svetaketu f in a l 1y gal ned entrance in t o Janaka' s assembly. Once he had impressed t h e k i n g w i t h h i s s k i l l
at
riddles,
Janaka p e r m i t t e d him t o engage Bandin i n v e r b a l contest.
To
.
e v e r y o n e ' s s u r p r i s e , A s t w a k r a won t h e c o n t e s t as we1 l as t h e r i g h t t o dispose o f Bandin j u s t as he had k i 11 ed t h e brahmans whom he had p r e v i o u s l y defeated. p r i ests,
Suddenly,
i n c l u d i n g AstZvakral s f a t h e r ,
a1 1 t h e drowned
stood
before them.
' l h e words o f Astavakra a t 3.133.1 which convi need Janaka t o permi t him t o continue h i s journey i n f a c t c l o s e l y resemble Kashi verses f rorn t h e xpastambadharmasatra ( 2 . 5 . 1 1 . 5 - 7 , Their c o n t e n t s that a S a n s k r i t Series, Benares, 1932). r a t h e r than k i n g y i e l d s t h e way t o no one b u t t h e brahman t h e i r a u t h o r i t a t i v e source seem t o be what i n t e r e s t e d the e p i c ' s compilers.
- -
107
Astgvakra was duly honored and Bandin drowned h i m s e l f i n the * oceans r e t u r n i n g t o h i s F a t h e r * Varuna. 14.
The
story
of
Yavakr5 t a
[yawkt5 t~pakh~anarn]~~
[3.135.10-139.241 Narrator:
LomaSa
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a * DraupadZ and t h e PZndavas
.
.
..
a
Yudhfsthira asked .
foma6a
t o te77
the
story
of
Y a v a k r f t a when t h e p a r t y reached t h e hermftage u f Raibhya, t h e p 7ace where YavakrZ t a d i e d -
Raibhya* a brahman, and BharadvZija, an a s c e t i c * were f a s t f r i e n d s who 1ived t o g e t h e r i n a hermitage. Bharadvajal
observed
that
the
YavakrZta, son o f
brahman and
t r e a t e d f a r b e t t e r than him and h i s f a t h e r .
his
sons
were
Determined t o
command as much respect as t h e brahmans* Y a v a k r i t a undertook s t r i c t penances t o r e c e i v e knowledge o f t h e Vedas. Twice I n d r a appeared t o YavakrZta t o t r y t o d i ssuade him from h i s g o a l s but t o no a v a i l .
The t h 4 r d time,
I n d r a took
t h e form o f an aged brahman and appeared near t h e banks af t h e
Ganges where Yavakrzta performed h i s ab1u t i ons.
Yavakrcta
watched as I n d r a t r i e d t o dam t h e r i v e r w i t h handsful o f sand. Laughing a t h i s f r u i t l e s s e f f o r t s s Yavakrita t o l d t h e brahman t h a t he was attempti ng t h e impossible. Indra.
**So a r e you ** rep1i e d
Because h i s t a s k was f r u i t l e s s ,
would I n d r a not simply g r a n t him a boon?
s a i d Yavakrzta,
why
I n d r a d i d so,
and
g3etatsarvamyathavrttam Srotumi cchZimi lomaSa/ karmabhi rdevakal p ~ h ~ ki r nr t y a m ~ n arbhrsam i * rame//3.135.11
..
I08 YavakrZta
went
to
report
to
his
father
achievement o f knowledge .of t h e Vedas.
his
su~cessful
Displeased w i t h t h e
Bharadvaja t o l d h i s son a s t o r y t o warn him a g a i n s t
news,
pride. a * va1adhig4 t3.136.3-136.141 Narrator :
Bharadvaja
Audi ence :
YavakrTta
There once was a seer named Valadhi w h o g r i e v e d
over
h i s dead son.
Undertaki ng
rigorous
a u s t e r * t i es,
he
obtained a son who would 1i v e as l o n g as a c e r t a i n mountain range remai ned s t a n d i ng The young Medhavin,
aware o f h j s o r i g i n s ,
was f u l l
of
p r i d e and t h e r e T o m h o s t i l e and d i s r e s p e c t f u l t o e v e r y h e r m i t he encountered.
One day,
t h e puwerful seer OhanuSZksa t r i e d
t o reduce Medhavin t o ashes f o r an ofFense a g a i n s t h i m l n o t h i ng happened.
When
OhanuSfksa cursed t h e mountai n
but to
s p l i t , Medhavi n d i e d imtnedi ate1y . A n d so Bharadvaja warned h i s son n o t t o o v e r s t e p t h e
1 i m i t s o f p r o p r i e t y due t o excessive p r i d e * LomaSa
then
returned
to
the
story
of
YavakrYta8
[3. 736.14] A1 though V a v a k r i t a
promised h i s
father that
he would
honor Raibhya and h i s sons, he d i d n o t keep t h a t promise.
One
day he entered F?aibhyats hermitage and s p o t t e d h i s b e a u t i f u l d a u g h t e r 4 n-3 aw.
F i 11ed w4 t h passion
he raped h e r *
109
When Raibhya learned of Yavakrita's offense. he pulled two strands of his hair and burned them in the sacrificial fire.
One became a
demon.
beautiful woman, the other a ferocious
Raibhya sent them to kill Yavakrita.
The woman was
able to make Yavakrita unclean by seducing him and stealing his water bowl, thus he became vulnerable to the demon. demon
chased
hermitage. enteri ng..
Yavakrita
but
the
to
blind
the
threshold
guard
prevented
of
The
Bharadvaja' s
Yavakrita
from
The demon caught Yavakrita and sp1 it open hi shead.
When Bharadvaja learned how his son had died. he decided to give up his own life.
He cursed his friend Raibhya to die
at the hand of his own eldest son. Now at that time Raibhya's sons Arvavasu and Paravasu had been
selected
to
sponsored by King
participate
in
a
sacrificial
session
Returning home to his father's
B~haddyumna.
hermitage late at night. Paravasu mistook his father, who was sitting in the
forest wrapped
dangerous animal
and
in an antelope
killed him.
skin.
for
Realizing his error.
a he
performed the appropriate funeral rites for his father. then hurried back to
B~haddyumna's
what had happened. would expiate his B~haddyumna's
sacrifice to tell his brother
Arvavasu agreed to perform the ritual that brother's sin
while
ParBvasu
completed
ritual, still underway.
When Arvavasu returned to the king's sacrificial arena after completing his ritual, had murdered a brahman.
Paravasu shouted that Arvavasu
The servants threw ArvBvasu out.
The
110
gods stepped into recti fy the s i tuat i on and, pleased wi th Arvavasu. they granted him a boon. Bharadvaja,
and
Vavakrita
be
He asked that Raibhya,
restored to
life,
and
that
Par3vasu's parricide be absolved and the whole episode wiped from his memory. Yavakrita then asked the gods how it was that Raibhya managed to kill him. to
acqui re
Because Vavakrita had taken a shortcut
knowl edge
of the Veda,
knowledge was inferior to Raibhya's.
repl ; ed
the
gods,
hi S
The gods then returned
to heaven. The PS'!r:tavas pressed their diFFicult: stamina.
on despite the increasing dangers of
journey and growing concern
When
i1:
became c1ear "that
For Draupadi's
she could bare7y wa7k
anymore despite her de1:ermina"tion to con1:inue. 8hima summoned Gha~o1:kaca,
Gha~o1:kaca
his
demon
son
born
of
the
r3ksasi
willingly carried a17 of them well
hermitage of Nara and N6r6ya'!a on Nt. Kat 711sa. there for six days awaiting Arjuna. had an
extraordinary encounter
wi1:h
Hidimb6.
north 1:0 the They remained
During tha't 'time, Shima HanUm6n.
his
brother.
while looking for some saugandhika flowers which Draupadi had asked Shima to Find. himse1F in his
true
Hanam8n gran"ted his bro1:her a vision of Form and promised to reinforce
Bhima's
terrible roar in 'the coming bat:tle, t:herebyassuring 'the death
of Shima's enemies. F.
The section on the killing of Jatasura [ja~asuravadhaparvaJ
[3.154]
111 Fol lowing
this
encounter.
Shima
trave1ed
on
Kubera's hermitage where he found the Flowers he sought. others Followed him During
their
~here
stay.
Yudhi~~hira,
Draupadi.
was elsewhere.
to The
and remained For some time.
.
raksasa
the
Jat8sura
abducted
Sahadeva and Naku1a one day whi 1e Shima
Shima ki 1 led the demon and rescued his Fami ly.
They remained in the hermitage of
N.r8ya~a.
biding their time
unti1 they might be reunited with Arjuna.
G. Section on the war of the
yak~as
[yak~ayuddhaparvan]
[3.155-1721 1. Why Agastya cursed Kubera 95 [3.158.49-158.59]
Narrator:
Kubera
Audience:
The
par:--:tavas
host of gandharvas, apsarases,
I
Draupadi,
yak~as,
and
and Kubera' s
rak~asas
When Shima set oFF to co11ect ce1estia1 F10wers at Draupadi 's request. he tracked them to Kubera's domain. yak~as
and
rak~asas
entering the realm, and routed the rest. Manimat.
When
tried unsuccessFully to prevent him From and in the ensuing battle he kil1ed many Among those killed was Kubera's Friend.
he heard of his
Friend's death,
outraged and set out to Fight Shima. P~~t!avas,
Kubera
There
Kubera
was
Upon encountering the
however (who had meanwhi le come in search of Shima),
became quite
Friendly
and explained that
Shima
had
Freed him From a curse.
95Kubera' s account of the reason for hi s curse is not designated as an anc;llary story in the critical ed;tion. ~rotumicch.myaha~ deva tava;tacchapakara~am/3.158.49cd
112 Once Kubera and h i s f r i end Mani mat encountered Agastya as they t r a v e l e d t o a counci 1 o f Agastya's head,
t h e gods.
Manimat spat
on
and t h e sage cursed him t o be k i l l e d by a
human i n a b a t t l e t h a t would a l s o i n v o l v e Kubera's
Agastya declared,
troops.
however, t h a t once Kubera saw t h e k i 1 l e r ,
t h e curse would be l i f t e d . A t 3.163-171,
A r j u n a t e l l s h i s b r o t h e r s and Draupadi t h e It begins w i t h a summary, i n
s t o r y of h i s s o j o u r n with Indra. Arjuna ' s own words, 3.45.17-30,
of
the events r e l a t e d a t 3-38-45.
At
I n d r a had explained t o LomaSa t h a t Arjuna wou ld
n o t r e t u r n t o e a r t h u n t i l he had completed a s p e c i f i c task f o r t h e gods.
He must s l a y t h e asura Nivatakavaca who was t r y i n g
t o d e s t r o y t h e gods. Pandavas, however, ,*
U n l i k e a ? l t h e o t h e r adventures o f t h e
t h i s p a r t i c u l a r episode (3.165-171-10)
is
r e l a t e d by Arjuna himse 7 f , once he r e t u r n s t o h i s b r o t h e r s and
Draupadi i n t h e f o r e s t .
ti. Secti on on t h e boa c o n s t r i c t o r [ ajagaraparvan] [3.1731781
..
The Pandavas remained on
t h e mountain
for
years, then t r a v e l e d t o t h e v i c i n i t y o f M t . Y-una passed t h e t w e l f t h year
of e x i l e -
As
the year
f o u r more where they drew t o a
c l o s e , they went t o Lake Dvaita. One day, t h e Pandavas encountered a boa c o n s t r i c t o r who * *
took Bhima p r i s o n e r .
.
When Y u d h i s* t h i r a found Bhima. the boa
released him a f t e r Y u d h i s t h i r a gave c o r r e c t answers t o t h e v
boa s
quest ions
about
dharma.
In
their
subsequent
113 conversation
about
other
matters
of
learned t h a t t h e boa was King Hahusa,
now set f r e e .
dharma,
Yudhisthira
cursed by Agastya b u t
Nahusa returned t o heaven and t h e PSndavas and * .
t h e i r group i n t h e forest.
.
I . Section on t h e session w i t h MSrkandeya * [mSrkandeyasamSsyaparvan~ . [3.179-2221 A f t e r some months t h e Pandavas returned t o t h e Kmryaka  ¥
Forest.
Krsffa a r r i v e d f o r a v i s i t , and 7earned o f Arjuna 9 s * * *
Markandeya a 7so a r r i v e d and so began *
adventures w i t h I n d r a .
Ã
a 7engthy session of conversat ¥o and storytef 7 ing.
..
I n i t i a 7 7y8 Mmkandeya explained t h e o r i g i n s and operation of t h e l a w o f k a r m a . 1
.
(3.181)
The greatness o f brahmansg7 f3.182.1-182.211
Narrator: Audience:
.
Markandeya . Yudhii s* .t h i ra. SatyabhSmS,
t h e PSndavas, *
Narada,
and
the
Draupadi, PSndava .
entourage
.
The m a v a s c o l l e c t i v e l y asked t o hear about the greatness o f brahmans, and so Markandeya told t h e ,. f o Wowing s t o r y .
Whi l e h u n t i n g i n t h e f o r e s t one day. Ha4 hayas shot a hermit,
mistook f o r a deer.
a prince o f the
clothed i n an animal s k i n, whom he
The remorseful p r i n c e gathered a group o f
g6puravrtt8h kathah punyah sadacarah sanatanahl r S j fiam s t r i n a n i r s i n h ca mgrkandeya vkaksva nah//3.180.43
.. . .
h he story.
..
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y
k s a t r i y a t o g e t h e r and went in search o f t h e u n i d e n t i f ied dead
man's
father.
They
came
to
the
hermitage
A r i stanemi , t o l d him t h e e n t i r e story, .
.
of
TSrksya
then discovered t h a t
t h e y c o u l d n o t f i n d the dead manesbody.
"Could t h i s be him?"
asked Tarksya, p o i n t i n g t o a c e r t a i n h e r m i t standing nearby.
TSrksya explained t o t h e amazed ksatr-iya t h a t death has no power over such devout brahmans as they.
2.
The greatness o f brahmans,
cont inuedg8 (3.183.1
-
183.321 Narrator : Audience:
. Yudhisthira, ..
MSrkandeya .
SatyabhSmS,
the Pandavas, .
NSrada,
and
the
Draupadi,
..
Pandava
entourage Markandeya ., t o l d a second story about a brahman who understood the r e 7at ionsh i p between brahmans a n d
ksatrfyas. King Vainya was preparing t o undertake a horse s a c r i f i c e . The brahman A t r i considered a v i s i t t o t h e king, knowing t h a t he
would
receive
a sacrificial
fee
if he
did
so.
He
hesitated, however, out o f concern t h a t he would encounter h i s
r i v a l Gautama t h e r e who would speak i11 o f him no matter what A t r i s a i d t o t h e king.
Instead, A t r i planned t o r e t i r e t o t h e
forest. When A t r i announced h i s p l a n s t o h i s w i f e ,
she urged him
9 8 ~ sh is t o r y f o l lows immedi a t e l y a f t e r t h e conclusion o f t h e precedi ng one.
t o attend t h e s a c r i f i c e and secure wealth f o r h i s dependents before departing f o r t h e f o r e s t .
Acknowledgi ng t h e w i sdom o f
her advice, he went t o Vai nya*s s a c r i f i c i a l compound. had feared,
As A t r i
h i s r i v a l Gautama began t o argue
loud1y w i t h him as soon as A t r i a r r i v e d and greeted Vai nya as f i r s t among kings.
for
selfish
Gautama accused A t r i o f p r a i s i n g Vainya
reasons
alone.
To
s e t t l e t h e argument,
the
brahmans present subosi t t e d t h e d i sagreement t o SanatkumSra in order t o determine which p o s i t i o n was c o r r e c t according t o dharma.
The
dispute
settled
was
Sanatkumara declared t h a t A t r - i k i ng ' s supremacy. him.
Atri
i n A t r i g s favor
when
had r i g h t l y proclaimed t h e
Vai nya then bestowed consi derabl e weal t h on
d i s t r i b u t e d i t among h i s sons and l e f t "For t h e
forest. 3. The conversati on between Sarasvati and ~
a r k ~ ~ a
[3.184.1-184.251 Markandeya quoted t o t h e Pandavas a conversation * . * ' between t h e goddess Sarasvatz and t h e brahmaft Tarksya on t h e exemp 7ary behavior o f brahmans.
Narrator: Audi ence :
Markandeya .. Yudhi s t h i fa,
SatyabhSmZ,
the
N-ada,
..
PSndavas, and
the
Draupadi.
..
Pandava
entourage When TZWksya q u e s t i oned Sarasvati. about
- a t r a i va ca sarasvatya g i tam parpuramj aya/ prstaya muni na v i r a Srnu tarksyena dhimat~//3.184.1
...
..
1I 6 proper
behavior
for
mortal
men,
4 mportant of f e r i ngs t o brahmans:
and b u l l ocks
.
she
a
listed
cows, oxen,
number
0°
1odgi ng, go1d,
When he inqui r e d about t h e agnihotra r it u a l
,
she explained t h a t o n l y a S r o t r i y a p r i e s t should perform i t . 4. The s t o r y o f the f i s h [ m a t ~ ~ o p a k h ~ n a ~ ~
[3.185.1-189.31] a. Manu Vaivasvata [3.185.1-185.541 Narrator :
Markandeya ..
.
Audi ence :
Yudhi s t h i ra. SatyabhSm8,
.
the
PSndavas, and
NBrada,
Draupadi
the
Pandava .*
entourage Following
the
story
of
Tarksya
and
S a r a s v a t i , t h e Pandavas asked t o h e a r about t h e deeds o f Manu'.
Manu,
son
accomplishment.
of One
Vivaswat, day,
while
was he
a was
seer
of
engaged
great in
his
a u s t e r i t i e s near t h e banks o f t h e V i r i n i R i v e r , a f i s h swam near and begged Manu t o p r o t e c t i t from being devoured.
took i t from t h e r i v e r and placed i t i n a water j a r . grew we1 1 under Manuts care,
Manu
When i t
he t r a n s f e r r e d t h e f i s h t o a
pond, then t o t h e Ganges, and f i n a l l y t o t h e ocean. I n g r a t i t u d e f o r Manuts p r o t e c t i o n , t h e f i s h warned him t h a t i n t i m e a f l o o d would destroy t h e e a r t h .
He must b u i l d
a boat and gather on board t h e seven seers and t h e seeds of
'O0kathayasveha c a r i tam manorvai vasvatasya me/3.185.1cd ityetanmatsyakam n m a pu-nam par3 ki r t it a m / Skhyanaimdamakhy~tamsarva-aharam maya//3.185.53
every l i v i n g creature.
The f i s h would r e t u r n t o tow t h e boat
t o safety. Manu d i d as t h e f i s h advised and i n time i t returned.
Manu lashed destroyed,
a
cable
to
its
horn.
While
the
e a r t h was
t h e f i s h p u l l e d t h e boat year a f t e r year,
reaching t h e high peaks o f
t h e Himalayas.
finall y
When t h e y had
moored t h e s h i p there, t h e f i s h revealed h i m s e l f t o be Brahma
and i n s t r u c t e d Manu t o c r e a t e t h e w o r l d anew. b. MSrkandeya's account of t h e end o f t h e universe .
(mahSpra7aya)
and
its
future1''
[3.186.1-
189.311
.
Narrator :
Markandeya
Audience:
The Pandavas, Draupadi, Satyabhama, .
.
NSrada, and t h e PZndava entourage
.
Yudhisthira asked Markandeya t o give * * Ã
the Pandavas an account o f t h e re-emergence o f t h e universe .* f o 7 l o w i n g the mahapra7aya a t t h e end o f an eon.
As a witness
t o t h e passage o f many eons, Markandeya .. told t h e s t o r y from ¥first-han knowledge.
A f t e r d e s c r i b i n g t h e f o u r f o l d s t r u c t u r e o f an eon and the d u r a t i on
of
each
major
segment,
..
Markandeya
described
t a t h a katham gubham Srutva markandeyasya dhimatah/ v i smi t Z h samapadyahta puranasya h i vedanat//3.189 ;31 E d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note t h a t some 70 verses o f t h i s s t o r y a r e found n e a r l y v e r b a t i m i n t h e Brahmapurana See t h e notes to verse 3.186.59 in v o l 4, { AnandaSrama ed. ) p . 642 o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n .
.
.
1I 8
c o n d i t i o n s a t t h e end o f t h e Kal i era, i n c l u d i n g t h e a c t i o n o f t h e d e s t r u c t i v e doomsday f ire. Wandering t h e ocean t h a t subsumes a1 1 l i f e ,
.
Markandeya *
f in a l 1y encountered a small c h i I d in a banyan t r e e who i n v i t e d
t h e hermit t o enter h i s body t o r e s t .
.
( w h o was Visnu)
audi ence.
,
Once i n s i d e t h e c h i l d
Markandeya entered t h e world as known t o h i s
A f t e r roaming there f o r over 100 years, he implored
t h e c h i l d t o expel him,
then conversed w i t h the c r e a t o r who
h i m s e l f as t h e sum o f a1 1 d e i t i e s .
identified
Markandeya *
.
explained t o t h e Pandavas t h a t t h i s god i s none other than *
.
Krsna Varsneya. . a
*
.
Y u d h i*s. t h i r a then asked t o hear about t h e f u t u r e o f t h e world, pertain
..
and Markandeya descri bed t h e condi t i ans t h a t would at
destruction,
the
end
of
the
world
the
Kali
would
era.
gradual 1y
be
Following
its
renewed.
The
brahman K a l k i n would be born t o r u l e and t o e s t a b l i s h order accordi ng t o sacred precepts. the
K r t a era,
A f t e r describing conditions i n
..
t o observe Markandeya exhorted t h e Pandavas *
dharma.
5.
The
story
of
..
Manddka
[ mandukopakhyanaiiiJ^ ..
[3.190.1-190.821
..
Narrator:
Markandeya
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i ra, t h e PSndavas and Draupadi *
The Pandawas asked to hear s t i l l ,*
more about
the
I o 2 b ha y a e v a brahmanamahabhagyam m~k~deyam/3.190.1 vaktumarhasityabravitpSndaveyo e
..
119 grea~ness
of brahmans, and so
M.rka~~eya
~o7d
the Followjng
story.
In the midst of a hunt one day. King a lovely pond in a grove.
Parik~it
came upon
As he rested there with his horse.
he heard a woman singing beautifully.
He promptly fell
in
love with the singer, who agreed to be his companion only if he would never show water to her. They returned to his town together and the king had a beautiful park built, ensuring that it had no water.
As they
walked there one day, the tired and thirsty king came upon a pond
carefully
covered
over.
Apparently
forgetting
promise, he invited his wife to enter the water. and disappeared. found.
his
She did so.
When the pond was drained, a single frog was
Di straught and enraged,
the
ki n9 ordered that all
frogs be slaughtered. To dissuade Pariksit from the massacre, the king of the frogs approached him to beg for mercy. woman was hi s
daughter,
~u~obhana,
He explained that the
who had often decei ved
other kings in just the same way.
Her father ordered her to
stay
her
with
Parik~;t,
but
cursed
to
bear
unbrahmanic
children. Pariksit and autobhanK had three sons, Bala.
~ala.
the eldest, was made king when
to retire to the forest. stag in his chariot.
One day,
King
Sala. Oala and Par;k~it
~ala
decided
was pursuing a
Urging his driver onward. the driver
replied that it was useless to pursue the stag without certain
horses c a l l e d t h e Vamya.
^a1a sent t h e charioteer o f f
to
borrow those horses from t h e owner, t h e h e r m i t VSmadeva. When he had succeeded i n k i l l ing t h e stag, Sala declared the horses t o o good f o r a brahman, and refused t o r e t u r n them. When Vamadeva came t o reclaim h i s horses, a heated argument ensued.
Sal a was k i l l e d by raksasas whom Vamadeva invoked.
When h i s b r o t h e r continued t h e b a t t l e, VSmadeva commanded t h a t k i ng s p o i soned arrow t o k i l l Oal a * s o w n son.
When Dal a drew
a second poisoned arrow, Vamadeva paralyzed him and Dala gave up i n defeat.
To expiate h i s g u i l t , VSmadeva ordered Dala t o
touch h i s w i f e w i t h the arrow. o f f e r e d her a boon.
When he d i d so,
VSmadeva
She asked t h a t her husband be freed from
g u i l t and t h a t animosities be s e t aside.
Thus the c o n f l i c t
w a s resolved.
6. The s t o r y o f Indradyumna [ indradyumnopakhyanam] '03 [3.191 .I-191.281 Narrator:
Markandeya *.
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i ra, t h e Pandavas and Draupadi ' ..
The Pandavas and t h e rsis asked f f anyone had 1 i ved .. * . longer
.
t h a n Markandeya, ,
prompting h i m t o tel l
King Indradyumna f e l l compl e t e l y
forgotten.
In
the t a l e o f
from heaven because he was
search
of
.. recogni ze him, he approached MSrkandeya.
someone
who
would
A1though Markandeya
.
'03etanmayanubh~tam c i r aj i v i nadrstarni t i pandavanuvaca markandeyah/3.191.26 '
.
s
e
e
d i d n o t recognize t h e king,
he suggested t h a t
v i s i t a c e r t a i n owl i n t h e Himalayas.
Indradyumna
The k i n g changed i n t o
a horse and bore MSrkandeya away t o f i n d t h e owl. ..
owl d i d not remember him, crane
- older
i t suggested t h a t he f i n d a c e r t a i n
than both Mmkandeya and t h e owl
i n a place c a l l e d Indradyumnals same,
At
last,
a
and who,
divine
lake.
- who
lived
The r e s u l t was t h e
l a k e a t o r t o i s e who was
but t h e r e l i v e d i n t h e
c r a n e ' s elder,
When t h e
the
f o r t u n a t e l y , d i d remember t h e king.
chariot
appeared
and
Indradyumna
was
returned t o h i s p l a c e there. 7. The s t o r y o f Dhundhumara [ d h u n d h u a ~ o ~ a k h y a n a m ] ' ~ ~ [3.192.6-195.391
Narrator: Audi ence :
. Yudhi s. t. h i ra, MSrkandeya
t h e Plfndavas and Draupadi .*
Yudhisthira asked t o hear '
the t a l e about why t h e
Jksvaku k i n g Kuva 7aSva 's name was changed to DhundhuttMra.
The seer
Uttartka,
who dwelled i n a desert
hermitage,
.
succeeded i n o b t a i n i n g a boon from Visnu a f t e r l o n g years of propit i a t i o n .
V i snu * . granted him f i rmness i n dharma, but a1so
gave h i m t h e means t o k i l l an asura named Dhundhu who was
threatening t h e world.
A p r i n c e named Kuvala6va would be born
"'hanta t e kathayi syami Srnu rsjanyudhi s t h i r a / dharmi sthami . damakhyanam dhundhum~rasyata'cchrnu//3.192.6
.
a
idam t u punyamSkhyanam v i snoh samanuki rtanam/ Srnuyadyah s a dharmatma put'r'av~mScabhavennarah//3.195.38
.
E d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note t h a t s h o r t e r versions o f t h i s s t o r y appear i n Harivam6a ( C a l c u t t a ed.) 1 .11.667-705; VSyupurana 8.20-60 and ~ r a h h ~ n d3.63.29-61 a
.
.
122
t o be t h e instrument of
Dhundhu's
destruction
- with
the
assistance o f Uttahka. I n time Kuval a$va
- i n t h e IksvSku 1ine -- was appointed
k i n g by h i s f a t h e r BrhadaSva.
Hearing o f t h e g r e a t k i n g ' s
impendi ng r e t i rement, Uttahka attempted t o d i ssuade him and sought
h i s protection
from
the asura Dhundhu.
BrhadaSva
i n s t r u c t e d h i s son t o accomplish t h e deed. and s e t off new f o r e s t hermi tage
f o r his
.
.
Yudhisthira then asked t o hear more about Dhundhu, since '
he k n e w nothing powerful
of
.
Markandeya told how he came to be so *
him.
[3.194].
.
Visnu .
As
lay
sleeping on t h e
sprouted from h i s navel. Brahma, Visnu .
cosmic
ocean,
I n i t Brahma w a s born.
a
lotus
Spotting
t h e demons Madhu and Kai tabha began t o harass him.
awoke and o f f e r e d
to
grant
p r e f e r r e d t o grant one t o him.
them
a boon,
but
they
H e chose t h e boon t h a t
he
would k i l l them, which t h e y granted o n l y on t h e c o n d i t i o n t h a t t h e k i 11ing occur i n a p l a c e t h a t was uncovered.
t h i g h s were uncovered,
On1y h i s own
so t h e r e he c u t o f f t h e i r heads.
M a d h u and Kai tabha had a son named Dhundhu w h o performed many a u s t e r i t i es
.
Impressed by h i s devoti on, Brahma granted
him t h e boon o f i n v i n c i b i 1 it y .
Out o f contempt, he d i d not
mention humans i n h i s request,
t h e r e f o r e o n l y a human could
k i l l him. Emboldened by repeatedly.
his
boon,
Dhundhu defeated
the
gods
One day, he went o f f t o t h e desert near Uttartka's
123 hermitage and
h i d beneath the
A t his father's
devastate t h e world. off
sand where he continued t o request,
Kuva13Sva s e t
h i s 21 8000 sons and Uttahka to t h e sage's
with
desert
Dug o u t o f h i s sandy 1a i r, Dhundhu waged a f i e r c e
hermitage
b a t t l e J b u t was e v e n t u a l l y s l a i n by KuvalSSva who henceforth was c a l l ed Dhundhumara, s1ayer o f Ohundhu.
.-
Fo 7 Tow#ng t h e s t o r y o f DhundumZra, Yudhi s t h i r a asked
.
MZrkandeya t o address them on t h e s u b j e c t o f women and dharma, i n particular
t h e d i f f i c u 7 t ~ b 7 i g a t i o n sof a f a f t h f u 7 w i f e ,
and t o comment hunters] observe
on t h e d f f f i c u 7 t
e m p loyed
dhwma.
in
7 f v e s o f peop7e
reprehensib 7e work,
M2Irkandeya
rep1 jecf
wfth
(such as
who neverthe less two
stories
an
obedience* 8. The s t o r y o f t h e devoted w i f e [pativratopakhyanamJ
13.196-20-197.44J
Narrator:
Markandeya *
Audi ence :
Yudhi s t h i ra,
One day
..
t h e Partdavas and Dfaupadi '
w h i l e he was r e c * t i n g t h e Vedas8 a heron
dropped dung on t h e venerable brahman KauSika. k i l l e d t h e b i r d w i t h a h o s t i l e glance,
The p r i e s t
t h e n was f i l l e d w i t h
remorse.
KauSi ka I a t e r went ta a c e r t a i n house t o beg f o r alms. The woman who l i v e d t h e r e was about t u g4ve him f o o d when her husband r e t u r n e d home.
I n t e n t upon h e r d u t i e s t o h e r husband,
'05etatprakaranam r a ~ a n n a d hki r t y a yudhi s t h i r a / pativratSnSm hiyatam dharmam* c ~ v a ht a i h * h-nu//3.196.21
.
124 she f o r g o t finally
about t h e brahman w a i t i n g a t her door*
n o t i c e d hims she offered
enraged-
Food,
She asked h i s forgiveness,
When she
but t h e brahman was
c l a i m i n g t h a t he could
n o t be t r u l y knowledgeable about dharma i f he was unaware t h a t her
p r i m a r y duty was
powerful
to
her husband*
To
i l l u s t r a t e the
e f f e c t s o f h e r adherence t o dharmas she explained
t h a t she was f u l l y aware OF t h e i n c i d e n t w i t h t h e heron.
She
suggested t h a t t h e brahman c o n s u l t w i t h a c e r t a i n h u n t e r i n M i t h i l a w h o would educate him p r o p e r l y an t h e s u b t l e t i e s o f dharma. Conversation
$3-
between
a
[ brahmana vyZdhasamvadahJ lo'
brahman
a
and
hunter
[3.198.1-206.34J
Narrator :
Markandeya
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a s t h e PZCndavas and RraupadZ
.
8
Impressed w i t h t h e woman * s words
t h e brahman went
to M i t h i 1Zi i n search o f t h e hunter, who c l e a r l y knew why t h e brahman had sought him o u t . his
dwelling.
When
The h u n t e r took t h e brahman t o
admonished f o r
engaging
in
a
sinful
occupationI t h e hunter began a l e n g t h y discourse on dharma and w h i eh
karma
grew
in c r e a s i n g l y
more
From
e s o t e r i c.
a
d i scussion o f meat-eat* ng and t h e in e v i t a b i 1it y o f k i 11ings he
went
on
senses,
to
lecture t h e
brahman on
t h e eternal
souls the
t h e elements and t h e i r p r o p e r t i e s I t h e p r o p e r t i e s o f
t h e t h r e e gunas, and t h e workings o f breath { p a n & .
125 The hunter then took the brahman to visit his parents, usi ng the occasi on to di scourse on appropri ate behavi or toward one's parents. own parents,
He admonished the hermit for neglecting his pOinting out to him that other attentions to
dharma mi ght well be usel ess wi thout proper treatment of one's parents. Before departi ng J the brahman i nqui red how a §adra became so knowledgeable about dharma.
The hunter explained that in
a previous life he had been a brahman who became adept with the bow and arrow. killed a hermit. a hunter, dharma.
While hunting with a king, he accidentally As he lay dying, the hermit cursed him to be
but one who would be exceptionally well
versed in
The brahman then returned to his home and behaved
properly toward his parents and elders.
In c70sing
~he
s~ory,
s"tories i
71us~ra1:ed ~he
to one's
paren~s.
M.rka~~eya
remarked
~ha~
his
~wo
dharma o'f 'faith'ful wives and obedience
10. Al'lgiras [8"girasam] 107 [3.207.6-221.80] Narrator:
M.rka~~eya
Audience:
Yudhi~~hira,
the
A~ Yudhi!!~hjra's reques~1
of
~he
or
MlIrka'!C!eya
seer A"giras' re7ationship wi1:h
how Skanda was born s~ories
~o
~he
~o
Agni.
The
pa~~avas
~he
At one time, Agn;
~old ~he s~ory
'fire god Agni, and
rela~ionship
preceding ones, iF any,
and Oraupadi
of
~his
cycle
is unclear.
abandoned his sacrificial duties as
107 atrapyudaharantimami t i hasa!!, puratanam/3. 207 • 6ab
126 oblation-carrier and concentrated on his own austerities in the forest.
Meanwhile the seer
and performed them ably.
A~giras
assumed Agni's duties
The jealous Agni eventually decided
to return to his former position. and
A~g;ras
so for the well-being of the universe.
urged him to do
A~giras
deferred to
Agoi, asked him to be his son, and was granted by Agn; a son of his own named Brhaspati. a. The story of Agni 's abdication [3.212.1-212.19] M.rka'!t!eya ' s narrat i ve cont i nued wi th a 1engthy genealogy of the sacriFicial Fires l c1aim
that,
Adbhura.
in
Fact,
there
which concluded with the
exists
on1y
In the course of the narrative,
story of Grhapati, or Agni
l
one
Fire,
named
he recounted the
who at one time hid in the ocean
in fear of the niyata ritual.
Not feeling adequate to the task of carrying oblations during the niyata ritual. Agni begged Ar'tgiras to serve in his stead.
Refusing
continually.
Agni
gave
up
his
body
and
entered the earth. creating in turn various mineral ores from his body parts. A~giras
At length the combined austerities of Bhrgu.
and other seers emboldened Agni,
withdrew in fear.
but once again he
Finally. Ar'tgiras churned up the ocean to
recover Agn;, and since that time he has continued to serve as oblation-bearer to the gods. b. Kartti keya' s bi rth t08 [3.213. 1-221 .80] lO'The word purll introduces thi 5 story at 3.213. 3a. Its concluding verse clearly indicates that it was regarded as an independent story, even though the epic does not explicitly
127 M.rka~~eya ~hen
birth
to7d the
son of Agni by the wives of
l
Once, long ago,
of
K6r~~ikeya's
seven seers.
~he
Indra sought a commander who would stand
up to the asura forces them.
s~ory
in the gods'
perpetual
defeated the asura
He came upon and
battle with n who was
Ke~i
molesting a woman named Devasen3 J daughter of Prajapati.
She
also happened to be Ke§in's niece, daughter of his mother's sister.
She explained that Prajapati had granted her the boon
of a husband who would be a great conqueror. sympatheti c
Indra
at
that
moment
watched
The doubtful but the
sun
ri se,
thinking that a son begotten by the moon or the fire god would be a suitable husband.
Indra took Devasena to Brahma and
asked him to find such a husband for her. BrahmB declared that her husband and Indra's commanderin-chief would be the man
Indra had imagined.
Indra and
Devasena left to visit the seven seers who were engaged in sacrifice.
As Agni came forth to transmit their offering
noticed the priests'
wives and was filled with
lust.
J
he To
remain near them without doing any wrong. Agni entered the household fire so that he might at least observe them. 1 ust did not abate, austeri ti es.
At
so Agni
thi s
fled to the forest to
Svaha.
daughter
of
Dak~a,
His
perform who
had
watched and waited for an opportunity to express her love to Agni
J
realized that he was overcome by lust.
She determined
to assume the form of the wives of the seven sages and seduce refer to it as a kath •• up6khy6na, and so on.
3.221.80
128
Agni in the forest. When first approaching Agni. SvBha assumed the form of ~iVB.
wife of A~giras.
Agni was delighted with her sexual
When she sought to return home. ~iva took Agni's
advances.
seed in her hand. assumed the form of a quickly,
and dropped the seed
i naccessi b 1 e mounta in.
garu~a
bird to leave
into a golden vessel atop an
AssuIWi ng the form of each of the wi ves
in turn -- except Arundhati, whose devotion to her husband made it impossible for SvBha to assume her form -- SvBh& made love to Agni
and deposited his seed in the same container.
From the spilled seed, Skanda (Kumara. KBrttikeya) was born. Enormously
strong,
the
hurl i ng spears at mountai n Eventually.
the
truth
of
child
sat
tops and his
atop
pl ayi ng
parentage
the
mountain
boi sterousl y. was
revealed.
Vi§vamitra, who had secretly followed Agni into the forest and wi tnessed everythi"g. performed appropri ate sacraments for the chi 1 d.
Meanwhi 1 e.
the seven seers had di vorced thei r
si x
wives, believing them guilty of adultery.
When they learned
the
to
truth
from
Vi 6vami tra.
they
refused
forgi ve the; r
wives. Fearing Skanda's power. the gods sent the Mothers to kill him.
Instead. they nurtured and protected him. as did his
father. Agni.
Indra then gathered the gods to attack Skanda.
As they attacked him. various beings were born from Skanda's wounds .
~ri
herself came
to
honor
him.
and
including Indra. offered to make him their leader.
the
gods.
Demurring,
129
Skanda d e c l a r e d t h a t he would serve I n d r a J and t h e r e f o r e was named
commander
installation,
of
the
Devasena
godse
was
armies*
brought
to
Following Skanda
and
his the4 r
marriage performeda Fo1low4 ng t h e m a r r i age, t h e s i x wives o f t h e seven seers appeared and asked t h a t Skanda d e c l a r e himsel f t h e i r son. d i d so,
He
and t h e s i x then became t h e k r t t i k a c o n s t e l l a t i o n *
Steppi ng f o r w a r d next, t h e Mothers asked Skanda t o be declared t h e i r offspring, chi ldrena
and t h a t they be p e r m i t t e d t o devour a1 1
W i t h t h e p r o v i s i o n t h a t t h e y n o t devour c h i l d r e n
who honor themB Skanda granted t h e i r
r e q u e s t and p e r m i t t e d
them t o a f f 1i c t c h i l d r e n up t o s i xteen years o f age. Svzha son.
too
stepped forward t o demand a boon from
She sought t o remain f o r e v e r w i t h Agni
,
her
and so Skanda
declared t h a t h e n c e f o r t h a l l o b l a t i o n s should be oFfered w i t h the declaration
@t egsvah2L
F i n a l l y * &=ahmaexplained t h a t Skanda was i n f a c t t h e son o f Siva and Uma, who had taken t h e form o f Agni and SvShZ t o
bear Skanda f a r t h e goad o f t h e universe. Soon t h e r e a f t e r ,
t h e asuras a t t a c k e d t h e gods-
When
p a r t i c u l a r 1 y threatened by t h e asura Mahi sas Skanda k i 1 l e d him, ensuring t h e gods' v i c t o r y .
J.
The s e c t i o n on t h e c a n v e r s a t i o n between Satyabhama and OraupadT [drapadistyabmmasawSdaparva] 13 2223.2241 The
sessiim
wgth
Markandeya ,
was
now
conchded.
Immediate 7y
..
Krsna . #s wife
thereafter*
Satyabhama,
asked
Draupadi how she maintainted such a good r e 7at ionship w i t h her husbands,
f o r Satyabhama wanted t o learn from h e r *
enumerated t h e responsibf T i t i e s o f a d u t f f u 7 w i f e .
Draupadf
...
Krsna and
Satyabhama then departed. K.
The s e c t i o n on t h e c a t t l e r a i d fgho&ayStraparva] [3.225-3.2431
The a c t f m
of
DhrtarifstraJ and news of
the
na~rativeshifts
to
*.
t h e Pandavas a r r i v e s .
court
of
Karqa goads
Duryodhana t o show o f f h i s powerI and a c a t t 7e e x p e d f t i o n i s organized, d t h the r e 7uctant agreement o f Q h r t r a* s. t r a party
ensues. the
intrudes
upon gandharvas
f n Dvajtana,
and a b a t t l e
Duryodhana and most of h i s p a r t y a r e captured,
Pandavas ,
rescue
them.
Morta 7 7y
The
ashamedI
and
Duryodhana
determfnes to f a s t to death u n t f ? some dsnavas seek him o u t t o revea 7 i n format ion about t h e b a t t 1 e ahead-
Duryodhana r e t u r n s
t o tfast inapura* i s dissuaded from h o l d i n g a ceremony o f roya 7 ccmsecration ( s i n c e Y u d h i s.t h i r a i s s t i 7 ? a r i v e and t h i s i s not
.
permissib7e)# and instead holds a grand Vaisnava r i t u a 7. * L . The s e c t i o n on t h e dream about t h e deer
[mrgasvapnabhayaparva] l 3 . 2 4 4 ] Yudhi s, t* h i r a insolence.
arrfve,
concern
at
Duryodhana Qi
Fa? 7owfng a dream i n which deer t o l d Yudhi9thfra
t h a t t h e i r surviva7 DvaitavanaI
expresses
wou7d be compromised i f he remained
t h e p a r t y r e t u r n s t o Kamyaka Forest.
Vyasa
comes
to
comfort
them
in
tbeir
in
When they difficult
131 circums~ances,
and counsels
pa~jence.
M. The section on the measure of rice [vfihidrau~jkaparva]109 [3.245.34-247.47]
Narrator:
Vy3sa
Audience:
Yudhisthira
When
Yudhis~hira
asked
the re7ative
abou~
giF1:-giving versus perFormance of austeri1:ies, Vy6sa -the story of Mudga7a 1:0 An asceti c
illus~rate ~he
named Mudgal a
performed the new and full
1 ived
merj~s
o~
recoun~ed
va7ue of giving.
by gl eani ng ri ce.
He
moon sacrifices with scrupulous
care, and was extremely generous to the guests who visited him.
As a result, his food miraculously multiplied. Hearing of the generous hermit, the sage Durvasas went to
visit him.
Treated with Mudgala's usual generosity,
he ate
every bit of food available, and repeated this activity six times.
Durvasas was surpri sed to observe that the brahman and
his family remained cheerful and generous toward him, although each
time they
themselves would
go
hungry.
AS
Durv3sas
praised him following this ordeal. a chariot arrived to carry Mudgala to heaven as a reward for his deeds. Mudga 1 a hesi tated, aski ng the envoy who had come to fetch him to enumerate the virtues of those already in heaven.
The
envoy descr i bed heaven at some 1 engt.h, conc 1 udi ng wi th remarks about its faults. in particular describing the experiences of
109atrapyudaharantimami t i hasam puratanam/ vrihidronaparityagadyatphalam . . prapa mudgalah/13.245.34 .
132
thase whose v i r t u e fades,
causing them t o f a l l from heaven.
Heari ng t h i s * t h e hermit d e c l ined t h e o p p o r t u n i t y t o due1 1 i n heaven.
I n s t e a d he devoted h i m s e l f e n t i r e l y t o meditation i n t o reach a s t a t e OF permanent i n s i g h t .
an e f f o r t
N. The s e c t i o n on t h e abduction o f DraupadT
[draupadiharanaparva] l3.248-3.2831 A f t e r te 7 7 ing t h i s s t o r y ,
.
VySsa 7 e f t t h e Pandavas f n
.
KSmyaka Forest.
One day, t h e PSndavas went hunting, *
l2raupad.i behind i n the c a r e ofDhaumya.
leaving
A7ong came Jayadratha
o f Sindhu who was s t r u c k by Draiipadi ? s beauty and abducted
here when she refused to ge w f t h him.
Sensfng danger,
the
..
PiWtdavas r e t u r n e d t o t h e hermftage and q u f c k l y caught up w i t h Jayadratha.
..
Yudh i s t h i r a a 1 7owed hfm to escape,
but
when
Draupadi p r o t e s t e d aga f n s t t h f s ?eniency, Arjuna and BhZma pursued him, beat him up and shaved h i s head b e f o r e r e leasing him.
L a t e r s a s he s a t w i t h t h e r' *s i s who were cunsolfng him,
.
Y u d h f* s t h i r a asked Markandeya i f he had e v e r knawn a man so , 0
m i s w a b 7e' I
.
The
story
of
RZma
[ ramapakhyanam] 'lo
[3.258.4-
276.131
Narrator :
..
MiPkandeya
'"etanme bhagavansa~vamsamyagakhyStumarhasi/ 6rotumi cchSmi c a r i tam rSmasyZk1f stakarmanah//3 * * .
258.5
Scattered throughout t h i s tell ing o f t h e RSma s t o r y are verses s i m i l a r o r i d e n t i c a l t o t h e ValmZki Ra~#yana. For an assessment o f t h e I ong-stand* ng d i spute caneern?ng which {if e i t h e r ) s t o r y came f ir s t a see Robert P. Goldman a trans. a The RZmayana o f Va7miki, Vdume I: BSlakanda (Princeton: Prjnceton * ~ n < v e r & t yPress, W 8 4 ) . 8
.
Audience: Yudhi s. *t h i ra, t h e Pandavas and t h e hermits
.
.
When Y u d h i s t h i r a asked MRrkandeya #
f f a
man more
u n f o r t u n a t e t h a n he had ever 1 ived, the sage t o l d t h e s t w y o f
mma. Dasaratha, sons :
son of
Aja i n t h e Iksvsku l i n e a g e * had f o u r
Ramas Laksmanas Satrughna* and Bharata.
Ravana,
the
demon k i n g who abducted Ramals w i f e s E t a s was t h e grandson o f t h e god P r a j S p a t + .
P u l a s t y a s son of who
M S father
deserted
in
had a son named Vai gravarta favor
of
his
grandfather*
Pleased w i t h t h e young man, P r a j a p a t i granted him
Prajspati tmmortalityl
r i c h e s s and i n s t a l l e d him i n Lafkka where t h e
14 ved
raksasas
Prajzpati
.
I n anger
Pulastya
c r e a t e d a double
of
h i m s e l f and produced another son named ViSravass who became a hermit =
In t i m e , V i 6ravass too, f e l t angry toward Vai Sravana. bore
a
number
of
children
K~mbhakarna~V i bhigana
by
Khara*
raksasa
and
women:
SCjrpanakh~.
He
RZvana, RZvana
Kumbhakarna, and V i b h h a n a undertook a u s t e r i t i es t o w i n boons When t h e y succeeded, Ravana became in v i n c i bl e t o
f r o m Brahma.
a11 except sleep
for
humansJ Kumbhakarna was granted t h e a b i l i t y t o an
extended
period,
and
Vibhisana
was
granted
immortal it y and t h e a b i 1it y t~ remai n s t e a d f a s t in dtaarma.
After
r e c e i v i n g h i s boons RZvana t u r n e d Vaigravana out
Lahkas and,
when he t o o k Vaisravana * s c e l e s t i a l c h a r i o t
of
was
cursed never t o r i d e on i t and t o l o s e i t t o the man who would
k i l l him i n b a t t l e . As t h e
i n v i n c i b l e RZvana began t o t e r r o r i z e t h e gods, He e x p l a i n e d t h a t Visnu .
t h e y begged 8rahma f o r assistance.
had a l r e a d y been b a r n on e a r t h (as RZfma) t o defeat
Brahma t h e n
RSvana.
i n s t r u c t e d various i n h a b i t a n t s o f heaven t o be
born as b e a r s B monkeys and other b e i n ~ si n o r d e r t u a s s i s t V i m* u .
A gandharva named Oundubhi was in s t r u c t e d t o t a k e t h e
form o f a hunch-backed woman named UantharZ. When K i n g DaSaratha
reached t h e
age a t which
i t was
proper t o r e 1i n q u i s h h i s throne, he was assured by p r i e s t s and counselors t h a t Wfma was f i t to assume t h e throne. t h e k i n g s in t e n t i o n @
Hearing o f
t h e servant MantharZI p1anted t h e seeds
o f r iva1 r y in Kai keyZ s m i ndB p o i n t i ng out t h a t if Rams became k i n g 4 her sun Bharata would lose o u t . Uai keyf approached t h e k i ng seduct iv e l y and asked t h a t he n o w g r a n t a boon promised t o her l o n g ago.
t h e k i n g agreed t o g r a n t her wish.
she s t a t e d forest. with
it:
Without t h i n k i n g ,
He was g r i e f - s t r i c k e n when
Make Bharata k i n g and b a n j s h RSma to t h e
Upon hearing o f t h e boon, RSma s e t o f f f o r t h e f o r e s t
his
brother,
Laksmana,
and
wife
SZt3
without
any
hesitation. Soon t h e r e a f t e r
t h e k i ng died.
K a i key% summoned her son
and i n s t r u c t e d him t o assume t h e throne.
Revi 1 ing h i s mother,
Bhzrata s e t o u t t o b r i ng Rama back t o become k i n g R True t o h i s promi se, Rama r e f u s e d t o become k i n g and went F u r t h e r i n t o
the f o r e s t where he was ca1 l e d upon t o p r o t e c t i t s i n h a b i t a n t s
135
by ki 11i n g var30us rSksasas.
The wounded $kirpanakh~
witnessed Rams's conquest o f
t h e raksasas and was
--
who
herself
c r u e l 1y rebuffed when she made sexual advances toward RSma
--
returned t o t e l l her b r o t h e r Ravana o f t h e slaughter. Set upon revenge,
Rsvana sought out h i s former m i n i s t e r
Marica and threatened him if he would not RZvanags plan.
participate
jn
Mar5ca was t o assume t h e form o f a bejeweled
deer t o draw Rams and Laksmana o f f so t h a t RXvana mjght abduct SZtZ. H i s plan
succeeded.
As
she w a s being abducted,
v u l t u r e J a t ~ y uattempted t o rescue RZivana.
Eta,
the
b u t was s l a i n by
Before dying, he communicated t o t h e d i straught Rama
and Laksmana t h a t S Z t S had been kidnapped. As she w a s f l o w n through t h e a i rI S Z t a dropped pieces o f jewelry and garments as d u e s t o her path. travel
i n search
H k s a s a wha,
o f her,
A s they b e ~ a nt o
t h e brothers b a t t l e d a h o r r i b l e
i t happened, was a gancfttarva cursed by Brahmg.
He advised them t o search out t h e monkeys Sugrfva and V a l i n f o r assi stance.
When they found SugrZvas Rama and Laksmana were given a robe which
Sits
reached an
agreement
had dropped during by
which
her
abduction.
Rama would
k i 11
They
Sugr5vags
brotherI V a l i n ,
and SugrTva would recover S i t a m - And so, as
they had agreed,
t h e group t r a v e l e d t o K i skindha Forest where
SugrZva engaged V a l i n i n b a t t l e .
When t h e b a t t l e reached a
draw* Rama kept h i s promise and k i 1l e d Val in w i t h an arrow t o
136
the heart.
The group then lived together for four months in
Kiskindha Forest. Meanwhile. lar\ka.
closely
merci 1 essl y.
Rava~a
had placed Sita in an a§oka grove in
guarded
by
rllksasis
who
A good-hearted rllk!!asi named Tri j
taunted a~a
her
confi ded to
Sita that Rama was well. and that she need not fear
Rava~a.
He would never rape her since he had been cursed to become ; mpotent if he ever attempted to force hi mse 1 f upon any woman. In her dreams. she told Sit •• she had seen a great battle in which R3ma was victorious and rescued Sitae After four months of waiti n9. anxious to recover Sitae
Rama grew restless and
He sent Laksmana to i nsi st that
Sugriva honor their agreement.
Sugriva explained that his
search parties were about to return from scouring the earth in search of Sitae When they returned. the monkey Hanuman reported that he had found Sita in
La~ka.
He had reassured her that RKma would
soon rescue her. and presented RKma with a token by which Rama could be assured of her identity. The monkey armies assembled and conferred about how to cross the ocean length of 100 leagues to by Rama.
Propitiated
the god of the ocean appeared to him in a dream and
promised to permit the monkey Nala. construct a bridge to built.
La~ka.
La~ka
son of
undisturbed.
Vi~vakarman.
to
When the bridge was
the army quickly amassed on lar\ka. and Rama's envoy
entered the we 11
fort i fi ed ci ty .
Rebuffed by
R.va~a.
he
returned t o Rams and a f i e r c e b a t t l e ensured.
Even t h e mighty
Kumbhakarna was k i 11ed , RZvana s son 8 I n d r a j it
un1eashed h i s
c e l e s t i a l weaponsJ s t r i k i n g down both RZSma and Laksmana.
But
V i bhTSana r e v i ved them and SugrLva cured them o f t h e * r wounds.
Eventual 1y,
Laksmana k i 11ed I n d r a j it
b a t t l e j n h i s m i ~ h t yc h a r i o t I
.
When RZvana j a i ned the
Wftali,
charioteer o f
appeared beFore RZma w i t h I n d r a t s own c h a r i o t . i t t o b a t t l e RSvana.
weaponI
lndra,
Rama mounted
When he employed t h e c e l e s t i a l
braha
Rama slew Ravana.
When S Z t a f i na3 l y emerged from Latika* Rama declared t h a t she was free; gads appearedI would d i e
if
decl ared her
he c o u l d n o t take her back as h i s w i f e .
A 1 1 the
and S Z t a declared i n a vow o f t r u t h t h a t she she had done any wronginnocence-
The dead
The
gods
monkeys were
T r i j atg rewarded8 Hanuman granted immortal it y
i n turn rev4 vedJ
and Rama and
S i t s were r e u n i t e d t o r u l e i n AyodhyZ-
Narrator : Audi ence :
.. Yudhi s. t. h i r a MZrkandeya
t h e Psndavas, and Draupadi
''%he c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n does n o t g i v e a t i t l e f o r t h i s anci 11a r y s t o r y . 6rnu rZjanku1a s t r i n a m mahabhsgyam yudhi s t h i r a / sa+vametadyath~praptam savi try^ * r ~akanyay~//3.277 j 4 E d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n n o t e t h a t t h 4 s s t o r y also appears in t h e Skandapurana (7.1 ,lee), w i t h many verses and ha1f-verses a ~ r e eng i verbatim i n t h e two s t o r i e s . Several verses (3.281 -57-58; 3.283 16) a1so occur in t h e Matsyapurana (Zl3.l4-l6; 214 - 2 3 ] , a1though not necessari 1y verbatim.
-
138
When
Yudh;~~h;ra
conFessed
~o
M.rka~~eya
was most distressed over Draupadi's near abduct;on l
that he he asked
;F so devoted a wiFe had ever 1ived, and M6rka'!t!eya responded w;th the taTe of S6v;tri.
The virtuous king of the Madras named a vow to have children.
A~vapati
undertook
After eighteen years, the goddess
Savitri appeared to inform him that BrahmB would soon grant him a daughter.
In time, a beautiful daughter, whom he named
Savitri, was born.
She was so extraordinary,
suitors dared not approach her. her
to
fi nd
a
sui tab 1 e
however, that
One day. the king instructed
husband
for
herself
criticized for not arranging a marriage for her.
1 est
he
be
She traveled
far and wide with her father's counselors to find the right
man. After some time, S&vitri returned home to announce that she had chosen Satyavat, son of the
~alva
king Dyumatsena.
The sage Narada, who happened to be visiting with the time
J
A~vapati
at
confi rmed Satyavat s many vi rtues, but exp 1 a; ned why I
he was a disastrous choice for a husband. die in one year.
He was destined to
Resisting her father's efforts to dissuade
her, Savitri insisted upon marrying the man she had chosen. and the wedding took place. Savitri l;ved happily with her husband and his parents in thei r
forest
hermitage,
occupi ed
by
them si nee the
bl i nd
Dyumatsena had been turned out of his kingdom by an enemy. Remembering N&rada's words. S3vitri kept a careful count as
139
the days passed. Savi tri nights.
made a
Four days before her husband was to die. vow to
remai n stand; ng for
three days
and
Successfully completing her vow on the day Satyavat
was to di e, she performed her usual duti es.
When Satyavat set
out to gather frui ts and wood. she; n5i sted upon accompanyi ng him. Exhausted lap to rest.
~rom
his
e~forts.
Satyavat lay his head in her
Soon. a handsome but fearsome man approached.
It was Yama. god of death.
He drew a thumb-sized person from
Satyavat's body. tied it with a noose. and set off toward the south with Savitri following behind. back.
but she
Vama told her to turn
i nsi sted that she would follow her husband.
Impressed by her devotion. Vama granted her any boon but her husband's life.
She chose the restoration of her father-in-
law's eyesight and continued to follow Yama. Granted a second boon by Vama. she asked that her fatherin-law's kingdom be restored. that
her
own
father
And granted a third. she asked
be granted one
hundred
sons.
St i 11
refusing to leave Satyavat. 5avitri continued to impress Vama with her knowledge and wisdom. earning a fourth boon.
This
time she chose one hundred sons for herself. born by Satyavat. Finally, Vama granted her a fifth boon without condition, so she chose Satyavat's life. When Satyavat regai ned consci oU5ness.
the two hurri ed
back to the hermi tage si nce ni ght had fall en. Dyumatsena
had
regai ned
hi s
si ght
and
went
Meanwhi 1 e. to
all
the
140 nei ghbor; ng
hermitages
in
search
of
hi s
son
and Savitri.
Various sages assured him and his wife that the two were safe. When they finally returned. savitri recounted the entire story to Satyavat. his parents. and the assembled hermits.
She was
warmly praised. The fo 11 owi ng day. mi n i sters arri ved to announce that the usurper and his fl ed.
retinue had been killed.
Dyumatsena and hi s
fami 1 y
and his army had
returned to hi s ci ty.
In
time both Savitri and her father bore 100 sons, according to the boons she had received. O. The section on the theft of the earrings [ku~~al.hara~aparva]
[3.284-294]
As the twe1Fth year drew to a
close, one Final event
occurred which was to be extremely signiFicant to the outcome oT the Mahabh.rata
war:
Indra
succeeded in obtaining
From
Kar,!a the armor and golden earrings with which he had been born, and which made hi'" invulnerable. SDrya.
Karna's
Fa1:her.
Indra
Despite the eFForts of
was able to deprive Karr:ra
those weapons by appearing to him as a Karna was unable 1:0 reFuse Indra.
but
beggar.
0"
Ultimately
in return he requested
and received a weapon Fro", Indra which wou1d kil1 one -- but on7yone -- enemy_ of this.
The P8'!t!avas were jubi lant when 1:hey heard
For i1: meant that Karna could be deFeated.
P. The section on the wooden fire-sticks [.ra'!eyaparva]
[3.295-3.299] Book
three
closes
Fol lowing
an
encounter
between
141
Yudh. i s t b i r a and h i s father t h a t has Q u i t e a d i f f e r e n t outcome Ã
than K a m a ' s (whose father had f a i l e d t o p r o t e c t him). loss, t h e Pandavas had returned A f t e r hearing o f Krsnars * . Ã
t o D v a i t a Forest. request,
water
One day,
b f s f o u r brothers
seeking water a t
Y u d h i s* t h i r a r s
mysteriously died.
They drank
f r o m a c e r t a i n lake a f t e r having been w a r n e d by
an
f n v i s i b l e being not t o d r i n k u n t i l t h e y had answered c e r t a i n
.
Yudhfsthira . came
quest ions.
in
search
of
his
brothers,
discovered a yaksa who 1 Wed t h e r e , and answered a 7 7 o f h i s very e s o t e r i c
questions.
The yaksa brought t h e four b r o t h e r s
back t o l i f e and revealed h i s t r u e i d e n t i t y :
he was Dharma,
Y u d h i s.t h f r a @s f a t h e r . The
Sranyakaparvan
closes
with
the
.
PSndavas
in
c o n s u l t a t i o n about h o w t o arrange t o spend t h e i r f i n a l year o f e x i l e incognito.
142
4.
The section about A.
Vira~a
The sect;on about
[vir.~aparvanJ
Vira~a
The P3ndavas concluded
~ha~
Tina7 year of exi7e in disguise in ru7ed by
Vira~a.
[4.1-4.12]
[vair8~aparvaJ
~he
~hey
should spend
~heir
kingdom of 'the Ma'tsyas,
They decided upon 'their secre't iden'ti'ties,
and hid 'their weapons in a 'tree ou'tside of 'the One by one 'they en'tered 'the
ci~y
capi~al
ci'ty.
and were re'tained by 'the
king to serve in his cour't.
B.
Sect;on about the killing of Kicaka {kicakavadhaparva} [4.13.1-23.28)
1.
Famous fai thful wi ves '1Z [4.20. 7-20. 13] Narrator:
Bhima
Audience:
Draupadi
While Draupadi and 'the Pandavas lived out 'their thi rteenth and Fina 7 year of exi 7e, Draupadi was seXUB
repea~edly
7 7y propos i 't i oned by Ki caka, marsha 7 of Vi r.~a ' s army and
brother of Queen Sudesn8.
Fol7owing an inciden't (4. 15) during
which he kicked her, Draupadi decided'tha't Kicaka mus't die For humi7iating her. initia77y
She convinced Shima 'to ki 7 7 him,
attemp~ed
'to dissuade her by invoking
bu't he
(in great7y
abbrevia'ted Fashion) 'the 'ta7es of o'ther heroines.
Shima
reminded
Draupadi
of
four
other
virtuous
and
faithful women who had sacrificed greatly for their husbands' sake:
Sukanya. who remained faithful to the aged, irascible
112The critical edition gives no title for this ancillary
story.
143
Sndrasena NSdZyanZ , who f d 1owed
and ugl y Bhargava Cyavana; h e r one-thousand-year-01
d husband; S f t S , w h a remai ned f a i t h f u l
to h e r husband RZma even when abducted and suFfering g r e a t l y at
the
hands
of
the
rzksasa
RSvana;
and
LopSmudr&
who
abandoned a1 1 comforts t o fa1 low t h e sage Agastya.
Bhima ' s
caunse 7s o f
pat fence
unsuccessfu 1 ,
were
Or-aupad2 p f e v a i Ted upon him t o murder &-caka.
and
When KZcaka ' s
fami 7y prepared t o cremate DraupadZ a Tong w f t h K2cakaD she summoned Bhima by h i s secret name. mare t h a n one hundred o f &-caka's
He rescued her,
k i n i n t h e process.
ki71ing WiriItaD
a t t r f b u t ing t h e massacre t o Draupadi * s supposed husbands, t h e
gandha~vas,demanded t h a t she leave t h e c i t y . Su&wman o f
the
Trigartas,
an a77y
of
t h e Qh8rtarastras, * . The death of h i s
cunvfnced them t o invade t h e Matsya kingdom. enemy f i c a k a
Meanwhi l e , Kfng
had weakened t h e kingdom, he safd.
C. The s e c t i o n on t h e c a t t l e r a i d [gograhanaparva] [4.244.621 As
the
ensuing j o i n t
cattle
t e r r i t o r y g o t underway, t h e Pandawas * ,
raid
of
the
term o f e x i
Matsya
re ended.
V i rats i n f t f a t 1y engaged SuSarman and was taken prisoner,
but
Yudhi s. . t h 2 r a and BhZma rescued V f r a t a and captured SuSarman. Word o f t h e v i c t ~ r yspread, b u t not b e f o r e Arjuna set o u t as charioteer
to
V i r Z t a f s son,
Uttara,
in
order
to
Duryudhana, who was r a i d i n g elsewhere i n t h e kingdom.
attack With
g r e a t e f f o r t t o emholden t h e t e r r f f fed U t t a r a , Arjuna fevea Ted
t h e i d e n t i t i e s o f t h e Pl#ndavas t o hfm, and t h e two confronted 0
t h e Kaurava
force
I n an e x t r a o r d i n a r y encounterf
Arjuna
m u t e d t h e Kauravas and s t o l e t h e i r c l o t h i n g (except t h a t o f Bhfsma, who a l s o p a r t i c i p a t e d i n t h e f i g h t ) and f o r c e d them to retreat = The s e c t i on about the weddi ng [vaivahikaparva] 14.63-
0.
4-67]
Severa 7
days
after
the
Matsyas
were
v i c t o r i o u s 7y
.
revea Ted t h e f r i d e n t i t i e s , and V i r a t a reunited, t h e Pandavas * daughter
Uttara
Abh imanyu.
marriage*
5.
great
A
and
was g i v e n
so
in
marriage
t o Arjunafs
assemb7y
gathered
to
concludes
the
celebrate
f o u r t h book
of
sun, the
t h e M6hf
The s e c t i o n about t h e p r e p a r a t i o n s ( f o r war)
[udyogapa~van] A.
The s e c t i o n about t h e p r e p a r a t i o n ( f o r war) [udyogaparvan] [S. 1-5-22
The e n t i r e udyogaparvan
i s concerned w i t h n e g o t i a t i o n s
between t h e Pandavas , and Ouryodham aver t h e r e s t o r a t i c m o f e
h a ? f the kingdam t o t h e Pandavas. ' *
Y u d h i s.t h i r a dispatched t h e
f i r s t emissary, f?rupadafs p r i e s t , a t about t h e tfme when K f n g &7ya
o f t h e Madras undertook
a journey
P ~.m f was. a I
.
The s t o r y o f I n d r a ws v i c t o r y
t o a l l y with the
1 i ndravf3ayopakhyanamj
'I3l5.9.1-18.20]
Narrator:
6a1ya
Audience:
The PSndavas and Krsna . * . *
h7ya,
.
k i n g o f t h e Madras,
.. and Kaufavas, Pandavas
matema7 u n c l e o f t h e
and commander o f f3uryodhana ?s army,
.
t r a v e l e d w f t h h f s troops fntendfng t o 3uin the Pandavas as t h e . cousfns marsha7ed t h e f r
fumes
Du~yodhana ?s demonstrat ton o f troops a long t h e i r route, Kauravas.
for
Impressed wf t h
war.
hasp it a 7 i t y t o
h ftn and h i s
ga 1ya c h a n ~ e dh i s a 1legfance t o t h e
.
ga7ya then met w i t h t h e Pandavas t o assure them
t h a t they wou7d t r - f u ~ p h ,and caunse l e d them t o persevere.
tie
t o l d them a s t o r y o f I n d ~ a t o f 1l u s t r a t e t h a t the d e f t f e s a?so have prub7ems-
Note t h a t I n d r a and V i s,n u cu1 7ude to defeat
W t r a , ~ u s as t Salya and t h e Pandavas , do t o defeat Karna.
P r a j Spati created a three-headed T r M i ras
i n order
to
spite
recounted in t h i s t e l l ing 1
son named V i 4varUpa o r
Indra-
(The
reasons
Feari ng t h a t V i GvarUpa would
usurp h i s p o s i t i o n as k i n g o f t h e gods,
Irtdra sent apsarases
--
t o seduce him.
When t h e * r e f f o r t s f a i l e d ,
o f brahmani c i de
-- s1e w T r i S4 r a s w i t h h i s thunderbol t
his
body
ablaze,
Indra
are n o t
feared
he
was
Indra
i n an a c t See4 ng
st$11 alive,
and
t h e r e f o r e convi need a woodcutter standi ng nearby to c u t o f f T r i S i r a s * t h r e e heads.
upakhyanamidam Sakravijayam vedasammitam/ . shnZ kesu Srotavyam jayami echat~//5.18.16 r Z j iW v y ~*d h e
Enragedl
P r a j a p a t i created t h e demon V r t r a f a r t h e s o l e
purpose of k i l l i n g Indra.
As t h e two b a t t l e d J V r t r a managed
to swallow I n d r a J b u t the gods caused him t o yawn and I n d r a escaped.
Unable t o
consulted Visnu for *
overcome V r t r a ,
assistance.
Indra
retreated
and
Visnu . proposed a p l a n f o r
defeat* ng V r t r a which was set i n mation when h d r a d e d a r e d a truce.
I n accepting i t * V r t r a declared t h a t he c o u l d n o t be
defeated by day o r n i g h t J w i t h rock o r woodJ wet matter o r d r y J n e i t h e r by thunderbolt nor o t h e r weapon* One day when V r t r a stood a t t h e ocean s edge a t t w i I ight
.
Wsnu entered t h e foam. '
Indra h u r l e d t h e foam a t V r t r a and
s t r u c k h j m dead. Overcome w i t h gui 1t because OF h i s d e c e i t f u l a c t , neglected t h e world and h i d beneath t h e waters. ensued,
bdra
A drought
and t h e gods h u r r i e d l y selected Mahusa t o serve as
k i n g o f t h e gads-
In t h e i r hasteJ they granted Nahusa t h e
abi 1it y t o absorb t h e sp1endor o f any powerful bei ng who wuul d
come i n t o t h e range o f h i s v j s i m .
Once made k i n g o f the gods, lust.
Eventuallyl
Nahusa became F i 1l e d w-i t h
he saw I n d r a t s w i f e J sac2 or I n d r a n i , and
i n s i s t e d t h a t she now consider him her husband.
Pleading f u r
sac5 (on Brhaspati 's advice) promised Nahusa t h a t she
time
would come t o
him once she discovered what
had become o f
Indra. Meanwhi l e , t h e gods appealed t o Visnu f o r h e l p -
Visnu a
.
declared t h a t I n d r a would be absolved of h i s crime i f he would
147
s a c r i f i c e t o Visnu. *
A f t e r performing a horse s a c r i f i c e I I n d r a
a
was p u r i f i e d o f h i s s i n . r u l e,
S e e h g t h a t Nahusa continued t o
however I Xndra agai n d i sappeared. When I n d r a d i sappeared a second timeI sac? w a s determj ned
to g e t him back-
She worshipped t h e goddess R S t r i and was
granted a goddess guide named Whisper who took hev on a l o n g journey t o f i n d Indra. that
Once she l o c a t e d himJ I n d r a i n s i s t e d
he could n o t d e f e a t
en1 i s t e d sac2 * s h e l p
a l o n g s so he
Nahusa by s t r e n g t h
i n deposing
Nahusa-
She was t o ask
Nahusa t o came t o her on a palanquin c a r r i e d by two seerssac2
returned t o
granted her wish
heaven t o
s e t up t h e
ruse.
Nahusa
and was immediately cursed by t h e two seers
whom he humi 14ated.
sac2 then i n s t r u c t e d Brhaspati t o f i n d
and r e t u r n I n d r a t o heaven. At
Brhaspati ' s
1ocate I n d r a .
u r g i ng,
Agni
tried
u n s u c c e s ~ f u1y ~ to
Re1u c t a n t l y f o l 1owi ng Brhaspati s
instructions t o
@
search
the
watevss Agni
found
subsequent Indra
and
r e p o r t e d t o Brhaspati t h a t he was h i d i ng i n a l o t u s f i b e r . When a1 1 t h e gods went t o him8 heaping p r a i s e upon h i m 8 I n d r a was
f i n a l 1y persuaded
a1 1iance w i t h Agni a p1an o f attack.
I
to
come o u t
and f i g h t
Nahusa.
Kubera, Soma, Yama8 and Varuna,
In
he devi sed
As t h e y planned, t h e sage Agastya appeared
to announce t h a t Nahusa had a l r e a d y been ousted f r o m heavenWhen he i n a d v e r t e n t l y touched h i s f o o t t o Agastya8s head, t h e
sage c a s t him f r o m heaven
A t l a s t 8 I n d r a was reumi t e d w i t h
h c i and resumed h i s p l a c e as k i n g o f t h e gods-
Despite t h e loss o f t h e Madras, suppart o f seven armies.
f3.
.
Y u d h i s.t h i r a gained the
The Kauravas counted e7even among
The s e c t i o n about t h e going o f Samjaya
The
embassy
of
Drupada f s
priest
f a i led
and
f o r peace. D h r t a r a*s. t r a sent Samjaya t o p read w i t h t h e PWxtavas * . Although he argued t h a t anythfng was b e t t e r
than a b7oody
...
fami 7y war, Krsna came forward t o i n s i s t upon t h e j u s t i c e o f
.
t h e Pandava cause. *
H e announced t h a t he hfmself w o d d t r a v e l
t u t h e Kauravas a s emissary. t h e Kaufavas w i t h h i s a f f e r
Yudhisthira sent Sam~ayaback to * . t o settle the dfspute
ff
five
.
v i 7 rages were awarded t o t h e Pandavas. '
In t h e course o f D h r t a r a s . t r a F s sleep less n i g h t f o 7 7owing Samjaya @ sr e p a r t t h a t t h e Pandawas wou7d not yie7d,
Vidura
recounted t o him the s t o r y o f a conversat i o n between Virocana and Sudhanvan on the s u b j e c t o f honesty. C.
The sect ion about b e i ng awake [ p r ajzgaraparva]
1
15.33-
The conversatiem between Virocana and
114atr~pyud~barant~m tih2bain ami puratanam/ v i rocanasya samvzdam keSi nya'rthe sudhanvana//5. 35 5 Verse 5.35.24 i s a Gari an't o f Naradasmrti [ed. Jo11y ) rndana 203; 5.35.49 i s a v a r i a n t o f Naradasmrti sabM7aksaffa 18. Several verses i n t h i s s t o r y also occu8r i n Manu ahd; w i t h v a r i a t i onss i n Paficatantra. Verse 5.35.26 occurs i n Manu 8.98 and i s s i m i 1 a r t o Paficatantra 3.109. Verse 5.35* 27 occurs i n Manu 8 . 9 Q , 5.35.26-27 occurs in Baudhayana Dharmasutra l.10.34-36s and verse 5.35.33 i s s i m i l a r t o Paifcatantpa 3.182.
Narrator:
V i dura
Audi ence:
Dhrtarsstra
The woman KeSi n5 asked V i rocana whether brahmans o r a s w a s are superior.
The asura rep1ied,
are.
''
KeSi n?
suggested t h a t they pose t h e question t o t h e brahman Sudhanvan who was expected t o v i s i t them the f o l l o w i n g day. When Sudhanvan a r r i wed
he and V i rocana immedi ate1y g o t
f n t o an argument over wha was superior t o whom.
Sudhanvan*
regarding himself as V i rocana's superior8 refused t o s i t w j t h him.
When V i racana suggested t h a t they wager gold,
horses and wealth on the
COWS,
r e p l y of a knowledgeable person,
Sudhanvan countered w i t h t h e proposal t h a t they wager the* r 1 ives.
After
agreeing8 t h e two set o f f to l e t Virocanals
t r u t h f u l father,
Prahlada,
the
of
superiority
s e t t l e the argument.
brahmans
Sudhanvan h i s SOWS 1i f e .
over
He d e d ared
and
asuras,
A t the f a t h e r ' s
granted
to
request and i n
deference t o h i s scrupu1ous honesty8 Sudhanvan then returned the son to h i s f a t h e r .
2
The
s3dhYas1l5[5.36.1-36
conversati on
between
Rtreya
and
the
21 1
l
Narrator:
Vidura
Audi ence:
DhrtarZst r a
.
. , to behave t ~ w a r dthe Pandavas . Urging Dhrtarlistra
' l 5 a t r a ivodSharant5mam$ti hasam purZftanam/ Streyasya ca samvadam sadhy&nSm c e t i nah 6 r ~ t a r n / / 5 . 3 6 ~ 1 Verse 5.36.13 o f t h i s*s t o r y i s s i m i lgar t o ~ a h c a t a n t r a1 279
150 as honorab 7e sans, j u s t as they behaved as d u t f f u 7 7y toward h i m as
if
he were t h e i r f a t h e r ,
s t o r y i n p r a f s e u f adherence
One day,
Vfdura ta7d the fa1 lowing
ta d h a r ~ a .
t h e SSdhya d e i t i e s questioned t h e sage K t r e y a
w h o was roam* ng about d i s g u i sed as a swan.
guess h i s
identity,
they
A1though unable t o
knew he w a s wise
and
therefore
requested some words o f wisdom from him. The swan responded w i t h advi ce about rema* n i ng steadfast in dharma,
r e f r a i n i n~ from abusjve language,
at- any form o f i11 speech.
insul ts, p r i d e ,
Even when provoked,
one should
r e f u s e t o r e p l y harshly t o verbal attacks.
One should n u t
bear grudges,
be ungrateful,
speak f a l s e l y ,
break promises,
i g n o r e good deeds done or t r u e friends. 0.
The s e c t i o n about Sanatsuj s t a [sanatsu3ataparva]
15.42-5.451
D h r t a r a s t r a 's f i n a 7 quest ion t a Y u d h i s t h i r a concerned
the secret teaching t h a t t h e r e i s nu death. Vfdura w a s n o t p r i v y to t h i s teaching, and
SQ
brahman Sanatsujata t o i n s t r u c t Dfwtarastra , E.
The s e c t i on about t h e dawn a r r i v a l
Being a &Udra, he suamoned t h e
. [y~nasamdhiparva]
15.46-5.W]
The Kaufavas gathered t h e next day to hear Samjayals repurt.
Be
t o l d o f their
a 7 Tiances,
K*~* s* n a , and p r e d i c t e d t o t a l defeat then t u l d t h e f u 7 7 m i n g s t o r y *
inc 7 u d f n ~t h a t
f o r the KawavasS
with
@hisma
I
. Mara
[Sm4t3.1-48.22 J
and lUZKrayanal"
Narrator :
8 h i sma
Audi ence :
Duryadhana and t h e Kaurava assembl y
Underscoring Sam3aya 's grim warn +rigs, BhZsma t o ld t h e fa1 l o w f ~ gs t o r y t o revea 1 t h e d i v i n e i d e n t f t * e s of Arjuna and Krma as Aiara and Mrayana, conquerors ~f t h e demons. * * s
Once,
when BrahmZ was
surrounded by t h e gods,
divine
seers and apsarases i n heaven, t w o d e i t i e s 1 e T t t h e company. Unaware o f the4 r i d e n t i t i e s ,
Brhaspati asked Brahma w h o t h e
two were who had so rude7y departed.
Brahrna explained t h a t
t h e y were IUara and NZrSyanas ancient gods who
perpetually
a s s i s t e d i n t h e d e s t r u c t i o n 09 t h e asuras. Hearing t h i s ,
boon:
I n d r a f o l l o w e d a f t e r them and requested a
t h a t t h e t w o h e l p t h e gods i n t h e i r c u r r e n t war w i t h
the aswas
Nara and Narayana defeated t h e asuras and, s a i d
... to B h i s m a , had r e t u r n e d a g a h i n t h e f o r m o f A r j u n a and Krsna battle w i t h and d e s t r o y t h e K u r u s . The a r ~ u m e n t scontinue&
w i t h B h i s ~ a * S a m ~ a y a Vidura, ~
and Q h r t a r a s t r a u r g f n g Duryodhana to r e f r a i n from war, and Duryodhana
and
Karna
pressfng
for
itw
Vidura
t o Id
the
f a 1 lowing s t o r y t o i 1 l u s t r a t e t h e dangers o f f a d 1y rancar. 2
The f o w l erl"
15.62.6-62.151
' I 6 ~ h ec r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no title f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y story*
Narrator :
V i dura
Audjence:
Ouryadhana and t h e Kauravas
Two s t r o n g b i r d s became caught i n a f o w l e r t s net. They
flew
up i n t o
f o l lowed behind.
the
sky w i t h t h e
and the
fowler
A seer who observed him running marveled a t
how the hunter pursued them. b i r d s began t o q u a r r e l ,
Just as he sajd, and crashed t o
net,
the
The hunter rep1 i e d t h a t once t h e
he would catch them*
the b i r d s eventually f e l l
around.
unnaticed as t h e y quarreled, With t h i s c a u t i a n ,
The
fowler
stole
tu fighting up t o
them
and snatched them.
Vidura urged Ouryodhana t o r e f r a i n
.
Trom b a t t l e w i t h t h e Pandavas l e s t both Fa1I v i c t i m t o t h e i r enem4 es.
3. The honey 09 immurtal itYi1* [5.62.20-62-27] Narrator:
V i dura
Audience:
Ourycxihana and t h e Kauravas
Vidura
I707 7owed one
story
with
another
about
samethfng he himse 7 f had witnessed-
Once,
on a t r + p to Mount Gandhamadana w i t h a group o f
mountain men and brahmans, Vidura and h i s companions spotted a c e r t a i n k i n d o f honey which Kubera loved. immortal ity, t h e honey was we1 l-guarded.
Said t o b r i n g
The greedy mountai n
men d i e d t r y i n g t o o b t a i n it, and so would Ouryadhana d i e i n t h e e f f o r t t o c o n t r o l t h e e a r t h he b l i n d l y coveted-
''%his witnessed.
story
i s described as samething Vidura himself
153
Duryodhana f l a t l y refused t o grant even t h e t i n i e s t b i t of
l a n d t o t h e Pandavas, The s e c t i o n about t h e a r r i v a l o f t h e l o r d
F.
[bhagavadyanaparva] ( 5 . 7 0 - 5 . 1 3 7 )
-..
Meanwhile, Bhima,
Naku1a
although
he
and felt
Krsna Sahadeva
certain
convinced
t o permit that
his
Yudhisthira, e
him
Arjum,
t o seek
efforts
peace,
would
prove
f r u f t 7ess.
.
When the Kauravas gathered once again t o hear Krsna plead h i s case, reply.
they were so moved by h i s plea t h a t no one could
Rama JSmadagnya was t h e f ir s t t o speak,
t e l l i n g the
f o l l o w i n g s t o r y t o urge Duryodhana t o make peace. 1
.
The s t o r y of ~ambhodbhava"~ (5.94.1-94.451 Narrator:
Rama Jamadagnya
Audi ence :
Duryodhana,
Krsna and * . *
the
Kaurava
assembl y King Dambhodbhava was a universal sovereign who ruled the enti r e earth.
Each day.
he would ask h i s p r i e s t s
and m i n i s t e r s i f anyone on e a r t h w a s h i s equal.
Eventual l y .
some brahmans were unable t o r e s t r a i n themselves i n t h e face o f h i s gross p r i d e .
They t o l d t h e k i n g t h a t t h e a s c e t i c s Nara
and NZrayana were indeed more accomplished than he.
Spoi 1i n g
for
a
fight,
the
k i n g sought
out t h e two
a s c e t i c s and declared h i s i n t e n t i o n t o f i g h t them.
Insistent
I 9m~meko~amam i rajartSrnu satyZimaSartki tah/ Srutva Sreya adats'va y a d i sadhvi t i manyase//5.94.4
tarn
154
in his challenges, the king finally provoked them to battle. His weapons were completely ineffective, and Nara countered with miraculous reeds that struck the eyes, ears. and nose of the king's soldiers. fell
Seeing this, Dhambhodbhava immediately
at Nara' s feet and thereafter abandoned hi s
excessi ve
pride. Duryodhana. said Rama. would be well advised to do the same. 2. The story of Matalil~ [5.95.8-103.31] Narrator:
Ka~va.
Audience:
the seer
Duryodhana,
Krsna
and
the
Kaurava
assembly Les-t Duryodhana 'th ink he was i nvi nei b 1 e. Ka'!va to 7d the s1:ory of M6-ta li. Indra's charioteer, immediately 'f01lowing R~ma's
srory of Dambhodbhava.
Ma:ta 1 i was di ssat i sf; ed wi th all the prospect: i ve husbands for his daughter
Gu~ake~i.
and therefore decided to travel to
the world of the snakes to find a suitable husband for her. When he encountered travel
Narada on
his way.
the two agreed to
together in search of someone appropri ate.
Narada
served as tour guide as they visited in turn the worlds of Varu~a.
the elephants. the daityas, the
garu~as
(who feed on
snakes). and the world of Rasatala where Surabhi. the wishfulfilling cow. dwelled.
Nowhere could they find a suitable
120atrapyud3harantimami t; hasam puratanam/ mata1erdatukamasya kanya~ m~gayato varam//5.95.11
155 husband u n t i 1 they t r a v e l e d through t h e w o r l d of the snakes. There M a t a l i spied t h e snake Sumukha and approved o f him. Unfortunate1y , r e p o r t e d Sumukha' s grandfather when Matal i and
Narada i n q u i r e d about
the handsome Sumukha,
he would
w i t h i n t h e month be devoured by t h e b i r d Garuda, who had a l s o eaten Sumukhats f a t h e r . before I n d r a
-
Undeterred, MStaJi brought Sumukha
who happened t o be v i s i t i ng w i t h V i snu * .
a s k e d t h a t he be granted "immortal it y . grant Sumukha a long 1 i f e ,
I n d r a refused,
I n d r a t s boon,
express h i s great anger.
he v i s i t e d him t o
How could I n d r a i n t e r f e r e i n t h i s
w a y w i t h t h e boon he had granted a t c r e a t i o n ,
Garuda t o feed on snakes?
By h i s action,
to
boast
of
challenged Garuda t o
his
superior
l i f t t h e god's
that
is,
for
I n d r a would cause
Garuda and h i s f a m i l y t o d i e o f s t a r v a t i o n . on
but d i d
and so t h e marriage took place.
When Garuda heard o f
went
- and
The enraged b i r d
strength,
unti 1
r i g h t arm.
support it s weight , Garuda apol ogi zed t o V i snu, ..
Visnu
Unable t o
acknowledging
t h e god's superior s t r e n g t h . So,
too,
should
Duryodhana acknowl edge
.
the
abi 1it i e s o f the Psndavas and r e f r a i n from b a t t l e , *
superior advised
Kanva.
In reply, Duryodhafta ignored Kanva, 7aughed aloud in mockery.
At
tm
looked a t Krsna . . . and
t h e venerable Wads told
t h e fa7 lowing cautionary t a l e about t h e stubborn GSIava.
3. The adventure o f GSIava [ g a l a ~ a c a r i t a t * ~
(5.104.5-121.221
Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
...
Duryodhana,
Krsna
and
the
Kaurava
assembl y On one occasion t h e god Dharma d i sgui sed h i msel f as
.
t h e sage Vasi s t h a i n order t o t e s t V i 6vami t r a .
When Dharma
requested food, ViSvamitra h u r r i e d o f f t o prepare a r i c e d i s h . Meanwhile,
Dharma accepted food
from some o t h e r
ascetics.
When V i Svami t r a f in a l l y r e t u r n e d w i t h t h e c a r e f u l 1y prepared food,
Dharma said,
" I ' v e a1 ready eaten.
Wait here f o r m e , "
and disappeared. VisvSmitra stood motionless,
head, w a i t i n g f o r Dharma * s r e t u r n . d u r i ng whi ch a sympathetic
w i t h t h e food bowl on h i s One hundred years passed,
a s c e t i c named G S I ava tended t o
V i svamitra as he maintained h i s p o s i t i o n .
returned
in
the
same
disguise,
he
When Oharma f i n a l l y
was
so
pleased
with
V i Svamitra t h a t he transformed t h e sage from a k s a t r f y a t o a
brahman. V i 6vami t r a t h e n dismissed Galava,
guru's
gift
was
V i svarni t r a name
required.
When
a s s u r i n g him t h a t no G a l ava
an appropri a t e g i ft, t h e
in s i sted
exasperated
that sage
" a t r a ~ ~ u d a h a r a n t i a atmi hasam i purStanam/ yathZ n i rbandhatah prSpto gal avena parajayah//5.104.7 idam mahakhymamanuttamam matam bahu6rut5nam * g a t b o 6 a r S g i nam/ sarniksya 1oke bahudha pradhavi t a t r i v a r g a d r s t ih p r t h i %mupaSnute//5.121.22
...
157
asked him f o r e i g h t hundred w h i t e horses, each w i t h one b l a c k ear. For q u i t e some t i m e G31ava anxiously contemplated h i s
p r e d i cament
.
Without any m a t e r i a1 resources,
p o s s i b l y f u l f i11 t h e
request?
how could he
He f i n a l 1y concl uded t h a t
o b t a i n i n g a f a v o r from Visnu was h i s o n l y hope. '
With t h a t ,
h i s f r i end Garuda sudden1y appeared and o f f e r e d t o take him i n any d i r e c t i o n he cared t o t r a v e l , east, south, A t G51avats request,
they s e t out toward t h e east
and Galava was already d i s t u r b e d by h i s The two stopped f o r a r e s t on
dilemma over t h e g u r u ' s g i f t . Mt.
Rsabha.
but
The speed o f t h e b i r d ' s f 1 ig h t
soon he begged Garuda t o stop. was t o o d i s t r e s s i n g ,
west o r n o r t h .
There t h e y were
.
.
brahman a s c e t i c named Sandi li
greeted and f e d by a female Before t h e y f e l l asleep,
the
thought crossed Garudals mind t o t r a n s p o r t t h e woman t o l i v e
..
where P r a j a p a t i and V i snu d w e l l ed. wings
had f a l l e n o f f .
When he awoke,
He placated t h e
ascetic
Garudal s and
she
r e s t o r e d h i s wings. A s the two s e t
demanded h i s g i f t s .
off,
t h e y encountered ViSvamitra,
who
Claiming t h a t t h e o n l y s o l u t i o n was t o
beg a k i n g f o r t h e g i f t , Garuda recommended t h a t he and Galava
approach King Yayati
,
son o f Nahusa, who was r e p o r t e d t o be
wealthy. When approached on GS1avaBs behalf Garuda t h a t he had l o s t h i s wealth. b e a u t i f u l daughter Madhavi.
Yayati
rep1i e d t o
Instead, he offered h i s
I f Galava would o f f e r
her i n
158 marriage t o a r i c h king,
he might demand t h e horses as a b r i d e
price. For h i s f i r s t
I ksvSku o f Ayodhya.
prospect,
Galava selected K i n g Haryasva
Much as t h e k i n g wanted t o have a son b y
Madhavi, he o n l y owned 200 w h i t e horses w i t h one b l a c k ear. Hearing t h i s ,
Madhavi proposed t h a t she would h e l p Galava by
agreeing t o bear one son t o each of four kings. p r e v i o u s l y r e c e i v e d a boon t h a t
so Madhavi
she would become a v i r g i n
t h e stage w a s set.
a f t e r each c h i l d b i r t h , And
S i n c e she had
bore three
sons:
Vasumanas
to
King
HaryaSva, Pratardana t o King Divodasa o f t h e K S 6 i s,
and $ i b i
When she had borne
6 i b i , she
t o K i ng Augfnara o f t h e Bhojas. and GSlava v i s i t e d Garuda,
who then informed them t h a t
it
would be p o i n t l e s s t o t r y t o o b t a i n t h e remaining 200 horses. Long ago, t h e r e had been 1,000 such horses. drowned,
and on1y s i x
Four hundred had
hundred remai ned.
Garuda counseled
Galava t o o f f e r t o V i s v a m i t r a t h e 600 horses he had a1 ready obtained and Madhavi i n 1 i e u o f t h e f i n a l
200.
When Galava made t h i s o f f e r , V i Svami t r a asked w h y 651ava had n o t o f f e r e d Madhavi t o him i n t h e f i r s t p l a c e . already
have
four
sons,
not
just
one.
He would
Neverthel ess ,
V i Svami t r a accepted t h e o f f e r and discharged G a l ava's
When MSdhavi b o r e h i s son,
debt.
Astaka, . GSlava r e t u r n e d h e r t o h e r
f a t h e r w i t h warm p r a i s e f o r her successful e f f o r t s t o save f o u r kings. Yayati t h e n decided t o h o l d a svayamvara f o r MZdhavi
.
159 She chose to marry the forest.
In other words. she elected to
live as a forest ascetic. After thousands of years. rewards
of
heaven,
excessi ve pri de.
but
was
Just as
Yayati
di ed and earned
eventua 11 y
he
began
di spe 11 ed
to fall
to
for
earth.
the his he
spotted four kings performing a v.japeya sacrifice in Naimisa Forest.
Yayati descended to earth along the column of smoke
1 eadi ng from that sacr; fi ce immediately sacri fi ce
I
offered but he
to
up to heaven.
grant
refused.
came shortly thereafter.
Yayati
Soon.
The fou r
the
merit
of
Madhavl arrived.
ki ngs their Ga1ava
Greeting her father with great jOy.
Madhavi introduced his four grandsons to him. that they were not strangers. Yayati merit of his daughter, Ga1ava,
When he learned
accepted the combi ned
and his four grandsons.
and
ascended again to heaven. At
Dh,:tara~~ra' s
Ouryodhana. brieFly
in
request. K,:!!,!a then appea led di rect ly to
Bhi!!ma, Dro,!a, Vidura, and turn
to
support
Dh:tara!!~ra
Krsna's
plea
each spoke
For
peace.
Ultimately, Duryodhana stormed out of the assembly and Krsna made one fina7 appea7 to his e7ders to stop him.
4.
Bhoj a' s son and the bi ndi ng of the danavas 122
122 The critical edition gives no titles 'for these very short stories. Compare the story cluster at 2.55.3-17 which I have entitled "KBvya's wisdom." There (2.55.9-11) Vidura quoted to Yudhi 5th; ra the words of Kavya -- the very same advice Krsna here offered (without attribution to Kavya) to the Kuru'· elders at 5.126.48 in urging them to restrain Duryodhana for the greater good of the clan. Compare also 5.37.' 6 where Vi dura uttered the same verse to Dhrtarastra duri ng the ki n9' s s1 eepl ess ni ght as he anxi ously awai ted
Narrator: Audi ence:
Krsna ..*
.
Duryodhana, B h i s m a , Drona, DhrtarSstra, . and t h e assembly of Kauravas
KrsnaI *..
the
antepenultimate
Duryodhana t o d e s i s t from b a t t 7e,
r e c o u n t i n g two s t o r i e s
elder
to
implore
culminated h i s appeal by
meant t o urge
the e l d e r
Kurus
to
r e s t r a f n Duryocfhana.
a. King B h o j a B s
[5.126.36-126.391
King B h o j a ' s son usurped t h e throne from h i s father.
Krsna ' . was i n s t r u m e n t a l i n t h e war t h a t defeated t h e
e v i 1 son, and helped t h e Bhojas t o r e i n s t a l l Ugrasena Ahuka as k i ng
. b.
The
binding
of
the
d ~ n a v a s ' ~ *(5.126.40-
126.491
When t h e gods and t h e asuras were engaged In a f i erce b a t t l e which threatened t h e e n t i r e universe,
declared d e f e a t
for
v i c t o r y for t h e gods.
the
asuras,
daityas
Prajapati
and danavas,
and
He ordered Dharma t o bind t h e d a i t y a s
and danavas f o r d e l i v e r y t o Varuna.
Thereafter Varuna guarded
Samjaya's r e p o r t t o t h e Kauravas on t h e outcome o f h i s embassy See t h e f o o t n o t e t o 2.55.3-55.17 Pandavas. for references '"t occur rences o f t h i s adage i n t e x t s o t h e r t h a n t h e Mbh.
to" t h e
he
story
.
'%he story.
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y
t h e enemies o f t h e gods i n h i s ocean realm.
Krsna .' *
After
spoke,
.
Dhrtarastra summoned Gandharf *
demanded t h a t Duryodhana r e t u r n t o the assembly.
and
She a l s o
f a i l e d to dissuade Duryodhana from going t o war, and again he stormed out.
Once more D h r t a r a .s.t r a had his son r e t u r n t o t h e
assembly, and berated h i m upon learning from Vidura t h a t he planned t o t a k e Krsna prisoner. . * . Krsna * * *
made
a ? ? the d e i t i e s
and
I n a stunning r e v e l a t i o n ,
the
.
Pandavas ,
appear
in
mfnfature f r o m his own body. Before d e p a r t i n g , Krsna v i s i t e d Kunti * . * 5 . E a r n i n g t h e r i g h t t o ruleI2$ [5.130.8-130.101
Narrator: Audience:
Kunti Krsna (whom she i n s t r u c t e d t o r e l a t e t h e . * * s t o r y t o Yudhi s .t h i r a )
Once VaiSravana o f f e r e d k i n g s h i p o f t h e e a r t h t o
the r o y a l seer Mucukunda.
S t a t i n g t h a t he would r a t h e r earn
k i n g s h i p by t h e s t r e n g t h o f h i s arms, Mucukunda declined.
In
due course, Mucukunda d i d e a r n t h e r i g h t t o r u l e i n j u s t t h a t
Kunti advised Y u d h .i s t h i r a ( t o whom K .r' s* n a would recount
way.
the s t o r y on her beha 1f ) t o f i g h t dharmica? l y . L.
The i n s t r u c t i o n o f VidurS's son
.
1 2 5 ~ r ncu a t ropamamekam y a vrddhebhyah &rutsmayS/S .130.8ab '26atrapyudahrantimaimt i hasam puratanam/ v i durayaSca samv3dam putrasya ca pramtapa//S. 131 . I j ayo namet ihaso ' yam Srotavyo v i j igi sung/ mahim v i j a y a t e ksipram SrutvS S a t r d m h a mardati//5.134. I?
Narrator:
Vidura,
a queen
Audience:
Samjaya, her son
. . . t h e f o 1lowing story, intended as Kunt2 a l s o t o l d Krsna
.
a message t o Yudhisthira. Vidura was a k s a t r i y a woman famed f o r her learning. Once she berated her son,
Samjaya,
f o r becoming despondent
a f t e r h i s defeat by t h e king o f Sindhu.
H u r t by her harsh
words, the son asked w h y she would want t o l i v e i f she had so l i t t l e regard f o r him.
Again she urged him t o buck up,
and
advi sed t h a t he r a l l y support i n h i s cause against the king by showing determination and preparing f o r t h e r i g h t moment t o attack- h i s foe.
Such behavior would inspi r e p o t e n t i a l a1 1i e s .
Again the son accused her o f heartlessness.
P e r s i s t i n g i n her
attempts t o rouse h i s spi r i t , VidurZ f i n a l l y succeeded, and
Samj aya defeated h i s enemy. G. The s e c t i o n on t h e discussion with Kama
fkarnopanivadaparva]
15.138-5.1481
.
Before r e t u r n i n g t o t h e Pmdavas, ,
Krsna sought o u t
Kama and revealed his t r u e parentage t o him.
claim h i s r i g h t ,
said Krsna, ' * ,
h i m the r i g h t f u l k i n g . insisting that
I f be wou l d
.
t h e Pandavas would g l a d l y make
Kama refused t o r e v e a l h i s i d e n t i t y 0
i t would be shameful
t o repay Duryodhanays
patronage in t h i s way a lthough he n o w f e l t c e r t a i n t h a t t h e E d i t o r s o f the c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note t h a t verse 5.131.28 i s Regarding t h i s s t o r y , e d i t o r i a l simi l a r t o HitupadeSa 2.6. n o t e s t o the c r i t i cal e d i t i o n c i t e Hermann J a c W , Wber e i n ver lorenes Heldengedicht der S i ndhu-Sauvi r a , Album-Kern, E . J . B r i l l , 1903, pp. 53-55. Leiden:
163 Kauravas w o u l d be defeated.
t o join
the
.
Pandavas,
When Kuntf a l s o pleaded w i t h him
Kama
repeated
promised t h a t he would t r y t o kill
his
arguments,
o n l y Arjuna
but
during t h e
coming w a r . H . The s e c t i o n on t h e marching out [ a b h i n i r y a n a p a r v a
[5.149-5.1521 Fo 7 lowing a l a s t p l e a t o Duryodhana by h i s f a t h e r , t h e armies were marshaT1ed.
I . The consecration of Bhisma [bhismabhisecanaparva] , [ 5 -153-5.1561 Bhisma
was
made marshal
of
the
Kaurava
army
and
...
* . Dhrstadyumna marsha 7 o f t h e Pandavas
J. The embassy o f U l U k a [u7akayanaparva] c5.157-5.1601 Duryodhana
sent
u7aka t o t h e Pandava .. camp w i t h a
r e p o r t on t h e Kaurava armies and with i n s u l t s
f o r Arjuna.
...
Krsna and A r j u n a s e n t a s t r o n g r e p l y .
K . The s e c t i o n on the enumeration o f t h e w a r r i o r s and
g r e a t w a r r i o r s [ r a t h S t irathasamkhyaparvaj
[5.161-
5.1691 As
t h e armies marched
to
the b a t t l e f i e l d ,
recounted t h e s t r e n g t h o f the Pandavas dec7aring
his
own
intention
to
chief warriors.
fight,
Bhisma
Duryodhana t h a t he would engage any w a r r i o r except He t o l d t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y
Bhisma In
informed
Sf khandin.
i n e x p l a n a t i o n when Ouryodhana
asked w h y he would n o t f i g h t Sfkhandin.
164 L. The s t o r y o f Amba [ a i i i b ~ k h ~ a n a i i [5.170.1i]~~~
193.661
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Duryodhana and t h e Kaurava assembly
Upon t h e death of C i trsrtgada, Samtanu's second son by Satyavati
was
consecrated
k i ng
.
Since
the
young
king
V i c i t r a v i r y a was unmarried. Bhisma sought a b r i d e f o r him.
It
happened t h a t t h e t h r e e daughters o f t h e KS5i k - i n g would hold a
svayamvara,
so
Bhi5ma
traveled
to
KaSi.
Apparent1y
s a t i s f i e d w i t h t h e p h y s i c a l appearance o f Amb5, Amb311 k3.
he
drove
into
the
midst
of
the
(In r e l a t i n g t h e story,
kidnapped a1 1 three.
Ambi kS and
assembly
and
Bhisma d e a r l y
indicated t o Duryodhana t h a t he cansidered the kidnapphg a l e g i t imate expression o f the bravery required o f a successful
suitor a t a svayamvara.) Satyavati was r e l i e v e d and overjoyed w i t h t h e news, b u t Amba prompt1y questi oned t h e appropriateness o f Bhisma ' s act. She and t h e k i n g o f
pledged t o marry,
6a1va had mutually
- but
secretly
.
t h e r e f o r e Bhisma must re1ease her.
--
When
Bhisma d i d so, she returned t o her betrothed, who r e j e c t e d her w i t h t h e statement t h a t she had now been claimed by another
man. In
despai r.
concluded
that
Amb3 Bhisma
contemplated was
her
her
main
m i sfortune.
enemy
since
She he
had
' ^ ~ h e udyogaparvan gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y . I t is, however, described as an u p a k h y m i n t h e adiparvan 1i s t o f one hundred books (1 . 2 . 5 4 and 1 . 2 . 1 5 0 ) .
165
precipitated her current predicament.
Feeling helpless to
avenge herself against him. she resolved to undertake a life of asceticism to prevent such ill karmic effects in her future lives. While seeking instruction among a group of ascetics, Amba encountered her maternal uncle, the royal seer Hotravahana. Deeply moved by her distress,
he advised her to enlist his
friend Rama Jamadagnya to punish whomever she considered to be at fault in the matter. Ak~tavra~a
~alva
Bhi~ma.
or
asserted that indeed
Bhi~ma
A second sage named
was to blame. and Amba
confessed that she had reached the same conclusion. As it happened, R.ma arrived in that same hermitage the very next day. Amb3's
story
Comparing preference.
As his friends had predicted. upon hearing he
Bhisma
offered to
the
to
asura
fight
whomever Amba
V~tra.
Despite his open-ended offer,
she
chose.
declared
her
Rama balked and
tried to dissuade Amba, explaining that he could only fight for a brahman cause.
When Akrtavrana . . reminded R3ma that he
had long ago pledged to help anyone who feared for his or her life and to destroy any brahman-hater, Rama acceded to Amba's wish. and the group set out to confront Rama repeatedly demanded that marry Vicitravirya. but guru Rama, refused.
Bhi~ma,
Bhi~ma.
Bhi~ma
take Amba back to
despite his respect for his
Signaling to Rama that he was well aware
how serious his refusal of the teacher's request was. Bhisma quoted a verse attributed to Marutta.
166
On obedi ence to Qurus t28 [5. 178.23-178.25]
1.
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Rama Jamadagnya
The sage Marutta was said to have chanted a verse
(§7oka, 5.178.24) identified as ancient lore, asserting that one
must
obey a
guru
even
if
he
is
ignorant or
behaves
improperly. With the telling claim that Rama did not behave like a guru (because he wielded arms). to fight. prevent
Bhi~ma
After a futile attempt by it.
the
duel
began
and
declared his intention
Bhi~ma's
cont i nued
Eventually, a group of brahmans appeared to and
instructed hi min the
bel ongi ng to Praj8pati
use of a
mother for
Ga~ga
many
Bhi~ma
to
days.
in a dream
certai n secret
weapon
that would put Rama to 51 eep unti 1
Bhisma chose to awaken him.
On the following day. as he was
about to deploy the weapon. Indra advised Bhisma to withdraw it.
He d;d so. and Rama acknowledged his defeat.
Because
neither contestant would be the first to withdraw, the gods forcibly declared a truce. Rama then advised Amba to seek mercy from clearly he was invincible.
Instead.
Bhi~ma
since
Amba angrily declared
.
that she herself would defeat Bhisma in battle and undertook stri ct ascet i c
practices despi te repeated efforts to deter
her.
128 ayam capi vi Auddhatmanpurane ~r(Jyate vi bhol
maruttena mahabuddhe
gita~'
§loko mahatmanal/5.178.23
167
After wish.
years
o f determined p r a c t i c e ,
Siva granted her
be reborn as t h e daughter
Amba would
Drupada, and would e v e n t u a l l y become a man. immolated hersel f
of
the
King
S a t i s f i e d , Amba
.
A s S i va had said,
AmbS was reborn as $ i khandi ni
.
'Si va
advi sed K i ng Drupada t h a t h i s daughter would become a man, and
so he r a i s e d her d i s g u i s e d as a male.
married, however,
Once
6i khandini .
was
h e r w i f e eventually discovered t h e t r u t h .
The woman's enraged f a t h e r threatened t o d e s t r o y Drupada and
h is
court.
As
her
parents '
t r o u b l es
mounted.
$ i khandi . ni
decided t h a t she had caused t h e s u f f e r i n g and departed f o r t h e f o r e s t t o f a s t to death. She happened t o choose t h e f o r e s t home o f a wealthy yaksa named SthOnZkarna. o f f e r e d t o help.
Impressed by her a u s t e r i t i e s , When he heard her s t o r y ,
t h e yaksa
he suggested t h a t
t h e y exchange g e n i t a l s f o r a s h o r t period o f t i me.
S i khandi ni * .
returned
inspection
to
her
home
and,
following
private
conducted by women whom K i ng H i ranyavarman had deputed f o r t h e t a s k , the conf lict was averted.
Meanwhile, Kubera happened t o pass through Sthonakarna's f o r e s t home.
The yaksa h i d himself, l e a v i n g t h e other yaksas
t o explain why he would n o t greet Kubera as he should. punish Sthcinakarna yaksas
--
for
h i s unnatural
act
--
an
insult
To to
Kubera cursed b o t h Sthonakarna and $4 khandi n i t o
r e t a i n t h e i r new genders f o r e v e r .
When
6 i khandi .. n/i
returned
as agreed t o e f f e c t t h e exchange, he learned how 6 i v a s s boon
168 had f i n a l l y been r e a l i z e d . The udyogaparvan
closes w i t h t h e armies advancing toward
each other i n fu7 7 b a t t 7e formation.
6. The s e c t i o n about Bhisma [bhismaparvan] A.
The s e c t i o n on t h e measurement o f t h e c o n t i n e n t
.
JambUdvZpa [ J a m b O k h, .a n d a v i n i r m m a p a ~ c6.1-6.113 S o l d i e r s from every quarter gathered to j o i n
batt 7e.
Many p o r t e n t s appeared.
in the
.
A t D h r t a r 3 s t r a ' s request,
Samjaya gave an exhausti ve geograph i c a ? descr I p t 7on o f t h e earth. 6 . The s e c t i o n on t h e e a r t h [bhamiparva]
[6.12-6.13J
A t Ohrtara , t r a s request, Samjaya gave a geograph I ca 7
d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e earth,
i n c l u d i n g beyond JambQdv2pa.
C. The s e c t i o n on t h e song o f t h e l o r d
[bhagavadgf taparva] [6.14-6.401 1
.
Krsna ... and v i c t o r y [6.21.9-21.17] Narrator :
A r j una
Audience:
Yudhi s *t h i r a
A r j u n a t o l d t h e fo77owing two stories to reassure
.
Y u d h i s,t h i r a o f v i c t o r y .
a. How v i r t u e triumphs129 [6.21.9-21.12] Narrator :
A r J una
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t* h i r a
.
t 2 g e t a m e v ~ r t h a m at y ~a r i yuddhe devasure ' b r a v it/ p i tamahah ki 1a purS mahendradindi vaukasah//6.21.9
Brahma,
the
grandfather
i n s t r u c t e d I n d r a and t h e o t h e r
of
the
gods as they
gods,
once
prepared f o r
b a t t l e w i t h t h e m a s , reminding them t h a t t r u t h , dharma, and v i r t u e brought v i c t o r y ,
n o t might alone.
...
b. V i c t o r y f o l lows ~ r s n a ' ~[6.21 ' .14-21.171
Narrator:
A r j una
Audience:
Yudhi s . .t h i r a
.
( i n c a r n a t e as V a t kuntha) r a l 1ied t h e Once V i snu * * .
gods t o b a t t l e w i t h t h e question,
"Who w i l l w i n?"
The gods,
-in V i m . .u ' s s u p e r i o r i t y ,
acknowl edging t h e i r t r u s t
declared
.
t h a t t h e y would win w i t h Krsna. A f t e r reassuring Yudhi s t h f r a , Arjuna i n s t r u c t e d Krsna to * * . a
draw up h i s c h a r i o t between t h e two armies, now deployed face t o face on t h e b a t t l e f i e I d . and
so
ensued
his
Sudden l y A ~ J w h~imse 7 f f a ?teredo
...
conversation
with Krsna
known
as
the
bhagavadgi t a . The
bhagavadgita
conversation
(samvada)
itself at
(6.14.1-40.78)
6 - 40.70,
6.40.74,
is and
called
a
6.40,76.
Because i t i s a f i r s t - p e r s o n r e p o r t o f what has v e r y recent7y occurred, i t i s n o t i n t h e c o n t e x t o f the MahabhZrata a s t o r y t h a t would r i s k b e i n g considered superfluous. At
last,
Arjuna
readiness t o f i g h t .
picked
up
his
bow,
sfgna11ing
his
Whi 7e t h e Pandava armies roared approva 7 , ,
.
Yudhi s t h i r a stepped down from h i s c h a r i o t , approached Bhema,
""he word pura (l on^ ago) t h i s i s a s t o r y o f t h e past.
a t 6.21 .15a
-i n d i cates t h a t
170 Drona,
and 6a1ya and
Krpa,
requested
t h e i r permission
to
fight. D.
The s e c t i o n on the k i 1l i n g o f Bhisma [bhismaparva]
16.41-6.1171
.
The Pandavas and t h e i r troops were stunned when
Yudhisthira *
stepped
off
his
chariot
and
approached
the
Kauravas on foot as t h e b a t t 7 e was about t o commence.
1
.
Payi ng oner s respects before battl el3' [6.41.16-
41.191
...
Narrator: Audience:
Krsna Arjuna, Bhima, Nakul a, Sahadeva. and t h e marshals o f t h e Pmdava army .*
..
.'.
Krsna expl a i ned Yudhi s t h i r a t s s u r p r i s i ng act
by
c i t i ng the a n c i e n t p r a c t i c e o f paying respects t o teachers and f a m i ly members b e f o r e engaging them i n b a t t l e .
w a s regarded as a guarantee o f v i c t o r y ,
The p r a c t i c e
...
and Krsna voiced h i s
support o f i t . The b a t t l e g o t underway, t h e events o f each day narrated
i n detail
by
Samjaya.
Gifted with divine
eyesight which
enabled him t o observe every aspect o f t h e b a t t re,
Samjaya
reported dai 7y t o D h r t a r a s t r a as t h e bloody carnage proceeded. As t h e days passed,
were
killed.
more and more of Duryodhanars brothers
Seeing
that
the
PSndavas .
clearly
had
advantage, Duryodhana sought an explanation from Bhisma.
the
2. Why t h e Psndavas c o u l d n o t be defeated"' [6.61.36-61-70] Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence :
Duryodhana
Ouryocihana f a i l e d being
vanquished
by
t o see
t h e PSndavas. * .
why t h e An
Kauravas were
exasperated BhJsma
.
explained t h a t , w i t h Krsna on t h e i r s i d e , t h e Pandavas could ,.* .
n o t be d e f e a t e d . Once, 1ong ago. a1 1 t h e occupants o f heaven were gathered i n BrahmSf s presence.
V i snu appeared, s .
w i t h a l e n g t h y address o f p r a i s e .
and Brahma honored him
He then asked Visnu t o be *.
reborn on e a r t h a g a i n t o re-establ ish dharma. Brahmars w i sh would be granted,
Replying t h a t
V i snu d i sappeared.
Brahma
then e x p l a i n e d t o t h e assembly t h a t t h e d e i t y was Vasudeva, l o r d o f t h e universe. Duryodhana asked t o hear about t h e o r f a i n s o f VSsudeva, so Bhisma exp7ained how he had c r e a t e d t h e u n i v e r s e .
...
3. S t o r y About ~ r s n a [6.64.1-64.111 ' ~ ~ Narrator :
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Duryodhana
Bhfsma repeated t o Duryodhana a s t o r y about Visnu * --
I 3 $ a t t u me k a t h i tam tata muni b h i rbhavi tatmabhi h/ puranagitam dharkajiia tacchrnuSva yath~tatam7/6.61.36
..
3 3 6 r n u cedam maharaja brahmabhutastavam mama/ brahmarsi b h i 6ca devai Sca yah purS kath'i t o bhuvi //6.64.1 punyam Srutvaitadakhysnam maharaja s u t a s t a s a / ke6avam bahu mene sa pandavZimSca mahSrathan//6.64.11
..
1 72
f n i t i a 1 1y spoken by BrahmZ, and t r a n s m f t t e d t o huntan beings by t h e gods.
The s t o r y noted various names by which d e i t i e s and sages
.
had addressed V< m.u . When the b a t t 7e resumed, t h e Kauravas took g r e a t pains t o protect
BhZsma
from the a t t a c k i n g $ i khandin.
Afjma
and
Bhimas i n p a r t i c u l a r , k i 7 led large numbers o f Kaurava troops. Bhisma
k i T?ed many
PaficaTas
and
Somakas,
a7 lies o f
the
Pandavas, as t h e b a t t l e cuntinued day a f t e r day. m .
Y u d h i s,t h i r a v f s i t e d Bhistna t o ask how t h e
One evening, Pandavas ' * know7edge,
ccw7d
defeat
him-
Armed
.
Yudh i s t h i r a returned
to
his
with
the
own camp.
requjsite Arjuna
upen 7y expressed h i s shame a t t h e prospect o f k i 7 7 i n g Bhisma. 4.
Brhaspati * s statement about k ~ a t r i y adharma134 [6*103.94-103.961
..
Narrator:
Krsna
Audi ence:
Arjuna
Even a f t e r r e c e i v i n g &?hZsma * s permission t o k f 7 F
h i m and a f t e r
.
l e a r i n g t h a t !%khandin wou7d succeed i n doing
so, Arjurta h e s i t a t e d t o c a r r y o u t t h e deed*
...
K m n a reainded
h f m t h a t he had vowed t o k i 7 7 Bhfsma, and assured Arjuna t h a t t h e deed e n t a i l e d no wrongdohg. Long ago8 Brhaspati taught Indra about k s a t r i y a dharma8 which permitted a w a r r i o r t o k j 1 1 anyone w h o approached him as
an enemy.
A k s a t r f y a r s duty was t o f i g h t , when necessary t o
and t o conduct s a c r i f i c e s according to t h e
p r o t e c t people, precepts.
Thereafter,
on
the
tenth
day
succeeded f n morta 7 7y wounding Bhisma. an
a bed o f
arrows
of
battle,
Sikhandfn
He l a y q u j e t 7y dying
w h i l e pandemonfum brake
7oase as t h e
.
Kauravas and PSndavas realfzed t h a t BhZsma had f a ? l e n w ,
The
b a t t 7e was ha 7ted f o p t h e nfght as t h e w a r r i o r s rushed t u make Bhfsma as c o a f o r t a b 7e as possible. I n t h e tnornjng,
t h e w a r r i a r s gathered around hfm-
Again
Bhisma urged Ouryodhana t o stap t h e war, but t o nu avai 1
He
.
a7sa implored Karna t o f i g h t w i t h h i s b r o t h e r s , t h e IWndavas, but u l t f m a t e l y gave h f s apprcwa 7 t o Karma, who w a s determined
ta c o n t i n u e f i g h t i n g against them. H e r e t h e bhismaparvan c&nc?udes
174 S e c t i on about Dmna [cirmaparva]
7.
The consecration of Drona [dronSbhi&ekapa~vaJ[ ? . I -
A=
7*15] The dronapawan cavers days eleven to f f f t e e n o f the eighteen-day war, and describes t h e t i m e durfng which Qrona commanded
the
Kaurava
armies
f n s t a l l a t f a n as general,
a
In
surprfsing
-
Fa7 lowfng
Drona @ s forma 1
t h e b a t t l e continued,
turn
af
the
n a w a t e d t o Samjaya t h e f e a t s o f Krsna* #
.
.
narrative,
Ohrtar8fst~a
This uccurs ear7y f n
*
..
t h e drunaparvanf when DhrtarZfstra attempted t o compose h imse 7 f Referred t o as
to hear Samjaya F s account o f Qruna2s d e f e a t . dfvfne
feats
fs K,~ . .s m
(dfvydfni
successfu7
&armni
b a t t 7es
7 . 7 0 - la># the catalogue
concluded
with
of
D h r t a r a*s. t r a ' s
remfnder t h a t Krsna had revea led hfmse7 f t o the b7 i n d k f n g as * * *
.
V i s n, u . B . The section on t h e k i l l i n g o f t h e Samgaptakas
[sam&aptakavadhaparva] [ 7 . 1 6 - 7 . 3 I Samjaya contfnued detai?fng
f3ronars
efforts
his
descriptian
to
defeat
assfstance o f the Sam6aptakasf
..
Yudhi s t h f r a
bustage.
Arjuna f s p a r t f c i p a t f a n
of
Arjuna,
i n partfcular,
.
D h r t a r # s* t f a
asked
i n the b a t t l e ,
for
the
battlef
wjth
the
and t o
take
details
an
and Samjaya t o l d the
f o 7 7uwing i n c i d e n t . 1
. The
vaisnava *
K7.28.22-28
361
I J 5 t a t o ' rj unam vlWudevah pratyuvScSrthavadvacah/ 6rnu guhyamidkm p a r t h a y a t h ~v r t t a m pur~nagha/]7*28.22
..
Narrator:
Krsna * . *
Audi ence :
A r j una
Arjuna and Bhagadatta,
k i n g o f the FWfgjyot f sas,
w e r e engaged i n combat when sudden?y ahagadatta hur7ed t h e
ce7estiaI
.
weapon ca77ed vaisnava a t Arjuna.
Oespfte h f s
prumfse not t o become d i r e c t r y fnvolvecf i n the armed cembat,
Krsna stepped i n f r o n t o f Ar3una. * . chest.
When
A r ~ u n a angri ?y
The weapen s t r u c k h i s inquirad
abaut
.
Krsna 's * .
f n t e ~ f e r e n c eKrsna ~ t o 1d h f a t h e f a 7 lawing s t o r y . '
a
.
Krsna explained t o Arjuna t h a t he had four forms: m
.
.
one
engaged i n ascetic p r a c t i c e s an e a r t h s one merely observi n~
deeds performed i n t h e world, a t h i r d a c t i v e i n t h e world and a f o u r t h sleeping on t h e cosmic ocean a n t i 1 he awoke f o l 1ow* ng t h e mahapra7aya.
.
Onces as V i snu awoke from h i s thousand-year
s l e e p  t h e e a r t h goddess requested t h a t he grant her son, Naraka, t h e boon o f i n v i n c i b i 1 i t y a ~ anis t t h e gods and aswas Visnu . , d i d so, and gave t o h i m t h e v a i m a v a weapan ta ensure
his infallibility. hands o f Bhagadatta.
..
Krsna . recognized t h a t same weapon i n t h e Knowing t h a t i t could k i 11 even Rudra
and Indra, he intervened t o save A r j u n a a s l i f e .
F d 1owi ng t h i s in c i dent l A r j una k i 11ed Bhagadatta. C 8 The section on the k3 11i ng o f Abhimanyu
[abh imanyuvadhaparva] [ 7.32-7.51 1 The next major event o f t h e b a t t 7 e was t h e k i 7 l i n g of-
A r j u n a @ sson,
Abhimanyu.
D u h & ~ s a n a f sson k i ? led h i m
S f x w a ~i ro r s surrounded h i m a
and
I n t h e evening fo77awing y w n g
176
.
Abh imanyu ' s death, the Pandavas grieved and Vyasa attempted ta a
conso 7e them [A
lengthy
section
found
in
the
Wu7gates or
Bombay
e d i t i o n o f t h e Mbh i s here o m i t t e d from t h e c r i t i c a l t e x t and included i n drtmaparvan, Appendjx I , Mo, & 35-23&
It does
appear i n t h e critics 7 t e x t o f $lIntiparvan, adhyayas 29, 30-
31, and 248-25Ue J D. The section on t h e vow [ p r a t i j f i S p a r v a ]
r7.52-7*60]
Only a t d a y ' s end d i d Arjuna Team o f h i s son's death, for t h e Kauravas had successfu77y d i s t r a c t e d him throughout t h e day.
Blaming Jayadratha,
i n p a r t i c u 7 a r s f a r h i s son's
deaths Arjuna swore t o ki77 him t h e v e r y next day* E. The s e c t i o n on t h e k i I l i n g o f Jayadratha
[3ayadrathaparva] As A f juna
[7.67-7.121]
moved r e Tent less 1y toward Jayadratha t h a t
day, Drona i n s t r u c t e d Duryodhana t o engage Arjuna i n an e f f o r t t o p r o t e c t Jayadrathas even
though he be7ieved the e f f o r t
would prove f r u i t l e s s *
.
I I n d r a t s armort3' [7.69.49-69
Narrator:
Drma
Audi ence:
Ouryodhana
Despfte f n v i n c i b It? Arjuna *
DronaFs u r g i n g *
71 1
Duryodbana
feared
the
Orona , secured Duryudhana 's golden armor
w i t h p r o t e c t i v e mantras so t h a t Arjuna cou7d n o t harm hims and
13%he t e r m 7.6%49c.
pura
(long
ago)
signals
this
story
at
177 t o l d Duryodhana t h e fo 7 lowing s t o r y .
When t h e gods were unable t o subdue t h e asura Vrtra, t h e y
appealed t o Brahma f o r help.
He advised them t o p r o p i t i a t e
Siva through whom V r t r a had become i n v i n c i b l e .
Siva gave t o
I n d r a h i s o w n armor, and i n s t r u c t e d him in t h e mantras he was t o utter as he buckled i t on.
Victorious.
I n d r a gave t h e
armor t o A r t g i ras, who gave i t to h i s son Brhaspati , who gave i t t o Agnivegya.
who gave i t to Drona.
W i t h i t Drona would
a1 so remai n unharmed. Duryodhana took heart and Joined t h e b a t t 7 e . the Pandavas d r e w gradua 7 l y
7 i g h t began t o fade, Jayadratha,
the
As
c loser t o
d e s p i t e t h e formidable e f f o r t s o f t h e Kauravas.
When the w a r r i o r BhOrf6ravas was engaged in combat w i t h t h e unarmed Pandava .. a ? 7y Satyak?# Arjuna
behind and cut off BhQriSravas Accusing ArJuna
from
sword arm t o p r o t e c t SStyaki
o f undharmic behavforI
meditation t o a w a i t h i s death.
approached him
As he d i d
BhOrisravas sat
.
in
so, SStyaki beheaded
him. 2.
S a t y a k i t s j u s t i f i c a t i o n f o r t h e s l a y i n g of
~ h ~ r i ~ r a [7.118.47-118.481 v a s ~ ~ ~ Narrator:
SStyaki
A u d i ence :
Pandavas and Kauravas
Following
the
..
death
of
Bh@ri&ravas, ' S a t y a k i
was
c r i t i c i z e d for having c u t off h i s head over t h e p r o t e s t s of
178
.
a7 7 t h e Pandava w a r r i o r s .
To j u s t i f y h i s a c t , Satyaki quoted
a verse of Va7miWkf saying
that
it
i s approprapriate t o cause
one's enemies p a i n .
Claiming
that
he
had
committed
no
sin
in
killing
BhOri Sravas, Satyaki quoted a verse a t t r i b u t e d t o Valmiki
.
3 . Why BhUriSravas humi 1i a t e d SStyaki'38 [7.119.1119.28]
Narrator:
Samjaya
Audi ence:
D h r t a r S* s. t r a
.
Dhrtarastra , could not understand h o w BhDriSravas had managed t o throw Satyaki t o t h e ground.
He asked SamJaya
t o explain i t .
S i n i w a s a descendant o f Yayati through h i s e l d e s t son, When Devaka h e l d a svayamvara f o r h i s daughter,
Yadu.
defeated a l l t h e k s a t r i y a s t o w i n h e r .
h i s chariot,
6ini
A s he took Oevaki on
t h e k s a t r f y a Somadatta was unable t o c o n t a i n
h i m s e l f and attacked 6 i n i
.
As t h e two men b a t t l e d . 6 i n i threw
Somadatta t o t h e ground, s t r u c k him w i t h h i s f o o t , but a1 lowed him t o
1i v e .
Profoundly
humi 1 iated,
Somadatta
a u s t e r i t i e s t o r e c e i v e a boon from Siva.
undertook
Siva u l t i m a t e l y
granted t h a t Somadatta would bear a son who would k i c k S i n i ' s
son on a b a t t l e f i e l d in f u l l view o f thousands o f k i ngsso i t happened t h a t SStyaki
.
t h e son o f 6 i n i
13*~heword 7.119.3b.
BhOriSravas,
purs
son o f Somadatta,
And
kicked
.
(long
ago)
signals
this
story
at
179
The day ended with the slaying of Jayadratha, but Orona was so enraged that the battle continued into the night. F. The
sec~ion
Ghato~kaca
on the killing of
[ghato~kacavadhaparvaJ
[7.122-7.154]
Many instances of single combat between key warriors continued to occur, including an encounter between Karna and Shima's demon son,
Ghato~kaca,
Yudhi~~hjra
With his death,
in which the latter was killed. ordered his troops to redoub7e
their eFForts to ki77 Orona. G. The section on the killing of Orona
[dro~avadhaparva}
[7 . 155-7 . 165]
As morning,
the
sun
rose,
Orona
was
the
finally
arm; es
slain
by
fought means
on.
In
of
a
the
trick.
Yudhi 5thi ra had 1 earned that an e1 ephant named A.vatthaman (the same name as Shima told
Oro~a.
Dro~a'
s
son) had been kill ed ; n batt 1 e.
neglecting
than the man that had d;ed. down his bow. whereupon
~o
say it was the animal
In his shock and grief,
Oh~~~adyumna
ra~her
Oro~a
attacked him.
set
As the
word spread, the battle ceased. H. The section on the hurling of the (n.r.ya~.§ramok~aparvaJ
n.r~ya~a
weapon
[7.166-7.173]
Enraged at the manner in which his Father,
Oro~a,
had
been tricked into lowering his guard on the battleField and subsequent7y killed, A§vatth.man un7eased the divine weapon against Shima.
K':~l!a
nar.ya~a
and Arjuna dragged Shima From his
chariot and Forced him to set his weapons aside, thus turning
180
aside t h e narayana weapon. the
left
understand
L a t e r i n t h e b a t t l e , A6vattbaman
field
in
despair
and
why
the
weapon
had
bewilderment, failed
unable
km
to
to
Bhima.
Encountering Vyasa on t h e road, he asked why the weapon had failed.
1. Why t h e narayava weapon f a i led13917.172.42172.941 Narrator:
Vyasa
Audience:
A6vatthSman
Once NarZyana took b i r t h as Dharma and undertook He was granted a v i s i o n of Siva
a u s t e r i t i e s i n t h e Himalayas. and Parvat:,
and asked t h a t 6iva g r a n t the boons he sought.
6iva d i d so, maki ng Narayana invi n c i b l e i n b a t t l e even t o 6 i v a himself.
The sage Nara
--
who was Arjuna
--
was a1 so born
f ram NBrayana ' s a s c e t i c i sm.
Agvatthman, e x p l a i ned Vyasa, had been born as a p o r t i o n o f Siva.
I n a former 1 i f e , ASvatthSman had revered S i v a and
received
many
boons.
Krsna, e
*
.
too,
although
creator
of
e v e r y t h i n g , worshi pped S i v a .
With t h i s nature,
true
information,
and
withdrew
ASvatthaman understood
the
Kaurava
army
Krsna . , 's
from
the
b a t t l e f i e l d f o r the night. 2. S i v a on t h e b a t t l e f i e l d 1 4 0 [7.173.1-173.1071
he
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y
story.
%arrmani c a i va d i vyani mahadevasya dhimatah/ t a n i t e a k i r t a y i syami yathapra j f i a m yathaSruthm//?. 173.40
181
Narrator:
Vyasa
Audience:
Arjuna
AFter the day's day he had Fo 7 10wed a warrior in Front
0"
ba~t7e,
s~ranger
him.
Arjuna to7d Vy6sa that a71
who destroyed every Kaurava
He asked iF Vy.sa knew the person's
identi'ty.
Vyasa explained to Arjuna that he had been following ~iva on the battlefield that day_ many names and catalogued in of
~aiva
mythology,
Vyasa praised g;va, listing his brie~
phrases the major features
including a slightly longer (but still
cryptic) account of the destruction of
Dak~ats
the battle of the three celestial cities. off wi th
the assurance that
~i
during the great battle. Here ends the
dro~aparvan_
sacrifice, and
Vyasa sent Arjuna
va was a 1 so protect i ng
him
8.
The sect ion about Karna [ karnaparvanJ 18.1 -8 69 1 l
A * The s e c t i o n on t h e k i 11 i ng o f Karna [karnavadhaparva]
On t h e s i x t e e n t h day,
the b a t t l e got underway w i t h
Karna s e r v i n g as genera? o f t h e Uaurava armies, next t w o days8 t h e unre 7entfng
During t h e
s Taughter cant fnued as ha 7 f o f
t h e w a r r i o r s remaining a f t e r Dronars defeat were ki77ed. The f i r s t day d i d n o t go we7 7 f o r t h e Kauravas8 so t h a t evenfng Duryodhana asked
sa 7ya
d r f v e r on t h e f o l ? a w f n g day.
to serve as Karva 9 s c h a r i o t
$alya was g r e a t l y insu7ted a t
b e h g asked t o serve i n t h i s capacfty f a r a man o f i n f e r i o r class, but d t f m a t e l y agreed t o do so on t h e c m d i t f o n t h a t he be permf t t e d say whatever he pleased t o Karna.
1
How BrahmZS became Rudra s c h a r i o t ciri verl''
Narrator:
5uryodhana
Audi ence:
h l ya
In an e f f o r t t o carwince & l y a
t o d r i v e Karna 's
c h a r i o t , Duryodhma recounted two s t o r i e s *
With t h e f i r s t he
c h a r i o t , so cou7d t h e k s a t r i y a Sa7ya d r i v e f o r t h e sUta KarnaThe second s t o r y
revealed
that
Rams
Jamadagnya had given
he word pura ( 1 ong ago) s i gnal s t h i s s t o r y a t 8 . 2 4 * 1c * The s t o r y occurs i n n i n e puranas as well as i n Vedic I it e r a t u r e . For a d i s c u s s i o n o f ttie s t o r y s s p l a c e i n S a n s k r i t 1 it e r a t u r e s e d i t o r s o f t h e c r +ti cal e d i t i o n c i t e B h a k t i suddha Mukhopadhyaya, ** ,*q Journa 7 o f the Gangmath Jha Research ~ ) , pp. 371-3Q5. See I n s t i t u t e , Vol VIII, P a r t 4 ( A U Q U S ~1951 a1 SQ dronaparvan 7.173.52-58 f ~ tr he s t o r y i n b r i e f
Once, a f t e r t h e
a s w a s had defeated t h e gods, t h e t h r e e
sons o f t h e demon Taraka performed a u s t e r i t i e s and earned a boon f rorn BrahmS.
Brahma refused.
A t f ir s t t h e y requested in v i n c i b i 1it y s b u t
I n s t e a d t h e y asked t h a t each be a1 lowed t o
b u i 1 d a c i t y t h a t would be in v i n c i b l e f o r one thousand years. A f t e r t h a t t i m e * t h e t h r e e c < t $ e s would come t o g e t h e r as one.
If anyone c o u l d t h e n d e s t r o y i t w i t h a s i n g l e arrow, t h e sons power would be d i s s o l v e d * Once t h e
Brahma granted t h i s boon.
t h r e e c i t i e s were b u i l t ,
T3raka3 obtained another boon f porn 8rahmZ. r e v i v e dead
demons
and
daub1 e t h e i r
fiari
grandson o f
A l a k e which c o u l d
former
strength
wa3
created i n one o f t h e c i t i e s . The asuras
terrorized
powerless to s t o p them. f o r re1 ie f *
t h e universe*
Even I n d r a was
E v e n t u a l l y t h e gads implored Brahma
He revealed t h e boon and decl a r e d t h a t on1y
c o u l d destroy t h e three-fn-one
c i t y a t t h e appointed t i m e .
The gods3 w i t h Brahms i n t h e 1ead, t r a v e l e d t o v j s i t and p a i d him a p p r o p r i a t e homage
5-iva
si va
fie agreed t o champi on t h e i r
cause3 b u t o n l y i f 3rahma wauld d r i v e h i s c h a r j o t i n t o b a t t l e s i n c e no one e l s e was c a p a b l e o f c o n t r o l 1 i ng i t . consented,
Brahma
and so t h e t r i p l e c i t y was d e s t r o y e d * a. gar"& and RSma JSmadagnyass weapons o f S i ~ a ' ' ~
Id2i mam capyaparam bhUya it i hasam n i bodha me/
p i turmama s a k ~ & yam e brshmanah praha dharmavi t I l 8 . 2 4
*
7 29
[8.24.12§-8.24.156
Narrator:
Ouryodhana
Audience:
Salya
So s t r i c t were t h e a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s o f RSma Jamadagnya t h a t he earned from S i v a t h e boon o f h i s c e l e s t i a l
weapons.
S i v a warned him t h a t
anyone not worthy t o use t h e m
t h e weapons would d e s t r o y
Meanwhi l e , t h e gods wepe once
again l o s i n g a b a t t l e w i t h the asuras*
to a s s i s t them. assurances
He
that
sent Rams Jamadagnya i n t o t h e b a t t l e w3th
he would
returned t o S i v a and was desi red,
They pleaded w i t h S i v a
p r e v a i 1*
The
successful
Rams
then granted t h e weapons he
had
Subsequentlys Rams t a u g h t Karna how t o use those
d i v i n e weapons. The M2Sdrakas excori atedfd3 [8.2?.71-27 Narrator:
Karna
Audi ence:
gal ya
The next
day, Karna and sa 7ya traded insu Its as
they headed out onto the b a t t l e f i e f d . agreement,
Sa 7ya
1051
As p a r t
of
thejt-
wau 7d serve as charioteer t o the best a f h i s
a b i 7 i t y , but w a s f r e e t o say whatever he l i k e d ta Karna.
Karna repeated a $a1 ya * s
peopl e s
pruverbia3.
the
Among
lengthy catalogue MSdrakas,
other
things,
which they
of
insults
about
he
c l a* med
were
were- s a i d
to
143stri yo bZf7agca vrddhaha prayah kridSgat8 j anah/ ya gathah sampragbyanti kurvantb 'dhyayanam yatha/ ta gathati &-nu me &a1ya madrakesu durStmasu[/8.2?. 71
.
a
be
They observed no conventions o f
t r a i t o r o u s and d i shonest purity
and
members
a1 lowed
to
m i ng1e
men
and
women8
together
f r e e ly
strangers
.
and
fami 1y
Msdraka women
were
1icent+aus and observed none o f t h e precepts o f dharnta.
ga 7ya
r e t o r t e d w i t h t h e f o 7 lowing story. The s t o r y o f t h e crow144[8.28.9-28- 55 ]
3
Narrator :
$a1ya
Audience:
Karna
A weal t h y va igya once 1ived across t h e ocean.
He
I ived a v i rtuous 1if e and had many chi 1dren who r e g u l ar1y and generous1y Fed a l o c a l crowe I n t i m e 8 t h e crow grew arrogant, t h i n k i n g i t s e l f s u p e r i o r t o a11 o t h e r b i r d s . One day* a f l o c k of challenged
them t o
u p r o a r i o u s l y ~ but abi lit i es.
swans a1 i g h t e d nearby and t h e crow
a
flying
the
crow
contest. boasted
The at
swans
length
laughed
about
his
One swan f 4 nal l y accepted the crow1s cha11enges
and l e d t h e arrogant b i r d f a r o u t over the ocean.
When a t
1 ast i t t i red, t h e crow was humbled and asked t h e swan f o r
help.
The swan r e t u r n e d i t t o d r y l a n d and t h e r e a f t e r t h e
crow was a p p r o p r i a t e l y modest.
L i k e t h e craw,
s a i d $a1ya8
Karna thought himself superior t a h i s b e t t e r s . To show t h a t he was unaffected by h 7 y a P s i n s u ? t s , Kama
repeated
a
group
of
stories
derogatory
ta
Vahikas
and
ibl2Wt-a kas.
"%his Mbh
is one o f t h e few s t o r i e s ca1 l e d nfdargana i n t h e
i m a m kskopamam karrta procyamSnZEm nibodha rne/8.28'3ab gal yo ' brav?tpunahkarnam n i darSanamud~haran//8.28. I
7 86
.
4. S t o r i es from Dhrtarz&stral . s court'4s [8.30.7-30.82 Narrator:
Karna
A u d i ence :
6a1ya
]
Karna ' s f u r t h e r fnsu Its were presented f n t h e form of e f g h t s t a r f e s repeated from aaong those he had ever-heard
brahmans recount t o D h r t a f a s t r a and h i s court. 8
.
a. The Vah5 kas [8.30.§-30.2 ] The impure VZfhTkas 1i v e d beyond t h e borders o f
the sacred Xrya r e g i on.
They drank excessively, slaughtered
c a t t l e , ate b e e f a and were 1i c e n t i o u s ( e s p e c i a l l y t h e women). The VZhikas were wjcked and thoroughly depraved.
b . The raksasa woman among t h e VahZkas [ 8 * 3 0 m 28-
30.331 A c e r t a i n raksasa woman used t o s i n g about the VZh5 kas a t r e g u l a r i n t e r v a l s i n t h e t o w n OF Sakala.
She sang
about t h e pleasures o f g l u t t o r ~ o u sconsumptiun o f m e a t .
c. Regi ons w3 t h a u t v i r t u e f8.30 34-3O.37] Another
brahman
in
D h r t a r S.s t r a t s
enumerated r e g i ons which lacked v i r t u e .
court
had
He a1so d e s c r j bed the
VShgkas as people w h o never performed s a c r i f i c e s o r observed
dharma.
d . F u r t h e r e v i l s o f t h e VShikas [8.30.38-308401
6rnu madraj anSdhi pa/ samnidhau d h r t a r a s t r a s y a ~rocyam8nammays &rutam// dehm8ca v i v3 d h ~ d kt ir a n p ~ r v a v r t t a m & c ap a r t h i van/ brahmanah kathayantah sma dhrt&rastramupasate// t a t r a vrddhah p u r a v r t t a h katfdih k&&ciddvi jottamah/ t//8.30.7-9 bat112 kadesam* inadramdica kutsayanv~kyamabravi
ld5i dam t u me tvameksgrah
The VahZ kas were known t o use improper e a t i n g utensi I s (wood and c l a y )
t o eat From p l a t e s 1i c k e d by dogs,
and t o d r i n k t h e m i l k of almost any animal i n d i s c r i m i n a t e l y . e. The o r i g i n s o f the VahZkas [8.30.41-30.471 A raksasa woman once t o l d
a brahman t o avoid Including t h e
c e r t a i n peoples who d i d n o t observe dharma.
she explained t h a t t h e y were born o f two
VXhikas among them,
pMacas8 a thoroughly despi sed group OF creatures. f
. The adharmi c
Vah2 kas [8.30.48-30.561
A c e r t a i n brahman v i s i t i ng D h r a t r a*s t r a t s c o u r t
once s i ngled o u t the VahC kas f o r speci a1 censure. only
group
improper1y
he
had
ever
know
in
which
I t was the
everyone
acted
l
g
.
Further c r i t i c i s m o f VahZ kas [8.30.57-30. One
day*
..
kjdnappers from X r a t t a .
a
chaste
woman
was
663
abducted
by
She cursed a1 1 t h e women o f t h e i r
fami 1 ies t o be unchastes and t h e r e a f t e r thraugh t h e maternal nephew.
in h e r i t a m e passed
Even i n t h e k r t a e r a * Brahma had
condemned t h e p r a c t i c e s o f t h e Vahi kas and o t h e r s who dwell ed i n the r e g i o n o f the f i v e r i v e r s . h . MZdrakas as t h e lowest o f t h e low [8.30.67-
30m821 Once a c e r t a i n king rescued a drowni ng raksasa. The demon r e c i t e d a formula meant ta cure one o f possession by
a raksasa o r t o r e v i v e someone who had been poisoned.
Among
t h e verses were the claims t h a t t h e VahZlcas a r e t h e d3 r t o f
188
t h e e a r t h * and t h a t Madra women are t h e d i r t o f a11 women.
Other s i n s o f t h e VZhZkas and Madrakas drunkenness,
i n c l u d i n g abort+on,
and t h e f t , were a l s o repeated.
Fina 7 7y3
Duryodhana
interrupted
the
verba ?
warfa~e
between Karna and Salya, and t h e seventeenth day o f b a t t l e got D u r f n ~t h e day3 Drma 's s m ,
underway'
overcame by Arjuna, but not k i 7 led.
ASvatthaman,
was
Y u d h f s t h i r a w a s exu7tant
.
when he beard t h e shouts o f t h e Pandava troops, t h i n k i n g that *
Karna had been k i 7 lede
When Arjuna
t o 7d him t h a t
was
it
.
ASvatthaman whum he had defeated, Yudhi s t h i f a became enraged and accused Ar3una o f avofdfng combat w i t h Karnag
Arjuna3
too, became enragedg
5 . The s i g n s o f d t ~ a r r n a '[8.49.33-49. ~~ S 6]
Marrator:
Krsna *..
Audi ence :
A r j una
Arjuna
contemp 7ated
.
k i 7 7 ing
Yudhisthira spoke so crue7 7y t o h i m , staries
to
i77ustrate
the
his
brother
when
Krsna t o l d Arjuna two . * .
dffference
between
truth
and
f a kehood.
a g Balakats un$ntentiunal good deedi4'
[ & 49.34-
49-40] A c e r t a i n hunter named Balska was scrupu1ous i n
h4s abservanee 09 dharma*
He used t o k i 11 anjmal s a n l y t o
'46acaksva bhagavannetadyatha v i dyamaham tatha/ b a l a k h d h a b h i sambaddham nadinam kauSi kasya ca//8*49 * 33 %ere
,..
Krsna beg4 ns t h e s t o r y w i t h o a t p r e l im i n a r i es
I89 support h i s fami l y . water
and
killed
One day, he saw a b l i n d animal d r i n k i n g it
killed
hesitation.
BalZka
heaven on a d j v i n e c h a r i o t .
immediately taken t o unwittingly
without
a
beast
which
intended
He
kill
to
was had a11
creaturess and had obtained a boon t o do so.
b. KauSi ka s m i sgui ded adherence t o dharmaId8 [8.49.41-49.461 A r a t h e r i g n o r a n t f o r e s t a s c e t i c named KauSjka I t l a t e r happened
one day vowed always t o speak t h e t r u t h .
t h a t some innocent people f l e d i n t o t h e woods, robbers.
pursued by
When t h e robbers asked i f KauSika had seen t h e
peaple, he rep1i e d t r u t h f u l l y .
The robbers were then able t o
capture t h e i r prey and k i l l them. t o a t e r r i b l e he11
For h i s s i n , KauSika went
.
Afjuna sought K*f s n a f s advice. * . Yudhisthira, ,
but
.
Yudhisthfra f s
He d i d not want t o k i l l words
to
him
warranted
Yudhisttiira , ls death, a c c e r d f n ~ t o a vow Arjuna had taken long ago*
Krsna , , . counse?ecf t h a t he verba 7 l y show disrespect t o h f s
brother f n a sma71 way accarding t o the adage t h a t one who i s t r e a t e d d i s r e s p e c t f u ? 7y f s dead, a 1 though a 1 f v e .
Arjuna teuk
..
, prepared h i s advice, then, urged on by Yudhfsthira and Krsna,
t o ki71 Karna. As the batt7e continued t h a t day, Bhima ki77ed DuhSasana
and, as he had vowed when DuhSasana dragged QraupadY by t h e
i48~ere Krsna . * * p r e l im i n a r i es.
begins
the
second
story
without
190 h a i r i n t o the assembly ha7 1 long
thereafter,
Arjuna
Kama h imse 7 f.
age, drank h f s blood.
k i 7 led Kafna ' s son,
Vrsasena, ,*
and
Soon then
The Kaurava troops r e t r e a t e d i n t e r r o r and the
Panda . was r e j o i c e d . 14# 7 3 f s conc 1udes the karnaparvan
''%he r e a d i ng o f t h e f i na1 adhyaya o f t h e @carmiparvan is uncertain, b u t t h e c r i t i c a l l y e d i t e d t e x t c o n t a i n 6 a section in w h i ch Yudtti s t h i r a warm1y c o n g r a t u l ates Krsaa and A r juna f o r t h e i r v i c t o r y '6ver Karna. I n s t a t i ng tha* both Wrada and Krsna DvaipSyana had t b l d him t h e i r i d e n t i t i e s as Nara and ~ & + & y a n aYudhi , s t h i r a described t h e in f o r m a t i on he received as a story: asakrccapi medhSvZ krsnadvaipayano mama/ kathametarn mahSWho d4 vyamakathayatprabhuh//8 a9 23
9.
The s e c t i o n about 6alya [&a?yaparvan] The s e c t i o n on the lti 11ing OF Salya [$a 7yavadhaparva]
A.
[ Q . 1-9.161
On the e i g h t e e n t h and f ina 7 day of b a t t l e D Dwyudhana appofntecf &7ya
as general o f t h e Kaurava farces.
By midday,
Yudhisthirai had k i ? l e d hfm*
6. The secti on on e n t e r i ng t h e 1ake [hradaprave&aparva] [9.1?4.28j
The
Kaurava
troops
retreated
in
Duryodhana v f r t u a l 7y alone on t h e b a t t 7efie7d.
fear,
leaving
He* tuu, then
ran away i n fear and hfcf a t the bottam o f a lake, refusing t o
any
ffght
.
mom.
Y u d h i s,t h f r a
When
sfatpry
tu
the
take
Pandavas #
,
the
found
kingdom
him,
he
told
for
himself.
.
Yudh i s t h i r a f n s i s t e d , however, t h a t Duryodhana be defeated i n Duryudhana f i n a 7 7y agreed t o f i g h t when Yudhi s t* h i r a
b a t * 7e.
8
Duryodhana se 7ected the
o f f e r e d him the weapon of h i s chuice* then cha 7 7enged any o m o f
mace,
..
t h e Psndavas t o combat.
Bhima i n s i s t e d t h a t he be the one t a k i 7 7 Duryodhana, C.
The s e c t i o n on t h e p i l g r i m a g e c i r c u i t
[ t Z r t h a y a t r a p a r v a ] 19.29-9.531 1
.
Balaramass p i lgritnage a l o n g t h e Sarasvat:
~i verlsg
t9m34.33-53-33] Narrator :
V a i 6ampayana
..
vai punyam r2fje n d r a 150mayocyam~n~T Srnu krtsna6ah/9.34.35cd his seeies o f 26 s t o r i e s i s framed as a d e s c r i p t i o n o f E3al aramal s t r a v e l s t o p i 1grimage s i t e s along t h e Sarasvati R i ver
.
192
Audience:
Janamejaya
Just as Bhi tlfa and Duryodhana were abour 'to Fight on the Fina 1 day of the Mah6bh.rata war, Sa lar.ma, e 7der brother of
K:~~al
arrived.
the war,
He had 1eFt on pilgrimage on the eve of
reFusing to
take
sides
in
the conF7ict ..
Balar.ma returned to the scene, Janamejaya asked to
recount
pi7grimage
his
travels.
site
Formed
Stories a
major
Vai~a~p.yana
associated
parr
of
When
wi'th
each
Vaj§a~p.yana·s
narration. a.
Prabhasa '51 [9.34.35-34.77] Narrator:
Vaija~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
At PrabhBsa. Soma had been released from the curse of Daksa. Dak~a
gave his twenty-seven beautiful daughters to Soma
in marriage, but Soma devoted exclusive attention to the most beaut; fu 1 among them. 152
The twenty-si x neg1 ected
wives complained repeatedly to their father. admonished Soma. but to no effect. cursed
him
waste
As
In exasperation,
emaciated, so, too. did living creatures suffer.
Finally, the
for assistance.
Soma
Oaksa
increaSingly
Dak~a
away.
Each time he
grew
gods begged
to
Rohi~i.
He declared that if
S~ma
critical edition gives no title for this story, co" ect; ve 1 y the group of twentY-51 x stori es ; 5 introduced as indicated in the preceding note. 151 The
a 1 though
152The editors of the critical edition here refer readers to 12.329.45-46 for the episode of Soma and the daughters of Oaksa.
193 would bathe
in the pilgrimage site named PrabhBsa on
the
Sarasvati River, he would henceforth wax for half a month and wane for the remainder.
Soma did so and regained his vigor.
b. Udapana 153 [9.35.1-35.53] Narrator:
Vai~a~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
Janamejaya asked to hear the story OT Trita l
who
had once resided in Udap.na.
In
a
former
Gautama had three sons:
age.
a
di sti ngui shed
sage
Ekata. Dvita, and Trita.
named
All were
accomplished Vedic practitioners, but Trita was the foremost among them. One day.
Ekata and Dvi ta. desi ri ng wealth. deci ded to
perform a sacrifice.
As the three brothers headed toward the
sacrificial compound, Ekata and Dvita plotted to deprive Trita of his share of the gifts for their services.
After all, they
rationalized. he could readily earn all he needed by aSSisting at other sacri fi ces .
As they walked,
A wolf
night fell.
appeared and the brothers became terribly frightened.
Trita,
who was several steps ahead of the other two, fell into a deep hole on the shore of the Sarasvati River.
Equally motivated
by fear of the wolf and greed, the brothers ignored his cries
and deserted Trita. Fearful
that
he wou1 d
di e,
Tri ta
performed
153 0n1y the phrase purvayuge (in a former age) signals the telling of this story.
a
mental
(9.35.7a)
194
sacrifice to such perfection that all receive a share of Tritals offerings. him from the well
and
the gods gathered to
In gratitude they freed
sanctified its waters.
When
Trita
encountered his brothers. he cursed them to become wolves. c. Ba1arama l s visit to miscellaneous
~irthas
[9.36.1-36.36] Narrator:
Vaita~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
Here continues
wi'thout
the
description
of
additions 1 stories
~rave1s
Ba1ar.ma's
about
the
pi Tgrimage
sites.
d. Why the Sarasvati River altered its course toward the east 154 [9.36.37-36.63] Narrator:
Vai.a~p.yana
Audience:
Janamejaya
I n the kfta era. the Na i mi sa Forest ascet i cs were engaged in a twelve-year sacrifice. they set Taki ng
ou~
up
After completing it
on a pilgrimage to the banks of the Sarasvati.
residence
there
(near
Samantapaftcaka) I
the
ai r
resounded with the chants of hundreds of Vedic recitations. As more and more ascetics arrived. however. the banks became too
crowded
to
accommodate
ritual s at a di stance from river turned eastward
~o
them. ~he
so
river.
they
undertook
thei r
Out of concern the
flow near them. then turned westward
15~The phrase pDrvam krtayuge (formerly. in the kr-ta era) introduces this story at S.36.39a.
195
again when all had been accommodated. e. The pilgrimage site at Sapta-Sarasvata and the story of Ma~ka~akal~ [3.37.1-37.50] Narrator:
Vai~a~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
began by explaining how the site
Vai§a~p.yana
came to be know as Sapta-S.rasva1:a (3.37. 1-28).
He described
seven occasions on which sacriFices had been perFormed there and during which Sarasvati had been speciFically summoned to participate. diFFerent
On each occasion she had been summoned by a
epi~het,
hence her seven names_
Vajla~p.yana
then to7d the
s~ory
of
Manka~aka,
1:he
brahmacarin (3.37.29-50). Once, wh i 1 e performi ng his ab 1 ut ions in the Sarasvati, Ma~kanaka
saw a named woman bathing there.
the ri ver J
but
He ejaculated into
recovered the sperm in hi s earthenware pot.
From the liquid were born seven seers who in turn fathered the Maruts. One day some time 1ater J
Mal"tka-:-aka pierced himself
with a blade of ku§a grass and juice -- not blood -- fell from his wound.
When he began to dance with joy, the gods became
disturbed.
~iva
visited him on behalf of the gods to learn
what the fuss was about.
When he did,
~;va
laughed and cut
his own thumb with a fingernail.
Out came ashes.
immediately
unseemly
apologized
for
his
Ma"'kanaka
behavior.
155etanmattkanakasyapi car; tam bhori tej asah/9. . . 37 . SOab
$iva
196
decl ared t h a t anyone who would worship him in t h a t place would a t t a i n heaven. f . The pilgrimage s i t e Uianas o r Kapalam~cana'~~
c9.38.4-38.301 Narrator:
Vai 6amp-a
Audience:
Janamejaya
A7thcugh
various
events
had
occurred
there,
Janamejaya asked t o hear the s t o r y o f t h e sage Mahodara. Once when Rama DaSaratha slew a raksasa, he threw i t s head i n t o t h e a i r . stuck t o i t .
The head landed on Mahodarat s t h i g h and
I n g r e a t pain, Mahodara t r a v e l e d t h e e a r t h t o
b a t h e i n every t z r t h a , but he found no r e 1ie f
.
F i rial l y some
.
r s i s advised him t o bathe i n Wanas on t h e Sarasvati River. When he d i d so, t h e head f e l l i n t o t h e waters and disappeared. When they heard t h e story, t h e
rsis who had sent him t o Usanas .
gave i t t h e name KapZSlamocana ( s k u l l - r e l e a s e ) . g
. Where peopl e became brahmansIs7 [9.38.31-39.321 Narrator:
Vai Sampayana
Audi ence :
Janamej aya
VafSampayana told how f i v e men had achieved t h e
status o f brahmans at t h i s s i t e on t h e Sarasvati
River:
. Sindhudvlpa, Devapi, KuSikats son, and ViSvamitra. Arstfsena, .
#
.. . .
K r s t i sena
''lhe
s s t o r y was b r i e f (9.39.1-39.8).
A1 though
word p u r f (long ago) s i gnal s t h i s s t o r y a t 9.38.5d.
he phrase pura krtayuge (9.39.3a) ( l o n g ago i n t h e k r t a e r a ) i n t r o d u c e s t h e 'story o f t h e r s* i k s t i s e n a .
.
.. . .
197 d i 1 * g e n t and
persistent
..
in
h i s attempts
.
knowl edge, A r s t i sena f a i l e d t o do so. * when he undertook s t r i n g e n t a u s t e r i t i e s .
to
master
Vedic
He f i n a l 1 y succeeded I n t h a t same place,
s a i d Vai Sampayana, S i ndhudvzpa, DevSpi and KauSi ka ' s son had become brahmans u s i n g t h e same methods. King
KauSi kaIs8,
ViSvami tra.
named
Gadhi.
had
a
son
named
When t h e k i n g decided t o abandon h i s body,
he
i n s t a l l e d ViSvSmitra on t h e throne. Not being a very e f f e c t i v e king, one day V i 6vami t r a l e d his
troops
i n t o the
hermitage o f
raksasas from t h e kingdom.
.
Vasistha *
.
to
rout
Vasistha was enraged a t
d e s t r u c t i o n caused i n h i s duel 1ing,
some the
so he ordered h i s wish-
g r a n t i n g cow t o c r e a t e a t r o o p o f h o r r i b l e c r e a t u r e s c a l l e d Savaras.
The creatures chased V i svami t r a *s s o l d i e r s away.
At
t h a t very spot t h e k i n g undertook t h e most severe a s c e t i c vows.
Even t h e gods were unable t o deter him.
Eventually.
Brahma granted him t h e boon of brahman status. i s introduced as a descriptfon of
T h i s set o f s t o r f e s what happened at t h e n e x t
t i r t h a Balar-
visited.
h. Baka s hermitage and Dal bhya Baka s t h r e a t t s 9 [9.40.1-40.281 Narrator:
Va"iampayana
'^A stock phrase i n t r o d u c e s t h i s s t o r y a t 9.39.12ab: [gadhi rnSma rnahanasxt k s a t r i yah p r a t h i t o bhuvi J (There was a g r e a t ksatriya, c e l e b r a t e d over t h e world, known by t h e name ~ ~ d h 'i )
.
he
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y , but
it is recounted immedi a t e 1y f o l 1owi ng the precedi ng s t o r y .
Audience:
Janamejaya
B a 7 a r m t r a v e l e d on a short ofstance to t h e hermitage o f Baka.
..
One day t h e r s i DZlbhya Baka went t o D h r t a r a.s.t r a t s c o u r t t o request c a t t l e i n exchange f o r a s a c r i f i c e he was preparing t o perform.
Angry t h a t some o f h i s c a t t l e had d i e d
f o r no apparent reason, D h r t a r Z s t r a said, i f you want them."
"Take t h e dead ones
I n s u l t e d , DZlbhya Baka decided t o destroy
He c u t f l e s h from t h e dead animal s and used i t
t h e kingdom. in h i s r i t u a l
.
As a r e s u l t , t h e k i ngdom began t o s u f f e r .
At
.
length, D h r t a r a s t r a t s p r i e s t s advised the k i n g o f t h e cause of t h e i r troubles
and
recommended t h a t he
..
compassi on.
Dhrtarastra
forgiveness,
so
Baka
apol o g i zed
restored h i s
appeal
p r o f use1y
kingdom.
to
Bakat s
and
I n that
asked same
place, Brhaspati had o f f e r e d f l e s h f o r the d e s t r u c t i o n o f t h e asuras,
and helped t o b r i n g about t h e i r demise. i
. YaySti
[9.40.29-40.351
Narrator :
Vai Sampwana
Audience:
Janamejaya
A t t h i s sacred place, Yayati had performed t h e
s a c r i f i c e by which he a t t a i n e d heaven. j
. Vasi ~. .t h a ~ a v t f h a '[9.41.1-42.381 ~' Narrator:
VaiSamp3yana
h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s anci 1 l a r y s t o r y , b u t i t i s recounted immedi ate1y f o i l owi ng t h e precedi ng story.
he
c r i t i c a l g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y story.
Audience: Bal-a
Janamejaya t r a v e l e d n e x t to t h e t i r t h a associated
with Vasistha, ,. and J a m m ej a y a asked to hear about t h a t sage Is
connect ion w i t h the place.
..
(1) The feud between Vasistha and ViSvamitra
[9.41.1-42.261
.
Vasi stha and V i Svami t r a were r iv a l ascet ics who
dwelled
on
opposite
banks
of
the
Sarasvati
River.
.
Vasi s t h a 1ived i n the sacred p l a c e where Skanda, son of Siva, had been p u t i n charge o f t h e c e l e s t i a l army. Each day Vasistha and V i S v - i t r a
would challenge each
other t o prove s u p e r i o r i t y i n t h e i r a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s .
.
day, V i Svami t r a decided t o k i 11 Vasi stha. accumulated m e r i t ,
One
By the f o r c e o f his
he ordered t h e r i v e r Sarasvati t o bear
Vasistha t o him along her c u r r e n t s .
T e r r i f i e d t h a t he might
curse her, Sarasvati reported V i SvZmi t r a ' s demand t o Vasi stha. The compassi onate asceti c assured her t h a t he waul d n o t r e s i st her e f f o r t s , l e s t Visvamitra curse her.
..
Touched by Vasisthats
concern, Sarasvati seized an o p p o r t u n i t y t o breach t h e bank on
.
which Vasi stha . was chanting mantras and c a r r i e d t h e sage t o V i Svami t r a ' s hermi tage.
Before t h a t enraged a s c e t i c coul d
.
k i ll Vasistha, she swept him back again t o the opposite bank,
thus complying w i t h the l e t t e r , demand.
i f not the s p i r i t ,
o f his
I t was t h e angry V i S v m i t r a who then cursed her t o
f l o w as a r i v e r o f blood.
her c u r r e n t .
Many raksasas came t o d r i nk from
200 Learning o f S a r a s v a t i l s p l i g h t , a group o f r s i s decided t o rescue her and d i d so by w o r s h i p i n g Siva, who 1i f t e d t h e curse. for
B u t then t h e s t a r v i n g r9ksasasas appealed t o t h e r s* i s
help.
The
w i se
men
therefore
desi gnated
certain
contami nated foods as t h e e x c l u s i ve p o r t i on o f t h e rSksasas. S a r a s v a t i then created a new branch c a l l e d t h e Aruna.
The
rsis bathed t h e r e and went t o heaven. (2) I n d r a s brahmani cide'82 [9.42.27-42.381 I n d r a , t o o , had bathed i n t h a t t i r t h a when he committed t h e s i n o f brahmanfcicfe.
Janamejaya asked t o
hear why Indra committed t h a t sin, and how i t w a s e x p f a t e d .
The asura Namuci , f e a r i ng I n d r a , h i d h i m s e l f in a ray o f
the sun.
I n d r a coaxed him t o r e v e a l h i m s e l f by promi s i ng t h a t
he would n o t k i 11 him w i t h a n y t h i n g wet o r dry, n o r d u r i n g t h e day o r n i g h t .
When a f o g f e l l one day,
head w i t h a weapon made o f foam.
I n d r a c u t o f f Namuci's
The severed head chased
I n d r a u n t i 1 he appealed t o Brahma f o r r e 1 i e f .
Brahma advised
him t o bathe a t t h e confluence o f t h e Aruna and Sarasvati Rivers.
When I n d r a d i d so, Namuci * s head fell in t o t h e water.
Ba 7arama then t r a v e l e d t o t h e t i r t h a o f Soma where K u m a
dwe1 7ed. k . The t i r t h a o f
t9.42.38-46.31
' 6 2 ~ r n u s v tadupakhyanam ai y a t h a v r t t a m j aneSvara/9.42.28ab E d i t o r s b'f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i ' t i o n n o t e th'at t h e myth of I n d r a and Namuci can be t r a c e d back t o Rgveda V I 11.14.13. IÑhant te kathayi syami Srnvanasya j anadhi pa/ abhisekam k u m h y a p r a b h ~ v a mc a mahatmanah//Q.43.5
201
Narrator:
Vai§ampayana
Audience:
Janamejaya
Long ago, fire.
~iva's
sperm fell into the sacrificial
Agni was unwilling to burn it. but he was also unable
to hold on to the great aiva's seed.
Commanded by Brahm••
Agni dropped the sperm into the Ganges River. to bear its blazing splendor. mountain Himavat.
Equally unable
the Ganges cast
it onto the
A child began to grow.
Seeing the baby all alone, the six
K~ttikas
each claimed
him as her son. and so he was known as Karttikeya.
He grew to
be handsome and possessed ascetic powers. One day. large
the boy spotted
assembly
bei ngs.
of
odd-faced
and the gods.
~iva
and Um. sitting amidst a
creatures.
various
As KBrtti keya approached,
celestial hi 5
four
"parents" each thought he or she would be approached fi rst. Perceiving this, Karttikeya took four forms and simultaneously approached them:
aiva. Um.,
Ga~g ••
and Agni.
Struck by his
act. the four asked Brahm. to grant the young man some special sovereignty, and so he was appointed general of all creatures. At the ceremony of investiture. appropri ate ri tes .
B~haspati
performed the
Every creature of heaven attended.
and
each gave special companions to the new general to assist him in battle.
His army was composed of creatures from all three
realms. After the ceremony. Skanda set out to dest roy the asuras. Wi th hi s
army,
he defeated hundreds of thousands of them.
in c l udi ng t h e i r 1eader
1
. Tai jasa,
.
TEraka.
where Varuna was i n s t a l l e d as 1o r d of
t h e waters165 [ Q . 46.4-46.121 Narrator:
Vai Sampayana
Audience:
Janamejaya
When VaiSampayana mentioned t h a t Ba lafifma had
a ?so bathed i n t h e t i r t h a where Varuna was consecrated by t h e
d e i t i e s , Janamejaya asked t o hear the s t o r y .
In t h e k r t a era, t h e gods asked Varuna t o serve as t h e i r p r o t e c t o r i n t h e oceans as I n d r a d i d i n t h e heavens.
When he
agreed, a formal ceremony o f i n v e s t i t u r e was performed i n t h e
place c a l l e d Taijasa. m. Agni ti rtha16' [9.46.12-46.201
Narrator:
VaiSampayana
Audi ence :
Janamej aya
Balaraaa t r a v e l e d next t o A g n i t z r t h a , where A g n i had once hidden,
Agni t i r t h a was t h e p l a c e where Agni had once d i sappeared i n fear o f a curse by Bhrgu.
The gods f i n a l l y l o c a t e d him
h i d i n g i n a piece o f Sami wood.
As a r e s u l t o f Bhrguls curse.
A g n i t h e r e a f t e r consumed everything.
~ d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note t h a t t h i s episode i s presented more f u l l y i n Matsya Purana 146-160.
.
1 6 s ~ r nr8jann-i u dam c i tram purvakalpe yathatatham/Q. 46.5ab '%he
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y .
n
. B r a h m a y ~ n i '[Q. ~ ~46.20-46.221 Narrator :
Vai SampXyana
Audi ence :
Janamej aya
T h i s was t h e next t i r t h a t BaJar2lma v i s i t e d .
Brahmayoni
was
the
place
where
Brahma
had
overseen c r e a t i on. 0.
~ a u b e r a '[9.46.22-46.281 ~~ Narrator:
Vai6ampayana
Audi ence :
Janamejaya
Kaubera w a s t h e next t i r t h a BaJarama v i s i t e d . A t Kaubera,
Kubera obtained dominion over a1 1
treasures and over t h e n o r t h e r n d i r e c t i on, Rudra' s f r i e n d s h i p. and a son named Nalakdbara. p
. ~ a d a r a ~ a c a n a[ Q~.46.29-47.61] '~ Narrator:
VaiGampSyana
A u d i ence:
Janamej aya
Ba 7arSma t r a v e l e d t o t h e t i r t h a Vadarapacana. ( 1 ) sruravati
[9.46.29-47.551
S r u r a v a t i , daughter o f Bharadvaja, 1ived in Vadarapacana as a brahmac3rini.
For many years she engaged i n
s t r i c t a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s t o o b t a i n Indra f o r her husband.
.
day, I n d r a v i s i t e d her i n t h e disguise o f Vasi stha.
One
When she
-
he
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e i s given f o r t h i s
story.
h he
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y .
l6%he c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y story.
204
told
him
her
.
goal,
Vasistha
i n s t r u c t e d her t o b o i l them. consumeds b u t
the
fruits
gave
her
some
fruits
and
The day faded and her f u e l w a s showed no
signs
of
softening.
P u t t i n g her own f e e t i n t o t h e f i r e t o keep i t fueled, she f e l t
no pain as t h e y burned. *
Finally,
I n d r a appeared t o her
undi sgui sed t o announce t h a t her wish had been granted.
He
then t o l d her t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y .
J (a) ~ r u n d h a t i ' ?[9.47.28-47.48 ~ Narrator:
Indra
Audience:
6ruravat~
Once.
i n t h a t very
place,
t h e seven
seers , l e f t Arundhati t o gather food i n a f o r e s t on Himavat Mountain.
A twelve-year
w h i 1e Arundhati
drought struck, so they stayed away
c o n t i nued t o observe her a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s
a1 one. One day, 61va appeared t o Arundhati i n t h e form o f a
brahman.
She had o n l y some f r u i t s t o o f f e r as food,
i n s t r u c t e d her t o cook them. a
so S i v a
Twelve years passed by as if i n
s i n g l e day w h i l e he t o l d her s t o r i e s .
Meanwhile,
drought passed and the seven seers returned. a s c e t i c m e r i t , S i v a granted her a boon.
the
Praising her
Arundhati asked t h a t
t h e spot be designated as t h e t i r t h a Vadarapacana. I n d r a then granted 6ruravati:
another boon:
anyone who
would bathe t h e r e and stay i n t h a t place f o r one n i g h t would
he 9.47.28b.
word
pura
(long
ago)
signals
this
story
at
205
attain regions otherwise difficult to acquire. (2) ~ruravati' s mother 171 [9.47.56-47.61]
At Janamejaya's request, ~ruravati's
him about
Once when
the
Vai§a~P6yana
told
mother.
beautiful
Bharadvaja ejaculated.
apsaras
Gh~t.ci
passed
by,
He placed the semen in a cup made of
tree leaves, and in that cup
~ruravati
was born.
He raised
her in his hermitage, and there she remained.
AFter bathing at Vadarap6cana and donating wea7th to the brahmans there, as was appropriate, Balar8ma traveled to the pilgrimage site of Indra. q.
Indra' 5 ti rtha172 [9.48.1-48.6] Narrator:
vaita~p.yana
Audience:
Janamejaya
At this pilgrimage site, Indra had performed 100 horse sacri fi ces and had
gi ven great weal th to
B~haspati,
priest of the gods.
AFter traveled
bathing
on
to
and
the
site
honoring
the
named
aFter
brahmans, the
BalarSma
BhSrgava
R6ma
JSmadagnya. r. RBma I s
ti rtha173 [9.48.6-48. 10]
Narrator:
Vaita~p.yana
Audience:
Janamejaya
171 The critical
edition gives no title for this story.
172The critical edition gives no title for this story. 173The critical
edition gives no title for this story.
206
A f t e r RSma Jamadagnya had s l a i n t h e k s a t r i yas, he performed a vajapeya s a c r i f i c e and 100 horse sacrifices i n
the place t h a t came t o be known as Rams's t m a . gave t o KaSyapa, sacri f ic i a1 fee.
h i s preceptor,
the
e n t i r e earth as the
He a1so made generous g i f t s t o t h e brahmans.
Ba lafama bathed a t the sacred s i t e ,
and r, s i s there,
He then
honored the brahmans
and t r a v e l e d on.
s. YamunS t ~ r t f t a 'f9.48.10-48.161 ~~ Narrator:
Vaisampayana
Audience:
Janamejaya
I n t h i s place Varuna had long ago performed a rajas-
r i t u a l f o l l o w i n g h i s defeat o f the gods,
and human bei ngs.
raksasas,
When the s a c r i f i c e began, a t e r r i b l e b a t t l e
broke o u t between t h e gods and asuras.
When i t ended,
one
broke out among ksatriyas. A f t e r paying appropriate honors t o the r s i s a t the YamunS 0
.
t i r t h a , Ba7arama continued on h i s journey. t
Ad+t y a t ~ r t h d [Q~ . 48.16-49.651 ~
Narrator:
VaiSampayana
Audi ence :
Janamej aya
Among t h e famous i n h a b i t a n t s o f place was the accompl ished seer A s i t a Devala. asceti c
named
J a i g i savya
s e t t l ed
in
Deval a ' s
this
sacred.
One day,
an
hermi tage.
'^The c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e t o t h i s s t o r y . % h e word pura (long ago) s i g n a l s the beginning o f the story o f A s i t a Devala a t 9.49. I d .
207 Devala was extremely attentive to him,
but after many years
grew concerned that the ascetic never uttered a single word to him. Soon thereafter,
Asita Devala traveled to the ocean's
shore to perform his ablutions. when
he
arrived.
Returning
He found to
his
Jaigi~avya
hermitage,
there
he
was
astonished to find that the ascetic had returned before him. Determined to learn flew
up
into
worshipped.
the
Jaigi~avya's
sky
where
true identity, Asita Devala he
saw
Fo11 owi ng him to heaven,
the
ascetic
being
real m.
to Valla r s
to
Soma's and beyond, Asita Oevala eventually "lost sight of him. He was told that the ascetic had gone to the region of Brahma. Unab 1 e to fo 11 ow, Jaigi~avya
Jaigi~avya
sitting
he returned to his there.
At
hermi tage -- to fi nd
Oeva1a's
humble
request,
instructed him in yoga and Deva1a abandoned his
householder dharma for the practice of moksadharma. 17&
8a7ar.ma bathed at
~he
site and traveled on
honoring the brahmans who dwel7ed u.
aF~er
duly
~here.
Soma's ti r~hat77 [9.50. 1-50.2] Narrator:
Vai§a~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
At th i s t.i rtha a great batt 1 e had been waged to defeat Taraka.
176-rhe di a1 ogue between Jai gisavya and Asi ta Deva1 a is recorded at 12.222 in the critical' edition. 171The critical edition gives no title fo,.. this story.
208
As he had done
a't
each site, Ba7ar8ma ba"thed, honored its
residents, and traveled on. v. Muni Sarasvati' s ti rtha118 [9.50.2-50.51] Narrator:
Vai§a~payana
Audience:
Janamejaya
When Va i §a,!,payana mentioned that Sarasva't had at this 7ocation instructed rsis in the Vedas during a twe7veyear drough't, Janamejaya asked why he did so. There
once
1 i ved
powers Indra feared. apsaras A1ambusa.
a
sage
named
Oadhi ca
whose
ascet i c
To tempt him, Indra sent the beautiful
Oadhica ejaculated when he saw her, and his
sperm fell into the Sarasvati River. sperm in her womb,
then presented
The river nurtured his a
son 'to Oadhica.
The
delighted sage showered blessings upon the river, and declared that hi s
son,
Sarasvat.
waul d
during a twelve-year drought.
teach
the Vedas to brahmans
P1 eased wi th her boons,
the
river departed with the child. Meanwhile. a war was raging between the gods and demons. As Indra searched the world for weapons, he told the gods that only Dadhica's bones could slay the asuras. relinquished his life for the cause.
The sage gladly
and so Indra used his
bones to win the war. Much 1 ater,
a
twel ve-year
drought gri pped
Sages scattered in all directions, but
Sarasva~i
the
earth.
counseled her
t18The word pDrvam (formerly, long ago) signals this story
at 9.50.5a.
son to remai n near her where he wou1d a1ways be we1 1 f e d
and
manage t o sustain t h e gads w i t h h i s o f f e r i n g s . When t h e drought had passedl t h e malnourished r, s. i s had f o r g o t t e n what they knew o f Vedic l e a r n i n g .
By chance one o f
and a l l
them encountered Sarasvat s t u d y i n g t h e Vedasl a s c e t i c s begged him t o be t h e * r teacher.
the
He acquired 6 0 , 0 0 0
students and taught them w e l l . BaTarama bathed and honored tfrtha,
the
sages
at
Sarasvatrs
t h e n trave7ed an.
w.
[Q. 51 -1-51.241
Kuni-Gargat s Narrator :
Vai gamp3yana
Audi ence :
Janamej aya
Janamejaya
asked
to
hear
why
Kuni-Gargats
daughter became an ascet f c w i thaut ever ~ a r r y i n g .
The seer Kuni-Garga produced a b e a u t i f u l daughter through an act o f w i l l .
When he went to heavenl
she continued her
a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s s grew d d and f r a i l s b u t f e l t daing so.
contented
When she had decided t o abandon her body,
NSrada
appeared before her t o say t h a t she could not go t o heaven u n t i 1 she marri ed.
The 01d woman w e n t among a group of seers
and o f f e r e d h a l f her m e r i t t o t h e man who would marry her. GZ1avats sonl
.
the r s f srfigavat,
accepted her o f F e r on t h e
c o n d i t i o n t h a t she would s t a y w i t h him f o r only one n i g h t . They married.
The woman became b e a u t i f u 1 and young.
%tatte mahat//9.51m23cd
vrddhakanySy3
vySkhyatam
The next
c a r i tam
210
day.
she abandoned her
body.
1 eavi ng
her saddened
husband
behind. x. Samantapaficaka/Kuruk~etra180 [9.51.25-52.21] Narrator:
VaiAa~payana
Audience:
Jana.ejaya
Whi Ie
a't
Samantapaifcaka,
$alya's death and grieved 'For him..
Ba7arllma
heard
0'F
Vai~a,!,pllyana narra'ted 'the
origins of Kuruk!!e'tra as certain rsis had recounted i t 'to R6ma Jsmadagnya.
Long ago. Indra noticed that Kuru was tilling the soil at Kuruk~etra.
so he descended to earth to inquire why.
Kuru
explained that those who died there would henceforth be freed from
si ns
and
go
di rectl y
to
heaven.
Indra
1 aughed
in
disbelief and returned to heaven, but returned repeatedly to ask the same question.
Each time he received the same reply.
Seeing that Kuru persisted. Indra expressed his concern to the other gods. him
stoP.
They advised Indra to offer Kuru a boon to make otherwise this
alternate
route to
heaven
would
jeopardize the number of sacrifices to the gods and threaten thei r
we11-bei ng.
Indra offered
Kuru the fo11 owi ng
boon:
anyone who died there must have fasted and must die in battle in order to attain heaven.
Kuru agreed. and so
Kuruk~etra
became a sacred place. Ba7arllma cont:inued onward, t:raveling to an extraordinary hermitage.
1BOThe word pur. introduces thi s story at 9.52. 4a.
21 1
.
y . Where Visnu performed a s c e t i c a c t s and where '
..
$and+1yaf s daughter 1iweda1 19 53 1-53 91 M a r ~ a t o r : Vai GampSyana Audience:
Janaznejaya
When Balarama impressed
with
its
entered
sacrality
the
and
hermitage
inquired
he
about
was its
The r. s . i s t h e r e t o l d him t h e f 0 7 70wiag s t o r y *
inhabitants.
..
(1 ) The d w e l l ing of V i snu and !hndi 1ya
.
Marrator:
Rsi s
Audi ence:
Bal arama
this
In
e
place
Visnu *
had
..
a u s t e r i t i e s and h d i l y a had a b e a u t i f u l daughter
performed who t h e r e
performed a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s o f which women weve s a i d h a r d l y t o
be capable*
Eventua7 I y she went to heaven
Balarama
then
passed
through
P I aksaprasravana and Karapacana
the
t5rthas
named
about whi c h no s t o r i es a r e
told. 0.
The s e c t i o n on t h e b a t t l e w i t h maces [gadayuddhaparva] At
%54
the
[Q 544.641
narrative
returns
c o n f r m t a t fun between Duryodhana and Bhima.
tu
the
impending
Once Ba 1arama w a s
du Ty w e ?corned, he remarked t h a t Samantapaficaka was a sacred arena, combat.
and so t h e w a r r i o r s walked t h e r e t o undertake t h e i r
.
,, which As they f o u ~ h tf e r o c i o u s I y , Arjuna asked Krsna
man was s u p e r i o r .
Krsna *..
observed t h a t t h e y were equa?ly
lal~hec r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y .
matched,
and
deception-
that
BhZma wou7d not prevaf7
un7ess he used
He quated a verse a t t r f b u t e d t o Manas t o p o i n t
out t h e danger of a person w f t h nuthfng t o lose. I
rn
Wanas on vanqui shed warri ors182[9.57.12-57.13 ]
...
Narrator:
Krsna
Audi ence :
A rjm a
...
Kfsna told Arjuna t h a t Usanas had said w a r r + a r s m u s t be cautiuus o f deFeated traaps who reconno4teur far
a
I ast desperate a t t a c k * And so BhYma d f d conquer h i s foe u n f a i r l y by s t r i k f n g him across t h e t h i g h s fu7 7 i?wyodhanafs tact ice
legs.
f o r c e w i t h h i s mace0 t h u s breakfng
l3a 7arama protested
Yudhf s* t h f r a
refused
ta
this
censure
unacceptab ?e
t~f s
brother0
cunsfderfng t h e many a c t s o f d e c e i t BbZma and t h e Pandawas had endured a t Duryodhana 's i n s t $ g a tfun. The
Pandava , a
troops
exulted
fn
their
victorya
A&vatth2#man, Krpa, and Krtavarman h u r r i e d t u Quryodhana' s s i d e when
they
7earned
the
awfu7
news.
A&vatthaman, Duryudhana appo f n t e d
At
the
urgfng
~f
the ycwng man genera 1 of
the Kaurava forces as n f g h t began t o fa77 on t h e e i g h t e e n t h day of b a t t 7 e e
Here ends the $$a1yaparvan
rn
la2api cManasEk g5tEkh 6rtiyate *yam puratanah/ Glokastattv~rthasahitastanmenigadatah & r n u / / Â § S 7 . 1 punaravartamananam bhagnanam j 5 v i t a i s i nam] bhetavyamariSesan&mekayanagata h i t e ] / & S 7 n 1 3
. .
10.
The s e c t i o n about the noctural r a i d [ s a u p t i k a p a ~ v a n I A.
The s e c t i o n about t h e nocturnal r a i d [sauptikaparva]
[lo. 1 - 1 0 . ~ ] Krtavarman, K r p a and ASvatthaman l e f t t h e b a t t T e f i e Id t h a t nfght and s a t beneath an 07d banyan t r e e i n a nearby
forest
A 1though g r i e v i n g ,
Krtavarman and Krpa eventua 7 7y
fa77 asleep. 1
ASvatthZRmanrs rage183[lU.lm50-1m53~ Narrator:
Asvatthzman
Audi e ~ c e : flimsel f itnab 1e
to
sleep
a f t e ~ Duryadhana rs
defeat#
AfivatthSrnan burned w i t h anger over h i s inabf ? f t y t o k i I ?
.
Pandavas.
Since he cauld not kf77 thern i n a f a i r f i g h t ,
decfded t o do so using g u i l e *
the
he
He then r e c a l l e d s w e ancfent
verses concerning treatment o f enemies*
Certai n
a n d ent
sayi ngs
asserted
that
onet s
enemi es
should be s l a i n however and wherever they might be Found: t + r e d s waunded,
eating,
or sleephg.
And so 13roriars son
.
resolved t o murder t h e Pandavas and Paficz7 as in t h e i r sleep. * Mvatthaman awakened h f s cornpan ions and d i s c 7osed h i s p7m.
Unable to dissuade him,
Kfpa and Kftavarmam f o r luwed
.
beh i d h i m as he approached t h e PSndava , camp.
Invoking &va, cornpan ions
Asvatthaman entered t h e camp wbf 7e h i s
wa i t e d j u s t
outside.
He
kicked
t o death
lB3asmi nriarthe purS g i t a u Sruyete dharmaci ntakai h/ 67 akau nySyamaveksadbhi s t a t t v z r t h a m t a t t v a d a r g i bhi h//t 0.1 .50
the
214
.
Pancala prince Dhrstadyumna,
who had k i 7 7ed Droffa-
8
He t h e n
k i l l e d Uttamaujas and Yudhamanyu, a77 o f t h e sons o f Draupadis Sfkhandin, Drupada 9 s w a r r i o r s , and many o t h e r s .
When he was
f f n f s h e d , he r e p o r t e d t o t h e dying Duryodhana t h a t on l y seven Pandavas , * Satyakf
alive:
remained
the
Pandavas, ',
five
.
Krsna, m
*
and
.
B. The s e c t i o n on t h e a i s i k a weapon [ a i s i k a p a r v a ]
[lo.
10-
10.18] When
the
Pandavas *.
learned
of
the
slaughter,
enraged Bhima set o u t t o f i n d and k i l l A6vatthSman.
the Upon
Krsna s advice, Arjuna released h i s remaini ng d i v i ne weapon t o * . *
stop t h e d i v i n e weapon which ASvatthaman had released f o r t h e d e s t r u c t i on
of
the
PSndavas
.
VySsa , however,
convi nced
ASvatthZman t o d e f l e c t t h e weapon t o t h e wombs o f t h e Psndava
women.
And
unborn c h i l d o f
so t h e
k i l 1ed in her womb.
Virata's
daughter
was
...
Krsna then t o 1d AgvatthZSman t h a t the dead
f e t u s would be r e v i v e d and 1 i v e as Pari k s i t , s o l e h e i r o f t h e
Pandavas. * 1
children'"
.
How ASvatthaman k i 1 1ed Dhrstadyumna and Draupadi ' s * * . [10.17.6-18.261
Narrator:
Krsna
Audience:
Yudhi s ' *t h i r a
*
a
.
A f t e r h i s sons and t h e o t h e r k s a t r i y a s were k i l l e d in their sleep,
t h e grief'-stricken
.,.
Y u d h i.s. t h i r a asked Krsna how
'"wedaham h i mahadevam t a t t v e n a bharatarsabhal yani c ~ s y apurgnani k a r m ~ n iv i v i dhanyuta//I 0.17.8
215 A§va~~haman
Wi th
had been able to accomplish such a dreadFul deed.
~; va
r
sassi stance,
killing the sleeping
pa~~ava
Asvatthaman
had
succeeded ; n
troops.
When Brahma wanted to create living beings. he summoned Rudra
and ordered
him to do
so
immediately.
Rudra went
beneath the waters and practiced austerities for a long time in order to create beings without flaws.
After a long time
Brahma called into being a second creature and ordered it to create.
Its "children" attacked it, however, since they were
ravenously hungry.
The creator sought help from Brahm •• who
assigned various plants as food.
The beings then multiplied.
At length Siva emerged from the waters and grew angry at what he saw.
It was he who had created food. but he left in
anger to undertake even more stringent ascetic practices. When the krta era ended, sacrifice but allowed
no
the gods prepared to offer a
share for
~iva.
Determined
to
destroy the sacrifice, he constructed a bow using two of the types of sacrifice with which the universe had been created. He
approached
the
si te
where
the
sacrifice and shot an arrow into it. shape of a deer and ran away.
gods
were
engaged
in
The sacrifice took the
As Siva began to mutilate some
of the deities, they were helpless to stop him.
but with a
loud cry they snapped his bowstring.
group they
When as a
sought his protection. Siva was pacified and hurled his wrath ; nto the waters.
There; t
c~t i
nues to bu rn as fi re .
healed the wounded deities and restored the sacrifice.
He
It was
216
Siva who, pleased with A§vatthaman, enabled him to murder the
pandavas and Paficalas. Here ends the sauptikaparvan.
11. The s e c t i o n on t h e women [ ~ t r i ~ a n ] ' ~ ~ A.
The s e c t i o n on g r i e v i n g [viSokaparva]
[I 1. I - 1 1 . 8 ]
T h i s parvan opens w i t h Vidura a t t e m p t i n g t o console t h e g r i e f - s t r i c k e n D h r t a r a*s. t r a over t h e l o s s o f h i s c h i l d r e n and
warders.
The king gathers t h e women o f h i s c o u r t ,
travels t o t h e b a t t 7 e f i e l d t o view t h e carnage.
and
The parvan
cone ludes w i t h t h e performance o f f u n e r a l r i t e s f o r Kama. 1.
The brahman i n t h e
[11.5.1-6.121
Narrator :
V i dura
Audience:
Dhrtarastra
Grief-stricken
.
at
the
outcome
of
the
D h r t a r a* s. t r a asked V i d u r a how he might cope w i t h requirements o f dharma.
war,
t h e many
Vidura r e p l i e d w i t h t h e f o l l o w i n g
story. One day a c e r t a i n brahman wandered i n t o a f o r e s t f i 1l e d w i t h w i l d beasts. shelter.
No m a t t e r where he ran, he c o u l d f i n d no
The brahman noticed,
however,
t h a t t h e f o r e s t was
surrounded by a huge n e t held by a fearsome woman. wandered t h e r e ,
t h e brahman f e l l
i n t o an i n v i s i b l e p i t and
dangled by h i s f e e t , e n t w i ned among t h i c k v i nes. confronted him:
As he
a huge snake l a y i n t h e p i t ,
Awful sights an elephant
I8%he e d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n i d e n t i f y t h e i n t e r t e x t f o r a s i n g l e verse i n t h i s parvan. Verse 11 - 2 . 3 i s a l s o found i n t h e Ramayana (2.105.16; 7.52.11), i n the Gobhi lasmrti (3.431, t h e ~ a t h a s a r f t s a g a r a(51.26cd-27ab) and Divyavadana (Cowell, p. 27). I n t h e Mbh, a v a r i a t i o n i s found a t 12.27.29 i n t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n , and a t 12.330.20 and 14.44.19 o f t h e Bombay e d i t i o n . 186aho* b h i h i tamakhyanam bhavatg t a t t v a d a r s i nS/11.7.1 ab
218
roamed near its rim. deformed bees swarmed around it.
The
brahman drank the honey dripping from those bees, but was not sated.
Still he clung to his hopes for life as he continued
to hang suspended over the pit. Prompted by
Dhrtara~~ra,
Vidura provided an allegorical
i nterpretati on (upamllna) 187 of the story. the
world,
the
forest
was
one's
diseases, and the woman old age. snake was death. e1 ephant
the
life,
c~n
the
beasts
the vi nes one I s desi re for 1 i fe,
year.
were
The pit was the body, the
The bees were desi res
pleasures to which people are addicted. one
The wi 1 derness was
and
and the
the
honey
Through knowledge,
loosen the bonds.
Ohrtarllstra was not Fu77y comForted by Vidura' swords, and so Vy:Jsa conFided to him that in fact the purpose of the Mah~bh:Jrata
war had been to relieve the earth of the great
burden of a 7arge popu7ation.
Things had therefore unfo7ded
according to a promise
had made in that regard
Brahm~
long
ago.
B. Section on the women [striparvan] [11.9-11.25] But the king was not conso 1ed. the women
and traveled to
the
He ca 7 7ed together a 7 7
batt7efield.
The
overtook him and all were ultimately reconci7ed. however I was more di ffi cu 7t to canso 7e. failing to halt the war.
P~ndavas
Gandhari,
She b 7amed Krsna for
She cursed him to ki77 his own kin.
187upamanami dam raj anmoksavi dbhi rudahrtam/ sugatim vindate yena paralokesu manavah//11.6.4
.
.'
219 Dh~tar.~~ra
proper
expressed concern that the dead warriors receive
Funera 1
rites.
so
Yudh i s1:h j ra
cOlfllllanded
tha1:
the
rituals be duly performedr
C. Section on funeral rights [§r6ddhaparva] [11.26] D. Section on the presentation of the water [ja7aprad.nikaparva] [11.27] As hundreds of peop 7e gathered a 70ng the shores of the Ganges. Kunti t07d her sons that
Kar~a
was thejr brother. and
so. as the striparvan conc7uded. Yudhisthjra assisted in the Funeral rites for Karna. Here ends the striparvan.
220 12. Section on p a c i f i c a t i o n [SantfparvanJ A. S e c t i on on raJadharma [rajaefharmaparva]
1
[ 12.1-1 2.128
1
. Kama cursed188[I2.2.3-5.151 Narrator:
NSrada
Audience:
Yudhi s . *t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i v o r s
o f t h e Bharata War,
gathered on t h e
banks o f t h e Ganges R i v e r
The s u r v i v o r s performed t h e
their
family
in battles
members s l a i n
funeral r i g h t s then
remained
for
in
residence on t h e r i v e r b a n k t o complete the p e r i o d o f mourning. Thousands o f brahmans,
ascetics,
..
and r s i s v i s i t e d t o o f f e r
condo7 ences.
.
Y u d h i s t h i r a explained t o Nmada t h a t he had n o t i c e d a resemb7ance between Kama and K u n t i .
but had been unable t o
e x p l a i n i t u n t i l Kunt2 told him that Kama w a s h i s brother. He asked Narada t o r e v e a l w h y Kama had been cursed.
According t o NSrada,
Kama had been born i n order t o
provoke war so t h a t t h e k s a t r i y a s m i g h t a t t a i n heaven (through
death i n b a t t l e ) .
Reared by
a
sUta and unaware o f
his
k s a t r i y a o r i g i n s , Kama was t r a i n e d i n weaponry by Drona, who
.
w a s a l s o t h e teacher o f t h e Pandavas. *
burned i n him;
Envy o f those young men
he felt p a r t i c u l a r l y c o m p e t i t i v e w i t h Arjuna.
When Drona refused t o impart t o Kama knowledge o f t h e brahma
weapon ( w i t h which he hoped t o challenge A r j u n a
i n single
88suhyametattu devSnSm kathayi syami t e nrpa/ ~ dam pu'ra//12.2.3 t a n n i bodha maharaja k t h vrtkami
221 combat) because Karna was neither brahman nor termi nated hi s studentshi p wi th
Karna
k~atriya.
Dror:-a and sought out R3ma
J3madagnya. Karr:-a presented himself to Rama as a kinsman, in effect. Bh~gu
claiming that he was also a brahman of the
clan.
Rama
welcomed him as a student, and instructed him in weaponry. One day.
as Karna wandered
alone on the outski rts of the
hermitage. he accidentally killed a certain brahman's cow. The priest cursed him to be decapitated in battle.
Despite
Karna's efforts to make amends, the brahman refused to mute the curse. In time Rima taught him the use of the brahma weapon. and Karr:-a dwelled contentedly with his preceptor.
One day. while
they were walking about in the hermitage. Rama grew tired and fell
asleep.
his
head in
Karna's lap.
A fearsome
b1ood-
sucki ng worm approached and began to bore its way through Karna
I
S
thi gh.
remained
Despite the
motionless
awakened when Karna's
lest
he
was
the worm
disturb
blood fell
killed the worm with a glance. It
horrible
released
pain, his
on him.
the
young man
teacher. and
in his
Rama rage
Suddenly, a raksasa appeared.
from
a
curse.
Rama as ked
its
identity. a. Da~~a, the asural89 [12.3.18-3.24]
189tamuvaca mahabahurjamadagnyah pratapavanl kastvam kasmacca narakam pratipanno bravihi tatl/12.3.18 The phrase pur. devayuge (long ago during the deva era) signals the beginning of the story at 12.3.19c.
Narrator:
Dam$a
Audience:
Rama Jzmadagnya and Karna
The c r e a t u r e had been an asura who w a s t h e same age as t h e g r e a t Bhrgu.
When DamSa raped Bhrguls w i f e , he was
cursed t o become a w o r m and t o be f r e e d some day by Bhrguls descendant, Rama. The narrator here returns t o Narada *s story about K a m a 's
curses S i nce brahmans were incapable o f enduring such pain, Rama
was now suspicious o f Kama and asked h i s r e a l
Karna confessed t h a t he was a s d t a .
identity.
To punish h i s greed and
decept ion, RZtma d i smi ssed Karna from h i s service, and decl ared
t h a t he would f o r g e t a1 1 t h a t he had learned about t h e brahma weapon u n t i 1 t h e moment o f h i s own death on the b a t t l e f i e l d . Even so, declared Rama, Karna could now defeat any k s a t r i y a . Exuberant Duryodhana
and
at
his
had
achievements,
many
Karna
opportuni t i es
to
returned d i s p l ay
to h is
abi l it i e s .
On one occasion,
he and Duryodhana attended a
svayamvara.
When t h e p r i ncess passed Duryodhana by, he simply
abducted her and was p r o t e c t e d from t h e pursuing kings by Karna. On another occasion,
King Jargsamdha o f
t h e Maghadas
challenged Kama t o combat and was defeated.
I n c l o s i n g h i s s t o r y , NSrada l is t e d t h e mu1t i p l e reasons f o r Karna's death:
t h e brahmanls
boon granted by Kunti,
curse,
Ramass curse,
the
I n d r a t s t r i c k which divested Karna of
h i s d i v i n e p r o t e c t i v e armor and earrings, BhTsmats be1it t 1 i n g remarks,
$a1ya s verbal a t t a c k s on Karna s sel f-conFi dences
and A r j m a ' s possession o f e e l e s t i a1 weapons. Yudh. i s.t h i r a then dec Tared t h a t f t w o d d have been b e t t e r
.
had t h e Pandawas taken up t h e 1 W e af f o r e s t due7 l e r s *
Arjuna
argued t h a t Yudhisthfra should a c t 7 i k e a king. .'
2.
Conversati on between I n d r a and t h e asceti dgU [12.31.1-11.28] Narrator:
A r jm a
.
Audi ence : Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors When Yudhisthira 0
dec7ared
that
he
intended
ta
abandon h i s kingship f o r t h e 1 i f e a f an a s c e t k 8 Ar3una t o l d him the fo7 T ~ w i n g s t o r y i n f m p 7 i c i t c r f t i c i s m of renunciation* A group o f young brahmans went t o l i v e i n the f o r e s t as
ascetics.
Because they were r a t h e r in e p t s Indra took p i t y on
them and appeared before them as a golden b i r d .
He i n s t r u c t e d
them i n t h e proper d u t i e s o f brahmanss a s s e r t i n g t h a t brahmans perform penances by fu1 f i11ing the1 r domestic d u t j es.
The
a t t e n t i v e young men accepted I n d r a ws in s t r u c t i an and returned t o the householder 1if e . ,. to Maku 7a, Sahadeva8 and DraupadZ a 7so urged Yudhfsthira
behave l i k e a k f n g sfnce he had fought so hard t o win t h e
lgoat r a i vodSharantimami t i hasam purZCtanam/ tSpasa4 h saha samvzdam ~ a k r a s y abharatarsabha//lZ. I 1 .I h n t i parvan e d i t o r s note s i m i 1a r i t i es between t h i s s t o r y and t h e VigtMsajWxtka (393) and Manu 3 115-1 18 285. They regard t h e Jataka t a l e as l a t e r , b u t g i v e no reasons f o r t h i s opinion.
224 k f ngdom.
Arjuna
(punishment]
pointed
out
which the k i n g
the
and BhTma
metes a u t ,
danda .
a#
importance
exhorted
.
Y u d h i.s t h i r a t o f i g h t a mentar b a t t l e a g a i n s t the g r i e f which c I ~ u d e dh i s judgment. 3 - Conversation between a k i n g and queen o f ~ i d e h a ' ~ '
112- 18.1-18-38] Narrator:
Arjuna
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled survivcws
.
.,
Yudhfsthfr-a cant inued t o argue t h a t sovereignty was
on ly va 7ued by those enmeshed i n wor7d7y p Ieasures, and t h a t r e n u n c i a t i o n was f a r s u p e r i o r m A ~ j u n ar e t o r t e d w i t h t h e s t o r y whose w f f e p a i n t e d out t o him t h a t a t r u e
o f K i n g Janaka,
is
renunciant
one
who
tends
to
his
ob7igations
with
equanimity, whatever they might be. The
Videha
king
Janaka
had
( 1 ike
Yudhisthira) *
resolved ta abandan h i s kingdom f o r a 1 if e i n the hermitage.
J u s t a f t e r he had taken up t h i s l i f e , h i s w i f e appmached him p r i v a t e l y and challenged h i s decision. ignoring
his
inappropriate brahmans.
that
if
duties, for
arguing
ks , atrfya
the
to
She berated him f o r
ways
imjtate
in
which
the
it
was
behavior
af
She accused him o f empty mhnicry, saying a u t r i g h t he
were
to
follow
the
spirit
of
the
virtue
of
detachment r a t h e r than t h e l e t t e r , he would simply continue t o perform h i s k i n g l y d u t i e s i n a t r u e s p i r i t o f detachment.
lg1kathayanti puravrttami t$h a s m i mam janSh/ v i dehara j?iah samvbdam bh3SryayZS saha bharata//12
18 2
225 A r j u n a urged Yudhi s. .t h i r a t o a v o i d King Janaka's mistake, and t o see h i s duty c l e a r l y . 4.
C m v e r s a t i on between B ~ h a s p a t iand 1ndralg2 [12,21 ,I-21 -61 Narrator :
Devasthana, t h e ascetic
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
.
When Yudhisthira dismfssed Arjuna 9s arguments wf t h '
the c 7afm t h a t h i s brother d i d n o t rea ? ?y understand teachings an moksa, Devasthzfna
- a somewhat
more a u t h o r i t a t i v e f igure
c a r r i e d Arjuna % arguments one s t e p f u r t h e r : accumu7ate
wealth
whfch
is
then
put
in
the
A
-
king must
service
of
He t o l d the f o ? I o w i n g s t o f y t o i 7 7 u s t r a t e h i s
sacrffice. pdnt.
When Zndra asked, Brhaspati t o 1d him t h a t contentment (samtosa), d e f i n e d as the canquest o f a11 d e s i r e s and t h e practice o f r e a l ized
a
noninjury,
i s the
..
Therefore Yudhi s t h i ra,
o f t h e learned:
supreme achievement
to
be
too, should accept t h e v i ew
t h a t a k s a t r i y a should see t o h i s d u t i e s as
king, cu1t i vat4 ng i n a11 t h i n g s an a t t i t u d e o f detachment and noninjury. tia Brhaspati on t h e d u t i e s o f a k ~ a t r f ~ a ' ~ ~
[12.23*14-23.15] l g 2 a t r avodaharant5mami i t i hasam puratanam/ indrena samaye p r* s. t.o y a d u v ~ c abrhaspati h//12.21
1
1g3eta~cestZih k s a t r i yanam rsjansamsi ddhi k a r i kah/ a p i gathbm'i mam capi b r h a s p a t i rabh$sata//~2.23.14 bhtlmi r e t a u n i g i r a t i sarpo b i 1asayah1va/ rZijanam c a v i rocidharam brshmafiam cZtprav8si nam//12
,2 3 , t S
Audience:
Yudhi s* .t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
When A r j m a defended t h e p r u p r f e t y o f t h e use o f weapons f o r k s a t r f y a s , V Y ~ Sunderscored ~ t h e s a c r a 7 i t y of t h f s aspect
of
ksastriya
duty
by
quoting
&haspati.
(See
footnote. 1
6. The s t o r y o f K i ng ~ u d ~ u m n[ 12.24,2-24 a ~ ~ ~
30 ]
Narrator:
VyZfsa
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i ra and t h e assembl ed s u r v i v o r s
.
Arjuna a ?so emphasized t h e supreme +mportance o f househa 7der d u t i e s , and VydIsa u n d e r s ~ o r e dh i s remarks w i t h the f a 7 rowing story.
Mendicant b r o t h e r s named gaftkha and L i k h i t a 1i v e d i n adjacent
hermitages
a1ongside
a
certain
stream.
d w e l l ings were f i 1l e d w i t h f r u i t s and f l o w e r i n g t r e e s .
day,
60th One
L i k h i t a v i s i t e d h i s b r o t h e r t s hermitage whi 1e he was
elsewhere,
and helped h i m s e l f to t h e d e l i c i o u s r i p e f r u i t s
growing there.
safikha returned t o f i n d h i s b r o t h e r Feasting
on t h e f r u i t s .
Enraged, he accused him o f t h e f t and demanded
t h a t he present h i m s e l f t o King Sudyumna so t h a t a p p r o p r i a t e
puni shment might be pronounced upon him.
L ikhit a d u t i f u l l y
d i d so and was promptly punished by having h i s hands c u t o f f . The
k i n g then pardoned him,
and pa1 i t e l y asked i f L i k h i t a
requested anything e l s e o f him.
L i k h it a r e t u r n e d t o h is
b r o t h e r , who a l s o p r o m p t l y forgave him.
Sathkha i n s t r u c t e d him
l i q u i d o b l a t i o n s t o t h e gads a t t h e r i v e r ' s
t o offer
When he d i d so, h i s hands were m i r a c u l o u s l y r e s t o r e d e x p l a i n e d t h a t i t was t h e k i n g R sd u t y t o punish was
purified
i n the
process
of
exercising
--
this
edge. Sahkha
indeed he
--
duty
t h e r e f o r e sahkha d i d n o t usurp t h e k i n g ' s d u t y by f o r g i v i n ~ h i s b r o t h e r before h i s punishment was received.
And so,
said
VyasaB Sudyumna t h e r e a f t e r was p r a i sed f o r h i s behav* o r 7 . A!3ma1s d i s c ~ u r s e '[~ 12.28.2-28.581 ~
Narrator :
Vygsa
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
Una67e t o be eanso?ed d e s p i t e the best e f f o r t s af
his
fami 7y
sinner-
the
and
e7ders,
.
Yudhisthft-a
considered
himse7f
a
He announced t h a t he wau7d s t a r v e hfmse7f t o death on
very
spot
where
he
sat,
Vyasa
responded
wfth
the
f a 7 7owfng s t o r y .
King Janaka, g r i e f and sorrow.
r u l e r o f t h e V i dehasB was once f u l l o f
He asked t h e brahman ASma how a kf ng should
behave when h i s spi r it f a 1t e r e d in v i c t o r y a f t e r cantemp1a t i ng
the r e s u l t a n t l o s s o f f a m i l y members and property. a.
A6mats a d v i c e Narrator :
Ahta
Audi ence :
Janaka
A h a e x p l a i n e d t h a t human beings a r e addicted
hifsam purZStanam/ l g s a t r ~ p y u d ~ h a r a n t ~ mt aim i asmag5 tam naravyaqhra t a n n i bodha yudhi s t h i r a / / l 2 . 28.2
-
e i t h e r t o p l easures o r g r i e f ,
dependi ng upon c i rcumstances.
N e i t h e r is avoidable, t h e r e f o r e b o t h should be t o l e r a t e d w i t h The course o f d e s t i n y cannot be a l t e r e d ,
equanimity.
I f one understands t h e
decrepitude and death devour a l l . transitory
nature and
revolutions
of
inevitability
a wheel,
then
one
and
of
life,
akin t o
the
can concentrate on
the
p r a c t i c e o f v i r t u e in order t o achi eve u l t i m a t e emancipation o f the s p i r i t .
..
Vyma advised Yudhisthira t o c a s t o f f g r i e f a s Janaka had
done a f t e r hearing these wise words.
s conversati on w i t h srfi jayaIg6 [I 2.29.12-
8. Narada
29.141] Narrator :
VySsa
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s #
When Yudhfsthira , persisted
Krsna . t o comfort him.
begged
in h i s grief,
To do so,
Krsna * . ,
Arjuna
recounted
Narada 's discourse t o King S r n j a y a fo? ?owing t h e death o f h i s
son.
That discourse consisted o f t h e s t o r i e s o f 1 6 kings.
Nmada urged S r f t jaya t o s e t aside hi s g r i e f s i nce a1 1 c r e a t u r e s must d i e , ancient
kings,
as h i s son had.
each
of
whom
had
Hearing the s t o r i e s of died
despite
great
ti hmam puratanam/ g 6 a t r a vodaharantimaiin i s r f i jayam putraSokSrtam yathayam praha naradah//12.29.12 In many manuscripts, these stori'es also occur i n t h e dronaparyan f o 1 lowing t h e death o f Abhimanyu. Because t h e ashm mi r v e r s i o n omits t h e s t o r i e s there, e d i t o r s o f t h e drona and Santiparvan concluded t h a t t h e i r occurrence i n t h e droha in d i cates a dupl i c a t i o n from t h e Sant i . See v o l 13, p. 646, c r i t i c a l notes t o verse 12.29.12 i n t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n .
.
accompl ishment , S ~ fjaya i wou1d be soothed rn Ig7 a.
King
Marutta# son
of
Avi ksitl§ [12.29.76-
29*21] Narrator:
Narada
Audi ence :
Srfijaya
T h i s k i n g performed a g r e a t s a c r i f i c e ( c a l l e d v f g v a s r j ) , whi c h a1 1 t h e dei t i es attended.
refused t o serve as c h i e f p r i e s t , whom Marutta
had defeated
in
Brhaspati
had
out o f l o y a l t y t o I n d r a *
battle*
Samvarta,
younger
b r o t h e r o f Brhaspati , o f f ic i ated , and Uarutta achi eved g r e a t m e r i t through t h e performance d t h e s a c r i f i c e . i1lustr-ious
I f such an
k i n g had died, how c o u l d Sriijaya grieve f o r h i s
son?
b. King Suhotra* son o f A t i t h i n [12.29.22-29-27] Narrator:
Narada
Audi ence :
Srfi jaya
During t h i s k i n g t s r e i g n , k i ngdom w i t h g o l d f o r one year*
Sndra showered h i s
Suhotra c d l e c t e d t h e g o l d
197!%rnomi t e narada vacameti!â‚ v i c i t r a r t h s m sra jami va pu'nyagandham/l2 * 29 * 137ab l g O ~ hset o r i e s f o 1 low one a f t e r t h e other, I inked by t h e followhg refrain: sa cenmamara srfijaya caturbhadratarastvaya/ putratpunyataraScaiva ma p ~ t r a m a n u t a p y a t h ~ h / / 1 2 ~ 2 9 . 2 1 The fo11owi ng *add4t i onal phrase occurs a t I 2: 29 27 and 12 . 2 9 39 : adaksi namayajvanam Svai t y a samsamya ma Sucah (who never performed*any s a c r i f i c e n o r made a#y g i f t ) Edi t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note compari sons between t h i s s t o r y and &tapatha 3rNmana 1 3 . 5 * 4.6 and Aitareya Brahmans 8 rn 2 1 a
{which
i n c l u d e d golden f i s h
and an<mals),
and performed a
g r e a t s a c r i f i c e a t which he gave t h i s v a s t brahmans-
wealth t o
the
Ifa k i n g so f a r s u p e r i o r i n accomplishments t o
Syfijaya's son had died,
s u r e l y S r i i j a y a should not succumb t o
grief.
c.
Kin9
6rhadratha
OF
the
~ f i ~ a s ' [12.2Sm28~'
29,341
Narrator:
MSrada
Audience:
Srfijaya
This
k i n g gave as
horses a women, and elephants, of c a t t l e .
No one,
sacrificial
gifts
100,000
100 m i 11i o n b u l l s a and thousands
i n c l u d i n g t h e gods* had ever donated as
much as Brhadratha j n t h e seven soma s a c r i f i c e s he performed. When such a m a n had d i e d B how c o u l d Srfijaya grieve?
d. King g i b i B son o f UiEnara [12.29.35-29.39] Narrator:
N2frada
Audi ence :
S r f i jaya
$4 b i ru1ed o v e r t h e e n t i r e e a r t h and g i f t e d a1 1 t h e c a t t l e and horses he owned t o brahmans i n t h e performance o f sacri Fices.
I f such an i1l u s t r i o u s k i n g had d i e d * s u r e l y
S r f i j a y a should nat g r i e v e f o r h i s son.
e m King Bharata,
son o f Duhsanta and ~ a k u n t a 1 2 I ~ ~ '
I g g ~tdoir s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n mate between t h i s s t o r y and Aftareya Brahmans 8 22
compari sons
'O0~di t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n n o t e compari sons between t h i s s t o r y and A i t a r e y a Br2Fhmana 8 2 3 * as we1 1 as &tapatha Srahmana 13 54.1 I -1 3.
[12.29m40-29m45] Narrator:
IUSrada
Audience:
Srfijaya
k i ng
Thi s
performed
one
thousand
s a c r i f i c e s and one hundred rajasuya r i t u a l s -
a6vamedha
He gave away
u n t o l d wealth and c o u n t l e s s horses t o Uanva# t h e a s c e t i c i n whose hermi t a ~ ehe had been r a i s e d * f . King RSma,
Even Bharata died.
son o f Dasaratha [12.29.46-29.55]
Narrator :
Narada
Audi ence:
Srfijaya
Rams s r u l e was fabulous1y prosperous
of
one
children.
Food was always p l e n t i f u l , and cows y i e l d e d mare
ample m i 1k.
His subjects
f a m * 1ies f l o u r i s h e d .
y e t heJ too,
s u b j e c t s as
if
they
were
He cared
For every
than
his
-
his
were we11 content;
own
their
He performed t e n asvamedha s a c r i F i ces,
died-
g m Kin9 8hagZratha [12.29.56-29.631 Narrator :
Narada
Audience :
Srfijaya
Thi s k i ng performed e x t r a o r d i nary s a c r i f ices D u r i n g one, Xndra,
asuras.
w h o was drunk on samaJ k i I 1ed thousands o f
Duri ng another
t h e k i n g gave one m i 11i o n women # each
on a c a r t d r i v e n by f o u r horses and accompanied by one hundred
elephantsJ 100#000 horses,
goats and sheep*
one m i l l i o n cows, and 100 m i l l i o n
BhagZratha ca1l e d t h e goddess GahgSf down t o
earth in another e x t r a o r d i n a r y inci dent.
She was subsequent1y
232 called Urvati and regarded as the daughter of Bhagiratha.
He,
too, died. h. King Dilipa [12.29.64-29.73] Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
S~njaya
There were numerous stories about King Dilipa, among them one about the time he gave the entire earth to the brahman pri ests dur; ng one of hi s sacri fi ces. sacrificial stake was pure gold. that Vi tvavasu hi msel f
At another, the
50 pleased were the gods
attended to pl ay the vi na.
Oilipa
died, too. i. Ki ng
Mandhat~.
Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
5~ftjaya
.
Mandhatr was after
son of
Yuvana~va
Yuvana~va
born from
hi s
[12.29. 74-29.86]
father' s
stomach
had accidentially swallowed sanctified ghee
intended for his wife, the queen.
Indra himself suckled the
child. providing milk from his finger.
In one hundred days.
he grew into a young man and conquered many kings in battle. He
performed
many
r8jasaya sacrifices. S~njaya
a§vamedha
sacrifices
and
one
hundred
When such a king had died, why should
grieve for his son? j. King Vayati. son of Nahusa [12.29.87-29.92]
Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
Srojaya
Ki ng Vayati
conquered the enti re world.
then
233 t r a v e l e d across it p e r f o r m i ng s a c r i f i c e s .
A f t e r p e r f o r m i ng
more than one thousand s a c r i f i c e s s he o f f e r e d t h e brahmans three
mountains
OF g o l d *
Bypassing
bestowed k i n g s h i p upon h i s youngest sonl t h e forest.
He, tool k.
his
elder
sons8 he
Pura* and r e t i r e d t o
died.
K i ng AmbarTsa* son o f NabhSga [I 2.29.93-29
Narrator :
MZrada
Audience:
Srfij a y a
*
971
Considered t h e embodiment o f v i r t u e * d u r i ng one of h i s s a c r i f + c e s AmbarTsa arranged f o r each brahman t o have m e m i 11i o n
kings a t
his
service.
Each o f
received t h e m e r i t s o f t h e aSvamecfhia s a c r i f i c e . had died,
those
kings
I f such a man
how c o u l d Srfijaya g r i e v e f o r h i s son? 1.
King Sa$abindu* son o f C i t r a t h a [12.29*98-1031 Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
Srfijaya
Sadiabi ndu had 100 000 wives and one m i 11 ion sons who wore golden armor. princessesl thousand
When each o f them m a r r i e d one hundred
the women brought one hundred elephants*
cartsl
100sOOO horsesl
m i 1 I i o n sheep and goats.
10sOO~lOOO cows
and
one one
Saeabi ndu donated a1 1 o f t h i s w e a l t h
t o t h e brahmans d u r i ng an aSvamedha s a c r i f ic e
.
Even Sagabi ndu
died. m. K i ng Gayas son o f AmUrtarayas [I2.29.104-29
Narrator:
Narada
Audi ence:
Srfi j a y a
112 1
234 Pleased when
King Gaya
lived
on
sacrificial
remains alone for one hundred years, Agni granted him three boons:
inexhaustible wealth,
and unceasi ng
pl easure
perpetual concern for virtue.
in the truth.
Gaya performed the
a§vamedha regularly for one thousand years. each time giving
100,000 cattle and hundreds of horses to the brahmans.
For
one of those sacrifices, he had a golden platform constructed which was one hundred yojanas (appx. nine hundred miles) long and fifty yojanas (appx. four hundred fifty miles) wide, then donated it as the sacrificial fee. n.
King
Rantideva,
son
Gaya died, as well. of
Samkrti
[12.29.113-
29. 121 ] Narrator:
NBrada
Audience:
S~njaya
Rantideva sought three boons from lndra, and was granted them after performing severe austerities:
plentiful
food and guests, constant faith, and the abi 1 ity never to need ask anything of someone else. animals killed
at
The fluids flowing from the
his sacrifices formed
a
river
known
as
Charmanvati. A11 the di shes and vessels in Rant i deva 's pa 1 ace were made of gold.
When he entertained guests, 100,000 cattle
were slaughtered.
This king, too, died.
o. King Sagara [12.29.122-29.128] Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
Srnjaya
235 Ki ng Sagara. enti re earth.
up,
ru 1 ed
the
He performed one thousand a§va",edha sacri fi ces.
pleasing the gods. brahmans.
who had 60. 000 sons.
He gave palaces with golden columns to
Once when he was angry. he had the entire earth dug
and so it came to house the ocean. his namesake.
This
king. too. died. p.
King
P~thu.
son of Vena [12.29.129-29.1361
Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
Srnjaya
Prthu was consecrated lord of the earth by all the great
rsis.
Because he
protected
human bei ngs
from
injury. he was called k!!a-trjya.
And because living beings
loved him. he was called a r6ja.
During his rule. crops grew
without the soil being tilled and cows gave large amounts of Everyone was healthy and free of fear.
mi 1 k.
During one
a§vamedha.
Prthu gave twenty-one mounta; ns of gold to
brahmans.
King
After
Narada
disappeared. S~njaya's
9.
P~thu
Then
the
died, too.
told
these
Narada
stories,
decl ared that
he
would
return
son to life. and he would live 1,000 years.
How S:nj aya' s son became Suvarnasthivi n201
['2.30.4-
31 .47] a.
S~njaya's
Narrator: Audience:
introduction to Narada and Parvata Krsna Yudhisthira and the assembled survivors
~latra te kathayi~yami yatha vrtta~ jane§vara/12.30.4ab
236 Although S r n j a y a was consoled by t h e stories o f Y u d h i s,t h i r a was n o t .
former kings,
s
He did, however,
k n o w how t h e c h i l d had r e c e i v e d h i s name,
w i s h to
and w h y he d i e d as
a young c h i 7d,
Krsna began t h e s t o r y by e x p l a i n i n g that i t concerned two #
.
.
.
Narada and t h e v e r y sage who had j u s t
psis:
w i t h Yudhi s* t h i r a and h i s s i s t e r ' s son,
been speaking
Parvata.
They roamed
t h e e a r t h companhmably and so enjoyed each o t h e r ' s company t h a t they vowed always t o c o n f i d e t h e i r wishes t o each o t h e r . I f one broke t h e vow. t h e o t h e r would curse h i m . O n t h e i r t r a v e l s t h e y came t o stay w i t h King S r f t j a y a f o r
a f e w days.
He in s t r u c t e d h i s l o v e l y daughter SukumSri t o
w a i t upon them. Ashamed,
he d i d
Before long.
Narada w a s i n l o v e w i t h her.
not
this to
confide
Parvata and
so
promptly cursed t o t a k e on t h e appearance o f an ape.
was
Narada
cursed h i s nephew i n t u r n t o f a i l t o reach heaven, and Parvata l e f t Srfijaya's c o u r t t o t r a v e l on alone. NSrada
married
Sukumari
and,
as
immediately t o o k on t h e f a c e o f an ape.
Parvata
had
said.
SukumZri l o v e d him
even so, and was f a i t h f u l t o him.
..
Some t i me 1a t e r , t h e two r s i s happened t o encounter each other i n the forest.
F i l l e d w i t h r e g r e t , t h e y released each
o t h e r from t h e i r curses. h e r changed husband,
Sukumari f l e d i n t e r r o r upon seeing
f o r she d i d n o t recognize him.
Parvata
reassured her o f Narada's i d e n t i t y , and t h e two again went on t h e i r way.
237
b . The b i r t h o f S u v a r n a* s. t h i v i n202 [I 2.31.3-31.471 Narrator: Aud ience :
Narada
..
Yudhi s t h ir a
and
the
assembl ed
survivors Krsna turned t h e s t o r y t e ? ? f n g back t o Maradd, * * .
.
whom Yudhisth i r a prompted t o t e 1 7 how Srfijaya 's son was born. , Although
t h i s episode
follows
identifies
Srfifayars daughter
dissension
between
the
two
immediately as
the
sages,
upon one
proximate
the
which
cause
fo77owing
of
episode
suggests t h a t they passed their time w i t h him tranqui 7 7y. After
NSrada and Parvata had spent
the
r a i n y season
contented1y in Srfi j a y a ' s k i ngdom, t h e y prepared t o set o u t on t h e i r way.
Parvata suggested t h a t
g r a n t i rig him a boon.
especi a1 1y
The k i n g
H i s wish was granted, b u t because Parvata was
p a r t i a1
generous g i f t .
NZrada was d e l ighted t o do so.
by
b u t then asked t h a t t h e y g r a n t him a son
a t f i r s t demurred,
equal t o I n d r a .
t h e y repay Srfijaya
to
Indra.
he
c u r t a i l ed
the
otherwi se
Srfi jaya would indeed have a splendid son, b u t
he would n o t l i v e long s i n c e t h e k i n g ' s d e s i r e was f o r a son who would d e f e a t
Indra.
To a m e l i o r a t e t h e e f f e c t o f t h i s
c o n d i t i o n a l boon, N3rada promised t o r e t u r n t h e c h i l d t o 1 if e i f Srfijaya would r e c a l l h i s o f f e r d u r i n g h i s t i m e o f g r i e f .
The c h i l d was born
and indeed caught 1ndrals
^evametanmahara j a yathayam ke6avo b r a v it / karyasyasya t u yacchesam t a t t e vaksyami prcchatah//12.31.3
.
e
anxious
238 notice. t h e boy.
I n d r a watched and waited f o r an o p p o r t u n i t y t o k i l l When t h e c h i l d was f i v e years o l d ,
f o r an o u t i n g i n the f o r e s t .
suddenly
and
killed
the
A s he played,
child.
His
h i s f a m i l y went a t i g e r appeared
d i straught
father
immedi ate1y remembered N3rada' s promi se and meditated on h i m.
Nmada appeared,
recited the
restored t h e c h i l d t o 1if e .
stories o f
former
kings,
and
Suvarnasthivi n r u l e d f o r 1,101 . *.
years.
The c o n f l i c t o f t h e gods and a ~ u r a s ~[12.34.13'~
10.
34.21 ] Narrator :
Vyma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
.
Vyasa then appealed t o Y u d h i s t h f r a 's know7edge of k s a t r i y a duties to console him. The f r a t e r n a l gods and demons b a t t l e d f o r 32,000
before t h e d e i t i e s triumphed.
years
A number o f renegade brahmans
sought a1 1iance w i t h t h e demons, and they, t o o , were k i 11ed by t h e gods.
The learned know t h a t saving a f a m i l y j u s t i f i e s
k i 1 l i n g one
person,
k i l l i n g one f a m i l y .
and
that
saving
a
kingdom
justifies
Although s i n sometimes appears t o be
v i rtuous and v i c e versa, those who are t r u l y knowledgabl e know t h e difference.
..
VySsa urged Yudhisthira t o t r u s t h i s own
l e a r n i n g and accept t h a t h i s actions were j u s t i f i e d .
' idam
ca SrOyate p a r t h a yuddhe devasure pura/12.34.13ab
239 11
.
D i s c u s s i on between Manu and t h e a s c e t i csa4 [12.37.3-37.431
Narrator:
VySsa
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
..
.
Yudhi s t* h i r a now seemed t o take h e a r t .
He i n q u i r e d
about proper behavior as i f now reconci l e d t o performing h i s duties
as
The
king.
turnabout
p a r t i c u l a r l y dramatic moment.
is
not
presented
A t verses 12.38.27-30
as
a
we hear
a t l a s t t h a t Y u d h i ,s,t h f r a c a s t o f f h i s g r i e f and returned t o h i s c i t y as i t s king.
I n t h e f ir s t e r a of t h e universe (krta yuga) , t h e sages approached
Manu
with
questions
r e c e i v i n g food and making g i f t s .
about
the
and about g i f t -
.
A t t h i s point
in
of
The passage goes i n t o some
detail about improper food f o r a brahman, g i v i ng
propriety
detai 7
about
the duties
classes [12.36.1J.
..
Yudh i s t h i r a
.
i n the n a r r a t i v e Y u d h f s t h i r a asked t o hear of
kings
f
and
t h e other
three
Vyasa a d v i s e d h i m t o c o n s u l t Bhfsma.
expressed r e luctance
t o seek
advice
from
When the
*..
grandfather whom he had brought t o t h e b r i n k o f death, Krsna reassured him and urged him t o f o l l o w Vyma Is advice. g r i e f dispe7 led,
His
Yudhfsthira and h i s company s e t out f u r t h e a
#
c i t y , where he was i n s t a 1 led as k i n g .
2Matrapyudaharantimasnt i hasam puratanam/ s i ddhSnSm cai va samvadam mabScai va p r ajapateh//12.37.3 e t a t t e k a t h i tam s k v a m yatha v r t t a m yudhi s t h i ra/ samasena mahaddhyetacchrotayvam bhar'atarsabha//"!. 37.43
The day
after
.,
h i s appointment,
Y u d h i s t h i r a set
about
g i v i n g a p p r o p r i a t e p r o p e r t i e s t o h i s b r o t h e r s and t o assure t h e proper f u n c t i o n i n g o f h i s kingdom.
. ..
Soon, however, Krsna
.
advised Y u d h i s* t h f r a t o v i s i t Bhisma and pose h i s remaining questions t o him.
And so Y u d h i* s t h i r a gathered h i s company t o
v i s i t Bhisma. 12. How t h e exterminated k s a t r i y a c l a s s was r e v i v e d u 5 [12.49.1-49.801 Narrator:
Krsna
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i vors
As
a
m
.
.
t h e survivfng
warriors
rode toward Kuruksetra
. .
where Bhisma Jay d y i n g , Krsna p o i n t e d out Samantapaikaka t o
.,
Y u d h f s t h i r a , s i t e o f Rama Jmadagnya's murder o f t h e k s a t r i y a .
.
Y u d h i s t h f r a asked t o hear t h e f u l l s t o r y . The s t o r y begins w i t h a condensed genealogy o f Satyavati from
Jadu.
R c i ka
.
Her f a t h e r ,
O n one occasion,
Gadhi,
married her t o t h e Bhargava
R c i ka produced food from a s a c r i f i c e
intended t o g i v e a son t o S a t y a v a t i ' s f a t h e r , gave one p o r t i o n t o S a t y a v a t i h e r s e l f t o d r i n k ,
Gadhi.
Rci ka
and i n s t r u c t e d
her t o take t h e o t h e r t o her own mother so t h a t she might bear a
ksatriya
son
and
Satyavati
a
a c c i d e n t a l l y mixed up the two d r i n k s .
%mu
brahman.
Satyavati
She immediately became
kaunteya ramasya may3 yavatpari $rutam/ mahanam kathayatam karanam tasya janma ca//12.49.1 t a t 0 ramasya tatkarma $ r u t v ~r 'a j a yudhi s t h i rah/ v i smayam paramam gatva pratyuvaca janardanam//t 2.50.1
241
pregnant with a
k~a~rjya
child and her mother with a brahman.
When Rcika declared that Satyavati's son would be a violent man. she convinced h;m to defer the curse for one generation. As a consequence. her son was the brahman Bhargava Jamadagni. Her mother bore a son named Vi§vamitra. equal in every way to a brahman, although born a
k~atrlya.
Satyavati 's grandson was the warri or Rama Jamadagnya. he was conquering the earth. the son of
K~tavirya.
the Haihayas. had become a universal ruler. he
gave alms
to
Agni
villages and forests. ~pava,
who
rewarded
Arjuna of
On one occasion.
him by
burning
towns.
Burned wi th them was the retreat of
who then cursed Arjuna to be slain by Rama.
Ar j una forgot
about the curse.
stole Jamadagnya's sacrificial cow. RAma cut off Ar j una's arms.
One day
Arj una • s
son then sto 1 e
Rama' s father.
RAma vowed to kill every living
k~atriya.
One thousand years passed.
his own sons
In seeking to recover it.
Rama's retreat and decapi tated
into
The enraged
and d;d so.
One day, Par3vasu, grandson
of Vi§vamitra. publ;cly accused R3ma of cowardice. again went on a murderous rampage. power,
As
Rama once
When the survivors gained
he killed them and the;r children. and continued to
murder any descendants. After thi rty-seven ki 11 i ng sprees, Rllma performed a horse sacri fi ce and gave the earth to
Ka~yapa.
Ka§yapa promptl y
banished Rama. handed the earth over to brahmans. and retired to the forest.
With no
k~atrjyas
left. the earth soon fell
242 in t o t e r r i b l e s t r a i t s i n the hands o f t h e o f f s p r i n g o f StJdras
and brahmans, and vafsyas and brahmans.
Great1y burdened, the e a r t h begged KaSyapa t o a1 low some k s a t r i y a Haihayas (who had been h i d i n g from Rama) t o r u l e . She enumerated t h e survivors, and asked Kasyapa t o a1 low t h e m
t o p r o t e c t her.
According t o her wish,
Kasyapa i n s t a l l e d t h e
ksatrfyas as kings f o r the sake o f t h e earth. ~ ~ ~ 13. The verses o f ~ s a n a st12.56.28-56.30
1
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira and t h e assembled survivors *
After
.
some
preliminaries,
quest ion Bhisma on dharma. concerned a
king's
Y u d h i,s.t h i r a
began
to
BhJsma Is f i r s t words o f advice
d u t i e s t o d e i t i e s and brahmans.
When
discussing t h e c h i e f duty o f k s a t r i y a s t o p r o t e c t brahmans, Bhisma quoted two verses a t t r i b u t e d t o t h e sage USanas. USanas s a i d t h a t dharma-know4 ng r u l e r s should f ight, and w i 1 1 not commit any s i n by doing so s i nce v i o l e n t a t t a c k by an
enemy j u s t i f i e s f i g h t i n g back. 14. What Brhaspati sai dZo7[12.56.38-56.391
Narrator :
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
, t h a t a king should not be t o o A d v i s i n g Yudhisthira
l e n i e n t , Bh-
~ t J o t 8 dan o l d saying o f t h e d e i t y B r h a s p a t i .
*%l okau coSanasS g i t a u pura t a t a maharsi na/ t a u nibodha mahaprajRa tvamekagraman~'n'rpa//12.56.28
*orbarhaspatye ca SSstre vai S l oka v i n i yatah pura/ asrninnarthe maharaja tanme nigadatah 6rnu//12.56.38
.
243 B~haspati
said that a king who always forgives people is
not admirable. 15. The verse of U.anas roa [12.57.2-57.3] Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira and the assembled survivors
again quoted U§anas
Bhi~ma
should not shirk U~anas
~o
emphasize
tha~
a king
ba~~7e.
said that a
king who avoids battle and a
brahman who refu1ses to depart the householder life when the time is appropriate will be destroyed. 16.
Ki ng Marutta on the duty of ki ngs 209 [12.57.6-57. 7] Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira and the assembled survivors
Bhi~",a repea~ed
must even punish
~heir
King
Maru~~a's admoni~ion ~hat
~eacherss
iF necessary_
two brieF examp7es of kings who had punished
kings
He then gave
~heir
own sons.
Bhi ~ma quoted Ki ng Marutta' s statement that even the ki ng' s teacher must be puni shed if he vi 01 ated proper conduct. He then summarized the story of King Sagara. son of Jadu. who exiled his own son Asamanjas because he drowned children in the nearby Sarayu River. his beloved son
~vetaketu
likewise the sage Uddalaka disowned because the young man was inclined
208bhagavanuAani caha §lokamatra vi ~am patel tamihaikamanl rljangadatastva~ nibodha mel/12.57.2 209maruttena hi rljfiayam gitah ~lokah pur.tanahl rljyadhikare rajendra brhaspatimatah pural/~2.57.6 gurorapyavaliptasya karyakaryamajanatah/ utpathapratipannasya parityago vidhiyate//12.57.7
t o neglect t o attend t o v i s i t i n g brahmans i n t h e p r o p e r way. 17. Uianas on k s a t r f y a dharma2I0 [I 2.57.40-57.41
]
.
Narrator :
Bhi sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i v o r s
.
Bhisma again quoted USanas on the c r i t i c a l importance t o the e n t i r e community of a king who behaves p r o p e r t y . 18. Manu on a k i n g vs d u t y t o p r o t e c t 2 " [12.57.43-57.451
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence :
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
..
Here Bhisma underscored t h e importance o f t h e k i n g ' s duty,
chief
protection
of
his
subjects,
with
a
quote
reportedly from Manu.
Manu s a i d t h a t one should a v o i d a teacher who does n o t speak,
a p r i e s t who has n o t studied,
p r o t e c t h i s subjects,
a king who does of
a w i f e who says unpleasant t h i n g s ,
a
cowherd who loves t h e v i 1lage, and a barber who l o v e s t h e forest. 19. Brhaspati on t h e importance o f a c t i on2I2 [12.58.1358.161
Narrator:
Bhi sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assernbl ed s u r v i vors
..
% 1okaScSyam
purS g i t o bhargavena mahStmana/ akhySte ramacari t e n r p a t i m p r a k i bharata//12.57.40
211pr~cetasena manuna $1okau cemavudahrtau/ rajadharmesu r a j e n d r a t ~ vhai i kaman~h$rnu//12.57.43
..
245
Bhf !!ma emphasized the importance of a king' s need to be ready For action. B~haspati
said that effort is the key to success.
The
asuras were killed and soma was obtained through effort.
Even
an
; nte11 i gent
ki ng
who
does
not
exert
hi mse1 f
wi 11
be
vanquished by his enemies. 20. The or; gi ns of sovere; gnty in the krta era213 [12.59.13-59.141]
.
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira and the assembled survivors ..
On the beginning of their second day of conversation, Yudhisthira asked Bhi!!ma to exp7ain the origins of kingship, in particu7ar how S08eone who appears to be just like other individua7s rules the wor7d.
Our; ng the kr:ta era, there was no ki ng, nor i ni ti all y any need of one.
People lived
for a time
in mutual
harmony.
Eventua 11 y, however, vi rtue began to dec 1 i ne and humans became covetous.
The s i tuat ion deteri orated to such a poi nt that
humans ceased to perform Vedic rites.
The deities. feeling
the imminent threat of losing their places in heaven because of
human
failure
to maintain
appealed to Brahma for
help.
the necessary
ritual
cycle,
He then composed a work of
100,000 chapters (adhy8yasahasr.'!S"! latam 12.59. 29ab) sett i ng
213 n ;yatastvam nara§restha trnu sarvama§esatah/
yatha rajYB'!' samutpannamad'a'u k-:-tayuge 'bhavat/ /12.59.13
246
forth all that pertai ned to dharma,
artha and
kama.
st ud i ed it tho rough 1 y J but was concerned that human 1 i ves were too short to absorb its massive contents properly. Vai~.'aka~a.
abridged it in a version called 10,000 verses.
He thus
which contained
Indra further abridged it to 5.000 verses.
called Sahudantaka.
B~haspati
abridged it yet again to the
3,000 verse composition called S.ryhapatya, and K3vya reduced
it to 1,000 verses. The gods then asked Vi snu to desi gnate the human who shou 1 d
henceforth
be
soverei gn .
produced a son named Virajas. grandson all
By and
was born and
established by Brahma.
he
But Virajas. his son, and his
practiced austerities.
grandson of Vi ~r:eu,
act of wi 11
Fina1l y Anar'lga.
educated
in
great
the precepts
He ruled well, but his son, Atiba1a.
eventually became a slave to his passions.
So, too, was his
son
was
an
inappropriate
vicious. P:thu,
sovereign,
for
he
The sages killed him. pierced his arm,
sprang forth.
At last.
uphold dharma honorably. he tamed the earth.
here was a
excessively and a son,
ki ng who would
With the assistance of the deities,
Since then the earth has been ruled by
kings. 21. Nar&yar:- a
f
s ve rse on the ideal brahmac.r j';14
[12.61.13-61.14]
Narrator:
Bhisma
2Uathatra narayanagitamahurmaharsayastata mahanubhavah/ maharthamatyarthatapahprayuktam taducyamanam hi maya nibodha//12.61.13· . .
Audience:
Vudhi s* .t h i r a and t h e assembled survivors
Y u d h f* s. t h f r a asked Bhfsma t~ enumerate t h e cfutfes o f
each
uf
the
brahmaczrya
stages of
faur
quot fng
stage,
Tffe.
He began
NarSyana ' s verse
d t h
as a
the
genera 7
maxfm. NarZyana s a i d t h a t one should enjoy t h i n g s by means o f t r u t h , simp1ic i t y # honor4 ng guests, and through observance o f
c h a r m J aptha and t h e p u r s u i t o f pleasures. BhYsma then s u m a r f z e d t h e d u t i e s u f t h e f o u r d a s s m , emphasizing t h a t they depended upen t h e proper- performance o f ksatriya responsibf7itfes. 22. I n d r a i n s t r u c t s MSndhZtr on k s a t r i y a d u t i e s and t h e i r
[12.64.10-65.353 Narrator:
BEsma
Audience:
Yudhi s t. h i r a and t h e assembled survivors
.
Bhisma t o l d t h e s t o r y o f I n d r a # s i n s t r u c t f u n t o King MlWxlhatr tu underscare t h e e f f i c a c y and c r i t ica 7 importance o f m a i n t a i n i n g k s a t r i y a dharma. One day# King MandhZtr performed a s a c r i f i c e so t h a t he
might a b t a i n a v i s i o n o f V i snu. * . him i n
the
outcome.
form
of
Indra,
A t first,
..
Visnu appeared t o
i n q u i r i n g why
he
sought
this
The k h g r e p l i e d t h a t # as e f f e c t i v e l y as he had
performed h i s d u t i e s t o date, t h e r e were some he*s t i 1l d i d not know h o w t o perform.
deta* 1
The disguised Visnu . responded i n some
by expl a i n i ng why t h e dharma o f k s a t r i y a s was foremost.
'I5atra t e v a r t a y i sysmi dharmamarthavi n i ~cayam/12.64.1Oab
248 When MSndhatr asked how kings should behave toward groups t h a t 1ived by t h i e v e r y
.
t h e d i sgui sed V i snu rep1 ied t h a t they
were subject t o t h e same ub1i g a t i o n s as a1 1 other p e o p l e *
He
went on t o say t h a t when t h e c u r r e n t k r t a era passedJ even greater wrongs would f o l l o w ,
but k s a t r i y a s must c o n t i n u e t o
uphd d t h e i r d u t i e s . 23. When BrahmS appai nted Manu as k i rigzf6 [ 1 2 . 6 7 . 1 7 -
67-33] Narrator :
B h i sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s. t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i vors
In t h e c o n t e x t o f Y u d h f s t h f r a ts f n q u f r y about t h e duties o f a king,
BhTsma t o l d t h e s t o r y o f how Brahm2E had
i n j t i a 1 1y a p p o i n t e d Manu to p r o t e c t human b e f n g s .
In
the
krta
e r a J human
beings found
themselves
unable t o l i v e p e a c e f u l l y despite t h e i r e f f o r t s t o do soEventually, they sought o u t BrahmS and asked him t o appoint sameone t o p r o t e c t them.
8rahmS asked Manu, who expressed
reluctance considering t h e poor behavior o f people and hence the d i f f i c u l t y o f t h e task.
People b r i b e d him, promising t o
g i v e him a c e r t a i n percentage o f t h e i r animals,
crops.
w e a l t h and
They would g i v e Manu t h e i r most beauti fu1 daughters t o
marry, and a l s o one-quarter o f any m e r i t they would earn.
And
so Manu accepted t h e t a s k *
2 ' 6 ~ n l tyh e phrase nah Srutam (wet ve heard) s i g n a l s t h i s Editors o f the c r i t i c a l s t w y a t 1 2 . 6 7 . 1 7 b and 12.67.18b. e d i t i o n note s i m i 1a r t t i e s w i t h Ramayana 2 67.
249 24. The s t o r y o f Brhaspati and ~ a s u m a n a s ~[~ ' 12'68.2-
68.61 J Narrator :
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhisthi r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
..
.
When Yudh f s t h f t-a asked why bratmans say t h a t a king f s a godf BhZsma responded w f t h t h i s t a r e . One
day,
Brhaspati
King
whjch
Vasumanas
rules
shadd
of
be observed
Ekhaspat i began by expl a i n i ng t h e attention t o kingdom.
Kosala
asked in
the
a
importance o f
d u t i e s t o ensure order
consequences a f n o t doi ng so.
kingdom. a
king%
and s t a b i l i t y
He l i s t e d the b e n e f i t s o+ obeyi ng a king,
sage
i n the and t h e
Fol 1owi ng t h i s conversati on,
Vasumanas was p r o t e c t i v e OF h i s subjectss as a k i n g should be. 25.
Brhaspati on k i ng1y v i rtue2I8 [ 12.69069-69.71 ] Narrator:
BhZsma
Audience:
Y u d h i s.t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
I n a discussion u f mfsce77ane~usd u t i e s o f a k i n @ ,
.,
Bhfsma t a 7d Y u d h f s t h i r a how t o achieve sovereignty a v e r t h e
entire e a r t h a r t h a and karna-
Such a k i n g must be canversant w f t h dharmaf Qn t h e s u b j e c t o f dharma, Bhisma once again
217atr~pyud~harantimam4 t i hasam pwatanam[ b r h a s p a t i m vasumana yatha papraceha bharata//12
68.2
'%smi n n a r t h e ca yau $1okau g
-
Brhaspati
said
that
a
king
achieves
happiness
by
protect4 ng t h e earth and h i s subjects and by meeti ng h i s o t h e r ob1 ig a t * ons.
Such a man has no need o f a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e ,
and
so on. 26. The conversati on between PurUravas and MStari Svana cvay~)2t9 1 1 2 ~ 7 3 ~ 2 - 7 3 * 2 6 1
.
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled surv
t3hYsma turned
brahmans t o a king,
to
the
topfc
o f t h e importance of
cfting an ancfent conversation between
PurUravas asked Vayu w h y brahmans a r e c h i e f amang humans. Vayu described t h e i r o r i g i n s from t h e mouth o f BrahmZ.
When
Puraravas asked whether t h e e a r t h belonged t o the k s a t r f y a s o r brahmans
VZSyu explained t h a t everythi ng be1ongs t o brahmans
as f i r s t - b o r n l the
earth,
it
b u t because t h e y had refused sovereignty over had accepted
the
rule
of
ksatriyas.
If
k s a t r i y a s would take t h e good advice o f brahmans, they would remai n soverei gn.
.
2 7 . Conversat% on between A i I a and ~ a 6 ~ [a12 ~74a 6-~ ~ ~
74.321 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
.
219atr~pyud~harant~m ti ahasam mi purstanam/ pur#Jravasa a i 1asya samv~dahmatari &vanah//12.73 220at rapyudaharantimami ti hasam puratanam/ a i 1akaSyapasamvadam t a m n ibadha yudhi s t h i ra//12
..
2
l
74.6
'
251
Bhisma or
k~atriyas
con~inued
were
on the topic of whether brahmans
superior
by
reFerence
to
an
ancien~
conversa~ion.
Aila
asked
whether
fo 11 owed when a rep 1 i ed
brahmans
di spute ari ses
that they
destruction of a
shou 1 d
kingdom.
1 i ve
or
k~atriyas
between in
be
Ka§yapa
the two.
ha rmony to
Rather.
should
avert
total
they should assist each
other for mutual benefit. Ai 1 a
then
asked
about the ori gi n
of Rudra.
replied that Rudra existed in human hearts. ready to lead them astray into divisiveness.
Since all humans experience some
effect when sinful people are punished. Ailawondered why they should not all be wicked.
Ka§yapa explained that while this
life may appear as favorable for those who are wicked as for those who are not. in the next world their fates would be very different.
And
so a
ki ng
should
take care
to
appoi nt
a
knowledgable brahman, ensuring that both might prosper. 28. Conversation between King Mucukunda and Vai~ravana22t [12.75.3-75.22]
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira and the assembled surv;vors
Bhi~ma wen~
on to exp7ain
tha~
a7though the
s~ate
of
a kingdom depended upon a king, the king's prosperity depended upon his priest.
221atrllPyudaharantimami ti hllsam puratanam/ mucukundasya sa~vada~ rajno vai§rava~asya ca//12.75.3
A f t e r King Mucukunda conquered the e a r t h , Vai sravana t o t e s t h i s power. demons, f a i 1 ure. were
he attacked
When h i s army was destroyed by Vasistha, .*
Mucukunda c r i t i c i z e d h i s p r i e s t ,
for the
.
Vasi stha undertook s t r i c t penances and the demons .
slain.
During
the
battle,
Vai 6ravana
appeared
to
Mucukunda t o ask why t h e k i n g had attacked him rather than propitiating
him
through
worship.
M u c u kunda
indi gnantl y t h a t he was a c t i n g as a k s a t r i y a should:
rep1ied pursuing
soverei gnty through f o r c e o f arms. whi 1e h i s p r i e s t performed appropri a t e r i t e s .
.
Y u d h i s t h i r a then asked how a k i n g b e n e f i t s h i s people, how h e earns heaven, and the d i f f e r e n c e between brahmans who
perform t h e i r d u t i e s and those who do not. 29. The K i ng o f Kai keya*s speech t o a demonzz2
[12.78.6-78.341 Narrator :
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s 't h i r a and t h e assembled survivors n
When Y u d h i,s t h i r a asked whose wea 1 t h a. k i n g properly p r o t e c t s , Bhisma r e p l i e d t h a t although a king was not lord o f the w e a 7 t h o f brahmans, he i s responsible f o r t h e i r misdeeds in h i s kingdom.
There f o l l o w e d t h i s s t o r y .
A c e r t a i n demon captured t h e k i ng o f t h e Kai keyas in h i s
own
kingdom.
The k i n g p r o t e s t e d h i s capture w i t h a
long
speech enumerati ng how everyone in h i s k i ngdom observed proper t i hasam puratanam/ 2z2atr~pyud~harantimamf gitam kekayarajena h r i ~ a m ~ h e nraksasS//12.78.6 a
duties.
Since every f i b e r o f h i s being was righteous,
dare t h e demon abduct him?
Conceding t h e
how
k i n g ' s virtuous
nature, t h e demon released him.
Yudhi s t h f r a and Bhisma then discussed t h e circumstances
under which a brahman could a c t
7 i k e a vafSya,
how a king
should endeavor t o maintain t h e good will o f h i s subjects, w h a t happens i f a king i s unable t o p r o t e c t h i s people, what s o r t of persons p r i e s t s should be, and how a k i n g ' s ministers should behave.
...
30. Conversati on between Krsna and Narada on conduct t h a t
wins over f r i e n d s and foes223[I 2.82.2-82-30]
-
Narrator :
B h i sma
Audience:
Yudhi s .t h i r a and t h e assembl ed survivors
I n the
context
of
a
discussion
i n d f v i d u a l s t o help r u l e a kingdom,
about
.
selecting
Y u d h i s t h i r a and Bhisma rn
discussed a k i n g ' s behavior toward f r i e n d s and enemies. Once Krsna sought * . .
Narada's
between b i c k e r i n g f a m i l y members. sides,
advice when
he f e l t
torn
He d i d n o t wish t o take
b u t f e l t be1eaguered by t h e i r c o n t i n u i ng h o s t i l i t i e s .
Narada advi sed him t o use weapons such as s i n c e r i t y t h a t would eventual 1y conquer t h e adversari es.
...
Only by r u l ing t h e Vrsni s
responsibly woul d t h e d i ssensi on be overcome.
. .
31. Sage KSlakavrksiyass words t o t h e Kosala kingR4
' a t rapyudaharantirnamit i hmam puratanam/ muni h k a l akavrksiyah kausal yam yaduvaca ha//12.83.5
.
[12.83.5-83.671
Narrator :
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
.
When issuing t h e advice t h a t a k i n g should protect anyone
who
supports
his
%hisma recounted
interests,
the
following story.
Once t h e sage KZlakavrksiya v i s i t e d k i n g Ksemadarsin o f t h e Kosalas i n order t o t e s t t h e l o y a l t i e s o f h i s ministers. W i t h the h e l p o f a number o f men i n h i s r e t i n u e ,
he learned o f
t h e wrongdoings o f a1 1 t h e k i n g ' s appointed o f f i c e r s .
The
sage then appeared before the k i n g w i t h a caged crow i n hand. He
challenged
offenses,
each
claiming
wrongdoings.
officer that
in the
turn
with
crow
had
his
paritcular
disclosed
the
That n i g h t , the g u i l t y men banded together and
k i 1 1ed the crow whi 1e t h e sage s l e p t
.
The next morni ng,
he
divulged a1 1 he knew t o t h e k i n g and urged him t o address t h e problem.
The k i n g asked Kalakavrksiya t o remain w i t h him as
advisor.
He d i d so,
and h i s kingdom prospered.
Y u d h *i s t h i r a then asked about t h e q u a l i t i e s o f a king's . m i n i s t e r s , counselors, and so on.
32. Conversati on between Brhaspati and ~ n d r a ~ ~ ~ [12.85.1-85.111 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s *t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i vors
.
^at raPyudaharantimamit i hasam puratanam/ brhaspategca samvadam Sakrasya ca yudhi s t h i ra//12.85.1
..
I n t h e context o f a discussion of the fdea 7 q u a l i t i e s o f a k i n g ' s advisors,
Bh-fsma t o J d the f o r 7owing s t o r y ,
Once Indra asked Brhaspati how one could achieve fame and regard
among a1 1 creatures.
Brhaspati
advocated
proper
behavior as the key t o winning over everyone.
.
Yudhisthira and Bhisma then discussed in g r e a t e r d e t a i l
how t o p r o t e c t a kingdom, what s o r t o f c i t y t h e k i n g should inhabit,
and how he should (if
he chose) accumulate @reat
wealth. 33. Conversati on between Utathya and
[12.91 .I-92.561 Narrator :
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled survivors
..
Bhisma cant h u e d t o deta f 7 the proper conduct o f a k i n g in a ll manner o f circumstances,
traders and farmers.
I n this
i n c 7uding behavior toward
context,
he recounted the
fo77owing story. Utathya
l e c t u r e d Mandhatr
in
some
detail
about
the
virtues of dharma i n a k i n g and i t s b e n e f i c i a l e f f e c t s upon h i s e n t i r e kingdom.
To emphasize t h e importance o f honoring
t h e brahmans i n h i s k i ngdorn, Utathya t o l d t h e fa1 l o w i ng story. a. Consequences o f ma1i ce toward brahmans2''
226 On1 y t h e phrases p r i t imanabhyabhasata (spoke p l e a s a n t l y ) and pravaksy-i ( I w i 11 t e l l ) signal t h i s story a t l 2 . 9 l . l d and 12.91.2c.*
'%he c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s a n c i l l a r y story.
256 [12.91.21-91.23] Narrator:
Utathya
Audience:
MBmdhZtr . .
At one ti me the goddess demon Vali.
~ri
dwell ed wi th the
Enraged when he behaved badly toward brahmans,
she deserted him and went to live with Indra.
Utathya advised
M3ndhKtr to beware lest gri desert him in the same way. b. Darpo (Pride), the son of gri 228 [12.91.2491.25] Narrator:
Utathya
Audience:
MKndhatr
The goddess Adharma.
~ri
The child caused
bore a son named Darpo (Pride) by ruin to many deities and asuras
alike, as well as many royal sages.
MKndhKtr must beware of
being conquered by him. Utathya conti nued to enumerate the consequences of a king's
unrighteous
behavior,
continuing good conduct. and prospered as a result.
and
MBndhat~
the
benefits
of
his
followed Utathya's advice
Bhisma urged Yudhisthira to do the
same. 34. Vamadeva's advice to King Vasumanas U9 [12.93.295. 13] Narrator:
Bhisma
~8The critical edition gives no title for this story.
229atrapyudBharantimami ti hasam puratanam/ gita~ drstarthatattvena vamadevena dhimatal/12.93.2
257
Y u d h i.s t h i r a and the assembled s u r v i v o r s
Audience:
Y u d h ,i s t h i r a asked sped f i c a 1 l y how a r i g h t e o u s king w h o wanted t o
In r e p l y ,
remain so should behave.
Bhisma
n a r r a t e d the f o 7 lowing s t o r y . K i ng Vasumanas once asked t h e sage Vsmadeva how he shoul d
behave
to
mai n t a i n
adherence
to
his
duties.
Vamadeva
admonished him t o continue t o a c t righteously, a d v i c e o f h i s teachers,
modeling h i s conduct upon t h a t o f
k s a t r i y a s o f former times,
p r o t e c t i n g h i s subjects,
heeding t h e
appointing righteous o f f i c i a l s ,
a t t a c k i n g h i s foes,
and so on.
Y u d h i s* t h i r a and Bhisma t h e n discussed how 4
another
king
and
how
to
achieve
salvation
t o conquer
despite
the
o b l i g a t i o n t o kill people in b a t t l e . 35.
Conversati on between Ambarisa and I n d r a [I2.99.2-
99.50 ]230
Narrator :
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
..
Y u d h i s t h i r a turned t h e conversation t o t h e subject o f warfare.
His q u e s t i o n regarding t h e f r u i t s o f death i n b a t t l e
prompted the fo77owing s t o r y f r o m Bhisma*
King Ambarzsa died. general, Sudeva,
I n I n d r a s heaven he found h i s own
bound f o r o t h e r heavens.
questioned I n d r a c l o s e l y .
Amazed,
t h e king
How was i t p o s s i b l e t h a t Sudeva,
who had never worshipped t h e gods, had surpassed Ambarisa, who
258 had been a
paragon o f
the
ksatriyas?
For Sudeva,
explained, war had been equivalent t o s a c r i f i c e s ,
Indra
and hence
the general had been rewarded f o r h i s superb performances o f it.
36. S t o r y of b a t t l e between Pratardana and King Janaka o f
ith hi la^^'
[12.100.1-100.10]
Narrator :
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s. *t h i r a and t h e assembl ed survivors
ShZsma established
continued
authority
heaven through b a t t
with
a
o f t h e view
story that
indicating
good
s o l d i e r s win
7e.
King Janaka, whose wisdom was w e l l -known, soldiers t o
the
urged h i s
b a t t l e w i t h the promise t h a t they would earn
heaven i f t h e y embraced the f i g h t wholeheartedly, win o n l y a he11 i f they d i d not.
and would
Bhisma recounted Janaka's
..
b a t t l e f o r m a t i on, and advi sed Yudhi s t h i r a t o copy i t t o ensure h i s own successes.
.
Yudh f s ,t h f r a and Bhisma then discussed how t o prepare for
war. 37. Conversation between Brhaspati and I n d r a [I 2.104.2-
104.52 J~~~ Narrator:
Bhisma
23'atrapyudaharantimamit i hasam puratanam pratardano mai t h i 1aSca sambramam y a t r a cakratuh//12.100.1 2 3 2 a t r ~ p y u d ~ h a r a n t i mtaim i hasam puratanam/ brhaspatefica samvadanti ndrasya ca yudhi s . .t h i ra//12.104.2
Audience:
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
Bhisma r e l a t e d t h e fo7lowing s t o r y when Yudhisthira asked h o w a k i n g should behave toward h i s enemies.
Once I n d r a sought Brhaspati ' s advice on the proper ways t o d e f e a t one's enemies.
an enemyt s strengths, spies w i s e l y ,
Brhaspati advi sed him t o c a l c u l a t e
prepare adequate1y f o r b a t t l e,
employ
do o n l y what i s necessary f o r v i c t o r y ,
j u d i c i o u s use o f discussion,
and so on.
make
Prompted by Indra,
Brhaspati a l s o explained how t o i d e n t i f y i n d i v i d u a l s who are wicked.
Armed w i t h t h i s knowledge, I n d r a was v i c t o r i o u s over
h i s enemies. 38.
Story o f ~ ~ e m a d a n2" r ~ [I i 2.105.2-1 07.271 Narrator:
Bhi sma
Audience:
Yudhi s +t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
..
Y u d h i s t h i r a asked Bhisma how a k i n g should conduct himself
when he
has
lost
his
wealth,
the
trust
of
his
o f f i c e r s , and control o f h i s army. Once King KsemadarSi n found h i s c o n t r o l over h i s kingdom
great1y weakened. advice,
He approached t h e
r, s. i K S l akavrksiya . for
and was advised t o r e f l e c t upon t h e impermanence o f
a1 1 t h i n g s .
He should c u l t i v a t e equanimity regardless o f h i s
c i rcumstances.
However,
if t h e k i ng nevertheless w i shed t o
. .
recover h i s k i ngdom, KZl akavrksiya advi sed him t o in g r a t i a t e
himself to h i s enemy,
King Janaka of
Mithila,
t i haso ' nugiyate/ 2 3 3 a t r ~ y aksemadarsiyami m t a t t e * ' ham sa pravaksyami t a n n i bodha yudhi s. t. h i ~ a / / 1 2 . 1 0 5 . ~
and become
indispensible t o him. on
take
He should c l e v e r l y persuade Janaka t o
progressi v e l y
M i t h i 1a s
enemies,
more
thereby
Janakars treasury.
expensi ve
campai gns
eventual 1y causi ng a
Finally,
he should
advise
agai nst drain
on
Janaka
to
perform t h e v i 6 v a J i t s a c r i f i c e t o expend t h e remainder o f h i s belongings.
I n t h i s way,
an enemy can be defeated.
KsemadarSin found t h i s advice d i s t a s t e f u l he remained j u s t
that
.
despite h i s d i f f i c u l t i e s ,
Observi ng t h e sage
arranged a meeti ng between t h e k i ng and h i s r i v a l , Janaka. Impressed by him, Janaka took him t o M i t h i l a as h i s m i n i s t e r . Yudhfsthira Ã
then discussed h o w t o
and Bh2sma
foster
ˆ
loya 7&y, the r e 7ative importance o f a king *s many duties, when t o be t r u t h f u l and when t o t e l l
l ies,
and how t o overcome
7 i f e "s constant d i f f i c u l t i e s .
39. Conversation between a t i g e r and a jackal234
[12.112.2-112.861 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
..
Yudhisthira asked Bhisma how one could recognize a * t r u l y t r a n q u i l person
Csauwtyal
.
There once w a s a k i n g named Paurika who w a s reborn as
a
jackal
because
of
Recall ino h i s former 1ife, a
model
of
compassion
his
cruelty
to
1i v i n g
beings.
he was f u l l o f remorse and became
and
honesty.
The
other
jackals
ti hasam puratanam/ 2~atrapyud~harantimami vyaghragomSyusamvadam tam n i b d h a yudhi sthira//12.112.2
.
261 compl a i ned
about
criticized
them
h is for
uncharacteri s t i c their
lack
of
behavior, virtue.
and A
he
tiger,
overhearing t h e j a c k a l ' s w i se words, was so impressed t h a t he asked t h e j a c k a l t o s e r v e as h i s m i n i s t e r .
The j a c k a l ,
who
w a s content w i t h h i s simple l i f e , agreed t o serve t h e t i g e r on
three conditions:
i f he were a1 lowed t o do e x a c t l y as he
pleased, i f t h e t i g e r 1istened c a r e f u l l y t o h i s advice, and if he agreed t o p r o t e c t him. The t i g e r agreed, m i n is t e r .
When,
and so t h e j a c k a l
despite
repeated
servants c o u l d n o t c o r r u p t him,
began t o serve h i s
attempts,
the
k i ng ' s
they s t o l e a choice b i t o f
meat intended f o r t h e k i nq and h i d i t i n t h e j a c k a l ' s house. Aware o f t h e i r in t r i gue, t h e j a c k a l was unconcerned, be1ie v i ng t h e t i g e r would honor t h e t r u s t they shared. When t h e
k i n g demanded t h a t
t h e t h i e f be found,
d e c e i t f u l m i n i s t e r s accused t h e j a c k a l , o n l y pretended v i r t u e .
c l a i m i n g t h a t he had
The enraged t i g e r ordered t h e j a c k a l
t o be k i 11ed, b u t t h e k i ng ' s mother interceded. him t h a t
the
jackal
the
was wrongly
accused,
She convi nced
and t h e
jackal
stepped forward t o d i s c l o s e t h e e n t i r e p l o t a g a i n s t him.
The
t i g e r forgave him, b u t t h e j a c k a l no l o n g e r wished t o remain as h i s m i n i s t e r and r e t i r e d t o t h e f o r e s t .
40. The s t o r y o f t h e camel235[12.113.2-113-.21]
Narrator:
Bhisma
% a tvevam v a r t itavyam sma yathedamanu6u&rumah/ ustrasya 'sumahadvrtt6n1I tannibodha yudhisthira//12.113.3 4
.
..
262
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
Audi ence:
The f a 1 7owfng story was prompted by Y u d h f s t h i r a *s Â
quest ion about w h a t a k i n g should do t o be happy. s a i d Bhisma,
¥
The s t o r y ,
t e l l s a k f n g how not t o behave*
I n t h e krta era t h e r e was a camel who r e c a l l e d a1 1 o f h i s former 1ives.
He performed such s t r i c t penances t h a t
Brahrna o f f e r e d t o grant him boons.
The camel asked f o r a very
l o n g neck w i t h which t o receive any food he l i k e d .
receiving t h i s g i f t ,
t h e camel became very lazy.
After
He would
simply s t r e t c h out h i s neck t o find food, wherever he happened t o be.
O n e day,
a t e r r i b l e storm arose w h i l e he was eating,
so he simply stuck h i s head i n t o a nearby mountain cave f o r protection. shelter.
A l ong came a hungry pai r o f j a c k a l s, a1 so seeki ng
When they saw t h e camel's neck. they fastened on t o
i t and chewed away.
as he might, t h e camel could n o t
Try
shake them o f f , and so he died.
And so Y u d h i.s.t h i r a would be
we1 1 advi sed t o avoid id l eness. 41
. Conversation
between the ocean and t h e rivers236
[12.114.2-114.141 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
s
,.
Yudh I s t h i r a asked how a v i c t o r i o u s k i n g should behave
toward
a
powerful
enemy,
and
6hisma
responded
with
the
f o 7 lowing s t o r y .
rapyud~harantimamit i hasam ouratanam/ saritam caiva samvadam s h r a s y a ca bhmata//12.114.2
263
Once l o n g ago t h e ocean asked t h e r i v e r s why they never c a r r i ed any s t a l ks o f cane t o i t
.
The r i v e r Ganges rep1 ied
t h a t t h e p l i a n c y o f t h e cane made i t extremely d i f f i c u l t t o uproot.
And so,
said Bhisma,
a wise k i n g should y i e l d t o a
more powerful enemy 1ike a s t a l k o f cane. Y u d h i,s. t h i r a and Bhisma then discussed proper
behavior
toward conceited peop 7e and how t o se 7ect a p p r o p r i a t e people t o serve one.
S t o r y of the sage and t h e dog237(12.117.1-119.11
42.
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
.
t o comment f u r t h e r on t h e
Y u d h i s t h i r a asked Bh-a
proper ru7 in9 o f one's kingdom, and Bhisma responded w i t h the f o 1 lowing s t o r y . A
certain
sage
lived
in
the
forest,
a t t e n d i n g t o h i s s p i r i t u a l advancement.
scrupulously
A l l of the forest
animals loved him, but h i s most devoted companion was a dog. One day,
a 1eopard came s t a l k i n g t h e dog. help,
t h e dog
was
When he pleaded
sage f o r
leopard.
The same t h i n g occurred subsequently when a t i g e r
entered t h e hermitage i n p u r s u i t of
transformed
t h e leopard,
elephant came t o a t t a c k t h e transformed t i g e r , e l ephant- k i 114 ng 1ion wandered by.
into
a
with the
when
an
and when an
Later, a fearsome 6arabha
237atrapyud~harantimami t i hasam puratanam/ n i darsanakaram 1oke s a j j ankcari tam sadS//12.117.1 asyaivarthasya sadriam yacchrutamme tapovane/ jamadagnyasya ramasyawyaduktamrsi sattamai h//12.117.2
264 (an eight-legged animal s a i d t o be extreme1y strong) t r i e d t o
attack t h e 1ion. and t h e sage again transformed h i m .
One day.
he turned upon t h e sage i n h i s l u s t f o r bloody meat, and so
t h e sage again changed him i n t o a dog and sent him away from t h e hermitage.
.
And so, s a i d Bhhna, Yudhisthira should l e a r n
t o assign people on1y t h e work appropriate t o them, f o r ,
1ike
t h e dog. someone o f 1ow b i r t h is not r e a l 1y capable o f s e r v i ng i n a post appropriate o n l y t o one o f higher b i r t h . 43.
Manu on puni~hrnent*~' [12.121 -10-121 -121 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
Y u d h f.s,t h i r a questioned
Bhisma
on
punishment,
the
source o f dharma. Bhisma quoted Manu,
who was s a i d t o have been t h e
f i r s t t o say t h a t t h e man who p r o t e c t s a l l creatures e q u a l l y i s said t o be great. 44.
Story o f K i ng ~ a s u h o m a[I ~2.122.1-1 ~~ 22.551 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s . *t h i r a and the assembled s u r v i v o r s
I 8 a p i c a i t a t p u r a rajanmanuna proktamadi tah/ suprani tena dandena p r i yapri yasamZStmanZf'/ p r a j a ' r a k s a t i yah samyagdharma eva sa keva1a h / / j 2.121 j 0 arthoktametadvacanam prageva manuna purW janma coktam vasisthena brahmano vacanam mahat//12.1~1.11
.
..
3gatrapyud~harantimami t i hasam purStanam/ artgesu r a j a dyutimanvasuho'ma i t i firutah//12.122. l a b
265
Bhisma t o l d
Continuing on t h e t o p i c o f punishment,
the s t o r y o f King Vasuhoma, renowned k i n g o f t h e Angas,
who
dwe 1 led n e a r M t . M e w .
One day, King Mmdhatr came t o 1earn from him t h e o r i g i n
.
of punishment (dandanda).
Vasuhoma explained t h a t once upon a
t i m e Brahma wanted t o perform a s a c r i f i c e , l o c a t e a p r i e s t who was h i s equal
.
b u t could n o t
He then conceived a f e t u s
i n h i s b r a i n and r e t a i n e d i t t h e r e f o r one thousand years when out i t f e l l
a f t e r he sneezed.
The creature,
named Ksapa,
became Brahma * s p r i e s t and r u l ed over a1 1 creatures. Brahmats
sacrifice
at
long
last
.
. Visnu,
disappeared and chaos ensued. appeal ed f o r various
a s s i stance,
deities
mountains,
to
rivers,
took
so
underway,
..
of
on.
the
The
Ksapa
t o whom Brahma had assi gned
t h e form o f Danda,
sovereignty and
got
When
deities,
staff
of
demons,
Danda
was
t h e r e a f t e r d u l y handed down t o m a i n t a i n order and t o p r o t e c t t h e uni verse.
..
45. Conversation between Kamanda and Atigari stha2"
[12.123.10-123.241 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s *t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
Bhfsma
.
addressed
r e l a t i o n s h i p between a r t h a ,
the
various
disputes
about
the
kama and dharma by t e l l i n g t h e
f o 7 Towing s t o r y .
240atrapyud~harantimami t i hasam puratanam/ kamandasya ca sarnv~damartg~r% sthasya * cobhayoh//12 .I 23.10
.
.
King Artgari s t h a asked t h e sage KSmanda how a king might e x p i a t e h i s s i n s and prevent t h e i r spread among h i s subjects. The sage advised t h a t by s t r i c t observance o f k s a t r i y a duties,
a k i n g would cleanse himself o f s i n s . 46. Achievi ng v i rtuous behavior241[12.124.18-124.691 Narrator: Audience:
Bhisma ,
.
Yudhi s .t h i r a and t h e assembled survivors
When Yudhisthira asked Bh-a ., v i r t u o u s behavior,
how he might achieve
BhZsma r e p l i e d t h a t Ouryodhana had asked
t h e very same question o f h i s f a t h e r a f t e r h i s cousins made a f o o l o f him i n t h e i r great assembly hall a t Indraprastha.
a. N a r r a t o r : Audience:
D h r t a r S s.t r a Duryodhana and Kama
.
O h r t a r a s t r a narrated t h e fol l o w i n g s t o r y , which N3rada had told h i m on another occasion.
Long ago, t h e d a f t y a Prahlada succeeded i n wresting r u l e o f t h e three worlds from Indra.
I n d r a sought Brhaspati ' s
advi ce on t h e source o f happi ness that
.
When Brhaspati rep1 ied
knowledge i s t h e source o f happiness,
t h e r e was not something superior t o i t . I n d r a t o put t h e question t o U6anas. that
Prahlada possessed higher
I n d r a asked i f
Brhaspati advi sed
When U6anas t o l d him
know1edge,
I n d r a d i sgui sed
h i m s e l f as a brahman and became Prahlada's d i s c i p l e . Prahlgda disclosed h i s secret t o success:
I n time,
He followed t h e
24'atrapyudaharantimaimti hasam puratanam/ naradena pura proktam 621am3Sri t y a bhSrata//12.124.18
267 advice o f h i s p r i e s t s h k r a a and h i s senses and emotions were we1 1- c o n t r o l 1ed
Indra
As
a
he sought to behave j u s t as Prahlsda
then requested a boon:
behaved.
who had been s e r v i ng Prahl ada we1 I
Prahl ads d e l ib e r a t e d over t h i s
request w i t h
consi derabl e anxi e t y g h i s behavior t o o k bodi 1y form as dharma, f o l lowed by t r u t h , good b e h a v i o r # power, and p r o s p e r i t y (Sr5 ) B e f o r e depart4 ng,
And
SOa
.
6 r i r e v e a l e d I n d r a t s i d e n t i t y t o Prahrada.
.
s a i d 13hismas Yudhi s t.h i f a should heed O h r t a r S s t r a t s
i n s t r u c t i o n s t o h i s son* 47.
..
Conversati on between Sumi t a and ~ s a b h a ~ ~ ~ [12.125*8-126*52] Narrator:
Bh5 sma
Audi ence : Y u d h i s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s At
the
ment i o n
of
Duryodhana,
..
Yudh f s t h i r a
expressed r e g r e t t h a t h j s hopes were dashed, t h a t Duryodhana
had not stepped back t h e y had waged*
H e asked Bhfsmi
i f anything p e r s i s t e d l i k e
Once a r o y a l sage named Sumi t r a went hunting. deer and pursued t h e wounded
animal
for
He shot
a
m i l e s and m i l e s *
E v e n t u a l l y they entered a hermitage* and the hunter s a t dawn t o rest
The l o c a l a s c e t i c s came t o greet him and i n q u i r e d
about h i s purpose there.
He expressed despondence over h i s
dashed hopes o f f e l l i n g t h e wounded d e e r s and asked t h e wise ?12atra te vat-tayi sysmi yudhi s t h i r a n i bodha t a t / it i hasam sum4 t r k s y a n4 rvrtkamrsabhasya c a / / l Z . 325.8
..
268
h e r m i t s ifanything was as s t r o n g as hope.
I n r e p l y * t h e sage
.
Rsabha t o l d how he had once v i s i t e d t h e hermitage o f Nara and
.
NSr2Iyana. a. Conversation between Tanu and King viradYtimna2l3 [12.126.1-12.126.49J A s he
settled
down f o r
.
e x t r a o r d i nary r s* i Tanu nearby h i s ascetic practices.
a s t a y * he saw t h e
F r i ghteni ngl y emaci a t e d from
Tanu asked him t o s i t dawn* and began
t o speak about dharma and a r t h a when along came a k i n g named Viradyumna w i t h a f u l l
retinue.
The king was f r a n t i c a l l y
searchi ng everywhere For h i s l o s t son
his only c h i I d .
asked t h e sage whether a n y t h i n g was greater than hope.
He The
sage rep1i e d t h a t h i s son had i n s u l t e d an a s c e t i c by r e f u s i n g t o o b t a i n some t h i n g s f o r greet: ng were performed, about hape.
from
t h a t sage had not r e c e i v e d proper
V i radyumna
r e e d 1 i ng t h e d e t a i 1s.
The appropriate r i t e s OF
and a g a i n V i radyumna asked t h e r s i
A s i t happened
consideration
him.
in
the
past,
and
he
sat
He t o l d t h e k i n g t h a t n o t h i n g was as
d i f f k u l t t o achieve as what one hopes f o r .
Fa1l o w i n g t h e
sageNs d i scourseJ which contained a reproach t o t h e k i n g f o r h i s former behavior obsessed him.
the
k i ng r e 1inqui shed t h e hope whi c h
.
Hearing t h i s t a l e from Rsabha,, King Sumitra#
t o o * was p a c i f i e d .
L i k e these o t h e r kings
BhZsma advised
.
Yudhi s t. h i r a t o put h i s r e g r e t s o v e r t h e recent war behi nd him. 2 4 3 ~ h i s t o r y i s recounted as something witnessed by Rsabha, and i s simply i n t r o d u c e d w i t h the word pura ( l o n g
Ago).
269 48. Conversat i on between Gautama and Yama244
[12.127.2-121.10J Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence: Yudhi sthi ra and the assembled survi vors
Yudhisthira asked to hear more on the subject of dharma. One day. Yama visited the sage Gautama as he was engaged in meditation in his hermitage.
Gautama greeted him and asked
how one discharges one's debt to parents. and how one the highest regions after death.
a~ta;ns
Yama replied that devotion
to duty and ascetic practices with one's parents in mind and performance of horse sacrifices would ensure the goal Gautama sought. B. The section on apaddharma [.paddharmaparva} [12.129-
12.167] Immediately F07lowing adhyaya 12.128 of the critical edition (which concerns how a king who has Fallen on very bad times shou7d behave) begins the apaddharmanu6asana parvan. sect ion
'two
Further
discussion
0
F the !ant i parvan . of
how
to
The sect i on opens cope
with
very
wi th
diFFicu7t
circumstances, inc7uding Fa1tering courage, lack of money, and dissension among advisors.
244atrapyudaharantimamitihasam puratanam/ gautamasya ca sa~vada~ yamasya ca mahatmana~//12.127.2
-
Story o f Kapavya and t h e t h i efZd5[I 2 . I33 1
1
Narrator :
Bhf sma
..
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i v o r s
Audi ence:
This i s t h e f f r s t s t o r y narrated i n t h e s e c t f o n on
or
apaddharma,
permfssfb 7e
behavfor
under
extreme
BhYsma recounted i t wh i ?e d f s c t ~ s s i n ghow to
circumstances.
dm7 w f t h thfeves. There was a t h i e f k s a t r f y a dharma. h is
parents,
Admiring him, 1eader. that
named Kgpavya who observed t h e
He respected brahmans
protected
a s c e t i cs,
and
was d u t i f u1 toward
hunted
r e g u l a r 1y *
a t r o o p o f t h i e v e s selected him t o be t h e i r
tie exhorted them t o behave p r o p e r l y ~ a s s u r i n g them
they
profession
would *
a1 1
achjeve
salvation
despite
their
This s t o r y , s a i d 8hZsma, had the power t o p r o t e c t
people t r a v e l i n g through t h e f o r e s t . 2. f3rahmaf s verses concerning weal th246112.134.1-
Narrator : Audience:
Bh5 sma
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v a r s
3 dam kapavyacari tam yo n i tyamanuk i r t a y e t / naranyebhyah sa b h ~ t e b h y o bhayam~rchetkadacana//12.133 25
246atragatha brahmag5tSh k%r t a y a n t i purSvi dab/ yena mgrgena r a j anah kagam samjanayanti c a ~ / 1 2 . 1 3 4 . I
271
EWsma
immedfately
quoted
verses
attributed
to
Brahma concerning wea7th a k i n @ was p e r ~ i t t e dt o t a k e . C i rcumstances
under
which
a
kimg
could
appmpri a t e
another s wealth i n c l u d e d from someone who d i d n o t perform s a c r i f i c e s and from
w
He shuuld
not
hoard
wealth* but should use i t t o m a i n t a i n h i s army and perform s a c r i f ices 3. Story o f a p r ~ c r a s t i n a t o r[12.735.7-135.19J ~~~
Marrator:
Bh5sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s *t h i r a and the assembl ed survi vors
.
Unprompted
by
Y u d h i,s t h i r a ,
Bhisma
told
the
f a 7 7owing s t o r y t o a d v i s e a g a f n s t p r o c r a s t i n a t i o n . Three f i s h e s who were good Friends 1i v e d i n a shallow lake.
One was i n c l i n e d t o p l a n ahead, one w a s very sens*bleB
and t h e t h i r d was a p r o c r a s t i n a t o r .
One days a fisherman
began t o d i v e r t t h e waters o f t h e l a k e * and g r a d u a l l y t h e water 1eve1 f e l l
.
The f ir s t f i s h urged the o t h e r two t o 1eave
immedi a t e l y * t h e second s a i d he would be ready when the time
camel and the t h i r d saw no need t o a c t . another lake.
The f ir s t f i s h found
A s t h e f i r s t l a k e was drained, fishermen caught
a1 1 t h e remaining f i s h . s t r i n g as + f caught
The second o f the t r i o h e l d onto t h e
t h e n escaped when t h e fishermen lowered
t h e rope i n t o o t h e r water t o c l e a n t h e captured f i s h .
The
247at r a i va cedamavyagrah 6rnv~&hy~namanuttamam/ dZ rghasat ram samSSt-it y a * k ~ r y a k ~ r y anvi Scaye//12.135.1 i Edi t a r s o f t h e 6ant iparvan note s i m i 1a r i t i es between t h i s s t o r y and M i t a c f n t i j a t a k a (No= 1441, Paficatantra Is katha 14, 12Q f f ) and Hi tupadega I V (p
.
p r o c r a s t i nator, 4.
however, died.
Conversation between a c a t and a mouse24a [12.136.18-136.194] Narrator : Audi ence:
B h isma
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and the assembled s u r v i v o r s
..
Yudhisthfra asked Bh-a
how a king should behave
toward friends and enemies, p r o m p t i n g t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y . A wise mouse named Pal it a 1ived i n t h e f o r e s t a t t h e f o o t
o f a banyan t r e e .
A c a t named LomaSa l i v e d i n i t s branches,
happi ly e a t i n g t h e many b i r d s who f l e w around i t . O n e day,
animals.
a Candal a came t o live i n t h e f o r e s t and t r a p
When t h e c a t became trapped. P a l i t a emerged from h i s
underground l a i r and hunted f e a r l e s s l y throughout t h e f o r e s t u n t i l he was trapped by two p r e d a t o r s : Pal ita consi dered h i s o p t i o n s . mouse,
a mongoose and an owl.
Being a r a t h e r
in t e l 1igent
he concluded t h a t t h e l e a s t dangerous course was t o
s t r i ke a b a r g a i n w i t h t h e cat.
P a l i t a o f f e r e d t o gnaw through
t h e n e t which bound LomaSa i f i n r e t u r n t h e c a t would p r o t e c t him from t h e mongoose and t h e ow1 s h e l t e r e d Pal i t a under h i s body,
.
LomaSa agreed.
When he
t h e o t h e r p r e d a t o r s went
t i hasam puratanam/ 248atr8pyudSharantimami mar j a r a s y a ca samvadam nyagrodhe ca//12.136.18 evametanmays proktami t i hasam yudhi s t h i r a / sh h r d 3 m ~ r u t v a t v a m yath3vatsamupacara//12.136.20*4
mosakasya m a d h y e
The e d i t o r s o f t h e Smtiparvan note comparjsions Kathasaritsagara 7ambaka 6 , t a r a m a 7 , s t . 106-130.
with
273 away. Throughout the night, Pal ita slowly gnawed away at the net.
The anxious cat urged him to hurry and accused him of
bad faith.
Pal ita replied that circumstances alone had made Loma~a
them friends,
and he would not free
was in view.
Only in this way could he assure his own full
rescue.
until the hunter
Their conversation continued through the night.
As
Pal ita had promised. he allowed Loma§a to escape as the hunter approached his net in the morning.
Seeing both of his prey
escape, the hunter went away in disgust. Loma§a then attempted to convince Pal ita that they could be fri ends, but Pal ita remai ned wary and i nsi sted that the weak should never trust the strong. hunter, Loma*a ran away in fright.
When he menti oned the and Pal ita found another
place to live. 5. Conversation between the bird POjani and King Brahmadatta249 [12.137.4-137.109] Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira and the assembled survivors
Yudhis~hira
asked
his enemies iF indeed he A
bird
named
Bhi~ma
~rusted
POjani
how a king could deFeat
no one , as Bhisma advised.
lived
in
the
palace
of
King
249~rnu kaunteya yo vrtto brahmadattani ve§ane/
pD]anya saha samvado brahmadattasya parthiva//12.137.4 etatte brenmadattasya pOjanya saha bhasitam/ mayoktam bharata§restha . kimanyacchrotumicchasi//12.137.109 The editors of the §.n~iparvan noted comparisons between this story and Hariva,!,§a I.20.S0ff and the Kun~anij.~aka (No. 343).
274
Brahmadatta. was w e l l
Not on1y c o u l d she i m i t a t e any animal,
versed i n t h e t r u t h .
I t happened t h a t
b u t she
she had a
c h i c k a t j u s t t h e t i m e when t h e queen b o r e a son, so every day POjani would b r i n g sweet f r u i t t o b o t h c h i l d r e n .
One day, the
young p r i n c e a c c i d e n t a l l y k i l l e d POTjani s c h i c k w h i l e p l a y i n g with it.
D i s c o v e r i n g her dead o f f s p r i n g ,
prince w i t h
her talons.
Despite t h i s a c t ,
PUjani t o c o n t i n u e l i v i n g i n t h e palace, would
forgive
her.
impossible t o do regained.
so.
The
bird
she b l i n d e d t h e t h e k i n g asked
f o r g i v i n g him as he
argued
that
would
be
T r u s t once breached c o u l d never
be
it
Although t h e k i n g continued t o argue t h a t t r u s t
could be r e e s t a b l ished between them, t h e bi r d argued otherwise and then " l e f t
t h e k i n g forever.
6. Conversat ion between BharadvSj a and K i ng ~atru~tapa ~ ~38.3-1 38.70 ] [ 1*2.1 Narrator: Audience:
Bhisma Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s @
Y u d h i s* t h i r a asked
Bhisma
how
a
king
should behave
during the d e d i n i n g Kali e r a .
King Satrumtapa o f t h e Sauviras was a g r e a t w a r r i o r who
.
sought t h e a d v i c e o f t h e r s ? Bharadvaja on t h e t o p i c o f a r t h a . Bharadvaja emphasi zed t h a t t h e k i n g must b e ready a t a1 1 times t o use t h e danda.
He s h o u l d be wary o f h i s enemies, c u l t i v a t e
t h e enemies o f h i s enemies, m a i n t a i n h i s guard, seek p l easure t i hasam purStanam/ 2aatrapyud~harantimami samvadam* rajfiah bhar advaj asya ca//12.138.3
Satrumtapasya
275
i n moderation, warrant
employ spies w i s e l y ,
i t , k i 11 a f a m i l y
trust
o n l y t h o s e who
member o r teacher
behave according t o dharma, and so on.
who does not
The k i n g f o l l o w e d t h i s
advice and h i s kingdom prospered.
.
7. Conversati on between V i SvSmi t r a and a ~ a.n d aa251 l
[12.139.12-139.941 Narrator:
Bhi sma
Audience:
Yudhi s *t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
Y u d h i s t h i r a asked BhYsma how a k i n g should 1 ive in e
a n e r a marked by s i n f u l n e s s . O n c e between the
drought occurred.
t r e t a and dvapara eras a twelve year
People stopped w o r k i ng,
and p l a n t s died.
and many animals
People began t o e a t t h e i r own k i n d .
The
great sage ViSvamitra wandered about i n search o f f o o d and
'.
came upon a small v i 1lage occupied by Candal as. h i s r e q u e s t f o r food.
When he s p o t t e d some dog meat on t h e
..
floor
o f one CandalaBs hut.
steal
and consume i t . consi d e r i ng h i s
During t h e
night
challenged him.
No one heeded
he s t o l e
he reasoned i t p e r m i s s i b l e t o
i n t o the
d i r e c i rcumstances. hut,
but
the
hunter
Vi6vSmitra begged him f o r t h e dog meat, but
the Candata admonished him f o r c o n s i d e r i n g such an egregious breach o f h i s dharma.
ViSvamitra argued t h a t since he was on
the b r i n k o f s t a r v a t i o n ,
i t was p e r m i s s i b l e t o e a t dog.
They
continued t o argue back and f o r t h f o r some t i m e u n t i 1 f i n a l l y
2'atrapyud~harantimami ti hasam purStanam/ v i 6vSmi t r a s y a samv3dam c a d 1asya ca pakkane//12.139.12
.
the
Candala ..
fell
silent.
ViSvamitra
returned t o h i s f a m i l y i n t h e f o r e s t .
took
the
meat
and
He l i t a s a c r i ' f i c a l
f i r e and cooked t h e meat i n i t , o f f e r i n g a p o r t i o n t o t h e
Suddenly,
gods.
t h e drought broke and V i Svamitra a t e t h e
meat. 8. What Ufianas s a i d t o t h e Dai tyas252[12.140.22]
Narrator:
Bhi sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
..
Y u d h i s t h i r a was so aghast t h a t Bhisma should c l a i m 8
that
an
act
as
e
unthinkable
as
e a t i n g dog meat
should be
permissible i n extreme d i s t r e s s t h a t he asked why he should refrain from
doing anything at a l l .
I n t h e course o f
his
reply, Bh1sma told t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y .
.
B h i sma expl a i ned t h a t he was -i mparti ng t o Yudhi s t h i r a t h e
curnulati ve w i sdom o f t h o u g h t f u l people.
Further j u s t i f y i ng
t h e deeds o f good people as a source o f l e a r n i n g t h e dharma, Bhisma quoted t h e sage Usanas as having s a i d t h a t what does
not p o i n t t o knowledge i s not l e g i t i m a t e . 9. S t o r y of how a pigeon behaved toward a
his s i n g l e sentence which Uianas i s s a i d t o have u t t e r e d is introduced w i t h t h e word purS (long ago). daiteymufianah praha samSayacchedane pura/ jfianamavyapadefiyam h i yatha n a s t i t a t h a i v a tat//12.140.22 ' ' ~ r n u r aj ankatham d i vyam sarvapapapranasi nim/ n'rpatermucukundasya ka'thitam bhargavena ha//12.141.6 dharmani icayasamyuktam kamarthasahi tam kathSm/ SrnusvSvahi t o rajangadato me mahabh~j&//12.141.9 E d i t o r s o f t h e &antiparvan note t h a t a summary o f t h i s s t o r y o c c u r s i n Paftcatantra 111.140.90; see a l s o Ramayana 6 . 1 8 2 4 -
277
Narrator: Audience:
Bhxsma Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s rn
Yudhisthfra t h e n asked Bhisma what rewards would ,,
come f r o m assisting one who appealed for helps and so Bhisma told the f a ?? a w i n g s t o r y .
Bhisma repeated a s t o r y which Rama,
son o f Bhrgu,
had
told King Mucukunda when asked t h e very same question. a. How t h e pigeon behaved Narrator:
Rama Jamadagnya
Audi ence :
K i ng Mucukunda
A cruel and fearsome b i r d catcher once 1ived in
the forest, meat.
k i 1l i n g l a r g e numbers o f b i r d s and s e l l i n g t h e i r
One day, a t e r r i b l e storm blew up as he hunted.
The
f o r e s t was flooded w i t h t o r r e n t i a l r a i n s , and a1 1 t h e animals searched
f r a n t ic a l ly
for
dry
ground.
Himself
cold
and
s h i v e r i ng , t h e b i r d catcher neverthel ess caged a p i geon he found r e s t i n g on the ground.
The s k i e s cleared, b u t r e a l iz i ng
t h a t he was f a r from home, t h e h u n t e r 1ay down beneath a t r e e and f e l l
asleep.
I t so happened t h a t t h e pigeon's
1 ived i n t h e branches o f t h a t very t r e e .
family
Hearing her husband
exclaim w i t h worry over h e r ( t h i n k i ng her l o s t ) , she urged him t o accept t h e i r f a t e and f i n d another mate since she had been
trapped.
Instead,
t h e male pigeon o f f e r e d t h e b i r d c a t c h e r
every hospi t a l it y , s e t t i n g a f ir e t o warm him and j umpi ng in t o i t as food when he r e a l ized he had no food t o o f f e r t h e b i r d
catcher.
The man was h o r r i f i ed and promptly vowed t o become
a ,hermi t
.
H e released t h e p i geon and s e t o f f *
Mourni ng her
husband's l o s s , t h e pigeon immolated herself and j o i n e d him in heaven.
A s i t happeneds t h e b i r d catcher saw t h a t t h e two pigeons were t o g e t h e r i n heaven and determined t h a t he, a t t a i n t h a t state.
too,
would
A f t e r performing many a u s t e r i t i e s , he came
upon a f o r e s t f i r e and j o y o u s l y rushed i n t o i t t o d i e * 10. What h d r o t a s a i d t o King ~aname jaYats4
[12.146.2-148.35J Narrator:
Bh5 sma
..
Yudhi s t h i r a and the assembled s u r v i v o r s
Audience:
BhYsma
re7ated
the
fa710wfng
stary
when
.
Yudhisthira asked haw one might cleanse himself o f a s i n . , One day l o n g agos K i n g Janamejaya k i 1l e d a brahman and undertook
to
cleanse
himself
wandered t h e e a r t h u n t i l
of
this
t e r r i b1e
he met the sage
.
He
son
of
s in
Indrota,
Sunaka, who immediate1y recognized h i s s i n and c r i t i c i zed hime I n d r o t a agreed t o i n s t r u c t t h e k i n g an how t o e x p i a t e t h e s i n when Janamejaya begged him t o do so*
Indrota extracted a
% t r a t e varnayi sye hami ti hasam pwatanam/ indrotah gaunakb v4 p r o yadaha ~anamejayam//l2~146.2 a s 5 d r j~h mahSv5 ryah p S r i k s i j janame j ayah/? 2 146 3ab E d i t o r s o f t h e &antiparvan n o t e t h a t t h i s Janamejaya should be d i st4 ngui shed from Yudhi s t h i r a 8 s grandson to whom s Vaj SampZIyana r e d tes t h e blahabh&kta. Otherwi ses t h e s t o r y m placement i n Bhismats mouth would be temparally impossible. The e d i t o r s a1so note t h a t t h i s s t o r y is found in Harivamsa I .3O.6-l4.
279
promise t h a t Janamejaya would never again i n j u r e a brahman. He
instructed
the
pilgrimage s i t e s ,
king a t
on
visits
tci
and on proper behavior f o r a king.
course o f h i s i n s t r u c t i o n , said
length
various I n the
he quoted something Yayati
had
. a m What Yayati sa+d2" [12. 148.8-148m9] Narrator:
Indrotra
Audience:
Janamej aya
Yayati had s a i d t h a t m o r t a l s a c h i eve long 1iFe by f ir s t p e r f o r m i ng s a c r i f ices and 1a t e r u n d e r t a k i ng a s ~ e tci
p r a e t i ces
. b
Brhaspati s advi ce t o t h e
[ 12.148 28
148.331
Narratur:
Brhaspati
Audience:
Demons
At one t f m e ,
the demons asked Brhaspatf
how
s f n s cou7d be expfated*
Brhaspati e x p l a i ned t o t h e demons t h a t dharmi c behavi o r expiates s i n s .
25spunyade$abhi gamanarn p a v i t r a m paramam smrtam/ ap'i hyudaharantim~'gatha gZka y a y ~ t 'nZi/]12. i 148.8 yo martyah p r a t i p a d y e t a S y u r j Z v e t a vS punah/ krtva tatsgamnyasya yaj fiamekantatah tapa$caret//12. 148 - 9 2 5 6 ~most n manuscr4pts, saunaka t e l l s t h e s t o r y w i t h a u t A few i n c l u d e t h e word pupa (1ang ago) t o introduction* introduce i t .
280 11. Conversat; on between a vu1 ture and a j acka1 257 [12.149.1-149.117] Narrator: Audi ence:
Bhisma Yudhi 5th; ra and the assemb1 ed survi vors
Bhi §ma rep 7 i ed wi th t:h is story when Yudh i sth j ra asked
j.,
anyone had ever come back 'from the dead.
There once lived a brahman who, after much effort, had a son.
Unfortunate1 y.
the
chi 1 d
di ed as
an
infant.
The
brahman's family took the child's dead body. but they could not bring themselves to abandon it.
As they grieved over the
child, a vulture appeared and told them to go away. for the child had simply suffered what everyone eventually must. As they were returning home, a
jackal appeared and urged
them to go back to the burni ng ground and further their grief.
i ndul ge
When they did so, the vulture berated them for
their useless sorrow and suggested that they tend to their proper duties.
The jackal intervened and urged them to remain
with the child's corpse at least until evening.
The vulture
continued to remark upon the folly of this action, and again the family members were about to set out for home when the j acka 1
returned to berate them fu rther.
occas i ona 11 yother
humans
had
been
He told them that
restored
to
1 ; fe J
and
suggested that they find a deity or wise man who would grant 257~rnu p.rtha yathavrttamiti hasam pur.tanaml
grdhrajambukasamvaaam yo vrtto· vaidi6e pur8//12.149.1
d~armarthamoksasamyuktamitihasamimam ~ubham/ §rutva manu~yat:' satatami ha pretya ca modate/ /12.149.
11 7
281 such a t h i n g t o them.
The v u l t u r e r e p l i e d t h a t no matter what
the jackal sa+d8 t h e c h i l d would remain dead.
The j a c k a l s
howevers protested t o them t h a t he dfd n o t b e l i e v e t h a t such a handsome c h i I d was r e a l 1y dead8 and so they remai ned there. The v u l t u r e warned them t h a t they were i n danger as n i g h t approached8 b u t t h e jackal again urged them t o stay. jackal
and t h e
vulture
continued
appeared before t h e family.
to
argue8 s i v a
As t h e himself
Implored f o r t h e c h i l d ' s l i f e s
s i v a restored i t , and so t h e fami 1y returned home. 12. Conversatfon between t h e 6a?ma?i t r e e and Pavana ( ~ a ~ [12.150.1-151.31] u ) ~ ~ ~ Narrator : Audience:
BhZsma
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled survivors
Yudhisthfra asked t3hZsma how one should defend *
h imse 1 f i f he thought less ry prcwuked a p o w e r f u 1 foe. There was a g r e a t Sa 7ma 1 f t r e e in t h e
h i ma1ayas .
One day
t h e sage Narada v i s i t e d and exclaimed i n wonder over i t a He was amazed t h a t t h e w4 nd god seemed never t o have affected by breaking i t s branches* and so on.
give
it
special
protection.
The
it
Surely t h e w i nd god must arrogant
tree
in
reply
.
The
s k e p t i ca1 Mrada reported t h i s conversati an t e Pavana,
who
d e d ared t h a t i t s p o w e r surpassed t h a t o f Pavana (Vayu)
threatened t h e t r e e i n a rage.
The t r e e r e p l i e d f e a r l e s s l y 8
but upon consideration became a f r a i d .
Pavana had said he
282 would r e t u r n t h e n e x t day8 so t h a t n i g h t t h e t r e e c u t o f f i t s own branches.
F i l l e d ~ 4 t hshame8 t h e t r e e
regretted
its
foolish attitude. Y u d h f,s t h i r a and Bhisma then discussed t h e causes o f s i n and o f ignorancef t h e p a r t f c u l a r v a h e o f se I f - r e s t r a f n t and of t r u t h f peep 1 e
t h e sources o f v f c e f and c h a r a c t e r f s t i c s o f wicked
. 13. The o r i g i n o f t h e sword25g[12.160.11-160.8?] Narrator:
Bh: sma
Audi ence :
N a b 1a and t h e assembl ed s u f v i v o r s
Here t h e f n t e r 7ocutor s h i f t s from Y u d h i s* t h i r a t o e
h i s younger b r o t h e r , Naku laf who wishes t o know which i s t h e best weapon f o r b a t t 1e and how f t was created. Long ago t h e universe was m l y an ocean.
Eventual l y ,
E3rahma was b o r n 8 created t h e p l a n e t s * s e t t i m e i n motion, produced sans8 and s e t i n motion t h e process l e a d * ng t o t h e b i r t h o f a1 l c r e a t u r e s . A t f i r s t , a l l obeyed t h e precepts s e t f o r t h i n t h e Vedas
as spoken by BrahmS8 b u t i n t i m e t h e demons began t o d i s r e g a r d them and tormented a1 I creatures.
Brahma and t h e d e i t i e s went
h i g h i n t o t h e Himalayas and performed a g r e a t s a c r j f i c e . t e r r i b l e c r e a t u r e named Asi
(sword)
sprang f o r t h .
A
.
V i snu8
?%he s t o r y i s s i g n a l l e d merely by t h e ward pura ( l o n g ago) a t 12.160.11 b u t concludes w i t h t h e fol l o w i fig verse. s a r v a t h a i t a d i h a g r u t v s khadgasSdhanamuttamam/ 1abhate purusah k i r t im p r e t y a c~nantyama6nute//t2.1$0.87
siva,
and t h e o t h e r gods
used i t t o d e f e a t t h e demons i n
b a t t l e 8 and i t was handed down t o human kings who were charged t o use i t t o p r o t e c t 1i v i n g beings.
Fo?7uwing t h i s s t o r y , t h e Pandavas and t h e i r company went * home and held discussions w i t h t h e wise Vidura i n an e f f o r t t u
s e t t l e the question o f t h e r e l a t i v e preeminence o f dharma, a r t h a and kama*
A f t e r these discussfuns,
Yudhisthira again * .
quest jmed ~ t t ~ ~26a m a . 14. The s t o r y o f an u n g r a t e f u l person i n the land o f
t h e m7ecchas ( b a r b a r j Narrator: Audi ence:
an^)^"
112.162.28-167.241
6h5 sma
..
Yudhi s t h i r a and the assembl ed survi vors
T h i s 7engthy s t o r y conc7udes t h e p o r t i u n o f t h e S i n t i parvan devoted t o d i s c u s s i o n o f k s a t r i ya
dharma,
jmmediate7y preceds t h e openfng o f the moksadharma BhZsma
told
the
story
when
Yudhisthira *
asked
tu
and
section^
hear
a
deta f Ted d e s c r i p t i o n o f u n g r a t e f u 7 persons and those who harm their f~fends.
.em 2 6 0 ~t o d ri s o f t h e &antiparvan question t h i s reading (i t h a t t h e Pandavas l e f t t h e b a t t l e f i e l d t o t a l k w i t h Vidwa), even though * i t predomi nates in t h e i r manuscri p t s . F i ve manuscripts c o n t a i n t h e r e a d i ng avasaram gatva (having found a r e s p i t e in t h e conversati on} instead o f avasatham gatva {having gone home)* The former i n t e r p r e t a t i o n does make sense; i t is q u i t e 1ike1y t h a t V i dura was i n t h e great company which set o u t w i t h Yudhisthi r a and h i s b r o t h e r s t o v i s i t Bhisma on h i s b a t t l e f i e l d deathbed. 261hantat e v a r t a y i sye hamit ihasam puratanaml ud5 cySm d i 6 i yadv'rttam m1ecchesu inanuj adhi p a l l 12'162.28 e t a t p r ~ h apura sarvah narado m ' ama bharata/ samsmrtya cSpi sumahadgkhyanam purusarsabha/ i tam1112.167 18 mayap4 bhavate sarvam yath~vadupavakn
284
There was a brahman named Gautama who was ignorant o f Vedic
learning.
One
days he came t o
a
village of
prosperous t h i e v e s
and sought o u t
uphold the tjharma.
The brahman requested enought t o l i v e on
f o r one year.
a wealthy one
very
known t o
He was so w e l l t r e a t e d by t h e t h i e f t h a t he
remai ned in t h e v i 1lage and gradual l y took on t h e ways o f i t s i nhabi t a n t s ,
in c l udi ng
k i 11ing
w i 1d
cranes
a1ongside
the
t h i eves. One days t h e r e came t o t h e v i 1lage another brahmans a very
learned
Gautama8s.
O n e a who
happened
to
be an
friend
of
Seeking o u t someone from whom i t was appropriate
t o beg almss he found Gautamafs house. 1 ived,
old
he berated h i m ,
Seeing how Gautama
refused t o accept alms from him,
and
l e f t t h e next day. Gautamal t o o l
l e f t that v i l l a g e *
i n w i t h a group o f merchants. w i 1d
A s he t r a v e l e d , he f e l l
When they were attacked by a
el ephant a he was one o f t h e few who escaped
he found h i m s e l f rested. there,
i n a beautiful
forest
A t 1ength
s h e l t e r where
he
That evenings a splended crane named Rsjadharma came f o r t h e spot was h i s home-
A s i t happeneds t h e crane was a great F r i e n d o f BrahmZC.
Not knowing t h a t t h e brahman thought only o f k i 11ing hims t h e crane t r e a t e d him as an honored guest.
Gautama confided t h a t
he w a s very poor and i n search o f wealth.
The crane, who had
taken a I ik i ng t o him, predicted t h a t he would succeed and, t o h e l p him do sos sent him on hjs way t o f h d t h e b i r d t s demon
285 f r i ends V i rUpaksa.
A1though determined
in
that
t h e i r subsequent Gautama was
not
conversati on a
dharmic
he qui c k l y
brahman*
the
wanderer had a r r i v e d on a very auspicious day, one on which t h e demons planned t o honor one thousand brahmans-
Gautama
was in v i t e d t o s t a y and t o he1p himsel F t o the wealth o f f e r e d
t o t h e o t h e r brahmans honored t h a t day. Gautama l e f t t h a t place weighted down w i t h galds
and
t r a v e l e d u n t i l he happened t o reach t h e same place where he had f i r s t
met
Rajadharmal
t h e crane-
Seeing h i s
friend
a r r i v e , t h e crane again afforded him every h o s p i t a l i t y ,
but
Gautama could o n l y t h i n k o f k i l l i n g t h e crane as foods since
he had neglected t o c a r r y any w i t h him. Late t h a t n i g h t l Gautama k i l l e d himl
as the crane s l e p t beside t h e f i r e l
cooked him and r a n away.
When several
days passed and t h e demon VirGpZksa d i d n o t receive a v i s i t
f r o m h i s f r i e n d Rajadharmal he grew w o r r i e d and suspicious o f Gautama. The demons found Gautama w i t h t h e crane,
remains o f t h e dead
and took him before V i rtJpaksas who ordered t h a t t h e
u n g r a t e f u l man be k i Wed and Fed t o t h e thieves.
But even
those cannibals refused t o eat him. V i rapaksa honored h i s dead f r i e n d w i t h a g r e a t funeral
f ir e .
Indra
M i raculouslyl
himself
came
t h e ~oddessSurabh5 revived t h e crane. to
visit
VirOpaksa
and t o l d
fa11 owi ng s t o r y o f t h e curse o f R 8j adharma
him
the
286 a. Brahma' s curse of Raj adharma 262 [12.167. 7167.10]
Narrator:
Indra
Audience:
VirDpaksa. a demon
One day long ago. the crane Rajadharma did not come to Brahm.' s assemb 1 y
as the gods expected him to do.
Brahma cu rsed him to stay on
earth for along time.
thus
preventing the crane's early return to heaven. When Rajadharma heard this story. he implored Indra to restore Gautama's life. which he did after some hesitation. He forgave Gautama. and returned to Brahm.'s heaven the very next day.
Gautama returned to hi s
th i eves and 1 i ved again wi th hi s
home in the vi 11 age of
~Odra
wi fe.
The dei ti es
cursed him to live in hell.
c.
The
section
on
moksadharma
[mok~adharmaJ
[12.168-
12.353] 1. The brahman'S words to his friend, King Senajit H3 [12.168.8-168.53) Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira and the assembled survivors
Yudhi sthi ra turned the conversati on to a di scussi on of the dharma of the twice-born,
as distinct from
k~atriya
2~~ravayamasa cendrastam virDpaksam puratanam/ yatha tapa~ pur. datto ·brahma~. ·r.ladharma~a~/ /12.167. 7 2~ atrapyudaharantimamitihasam puratanam/ yatha senajitam viprah . . ka§cidityabravidvacah//12.168.8
.
287 dharma
which
had
conversation.
previously
been
the
subject
of
their
He asked Bh%sma how one shoul d d i spe7
grief
a f t e r g r e a t sorrows such as death o r l o s s OF w e a l t h Once a brahman v i s i t e d h i s f r i e n d , grieved deeply
over
the
death
of
preached t h e v i r t u e s OF detachment.
his
K i n g Senaji t s who son.
The
brahman
He quoted t h e s t o r y o f a
c e r t a i n p r o s t i t u t e named P i rtgala, wha understood t h e n a t u r e o f desjre, as f o l l o w s . a - The wise words o f t h e p r o s t i t u t e ~ i t b ~ a l a ~ ~ ' [129168,46-168.52] Narrator:
A brahman
Audi ence :
K i ng Senaj it
P i f i g a l a v s l o v e r d i e d i n an a c c i d e n t *
As she
grieved f o r him* she came t o understand haw she had been r u l e d by d e s i r e .
Freed from d e s i r e * she would h e r e a f t e r l i v e w i t h
c o n t r o l 1 ed senses. When
Senajit
heard
his
friend's
advice*
his
grief
d isappeared.
2 * Conversation between a f a t h e r and a son26s
*I4atra p i rtgal aya g i t S gathah Sruyanti p a r t h i "a/ yatha s2i krcchrakSl e 'pi I ebhe sanZttanam//12.168 46
dharmam
a
265at r~~~udSharant~m t ia hasam mi puratanam/ p i t u h putrena samvadam t a n & bodha yudhi st4 ra//? 2.189.2 This adhyaya i s ' repeated ' w i t h some v a r i k k i o n s in 18 manuscriptsw I n them i t occurs f o l l o w i n g 12.268 o f t h e c r j t i c a l e d i t i o n , where t h e Mbh e d i t o r s om*t i t . The v a r i a t i ores from t h e v e r s i o n repeated i n adhysya 12.277 of t h e Bombay e d i t i o n a r e noted i n t h e c r i ti ca7 apparatus o f c r i t i c a l The appendices o f the c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n chapter 12.469. e d i t i o n ' s &antiparvan do n o t r e c o r d t h a t v e r s i o n i n f u l l s i n c e
Narrator :
Bhi sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s* t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i v o r s
.
Yudhfsthira asked Bhisma what one should s t r i v e for, knowfng t h a t l i f e i s s h o r t . A brahman had a son named Medhavin, who asked h i s father
t h e same question Y u d h i* s. t h i r a had asked. a. Conversation between MedhSvi n and h i s f a t h e r Narrator:
Father
Audi ence:
Medhavi n
H i s father
summarized t h e o b l i g a t i o n s o f
brahmacarya, b u t t h e son d i d n o t accept h i s r e p l y .
the
Should one
really act so w h e n death c o u l d occur a t any moment?
Since
death was p o t e n t i a1 1y immanent f o r everyone, t h e son declared
t h a t he would devote himsel f t o t h e t r u t h and pursue t h e 1 if e of
a
renunci' a n t .
Bhisma
commended
this
behavior
to
..
Yudhi s t h i r a .
3. A brahman's r e c i t a t i o n of the words o f t h e sage
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and the assembled s u r v i v o r s * .
Y u d h i.s t h i r a asked how f t i s t h a t both r i c h and poor t h e notes a t 12.169 were judged t o s u f f i c e f o r comparison. $ a n t i parvan e d i t o r s a l s o n o t e t h a t a longer version o f t h e s t o r y appears i n Mif~kandeya * Purana, adhySya 1 0 f f .
^atrapyudaharantirnami t i hasam purZttanam/ iamyakena v i muktena g i t a m &anti gatena ha//12.170.2
289
achieve happiness and sorrow. Long ago,
a
renunci ant
because of hunger.
brahman. who was very unhappy
a bad wife,
and so on, told Bhisma what
~amyaka
had said when he achieved moksa.
desire.
moksa can be achieved.
If one relinquishes
Rich people can be weighed
down by their possessions. but a poor person who has achieved equanimity can indeed achieve
mok~a.
4. What Mal'tki saict267 [12.171 .4-171.54] Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira and the assembled survivors
Yudhi~~hira
this
topic.
asking
resources to conduct
continued to question how
someone
sacri~jces
who
8hi~ma
lacked
c7ose7y on
the
material
cou7d achieve happiness. here
synonymous with spiritual attainment. Mal'tki frustrated.
always
sought
One day.
he
wea 1 th used all
but his
was
continually
remai ni ng money
to
purchase two bulls in order to train them to till the fields. As they walked toward the field, the bulls attacked a camel lying on the road.
The camel jumped up and ran off, the bulls
dangling with their teeth sunk into its neck.
Ma~ki
realized
that this sad scene was destined to occur. and so resolved to abandon all attachments.
267atrapyudKharantimami ti hasam puratanam/ ni rvedanmar\ki na gi tal!' tannlbodha yudhi ~~hi raj /12.171 .4
290 5. What King Janaka said268[12.171.55-171.56J
Narrator :
Bhisma
Audi ence : Yudhi s *t h i r a and the assembl ed s u r v i v o r s Bhisma continued w i t h
two stories
on
the
same
topic.
When King Janaka achieved t r a n q u i 1it y ,
he s a i d t h a t h i s
materi a l wealth was g r e a t , b u t he a c t u a l l y had n o t h i ng a t a11 * 6. What t h e sage Bodhya s a i d t o King ~
Narrator :
a
~
a
t
i
Bhisma
Audi ence : Yudhi s t h i r a and the assembl ed s u r v i v o r s 6
.
.
Once King Yayati asked t h e r s i Bodhya t o i n s t r u c t h i m regardi ng t h e means f o r a c h i e v i ng tranqui 1 it y ( S S n t i ) a. Bodhya's words t o Yayati Narrator:
Bodhya
Audi ence :
YaySt i
Bodhya rep1 ied t h a t he f o l 1owed t h e t e a c h i ngs of o t h e r s , but never t a u g h t anyone h i m s e l f .
He 1 i s t e d h i s s i x
teachers and suggested t h a t YaySti consider f o r h i m s e l f t h e ' a t r~~~ud~harantit mi hasam ami puratanam/ gitam videhara jena janakena praSamyata//12.171.55 anantam b a t a me v i t t a m yasya me n a s t i kimcana/ m i t h i 1&yarn p r a d i p t a y ~ m na me dahyati k i mcana//12.171.56 The e d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note simi l a r i t i e s between t h i s verse a t t r i b u t e d t o King Janaka and Jataka 339, gatha 125, Dhammapada 200, and Uttaradhyayana S 9.14. ^at r a i vodaharantimam bodhyasya padasamcayam/ n i rvedam p r a t i v i n b s t a m p r a t i bodha yudhi s t h i ra//12.171.57
..
~
~
~
lessans one might draw from them:
Pihgals,
t h e osprey,
the
snake, t h e bee i n t h e f o r e s t , t h e arrow maker, and the maiden. 7. Conversation between King Prahlada and the sage
gjagaraZTo[12.172.2-172.371 Narrator :
Bhi sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t. h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
Yudhfsthira asked bow a person should behave
jn
a r d e ~to ensure success.
King Prahlada once questioned a r e n u n d a n t brahman who seemed t o equani m i t y
have
achieved
the desirable
state
of
complete
. a. Conversati on between Prahl ada and Rjagara Narrator:
A c e r t a i ri brahman
Audi ence :
K i ng Prahl Sda
Kjagara rep1j e d t h a t he had f r e e d himself o f a l l desire, s l e p t wherever he might, was i n d i f f e r e n t whether he a t e o r d i d not.
He remained focused on a vow which wauld
secure him i m m o r t a l i t y . 8. Cowersat ion between I n d r a and ~ a ~ ~ a ~ a ~ ' '
[12.173.4-173,621 Narrator:
Bh5 sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s. t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
270atr8pyud~harantimami ti hasam puratanarn/ prahrsdasya ca samvadam munerajagarasya ca//12.172.2 The s t o r y i s a l s o r e f e r r e d * t o as t h e i?jagafacarita a t 12.172.37a. t i hasam puratanam/ 27iatr~pyudaharantimami indrakaSyapasamvSdam tarinibodha yudhisthira//12.173.4
.
292
.
Yudh i s t h i r a asked whether peop?e shou 1d
f a m i Ty, wea 7 th,
dharma o r wisdom ( p r a j f i 8 ) as super for.
regard Bhysma
rep7ied t h a t wisdom i s super$or. Once a
vaisya
ran
over
KZSyapa* As he 1ay near death,
a
and dissuaded
reminded him t h a t
his l i f e *
by
of
t h e name
Indra appeared i n t h e form
him from t h i s wish.
a brahman
creatures* envied by a1 1
son
t h e enraged and badly inj u r e d
young man decided simply t o d i e . o f a jackal
r' s . i fs
i s the m a s t
The jackal
fortunate o f
a11
and should never careless7y c a s t off
S u f f e r i n g as he was For h i s own former sins,
the
j a c k a l was s t r i v i ng f o r eventual rebi r t h as a human being. Impressed by t h e j a c k a l t s l e c t u r e , the brahman r e a l l z e d t h a t t h e animal was Xndra* worshipped him a p p r o p r i a t e l y s and went hame, 9. Bhrgu s r e p l y t o ~ h a r a d v a j a ~[12.175.5-185~ ~' 271
Narrator:
Bh5sma
Audience:
Yudhi s .t h i r a and t h e assembl ed survi vors
..
Yudh i s t h i r a then sudden 1y asked about the o r i g i n s
OF the universe*
8hisma pep7fed w i t h the fa7 l o w i n g story,
told to Bbaradva~awhen he asked the same questfan o f Bhrgu. a
What Bhrgu t o 1d Bharadvzj a Marrator:
Bhrgu
ti hasam puratanaml 272at rapyudaharant~mami bharadvaj 8ya bhrgunSbh4 h i tam 6restham . prcchate//l2.1?5.!5 S ~ n t i p a r G a ne d i t o r s note s i m i l a r i t i e s between t h i s s t o r y and B r hannaradfya Purana adhyaya 42.1 -44 20. 4ht i adhyaya 187168 a1so correspond w i t h t h a t purana, adhyaya 44.21 -105.
.
293 Audi ence :
Bharadvaj a
8hrgu explained t h a t t h e r e was a primal being named Manasa From whom t h e universe issued. the
geography
of
the
universes
everythi ng which has form.
and
how
tie also described Brahma
created
He e x p l a i ned t h e operation o f t h e
f i v e elements o f f i r e , winds spaces water, and earth.
He a l s o
d l scussed t h e d i s t i n c t i o n s among classes o f human beings and
asserted t h a t E3rahmS himself had e s t a b l ished t h e f o u r stages o f l i f e [that
is,
student, householder,
f o r e s t dweller,
and
renunci ant 1 ,
.
Y u d h i,s t h f r a and Bhisma then dfscussed some detaf 7s of goad and bad conduct0 t h e n a t u r e u f adhyatmaO and types of Yoga *
10. W h a t occurred between Yama, K Z l a and a brahman who was a japabcdT3 [12.189.6-328193.32J Narrator: Audi ence:
BhZsma
.
Yudh4 s .t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
Y u d h i s t h f r a asked what might be gained f f o m t h e per farmanee a f menta 1 s a w i f fees,
There w a s a very wise brahtnan who was a r e c j t e r o f t h e Vedas
(jZpaka)
He
recited the
gayatri
mantra
for
me
thousand years u n t i 1 the goddess hersel f appeared t o o f f e r him
2~3atr~pyud~harantim mi t iahasam puratanam/ iksvakoh saryaputrasya yadvrttam brShmanasya ca~/12.~92.2 kS1asya mrtyosca t a t h a yadwttam tannibodha me/ yatha sa tessm samvkdo yasmi nsthane c8bhavat//l2.192.3
. .
Ipi
294
a
boon.
He
asked on1 y
for
the
resol ve
recitations and achieve liberation.
to conti nue
hi s
She told him to continue
reciting and said that"Dharma, Kala (time), Mrtyu (death) and Vama would appear
before him and would argue
a matter of
dharma with him. After
another one
thousand
years
had
passed,
appeared and i nvi ted the brahman to cast off hi 5 ascend to the realms beyond those of the deities.
Dharma
body and
The brahman
refused to go anywhere disembodied. and persisted when Dharma continued to try to persuade him. Kala and
M~tyu.
Next there appeared Va.a.
The brahman greeted them all in appropriate
manner, and as he was doing so King Iksvaku appeared.
He was
also duly welcomed. The
king
offered
steadfastly refused it.
wealth
to
the
brahman.
but
he
turning the tables to ask the king
what he, the brahman, might give to the king.
The startled
king -- whose duty it was only to give to brahmans, never to take anything from them -- himself refused at first, but then asked the brahman for the fruits of the austerities he had been performing for the past one thousand years. brahman promptly agreed. the king demurred.
What possible use
could he have for such a gift, even if as a accept something from a brahman?
When the
king he could
The argument continued for
some time. with the brahman inSisting that the king must now accept what he had asked for and the king maintaining that his dharma would not permit him to accept.
When the deities tried
295
to calm them down, they were ignored. At one point when the king proposed a compromise, namely that he would accept only one-half wal ked by, Vik~ta.
in the midst of a
o~
the gift, two
simi lar dispute.
k~atriyas
One,
named
had once given a cow to a brahman and, when asked, had
freely given the merit received to the other man,
Virupa.
Virupa then donated two cows to a poor brahman and attempted to give
Vik~ta
double the merit which he, Virupa. had won.
Vikrta maintained that no debt was owed and refused the gift. They asked
Ik~vaku
to settle the dispute.
Thi s argument brought the ki ng IS di 1 emma home to hi m more forcefully still.
The two named Virupa and
Vik~ta
disclosed
their true identities as Kama (desire) and Krodha (anger or wrath).
They told the brahman and the king that it was they
who had induced the argument. They declared that its purpose had been to test the brahman, and announced that both he and Iksvaku would reach the realm of BrahmK. Fo77owing described the
a
break
sacred
in
the
rea lms
narrative
such
a
in
which
brahman might
Bhistna win,
he
conc7uded the s~ory at Yudhi~~hira's prompting.
The brahman then declared that his reward would be equal to the king's after death,
and so both attained union with
brahman.
11. Conversati on between Manu and B~haspati 214 274atrapyudaharantimami ti hasam purKtanam/ manoh prajapatervadam maharse.ca brhaspateh//12.194.2
.
. " .
296 [12.194.2-199.321 Narrator: Audience:
Bhisma
.
Yudhisthira and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
Yudhfsthira asked m
.
Bhisma about
t h e rewards
of
knowledge.
long ago,
Once,
the
.
r *s i Brhaspati asked h i s teacher,
Manu, t o t e l l him the o r i g i n s o f the universe and the rewards
o f know1edge. a. What Manu t o l d Brhaspati Narrator :
Manu
Audi ence :
Brhaspat i
Manu explained t h a t there
moksa,
one t h e physical
other mental performance.
performance o f
are two
routes t o
sacrifices
and t h e
H e then recounted t h e o r i g i n s o f
t h e universe i n a h i g h l y e s o t e r i c discourse.
.
12. The deeds o f Visnu,
also c a l l e d Narayana,
.
H r s i keSa, Govi nda, and ~ e S a v a ~ [I ~2.200.3$
Narrator : Audi ence:
Bhisma
.
Yudhi s *t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
Y u a h i s t h i r a asked a
Bhisma
t o talk about
,.
Visnu,
c r e a t o r o f the universe.
b r u t o * yamartho ramasya j amadagnyasya j a1patah/ naradasya ca devarseh krsnadvai pwanasya ca//'12.200.3 a s i t o deval astata v a j mi&+ hca mahatapah/ markandeyaka govinde kathayatyadbhutam mahat//12.200.4 yan i cahurmanusyendra ye puranavi do j'anah/ a6esena h i govi nde k i r t a y i syahi tZinyaham/'/12.200.7 $
.
..
A f t e r V i snu created t h e earth, he f 1oated upon t h e cosmic waters and created m i nd and consciousness
.
From consci ousness
.
sprang a l o t u s from V i snu ' s navel, and from t h e 1otus emerged *
When
Brahma.
a demon named Madhu sprang f o r t h
.
V i snu k i 11ed him and so came t o be
element tamas (darkness),
known as MadhusOdana.
Brahma created seven sons,
incl udi ng
.
a1 so set
Daksa who became progenitor o f a11 creatures.
t i m e i n motion,
from the
V i snu a
and from h i s body created human beings.
He
assigned various d u t i e s t o i n d i v i d u a l d e i t i e s .
.
13. KaSyapa s s t o r y about ~ r s n a [ I 2.202.4-202.231 ~ ~ ~
Narrator: Audience:
Bhisma
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
..
Y u d h i s t h i r a asked t o hear i n greater d e t a i l about Krsna a
*
.
.
Once, Markandeya, ..
when
Bhi sma
t r a v e l ed
he heard t h e
to
the
sage Kagyapa t e l l
of
hermi tage the
following
story. a.
Ka6yapags s t o r y Narrator:
KaSyapa
Audi ence :
MSrkandeya
Long ago, t h e d e i t i e s and m a s b a t t l e d .
When
t h e demons prevai led, t h e d e i t i e s appealed t o Brahma f o r aid.
..
Brahma t o l d them t h a t Visnu had already taken the form of boar t o slay t h e demons and restore order.
a
In a terrible
276yacc~sya t ej ah sumahadyacca karma puratanam/ tanme sarvam yathatattvam prabrOhi bharatarsabha//12.202.2
..
.
b a t t l e , Visnu . k i l l e d t h e demons. 14. Conversation between a teacher and a s t u d e n t on
m 0 k ~ 8[12~203*2-21 ~ 0*36]
Narrator:
Bhisma
A u d i ence:
Yudhi s* t h i r a and the assembled s u r v i v o r s
Y u d h i.s.t h i r a asked Bbfsma t o te7 7 h f m a7 7 about t h e means by whfch he c o d d a t t a i n moksa. A very
I earned d i s c i p l e once asked h i s t e a c h e r t o e x p l a+n
why, when c r e a t i o n springs from one sourceJ b e i n g s meet such ,. then spoke about t h i s most profound o f The rsf
d i v e r s e ends.
a1 1 matters, c a l l e d adhyatma*
He began h i s d i s c o u r s e w i t h t h e
s t o r y of Krsna* .*. a
...
Krsna, t h e unman+f e s t Z T 8[ I 2 203 7-203.431 Narrator:
A teacher
Audience:
A student
...
The teacher d e c l a r e d Vasudeva (Krsna) origin
of
the
universe,
depended upon him* evolution o f begi n n i ng
the
and
told
how
the
t o be t h e
entire
cosmos
tie p r e s i des over both t h e d i s s o l u t i o n and universe
as
t h e aaes
proceed.
In
the
he in s t r u c t e d t h e r, s f s
277atrapyud~harant5mami ti hasam puratanam/ samvadam moksasamyuktam S i syasya guruna saha//12
203 2
278purusamsanatanam v i snum yattadvedavi do v i duh/ sargkp'ral ayakartkramavyaktam brahma &ZCSvatam] t a d i dam brahma varsneyami t i bsam Srnusva me//12.203 9 br~hmanobrahmanai h ' GrZivyo rajanyah ' k s a t r i y a i s t a t h a / m~hatmyamdevadevasya v i snorami t a t e jasah/ arhastvamasi k a l ysna v ~ r s n e y a mSrnu yatparam/12.203 10
.
. ..
299 Fo1l o w i n g t h e s t o r y
t h e g u r u a d v i sed h i s student on t h e
appropriate b e h a v i o r o f a brahmacaryaJ a t t r i b u t e s o f BrahmS, and other re1a t e d matters on t h e know1edge r e q u i r e d t o achieve sa1v a t i on. Further
intensive
discussion
of
mdcsa
fa1 lows,
with
Y u d h i* s, t h i r a q u e s t i o n i n g which f a u l t s a r e u b s t a d e s t o moksa
and how t o ccmquer t h e senses. 15. How King Janaka o f M i t h i l a a t t a i ned r n ~ k ~ z ? ~ ~ [12e211*2-212*52] Narrator: Audience:
BhZsma
..
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
Y u d h i s.t h i r a asked how King Janaka had a t t a i n e d moksa
. K i n g Janaka 09 M i t h i l a w a s
means t o achieve Brahma.
c o n s t a n t l y focused on t h e
He was r a t h e r unimpressed w i t h t h e
teachings o f t h e many gurus who 1i v e d a t h i s c o u r t , b u t one day an a s c e t i c named PaficaSikha came t o M j t h i l a . remarkable. concentrate
Janaka on
what
ignored a1 1 o f PaficaSi kha
h i s other
might
teach
He was t r u l y teachers him.
to
They
discussed many profaund t o p i c s and i n t i m e t h e k i n g a t t a i n e d
16. Conversation between t h e demon Prahl Zda and
279at rapyudaharantimami t i hasam purZtanam/ yena v r t t e n a v r t t a jfiah sa jbagama mahatsukham//I 2.21 I . 2 Edi t o r s o f t h e c r i t i s c a 1 e d i t i on n o t e s i m i 1a r i t i es between 12.21 1-23 2 and t h e Narada-Sanamdana d i a1ogue in B ~ h a n n a r a d i y a Pur2fna adhysya 4 5 , s t e 5-87.
1ndraZ8' [12.215.3-215.371 Narrator: Audi ence:
Bh? sma
.
Yudh4 s *t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
Y ~ d h f s t h i r a asked #
whether
a
person
shou7d
be
a m s i d e r e d t h e r e a l p e r f ~ r m eo~f a c t s . The g r e a t a s u r a Prahl ada was camp1a t e 1y d i spassi onate and
focused so1 e l y on a c h i e v i ng moksa*
One days I n d r a in t e r r u p t e d
h < s m e d i t a t i o n t o i n q u i r e i f he was t r u l y nonattacheds o r simply s t o i c i n behavior.
a, PrahlSda on moksa Narrator:
Prahl Sda
Audience:
Indra
PrahlZfda explained t h a t because he understood t h e nature o f ignorance and desi r e s he had aehi eved wisdom. He then counseled I n d r a on how t o achieve moksa.
17. Conversation between I n d r a and Val 1 , h i s primary
asura o p p a n e d l [12.216.2-218-383 Narrator :
Audi e w e :
BhTsma
.
Yudhi s .t h i r a and t h e assentbl ed s u r v i v o r s
.
Y u d b i s t h i r a asked how a king cou7d c a n t h u e l i v i n g f f he lost e v e r y t h i n g he va rued un e a r t h *
280atr~pyud~harant~m t iahasam mi purStanam/ prahrZIdasya ca samvadami ndkasya c a yudhi s t h i ra//t 2 2 j 5 * 3 See a l s o t h e To1 l o w i n g adhyayas i n t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t f o n o f t h e Mahabharata: 2 . 6 L 5 8 f f S 5.35, 12.124s 12.172.
301 Onces a f t e r
he had defeated t h e demonsl
I n d r a asked
Brahma what had become o f Val i f o r m e r l y so powerful
. A1though
he regarded t h e quest* on as unseeml y a BrahmZi rep1ied t h a t Val i had been reborn as an ass. advi sed Brahm&
I f I n d r a should encounter himJ
he should seek knowledge from h i m
I n d r a searched everywhere on e a r t h u n t i l he found V a l L tie taunted hims asking i f he F e l t badly about t h e low s t a t e t o which h i s own a c t i o n s had brought him. t h i s behavi o r
Berating In&-a f o r
Val i neverthe1ess 1ectured him on transience
and warned h j m n o t t o be so arrogant. nature o f prosper+ty
[sr~)
emerged from Val i* s body' d i s c l osed her
a
He d i scussed t h e f i c k l e
and as he d i d so,
she h e r s e l f
Neither one recogni zed herl so she
id e n t i t y and expl a i ned t h a t
she had deserted
V a l i when h i s behaviar turned away from dharma.
When she
decl ared t h a t she would now r e s i d e in I n d r a s he asked $ r i how he s h o d d p r o t e c t h e r s and was du1y advi sed
Fo11owi ng Val i ' s
a s s e r t i o n t h a t one day he would again conquer t h e godsJ they went t h e i r separate ways. 18
Conversati on between s a t a k r a t u { I n d r a ) and t h e N
Z
~
J
aswa
[12.21901-219.23] C ~ ~ ~ ~
Narrator:
8hZsma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s 't h i r a and t h e assembl ed survivors
.
Unprompted by Yudhi s t h i ~ a Bhfsma , cant h u e d w i t h t h e f07 lowing s t o r y on t h e s u b ~ e c to f equanimity.
282at r a i vodSharantZmamit i hasam purStanam/ $atakrato&ca samvadam namuce5ca y ~ d h i s t h i r a / / 1 2 ~ 2 1 9 ~ 1
.
302 One daya h t a k r a t u
o r I n d r a a in t e r r u p t e d t h e meditating
Narnuci t o ask if he experienced e i t h e r sorrow o r happiness. Namuci rep1ied t h a t sorrow and happi ness were one to him s i nee
he cu1t i vated w i sdom* 19. Conversati on between t h e asura Val i and 1ndraZa3 [12.220.1-220-1181 Narrator :
f3hZ sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s .t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i v o r s
.
.
Yudhfsthfra asked what BhZsma thought was best f o r someone whu had s u f f e r e d a great lass.
In reply, B E s m t o 7d
a version a f t h e conversatfon between I n d r a and V a 7 +' d i f f e r e n t f r o m the m e recounted a t 12.216-2-2143-38.
After
order
following the
had
defeat
been of
reestablished
the
asurasJ
in
the
universe
I n d r a and t h e
other
d e i t i e s set o u t w i t h a huge r e t i n u e on a t o u r c i f t h e worlds. They happened t o come upon V a l i i n a cave near t h e seashore.
I n d r a immediately began t o taunt hims asking why he seemed so camp1acent a f t e r having suffered such a tremendous l o s s .
Val i
warned Xndra n o t t o be arrogantJ and spoke l o n g about t h e vagaries o f time.
I n d r a rep1 i e d t h a t he, t o o s knew t h e t r u t h
about t h e nature o f t i m e and was impressed by V a l i' S subtle
understanding.
I n d r a wished him we1 1 and departed t o r u l e
happi I y in h i s own heaven
283atrai vodaharant5mami t i hasam purZEtanam/ bal ivssavasamvadam punareva yudh is t h i ra//1 2 220.6
..
303 20.
Conversation between S r i and ~ n d r a (12.221 ~ ~ ~.2221.941 Narrator:
Bhisma
..
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
Y u d h i.s.t h i r a asked how a person could know what
successes and f a i lures 7ay ahead for someone. Bhisma expl a i ned t h a t one s own m i nd anas as) determi nes onegs f u t u r e , story.
Once Narada and I n d r a happened t o f i n d themselves a t
same
the
and t o i1t u s t r a t e h i s p o i n t t o l d t h e f o l l o w i n g
spot
along
the
Ganges
River
at
dawn.
After
p e r f o r m i n g t h e i r morni ng r it u a l s, t h e y s a t together exchangi ng s t o r i e s . 285 A s t h e y talked,
t h e goddess
6ri appeared and approached
them.
a.
6 r i on v i r t u o u s behavior Narrator :
6ri
Audience:
I n d r a and NSrada
When
Indra
r e s p e c t f u l 1y
inquired
about
her
i d e n t i t y , she explai ned t h a t she had 1e f t t h e asura Val i, who was
no l o n g e r devoted t o
Indra.
truth,
and had come t o dwell
in
A f t e r e x p l a i n i n g i n some d e t a i 1 t h e s o r t s o f behavior
she considered v i rtuous,
she s a i d she had come f r e e l y t o 1ive
"at r~p~ud~harantim d t ia hasam purStanam/ S r iyS Sakrasya samvsdam t a h n i bodha yudhi s. t.h i ra//12.221 .3 285punyakarmabhi rSkhySta d e v a r s i k a t h i t a h kathah/ cakratustau kathSSi 1au Suci samhrstambnasau/' ~ O r v a v r t t a v y a p e t a n ikathayantau samahitau//12.221.9
304 wi th Indra and the other dei ti es as long as they remai ned observant of dharma.
The three then departed together and the
heavens celebrated. 21. Conversation between
Jaigi~avya
and Asita
Deval a 286 [12.222.2-222.24] Narrator: Audience:
Bhisma Yudhisthira and the assembled survivors
Yudhisthira asked how one attains brahman. Once Asita Devala asked the wise neither
happy
Jaigi~avya
nor angry.
and
how
Jaigi~avya
he
why he seemed
had become
so wise.
then spoke about the goal of tranquility (§8nti).
and how those behave who have achieved it. 22. What Krsna said to ugrasen~87 [12.223.2-223.23] Narrator: Audi ence:
Bhisma Yudh i 5th i ra and the assemb 1 ed su rvi vors
Yudhisthira asked Bhisma who was the person most accomp7ished and Fu77 of merit.
In rep7y, Bhisma to7d the
To77owing story, in which N8rada is 7auded. Once Ugrasena
remarked that
everyone seemed to
thi nk
Narada was extraordinary. indeed. a.
K~~~a's
praise of Narada
Narrator:
Krsna
286atrapyudaharantimami ti hasam puratanam/ jaigi~avyasya sa~vadamasitasya ca bharata//12.222.2 287 atra te vartayi syami prcchato bharatarsabha/ ugrasenasya sa~vada~ narade ke§avasya ca//12.223.2
305 Audience: Kr~,:,a
Ugrasena
rep 1 i ed
by enumerat i ng
Narada s I
fi ne
qualities, amply illustrating why he was universally we11regarded. 22. What Vyasa said to ~ukan8 [12.224.6-246.15] Narrator: Audi ence:
Bhisma Yudhi sthi ra and the assembl ed survi vors
Yudhi~~hira
about
~he
ear7 fer
asked
Bhi~ma
~o
disclose
beginning and end of creation, reFerring
recoun~ing
of
the
conversa'l:ion
be~ween
every~hing ~o Bhi~ma
Bh,:gu
's
and
Bharadv~ja, and asking tha'l: Bhisma elaborate on it. 289 ~uka.
who wished to live as a brahmacarin. had asked the
same questions of Vyasa. a. Vyasa's discourse Narrator:
Vyasa
Audience:
auka
nS atra te vartayisye 'hamitihKsam puratanam/ jagau yadbhagavanvyasah putraya pariprcchate//12.224.6 Editors of the §.ntiparvan' note correspondences between 12.231-233 and Brahma Pur~na. adhyllya 235-236; c. e. 12.238-240 can be compared with Brahma Purllna 236.22-64; c.e. 12.239-241 can be compared with Brhann.radiya Pur.na 44.21-82; and c.e. 12 . 241-242 can be compared wi th Brahma Pur.na 237. 1 -39 . Approxi matel y one-quarter of the verses in adhY.ya 224 are identical to or correspond closely to verses in Manusmrti 1. More than half of adhy.ya 235 corresponds closely to verses in sect ions of Manusmrt i 3 and 4. Adhy.ya 236 and 237 ar-e sprinkled with verses corresponding to some in Manusmrtf 6. 2~porvam hi kathitam §rutva bhrgu bhasitamuttamam/
me
bharadvajasya viprarsestato budd~iruttama//12.224.4 This verse refers to the narrative at 12.175.5-185.27.
In
this
very
1engthy
discourse
VySsa
enumerated t h e d i v i sions o f ti me and t h e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f each era,
how c r e a t i o n took p l a c e through Brahma, t h e n a t u r e
o f t h e Vedas and t h e d i s s o l u t i o n o f t h e universe when Brahma sleeps.
He d e t a i 1ed t h e d u t i e s o f brahmans, explained how t o
achieve
moksa as
expounded i n both t h e Samkhya and Yoga
systems o f thought, the d i s t i n c t f r u i t s o f pursuing t h e p a t h o f a c t i o n versus t h a t o f knowledge, a
forest
dweller,
and
a
d u t i e s o f a householder,
renunciant,
and
the
subject
of
adhy3tma. 24.
S t o r y o f K i ng Avi kampakaZg1[ I 2.248.7-250.41 1 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled survivors
..
Yudhisthira observed t h a t a77 t h e great k i n g s o f
t h e past had d i e d , and asked Bhisma why death occurs. Duri ng t h e k r t a era, t h e r e 1ived a k i ng named Avi kampaka, w h o w a s sound1y defeated by h i s enemies, and whose son,
had d i e d i n b a t t l e .
tian
,
The g r i e v i n g k i n g t o o k up a l i f e of
meditation. One day, he happened to encounter Narada and t o l d him h i s
2 g o ~ hpassage e consists o f 618 verses i n 23 chapters, perhaps the 1ongest anci 1la r y s t o r y in t h e c r i ti c a l edi t i on o f t h e Mahabharata.
his s t o r y i s introduced on1y w i t h t h e phrase p u r a k r t a y u g e ( l o n g ago i n t h e k r t a e r a ) a t 12.248.7a. E d i t o r s of t h e &antiparwan note that* t h e s t o r y i s repeated i n t h e dronaparvan i n a1 1 manuscripts except t h e Sarada. Editors in c l ude i t i n t h e appendix o f t h e dronaparvan.
307 troubles.
Narada consoled him with the following story. a. Conversation between Brahma and Sthanu {~iva)H2 [12.248.11-248.37]
Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
King Avikampaka
Brahma i ni ti a 11 y created i nnumerabl e creatures who filled the universe.
Eventually,
he considered how to
destroy some of this life, and so a great fire emerged from his body, consuming the universe.
Out of compassion, Sthanu
interceded on behalf of living beings.
Brahma explained that
he was only trying to alleviate Earth's burden. as she had requested Brahma's help. assist her.
~i
He could think of no other way to
va asked that the creatures who had di ed be
permitted to be reborn again and again. Brahma quenced the raging fire, and from his body there emerged a beautifully adorned black woman.
Brahma instructed
her to kill all living beings indiscriminately. sorrow. she burst into tears. who had done her no harm? engage in penances. do
as
he
Finally,
said, Brahma
Feeling great
How could she kill creatures
She asked Brahma's permission to
A1 though BrahmB repeated1 y ordered her to
she
merely
smiled
and
stood
there
looking
at
Death
went
off
practice
to
him.
292tasya tadvacanam ~rutva nBrado 'tha tapodhanah/ akhyanamidamacasta putra60kBpaham tada//12.248.11 rajafttrnu sam.k~Yanamadyedam bahuv;staram/ yatha vrttam jrutam caiva mayBpi vasudhadhipa//12.248.12
308
penances, ignoring BrahmVs command t o see t o t h e d e s t r u c t i o n o f creatures* A f t e r untold numbers o f years,
Brahma again i n s t r u c t e d
Death t o her duties, assuring her t h a t she would commit no s i n by fa1 lowing h i s orders
F i n a l 1y she acceded, and so i t was
t h a t BrahmZ created Death. 25
Conversati on between Tu1Zdhara and J8ij a l iZg3 [12.253m1~256*22] Narrator : Audience:
Bh5 sma Yudhi s. .t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
Yudh i s' t* h i r a
expressed
concern
over
the
many
d i f f e r e n t courses o f conduct s a i d t o be praper f o r one s o r t o f person, but not f o r o t h e r s .
I f n a t u r e i t s e 7 f was t h e cause o f
b i r t h and death, was i t r e a 1 1y s u f f i c i e n t t o know t h e contents ~f
the Vedas i f one sought comprehensfve know7edge? BhZsma rep1i e d w i t h t h e s t o r y o f a c e r t a i n brahman named
JZja1 i who 1ived i n t h e f o r e s t as a renunciant.
Through t h e
power o f h i s yoga, he mental ly t r a v e l e d t h e world-
One day,
as he proud1y contempl ated h i s own accompl ishments,
some
demons t o l d him t h a t a c e r t a i n merchant named TulSdhSra might indeed be superior t o him.
And so J8ija1 i set o f f f o r Varanasi
t o f i n d Tuladhara* a * TulWh8ira on dharma and yoga Narrator:
Tu1adhara
293atrapyud8harant~ mami ti hasam puratanam/ t u 1 adharasya vakySn4 dharme j S j a 1 ina saha//lZ
253 * I
309
Audience:
Jajali
When he did so, Jajali inquired how a merchant could have achieved such wisdom.
Tuladhara explained that he
observed his dharma without judging or criticizing others. yet he considered any livelihood that injured living beings to be unacceptable.
He tal d
the follow; ng story.
in
rsis
whi ch
criticized Nahusa for slaughtering animals in order to perform sacrifices. (1) Nahu~a's slaughter of a cow and a bul12~
[12.254.46-254.48J Narrator:
Tuladhara
Audience:
Jajali
Some rsis criticized cow and a bull.
Nahu~a
for killing a
but since he had not meant to commit a
sin
thereby. they transformed his sin into 101 diseases which they scattered among living beings. Jajali
argued
that
sacrifical
obligations
agriculture
and
the
it
would
without
animals
be the
impossible food
by
raised
to
meet
produced
husbandry,
by
hence
Tu13dhara must be an atheist (n_stika). Tu 1 adhara then di st i ngui shed among sacri fi ces appropri ate for
k~atriyas
and
for
brahmans,
sacrifices alone are proper for the
declaring latter.
that
mental
Exclaiming in
29~he context makes clear that th i s story is told to 1 end authority to Tu18dhara's injunction against killing cattle. but in the critical edition it is not identified as a story per se.
wonder over t h e p r a c t i c e o f yoga,
and remarking t h a t i t was
unknown t o wise men o f former t i m e s s J a j a l i sought t o know more about it.
TulSdhara c o n t i nued t o explain t h e p r a c t i c e o f
nonviolence and r e l a t e d p r a c t i c e s o f yoga,
and a F t e r
a time
each achieved t h e f r u i t s of h i s s p i r i t u a l p r a c t i c e . 2 8 . The wards o f K i rtg
Narrator : Audience:
v i ~ a k h n u ~[ 12.257 '~
I - 2 5 7 . 1 11
8h5 stna Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s m
b
BhZsma cont h u e d immediate 7y w i t h the f~ 7 lowing s t o r y on nonvf07ence~
Once King slaughtered
for
Vicakhnu
heard
sacrifice,
the cries
and
remarked
of
cattle
that
being
Manu
had
advocated nonvi 01 ertce, t h e r e f o r e it was wrong t o k i 11 an3 ma1s f o r s a c r i f i c $ a l purposes.
Because V i snu . * i s present a t every
s a c r i f i c e s and because i t i s prescribed t h a t
h i s worship
should be undertaken ~ 4 t hthe products o f t h e payasa t r e e # t h e r e i s no place f o p animal s a c r i f i c e . 27
Story o f C i r a k a r i nZg6[ t 2.258 2-258.751 Narrator: Audi ertce:
BhZ sma
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i vars a
r ~ ~ ~ u d a h a r a n t 5 mti am hasam i puratanam/ c i rakarestu yatpUrvam vrttamahgi rase k u l e / / I 2 2 5 8 . 2 The e d i t o r s o f t h e Santiparvan note t h a t t h i s s t o r y a l s o adhyaya 266. occurs in t h e Skanda Purana, mahesvara khan&, See V . M. Bedekar, '*The Legend o f C i r a k a r i n i n t h e Skanda Mahapurana and t h e Mahabharata: A Cornparati ve Study, lt P w m a I V , No. 3 , 1962, pp* 1Q7-214.
31 I
.
Y u d h f.s t h f r a asked haw one cau l d s u r v i v e pursufng a po7fcy o f n m v i o l e n c e , sfnce even i f one wanted t o do so, f t
seemed d i f f i c u l t t o garactfee.
Once there was
a wise man named C i r a k S r i n ,
so named
because he always t h o u g h t about t h i n g s f o r a l o n g time. day, C i r a k a r i n s mother,
AhalyS,
One
committed a grave offense.
She was seduced by I n d r a , who came t o t h e hermitage d+sgui sed as her husband, Gautama.
When he learned OF t h i s , t h e enraged
f a t h e r commanded C i r a k a r i n t o k i 11 h i s mother-
The son went
o f f t o t h e woods t o c o n s i d e r h i s f a t h e r ' s arder, t h i n k i n g hard
f o r many days about h i s d u t i e s t o h i s f a t h e r and those t o h i s mother.
Gautama a1so departed
Much 1a t e r , Gautama returned
and was overjoyed t o see t h a t h i s son had n o t y e t c a r r i e d out h i s command.
The r e p e n t a n t f a t h e r c o n g r a t u l a t e d h i s son f o r
.
such cautious behavior, and a1 1 w a s we1 l
28. Conversati on between K i ng Oyumatsena and Prince
Satyavat [ 12.259.2-259.35 ] 297 Narratar :
BhZ sma
.
Audi ence : Yudhi s t* h i r a and t h e assernbl ed s u r v i vors Y u d h i.s.t b i r a askad how a kfng could p r o t e c t those
i n h i s c a r e and s t i 1 7 r e f r a i n from i n j u r i n g W v f n g beings. When
at
one
time
King
execution o f some persons, k i 1li n 9 i s wrong.
Oyumatsena
had
ordered
the
h i s son Satyavat declared t h a t
The k i n g protested t h a t a1 1 d i s t i n c t i o n s
2g7atrapyud8harantimami t i hasam puratanam/ samvsdam r aj h satyavata saha//l2 259.2 dyumatsenasya
between good and e v i l would disappear i f one c o u l d not punish wrongdoers ( i n t h i s case,
Furthermore, a k i n g i s
thieves).
o b l i g e d t o punish people by v i r t u e o f h i s o f f i c e and would commit no offense
i f he behaved according t o
h i s dharma.
Satyavat r e p l i e d t h a t t h e t h i e v e s could be punished eventually rehabilitated concl u s i on, Satyavat
- by
-
and
o t h e r means t h a n death.
In
repeated in s t r u c t i on he had former1 y
received from a learned brahman,
had been taught
who
the
t r u t h s o f nonvi 01ence 1ong ago. 29. Conversation between Kapi l a and t h e cow (a rsf ,*
named SyOmaraSmi in d i sgui se)298[I2.260.5262.451 Narrator : Audi ence:
B h i sma
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
Y u d h i* s t h i r a asked Bhisma whether t h e dharma o f t h e householder o r t h e p r a c t i c e o f yoga was s u p e r i o r ,
and Bhisma
e x p l a i n e d how both were considered worthy o f p u r s u i t .
Long ago,
...
when t h e god Tvastr came t o v i s i t King
Nahusa, t h e k i n g prepared t o k i 11 a cow, Vedas.
Seeing
inj u n c t i o n s .
the
cow,
the
sage
as enjoined i n t h e
Kapila
such
.
J u s t then. t h e r s i SyQmarasmi entered the cow1s
body through h i s yogic power. c r i t i c i z e t h e sacred Vedas. such i n t e n t i o n ,
He asked K a p i l a how he c o u l d Kapi l a rep1i e d t h a t he had no
b u t s a i d he found i t d i f f i c u l t t o i n t e r p r e t
2g8atrapyudaharantimami ti hasam puratanam/ kapi 1asya gofca samvadam ' t a n n i bodha yudhi s *t h i ra//12.260.5
.
bemoaned
313 He asked t h e cow i f
i t s i n d i v i d u a l prescriptions accurately.
i t could t e l l him anything t h a t was s u p e r i o r t o nonviolence.
The cow repeated Vedic p r e s c r i p t i o n s about t h e c e n t r a l importance
of
sacrifices,
and
declared
undertake them w i t h o u t h e s i t a t i o n . path
of
knowledge
(jfiana)
was
that
one
should
Kapi l a argued t h a t t h e equally
efficacious
for
so w h y should one observe t h e dharma o f
a t t a i n i n g Brahma, househol ders?
The cow r e p l i e d t h a t t h e o t h e r t h r e e stages depended upon the
householder,
and
so
one
dare
not
p r e s c r i p t i o n s i f he hoped t o achieve Brahms.
violate
Vedic
Kapila replied
t h a t t h e p a t h o f knowledge enabled one t o achieve t h e same
s p i r i t u a l accomp1ishments as a brahman, b u t w i t h o u t r e s o r t i ng t o violence.
The cow t h e n revealed t h a t i t had come t o Kapi 1a
w i t h many doubts,
and asked t o hear more about t h e path o f
yoga as a means t o
ma+.
K a p i l a r e p l i e d t h a t t h e Vedas a r e
indeed a u t h o r i t a t i v e , b u t one should s c r u p u l o u s l y observe t h e
d u t i e s s e t f o r t h i n them, yoga,
whose p r a c t i c e
dharmic p u r s u i t
of
b u t people should a l s o engage i n
i s consistent
the
domestic
with
life
is
t h e Vedas. auspicious,
The but
u l t i m a t e l y o n l y prepares one f o r t h e f i n a l p u r s u i t o f moksa through know1edge. 30.
.
Mow Kundadhsra benef it e d a devotee2"
[ 12.263.2-
263.551
" a t r a t e v a r t a y i syami iti hasam puratanam/ kundadharena y a ' t p r i t y ~bhaktayopakrtam p~ra//12.263.2 e
314
Narrator: Audience:
Bhi sma
..
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
Observing t h a t the Vedas address dharma,
Yudhfsthira .
kama,
and
asked
Bhisma
which
is
artha,
considered
superior.
Once a very poor brahman worshipped the d e i t i e s i n o r d e r t o o b t a i n wealth f o r s a c r i f i c i a l purposes.
H e decided t h a t
.
. a cloud, would be r e c e p t i v e t o h i s request, and so Kundadhara, devotedly performed s a c r i f i c e s t o please him.
One n i g h t , t h e
brahman had a v i s i o n o f Manibhadra i n t h e company o f a1 1 t h e deities. When
I n h i s v i s i o n they doled o u t riches t o worthy men.
Kundadhara presented ..
h i msel f
and
petitioned
on
the
as much wealth brahman s behal f, Mani bhadra o f f e r e d Kundadhara '
as he wanted to g i v e t h e brahmans.
.
Kundadhzra asked .
for
the
gift
But instead o f t h e wealth, of
virtue,
and so
it
was
granted.
The despondent brahman, f e e l ing t h a t h i s worship had been unsuccesful , gave up h i s e f f o r t s and went t o 1i v e t h e 1if e o f a forest ascetic.
He continued i n h i s p r a c t i c e and became
extreme1y s p i r i t u a l 1y adept.
One day, Kundadhara appeared and
compl imented him on h i s attainment.
He granted him a v i s i o n
o f kings m i r e d i n he11 because o f t h e i r attachment t o w o r l d l y pleasures.
At
l a s t t h e brahman r e a l i z e d the t r u e value o f
. boon, KundadhSrats
and apologized
for
h i s earl i e r l a c k o f
proper g r a t i t u d e .
31
.
S t o r y of t h e brahman who led the uficha way o f
Narrator :
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled
.
survivors Y u d h i s t h i r a asked which s a c r i f i c e had a s i t s sole a
9
purpose t h e a c q u i s i t i o n o f v i r t u e . A brahman named Satya 1i v e d i n the f o r e s t by gathering
g r a i n abandoned i n t h e corn f i e l d s . perform a s a c r i f i c e .
.
a r s i i n disguise), e
sacrifice
him.
One day, he prepared t o
A c e r t a i n deer named Parnada (actual l y
who 1 i v e d nearby,
When
the
brahman
asked t h e brahman t o refused t o
kill
this
n e i ghbor , t h e goddess SSvi t r i appeared and requested t h a t t h e brahman do so.
Again he refused.
A t length,
he began t o
reconsider, however, when t h e deer expl a i ned t h a t he wished i n t h i s w a y t o reach heaven. Satya t h a t i t was n o t
The god Dharma appeared t o remind
proper t o s a c r i f i c e an animal,
but
remai ned t o assi s t Satya i n compl e t i ng the s a c r i f ice.
.
Yudhisthira and Bhisma t h e n discussed how one becomes s i n f u l or v i r t u o u s , and how t o achieve moksa. 32. Conversation between Narada and Asi t a Devala on
the path t o moksdol [I2.267.1-267.381 ^'at r a t e v a r t a y i syami naradenanuki r t itam/ ufichavrtteh pur'avrttam y a j f i a r t h e brahmanasya ha//12:264:2 E d i t o r s o f t h e &antiparvan note c l o s e correspondences between 12.266 and Brahma P u r m a 237.40-57; adhyaya 12.258 corresponds close1y t o Skanda P u r h , mahe6vara khanda* a d h y m 45.
31 6 Narrator : Audience:
B h i sma
Yudhi s* t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i vors
BhYsma continued w i t h the next story r e l a t i n g t o moksa.
Once Narada questioned Asi t a Deval a about c r e a t i o n and destruction.
He spoke about t h e f i v e elements and how t h e y
composed the universe.
He a1so spoke o f t h e f i v e senses, t h e
human organs, and v a r i o u s s t a t e s o f mind. 33.
What
the
king o f
Videha
said t o
the
brahman
~ Z i n d a v ~ a[ ~ I 2.268.3-268.141 '~ a
-
Narrator:
Bhi sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and the assembl ed s u r v i v o r s
..
.
Yudhisthira asked how he and h i s kinsmen could r i d . themselves o f t h e i r d e s i r e for materia7 gain,*
The k i n g o f
M it h i la,
who was very w i se,
came t o
understand t h e in s i gni f icance o f materi a1 possessions.
He
..
shared w i t h t h e brahman Mandavya h i s i n s i g h t i n t o t h e f u t i 1 it y o f seeking material gain.
L i s t e n i n g t o t h e king, t h e brahman
w a s i n s p i r e d t o pursue t h e p a t h t o moksa.
Here
i s repeated
the
verse a t t r i b u t e d
to
Janaka
e a r l i e r i n the &antiparvan (and in somewhat d i f f e r e n t form) a t 72.17.18,
12.171.56, and 12.272.50.
3 0 2 a t r ~ p y u d ~ h a r a n tti i mhasam a~ puratanam/ gi tam v i deharajena m~ndavy'ayanuprcchate//12.268.3 susukham bata j i v a m i yasya me n a k t i kimcana/ m i t h i 1ayam pradiptayam na me dahyati k i mcana//12.268.4 E d i t o r s o f the S h t i p a r v a n note simi l a r i t i e s between t h e verse King Janaka and Jataka 539, gatha 1 2 5 ; below a t t r i b u t e d Dhammapada 2 0 0 ; and Uttaradhyana SQtra 9.14.
to
31 7 The Bombay e d i t i o n o f t h e Mbh and 1 7 o t h e r manuscripts include
here
another
version
of
the
between a father and h i s son, Medhavin, the c r i t i c a l
e d i t i o n omit
here.
fr
story
*'Conversation
which t h e e d i t o r s o f
The story appears in t h e
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n a t 12,169, and c r i t i c a l notes t o t h a t adhyma d e t a i l d i f f e r e n c e s between t h a t s t o r y and t h e Bombay e d i t ion
s t o r y included a t t h i s Juncture i n t h e &antiparvan, 34. Conversation between t h e defeated V r t r a and h i s
2.270.13-271 . 5 8 ] ~ S a n a s ~[I '~
teacher. Narrator: Audience:
B h i sma
..
Y u d h i s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
Y u d h i s* t h i r a asked when he and his b r o t h e r s could a n t i c i p a t e r e l i n q u i s h i n g t h e i r d u t i e s as k i n g s
i n favor o f
renunciation.
A f t e r V r t r a was defeated i n h i s b a t t l e w i t h I n d r a , h i s teacher USanas asked V r t r a replied t h a t karma.
i f he was
despondent over
h i s loss.
he understood t h e workings o f time and
He then asked USanas how one could a t t a i n Brahma.
t h e y talked,
a l o n g came t h e sage Sanatkumara,
asked t o t a l k about V i snu. .
As
whom USanas
.
Sanatkumara d e s c r i b e d V i snu . as t h e
ground o f t h e universe, c r e a t o r and destroyer,
t h a t t h e cosmos i s h i s v e r y body.
and explained
He then d i s c l o s e d t h e means
t o real ize moksa, and so V r t r a achieved s a l v a t i o n .
^asmi nnarthe pura g i t a m Srnusvai kamana nrpa/ yatha d a i t y e n a v r t r e n a bh'ra'stai Svaryena* c e.s.t i tam//12.270 '. 13 *
..
35. How I n d r a defeated vrtra304 [I 2,272.7-273.631
Narrator: Audience:
Bhisma Yudhi s* .t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
.
.
Yudh 7 ,s t h i r a asked how V r t r a , who worshipped V i s n u ,
was defeated
by
Long ago, f ormi dab1e
M a . I n d r a became f r i g h t e n e d a t t h e s i g h t o f h i s
opponent,
unperturbed by Indra.
Vrtra,
but
Vrtra
was
compl e t e l y
He q u i c k l y g o t t h e best o f him w i t h h i s
s k i l l a t i l l u s i o n , and t h e sage Vasistha . . came t o r e v i v e I n d r a . Brhaspati grew concerned and sought t h e in t e r c e s s i on o f V i snu, * . who entered I n d r a s v a j r a ( t h u n d e r b o l t ) weapon. s t r e n g t h added t o h i s own, V r t r a was s l a i n .
With V i snu ' s
.
From h i s body,
t h e s i n of brahmanicide emerged i n h o r r i b l e embodied form and possessed Indra. I n fear,
success.
I n d r a attempted t o h i d e from her,
She sapped h i s energi es e n t i re1y
.
b u t w i t h no When Brahma
requested t h a t she l e a v e Indra, she agreed t o do so i f BrahmZ would designate her n e x t residence. t h a t s i n i n t o four portions.
And so Brahma d i v i d e d
Agni assumed one q u a r t e r , p l a n t s
assumed another p o r t i o n , t h e apsara women t h e t h i r d ,
and t h e
he s t o r y i s i n t r o d u c e d o n l y w i t h t h e term ours ( l o n g I t concludes w i t h t h e f o l l o w i n g verses: ago) a t 12.272.7b. ye t u 6akrakatham divyamimam parvasu parvasu/ v i pramadhye p a t h i syant i na i e przpsyanti k i 1bbi sam//12.273.62 i t y e t a d v r t r a m a S r i i y a SakrasyStyadbhutam mahat/' 2.273.63 k a t h i t a m karma t e t a t a k i m bhUyah Srotumicchasi //I Edi t o r s ' o f t h e S a n t i p a r v a n note t h a t t h e s t o r y a1so occurs in T a i ' t t f r e y a Samhits 2 . 5 . 1 ; KSthaka Samhita 12.10; Maitrayan2 Samhfta 2.4.1; 6atapatha Brahmana 1.*6.3.1-5, 4.2.6, 5 . 5 . 4 ; Ja'iminiya Brahmans 2.153-157; ' Mahabharata 3.9-18, and 12.329.17-41.
319 waters the fourth.
For each. Brahma declared a way in which
the sin could be discharged.
Indra cleansed himself of the
sin by means of a horse sacrifice. The origin of fever US [12.274.4-274.60]
98.
.
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira and the assembled survivors
Yudhi~~hira
asked Bhi~ma 'to 'tell him o'f 'the origin
0"
'fever (jvara)1 which had a'fF7icted Vr'tra be'fore he was s7ain.
Long ago. there was a There
~iva
One day.
the deities
sacrifice.
Meru.
and Parvati used to sit. with the various deities
around them. All
splendid peak high on Mt.
When
Dak~a
except ~iva
decided to undertake a sacrifice.
~iva
and
Parvati
set
out for
the
explained to Parvati that by ancient
agreement he was allotted no portion of sacrifices. she felt ashamed.
And so
~iva
disrupted
the form of a deer and ran away.
Dak~a's
~iva
sacrifice. which took
pursued it. and from a
single bead of his sweat that fell to the earth. a fearsome being sprang up to devour the deer. terri fi ed at the di spel
thi s
si ght of
embodi ment
it.
of hi s
All the deities were
Brahma demanded that anger
by di vi di ng
it
~i va
into
segments that would be spread across the earth as fever.
305 i tyesa vrtramatri tya jvarasya mahato maya/
vi starah' kathi tah putra kimanyatprabravimi
te//12.~74.59 . $~ntiparvan editors note
correspondences between adhyaya 274 and Brahma Purlfna adhy.ya 39-40 as well as V.yu Pur6na (no sections of the 'text indicated).
320 37. Conversat i on between Narada and Samaflga306 [12.275.2-275.21] Narrator:
Bhisma
..
Aud i ence:
Yudh i 5th i ra and the assemb 1 ed su rvi vo rs
Yudhis'thira asked how death and grieF could be prevented.
Once Narada asked seemed happy.
Sama~ga
how it happened that he always
Samaflga replied that his good spirits should be
attributed to his profound knowledge.
The practice of yoga
had freed him of the fear of death, sin, and other concerns. 38. Conversat i on between Gal ava and Narada 307 [12.276.3-276.58] Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi sthi ra and the assembl ed survi vors
Yudhisthira asked what would be best 'or someone ignorant of the Vedas and who pursued no spiritual practice. Replying dutiFul
that
such
a person should revere his teacher,
toward elders,
matters.
Bhi~ma
Galava. spiritual knowledge.
and
listen to
recitations on
be
sacred
told the Fol7owing story_
who
matters.
considered asked
himself
Narada
how
quite he
ignorant might
in
acquire
Since people who observed dharma seemed to behave
306atrai vodaharantimami tihasam puratanam/ naradasya ca sa~vada~ sama~gasya ca bharata//12.275.2 301 atrapyudaharanti mami t; hasam pu ratanam/ galavasya ca sa~vada~ devar~ernaradasya ca//12.276.3
i n very d i f f e r e n t ways,
he sought Narada's advice.
Narada
enumerated t h e many v i r t u e s one should cul t i vate,
various
and warned Galava about t h e kinds of
behaviors t o emulate, brahmans t o avoi d.
39. What t h e brahman Aristanemi said t o *
sagaraag0
t12.277.2-277.471 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence : Yudhi s .t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s Y u d h f* s t h i r a asked how a k i n g who had m o k s a as h r s goal shou 7d behave.
..
The brahman Aristanemi
counseled King Sagara t o pursue
m o k s a by d i s c h a r g i n g h i s o b l i g a t i o n s as a householder. and a
forest
dwelle r
attachments. attitudes,
He
before
exhorted
and described
person achi eves.
f r e d ng
h i msel f
Sagara t o
e n t i re1y
proper
behavior
t h e dispassion a t r u l y
Heedi ng t h e brahman ' s words,
from and
1i b e r t e d
K i ng Sagara
t h e r e a f t e r c u l t i v a t e d t h e v i r t u e s t h a t would lead t o m o k s a . 40.
Story o f Narrator : Audience:
anas as^'^
[ I 2.278.6-278.381
B h i sma
.
Yudh-i s *t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
" a t r a te v a r t a y i syami it i hasam puratanam/ a r i staneim ., na proktam s a g a r ~ y ~ n u p r c c h a t e / / 1 2 . 2 7 7 . 2 ^ ~ r n u r aj annavahi t a h sarvametadyathatatham/ y a t h ~ m a t yatha i caftacchrutaparvam mayanagha//12.278.6 e t a t t e k a t h i tam t a t a bhargavasya mahatmanah/ c a r i tam bharatasrestha yanmam tvam p a r i prcchasi //12.2?8.38
322
.
Yudhisthfra . asked Bhisma t~ te77 him w h y t h e c s i USanas was a f r i e n d t o t h e asuras but mt the gods,
and h o w he
got the name $ukra. The
Bhargava
Kubera ' s riches. became enraged.
Usanas used
his
yogic
power
When Kubera compl a i ned t o S i va,
to
steal
t h a t god
Manas placed h i m s e l f on t h e p o i n t of 6 i v a p s
sword so t h a t t h e d e i t y could n o t s t r i k e him-
S i v a bent h i s
sword i n t o a bow, popped U&anas i n t o h i s mouth, and swallowed him.
Whi 1e Usanas wandered about i n $ i v a l s stomach, $4 va sank i n t o meditation f o r a very long time.
A f t e r countless yearsI
Usanas began t o seek a way out o f & v a 8 s body, b u t t h e d e i t y had blocked a l l
possible
means
of
repeatedly asked g+va t o l e t him out, through h i s urethraI
escape.
When
Usanas
S i v a t o l d him t o pass
and so he g a t t h e name gukra
(semen)
Uma d f d n o t allow t h e enraged s i v a t o k i 11 U&anasI Tar she now considered him her son.
And so s i v a t s anger was c o d e d -
41. The r* s i ParSSarawswords t o King ~ a n a k d "
[12.279.3-287.451
Narrator: Audience:
Bh5 sma
..
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i vcws
YudhistMra asked BhZsma to t e l l h $ m b y w h k h a c t s , one cou7d achieve the g r e a t e s t b e n e f i t both b e f o r e and a f t e r
death. 310atrat e v a r t a y i sysmi yatha pUrvam mahayaSah/ parasaram mahathanam papraccha janako nrpah[/12.279.3
323
Long ago, King Janaka had asked t h i s very q u e s t i o n o f t h e sage ParaSara* who then e x t o l l e d t h e b e n e f i t s o f observing onews
dharma,
Hawever
else
it
may
appear*
i n e v i t a b l y reap t h e f r u i t s o f onegs actions.
one
would
ParaSara a l s o
enumerated t h e r e s u l t s of bad behavior* and how t o e x p i a t e it. He discussed proper r e l a t i o n s h i p s among the f o u r classes,
t h e appropriate occupations of
each one.
and
H e d3scussed t h e
and t h e f r u i t s o f tapas* and
ub1 i g a t i o n s o f a householderI
a1so expl a i ned haw t h e f o u r c1asses had been mu1ti p1 ied by t h e mixing o f classes through in t e r m a r r i a ~ e . He concluded w i t h a lengthy discourse on t h e d i s c i p l i n e o f yoga. *
42.
Conversation between t h e Sadhyas and a swan3" [12.288.2-12.288.451
Narrator: Audi ence:
BhTsma Yudhi s *t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
Yudhi6thira asked f3hYsma t o g i v e h i s o p f n i t m on t h e v i r t u e s o f t r u t h , se 7 f - r e s t r a f n t ,
forgiveness,
and wisdom
w h i c h so many people 7au& A t one time Brahmg t o o k t h e form o f a swan and t r a v e l e d
t h e t h r e e worlds.
When he encountered t h e d e i t i e s c a l l e d
Sadhyass they asked him t a i n s t r u c t them i n moksadharma and t o
tell them t h e primary way t o achieve i t . a s c e t i c i sm ( tapas)
s e l f contra1 (dama]I
He t o l d them t h a t t r u t h (satyam)
and
31'atra t e v a r t a y i sye hami t4 h ~ s m npuratanain/ sadhyanad ha samvadam hamsasya ca yudhj s *t h i r a i l 1 2.288.2 samvWa 12.288.45ab
4 tyayam
.
Sresthah @
sadhysnam
p a r i kZ r t it a h /
mental c o n t r o l ( a t m a g u p t f ] are t h e meanss and elaborated upon each.
The Szdhyas
also
asked
several
other
questionss
inc1udi ng some about t h e qua1 it i es o f brahmans.
Bh2 stna then answered Yudhf s* t* h f r a 's quest f arts a b m t t h e d f f fereme between the Samkhya and Yoga systems. 4 3 . BhZ ?ma s examp1e d 2
BhTsma
Narrator : Audi ence:
Yudhi s *t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
.
I n d e s c r i b i n g t o Yudhi s t h i r a the e f f e c t i veness o f yogic p r a c t i c e , BhTsma uses a s e r i e s o f analogies t o mundane experi ences t h a t he c a l l s rtfdarsana.
He compares a successfu1
yogi n t o men who accompl ish t h e * r goal s by ski 11f u 1 a t t e n t i o n : a bowman who s t r i kes h i s t a r g e t , short i n a
storms and
a boatman who reaches the
a c h a r i o t d r i v e r who maneuvers h i s
v e h i c l e during a b a t t l e -
Each analogy appears t o r e c a l l a
well-known truism about e f f e c t i v e performance.
..
4 4 . Canversati on between Vasi s t h a and KarZ1a
.lanaka3I3 [ 12 291 -7-296.451 Narrator : Audi ence:
BhZsma
..
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i vors
"*atmana~ca samadharte dharanam p r a t i cabhi bho/ n i darsanani si3ksmZni 6rnu ke bharatarsabha//I 2.289.30 This passaQe r e f l e c t s one o f t h e e p i c ' s few uses o f t h e t e r m nMarSarm as a k i n d o f i11u s t r a t i v e maxims here presented as analog* es. '13atr a t e v a r t a y i sye hami t ihasam purlEtanam/ vasi sthasya ca kamvZdam k a r a l a~anakasya ca//12 = 291 - 7 E d i t o r s o f *the &ant inarvan n o t e correspondences between
325
Bhisma and Y u d h i.s* t h i r a w e r e engaged i n dfscussfon of
Samkhya p h i 1osaphy=
Yudhisthira '
exp7afn
t h e concepts
Once,
then asked BhZsma
to
0
aksara and
ksara, el f c i t f n g
as t h e y s a t together t a 1 king,
further
King Janaka asked
.
Vasi stha t o teach him about brahman and t h e concepts aksara ' and ksara.
Vasistha ' . t o l d him o f t h e process OF d e s t r u c t i o n
and c r e a t j o n OF t h e cosmos from Sambhu o r ISvara,
about t h e
r e l a t i o n s h i p o f t h e p r i n c i p l e s s a t t v a s r a j a s , and tamas, t h e process o f r e b i r t h s and t h e underlying campati b i 1i t y of the samkhya and yoga p h i 1osophi es
.
6hTsma concl uded by exp7 a i n i ng
that he had acquired t h i s knowledge from Narada* who learned
.
i t from Vasi stha,
45.
who I earned i t from Brahma h i mse1f
Conversation between a BhSrgava r s' f and King
asu urn an^'^ Narrator : Audience:
[12.297.1 - Z W . Z ? S J
Bhisma Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed survivors '
Bhisma c o n t i n u e d h f s d i s c o u r s e w f t h t h e fa7 lowfngp story* One day K i ng VasumSn, who was a member o f Janaka's c l a n *
was hunting deer when he came upon a m i . e
The k i n g asked t h e
r* .s i h o w one should l i v e t o ensure maximum gain a f t e r death.
.
The r s i
e x t o l led t h e b e n e f i t s o f a t t e n d i n g t o dharma.
He
d i scussed t h e proper a t t i tude taward materi a1 g a i n, the va1ue o f behavior a p p r o p r i a t e t o onets c l a s s [ v a r f f a ), and exhorted
''%he c r j t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t j t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y .
326 the k i n g t o honor d u l y those p r o f i c i e n t i n a s c e t i c acts.
King
Vasurnan was thus in s p i r e d t o t u r n h i s energies toward dharmic behavi a r and away from indul gence o f h i s desi r e s
46
.
Conversation between t h e sage YS jfiyaval kya and
King Janaka ~ av ai r a t i 315 [ 12.298.3-306.108 ] Narrator :
6hZ sma
..
Audi ence : Yudhj s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors Yudhisthira asked Bhisma to teach him about t h a t whfcb i s eterna I , and Bhfsma rep1i e d w i t h t h e f 0 7 rowing story.
Once t h e k i n g asked Y2Ijfiyaval kya t o discuss a s e r i e s o f t o p i c s D inc1uding t h e senses, types o f p r a k r t 2 , b i rth and death.
6rahman8 and
The sage rep1ied w i t h a 1engthy d i scourse on
samkhya p r i n c i p l e s .
tie began w i t h a d i scussi on of p r a k r t y and
went on t o give a b r i e f account o f t h e c r e a t i o n from the unman4 f e s t ( a v y a k t a n ~ and i t s destruct4 an.
He t a 1 ked about
t h e concepts adhyatma8 adhfbhutaD and adhfdaivata, as w e l l as t h e re1a t i onshi p between pufusa and p r a k r t f .
The k i n g then asked f o r more i n f o r m a t i o n on mdcsadharma,
.
and t h e d i s t * n c t i o n s between t h e Szmkhya and Yoga systems. The sage responded b y recounting some d4fferences of opinion
between t h e two systems, one.
b u t s t a t e d t h a t they a r e u l t i m a t e l y
He a l s o described what happens a f t e r death and how one
uvercames i t .
3'5atra t e v a r t a y i sye hami t i hasam purStanam\ ya jfiyaval k ~ a s y asamvWam * j anakasya ca bhSrata//lZ 298.3 a
a. What Ya j ?iyaval kya 1earned from s ~ r y a ~ ' ~ t12.306.2-306.251
Narrator:
Y8jfiaval yka
Audi ence:
King Janaka Dai v a r a t i
In
repry
to
the
king's
question
abut
the
supreme bratman, Yajfiava Tyka t o ld what he had 1 earned from the god SUrya himse 7 f -
YSjfiavalyka asked Sarya t o fmpart t o him knowledge o f the y q j u s (Vedic s a c r i f i c i a1 formulas i n prose form,
from rc and saman formul as).
d i s t i ngui shed
SUrya caused SarasvatZ t o enter
t h e sage% body* thus t r a n s m i t t i n g t o him t h e e n t i r e Veda* i n c l u d i n g t h e Upani sads.
Later, as he was engaged i n r i t u a l
honors t o Sarya and SarasvatZ
t h e e n t i r e &tapatha
BrZhmana
{call ed t h e gatapatha Veda a t 92.306 23) f i11ed h i s mind. began t o teach i t t o
He
some d i s c i p l e s , b u t h i s maternal uncle
challenged h i s qua1 i f ic a t i o n s t o teach t h e Vedas-
When other
teachers expressed w+ 1 1ingness t o g i v e h i m payment f o r h i s r e c i t a t i o n o f t h e Vedas, t h e a u t h e n t i c i t y o f h i s knowledge was canf irmed
.
Subsequent 1y
he canpi 1ed t h e h t a p a t h a Brahma?a
and cuntinued t o t e a c h * b.
What Y S j fiaval kya taught t h e gandharva
3 ' 6 ~ h ec v i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y * M u s t o f t h e s t o r i e s from t h i s seeti on t o adhyaya 327* when the Mbh r e t u r n s t o t h e n a r r a t i v e l e v e l o f t h e Naimisa Forestl seem
t o echo a theme r a i s e d i n t h i s story, namely r o l e r e v e r s a l s i n whi ch someone o f 3 n f e r i o r s t a t i o n e F f e c t i v e l y in s t r u c t s a s u p e r i o r . I n t h i s way, more t r a d i t i o n a l r e l a t i o n s h i p s such as father/son, ma1e/femal e, and teacherlstudent a r e in d i r e c t l y chal 1enged.
V i 6 ~ 8 v a s u[12.306.26-306.821 ~~~ Narrator :
YZ j fiaval yka
Audience:
U i ng Janaka D a i v a r a t i
YSjfiaval kya went on t o t e l l t h e k i n g how one
day t h e gandharva V i SvSvasu posed t o YSjfiava1 kya twenty-four q u e s t i o n s on t h e Vedas* answers came t o
Focusing h i s mind on Sarasvat?,
h<m, and so he i n s t r u c t e d t h e
the
gancfharva.
L a t e r , V i S v ~ v a s uasked t h e sage t o e x p l a i n something which he had
learned
paficavim&a,
about
from
understood
many to
other
mean
the
sages,
that
is,
the
& # t a p a t h a Brahaam.
V i 6v3vasu was p1eased w i t h YS j fiava? kya ' s rep1y and r e t u r n e d t o
heaven where he in t u r n in s t r u c t e d v a r i uus d e i t i es Like
the
gandharva,
King
OaivarSti
p1 eased w i t h Yzjiiaval kyat s i n s t r u c t i o n .
and jewels t o t h e brahmans,
.
Janaka w a s
we1 1
tie gave c a t t l e , g o l d
s e t h i s son upon t h e throne t o
r u l e M i t h i I a, and r e t i r e d to t h e f o r e s t f o r f u r t h e r m e d i t a t i o n and study.
In c l o s i n g , Bhisma explained t h a t he had been i n s t r u c t e d p e r s o n a l l y by t h e Janaka king. 47.
Conversati on between PaficaSi &ha and K i ng ~anaka~ [ 12 ' ~ 307.3-307 141 Narrator : Audi ence: --
Bhisma
..
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i v o r s
-
3 1 7 ~ hcer ~ t i c a le d i t i o n gives na t i t l e f o r t h l s s t o r y * 318atrZpyudaharant~mami ti hasam puratanam/ b h i ksoh pancagi khasyeha samv~damjanakasya ca//12.307.3
. .
.
Yudhfsthira asked i f and how one could overcome
Long ago, the
very
K i ng Janaka had asked t h e I earned Pancagi kha
same
question.
PancaSikha
told
him of
deathts
i n e v i t a b i 1i t y , but explained t h a t t h e c y c l e of r e b i r t h c o u l d be overcome b y perfarmi ng s a c r i f i c e s * and so on. 48.
Conversation between King Janaka and t h e sage [I '2~AO8=3-308* 191 J ~ulabha~ Narrator:
Bh5sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled survivors
..
Yudhisthira asked how m e
couJd achieve mo+a
through the pursu i t a f the househo 7der dbarma. K i ng Janaka was renowned f o r h?s p r a c t i c e of moksadharma.
Once a mendicant
named Sulabha became c u r i o u s t o
see f o r
h e r s e l f whether o r n o t h i s r e p u t a t i o n was deserved.
Through
t h e power o f yoga,
she made h e r s e l f a b e a u t i ful woman and went
to meet Janaka i n h i s c o u r t .
Without s a y i n g anything aloud,
she used her y o g i c powers t o search h i s mind and determine f o r
h e r s e l f whether intrusion
and
i d e n t i t y and
he had achieved questioned
intentions.
her
moksa.
at
the
aloud about
her
He a l s o summarized what
l earned from h i s teacher, PaficaH kha. Sulabhs f o r *
length
He r e s i s t e d
he had
Janaka t h e n reprimanded
so t o speak* i n v a d i n g h i s p r i v a c y ,
protesting
t i hasam purztanaml 31gatrapyudaharant5mami janakasya ca samvadam s u l abhayasca b h a r a t a / / I 2.308.3
330 t h a t t h i s a c t was
i n a p p r o p r i a t e and e q u i v a l e n t i n several
respects t o p h y s i c a l
sexual
Su1abha
learned
his
1essons we1 1,
otherwi se he woul d not have r e a c t e d as if she
attachment
touched
to
him-
possibly
rep1y,
Janaka
actually
not
In
charged t h a t
had
could
activ ity.
Furthermore,
have
h is
t h e world was evident by t h e
continued t o serve as k i n g -
c o n t i n u i ng
fact
When she was f i n i s h e d ,
that
he
Janaka
rema*ned s i I ent 49. Haw Vyasals son,
Sukra, achi e w d mok9d2'
[12.309.2-309.921
Narrator: Audi ence:
BhZsma Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v j v u r s
.
Yudhisthira asked to hear how Sukra achfeved
moksa
.
Vyzsa observed t h a t h i s son h k r a was leading h i s 1 if e w i t h a u t any apparent thought f o r i t s u1tim a t e meani ng H e then
.
n s t r u c t e d h k r a f u l l y i n t h e Vedas, and exhorted him
to r e a l i z e t h e t r a n s i t o r y nature o f existence.
He warned
h k r a that death could come a t any moment, and t h a t he should hurry to attend t o t h e p u r s u i t o f moksa. urgent advice,
Hearing h i s f a t h e r *s i
h k r a I e F t t o f i n d an appropriate teacher w h o
might guide him i n pursuing mdcsa.
32%udhisth3ratsuse o f t h e word purg ( l o n g ago) s i g n a l s t h i s s t o r y a t * 12m309w1b.
50
How V y a s a 's sun Sukra was b o d z 1 [ 12 310 10-
Narrator: Audi ence:
Bhf sma
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
.
Yudh+sthira , asked abaut &&ra,
the
fami 7y h i s t o r y
of
whose s p i r f t u a 7 aceamp 7 ishments a t a y m m g age were so
O n c e Vyasa was engaged i n yogic m e d i t a t i o n f o r one
hundred years near t h e l o c a t i o n i n t h e Himalayas where Siva and Parvati l i v e d .
Vyasavs worsh+p was focused s o l e l y upon
S i v a during t h a t time, and h i s purpose was to o b t a i n from & v a t h e boon o f a son.
Impressed w i t h h i s d e v o t i o n s Siva granted
h i s wish.
Some t i m e 1a t e r
V y S s a was prepari ng h i s r it u a l f ir e when
t h e beauti f a 1 apsaras GhrtacZ happened t o pass by.
unable to
control t h e passion t h a t aroused him, he e j a c u l a t e d on t h e ground where he stood preparing the s a c r i f i c e .
semen was born 6ukrag h i s sona
A1 I
From t h a t
the d e i t i e s rejoiced*
h k r a chose Brhaspat* as h i s t e a ~ h e r . He showed no i n t e r e s t
pura [long ago) introduces t h i s s t o r y a t 3 2 1 ~ hword e 12.31tLlla. markandeyo h i bhagavSnetadakhyatavSnmama/ sa d e v k a r i t a n $ha kathayamasa me sadiK//l2.310.24 itihZsam%mampunyam moksadharmarthasamhitam[ dharayedyah'Samapa+ah sa gacchetparamam gatim//12.~20.41 E d i t o r s o f t h e g a n t f p a ~ v a nnote another v e r s i o n o f t h i s s t o r y in @rhannlfradiya Purana X .58 2-62 35 *
332
in the householder life. but concentrated on moksadharma from a very young ago. One day.
he
asked
Vyasa to
subject of moksadharma.
share
hi 5
wi sdom
on
the
Vyasa instructed his son to become a
pupil of King Janaka of Mithila. for he was fully conversant with the topic.
Furthermore. he should travel there on foot
and refrain from using his yogic powers. After a long journey, When
the
gatekeepers
~ukra
started
arrived at Janaka's court. to
refuse
him
entry.
one
recognized his spiritual qualities and escorted him into the palace. where he rested and meditated until the next morning. The next day. Janaka and his court greeted the son of his teacher with full
and appropriate honors.
When
~ukra
posed
questi ons to hi m, Janaka rep1 i ed wi th a bri ef di scourse on the feu r
stages of 1 i fe .
He
individuals could achieve stage.
asserted.
mok~a
however.
directly from the brahmacarya
Janaka went on to assure
~ukra
his own knowledge were baseless.
that his doubts about
I n fact.
he already knew
everythi ng he needed to know about moksadharma. ~ukra
at ease.
In which I~
~ukra
was
re~urning,
is narrated as if
loca~ion
various
in
the
even~s
resembles
Wi th hi 5 m; nd
returned home to the Himalayas.
course of describing
~he
that certa in
~o
vast
Bhi~ma
of
beautiFul mountains
told the Following
~o
s~ory.
Fix in the 7istener's mind a precise mountain range by association
invo7ving the gods.
some
~he
those
to7d
with
In this respect, the story in
the
.ra~yakaparvan
333
{tirthayatraparvan) Pandavas ' *
.
(3.80-153)
in
conjunction
with
the
tour o f t h e sacred fords. a. Kumarats challenge322[12.314.7-314.171 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Y u d h i s t h i r a and t h e assembled
.
survivors One day,
long ago. t h e brash young god KumZra
chal 1enged the o t h e r dei t i es by h u r l ing a spear whi ch p i erced the earth.
He dared anyone t o remove it. o r even t o wiggle
i t , i n order t o demonstrate s u p e r i o r i t y t o him.
The gods grew
.
very concerned, b u t V i snu grabbed i t and shook i t , s e t t i n g t h e * earth
i n violent
. V i snu ..
motion.
Although
he could e a s i l y
have
removed i t . Visnu d i d not. o u t o f consideration f o r KumSrat s
pride.
When
shouted aloud t h a t no one b u t KumSra could
remove i t , t h e demon Prahlada was roused t o t r y . move i t i n the s l i g h t e s t .
Unable t o
Prahlada f a i n t e d .
Sukra reported t o h i s f a t h e r a1 1 t h a t had t r a n s p i red a t Janakats court,
and continued t o l i v e w i t h h i s f a t h e r and
Vyasats other p u p i l s as before. One day, f o u r o f t h e pup3 1s requested a special favor, which Vyzsa readi l y granted.
They asked t h a t no one except
they and Sukra be p e r m i t t e d t o teach t h e Vedas.
establ ished
the
t r a d i t i on
of
1 ineages establ ished by these
Vedi c
i n s t r u c t i on
f ive students.
--
And so was through
Then,
wit h
he word y a t r a ( t h e r e ) indicating the location s i g n a l s t h e beginning o f t h i s s t o r y a t 1 2 . 3 1 4 . 7 ~ .
--
VyZIsat s permission,
four o f t h e d i s c i p l e s went t o 1i v e on
earth, where they would teach. L e f t a1ong w i t h only Sukra, VySsa grew somewhat depressed arid gave up Vedic r e c i t a t 3 on e n t i re1y o v i s i t e d i n order r e c i t a t i ons,
Eventual 1y , Narada
t o urge VyZsa and Sukra t o resume t h e i r
f o r demons were begi nni ng t o gather strength.
They d i d so w i t h such v3gor t h a t one day a great wind began t o
blow.
Vyzsa i n s t r u c t e d h i s son t o h a l t h i s r e c i t a t i o n ,
and
explai ried t o him t h e re1a t i o n s h j p among forces i n t h e universe
that accounted f o r
t h i s event.
Vygsa then t o l d Sukra t o
resume h i s r e c i t a t i o n , but Vyasa himself went o f f t o bathe i n t h e Ganges River. Whi 1e VySsa was away, NSrada v i s i t e d Sukra, intendi ng t o ask him t o explain some t h i n g s i n t h e Vedas*
Instead, Sukra
requested N21radats i n s t r u c t i o n about something useful. b
.
Sanatkumara a s in s t r u c t i o n to the rsfsJZ3
Narrator:
Mzrada
Audi ence :
&J
kra
3 2 3 ~ hword e pDrvam ( f o r m e r l y ) introduces the discourse. w i t h NZiradals reference t o h i s own words as sastra: asokam SokanSSartham gastram 6Snti karam S i vam/ n i Samya 1abhate buddhi m t a m * I abdhva sukhamedhate~/l2.317~1 T h i s section marks another use o f a word f o r s t o r y (here ftfhi!fsa) t o describe p r e s c r i p t i v e i n j u n c t i o n s i n t h e s t y 1e of dharmaSastra. (See also t h e e a r l ie r footnote t o acfhyaya 159.1 There i s no i n d i c a t i o n from t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n notes t o t h e t e x t t h a t these passages resembl e actual Sastra p r e s c r i p t i ons, however. It concludes
335 Long
ago,
a
group
of
rsis
had
sought
He praised the value of tapas, of
Sanatkum3ra's instruction.
speaki ng the truth, of yoga, of re1 i nQu; shi ng attachments, and so on. c. Old stories n4 [12.317.3-318.60] Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
~ukra
This segment contains not stories, per se, a prescriptive
ca~a7ogue
bu~
of do's and don'ts with respect to
wisdom. Narada offered numerous pieces of advice regarding such topi cs as grief.
refra in i ng from dwell i ng on the past.
the
mental
habits
of
wise
persons,
overcomi ng and
proper
understandi ng of the i nevi tab1 e and trans; tory nature of 1 i fe. ~ukra
contemplated
what
Narada
had
told
him,
then
declared aloud that he would now achieve ultimate release from
samsara.
He sought
out
hi s
father
to
inform
him,
then
departed for Mt. Kai1asa where he applied his yogic powers to transcend existence step by step.
All the deities exulted as
they observed aukra's release, but his father felt a mixture of happiness and grief.
~;va
appeared to him, reminding VyKsa
that he had produced the very kind of son he had desired.
To
324tasmadani stanaA3rthami t i hasam n i bodha mel ti~thate cedvate buddhir1abhate tokana§anam//12.317.3 etatte paramam guhyamakhyatamrsisattama/ vena devah parityajya martya10kam divam gat3~/112:318.45 ..
console himl
Siva c r e a t e d a shadow Sukra t o s t a y near h i s
f a t h e r forever. 51
Vyasa was c o n t e n t -
. Conversation
between Nsrada and t h e r.s i
~ 2 i r Z S ~ a n[a12 ~ ~321 ~ -7-322.1 21 Narrator : Audi ence :
6h5 sma
.
Yudhi s *t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s w v i vors
Y u d h i* s* t h i r a asked Bbisma t o te17 h+m who i s the d e i t y t~ whom t h e d e f t g e s themse7ves pray-
I n t h e k r t a eral t h e e t e r n a l Narayana t o o k the form o f f o u r dei ti esl in c l u d i ng Nara and NSrayana.
One day, Narada
came upon these two as t h e y were engaged i n worship i n a hermitage
i n t h e Him4K1ayase
NSrZyana whom he worshippede regarded as a mysteryl
that
unrnanifest ground o f being.
He r e s p e c t f u l l y
inquired o f
Marayana revealed what was he worshipped
&setrajfial
the
NSrada rep1i e d t h a t he would
undertake tapas i n o r d e r t o o b t a i n a v i s t on o f t h i s d e i t y o f
de*t ies
and he departed w i t h NSrSyana s b l e s s i ngs
l
52. How t h e de*t i es were born326[ 12.322 16-323 53 ]
Narrator: Audi ence:
BhZ sma Yudhi s *t h i r a and t h e assembl ed survivcws
..
Y u d h i s t h i r a asked Bhfsma about t h e o r i g f n s o f t h e
d e i t i e s and what u 7 t i m a t e 7 y becomes o f them. Once there was an e x t r a o r d i nary k i ng named Upari cara.
326vi s t 5 r n a i ss k a t h s r SjafiSrutS me p i trsamni dhau/ s a i sS t a v a h i ' v a k t a v y ~kathSsaro h i sa smrkah'//g 2 322.16
He
337
worshi pped Wirayana
w it h
great
d e v o t i on
and had
o b t a i ned
numerous boons fram him. I t happened t h a t the
on
work
dharma
seven r. s f s composed an e x c e l l e n t *
( S a s t r a 12.322.28d)1
which
was
perfectly
They r e c i t e d i t to Nar2Kyanal who
c o n s i s t e n t w i t h t h e Vedas.
was so pleased w i t h 4 t t h a t he declared t h e f o 1 lowing: SvayambhU woul d teach t h e work.
Manu
When combi ned w j t h equal 1y
jmpartant works t h a t Usanas and Brhaspati would cumpose, Vasu waul d
acqui r e
Brhaspati
.
the
combi ned
know1edge
f ram
h is
When Vasu lJpari cara d i ed, however,
teacher,
t h e 1earni ng
would be l o s t . And so eventual 1y Brhaspati was born and Upari cara became his
student.
sacri f i c e .
One day,
Vasu
Uparicara perfarmed a
horse
Narayana was so pleased t h a t he granted t h e king
a v i s i on o f h i msel f
.
Brhaspati became enraged t h a t & was not
favored i n t h i s way.
I n an e f f o r t t o calm hims t h r e e r* . s h
a t t e n d i ng t h e s a c r i f ic e t o l d t h e f a 1 la w i ng s t o r y . a. The e f T o r t f o r darSan o f ~
~
r
~
~
a
n
[l2.323.18-%!3.53]
..
Narrator:
The r s i s Ekata, D v i t a l and T r i t a
Audi e w e :
Brhaspati and t h e p a r t i ci pants 1 n Upari c a r a t s horse s a c r i f ic e At
penances f u r thousands v i s i o n o f Narayana.
one
o f years
time
the
r .d s
i n order t o
undertook
be granted a
Eventual l y , NarSyanat s v o i c e t o l d them t o
3 2 7 ~ hcer i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y .
a
~
~
338 v i s i t an i s l a n d c a l l e d !hetadv%pa (White I s l a n d ) which l a y o f f the
shore
of
the
M i 1k
Ocean
{KsZrodha).
There
he
was
accustomed ta g r a n t i n g darsan o f h i m s e l f t o a group which resided t h e r e i n constant warship o f h i m They penances
did in
as
MSrayana
that
location.
advised,
and
Indeeds
again
once
undertook
during
their
residence t h e r e NSrayana d i d appears b u t t h e r* s f s saw only a b1 inding I i g h t .
The r e s i d e n t s o f t h e i s l a n d consoled them by
e x p l a i n i n g t h a t ages and ages o f d e v o t i o n t o Narayana were necessary before one might be granted a v i s i o n o f him.
How
could Brhaspat4 expect t o see Marayana when even these r.s* i s had been denied a v i s i o n ? Here
the
narrative
returns
to
the
scene
of
Wsu
And so Brhaspati concl uded Upari c a r a l s horse s a c r i f i c e * Some time 1a t e r s t h e k i n g went t o heaven,
f e l l j n t o he11 .
b u t subsequently
Because h i s devotion t o NarZyana continued
w i t h a u t in t e r r u p t i on *
he reached heaven agai n and eventual 1y
went t o t h e realm o f brahman.
53. Conversation between t h e p . s i s and t h e deitiesJt8
Narrator: Audi ence:
.
6hZsnta
.
Yudhi s .t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
Yudhisthira asked t3hisma
to te?? him why Vasu
328at rapyudaharantintanti ti hasam purZtanam/ rsznarn c a i v a samvZSdam t r i d a s ~ n ~ca m bharata//l2.324.2
.. .
339 Uparicara fe 1 1 from heaven i f he a lways worshipped Narayana.
Once t h e gods d i r e c t e d brahmans t o use o n l y goats t h e i r sacrifices,
in
b u t t h e brahmans argued t h a t i t was proper
o n l y t o use vegetable matter.
As they t a l ked,
King Vasu
happened t o be passing by, so t h e brahmans put t h e question t o him
-
a k i n 9 very experienced w i t h s a c r i f i c e s .
sided w i t h t h e gods, heavenÃ
When Vasu
t h e brahmans cursed him t o f a l l
He d i d so immediately.
from
Although t h e d e i t i e s c o u l d
n o t remove t h e curse, t h e y promised t h e i r a l l y t h a t he would be as comfortable as p o s s i b l e meanwhile.
I n p a r t i c u l a r , they
granted him the energy t o continue h i s worship o f NarSyana. The god was so pleased w i t h Vasu t h a t he sent Garuda t o bear t h e k i n g back t o heaven* 54. Naradat s v i s i o n o f R J a r ~ ~ a n( 1a2.324.37~~~ 326.1241 Narrator:
B h i sma
t h i r a and t h e assembled s u r v i vors Audi ence : Yudhi s *
Fol7owing t h e s t o r y o f King Vasu 's curse, Bh2sma immediately began t o recount t h i s indicates,
the
story
v i r t u a l l y every other
is
tale.
extensively
As
lauded,
the
footnote
mureso
than
such s t o r y , but o f course less than the
3 2 9 ~ l t h o u gnone h o f t h e common words f o r s t o r y introduces t h i s t a l e , i t i s subsequently r e f e r r e d t o as a r a t h e r special one, presumably because i t i s about V i snu. idam mahopanisadam caturvedasamanvitarn/~2.326.100ab narayanamukhodgitam M r a d o t6ravayatpunah/12.326.101ab s u r a i r v a muni bhi r v a p i puranam y a i ridam Sbutam/12.326.112ab idamakhyznamarseyam paramparyagatam nrpa/12.326.113ab matto ' nyani c i t e r a j a n n u p a k h y ~ n a i a t a n ivai /12.326.114ab
Mbh i t s e l f .
Once N8rada t r a v e l e d t o White I s l a n d , granted a v i s i o n o f Narayana.
.
He began t o meditate,
Visnu w i t h a r e c i t a t i o n o f h i s names, w i sh
.
wishing t o
be
honoring
and was granted h i s
Narayana asked what f u r t h e r boons he woul d 1ike,
but
Narada rep1fed t h a t he had r e c e i v e d t h e b e s t p o s s i b l e one. Nar-a
then revealed more about h i s nature t o Narada.
He
d e t a i 1 ed h i s in c a r n a t i ons in successi ve eras, p a s t and f u t u r e , and then disappeared. Here f o r t h e
first time i n t h e moksadharma s e c t i o n o f the
Santiparvan the n a r r a t i v e e x i t s t o t h e snake s a c r i f i c e s t o r y , where t h e s t o r y
frame
o f Maradars conversation w i t h Marayam
i s further discussed.330 55. Why humans p e r f o r m s a c r i f ices331[I 2.327.15-
Narrator:
VaiSampayana
Audi ence :
Janamej aya
Janamejaya remarked that moksadharma seemed v e r y
330 Srutvai tadakhyanavaram dharmadjanamejaya/ bhmtara6casya t e s a k e narayanaparabhavan//12.326.121 Eleven mss. i n s e r t verses t h a t e x i t t o t h e n a r r a t i v e l e v e l o f t h e N a i m i sa Forest frame s t o r y . $antiparvan e d i t o r s r e t a i n t h e 13 adhyaya i n which t h i s occurs o n l y r e l u c t a n t l y , f o r a1though t h e y i n t e r p r e t t h e s h i f t o f n a r r a t i v e l e v e l s here as an in d i c a t i o n o f l a t e a d d i t i o n t o t h e Mbh, they a r e f o r c e d t o i n c l u d e t h e m a t e r i a l s i n c e a1 1 mss. (except t h e Malayalam v e r s i o n ) i n c l u d e t h e acfhywas. Moreover, since, as t h e y note, h m k a r a quotes verses from t h i s section, t h e y i n c l u d e i t i n the c r it i c a l text.
he s t o r y i s i n t r o d u c e d w i t h t h e word pura ( l o n g ago) a t 12.327.15b.
341
diFFicu7-t -to prac-tice and asked why sacriFices are oFFered -to -the gods. One day,
Vai ~a'!lp&yana and
the other four students
Vyasa had asked their teacher the same question. his reply by
of
Vy&sa began
recounting the origins and genealogy
of the
deities at the beginning of the cosmic cycle.
After Brahm&
created
assignments.
them,
the
gods
asked
for
their
Initially, he instructed them to undertake sacrifices for his benefit.
Brahma
was
very pleased
wi th
the
resu 1 ts,
and
declared that they, too, would benefit from the performance of sacrifices.
He named their duties and the gods departed.
Brahma then performed his own sacrifice, and the deity with a horse's head appeared before him.
He assured Brahma
that he would come to assist him when necessary, incarnate in some appropriate form.
Vy&sa urged his students to worship
Visnu devotedly. 56. The significance of Visnu's names 3n [12.328.10330.71] Narrator:
Vai~a'!lpayana
Audience:
Janamejaya
When Janamejaya asked
Vai§a~p.yana
to exp7ain the
332brahmansumahadakhyanam bhavata pari ki rti tam/ yacchrutva munayah sa'rve vi smayam paramam gatah/ /12.331 . 1 ' " idam'~atasahasr&ddhi bharat&khy&navistarat/ amathya matimanthena jnanodadhimanuttamam//12.331.2 samuddhrtamidam brahmankathamrtamanuttamam/ tvayokta'!l hi naraya~akatha~rayam//12.331.4
taponid~e
significance o f recited t o h i s
the
many names o f
students,
Visnu which * .
VaitSampmna told
Vyma
had
him how Visnu r
c
himse 7 f had answered t h a t question when Arjuna had asked i t o f
him.
.
Visnu
told
Arjuna
of
his
relationship
with
i n d i c a t i n g t h a t he and Siva were one and t h e same.
Rudra,
He b r i e f l y
e x p l a i ned why he was c a l l ed Narayana, Kegava, Damodara, and so
on.
When he mentioned t h e complementary n a t u r e of t h e d e i t i e s
Agni and Soma, Arjuna i n q u i r e d how t h a t had t r a n s p i r e d . a. The i d e n t i t y o f Agni and Soma,
.
and Visnu . as
H.r .s i k e ~ [I a 2.329.2-330.41 ~ ~ ~ Narrator:
VaiSampZIyana
Audi ence :
Janamej aya
This s t o r y concern t h e a c t s o f A g n i
-- r e a l l y a set o f s t o r i e s said t o and Soma - f s f l a n k e d by capsule ..
s t o r i e s explaining how Visnu acquired a number o f h i s o t h e r
names. A s the universe developed from undi f f e r e n t i ated brahman,
Soma and Agni were born from t h e eyes o f Purusa. s a i d Visnu,
brahmans a r e a c t u a l l y Soma and
En f a c t ,
ksatrfyas
are
actual l y Agni , w i t h t h e brahmans as the e l d e r and t h e r e f o r e superior o f t h e t w o groups. the sacrifice, brahmans.
Visnu . * explained Agni * s r o l e i n
and went on t o discuss t h e s u p e r i o r i t y
of
He then recounted a s e r i e s o f s t o r i e s beginning
h a n t a t e war-tayi sySrni puranam pSndunandana/ mama//12.329.2 Stmatejodbhavam p a r t h a ~ ,r .n u s v ak'a'man~ i
.
343
w i t h some o f I n d r a *s c o n f l i c t s w i t h brahmans, moving t o h i s murder o f the brahman V i SvZrupa, h i s shame and expulsion,
and
h i s eventual
the
restoration
t o heaven w i t h
brahman and p r i e s t of t h e gods, Brhaspati
.
t h e help o f
Visnu . . then turned
t o s t o r i e s about Soma. V i snu c o n t i nued w i t h b r i e f expl a n a t i ons o f t h e i r names,
i n c l u d i ng A j a ,
..
V a i kmtha,
and others.
The segment concl uded
w i t h a s t o r y o f a b a t t l e between Siva and Visnu . which was resolved when Siva cooled h i s anger and V i snu . declared t h a t they were identi c a l
.
57. What Narada discussed w i t h Nara and NSrZiyana a f t e r
h i s v i s i on o f Narrator :
Vai SampSyana
Audi ence :
Janamejaya
[ I 2.331 .19-334.171
Janamejaya asked w h a t Narada had discussed w i t h Mara
and Narayana when he v i s i t e d them fol7owing h i s v i s i o n o f
Narzyana.
Fa1 lowing t h e experience o f h i s v i s i o n , NSrada returned t o t h e Himalayas where he came upon Nara and Narayana.
He
observed t h a t they resembled the d e i t y i n h i s v i s i o n . A s i t happened,
t h e two d e i t i e s asked Nsrada i f he had
seen Narayana, so he described h i s experience t o them. t o l d him t h a t i n f a c t t h e y already knew o f h i s v i s i o n .
They Narada
remained w i t h them f o r one thousand years, worshipping Narayana.
^name
bhagavate tasrnai vyasayami t a t e j ase/ yasya prasadadvaksyami narSyanakathamiMm//12m331.19
344
Once, as he dwel l e d there,
Nara asked Nmada what he
sought t o g a i n from h i s devotions.
.
The r s f s a i d he performed
them u l t i m a t e l y t o NarZfyana, a1though h i s o f f e r i n g s were made to
the
gods.
He
then asked
Nara
and Narayana why
ancestors were c a l l e d pinda. * * a. The o r i g i n o f t h e ancestors335[ I 2.331 . I 1
the
-
331 - 2 5 1
Narrators:
Nara and NZfrayana
Audi ence :
NSrada
Once,
long ago, t h e e a r t h sank,
and Visnu .. (in
t h e form o f a boar) restored her t o her proper l o c a t i o n i n t h e
universe.
As t h e t i m e drew near f o r h i s prayers, he was s t i 11
covered w i t h mud and water from h i s work,
f r o m h i s tusks.
his rituals,
so he shook the mud
It f e l l o f f i n three balls.
A s he performed
he declared t h a t t h e small mudballs should be
cal l e d p i t r (ancestor) and he made them h i s o f f e r i n g . that
t i m e on,
the
ancestors
have
been t h e
From
recipients
of
worship. NSrada then l e f t t o r e t u r n t o h i s own hermitage i n the Hima1ayas
. ..
5 8 . Why V i snu appeared t o Brahma as a horse's head336
"%he word pOrvam (former1y) i n t r o d u c e s t h i s s t o r y i n the c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n a t 12.333.11a. ' - k a t h a y i syami t e sarvam puranaamvedasamtni tam/ jagau yadbhagavanvy~sbr a j f i b dharmasukasya vai//12.335.7 yo hyetadbrahmano nityam 6rnuyaddhmayeta va/ na tasyadhyayanam na~amupa~acchetkad~cana//12.335.70 etaddhayasi ro r Z j annakhy~namt a v a k i r t itam/
[I2.335.7-335.721
Narrator :
Sauti
Audience:
Saunaka
When Saunaka asked why Visnu had taken t h e form of 8
.
a h o r s e ' s head when a p p e a r i n g t o B r a h n ~ , Sauti told t h e
same
s t o r y V a J S a m p w a had recounted t o P a r f k s f t when he asked t h e
same quest ion. Vai Sampayana expl a i ned
the
re1a t i onshi p
among
elements and the o r i g i n o f the universe from p r a k F .
When
t h e demons Madhu and Kaitabha s t o l e t h e Vedas,
Brahma was
He thought o f Visnu. however, and worshipped him i n
alarmed.
t h e hope o f gaining h i s assistance. a horset s
head.
perform yoga.
He went
.
V i snu awoke and assumed
t o t h e underworld and began t o
Hearing t h e wonderful
sounds he made,
the
demons dropped t h e Vedas and ran t o determine t h e source o f t h o s e sounds.
Visnu rescued t h e Vedas and r e t u r n e d them t o * #
Brahma.
Upon t h e i r r e t u r n ,
t h e demons s a w t h a t t h e Vedas were
gone, so t h e y returned t o t h e cosmic l o t u s from which they had been born.
There they s a w Visnu sleeping. s .
They woke him up,
wondering who he was, b u t a l s o hoping f o r a good f i g h t , and so
.
Visnu became known as MadhusUdana, t h e k i l l e r o f Madhu. 59. The o r i g i n o f ekantadharma, t h e dhariha of devotion
t o a s i n g l e deity337[12.336.11-336*61] Narrator:
NZirada
Audi ence :
A r j una
.
V i snu himsel f was t h e fir s t t o perform t h e r i t e s o f
t h i s dharma when Brahma was
..
various r s i s ,
born.
It was t r a n s m i t t e d t o
occasional l y b e i n g l o s t but always r e s t o r e d *
NZrada detai l e d i t s 1ineage through t h e ages. 60
Vyasat s b i r t h from ~
~
r
Narrator :
VyZsa
Audience:
His f i v e p u p i l s
a [ 12.337.15-337.581 ~ a ~ a ~ ~
When Janamejaya asked t o hear t h e story a f VyZlsa 's
birth,
VaiSampayana t o l d
i t as he had h e a d t h e t a l e
from
Once Vyasa was very t i r e d due t o the d i ff i c u l t y o f h i s tapas and h i s e f f o r t s a t composing t h e hlbh. from
t h e i r 1earni ng 8
Taking a break
t h e students asked Vyasa t o 4 n t e r p r e t
c e r t a i n things f o r them8 and then t o t e l l
them o f h i s own
b irth. When Brahms was born from V i snu . ' s navel , he grew nervous
337~1though t h i s t a l e i s n o t speci f i c a l l y i d e n t i f i e d as a s t o r y in t h e c r i t i c a l t e x t 8 Vai Sampayana noted i t s a n t i q u i t y and a u t h e n t i c i t y by c i t i n g i t s tkansmission from Wrada t o VySsa t o Vaigampayana.
~
when Visnu . . i n s t r u c t e d him t o proceed w i t h c r e a t i o n .
..
Visnu
summoned t h e goddess Buddhi ( 3 n t e l l e c t } , in s t r u c t e d her t o r e s i d e i n Brahm&
and so enabled Brahms t o
c a r r y out h i s
w i shes.
A f t e r awhilel
.
Visnu . n o t i c e d t h a t t h e e a r t h was g r e a t l y
burdened by t h e weight o f c r e a t u r e s l o f a snake t o support t h e e a r t h
r s f named Apantaratamas.
l
and so he t e a k t h e form
.
Then V i snu c a l l e d t o I i f e a
When he promptly arranged t h e Vedas
a t V i snu* . . s commandl t h e god was so pleased t h a t he declared
..
t h e r s i should perform t h e same t a s k i n each e r a *
..
The psi
would be born as t h e son o f P a r ~ g a r ai n t h e K a l i e r a and would
.
recognize Visnu, who would be reborn as Krsna. s
.
a
*
And
SO
VySsa
t o l d h i s pupi 1s t h e deta* Is o f h i s own b i r t h * 61
.
Conversation between Braha3 and S i va339 [12.338e8-33§*21 Narrator:
Vytisa
Audi ence :
Vai Samp2Iyana
Oncel
Ocean
as 8rahma s a t alone t h i n k i n g i n t h e M i lk
h i s son $ va ii came t o ask why he p r e f e r r e d to be o f f by
himself.
When Brahma r e p l i e d t h a t he went t h e r e t o meditate
an pUrUSaa Siva asked i f
indeed t h e r e was o n l y one purusa.
BrahmS t h e n descri bed t h e a t t r i b u t e s o f mahapu~usa, id e n t i c a l
339at rapyudaharantimami ti hasam puratanam/ brahmana saha samvsdam tryambakasya vi&iSrn pate//j22.338.8
62. Conversation between Narada and ~ n d r a ~ ~ '
[12m340e4-353-9] Narrator: Audi ence: After
Bh?sma
.
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembl ed s u r v i v o r s
discussing
the
of
topic
NSrSyana,
Va i8ampayana cant h u e d w i t h the f e 1 Iowfng s t o r y wh fch had been
prcmpted
Yudhf s, t.h f ra @s quest i o n
by
about
duties
the
appruprfate t o peop 1e i n varfaus stages o f ? f f e A
brahman
named
Rharmaranya
Mahapadma near t h e Ganges River. h i gh1 y respected,
householder
in
the
town
of
He was extreme1y devout and
b u t he harbored s e r i o u s doubts regarding
w M c h dharma h e should f o l l o w :
for
1i v e d
brahmansI
t h a t p r e s c r i b e d i n t h e Vedas that
p r e s c r i bed
in
the
dharmaS8stras, o r t h e example o f exemplary men o f t h e p a s t . One day,
a
very
learned brahman
came t o h i s
hause*
OharmZranya we1 comed h i s guest and 1 a t e r consulted him on t h f s
t r a u b l i n g matter.
The guest confessed t h a t heI
perplexed by t h e same questionsm
too,
It so happened,
was
however,
that the teacher o f t h i s guest had t o l d him o f a g r e a t nags named Padmanabha o r Padma who l i v e d i n a c i t y on t h e banks o f
340apica tvam naravyaghra Srotumarhasi me kathSm/ pura Sakrasya k a t h i tam naradena s u r a r s i na//12.340.4
. .
tasmai rSjansurendrZya narado wadatam varahi ~ snSyopapanniKya i proktavanvi pu1 a m katham//t Z.WO.lO yatha yena ca kalpena sa tasmai dvijasattamah/ 2.340.11 tvamapi me Srnu//t * kathsm k a t h i tavanprstastatha ,
.
.
t a t h a i va ca kathSmtSm r S j ankathi tavi#nstad&f/lZ. 353. Zcd bhZrgavenapi r aj e n d r i j anakasya n i ve&ane/12 353 3ab l
l
349
t h e Gomat:
River*
Surely t h a t nag& would have t h e answer
Dharmaranya was d e l i g h t e d t o hear t h i s , guest departed,
and,
promptly s e t out f o r t h a t c i t y .
when h i s
Arriving a t
t h e nagat s house, he w a s t o l d by Padmanabhags w i f e t h a t her husband would n o t r e t u r n For anather f i f t e e n days. helping p u l l
SUryat s c a r t .
He was
Dharmaranya p o l it e l y asked t h e
woman t o i n f o r m Padmanabha t h a t he wished t o see him, and t h e
brafvnan went o u t s i d e o f town t o w a i t by t h e r i v e r b a n k A11 o f t h e nagas were very upset when they learned t h a t
t h e brahman was i n t h e f o r e s t .
They begged h h t o accept
t h e i r h o s p i t a l it y , but he p o l it e l y refused f a r the t i m e being* s i nce he had undertaken a f a s t .
He promised t o t a k e food from
them i f PadmanSbha d i d n o t r e t u r n on t h e f i f t e e n t h dayThe naga d i d r e t u r n home as expecteds and learned from
h i s w i f e about a1 1 t h e bad occurred i n h i s absence. t h e brahman expected him t o
insulted t h a t forest.
Shouldnf t
He was
gu o u t t o t h e
a mere human being come t o
him?
His
sensi b1e w i f e p o i n t e d o u t t h a t the brahman was a guest, and deserved c e r t a i n a t t e n t i o n s .
SO
Padmartabha acknowl edged her
p o i n t , and s e t o f f t o meet DharmSranya. When t h e y
met,
Dharmaranya f i r s t
asked t h e
nags t o
describe t h e s i g h t s he had seen w h i l e a t t e n d i n g t o Sarya* Padmanabha ob1 ig i ngl y
d e s c r i bed SUrya h i msel f , and t o 1d
a
remarkable s t o r y * One day
a t noon,
everyone n o t i c e d something
SUrya w j t h a b r i 11iance t h a t matched h i s own.
approach
They greeted
350
each other and merged.
Amazed. they asked SDrya who it was.
This was a brahman who had observed the uflcha vow. living on water or air alone for days and days. and so reached heaven. When the story was finished,
Dharmara~ya
began to take
leave of the n.ga. who coaxed him to disclose the initial reason for his visit.
Dharm.ra~ya
replied that Padmanabha's
story had removed his doubts, and left to begin his practice of the uncha vow. Here concludes the
~ant;parvan
section of the Mbh.
13.
Section about t h e in s t r u c t i on [anuSasanaparvaN A.
Section on t h e dharma o f g i v i n g [dSnadharmaparvaJ 113.1-13.1523
.
As the parvan opens, Yudhfsthira t e l l s Bhfsma t h a t he , simply cannot r e c o n c i l e himself
t o the c o s t s o f t h e w a r just
concluded, especia7 7y h i s own p a r t i n k i l l i n g Bhisma.
How
could he ever e x p i a t e such sins? 1
. Conversati on (Time),
between Mrtyu (Death)
t h e b i rd-catcher,
,
Gautami , KZl a
and t h e serpent3''
(13.1.9-1.651
Narrator :
Bhisma
Audiewe:
Yudhi s* .t h i r a
Ohisma r e p l i e d t h a t Yudhisthira was mistaken about r t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p between h i s sou7 and h i s a c t i o n s .
He t o l d
t h e fo77owing s t o r y t o show t h a t no f a u l t lay with e i t h e r t h e
,.
Pandavas or the Kauravas, for Kala (Time] a lone was t h e cause of w h a t had t r a n s p i r e d . Once t h e son o f an o l d woman named Gautami d i e d of
snakebite.
a
An in d i gnant b i rd-catcher named A r j unaka caught
t h e snake and brought i t t o Gautami, asking how she wanted i t
t o be k i l l e d .
Gautams asked t h e bird-catcher t o release t h e
snake, f o r her son's death was meant t o be. a t t a c h t o t h e ani m a 1
.
No blame should
The b i rd-catcher t r i e d t o convi nce her
t h a t she would f e e l b e t t e r if her sont s death were avenged,
a t r a p y u d a h a r a n t i a a m i t i hasam pupatanam/ samvadam mrtyugautamyoh k S h l ubdhakapannagaih//13.1.9
352 and that its death waul d
save other peopl e
whom it
waul d
otherwise bite. Gautami spoke up.
remained
M~tyu
steadfast.
and eventua 11 y the snake
(Death) had ordered him to kill the boy.
The
bi rd-catcher refused to accept the snake I s argument that
M~tyu
himself was the cause and the snake merely the agent,
even
when
the
snake used
the
sacrifices on behalf of a
analogy of yajam~na,
a
pri est
who
offers
who earns the merit.
Then Mrtyu appeared to defend himself, claiming that he acted only at the instigation of Kala (Time) and could not be held ultimately responsible, either. adamant:
both the snake and
M~tyu
But the bird-catcher was were responsible for the
child's death. Kala then appeared among the discussants and explained that ; t
was the chi 1 diS
own
karma that
caused hi s
death.
Gautami agreed with Kala, adding that her son's death was also the
frui t
of
her
former
act ions.
The
bird-catcher
was
convinced, at last, and so should Yudhisthira be at ease and not hold himself responsible. 2. The story of Sudar~ana [sudar§anoP~khy.namJ342 3~pitamaha mahaprajfta sarva§astravi§arada/ ~rutam me mahadakhyanamidam matimatBm vara//13.2.1 bhDyastu ~rotumicchBmi dharmarthasah;tam nrpa/ kathyamana~ tvaya ki~cittanme vyakhyatumarhasi//13.2.2
atrapyudaharantimamitihasam puratanam/ yatha mrtyurgrhasthena dharmama§ritya nirjitah//13.2.4 . .
.
etatte kathitam putra mayakhyanamanuttamam/ yatha hi vijito mrtyurgrhasthena purabhavat//13.2.93 dhanya~ ya§asyam.Yu~yam;dam.khyanamuttamam/
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Y u d h i s* t h i r a
..
and
Y u d h i s t h i r a w a s i n t r i g u e d by Bhisma 's s t o r y , inquired
any householder
whether
had
ever
overcome
Mrtyu
through v i r t u e .
There was a g r e a t k i n g named Duryodhana who was a p e r f e c t With t h e R i v e r Narmada he had a b e a u t i f u l
r u l e r i n every way.
daughter whom he named SudarSanS
a brahman) wanted t o marry her, unworthy.
Agni h i m s e l f (disguised as b u t her f a t h e r thought
Agni d i sappeared from Duryodhana*s s a c r i f ice.
t h e k i n g learned why,
him When
he g l a d l y gave SudarSanS t o him i n
marriage, provided t h a t Agni would agree always t o remain i n t h e k i ngdom o f Mahi smati
Soon SudarganS. they
a
son
named
Sudar6ana
was
born
to
Agni
and
The boy married Oghavati, daughter o f a king, and
l i v e d together
overcome
=
Mrtyu
in
Kuruksetra.
through
faultless
Agni * s son performance
vowed of
to the
householder ' s dharma, and in s t r u c t e d h i s w i f e to be scrupulous i n her duties,
as w e l l .
Mrtyu kept a d o s e watch on Sudarsana. had gone t o
gather
wood,
One day, when he
a brahman came t o
h i s dwelling
.
Seei ng t h e beauti f u l Oghavati , he wanted
o n l y t o have sexual
i n t e r c o u r s e w i t h her and would n o t be
seeki ng h o s p i t a l it y
d i s t r a c t e d by her o t h e r o f f e r s .
D u t i f u l t o h e r husband, she
354
compl ied, despi t e her intense shame. SudarSana
returned while
t h e two
readi ly consented t o t h e act.
together,
and
d e c l a r i n g himself t r u e t o h i s
brahman came f o r t h
The
vow.
were
and revealed himself
t o be
Dharma, c o n g r a t u l a t i n g Sudarsana f o r having passed t h e god's t e s t o f h i s behavior and i n t e n t i o n .
He declared Oghavati
uncfefi led by t h e experience due t o her devotion and announced t h a t Sudarsana and h i s w i f e had indeed conquered Mrtyu. 3 . The s t o r y o f V i SvZmi t r a [ v i ~ v ~ m i t r ~ a k h ~ m a m f i ^
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence :
Yudhi s thir a * .
Fo 1 lowing Bhisma 's s t o r y
..
Yudhisthira
asked
how
the
about
ksatrfya
t h e householder,
Vi6v3mftra
became
a
brahman.
.
Bhisma t o 1d Yudhi s t h i r a t h e s t o r y o f V i Svami t r a ' s b i r t h . K i ng Gadhi,
o f t h e Bharata clan, desi red a son,
but instead
had an e x t r a o r d i n a r y daughter whom he named Satyavati. Bhrgu Rcika,
The
son o f Cyavana, wanted t o marry her, b u t Gadhi
thought he w a s t o o poor. m a r r y Satyavatz
,
The k i n g promised t h a t Rcika could
however, i f Rcika would g i v e her f a t h e r one
thousand w h i t e horses,
each w i t h
a b l a c k ear,
as a b r i d e
price.
With t h e a i d o f Varuna,
T h e word 13.4.1b.
pura
who declared t h a t the horses
(long ago)
introduces t h i s s t o r y
at
355 would come into existence whenever Rcika thought about them, Rcika watched the horses emerge from the Ganges River. When they married.
~cika
was so pleased with Satyavati
that he offered to grant her a boon.
She told her mother. who
asked that Satyavati request a boon for her, too. namely the birth of a
son.
instructed
both
~cika
to
agreed to Satyavati's request.
bathe.
Satyavati
should
embrace
and an
udumbara tree and her mother an a§vat:t:ha tree. and then should
drink the sacrificial
offering he had prepared for each of
them. Satyavati's mother insisted that they exchange trees and sacri fi ci al preparat; ons gi ven by
~ci
Satyavati 's son to be super; or to hers.
ka,
thi nki ng he meant
Satyavati agreed. and
both women became pregnant. When Rcika learned of the exchange.
he told Satyavati
that her action would have unpleasant consequences: gi ve
bi rth
to
a
k~a1:rjya
and
her
mother
to
a
She would brahman.
Satyavati begged that the effect be postposed to affect her grandson, and so
~cika
agreed.
Satyavati's son was Jamadagni and her mother's son was Vi~vam;tra,
a
k~atrjya
who became a brahman in fulfillment of
Rcika's original intent for Satyavati's child. 4. The conversation between Vasava
(Indra) and the
parrot ~uka [§ukaVlfsavasa'!'vlfdaJ;lJ 31.4 [13.5.2-5.31] 344-rhe cri ti cal edi ti on g; ves no ti tl e for thi s story, however the editors note comparisons with J.taka 429, mahlfsukajlftaka.
Narrator :
6hZ sma
Audi ence :
Yudhi s *t h i r a
.
Yudh f s *t h f pa asked t o hear t h e qua 7 f tf es o f a devaut person, and so Bhfsma t o l d t h e f o ?7 a w f r r ~s t o r y . A hunter went i n t o t h e f o r e s t one day w i t h p o i sohed
arrowsB i n t e n d i n g t o k i l l a d e e r *
His arrow missed i t s mark
and instead k i 11ed a 1arge t r e e in which a p a r r o t had 1i v e d i t s e n t i r e 1iFe.
Devoted t o t h a t t r e e
itself
hunger because
dying of
t h e p a r r o t remai nedI
could
it
not
abandon
the
be1oved tree. I n d r a was
enormaus1y
impressed w i t h
this
d i s p l ay
of
compassionJ and so took t h e form o f a brahman and went t o question the b i r d mare c l o s e l y . a t onceI
d e s p i t e h i s disguise.
had she1tered him a1 1 h i s 1 i f e now?
The p a r r o t recognized I n d r a He t o l d I r i d r a t h a t t h e t r e e so how c o u l d he abandon i t
When I n d r a o f f e r e d i t a boonB the p a r r o t asked t h a t t h e
tree be revived, and When i t died,
SQ
i t was r e s t o r e d -
t h e p a r r o t went t o
consequence o f it s compassi onate a c t 5.
I n c i r a p s heaven as a
.
The r e l a t i v e s t r e n g t h o f f a t e and human e f f o r t 3 4 5 l13.6.2-6-49] Narrator :
BhZ sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s 't h i r a
.
Y u d h f s* t h f r a fnqufred about t h e r e 7 a t i v e s t r e n s t h t i hasam puratanam/ 345atrapyudaharantimami vasi sthasya ca 'samv~dain b*2 yudhi s t h i ra//13*~
..
b rahmanasea
357
of
fate
and human e f f o r t .
In
rep7y,
Bhisma recounted t h e
fo 7 70wfffg conversation between Brahm3i and Vasistha . * on t h e vepy same question.
Brahma explained t h a t f r u i t s a r e good o r bad accord3 nQ t o t h e qua1 it y o f t h e seeds p l a n t e d
-
Fate w i t h a u t correspondi ng
a c t i an an t h e p a r t o f indi v i dual s is t o no avai 1 1 eft unsown.
1i Ice a seed
Good deeds l e a d t o m e r i t , but w i t h o u t them one
g a i ns n o t h i ng.
Even Visnus w h o
acted to b a t t l e
demonss
practiced t a p a s . 0rahmZ gave many exampl es o f we1 1-known k i ngs and sages who had reaped t h e f r u i t s o f t h e i r own a c t i o n s s good o r illg Fate can have no in f 1 uence w i t h o u t actions, so i t is power1ess in
itself. 6.
The d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e f r u i t s o f karma [karmaphalavarnanam] [13.71 YudhisthWa then asked about the f r u i t s o f good * w
a c t ions. 7 . The d e s c r i p t i on 09 honorabl e men [pOjyavarnanam]
.
Y u d h i s* t h i r a asked
which
individua7s
one
shou?d
consider s u p e r i ~ r . 8. The conversation between a jackal and a monkey
Narrator :
0 h i sma
358 Audience:
Yudhisthira
Yudhi~!=hira
1:hen asked what happens i'F peop7e 'Fai7
to make giF1:s to brahmans as promised.
In rep7y, Bhisma t07d
the 'F0770wing story. A monkey and a jackal had been human beings -- and close fri ends -- ina former 1 i fe.
One day, the monkey saw the
jackal eating a dead animal and asked what he could possibly have done in a former life to bring him to such a state.
The
jackal replied that he had failed to keep his promise to give a gift to a brahman.
When he asked the same question of the
monkey, the jackal learned that the monkey used to steal from brahmans. 9. The prohibition against instructing the low-born
[ni casYOpade!;ani~edha,!}347 [13.10.3-10.60] Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira
Yudhis1:hira asked whe1:her it was permissib7e to give instruc1:ion 1:0 low-born persons.
Bhisma rep7ied that he
had once heard rsis 'Forbid it, and 1:o7d the 'F0770wing s1:ory. Once, in a hermitage in the Himalayas, there lived many beings devoted to ascetic practices.
One day,
a !;Ddra
347 atra te vartayi syami §rnu raj anyathagamam/ r~i~a~ vadata~ porva~ §rutamasidyatha maya//13.10.3
nidar§anamidam
raja~§rnu
me bharatarsabha/ pOrvam yudh;sthira/ brahma§ramapade vrttam par§ve ~imavata~ §ubhe//13.10.5 Here the term nidar§ana is used ; n the general sense of instruction, and does not refer to a type of story. duruktavacane'rajanyat~a
359
visited and was duly welcomed.
When he asked to be allowed to
undertake ascetic practices himself. the group leader refused, sayi ng that the §Odra mi ght rather serve the other-s.
Not
satisfied. the §Ddra went a short distance from that hermitage and began to engage in meditation, and so on. After a very
long time,
r:~i
happened
He was so pl eased wi th thei r
§Ddra.
began to visit regularly. how
a
to
conduct
the
to visit
conversati on
One day, the §Ddra asked
§r~ddha
rites,
the
ritual
the
that he ~o
for
learn one's
ancestors (the practice of which is restriced to tw;ce-born men) .
Knowi ng it was wrong to instruct the §Ddra. the rsi di d
so anyway. The §Ddra lived out his life in his small hermitage and was reborn as a k!!a'triya.
The rsi was reborn as a brahman who
achieved great learning. but nevertheless in a lower state of spiritual accomplishment. When the
k~a1:ri ya
man
became
ki ng,
he
appoi nted
the
brahman as his priest.
He would always smile when the priest
performed appropriate
rituals.
and so
one day
the
priest
(feeling that the king was laughing at him) asked about this behavior.
The king told him the story of their former- lives.
and explained that he was amused to see the condition of the former rsi.
Because he also regretted that he· had fared so
much better. the ki ng offered the pri est whatever means he would require to focus his efforts on ensuring that he would not further lose station in his next life.
And so the priest
went t o the very same hermitage i n which he had l i v e d i n h i s former l i f e , and devoted himself t o a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s . 10. The dwell ing-places
o f S r i [Sriyo
Narrator :
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s . *t h i r a
Y u d h i* s. t h f r a
asked
in
what
kind
of person
6rz
dwe7 7 s
When
she
saw
the
beautiful
p r i ncess Rukmi n i asked t h e same question o f her.
by explaining t h a t
Sri,
goddess
6 r i repli e d
she stayed only w i t h m e n w h o
dharma and c o n t r o l 1ed t h e i r emoti ons.
the
observed
She stayed on1y w i t h
women w h o were t r u t h f u l , devoted t o t h e i r husbands, and so on.
She went on t o 1is t a number o f o t h e r dwell ing-places, sacrifices,
lotuses,
such as
and so on.
11. The s t o r y o f BhartgaSvana [bhang~vanopakhymamJ^ Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
.
[ 13.12.2-1 2.49
1
..
Y u d h i s't h i r a asked
whether men o r
women d e r i v e
g r e a t e r p l e a s u r e f r o m sexua 7 intercourse, and Bhisma repl i e d with t h e following s t o r y .
Once t h e c h i l d l e s s King Bhartgaavana performed an
"'atra
...
t e v a r t a y i syami yathadrstam yathSSrutam/13.11.2ab
349atr3wudaharantimamiti hasam purZtanam/ bhartgaSvanena Sakrasya y a t h ~vairamabhUtpura//13.12.2
361
agnistuta
sacrifice
in
order
to
have
successful and he had one hundred sons. a 1 ways great 1 y
i nsu1 ted when
children.
It
was
Indra, however, was
that sacri fi ce
was performed
because its worship focused on Agni and did not include him. He determined to get revenge. One day when the king went hunting alone, Indra clouded his mind so that he lost his way and rode helplessly through the forest.
Tired and thirsty, the king came to a lake and
immersed himself. woman.
When he stepped out, he had turned into a
Although deeply ashamed,
he returned to his court,
told the whole story. then departed to live in the forest. In the forest s/he met an ascetic and bore one hundred sons.
Taking those children to the kingdom, s/he instructed
the one hundred sons to live together in peace. Indra was displeased to see that his intended punishment had turned out so well, and so he took the form of a brahman and set the two groups of children against each other.
They
went to war and all were killed. When the
fema1 e
asceti c
children, she grieved deeply.
1 earned of
the death
of her
Indra, disguised as a brahman,
visited her and heard the entire story of her transformation. When Indra disclosed that he was the cause of this misfortune, the woman sought his forgiveness for the unintended insult. Indra then
asked
which
brought back to life.
group of
children
she would
like
The woman replied that she felt greater
affection for those born to her as a woman.
362
Pleased w i t h her honesty,
I n d r a brought a l l two hundred
c h i l d r e n back t o l i f e . t h e n o f f e r e d t o r e s t o r e her masculine gender.
The woman asked t o remain female because women d e r i v e
much more p l e a s u r e from sexual i n t e r c o u r s e t h a n men,
and so
she remai ned.
.
Y u d h i s t h i r a and Bhisma then discussed i n b r i e f how one should
behave,
fo7 Towed
greatness o f Mahadeva.
by
Bhfsma Is
remarks
about
the
Because he did not fee7 a b l e t o speak
.
knowledgeably about S i v a , Bhisma asked Krsna t o do so. ,
12. The s t o r y o-f Upamanyu [upamanv~akhflnam]350 [13.14.11-17.1691 Narrator:
Krsna * * *
Audi ence:
B h i sma and Yudhi s .t h i r a
.
Krsna's w i f e Rukmi n i had a number o f e x t r a o r d i n a r y . * * sons, but h i s wiFe JSmbavatT had none. him a d e s i r e f o r a son,
When she expressed t o
Krsna agreed and went o f f *
Himalayas t o p u r i f y h i m s e l f .
a
.
t o the
He s e t t l e d i n t o a b e a u t i f u l
.
hermi tage where t h e r s f Upamanyu resided.
Upamanyu p r e d i c t e d
t h a t Krsna would have an e x t r a o r d i n a r y son, and t o l d him t h e a
*
.
i11u s t r i o u s h i s t o r y o f t h a t hermitage and t h e boons o b t a i ned by those w h o had worshipped S i v a t h e r e .
a. Upamanyufs v i s i o n o f ~ Narrator:
i
v [13.14.70-14.1991 a ~ ~ ~
Upamanyu
his s t o r y i s i n t r o d u c e d w i t h the ( d u r i n g t h e k r t a e r a ) a t 13.14.70b.
phrase
krteyuge
363
Audience: Upamanyu VyBghrapada.
Krsna was
the
son
of
the
great
rsi
One day. along with his younger brother Dhaumya.
Upamanyu saw a cow being milked in a certain hermitage. went home and asked his mother for some milk.
He
She had none.
but boiled a rice cake and told her son that the liquid was milk.
He knew,
however. that it was not and so his mother
explained that it was virtually impossible for the family of an ascetic to get milk.
She said that only
that wish -- or any other -- of Upamanyu's. about Siva's identity.
~iva
could grant
When he inquired
his mother patiently told her son of
Siva's many forms. Upamanyu then undertook worship Siva.
~apas
for thousands of years to
Once. Siva appeared to him in the form of Indra
and offered him a boon, but Upamanyu refused. saying he only wanted boons from Siva and extolling that deity's superiority. As he began to despair that Siva would ever be pleased with him, Upamanyu saw before him Nandi.
~iva
and UmBo
He greeted
Siva with his one thousand names. and the deity offered him any boons Upamanyu mi ght request.
Upamanyu asked that hi s
devotion remain steadfast, that his family always have milk. and that his own knowledge increase.
And so his wishes were
granted. Krsna
~hen
and began his
underwent initiation. asce~ic
vision of ~iva and Um..
practices.
instructed by Upamanyu. In
~ime
he,
too.
had a
Kr:~,!a praised him appropriat:ely.
~hen
UmZ assured him t h a t a son would be born t o him, as he wished.
When Krsna recounted h i s v i s i o n o f &va, * * *
Upamanyu t o l d
t h e fo 7 7owing s t o r y . 13. The mahStmya in p r a i s e o f 6 i v a
[ ~ i v a s t u t i i i i ~ h a t m y a m[13.17.3-17.171] ]~~~
Narrator:
Upamanyu
Audience :
Krsna .
There once
.
a
was
great
r* s i *
worshipped 6 i v a f o r thousands o f years.
named Tandin
who
When a t last he w a s
.
granted a v i s i o n o f Siva, Tandin u t t e r e d a hymn o f t h e dei t y t s names, whi ch Upamanyu quoted. Krsnats r e p o r t o f h i s v i s i o n o f Siva i s fo77owed by an . * * a s t o n i s h i n g s e r i e s of b r i e f testimonia7s regarding t h e great deeds o f S i v a .
Many o f t h e t e s t i m o n i a l s (13.78.2-18,44)
s h o r t s t o r i e s t o l d by characters who have
are
themselves been t h e
* . during t h e course o f s u b j e c t o f s t o r i e s t o l d t o t h e Pandavas
t h e i r ordeals. A7ambayanajI
..
The i n d i v i d u a l s a r e t h e rsi C a t u M i r s a fson of
..
W l m i k i , Rama Jamadagnya, t h e r s i Asita Devala,
.
t h e r. s. i Grtsamada, Jaigisavya, Gargya, ParaSara, Handavya, and G37ava.
. .
Krsna concludes t h e adhywa w i t h h i s own c a t a l o g o f t h e m e r i t s o f worshipping S i v a .
..
14. Conversation between AstSvakra and DiGa
" ~ d i t o r s of the c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note that the 6 f v a s a h a s r a n m t o t r a a t t r i buted t o Tandi n occurs in near1y i d e n t i c a l form i n t h e Lifigapurana, a d h a y a 65.
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthi '. ra
..
Y u d h f s t h i r a asked B h W t o e x p l a i n w h y peup7e p a r t i c u l a r l y married couples performing
-
--
f r u i t s from
reap different
d u t i e s incumbent upon them j o i n t l y .
I n reply,
Bhisma told t h e fa7 7owfng s t o r y .
.
The a s c e t i c AstSvakra sought t o marry Suprabha, . daughter of the r s i Vadanya.
Before granting h i s permission,
.
Vadanya asked t h a t Astavakra make a p i lgrirnage t o t h e n o r t h beyond S i v a f s hermitage i n t h e Himalayas t o t h e d w e l l i n g o f t h e female ascetic D i S .
He should worship her, then r e t u r n t o
Vadanya. Astavakra . s e t out on h i s journey. t o worship Siva and Uma i n t h e i r onward t o Kubera 's p a l ace.
On t h e way,
hermitage,
he stopped
then continued
There he stayed f o r one year whi 1e
b e i ng entertained by a p s a r a s e s and gandharvas.
When Kubera
p o l i t e l y asked i f he would l i k e t o remain there,
Astavakra ..
declared h i s i n t e n t i o n t o continue on h i s way. T r a v e l i n g north,
he entered a b e a u t i f u l hermitage and
approached the palace gate.
He was taken before an o l d woman,
w i t h whom he conversed u n t i 1 n i g h t f e l l .
During t h e n i g h t ,
..
t h e woman crept i n t o AstSvakrats bed and attempted t o seduce him.
He t o l d her h i s purpose i n v i s i t i n g her, and i n s i s t e d
^ a t rapyudaharantimami ti hasam purStanam/ ast-akrasya . samvadam d i saha bharata//13
.
19.10
366
.
They f i n a l l y agreed t h a t AstSvakra .
t h a t she behave p r o p e r l y .
would l i v e i n t h e palace f o r a w h i l e and t h e o l d woman would t r e a t him i n an a p p r o p r i a t e way.
The o l d woman w a i t e d upon him as was proper,
.
c r e p t i n t o Astavakrat s bed d u r i n g t h e n i g h t , she
offered
brahmacarin1
.
Astavakra.
herself since
to
her
him
freely.
youth,
and
insisting that
She
now
but a g a i n
had
wished
been
to
a
marry
For h i s p a r t , Astavakra admitted t h a t he l i ked t h e
o l d woman v e r y much, b u t sought t o do only what would f u l f i1 1 h i s promise t o Vadanya.
Meanwhi l e , t h e o l d woman assumed t h e
form o f a b e a u t i f u l young woman. The woman
then
..
AstZvakrats r e s o l v e .
revealed
that
she
had
been
testing
She declared t h a t he would r e t u r n home
s a f e l y , marry Suprabha,
and have a son.
And so he d i d .
..
Yudhisthira and Bhisma then discussed aspects o f g i f t giving. 15. The in v e s t i g a t i on in t o competency
[patrapariksa]^
113.23.8-23.151
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira
.
When Y u d h i*s* t h i r a asked why i t i s proper t o g i v e gifts
t o c e r t a f n persons,
Bhisma
r e p l i e d by
quoting
four
a u t h o r i t a t i v e f i g u r e s , each o f whom had something t o say about proper conduct.
^^The q u o t a t i o n s o f t h e f o u r a u t h o r i t a t i v e persons a r e i n t r o d u c e d as t h e i r views, o r d o c t r i n e s (mata) a t 13.23.10.
367
P r t h i v i s a i d t h a t t h r e e a c t s cleanse a brahman o f sins.
(Although t h e t e x t does not s p e c i f y them,
they are
understood by some commentators as conducting s a c r i f i c e s , teachi ng,
and r e c e i v i n g
.
brahmans )355 Vedas,
KaSyapa
Puranas,
and
gifts,
the
said that
on
so
--
traditional
n o t h i ng can
help
--
duties o f
n o t even t h e
one
who
behaves
improperly.
Agni s a i d t h a t a brahman who sought t o destroy
someone who
i s well
thought o f would never
a t t a i n higher
..
worlds.
Markandeya said t h a t t r u t h i s s u p e r i o r even t o one
thousand horse s a c r i f ices. 1 6 . The f r u i t s o f o f f e r i n g s t o d i v i n e ancestors
[daivapitryadanapha7aW Y u d h i.s* t h i r a
and
Bhisma
[13.24.1-24.1011
then
discussed
dharma
f u r t h e r b e f o r e discussing proper performance o f r i t e s t o one 's a n c e s t o r s (6raddha).
17. The form o f brahman murder
[brahmaghatisvarapaili]^
Narrator :
B h i sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t* h i r a
When
..
Yudhisthira
[13.25.1-25.121
asked
how
one
might
commit
brahmanicJ'de without actually k i 7 7 i n ~a brahman, Bhisma told t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y about a conversation he had had with Vyma
on t h e same subject.
35$ddit o r s o f t h e Hbh note t h e s i m i l a r i t y between verse 13.23.11 and Manu 11.263. ^The 13.25.26.
word pura
( l o n g ago)
introduces t h i s
story
at
368 Vyasa t o l d Bhisma t h a t one can be gui 1t y o f brahmanici de by, f o r exampl el d e s t r o y i ng a brahman s means of by p r e v e n t i n g h i s c a t t l e from d r i n k i n g water,
subsi stence,
by c r i t i c i z i n g
t h e Vedas, by s t e a l ing f r o m b l ind and c r i p p l e d persons, and by
s e t t i n g f i r e t o hermitages, f o r e s t s ,
o r towns.
18. The p r a i se o f p i l grimage s i t e s [ t i r t h p r a ~ a ~ s ~ ~ [13.26.3-26.661
Narrator:
B h i sma
Audience:
Yudhisthi r a
.
.
When Y u d h i s t h i r a asked W s m a t o 7 i s t t h e merits o f bathing i n t h e v a r i o u s sacred waters, Bhisma repeated what A r t g i r a s had s a i d t o Gautama on t h e subject
long ago.
A t i g i r a s enumerated t h e p a r t i c u l a r m e r i t s t o be
achieved by b a t h i n g i n s p e c i f i c sacred bodies of water. merits
range
from those equivalent
The
t o p e r f o r m i n g a horse
s a c r i f i ce t o a t t a i nment o f p a r t i c u l a r realms a f t e r death. Fo?lowing t h i s s t o r y , the n a r r a t i v e e x i t s t o t h e frame o f
Vai6ampayana rs n a r r a t i o n
for a d e s c r i p t i o n o f
i 7 l u s t r i o u s persons gathered around f f h a a .
.
v i r t u e s o f those r s i s , on
earth
are
the
t h e crowd o f
R e f l e c t i n g on the
Yudhisthira asked Bhisma which places .,
most
sacred.
Bh1sma r e p l i e d
with
the
f o ? lowing account o f a conversation between a brahman and a r' s i on t h e t o p i c .
357~hisma begins the story at 13.26.4 without in t r o d u c t i b n . A t i t s conclusion, i t i s r e f e r r e d t o as japya (muttered prayer o r s c r i p t u r a l passage) a t 13.26.63a.
369 19. The p r a i se o f t h e Ganges [gafigap~a~aTsanam]358 [13.27.19-2?.105]
Narrator:
Sh5sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s. t h i r a
.
..
Once a r s i
happened t o
stop a t t h e
brahman who l i v e d according t o t h e M 7 a vow.
home o f
a
They t a l k e d o f
v a r i ous s p i r i t u a l matters, and t h e brahman asked which places
on e a r t h were t h e most sacredm
Ganges R i v e r was
The r. s i
t h e most sacred,
touched w a s e q u a l l y so.
rep1 i e d t h a t
t h e r e f o r e any
the
place i t
The r s* i proclaimed t h e m e r i t s o f
b a t h i n g i n and 1i v i n g alongside t h e Ganges.
Hearing those
p r a i ses , t h e brahman worshi pped t h e Ganges and achi w e d great merit.
20. The s t o r y o f Mataflga [mataflgop~khyanam]359
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s *t h i r a
.
Yudh i s' .t h i r a asked haw a member o f a n a t h e r c l a s s t h e p o s s i b i l i t y o f such an
358at rapyudaharant5mami t i hasam S i lofichavrtteh s amv yudhi sth4 ra//13.27 3'9
..
3 5 9 a t r ~ p y u d ~ h a r a n t ~tmi hasam a m ~ purStanam/ matattgasya ca samvadam gardabhyS&za y~dhisthira//13.2&~6 6rutam me mahad~khy~nametat&urukulodvaha/13.31.1ab The c r i t j c a l t e x t l a b e l s adhyZya 28 *'The s t o r y o f Matahgas' [matafigopakhyanaml and adhyayas 29 and 30 as '@Theconversati on between Xndra and Mataftgag' [indramatafigasamvadah] Despi t e the d i f f e r e n t t i t l e s , t h e s t o r y b e ~ i n sa t 13.. 28 ahd continues i n 13*29 and 13.30.
.
370 occurrence, B M s m a t e Td t h e fo 1 Towing s t o r y o f a conversat fon hfatahga and
between t h e &ahman
a fema 7e ass,
A brahman adopted a son born o f a lower e l ass woman
r a i s e d t h e boy (named Matartgal as a brahman* brahman
instructed
s a c r j f i ce.
Matahga
to
gather
One day,
materials
for
The boy h i t c h e d h i s c a r t t o a young ass,
but the a
which
p r c m p t l y headed f o r i t s mother i n s t e a d o f going where Matahga t r j e d t o lead h i s goad.
jt*
The angry bay beat t h e young animal w i t h
The mother ass cansoled h e r c h i l d ,
p o i n t i n g out
t h a t t h e young man l a c k e d compassf on because he was born o f a t h e r e f o r e he was a candala. ,
brahman woman and a $Odra f a t h e r
Shocked and dismayed by t h i s i n f o r m a t i o n , the boy r e t u r n e d t o h i s adopted f a t h e r and determined t o undertake tapas t o a t t a i n t h e s t a t u s o f a brahman. Because t h e b o y t s a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s were so I n d r a appeared t o him and ofFered boons. f o r w i s h i n g f o r t h e impossible,
jntense*
He c h a s t i s e d Matahga
and went away.
One hundred years passed and s t i l l Matahga p e r s i s t e d . I n d r a appeared t o him a g a i n process o f brahman-
and explained t o him t h e l o n g
r e b i r t h s r e q u i r e d t o advance from a Giudra t o a
Matahga was u n d e t e r r e d -
A thousand years passed before I n d r a again appeared t o
Matattga.
I n d r a s t e a d f a s t l y r e f u s e d t o g r a n t h j s s o l e d e s i re,
and so Matafiga went t o Prayaga where he practi.ced yoga f a r another I 0 0 years*
When he ca1 lapsed from t h e e f f o r t o f h i s
a s c e t i c i s m J Indr-a h u r r h d ta h i s s i d e *
Bemoaning t h e f a c t
t h a t so many brahmans t o o k t h e i r s t a t u s f a r granted and f a i l e d t o f u l f i l 1 t h e i r d u t i e s 8 Matafiga F i n a l l y r e l e n t e d . f o r t h e boon o f assuming any form a t w i l l ,
He asked
t o be admired by
brahmans and k s a t r i y a * and t o achieve g r e a t fame.
H i s wishes
were granted8 l n d r a disappeareds and Matahga d i e d -
21
.
The s t o r y o f VT tahavya [v? t a h a v y ~ p a k h ~ a n a r n ] ~ ~ ~ [13a31.5-31 - 6 4 1 Marrator:
BhZsma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
Manu had a son named S a r y a t i , named Hehaya and TZ1ajahgha. had
ten
weaponry.
sons
were
who
Those
sons
who had two sons
Hehaya (a1 so c a l l e d Vztahavya)
accomplished once
invaded
in
learning
Ka65
and k i 1 l e d
HaryaSva b e f o r e r e t u r n i n g t o t h e i r kingdom. Harya5vas became k i n g o f
but
Kg&%,
defeated by t h e sons of
Vitahavya.
Sudeva,
Ka6Z
became
king
safeguard t h e c i t y *
of
When t h e
he
in
king
Sudeva8 son o f
i n time
he* t o o * was
When Divodasa, sought
and
son o f
Endrats h e l p
sons OF Vitahavya
to
attacked
agai n s a f i e r c e b a t t l e raged f o r one thousand days8 b u t a t l e n g t h DjvodZsa F l e d i n f e a r o f h i s 1 i f e m He escaped t o t h e hermitage a f Bharadvgja* h i s p r i e s t * and sought h i s p r o t e c t i o n .
Bharadvaja performed a s a c r i f i c e
so t h a t Oivodasa w u d d have a mighty son,
and so Pratardana
was born. 3 6 0 ~ r nru ajanyatha 'ksatriyah lakasatkrtam//13 3l'. 5
r aja vi tahavyo s a n p u n a h*
mahZya&Sh/ prapto brahmanyam
D i vodasa appoi nted t h e e x t r a o r d i n a r y boy regent o f KSSZ
and ordered him t o engage the sons o f VTtahavya i n b a t t l e d i d so,
k i l l i n g everyone except King VZtahavya h i m s e l f
He who
.
escaped t o seek t h e p r o t e c t i o n o f t h e r s i Bhrgu. Pratardana f o l l o w e d VTtahavya t o Bhrgufs hermitage and demanded t h a t retaliation
he be a1 lowed t o
for
the
k i 11 the
repeated d e s t r u c t i o n
declared t h a t on1y brahmans were t h e r e . could only
speak
the
truth,
king hjmself of
in
Bhrgu
KaSL
Be1 i e v i ng t h a t Bhrgu
Pratardana marveled
h i m s e l f had caused a k s a t r i y a t o become a brahman.
that
he
And so,
because o f Bhrgu s utterances Vztahavya d i d become a brahman. The s t o r y
conc?udes wfth t h e genea logy o f V i tahavya 's
2 2 . The descript40n o f honorable men
Narrator:
8h2sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s. t h i r a
.
.
Y u d h i s t h i r a asked BhZsma who i s t h e most worthy o f honur,
and Bhfsma r e p l i e d w i t h t h e f o l l o w i n g account o f a
...
conversation between Mfrada and K r s n a * Once
...
Krsna
observed
Narada
brahmanss and asked NSrada t o t e l l Narada rep1ied t h a t
worshi p p i ng
many
him who he worshipped.
he worshipped brahmans who worshipped
c e r t a i n dei t i es (such as Varunas VSyu,
Sarasvat5, and so on)
,
373 w h o a r e devoted t o study o f t h e Vedas,
many and brahmans-
varied
virtues
and practices
and who e x h i b i t th8 ascribed
to
ideal
Narada advised Krsna . . * t o do t h e same-
23. The p r a i se o f brahmans [brShmanapra&amsa] c13.33.1-33-25] t h i r a t h a t worshi p p i ng brahmans BhZsma t e l l s Yudhi s *
i s t h e most important o f a k i n g t s many duties. 24. Conversation between Vasudeva and PrthivT on how
to remove s i ns362( I 3 34 19-34.29 J Narrator :
8hi sma
Audience:
Yudhisthir-a .
.
A s i3hZsrna ccmtfnued t a speak about t h e s u p e r i o r i t y
a f brahmans, he repeated the f a 1 b w f n g canversat ion between
.
Krsna and P r t b i v i an how to pemove s i n s e '
.
Krsna . . once asked P r t h i v i how a householder could ensure t h e removal o f h i s sins. brahmans destroys s i n l
P r t h i v 5 rep1ied t h a t serving
and t h a t indeed a1 1 p r o s p e r i t y flows
f r o m reverence toward them.
[13-35-4-35-12]
a * What Brahma declared as t h e d u t i e s of
t i hasam puratanarni 362atrapyudaharantimami samvSdam vasudevasya prthvy&ca bharatarsa&a//13.34.19 The c r i ti cat * t e x t 1abel s *hi s adhyaya T h e conversati on between I n d r a and Matahgal tt but t h i s must be a p r i n t 4 ng e r r o r .
363atragatha brahmagi tah k 5 r t a y a n t i puravi dah/ s r s* t. v a d v i j StZndhata hi' yathapurvam samadadhat//13 35 4
.
374 Bhi~ma
went on to repeat what Brahm. himselF
had declared to be 'the duties of brahmans at the time of creation. Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira
Brahma dec1 ared that brahmans should set an examp 1 e
for
precepts
all
1 i vi ng be; ngs
speci fi ed
for
that
I
them.
study
they shou 1 d the
Vedas,
obey the and
offer
sacrifices. b. Conversation between
~akra
(Indra) and the
asura ~ambaraH4 (13.36.1-36.19] Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhisthira
Bhi~",a
between
I ndra and
exemplary behavior
then to7d the story of a conversation
the asura ~oward
~ambara
on
how the
latter's
brahmans had beneFitted him.
Once lndra took the form of an ascetic to ask the asura ~ambara
how he
had achi eved
hi s
posi tion as
chi ef asura.
Sambara expla;ned that through his scrupulous reverence for brahmans he had ach i eyed success.
He told the fo 11 owi ng story
about his own father. (1) How brahmans achi eyed vi ctory365 [13.36. 11-36. 18] 3Uatrapyudaharantimamitihasam puratanam/ §akraAambarasamvadam tannibodha yudhisthira//13.36.1 .. .. .. 365 The 13.36.11b.
word
pur.
(long
ago)
s; gnal s
thi s
story
at
Narrator:
sambara
Audience:
Indra
sambarats
father
witnessed
between t h e d e i t i e s and a s w a s ages ago.
brahmans t r i umphed,
the
battle
Observing t h a t t h e
he asked Soma why t h e y succeeded.
Soma
explained t h a t t h e y awed v i c t o r y t o t h e i r a s c e t i c practices, and t h e i r supervised study a f t h e Vedas
t h e r e a f t e r wtrsh* pped brahmans,
h m b a r a ' s father
and h i s son
fa11 owed t h i s
p r a c t i ce
ATter
h e a r i ng
sambara ' s
story,
Indra,
too,
began t o
worshi p brahmans and became t h e leader o f de3 ti es. 26. The invest ig a t i on in t o competency [ p a t r a p a r i ksa]
[ 1 3 . 3 7 * 1-37.191
..
BhZsma exg#?afnes t o Y u d h f s t h i r a who f s worthy o f
27.
The n a r r a t i o n on t h e n a t u r e o f women [st15s v a b h ~ v a k a t h a n a m ] ~ [ ~3~ 38 2-38.301
.
Narrator :
6h5 sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
A f t e r f u r t h e r dfscussfon about t h e persons t o whom
.
m e shou7d o f f e r g i f t s * Yudhfsthira , asked t o hear about t h e
nature u f women.
Once
In
the
reply,
..
rsf
Bhisma
Narada
quoted
encountered
the f d lowing
the
apsaras
376 Paficac5da8 whome he asked t o inform him concerning t h e n a t u r e af women.
I n r e p l y 8 t h e a p s w a s enumerated t h e many f a u l t s
W a s a ) o f women.
They a r e f i c k l e 8 prone t o immodestys v a i n 8
susceptible t o t h e a t t e n t i uns o f any man, however 01cf o~ ugl y 8 and incapable of f i d e l i t y * however we1 1 t r e a t e d .
These f a u l t s
are p a r t o f t h e i r very nature* Since women can
SQ
c l e v e r ly seduce sen, said Y u d h i s* t h i r a ,
i t was hard t a imagfne how t h e i r - behavior c ~ u ? d be r e s t r a i n e d *
28. The s t o r y o f V i pu1a [ v i p u 7 0 ~ a k h y a n a n z ] ~ ~ ~ *
[13.40#2-43*26]
Narrator:
8hZ sma
Audience:
Y u d h i s* t h i r a
.
BhYsma r e p 7 f e d t o Yudhisth i r a wi t b t h e f a 1 70uing ' * story, which Mafkandeya had once t o Id him a 70ngs i d e t h e Ganges . River
Lung ago, w a s possible f o r
t h e d e i t i e s were concerned because i t
any human being t o become d i v i n e *
expressed t h e i r worry t o Brahm&
They
and so he created women by
means o f a s p e d a1 r i t u a l so t h a t they might d i s t r a c t men From
ascetic p r a c t i ces. 348
Created w i thout r e s t r a i n t
even f3rahmS
367atrat e v a r t a y i syami it i hasam puratanaml yatha raksa k r t & parvam v i p d ena mahZtmanS//l3 4 0 . 2
368~n d e s c r i b i ng women's p r i n c i p a l v i c e s * t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n t e x t i n c l u d e s two verses ( 1 3 a 4 0 ~ 1 1 and 1 3 . 4 0 . 1 2 ) which t h e edi t a r s note a r e v a r i a t i o n s o f Mam & 18 and Manu S L 1 T 8 respect ive1y The use o f verses f ram Manu i n adhyayas 13.40-13.49 would
.
l i k e l y bear c l o s e study f o r what they may show about t h e mechanics o f and t h e various reasons f o r i n s e r t i n g s u b s t o r i e s A number o f verses comparable t o i n t o the anu&asanaparvan. those found i n various s e c t i o n s o f Manu are i n t e r s p e r s e d throughout those sections, which otherwise do n o t appear t o form a d i s t i n c t i v e segment of t h e parvan. Two verses s i m i l a r t o Manu 9.18 and 9.17 f i r s t occur 4n t h e s t o r y of Vipula (13*40m2-43*26)Jas i n d i c a t e d i n t h e preceding footnote. Acfbyaya 44J which consi s t s o f 5 4 verses contains e i g h t f u l l o r p a r t i a l S lokas corresponding t o verses in Manu. CThe adhyaya in s t r u c t s Yudhi s t h i r a on various which, in t e m r e s ng1 ti y do not acceptable f o r m s o f m a w + a ~ e fu1 ly conform t o t h e p r e s c r i p t i o n s s e t f o r t h in Manus d e s p i t e AdhySya 45s which i t s obvious a u t h o r i t a t * ve s t a t u s here* ) consists of 24 verses c o n t a i n s s i x f u l l o r p a r t i a1 &7okas corresponding t o verses i n Manu* These verses b o t h precede and f a l l o w t h e two-verse s t o r y a t 13*4S 18-20 which 1 have ca1 led @@Yarns on s e l l ing c h i Wren Bv I n general t h e acfhyaya d i scusses t h e p r a p r i e t i es o f dowry and in h e r i tance. F u l ly ha1f uf t h e 14 Slokas o f adhyaya 46 are comparable t o verses i n Manu, in d u d i ng t h e second and t h i r d 1ines o f t h e two-verse s t u r y a t 13.46.1-2 which 1 have c a l l e d V a k s a on dowry. I' The t e n Hukas i n adhyaya 47 ( i t s e l f c o n t a h i n g 61 S7okas) cumparable t o verses i n Manu a r e interspersed throughout t h e acihyaya, which f u r t h e r discusses inher-i tance. The 20 &?ukas i n adhyaya 48 {numbering n e a r l y h a l f o f i t s 49 N o k a s ) a l s o occur throughout t h e adhyaya, which genera1 I y concerns t h e dharmic o b l i g a t i o n s o f c h i l d r e n o f various mixed warm marriages. The c l u s t e r i n g of verses simi 1ar t o those i n Mahu ends w i t h adhyaya 49 which i n t h e c r i t i c a l t e x t , c o n t a i n s no resonances w i t h Manu. E d i t o r s o f the c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n noted d i screpanci es in t h e manuscript t r a d i t i o n w i t h regard t o t h i s adhyaya, however They r e j e c t e d 38 1i n e s w i t h numerous simi 1 a r i ti es t o verses from Manu 9. 166-1B38 which nevertheless I T J pp. 296-97 occur i n t h e manuscript t r a d i t i o n . (See v o l o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n f o r d e t a i l s . ) The c l u s t e r i n g o f Manul i k e verses ends i n adhyaya SO which presents t h e s t o r y of Cyavana and Nahusa ( 1 3.50.2-51 48) On1y thorough t e x t u a l anal y s i s waul d d i s c l ose t h e d e t a i 1s a f how these adbyayas may have been constructeds b u t one might p r o v i s i o n a l 7y c o n j e c t u r e t h e f o 1 lowing about t h i s m a t e r i a l I n t h e Mbh8 references t o Manu seem t o be one o f t h e characteri s t i c markers o f an appeal t o a u t h o r i t a t * ve r e 1igious traditianw Although a t t h e n a r r a t i v e l e v e l apparent d i screpanci es between t h e immedi ate c o n t e x t o f t h e epi c material and t h e contents o f Manu as we know i t a r e nut acknuwl edged these d i fferences may s i gnal t h e process of Vedacization i n a c t i a n . One cannot r u l e o u t t h e p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t the epic knows other Manu t r a d i t i o n s t h a t we do n o t and hence the p u s s i b i l i t y t h a t t h e e p i c ' s uses o f Manu a r e q u i t e
.
.
378 could not r e s t r a i n them.
.
named DevaSarman whose wife, There once was a psi * was
e x t r a o r d i n a r i 1y
beautiful
Indra
was
Ruci a
particularly
a t t r a c t e d t o her, so DevaSarman used h i s powers t o p r o t e c t her from Xndra. One day when Oeva&arman wanted t o leave home t o perform a c e r t a i n s a c r i f i c e g he charged h i s d i s c i p l e Vipula w i t h t h e protect4 on o f Ruci
.
Devagarman c a r e f u l 1 y in s t r u c t e d V i pu1a on
t h e myriad guises I n d r a might assumes then l e f t t o perform t h e ritual
.
When
considering
how
best
to
protect
Ruci,
Vipula
concluded t h a t he should use h i s yogic powers t o e n t e r her bady
.
I n t e n t upon h i s yogic p r a c t i c e , he would def il e n e i t h e r
h h s e l f nor her, unusual a c t
l
and t h u s commit no offense
by t h i s most
V i p u l a entered Ruci @ s body3 b u t she remai ned
consistent w i t h a u t h o r i t a t i v e sources l o s t t o usm B u t i t i s a l s o possible t h a t fami 1i a r c i t a t i o n s from Manu a r e used j u d i c h x ~ s l yi n s e c t i o n s of t h e e p i c such as t h i s one a t 13.4049 in an e f f o r t to v a l idate t e a c h i ngs on dharma n u t p r e v i ousl y regarded as a u t h o r i t a t i v e . I n t h a t case3 t w o o f t h e t h r e e substories i n t h i s very small and not p a r t i c u l a r l y d i st4 n c t i v e segment o f t h e anu6asanaparvan might be understood as suppl ementi ng and p e r s a n d iz i ng Manut s a u t h o r i t a t i v e v o i c e ( i d e n t i f i e d anonymously as g r u t i a t 1 3 . 4 O J l s f o r example) The4 r w i t h t h e wise words of two d e i t i e s a Yama arid Daksa. remarks are presented as b r j e f paraphrases, yet t h e i r respective references t~ an unpleasant a f t e r l i f e i n a s e r i e s o f h e l l s C r e s u l t i n g from s e l l i n g oners c h i l d r e n ) and a daughter's dowry must s u r e l y evoke v i v i d images o f t h e i r own fearsome mythologies, s e t f o r t h i n smrti m a t e r i a l such as t h e Puranasm By seemi ng t o intet-ming1e $but f and s m r t f materi a1, present* ng them as equal 1y a u t h o r i t a t i v e , t h i s segment o f t h e e p i c 4 s arguably archaic4 x i ng p r a c t i c e s ( o f dowry, marriage, and inheritance, i n t h i s case) t h a t were t h e s u b j e c t o f d i s p u t e among brahmarts-
379 completely unaware o f h i s means o f p r o t e c t i n g her. Eventual 1y I n d r a came a1ong i n pursui t o f Ruci Vipulats
body
seated
in
meditation
with
Ruci
.
He saw nearby*
Restrained by V i p u l al she was unable t o g r e e t o r speak t o him* Once Indra r e a l ized what was going on,
.
PSPs curse.
he grew fearFu1 o f t h e
V i p d a chastised him sharply, and I n d r a departed
i n shame.
When
OevaSarmari
returned,
he
was
pleased
with
his
d* s c i p l e v s s u c ~ e s s f u le f f o r t s a t p r o t e c t i n g h i s w i f e 8 granted h i rn t h e boon o f unTai 1ing r ighteuusness, and d i smi ssed V i p u l a from h i s service.
V i p u l a c o n t h u e d h i s a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e s and
wandefed t h e e a r t h Some
time
laterl
an
apsaras happened
to drop
some
ce1e s t i a l f l o w e r s near t h e hermitage o f Ruci and her husband. Ruci found them and ware them i n her h a i r when she v i s i t e d her sister,
Prabha~at5~ at
the court o f
Prabhavatz s husband was k i ng
t h e Afigas where
Prabhavat:
her
immedi ate1y desi red
same o f those f l o w e r s s and Ruci informed her husband o f t h i s request.
OevaSarman summorted Vipula and charged him t o f i n d
more o f those c e l e s t i a l
Flowers.
Vipula went
t o t h e spot
where R u c i had Found them8 and readi ly Faund others. On h i s way back t o Devagarman 8 V i p u l a encauntered a human couple i n t h e m i d s t o f an argument*
They swore an oath t h a t
t h e one who spoke f a l s e l y i n t h e i r dispute should s u f f e r t h e same f a t e i n t h e next w o r l d as Vfpula wouldm shocked t o hear h i s name u t t e r e d i n t h i s way,
Vipula was
b u t could t h i n k
380
of no sin that would bring him great misfortune after death. As he walked along he also encountered six men playing dice.
When they fell to arguing, they swore in the same way
as the couple had. he
had
not
After much thought, Vipu1a recalled that
honest1 y
di scl osed
to
Deva§arman
how
he
had
protected Ruci from Indra. Deva§arman knew what had happened to Vipu1a on the way. and explained that he had encountered Night and Day and the six seasons.
Although Vipula thought his act was a secret,
these knew of i t and decided to remind him of it.
Deva§arman
declared that he would have punished Vipu1a long ago had he actually done anything wrong.
He forgave his disciple for
keeping the secret and announced that Vipu1a would not suffer after death. Bhi !!ma cone 1uded the story of Vi pu 7a and Ruci with a summary of the vices of women who lack virtue.
29. The dharma of marriage
[vjv.hadharmS~J
[13.44.1-
46.14]
Yudhisthira
then
inquired
about
the
kind
of
husband one shou7d seek For one's daughter, whether abduction
is a
legitimate Form of marriage, the practice of dowry and
some of its attendant prob lems, and inheritance by a daughter. Bhi ~ma
repeated the Fa 7 Jowing,
attributed to Yama,
subject of se 17 i ng one's chi 1dren -- ma 7e or Fema le profit.
on
the For
a - Yama on s e l l i n g Marrator :
6hZ sma
Audience:
Yudhi s* .t h i r a
[13m45.18-45.20]
Yama s a i d t h a t a person who sel I s h i s son o r
accepts a d o w r y f o r h i s daughter i n order t o support himself w i l l f a l l i n t o t h e seven h e l l s c a l l e d KSlasShvaya.
Narrator :
BhC sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t. h i r a
DaksaB son o f Pracetas# said t h a t a daughter f o r whom no d o w r y i s accepted cannot be considered as sold. On m i xed classes [varnasamkarah]
30
.
Yudhf s t h f r a regardfng jnherf t a m e ,
and
[I 3 48 1-48 493
Bhisma then discussed m a t t e r s
and t h e d u t f e s o f persons b o r n of mixed
c lasses. 31 On observing sons [putrapranfdhih] l
E13.49 1-49 281 l
36gatragatha yamod~i t s h k i r t a y a n t i purzvi dah/ dharmajfia dharrnas~s t resu 'nibaddha dharmasetusu//13.4Sm18 370pr~cetasasya vacanam ki r t a y a n t i pursvi dah/ yasysh k i mci n n ~ d a d a t ejfiZStayo na sa v i krayah/ f 13 46.1 E d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note t h a t t h e second h a l f of t h i s verse i s comparable t o Manu 3 S 4 a b and the f i r s t halF of t h e f o l l o w i n g verse i s comparable t o Manu 3.54cde The f o u r verses immedi ate1y fo1 low4 ng t h i s s t o r y a t 13 46 2-6 are comparabl e t~verses in t h e same sect4 on of Manu# 3.55 # 3 - 6 1 , 3 . 5 6 and 3 * 5 8 # r e s p e c t i v e l y s
types o f p a t e r n i t y ,
Audience: When
such as t h e behavior o f n a t u r a l
sons,
Yudhi s. t h i r a
Yudhfsthfra *
asked
about
the
nature
~f
Long ago* t h e 8hSrgava saQe Cyavana decided t o observe t h e vows o f davasa.
He 1i v e d i n the water i n one
s p o t a t t h e confluence o f t h e Ganges and YamunS r i v e r s .
The
water c r e a t u r e s became q u i t e accustomed t o h i m and l o s t t h e i r
fear o f him.
One day a 1arge group of fishermen decided t a cast t h e i r nets i n the very spot where Cyavana r e s i d e d together, covered #
Tying t h e i r n e t s
t h e y c a s t them i n t o the waters and drew up a mossshe1 1f ish-encrusted Cyavana a1ong w i t h hundreds o f
f i s h wha d i e d when p u l l e d f r a m t h e water.
The fishermen w e p e
much d j s t r e s s e d t o f i n d Cyavana among t h e i r catch and asked how
they
could
make
amends
for
their
terrible
mistake.
Cyavana s a i d he p r e f e r r e d e i t h e r t o d i e along w i t h t h e f i s h ,
31'hanta t e kathayi syami purSvrttam mahSdyute/ nahusasya ca samvSdam maharseScyavanasya ca//93.50.2 The c r i t i c i 1 t e x t l a b e l s adhyaya* 1 3 S O as EtThe s t o r y of Cyavanawf [cyavanapakhyanam] and adhyaya 51 as V%e c o n v e r s a t i on between Gyavana and Mahusa" [ c y a v a n a n a h ~ s a s a r n v ~ d a hDespi ~~ t e t h e d i f f f e r e n t ti t 1 es, *the s t o r y begins a t i s - 5 0 'and continues w i t h o u t any break o r new questjon f ram Yudhi s t h i r a i n 13*51
..
383 o r to be s o l d as one o f them. The f ishernten trembled i n f e a r # and sought t h e advice o f K i n g Nahusa.
When he r e s p e c t f u l 1y asked t h e same question o f
Cyavana t h a t t h e Fisherman had, Cyavana s a i d Nahusa should pay them a f a i r p r i c e f o r t h e whale catch,
i n c l u d i n g himself.
Cyavana declared h i m s e l f unworthy o f each p r i c e Nahusa named a f t e r ccmsult i ng w i t h v a r i aus gmups : 100,000 coinsI
one thousand c o i ns,
a m o r e o f coins, h a l f h i s kingdom, o r a11 of
h i s kingdom. #hi 1 e Nahusa was de1 ib e r a t i ng f u r t h e r w i t h h i s p r i e s t and ministers, an a s c e t i c came t o him and advi sed Nahusa t h a t a cow
--
a valuable commodity# indeed
p r i c e to pay.
--
was an appropriate
Cyavana g l a d l y accepted t h i s o f f e r I
Nahusass choice.
praising
He forgave the fishermen and sent them t o
heaven, and a l s o granted many boons t o Nahusa. 33. Conversati on between Cyavana and Ku&ika
[cyavanakuSi k a ~ a ~ v ~ c 372 i a h[]13.52.7-56.20 Narrator :
BhTsma
Audience:
ra Yudhisthi *
Yudhfsithira * *
then
asked
to
hear
J
about
Mma
Jamadagnya and how m e grandson o f Rcfka became a k s a t r i y a and the o t h e r a brahmanm
Cyavana foresaw t h a t some o f h i s descendants would become ksatriyas,
and sought t o f o r e s t a l l i t from happen4 ng.
hasam purStanam/ 3 7 2 a t r ~ p y u d ~ h a r a n t i mti am i cyavanasya c a sawadam kuSikasya ca b h ~ r a t a / / l 3 . 5 2 . ?
384
He knew t h a t t h e probl em woul d a r i se among t h e Ku6i kas , and so he planned t o destroy them, Cyavana v i s i t e d King Kugika and asked t o l i v e w i t h him for a time* saget s
The king welcomed him and p u t h i s kingdom a t t h e
d4 sposal
Cyavana
explained
that
he
wished
to
undertake a c e r t a i n vaws and asked t h a t t h e king and queen attend him w h i l e he d i d so.
They r e a d i l y agreed and served
him a t t e n t i v e l y , j u s t as he i n s t r u c t e d , whi 1e Cyavana appeared t o sleep f o r
twenty-one
days.
On t h e twenty-second
day,
Cyavana arose without a word and disappeared. The d i straught king searched f o r him, f i rial l y d i scoveri ng Cyavana asleep again, queen tended to him when he awoke *
just
as before.
Again the k i n g and
fa1 low3 ng h i s in s t r u c t i ons scrupul o u d y
A f t e r f i f t y dayss Cyavana i n s t r u c t e d them t o
yoke themselves t o a c h a r i o t and draw him slawly along t h e
road w h i 1e he bestowed g i f t s on everyone who passed by. from
hunger# t h e
F i na1l y ,
king
and
queen
nevertheless
Weak
compliedm
Cyavana a1ighted from t h e c h a r i o t and praised t h e
k i rig and queen f o r the4 r l o y a l a t t e n t i o n .
He sent them home
t o rest and i n s t r u c t e d them t o r e t u r n t o him t h e f o l l o w i n g day t o receive a reward from him* That even ing , Cyavana transformed h i s woudl and hermi t a g e i n t o a jeweled mansion.
The k i n g and queen marveled a t j t
and when i t disappeared they marveled a t Cyavanals abi 1it y t o
create such i l l u s i o n s m Cyavana then declared t h a t he had completed h i s vow and
385 KuSi ka
rm longer requi red t h e sew4 ces o f t h e k i n g and queen.
asked why Cyavana had stayed w i t h them as he had, and t h e sage
d-i sclosed h i s o r i g i n a l i n t e n t i o n t o destroy KuSi ka s 1ineage* While he had t r i e d t o provoke the king, Cyavana had instead
been
impressed
by
his
and
the
queen's
devoted
service.
Cyavana declared t h a t Ku&ikags great grandson would become a Ku6i ka asked h s t e a d t h a t h i s grandson become a
brahman-
brahman, and w a s granted t h < s boon*
Cyavana p r e d i c t e d t h a t
K u S i k a fs
Jamadagni
granddaughter
wadd
marry
and
bear
a
ksatt-iya sun named V i Sv4Smi t r a w i t h the qua1 it i es o f a brahman.
It would
also
Jzmadagnya ksatrfyas
happen
would
be
that
born
a who
BhZrgava c h i I d would
Rams
named
exterminate
a1 1
the
.
34. The f r u i t s o f t h e vow o f s e l f - c o n t r o l
[yamaniyamapha7ani] [13.5?J-57.44] Recause Y u d h i s t h f r a w a s g r i e f - s t r i c k e n
aver t h e
deaths h e had caused, 8hfsma spoke t o h i m about t h e m e r i t s of religfous ~ b s e r v a n c e sthrough which he cou7d dfspe7 h i s g r i e f and gain m e r f t .
35.
P r a i se o f brahmans [brahmanapragamsa]
[ 13.58 1 rn
58*40]
He
also
emmerated p a r t i c u 7 a r
afferfngs
which
shou 7d be made t o d e f t i e s and brahmans t o e x p i a t e wongdofngS 3 6 . The s a c r i f i c i a l g i f t t o (brahman) guests
[ a t i t h f y a ~ i f a h ] [12SS#A-!59.19]
'.
BhZsma enumerated f o r Yudhi s t h * f a t h e
mer$t s o f
r i t u a l g i f t s t o brahmans.
37.
The dharma of
ksatriyas [ksatrfyadharmah ] ,
[13.60-f-60.25]
BhZsma t a l k e d f u r t h e r o f a k s a t r i y a 's ob7 i g a t i o n s t o give,
as we1 7 as t h e r e l a t i v e s i g n i f V c a n c e o f t y p e s o f
g7-ft-gfving.
38- P r a i s e o f t h e g i f t o f t h e e a r t h [ b h a ~ i d a n a ~ r a ~ a ? s a[ 13.61 ] ~ ? ~ - 31-6 1 93 1 Narrator:
BhZsma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
.
To i 7 7 u s t r a t e h i s p o i n t t h a t t h e g i f t o f t h e e a r t h
to 7d t h e f o 7 7c?w*ng v e r y s h o r t s t o r y . When RZma Jamadagnya heard t h e e a r t h say t h a t by g i v i n g her away he wauld g e t her back again,
he g t f t e d t h e
e n t i r e e a r t h to t h e sage KaSyapa.
Bhisma went un t o te7 7 t h e fo7 Tawing story i n which Zndra
inquired o f B r h a s p a t i about t h e best g i f t by which t @a t t a i n heaven ,
a.
Conversati on between ayhaspati and 1ndra3" [13.61.48-61-93]
-
v a i )/I 3 61 31 mSmevSdatta mSm d a t t a mSm d a t t v s mamavapsyatha/ asmi ml1oke pare c a i va t a t a k ~ j a n a n epunah//13 61 32 374atrapyudaharantimami t i hasam puratanam/ brhaspateSca samvadami ndrasya ca yudhi s t h i ra//13.61m 48
..
Narrator:
BhT sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s. .t h i r a
Indra once asked Brhaspati which g i f t would
earn heaven f o r a donor.
Brhaspati r e p l i e d t h a t a special
realm as w e 1 1 as other m e r i t s were reserved f o r those who made g i f t s OF t h e e a r t h i n appropri ate r i t u a l contexts.
He t o l d o f
.
Brhaspati
t h e i1 1 consequences oT
r e t r a c t * ng such g i f t s
concluded w i t h a discourse an t h e c y c l e o f 1i f e based upon food consumption and t h e m e r i t s a f rnaki ng r i t u a l o f f e r i n g s o f food
. 39.
Prai se o f g i v i ng food [annadanapra@aTs#]375 [13.62.1-432eS1]
.
When Yudhisthi . r a asked BhTsma t o t e l l him which g i f t s most please brahmans, BhTsrna rep1j ed w i t h t h e fo1 lowing s t o r y about what Narada had t o l d him p r e v i o u s l y . Narrator :
BhZ sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
.
Narada t o l d Bhzsma t h a t no g i f t food,
i s superior
to
whether o f f e r i n g t o d e i t i e s or humans. 40
l
G i f t - g i v i ng d u d ng p a r t i c u l a r constel l a t i o n s
[naksat~ayagadanam j [ 13 . 6 3 . 1 -63.36 1 Yudhisthira asked 8h.fsma t o te77 him which g i f t s b
e
shou7d be o f f e r e d under p a r t icu?ar conste 7 7at ihns of
stars.
I n rep 7y, Bhisma repeated t h e f o 1 70wing conversat ion between
DevakZ and Narada. -
-
-
-
37%he word pupa introduces t h i s s t o r y a t 13.62.4.
a. Conversation between Devak5 (KrsnaRs mother) ... and ~ZCrada~"[ 13.63.2-63 361 Narrator:
Bh5 sma
Audience:
Yudhi s. t. h i r a
Nsrada i n s t r u c t e d DevakZ i n t h e general r u l e s f o r making c e r t a i n offerings. brahmans
a
cow
and
For example,
calf
a
during
the
by g t f t i n g t o
constellation
mmadafvata, one a t t a i ns a superior heavenly realm.
Gifts a f
food made d u r i n g t h e c o n s t e l 1a t i o n punarvasu b r i ng beauty,
fame and r e b i r t h in a fami 1y weal t h y
then
spoke
of
the
beneffts
of
n f o o d (bahvama]
sesame
as
a
rn
sacrificial
offering. 41.
The m e r i t s of g i f t s o f sesame seeds, and so on
[ t i ?adidanapha7am] 113 *65 1-65 661
While exp7aining to Yudhisthira . t h e merits a
of
various cather g i f t s , t3hfsma t o l d the fo7 7owing story.
a
rn
The d e i t i e s
s a c r i f i ce on earth3" [ 13.65.16-
65e24J Narrator:
BhTsma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s 't h i r a
.
376atrapyud~harant~mami t+ hasam pur2#tanam/ devakyiK@caiva samvadam devarsernaradasya ~ a / / 1 3 . 6 3 ~ 2 the phrase ata Qrdhvam nfhdhedam (hence 1 is t e n t o t h i s) at 13 rn 65.16a
%n1
Once t h e d e i t i e s wanted t o perform a s a c r i f i c e , and so t h e y asked BrahmS t o g r a n t them a p o r t i o n o f t h e e a r t h on whi ch t o conduct i t .
He gave them an area on M t
.
Himavat,
and when the4 r s a c r i f i c e was concluded they gave t o t h e e a r t h
i t s e l f a p o r t i o n o f t h e m e r i t t h e y had earned. 42.
The m e r i t s o f g i f t s o f water [paniyadanaphalam] (13.66.1-66.191
Bhisma f a ?lowed his remarks on the merits of food as s a c r i f i c a l o f f e r i n g s with p r a i s e of t h e
m e r i t s o f w a t e r for
t h e same purpose.
43.
P r a i s e o f g i f t s o f sesame seeds, and so on
f t i JadidanapraSaW [I3.67.1 -67.331 Bhisma told the f a l lowing story when Yudhisthira ' inquired about
the merits o f
sesame,
water,
and
lamps as
s a c r i f i c i a l offerings.
a. Conversati on between Yama and brahrn~tn~~' L13.67.2-67.271 Narrator :
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
.
There once was a v i 1 l a g e named ParnaSal many brahmans 1 ived.
where
One day, Yama ordered a c e r t a i n person
t o go t h e r e and b r i n g t o Yama a l e a r n e d man named Sarmin. Y a m i n s t r u c t e d him not t o confuse Garmi n w i t h another man who w a s v e r y much l i k e him, b u t t h e e s c o r t d i d j u s t t h a t .
Yama
3%trapyudaharantimamiti hasam puratanam/ brahmanasya ca samvadam yamasya ca yudhi s t h i ra//13.67.2
.
390 greeted t h e brahman r e s p e c t f u l l y , r e t u r n him t o Parna&Ila
then t o l d t h e e s c o r t
and b r i n g t h e r i g h t man.
asked Yama i f he c o u l d s t a y t h e r e (i .e.,
to
The brahman
d i e ) since he had
already s t u d i e d t h e Vedas s u f f i c i e n t l y and w a s ready t o d i e . Yama explained t h a t he c o u l d n o t p e r m i t t h e brahman t o remai n since
only
KXla
finished.
(Time)
could
A t t h e brahmants request,
h i m how t o earn m e r i t : gifts.
determine
offer
when
a
life
was
however, Yama d i d t e l l
sesame and water as
ritual
The brahman was returned t o ParnaiSS13 and f o l l o w e d
Yamals advice.
The e s c o r t brought garmi n t o Yama and he, t o o ,
w a s i n s t r u c t e d as t h e brahman had been.
Yama a l s o advised
Sarmin t o make r i t u a l o f f e r i n g s o f lamps to 1i g h t t h e way f o r t h e ancestors.
Fol l o w i ng t h e i r conversation, 6armi n was s e n t
back t o t h e v i 1lage. 44. The m e r i t s o f cow-giving
[godanaphaTamJ (13.68.1-
68.211
.
Bhisma giving
extu71ed
YusShisthfra *.
to
the merits
of
cows as g i f t s t o brahmans. 45. The s t o r y o f King Nrgaes [nrgopakhymaw379
[13.69.1-69.331 Narrator:
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i ra
gh-a Yudhisthira ..
"he 13.69.2a.
told
against
word
p W
the
ruining
following
anything
d o n g ago)
story
that
introduces
to
belonged
warn
to
t h i s story
a
at
brahman ,
Once some young men who were l o o k i n g f o r water came upon a we1 l overgrown w i t h plants.
They cleared i t w i t h
much labor, o n l y t o f i n d a huge 1izard ( k r k a i a s a ) trapped i n t h e we1 1.
Try as they might, they could n o t s e t i t free,
so they sought Krsnals assistance. a
,
*
and
Krsna f r e e d t h e animal, *
a
.
which explained t h a t i t was the soul o f K i n g Nrga, punished by Yama f o r the u n i n t e n t i o n a l s i n o f t a k i n g a cow from a brahman.
Once a c o w which belonged t o a brahman wandered on i t s own i n t o Nrga's herd. Nrga happened t o
Without r e a l i z i n g t h a t i t was not h i s ,
give t h a t c o w t o another
brahman.
The
o r i gi nal owner d i scovered t h e cow and demanded i t s return, b u t t h e new owner be1 ieved t h a t i t had been f r e e l y given.
Nrga
tried t o s e t t l e t h e dispute by o f f e r i n g b o t h brahmans hundreds
of o t h e r cows i n compensation, s i n g l e cow.
b u t both of
them wanted t h e
Nrga d i e d before t h e argument could be resolved,
and so w a s made t o pay f o r h i s u n i n t e n t i o n a l offense by 1i v i ng one thousand years as a 1izard, u n t i 1 Krsna would s e t him f r e e .
a
*
t o a t t a i n heaven.
46. The s t o r y o f NSci ketas [naci k e t ~ ~ a k h ~ ~ n a m ] ~ ~ ~
[13.70.2-70.561
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s *t h i r a
38%tr~pyud~harantimami t i hasam puratanam/ rseruddal akervakyam naci ketasya cobhayoh//13.70.2 E d i t o r s ' o f the c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note t h a t t h e katha manisad c o n t a i ns a d i f f e r e n t version o f t h i s s t o r y .
392 Bhi~ma
to7d the Fo77owing story when Yudhisthira
asked to hear more about the beneFits of giving catt7e to brahmans. One day the ':f!i Udda1aka told hi s son N2Ici ketas to fetch some sacrificial Materials which Udd2llaka had left lying beside the r;ver. fi nd
them
(the
When N3ciketas materi a1 s
had
reported being unable to
washed
away),
the
enraged
Udda1aka cursed his son to die on the spot, and he did. Distraught with grief. Udda1aka wept over his son's dead body all day long.
Toward evening, the boy came back to life,
although he was very weak.
His father asked what N2Iciketas
had experienced while dead. Nlciketas told of his travel to Yama's splendid palace. There Yama welcomed him and told N3ciketas that by visiting Yama he had fulfilled his father'S curse, and that he was not dead.
When Yama offered him any favor, N3ciketas asked to see
those realms where people who behave dharmica11y go
after
death. On hi s own chari ot Vama took Naci ketas on a tour of those
places of extraordinary beauty and told him of the wonderful realms
reserved
brahmans.
for
those
who
give
cattle
to
deservi ng
He specified the manner in which such a sacrifice
shoul d be conducted. and the most appropri ate ci rcumstances in which to perform it.
Vama also designated certain acceptable
substitutes for cattle in such offerings. And so Naciketas was joyful upon his return to life, for
393 Yama
had taught
him
a
new r i t u a l
and had shown
him
its
benef it s a f t e r death. 47.
R e l a t i n g t o t h e g i f t o f cows [gopradanikaw (13.71 -1-73.151
..
When Y u d h i s t h i r a t h e n asked t o h e a r
i n greater
detail about those realms reserved f o r c a t t l e - g i v e r s a f t e r t h e i r death, Bhisma t o l d t h e f o r lowing s t o r y .
a. Conversation between Satakratu ( I n d r a ) and .5-73.15 ] Padmayoni ( B r a h m ~ ) ~[I ~3.71 ' Narrator :
Bhisma
Audience:
Y u d h i.s t h i r a
.
One day, I n d r a asked Brahma t o tell him about t h e regions reserved a f t e r death f o r those who g i v e c a t t l e t o brahmans.
Brahma described a p l a c e f r e e o f t h e effects
of
t i m e where wishes a r e granted as soon as they a r e conceived. He d e t a i l e d t h e d i f f e r e n t b e n e f i t s a c c r u i n g t o brahmans
and t o
ksatriyas from making g i f t s o f c a t t l e , and a1so t h e dangers o f s t e a l irig o r improperly s e l l ing them. 48.
The
[vrataniyamaphalafl
fruits
of
vows
and
acts
of
piety
[13.74.1-74.391
Bhisma t o l d Y u d h i s t h i r a o f t h e m e r i t s o f vows and ' b
various pious a c t s r e l a t i v e t o g i f t - g i v i n g * 49.
R e l a t i n g t o t h e g i f t o f cows [gopradanikam] (13.75.1-77.241
Once again Y u d h i.s.t h i r a inquired about the r u l e s for r i t u a l g i f t i n g o f cows.
Byhaspati ' s i n s t r u c t i o n t o King ~ ~ n d h ~ t r ~ ~
a.
t13.75.4-75.231 Narrator :
B h i sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t* h i r a
.
Following a discourse by Bhisma on t h e value o f patience or r e s t r a i n t ( d a n t a ) , he told t h e f o l lowing s t o r y in reply to Y u d h i* s* t h i r a ' s request f o r i n s t r u c t i o n on how t o o f f e r
t h e g i f t o f a cow i n proper fashion..
When King MSndhatr was unsure about how t o make a r i t u a l
o f f e r i ng o f c a t t l e ,
he sought t h e advice o f Brhaspati , who
t o l d him e x a c t l y what t o say and do i n performing t h e r i t u a l Brhaspati lauded t h e benefits
o f such g i f t s ,
.
b u t cautioned
MandhStr t o d i s c l case t h e r i t u a l ( c a l l ed guhyadharma, o r secret p r a c t i c e a t 13.75.22ab) o n l y t o those worthy o f performing i t . b . How cows were created383[ I 3.76.10-76.331
Narrator:
B h i sma
Audience:
Yudhisthira
.
Y u d h i,s t h i r a asked why a red cow ( r u h i n i ) was
regarded as t h e best o f a11 cows t o o f f e r as a g i f t .
Long ago, Brahma t o l d Daksa to create.
He created food,
then 1i v i n g beings who c r i e d out from hunger as soon as they
he
word
purZ
( l o n g ago)
introduces t h i s
story
at
13.75.4a. ^%'his s t o r y i s simply i d e n t i f i e d as v r d d h W m bruvatam (what o l d men t e l l ) a t 13.76.10a.
Daksa drank some amrta and a cow,
were born.
born from t h e perfume h i s body exuded. daughters,
a l l o f them tawny ( k a p i l a ) .
c r e a t u r e s were fed.
Surabhi,
was
S u r a b h i bore many Through them Daksals
As calves were b e i n g suck1 edJ some o f t h e
l i q u i d s p i l l e d o n t o ! % i v a a shead.
When he g l a r e d a t those
c a l v e s w i t h h i s t h i r d eye, i t s b r i 1 liance t u r n e d t h e i r hides various colors.
Daksa explained t o 6 i v a t h a t t h e 1i q u i d was
pure, and gave him a b u l l and some cows as a g i f t .
So i t was
t h a t S i v a l s mount w a s a b u l l and the d e i t i e s designated him l o r d o f animals. c
Conversation between King SaudZfsa and
Narrator:
Bhi sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a
Bhfsma t o l d t h e f o l 7 o w i n g story about what Vasfstha , s a i d t o King Saudasa
about c a t t l e .
Once, when K i n g SaudSsa asked what was sacred, l auded t h e m e r i t s o f c a t t l e in g r e a t d e t a i 1. to
use dung,
m i 1k,
and so on.
.
Vasistha
H e described how
Through t h e
practice o f
penances, c a t t l e had a t t a i ned t h e i r important p o s i t i on. Vasi stha a1 so explained t h e p a r t i c u l a r b e n e f i t s t o be gained from g i v i n g s p e d f i e c o l o r s o f cows as g i f t s .
Cattle.
^%he phrase etasminneva kale ( a t t h a t v e r y time) i n t r o d u c e s t h i s s t o r y a t 13.77. l a ) . Note t h a t t h i s s t o r y s t r a d d l e s t h r e e adhyayas given d i f f e r n t t i t l e s i n t h e c r i t i c a l text. The f i r s t i s 1 is t e d a s number 48 here. t h e second i s t i t l e d "The m e r i t s o f c a t t l e - g i v i n g n [gopradanam]. The t h i r d has t h e same t i t l e as t h e f i r s t (13.79.1-13.80.45).
396
..
s a i d Vasi stha, a r e t h e supreme g i f t one can g i v e t o brahmans.
50
R e l a t i ng t o t h e g i f t o f c o w s [gapradXnikam] [13s79.1-13.80.45]
..
When Y u d h i s t h f r a asked BhYsma t o te77 h i m w h a t i s the most sacred thing af a 1 1 a f t e r he had completed t h e story
about Vasistha, * BhZsma r e p 7 ied w i t h t h e f~ 1 l o w i n g stury.
a
What
hka
to1d
...
Krsna
Dvai payana
( ~ y a s a ) ~ ~ ~
[13.80.6-80m45J Narrator:
BhZsma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i ra * *
Once Vyasa asked $uka t o t e l l h i m what is t h e mast
sacred t h i n g * h k a r e p l i e d t h a t c a t t l e are. brahrnans
ensures
that
one
a t t a i ns
the
Giving c a t t l e t o e x t r a o r d i n a r i 1y
b e a u t i f u l realm o f c a t t l e a f t e r deaths and Suka described i t * 51. The c o n v e r s a t i o n between c a t t l e and t h e goddess
Sr-2 [ ~ r ~ ~ o s a * v a d a [13.8lS2-81 e]~~~ *26] Y u d h. f*s t h i ~ aasked f f i t w a s true, t h a t cowdung i s imbued w i t h the guddess S r 2 .
as he had heard, I n r e p 7y, Bhfsma
t07d t h e f a 1 l o w i n g s t o r y .
Narrator :
f3h5 sma
Audi erice:
Yudhi s. t* h i r a
One day $ri t o o k on a b e a u t i f u l form and entered a herd o f c a t t l e .
They marveled a t her beauty and asked who
3e*he compound word puriIvrttam (past event) s i gna1s t h i s s t o r y at 1 3 . 8 0 . 6 m
397
she was.
6r5 expl a i ned t h a t she had abandoned t h e demons and
now dwelled i n t h e d e i t i e s -
d e i t i e s and r.s' i s f i n d
Only when she was w i t h them d i d
success*
She expressed her d e s i r e t o
dwell i n c a t t l e . The c a t t l e were s k e p t i ca1 , f o r t h e y had heard t e l l o f her f i c k l e nature.
Moreovers they
saw no reason why she was
needed to enhance t h e i r a t t r a c t i veness.
S r Z argued t h a t
c a t t l e were l u c k y t o have her, f o r o t h e r s had had t o win her favor
thraugh
uninterested.
extracwdi nary e f f o r t .
The c a t t l e
remained
F i n a l ly, !b-5 asked t h a t they a1low her t o dwell
i n them as a kindness t o her, lest she be 2hought i11 o f f o r having been sent away.
The c a t t l e , who were always i n c l ined
g r f to dwel 1 i n the1 r
toward kindness,
r e l e n t e d and i n v i t e d
dung and u r i ne.
She agreed, w i t h her b l e s s i rigs.
In f u r t h e r teachings an c a t t re, Bhfsrna t o l d t h e f d 70wfng story.
52. I n q u i r y about t h e realm o f c a t t l e [gp70kapraSnah] 113.82- 1-82.471
a
Conversati on
between
Brahma
and
1ndraJa7
[13,f32.6-82-43] Narrator :
Bhf sma
Audience:
Yudhisthira *
.
When I n d r a became k i n g o f t h e d e i t i e s and t h e demons had been defeated,
the t h r e e worlds prospered.
One
398 days a l l
the c e l e s t i a l
beings gathered t o g e t h e r
t o honor
I n t h a t assembly Indra asked w h y the realm o f c a t t l e
Brahma.
w a s superior even t o t h a t of t h e d e i t i e s .
8rahina 1 ectured I n d r a on t h e supreme importance o f c a t t l e i n t h e performance o f s a c r i f i c e .
He t o l d t h e f o l lowing story
about t h e i r o r i g i n . ( 1 ) The o r i g i n s o f c a t t l e 3 8 8~t3e82.23-82.41]
Narrator:
Brahma
Audience:
h d r a and t h e assembly o f d e i t i e s and c e l e s t i a l beings
During undertook SurabhT,
a u s t e r i t j es the
daughter
the
and
era
OF the
became
deities*
pregnant
with
Aditi V i snu. *
OF Oaksa* a l s o engaged i n ascetic
p r a c t i c e s w i t h t h e same goal i n mind.
A1 3 t h e d e i t i e s were
d i sturbed, and Brahma questioned her on the4 r beha1f, o f f e r i n g
her any boon she chose*
She requested nothing* b u t BrahmZ
granted her immortal it y * d e s i ~ n a t e dt h e realm cay l e d Goloka as her dwell ing,
and decl ared t h a t her daughters would 1ive on
e a r t h and perform good deeds.
Once I n d r a understaod t h e reverence owed t o c a t t l e ,
he
began to worship them d a i l y * 53. The o r i g i n 09 gold [suvarnotpattfh] [l3.83.1-
85*70J Bhisma t o l d a series o f s t o d e s about @old when
3 8 0 ~ hphrase e pura devayuge clang ago, d u r i ng t h e e r a a f t h e d e i t i e s ) i n t r o d u c e s t h i s substory a t 13.82.23a.
..
Y u d h f s t h i r a asked why t h e s c r i p t u r e s consider i t t h e supreme s a c r f f i c f a 7 gp$ft.
a. On g a l d as the supreme s a c r i f i c i a l o f f e r i n g 3 e 3 [13*83*10-85m?U] Narrator :
BhTsma
Audience:
Yudhi s *t h i r a
(1 1 Bh5smat s t e s t o f adherence t o r f t u a l r e g u l a t i o n s [ l 3 . 8 3 . ??-83.28]
performed t h e
Narrator :
Bhi sma
Audience:
Yudhisthira
When
father
funeral
..
his rites*
6amtanu
dieds
BhZsma
As he was doing so, an
arm
adarned w i t h jewels reached up through t h e ground as if t o
.
accept t h e r i c e b a l l s ( p i n d, a ) b e i ng o f f e r e d .
BKsrna knew t h a t
t h e r i t u a l r e q u i r e d him t o l a y t h e o F f e r i n g on t h e k w h grass spread
for
that
purpose,
canti w e d with the r i t u a l .
and
so
he
ignored t h e
arm
and
The arm disappeared*
That n i g h t , t h e ancestors appeared t o BhZsma i n a dream and expressed the4 r ip1easure a t h i s behavi or. They in s t r u c t e d h i m t o make o f F e r i n g s of gold f o r t h e i r b e n e f i t , and f o r h i s . When he awoke# BhZsma determined t o f o 1 low t h e i r w i shes.
( 2 ) Rams Jamadagnyat s e x p i a t i o n o f h i s s i ridg0 [13.83.29-85.68]
he d e t a i l s o f t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y are c a l l e d d m p l y anubhOt i (know1 edge) a t 13 83 1Oc
Narrator :
BhZ sma
Audience:
V'udhi s t h i r a b .
Bhfsma
cant fnued
Aqter
repeated1y
immediate 1y
wfth
the
f o 7 7owing s t o r y .
extermi n a t i ng
the
ksatriya, Rzma Jamadagnya performed a horse s a c r i f ice t o
cl eanse hjmsel f
.
A1 Though he performed i t successful Iy s he
was d i scantent and t h e r e f o r e sought t h e advice o f some learned
..
rsis*
Although r i t e s performed w i t h g i f t s o f c a t t l e s e a r t h
and wealth e f f icac4ous.
were
effective,
gifts of
gold
were
extremely
..
V a s i s t h a s who was among t h e sages, t d d Raina t h e
folloWing story*
(a) The o r j g i n o f
[13-83-36-83*38]
..
Narrator:
Vasi stha
Audi e w e :
Rama Jamadagnya
Long ago, Agni set f i r e t o t h e ent* r e world. OF a1 1
From t h a t a c t g o l d emerged.
It j s t h e m o s t precious
objects and t h e purest o f substances.
Agni
i s the
essence o f g o l d * and thus those who give i t as s a c r i f i c i a l g i f t s are making a g i T t o f a1 I t h e del t i e s i n t h a t a c t .
continued w f t h a more d a b o r a t e s t a r y o f the Vasistha * rigi ins o f gold.
(b] More on t h e o r i g i n s o f
[13m83*39-84*81] 3 9 1 ~ hcer i t i c a l e d j t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y *
3s2mayaSrutami dap paw&? pursne bhrgunandana/13 83.3Qab
401
Narrator:
Vasistha
Audience:
R3ma Jamagadnya
When high in the Himalayas. about
this
marriage.
~iva
and Uma married. they lived
The deities, who were quite anxious ~iva
asked
to
refrain
from
having
children since they feared that such a child would consume the universe with its splendor. incensed. own.
It
Siva calmly agreed. but UmS was
She cursed them all to be without sons of their so
happened
that Agni
was
not
present
at
that
congregation, and so was not cursed. Over time,
the demon Taraka gradually usurped more and
more power from the dei ties. Brahma, who advi sed that Agni their aid against Taraka.
They sought assi stance from could bear a
son to come to
He foretold that the child would be
born from Agni's semen when cast into the Ganges River. The deities took heart and sought out Agni, but he was nowhere to be found.
A certain frog disclosed that Agni was
hiding in the underworld. whereabouts and hid in an away this secret. but a
Agn; cursed frogs for revealing his a§va~~ha
tree, but an elephant gave
Agni cursed elephants, entered a §ami tree,
parrot told
the dei ti es where
he was.
He
cursed
parrots. but the deities finally found him and told him of their problem. Agni agreed to help and caused a fetus to begin to grow in the Ganges River.
Ga~g.
was much distressed by the great
energy of that fetus.
When Agn i refused to remove it from her
402
waters
she c a s t i t onto M t . Meru where i t continued t o grow.
The goddess
K r t t i ka
nursed
t h e baby whose
splendor
made
e v e r y t h i n g near him shine l i k e gold, and thus he was c a l l e d K S r t t i keya.
And so i t is t h a t go1d is t h e essence o f Agni
.
(c) $ h a g s s a c r i f i c e and t h e o r i g i n s o f 3.85.1-85. creatures393[I
53)
.
Narrator:
Vasi s t h a
Audi ence :
RSma Jamadagnya
..
One day, a11 t h e d e i t i e s and r-sis came t o a s a c r i f i c e h e l d by Siva.
I n the form of VarunaJ Siva
o f f e r e d t h e r i t u a l o b l a t i o n s t o himself as t h e d e i t y o f t h e rite.
When BrahmS saw a1 1 t h e b e a u t i f u l women gathered there,
he e j a c u l a t e d spontaneously.
Pasan picked up t h a t semen m i xed
w i t h d i r t and threw i t i n t o t h e s a c r i f i c i a l f i r e . o f f e r i ngl
a1 1 creatures were born.
Bhrgu
came
forth
from
the
fire
first,
Adgi ras, K a v i , MarTei, t h e VSlakhilyas, A t r i
.
rsfs.
From t h a t
$iva declared t h a t
followed
by
and the o t h e r
s i nee he was t h e s a c r i f i e e r ,
o f f s p r i ng were h i s c h i ldren, b u t Agni in s i s t e d t h a t
the
was t h e
f a t h e r J and so he assigned sons t o each o f t h e claimants.
..
Vasi stha enumerated t h e o f f s p r i n g o-f each sonl
and t h e
d e i t f e s declared t h a t t h e sons should populate the earth. Brzihrna was pleaseds and sa concluded t h a t g r e a t s a c r i f i c e o f $ 4 va.
3g3apic e d a ~pura rama $rutam me brahmadarganaml p i tamahasya yadvrttam bdhmanah paramStrnanah//l 3.85.1 p
.
A f t e r h e a r i ng Vasi stha1s s t o r i e s
RZma Jamadagnya made
g i f t s o f g o l d t o brahmans i n order t o cleanse h i s s i n s f u l l y .
..
Bhhna advised Yudhisthira t o do t h e same* 54. The k i 11 ing o f Taraka [tarakawadhah
[ 13.86.5-
86-34] Narrator :
BhZ sma
A u d f ence:
Yudhi s t h i ra * *
After
.
mention o f t h e demon Taraleas Yudhfsthira .
No s i n g l e female was a b l e t o t o l e r a t e the f e t u s of
Agni s son,
w h i ch Gafiga had d i s1odged f r o m her waters.
The
d e i t i e s sp1 i t t h e f e t u s i n t a s i x pieces and convinced t h e s i x K r t t i k ~ tso agree to b r i n g a p o r t i o n each t o term.
c h i l d r e n were born a t the same timel
A1 1 s i x
and m i raculous1y merged
t o f o r m one awesome c h i l d , c a l l e d K a r t t i k e y a o r Skanda. K r t t i kas nursed himl
The
anti each OF t h e d e i t i e s made a special
g i f t ta hjm. As t h e boy grew,
Taraka t r i e d i n wain t o destroy him.
Eventual 1y , Skanda k i 11ed Taraka easi 1y w i t h an arrow.
S i race
then, Skanda has been a t t h e head o f t h e d i v i n e army. 5 5 . The p r a c t i ce o f ancestor r itua1s [Sraddhakal pah]
[ 1 3 * 8 7 *1-91 '451
..
A t Yudhfsthi f a ?s request,
BhZsnm then d k w s s e d the
j%he s t a ~ ycandudes w i t h t h e To1 l o w i ng sentence a t 13.86.33ab: evam ramaya kauravya was+s t h o kathayatpura/
.
@
df fferent
a n c e s t ~ r s on
days
He
o f f e r i n g s are best f o r t h a t r i t u a l -
also
explained
which
&!hisma went an t a t e l l
about the s p e c i f i c b e n e f i t s o f gfadcfha r i t e s performed under p a r t fcu 7 a ~ conste 7 7at fanss as Yama had
lang ago i n s t r u c t e d
King !k!fabindu.
a. Yamats i n s t r u c t i o n to K i n g h S a & i n d u on 1-89. I 51
&-addhdg5 [ 13.89
Narrator :
Bhf sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
..
6hZsma repeated t o Y u d h i s* t h i r a w h a t Yama had
told King g a ~ a b i n d uabout t h e d i f f e r e n t m e r i t s o f performing &-addha a t d i f f e r e n t t i m e s . many chi l d r e n ,
One c o u l d reach heaven,
achieve fames and so on,
father
depending upon t h e
t i m e OF year when t h e r i t e was performed.
Bhisma
then
told
.
Y u d h i s,t h i r a the
characteristics
brahmans t o whom &-addha o f f e r f n g s shou I d be g i wen, $'' Yudhisthira i n q u i r e d about t h e o r i g i n s o f
the rfte,
of
When Bhisma
t ~ 7 dt h e fa7 lowing s t o r y &.
O r i g i n o f & r a d d d g r [13.91.3-91.451 Narrator :
Bhi sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t* h i r a
Atri
,
son o f BrahmZ,
had a son named N i m i
.
3 9 6 ~ i g h t e eonf t h e 47 verses oT t h i s adhyayas 13.90, a r e s i m i lar to verses i n Manu, according ta t h e e d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l edition. I g 7 ~ hce r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r th4s s t o r y .
405 N i m i * s wonderful sons
S r i mat, died a t t h e age o f one thousand
a f t e r a l i f e t i m e devoted t o asceticism* N i m i was unable t o d i s p e l h i s g r i e f .
One days he had t h e
t e subsequently known as t h e t#raddham idea of performing t h e r+ H e gathered f r u i t s and g r a i nss c a l l e d together a number o f
brahmans, and performed t h e new r jt u a l , making o f f e r i n g s o f
..
r i c e b a l l s [ p i n d a ) f o r h i s dead son. A f t e r performing t h e r i t e s M i m f was seized w i t h doubts
about the p r o p r i e t y o f c r e a t i n g a new r i t u a l puni shed?
Nim*
thought
of
his
.
grandfather
Would he be Atr*
,
who
immediately appeared t o reassure hjm t h a t t h e Srzddha r i t e had actual l y been s e t f o r t h by BrahmS long ago. Nimi
regarding t h e
order
i n which
A t r i instructed
t h e d e i t i e s should
be
invoked during t h e r i t e D and s p e c i f i e d c e r t a i n foods which should n Q t be used as o f f e r i n g s * Soon, a11 t h e r s i s were performing &-addha r i t e s .
.
56. The character% s t i c s o f vows [ v r a t a v f ~ e s a h ] ~ ~ ~ [ 1 3 . 9 2 = 1-92,221
Narrator:
Bh5 sma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a
The ancestors
quickly
grew
uncomfortable
consumi ng a1 I o f t h e food o f f e r e d d u r i ng &-addha r i t e s
from They
sought f3rahmSts adv4ceD but he r e f e r r e d t h e problem t o A g p i . Agni s a i d t h a t he would j o i n them i n cunsuming t h e o f f e r i n g *
3 9 0 ~ hset o r y from t h e without i n t e r r u p t i o n m
previous adhyaya continues
here
and so t h e ancestors would no l o n g e r overeat.
57. The c e r t a i nty o f dharma fdharman26cayahJ [ 13.93.1
-
93.171
B h i s m a t o l d Y u d h i,s,t h i r a about t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p between a s c e t i c i s m and t h e p r a c t i c e o f vows.
.
58. S i n - i n c u r r i n g g i f t s [pratigrahaefosah]
[13.94.1-
94.441 D u r i n g a conversatfon about f a s t i n g and the g i v i n g
and
receiving
of
food,
Y u d h i.s.t h i r a
asked
to
know
the
d i f f e r e n c e between those who give t o brahmans and those who receive.
I n reply, Bhfsma told t h e f 0 7 lowing s t o r y .
.
a. Conversati on between Vrsadarbhi and t h e seven
Narrator :
B h i sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
The
seven
..
r.s' f s
(Kasyapa,
Atri
,
Vasistha, .
BharadvSja, Gautama, V i 6vami t ra, and Jamadagni ) wandered about
.
p e r f o r m i ng t a p a s , accompani ed by Vasi s t h a ' s w i f e Arundhati ,
..
t h e i r s e r v a n t GandS, and her husband PaSusakha. t h a t a drought gripped t h e l a n d .
It happened
S t a r v a t i o n was rampant,
and
$i b i ' s son d i e d o f s t a r v a t i o n .
.
The seven r.s i s and t h e i r companions came upon t h e dead
body.
Mad w i t h hunger, t h e y began t o cook i t f o r food when
.
K i n g Saivya, son of Vrsadarbhi happened along. b
He urged them
407
n o t t o r e s o r t t o cannibal ism, and o f f e r e d them c a t t l e and any o t h e r g i f t s t h a t would r e s t o r e t h e i r we1 1-being.
A1though
g r a t e f u l f a r t h e o f f e r , t h e y declined i t ( l e s t t h e y l o s e m e r i t and w e n t on t h e i r way.
i n accepting g i f t s ) ,
The k i ngts men
followed them, and o f f e r e d them f i g s s t u f f e d w i t h gold.
Again
.
t h e rsis r e f u s e d these g i f t s and went on t h e i r w a y . , Now t h e k i ng was enraged a t t h e i r r e f u s a l t o accept h i s performed a c e r t a i n
gifts.
He
eksasi
named YatudhSni
sacrifice
emerged t o
do
and a
his
fearsome
bidding.
.
in s t r u c t e d her t o k i 11 t h e r s' f s and t h e i r companions,
He
and so
Yatudhani departed t o do so.
-
59.
The chapter about t h e curse [Sapathadhy-hl
[13.95.1-13.96.54J The s t o r y c o n t i n u e s i n t h i s adhyaya.
.
. @ scurseNo Vrsadarbhi Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
YStudhSni went t o t h e f o r e s t and stood guard a t a love1 y take.
When t h e p a r t y a r r i ved there, accompani ed by a s o l it a r y
ascetic
named gunahsakha,
etymology
of
his
name
permission t o gather though
they
knew
to
the
they
each o f
the
Yatudhani
sages
in
exchange
edible lotus stalks were
vulnerable
revealed t h e
to
for
her
there, that
even demon.
Sunahsakha a1one muttered h i s r e p l y t o t h e demon ' s question.
.
his adhjd?ya c o n t i n u e s t h e s t o r y o f t h e seven r s, i s , focusing on t h e impact o f t h e k i n g ' s curse.
408 When she asked him t o repeat h i s name, t h e a s c e t i c s t r u c k her with h i s s t i c k ,
and she d i ssolved i n t o ashes.
The sages were d e l i g h t e d , u n t i 1 they d i scovered t h a t a11 t h e l o t u s s t a l k s t h e y had gathered had disappeared. cursed t h e t h i e f ,
Each one
whomever i t might be, u n t i l i t became c l e a r
that Sunahsakha w a s
h i msel f
the
gui l t y
one.
He
then
revealed t h a t he was I n d r a , come t o t e s t them and p r o t e c t them
from t h e demon YatudhZni
.
succumb t o temptations,
I n d r a took them t o heaven w i t h him.
As a reward f o r t h e i r f a i l u r e t o
..
b. The r s i s l oathdd2 [13.96.1-96.541 Narrator :
Bhi sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
Once together, site,
a
l e d by I n d r a .
.
number
of
r* s* i s
went
on
pilgrimage
When they reached t h e f i n a l sacred
they began t o gather
l o t u s s t a l k s t o eat.
Suddenly,
Agastya r e a l i z e d t h a t those he had gathered had been s t o l e n . He
demanded
their
return,
and
declared
that
he
would
immediately l e a v e t h e e a r t h and go t o heaven, since dharma had obviously begun t o d e c l i n e and he d i d n o t wish t o experience the results.
One by one,
t h e worried r s f s declared t h e i r Ã
innocence, pronouncing f i e r c e curses upon t h e t h i e f .
Indra,
he e d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n note t h a t s i m i l a r s t o r i e s o f oaths sworn a g a i n s t wrongdoers occur i n Jataka 488, J3takamala 19, and i n t h e f o l l o w i n g adhyaya a t 13.96. 0 2 a t r a ivod~harantimami ti hasam purgtanam/ yadvrttam t i r t h a y a t r a y a m 6apatham p r a t i tacchrnu)/l3.96.1 Thi s s t o r y 4 mmedi a t e l y f o l lows the preceding one.
however, u t t e r e d boons t o t h e t h i e f , t h a t god o f t h e deed.
and so Agastya accused
I n d r a apologized and returned t h e l o t u s
s t a l k s , d e c l a r i n g t h a t he had only done so i n order t o hear t h e r* s f s make dharmic pronouncements (a1 though they had o n l y
done so i n t h e negative)
.
Agastya was appeased, and t h e group
continued on i t s t o u r of sacred s i t e s . 60. The o r i g i n o f ( t h e p r a c t i c e o f g i v i n g an) umbrella 3.97.1-98.221 and sandal s [ c h a t r o p a n a h o t p a t w [I Yudhisthfra .
asked
how
the
practice
of
giving
umbre 7 7as and sanda 1s during r e 7 igious rituals had begun, and
Bhisma r e p 1 f e d w i t h t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y . a. Conversat ion between Jamadagni and ~
~
[13.97.5-98.221 Narrator :
Bhisma
Audience:
Y u d h i s.t h i r a
Jamadagni used t o enjoy p r a c t i c i n g h i s s k i 11s w i t h bow and arrow.
H i s w i f e Renuka would r e t r i e v e the arrows
f o r him.
One p a r t i c u l a r l y h o t day, he asked her t o gather t h e
arrows.
The ground was so h o t t h a t she t o o k refuge under a
tree f o r a s h o r t time, b u t then went on w i t h h e r task l e s t her husband become angry w i t h h e r .
When he asked what had delayed
her, Renuka t o 1d him t h a t her head and f e e t had been burned by
t h e sun.
Jamadagni decided t o destroy t h e o f f e n d i n g sun.
As Jamadagni t o o k aim, SOrya approached him i n the guise
0 3 i t i hasam purSvrttami mam firnu naradhl pa/ j amada'gnefca samvadam 's06yasya ca mahatmanah//I 3.97.5
r
~
410 of a brahman.
He pointed out the crucial role the sun plays
in co 11 ect i ng and di scharg i ng water as ra; n . Jamadagni was adamant,
Sorya asked for
When he saw that
In
his protection.
return, the sage asked SOrya to find a way to protect people from the sun's rays.
And so SOrya gave Jamadagni an umbrella
and sandals.
[ 1 3 . 99 . 1 -99 • 33 ]
Bhisma discussed the merjts of gjving
gi'~s
tha~
bring pleasure.
62. The gift of oblation [baliprad8nam] [13.100.1100.25]
When householder l
Yudhjs~hira
Bhi~ma
asked
~o
hear the du'ties of a
'told the F07lowing story.
a. Conversat i on between Vasudeva and Prthi vi 404 [13.100.2-100.25] Narrator:
Bhisma
Krsna once questioned of a
househo 1 der.
P~thivi
about the duties
She spoke of the ob 1 i gat i on to conduct
various sacrifices to the deities and onels ancestors, how to treat guests,
and when to
404 atra te vartayi sy~mi
feed animal s
who
1 i ve
near
the
puravrttam j an~dhi pal vBsudevasya samvadam prthivya~caiva bharataI113.100.2 Th is story conta ins th ree verses comparable to verses in Manu. according to editors of the critical edition: 13.100.13 (cf. Manu 3.90). 13.100.18 (cf. Manu 3.102cd). and 13.100.21 (cf. Manu 3. 119) .
house.
63. The g i f t o f lamps, and so on fd¥Lpadidanam [13.101 .I-101.65]
Y u d h i.s t h f r a asked Bhisma t o explain t h e g i f t o f
lamps, and Bhisma responded w i t h t h e f o 7 lowing s t o r y . a.
Conversati on
between
Praj apat i
and
1
~ u v a r n a ~[13.101.2-101.65 '~ Narrator:
B h i sma
Audience:
Yudhi s t.h i r a
One day,
Manu
.
t h e a s c e t i c Suvarna sat t a l k i n g w i t h
Manu, and asked how t h e p r a c t i c e o f o f f e r i n g f l o w e r s t o t h e d e i t i e s had a r i s e n . ( 1)
Manu rep1i e d w i t h t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y . Conversati on
between
Sukra
and
Bal i406
[13.101 .lo-101.641
Narrator :
Sukra
Audi ence :
Bal i
Once t h e Bhargava
6 uk r a v i s i t e d
Bal i, c h i e f
of the asuras, who asked him t o e x p l a i n t h e m e r i t s o f g i v i n g flowers, incense, and lamps as r i t u a l o f f e r i n g s . t h e types o f
f l o w e r s b e s t s u i t e d f o r such o f f e r i n g s
l o t u s e s ) , t h e p r e f e r r e d t y p e s o f incense, giving,
6ukra noted
and t h e proper way t o o f f e r
(e.g.,
t h e m e r i t s o f lamp-
food i n a s a c r i f i c i a l
i hasam puratanam/ 0 5 a t r ~ a p y d ~ h a r a n t i m atm 1 manoh prajapatervadam suvarnasya ca bharata//13.101.2
4 0 6 a t r ~ p y u d ~ h a r a n t i mt a1 m i hasam puratanam/ Su k r a s y a ca ba1 e s c a i v a samvadam samSgame//13.101.10
vai
412 context. A f t e r Sukra s a i d these t h i n g s t o B a l i , Manu repeated them to
Suvarna,
who
later
told
NSrada.
It w a s
Wada
who
iinstructed Bhisma. 64. The m e r i t s o f g i v i n g flowers,
and so on
fpuspadidanapha7amJ [13.102.1-103.37] Conversation between Nahusa, Agastya, ~
h [13.102.3-103.371 ~ ~ u
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
~
and
~
~
..
Yudhisthira asked to hear more regarding the . merits
of
gfving
flowers,
lamps as
incense, and
ritual
offerings,.
Nahusa achieved heaven through t h e f o r c e o f h i s m e r i t , and continued t o
l i v i ng there.
perform various
r i t u a l s every day w h i l e
But once he was appointed c h i e f o f t h e d e i t i e s ,
he ceased those o f f e r i n g s o u t o f f a l s e p r i d e , and so h i s m e r i t
began t o wane.
For a while,
though,
he remained i n heaven,
t r e a t i ng rsis most di srespectf u l 1y by demandi ng t h a t they draw * , h i s cart. When i t was Agastyats t u r n t o be a bearer, Bhrgu came t o compl a i n t o him about Nahusa*s behavior. h i s own exasperati on,
had
received
a
boon
Agastya expressed
b u t felt helpless t o stop Nahusa,
who
from
him
Brahma h i m s e l f
which
made
407atrapyudaharantimaim t i hasam purStanam/ nahusam p r a t i samvSdamagaskyasya bhrgostatha//13.102.3
. .
413
..
i n v i n c i b l e t o the r s i s .
Bhrgu revealed t h a t Brahma h i m s e l f
had arranged f o r Nahusa's undoing. i n s u l t Agastya by k i c k i n g him,
Nahusa would t h a t very day
and i n response Bhrgu would
curse him t o become a snake. When Nahusa had yoked Agastya t o h i s c a r t t h a t day, Bhrgu h i d himself i n Agastyavs h a i r.
Nahusa prodded Agastya w i t h a
.
s t i c k . b u t t h e rsi . remained unperturbed.
however,
and
kicked Agastya's
Nahusa g o t angry,
Bhrgu cursed Nahusa
head.
immediately. Since he r e t a i n e d h i s mental f a c u l t i e s when h e became a snake,
Nahusa asked Bhrgu t o declare a term o f t h e curse.
Bhrgu declared t h a t a k i n g named Yudhi s t h i r a would b e born who rn
would release IUahusa from h i s curse. Bhrgu r e p o r t e d these events t o BrahmK who suggested t h a t
t h e d e i t i e s r e - i n s t a t e I n d r a as t h e i r c h i e f , and so t h e y d i d . 65. S t e a l ing from brahmans fbrahmasvaharanam]
[13.104.1-104.29] When Yudhisthira i n q u i r e d about t h e f a t e o f p e o p h * * who s t e a 1 from brahmans, BhZsma t o l d the f o l l o w i n g s t o r y .
.
a. Conversation between a Candala and a m
ksatriya'a8
113.104.2-104.2~1
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
A k s a t r i y a once asked a Candala why, * .
'''at
s i n c e he
rapyudzharant~at d i hasam puratanarn! c a n d a l asya ca saddam ksatrabandhoha bh3rata//13 .'104.2
.
414
was so f i 1t h y ,
he was concerned t o wash o f f some 1i q u i d t h a t
had spi 1 l e d on him from a p l a n t .
.
The Candal . a expl a i ned t h a t long ago some c a t t l e had been
st01 en from a brahman
.
As they were b e i ng 1ed o f f ,
t h e i r m i 1k dripped o n t o soma p l a n t s along t h e
some o f
road.
The
brahmans who drank the l i q u i d from those p l a n t s as w e l l as the p r i e s t who performed t h e sacri f i c e f o r them went t o he11 , and
so d i d
the
king who
sponsored t h e
sacrifice.
Even
the
c h i l d r e n and grandchi l d r e n o f those who had s t o l e n t h e c a t t l e died.
.
Now t h e Candsla used t o l i v e where those c a t t l e were
taken when s t o l e n , observing t h e v o w o f brahmacSrya.
Because
the cows1 m i 1k had s p i 1l e d on t h e food he had begged for h i msel f , he had been reborn as a Candal a.
.
Although t h e CandSla could s t i l l r e c a l l h i s former l i v e s , * he w a s a t a l o s s t o k n o w what conduct would h e l p him improve
h i s lowly status.
The k s a t r i y a advised him t o d i e i n b a t t l e
for a brahman's sake.
..
The Candala d i d so,
and thereby gained
a better state.
66. The superi o r elephant [hast ikatam] [I2 . 1 0 5 . 1
-
105.621 When Y u d h i.s* t h i r a asked i f everyone goes t o t h e
same world
<7o&a] a f t e r
death,
Bhisma
replied
with
the
f o 7 lowing s t o r y .
a. Conversation between t h e a s c e t i c Gautama and
Vasava ( ~ n d r a } ' [13.105.3-105.62] ~~ Narrator:
Bhzsma
Audience:
Yudhisthira
.
An a s c e t i c named Gautama rescued an orphaned baby elephant and r a i s e d i t l o v i n g l y f o r t e n years. I n d r a took
the
form o f
abduct t h e elephant.
One day,
.
King D h r t a r a s* t r a and attempted t o
He saw no reason why a brahmari should
have such a magni T i c i e n t ani ma1
and wanted it fur h i mself.
Gautama begged t h e k i n g t o leave h i s beloved and l o y a l ani ma1 a1one. gold
O h r t a r Z s* t r a o f f e r e d him c a t t l el
b u t Gautama was uninterested.
as h i s own son,
servants and
He regarded t h e elephant
and r e 1i e d upon i t t o a s s i s t i n h i s chores.
I n a s e r i e s o f chal lenges and responses,
Gautama described
successively more e x t r a o r d i nary regions o f t h e universe,
each
time assuring t h e disguised d e i t y t h a t he would f o l l o w him anywhere
to
retrieve
the
elephant.
Eventually
Gautama
recognized t h a t t h e k i n g was Indra h i m s e l f * and I n d r a then relented. ascetic
-67.
He was so pleased with Gautama t h a t he took the and h i s elephant
-- t o
1i v e i n h i s heaven
The mahatmya i n praise o f f a s t i n g [ana&anamahatmyam] [ 1 3.106.1 -1 0 6 . 4 2 1 Remarkjng t h a t of a77 t h e t o p i c s on which &hisma
had
instructed hfm,
Yudh f s t h f r a asked
t a p a s was perhaps
t3h.isma
t h e must
t u disc 70se what
fmportant,
cunst f t u t e s
the
409atr~pyud~harant~m t iahasam mi puratanam/ gautamasya muneststa samv~damvasavasya ca#'/13.105.3
416 supreme tapas,
He r e p 7 f e d with the f o 7 7owfng stat-y.
a. Conversati on between B h a ~ c r a t h aand ~ r a h m ~ ' ' ' [13.?06.4-106.421 Narrator :
Bhisma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a
.
Statfngp t h a t nuthing was s u p e r i o r t o f a s t i n g J Bhfsma r e c i t e d t h e f0770wfng story.
When Bhag5ratha reached a realm o f t h e universe p a r t i c u l a r l y d i f f i c u l t to a t t a i n B BrahmS sought to know how he had done so.
Bhagzratha rep1i e d w i t h an extensive 1i s t o f
s a c r i f ices performed , g +f t s given t o brahmans, and a u s t e r i t i e s observed
--
b u t none OF them had gained t h i s p a r t i c u l a r 7oka
Only when he learned t h e vow o f f a s t i n g from t h e
f o r him.
Bhrgu Usanas (who had pub1ic i zed it despi t e I n d r a l s e f f o r t s t o keep i t a seevet) had Bhagiratha a t t a i n e d t h a t region.
68. The s t o r y o f l o n g e v i t y [ayusySkhyanarn]
[13.107.1-
107*1481
.
Yudhisthfra fame,
wea 7 th,
then asked l3hZsm
haw men
acqufre
and p r ~ s p e r i t y . Bh.fsma rep 7 i e d w i t h a lengthy
cata 7cque o f dharmic behavior t h a t uou7d assure success i n
this
life,
inc7uding d a i l y r i t u a l s t~ perform,
clothes t o
wearJ fmds t o e a t J and so onm4'!
'''A number o f t h e verses i n these sectjons m907 and 1% 108) are s i m i l a r t o verses i n Manu*
[adhydfyas la Note t h a t adhyaya 107 3 s ca1l e d an akhyanmB b u t presents a 1 f s t o f p r e s c r i p t i v e behaviors, n e t a story, per se.
69.
Proper behavior between youngest and e l d e s t [ 3 y e s t h a k a n i* s t h a v r t t i h ]
[I 3.108.1-1 08.19 J
Next, t h e k i n g inquired about t h e proper behavior between e l d e r and younger brothers. 70. Precepts on f a s t i ng [upav#fsavidhih] [13.109.1110.13?]
.
Yudhfsthit-a returned t o t h e t o p i c o f f a s t f n g , and fnquired abcwt i t s m e r i t s and how i t had come t o be such a widespread p r a c t i c e .
BhZsma rep 1 ied w i t h same i n s t r u c t ion b e
.
had received from t h e r s, i M g f r a s on the v e r y same t u p f c .
a * What Aftgi r a s t o l d ~ h ~ = m [ I 3.109.7-109.69) a ~ ~ ~ Marrator :
i3hLsma
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i f a
.
Afigi r a s speci f ied f a s t s o f d i W e r e n t f o r members o f d i f f e r e n t classes*
1engths
He out1 jned t h e speci f i c
b e n e f i t s o f f a s t s performed a t d i f f e r e n t times of
t h e year,
in d udi ng materi a1 ~ an iand rewards a f t e r death.
Y u d h i,s t h i r a then inquired how t h e paar can achieve a
t h e m e f i t s t d c e - b o r n men achfeve through t h e performance of sacrifices* described sacr i f ices,
Bt6sma explained t h a t
were
in
and he
fact
equivalent
7 isted
the to
f a s t s he the
had j u s t
performance
t h e correspondences
between
of the
rewards o f cet-tafn f a s t s and t h a t u f c e r t a i n s a c r i f i c e s * 71. Further questioning about p u r i f i e a t i o n
'I2i dam khal u mahSrSja S r u t a m ~ s ~ t p u r ~ t a n a m /
..
upavasavi dhau Svestha ye guns bharatarsbha/l3.109
8
Nexts Y u d h*i s t h i ~ aasked which i s the foremast o f * a ? 1 pf l g r f ~ a g es i t e s .
f3hisma responded w i t h a discaurse on
mental pi7grfmages such as cumpassions s e 7 f - r e s t r a i n t ,
and
t r a n q u i ? i t y , whfch a r e as e f f i c a c i a u s as worship a t actual p i Igrimage s i t e s -
72. The c y c l e o f b i r t h and r e b f r t h [samsaracakram]
[13.112.1-114.11]
a. What BrahmZ t o l d ~ r h a s p a t i " [13e112.11 ~ 112.113] Narrator:
Brhaspati
Audience:
Yudhisthi r a g Bhisma, and t h e assembl ed s u r v i vors
.
Yudhfsthir-a them asked f o r detaf 7s on the cyc7e o f b f r - t h and r e b i r t h S 4 l 4 It su happened t h a t
Brhaspati a r r i v e d ~ u s at t t h a t moments and so Bhfsma suggested t h a t Yudhisthira . ask h i s questions o f t h e d e i t y d i r e c t 7y.
A
..
d i a ?ague between Yudh j s t h i r a and Brhaspat i ensued an r e 1ated topicss inc7udfng what happens a f t e r death,
haw conceptfun
'l3etanmaya maharsj a brahmano vadatah purS/ surars5ngm $rutam madhye* prsta6cSpi y a t h ~ t a t h h m / / l 3 i12.11 2
...
41%h len posing h i s question a t 13.112.3, Yudhisthira u t t e r s a phrase simi l a r t o verse 4.241ab i n Manu. This ? s one instance i n t h e e p i c i n wh+ch t h e r e i s no c1u s t e r i n g o f verses t h a t seem t o be based on Manu8 b u t o n l y a reference t o a The occurrence o f s i n g l e ar p a r t i a1 verses s i ng1e ha1f-verse. f r o m Manu seems t o be much l e s s common than the cluster in^ phenomenon observed, For example8 a t 13*40-49 i n t h e c r i t i c a l edition.
occurs, t h e sou 7 ' s course o f mu 7tip7e r e b i r t h s from anima 7 t o human farm.
Fo 1 7ewing t h i s discourse8 Brhaspat f remarked t h a t
what he t o 7d Y u d h i* s. t h i r a he had learned from Braha&
In respanse t o a f u r t h e r quest ion fram Yudhisthira on how peop7e achieve m e r i t
i n t h i s w ~ r 7 dand t h e nextB 6 f h a s p a t i
e x t o ?led t h e b e n e f i t s u f g i v i n g food.
The m e r i t s o f ahimsJf [ahims2?pha7am] [13.115.1
73.
117.41]
Yudhj s* .t h i r a then asked whether ahimsz, performance o f Vedic r i t u a l s, medi t a t 3 on [dhyana),
{indriyasamyama),
austerities
ctapas)
contra7 o f t h e senses or
teacher y i e 7ded g r e a t e r benef i t
.
beneffcia
exto7 Ted
Brhaspati
ahimsZfdharma
then
service
to
me's
Observing t h a t a 7 ?
the
were
merits
of
Fo 7 lawing h i s conversation w i t h Y u d h,i's t h i ~ a ~
Brhaspat i ascended i n t o t h e sky and disappearedR After
..
Bhfsma had answered a questfan from Y u d h i s t h i r a
regarding how one
who has harmed o t h e r s
can e x p i a t e
the
wrcmgdofng, V u d h i s t h i r a i n q u i r e d about t h e v i r t u e s and v i c e s a
a f meat-eating.
BhZsma r e p r i e d w i t h t h e fo77owing s t o r y .
..
a . The psis on m e a t - e a t i r ~ ~[13.116.7-t16R76] ~'~
Narrator:
Bhisma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
.
Bh5 sma acknowl edged t h a t t h e r,s, i s themsel ves
'%siri8matra samvado bahusah kurupumgava/ b'abhva teszm 'tu matam y a t $ a c ~ r n uyudhi s t h i r a / / t 3 . 1 16.9 Edi t o r s o f t h e cr'i t'ica1 e d i ti on nate ' t h a t t h e * s t o r y c o n t a i ns s i x verses comparable t o verses i n Manu.
420
had expressed doubts about t h e advi sabi 1it y o f meat-eati ng. Although
the d i f f i c u l t 4 e s o f
foregoing meat once one had
become accustomed t o i t were recognized,
the benef
.
abstention are so numerous t h a t the r s, i s urged it.
I n fact,
many kings a f former ages had refused meat, especj a11y d u r i ng t h e month o f K z r t t i k a , and had prospered as a consequence. Praapted by f u r t h e r quest ions from Yudhi s t* h i ra, BhYsma w e n t on t o exto7
specify
the
t h e m e r f t s af avoidfng meat-eating,
few
instances
in
which
it
was
and t o
permfssi&?e:
consuatption associated w f t h Vedic s a c r i f i c e s and cansumption of hunted animals ( s i n c e h u n t i n g i t s e l f was n o t proscribed.L 74.
The s t o r y o f t h e worm [kztapakhyanam]
[ l a m118. I
120.14]
..
Y u d h j s t h i r a asked Bhfsma what men who d i e d i n b a t t r e w o d d achieve.
a.
BhZsma rep?i e d w i t h t h e f a 7 ?owing story. Conversation
between
Vyasa
and
a
warm416
~13m118.6-120.14]
Narrator :
Bh?sma
Audi ewe:
Yudhi s t h i r a
..
Once VySsa encountered a worm t r y i n g t o rush
across a busy roadwaym He asked the worm w h y i t w a s h u r r y i n g so.
The worm rep1i e d t h a t t h e sound o f an approachi ng c a r t
had t e r r i f i e d regarded
death
i t m The
as
a
worm was a f r a i d t o d i e because
painful
thing.
Vyasa
rep1 i e d t h a t
% t r a te v a r t a y i sysmi puravrttami dam nrpa/ , ra//13 dvai pSyanasya s&mv~dam kZtasya ca yuklhisthi
.
it
118 . 6
421
considering its limited ability to experience pleasure,
it
seemed to him that the worm would be happier if dead.
The
worm
and
explained
that
it
had
been
a
wealthy,
generally wicked §Ddra in its former life.
greedy
Once, however, he
had performed a good deed by honoring a brahman who visited hi
5
home.
and
concl uded that was why he was fortunate
remember his past life. deed
Vyasa said that because of the good
the worm had been
I
Vyasa.
to
granted th is very
The sage foretold
encounter wi th
that the worm would eventually
become a brahman. and promised that if it would seek him out then, Vyasa would explain how to achieve Brahma. The
worm
never
eventually reborn thanked hi m.
as
forgot a
VyKsa's
k~at:rjya.
kindness.
and
he sought out Vyasa
Vyasa advi sed that he di e
k~atrjya
and
in battle for
appropriate brahmanical cause. and thus achieve brahman. the
when
an
When
was reborn as a brahman. Vyasa visited him once
again, advising him to persist in dharmic behavior. so, and reached the state of brahman.
He did
Likewise would warriors
realize a virtuous and thorough performance of dharma, and so Yudhisthira should not grieve. 75. The gift of Maitreya
[majtreyabhik~.J
[13.121.1
123.19]
a. Conversation between Maitreya and Vyasa~17 [13.121.2-123.19]
~1~trapyudaharantimamitih.sam puratanam/
.
..
mai treyasya ca salftvadalft cal /13.121 .2 . krsnadva;payanasya ,
Narrator:
Bhfsma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
..
A t one time Vyasa was t r a v e l i n g i n d i s g u i s e *
He happened t o v i s i t Banaras where the mmi U a i t r e y a l i v e d * Hospitably received by Maitreya, Vyasa began t o laugh a f t e r enj o y i ng an excel 1e n t meal
t h e reason fur h i s joy, giving,
Prompted by Mai t r e y a t o e x p l a i n
VySsa extol l e d the m e r i t s o f g i f t -
using M a i t r e y a R s generosity t o him as an example.
Mai treya rep1i e d i n t u r n t h a t t h e b e n e f i t s o f g i v i n g depended upon t h e
worthi ness
and
understandi ng o f
the
r e c i p i ent
.
Indeeda he said, brahmans w h o understood t h e Veda ensure t h e proper conditions f o r mer* t-earni ng by both p a r t i e s Impressed w i t h Mai t r e y a ' s know1edgea Vyasa then d i s d osed
t h a t tapas was even superior t o g i f t - g i v i n g
as a means o f
g a i n i n g merit.
When t h e i r conversation was concluded, Vyasa departed* Yudhisthira requested t h a t Bhfsma describe t o h f m t h e , #
behavior o f good women, and so Bhisma reccwnted t h e f a 7 Towing S~QFY.
.
7 6 * Conversation between Sumana and SandilZ
.
[ S a n, d f 7 i s u m a n ~ ~ a ~ v ~ d a[13.124.2-124D22] fi]~'~
Narrator :
BhTsma
Aud* ence:
Yudhi s* .t h i r a
4 1 8 ~ l t h o u gt h i s episode is not i d e n t i f i e d as a s t o r y a t t h e outset, i t concludes as follows: ya&cedam psndavakhyanam pathetparvani p a r v a n i l sa d e v d okah * samprapya nandane susukham vasbt,t/13.124 22
423 Once upon a time the Kekaya woman Sumana asked
.
h n d i 1% how she had a t t a i n e d heaven-
..
$and+1:
explained t h a t
i t was not through tapas o r observance o f vows o r g f f t s t a
brahmans t h a t she had achieved heaven, b u t t h r o u ~ hscrupulous observance o f
.
her
duties
h n d i 15 d i sappeared a f t e r D
as
a wife
and
daughter-in-lawm
d e l ineat4 ng a1 1 t h e ways in whi ch
she had been a d u t i f u l wiFe. 7 7 . I n p r a i s e o f conci 1 ia t $on [santvapraSamsa]
[l3rn l2Sml-l2SS38J
.
When Y u d h f s t h i m asked whether canci 1 f a t fon o r gf f t s
yfelded superfor
merit,
BhZsma
responded
with
the
fd?owfn~ s t o r y t o i l h ~ s t r a t eh i s p o i n t t h a t sometimes one, sometimes t h e o t h e r i s
must e f f e c t i v e -
a - How a brahman was freed from a ~ a k s a s a ~ ' ~ [13~125m4~125rn38] Narrator :
BhTsma
Audi ence :
Yudhi s* t h i r a
One daya a brahman was captured i n t h e f o r e s t by a hungry raksasa. '
He remained calm and immediately decided
t h a t he w o u l d win escape through conci l i a t i o n m The raksasa
s a i d h e would re1ease t h e brahman if he would expla%nwhy t h e
raksasa was t h i n and pa1e m The brahman rep1ied wii t h a s e r i e s o f f l a t t e r i n g explanationsa and sa the raksasa s e t him free. 7 8 . The conversation between Uma and Mahegvara (2% va)
t i hasam purZltanam/ 4t9atr~pyud8harant~mami grhztvs raksasa mukto dvi j b t i h kanane yathZ//l3.125
4
Yudhfsthfra next asked t o hear mure about Vfsnu, * * and so BbZsma recounted the f 0 7 7 0 w i n g s t o r y *
Narrator:
Bhisma
Aud4 ence:
Yudhi s' t h i r a
Once Krsna undertook a fearsome vow, . * . number a f r,s. f s came t o observe.
which a
Krsna welcomed them, t h e n a . * .
g r e a t d e s t r u c t i ve f i r e emerged f rom h i s mouth and r a ~ e dacross t h e mountain where they had gathered.
A f t e r destroying i t
e n t i r e l y * t h e f i r e r e t w n e d and Krsna bowed a t i t s f e e t rn , * *
an
instant8
vitality.
Krsna * 4
restored
the
mountain
to
its
I n
former
.
The r s i s were amazed* b u t Krsna explained t h a t t h e * * * '
f i r e was Visnu himself. '
Krsria t h e n expressed a d e s i r e t o hear .
a
.
an e d i f y i n g d i s c o u r s e * and so Narada was c a l l e d forward t o
te1 I a s t o r y .
He chase t o t e l l t h e f o l l o w i n g one.
â 11 The canversati on between Uma and g i va4*'
Narrator:
Narada
Audience:
Krsna and t h e assembled r s i s
Once Siva was Himavat.
Thinking t o
p3ay
.
...
engaged i n
a trick
on
her
tapas on
Mtrn
husband,
Uma
420hantate k a t h a y i syami kathamati manoramam/ purZI r E j anprabhSvo asya visnoh $ r u t a h / / ? 3.126 8
..
yam
'*'evamuktah sa mud bhi rnsrado bhagav2lnrsi h / parvavkt*tam k a t h a y h ~ s a devarsi h 6~bhSm//13.126~ SO
..
e
maya
kathSm
425 approached him from hands.
behind and covered h i s eyes
The universe was plunged i n t o darkness,
with
her
b u t them a
f +r e emerged From g i v a t s ForeheadB fo1 lowed by a t h i r d eye.
The f i r e raged f o r t h * consuming everything on t h e mountain.
Uma stood submissive1y b e f o r e her husband, mountain when he saw her d i s t r e s s .
who r e s t o r e d t h e
Urns asked S i v a t o e x p l a i n
these e x t r a o r d i nary events. s i v a rep1 i e d t h a t t h e t h
t h e u n i e r s e when she had covered h i s eyes-
Urns t h e n asked her
husband a s e r i e s o f questions about h i s various a t t r i b u t e s , t u each o f which he rep1i e d w i t h a s t o r y . [a) Why
6 i va has f o u r faces422[ 13.128. I
-
128.81 Narrator :
s i va
Audi ence :
Uma
Long agoB Brahma created an extremely b e a u t i f u l woman named T i l o t t a m a m She v i s i t e d s i v a w i t h t h e in t e r t t i on o f seduci ng h i m
A s she revevent1y c i rcumambul ated
him, a face would appear on h i s head so t h a t he might not l o s e s j g h t o f her b e a u t i f u l Farm# and so he became four-faced.
(b) How Nandi came t o be $ i v a l s
mount423
[13.128.10-128.12J Narrator: 4 2 2 ~ hword e 13.128.1a.
pura
(long
ago)
64 va introduces
this
story
at
4 2 3 ~ heer i t i c a l edi t i a n g i v e s no t i t l e For t h i s anci 1l a r y story-
426
Audi ence :
Uma
When BrahmZ created t h e m i 1k-gi v i ng cow Surabhf, she produced many calves, mi 1k
.
each o f whom produced sweet
When some m i 1k from one o f t h e c a l ves ' mouths s p i 1 led
on s i v a a he became so angry t h a t h i s rage burned the c a l v e s t skinsl
making them mottled.
Brahma sought t o calm 6 i v a by
g i v i n g him t h e b u l l ffandi as h i s mount.
I n response t o further questionsa s i v a t o l d Um3 t h a t he frequents cremation grounds because he f i n d s them sacred and pleasant, a f a v o r i t e abode o f h i s gana companions.
He t h e n
1 i s t e d t h e f i v e main d u t i e s incumbent upon humans, and t h e
spec
and f o r e s t renunciants.
He a l s o explained how t h e status o f
brahman i s
l o s t 8 discussed
gained
and
conduct
that
wins
heaven, utternaces and thoughts t h a t gain and l o s e merit, and t h e workings o f karma.
Siva them asked UmS t o d e t a i l
f o r him t h e d u t i e s of
and so she d i d .
women,
.
..
Next, t h e r s f s asked 6 i v a t a t a l k about Visnua and SO S i v a explajned h i s many a t t r i b u t e s . Krsna was w e 1 1-p1 eased w i t h IWrada ' s s t o r y .
a11
.
a
the
r* s fs .
present.
After
and honored
p r a i s i n g him Furtherl
they
departed.
.
..
79. The thousand names o f Visnu [vfsnusahsranamaJ
[ l a . 135.1-135.421 Y u d h i* s. t h f r a then asked t u hear about t h e foremast
d2 i t y (Visnu) , and t h e foremast mantra (Savf tr-2 j . *
80
. The
mab8tmyam of brahmans [brahmanamah8tmyaml
[13.136.1-136.231 Y u d b i,s t h f r a
asked
Bhisma
to
whom
. 81 . The c o n v e r s a t i on between Pavana (Vayu]
revere
[brahmans]
[pavanar junasamvadah]
When
Yudhisthira
[ 13.1 38.1 -1 42.26
sought
e .
a t t a c h e d t a r e v e r e n c f n g brahmans,
and A r j una
to know
1
the
rewards
Bhisma t o 749 t h e f a 1 lowfng
story*
a - The conversation between VSyu (Pavana) and Arjuna ~ a r t a v i r ~[13-137.2-142.16] a ~ ~ ~ Narrator:
BbZsma
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a
Long ago, Mindful
the
..
rsf
boons.
Arjuna Kartavfrya r u l e d t h e world.
of h i s d u t i e s t o brahmans, he donated v a s t r i c h e s t o Dattstreya,
who i n
return offered the
king three
Arjuna chose t o be thousand-armed i n battlej t o r u l e
aver t h e e a r t h
and was
'.
and t o be a v i g i l a n t k i n g *
ranted a f o u r t h boon:
He a1so requested
t h a t i f he should s t r a y from
dharma8 someone would come forward t o c h a s t i s e him. And so i t happened t h a t eventual l y Arjuna came t o be1ieve he was superjor t o brahmans.
VZyu* god o f wind
warned him
a g a i n s t such arrogance and reminded him o f t h e many ways
t i hssm purZtanam/ 424at raPyud~harant%mami pavanasya ca samv~damarjunasyaca bhSrata//13.337.2
428 brahmans had demonstrated t h e * r superi o r i t y , s a i d nothing, c l e a r l y he w a s n o t convi need. series o f s t o r i e s about
A1though A r j una VByu then t o l d a
t h e feats o f p a r t i c u l a r
brahmansJ
pausing a f t e r each s t o r y t o see i f Arjuna KartavTrya had been c m v i nced.
F o l 1owi ng t h e s i x t h story, A r juna a t la s t conceded
h i s subordination t o them. (1) The s t o r y o f ~ a ! 3 ~ a p[13.139.1-13998] a ~ ~ ~ Narrator :
Vayu
Audi ence :
A t j una KSrtavZ r y a
Once King Ahga decided t o g i v e t h e e a r t h t o brahmans as
a
sacrificial
gift.
Earth
became
w o r r j ed, and so went t o seek advice from BrahmS.
extremely
Concerned by
.
her departureJ t h e rsf Kasyapa assumed her form and caused t h e
world t o prosper.
When E a r t h returned t o her d u t i e s a f t e r
thousands o f years, she expressed g r a t i t u d e t o Kagyapa f o r h i s e x t r a o r d i nary accompl ishment. (2) The s t o r y o f utathYd2' [ 13.139 9-1 39.31
Narrator:
VSyu
Audience :
Arjuna Kartav? r y a
Soma had an extremely b e a u t i f u l
1
daughter
named BhadrS, whom he wanted t o marry t o t h e Zhgi r a s Utathya. Adapting her f a t h e r e sw i 5h as her own, BhadrZ undertook s t r j c t penances t o win Utathya as her husband.
ago}
.
When some t i m e had
introduces
this
story
4 2 6 ~ r nruajannutathyasya j atasyatlgi rase ku1e/13.139.9cd
at
429
passed. Bhadra's paternal grandfather Atri called her before him and arranged the marriage. It happened that
Varu~a
Utathya happily complied.
had long desired this woman. and
so one day he kidnapped her as she bathed in the Yamuna River. When Utathya 1 earned of the abducti on. Narada
to
demand
Bhadra' s
return.
he enl i sted the rsi
When
Varuna
rejected
NBrada's embassy. the enraged Utathya drank up the waters. but
.
still Varuna did not return Bhadra to her husband.
Utathya
commanded the earth to dry up all the lakes upon her and asked
.
the Sarasvati River to become invisible where Varuna lived . Varuna finally relented and so Utathya restored the deity's watery realm. (3) The story of Agastya U7 [13.140.1-140.14]
Narrator:
Vayu
Audience:
Arjuna Kartavirya
Once when the deities had been thoroughly defeated by the asuras. they wandered helplessly across the earth.
At length they met the awesome brahman Agastya. and
begged for his assistance.
Agastya became so enraged upon
learning of the devas' misfortune that his anger burned the asu ras and
they abandoned both
heaven
and earth
in
great
haste. It happened that just at that time the asura Bali perform; ng an
a§vallledha sacri fi ce in the
427 § rnu raj annagas tyasya hal/1 :3 • 140. 1 cd
underworl d.
m.hatmya~
was
along
brahma~asya
430 with some companions, and they were not harmed.
The deities
asked Agastya to pursue and kill the asuras who had escaped. but he refused. saying that his ascetic powers would diminish ;f
he di d so.
(4) The story of Vasistha 428 [13.140.15140.26] Narrator:
Vayu
Audience:
Arjuna Kartavirya
Once performing a sacrifice.
upon
a
time
the
deities
were
They had sel ected Vasi stha as the
brahman who, evoked mentally. would perform the sacrifice for them.
While
the
deities
were
thus
preoccupied
and
cons i deri ng that they were phys ; call y weakened by the penances they had undergone in preparat i on for the sacri fi ce -- a group of asuras attacked them.
Caught unaware and in a weakened
state. even Indra was not able to defeat the asuras, and so he sought
Vas i stha • s
he 1 p.
burned the asuras
Wi thout
di ffi culty.
through the power of hi 5
the
'tapas.
brahman and
so
rescued the deities. (5) The story of Atri 429 [13.141.1-141.14] Narrator:
Vayu
Audience:
Arjuna Kartavirya
Once when the deities and asuras were at 428~rnu
rajanvas;sthasya
ya~asvina~/13.140.15cd
429 ~ r n u
me
sumahatmana~)13.141.1Cd
mukhyal!'
h a i hay a ~ r e ;; ~ h a
karma
karmtltreh
war, both Surya and Soma were i n j u r e d , and so the universe w a s p l unged i n t o darkness.
The devas n o t i c e d the brahman A t r i who
was engaged i n tapas, and they pleaded w i t h him t o rescue them from immanent defeat.
At
forms of Surya and Soma.
their
request,
Atri
assumed t h e
He burned so b r i g h t t h a t t h e asuras
w e r e consumed i n the flames,
and so he rescued the d e i t i e s .
(6) The s t o r y o f ~ ~ a v a n [I 3 a. 1~4 1~.l5-141.30] ~ Narrator:
VZyu
Audience:
A r j una Kartavirya
Once upon a time,
Cyavana interceded w i t h
I n d r a on behalf o f the A6vins t o ask t h a t they be allowed to d r i n k soma w i t h the other d e i t i e s .
I n d r a refused, a s s e r t i n g
t h a t they were not d e i t i e s as Cyavana claimed they were,
and
so Cyavana warned t h a t he would f o r c e t h e d e i t i e s t o accept t h e A6vins.
Cyavana undertook a s a c r i f ice f o r t h e sake o f the ASvi ns. I n d r a was so enraged by t h i s a f f r o n t t h a t he attacked Cyavana, who paralyzed him w i t h a glance. fearsome
asura,
sacrifice.
Mada,
who
had
Nearby stood a h o r r i b l y been
born
of
Cyavana' s
The d e i t i e s were so f r i g h t e n e d t h a t they t o 1 d
I n d r a they would admit t h e A6vins i n t o t h e i r company,
and so
t h e matter was settled. (7) The s t o r y o f t h e Kapas and the brahman~*~'
.
4 3 a. ~ r nr a ujanmahatkarma cyavanasya mahatmanan/13.141.15cd 431 6 r n u ne janadhipa/1'3.142.1cd
b r ahinane s v e v a s
mu k hyam
karma
432 [13.142.1-142.16] Narrator:
V3yu
Audience:
Arjuna K3rtavirya
This
story
appears
to
relate
another
version oT the previous story. one in which the devas did not capitulate as readily to Cyavana's demand. When Cyavana created the
asura Mada to cha 11 enge
the
stubborn deities. he also deprived them of their control over the earth.
The despondent dei ties sought Brahm. s t
complaining that now two
advi ce.
realms were out of their control
since the asura Kapas controlled heaven.
Brahma advised them
to enlist the support of brahmans to regain their power.
The
brahmans agreed.
the
and undertook a
sacri fi ce to destroy
Kapas. When the Kapas became aware of this activity. they sent a messenger to try to dissuade the brahmans from their course. but the embassy failed.
The Kapas then attacked,
but the
fires which the brahmans had created with mantras destroyed those asuras. - The devas were well-pl eased. and thereafter propsered. At
1 ast ,
Arj una
Kartavi rya
became
convi nced
of
the
superiority of the brahmans. 82. The m.h.tmya to Krsna
[k~~~am.h.tmyam}
[13.143.1-
143.44) At
73. 143.3.
Bhi sma introduced Krsna , ... as a
new
narrator. beginning with a lengthy passage in praise oT him.
83. The mahatmya i n p r a i s e o f DurvSsas
Yudhisthfra then asked .* m e r i t s o f brahmans.
.
Krsna
t o enumerate
the
Krsna repl ied w i t h t h e f o l l o w i n g account .
*
a
o f w h a t he had t o 7d h i s own son, Pradyumna, who had once asked
the same question. a. The b e n e f i t s o f reverence toward brahmansd3* [13.144.2-144.511
.'.
Narrator:
Krsna
Audience:
Yudhi s t h i r a and the assembl ed 6
.
survivors
.
. . explained t o h i s son t h a t everythi ng good Krsna comes from brahmans, in c l udi ng fame and strength. a1 1 -powerful
and worshipped throughout the universe.
on1 y proper t o revere them,
abilities.
They are It i
s
consideri ng t h e i r extraordinary
...
Krsna then t o l d h i s son t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y . (1 ) The brahman D u r v ~ s a s ~ ~ ~ [ 1 3 . 1 4 4 . 1 3 - 1 4 4 . 5 1 1
*..
Narrator:
Krsna
Audience:
Pradyumna, Krsna's son
..,
.. .
Once t h e brahman DurvSsas 1 ived w i t h Krsna Because o f angered,
h is
we1 1-deserved
reputation
no one else dared t a k e him i n .
for
b e i ng
east 1y
Whi 1e l i v i n g w i t h
Krsna, Durvasas would sometimes consume vast amounts o f foods. . . *
he
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y .
- s a sma samcarate lokZnye divyS ye ca manusah/ ima g ~ t h agayamanaicatvaresu * sabhSsu ca//'13'. 144.13
On o t h e r days, he a t e n o t h i n g a t a l l .
He would depart w i t h o u t
warni ng and s t a y away f o r l o n g periods.
. .
One day, DurvSsas asked Krsna t o have a c e r t a i n h o t d i s h A f t e r he ate, DurvSsas ordered Krsna and h i s * * *
served t o him.
w i f e Rukmi n:L t o smear t h e f o o d on t h e i r bodies, which t h e y d i d a t once.
He then ordered Rukmini yoked t o a c a r t ,
and he
.. .
whipped her l i k e a beast o f burden, b u t Krsna d i d n o t f e e l t h e slightest
anger
toward
DurvSsas
for
these
acts-
Soon.
Durvasas became i m p a t i e n t w i t h Rukmini as she stumbled and f e l l a l o n g t h e road, t h e road.
so he jumped from t h e c a r t and ran o f f
Krsna and Rukmin5 followed, . . *
ready t o serve him
still.
...
Well-pleased w i t h Krsna and Rukmini, would r e s t o r e whatever
DurvSsas s a i d he
he had destroyed i n t h e i r home,
would ensure t h a t they would c o n t i n u e t o prosper. t h e m always
to
d i sappeared.
exampl e
revere brahmans Krsna * * *
urged
Exhorting
they had him,
..
Yudhi s t h i r a
. 84.
as
to
and
DurvSsas
f o l low
Krsnai ..* s
P r a i se o f t h e l o r d [i6varapraSamsu [ I 3.145.1 146.29)
. .
Krsna . then r e c i t e d f o r Y u d h i s* t h i r a t h e names o f Rudra which he e x p 7ained t h a t
a
recited daily
i n praise
o f that
god.
i t was Rudra who had been reborn as Durv-s
and l i v e d w i t h Krsna and Rukmini. * * * 8 5 . Concl usi ons about dharma [dharmanirnayahl (13.147.1-13.148.361
He
435
.
Turn i n g t o quest ion Bhisma once aga i n , Yudhi s t,h i r a
asked a number ~ f q u e s t f o n s ,inc7uding some about t h e f e 7 a t f v e a u t h o r i t y o f s t u d y f n g t h e aqamas o r performing c e r t a i n dharmic a c t s # the f a t e o f those who observe dharma and t h o s e who do n u t , ways t o d i s t i n g u i s h good from bad peaple, and haw t o be c7eansed o f one's s i n s -
Yudhi s. t h i r a s
88 *
@
..
quest ion
Yudhf s t h i r a observed t h a t
[yudhisthfrapraSnah]
some acquired
easf Ty, and o t h e r s never d i d , d e s p f t e t h e i r e x e r t i o n *
wea 7 t h BhZsma
rep7 fed t h a t t h e p r a c t i c e o f tapas i s appropriate f u r those who cannot o b t a i n wealth. 8 7 . Doubts abaut dharma [dharmasaasayah] ,
[13.150.1--
150.91 Bhisma spoke f u r t h e r a b u t dharma and adharma. 88. P r o d amati an abaut t h e I ineage [vamtWnukZ rtanam]
8hfsma then r e c i t e d a long l f s t o f d e i t i e s t o be honored i n order t o be cleansed o f one ' S s i n s .
. [ y u d h f.s.t h i f a p r a t i p r a y ~ n a m ] [13.152.1-152.13]
89. Yudhi s. t h i r a ts r e t u r n journey
Bhisma
then
fell
q u e s t f o n i n g ceased (13- 152)
sflent# At Vyasa
and
Y u d h *i s t h i r a r s
s s ~ g g e s t i u n Bhfsma ~
dismissed the assemb7y t o r e t u r n t o t h e c f t y * He i n s t r u c t e d Yudh i s t h i r a t o r e t u r n t o him a t t h e hour Bhisma had chosen for
h i s own death.
B . The s e c t i o n on BhTsma's journey t o heaven
[bhYsmasvargarohanaparva]
[ l a . 153-1454.341
1 . Granting permission f o r Bhismals journey t o heaven
[ 6 h Z s r n a s v a r g ~ n u ~ f11 i ~3.153.1 ] - 3 53.50 1 Yudhfsthira and h i s entourage r e t u r n e d t o Bhfsma a t * t h e appufnted tfme, bearfng m a t e r i a l s f o r t h e f u n e r a l r i t e s .
I n h f s f i n a l remarks, BhZsma urged O h r t a r i f s t r a not t o grieve,
.
f o r M s sons had been evf 7 and the Pancfava h e f r s were good. '
..,
H e requested Krsna ' s permissfon t o d i e , a s we1 7
as t h a t of the
assem& led Bharatas. 2 . BhZsma ' s j o u r n e y t o heaven [bhismasvargagamanam]
[13-354.1-154.341 BttZsma entered a yogic trance, t h e crematfon,
offering. h e r son.
fact a
then d i e d .
After
t h e group went to the Ganges River t o make an
BhZsma ' s g r i e v i n g df vine mother appeared t o p r a i s e Krsna consoled h e r by reminding her t h a t he was i n *,.
Vasu who had merely returned t o heaven-
GafigZ was
calmed, and t h e funeral p a r t y prepared t o r e t u r n home* Here ends t h e anuSZsanaparvan.
437 14.
The s e e t i on on t h e asvamedha r it e [a6vamedikaparvan]
Sect ion on t h e agvamedha r it e [agvamedhaparvan]
A.
l 1 4 . 1 .1-14e96.15]
The XSvamedhikaparvan opens w i t h t h e funeral p a r t y g r i e v i n g on t h e banks o f t h e Ganges R i v e r .
.
When Y u d h i' s t h i r a
and h f s b r u t h e r s are overcomeJ D h r t a r a s t r a ,
Krsna, and . * *
Uyasa
urge Y u d h i s* t h i r a t o co7 7ect himself and t u r n t o the d u t i e s o f
r u 7 i n g t h e kfngdotn. prob Tern:
..
Yudh i s t h f ~ a ,howeverJ p u f n t s out an acute
he lacks any wea 7 t h whatsoever w f t h which t o conduct
t h e r e q u i s i t e s a c r i f i c e s i n h i s kingdom.
Krsna f e c a l 7s t h a t * * *
h f g h i n t h e Hfmalayas 1 f e s t h e abandoned g o l d of King Marittta,
7 e f t behind by brahmans who 7ong ago performed a s a c r i f i c e i n Mariitta ts beha 1 f J but c m ~ 7 dn o t c a r r y away t h e huge amount of gu7d t h e k i n g had given them. Hearing t h i s , Y u d h i s,t h i r a asked t o be to7d the s t o r y o f
King Marutta 1
.
The s t o r y o f K i ng ~ a r u t t a[ I ~4.4 ~ ~1-5.261 l
Narrator:
Vyasa
Audience:
Y u d h i s t h i r a and t h e assembled f u n e r a l
..
party M a r u t t a was virtuous
and
heroic
d i s t i nguished f a t h e r .
the
son o f
beyond
the
King Avi k s i t . accomplishments
He
was
of
his
W i shing t o perform a s a c r i f i c e , Marutta
w e n t t o M t , Meru and cammi ssioned thousands o f gold vessels t o
4 3 4 6 u 6 r ~ stasya e dharmaj?ia r a j a r s e h p a r i k5rtanam/ i e 'nagha//14* 4.1 dvai pbyana maruttasya katham p k a b r ~ h m
.
438 be made as sacrificial
for the rites to be performed
gi~ts
nearby. Yudhi!!~hira
asked how Marutta had become so powerFu7,
and how he had obtained so much gold.
and
B~haspati
were rival brothers.
Sa~varta
After a
time, Samvarta 'tired of the competition, renounced his wealth, and lived as a forest ascetic. restored
to
appointed
heaven
Just at that time Indra, newly
following
a
battle
with
the
Now at that
as priest to the deities.
B~haspati
time, also, Marutta was king of the earth.
asuras,
Indra tri ed to
sub jugate him, but was unsuccessfu 1. and so he asked B-:-haspat i to refuse his priestly services to Marutta.
B~haspati
that surely he would never serve a mere mortal had been
the
~ami
1 y pri est of Marutta)
replied
(although he
after
havi ng
been
designated priest of the deities. and so Indra was contented. 2. The story of B~haspat i and Ki ng Marutta 435 [14.6. 1 10.36]
Narrator: Audience:
Vylsa Yudhisthira and the assembled funeral party
This story continues
the previous one with
Further
detajls about Marutta's sacriFice. Marutta conti nued the preparat ions for his sacri fi ce, and visited priest
for
B~haspati
Marutta,
to ask that he preside. B~haspati
was
expected
As the family to
comply.
~5atrapyudaharantimamitihasam puratanam/ b-:-haspate~ca sa~vada~
maruttasya ca bharata//14.6.1
439 Furthermore* he had e a r l i e r recommended t h a t Marutta perform t h i s very s a c r i f i ce.
When Brhaspati reFused I expl a i n i ng t h a t
henceforth he would o n l y perform s a c r i f i c e s fur t h e d e i t i e s and so gave Marutta permi s s i on t o f i n d another p r i e s t , Marutta returned home i n g r e a t confusion and d i s t r e s s . Along t h e way8 Marutta happened t o meet Nsrada, t o whom he t o l d t h e e n t i r e s t o r y .
Narada advised Maratta t o seek out
Samvartas and t o l d t h e k i ng e x a c t l y where t o f ind Samvarta and how t o approach him w i t h t h e inqui r y . Fo1lowing MSradals audience w i t h Samvarta.
instructions,
The brahman coinpl a i ned b i t t e r l y about
Brhaspati % i11 treatment o f him, could
only
permission,
grant
Marutta d i d g a i n an
the
b u t t o l d Marutta t h a t he
k $ n g 4 s request
with
Brhaspati 's
When M a r u t t a expl a i ned t h a t Brhaspati had a1 ready
refused t o conduct s a c r i f i c e s on h i s beha1f I Samvarta agreed t o do so, warning M a r u t t a t h a t his r e s o l v e must be f i r m I
for
s u r e l y I n d r a and Brhaspati would attempt to d i s r u p t M a r u t t a t s s a c r i f i c e when t h e y heard Samvarta was a f f i c i a t i ng. Samvarta gave M a r u t t a in s t r u c t i o n s
for
prepari ng t h e
s a c r i f i c e , andI as predicted, Brhaspati was g r e a t l y d i sturbed t o l e a r n o f t h e g r e a t resources a t M a r u t t a t s command f o r t h e
rite. Brhaspati expressed t o I n d r a h i s g r e a t d i s t r e s s a t h i s r iva1 ' s
prosperity.
Sympathetic
to
h is
f e e l i ngs,
Indra
in s t r u c t e d Agni t o t e l l M a r u t t a t h a t Brhaspati wauld p r e s i d e
a t h i s s a c r i f i c e a f t e r a1 1
and t h a t through i t Marutta w a d d
440
become immortal
.
Marutta refused t h i s o f f e r ,
and Samvarta
threatened t o harm Agn% i f he every returned t o argue t h i s prospect w i t h Marutta. I n d r a t r i e d again t o use Agni as a messenger t o threaten Marutta, b u t Agni s t e a d f a s t l y refused t o go,
.
The gandhZrva Dhrtarastra returned t o Marutta to
Samvarta.
issue I n d r a l s d
out o f fear o f
began
the
but t h e k i n g would n o t y i e l d .
s a c r < f % c e as
Indra
prepared
for
The brahman assured Marutta t h a t he wc~ulduse h i s
powers t o p r o t e c t Marutta from I n d r a t s a t t a c k , furthermcwe,
attract
and would,
Xndra and t h e other dei t3 es t o accept
ofFeri ngs a t M a r u t t a F s s a c r i f i c e rn Samvarta s p l an succeeded and Indra, a f t e r d r i n k i ng t h e
soma offered, was appeased. so much
Marutta d i s t r i buted vast wealth,
so t h a t the brahman p r i e s t s l e f t some behind which
t h e y could n o t c a r r y home.
3.
The b a t t l e between Indra and ~ ~ t r [a1 4' #11 ~ ~ I 1 -201
.
Narrator:
Krsna . *
Audi ence:
Yudhi s t h i r a and t h e assembled f u n e r a l
.
party
Fo 7 7owfng
Vyasa #s s t o r y ,
Krsna * * .
narrated
the
fo77owing t a l e o f I n d r a and V r t r a t o p u f n t o u t t o Y u d h i s t h i r a t h a t h e s t i l l has fnner demons ta conquer.
4 3 6 ~ hword e 1 4 . 1 1 .?be
pura
(tang
ago)
introduces t h i s
story
at
Lung agoJ V r t r a surrounded Earth and t h e r e arose a t e r r i b l e stench from t h i s a c t . the
asura,
I n d r a h u r l e d a thunderbolt a t
who escaped t o the waters
and d r i e d them upb
Pursued and attacked by Irtdra, V r t r a l e f t t h e waters and went t h e atmosphere (akaga)
ta the wind awn
body,
always
pursued
by
and f i n a l 1 y i n t o I n d r a a s
that
great
god.
Using
an
I n d r a killed V r t r a a t I a s t w i t h i n h i s
i n v i s i b l e thunderbolt awn body.
Krsna '..
went
Yucihisthira that * Tength,
on
t o discuss mental
thfs
was h i s
last
aff7ictfon,
enemy
warning
t o canquec
At
Yudhisthfra was ccmsoled and the ?Wndavas ttmk * .
up
t h e i r d u t i e s i n Hdfstfnapura. Before 7mg, K . f* s* m decided i t was time t o r e t u r n t o h f s own home o f
Dvaraka s i n c e he was no
f%fndavas, During * *
his
final
longer needed by
conversations w i t h Arjunal
the the
warrior asked h f m t o repeat what Krsna had taught h i m on the * * . Kufuksetra b a t t l e f i e Id-
Krsna said ( w f t h some i r r i t a t i o n ) @
8
8
t h a t he could not repeat those teachingsl but wauld recount a
story ( i t i h 3 s a J on t h e same t o p k The am@
ta
fu7 7 ~ u s
.
4 . The brahmants teachinas t o Krsna .. an mok~adhafma437
[14.16.12-19.60J Narrator:
Krsna a
*
*
431para~ h i brahma k a t h i tam yogayuktena tanmaya/ it i hbsam t u vaksy2$mi tasmi nnarthe puratanam//14.16.12 Here begins t h e a n u g ~ t a{14.15-14~50), * which Krsna recounts as equivalent t o t h e bhagavadgzta.
...
442 Aud4 ence :
A r j una
Once a brahrnan named Kagyapa went t o a c e r t a i n other brahman who had knowledge of t h e deepest m y s t e r i e s e
Pleased
w i t h KaSyapa s devoted s e r v i c e B t h e brahman t a u g h t h i rn many t h i rigs.
a. The t e a c h i ngs o f t h e b r a h m ~ a n[~14.16.17-1 ~~ 9-50] Narratar:
A c e r t a i n brahinan
A u d i e n ~ e : The brahman KaSyapa The brahman d i s c l o s e d t h a t heavenB once a t t a i n e d , would always be l o s t since death and r e b i r t h occur endless c y c l e . and d i f f i c u l t e
He 1is t e d t h e many 1i v e s he had 1ived,
i n an easy
E v e n t u a l l y B he abandaned t h e w o r l d and now
expected t o achieve r e l e a s e from death and r e b j r t h when t h i s li f e t i r n e ended f o r him.
He i n v i t e d Kagyapa t o q u e s t i o n him
since he expected t h a t soon he would a t t a i n a b s a r p t i o n i n brahman. and haw
KaSyapa saught t o know about t h e workings o f karma final
emancipat%m i s
achieveds
and
the
brahman
ab1 i g i n g l y t a u g h t him.
...
Krsna r e f t e r a t e d t h e supreMe va 7ue o f moksadharma, and went on to
teF 1 t h e f o 1 1 ~ w i n gs t o r y -
5 . Conversati an between a m a r r i ed brahman coup1e439
[14e20e1-34* 121 Narrator:
Krsna * .
Audi ence : A
A r J una
certain
brahman
woman 8
understand* ng
how
kriowledgeabl e her husband was r e g a r d i ng spi r i t u a l matters, asked him where she would go a f t e r h e r death s i n c e she had heard i t s a i d t h a t a woman a t t a i n s t h e realm o f her husband. The brahman explained t h a t he would
achieve t h e
brahman, a t t a i nab1e through y o g i c p r a c t i ces
As
he began
to e x p l a i n
realm o f
.
the esoteric
carrespondences
between v a r i o u s d e i t i e s and t h e human sensesB he told t h e fallowing story.
a. The c f a g a h o t ~s a c r i f ice4" E14.21 1-21 - 4] rn
Narrator:
A c e r t a i n brahman
Audi ence:
The brahman s w i f e
The s t o r y
c o n s i s t s i n equating t h e
ten
hotr
p r i e s t s o f t h e Vedic s a c r i f i c e w i t h t e n p a r t s o f t h e body. Next, t h e brahman d i scussed t h e concepts OFword ( vakyam) and mind [manas) w i t h h + s wife,
between mind and b r e a t h s *
as we11 as t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p
He then t o l d t h e f o l l o w i n g s t o r y .
b. The saptahc?tr s a c r i f ice441 [I4.22.1-22
Narrator:
A c e r t a i n brahman
Audience:
The brahman ' s w i f e
12 1
The s t o r y equates t h e seven h o t r p r i e s t s w i t h seven sense organs:
nose, eyesB tongue8 s k i n B- e a r
m i nd and
440atr~pyud~harant~m mi t iahasam puratanam/ nibodha dasahotrnsm v i d h ~ n a m i h ayZdr6am//14.2Im1
..
understanding ( b u d d h i ) . function
o f each.
The brahman explai fled t h e
I n t h i s regard,
he t o l d t h e
unique
Following
story. c. Conversation between t h e senses and t h e m i nddd2 [14.22.13-22.291 Narrator:
A c e r t a i n brahman
Audi ence:
The brahman ' s w i f e
The mind claimed t h a t
i t was s u p e r i o r t o t h e
senses s i m e w i t h o u t it they c o d d n o t apprehend a t a1 1 senses rep1 i e d t h a t t h e opposite was t h e case:
.
The
t h e mind c o u l d
experience n o t h i ng without them. The brahman then t o l d another s t o r y . d
. The
paficahotc s a c r i f icebb3[14.23.1-23.241
Narrator:
A c e r t a i n brahman
Audience:
The brahman's w i f e
The s t o r y c o n s i s t e d i n t h e d i s c l o s u r e t h a t t h e f i v e s a c r i f i c i a l p r i e s t s are i n f a c t t h e f i v e breaths:
The
brahmants w i f e
replied that
she
pranda
had thought
the
proper number was sevena and so t h e brahman t o l d t h e f a 1 low4 ng story.
t i hasam pwZtanam/ 442atrapyudaharant~mami indr iyanarn ca samadam m a n a k a i va bhami n i //I 4.22.1 3
443atrapyudaharant~mami t i hasam purStanam/ subhage paficahotrnam v i dhahami ha y~dr$am[/14.23.1 Edi t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l ' ' e d i t i o n n o t e t h a t 'the d i s p u t e over supremacy among t h e sense organs i s described i n Chandogya Upan isad I . 2 and l3rhadaranyaka Upan isad V I . I
.
445 (1) The best breath 4U [14.23.6-23.24] Narrator:
A certain brahman
Audience:
The brahman's wife
Long ago, the five breaths had approached Praj~pati
to determine which of them was superior.
had argued among themselves for awhile,
After they
PrajDpati
declared
that each depended upon the others, and so none was superior. e. Conversation between NKrada and the rsi DevamataU5 [14.24.1-24.20] Narrator:
A certain brahman
Audience:
The brahman's wife
The brahman Fo 7 7owed 1:he preceding story wi th an account of a conversation between N8rada and Devamata. Once Devamata had asked Narada which of the five breaths was created first.
NKrada explained the relationship among
the breaths and various bodily substances. f. The ca1:urho1:r sacrifice 4U [14.25.1-25.3] Narrator:
A certain brahman
Audience:
The brahman's wife
The brahman F07 Towed 1:he preceding story with an itih8sa about the caturhotr sacriFice.
U4-rhe word 14.23.6.
pur8
(long ago)
introduces this
story
U5at r~pyudaharantimam; ti hDsarn puratanam/ naradasky ca sa~vadam~~erdevarnatasya ca//14.24.1 4«atr~pyud~harantimamitihasam puratanam/
caturhotravidhanasya vidhanamiha
yad~§am//14.25.1
at
446
The story equates rol es of the four ho'tr: pri est5 with four concepts:
kara,!a (instrument).
karma (agent),
kartll
(agent), and moksa (release). The brahMan then spoke to his wife about the object of atta i nMent of brahman.
Compari ng it to a
forest, he equated various concepts associated with spiritual practi ce forest.
(e. g.,
§6nta,
mok~a)
wi th physi cal
'features of a
Then he told his wife the following story. g. Conversat i on between and adhvaryu and a yat jU7
[14.28.6-28.28] Narrator:
A certain brahman
Audience:
The brahMan's wife
Observing that an animal was about to be killed during a Vedic sacrifice, a certain ya'ti protested that the animal
should not be killed.
The adhvaryu pri est repl i ed
that, according to the Vedas, the animal would not actually die, but its parts would be distributed to various elements and quarters of the universe.
The ya'ti challenged the priest
to seek permission of the animal's family if, sacrifice was such a good thing for the animal.
indeed,
the
The adhvaryu
priest rejoined that in fact all beings are engaged in killing all the time since the act of living entails using up earth, water,
space,
and
50 on
(whi ch are the
1 i vi ng sources
of
perception) in the acts of seeing, hearing. touching, and so
447atrapyudaharantiMamitihasam puratanam/ adhvaryuyatisa~vada~ ta~ nlbodha yajasvin;//14.28.6
447
The y a t i t h e n d i s t i n g u i s h e d between t h e d e s t r u c t i b l e and
on.
t h e in d e s t r u c t i b1e aspects o f t h e soul I and expl a i ned t h a t t h e
atman is beyond such dual it y
The adhvaryu p r i e s t p r a i sed t h e
y a t f f o r having given him a proper perspective on action,
completed
his
sacrifice
with
t h e higher
and
knowledge he had
a t t a i ned. The brahman immedfate 7y
tu 7d t h e f o 1 ?owing story.
h. Conversation between Arjuna KZrtav5rya and t h e ocean448[14.29.1-29-22] Narrator:
A c e r t a i n brahman
Audi ence:
The brahman s w i f e
Once t h e g r e a t k i n g Arjuna KSrtavZrya s t r o l l e d along
the
seashoreI
shooting
demonstrate h i s prowess. h i m t o stop.
score.
arrows
into
the
water
to
The ocean appeared ta him and asked
H i s arrows were k i 11i n g sea creatures by t h e
Arjuna
proudly
challenged t h e
ocean t o name t h e
w a r r i o r equal t o him, and she mentioned Rama Jamadagnya. Arjuna K a r t a v i r y a hastened t o RSmafs r e t r e a t , where he began t o harass t h a t gpeat w a r r i o r .
a tree,
Rama c u t down Arjuna l i k e
and chased o f f h i s a t t a c k i n g army w i t h ease.
Some o f t h e k s a t r i y a s l o y a l t o Arjuna r a n so f a r i n t o t h e mounta4ns from f e a r perform t h e i r communities
o f RSma t h a t they had no brahmans t o
s a c r i f i ces
which
lost
for
their
them.
Thus
began
ksatr$ya s t a t u s ,
various
including
448
sabaras
Pundras .
Twenty-one
and XbhZ r a s times
.
d i d Rama d e s t r o y
the children
whom
brahmans f a t h e r e d w i t h k s a t r i y a women a f t e r a1 1 t h e k s a t r i y a men had
disappeared o r
been k i 11ed.
Eventually,
ancestors asked t h a t he h a l t t h e s l a u g h t e r .
RSmars
They t o l d t h e
fd low4 ng s t o r y t o dissuade him f r o m f u r t h e r violence. ( 1 1 The s t o r y o f t h e r o y a l sage AI arkaJJ9
[14.30.1-30.31] Narrator:
Rama s ancestors
Audi ence:
Rama Jamadagnya
@
The k s a t r i y a A l a r k a t u r n e d conquests a T t e r he had conquered t h e e a r t h . m e d i t a t i o n s he
decided
to
conquer
a t t a c k 1ng h i s mind w i t h arrows,
his
to
spiritual
As he s a t
mental
enemies
in by
As he considered i n t u r n t h e
o p t i o n o f s h o o t i n g arrows a t h j s mindJ noseI
tongues s k i n J
ears, eyes, and understandings each rep1i e d t h a t he would o n l y succeed i n k i 11i n g h i s body t h i s wayJ n o t i n conquering h i s senses and m i rid.
A f t e r I on9 contempl a t i on
he determi ned t h a t
yoga was h + s b e s t weapons and so he began t o employ
so
RZma
turned
to
the p r a c t i c e
of
asceticism
jtm
instead
And of
physi c a l v i 01 ence. The brahrnan t h e n explained t o h i s w i f e t h e associated w i t h
tamas,
rajasI
and
s u b j u ~ a t e dt h r o u g h a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e .
s a t t v a J which
qua1 i t i e s must
be
I n t h i s regardI he t o l d
t h e fa1 lowing s t o r y *
. King AtnbarT?als
i
verses45o[14*31.4-31. I 3 1
Narrator:
A c e r t a i n brahman
Audience:
The brahman s w i Te
A f t e r K i ng Ambar5 sa had succeeded in p r o t e c t 4 ng dharma long ago, he r e c i t e d some verses on t h e subject o f t r u e kingship. subjects
Although he had conquered e v i l and p r o t e c t e d h i s we1 t
,
Ambaesa
acknowledged
the
difficulty
of
i in t h e c y c l e conqueri ng desi re, and t h e r e s u l t a n t im p ~sonment o f rebi r t h .
Only those who understand t h a t t h e soul i s t r u l y
sovereign can hope t o conquer d e s i r e * The preceding s t a r y i s f a 7 ?owed i m e d i a t e 7 y by a n o t h e r # r e c o u n t i n g a ctmversatien between
a brahman and King Janaka-
j . Conversation between a brahman and King
~ a n a k a ~[I ~4' 32.1 -32.251 Narrator :
A c e r t a i n brahman
Audi ence:
The brahman * s w i f e
Once, i n order t o punish him, Janaka banished a c e r t a i n brahman from h i s kingdom.
Wishing t o canply w i t h t h e
k i ng s order, t h e brahman asked Janaka t o name a k i ngdom which
he d i d not deeply
rule.
traubled.
Contemplattng t h e question8 Janaka was He concluded
that
he
held
everythi ng o r over n e t h i rig8 in d u d i n g h i s own body.
sway
aver
Unable t o
45'atr~pyudaharant~mami t i hasam purStanam/ 4.32 brshmanasya ca samvsdam j anakasya ca bhami n i //I
7
450 resolve this paradox. he told the brahman to live wherever he chose. he
When questi oned further. Janaka expl ai ned that because
had
relinquished
the
concept
Imine.'
had
transcended
desire. and had mastered his senses. he had achieved mastery over the universe since it consisted only of sense objects. The brahman then disclosed that he was Dharma. who had come to test Janaka and had found him deserving. The brahman t:hen reassured his wi Fe that she wou 1d Fo 7 7ow him
to
Fi na 11 y brahman
the
exalted
Kr:!!,!a
I
and
state
exp 7a i ned
his
wi Fe
he
would
to Arj una
had
achieve that
an
been
aFter
his story
a 1 7egory,
the
death. of
the
brahman
representing Krsna's mind and the wiFe his understanding. Arjuna then asked and so
K~~~a
K:~~a
to speak to him about brahman,
to7d the Fo170wing story_
6. Conversati on between a guru and hi s di sci pl e 452 [14.35.2-50.48] Narrator:
Krsna
Audience:
Arjuna
Once a devoted student Quest; oned hi s teacher about the origins of creatures. about truth. wrongdoing.
tapas,
happiness. and
The teacher replied by explaining that knowledge
;s the highest object and tapas the best practice. a group of Brahma.
~~js
Long ago.
had assembled to ask silRilar -questions of
and so the guru tol d hi s
students what Brahma had
452atrapyudliharantimalRitihasalR puratanam! samvadam moksasamyuktam §isyasya guruna saha!!14.35.2 •
•
• •
•
I
•
said.
a. &-ahmais d i s c o u r s e w i t h t h e rsidS3[14.35.21-
.
Narrator:
Brahma
Audience:
The r s* i s a
BrahmZ i d e n t i f i e d t r u t h as t h e u l t i m a t e source o f a1 1 beings.
fn
He explained t h a t t h e way t o r e a l i z e t r u t h l a y
performance o f
varnaSramadbarma. rajas,
dharma and adherence He expl a i ned t h e
the
qua1 iti es
stages
af
of
sattva*
and tamas and the4 r i n t e r r e l a t i ~ n s h i p , as we1 1 as t h e
workings o f karma.
H e a l s o recounted t h e e v o l u t i o n o f t h e
u n i v e r s e from t h e unman$fest characteristjcs o f deities, time.
to
including a discussian o f t h e
n a t u r a l forces,
and d i v i s i o n s a f
He o u t 1 i n e d the i d e a l b e h a v i o r o f t h e briahrna~arya~ the
h i e r a r c h y o f d u t i e s which
seem t o be c o n t r a d i c t o r y
s a c r i f ice and a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e )
(ewg.
.
When BrahmZ ' s d i scourse c m c l uded , t h e r* s* i s f 01 1owed what he had t a u g h t them and achieved mdcsa.
..
Krsna . c ~ n c h d e dby d e c l a r i n g t h e s t o r y t o be an a1 l e g o r y 453i t y u k t a h sa rnurti S r e s t h a i ryadaha p r a p i tamahah/ tatte 'hiam s a m p r a v a ~ s y ~ mSrnu i 6 i sya yathagamah//1&35.21 T h i s s t o r y conta3 ns one verse { c i t e d below) which t h e e d i t o r s o f t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n i n d i c a t e can be found elsewhere i n i d e n t i c a l o r very simi Jar farm: Mbh 11 -2.3, 12.27.29, 12.317.20; Rarnayana 2m105.16 and 7.52.11; Gebhf7asmrtf 3.43; and ~ a t h a s a r f t s a g a r a51 .Z6c-Wd s a r v e ksayaanta n i cayah p a t a n t a n t a h samucchray~h/ samyog8* v i prayogantS maranantam h i * j i v i tam//14. a4.18 The adhyaya which Fc11lows a* 34.*45 c o n t a i n s two verses comparable t o verses i n MmuW Adhyaya 50 c o n t a i n s f o u r such verses.
..
i n which he was t h e teacher and h f s mind t h e student.
.
Krsna then prepared t o t a k e h i s leave o f t h e Pandavas. . , #
He w a s sent on h i s way w i t h much forma 1 i t y and p r a i s e . As he t r a v e l e d homeward,
Krsna passed through a barren * * *
d e s e r t D where he encountered t h e a s c e t i c Uttafika. man asked t o hear reconci led,
The h o l y
t h e Kauravas and Pandavas had been .
how
Hearing t h a t a 7 7 t h e Kaurawas were deads ilttafibsa
became enraged and threatened t o curse K*r *s*m
.
He cha 7 7enged
Krsna t o t a l k t o him on t h e e s o t e r i c t o p i c o f adhyatma, e * .
was then s a t i s f j e d t h a t indeed Krsna * . . was Visnu. . *
and
Krsna granted * * *
.
Uttahka a v i s i o n o f himself a s Visnus and granted him a boun. Uttahka chose t o have water whenever he wished f a r i t s and so h i s boon was granted.
Althaugh Uttafika subsequentry refused
t h e water i n t h e f a r m i n which i t was f i r s t o f f e r e d t o him (as u r i n e from I n d r a , d i s g u i s e d a s a
Krsna declared t h a t . e .
Uttahka rst h j r s t w a d d be s a t i s f i e d ever a f t e r by r a i n cloudsD known as uttahka clouds. Here
the
narrative
frame
shifts
to
the
level
of
Janatne3aya ' s conversat i o n w i t h Va iSampayana, and Janame3aya asks how Uttafika became so powerfu? t h a t he cou7d t h r e a t e n t o
curse Krsna himse 7 f . * . ,
Vai&?mpayana t d d him t h e
f o ? lowfng
story. 7 . ~ t t a f i k a114.55.2-57.561 ~ ~ ~
Narrator:
Vaisamp2Eyana
Audi ence:
Janamejaya
-
4 5 4 ~ hcer i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y .
453 Utta~ka
was so beloved by his preceptor Gautama
t hat he grew qu i te old
in
his servi ce.
One day,
Uttai"ka
ace; dental 1 y lost a lock of hi s grey hai r whi 1 e unl oadi ng fuel wood from his head (where he had been transporting it). began to cry in sorrow and frust rat ion.
He
Gautama sudden 1 y
realized how much time had passed. and told
Utta~ka
that. at
last, he was released from service to his guru. Utta~ka
would not leave before securing a gift for his
teacher, but Gautama would claim nothing. had been gift
enough.
he
said.
service
Utta~ka's
Moreover.
so pleased
was
Gautama with Uttai"ka's service that he restored his youth and gave his own beautiful daughter in marriage to Still
Utta~ka
refused to leave.
wife, Ahalya. to name a gift. by King Saudasa's queen. Uttai" ka
found
Ki ng
He then asked Gautama's
She requested the earrings worn
Utta~ka
Saudasa
dripping with human blood.
Utta~ka.
set off to obtain them. in
the
woods.
his
beard
Uttai"ka had arrived at Saudasa's
meal time, and was thus gOing to serve as additional food for the king. if
the
Uttanka explained his mission and agreed to return
ki ng would
Saudasa sent:
tell
Utta~ka
him
how
to obtai n
the
off to fi nd Queen Madayanti.
earri ngs. but she
refused to relinquish the earrings until Uttanka obtained a proper sign from her husband to indicate his permission. Uttanka obtained the required sign. but then asked for Saudasa's advice as a friend. was
Utta~ka
Since the king ate human flesh,
dharmically bound to keep his promise to return to
be eaten by such a man?
Saudasa advised him never t o r e t u r n
and so Uttahka s e t o f f f o r Gautama's r e t r e a t a f t e r o b t a i n i n g
the e a r r i ngs. On h i s way,
to p f c k f r u i t .
Uttafika became hungryJ so he c1imbed a t r e e
He accidental I y dropped t h e e a r r i n g s and a
snake (nsga) s t o l e them and q u i c k l y disappeared.
Fortunately,
t h e earth agreed to a l l o w Uttahka e n t r y to t h e underwarld i n
order ta r e t r $ e v e t h e jewelry.
There Uttabka met a b l a c k
horse w i t h a w h i t e t a i 1 who a s s i s t e d h i m + n r e t r i e v i n g t h e earrings.
A t l a s t , Uttattka de1 i v e r e d t h e e a r r i n g s t o Ahalya
and was released from h i s brahmacarya vow. Krsna then t r a v e l e d on t o Dvarakif where he was warmly . * ' w e lcomed back by t h e Vrsnis. , . *
the battle,
inc7uding
He t a l d them t h e whole s t o r y o f
the p a i n f u l
story
of
t h e death
of
Abh imanyu, son o f Subhadra.
Meanwhi l e D Yucfhisthira tuok cuunse? w f t h h i s brothers and 0
set f o r t h t e recover Marutta # s gu7d i n t h e HimS7ayas.
He
r e t r i e v e d i t and s e t a u t on h i s r e t u r n home.
. .
Krsna,
knowing
that
the
time
for
performance
asvamedha approached3 returned t o Hast fnapura there,
.
of
the
Whf 7e he w a s
P a r i k s i t was burn dead, and ~ r i e p f revafled.
Kuntf
pleaded w i t h Krsna to r e v i v e t h e c h i I d , t h e s a l e h e i r u f t h e . * * Pandawas, and so he d i d .
..
Upon t h e i r r e t u r n D t h e Pandavas
heard t h f s e x t r a o r d i n a r y news and r e j d c e c f . W i t h Vyasa Is permission,
t h e aGvamedha was undertaken3
and Arjuna was assigned t o p r o t e c t t h e horse as i t wandered
the earth f u r a year-
Arjuna
7ed t h e many b a t t 7es which ensued as the horse
wandered through many realms
+nc 7uding
i n every d f r e c t fon,
w i t h h i s own son &?abhruvShanai n Manfpura.
Arjuna returned to t h e Bharata c a p i t a 7 ,
When t h e h w s e and
t h e agvamedha r i t u a 7
cant inued. Just as t h e s a c r i f f c e was a b ~ u tt o conc7ude, a mongoose whose body was ha7f go?&
(nakula],
appeared and t o l d t h e
fa1 70wfng s t o r y .
8. The mongoose s story455[ 14 92.2-93
931
Narrator:
A half-golden mongoose
Audience:
The assembly a t Yudhi s . t.h i r a ' s a6vamedha
r it u a l
.
The mongoose claimed t h a t Yudhi s t h i r a l s elaborate s a c r i f i c e was
not
even equal
to
the
handful o f b a r l e y by a poor brahman.
story o f a fami 1y of bits
of
d i sgui se
food
.
to
a
offering
of
a small
The mongoose t o l d t h e
s t a r v i n g brahmans who gave the4 r l a s t guest,
who
happened t o
be
Dharma
in
As a consequence o f t h e i r generosi t y , the mongoose
had turned t o gold.
I t had expected t h e o t h e r h a l f o f i t s
bady t o be so transformed during t h i s r i t u a l
b u t since i t had
n o t occurredB t h e mongoose cone1uded t h a t Yudhi s* .t h i r a ' s r it u a l was n o t equal t o t h a t poor brahman f a m i l y i s o f f e r i n g s . Vai Sampayana counseled Janamej aya t h a t s a c r i f ice should not
be '%he
overvalued.
There
were
clearly
other
means
c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n gives no t i t l e f o r t h i s story.
of
achi e v i ng moksa. Janame~ a y aexpressed doubt t o VaMampayana t h a t m y t h i ng
was s u p e r i o r t o s a c r i f f c e , and so he questioned VaiSampayana f u r t h e r about t h e mongoose @ snegative o p i n i o n of
sacrf f f c e *
I n rep Ty, Vaisampayma t o 7d t h e f o 1 lowfng s t o r y -
9.
Sndrats s a c r i f i c e 4 5 6[14.94.8-Q4*23] Narrator:
VaiSamplCyana
Audi ence :
Janamejaya When
Once I n d r a undertook a p a r t i cu1a r s a c r i fi ce.
.
t h e t i m e came t o s a c r i f i c e t h e animals* t h e r s i s were f i l l e d with
cumpassionI
and
so
asked
Indra
nut
to
kjll
them.
Instead, they i n s t r u c t e d him t o use g r a i n o f f e r i n g s I f o r t h e k i 11 ing o f animals w a s not dharmic. A
great
exhausted.
argument
broke
outI
and
the
parties
grew
I n d r a and the r s i s agreed t o submit t h e case t o ,
King Vasu f o r a r b i t r a t i o n .
D
He declared t h a t e i t h e r o f f e r i n g
(animal o r vegetable) was acceptable* according t o t h e Vedas8 b u t s u f f e r e d in he1 1 fur having answered i n t h i s way. V a i SampXyana
warned
Janamejaya
that
me
should
not
attempt t o r e s o l v e such matters alone. Janamejaya then asked haw one cuu 7d know t h e b e n e f i t s o f sacrffice.
VafSampayana r e p l i e d w i t h t h e fc?710win$3s t o r y .
10. The s t o r y o f Agastya s s a c r i f i ced5' [ I 4.95.4-
4 5 6 ~ h ward e 14.94.8a.
%t
pura
(long ago)
introduces t h i s
story
rSpyud~harant~mami t i hasam puratanam/ agastyasya mahayajtle pur~vkttamarimdama//l4.95.4
at
95.361 Narrator:
VaiSampSyana
Audience:
Janamejaya
Agastya undertook a t w e l ve-year s a c r i f ice. t h a t time,
however,
I n d r a caused a drought.
D u r i ng
The r.s. f s grew
very concerned t h a t crops c o u l d n o t be maintained, b u t Agastya reassured them t h a t i f I n d r a would n o t water t h e earth,
he
h i m s e l f would become I n d r a and p r o t e c t i t . Agastya i n v i t e d a1 1 t h e d e i t i e s ,
and
The r* s i s expressed t h e i r
k s a t r f y a t o attend h i s s a c r i f ice.
pleasure,
c e l e s t i a l beings,
as long as A ~ a s t y awould adhere t o p r i n c i p l e s o f
nonvi 01 ence in conducti ng t h e s a c r i f ice. powerful Agastya was,
When I n d r a saw how
he caused t h e r a i n t o f a l l and attended
Agastya' s s a c r i f i c e along w i t h t h e other d e i t i e s .
F i n a l 7y, Janamejaya asked the i d e n t i t y o f t h e mongoose, and so VafSampayana told t h e f o l l o w i n g story. 11
. The
undertook a
i d e n t i t y o f t h e mongoose458[ I 4.96.2-96.151
Narrator:
VaiSampayana
Audi ence :
Janame j aya
Long ago,
the
sacrifice.
.
r s, i
Jamadagni
o f t h e Bhrgu c l a n
He mi1ked h i s
homa cow using an
a p p r o p r i a t e vessel f o r t h e 1 i q u i d , b u t Dharma r u i n e d t h e m i 1k by e n t e r i n g i n t o t h e c o n t a i n e r i n t h e f o r m o f Anger.
Anger's
identity,
he 14.96.3b.
Jamadagni was n o t angry.
term pura
(long
ago)
Knowing
Anger took t h e
introduces t h i s
story
at
458
form of a brahman and exclaimed t o Jamadagni t h a t t h e Bhrgus w e r e u n j u s t l y accused of being e a s i 1y enraged s i n c e Jamadagni
had remained calm d e s p i t e t h e p r o v o c a t i o n .
The rsf b i d Anger '
d i s c u s s t h e s i t u a t i o n w i t h h i s ancestors,
f o r the m i l k had
been intended f o r them.
The ancestors cursed Anger t o become
a mongoosei declaring t h a t he would be f r e e d o f h i s curse on
t h e day he expressed disrespect f o r dharma.
And so i t was a t Yudhisthi r a t s aSvamedha r i t u a l t h a t the mongoose w a s a t l a s t released f r o m h i s curse. Here ends t h e SSvamedhi kaparvan
.
15.
The section on l i v i n g i n t h e hermitage
[ZSramavifs i kaparvan j A. The section on l i v i n g i n t h e h e r m i t a ~ e
[a$ramavasaparva] l15.1-15.351 The Pandavas then concerned themselves w i t h r u l i n g * t h e i r kingdom, a Wed by the w i s e counse 7 o f VySsa, Vidura, and others.
.
Dhrtar-tra
After
a number
and Gandhari were we77 t r e a t e d .
decided t o l i v e i n a
dissuade them,
t h e o l d king and h i s w i f e
o f years,
Yudhfsthfra tried to .
forest r e t r e a t .
claiming t h a t
he wished t o r e l i n q u i s h
the
..
k i n g s h i p and a l l o w D h r t a r a s t r a t o r u l e , b u t Vyasa convinced
Y u d h i s t h i r a t o Jet them depart.
A g r e a t ceremony was h e l d in
w h i c h Dhrtarastra gave many g i f t s t o h i s family and s e r v a n t s
i n preparation f o r h i s symbolic death.
As they prepared t o
leave, K u n t i announced t h a t she would j o i n them, m u c h t o t h e dismay o f her f a m f l y . As the group h a l t e d on t h e banks o f t h e Ganges River t o
perform various r i t u a r s ,
Oevala came t o Warada t o l d
the
visit,
t h e a s c e t i c s NSrada,
along
with
f 0 7 ? 0 w f n ~s t o r y
Parvata and
VySsa and h i s
in
students-
t h e course o f
various
conversations about dharma. 1
. Stories
o f v i rtuous k i ngd5$ [ I 5.26.5-26.161
Narrator: Audience:
Narada
.
Dhrtarastra,
Gandhari ,
Kunti
%athantare t u kasmi mSci ddevarsi nSradastadS/ kath~mim~makathayatsarvapratyaksadarSi vSn//15.26.5
and
t h e i r attendants NSrada b r i e f l y t o l d t h e s t o r i e s o f f i v e v i r t u o u s kings w h o had achieved d i v i n e realms through t h e performance
of tapas.
King Sahasraci t y a had a t t a i n e d I n d r a *s realm, where
Narada had o f t e n
seen him d u r i n g h i s v i s i t s
Sai 1a1aya had gone t h e r e as we1 1 heaven
through
his
ascetic
Purukutsa and Sawoman.
.
there.
King
King Prsadhra had a t t a i ned ..
practice,
and
so
had
Kings
..
and
L i kewi se would O h r t a r S s t r a
Gandhari r e a l i z e t h a t end. Meanwhile,
the
.
Pandawas
worried
about
p a r t i c u l a r , and grieved a t being parted from her.
Kunti,
in
Eventua 7 ly,
they decided t o v i s i t t h e i r e l d e r s i n the f o r e s t , and s e t out with a vast p a r t y of
subjects who also wanted t o see them
again. The reunion w a s Joyful.
2. Mandavya ' s curse and V i dura s b i r t h 4 6 0
Narrator: Audi ence :
Vyasa
Ohrtarastra
and
the
visitors
assembled i n h i s hermitage Vyasa a l s o a r r i v e d a t the hermitage whi le t h e Pandavas were v i s i t i n g there. ,.
In t h e course o f h i s i n q u i r y
he c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n g i v e s no t i t l e f o r t h i s s t o r y . E d i t o r s o f the c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n n o t e i t s f u l l e r occurrence a t 1.101.1-27 i n t h e c r i t i c a l e d i t i o n , i n t h e Markandeya Purana {adhyaya 16.28), i n t h e Padma Purana ( 5 . 4 8 . S l f f ) ; ' t h e Garuda Purma (142.21ff), and t h e Skanda'Purana (3.169.170). he curse is a1 so r e f e r r e d t o a t 1 .57.77-81.'
461
a f t e r Dhrtarastra ' s , Gandhari ' s , and Kunti's * .
w e ? 7-being,
he
asked i f D h r t a r a.s.t r a had heard t h a t Vidura had r e c e n t l y d i e d w h i l e i n a yogic t r a n c e . of
VySsa b r i e f l y summarized the s t o r y
Vidurars true i d e n t i t y .
.
Once. MZndavya, a very accomplished r* .s i , cursed Dharma. As a
result,
t h a t d e i t y w a s reborn as V-idura (fathered by
VySsa w i t h King V i c i t r a v i r y a r s w i f e who s u b s t i t u t e d a female
for
servant
herself
s i n c e she
feared
Vyasa)
and
also as
Yudhi s thi ra. * .
(dead) sons
B. The s e c t i o n on t h e v i s i o n of t h e
[putradarSanaparvaJ (15.36-1 5.441 During t h e i r v i s i t , KuntJ. disclosed t h e circumstances under which Kama had been born, and Vyasa assured her t h a t she had done no wrong.
for
arranged
To ease t h e g r i e f o f t h e fami 7y8 VySsa
t h e miraculous
reappearance
of
w a r r i o r s along t h e banks o f t h e Ganges River.
the w a r r i o r s w e r e refreshed and j o y f u 7 ,
a ? ? the dead
In this v i s i o n ,
and a grand reunion
ensued. C . The s e c t i o n on t h e a r r i v a l o f NSrada
[naradagamaparva] [15.45-15-47] A t 7ast t h e e l d e r s convinced Y u d h i s t h i r a t o r e t u r n t o Ã
his city.
SeveraJ years r a t e r , Narada a r r i v e d t o report t h a t
..
D h r t m s t r a , GandharZ, and Kunti had been consumed i n a great forest f i r e .
They hadwi77ingJy s a c r i f i c e d themseJves, having
been p u r i f i e d by years o f a s c e t i c p r a c t i c e . The Pandavas were s o r e 7y grieved. ,*
Again they t r a v e l e d t o
462
the banks of the Ganges River where they perFormed Funera7 rituals in beha7F of their dead ancestors.
Here ends the
a~ramavasikaparvan.
463 16.
The section about t h e ( b a t t l e w i t h ) clubs mausa laparvan] A . The section about the
battle w i t h clubs [mausa laparva]
In time, a number o f troub7ing portents arose i n the Pandava . kingdom.
.
Soon t h e r e a f t e r , Y u d h i s t h i r a learned of the
.
slaughter o f t h e e n t i r e V *r .s* n i c l a n , w i t h only Krsna and Rama s u r v i v i n g the calamity, o n l y t o r e l i n q u i s h their bodies a t the
end. A-a
h u r r i e d t o t h e c i t y o f Dvaraka.
rescue of t h e remaining i n h a b f t a n t s ,
He organized the
and conducted funeral
r i t e s f o r Krsna . . * and Rasa. A f t e r doing h i s best t o r e - s e t t 7e t h e survivors, Arjuna v i s i t e d Vy-a
i n h i s retreat.
Vy-
explained t h a t m a* ' s
death and the d e s t r u c t i o n o f h i s c l a n had been the workings o f d e s t i n y , and t h a t A-a,
w o r l d w i t h h i s brothers.
too,
should prepare t o leave the
W u n a returned t o HSstinapura t o
tell h i s family what had occurred. Here concludes t h e mausal aparvan
.
17.
The section about t h e great journey
[mahaprasthan i kaparvan] A. The s e c t i o n about t h e great journey
[mahaprasthSnfkapafva] [ I 7 . 1 - 1 7 . 3 1 The Pmdavas conferred and determined t o r e 7 inqufsh t h e i r kingship.
They i n s t a l l e d P a r i k s i t as king and pub1fc7y
announced t h e i r i n t e n t i o n t o depart, a l o n g w i t h Draupadi. They headed n o r t h t o t h e HimaTayas, toward the sacred Mt,.
but
Meru,
eventually
Draupadi
co7Japsed and d i e d .
Sahadeva, then M u l a , ArJuna, and Bhima d i e d . c a r r i e d on w i t h o n l y
t h e dog who had
followed
Mext,
Y u d h f s,t h i r a them from
Hastinapura as companion. Eventual Ty,
I n d r a appeared and i n v i t e d Y u d h i* s* t h i r a t o
mount M a ' s c h a r i o t t o t r a v e l t o heaven, where he would be
reunited w i t h h i s b r o t h e r s and Draupadi
.
When Indra refused
t o a 1 low t h e dog t o accompany h i m , Y u d h i s t h i f a r e f u s e d t o go, declining t o r e j e c t his
loyal
follower.
When Y u d h i,s* t h i r a
p e r s i s t e d in h i s p o s i t i o n on the m a t t e r , t h e dog's d i s g u i s e
f e l l away
t o r e v e a l Dharma himseJf,
who had been
testing
Yudhfsthira t o t h e end. * The p a r t y proceeded t o I n d r a ' s heaven, b u t n o t f i n d i n g Draupadi and h i s b r o t h e r s there, Y u d h i s t h i r a i n s i s t e d t h a t he Â
would not s t a y .
¥
Wherever they were, t h a t was where he wished
to be. Here ends t h e mahaprasthI!&ii
kaparvan
.
18.
The section on t h e ascension t o heaven
[svargarohanaparvan] A.
T h e section on the ascension t o heaven
[svargarohanaparva] [ 18.1 -1 8 . 5 ] When Yudhi s t. h i r a a r r i v e d in Jndra Is heaven, Duryodhana was
the
first
person
he
encountered.
unwf 77ing t o l e t bygones be bygones,
Mot
only was
he
but he a l s o protested
t h a t none o f those he considered noble heroes o f t h e great w a r were t h e r e . Draupadi
He continued t o i n s i s t t h a t he be reunited w i t h
and h i s brothers, wherever they were.
messenger
led him on a d i f f i c u l t journey
r o t t i n g corpses and other h o r r i b l e sfgphts. messenger
declared t h a t
he had been
Fina l l y ,
a
a long a path past Eventually, t h e
instructed
t o go
no
t o r e t u r n t o heaven w i t h f u r t h e r , b u t he i n v i t e d Yudhisthira * him.
Just then. Yudhfsthira heard a chorus o f p i t f f u l voices ..
b e g g i n g him t o remain awhile.
They i d e n t i f i e d themselves t o
as Draupadi and h i s brothers, t h e deep 7y shocked Yudhisthira ,. and so he c r i t i c i z e d t h e d e i t i e s f o r consigning h i s family t o
such a f a t e * Yudhi s t* h i r a sent t h e messenger on his w a y , but a moment those v i s i o n s o f he1 1
l a t e r a1 1
t h e d e i t i e s appeared and
vanished.
Dharma explained t o him that he had been subjected
t o t h i s i n punishment f o r deceiving Drona on t h e b a t t l e f i e l d .
.
He took Y u d h i srt h i r a t o t h e Ganges River where t h e king bathed and re1 inqufshed h i s body.
h i s family.
Y u d h i s t h i r a was then reunited w i t h r
.
466
BrieF1ya't 18.5.5 and again at 18.5.26. Vya-sa's narration exits to the Frame of Ugra§ravas' story, who then described ~he
conc7usion of Jana.ejaya's snake sacriFice.
c10ses with an
enumeration of the
The parvan
merit:s of hearing
and
recital of the Mbh. Here ends the
svargaroha~aparvan
and the Mahabharata.
