SECTION XCIX
(Sambhava Parva continued)
"Santanu asked, 'What was the fault of the
Vasus and who was Apava, through whose curse the Vasus had to be born among
men? What also hath this child of thine, Gangadatta, done for which he shall
have to live among men? Why also were the Vasus, the lords of the three worlds,
condemned to be born amongst men? O daughter of Jahnu, tell me all.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Thus addressed,
the celestial daughter of Jahnu, Ganga, then replied unto the monarch, her
husband, that bull amongst men, saying, 'O best of Bharata's race, he who was
obtained as son by Varuna was called Vasishtha, the Muni who afterwards came to
be known as Apava. He had his asylum on the breast of the king of mountains
called Meru. The spot was sacred and abounded with birds and beasts. And there
bloomed at all times of the year flowers of every season. And, O best of
Bharata's race, that foremost of virtuous men, the son of Varuna, practised his
ascetic penances in those woods abounding with sweet roots and water.
"Daksha had a daughter known by the name of
Surabhi, who, O bull of Bharata's race, for benefiting the world, brought
forth, by her connection with Kasyapa, a daughter (Nandini) in the form of a
cow. That foremost of all kine, Nandini, was the cow of plenty (capable of
granting every desire). The virtuous son of Varuna obtained Nandini for his
Homa rites. And Nandini, dwelling in that hermitage which was adored by Munis,
roamed about fearlessly in those sacred and delightful woods.
"One day, O bull of Bharata's race, there
came into those woods adored by the gods and celestial Rishis, the Vasus with
Prithu at their head. And wandering there with their wives, they enjoyed
themselves in those delightful woods and mountains. And as they wandered there,
the slender-waisted wife of one of the Vasus, O thou of the prowess of Indra,
saw in those woods Nandini, the cow of plenty. And seeing that cow possessing
the wealth of all accomplishments, large eyes, full udders, fine tail,
beautiful hoofs, and every other auspicious sign, and yielding much milk, she
showed the animal to her husband Dyu. O thou of the prowess of the first of
elephants, when Dyu was shown that cow, he began to admire her several
qualities and addressing his wife, said, 'O black-eyed girl of fair thighs,
this excellent cow belongeth to that Rishi whose is this delightful asylum. O
slender-waisted one, that mortal who drinketh the sweet milk of this cow
remaineth in unchanged youth for ten thousand years.' O best of monarchs,
hearing this, the slender-waisted goddess of faultless features then addressed
her lord of blazing splendour and said, 'There is on earth a friend of mine,
Jitavati by name, possessed of great beauty and youth. She is the daughter of
that god among men, the royal sage Usinara, endued with intelligence and
devoted to truth. I desire to have this cow, O illustrious one, with her calf
for that friend of mine. Therefore, O best of celestials, bring that cow so
that my friend drinking of her milk may alone become on earth free from disease
and decrepitude. O illustrious and blameless one, it behoveth thee to grant me
this desire of mine. There is nothing that would be more agreeable to me.' On
hearing these words of his wife, Dyu, moved by the desire of humouring her,
stole that cow, aided by his brothers Prithu and the others. Indeed, Dyu,
commanded by his lotus-eyed wife, did her bidding, forgetting at the moment the
high ascetic merits of the Rishi who owned her. He did not think at the time
that he was going to fall by committing the sin of stealing the cow.
"When the son of Varuna returned to his
asylum in the evening with fruits he had collected, he beheld not the cow with
her calf there. He began to search for them in the woods, but when the great
ascetic of superior intelligence found not his cow on search, he saw by his
ascetic vision that she had been stolen by the Vasus. His wrath was instantly
kindled and he cursed the Vasus, saying, 'Because the Vasus have stolen my cow
of sweet milk and handsome tail, therefore, shall they certainly be born on
earth!'
"O thou bull of Bharata's race, the
illustrious Rishi Apava thus cursed the Vasus in wrath. And having cursed them,
the illustrious one set his heart once more on ascetic meditation. And after
that Brahmarshi of great power and ascetic wealth had thus in wrath cursed the
Vasus, the latter, O king, coming to know of it, speedily came into his asylum.
And addressing the Rishi, O bull among kings, they endeavoured to pacify him.
But they failed, O tiger among men, to obtain grace from Apava--that Rishi
conversant, with all rules of virtue. The virtuous Apava, however, said, 'Ye
Vasus, with Dhava and others, ye have been cursed by me. But ye shall be freed
from my curse within a year of your birth among men. But he for whose deed ye
have been cursed by me he, viz., Dyu, shall for his sinful act, have to dwell
on earth for a length of time. I shall not make futile the words I have uttered
in wrath. Dyu, though dwelling on Earth, shall not beget children. He shall,
however, be virtuous and conversant with the scriptures. He shall be an
obedient son to his father, but he shall have to abstain from the pleasure of
female companionship.'
"Thus addressing the Vasus, the great Rishi
went away. The Vasus then together came to me. And, O king, the begged of me
the boon that as soon as they would be born, I should throw them into the
water. And, O best of kings, I did as they desired, in order to free them from
their earthly life. And O best of kings, from the Rishi's curse, this one only,
viz., Dyu, himself, is to live on earth for some time.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Having said this,
the goddess disappeared then and there. And taking with her the child, she went
away to the region she chose. And that child of Santanu was named both Gangeya
and Devavrata and excelled his father in all accomplishments.
"Santanu, after the disappearance of his
wife, returned to his capital with a sorrowful heart. I shall now recount to
thee the many virtues and the great good fortune of the illustrious king
Santanu of the Bharata race. Indeed, it is this splendid history that is called
the Mahabharata.'"
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