SECTION XIII
(Lokapala
Sabhakhayana Parva Continued)
Vaisampayana said,--"Yudhishthira, having
heard these words of Narada, began to sigh heavily. And, O Bharata, engaged in
his thoughts about the Rajasuya, the king had no peace of mind. Having heard of
this glory of the illustrious monarchs (of old) and being certain about the
acquisition of regions of felicity by performers of sacrifices in consequence
of their sacred deeds, and thinking especially of that royal sage Harischandra
who had performed the great sacrifice king Yudhishthira desired to make preparations
for the Rajasuya sacrifice. Then worshipping his counsellors and others present
at his Sabha, and worshipped by them in return, he began to discuss with them
about that sacrifice. Having reflected much, that king of kings, that bull
amongst the Kurus, inclined his mind towards making preparations for the
Rajasuya. That prince of wonderful energy and prowess, however, reflecting upon
virtue and righteousness, again set his heart to find out what would be for the
good of all his people. For Yudhishthira, that foremost of all virtuous men,
always kind unto his subjects, worked for the good of all without making any
distinctions. Indeed, shaking off both anger and arrogance, Yudhishthira always
said,--Give unto each what is due to each,--and the only sounds that he could
hear were,--Blessed be Dharma! Blessed be Dharma! Yudhishthira! conducting
himself thus and giving paternal assurance to everybody, there was none in the
kingdom who entertained any hostile feelings towards him. He therefore came to
be called Ajatasatru (one with no enemy at all). The king cherished every one
as belonging to his family, and Bhima ruled over all justly. Arjuna, used to
employing both his hands with equal skill, protected the people from (external)
enemies. And the wise Sahadeva administered justice impartially. And Nakula
behaved towards all with humility that was natural to him. Owing to all this,
the kingdom became free from disputes and fear of every kind. And all the
people became attentive to their respective occupations. The rain became so
abundant as to leave no room for desiring more; and the kingdom grew in
prosperity. And in consequence of the virtues of the king, money-lenders, the
articles required for sacrifices, cattle-rearing, tillage, and traders, all and
everything grew in prosperity. Indeed, during the reign of Yudhishthira who was
ever devoted to truth, there was no extortion, no stringent realisation of
arrears of rent, no fear of disease, of fire, or of death by poisoning and
incantations, in the kingdom. It was never heard at that time that thieves or
cheats or royal favourites ever behaved wrongfully towards the king or towards
one another amongst themselves. Kings conquered on the six occasions (of war,
treaty, &c.) were wont to wait upon him in order to do good unto the
monarch and worship him ever, while the traders of different classes came to
pay him the taxes leviable on their respective occupations. And accordingly
during the reign of Yudhishthira who was ever devoted to virtue, his dominion grew
in prosperity. Indeed, the prosperity of the kingdom was increased not by these
alone but even by persons wedded to voluptuousness and indulging in all
luxuries to their fill. And the king of kings, Yudhishthira, whose sway
extended over all, was possessed of every accomplishment and bore everything
with patience. And, O king, whatever countries the celebrated and illustrious
monarch conquered, the people everywhere, from Brahmanas to swains, were all
more attached to him than to their own fathers and mothers.'
Vaisampayana said,--"King Yudhishthira,
then, that foremost of speakers, summoning together his counsellors and
brothers, asked them repeatedly about the Rajasuya sacrifice. Those ministers
in a body, thus asked by the wise Yudhishthira desirous of performing the
sacrifice, then told him these words of grave import,--'One already in
possession of a kingdom desireth all the attributes of an emperor by means of
that sacrifice which aideth a king in acquiring the attributes of Varuna. O
prince of Kuru race, thy friends think that as thou art worthy of the
attributes of an emperor, the time is even come for thee for the performance of
the Rajasuya sacrifice. The time for the performance of that sacrifice in which
Rishis of austere vows kindle six fires with mantras of the Sama Veda, is come
for thee in consequence of thy Kshatriya possessions. At the conclusion of the
Rajasuya sacrifice when the performer is installed in the sovereignty of the
empire, he is rewarded with the fruits of all sacrifices including the
Agnihotra. It is for this that he is called the conqueror of all. Thou art
quite able, O strong-armed one, to perform this sacrifice. All of us are
obedient to thee. Soon will you be able, O great king, to perform the Rajasuya
sacrifice. Therefore, O great king, let thy resolution be taken to perform this
sacrifice without further discussion. Thus, spoke unto the king all his friends
and counsellors separately and jointly. And, O king, Yudhishthira that slayer
of all enemies, having heard these virtuous, bold, agreeable and weighty words
of theirs, accepted them mentally. And having heard those words of his friends
and counsellors, and knowing his own strength also, the king, O Bharata,
repeatedly thought over the matter. After this the intelligent and virtuous
Yudhishthira, wise in counsel, again consulted with his brothers, with the
illustrious Ritwijas about him, with his ministers and with Dhaumya and
Dwaipayana and others.
'Yudhishthira said,--"How may this wish that
I entertain of performing the excellent sacrifice of Rajasuya that is worthy of
an emperor, bear fruit, in consequence of my faith and speech alone.'"
Vaisampayana said,--"O thou of eyes like
lotus-petals, thus asked by the king, they replied at that time unto
Yudhishthira the just in these words,--Being conversant with the dictates of
morality, thou art, O king, worthy to perform the grand sacrifice of Rajasuya.
After the Ritwijas and the Rishis had told these words unto the king, his
ministers and brothers highly approved of the speech. The king, however,
possessed of great wisdom, and with mind under complete control, actuated by
the desire of doing good unto the world, again resolved the matter in his mind,
thinking of his own strength and means, the circumstances of time and place and
his income and expenditure. For he knew that the wise never come to grief owing
to their always acting after full deliberation. Thinking that the sacrifice
should not be commenced, pursuant to his own resolution only, Yudhishthira,
carefully bearing upon his shoulder the weight of affairs thought of Krishna
that persecutor of all sinners as the fittest person to decide the matter, in
as much as he knew him to be the foremost of all persons, possessed of
immeasurable energy, strong-armed, without birth but born amongst men from Will
alone. Reflecting upon his god-like feats the son of Pandu concluded that there
was nothing that was unknown to him, nothing that he could not achieve, and
nothing that he could not bear, and Yudhishthira, the son of Pritha, having
come to this settled resolution soon sent a messenger unto that master of all
beings, conveying through him blessings and speeches such as one senior in age
might send to one that is younger. And that messenger riding in a swift car
arrived amongst the Yadavas and approached Krishna who was then residing in
Dwaravati. And Achyuta (Krishna) hearing that the son of Pritha had become
desirous of seeing him, desired to see his cousin. And quickly passing over
many regions, being drawn by his own swift horses, Krishna arrived at
Indraprastha, accompanied by Indrasena. And having arrived at Indraprastha,
Janardana approached Yudhisthira without loss of time. And Yudhisthira received
Krishna with paternal-affection, and Bhima also received him likewise. And
Janardana then went with a cheerful heart to his father's sister (Kunti). And
worshipped then with reverence by the twins, he began to converse cheerfully
with his friend Arjuna who was overjoyed at seeing him. And after he had rested
awhile in a pleasant apartment and had been fully refreshed, Yudhishthira
approached him at his leisure and informed him all about the Rajasuya
sacrifice.
"Yudhishthira said,--'I have wished to
perform the Rajasuya sacrifice. That sacrifice, however, cannot be performed by
one's wishing alone to perform it. Thou knowest, O Krishna, even thing about
the means by which it may be accomplished. He alone can achieve this sacrifice
in whom everything is possible, who is worshipped everywhere and who is the
king of kings. My friends and counsellors approaching me have said that I
should perform that sacrifice. But, O Krishna, in respect of that matter, thy
words shall be my guide. Of counsellers some from friendship do not notice the
difficulties; others from motives of self-interest say only what is agreeable.
Some again regard that which is beneficial to themselves as worthy of adoption.
Men are seen to counsel thus on matters awaiting decision. But thou, O Krishna,
art above such motives. Thou hast conquered both desire and anger. It behoveth
thee to tell me what is most beneficial to the world."
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