SECTION –XXXI
(Arjunabhigamana Parva Continued)
"Yudhishthira said, 'Thy speech, O
Yajnaseni, is delightful, smooth and full of excellent phrases. We have
listened to it (carefully). Thou speakest, however, the language of atheism. O
princess, I never act, solicitous of the fruits of my actions. I give away,
because it is my duty to give; I sacrifice because it is my duty to sacrifice!
O Krishna, I accomplish to the best of my power whatever a person living in
domesticity should do, regardless of the fact whether those acts have fruits or
not. O thou of fair hips, I act virtuously, not from the desire of reaping the
fruits of virtue, but of not transgressing the ordinances of the Veda, and
beholding also the conduct of the good and wise! My heart, O Krishna, is
naturally attracted towards virtue. The man who wisheth to reap the fruits of
virtue is a trader in virtue. His nature is mean and he should never be counted
amongst the virtuous. Nor doth he ever obtain the fruits of his virtues! Nor
doth he of sinful heart, who having accomplished a virtuous act doubteth in his
mind, obtain the fruits of his act, in consequence of that scepticism of his! I
speak unto thee, under the authority of the Vedas, which constitute the highest
proof in such matters, that never shouldst thou doubt virtue! The man that
doubteth virtue is destined to take his birth in the brute species. The man of
weak understanding who doubteth religion, virtue or the words of the Rishis, is
precluded from regions of immortality and bliss, like Sudras from the Vedas! O
intelligent one, if a child born of a good race studieth the Vedas and beareth
himself virtuously, royal sages of virtuous behaviour regard him as an aged
sage (not withstanding his years)! The sinful wretch, however, who doubteth
religion and transgresseth the scriptures, is regarded as lower even than
Sudras and robbers! Thou hast seen with thy own eyes the great ascetic
Markandeya of immeasurable soul come to us! It is by virtue alone that he hath
acquired immortality in the flesh. Vyasa, and Vasistha and Maitreya, and Narada
and Lomasa, and Suka, and other Rishis have all, by virtue alone, become of
pure soul! Thou beholdest them with thy own eyes as furnished with prowess of
celestial asceticism, competent to curse or bless (with effect), and superior
to the very gods! O sinless one, these all, equal to the celestials themselves,
behold with their eyes what Is written in the Vedas, and describe virtue as the
foremost duty! It behoveth thee not, therefore, O amiable Queen, to either
doubt or censure God or act, with a foolish heart. The fool that doubteth
religion and disregardeth virtue, proud of the proof derived from his own
reasoning, regardeth not other proofs and holdeth the Rishis, who are capable of
knowing the future as present as mad men. The fool regardeth only the external
world capable of gratifying his senses, and is blind to everything else. He
that doubted religion hath no expiation for his offence. That miserable wretch
is full of anxiety and acquireth not regions of bliss hereafter. A rejector of
proofs, a slanderer of the interpretation of the Vedic scriptures, a
transgressor urged by lust and covetousness, that fool goeth to hell. O amiable
one, he on the other hand, whoever cherisheth religion with faith, obtaineth
eternal bliss in the other world. The fool who cherisheth not religion,
transgressing the proofs offered by the Rishis, never obtaineth prosperity in
any life, for such transgression of the scriptures. It is certain, O handsome
one, that with respect to him who regardeth not the words of the Rishis or the
conduct of the virtuous as proof, neither this nor the other world existeth.
Doubt not, O Krishna, the ancient religion that is practised by the good and
framed by Rishis of universal knowledge and capable of seeing all things! O
daughter of Drupada, religion is the only raft for those desirous of going to
heaven, like a ship to merchants desirous of crossing the ocean. O thou
faultless one, if the virtues that are practised by the virtuous had no fruits,
this universe then would be enveloped in infamous darkness. No one then would
pursue salvation, no one would seek to acquire knowledge not even wealth, but
men would live like beasts. If asceticism, the austerities of celibate life,
sacrifices, study of the Vedas, charity, honesty,--these all were fruitless,
men would not have practised virtue generation after generation. If acts were
all fruitless, a dire confusion would ensue. For what then do Rishis and gods
and Gandharvas and Rakshasas who are all independent of human conditions,
cherish virtue with such affection? Knowing it for certain that God is the
giver of fruits in respect of virtue, they practise virtue in this world. This,
O Krishna, is the eternal (source of) prosperity. When the fruits of both
knowledge and asceticism are seen, virtue and vice cannot be fruitless. Call to
thy mind, O Krishna, the circumstances of thy own birth as thou that heard of
them, and recall also the manner in which Dhrishtadyumna of great prowess was
born! These, O thou of sweet smiles, are the best proofs (of the fruits of
virtue)! They that have their minds under control, reap the fruits of their
acts and are content with little. Ignorant fools are not content with even that
much they get (here), because they have no happiness born of virtue to acquire
to in the world hereafter. The fruitlessness of virtuous acts ordained in the
Vedas, as also of all transgressions, the origin and destruction of acts are, O
beautiful one, mysterious even to the gods. These are not known to anybody and
everybody. Ordinary men are ignorant in respect of these. The gods keep up the
mystery, for the illusion covering the conduct of the gods is unintelligible.
Those regenerate ones that have destroyed all aspirations, that have built all
their hopes on vows and asceticism, that have burnt all their sins and have
acquired minds where quest and peace and holiness dwell, understand all these.
Therefore, though you mayst not see the fruits of virtue, thou shouldst not yet
doubt religion or gods. Thou must perform sacrifices with a will, and practise
charity without insolence. Acts in this world have their fruits, and virtue also
is eternal. Brahma himself told this unto his (spiritual) sons, as testified to
by Kashyapa. Let thy doubt, therefore, O Krishna, be dispelled like mist.
Reflecting upon all this, let thy scepticism give way to faith. Slander not
God, who is the lord of all creatures. Learn how to know him. Bow down unto
him. Let not thy mind be such. And, O Krishna, never disregard that Supreme
Being through whose grace mortal man, by piety, acquireth immortality!'"
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