SECTION –CXXXI
(Tirtha-yatra Parva Continued)
"The hawk said, 'All the kings of the earth
represent thee as a pious ruler. Wherefore, O prince, has thou then stopped to
perpetrate a deed not sanctioned by the ordinance? I have been sore afflicted
with hunger. Do thou not withhold from me that which hath been appointed by the
Deity for my food,--under the impression that thereby thou servest the
interests of virtue, whereas in reality, thou wilt forsake it, (by committing thyself
to this act). Thereupon, the king said, 'O best of the feathered race,
afflicted with fear of thee, and desirous of escaping from thy hands, this
bird, all in a hurry, hath come up to me asking for life. When this pigeon hath
in such a manner sought my protection, why dost thou not see that the highest
merit is even in my not surrendering it unto thee? And it is trembling with
fear, and is agitated, and is seeking its life from me. It is therefore
certainly blameworthy to forsake it. He that slayeth a Brahmana, he that
slaughtered a cow--the common mother of all the worlds--and he that forsaketh
one seeking for protection are equally sinful.' Thereat the hawk replied, 'O
lord of earth, it is from food that all beings derive their life, and it is food
also that nourisheth and sustaineth them. A man can live long even after
forsaking what is dearest to him, but he cannot do so, after abstaining from
food. Being deprived of food, my life, O ruler of men, will surely leave this
body, and will attain to regions unknown to such troubles. But at my death, O
pious king, my wife and children will surely perish, and by protecting this
single pigeon. O prince, thou dost not protect many lives. The virtue that
standeth in the way of another virtue, is certainly no virtue at all, but in
reality is unrighteousness.
But O king, whose prowess consisteth in truth,
that virtue is worthy of the name, which is not conflicting. After instituting
a comparison between opposing virtues, and weighing their comparative merits,
one, O great prince, ought to espouse that which is not opposing. Do thou,
therefore, O king, striking a balance between virtues, adopt that which
preponderates.' At this the king said, 'O best of birds, as thou speakest words
fraught with much good, I suspect thee to be Suparna, the monarch of birds. I
have not the least hesitation to declare that thou art fully conversant with
the ways of virtue. As thou speakest wonders about virtue, I think that there
is nothing connected with it, that is unknown to thee. How canst thou then
consider the forsaking of one, seeking for help, as virtuous? Thy efforts in
this matter, O ranger of the skies, have been in quest of food. Thou canst,
however, appease thy hunger with some other sort of food, even more copious. I
am perfectly willing to procure for thee any sort of food that to thee may seem
most tasteful, even if it be an ox, or a boar, or a deer, or a buffalo.'
Thereupon the hawk said, 'O great king, I am not desirous of eating (the flesh
of) a boar or an ox or the various species of beasts. What have I to do with
any other sort of food? Therefore, O bull among the Kshatriyas, leave to me
this pigeon, whom Heaven hath today ordained for my food, O ruler of earth,
that hawks eat pigeons is the eternal provision. O prince, do not for support
embrace a plantain tree, not knowing its want of strength.' The king said,
'Ranger of the skies, I am willing to bestow on thee this rich province of my
race, or any other thing that to thee may seem desirable. With the sole
exception of this pigeon, which hath approached me craving my protection, I
shall be glad to give unto thee anything that thou mayst like. Let me know what
I shall have to do for the deliverance of this bird. But this I shall not return
to thee on any condition whatever.'"
"The hawk said, 'O great ruler of men, if
thou hast conceived an affection for this pigeon, then cut off a portion of
thine own flesh, and weigh it in a balance, against this pigeon. And when thou
hast found it equal (in weight) to the pigeon, then do thou give it unto me,
and that will be to my satisfaction.' Then the king replied, This request of
thine, O hawk, I consider as a favour unto me, and, therefore, I will give unto
thee even my own flesh, after weighing it in a balance.'
"Lomasa said, 'Saying this, O mighty son of
Kunti, the highly virtuous king cut off a portion of his own flesh, and placed
it in a balance, against the pigeon. But when he found that pigeon exceeded his
flesh in weight, he once more cut off another portion of his flesh, and added
it to the former. When portion after portion had been repeatedly added to weigh
against the pigeon, and no more flesh was left on his body, he mounted the
scale himself, utterly devoid of flesh.
"The hawk then said, 'I am Indra, O virtuous
king, and this pigeon is Agni, the carrier of the sacrificial clarified butter.
We had come unto thy sacrificial ground, desirous of testing thy merit. Since
thou hast cut off thy own flesh from thy body, thy glory shall be resplendent,
and shall surpass that of all others in the world. As long as men, O king,
shall speak of thee,so long shall thy glory endure, and thou shalt inhabit the
holy regions.' Saying this to the king, Indra ascended to heaven. And the
virtuous king Usinara, after having filled heaven and earth with the merit of
his pious deeds, ascended to heaven in a radiant shape. Behold, O king, the
residence of that noble-hearted monarch. Here, O king, are seen holy sages and
gods, together with virtuous and highsouled Brahmanas."
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