The Mahabharata of Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa, Volume 4 by or: Kisari Mohan Ganguli

O >> or: Kisari Mohan Ganguli >> The Mahabharata of Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa, Volume 4

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"The Pitris said, 'Great is this question which thou hast asked. It
involves a mystery and is fraught with wonder. We have been exceedingly
gratified with thee, O ranger of the sky! The very deities and the Munis
applaud acts done in honour of the Pitris. Even they do not know what the
certain conclusions are of the ordinances in respect of the acts done in
honour of the Pitris. Excepting the high souled, immortal, and excellent
Markandeya, that learned Brahmana of great fame, who is ever devoted to
the Pitris, none amongst them is conversant with the mysteries of the
ordinances in respect of the Pitris. Having heard from the holy Vyasa
what the end is of the three rice-balls offered at the Sraddha, as
explained by the Pitris themselves in reply to the question of the
celestial messenger, I shall explain the same to thee. Do thou hear, O
monarch, what the conclusions are with respect to the ordinances about
the Sraddha. Listen with rapt attention, O Bharata, to me as I explain
what the end is of the three rice-balls. That rice-ball which goes into
water is regarded as gratifying the deity of the moon. That deity, thus
gratified, O thou of great intelligence, gratifies in return the other
deities and the Pitris also with them. It has been laid down that the
second rice-ball should be eaten by the spouse (of the man that performs
the Sraddha). The Pitris, who are ever desirous of progeny, confer
children on the woman of the house. Listen now to me as I tell thee what
becomes of the rice-ball that is cast into the blazing fire. With that
ball the Pitris are gratified and as the result thereof they grant the
fruition of all wishes unto the person offering it. I have thus told thee
everything about the end of the three rice-balls offered at the Sraddha
and consigned to the three (viz., water, the spouse, and the fire). That
Brahmana who becomes the Ritwik at a Sraddha constitutes himself, by that
act, the Pitri of the person performing the Sraddha. Hence, he should
abstain that day from sexual intercourse with even his own spouse[542]. O
best of all rangers of the sky, the man who eats at Sraddha should bear
himself with purity for that day. By acting otherwise, one surely incurs
the faults I have indicated. It cannot be otherwise. Hence, the Brahmana
who is invited to a Sraddha for eating the offerings should eat them
after purifying himself by a bath and bear himself piously for that day
by abstaining from every kind of injury or evil. The progeny of such a
person multiply and he also who feeds him reaps the same reward.'

"Bhishma continued, 'After the Pitris said so, a Rishi of austere
penances, named Vidyutprabha, whose form shone with splendour like that
of the sun, spoke. Having heard those mysteries of religion as propounded
by the Pitris, he addressed Sakra, saying, 'Stupefied by folly, men slay
numerous creatures born in the intermediate orders, such as worms and
ants and snakes and sheep and deer and birds. Heavy is the measure of sin
they incur by these acts. What, however, is the remedy? When this
question was asked, all the gods and Rishis endued with wealth of
penances and the highly blessed Pitris, applauded that ascetic.'

"Sakra said, 'Thinking in one's mind of Kurukshetra and Gaya and Ganga
and Prabhasa and the lakes of Pushkara, one should dip one's head in
water. By so doing one becomes cleansed of all one's sins like Chandramas
freed from Rahu. One should bathe in this way for three days in
succession and then fast for every day. Besides this, one should touch
(after bathing) the back of a cow and bow one's head to her tail.
Vidyutprabha, after this, once more addressing Vasava, said, 'I shall
declare a rite that is more subtle. Listen to me, O thou of a hundred
sacrifices. Rubbed with the astringent powder of the hanging roots of the
banian and anointed with the oil of Priyangu, one should eat the
Shashtika paddy mixed with milk. By so doing one becomes cleansed of all
one's sins[543]. Listen now to another mystery unknown to many but which
was discovered by the Rishis with the aid of meditation. I heard it from
Vrihaspati while he recited it in the presence of Mahadeva. O chief of
the deities, do thou hear it with Rudra in thy company, O lord of Sachi!
If a person, ascending a mountain, stands there on one foot, with arms
upraised and joined together, and abstaining from food looks at a blazing
fire, he acquires the merits of severe penances and obtains the rewards
that attach to fasts. Heated by the rays of the sun, he becomes cleansed
of all his sins. One who acts in this way in both the summer and the
winter seasons, becomes freed from every sin. Cleansed of every sin, one
acquires a splendour of complexion for all time. Such a man blazes with
energy like the Sun or shines in beauty like the Moon!' After this, the
chief of the deities, viz., he of a hundred sacrifices, seated in the
midst of the gods, then sweetly addressed Vrihaspati, saying these
excellent words, 'O holy one, do thou duly discourse on what those
mysteries of religion are that are fraught with happiness to human
beings, and what the faults are which they commit, together with the
mysteries that attach to them!'

"Vrihaspati said, 'They who pass urine, facing the sun, they who do not
show reverence for the wind, they who do not pour libations on the
blazing fire, they who milk a cow whose calf is very young, moved by the
desire of obtaining from her as much milk as possible, commit sins. I
shall declare what those faults are, O lord of Sachi! Do thou listen to
me. The Sun, Wind, the bearer of sacrificial oblations, O Vasava, and
kine who are the mothers of all creatures, were created by the Self born
himself, for rescuing all the worlds, O Sakra! These are the deities of
human beings. Listen all of ye to the conclusions of religion. Those
wicked men and wicked women who pass urine facing the sun, live in great
infamy for six and eighty years. That man, O Sakra, who cherishes no
reverence for the wind, gets children that fall away prematurely from the
womb of his spouse. Those men who do not pour libations on the blazing
fire find that the fire, when they do ignite it for such rites as they
wish to perform, refuses to eat their libations[544]. Those men who drink
the milk of kine whose calves are very young, never get children for
perpetuating their races.[545] Such men see their children, die and their
races shrink. Even these are the consequences of the acts referred to, as
observed by regenerate persons venerable for age in their respective
races. Hence, one should always avoid that which has been interdicted,
and do only that which has been directed to be done, if one is desirous
of achieving prosperity. This that I say unto thee is very true.' After
the celestial preceptor had said this, the highly blessed deities, with
the Maruts, and the highly blessed Rishis questioned the Pitris, saying,
'Ye Pitris, at what acts of human beings, who are generally endued with
little understanding, do ye become gratified? What gifts, made in course
of such rites as are gone through for improving the position of deceased
persons in the other world, become inexhaustible in respect of their
efficacy?[546] By performing what acts can men become freed from the debt
they owe to the Pitris? We desire to hear this. Great is the curiosity we
feel.'

"The Pitris said, 'Ye highly blessed ones, the doubt existing in your
minds has been properly propounded. Listen as we declare what those acts
are of righteous men that gratify us. Bulls endued with blue complexion
should be set free. Gifts should be made to us, on the day of the new
moon, of sesame seeds and water. In the season of rains, lamps should be
lighted. By these acts of men, they can free themselves from the debt
they owe to the Pitris.[547] Such gifts never become vain. On the other
hand, they become inexhaustible and productive of high fruits. The
gratification we derive from them is regarded to be inexhaustible. Those
men who, endued with faith, beget offspring, rescue their deceased
ancestors from miserable Hell'. Hearing these words of the Pitris,
Vriddha-Gargya, possessed of wealth of penances and high energy, became
filled with wonder so that the hair on his body stood erect. Addressing
them he said, 'Ye that are all possessed of wealth of penances, tell us.
what the merits are that attach to the setting free of bulls endued with
blue complexion. What merits, again, attach to the gift of lamps in the
season of rains and the gift of water with sesame seeds?'

"The Pitris said, 'If a bull of blue complexion, upon being set free,
raises a (small) quantity of water with its tail, the Pitris (of the
person that has set that bull free) become gratified with that water for
full sixty thousand years. The mud such a bull raises with its horns from
the banks (of a river or lake), succeeds, without doubt, in sending the
Pitris (of the person that sets the animal free) to the region of Soma.
By giving lamps in the season of rains, one shines with effulgence like
Soma himself. The man who gives lamps is never subject to the attribute
of Darkness. Those men who make gifts, on the day of the new moon, of
sesame seeds and water, mixed with honey and using a vessel of copper, O
thou that art possessed of wealth of penances, are regarded as duly
performing a Sraddha with all its mysteries. These men get children of
sound health and cheerful minds. The merit acquired by the giver of the
Pinda (to the Pitris) takes the form of the growth of his race. Verily,
he who performs these acts with faith, becomes freed from the debt he
owes to the Pitris. Even thus has been laid down the proper time for the
performance of the Sraddha, the ordinance in respect of the rites to be
observed, the proper person that should be fed at the Sraddha, and the
merits that attach to it. I have declared everything to thee in due
order.'

SECTION CXXVI

"Bhishma said, 'The chief of the deities, Indra, after the Pitri has
ceased to speak, addressed the puissant Hari, saying, 'O Lord, what are
those acts by which thou becomest gratified? How, indeed, do men succeed
in gratifying thee?'

"Vishnu said, "That which I greatly hate is the detraction of Brahmanas;
without doubt, if the Brahmanas are worshipped, I regard myself
worshipped. All superior Brahmanas should always be saluted with
reverence, after feeding them with hospitality. One should reverence
one's own feet also (in the evening). I am gratified with men who act in
this way, as also with those who worship and make offerings to the whirl
that is noticeable on cowdung (when it first drops from the cow)[548].
They who behold a Brahmana that is a dwarf in stature, or a boar that has
just risen from water and that bears on his head a quantity of mud taken
up from the bank, have never to meet with any evil. They become freed
from every sin. That man who worships every day the Aswattha (Ficus
religiosa) and the substance called Gorochana and the cow, is regarded as
worshipping the whole universe with the deities and Asuras and human
beings. Verily, staying within these, I accept, in my own form, the
worship that is offered to them. The worship that is offered to these is
the worship offered to me. This has been so as long as the worlds have
been created. Those men of little understanding that worship me in a
different way worship me in vain, for the worship of that kind I never
accept. Verily, the worship of other kinds is not at all gratifying to
me.'

"Indra said, 'Why dost thou applaud the circular marks on cowdung, the
feet, the boar, the Brahmana that is a dwarf in stature, and mud raised
up from the soil? It is thou who createst and it is thou who destroyest
them. Thou art the eternal nature of all mortal or transitory things:'

"Bhishma continued, 'Hearing these words of Indra. Vishnu smiled a little
and then said, 'It was with my circular disc that the Daityas were slain.
It was with my two feet that the world was covered. Assuming the form of
a boar I slew Hiranyaksha. Assuming the form of a dwarf I conquered (the
Asura) king Vali. Those high-souled men who worship these gratify me.
Verily, they who worship me in these forms never meet with discomfiture.
If one beholding a Brahmana leading the Brahmacharya mode of life arrived
at one's house, offers unto him the first portion of one's food that
belongs as of right to a Brahmana, and eats what remains thereafter, one
is regarded as eating Amrita. If one, after adoring the morning twilight,
stands with face directed towards the sun, one reaps the merit that
attaches to the performance of ablutions in all tirthas and becomes
cleansed of all sins. Ye Rishis possessed of wealth of penances, I have
told you in details what constitutes a great mystery. On what else shall
I discourse unto you? Tell me your doubts.'

"Baladeva said, 'Listen now to another great mystery that is fraught with
happiness to men. Ignorant persons, unacquainted with it, meet with much
distress at the hands of other creatures. That man who, rising at early
dawn, touches a cow, ghee, and curds, as also mustard seeds and the
larger variety thereof called Priyangu, becomes cleansed of all sins. As
regards Rishis possessed of wealth of penances, they always avoid all
creatures both before and behind, as also all that is impure while
performing Sraddhas.[549]

"The deities said, 'If a person, taking a vessel of copper, filling it
with water, and facing the east, resolves upon a fast or the observance
of a particular vow, the deities become gratified with him and all his
wishes become crowned with success. By observing fasts, or vows in any
other way, men of little understandings gain nothing.[550] In uttering
the resolution about the observance of fasts and in making offerings to
the deities, the use of a vessel of copper is preferable. In presenting
the offerings to the deities, in (giving and accepting) alms, in
presenting the ingredients of the Arghya and in offering oblations of
water mixed with sesame seeds to the Pitris, a vessel of copper should be
used. By doing these acts in any other way, one acquires little merit.
Even these mysteries have been laid down relating to how the deities are
gratified.'

"Dharma said, 'The offerings made in all rites in honour of the deities
and in those in honour of the Pitris should never be given away to a
Brahmana that has accepted service under the king, or that rings the bell
or attends to subsidiary duties in acts of worship or at Sraddhas, or
that keeps kine, or that is engaged in trade, or that follows some art as
a profession, or that is an actor, or that quarrels with friends or that
is destitute of Vedic studies, or that marries a Sudra woman[551]. The
performer of the Sraddha who gives away such offerings unto such a
Brahmana falls away from prosperity and multiplies not his race. He
fails, again, to gratify his Pitris by doing such an act. From the house
of that person whence a guest returns unsatisfied, the Pitris, the
deities, and the sacred fires, all return disappointed in consequence of
such treatment of the guest. That man who does not discharge the duties
of hospitality towards the guest arrived at his abode, comes to be
regarded as equally sinful with those that are slayers of women or of
kine, that are ungrateful towards benefactors, that are slayers of
Brahmanas, or that are violators of the beds of their preceptors.'

"Agni said, 'Listen ye with concentrated attention. I shall recite the
demerits of that man of wicked understanding who lifts up his feet for
striking therewith a cow or a highly blessed Brahmana or a blazing fire.
The infamy of such a man spreads throughout the world and touches the
confines of heaven itself. His Pitris become filled with fear. The
deities also become highly dissatisfied on his account. Endued with great
energy, Fire refuses to accept the libations poured by him. For a hundred
lives he has to rot in hell. He is never rescued at any time. One should,
therefore, never touch a cow with one's feet, or a Brahmana of high
energy, or a blazing fire, if one is endued with faith and desires one's
own good. These are the demerits declared by me of one who lifts up one's
feet towards these three.'

"Viswamitra said, 'Listen to a high mystery that is unknown to the
generality of men and that is connected with religion. He who offers the
Pitris rice boiled in sugared milk, sitting with face directed to the
south at noontide in the shade caused by an elephant's body, in the month
of Bhadrapada, under the constellation Magha, acquires great merits.
Listen to what those merits are. The man who makes such an offering to
the Pitris under such circumstances, is regarded as performing a great
Sraddha each year for thirteen years in succession.'[552]

"The kine said, 'That man becomes cleansed of all his sins who adores a
cow with these Mantras, viz., 'O Vahula, O Samanga, O thou that art
fearless everywhere, O thou that art forgiving and full of
auspiciousness, O friend, O source of all plenty, in the region of
Brahman, in days of yore, thou wert present with thy calf in the
sacrifice of Indra, the wielder of the thunderbolt. Thou tookest thy
station in the firmament and in the path of Agni. The deities with Narada
among them adored thee on that occasion by calling thee Sarvamsaha. Such
man attains to the region of Purandara. He acquires, besides, the merits
that attach to kine, and the splendour of Chandramas also. Such a man
becomes freed from every sin, every fear, every grief. At the end, he
obtains residence in the happy region of the Thousand-eyed Indra!'

"Bhishma continued, 'After this, the highly blessed and celebrated seven
Rishis, with Vasishtha at their head, rose and circumambulating the
Lotus-born Brahman, stood around him with hands joined in reverence.
Vasishtha, that foremost of all persons conversant with Brahma, became
their spokesman and asked this question that is beneficial to every
creature, but especially so to Brahmanas and Kshatriyas, 'By doing what
acts may men of righteous conduct who are, however, destitute of the good
of this world, succeed in acquiring merits attaching to sacrifices?'
Hearing this question of theirs, the Grandsire Brahman began to say what
follows.'

"Brahman said, 'Excellent is this question, ye highly blessed ones! It is
at once auspicious and high and fraught with a mystery. This question
that ye have put is subtil and is fraught with high benefit to mankind.
Ye Rishis possessed of wealth of penances, I shall recite everything to
you in detail. Do ye listen with attention to what I say as to how men
acquire the merits attaching to sacrifices (even when they are unable to
perform them through poverty.) In the lighted fortnight of the month of
Pausha, when the constellation Rohini is in conjunction, if one,
purifying oneself by a bath, lies under the cope of heaven, clad in a
single piece of raiment, with faith and concentrated attention, and
drinks the rays of the moon, one acquires the merits that attach to the
performance of great sacrifices. Ye foremost of regenerate persons, this
is a high mystery that I declare unto you in reply to your questions, ye
that are possessed of insight into the subtil truths of all topics of
enquiry.'"

SECTION CXXVII

"Vibhavasu (otherwise called Surya) said, 'There are two offerings. One
of those consists of a palmful of water and the other called Akshata
consists of rice-grains with ghee. One should, on the day of the full
moon, stand facing that bright orb and make unto him the two offerings
mentioned, viz., a palmful of water and the rice-grains with ghee called
Akshata. The man who presents these offerings is said to adore his sacred
fire. Verily, he is regarded as one that has poured libations on the
three (principal) fires. That man of little understanding who cutteth
down a large tree on the day of the new moon, becomes stained with the
sin of Brahmanicide. By killing even a single leaf one incurs that sin.
That foolish man who chews a tooth-brush on the day of the new moon is
regarded as injuring the deity of the moon by such an act. The Pitris of
such a person become annoyed with him.[553] The deities do not accept the
libations poured by such a man on days of the full moon and the new moon.
His Pitris become enraged with him, and his race and the family become
extinct.'

"Sree said, 'That sinful house, in which eating and drinking vessels and
seats and beds lie scattered, and in which women are beaten, the deities
and Pitris leave in disgust. Verily, without accepting the offerings made
unto them by the owners of such houses, the deities and the Pitris fly
away from such a sinful habitation.'

"Angiras said, 'The offspring of that man increase who stands every night
for a full year under a Karanjaka tree with a lamp for lighting it, and
holds besides in his hand the roots of the Suvarchala plant.'[554]

"Gargya said, 'One should always do the duties of hospitality to one's
guests. One should give lamps in the hall or shed where sacrifices are
performed. One should avoid sleep during the day, and abstain from all
kinds of flesh or food. One should never injure kine and Brahmanas. One
should always recite names of the Pushkara lakes and the other sacred
waters. Such a course of duty, is the foremost. Even this constitutes a
high religion with its mysteries. If observed in practice, it is sure to
produce great consequences. If a person performs even a hundred
sacrifices, he is doomed to see the exhaustion of the merits attaching to
the libations poured therein. The duties, however, which I have mentioned
are such that when observed by a person endued with faith, their merit
becomes inexhaustible. Listen now to another high mystery concealed from
the view of many. The deities do not accept the libations (poured upon
the fire) on the occasion of Sraddhas and rites in their honour or on the
occasion of those rites that are performable on ordinary lunar days or on
the especially sacred days of the full moon and the new moon, if they
behold a woman in her season of impurity or one that is the daughter of a
mother afflicted with leprosy. The Pitris of the man who allows such a
woman to come near the place where the Sraddha is being performed by him,
do not become gratified with him for thirteen years. Robed in raiment of
white, and becoming pure in body and mind, one should invite Brahmanas
and cause them to utter their benedictions (when one performs the
Sraddha). On such occasions one should also recite the Bharata. It is by
observing all these that the offerings made at Sraddhas become
inexhaustible.'

"Dhaumya said, 'Broken utensils, broken bedsteads, cocks and, dogs, as
also such trees as have grown within the dwelling houses, are all
inauspicious objects. In a broken utensil is Kali himself, while in a
broken bedstead is loss of wealth. When a cock or a dog is in sight, the
deities do not eat the offerings made to them. Under the roots of a tree
scorpions and snakes undoubtedly find shelter. Hence, one should never
plant a tree within one's abode.'[555]

"Jamadagni said, 'That man whose heart is not pure is sure to go to Hell
even if he adores the deities in a Horse-sacrifice or in a hundred
Vajapeya sacrifices, or if he undergoes the severest austerities with
head downmost. Purity of heart is regarded as equal to sacrifices and
Truth. A very poor Brahmana, by giving only a Prastha of powdered barley
with a pure heart unto a Brahmana, attained to the region of Brahman
himself. This is a sufficient proof (of the importance of purity of
heart).'"

SECTION CXXVIII

"Vayu said, 'I shall recite some duties the observance of which is
fraught with happiness to mankind. Do ye listen also with concentrated
attention to certain transgressions with the secret causes upon which
they depend. That man who offers for the four months of the rainy season
sesame and water (unto the Pitris), and food, according to the best of
his power, unto a Brahmana well-conversant with the duties, who duly
pours libations on the sacred fire, and makes offerings of rice boiled in
sugared milk, who gives lamps in honour of the Pitris, with sesame and
water,--verily he who does all this with faith and concentrated attention
acquires all the merits that attach to a hundred sacrifices in which
animals are offered to the deities. Listen to this other high mystery
that is unknown to all. That man who thinks it all right when a Sudra
ignites the fire upon which he is to pour libations or who does not see
any fault when women who are incompetent to assist at Sraddhas and other
rites are allowed to assist at them, really becomes stained with
sin[556]. The three sacrificial fires become enraged with such a person.
In his next life he has to take birth as a Sudra. His Pitris, together
with the deities are never gratified with him. I shall now recite what
the expiations are which one must go through for cleansing oneself from
such sins. Listen to me with attention. By performing those expiatory
acts, one becomes happy and free from fever. Fasting all the while, one
should, for three days, with concentrated attention, pour libation, on
the sacred fire, of the urine of the cow mixed with cowdung and milk and
ghee. The deities accept the offerings of such a man on the expiration of
a full year. His Pitris also, when the time comes for him for performing
the Sraddha, become gratified with him. I have thus recited what is
righteous and what is unrighteous, with all their unknown details, in
respect of human beings desirous of attaining to heaven. Verily, men who
abstain from these transgressions or who having committed them undergo
the expiatory rites indicated, succeed, in attaining to heaven when they
leave this world."