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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






SECTION CLVII

"Bhishma said, 'Hearing these words of the god of wind, Arjuna remained
silent. At this, the god of wind once more addressed him, saying, 'When
the denizens of heaven, with Indra at their head, found themselves within
the mouth of the Asura Mada, at that time Chyavana took away from them
the earth. Deprived previously of heaven and now shorn of the earth also,
the gods became very cheerless. Indeed, those high-souled ones, afflicted
with grief, then threw themselves unreservedly upon the Grandsire's
protection.'

"The gods said, 'O thou that art adored by all creatures of the universe,
the earth has been taken away from us by Chyavana, while we have been
deprived of heaven by the Kapas, O puissant one!'

"Brahmana said, 'Ye denizens of heaven, do you, with Indra at your head,
repair quickly and seek the protection of the Brahmanas. By gratifying
them you will succeed in regaining both the regions as before.' Thus
instructed by the Grandsire, the deities repaired to the Brahmanas and
became suppliants for their protection. The Brahmanas replied, enquiring,
'Whom shall we subjugate?' Thus asked, the deities said unto them, 'Do ye
subjugate the Kapas.' The Brahmanas then said, 'Bringing them down on the
earth first, we shall speedily subjugate them.' After this, the Brahmanas
commenced a rite having for its object the destruction of the Kapas. As
soon as this was heard of by the Kapas, they immediately despatched a
messenger of theirs, named Dhanin, unto those Brahmanas. Dhanin, coming
to them as they sat on the earth, thus delivered to them the message of
the Kapas. The Kapas are even like you all! (They are not inferior to any
of you). Hence, what will be the effect of these rites which you seem to
be bent upon achieving? All of them are well-conversant with the Vedas
and possessed of wisdom. All of them are mindful of sacrifices. All of
them have Truth for their vow, and for these reasons all of them are
regarded as equal to great Rishis. The goddess of Prosperity sports among
them, and they, in their turn, support her with reverence. They never
indulge in acts of fruitless congress with their wives, and they never
eat the flesh of such animals as have not been killed in sacrifices. They
pour libations on the blazing sacrificial fire (every day) and 'are
obedient to the behests of their preceptors and seniors. All of them are
of souls under perfect control, and never take any food without dividing
it duly among their children. They always proceed on cars and other
vehicles together (without any of them riding his own vehicle while
others journey on foot). They never indulge in acts of congress with
their spouses when the latter are in midst of their functional period.
They all act in such a way as to attain to regions of felicity hereafter.
Indeed, they are always righteous in their deeds. When women quick with
child or old men have not eaten, they never eat anything themselves. They
never indulge in play or sports of any kind in the forenoon. They never
sleep during the day. When the Kapas have these and many other virtues
and accomplishments, why, indeed, would you seek to subjugate them? You
should abstain from the endeavour! Verily, by such abstention ye would
achieve what is for your good.'

"The Brahmanas said, 'Oh, we shall subjugate the Kapas! In this matter,
we art one with the deities. Hence, the Kapas deserve slaughter at your
hands. As regards Dhanin, he should return whence he came! After this,
Dhanin, returning to the Kapas, said unto them, 'The Brahmanas are not
disposed to do you any good! 'Hearing this, all the Kapas took up their
weapons and proceeded towards the Brahmanas. The Brahmanas, beholding the
Kapas advancing against them with the standards of their cars upraised,
forthwith created certain blazing fires for the destruction of the Kapas.
Those eternal fires, created with the aid of Vedic Mantras, having
effected the destruction of the Kapas, began to shine in the firmament
like so many (golden) clouds. The gods, having assembled together in
battle, slew many of the Danavas. They did not know at that time that it
was the Brahmanas who had effected their destruction. Then Narada of
great energy, coming there, O king, informed the deities how their foes;
the Kapas, had been really slain by the Brahmanas of mighty energy (and
not by deities themselves). Hearing these words of Narada, the denizens
of heaven became highly gratified. They also applauded those regenerate
allies of theirs that were possessed of great fame. The energy and
prowess of the deities then began to increase, and worshipped in all the
worlds, they acquired also the boon of immortality!' After the god of
wind had said these words, king Arjuna worshipped him duly and addressing
him answered in these words, 'Hear, O mighty armed monarch, what Arjuna
said.'

"Arjuna said, O puissant god, always and by all means do I live for the
Brahmanas! Devoted to them, I worship them always! Through the grace of
Dattatreya I have obtained this might of mine! Through his grace have I
been able to accomplish great feats in the world and achieve high merit!
Oh, I have, with attention, heard of the achievements, O god of the wind,
of the Brahmanas with all their interesting details as recited by thee
truly.'

"The god of wind said, 'Do thou protect and cherish the Brahmanas, in the
exercise of those Kshatriya duties which are thine by birth. Do thou
protect them even as thou protectest thy own senses! There is danger to
thee from the race of Bhrigu! All that, however, will take place on a
distant day.'"



SECTION CLVIII

"Yudhishthira said, 'Thou always worshippest, O king, Brahmanas of
praiseworthy, vows. Whatever, however is that fruit seeing which thou
worshippest them, O king? O thou of high vows, beholding what prosperity
attaching to the worship of the Brahmanas dost thou worship them? Tell me
all this, O thou of mighty arms!

"Bhishma said, 'Here is Kesava endued with great intelligence. He will
tell thee everything. Of high vows and endued with prosperity, even he
will tell you what the prosperity is that attaches to the worship of
Brahmanas. My strength, ears, speech, mind, eyes, and that clear
understanding of mine (are all clouded today). I think, the time is not
distant when I shall have to cast off my body. The sun seems to me to go
very slowly.[611] Those high duties, O king, that are mentioned in the
Puranas as observed by Brahmanas and Kshatriyas and Vaisyas and Sudras,
have all been recited by me. Do thou, O son of Pritha, learn from Krishna
what little remains to be learnt on that head. I know Krishna truly. I
know who he is and what his ancient might is. O chief of the Kauravas,
Kesava is of immeasurable soul. Whenever doubts arise, it is he who
upholds Righteousness then.[612] It is Krishna who created the earth, and
sky, and the heavens. Indeed, the earth has sprung from Krishna's body.
Of terrible prowess and existing from the beginning of time, it is
Krishna who became the mighty Boar and raised the submerged Earth. It is
He who created all the points of the compass, together with all the
mountains. Below Him are the welkin, heaven, the four cardinal points,
and the four subsidiary points. It is from him that the entire creation
has flowed. It is He who has created this ancient universe. In His navel
appeared a Lotus. Within that Lotus sprang Brahma himself of immeasurable
energy. It was Brahma, O son of Pritha, who rent that darkness which
existed surpassing the very ocean (in depth and extent). In the Treta
age, O Partha, Krishna existed (on the earth), in the form of
Righteousness. In the Treta age, he existed in the form of Knowledge. In
the Dwapara age, he existed in the form of might. In the Kali age he came
to the earth in the form of unrighteousness. It is He who in days of yore
slew the Daityas. It is He who is the Ancient God. It is He who ruled the
Asuras in the form of their Emperor (Valin). It is He who is the Creator
of all beings. It is He who is also the future of all created Beings. It
is He who is also the protector of this universe fraught with the seed of
destruction. When the cause of Righteousness languishes, this Krishna
takes birth in the race of either the gods or among men. Staying on
Righteousness, this Krishna of cleansed soul (on such occasion) protects
both the higher and the lower worlds. Sparing those that deserve to be
spared, Krishna sets himself to the slaughter of the Asura, O Partha! It
is he who is all acts proper and improper and it is he who is the cause.
It is Krishna who is the act done, the act to be done, and the act that
is being done. Know that that illustrious one is Rahu and Soma and Sakra.
It is he that is Viswakarma. It is he that is of universal form. He is
the destroyer and he is the Creator of the universe. He is the wielder of
the Sula (lance); He is of human form; and He is of terrible form. All
creatures sing his praises, for he is known by his acts. Hundreds of
Gandharvas and Apsaras and deities always accompany him. The very
Rakshasas hymn his praise. He is the Enhancer of Wealth; He is the one
victorious Being in the universe. In Sacrifices, eloquent men hymn His
praises. The singers of Samans praise Him by reciting the Rathantaras.
The Brahmanas praise Him with Vedic Mantras. It is unto Him that the
sacrificial priests pour their libations. The deities with Indra at their
head hymned His praise when He lifted up the Gobardhana mountains for
protecting the cow-herds of Brindavana against the incessant showers that
Indra poured in rage. He is, O Bharata, the one Blessing unto all
creatures. He, O Bharata, having entered the old Brahma cave, beheld from
that place the original cover of the world in the beginning of Time.[613]
Agitating all the Danavas and the Asuras, this Krishna of foremost feats
rescued the earth. It is unto Him that people dedicate diverse kinds of
food. It is unto Him that the warriors dedicate all kinds of their
vehicles at the time of war. He is eternal, and it is under that
illustrious one that the welkin, earth, heaven, all things exist and
stay. He it is who has caused the vital seed of the gods Mitra and Varuna
to fall within a jar, whence sprang the Rishi known by the name of
Vasishtha. It is Krishna who is the god of wind; it is He who is the
puissant Aswins; it is He who is that first of gods, viz., the sun
possessed of a thousand rays. It is He by whom the Asuras have been
subjugated. It is He who covered the three worlds with three steps of
His. He is the soul of the deities and human beings, and Pitris. It is He
who is the Sacrifice performed by those persons that are conversant with
the rituals of sacrifices. It is He who rises every day in the firmament
(in the form of the sun) and divides Time into day and night, and courses
for half the year northwards and for half the year southwards.
Innumerable rays of light emanate from Him upwards and downwards and
transversely and illumine the earth. Brahmanas conversant with the Vedas
adore Him. Taking a portion of His rays the sun shines in the firmament.
Month after month, the sacrificer ordains Him as a sacrifice. Regenerate
persons conversant with the Vedas sing His praises in sacrifices of all
kinds. He it is that constitutes the wheel of the year, having three
naves and seven horses to drag it. It is in this way that He supports the
triple mansion (of the seasons), Endued with great energy, pervading all
things, the foremost of all creatures, it is Krishna who alone upholds
all the worlds. He is the sun, the dispeller of all darkness. He is the
Creator of all. Do thou, O hero, approach that Krishna! Once on a time,
the high-souled and puissant Krishna dwelt, for a while, in the form of
Agni in the forest of Khandava among some straw or dry grass. Soon was He
gratified (for he consumed all the medicinal herbs in that forest).
Capable of going everywhere at will, it was Krishna who, having
subjugated the Rakshasas and Uragas, poured them as libations upon the
blazing fire. It is Krishna who gave unto Arjuna a number of white
steeds. It is He who is the creator of all steeds. This world (or, human
life) represents his car. He it is that yokes that car for setting it in
motion. That car has three wheels (viz., the three attributes of Sattwa,
Rajas, and Tamas). It has three kinds of motion (for it goes upwards or
downwards or transversely, implying superior, inferior, and intermediate
birth as brought about by acts). It has four horses yoked to it (viz.,
Time, Predestiny, the will of the deities, and one's own will). It has
three naves (white, black, and mixed, implying good acts, evil acts and
acts that are of a mixed character). It is this Krishna who is the refuge
of the five original elements with the sky among them. It is He who
created the earth and heaven and the space between. Indeed, it is this
Krishna of immeasurable and blazing energy who has created the forests
and the mountains. It is this Krishna who, desirous of chastising Sakra
who was about to hurl his thunder at him, crossed the rivers and once
paralysed him. He is the one great Indra that is adored by the Brahmanas
in great sacrifices with the aid of a thousand old Riks. It was this
Krishna, O king, who alone was able to keep the Rishi Durvasa of great
energy as a guest for some time in his house. He is said to be the one
ancient Rishi. He is the Creator of the universe. Indeed, He creates
everything from His own nature. Superior to all two deities it is He who
teaches all the deities. He scrupulously observes all ancient ordinances.
Know, O king, that this Krishna, who is called Vishwaksena, is the fruit
of all acts that relate to pleasure, of all acts that are founded on the
Vedas, and of all acts that appertain to the world. He is the white rays
of light that are seen in all the worlds. He is the three worlds. He is
the three Regents of all the worlds. He is the three sacrificial fires.
He is the three Vyahritis; indeed, this son of Devaki is all the gods
together. He is the year; He is the Seasons; He is the Fortnights; He is
the Day and the Night; He is those divisions of time which are called
Kalas, and Kashthas, and Matras, and Muhurtas, and Lavas, and Kshanas.
Know that this Vishwaksena is all these. The Moon and the Sun, the
Planets, the Constellations, and the Stars, all the Parva days, including
the day of the full moon, the conjunctions of the constellations and the
seasons, have, O son of Pritha, flowed from this Krishna who is
Vishwaksena. The Rudras, the Adityas, the Vasus, the Aswins, the Sadhyas,
the Viswedevas, the diverse Maruts, Prajapati himself, the mother of the
deities, viz., Aditi, and the seven Rishis, have all sprung from Krishna.
Transforming Himself into the Wind, He scatters the universe. Of
Universal form, He becomes Fire that burns all things. Changing Himself
into Water, He drenches and submerges all, and assuming the form of
Brahman, He creates all the diverse tribes of animate and inanimate
creatures. He is Himself the Veda, yet he learns all the Vedas. He is
Himself all the ordinances, yet He observes all the ordinances that have
been laid down in matters connected with Righteousness and the Vedas and
that force or might which rules the world. Indeed, know, O Yudhishthira,
that this Kesava is all the mobile and immobile universe. He is of the
form of the most resplendent light. Of universal form, this Krishna is
displayed in that blazing effulgence. The original cause of the soul of
all existent creatures, He at first created the waters. Afterwards He
created this universe. Know that this Krishna is Vishnu. Know that He is
the soul of the universe. Know that He is all the seasons; He is these
diverse wonderful vegetations of Nature which we see; He is the clouds
that pour rain and the lightening that flashes in the sky. He is the
elephant Airavata. In fact, He is all the immobile and mobile universe.
The abode of the universe and transcending all attributes, this Krishna
is Vasudeva. When He becomes Jiva He comes to be called Sankarshana.
Next, He transforms Himself into Pradyumna and then into Aniruddha. In
this way, the high-souled Krishna, who has Himself for His origin divides
(or displays) Himself in fourfold form. Desirous of creating this
universe which consists of the fivefold primal elements. He sets himself
to his task, and causes it to go on in the fivefold form of animate
existence consisting of deities and Asuras and human beings and beasts
and birds. He it is that then creates the Earth and the Wind, the Sky,
Light, and also Water, O son of Pritha! Having created this universe of
immobile and mobile objects distributed into four orders of being (viz.,
viviparous, oviparous, vegetable and filth-born), he then created the
earth with her fivefold seed. He then created the firmament for pouring
copious showers of water on the earth.[614] Without doubt, O king, it is
this Krishna who has created this universe. His origin is in his own
self; it is He who causes all things to exist through his own puissance.
He it is that has created the deities, the Asuras, the human beings, the
world, the Rishis, the Pitris, and all creatures. Desirous of creating,
that Lord of all creatures duly created the whole universe of life. Know
that good and evil, mobile and immobile, have all flowed from this One
who is Vishwaksena. Whatever exists, and whatever will spring into
existence, all is Kesava. This Krishna is also the death that overtakes
all creatures when their end comes. He is eternal and it is He who
upholds the cause of Righteousness. Whatever existed in the past, and
whatever we do not know, verily, all that also is this Vishwaksena.
Whatever is noble and meritorious in the universe, indeed, whatever of
good and of evil exists, all that is Kesava who is inconceivable. Hence,
it is absurd to think of anything that is superior to Kesava. Kesava is
even such. More than this, He is Narayana, the highest of the high,
immutable and unfading. He is the eternal and immutable cause of the
entire mobile and immobile universe with its beginning, middle, and end,
as also of all creatures whose birth follows their wish.'"



SECTION CLIX

"Yudhishthira said, 'Do thou tell us, O slayer of Madhu, what the
prosperity is that attaches to the worship of the Brahmanas. Thou art
well-conversant with this topic. Verily, our grandsire knows thee.'

"Vasudeva said, 'Hear, O king, with rapt attention to me, O chief of
Bharata's race, as I recite to thee what the merits of the Brahmanas are,
in accordance with truth, O foremost one of Kuru's race! Once on a time
while I was seated at Dwaravati, O delighter of the Kurus, my son
Pradyumna, enraged by certain Brahmanas, came to me and said, 'O slayer
of Madhu, what merit attaches to the worship of the Brahmanas? Whence is
their lordship derived both here and hereafter? O giver of honours, what
rewards are won by constantly Worshipping the Brahmanas? Do thou kindly
explain this clearly to me, for my mind is disturbed by doubts in respect
of this.' When these words were addressed to me by Pradyumna, I answered
him as follows, Do thou hear, O king, with close attention, what those
words were, 'O child of Rukmin, listen to me as I tell thee what the
prosperity is that one may win by worshipping the Brahmanas. When one
sets oneself to the acquisition of the well-known aggregate of three
(viz., Righteousness, Wealth, and Pleasure), or to the achievement of
Emancipation, or to that of fame and prosperity, or to the treatment and
cure of disease, or to the worship of the deities and the Pitris, one
should take care to gratify the regenerate ones. They are each a king
Soma (that sheds such agreeable light in the firmament.) They are
dispensers of happiness and misery. O child of Rukmini, whether in this
or in the next world, O son, everything agreeable has its origin in the
Brahmanas. I have no doubt in this! From the worship of the Brahmanas
flow mighty achievements and fame and strength. The denizens of all the
worlds, and the Regents of the universe, are all worshippers of
Brahmanas. How then, O son, can we disregard them, filled with the idea
that we are lords of the earth? O mighty-armed one, do not suffer thy
wrath to embrace the Brahmanas as its object. In this as also in the next
world, Brahmanas are regarded as beings. They have direct knowledge of
everything in the universe. Verily, they are capable of reducing
everything into ashes, if angry. They are capable of creating other
worlds and other Regents of worlds (than those that exist). Why then
should not persons who are possessed of energy and correct knowledge
behave with obedience and respect towards them? Formerly, in my house, O
son, dwelt the Brahmana Durvasa whose complexion was green and tawny.
Clad in rags, he had a stick made of the Vilwa tree.[615] His beard was
long and he was exceedingly emaciated. He was taller in stature than the
tallest man on earth. Wandering over all the worlds, viz., that which
belongs to human beings and those that are for the deities and other
superior beings, even this was the verse which he sang constantly among
assemblies and in public squares. 'Who is there that would cause the
Brahmana Durvasa to dwell in his house, doing the duties of hospitality
towards him? He becomes enraged with every one if he finds even the
slightest transgression? Hearing this regarding my disposition, who is
there that will give me refuge? Indeed, he that would give me shelter as
a guest should not do anything to anger me!' When I saw that no one
ventured to give him shelter in his house. I invited him and caused him
to take up his residence in my abode. On certain days he would eat the
food sufficient for the needs of thousands of persons. On certain other
days he would eat very little. On some days he would go out of my house
and would not return. He would sometimes laugh without any ostensible
reason and sometimes cry as causelessly. At that time there was nobody on
earth that was equal to him in years. One day, entering the quarters
assigned to him he burnt all the beds and coverlets and all the
well-adorned damsels that were there for serving him. Doing this, he went
out. Of highly praiseworthy vows, he met me shortly after this and
addressing me, said, 'O Krishna, I wish to eat frumenty without delay!'
Having understood his mind previously, I had set my servants to prepare
every kind of food and drink. Indeed, many excellent viands had been kept
ready. As soon as I was asked, I caused hot frumenty to be brought and
offered to the ascetic. Having eaten some, he quickly said unto me, 'Do
thou, O Krishna, take some of this frumenty and smear all thy limbs with
it!' Without any scruple I did as directed. Indeed, with the remnant of
that frumenty I smeared my body and head. The ascetic at that time saw
thy mother of sweet face standing near. Laughing the while, he smeared
her body also with that frumenty. The ascetic then caused thy mother,
whose body was smeared over with frumenty, to be yoked unto a car without
any delay. Ascending that car he set out of my house. Endued with great
intelligence, that Brahmana blazed with effulgence like fire, and struck,
in my presence, my Rukmini endued with youth, as if she were an animal
destined to drag the cars of human beings. Beholding this, I did not feel
the slightest grief born of malice or the desire to injure the Rishi.
Indeed, having yoked Rukmini to the car, he went out, desirous of
proceeding along the high road of the city. Seeing that extraordinary
sight, some Dasarhas, filled with wrath, addressed one another and began
to converse in this way, 'Who else is there on earth that would draw
breath after having yoked Rukmini to a car! Verily, let the world be
filled with Brahmanas only! Let no other orders take birth here. The
poison of a virulent snake is exceedingly keen. Keener than poison is a
Brahmana. There is no physician for a person that has been bitten or
burnt by the virulent snake of a Brahmana, 'As the irresistible Durvasa
proceeded on the car, Rukmini tottered on the road and frequently fell
down. At this the regenerate Rishi became angry and began to urge Rukmini
on by striking her with the whip. At last, filled with a towering
passion, the Brahmana leapt down from the car, and fled towards the
south, running on foot, over a pathless ground. Beholding that foremost
of Brahmanas flying along the pathless ground, we followed him, although
we were smeared with frumenty, exclaiming behind him, 'Be gratified with
us, O holy one! Endued with great energy, the Brahmana, seeing me, said,
'O mighty-armed Krishna, thou hast subdued wrath by the strength of thy
nature? O thou of excellent vows, I have not found the slightest fault in
thee! O Govinda, I have been highly gratified with thee. Do thou solicit
the fruition of such wishes as thou pleasest! Behold duly, O son, what
the puissance is of myself when I become gratified with any one. As long
as deities and human beings will continue to entertain a liking for food,
so long will every one among them cherish the same liking for thee that
they cherish for their food! As long, again, as there will be
Righteousness in the several world, so long will the fame of thy
achievements last! Indeed, thy distinction will last so long in the three
worlds! O Janardana, agreeable thou shalt be to all persons! Whatever
articles of thine have been broken or burnt or otherwise destroyed (by
me), thou shalt see restored, O Janardana, to their former state or they
will reappear even in a better form! As long, again, O thou of unfading
glory, as thou wilt wish to live, so long wilt thou have no fear of death
assailing thee through such parts of thy body as have been smeared with
the frumenty I gave thee! O son, why didst thou not smear that frumenty
on the soles of thy feet as well? By not doing it, thou have acted in a
way that is not approved by me! Even these were the words that he said,
well-pleased with me on that occasion. After he had ceased speaking, I
saw that my body became endued with great beauty and splendour. Unto
Rukmini also, the Rishi, well-pleased with her, said, 'O beautiful lady,
thou shalt be the foremost one of thy sex in fame, and great glory and
achievements will be thine. Decrepitude or disease or loss of complexion
will never be thine! Every one will see thee engaged in waiting upon
Krishna, possessed as thou already art with a fragrant odour which is
always present in thee. Thou shalt become the foremost of all spouses,
numbering sixteen thousand, O Kesava. At last, when the time comes for
thy departure from the world, thou shalt attain to the inseparable
companionship of Krishna hereafter!' Having said these words unto thy
mother, the Rishi once more addressed me and uttering following words,
left the spot. Indeed, the Rishi Durvasa, blazing like a fire, said, 'O
Kesava, let thy understanding be always disposed even thus towards the
Brahmana!' Verily after uttering these words, that Brahmana disappeared
there and then before my eyes. After his disappearance I took to the
observance of the vow of uttering certain Mantras silently without being
heard by anybody. Verily, from that day I resolved to accomplish whatever
behests I should receive from the Brahmanas. Having adopted this vow, O
son, along with thy mother, both of us, with hearts filled with joy
re-entered our palace, Entering our house I saw that everything which the
Rishi had broken or burnt had reappeared and become new. Beholding those
new articles, which had besides become more durable, I became filled with
wonder. Verily, O son of Rukmini, from that day forth I have always
worshipped the Brahmanas in my mind! Even this, O chief of Bharata's
race, is what I said on that occasion regarding the greatness of those
Brahmanas who are the foremost of their order. Do thou also, O son of
Kunti, worship the highly blessed Brahmanas every day with gifts of
wealth and kine, O puissant one! It was in this way that I acquired the
prosperity I enjoy, the prosperity that is born of the grace of
Brahmanas. Whatever, again, Bhishma has said of me, O chief of the
Bharatas, is all true!'"

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A Stephen King fan has published an 80-page version of the book which novelist Jack Torrance obsessively writes during King's The Shining, where his descent into madness is revealed when his wife discovers that his work consists of just one phrase, endlessly repeated.

Torrance, played by Jack Nicholson in terrifying form in Stanley Kubrick's 1980 film, is a frustrated writer who goes with his wife and son to spend the winter in the isolated Overlook Hotel in an attempt to get the novel he has always wanted to write started. But the hotel's grisly past and unquiet ghosts have their way with him, and his wife Wendy eventually finds that the manuscript he has been working on actually only contains the phrase "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy", typed over and over again.

Now New York artist Phil Buehler, who describes himself as "a big fan of Stanley Kubrick and Stephen King", has self-published a book credited to Torrance, repeating the phrase throughout but formatting each page differently, using the words to create different shapes from zigzags to spirals.

"The idea has probably been marinating for years, because I loved the movie and the Stephen King book," said Buehler. "I'd just finished my own obsessive art project [and] it was an idea I had over the Christmas holidays."

He said he decided to stick to type and formatting that could have been created on a typewriter, with the first ten pages duplicating shots of Torrance's work from the film. "I thought 'if he continues to get crazier, what would those pages look like?'" he said. "I hit writer's block about 60 pages in, and I had to get to 80 - that went on for about a week." His fiancée, who had neither read the book nor seen the film, became a little concerned about his actions. "I finally showed her the movie, and she realised I wasn't really losing it," said Buehler.

He's included a spoof review from the blog OverThinkingIt.com on the book's back jacket, which compares it to "the best of Beckett" in its "lack of forward momentum", and considers the struggles of the author, "heroically pitting himself against the Sisyphusean sentence". "It's that metatextual struggle of Man vs. Typewriter that gives this book its spellbinding power," the review says. "Some will dismiss it as simplistic; that's like dismissing a Pollack canvas as mere splatters of paint."

So far, Buehler says that around 1,000 people have viewed the book, for sale on Blurb.com for $8.95 in paperback, or $22.95 in hardback, and he's sold "a few" copies, with sales now starting to pick up steam. "A few people have asked me to sign it - they're looking it as a piece of art rather than a funny thing to give to a Kubrick fan," he said. "If you're not a Kubrick or King fan, you might not even get it."

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