Bhagavatapurana 1.8: athāṣṭamo'dhyāyaḥ

1.8.1

/0 sūta uvāca
atha te samparetānāṃ svānām udakam icchatām /
dātuṃ sakṛṣṇā gaṅgāyāṃ puraskṛtya yayuḥ striyaḥ //

Sūta said: / Then they, placing the women foremost, together with Kṛṣṇa went to the Gaṅgā / to offer water to their deceased kin who desired it.

1. Then, in order to pour oblations of water to their dead relations, who long for it, they all went with Sri Krishna to the Ganges, the women going in front.

1.8.2

te ninīyodakaṃ sarve vilapya ca bhṛśaṃ punaḥ /
āplutā haripādābjarajaḥpūtasarijjale //

All of them, having offered the water and wept bitterly again, / bathed in the river water purified by the dust of Hari's lotus feet.

2. Having poured out oblations of water and bitterly mourned for the dead, they again bathed in the water of the river sanctified by the dust on Sri Hari's lotus-like feet.

1.8.3

tatrāsīnaṃ kurupatiṃ dhṛtarāṣṭraṃ sahānujam /
gāndhārīṃ putraśokārtāṃ pṛthāṃ kṛṣṇāṃ ca mādhavaḥ //

Seated there was the king of the Kurus, Dhṛtarāṣṭra with his younger brother [Vidura], / Gāndhārī afflicted by grief for her sons, Pṛthā, and Draupadī; Mādhava

3—4. Sri Krishna and the sages comforted the aggrieved Dhritarashtra, the Lord of Kurus, Yudhishtira with his brothers, Gandhari distressed by the loss of her sons, Kunti and Draupadi, who were all immersed in sorrow for their dead relations, by showing how the course of Time (Hari) is irresistible—in respect of (created) beings.

1.8.4

sāntvayām āsa munibhirhatabandhūñ śucārpitān /
bhūteṣu kālasya gatiṃ darśayan na pratikriyām //

consoled them who had lost their kinsmen and were plunged in grief, along with the sages, / pointing out the course of Time among beings, for which there is no remedy.

1.8.5

sādhayitvājātaśatroḥ svaṃ rājyaṃ kitavairhṛtam /
ghātayitvāsato rājñaḥ kacasparśakṣatāyuṣaḥ //

Having restored his kingdom to Ajātaśatru, which had been seized by cheats, / and having caused the wicked kings to be slain, whose lifespans were cut short by the touching of [Draupadī's] hair,

5. Having secured to Yuhdhishtira his Kingdom snatched away by the gamblers, having brought about the destruction of the wicked princes whose life-time had been cut short for dragging Draupadi by her locks;

1.8.6

yājayitvāśvamedhaistaṃ tribhiruttamakalpakaiḥ /
tadyaśaḥ pāvanaṃ dikṣu śatamanyorivātanot //

having caused him to sacrifice with three horse sacrifices of the highest order, / He spread his purifying fame throughout the directions like that of Indra.

6. Having enabled Yudhishtira to perform the Aswamedha thrice over on the grandest scale, Sri Krishna caused his (Yudhish-

tira's) unsullied reputation to spread in all directions like that of Indra;

1.8.7

āmantrya pāṇḍuputrāṃśca śaineyoddhavasaṃyutaḥ /
dvaipāyanādibhirvipraiḥ pūjitaiḥ pratipūjitaḥ //

Taking leave of the sons of Pāṇḍu, accompanied by Satyaki and Uddhava, / and being honored in return by Dvaipāyana and other honored brāhmaṇas,

7. Having taken leave of the sons of Pandu, accompanied by Satyaki and Uddhava, and having exchanged mutual regards with Dwaipayana and other sages;

1.8.8

gantuṃ kṛtamatirbrahman dvārakāṃ ratham āsthitaḥ /
upalebhe 'bhidhāvantīm uttarāṃ bhayavihvalām //

intent on departing for Dvārakā, O brāhmaṇa, and mounted on His chariot, / He noticed Uttarā running toward Him, trembling with fear.

8. Resolved to go to Dwaraka, O Brahman, Sri Krishna mounted the chariot, but (just then) saw Uttara running up to him bewildered through fear,

1.8.9

/0 uttarovāca
pāhi pāhi mahāyogin devadeva jagatpate /
nānyaṃ tvadabhayaṃ paśye yatra mṛtyuḥ parasparam //

Uttarā said: / "Protect me, protect me, O great yogin, God of gods, Lord of the universe! / I see no one else besides You to grant fearlessness where death faces each other.

9. Crying, "Protect me, O Great Yogin, Protect me, God of gods, Lord of the world, I do not see any one other than Thee (being above fear and peril), that could be my asylum in the world, where men are the death of one another.

1.8.10

abhidravati mām īśa śarastaptāyaso vibho /
kāmaṃ dahatu māṃ nātha mā me garbho nipātyatām //

A glowing iron arrow rushes toward me, O Lord, O all-pervading one! / Let it burn me if it will, O master, but do not let my unborn child be struck down!"

10. O God, my Lord, a weapon of burning steel pursues me, let it burn me, Lord, but let not the child in my womb be hit.

1.8.11

/0 sūta uvāca
upadhārya vacastasyā bhagavān bhaktavatsalaḥ /
apāṇḍavam idaṃ kartuṃ drauṇerastram abudhyata //

Sūta said: / Hearing her words, the Lord, affectionate toward His devotees, / understood that this was the weapon of Droṇa's son, aimed to leave the Pāṇḍavas without heirs.

11. Suta said:—On hearing her words the glorious Krishna, who is most tender to His devotees, perceived that it was Aswathaman's missile intended to extirpate the race of the Pandavas.

1.8.12

tarhyevātha muniśreṣṭha pāṇḍavāḥ pañca sāyakān /
ātmano 'bhimukhān dīptān ālakṣyāstrāṇyupādaduḥ //

Just then, O best of sages, the five Pāṇḍavas, / noticing five blazing arrows directed against themselves, took up their weapons.

12. Just then, O great sage! the Pandavas also saw five burning arrows coming towards them, and took up their own missiles.

1.8.13

vyasanaṃ vīkṣya tat teṣām ananyaviṣayātmanām /
sudarśanena svāstreṇa svānāṃ rakṣāṃ vyadhādvibhuḥ //

Seeing that calamity befalling them, whose minds were devoted to no other object, / the all-powerful Lord protected His own people with His own weapon, the Sudarśana.

13. Seeing the peril of those (Pandu's sons) who think of (depend on) none other (than Himself), the Almighty Lord ordained the protection of his devotees by means of His own weapon Sudarsana.

1.8.14

antaḥsthaḥ sarvabhūtānām ātmā yogeśvaro hariḥ /
svamāyayāvṛṇodgarbhaṃ vairāṭyāḥ kurutantave //

Dwelling within all beings, the Self, the Lord of yoga, Hari, / by His own creative power veiled the embryo of the princess of Virāṭa for the lineage of Kuru.

14. Sri Hari who is within all beings, the Lord of all and the Lord of Yoga, encompassed Uttara's womb with his own power (Maya) to keep up the thread of the Kuru race.

1.8.15

yadyapyastraṃ brahmaśirastvamoghaṃ cāpratikriyam /
vaiṣṇavaṃ teja āsādya samaśāmyadbhṛgūdvaha //

Even though the brahmaśiras weapon was infallible and irresistible, / upon meeting the energy of Viṣṇu it was extinguished, O descendant of Bhṛgu.

15. Though the missile of Brahmasiras can never be resisted, prove ineffectual or be counteracted, still having met Vishnu's Fire (Sudarsana) it was put out, O the best of the Bhrigus.

1.8.16

mā maṃsthā hyetadāścaryaṃ sarvāścaryamaye ñcyute /
ya idaṃ māyayā devyā sṛjatyavati hantyajaḥ //

Do not consider this an astonishment in Acyuta, who is full of all wonders, / who, unborn, creates, maintains, and destroys this universe by His divine creative power.

16. Do not think this to be a great wonder (miracle) in Achyuta who is the embodiment of all wonders, who, Himself unborn, by his own divine Maya (will or power) creates, maintains and destroys this world.

1.8.17

brahmatejovinirmuktairātmajaiḥ saha kṛṣṇayā /
prayāṇābhimukhaṃ kṛṣṇam idam āha pṛthā satī //

Along with her sons liberated from the brāhmaṇa's energy and with Draupadī, / the virtuous Pṛthā spoke this to Kṛṣṇa, who was about to depart:

17. To Krishna who was about to start, the virtuous Kunti in the midst of Draupadi and of (all) her sons who were just saved from the fire of the Brahmana, spoke thus:—

1.8.18

/0 kuntyuvāca
namasye puruṣaṃ tvādyam īśvaraṃ prakṛteḥ param /
alakṣyaṃ sarvabhūtānām antarbahiravasthitam //

Kuntī said: / "I bow down to You, the primal Puruṣa, the Lord beyond material nature, / invisible to all beings, yet dwelling within and without.

18. Kunti said:—I worship Thee, the perfect Person, the First of all, the Ruler of Rulers, far higher than Prakriti, not perceivable by all, and present in and out of all beings.

1.8.19

māyājavanikācchannam ajñādhokṣajam avyayam /
na lakṣyase mūḍhadṛśā naṭo nāṭyadharo yathā //

Concealed behind the curtain of creative power, beyond the reach of sense-organs, imperishable, / You are not perceived by foolish sight, just like an actor dressed for the stage.

19. I, an ignorant woman, worship Thee who art concealed behind the screen of Maya and art undecaying and beyond the reach of the grosser vision; Thou canst not be realised by the clouded reason of the ignorant man, by one that has attachment to the mortal frame, just as an actor who plays a part cannot be.

1.8.20

tathā paramahaṃsānāṃ munīnām amalātmanām /
bhaktiyogavidhānārthaṃ kathaṃ paśyema hi striyaḥ //

You appear for the execution of the yoga of devotion by paramahaṃsas, / by sages of stainless self; how indeed can we women perceive You?

20. Similarly thou art not perceived (even) by Paramahamsas, pure in mind. How then could we, women, know Thee, so as to follow the path of devotion towards Thee?

1.8.21

kṛṣṇāya vāsudevāya devakīnandanāya ca /
nandagopakumārāya govindāya namo namaḥ //

Obeisances, obeisances to Kṛṣṇa, to Vāsudeva, and to the joy of Devakī, / to the boy of the cowherd Nanda, to Govinda!

21. Again and again I bow to Thee, Sri Krishna, Vasudeva, the joy of Devaki, the beloved child of Nandagopa, Govinda (one who is spoken of by all the Vedas).

1.8.22

namaḥ paṅkajanābhāya namaḥ paṅkajamāline /
namaḥ paṅkajanetrāya namaste paṅkajāṅghraye //

Obeisances to You whose navel is a lotus; obeisances to You who wear a garland of lotuses; / obeisances to You whose eyes are lotuses; obeisances to You whose feet are lotuses.

22. (I) Bow to Thee whose navel is graced with the Lotus; bow to Thee who is adorned with the wreath of lotus blossoms; bow to Thee whose eyes are (cheering) like the lotus-flower; bow to Thee whose feet are beautiful like the lotusflower (with the mark of lotus).

1.8.23

yathā hṛṣīkeśa khalena devakī kaṃsena ruddhāticiraṃ śucārpitā /
vimocitāhaṃ ca sahātmajā vibho tvayaiva nāthena muhurvipadgaṇāt //

Just as Devakī, confined for so long by the wicked Kaṃsa and plunged in grief, was liberated, O Hṛṣīkeśa, / so too have I, along with my sons, O all-pervading Lord, been delivered repeatedly from hosts of dangers by You alone, our master.

23. O Hrishikesa, was I rescued merely like Devaki, imprisoned by the wicked Kamsa and afflicted for a long time? Nay! I was saved from many a danger with all my sons, O Lord, and much more promptly, by Thyself, the one Lord of All.

1.8.24

viṣān mahāgneḥ puruṣādadarśanād asatsabhāyā vanavāsakṛcchrataḥ /
mṛdhe mṛdhe 'nekamahārathāstrato drauṇyastrataścāsma hare 'bhirakṣitāḥ //

From poison, from the great fire, from the sight of man-eaters, from the assembly of the wicked, from the hardships of forest exile, / and battle after battle from the weapons of many great chariot-warriors, and from the weapon of Droṇa's son, have we been protected, O Hari.

24. From poison, from the great fire, from the sight of great monsters, from the assembly of the wicked, from the difficulties of forest life and from the missiles of many a MahaRatha (great warrior) in every battle, and lastly now, from the missile of Drauni, we have been protected by Thee, O Hari.

1.8.25

vipadaḥ santu tāḥ śaśvat tatra tatra jagadguro /
bhavato darśanaṃ yat syādapunarbhavadarśanam //

Let calamities occur continually at every step, O teacher of the world, / where there may be the vision of You, the vision that prevents rebirth.

25. *May such calamities befall us, now and then through

eternity, O Lord of the world! only if (on every such occasion) we should be blessed with the favour of Thy sight which puts an end to the experience of Samsara.

1.8.26

janmaiśvaryaśrutaśrībhiredhamānamadaḥ pumān /
naivārhatyabhidhātuṃ vai tvām akiñcanagocaram //

A man whose pride is inflated by high birth, power, learning, and wealth / is never worthy to utter Your name, who are accessible only to the destitute.

26. That man whose pride grows on account of his birth, wealth, learning and good fortune, is not fit even to talk about Thee that art accessible to the poor, those that are sinless, or are not possessed of worldly fortune.

1.8.27

namo 'kiñcanavittāya nivṛttaguṇavṛttaye /
ātmārāmāya śāntāya kaivalyapataye namaḥ //

Obeisances to You who are the wealth of the destitute, in whom the activity of the qualities has ceased, / who rejoice in the Self, the tranquil one, obeisances to the master of absolute liberation.

27. (I) bow to Thee, who regardest sinless votaries to be Thy wealth, (who art the wealth of Thy sinless votaries,) whom the spheres of the three gunas, namely, Dharma, Artha, and Kama never touch; (I) bow to Thee that art Thine own delight, that art free from likes, dislikes, and that art the Lord of Moksha.

1.8.28

manye tvāṃ kālam īśānam anādinidhanaṃ vibhum /
samaṃ carantaṃ sarvatra bhūtānāṃ yan mithaḥ kaliḥ //

I consider You to be Time, the ruler, without beginning or end, the all-pervading Lord, / moving equally everywhere, while there is discord among beings.

28. I believe that Thou art the Kala and the ruler of all (Brahma, Rudra etc.), the one without beginning or end, the most powerful Lord moving alike everywhere; for, strife is only between the Bhutas (or elements.)

1.8.29

na veda kaścidbhagavaṃścikīrṣitaṃ tavehamānasya nṛṇāṃ viḍambanam /
na yasya kaściddayito 'sti karhicid dveṣyaśca yasmin viṣamā matirnṛṇām //

No one knows what You intend to do, O Lord, acting in imitation of human beings; / for You have no one dear and no one hateful, though people hold unequal views regarding You.

29. Nobody knows what Thou purposest to do,—Thou who actest like men; for Thee there is none to be loved, none to be hated, and in Thee there is no inclination to partiality; but it is the thought of men that is not straight in respect of Thee.

1.8.30

janma karma ca viśvātmann ajasyākarturātmanaḥ /
tiryaṅnṝṣiṣu yādaḥsu tadatyantaviḍambanam //

The birth and deeds of You, O Self of the universe, who are unborn, non-doer, the Self, / among animals, humans, sages, and aquatic creatures—that is supreme imitation.

30. That thou, O Lord of all, (Antaryamin of all), that hast no birth and no action, hast births and hast deeds to do, among beasts (as Varaha,) among men (as Rama,) among Rishis (as Vamana,) and among aquatic beings (as Matsya), is wholly a matter of Thy will to behave like the creatures of the world.

1.8.31

gopyādade tvayi kṛtāgasi dāma tāvad yā te daśāśrukalilāñjanasambhramākṣam /
vaktraṃ ninīya bhayabhāvanayā sthitasya sā māṃ vimohayati bhīrapi yadbibheti //

When the cowherd woman took a cord when You committed a fault, and You stood with Your face lowered in fear, / with Your eyes bewildered and the collyrium smeared with tears—that state of Yours bewilders me, before whom even Fear itself is afraid."

31. When Yasoda took a rope to bind Thee who hadst done mischief, the spectacle thou presentedst as if in fear with Thy face cast down, eyes rolling in confusion, collyrium dissolved in tears—that spectacle of Thee of whom even Fear is afraid, causes great perplexity in me.

1.8.32

kecidāhurajaṃ jātaṃ puṇyaślokasya kīrtaye /
yadoḥ priyasyānvavāye malayasyeva candanam //

Some say that the unborn was born to glorify Him whose praise is purifying, / in the lineage of His beloved Yadu, as sandalwood [grows] upon Malaya.

32. Some say that Thou the unborn hast appeared in the race beloved of Yadu, to enhance the glory of the blessed Yudhishtira (or Yadu) renowned for merit, just as the sandal tree grows on the Malaya (mountain) to make it reputed.

1.8.33

apare vasudevasya devakyāṃ yācito 'bhyagāt /
ajastvam asya kṣemāya vadhāya ca suradviṣām //

Others [say] that, prayed to by Vasudeva and Devakī, / You, the unborn, came for their well-being and for the destruction of the enemies of the gods.

33. Others say that Thou art the unborn who, as prayed for by Vasudeva, wast born as his son by Devaki for the protection of this world and for the destruction of the enemies of the gods.

1.8.34

bhārāvatāraṇāyānye bhuvo nāva ivodadhau /
sīdantyā bhūribhāreṇa jāto hyātmabhuvārthitaḥ //

Others [say] that, requested by the Self-born [Brahmā] to remove the burden / of the earth sinking under heavy weight like a boat in the ocean, You were born.

34. Some others say that, as prayed for by the four-faced Brahma, Thou hast appeared in the world to remove the burden of the earth, as from a vessel in the sea, groaning with excess of load.

1.8.35

bhave 'smin kliśyamānānām avidyākāmakarmabhiḥ /
śravaṇasmaraṇārhāṇi kariṣyann iti kecana //

Still others [say that You appeared] intending to perform deeds worthy of being heard and remembered / for those suffering in this world through ignorance, desire, and karmic acts.

35. Others again say that Thou hast come to perform deeds worthy of being listened to and remembered by the beings that are tossed in *samsara* by (force of) ignorance, desire and *karma*.

1.8.36

śṛṇvanti gāyanti gṛṇantyabhīkṣṇaśaḥ smaranti nandanti tavehitaṃ janāḥ /
ta eva paśyantyacireṇa tāvakaṃ bhavapravāhoparamaṃ padāmbujam //

The people who constantly hear, sing, chant, remember, and delight in Your deeds— / they alone soon behold Your lotus foot, which puts an end to the stream of worldly existence.

36. So, those men who constantly hear of Thy deeds, (when sung by others), sing of them, praise them, and remember them,—those only will see before long Thy lotus-like feet which terminates the stream of births.

1.8.37

apyadya nastvaṃ svakṛtehita prabho jihāsasi svit suhṛdo 'nujīvinaḥ /
yeṣāṃ na cānyadbhavataḥ padāmbujāt parāyaṇaṃ rājasu yojitāṃhasām //

Even today, O Lord whose deeds are self-directed, do You truly wish to abandon us, Your dependent friends, / whose only refuge, when offenses have been stirred up among kings, is none other than Your lotus feet?

37. O Lord that grantest the wishes of Thy votaries, dost Thou now (today) think of leaving us, who are beloved of Thee, who depend upon Thee for our very life? And we who have brought so much grief to the kings and princes, find no asylum other than Thy lotus-like feet.

1.8.38

ke vayaṃ nāmarūpābhyāṃ yadubhiḥ saha pāṇḍavāḥ /
bhavato 'darśanaṃ yarhi hṛṣīkāṇām iveśituḥ //

What are we, the Pāṇḍavas together with the Yadus, in name and form, / when You are absent—like the senses without their master?

38. What are we Yadus and Pandavas, (we shall be of no worth) by name or form, when thou art out of sight, just as a body and its organs are of no value when the ruling *jiva* is not there?

1.8.39

neyaṃ śobhiṣyate tatra yathedānīṃ gadādhara /
tvatpadairaṅkitā bhāti svalakṣaṇavilakṣitaiḥ //

This [land] will not shine then as it does now, O wielder of the mace, / imprinted by Your footprints that are marked with Your own signs.

39. Then, O Gadadhara! this earth will not be so (prosperous and) splendid as she is now when she shines with the mark of Thy foot-prints bearing Thine own (divine) characteristics.

1.8.40

ime janapadāḥ svṛddhāḥ supakvauṣadhivīrudhaḥ /
vanādrinadyudanvanto hyedhante tava vīkṣitaiḥ //

These regions, richly thriving with fully ripened herbs and creepers, / and the forests, mountains, rivers, and oceans, flourish indeed by Your glances.

40. These countries highly prosperous, rich in every kind of

fruitful plants and herbs, with their woods and mountains, rivers and seas, flourish only under Thy looks.

1.8.41

atha viśveśa viśvātman viśvamūrte svakeṣu me /
snehapāśam imaṃ chindhi dṛḍhaṃ pāṇḍuṣu vṛṣṇiṣu //

Now, O Lord of the universe, Soul of the universe, Form of the universe, / sever this tight bond of my affection for my own kin, the Pāṇḍus and the Vṛṣṇis.

41. Therefore, O Lord of all, the inner Ruler of everything, O Thou of whom the world is the body, cut off this, my attachment to kith and kin, the attachment which is so strong towards the Pandus and the Vrishnis.

1.8.42

tvayi me 'nanyaviṣayā matirmadhupate 'sakṛt /
ratim udvahatādaddhā gaṅgevaugham udanvati //

May my mind, with no other object, O Lord of the Madhus, / unceasingly direct its loving attachment to You alone, as the Gaṅgā directs her flood to the ocean.

42. O Lord of the Madhus, may my heart constantly and intensely find delight in Thee, and in nothing else, even as *Ganga* sends her flood down to the sea.

1.8.43

śrīkṛṣṇa kṛṣṇasakha vṛṣṇyṛṣabhāvanidhrug rājanyavaṃśadahanānapavargavīrya /
govinda godvijasurārtiharāvatāra yogeśvarākhilaguro bhagavan namaste //

O Śrī Kṛṣṇa, friend of Arjuna, bull of the Vṛṣṇis, destroyer of rebels on earth, / whose strength burns the royal dynasties and never wanes, / O Govinda, whose incarnation removes the distress of cows, brāhmaṇas, and gods, / master of yoga, guru of all, O Lord, reverence to You!

43. O Sri Krishna, friend of Arjuna, Bull among the Vrishnis, O Fire that burnt down the Vamsa (race, bamboos) of the princes that oppressed the earth, O Thou of unlimited (undiminished) power and might, O Govinda, (that possessest the wealth of Kamadhenus), whose Avatara is meant to remove the afflictions of cows, Brahmanas and the gods, O Lord of Yogas, O father of all, O holy One of perfection, I bow to Thee.

1.8.44

/0 sūta uvāca
pṛthayetthaṃ kalapadaiḥ pariṇūtākhilodayaḥ /
mandaṃ jahāsa vaikuṇṭho mohayann iva māyayā //

Sūta said: / Thus praised by Pṛthā in sweet words for all His manifestations, / Vaikuṇṭha smiled softly, as if bewitching [all] by His creative power.

44. Suta said:—All His glory being thus loudly chanted by Kunti in sweet words, Vaikuntha (Vishnu) smiled as if charming (the world) by Maya (His wonderful power in the form of a smile).

1.8.45

tāṃ bāḍham ityupāmantrya praviśya gajasāhvayam /
striyaśca svapuraṃ yāsyan premṇā rājñā nivāritaḥ //

Taking leave of her with "Very well," He entered the city named after the elephant [Hastināpura], / and when, having taken leave of the women, He was about to depart for His own city, He was detained by the king out of love.

45. Having accepted her praises, He went back into the city of Hastina and took leave of her and the other women; and Sri Krishna was about to leave for His city, when out of love He was stopped by king Yudhishtira.

1.8.46

vyāsādyairīśvarehājñaiḥ kṛṣṇenādbhutakarmaṇā /
prabodhito 'pītihāsairnābudhyata śucārpitaḥ //

Instructed through historical narratives by Vyāsa and others who knew the Lord's will, / and by Kṛṣṇa of wondrous deeds, he [Yudhiṣṭhira], overwhelmed by grief, was still not consoled.

46. Though Yudhishtira was offered explanations with many illustrative stories by Vyasa, by others that did not comprehend the Lord's ways, and even by Sri Krishna of wonderful deeds, he did not get over the grief which had seized him.

1.8.47

āha rājā dharmasutaścintayan suhṛdāṃ vadham /
prākṛtenātmanā viprāḥ snehamohavaśaṃ gataḥ //

King [Yudhiṣṭhira], the son of Dharma, grieving over the slaughter of his kinsmen, / spoke with an ordinary mind, O brāhmaṇas, fallen under the sway of affection and delusion:

47. O Brahmins, king Yudhishtira, the son of Dharma, brooding over the destruction of friends with a mind wanting in discretion as that of common people, and overpowered by affection and confusion, said:—

1.8.48

aho me paśyatājñānaṃ hṛdi rūḍhaṃ durātmanaḥ /
pārakyasyaiva dehasya bahvyo me 'kṣauhiṇīrhatāḥ //

“Ah, behold the ignorance rooted in the heart of wicked me! / For the sake of this body belonging only to another, many an akṣauhiṇī has been slain by me.

48. Alas! see how ignorance is rooted in my mind—in me who am of such a wicked heart. For the sake of this body which

(after death) is but useful to others (such as jackals) many, many _Akshouhinis_ of lives were slain by me.

1.8.49

bāladvijasuhṛnmitra pitṛbhrātṛgurudruhaḥ /
na me syān nirayān mokṣo hyapi varṣāyutāyutaiḥ //

For me, the destroyer of children, brāhmaṇas, well-wishers, friends, / fathers, brothers, and elders, there can be no release from hell even in tens of thousands of years.

49. For me there is no hope of being saved from hell for millions of years—for me who have done wrong to children, Brahmins, relations, well-wishers, friends, fathers, brothers, and preceptors.

1.8.50

naino rājñaḥ prajābharturdharmayuddhe vadho dviṣām /
iti me na tu bodhāya kalpate śāsanaṃ vacaḥ //

‘There is no sin for a king who sustains his subjects if he slays enemies in a righteous war’— / this authoritative word does not serve to convince me.

50. The word of law that on the part of a king protecting his people it is no sin to kill his enemies in a righteous war—this word is not at all of sufficient force to convince me that my action is really righteous.

1.8.51

strīṇāṃ maddhatabandhūnāṃ droho yo 'sāvihotthitaḥ /
karmabhirgṛhamedhīyairnāhaṃ kalpo vyapohitum //

This enmity toward the women whose kinsmen have been slain by me, which has arisen here— / I am not able to expiate it by the domestic rituals of the householder.

51. What sin has now accrued to me in respect of women whose relations were slain by me,—I shall not be able to expiate by any course of _karma_, (duties) laid down for a _grahastha_ (house-holder.)

1.8.52

yathā paṅkena paṅkāmbhaḥ surayā vā surākṛtam /
bhūtahatyāṃ tathaivaikāṃ na yajñairmārṣṭum arhati //

Just as muddy water cannot be cleansed by mud, or wine-stained [cloth] by wine, / so one cannot wipe away the slaughter of living beings by sacrificial rites.”

52. Just as one cannot purify miry water by means of mire, or wash out the profanation of liquor by means of liquor, so one cannot wipe out the sin arising from a single act of murder by any number of sacrifices (which consist of wilful slaughter of animals.)