Reading section 25

SECTION XXIII.

Parāçara said:—I shall now describe to you the future kings of Magadha sprung from Vrihadratha. In this race were born Jarāsandha and other powerful kings.

The son of Jarāsandha shall be Sahadeva, whose son shall be Somāpi, whose son shall be Srutavan, whose son shall be Ayutayu, whose son shall be Niramitra, whose son shall be Sukshatra, whose son shall be Vrihatkarman, whose son shall be Senajit, whose son shall be Srutanjaya, whose son shall be Vipra, whose son shall be Suchi, whose son shall be Kshemya, whose son shall be Subrata, whose son shall be Dharma, whose son shall be Susrama, whose son shall be Drirasena, whose son shall be Sumati, whose son shall be Subala, whose son shall be Satyajit, and whose son shall be Ripunjaya. The kings of the race of Vrihadratha shall reign for a thousand years.

SECTION XXIV.

Parāçara said:—Ripunjaya, the last king of the race of Vrihadratha, shall have minister by the name of Sunika. Slaying his Master he shall place his own son Prodyuta on the throne. He shall have a son by the name of Palaka, whose son shall be Visākayupa, whose son shall be Janaka, whose son shall be Nandivardana. These five kings of the family of Prodyuta shall govern the earth for a hundred and thirty eight years.

Thereupon Sisunāga (shall become the king). His son shall be Kākavarna, whose son shall be Kshemadarman, whose son shall be Kshatraujas whose son shall be Vidmisara, whose son shall be Ajatasatru, whose son shall be Darvaka, whose son shall be Udayashwa, whose son shall be Nanrdivardana, whose son shall be Mahanandi. These ten kings of the family of Sisunāga shall lord over the earth for three hundred and sixty-two years.

Mahapandi shall beget a son on a Sudra woman by name, Mahapadma Nanda, who shall be very avaricious and shall extirpate all the Kshatriyas like Parashurama. From that time Sudra kings shall govern the earth. And this Mahapadma shall enjoy the earth as lord paramount, and his commands shall no where be disobeyed. He shall have eight sons—Sumatya and others. Mahapadma and his eight sons shall reign for a hundred years. Thereupon a Brahman by name Kantilya shall root out Nanda and his sons.

After the family of Nanda, Mauryas shall lord over the earth. This Kantilya shall install the Maurya king Chandra-Gupta on the throne. He shall have a son by name Vindusāra, whose son shall be Asokavardana, whose son shall be Sujasas, whose son shall be Dasaratha, whose son' shall be Sangata, whose son shall be Sālisuka, whose son shall be Vrihadratha. These Maurya kings shall reign for a hundred and seventy-three years. After them the Sungas will enjoy the earth.

Thereupon slaying his own master the Commander-in-Chief Pushpamitra shall establish himself on the throne. His son shall be Agnimitra, whose son shall be Sujestsha, whose son shall be Vasumitra, whose son shall be Ardraka, whose son shall be Pulindaka, whose son shall be Ghosavasu, whose son shall be Vajramitra, whose son shall be Vagabata, whose son shall be Devabhuti. These ten Sunga kings shall reign for one hundred and twelve years. Thereafter the Kanwa kings shall lord over the earth. Slaying his own master, the Sunga king Devabhuti who shall be addicted to gambling, the minister Vasudeva shall place himself on the throne. His son shall be Vumimitra, whose son shall be Nārāyana, whose son shall be Susarma. These four Kanwa kings shall reign for forty-five years..

A servant by name Sipraka of the race of Andra shall slay Susarma, the last Kanwa king and by force place himself on the throne. Thereafter his brother Krishna shall govern the earth. Krishna's son shall be Purnotsanga, whose son shall be Lambodara, whose son shall be Durlaka, whose son shall be Meghaswati, whose son shall be Paruman, whose son shall be Aristhakarman, whose son shall be Hāl, whose son shall be Pathalaka, whose son shall be Prabillasen, whose son shall be the beautiful Sātakarni, whose son shall be Sivaswati, whose son shall be Gomatipatra, whose son shall be Patimari, whose son shall be Sivasreesatakarma, whose son shall be Sivashkandha, whose son shall be Yajnasree, whose son shall be Vijaya, whose son shall be Chandrasree, whose son shall be Pulomarchi. These thirty illustrious Andhra kings will govern the earth for four hundred and fifty years.

Thereafter seven kings of the Avira race, sixteen kings of Gardavila race and sixteen Saka kings shall respectively govern the earth.

Thereupon eight Yavana kings, fourteen Tukhara kings, thirteen Munda kings, and eighteen Manu kings shall rule the earth for thirteen hundred and ninety-nine years. Thereafter eleven Paura kings shall govern the earth for three hundred years.

When the Pauras shall spread all over the earth the Yavanas of Kailakila shall become kings. And amongst them one Viridhyasakti shall be the lord paramount. His son shall be Paranjaya, whose son shall be Ramchandra, whose son shall be Dharma, whose son shall be Varanga, whose son shall be Kritamandana, whose son shall be Sashinandi, whose son shall be Nandiyasā, whose son shall be Sisaka, whose son shall be Pravira. These nine kings shall reign for a hundred and sixty years.

Thereafter thirteen kings of this family, three of Valheeka, Pushpamitra, Parupmitra and Padmamitra, the nine kings of Saptakosala and then again nine kings of the country of Nishdha shall respectively flourish.

One king of the city of Magadha by name Viswasphatika shall create many a new mixed caste. He will root out the Kshatriya or martial race and elevate fishermen, barbarians and Brāhmans and other castes to power. The nine Nāgas will reign in Padmāvati, Kāntipuri, and Mathurā; and the Guptas of Magadha along the Ganges to Prayaga. A king by name Devarakshita will reign in a city on the sea shore over the Kosalas, Pundras and Tāmraliptas. The Guhas will occupy Kalinga, Māhihaka and the mountains of Mahendra. The race of Manidhanu will occupy the countries of Nishādas, Naimishikas and Kalatyas. The people called Kanakas will occupy the Amazon country and that called Mushika. People of the degraded three tribes and Abhiras and Sudras will occupy Saurāshtra, Avanti Sura Arbuda and Marubhumi. And Sudras, outcasts and barbarians will occupy the banks of the Jadus, Darvika, the Chandrabhāgā and Kashmir.

These and all the contemporary kings will be of churlish spirit; violent temper and always addicted to falsehood and wickedness. They will destroy women, children and cows; they will seize upon the property of their subjects, will be of limited power; they will rapidly rise and fall; the duration of their life will be very short; they will form high expectations and acquire very little piety.

The people of the countries, they will rule over, will imbibe the same nature. And the barbarians being powerful under royal patronage will destroy the subjects. Wealth and virtue will decrease day by day until the whole world will be depraved. Wealth will be the test of pedigree and virtue; passion will be the only tie of marriage; falsehood will be the only means of success in litigation; and women will be merely the objects of sensual gratification. Earth will be respected for its mineral treasures; sacrificial thread will be the only test of a Brāhman; external marks will constitute the only distinction of orders and wickedness will be the only means of livelihood. Weakness will be the cause of dependence; menace will be the cause of learning; gifts only will constitute virtue; wealth will be the only sign of honesty; simple ablution will be purification; mutual consent will be the marriage; a man wearing good clothes will be considered honest and water at a distance will be considered a holy spring. When the world will be thus sunk in faults, he, who will be the strongest amidst those castes, shall be the king; They will grow avaricious and the subjects, unable to bear the burden of various taxes, will take refuge amongst the valleys of the mountains and will be glad to feed upon wild honey, herbs, roots, fruits, flowers and leaves: their only covering will be the bark of trees and they will be exposed to the cold and wind and sun and rain. No man shall live more than three and twenty years. Thus in the end of the Kali Yuga most of human-kind will be annihilated.

Thus when the ceremonies of the Vedas and the institutes of law shall nearly have ceased, and the end of the Kali Yuga will approach, a portion of that divine being, who is the creator of the whole universe, preceptor of the mobile and immobile, who is the beginning and end of all, who is at one with all, who is identical with Brahmā and all created beings, shall incarnate himself on earth. He will be born in the family of Vishnuyasas, an eminent Brāhman of Sambhala village as Kalki gifted with the eight superhuman faculties. By his irrepressible power he will slay all the Mlechchhas and thieves and all those who are addicted to sins. His greatness and might shall be unobstructed.

He shall again establish virtue on earth and when the Kali Yuga will completely close, the remaining people shall be awakened and their minds shall be as pure as crystal. The people thus purified shall be the seeds of human beings and shall procreate a progeny who shall follow the laws of Krita-age. A verse is recited regarding this—"When the sun, moon, and the lunar asterism Tishya and the planet Jupiter are in mansion the Krita age shall come back".

Thus, O great sage, I have enumerated all the kings of the solar and lunar dynasties—those who are past and those who are present and those who shall be. From the birth of the king Parikshit and up to the installation of king Nanda it is to be known that 1065 years have passed. When the two first stars of the seven Rishis rise in the heavens and some lunar asterism is seen at night at an equal distance then the seven Rishis continue stationary in that conjunction for a hundred years of men. At the birth of the king Parikshit they were in Magha and the Kali Yuga then began which consists of twelve hundred divine years.

When the portion of Vishnu born in the race of Yadu went back to heaven the Kali Yuga set in. But as long as he touched with his lotus feet the earth the Kali Yuga could not effect it. As soon as the incarnation of the eternal Vishnu has departed, Yudhisthira the son of Dharma and his brothers renounced the kingdom. Seeing evil omens, on the departure of Krishna the son of Pandu installed Parikshit on the throne. When seven Rishis will be in Parvashadha, then Nanda will begin to reign and thenceforth the influence of Kali will increase.

The day of Krishna's departure from the earth will be the first of the Kali Yaga, the duration of which you shall learn from me. It will continue tor 360,800 years of men. After twelve hundred divine years the Krita-age shall come back.

Thus, O foremest of twice-born ones, thousands of eminent Brāhmans, Kshatriyas, Vasyas, and Sudras have passed away. It will be tautology and useless to mention the names and numbers of them born in various families. I therefore refrain from doing so.

The king Devapi of the Puru race and Maru of the Ikswaku race, by virtue of their great asceticism, are residing in the village of Kalapa. When the Krita-age shall set in they will come to the city and give origin to the Kshatriya dynasties. In this wise the earth is occupied through every series of the first three ages, Krita, Treta and Dwāpara by the descendants of Manu. As Devapi and Maru are still living so one of them remains in the Kali Yuga, to serve as the seed of the renewed generations.

I have thus related to you briefly the families of the various kings. To relate them at length would be impossible in a hundred lives.

The kings mentioned above and others, who assuming frail bodies have ruled over the ever-during world, and being binded by illusions have indulged the feeling—"This earth is mine—it is my son's—it belongs to my dynasty," have gone away. Those who reigned before them, those who succeeded them, those who will be kings in future, have ceased and shall cease to be. The earth, with her autumnal flowers, as if smiles, beholding the king eager for conquest and fightings. Hear, O Maitrya, I shall now recite some verses that were chanted by Earth and which the Muni Asita communicated to Janaka, whose banner was virtue, "How greatly are the princes, although reasonable, mistaken, that they consider themselves immortal when they themselves are but foam upon the wave. Before they have subdued themselves they endeavour to reduce their ministers, their servant, their subjects to subjection; they then attempt to defeat their enemies. They say 'We shall by and by subdue the sea-girt earth?' Their minds being thus always taken up with those thoughts, they cannot perceive the near approach of death. The subjugation of the sea-girt earth is not so very difficult for him who has subdued him; for the final liberation is another fruit of self-control. It is through ignorance that the kings wish to possess me whom their predecessors have been constrained to leave and whom their fathers have not kept, by the selfish love of power fathers fight with sons and brothers with brothers for occupying me. All the kings who reigned on this earth and who are now dead foolishly thought—'All this earth is mine—every thing is mine, it will be in my house for ever for he is dead.' How is it possible that such vain desires should be cherished by his descendants, who have seen their progenitor, on account of the thirst of dominion, compelled to desert me, whom he called his own and tread the path of dissolution. When I hear a king communicating to another through his ambassador, ‘This earth is mine—you give up all your claims for it,' I laugh at first but that laughter is soon turned into pity for the infatuated fool".

Parāçara said:—These were the verses, Maitreya, which Earth chanted, hearing which ambition melts away like snow before the sun. I have now given you a complete account of the descendants of Manu amongst whom many were endowed with a portion of Vishnu engaged in the preservation of the universe.

He, who hears reverentially from the beginning to the end, of the account of this family of Manu, gets his heart purified and all this sins are removed. Hearing of the description of the illustrious solar and lunar dynasties, people, with their faculties perfect, shall live in unequalled affluence, plenty and prosperity. He who has heard of the races of Ikshawku, Jahnu, Mindhāta, Sagara, Abiksheta, Raghu, Yayati, and Nahusha, who have all perished and of other wealthy kings gifted with great strength and power, who have been subdued by still more powerful time and are now only tales, will learn wisdom and forbear to call either children, or wife, or house or lands or wealth his own. Those heroic men, who have performed penances for many years with uplifted hands, those who have celebrated many sacrifices, have been left by time as subjects of narration. That Pritbu, even, whose discus dissevered many an enemy, who unobstructed travelled all over the regions, has been destroyed by the last of time like the light down of the Simal tree. Even Karlaviryya, who defeated numberless enemies and conquered the seven Zones of the earth, exists now only as the topic of a theme, a subject for affirmation or contradiction. The riches, of the kings Dashānana, Raghava, Abikoluta and others, which dazzled all the quarters, have all been reduced to ashes by the very frown of time. Oh! fie upon such wealth. The lord paramount of the earth, by the name of Māndhāta now exists only in name. And what pious man, hearing this story, will be so foolish as to cherish the desire of possession in his soul? Bhagiratha, Sagara, Kākutstha, Dasānana, Rāma, Lakshmana, Yudhishthira and others have been. Is it so? Have they really existed? Where are they now? We know not! The kings, who are now reigning, who shall be kings in future, and those whose names have not been specified, shall all remain only in names like their predecessors. The wise man, cognizant of this, will not cherish attachment even for his own self—what to speak of children, lands and properties.

THE END OF PART IV.

PART V.

SECTION I.

Maitreya said:—You have described to me at length the origin and spread of the families of kings. I wish to hear in particular, O venerable saint, why Vishnu incarnated a portion of himself in the family of Yadus. Tell me, O Muni, what actions did the illustrious and excellent Purusha perform in his descent upon the earth.

Parāçara said:—I shall relate to you, O Maitreya, what you have requested me to do—the birth, of a portion of Vishnu and the benefits which his actions conferred upon the world. O great Muni, Vasudeva espoused the illustrious god-like Devaki, the daughter of Devaka. After their marriage, Kansa, the increaser of the race of Bhoja, drove their car as charioteer. A voice was heard in the sky, loud and deep as thunder, which addressing Kansa, said—"O foolish, the eighth child of this damsel, whom thou art carrying in the car, along with her husband, shall destroy thy life".

Hearing this the highly powerful Kansa uplifted his sword and was about to slay Devaki when Vasudeva said—"O thou having long arms, Devaki should not be slain by thee; I shall hand over to thee every child that she shall bring forth".

O foremost of twice-born ones, saying 'so be it' Kansa obeyed Vasudeva's request and out of respect for him did not slay Devaki.

In the meantime, Earth, oppressed by her heavy load, repaired to an assembly of celestials on Mount Meru and addressing them, with Brahmā, at their head, described in piteous accents all her distresses. "Agni" said Earth "is the progenitor of gold; Surja, the rays of light; the Supreme Nārāyana, is my guide and the guide of all spheres; He is Brahmā, the lord of the lord of patriarchs, the eldest of the eldest born, one identical with minutes and hours and time having form though indiscrete. O celestials, you are all but a portion of Him. The Sun, the winds, the saints, the Rudras, the Vasus, the Aswins, fire, patriarchs of whom Attri is the first, are all but the forms of the mighty and inscrutable Vishnu. The Yakshas, the Rākshasas, the Daityas, Pisachas, Uragas, Dānavas, Gandharvas, and Apsaras are all but the forms of the glorious Vishnu. The sky painted with stars, fire, water, wind, myself, and this manifest universe are all identical with Vishnu. Still the diverse forms of that manifold being encounter and succeed one another night and day like the waves of the sea. Amongst them Kālanemi and other Dānavas have occupied the regions under the earth and been distressing the subjects continually. The mighty Vishnu destroyed the Daitya Kālanemi and he has now been born as Kansa, the son of Ugrasena. The Asuras, Aristha, Dhenuka, Keshi, Pralamba, Naraka, Sunda, Atyugravana, and the son of Bali and other highly powerful ones born in various royal families, cannot be counted. O celestials, many Akshauhini hosts of powerful Daityas—the chiefs of their race, assuming beautiful shapes, are now treading upon me. I am unable, being oppressed by this load, to support myself; I have therefore come to you for help, O celestial chiefs, O illustrious deities, it becomes you to relieve me of this burden, lest helpless I sink into the nethermost abyss".

Parāçara said Hearing these words of Earth, Brahmā at their request, explained to them how her burden might be lightened. "Deities" said Brahmā "all that earth has said is true. Myself, Siva and you all are but a portion of Nārāyana; the impersonations of his power are for ever mutually fluctuating; and excess or diminution is indicated by the predominance of the strong and the depression of the weak. Come, therefore, let us go to the northern shore of the milky sea and having glorified Hari, report to him what we have heard. He, who is the soul of all and at one with the universe, descends, for the preservation of Earth in a small portion of his essence, to establish righteousness below". Accordingly Brahmā, accompanied by the celestials went to the milky ocean and with minds devoted to him, praised him, whose emblem is Garuda. Brahmā said "O lord, thou art distinct from the Vedas, thy double nature is two-fold wisdom, superior and inferior, and thou art the essential end of both. Thou, alike possessed and devoid of form, art the two-fold Brahmā; smallest of the least and largest of the large; all and knowing all things; that spirit which is language, that spirit which is Supreme; that which is Brahmā and of which Brahmā is composed. Thou art the Rich, the Yajush, the Sāman and the Atharvan Vedas. Thou art accentuation, ritual, signification, metre and astronomy; history, tradition, grammar, theology, logic and law and art inscrutable. Thou art the doctrine that seeks to find out the distinctions between soul and life and body and matter endowed with qualifications and that doctrine is nothing else but thy nature inherent in and presiding over it.

"Thou art imperceptible, indescribable, inconceivable,—without name, or colour, or hands or feet, pure, eternal and infinite. Thou hearest without ears and seest without eyes. Thou art one and manifold. Thou movest without feet and holdest without hands. Thou knowest all but art not by all to be known. He who observes thee as the most subtile of atoms, not substantially existent, puts an end to ignorance and the final liberation is the meed of that wise man whose understanding cherishes nothing but thee in the form of supreme delight. Thou art the common centre of all, the protector of the universe and all beings exist in thee. Thou art all that has been or will be. Thou art the atom of atoms; thou art spirit, thou only art separate from primeval nature. Thou, as the lord of fire, in four manifestations, givest light and fertility to Earth. Thou art the eye of all and assumer of many shapes and without any hinderance travellest the three regions of the universe. As fire, though one, is variously lighted and though unchangeable in its essence, is modified in many ways, so thou, lord, who art omnipresent, takest upon thee all modifications, that exist. Thou art one supreme; thou art that supreme and eternal state which the wise behold with the eye of knowledge. There is nothing else but thou, O lord, nothing else has been or will be. Thou art both discrete and indiscrete, universal and individual, omniscient, all-seeing, omnipotent, possessed of all wisdom and strength and power. Thou art subject, neither to increase nor decrease. Thou art independent and without beginning. Thou art the subjugator of all. Thou art not subject to weariness, sloth, fear, anger or desire. Thou art free from sin, supreme, merciful, uniform, undecaying, lord over all, the support of all, the fountain of light, and imperishable. Salutation unto thee, uninvested by material envelopes, unexposed to sensible imaginings, aggregate of elemental substance, spirit supreme. Thou assumest a shape, O pervader of the universe, not as the consequence of virtue or vice nor from any mixture of the two, but for the sole object of upholding righteousness in the universe".

Parāçara said:—Having heard these eulogiums, the unborn universal Hari, pleased, said to Brahmā—"Tell me, Brahmā, what your and the celestials desire—and consider that already gratified".

Beholding that divine and universal form of Hari, Brahmā again prostrated himself and began to chant his glories—"Salutation unto thee, again and again, O thou having a thousand forms, having a thousand arms, many faces and many feet. Salutation unto thee, the illimitable author of creation, destruction and preservation and the inscrutable. Be propitiated with us, O god, O great soul, most subtile of the subtile, most vast of the great; O thou, who art nature, intellect and consciousness and who art other spirit even than the spiritual root of those principles. O lord, this earth, oppressed by powerful Asuras and shaken to her very foundation, comes to thee, the upholder of the universe, to be relieved of her burden. Myself, Indra, the Aswins, Varuna, Yama, the Rudras the Vasus, the sun, the winds, fire and all other deities are prepared to do whatever thou shalt and desire us to do. Do thou, who art perfect, O king of the celestials, give thy orders to thy servants, we are ready".