48 - The story of Bharata

Narada said: 

1. O blessed one, the antidote for the three types of distress has been heard by me. Still my mind is confused. It does not attain proper stability, easily.

2. O Brahmana, how can the sinful transgression against one's own self committed by wicked men, be tolerated by men? O bestower of honour, recount it to me.

Suta said:

3. On hearing what has been spoken by Narada, Sunandana, the son of Brahma, remembered the activities of Bharata. With great delight he said:

Sanandana said:

4. In this context, I shall tell you the ancient traditional story on hearing which your confused mind shall attain great stability.

5. O excellent sage, formerly, there was a king named Bharata. He was the son of Rushabha. This sub-continent is named Bharatakhanda after him.

6. After attaining the kingdom belonging to his father and grandfather in due succession, he protected it righteously. He delighted the subjects like their father.

7. He performed various kinds of sacrifices and worshipped Lord Vishnu, the embodiment of all Devas. He meditated upon him with the mind centering round him in the course of carrying out different activities.

8. He procreated sons. He was unattached to sensuous objects. The learned king left the kingdom and went to the hermitage of Pulastya and Pulaha.

9-10a. He went to the great holy centre Salagrama frequented by people desirous of liberation. O sage, he became an ascetic and performed the propitiation of Vishnu with great devotion, rendering service (unto the Lord) with things obtained by him.

10b-11a. O Narada, every day in the morning he plunged into the pure clear water and prayed to the Sun with devotion muttering the Supreme syllable expressive of the Brahman (i.e., Om or Gayatri).

11b-13a. He then returned to the hermitage. With great purity and devotional piety, he worshipped Vasudeva the Lord of the universe with the materials of worship such as sacrificial twigs, Kusha grass, clay, etc. brought by himself. He worshipped with fruits, flowers, leaves of Tulasi and clear water.

13b-14a. On one occasion, that highly blessed king took his ablution in the River Cakra. With great purity and attention, he stayed in the water performing Japa for three Muhurtas.

14b-15a. O Brahmana, a thirsty hind who was about to be delivered of a young one, came to the bank from the forest, in order to drink water.

15b-16a. As she had almost completed drinking the water, there arose the great roaring sound of a lion which was frightful to all living beings.

16b-17a. On hearing the roaring sound of the lion, the hind leapt to the bank of the river. While she was climbing the steep side of the bank, the foetus fell down into the river.

17b-18a. Bharata caught hold of the fawn that fell off from its mother's womb and was carried away is the forceful current and the waves of the river.

18b-19a. O leading sage, due to the misery on account of the fall of the foetus and the steep ascent, that hind fell down dead.

19b-22. On seeing the hind dead in the tragic circum-stances, the royal saint took up the fawn and brought it to his hermitage. The king nurtured the young one of the hind day by day. O sage, nourished by him, it duly grew up. At first the fawn used to graze at the outskirts of the hermitage. Then it went to the forest, it went far into the forest but, afraid of tigers, it returned soon. After some time, it used to go very far into the forest in the morning and return to the hermitage in the evening.

23-24a. Bharata kept it inside the hut in the hermitage during nights. His mind became highly involved with the deer-fawn that used to be near him or away from him by turns. O sage, his mind was not so much drawn towards Vishnu.

24b-25a. Remember that he had abandoned his kingdom and even sons; that he had eschewed all connections with his kinsmen. Still, he had great affection (feeling of kinship) with the fawn.

25b-26. When the fawn was away from the hermitage for a long time, his mind was agitated by various doubts such as, “Has it been devoured by the wolves?” “Have tigers seized upon it?” “Has it been struck down by the lion?” When the fawn was by his side his face was bright with delight and love.

27. As his mind was attracted by the feelings of 'myness', his Samadhis (trances and concentration) became disturbed often. After some time, the king died.

28. At the time of passing away, he was looking at the fawn. Like a father by the son, he was looked at by the fawn with tears in its eyes.

29. O sage, since his mental fancy was of that nature, he was born as a deer- O excellent Brahmana. Since he had the faculty of remembering previous births, he became unenamoured of worldly existence.

30. He left off his mother (i.e., the mind) and went to Salagrama. He nourished himself by means of dry leaves and grass.

31. Thus he expiated for the evil action that had been the cause of his birth as a fawn. Having left off his body, he was born again as a Brahmana who had the faculty of remembering his previous births.

32. He was born in a leading, pure family of Yogins of good conduct. He was richly endowed with all knowledge. He was conversant with all principles and topics in the scriptural texts.

33-34. That excellent sage perceived his own Atman beyond Prakrti. O great sage, thanks to the knowledge of Atman that he had acquired, that highly intelligent one saw Devas and others, nay, all living beings, without any difference. He was invested with the sacred thread, but he did not repeat the Vedic text as uttered by his preceptor.

35. He did not observe holy rites. He did not learn scriptural texts. When he was addressed many times, he made some stupid irrational statement.

36. Even that speech lacked in qualities of cultural refinement. It was often uttered in vulgar rustic language. O sage, accursed in body, he was always clad in dirty clothes.

37-40. Saliva oozed from the interstices of his teeth. He was always harassed by citizens. He used to remember the words of Hiranyagarbha (or Brahma*) as follows: “Excess of respect affects the prosperity of Yoga. A Yogin dishonoured by the people achieves Yogic power. Hence, a Yogin should perform holy rites of good men without defiling them. He should so perform them that the people should begin to disrespect him and avoid associating with him.” The highly intelligent one thus thought of the words of Hiranyagarbha, and showed himself to the public as one with sluggish features and of unsound mind. He regularly ate cakes made of Kulmāşha grain, vegetables and fruits from the forests.

* An ancient teacher of Yoga-Shastra.

41-42a. He ate whatever he got and whenever it happened. When his father passed away, he was compelled to work in the fields by his brothers, nephews and other kinsmen.

42b-43a. All his limbs became stout, though he was fed on rotten food. He became a sluggish worker. With food for his wages, he helped the whole world.

43b-44a. (On seeing) him so unrefined but having the features and activities of a Brahmana, a charioteer of the Sauvira¹ king considered him worthy of being taken as an unpaid labourer.

1.     Variously identified with Eder (N. Gujarat), Upper Sindh, Multan (Alberuni)-N.L.De. accepts the last, De, p. 183.

44b-45a. O Brahmana, that king was seated in a palanquin. He was thinking of going to the excellent hermitage of sage Kapila on the banks of Ikşhumati river.¹

45b-46. He wanted to ask the great sage Kapila who was well learned in the topic of virtues leading to salvation, as follows-”What is it that is conducive to the welfare of men in this world which is mostly full of miseries.” On being urged by the words of the charioteer, he carried his palanquin.

47. O Brahmana, he, the sole receptacle of all knowledge, was taken as an unpaid labourer. He was one among other men who too were unpaid labourers.

48. Endowed with the faculty of remembering events of past lives, he bore the palanquin as he was desirous of wiping off his sins. He, the most excellent one among the intelligent men, slowly walked ahead gazing at the yoke of the palanquin.

49-50a. The other bearers walked quickly. On observing the irregular movement of the palanquin, the king said “O palanquin-bearers! What is this? Go ahead at even step.”

50b-51. Again, the movement of the palanquin was irregular. The king laughed and asked thein, “what is this? You are moving otherwise!” When the king (mildly rebuked) them many times, the palanquin-bearers said “This fellow does not thus move quickly.”

The king said:

52. “Are you tired? You have borne the palanquin only for a short distance. Are you not used to strenuous work? Aren't you seen a bulky fellow?”

The Brahmana said:

53. “I am not stout. Your palanquin has not been borne by me. I am not tired. I have no fatigue or trouble. O lord of the earth, the bearer is another one.”

The king said:

54. “You are actually seen to be stout. The palanquin is still above you. Fatigue in carrying a load occurs to embodied beings (as they have to exert and carry the load).

The Brahmana said:

55. “O king, tell me what you have directly perceived. The qualifications of strong or weak may be added afterwards.

56. This is a false statement-”The palanquin is borne by you. The palanquin is still above you.” All this is false, O Sir, listen to my words now.

57. The two feet are on the ground. The shanks rest on the pair of feet. The thighs are on the pair of shanks. The belly has the support of the pair of thighs and hips.

58. 'The chest, the arms and the shoulders rest on the belly. This palanquin is supported by the shoulders. How can it be said that I am the support?

59. The body designated as “you' is stationed within the palanquin. “You are there. I am here”. This is also a wrongly put statement.

60. O king, you, I, and the others are to be borne by the elements; the whole class of living beings (and the elements) are fallen in the current of the Gunas.

61. O Lord of the earth, these-sattva and other Gunas are subject to the control of Karmans. The Karman accumulated due to ignorance is present in all creatures.

62. The Atman is pure, imperishable and quiescent. It is devoid of Gunas. It is beyond Prakrti. The Atman alone abides in all creatures but he has no increase (fatness) or decrease (slimness).

63. O king, when there is neither increase nor decrease, it was childish ignorance (that prompted you to say I am stout). On what basis was it uttered by you?

64-66. (Defective) This palanquin rests equally on the ground pair of feet, shanks, thighs, hips, belly and other things as well as on the shoulders. When the burden is equal, O king, the palanquin is not borne by you or the other creatures alone. A great burden originating from mountains, trees or houses nay, from the whole earth has to be borne by you and by me. As the Purusha has distinctness (separate existence) from the sense organs which are the products of Prakrti what heavy load is to be borne by me, O King. O King the Purusha is separated from the sense organs produced from Prakruti [?]

67. The material that constitutes this palanpuin is a conglomeration of all elements, grown large equally in regard to you, me or the entire world.

Sanandana said:

68. After saying this the Brahmana who was bearing the palanquin became silent. Thereupon the king hurriedly got down to the ground and touched his feet.

The King said: - 

69. O Brahmin, be pleased with me. Leave off the palanquin. May it be revealed to me who you are, in the guise of a low and degraded man.

70. I am eager to serve you. O learned one, may everything be mentioned by you, viz-- who you are, whose son you are and what the reason for coming here is?

The Brahmin said: -

71-73. May it be heard, O king. It cannot be explained who I am. Everywhere the action of arrival is prompted by some utility [enjoyment of pleasures]. The enjoyment of pleasures and the experience of miseries is accomplished through the body, etc. A creature attains the body, etc. in order to experience the outcome of Dharma and Adharma, O king, everywhere, in the case of every creature the reason is Dharma or Adharma. Hence, how is it that the reason is being asked?

The king said: -

74. There is no doubt in this that Dharma or Adharma is the cause of all effects. The transmigration from one body to another is for experiencing pleasure or pain.

75. As to your statement that it cannot be said who am I in regard to the Atman, I wish to state as follows.

76. O brahmin, how is it that it is not possible to say “I am he who exists. O twice-born, the word Aham (I) refers to the Atman and not to the body. *

*For doşhăya in this and the next verse read dehaya.

The Brahmin said: -

77. The word Aham refers to the body and not to the Atman. The mistaken identity of the Atman with the non-Atman may be due to the secondary sense of the word (or the effect of hearing).

78-79. It is the tongue, teeth, lips and palate, O king that say Aham (I). All of them must be meant by Aham [I] since all of them have been the cause of utterance. For what purpose does the tongue say of its own accord the word 'I'. Nor it is cogent to say aham means 'I am the tongue; I am the speech'. Is the utterance “I am” made through proper cause? Still, it is not correct to say that I am the speech [?]

80. O king, the physical body characterised by the head, hands. etc. is separate from the Purusha. Hence, where shall I fix the term Aham?

81. If there be any other person than I, O excellent king, I am not the body even if others wish to speak of it.

82. When, only one Purusha is present in all bodies it. is futile to say, “Who are you?” “Who ain l', etc.

83. “You are the king.” “This is the palanquin.” “We are the bearers going ahead.” “This is your world”. O king, it is not the reality to say thus.

84. A log of wood is obtained from a tree. From that this palanquin is fashioned out—this palanquin Occupied by you. O king, is it termed as a tree or a log of wood?

85. “The people do not say, “The great king is seated on the tree” when you are riding in the palanquin nor do they say that you are sitting on a log of wood.

86. The palanquin and the mass of log --each has its name and situation. O excellent king, may the palanquin that gives you delight be pondered over by you.

87. Similarly, the separate nature of the umbrella from the ribs may be considered. Wherefrom is the umbrella born?” This argument is applicable both to you and to me.

88. Man, woman, cow, goat, horse, elephant, bird, tree etc-it should be known that these are the terms given to bodies in the world, the bodies caused by Karmans.

89. The Being (Purusha) is neither a deva nor a man, nor an animal nor a tree. O king, these are different shapes of physical bodies originating from Karmans.

90. O king, the object that is called a king in the world or the object that is called 'king's soldier' or any other object is not true. It is sheer imagination.

91. What is that object which perishes after sometime? O king, what is the object that is evolved after transformation?

92. You are the king for the whole world, son to your father, enemy to your enemy, husband to your queen, father to your son. O king what shall I say? Who are you?

93. Who are you? This head? Or, does the head belong to you? Who are you? this belly? Or does the belly belong to you? O lord of the earth, are you the foot, etc? Don't they belong to you?

94. You are separated from all limbs, O king, ponder carefully on the topic 'Who am I?'

95. When the real situation is this, how can what should be evolved out of separate foot etc. be conceived as 'By me' I etc, O king [?]