Chapter 300

“Yudhishthira said, ‘O grandsire, learned men praise truth,self-restraint, forgiveness, and wisdom. What is thy opinion of thesevirtues?’

“Bhishma said, ‘In this connection I shall recite to thee an oldnarrative, O Yudhishthira, of the discourse between the Sadhyas and aSwan. Once on a time the Unborn and eternal Lord of all creatures (viz.,Brahman), assuming the form of a golden Swan, wandered through the threeworlds till in course of his wanderings he came upon the Sadhyas.’

“The Sadhyas said, ‘O ford, we are the deities called Sadhyas. We like toquestion thee. Indeed, we would ask thee about the religion ofEmancipation. Thou art well-acquainted with it. We have heard, O bird,that thou art possessed of great learning, and eloquent and wise ofspeech. O bird, what dost thou think is the highest of all objects? Ohigh-souled one, in what does thy mind find pleasure? Do thou, therefore,O foremost of birds, instruct us as to what that one act is which thouregardest as the foremost of all acts, and by doing which, O chief of thefeathery creation, one may soon be freed from all bonds.’

“The Swan said, ‘Ye who have drunk Amrita, I have heard that one shouldhave recourse to these, viz., penances, self-restraint, truth, andsubjugation of the mind. Untying all the knots of the heart, one shouldalso bring under one’s control both what is agreeable and what isdisagreeable.[1576] One should not wound the vitals of others. One shouldnot be an utterer of cruel speeches. One should never take scripturallectures from a person that is mean. One should never utter such words asinflict pain on others, as cause others to burn (with misery), and aslead to hell. Wordy shafts fall from the lips. Pierced therewith one (towhom they are directed) burns incessantly. Those shafts do not strike anypart other than the very vitals of the person aimed. Hence he that ispossessed of learning should never aim them at others. If a person deeplypierces a man of wisdom with wordy shafts, the wise mart should thenadopt peace (without giving way to wrath). The man who, though sought tobe angered, rejoices without yielding to anger, taketh away from theprovoker all his merits. That man of righteous soul, who, full of joy andfreed from malice, subdues his blazing wrath which, if indulged, wouldlead him to speak ill of others and verily become his foe, takes away themerits of others. As regards myself, I never answer I when another speaksill of me. If assailed, I always forgive the assault. The righteous areof opinion that forgiveness and truth and sincerity and compassion arethe foremost (of all virtues). Truth is the arcanum of the Vedas. Thearcanum of Truth is self-restraint. The arcanum of self-restraint isEmancipation. This is the teaching of all the scriptures. I regard thatperson to be Brahmana and Muni who subjugates the rising impulse ofspeech, the impulse of wrath appearing in the mind, the impulse of thirst(after unworthy things), and the impulses of the stomach and the organ ofpleasure. One who does not yield to wrath is superior to one who does.One who practises renunciation is superior to one who does not. One whopossesses the virtues of manhood is superior to one who has them not. Onewho is endued with knowledge is superior to one who is destitute of it.Assailed with harsh speeches one should not assail in return. Indeed, onewho, under such circumstances, renounces wrath, succeeds in burning theassailant and taking away all his merits.[1577] That person who whenassailed with harsh speeches does not utter a harsh word in reply, whowhen praised does not utter what is agreeable to him that praises, who isendued with such fortitude as not to strike in return when struck and notto even wish evil to the striker, finds his companionship always covetedby the gods. He that is sinful should be forgiven as if he wererighteous, by one that is insulted, struck, and calumniated. By acting inthis way one attains to success. Though all my objects have beenfulfilled, yet I always wait reverentially on those that are righteous. Ihave no thirst. My wrath hath been suppressed. Seduced by covetousness Ido not fall away from the path of righteousness. I do not also approachany one (with solicitations) for wealth.[1578] If cursed, I do not cursein return. I know that self-restraint is the door of immortality. Idisclose unto you a great mystery. There is no status that is superior tothat of humanity. Freed from sin like the Moon from murky clouds, the manof wisdom, shining in resplendence, attains to success by patientlywaiting for his time. A person of restrained soul, who becomes the objectof adoration with all by becoming the foremost of the supporting pillarsof the universe, and towards whom only agreeable words are spoken by all,attains to the companionship of the deities. Revilers never come forwardto speak of the merits of a person as they speak of his demerits. Thatperson whose speech and mind are properly restrained and always devotedto the Supreme, succeeds in attaining to the fruits of the Vedas,Penances, and Renunciation. The man of wisdom should never revile (inreturn) those that are destitute of merit, by uttering their dispraiseand by insults. He should not extol others (being extolled by them) andshould never injure themselves. The man endued with wisdom and learningregards revilement as nectar. Reviled, he sleeps without anxiety. Thereviler, on the other hand, meets with destruction. The sacrifices thatone performs in anger, the gifts one makes in anger, the penances oneundergoes in anger, and the offerings and libations one makes to thesacred fire in anger, are such that their merits are robbed by Yama. Thetoil of an angry man becomes entirely fruitless. Ye foremost ofimmortals, that person is said to be conversant with righteousness whosefour doors, viz., the organ of pleasure, the stomach, the two arms, andspeech, are well-restrained. That person who, always practising truth andself-restraint and sincerity and compassion and patience andrenunciation, becomes devoted to the study of the Vedas, does not covetwhat belongs to others, and pursues what is good with a singleness ofpurpose, succeeds in attaining to heaven. Like a calf sucking all thefour teats of its dam’s udders, one should devote oneself to the practiceof all these virtues. I do not know whether anything exists that is moresacred than Truth. Having roved among both human beings and the deities,I declare it that Truth is the only means for reaching heaven even as aship is the only means for crossing the ocean. A person becomes likethose with whom he dwells, and like those whom he reverences, and like towhat he wishes to be. If a person waits with reverence on him who is goodor him who is otherwise, if he waits with reverence on a sage possessedof ascetic merit or on a thief, passes under his way and catches his huelike a piece of cloth catching the dye in which it is steeped. Thedeities always converse with those that are possessed of wisdom andgoodness. They, therefore, never entertain the wish for even seeing theenjoyments in which men take pleasure. The person who knows that allobjects of enjoyment (which human beings cherish) are characterised byvicissitudes, has few rivals, and is superior to the very Moon and theWind.[1579] When the Purusha that dwells in one’s heart is unstained, andwalks in the path of the righteous, the gods take a pleasure in him. Thegods from a distance cast off those that are always devoted to thegratification of their organs of pleasure and the stomach, that areaddicted to thieving, and that always indulge in harsh speeches, even ifthey expiate their offences by performing the proper rites. The gods arenever pleased with one of mean soul, with one who observes norestrictions in the matter of food, and with one who is of sinful deeds.On the other hand, the gods associate with those men that are observantof the vow of truth, that are grateful, and that are engaged in thepractice of righteousness. Silence is better than speech. To speak thetruth is better than silence. Again to speak truth that is connected withrighteousness is better than to speak the truth. To speak that which,besides being true and righteous, is agreeable, is better than to speaktruth connected with righteousness.’

“The Sadhyas said, ‘By what is this world covered? For what reason doesone fail to shine? For what cause do people cast off their friends? Forwhat reason do people fail to attain to heaven?’

“The Swan said, ‘The world is enveloped by (the darkness of) Ignorance.Men fail to shine in consequence of malice. People cast off friends,induced by covetousness. Men fail to attain to heaven in consequence ofattachment.’

“The Sadhyas said, ‘Who alone among the Brahmanas is always happy? Whoalone amongst them can observe the vow of silence though dwelling in themidst of many? Who alone amongst them, though weak, is still regarded asstrong? And who alone amongst them does not quarrel?’

“The Swan said, ‘He alone amongst the Brahmanas that is possessed ofwisdom is always happy. He alone amongst the Brahmanas that is possessedof wisdom succeeds in observing the vow of silence, though dwelling inthe midst of many. He alone amongst the Brahmanas who is possessed ofwisdom, though actually weak, is regarded as strong. He alone amongstthem that has wisdom succeeds in avoiding quarrel.'[1580]

“The Sadhyas said, ‘in what consists the divinity of the Brahmanas? Inwhat their purity? In what their impurity? And in what their status ofhumanity?’

“The Swan said, ‘In the study of the Vedas is the divinity of theBrahmanas. In their vows and observances is their purity. In obloquy istheir impurity. In death is their humanity.'[1581]

“Bhishma continued, ‘Thus have I recited to thee excellent narrative ofthe discourse between the Sadhyas (and the Swan). The body (both grossand subtile) is the origin of acts, and existence or Jiva is truth.’