Chapter 43

“Bhishma said, ‘Beholding his disciple returned from his mission,Devasarman of great energy addressed him in words which I shall recite tothee O king!’

“Davasarman said, ‘What hast thou seen, O Vipula, in course of thyprogress, O disciple, through the great forest’ ‘They whom thou hast seenknew thee, O Vipula. I, as also my spouse Ruchi, know how thou hadstacted in the matter of protecting Ruchi.’

“Vipula said, ‘O regenerate Rishi, who are those two whom I first saw?Who also are those other six whom I saw subsequently? All of them knowme: who, indeed, are they to whom thou alludest in thy speech to me?’

“Devasarman said, The first couple, O regenerate one, whom thou sawest,are Day and Night. They are ceaselessly moving like a circle. Both ofthem know the transgression of which thou hast been guilty, those othermen (six in number) whom, O learned Brahmana, thou sawest playingcheerfully at dice, are the six Seasons. They also are acquainted withthy transgressions. Having committed a sin in secrecy, no sinful manshould cherish the assuring thought that his transgression is known onlyto himself and not to any one else. When a man perpetrates a sinful deedin secret, the Seasons as also Day and Night behold it always. Thoseregions that are reserved for the sinful shall be thine (for what thouhast done) What thou hadst done thou didst not tell me. That thy sin wasnot known to any one, was thy belief, and this conviction had filled theewith joy. Thou didst not inform the preceptor of the whole truth,choosing to hide from him a material portion. The Seasons, and Day andNight, whom thou hast heard speak in that strain, thought it proper toremind thee of thy transgression. Day and Night and the Seasons are everconversant of all the good and the bad deeds that are in a man. Theyspoke to thee in that way, O regenerate one, because they have fullknowledge of what thou hadst done but which thou hadst not the courage toinform me of, fearing thou hadst done wrong. For this reason thoseregions that are reserved for the sinful will be thine as much. Thoudidst not tell me what thou hadst done. Thou weft fully capable, Oregenerate one, of protecting my spouse whose disposition by nature, issinful. In doing what thou didst, thou didst not commit any sin. I was,for this, gratified with thee! O best of Brahmanas, if I had known theeto have acted wickedly, I would without hesitation, have cursed thee.Women become united with men. Such union is very desirable with men. Thouhadst, however, protected my wife in a different spirit. If thou hadstacted otherwise, a curse would have been uttered upon thee. Even this iswhat I think. Thou hadst O son, protected my spouse. The manner in whichthou didst it hath now become known to me as if thou hadst thyselfinformed me of it. I have, O son, become gratified with thee. Relieved ofall anxiety, thou shalt go to heaven!’ Having said these words untoVipula, the great Rishi Devasarman, ascended to heaven with his wife andhis disciple and began to pass his time there in great happiness. Incourse of conversation, O king, on a former occasion, the great asceticMarkandeya had narrated to me this history on the banks of the Ganga. I,therefore, recite to thee. Women should always be protected by thee (fromtemptations and opportunities of every kind). Amongst them both kinds areto be seen, that is, those that are virtuous and those that are not so.Those women that are virtuous are highly blessed. They are the mothers ofthe universe (for they it is that cherish all creatures on every side).They, it is, O king, that uphold the earth with all her waters andforests. Those women that are sinful, that are of wicked behaviour, thatare the destroyers of their races, and that are wedded to sinfulresolves, are capable of being ascertained by indications, expressive ofthe evil that is in them, which appear, O king, on their bodies. It iseven thus that high-souled persons are capable of protecting women. Theycannot, O tiger among kings, be protected in any other way. Women, Ochief of men, are fierce. They are endued with fierce prowess. They havenone whom they love or like so much as they that have sexual congresswith them. Women are like those (Atharvan) incantations that aredestructive of life. Even after they have consented to live with one,they are prepared to abandon him for entering into engagements withothers. They are never satisfied with one person of the opposite sex, Oson of Pandu! Men should feel no affection for them. Nor should theyentertain any jealousy on account of them, O king! having a regard onlyfor the considerations of virtue, men should enjoy their society, notwith enthusiasm and attachment but with reluctance and absence ofattachment. By acting otherwise, a man is sure to meet with destruction,O delighter of the Kurus. Reason is respected at all times and under allcircumstances. Only one man, viz., Vipula, had succeeded in protectingwoman. There is none else, O king, in the three worlds who is capable ofprotecting women.'”