Chapter 204

Vaisampayana said, “O thou foremost of the Bharata race, king Yudhisthirathen asked the illustrious Markandeya a difficult question aboutmorality, saying, ‘I desire to hear, O holy one, about the high andexcellent virtue of women. I desire to hear from thee, O Brahmana,discourse about the subtle truths of morality. O regenerate Rishi, O bestof men, the Sun, the Moon, the Wind, the Earth, the Fire, the father, themother, the preceptor–these and other objects ordained by the gods,appear to us as Deities embodied! All these that are reverend ones areworthy of our best regard. So also is the woman who adoreth one lord. Theworship that chaste wives offer unto their husbands appeareth to me to befraught with great difficulty. O adorable one, it behoveth thee todiscourse to us of the high and excellent virtue of chaste wives–ofwives who restraining all their senses and keeping their hearts undercomplete control regard their husbands as veritable gods. O holy andadorable one, all this appears to me to be exceedingly difficult ofaccomplishment. O regenerate one, the worship that sons offer to theirmothers and fathers and that wives offer to their husbands, both seem tome to be highly difficult. I do not behold anything that is moredifficult than the severe virtue of chaste women. O Brahmana, the dutiesthat women of good behaviour discharge with care and the conduct that ispursued by good sons towards their fathers and mothers appear to me to bemost difficult of performance. Those women that are each devoted to butone lord, they that always speak the truth, they that undergo a period ofgestation for full ten months–there is nothing, O Brahmana, that is moredifficult than that is done by these. O worshipful one, women bring forththeir offspring with great hazard to themselves and great pain and reartheir children, O bull among Brahmanas, with great affection! Thosepersons also who being always engaged in acts of cruelty and there byincurring general hatred, succeed yet in doing their duties accomplishwhat, in my opinion, is exceedingly difficult. O regenerate one, tell methe truths of the duties of the Kshatriya order. It is difficult, Otwice-born one, for those high-souled ones to acquire virtue who by theduties of their order are obliged to do what is cruel. O holy one, thouart capable of answering all questions; I desire to hear thee discourseon all this. O thou foremost of Bhrigu’s race, I desire to listen to allthis, waiting respectfully on thee, O thou of excellent vows!’

“Markandeya said, ‘O thou foremost of the Bharata race, I will discourseto thee on all this truly, however difficult of answer thy question maybe. Listen to me, therefore, as I speak unto thee. Some regard the motheras superior and some the father. The mother, however, that bringeth forthand some the father. The mother, however, that bringeth forth and rearethup offspring what is more difficult. Fathers also, by ascetic penances byworship of the gods, by adorations addressed to them, by bearing cold andheat, by incantations and other means desire to have children. And havingby these painful expedients obtained children that are so difficult ofacquisition, they then, O hero, are always anxious about the future oftheir sons and, O Bharata, both the father and the mother desire to seein their sons fame and achievements and prosperity and offspring andvirtue. That son is virtuous who realises these hopes of his parents.And, O great king, that son with whom the father and the mother aregratified, achieveth eternal fame and eternal virtue both here andthereafter. As regards women again, neither sacrifice nor sraddhas, norfasts are of any efficacy. By serving their husbands only they can winheaven. O king, O Yudhishthira, remembering this alone, listen thou withattention to the duties of chaste women.”