Chapter 258

Yudhishthira said, “Why did that high-souled one give away a drona ofcorn? And, O eminently pious one, to whom and in what prescribed way didhe give it? Do thou tell me this. Surely, I consider the life of thatvirtuous person as having borne fruit with whose practices the possessorhimself of the six attributes, witnessing everything, was well pleased.”

“Vyasa said, ‘There lived, O king, in Kurukshetra a virtuous man (sage),Mudgala by name. And he was truthful, and free from malice, and ofsubdued senses. And he used to lead the Sila and Unchha modes oflife.[86] And although living like a pigeon, yet that one of mightyausterities entertained his guests, celebrated the sacrifice calledIstikrita, and performed other rites. And that sage together with his sonand wife, ate for a fortnight, and during the other fortnight led thelife of a pigeon, collecting a drona of corn. And celebrating the Darsaand Paurnamasya sacrifices, that one devoid of guile, used to pass hisdays by taking the food that remained after the deities and the guestshad eaten. And on auspicious lunar days, that lord of the three worlds,Indra himself, accompanied by the celestials used, O mighty monarch, topartake of the food offered at his sacrifice. And that one, havingadopted the life of a Muni, with a cheerful heart entertained his guestsalso with food on such days. And as that high-souled one distributed hisfood with alacrity, the remainder of the drona of corn increased as soonas a guest appeared. And by virtue of the pure spirit in which the sagegave a way, that food of his increased so much that hundreds uponhundreds of learned Brahmanas were fed with it.

“And, O king, it came to pass that having heard of the virtuous Mudgalaobservant of vows, the Muni Durvasa, having space alone for hiscovering,[87] his accoutrements worn like that of maniac, and his headbare of hair, came there, uttering, O Pandava various insulting words.And having arrived there that best of Munis said unto the Brahmana. ‘Knowthou, O foremost of Brahmanas, that I have come hither seeking for food.Thereupon Mudgala said unto the sage, ‘Thou art welcome!’ And thenoffering to that maniac of an ascetic affected by hunger, water to washhis feet and mouth, that one observant of the vow of feeding guests,respectfully placed before him excellent fare. Affected by hunger, thefrantic Rishi completely exhausted the food that had been offered untohim. Thereupon, Mudgala furnished him again with food. Then having eatenup all that food, he besmeared his body with the unclean orts and wentaway as he had come. In this manner, during the next season, he cameagain and ate up all the food supplied by that wise one leading theUnchha mode of life. Thereupon, without partaking any food himself, thesage Mudgala again became engaged in collecting corn, following theUnchha mode. Hunger could not disturb his equanimity. Nor could anger,nor guile, nor a sense of degradation, nor agitation, enter into theheart of that best of Brahmanas leading the Unchha mode of life alongwith his son and his wife. In this way, Durvasa having made up his mind,during successive seasons presented himself for six several times beforethat best of sages living according to the Unchha mode; yet that Municould not perceive any agitation in Mudgala’s heart; and he found thepure heart of the pure-souled ascetic always pure. Thereupon,well-pleased, the sage addressed Mudgala, saying, There is not anotherguileless and charitable being like thee on earth. The pangs of hungerdrive away to a distance the sense of righteousness and deprive people ofall patience. The tongue, loving delicacies, attracteth men towards them.Life is sustained by food. The mind, moreover, is fickle, and it is hardto keep it in subjection. The concentration of the mind and of the sensessurely constitutes ascetic austerities. It must be hard to renounce in apure spirit a thing earned by pains. Yet, O pious one, all this hath beenduly achieved by thee. In thy company we feel obliged and gratified.Self-restraint, fortitude, justice, control of the senses and offaculties, mercy, and virtue, all these are established in thee. Thouhast by the deeds conquered the different worlds and have therebyobtained admission into paths of beautitude. Ah! even the dwellers ofheaven are proclaiming thy mighty deeds of charity. O thou observant ofvows, thou shalt go to heaven even in thine own body.

“Whilst the Muni Durvasa was speaking thus, a celestial messengerappeared before Mudgala, upon a car yoked with swans and cranes, hungwith a neat work of bells, scented with divine fragrance, paintedpicturesquely, and possessed of the power of going everywhere at will.And he addressed the Brahmana sage, saying, ‘O sage, do thou ascend intothis chariot earned by thy acts. Thou hast attained the fruit of thyasceticism!’

“As the messenger of the gods was speaking thus, the sage told him, ‘Odivine messenger, I desire that thou mayst describe unto me theattributes of those that reside there. What are their austerities, andwhat their purposes? And, O messenger of the gods, what constituteshappiness in heaven, and what are the disadvantages thereof? It isdeclared by virtuous men of good lineage that friendship with piouspeople is contracted by only walking with them seven paces. O lord, inthe name of that friendship I ask thee, ‘Do thou without hesitation tellme the truth, and that which is good for me now. Having heard thee, Ishall, according to thy words, ascertain the course I ought to follow.'”