Chapter 298
Janamejaya said,–“What, O Brahmana, was that great fear entertained byYudhishthira in respect of Karna, for which Lomasa had conveyed to theson of Pandu a message of deep import from Indra in these words, Thatintense fear of thine which thou dost never express to any one, I willremove after Dhananjaya goeth from hence? And, O best of ascetics, whywas it that the virtuous Yudhishthira never expressed it to any one?”
Vaisampayana said, “As thou askest me, O tiger among kings, I will relatethat history unto thee! Do thou listen to my words, O best of theBharatas! After twelve years (of their exile) had passed away and thethirteenth year had set in, Sakra, ever friendly to the sons of Pandu,resolved to beg of Karna (his ear-rings). And, O mighty monarch,ascertaining this intention of the great chief of the celestials about(Karna’s) ear-rings, Surya, having effulgence for his wealth, went untoKarna. And, O foremost of kings, while that hero devoted to the Brahmanasand truthful in speech was lying down at night at his ease on a rich bedoverlaid with a costly sheet, the effulgent deity, filled with kindnessand affection for his son, showed himself, O Bharata, unto him in hisdreams. And assuming from ascetic power the form of a handsome Brahmanaversed in the Vedas, Surya sweetly said unto Karna these words for hisbenefit, ‘O son, do thou O Karna, listen to these words of mine, O thouforemost of truthful persons! O mighty-armed one, I tell thee to-day fromaffection, what is for thy great good! With the object, O Karna, ofobtaining thy ear-rings, Sakra, moved by the desire of benefiting thesons of Pandu, will come unto thee, disguised as a Brahmana! He, as Wellas all the world, knoweth thy character, viz., that when solicited bypious people, thou givest away but never takest in gift! Thou, O son,givest unto Brahmanas wealth or any other thing that is asked of thee andnever refusest anything to anybody. Knowing thee to be such, the subduerhimself of Paka will come to beg of thee thy ear-rings and coat of mail.When he beggeth the ear-rings of thee, it behoveth thee not to give themaway, but to gratify him with sweet speeches to the best of thy power.Even this, is for thy supreme good! While asking thee for the ear-rings,thou shalt, with various reasons, repeatedly refuse Purandara who isdesirous of obtaining them, offering him, instead, various other kinds ofwealth, such as gems and women and kine, and citing various precedents.If thou, O Kama, givest away thy beautiful ear-rings born with thee, thylife being shortened, thou wilt meet with death! Arrayed in thy mail andear-rings, thou wilt, O bestower of honours, be incapable of being slainby foes in battle! Do thou lay to heart these words of mine! Both thesejewelled ornaments have sprung from Amrita. Therefore, they should bepreserved by thee, if thy life is at all dear to thee.”
“Hearing these words, Kama said, ‘Who art thou that tellest me so,showing me such kindness? If it pleaseth thee, tell me, O illustriousone, who thou art in the guise of a Brahmana!’–The Brahmana thereuponsaid, ‘O son, I am he of a thousand rays! Out of affection, I point outto thee the path! Act thou according to my words, as it is for thy greatgood to do so!’ Kama replied, ‘Surely, this itself is highly fortunatefor me that the god himself of splendour addresses me today, seeking mywelfare. Listen, however, to these words of mine! May it please thee, Obestower of boons, it is only from affection that I tell thee this! If Iam dear to thee, I should not be dissuaded from the observance of my vow!O thou that are possessed of the wealth of effulgence, the whole worldknoweth this to be my vow that, of a verity, I am prepared to give awaylife itself unto superior Brahmanas! If, O best of all rangers of thesky, Sakra cometh to me, disguised as a Brahmana, to beg for the benefitof the sons of Pandu, I will, O chief of the celestials, give him theear-rings and the excellent mail, so that my fame which hath spread overthe three worlds may not suffer any diminution! For persons like us, itis not fit to save life by a blame-worthy act. On the contrary, it iseven proper for us to meet death with the approbation of the world andunder circumstances bringing fame. Therefore, will I bestow upon Indrathe ear-rings with my coat of mail! If the slayer himself of Vala andVritra cometh to ask for the ear-rings for the benefit of the sons ofPandu, that will conduce to my fame, leading at the same time to hisinfamy! O thou possessed of splendour, I wish for fame in this world,even if it is to be purchased with life itself, for they that have fameenjoy the celestial regions, while they that are destitute of it arelost. Fame keepeth people alive in this world even like a mother, whileinfamy killeth men even though they may move about with bodiesundestroyed. O lord of the worlds, O thou possessed of the wealth ofeffulgence, that fame is the life of men is evidenced by an ancient slokasung by the Creator himself,–In the next world it is fame that is thechief support of a person, while in this world pure fame lengthens life.Therefore, by giving away my ear-rings and mail with both of which I wasborn I will win eternal fame! And by duly giving away the same toBrahmanas according to the ordinance, by offering up my body (as a giftto the gods) in the sacrifice of war, by achieving feats difficult ofperformance, and by conquering my foes in fight, I will acquire nothingbut renown. And by dispelling on the field of battle the fears of theaffrighted that may beg for their lives, and relieving old men and boysand Brahmanas from terror and anxiety, I will win excellent fame and thehighest heaven. My fame is to be protected with the sacrifice of even mylife. Even this, know thou, is my vow! By giving away such a valuablegift to Maghavan disguised as a Brahmana, I will, O god, acquire in thisworld the most exalted state.'”
