Chapter 37
“Vaisampayana said,–Then the king Yudhishthira hastily ran afterSisupala and spoke unto him sweetly and in a conciliating tone thefollowing words,–‘O lord of earth, what thou hast said is scarcelyproper for thee.
O king, it is highly sinful and needlessly cruel. Insultnot Bhishma, O king, by saying that he doth not know what virtue is.Behold, these many kings, older than thou art, all approve of the worshipoffered unto Krishna. It behoveth thee to bear it patiently like them. Oruler of Chedi, Bhishma knoweth Krishna truly. Thou knowest him not sowell as this one of the Kuru race.'”
“Bhishma also, after this, said,–He that approveth not the worshipoffered unto Krishna, the oldest one in the universe, deserveth neithersoft words nor conciliation. The chief of warriors of the Kshatriya rarewho having overcome a Kshatriya in battle and brought him under hispower, setteth him free, becometh the guru (preceptor or master) of thevanquished one. I do not behold in this assembly of kings even one rulerof men who hath not been vanquished in battle by the energy of this sonof the Satwata race. This one (meaning Krishna) here, of undefiled glory,deserveth to be worshipped not by ourselves alone, but being of mightyarms, he deserveth to be worshipped by the three worlds also. Innumerablewarriors among Kshatriyas have been vanquished in battle by Krishna. Thewhole universe without limit is established in him of the Vrishni race.Therefore do we worship Krishna amongst the best and the oldest, and notothers. It behoveth thee not to say so. Let thy understanding be neverso. I have, O king, waited upon many persons that are old in knowledge. Ihave heard from all those wise men, while talking; of the numerousmuch-regarded attributes of the accomplished Sauri. I have also heardmany times all the acts recited by people that Krishna of greatintelligence hath performed since his birth. And, O king of Chedi, we donot from caprice, or keeping in view our relationship or the benefits hemay confer on us, worship Janarddana who is worshipped by the good onearth and who is the source of the happiness of every creature. We haveoffered unto him the first worship because of his fame, his heroism, hissuccess. There is none here of even tender years whom we have not takeninto consideration. Passing over many persons that are foremost for theirvirtues, we have regarded Hari as deserving of the first worship. Amongstthe Brahmanas one that is superior in knowledge, amongst the Kshatriyasone that is superior in strength, amongst the Vaisyas one that issuperior in possessions and wealth, and amongst the Sudras one that issuperior in years, deserveth to be worshipped. In the matter of theworship offered unto Govinda, there are two reason, viz., knowledge ofthe Vedas and their branches, and also excess of strength. Who else isthere in the world of men save Kesava that is so distinguished? Indeed,liberality, cleverness, knowledge of the Vedas, bravery, modesty,achievements, excellent intelligence, humility, beauty, firmness,contentment and prosperity–all dwell for ever in Achyuta. Therefore, yekings; it behoveth ye to approve of the worship that hath been offeredunto Krishna who is of great accomplishments, who as the preceptor, thefather, the guru, is worthy of the Arghya and deserving of (everybody’s)worship. Hrishikesa is the sacrificial priest, the guru, worthy of beingsolicited to accept one’s daughter in marriage, the Snataka, the king,the friend: therefore hath Achyuta been worshipped by us. Krishna is theorigin of the universe and that in which the universe is to dissolve.Indeed, this universe of mobile and immobile creatures hath sprung intoexistence from Krishna only. He is the unmanifest primal cause (AvyaktaPrakriti), the creator, the eternal, and beyond the ken of all creatures.Therefore doth he of unfading glory deserve highest worship. Theintellect, the seat of sensibility, the five elements, air, heat, water,ether, earth, and the four species of beings (oviparous, viviparous, bornof filthy damp and vegetal) are all established in Krishna. The sun, themoon, the constellations, the planets, all the principal directions, theintermediate directions, are all established in Krishna. As the Agnihotrais the foremost among all Vedic sacrifices, as the Gayatri is theforemost among metres, as the king is the foremost among men, as theocean is the foremost among all rivers, as the moon is the foremost amongall constellations, as the sun is the foremost among all luminous bodies,as the Meru is the foremost among all mountains, as Garuda is theforemost among all birds, so as long as the upward, downward, and sidewaycourse of the universe lasteth, Kesava is the foremost in all the worldsincluding the regions of the celestials. This Sisupala is a mere boy andhence he knoweth not Krishna, and ever and everywhere speaketh of Krishnathus. This ruler of Chedi will never see virtue in that light in whichone that is desirous of acquiring high merit will see it. Who is thereamong the old and the young or among these illustrious lords of earththat doth not regard Krishna as deserving of worship or that doth notworship Krishna? If Sisupala regardeth this worship as undeserved, itbehoveth him to do what is proper in this matter.'”
