“Vaisampayana said, ‘Bowing down in the first place to my preceptor withthe eight parts of my body touching the ground, with devotion andreverence, and with all my heart, worshipping the whole assembly ofBrahmanas and other learned persons, I shall recite in full what I haveheard from the high-souled and great Rishi Vyasa, the first ofintelligent men in the three worlds.
Janamejaya said, “After his defeat and capture by the foe and hissubsequent liberation by the illustrious sons of Pandu by force of arms,it seemeth to me that the entry into
“Vyasa said, ‘Unto a disciple that wishes to enquire after Emancipationafter having transcended all pairs of opposites and accomplished theconcerns of both profit and religion, an accomplished preceptor shouldfirst recount all that has been said in the foregoing section, which iselaborate, on the topic of Adhyatma.
Sanjaya said, “Then the noble Abhimanyu of great energy, borne by hissteeds of a tawny hue, rushed at the mighty host of Duryodhana,scattering his arrowy showers like the clouds pouring torrents of rain.
“Janamejaya said, ‘O excellent Brahmana, thou hast, indeed, told me, inbrief, the history, called Mahabharata, of the great acts of the Kurus.But, O thou of ascetic wealth, recite now that wonderful narration fully.I feel a great curiosity to hear it.
Vaisampayana said, “Then that mighty bowman of blazing splendour, Arjuna,smilingly said unto Chitrasena in the midst of the Gandharva host, ‘Whatpurpose dost thou serve, O hero, in punishing the Kauravas? O, why alsohath Suyodhana with his wives been thus punished?’
“Vyasa said, ‘Those that are conversant with the scriptures behold, withthe aid of acts laid down in the scriptures, the Soul which is clothed ina subtile body and is exceedingly subtile and which is dissociated fromthe gross body in which it resides.
Dhritarashtra said, “How, O Sanjaya, did Alamvusha resist in combat theheroic son of Arjuna smiting many of our mighty car-warriors in battle?
“Vaisampayana said, ‘There was a king of the name of Uparichara. Thatmonarch was devoted to virtue. He was very much addicted also to hunting.That king of the Paurava race, called also Vasu, conquered the excellentand delightful kingdom of Chedi under instructions from Indra. Some timeafter, the king gave up the use of arms and, dwelling in a secludedretreat, practised the most severe austerities.
Vaisampayana said, “Then those Gandharvas decked in golden garlands andaccomplished in celestial weapons, showing their blazing shafts,encountered the Pandavas from every side.
