(-vadha Parva continued)
" said, 'On hearing these words of her afflicted parents, the daughter was filled with grief, and she addressed them, saying, 'Why are you so afflicted and why do you so weep, as if you have none to look after you? O, listen to me and do what may be proper. There is little doubt that you are bound in duty to abandon me at a certain time. Sure to abandon me once, O, abandon me now and save every thing at the expense of me alone. Men desire to have children, thinking that children would save them (in this world as well as in the region hereafter). O, cross the stream of your difficulties by means of my poor self, as if I were a raft. A child rescueth rescues his parents in this and the other regions; therefore is the child called by the learned Putra (rescuer). The ancestors desire daughter's sons from me (as a special means of salvation). But (without waiting for my children) I myself will rescue them by protecting the life of my father. This my brother is of tender years, so there is little doubt that he will perish if thou you diest die now. If thou you, my father, diest die and my brother followeth follows thee you, the funeral cake of the Pitris will be suspended and they will be greatly injured. Left behind by my father and brother, and by my mother also (for she will not survive her husband and son) I shall be plunged deeper and deeper in woe and ultimately perish in great distress. There can be little doubt that if thou you escape from this danger as also my mother and infant brother, then thy your race and the (ancestral) cake will be perpetuated. The son is one's own self; the wife is one's friend; the daughter, however, is the source of trouble. Do thou you save thyself, therefore, by removing that source of trouble, and do thou you thereby set me in the path of virtue. As I am a girl, O father, destitute of thee you, I shall be helpless and plunged in woe, and shall have to go everywhere. It is therefore that I am resolved to rescue my father's race and share the merit of that act by accomplishing this difficult task. If thou you, O best of Brahmanas, goest go thither there (unto to the Rakshasa), leaving me here, then I shall be very much pained. Therefore, O father, be kind to me. O thou you best of men, for our sake, for that of virtue and also thy your race, save thyself, abandoning me, whom at one time thou you shall be constrained to part from. There need be no delay, O father, in doing that which is inevitable. What can be more painful than that, when thou you hast have ascended to heaven, we shall have to go about begging our food, like dogs, from strangers. But if thou you art rescued with thy your relations from these difficulties, I shall then live happily in the region of the celestials. It hath has been heard by us that if after bestowing thy your daughter in this way, thou you offerest offer oblations to the gods and the celestials, they will certainly be propitious.'
" continued, 'The Brahmana and his wife, hearing these various lamentations of their daughter, became sadder than before and the three began to weep together. Their son, then, of tender years, beholding them and their daughter thus weeping together, lisped these words in a sweet tone, his eyes having dilated with delight, 'Weep not, O father, nor thou you, O mother, nor thou you O sister!' And smilingly did the child approach each of them, and at last taking up a blade of grass said in glee, 'With this will I slay the Rakshasa who eateth eats human beings!' Although all of them had been plunged in woe, yet hearing what the child lisped so sweetly, joy appeared on their faces. Then thinking that to be the proper opportunity, approached the group and said these words. Indeed, her words revived them as nectar reviveth revives a person that is dead.'"
(-vadha Parva continued)
' said, 'I desire to learn from you the cause of this grief, for I will remove it, if possible.'
"The Brahmana replied, 'O thou you of ascetic wealth, thy your speech is, indeed worthy of thee you. But this grief is incapable of being removed by any human being. Not far from this town, there liveth lives a Rakshasa of the name of , which cannibal is the lord of this country and town. Thriving on human flesh, that wretched Rakshasa endued with great strength ruleth rules this country. He being the chief of the Asuras, this town and the country in which it is situate are protected by his might. We have no fear from the machinations of any enemy, or indeed from any living soul. The fee, however, fixed for that cannibal is his food, which consists of a cart-load of rice, two buffaloes, and a human being who conveyeth conveys them unto to him. One after another, the house-holders have to send him this food. The turn, however, cometh comes to a particular family at intervals of many long years. If there are any that seek to avoid it, the Rakshasa slayeth slays them with their children and wives and devoureth devours them all. There is, in this country, a city called Vetrakiya, where liveth lives the king of these territories. He is ignorant of the science of government, and possessed of little intelligence, he adopts not with care any measure by which these territories may be rendered safe for all time to come. But we certainly deserve it all, inasmuch as we live within the dominion of that wretched and weak monarch in perpetual anxiety. Brahmanas can never be made to dwell permanently within the dominions of any one, for they are dependent on nobody, they live rather like birds ranging all countries in perfect freedom. It hath has been said that one must secure a (good) king, then a wife, and then wealth. It is by the acquisition of these three that one can rescue his relatives and sons. But as regards the acquisition of these three, the course of my actions hath has been the reverse. Hence, plunged into a sea of danger, am suffering sorely. That turn, destructive of one's family, hath has now devolved upon me. I shall have to give unto to the Rakshasa as his fee the food of the aforesaid description and one human being to boot. I have no wealth to buy a man with. I cannot by any means consent to part with any one of my family, nor do I see any way of escape from (the clutches of) that Rakshasa. I am now sunk in an ocean of grief from which there is no escape. I shall go to that Rakshasa today, attended by all my family in order that that wretch might devour us all at once'"
(-vadha Parva continued)
" said, Grieve not at all, O Brahmana, on account of this danger. I see a way by which to rescue thee you from that Rakshasa. Thou you hast have only one son, who, besides, is of very tender years, also only one daughter, young and helpless, so I do not like that any of these, or thy your wife, or even thyself should go unto to the Rakshasa. I have five sons, O Brahmana, let one of them go, carrying in thy your behalf tribute of that Rakshasa.'
"Hearing this, the Brahmana replied, 'To save my own life I shall never suffer this to be done. I shall never sacrifice, to save myself, the life of a Brahmana or of a guest. Indeed, even those that are of low origin and of sinful practices refuse to do (what thou you askest ask me to do). It is said that one should sacrifice one's self and one's offspring for the benefit of a Brahmana. I regard this advice excellent and I like to follow it too. When I have to choose between the death of a Brahmana and that of my own, I would prefer the latter. The killing of a Brahmana is the highest sin, and there is no expiation for it. I think a reluctant sacrifice of one's own self is better than the reluctant sacrifice of a Brahmana. O blessed lady, in sacrificing myself I do not become guilty of self-destruction. No sin can attach to me when another will take my life. But if I deliberately consent to the death of a Brahmana, it would be a cruel and sinful act, from the consequence of which there is no escape. The learned have said that the abandonment of one who hath has come to thy your house or sought thy your protection, as also the killing of one who seeketh seeks death at thy your hands, is both cruel and sinful. The illustrious among those conversant with practices allowable in seasons of distress, have before now said that one should never perform an act that is cruel and censurable. It is well for me that I should today perish myself with my wife, but I would never sanction the death of a Brahmana.'
" said, 'I too am firmly of opinion, O Brahmana, that Brahmanas should ever be protected. As regards myself, no son of mine would be less dear to me even if I had a hundred instead of the five I have. But this Rakshasa will not be able to kill my son, for that son of mine is endued with great prowess and energy, and skilled in mantras. He will faithfully deliver to the Rakshasa his food, but will, I know to a certainty, rescue himself. I have seen before many mighty Rakshasas of huge bodies engaged in combat with my heroic son and killed too by him. But, O Brahmana, do not disclose this fact to anybody, for if it be known, persons desirous of obtaining this power, will, from curiosity, always trouble my sons. The wise have said that if my son imparteth imparts any knowledge, without the assent of his preceptor, unto to any person, my son himself will no longer be able to profit by that knowledge.'
"Thus addressed by , the Brahmana with his wife became exceedingly glad and assented to 's speech, which was unto to them as nectar. Then , accompanied by the Brahmana, went unto to the son of () and asked him to accomplish (that difficult task). replied unto to them, saying, 'So be it.'"
(-vadha Parva continued)
" said, 'After had pledged himself to accomplish the task, saying, 'I will do it,' the Pandavas, O Bharata, returned home with the alms they had obtained during the day. Then , the son of from 's countenance alone, suspected the nature of the task he had undertaken to accomplish. Sitting by the side of his mother, asked her in private, 'What is the task, O mother, that of terrible prowess seeketh seeks to accomplish? Doth does he do so at thy your command or of his own accord?' replied, ', that chastiser of foes, will at my command, do this great deed for the good of the Brahmana and the liberation of this town.'
" said, 'What rash act hast have thou you done, O mother! It is difficult of being performed and almost amounteth amounts to suicide! The learned never applaud the abandonment of one's own child. Why dost do thou you, O mother, wish to sacrifice thy your own child for the sake of another's? Thou you hast have, O mother, by this abandonment of thy your child, acted not only against the course of human practices but also against the teachings of the Vedas, That , relying on whose arms we sleep happily in the night and hope to recover the kingdom of which we have been deprived by the covetous son of , that hero of immeasurable energy, remembering whose prowess and do not sleep a wink during the whole night and by whose prowess we were rescued from the palace of lac and various other dangers, that who caused the death of , and relying on whose might we regard ourselves as having already slain the sons of and acquired the whole earth with all her wealth, upon what considerations, O mother, hast have thou you resolved upon abandoning him? Hast have thou you been deprived of thy your reason? Hath has thy your understanding been clouded by the calamities thou you hast have undergone?'
"On hearing these words of her son, said, 'O , thou you needst not be at all anxious on account of . I have not come to this resolve owing to any weakness of understanding. Respected by him, and with our sorrows assuaged, we have, O son, been living in the house of this Brahmana, unknown to the sons of . For requiting, O son, that Brahmana, I have resolved to do this. He, indeed, is a man upon whom good offices are never lost. The measure of his requital becometh becomes greater than the measure of the services he receiveth receives. Beholding the prowess of on the occasion of (our escape from) the house of lac, and from the destruction also of , my confidence in is great. The might of 's arms is equal unto to that of ten thousand elephants. It was, therefore, that he succeeded in carrying you all, each heavy as an elephant, from Varanavata. There is no one on earth equal unto to in might; he may even overcome that foremost of warriors, the holder of the thunderbolt himself. Soon after his birth he fell from my lap on the breast of the mountain. By the weight of his body the mass of stone on which he fell down broke in pieces. From this also, O son of , I have come to know 's might. For this reason have I resolved to set him against the Brahmana's foe. I have not acted in this from foolishness or ignorance or from motive of gain. I have deliberately resolved to do this virtuous deed. By this act, O , two objects will be accomplished; one is a requital of the services rendered by the Brahmana and the other is the acquisition of high religious merit. It is my conviction that the Kshatriya who rendereth renders help unto to a Brahmana in anything acquireth acquires regions of bliss hereafter. So also a Kshatriya who saveth saves the life of a Kshatriya achieveth achieves that great fame in this world as in the other. A Kshatriya rendering help unto to a Vaisya also on this earth certainly acquires world-wide popularity. One of the kingly tribe should protect even the Sudra who cometh comes to him for protection. If he doeth does so, in his next life he receiveth receives his birth in a royal line, commanding prosperity and the respect of other kings. O scion of 's race, the illustrious of wisdom acquired by hard ascetic toil told me so in bygone days. It is therefore, that I have resolved upon accomplishing this.'"