SECTION CCXIX
(Arjuna-vanavasa Parva continued)
"Vaisampayana said, 'Varga continued, 'We were then, O foremost one of
Bharata's race, deeply distressed at this curse. We sought to propitiate
that Brahmana of ascetic wealth that departed not from his vow.
Addressing him, we said, 'Inflated with a sense of our beauty and youth,
and urged by the god of desire, we have acted very improperly. It
behoveth thee, O Brahmana, to pardon us! Truly, O Brahmana, it was death
to us that we had at all come hither to tempt you of rigid vows and
ascetic wealth. The virtuous, however, have said that women should never
be slain. Therefore grow you in virtue. It behoveth you not to slay us
so. O you that are conversant with virtue, it hath been said that a
Brahmana is ever the friend of every creature. O you of great
prosperity, let this speech of the wise become true. The eminent always
protect those that seek protection at their hands. We seek thy
protection. It behoveth you to grant us pardon.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Thus addressed, that Brahmana of virtuous soul
and good deeds and equal in splendour, O hero, unto the sun or the moon,
became propitious unto them. And the Brahmana said, 'The words hundred
and hundred thousand are all indicative of eternity. The word hundred,
however, as employed by me is to be understood as a limited period and
not indicative of a period without end. Ye shall, therefore, becoming
crocodiles, seize and take away men (for only a hundred years as
explained by me). At the end of that period, an exalted individual will
drag you all from water to the land. Then the will resume your real forms.
Never have I spoken an untruth even in jest. Therefore, all that I have
said must come to pass. And those sacred waters (within which I assign
you your places), will, after you will have been delivered by that
individual, become known all over the world by the name of Nari-tirthas
(or sacred waters connected with the sufferings and the deliverance of
females), and all of them shall become sacred and sin cleansing in the
eyes of the virtuous and the wise.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Varga then addressing Arjuna, finished her
discourse, saying, 'Hearing these words of the Brahmana, we saluted him
with reverence and walked round him. Leaving that region we came away
with heavy hearts, thinking as we proceeded, 'Where shall we all soon
meet with that man who will give us back our own shapes (after our
transformation)?' As we were thinking of it, in almost a moment, O
Bharata, we beheld even the eminent celestial Rishi Narada. Beholding
that Rishi of immeasurable energy, our hearts were filled with joy.
Saluting him with reverence, O Partha, we stood before him, with blushing
faces. He asked of us the cause of our sorrow and we told him all.
Hearing what had happened the Rishi said, 'In the low-lands bordering on
the southern ocean, there are five regions of sacred water. They are
delightful and eminently holy. Go the thither without delay. That tiger
among men, Dhananjaya, the son of Pandu of pure soul, will soon deliver
you, without doubt, from this sad plight.' O hero, hearing the Rishi's
words, all of us came hither. O sinless one, true it is that I have today
been delivered by thee. But those four friends of mine are still within
the other waters here. O hero, do a good deed by delivering them also.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'Then, O monarch, that foremost of the Pandavas,
endued with great prowess, cheerfully delivered all of them from that
curse. Rising from the waters they all regained their own forms. Those
Apsaras then, O king, all looked as before. Freeing those sacred waters
(from the danger for which they had been notorious), and giving the
Apsaras leave to go where they chose, Arjuna became desirous of once more
beholding Chitrangada. He, therefore, proceeded towards the city of
Manipura. Arrived there, he beheld on the throne the son he had begotten
upon Chitrangada, and who was called by the name of Vabhruvahana. Seeing
Chitrangada once more, Arjuna proceeded, O monarch, towards the spot
called Gokarna.'"
--------------------END OF PARVA 1 : UPA-PARVA 219 ---------------------
