SECTION VII
"Narada said,--the celestial assembly room of Sakra is full of lustre. He
hath obtained it as the fruit of his own acts. Possessed of the splendour
of the sun, it was built, O scion of the Kuru race, by Sakra himself.
Capable of going everywhere at will, this celestial assembly house is
full one hundred and fifty yojanas in length, and hundred yojanas in
breadth, and five yojanas in height. Dispelling weakness of age, grief,
fatigue, and fear, auspicious and bestowing good fortune, furnished with
rooms and seats and adorned with celestial trees, it is delightful in the
extreme. There sitteth in that assembly room, O son of Pritha, on an
excellent seat, the Lord of celestials, with his wife Sachi endowed with
beauty and affluence. Assuming a form incapable of description for its
vagueness, with a crown on his head and bright bracelets on the upper
arms, attired in robes of pure white and decked with floral wreaths of
many hues, there he sitteth with beauty, fame, and glory by his side. And
the illustrious deity of a hundred sacrifices is daily waited upon. O
monarch, in that assembly by the Marutas in a body, each leading the life
of a householder in the bosom of his family. And the Siddhyas, celestial
Rishis, the Sadhyas in all, the gods, and Marutas of brilliant complexion
and adorned with golden garlands,--all of them in celestial form and
decked in ornaments, always wait upon and worship the illustrious chief
of the immortals, that mighty represser of all foes. And O son of Pritha,
the celestial Rishis also, all of pure souls, with sins completely washed
off and resplendent as the fire, and possessed of energy, and without
sorrow of any kind, and freed from the fever of anxiety, and all
performers of the Soma sacrifice, also wait upon and worship Indra. And
Parasara and Parvata and Savarni and Galava; and Sankha, and the Muni,
Gaursiras, and Durvasa, and Krodhana and Swena and the Muni Dhirghatamas;
and Pavitrapani, Savarni, Yajnavalkya and Bhaluki; and Udyalaka,
Swetaketu, and Tandya, and also Bhandayani; and Havishmat, and Garishta,
and king Harischandra; and Hridya, Udarshandilya. Parasarya, Krishivala;
Vataskandha, Visakha, Vidhatas and Kala. Karaladanta, Tastri, and
Vishwakarman, and Tumuru; and other Rishis, some born of women and others
living upon air, and others again living upon fire, these all worship
Indra, the wielder of the thunderbolt, the lord of all the worlds. And
Sahadeva, and Sunitha, and Valmiki of great ascetic merit; and Samika of
truthful speech, and Prachetas ever fulfilling their promises, and
Medhatithi, and Vamadeva, and Pulastya, Pulaha and Kratu; and Maruta and
Marichi, and Sthanu of great ascetic merit; and Kakshivat, and Gautama,
and Tarkhya, and also the Muni Vaishwanara; and the Muni Kalakavrikhiya
and Asravya, and also Hiranmaya, and Samvartta, and Dehavya, and
Viswaksena of great energy; and Kanwa, and Katyayana, O king, and Gargya,
and Kaushika;--all are present there along with the celestial waters and
plants; and faith, and intelligence, and the goddess of learning, and
wealth, religion, and pleasure; and lightning. O son of Pandu; and the
rain-charged clouds, and the winds, and all the loud-sounding forces of
heaven; the eastern point, the twenty seven fires conveying the
sacrificial butter, Agni and Soma, and the fire of Indra, and Mitra, and
Savitri, and Aryaman; Bhaga, Viswa the Sadhyas, the preceptor
(Vrihaspati), and also Sukra; and Vishwavasu and Chitrasena, and Sumanas,
and also Taruna; the Sacrifices, the gifts to Brahmanas, the planets, and
the stars, O Bharata, and the mantras that are uttered in sacrifices--all
these are present there. And, O King, many Apsaras and Gandharvas, by
various kinds of dances and music both instrumental and vocal, and by the
practice of auspicious rites, and by the exhibition of many feats of
skill, gratify the lord of the celestials--Satakratu--the illustrious
slayer of Vala and Vritra. Besides these, many other Brahmanas and royal
and celestial Rishis, all resplendent as the fire, decked in floral
wreaths and ornaments, frequently come to and leave that assembly, riding
on celestial cars of various kinds. And Vrihaspati and Sukra are present
there on all occasions. These and many other illustrious ascetics of
rigid wows, and Bhrigu and the seven Rishis who are equal, O king, unto
Brahma himself, come to and leave that assembly house, riding on cars
beautiful as the car of Soma, and themselves looking as bright therein as
Soma himself. This, O mighty armed monarch, is the assembly house, called
Pushkaramalini, of Indra of a hundred sacrifices that I have seen. Listen
now to the account of Yama's assembly house."
--------------------END OF PARVA 2 : UPA-PARVA 7 ---------------------
