12.149
Bhīṣma said:
O Pārtha, listen to the ancient story as it truly happened: the dialogue between the vulture and the jackal that once took place in Vidiśā.
Some, afflicted and overwhelmed by grief, took up the child who had not yet reached youth, who had become everything to the family, and wept.
They took the dead child and, facing the cremation ground, stood there. Then, passing the child from lap to lap, they wept on the ground.
Hearing their weeping, the vulture approached and said: "Having given up this one who is of a single essence in this world, go without delay."
Here, thousands of men and thousands of women are brought together by time; are they ever truly not related?
Behold, the entire world is established in pleasure and pain. Union and separation are experienced alternately.
Those who carry away the dead and those who follow them, all these creatures also depart according to the measure of their own lifespan.
Enough of staying in this cremation ground, crowded with vultures and jackals, full of bones, dreadful and terrifying to all living beings.
No one who has met the law of time (death) is revived; whether dear or hateful, this is the fate of all living beings.
Everyone who is born in the mortal world must die. On the path ordained by Death, who can bring the dead back to life?
In this world, when the day ends and the sun sets, one should return to one's own place, truly letting go of attachment to one's son.
Then, O king, when the relatives heard the vulture's words, they cried out and, abandoning the son on the ground, approached.
Having made up their minds, then, abandoning their own son and hopeless about his life, they ascended his path and stood there.
But the jackal, whose color was like that of a crow and a cloud, came out of the hole and, seeing them going, said, "Men are truly pitiless."
This is the sun present here; the deluded form attachments, do not fear. The moment is of many forms, and one may live at any time.
You have placed your son on the ground and, devoid of affection, have left him in the cremation ground. Why do you go away so pitilessly?
O sweet-speaking girl, you do not have affection for this child; you show favor simply by someone's words.
You do not see the kind of affection for children that animals and birds have; for them, after raising their young, there is no expectation of reward.
Just as the sacrificial acts of sages are for those who have gone to the other world, so too are the acts for four-footed animals, birds, insects, living beings, and those bound by affection.
For those who delight in sons, neither in this world nor the next is any virtue seen; it is only the offspring who support them.
Those who do not see their dear sons, grief does not remain for them. And those who have grown up do not ever nourish their mother and father.
How can men have affection for those for whom there will be grief? How will you go, having abandoned this son, the upholder of the family?
We shed tears for a long time and gaze with affection for a long time; such dear ones are indeed especially hard to part with.
When a person is exhausted, accused, or facing the cremation ground, where relatives stand, no one else remains there.
Everyone holds their own life dear and finds affection. Even among animals, observe the kind of affection that exists among the virtuous.
How could I leave this one with lotus-quivering wide eyes, who is newly-wedded and adorned with bath and garlands?
Bhīṣma said.
When they heard the jackal's words, all the men, lamenting pitifully, turned back for the sake of the dog.
The vulture said.
Alas, shame! Why do you humans of low nature turn back because of the words spoken by the cruel, petty, and foolish jackal?
When the five elements have departed and the body is empty, like a piece of wood, why do you grieve for the unmoving self? Why do you not grieve?
Perform intense austerity, for by that you will be freed from sin. Everything is attained through austerity; what will lamenting achieve?
One should recognize both misfortunes and fortunes along with their manifestations; for it is through these that this world proceeds, bestowing endless sorrow.
Wealth, cows, gold, jewels, and even offspring—all these, as well as that which is rooted in austerity, are attained through the practice of austerity.
According to one's actions, among beings, the state of happiness and sorrow is experienced; having acquired (these), a creature is born and undergoes both pains and pleasures.
A son does not attain (results) by the actions of his father, nor does a father by the actions of his son. Each proceeds on a different path, leaving behind both good and bad deeds.
Diligently practice righteousness and avoid unrighteousness. Behave appropriately at the proper time towards the deities and the twice-born (Brāhmaṇas).
Give up sorrow and misery, and turn away from attachment to your son. Let this body be left in the sky, and then quickly return.
Whatever good or bad deeds a person performs, only the doer experiences their results; what concern is there here for the relatives?
Here, the relatives do not stay after abandoning; leaving behind the dear one and their affection, they depart, their eyes clouded and full of tears.
Whether one is wise or foolish, wealthy or poor, everyone, endowed with both auspicious and inauspicious qualities, goes according to the power of time.
What is the use of grieving for the dead? Why do you lament? Time, who is the lord of all, is impartial and acts according to righteousness.
Death comes to all: the young, the children, the old, and even those still in the womb; such is the nature of this world.
The jackal said.
Indeed, your affection has been dulled here by the vulture of little intelligence, as you grieve intensely, overpowered by love for your son.
With words that are equal, properly applied, and humble in reply, you go to the one who dwells in water, having abandoned the affection that is difficult to give up.
Alas, the pain caused by the separation from a son and by dwelling in the emptiness left by the dead is, for those who are crying, indeed intense, like the pain of cows deprived of their calves.
Today I understand the sorrow of men on earth. Seeing such affection and compassion, even my own tears began to flow.
One must always make effort; when an action is performed, it succeeds by fate. Both fate and human effort are fulfilled by destiny.
One should always maintain absence of despondency; for how can happiness arise from despair? It is through effort that the goal is attained; why then do you act so cruelly?
And this body, nourished by your own flesh and made up of half your being, the creator of your ancestors' lineage—having abandoned him in the forest, where will you go?
Then, when the sun has set and evening has come, at twilight, you will either take the son or those present here will remain.
The vulture said.
O humans, today, though I have lived for a thousand years and more, I do not see anyone living or dead, whether female, male, or neuter.
Some die in the womb, some die just after birth, some die while walking, and others die even in their youth.
Here, fortunes are impermanent, even for quadrupeds and birds; for both moving and non-moving beings, lifespan alone stands foremost.
The beloved wives, separated and likewise overwhelmed by grief for their sons, constantly go home, always burning with sorrow.
Thousands of undesired things and hundreds of desired things are left behind here; the relatives, greatly afflicted with grief, have indeed departed.
Let this body be abandoned; it is devoid of brilliance, empty, and has become like wood. Indeed, those who are attached to another body worship a corpse as if it were wood.
Why do you not go, leaving behind the tears of the deluded being? Indeed, this affection is useless, and so is possession.
He neither hears nor sees with his eyes or ears. Therefore, leave him and quickly return to your own homes.
Go quickly to your own residence, as instructed by me with words grounded in the dharma of liberation, reasoned and gentle.
Because harsh words were spoken by one endowed with wisdom and knowledge, who gave intellect and consciousness, the people turned back.
The jackal said.
How can you abandon this son, golden-hued and adorned with ornaments, the giver of offerings to ancestors, just because of the words of the vulture?
There is no opposition to affection; indeed, lamentation and weeping arise. Certainly, suffering will result from abandoning the dead.
It is said that when Śambuka, the Śūdra, was killed, the Brāhmaṇa boy was brought back to life, having obtained righteousness through Rāma's true valor.
Thus, the son of Śveta, the royal sage, met his destined death. The next day, through the devotion to dharma, he was brought back to life again.
Thus, whether it is a perfected being, a sage, or even a divine being, he should show compassion for you who are weeping here in misery.
Bhīṣma said.
When these words were spoken, the grief-stricken, son-loving ones withdrew. Placing the head on the lap, they wept profusely.
The vulture said.
He, soaked with falling tears and afflicted by the touch of the hand, was put into a deep sleep by the act of King Dharma.
Even with austerity, indeed, it is not destroyed in time. This is the end of all affection—this is the city of the dead.
Thousands of children and old people, having always been abandoned by relatives, spend their days and nights in sorrow on the earth.
Enough of insistence; sorrow has surrounded. There is no hope—how indeed can he have life again here today?
He will not regain life by the jackal's words. Once the body has been abandoned by the dead, it cannot be restored again.
This boy cannot be revived by giving form, nor even by hundreds of jackals, nor even in hundreds of years.
If Rudra, Kumāra, Brahmā, or even Viṣṇu were to grant a boon to him, then this child would live.
Neither tears, nor words of comfort, nor prolonged lamentation will bring the dead back to life here.
I, Kroṣṭuka, you, and all his relatives, having taken both dharma and adharma, we all proceed together on this path.
A wise person should keep far away from things that are unpleasant, harsh, injurious to others, another's wife, unrighteousness, and falsehood.
Seek with effort truth, righteousness, auspiciousness, justice, great compassion for living beings, straightforwardness, and absence of deceit.
Those who do not care for their mother, father, relatives, and friends while they are alive are acting contrary to dharma.
If someone does not see with his eyes and does not move in any way, what will you accomplish by weeping at the end of his life?
Bhīṣma said.
Having thus spoken, the relatives, overwhelmed with grief and burning with affection for the son, left him lying on the ground and returned to their homes.
The jackal said.
This mortal world is harsh, destroying all beings. There is separation from dear ones, and life itself is short.
Speaking much falsehood and untruth, and uttering unpleasant replies; seeing this state again brings about an increase of sorrow and grief.
This world of humans is not pleasing to me, not even for a moment. Alas! Fie! O humans, you turn back just because of the words of the vulture.
Just as the unwise are inflamed by grief for their son, so are you. How can you go on with affection, having abandoned your love for your son? Having heard the words of the vulture, who is wicked and undisciplined here.
Happiness is always followed by sorrow, and sorrow by happiness. In this world of alternating happiness and sorrow, nothing here is endless or eternal.
Having left this beautiful child, the cause of your family's sorrow, on the ground, where will you go, you deluded ones?
I see this living person, endowed with beauty and youth, shining with splendor, with my mind; there is no doubt about it here.
Destruction and also unworthiness of this happiness will be yours, O humans. For those burned by the fire of grief for sons, even death today is endurable for you.
Having thought of the possibility of suffering and having experienced happiness yourself, if you abandon it, where will you go today, having completely cast it off like a person of little understanding?
Bhīṣma said.
Thus, at that time, by one who always hunts at night, who dwells in the cremation ground, and covets untruthfully in opposition to dharma.
Then, the jackal, using words as sweet as nectar, led his relatives to a state of neutrality for his own purpose.
The vulture spoke.
This is a terrible region of the forest, filled with ghosts and frequented by yakṣas and rākṣasas, echoing with the cries of the Kauśikas.
Bhīma, who was very fierce and had a radiance like a dark cloud, left the corpse here and performed the funeral rites.
As long as the sun has not set and the directions remain clear, abandon him and perform the funeral rites.
Hawks make harsh cries, gentle beings cry out in distress, lions respond, and the sun sets.
The trees are covered by the blue smoke of the funeral pyre; and in the cremation ground, the hungry spirits welcome the living.
All those of powerful strength and very fierce nature in this land, the deformed meat-eaters, will oppress you.
There will be danger in this forest region from a distance. Let this (object) that has become like wood be abandoned, let the jackal's words be examined.
If you listen to the jackal's words, which are fruitless and false, then, having lost discernment, all of you will perish.
The jackal said.
Remain here without fear as long as the sun shines. In this situation, out of affection for your son, persevere and carry on.
Weep freely and without fear; look with affection as you wish. Endure as long as the Sun endures; what do the words of the flesh-eater matter to you?
If your son, in his delusion, accepts the harsh and forceful words of the vulture, he will not survive.
Bhīṣma said.
The vulture said to you, 'when the sun has not set,' and the jackal said, 'when it has set.' Hungry, the two addressed the attendant of the dead.
O king, the vulture and the jackal, both skilled in their own affairs, exhausted by hunger and thirst, are conversing, having resorted to the treatise.
Of those two who are wise in knowledge and possess jackal-leaves, they indeed set forth and go by sentences that are like nectar.
Overcome by sorrow and misery, they stood weeping. Because of the skill of the two who were adept in their own duties, they were indeed bewildered.
Thus, while those two wise men were disputing, and their relatives were standing by, Śaṅkara approached them.
Then Śiva, the wielder of the trident and bestower of boons, said to the humans, "I am the giver of boons." The distressed and bowed people, standing before him, replied with these words.
You ought to grant life to our son, for the sake of all those deprived of an only son and desiring life.
Thus addressed, the venerable one took water in his hand and granted life to the boy for a hundred years.
Thus, the Lord Pinākī (Śiva), ever engaged in the welfare of all beings, granted a boon to the jackal and the two vultures, giving them that which destroys hunger.
Then, having paid obeisance to the divine one, filled with joy and excellence, having accomplished their purpose, they happily and joyfully departed at that time, O lord.
With non-despair, perseverance, determination, steadfastness, and by the grace of the Lord of lords, the result is quickly attained.
Behold the divine arrangement and the certainty among relatives; for the miserable who are weeping, indeed, the wiping of tears has been accomplished.
See, in a short time and by searching with certainty, those who are afflicted, having obtained the grace of Śaṅkara, attain happiness.
O best of the Bharatas, by the grace of Śaṅkara, they became astonished and delighted again at the revival of their son.
Then, O king, they quickly, having heard of the sorrow born of sin, entered the city with their son, their minds delighted. This wisdom has been demonstrated for all in the fourfold order.
Upon hearing this auspicious history, which is associated with righteousness, wealth, and liberation, a person is always delighted both in this world and after death.
