18.003
The ascent of Yudhishthira to heaven.
Vaiśampāyana said.
When the king of dharma, Yudhiṣṭhira, son of Pritha, was standing thus for a moment, then, O Kauravya, the gods led by Śakra arrived there. (18-3-1)
Dharma, embodied in person, came there to examine the king—where the Kuru king Yudhishthira was. (18-3-2)
O king, when those gods—radiant in body and of meritorious birth and actions—had gathered together, that darkness disappeared. (18-3-3)
Those torments of evil-doers were not seen there, nor the river Vaitarani together with the thorny Shalmali tree. (18-3-4)
The king, the son of Kunti, saw all around iron pots, stones, and horrible deformed bodies—those things were not visible and became unseen to him. (18-3-5)
Then, O Bhārata, a wind very cool, pleasant to the touch, carrying auspicious fragrance, and auspicious, blew near the gods. (18-3-6)
The Maruts along with Śakra, the Vasus, and the two Aśvins; the Sādhyas, Rudras, and also the Ādityas; and all other heavenly beings. (18-3-7)
All the perfected beings and supreme sages assembled there, where the king of great splendor, the son of Dharma, was standing. (18-3-8)
Then Śakra, the lord of the gods, resplendent with supreme glory, addressed these consoling words to Yudhishthira. (18-3-9)
Yudhishthira, O mighty-armed, the divine hosts are pleased with you. Come, come, O tiger among men—by this much, O lord, it is accomplished. O king, you have attained success, and the imperishable worlds are also yours. (18-3-10)
You should not give way to anger; listen also to this speech of mine. Certainly, O dear one, hell is to be seen by all kings. (18-3-11)
O best of men, there are two kinds of destinies, auspicious and inauspicious; the one who first enjoys the fruits of good deeds later goes to hell, while the one who first experiences hell later attains heaven. (18-3-12)
O king, especially it is the one of evil deeds who first attains heaven; thus, you have been sent by me, who seek your welfare. (18-3-13)
Indeed, by pretext, Droṇa was overthrown by you for the sake of your son. By that same pretext thereafter, O king, hell was shown to you. (18-3-14)
Just as you, so Bhīma, Pārtha (Arjuna), the twins, and Draupadī (Kṛṣṇā) have gone to hell by pretext. (18-3-15)
Come, O tiger among men, your own people and the kings who were slain in battle for you have been freed from sin; all of them have attained heaven—see them, O bull among men. (18-3-16)
Karṇa, the great archer and the best among all bearers of weapons, has attained the supreme achievement for which you grieve. (18-3-17)
O mighty one, see him, the tiger among men, the son of Āditya, standing in his own place. O long-armed bull among men, abandon grief. (18-3-18)
See, both brothers and others, as well as your own party and the kings, each having attained their own respective positions; let the fever of your mind be dispelled. (18-3-19)
Now that you have experienced suffering in the past, O Kaurava, hereafter live happily with me, free from sorrow and free from illness. (18-3-20)
O mighty-armed son of Pāṇḍu, O dear one, attain for yourself the fruit of virtuous actions and of gifts, which have been conquered by your own austerity. (18-3-21)
Today, may the deva-gandharvas and the divine apsaras in heaven serve you with auspiciousness, they who wear garments spotless as the sky. (18-3-22)
O mighty-armed one, attain the worlds won by the rājasūya sacrifice and increased by the aśvamedha, and also attain the great fruit of penance. (18-3-23)
O Yudhiṣṭhira, higher and higher worlds among the kings, equal to Hariścandra, will be yours, O Partha, in which you shall enjoy. (18-3-24)
Where Mandhātā the royal sage, where king Bhagīratha, and where Bharata the descendent of Duṣyanta have been, there you will dwell. (18-3-25)
O son of Pritha, this divine and holy river—the purifier of the three worlds, the heavenly Ganga, O king—there, after bathing, you will go. (18-3-26)
Here, when you have bathed, your human condition will leave you. With sorrow gone, free from toil, and rid of enmity, you will become. (18-3-27)
While the lord of the gods was thus speaking to Yudhiṣṭhira, king of the Kauravas, Dharma himself, having assumed a bodily form, directly addressed his own son. (18-3-28)
O O king, most wise, I am pleased with you, child, because of my devotion, truthfulness, forgiveness, and self-restraint. (18-3-29)
This is the third question of yours, O king, which I have made. By your nature, O Pārtha, you are not able to mislead me by giving reasons. (18-3-30)
Formerly, you were indeed tested when you went to Dvaitavana; for the purpose of carrying the arani fire-sticks, even that you have accomplished. (18-3-31)
O Bhārata, when your own brothers had perished with Draupadī there, my son, by one assuming the form of a corpse, you were, once again, my Parīkṣita (the tested one, i.e., Parikshit). (18-3-32)
You wish to stand for this third cause for the sake of the brothers. You are pure, O greatly fortunate one, happy and free from impurity. (18-3-33)
O Pārtha, your brothers are not in hell, O lord of the people. This is an illusion created by the king of the gods, Mahendra (Indra). (18-3-34)
Certainly, dear father, hell is to be witnessed by all kings; therefore, you have now experienced the greatest suffering for a moment. (18-3-35)
O king, neither Savyasācī (Arjuna), nor Bhīma, nor the two sons of Yama, nor the foremost men, nor Karṇa, the valiant speaker of truth, are truly deserving of hell for long. (18-3-36)
Kṛṣṇā, the princess, is not deserving of hell, O Yudhiṣṭhira! Come, come, best of the Bharatas, behold the Gaṅgā who traverses the three worlds. (18-3-37)
Having thus been addressed, your former great-grandfather, the royal sage, went together with righteousness and all the dwellers of the abode of the gods. (18-3-38)
After immersing himself in the Gaṅgā—the divine, holy, purifying river praised by sages—the king left his human body. (18-3-39)
Then Yudhishthira, the king of dharma, having assumed a divine body, free from enmity and with his sorrow gone, was completely immersed in that water. (18-3-40)
Then the Kuru king Yudhiṣṭhira, accompanied by the gods and virtue, wise and being praised by the great sages, went onward. (18-3-41)
