MAHABHARATA – SWARGAROHANA PARVA

THE MAHABHARATA
                                 CODENSED IN
THE POET’S OWN WORDS
                                    By PANDIT
A. M. SRINIVASACHARIAR
                                  Translated By Dr V,
Raghavan M.A., Ph.D.
                                                              
     ॥ स्वर्गारोहणपर्व॥
                                            SWARGAROHANA PARVA
                 स्वर्गं त्रिविष्टपं
प्राप्य धर्मराज उवाच ह।
         ’ये ते वीरा महात्मानो भ्रातरो
मे महाव्रताः।
          तेषामिदानीं के लोका द्रष्टुमिच्छामि तानहम्॥
          कर्णं चैव महात्मानं कौन्तेयं
सत्यसङ्गरम्।
          अविज्ञातो मया योऽसौ घातितस्सव्यसाचिना॥
    
                  
                  न चेह स्थातुमिच्छामि
सत्यमेवं ब्रवीमि वः।
           यत्र ते मम स स्वर्गो नायं
स्वर्गो मतो मम॥’
              ’यदि वै तत्र ते श्रद्धा
गम्यतां तत्र मा चिरम्।’
              इत्युक्त्वा तं ततो देवा
देवदूतमुपादिशन्।
              युधिष्ठिरस्य सुहृदो दर्शयेति [परन्तप]॥
“If you have a strong desire for that place
where your brothers are, go there; let there be no delay.” So saying to
Yudhishthira, the gods then commissioned a divine messenger to show
Yudhishthira his friends.
               ततः कुन्तीसुतो राजा देवदूतश्च
जग्मतुः।
               पन्थानमशुभं दुर्गं सेवितं
पापकर्मभिः ॥
The king Yudhishthira and the messenger of
the gods walked the inauspicious and impassable path of (hell), taken by the
sinful.
              ददर्श चापि कौन्तेयो यातनाः
पापकर्मिणाम्॥
And Yudhishthira witnessed(there) the
tortures of the sinful.
              युधिष्ठिरः-
                ’कियदध्वानमस्माभिर्गन्तव्यमिममीदृशम्॥’
Yudhishthira- “How much of this way have we
thus got to go?”
               देवदूतोऽब्रवीच्चैनम् ’एतावद्गमनं तव’॥
The messenger of the gods replied to him:
“Thus far is your progress.”              
               स  सन्निवृत्तः शुश्राव दीना वाचस्समन्ततः।
               ’भो भो धर्मज राजर्षे तिष्ठ
तावन्मुहूर्तकम्।
               त्वयि तिष्ठति कौरव्य यातनाऽस्मान्न
बाधते॥’
Returning, Yudhishthira heard words of
distress from all sides: “Oh royal saint! son of Dharma! Stop for a while: when
you, scion of Kuru, stand (before us), the torture does not affict us.”
               अहो कृच्छ्रमिति प्राह तस्थौ
स च युधिष्ठिरः।
               उवाच ’के भवन्तो वै
किमर्थमिह तिष्ठत’॥
“Alas! What torture!” said Yudhishthira and
stopped.  He said (then): “Who are you?
Why are you here?”
               कर्णोऽहं भीमसेनोऽहमित्येवं
ते विचुक्रुशः॥
“I am karna.” “I am Bhima.” So did they cry.
               युधिष्ठिरः-
               ’किन्नु तत्कलुषं कर्म कृतमेभिर्महात्मभिः।
               य इमे पापगन्धेऽस्मिन् देशे
सन्ति सुदारुणे॥
Yudhishthira- “What is that impure act done
by these high-souled persons that they are in this stinking and very frightful
place?”
                देवांश्च गर्हयामास धर्मं
चैव युधिष्ठिरः।
                स तीव्रशोकसन्तप्तो देवदूतमुवाच
ह॥
Yudhishthira denounced the gods and aslo
Dharma. Burning with poignant grief, he addressed the messenger of the gods:
                ’न ह्यहं तत्र यास्यामि स्थितोऽस्मीति
निवेद्यताम्।
                मत्संश्रयादिमे दूनाः सुखिनो
भ्रातरो हि मे॥
“Inform (the gods) that I am not going
there (to heaven); I am staying (here, in hell); for, by my association, these
brothers of mine who are afflicted become happy.”
                  स्थिते मुहूर्ते पार्थे
तु व्यगमत्तत्तमो [नृप]
                  न यातना अदृश्यन्त ततो वायुश्शुचिर्ववौ॥                
         
  
When Yudhishthira stayed (there) for a
while, that darkness (of hell) disappeared; tortures were not seen; and a pure
breeze then blew.
                दिवौकसस्समाजग्मुर्यत्र
राजा स्थितोऽभवत् ॥
The denizens of heaven came to where king
Yudhishtira was.
                इन्द्रः-
                ’न च मन्युस्त्वया कार्यः
श्रुणु चेदं वचो मम।
                अवश्यं नरकस्तात द्रष्टव्यस्सर्वराजभिः।
                व्याजेन हि त्वया द्रोण
उपचीर्णस्सुतं प्रति।
                व्याजेनैव ततो राजन् दर्शितो
नरकस्तव॥
Indra- “(Yudhishthira!) You must not become
angry; hear these words of mine: Hell must be seen by all kings without fail;
it is under cover of some pretext that you deceived Drona in respect of his
son; hence has hell been shown to you through some pretext.
               ’सर्वे स्वर्गमनुप्राप्ता
यदर्थं परितप्यसे।
          
    एषा देवनदी पुण्या पार्थ
त्रैलोक्यपावनी।
               अत्र स्नातस्य भावस्ते मानुषो
विगमिष्यति॥’
‘ All of them have gone to heaven, those
for whom you grieve.  Yudhishthira, here
is the holy Ganges, the celestial river, the purifier of the three worlds.  By your bathing here, your mortal nature will
disappear.”
               धर्मः-
               भो भो राजन्महाप्राज्ञ प्रीतोऽस्मि
तव पुत्रक।
               पूर्वं परीक्षितो हि त्वं
प्रश्नाद् द्वैतवने मया।
               स्वरूपधारिणा तत्र पुनस्त्वं
मे परीक्षितः।
               इदं तृतीयं भ्रातृणामर्थे
यत्स्थातुमिच्छसि॥
               न च ते भ्रातरः पार्थ नरकार्हा
विशांपते।
               एह्येहि भरतश्रेष्ठ पश्य
चेमांस्त्रिलोकगान्॥’
Dharma-
“Oh, most wise king! my son! I am pleased
with you.  Previously, you were tested by
me with questions in the Dvaita forest; again, I tested you there (in your
journey to heaven), taking the form of a dog; and this is the third test,
(which you have stood) by your desiring to stand for the good of your brothers.  Son of Kunti! King! your brothers do not
deserve hell; come, come, you best of the Bharatas! See them gone to heaven.”
                 गङ्गां देवनदीं पुण्यां
पावनीमृषिसंयुताम्।
                 अवगाह्य ततो राजा तनुं तत्याज
मानुषीम्॥
Bathing then in the sacred and sanctifying
celestial river, the Ganges that is lauded by the sages, king Yudhishthira cast
off his mortal frame.
                 ततो दिव्यवपुर्भूत्वा देवैस्सर्षिमरुद्गणैः।
                 ददर्श तत्र गोविन्दं फल्गुनेन
सुवर्चसा।
                 अपरस्मिन्नथोद्देशे कर्णं
शस्त्रभृतां वरम्।
                 भीमसेनमथापश्यद्दिव्यमूर्तिसमन्वितम्।
                 नकुलं सहदेवं च ददर्श कुरुनन्दनः
                 तथा ददर्श पाञ्चालीं कमलोत्पलमालिनीम्॥
Becoming then divine-bodied and along with
gods and sages, Yudhishthira saw there Krishna, along with the lustrous Arjuna;
he saw then in another place Karna, the best of warriors; then Bhimasena,
endowed with a divine form, Nakula and Sahadeva and similarly Draupadi,
garlanded with lotuses and lilies.
                 वसूनेव महातेजा भीष्मः प्राप
महाद्युतिः।
                 बृहस्पतिं विवेशाथ द्रोणो
ह्यङ्गिरसां वरम्।
                 धृतराष्ट्रो धनेशस्य लोकान्प्राप
दुरासदान्।
                 पत्नीभ्यां सहितः पाण्डुर्महेन्द्रसदनं
ययौ।
                 आविवेश रविं कर्णो निहतः [पुरुषर्षभ]
                 धृतराष्ट्रात्मजास्सर्वे
यातुधानान्प्रपेदिरे।
                 धर्ममेवाविशत्क्षत्ता राजा
चैव युधिष्ठिरः।
                 यस्स नारायणो नाम देवदेवस्सनातनः।
                 तस्यांशो वासुदेवस्तु कर्मणोऽन्ते
विवेश ह॥
Bhishma of great lustre became one of the
Vasus himself.  Drona became one with
Brihaspati, the foremost of the sons of Angiras.  Dhritarashtra attained the worlds of Kubera
so hard to attain.  Accompanied by his
two wives, Pandu went to the great Indra’s abode.  Karna who was killed (in the battle) entered
the Sun. All the sons of Dhritarashtra joined the demons. Vidura entered god
Dharma, and so also king Yudhishthira. And Krishna who was an incarnation of
that eternal God of gods known as Narayana, entered (that Narayana) at the end
of His mission (on earth).
            एतत् कुरूणां चरितं पाण्डवानां च [भारत]।
           
कृष्णेन मुनिना [विप्र] निर्मितं सत्यवादिना।
           
कीर्तिं प्रथयता लोके पाण्डवानां महात्मनाम्।
           
क्रीडां च वासुदेवस्य देवदेवस्य शार्ङ्गिणः॥
This is the story of the Kauravas and the
Pandavas, composed by the sage Vyasa, the expounder of Truth, who spread in
this world the glory of the high-souled Pandavas and the sports of the
Sarnga-bowed Vasudeva, the God of gods.
            
            
महाभारतमाख्याय सर्वपापैः प्रमुच्यते॥
One gets rid of all sins by reciting the
Mahabharata. 
        
    धर्मे चार्थे च कामे च मोक्षे
च [भरतर्षभ]
            
यदिहास्ति तदन्यत्र यन्नेहास्ति न कुत्रचित्॥
On Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha, what is
found here in this Epic may be found elsewhere, what is not here can be seen
nowhere.
            
वाच्यते यत्र सततं जयाख्यं भारतं महत्।
            
श्रीश्च कीर्तिश्च विद्या च भवन्ति मुदितास्सदा॥
Where this great Bharata named Jaya is
read, there Prosperity, Fame and Learning are present always with happiness.
               ॥इति स्वर्गारोहणपर्व समाप्तम्॥
          
   THUS ENDS THE
MAHABHARATA        
                    
             
                      

Sri P R Ramamurthy Ji was the author of this website. When he started this website in 2009, he was in his eighties. He was able to publish such a great number of posts in limited time of 4 years. We appreciate his enthusiasm for Sanskrit Literature. Authors story in his own words : http://ramamurthypr1931.blogspot.com/

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