The Grandsire Names the God

"Hearing of those feats of the sons of Pandu, which the gods themselves could not achieve," Dhritarashtra said, "my heart is filled with fear and wonder. Day after day I hear of the humiliation of my sons. What ascetic penances have they performed, O Sanjaya? What boon have they obtained? What science is known to them, that like the stars in the firmament they suffer no diminution? Tell me truly why the sons of Pandu have become unslayable and mine slayable. I am like a man trying to cross the deep ocean with his two arms."

"Listen with attention, O king," Sanjaya said, "and let what you hear go to your heart. Nothing in this is the result of incantation. Nothing in it is illusion of any kind. They have created no new terrors. They are strong, and they are fighting by fair means, and they do every act, including the keeping of their own lives, agreeably to the way of morality. They never desist from a battle, and they never take their eyes off righteousness. And victory is there where righteousness is. That is the whole of it.

"Your sons are cruel and wedded to mean acts, and that is why they are being weakened. They did many deceitful things to the Pandavas, and the Pandavas swallowed all of it and said nothing. Let your sons now eat the fruit of it, which is like poison. You will eat it too, O elder brother of Pandu, because you could not be woken by anyone who wished you well. Vidura forbade you. Bhishma forbade you. Drona forbade you. I forbade you. You put the medicine aside like a sick man who has decided he knows better.

"But you asked me for the true cause of the Pandava victory, and there is an answer to that, and it is not mine. Duryodhana asked the grandsire this very question. He asked it at night, with his brothers beaten, and he asked it humbly. Listen, O monarch, and I will tell you what was said."

He came to the tent after dark, when the counting of the dead was still going on outside it, and his heart, Sanjaya said, was confounded with grief. He had watched his brothers driven off the field in front of the whole army, and he had come to the one man who had never lied to him about anything.

"Drona, and yourself," Duryodhana said, "and Shalya, and Kripa, and Drona's son, and Kritavarman the son of Hridika, and Sudakshina the ruler of the Kambojas, and Bhurisravas, and Vikarna, and Bhagadatta of exceeding prowess. Every one of them is reckoned a mighty car-warrior. Every one of them is high born. Every one of them is prepared to throw his life away in this battle. It is my opinion that these men are a match for the three worlds put together. All the warriors of the Pandava army united cannot bear your prowess alone.

"So a doubt has arisen in me, and you will explain it to me, because I am asking you. Who is it? Relying on whom are they beating us, over and over?"

He wanted a name he could put a weapon in front of. He wanted to be told that some king or some counsellor was the hinge of it, so that he could send Drona at the hinge in the morning.

Bhishma did not answer the question in the shape it was asked.

"Listen to the words I will speak to you, O thou of Kuru's race," Bhishma said. "I have addressed you to the same effect a great many times and you have never once done what I said.

"Let peace be made with the Pandavas. I regard that as good for you and good for the world. Enjoy this earth with your brothers around you. Be happy. Gratify the people who wish you well and give some pleasure to your own kinsfolk. I cried myself hoarse over this before the war and you did not listen, and you always disregarded the sons of Pandu, and the effect of all of that has now overtaken you."

Duryodhana said nothing, and waited, because none of that was new and none of it was the answer.

"Now hear also the reason why they are unslayable," the old man said. "There is not, there was not, and there never will be a being in all the worlds able to vanquish the sons of Pandu, because they are protected by the wielder of the bow called Saranga.

"I will not argue it with you. I will tell you an ancient history, which was recited to me by sages whose souls were under control, and you may do with it what you like."

Outside the tent the surgeons were still working and the drums had stopped. Bhishma began to talk about a mountain.

In days of yore, all the celestials and all the Rishis went up together onto the mountains of Gandhamadana and waited reverentially on the Grandsire. Brahma sat at his ease among them, the Lord of all creatures with the whole assembly of heaven around him, and there was nothing above him in any direction.

Then he saw a car standing in the firmament, blazing with effulgence.

He did not ask who it was. He found out by meditation, which is the way that Brahma finds things out, and then, having ascertained everything about it, he restrained his heart and joined his hands and made his salutations to the highest Divine Being.

The Rishis and the celestials saw the form displayed in the sky and stood up with their hands joined too, with their eyes fixed on it, because it was the wonder of wonders and because the Creator of the universe was on his feet in front of it.

And Brahma, foremost of all who are conversant with Brahman, worshipped him duly and then spoke.

"Thou art the Glory of the Universe, for that is thy form. Thou art the Lord of the Universe. O thou whose protection extends through the whole of it, O thou that hast the Universe for thy work, O thou that hast thy soul under control, Thou art the Supreme Master. Thou art Vasudeva. Therefore I seek refuge in Thee, that art the soul of Yoga and the highest Divinity."

"Victory to Thee that art the Supreme God of the Universe. Victory to Thee that art ever employed in the good of the worlds. Victory to Thee that art the Lord of Yoga, that art all-powerful, that art prior to Yoga and subsequent to it. Having the lotus springing from thy navel, having large expansive eyes, victory to Thee that art Lord of the Lords of the Universe.

"O Lord of the Past, the Present and the Future, victory to Thee that art the embodiment of gentleness, Thee that art the sun of suns. O thou that art the receptacle of untold attributes, victory to Thee that art the refuge of all things. Thou art Narayana. Thou art incapable of being understood. Victory to Thee that art the wielder of the bow called Saranga.

"O great Snake. O huge Boar. O first Cause. O thou of tawny locks, victory to Thee that art Almighty. O thou of yellow robes, O Lord of the cardinal points and the subsidiary points of the compass, O thou that hast the Universe for thy abode, O thou that art Infinite, O thou that hast no decay, O thou that art the Manifest and the Unmanifest, O thou that art immeasurable Space, victory to Thee that art deep, that art the giver of all wishes, that art without end.

"The goddess Earth is thy two feet. The cardinal and the subsidiary directions are thy arms, and the heavens are thy head. I am thy form. The celestials are thy limbs. The Sun and the moon are thy two eyes. Ascetic austerities and Truth born of morality are thy strength. Fire is thy energy, the wind is thy breath, and the waters have sprung from thy sweat. The twin Ashwins are thy ears and the goddess Saraswati is thy tongue. The Vedas are thy knowledge, and upon thee rests this Universe.

"O Lord of Yoga and of Yogins, we do not know thy extent, thy measure, thy energy, thy prowess, thy might, or thy origin. The Rishis, the gods, the Gandharvas, the Yakshas, the Rakshasas, the Pannagas, the Pisachas, human beings, beasts, birds and reptiles, all of these were created by me on Earth through Thy grace.

"Therefore, O thou of large eyes, take birth in the race of Yadu. For the establishing of righteousness, for the slaying of the sons of Diti, for the upholding of the Universe, do what I have said. Dividing Thyself into portions, take birth among human beings."

"Then the illustrious Deity replied to Brahma in a soft deep voice," Bhishma said. "He said only this: 'Through Yoga, O sire, all that is wished by thee is known to me. It will be even as thou wishest.' And having said it, he disappeared then and there.

"And the gods and the Rishis and the Gandharvas, who had been standing all that while with their hands joined and their eyes up, were filled with wonder and with curiosity, and they all asked the Grandsire the obvious question.

"'Who is that one, O Lord, whom thy illustrious self worshipped with such humility and praised in such high words? We desire to hear it.'

"And the Grandsire answered them sweetly. 'He who is called TAT. He who is Supreme. He who exists now and who will exist for all time. He who is the highest Self, the Soul of beings, the great Lord. I was talking with his ever-cheerful self, ye bulls among gods. I solicited the Lord of the Universe, for the good of the Universe, to take his birth among mankind in the family of Vasudeva. I said to him: for the slaughter of the Asuras, take thy birth in the world of men.

"'Those Daityas and Rakshasas of fierce form and great strength who were slain in battle have been born again among men. The illustrious and mighty Lord, taking birth in a human womb, will live on the Earth accompanied by Nara. Those ancient and best of Rishis, Nara and Narayana, cannot be defeated in battle by all the celestials united together, and when they are born together in the world of men, fools will not know them.

"'He from whose Self I, Brahman, the Lord of the whole Universe, have sprung, that Vasudeva is worthy of your adoration. He bears the conch, the discus and the mace, and he should never be disregarded as a man, ye best of deities. That person of foolish understanding is called a wretch who, out of disregard, speaks of Hrishikesha as only a man. People say that he labours in darkness who does not know that Divine person, the Soul of the mobile and the immobile creation, from whose navel the primeval lotus sprang. He who disregards the wearer of the diadem and the Kaustubha gem sinks in thick darkness.'"

"Having said these words to the gods and the Rishis in days of yore," Bhishma went on, "the Grandsire dismissed them all and went back to his own abode, and the gods and the Gandharvas and the Munis and the Apsaras went up to heaven full of delight.

"This is not a thing I have invented tonight. I heard it from Rishis of cultured soul talking in their assembly. I heard it from Rama the son of Jamadagni, and from Markandeya of great wisdom, and from Vyasa, and from Narada. Having heard from such men that Vasudeva is the Eternal Lord, the Supreme God of all the worlds, the great Master from whom Brahman himself sprang, tell me why he should not be adored and worshipped by men."

Then he turned it on his nephew, and did not soften it.

"You were forbidden before this by sages of cultured souls. They said to you: never go to war with that Vasudeva who is armed with a bow, nor with the Pandavas. Out of folly you could not take hold of what they were telling you.

"Therefore I regard you as a wicked Rakshasa. You are besides enveloped in darkness. That is why you hate Govinda and Dhananjaya the son of Pandu. Who else among men would hate the divine Nara and Narayana?

"This one is Eternal and Unfading, pervading the whole Universe, Unchanging, the Ruler and Creator and Upholder of all, and the truly Existent. He upholds the three worlds. He is warrior, He is Victory, He is Victor, and He is the Lord of all nature. There, where Krishna is, there righteousness is; and there is victory where righteousness is. It is by the Yoga of his Supreme Excellence that the sons of Pandu are supported. Victory will surely be theirs. He is the one who gives them an understanding fitted to righteousness, and strength in the battle, and He protects them from danger. He of whom you asked me is known by the name of Vasudeva."

Duryodhana had listened to all of it and had taken from it the one thread that interested him.

"In all the worlds Vasudeva is spoken of as the Supreme Being," he said. "I desire, O Grandsire, to know his origin and his glory."

"Vasudeva is the Supreme Being," Bhishma said. "He is the God of all Gods, and none superior to him of the eyes like lotus-petals is to be seen. Markandeya speaks of Govinda as the Most Wonderful and the Most High, as the All-being, as the All-soul, as the Highest Soul, as the Supreme male Being.

"Water, Air and Fire, these three, were created by Him. That Divine Master created this Earth. That Supreme Being laid himself down on the waters, and slept there in Yoga, made up of all kinds of energy. From his mouth He created Fire, and from his breath the Wind. From his mouth He created Speech and the Vedas. So He created first the Worlds, and the gods along with the diverse classes of Rishis, and He created decay and death also of all creatures, and birth and growth as well. He is the Actor and He is the Action.

"He created Sankarshana, the first-born of all creatures. He created the divine Shesha who is called Ananta and who upholds all creatures and the Earth with her mountains. Out of the secretions of his ear sprang the great Asura called Madhu, fierce and of fierce deeds, who intended to destroy Brahman, and that Supreme Being slew him. It is on account of Madhu's slaughter that the gods and the Danavas and human beings and Rishis call Janardana the slayer of Madhu.

"He is the great Boar. He is the great Lion. He is the Three-stepped Lord. He is the Mother and the Father of all living creatures. From His mouth He created the Brahmanas, and from His two arms the Kshatriyas, and from His thighs the Vaisyas, and from His feet the Sudras. Inexhaustible regions of blessedness are won by the man with whom Krishna is gratified. He who in a place of fear seeks the protection of Keshava becomes happy and endued with every prosperity. Knowing this truly, O Bharata, Yudhishthira has with his whole soul sought the shelter of Keshava, the Lord of Yoga and the Lord of the Earth."

"Hear from me now, O king, this hymn that was uttered by Brahman himself, and that was communicated in days of old by the regenerate Rishis and by the gods to men on Earth.

"Narada described thee as the Master and the Lord of the god of gods and of all the Sadhyas and the celestials, and as one acquainted with the nature of the Creator of the worlds. Markandeya spoke of thee as the Past, the Present and the Future, and as the sacrifice of sacrifices and the austerity of austerities. The illustrious Bhrigu said of thee that thou art the God of the gods, that thine is the ancient form of Vishnu. Dwaipayana said of thee that thou art Vasudeva of the Vasus, the establisher of Sakra, the God of gods and of all creatures. In days of old, on the occasion of the procreating of creatures, the sages spoke of thee as Daksha, the Father of creation. Angiras said that thou art the creator of all beings. Devala said of thee that the unmanifest all is thy body, and the manifest is in thy mind, and that the gods are the result of thy breath.

"With thy heads the heavens are pervaded. Thy two arms support the Earth. In thy stomach are three worlds, and thou art the Eternal Being. Even thus do men exalted by asceticism know thee. With royal sages of liberal minds, never retreating from battle, having morality for their highest end, thou, O slayer of Madhu, art the sole refuge.

"The truth about Keshava is now narrated to thee, both in brief and in detail. Turn thy heart in love to Keshava."

"Hearing that sacred story," Sanjaya said, "your son began to regard both Keshava and those mighty car-warriors, the sons of Pandu, very highly indeed."

And Bhishma, who had been watching the boy's face the entire time, said the same thing to him once more, in case any of it had gone in.

"You have now heard truly about the glory of the high-souled Keshava, and of Nara, which is what you asked me. You have heard why the two of them took their births among men. You have heard the reason why those heroes are invincible and have never been vanquished, and why the sons of Pandu cannot be slain in battle by anybody. Krishna bears great love for them.

"It is for this, O king of kings, that I say: let peace be made with the Pandavas. Restrain your passions and enjoy the Earth with your mighty brothers around you. By disregarding the divine Nara and Narayana you will certainly be destroyed."

Having said that, Sanjaya told his father, the old man became silent. He dismissed the king. He went into his tent. And the king walked back across the camp to his own tent, having first worshipped the illustrious grandsire, and lay down on his white bed to pass the night in sleep.

He had asked who the Pandavas were relying on, and he had been given the name, and the origin, and the hymn, and the plain sentence at the end of it that where Krishna is there is victory. He went to sleep and in the morning he did not sue for peace.

After the night had passed away and the sun had risen, the two armies approached each other again, and each rushed in united ranks towards the other, excited with rage and desiring to vanquish the other. The array that Bhishma protected on all sides that day was in the shape of a Makara. Your father, O king, that foremost of car-warriors, went out in advance of it, supported by a large force, exactly as he had gone out the day before.