(1)Sûta said [to the rishis at
Naimishâranya]: "Hearing Maitreya's description
of Dhruva's
ascent to the abode of Vaikunthha, Vidura's love for the Supreme
Lord in the beyond grew and again he began to
question Maitreya Muni.

(2)Vidura asked: 'Who were they, you called the
Pracetâs? Which family were they
known by, whose sons were they, oh best among the sworn, and where performed they their sacrifice?(3)I think that Nârada is the greatest of all the
devotees; he
saw God before his eyes and described the procedure of rendering
devotional service to the Lord [in kriyâ-yoga or thepâñcarâtrika-method].(4)When these men
were performing their sacrificial duties in worship of the Supreme
Lord,
the Enjoyer of All Sacrifices was by Nârada described with devotion.(5)Oh
brahmin, be so kind to tell
me, so very eager to hear, in full all the stories about the Lord that
were narrated there by the devarishi.'

(6)Maitreya
said: 'Utkala, the son of
Dhruva, after his father departed for the forest, did not desire the
throne of the emperor, his father, with all the lands and
opulence
belonging to it.(7) From the day he was born he was a most
satisfied,
unattached soul, who equipoised saw the Supersoul as spread everywhere
in
the world and all the world as resting in the Supersoul. (8-9)Because
of
his
single-minded
resolve
about
the
spirit
of
the
Absolute, his
being separated from heaven had
endedin
the oneness of the Self. A consequent yoga practice had increased his bliss that as
fire burned away the karmic impurities of his mind. Thus
realizing his
constitutional position all his thoughts were devoted to the Soul of
all Souls.(10)
Out on the road he to the less
intelligent appeared to be like a fool, blind, deaf, dumb and mad, but
actually
his intelligence was more like a fire with its flames tempered. (11)Thinking
that
Utkala
had
no
intelligence
and
was
mad,
the
elders
of
the
family
and
the
ministers
of
state
appointed Vatsara,
the younger son of Bhrami, ruler of
the world.(12)
Svarvîthi, King Vatsara's dearest wife, gave
birth to six sons: Pushpârna, Tigmaketu, Isha, Ûrja, Vasu
and Jaya. (13) Pushpârna had two wives, Doshâ
and Prabhâ. Of Prabhâ there were the sons Prâtar,
Madhyandinam and Sâyam. (14)Pradosha,
Nis'itha and Vyushtha were the three sons of Doshâ. Vyushtha
begot in his wife Pushkarinî a son named Sarvatejâ [the all
powerful
one].(15-16)His
wife,
called Âkûti, gave birth to a son named Câkshusha who
was
the [sixth]
Manu.His queen Nadvalâ bore him [twelve]
pure
sons: Puru, Kutsa, Trita, Dyumna, Satyavân, Rita, Vrata,
Agnishthoma,
Atîrâtra, Pradyumna, S'ibi and Ulmuka. (17) Ulmuka begot
six very good sons in Pushkarinî [who had the same name
as her predecessor]: Anga,
Sumanâ, Khyâti,
Kratu, Angirâ and Gaya. (18)The wife of Anga,
Sunîthâ, gave birth to Vena who was very crooked. Disappointed about his bad character the wise king Anga left the
city
[to
live
in
the
forest]. (19-20)He
[Vena] was cursed by the
sages
whose angry words struck him like thunder. After that had
happened he
died. Being without a king all the inhabitants of the world were
pestered by thieves and rogues. They then churned his right arm [his
'hand'],
upon which a
partial incarnation [ams'a-avatâra] of
Nârâyana
descended called Prithu, who
became the original Lord of the Earth.

(21)Vidura said:
'With King Anga being such a reservoir of good qualities and a saintly
person, a lover of brahminical culture and a great soul, how could his
son be so bad that he became indifferent and left?(22)
Why did the sages conversant with the
religious principles who saw Vena's faults, desire to pronounce the
brahmin's
curse against him, while it was the king who carried the rod of
punishment? (23) The king is never to be insulted by the
citizens, however sinful he may be, because he by his personal influence maintains the power of all the
local officials.(24)Please
describe to me,
your faithful devotee, oh brahmin, all there is to say about the activities of
the son of
Sunîthâ, for you are
well
conversant with [the things of] heaven and earth.'

(25)Maitreya replied: 'King Anga
once executed a great as'vamedha sacrifice, but to that great
offering all the godly souls
never
attended, despite the fact that
they were invited by the officiating
brahmins.(26) Puzzled about it they then told the
instigator of the sacrifice: 'The godly souls do not accept the
oblations in the fire of the priests. (27)Oh King, there is nothing
impure about the offerings that you with great care collected, nor is
there anything wrong with the proper execution of the mantras by the
qualified brahmins.(28)
In this we cannot find the least insult or neglect in respect of the
godly souls, because of which the God-conscious who were to witness the
sacrifice, would not accept their share.'

(29)Maitreya said: 'King Anga, the performer of
the sacrifice, was very
depressed after hearing what the
twice-born souls said. He then,
with
their permission, addressed the
priests to be informed by them: (30)
'Being invited the ones of God are not going to [attend the sacrificial
ceremony and] accept their share of
the offerings. My dear priests, please tell me what
offense I have committed.'

(31)The
leading priests said: ‘Oh god of man, in this life you have not
committed even the slightest sin, but in your previous life there was
an impurity because of which you in this life are without a son. (32)We, who wish you all
good
fortune, therefore say to you: execute the sacrifice to get good offspring, oh
King,
when you worship the Lord, the
enjoyer of the sacrifice, with the desire to get a son, He will grant
you one.(33) All
the
men
of
God
will thereupon accept
their
share
of
the
sacrifice,
because then,for
the purpose of [getting] a son, evidently the
Supreme Personality has been
invited.(34)The Lord being worshiped will
award the person whatever he desires; people will reap the fruits of their actions according
to the way they were of respect for Him.'(35) For the
king to get a son the scholars, thus having decided, offered rice cake in the fire of the Lord of the Flames [Vishnu]. (36)As a
result a
person appeared in white garments with a golden garland and a
golden
pot wherein he carried rice boiled in milk. (37)The king, firmly rooted in the
noble mind, took with the permission of the scholars the in milk boiled
rice in his joined palms and,
after smelling with great
delight, offered it to his wife. (38)The
childless queen ate from the food that would give her a child and
indeed was impregnated by the husband. In
due time she then gave birth to a son.(39) That boy appeared partly
following in the footsteps of his death-oriented, maternal, irreligious
grandfather. He therefore became an offender of the holy duty. (40)
He used to take up his bow as a hunter and go into the forest to kill
innocent deer. Thus all the people cried: 'There he is, the cruel
Vena!' (41) While playing in the playground with boys of
his age he very cruelly violently killed them mercilessly as if he
slaughtered animals. (42)Seeing how
cruel his son was, the king, by different means of punishment, could
not
get a grip on him and thus became most aggrieved. He thought: (43)
'They who are without a son living at home must have worshiped the Lord
[in a previous life]. They do not have to suffer the unbearable sorrow
because of such a bad son.(44)Because of his sinful
reputation and unrighteousness there will be great discord among the
people and endless anxiety.(45)Who would want such a
so-called son? He inevitably binds the soul to illusion; what
intelligent person would value a son who brings misery to one's family
life?(46)I
think
it is
better
to
have
a
bad
son
than
a
good
one. Because of a hellish
household a mortal can detach himself from his home as a source of
misery.'

(47)Thus grown indifferent the king,
unable to sleep, got up in the middle of the night to forsake his home
that was
so opulent because of the blessings of the great souls. Not noticed by
anyone he left Vena's mother who was fast asleep. (48)As soon as
was understood that the king, no longer taking care, had left, all
the citizens, priests and ministers, friends and the rest of the people
searched the earth in great
bereavement, like they were inexperienced yogis looking
[outside] for the original person hidden [within the heart].(49)Not
finding a trace of the father of the nation, oh Kaurava, the citizens
returned disappointed to their city and informed, after offering their
respects, with tears in their eyes the assembled sages about the
absence of the king.'

Third
revised
edition,
loaded
September 10, 2017.

Previous
Aadhar
editionand Vedabase links:

Text
1

Sûta said [to the rishis at
Naimishâranya]: "Hearing Maitreya's description
of Dhruva's
ascent to the abode of Vaikunthha, Vidura's love for the Supreme
Lord in the beyond grew and again he began to
question Maitreya Muni.

Sûta said [to the rishis at
Naimishâranya]: "The
hearing of the description of Maitreya of Dhruva's ascent to the abode
of Vaikunthha, made Vidura's love for the Supreme Lord, who cannot be
seen by one's normal eyes, grow and again he made an effort to question
Maitreya Muni. (Vedabase)

Text
2

Vidura asked: 'Who were they, you called the
Pracetâs? Which family were they known by,
whose sons were they, oh best
among the sworn, and where
performed they their sacrifice?

Vidura asked: 'Who where they, you called the
Pracetâs? What was the renown of their family and who were their
sons, o best among the sworn, and what sacrifice did they perform? (Vedabase)

Text
3

I
think that Nârada is the greatest of all the devotees; he
saw God before his eyes and described the procedure of rendering
devotional service to the Lord [in kriyâ-yoga or thepâñcarâtrika-method].

I think that Nârada is the greatest of all the
devotees; he saw God in the eye and he spoke about the procedure of
rendering service in devotion unto the Lord [kriyâ-yoga or the
pâñcarâtrika-method]. (Vedabase)

Text
4

When these men
were performing their sacrificial duties in worship of the Supreme
Lord,
the Enjoyer of All Sacrifices was by Nârada described with devotion.

When these men were doing their duties of sacrifice in
worship of the Supreme Lord, was He by Nârada full of devotion
described. (Vedabase)

Text
5

Oh brahmin, be so
kind to tell me, so very eager to hear, in full all the stories about
the Lord that were narrated there by the devarishi.'

O brahmin, be so kind to tell me in full, what stories
about
the Lord were all narrated there by the devarishi.' (Vedabase)

Text
6

Maitreya said: 'Utkala, the son of
Dhruva, after his father departed for the forest, did not desire the
throne of the emperor, his father, with all the lands and
opulence belonging to it.

Maitreya said: 'Utkala, the son of Dhruva, did, after
his
father departed for the forest, not desire the royal seat of his father
with all its lands and opulence. (Vedabase)

Text
7

From the day he
was born he was a most
satisfied,
unattached soul, who equipoised saw the Supersoul as spread everywhere
in
the world and all the world as resting in the Supersoul.

From his very birth, he was a satisfied, unattached
soul,
who equipoised, saw the Supersoul spread everywhere in the world and
all the world as resting in the Supersoul. (Vedabase)

Text8-9

Because of his
single-minded resolve about the spirit of the Absolute,his
being
separated from heaven had endedin
the oneness of the self. A consequent yoga practice had increased his bliss that as
fire burned away the karmic impurities of his mind. Thus
realizing his
constitutional position all his thoughts were devoted to the Soul of
all Souls.

Relating to the holy spirit had, for his spiritual
soul,
ended the separation from heaven [nirvâna] and by a continuing
yoga-practice he had increased his bliss, that as fire burnt all the
impurities of karma out of his mind; thus realizing his constitutional
position he then saw nothing but the Supreme Soul. (Vedabase)

Text
10

Out on the road
he to the less
intelligent appeared to be like a fool, blind, deaf, dumb and mad, but
actually
his intelligence was more like a fire with its flames tempered.

Out on the road appeared he, to the less intelligent,
to be
like a fool, blind, deaf, dumb and mad, but actually was his
intelligence more like a fire of which the flames are tempered. (Vedabase)

Text
11

Thinking that
Utkala had no intelligence
and was mad, the elders of the family and the ministers of state appointed Vatsara, the younger son of Bhrami, ruler of
the world.

Thinking Utkala to be void of intelligence and mad,
appointed the elders of the family and the ministers of state Vatsara,
the younger son of Bhrami, the ruler of the world. (Vedabase)

Pushpârna
had two wives, Doshâ and Prabhâ. Of Prabhâ there were
the sons Prâtar,
Madhyandinam and Sâyam.

Pushpârna had two wives Doshâ and
Prabhâ
and of Prabhâ there was the happiness of seeing the sons
Prâtar, Madhyandinam and Sâyam. (Vedabase)

Text
14

Pradosha,
Nis'itha and Vyushtha were the three sons of Doshâ. Vyushtha
begot in his wife Pushkarinî a son named Sarvatejâ [the all
powerful
one].

Pradosha, Nis'itha and Vyushtha were likewise the
three sons
of Doshâ. Vyushtha begot in his wife Pushkarinî a son named
Sarvatejâ [the all powerful one]. (Vedabase)

Text15-16

His
wife,
called Âkûti, gave birth to a son named Câkshusha who
was
the [sixth]
Manu.His queen Nadvalâ bore him [twelve]
pure
sons: Puru, Kutsa, Trita, Dyumna, Satyavân, Rita, Vrata,
Agnishthoma,
Atîrâtra, Pradyumna, S'ibi and Ulmuka.

His wife, called Âkûti, gave birth to
Câkshusha Manu who indeed was the [sixth] Manu. Free from passion
he from his queen Nadvalâ gave the world the sons Puru, Kutsa,
Trita, Dyumna, Satyavân, Rita, Vrata, Agnishthoma,
Atîrâtra, Pradyumna, S'ibi en Ulmuka. (Vedabase)

Text
17

Ulmuka begot six
very
good
sons in
Pushkarinî [who had the same name
as her predecessor]: Anga,
Sumanâ, Khyâti,
Kratu, Angirâ and Gaya.

In Pushkarinî begot Ulmuka six very good sons:
Anga,
Sumanâ, Khyâti, Kratu, Angirâ and Gaya. (Vedabase)

Text18

The wife of Anga,
Sunîthâ, gave birth to Vena who was very crooked. Disappointed about his bad character the wise king Anga left the
city
[to
live
in
the
forest].

The wife of Anga, Sunîthâ gave birth to
Vena who
was very crooked and because of his bad character left the saintly king
Anga disappointed the city. (Vedabase)

Text19-20

He [Vena] was cursed by the
sages
whose angry words struck him like thunder. After that had
happened he
died. Being without a king all the inhabitants of the world were
pestered by thieves and rogues. They then churned his right arm [his
'hand'],
upon which a
partial incarnation [ams'a-avatâra] of
Nârâyana
descended called Prithu, who
became the original Lord of the Earth.

He
[Vena] was cursed by the great sages, whose angry words struck him like
thunder; after that he then died, and being without a king, all the
inhabitants of the world then suffered from thieves and rogues. They
churned his right hand, upon which a partial incarnation
[ams'a-avatâra] of Nârâyana called Prithu descended,
who became the original Lord of the Earth.' (Vedabase)

Text21

Vidura said:
'With King Anga being such a reservoir of good qualities and a saintly
person, a lover of brahminical culture and a great soul, how could his
son be so bad that he became indifferent and left?

Vidura
said: 'When King Anga was such a reservoir of good character and a
saintly person, a lover of brahminical culture and a great soul, how
could his son be so bad that he became indifferent and left? (Vedabase)

Text22

Why did the sages conversant
with the
religious principles who saw Vena's faults, desire to pronounce the
brahmin's
curse against him, while it was the king who carried the rod of
punishment?

Why did
the sages conversant with the religious principles, finding fault,
desire to award Vena the brahmin's curse while it was he himself who
carried the rod of punishment? (Vedabase)

Text23

The king is never to be
insulted by the
citizens, however sinful he may be, because he by his personal influence maintains the power of all the
local officials.

The king
is never to be insulted by the citizens however sinful he may be,
because he maintains of all the local officials the power by his
personal influence. (Vedabase)

Text24

Please
describe to me,
your faithful devotee, oh brahmin, all there is to say about the activities of
the son of
Sunîthâ, for you are
well
conversant with [the things of] heaven and earth.'

Please
describe all this about the activities of the son of
Sunîthâ to me, your faithful devotee, o brahmin, as you are
well conversant with the things above and below. (Vedabase)

Text25

Maitreya replied:
'King Anga
once executed a great as'vamedha sacrifice, but to that great
offering all the godly souls never
attended, despite the fact that
they were invited by the officiating
brahmins.

Maitreya
answered: 'King Anga once executed a great as'vamedha sacrifice, but to
that great offering all the godly ones, although invited by the
officiating brahmins, never attended. (Vedabase)

Text26

Puzzled about it they then
told the
instigator of the sacrifice: 'The godly souls do not accept the
oblations in the fire of the priests.

Puzzled
about it they then told the institutor of the sacrifice: 'The godly
ones do not accept the priests their oblations in the fire. (Vedabase)

Text27

Oh King, there is nothing
impure about the offerings that you with great care collected, nor is
there anything wrong with the proper execution of the mantras by the
qualified brahmins.

O King,
there is nothing impure with the offerings that you with great care
collected, nor is there anything wrong with the proper execution of the
mantras by the qualified brahmins. (Vedabase)

Text28

In
this we cannot find the least insult or neglect in respect of the godly
souls, because of which the God-conscious who were to witness the
sacrifice, would not accept their share.'

In this
connection we cannot find the least insult or neglect in respect of the
godly ones because of which the ones of divinity, that are to witness
the sacrifice, wouldn't accept their own share.' (Vedabase)

Text29

Maitreya said:
'King Anga, the performer of
the sacrifice, was very
depressed after hearing what the
twice-born souls said. He then, with
their permission, addressed the
priests to be informed by them:

Maitreya
said: 'King Anga, the performer of the sacrifice, was, after hearing
what the twice-born said, very depressed about it and then with their
permission he addressed the priests to be further informed: (Vedabase)

Text30

'Being
invited
the ones of God are not going to [attend the sacrificial
ceremony and] accept their share of
the offerings. My dear priests, please tell me what
offense I have committed.'

'Being
invited the ones of God are not coming to accept their shares of the
sacrifice; my dear priests, please tell me what the nature of the
offense is that I committed?' (Vedabase)

Text31

The
leading priests said: ‘Oh god of man, in this life you have not
committed even the slightest sin, but in your previous life there was
an impurity because of which you in this life are without a son.

The
leading priests said: 'O god of man, in this life you not even
committed the slightest sin, but in your previous life there is a sin
from which in this life you are accordingly without any son. (Vedabase)

Text32

We, who wish you all
good
fortune, therefore say to you: execute the sacrifice to get good offspring, oh
King,
when you worship the Lord, the
enjoyer of the sacrifice, with the desire to get a son, He will grant
you one.

Therefore
-
all
good fortune to you - execute the sacrifice to get a good son, o
King; the Lord, the enjoyer of the sacrifice, worshiped by you desiring
a son, will deliver you one. (Vedabase)

Text33

All
the
men
of
God
will thereupon accept
their
share
of
the
sacrifice,
because then,for
the purpose of [getting] a son, evidently the
Supreme Personality has been
invited.

Thereupon
will
all
the men of God accept their share in the sacrifice, because
for the purpose of a son then directly the Supreme Personality has been
invited. (Vedabase)

Text34

The Lord being worshiped will
award the person whatever he desires; people will reap the fruits of their actions according
to the way they were of respect for Him.'

The Lord
being worshiped will award the person whatever the objects desired,
when it is sure that accordingly He for the people is the desired
outcome.' (Vedabase)

Text35

For
the
king to get a son the scholars, thus having decided, offered rice cake
in the fire of the Lord of the Flames [Vishnu].

Having
decided thus engaged the learned ones their means of sacrifice in
offering to Vishnu, the Lord of the Flames, for the purpose of the king
to get a son. (Vedabase)

Text36

As a result a
person appeared in white garments with a golden garland
and a golden
pot wherein he carried rice boiled in milk.

From the
sacrificial fire a person in white garments appeared with a golden
garland and a golden pot in which he carried rice boiled in milk. (Vedabase)

Text37

The
king, firmly rooted in the
noble mind, took with the permission of the scholars the in milk boiled
rice in his joined palms and,
after smelling with great
delight, offered it to his wife.

He, the
king, fixed in the noble mind, with the permission of the learned took
the in milk boiled rice in his joined palms which he, after smelling it
with great delight, offered to his wife. (Vedabase)

Text38

The
childless queen ate from the food that would give her a child and
indeed was impregnated by the husband. In
due time she then gave birth to a son.

She, the
queen, eating from the food that would give her a child, indeed,
conceiving from the husband, became pregnant and thus she in due time
gave birth to the son that she, missing one, needed to appear. (Vedabase)

Text39

That boy appeared partly
following in the footsteps of his death-oriented, maternal, irreligious
grandfather. He therefore became an offender of the holy duty.

That
child, a boy indeed, appeared partly following his maternal
grandfather's irreligion of death; and of that he became an offender of
the holy duty. (Vedabase)

Text40

He used to take up his bow as
a hunter and go into the forest to kill
innocent deer. Thus all the people cried: 'There he is, the cruel
Vena!'

He used
to take up his bow as a hunter, going into the forest to kill innocent
deer and thus all the people would cry 'There he is, the cruel Vena!' (Vedabase)

Text41

While playing in the
playground with boys of
his age he very cruelly violently killed them mercilessly as if he
slaughtered animals.

While
playing in the playground with boys of his age he very cruelly by force
merciless killed them as if he was slaughtering animals. (Vedabase)

Text42

Seeing
how
cruel his son was, the king, by different means of punishment, could
not
get a grip on him and thus became most aggrieved. He thought:

Seeing
how cruel his son was, was the king by different kinds of punishments
not able to get a grip on him and thus he became greatly aggrieved
thinking: (Vedabase)

Text43

'They
who are without a son living at home must have worshiped the Lord [in a
previous life]. They do not have to suffer the unbearable sorrow
because of such a bad son.

'Those
who are without a son must have honored God; they do not have to suffer
this unbearable sorrow to live at home with such a bad son. (Vedabase)

Text44

Because
of
his sinful
reputation and unrighteousness there will be great discord among the
people and endless anxiety.

From a
bad son's sinful reputation and unrighteousness will there be a great
discord among men and an endless anxiety among all people. (Vedabase)

Text45

Who
would want such a
so-called son? He inevitably binds the soul to illusion; what
intelligent person would value a son who brings misery to one's family
life?

Who
would want such a so-called son? No doubt means he for the soul a
bondage to illusion; which intelligent man would value one who brings
miserey to one's home? (Vedabase)

Text46

I
think
it is
better
to
have
a
bad
son
than
a
good
one. Because of a hellish household a mortal can detach himself from his
home as a source of misery.'

I think
it is better to have a bad son than a good one because one, from the
grief, becomes detached from one's home, that as the source of all
grief, turns the life of a mortal man into a heap of trouble.' (Vedabase)

Text47

Thus grown indifferent the king,
unable to sleep, got up in the middle of the night to forsake his home
that was
so opulent because of the blessings of the great souls. Not noticed by
anyone he left Vena's mother who was fast asleep.

Thus
grown indifferent got he, the king, unable to sleep, up in the middle
of the night to give up his home so opulent from the blessings of the
great souls and left he, not seen by anyone, Vena's mother deep asleep.
(Vedabase)

Text48

As soon as
was understood that the king, no longer taking care, had left, all
the citizens, priests and ministers, friends and the rest of the people
searched the earth in great
bereavement, like they were inexperienced yogis looking
[outside] for the original person hidden [within the heart].

As soon
as was understood that the king, no longer caring, had left, searched
all the citizens, priests and ministers, friends and the rest of the
people the earth in great bereavement, just as inexperienced yogis are
looking outside for what's hidden in the person. (Vedabase)

Text49

Not
finding a trace of the father of the nation, oh Kaurava, the citizens
returned disappointed to their city and informed, after offering their
respects, with tears in their eyes the assembled sages about the
absence of the king.'

Not
finding a trace of their father of state, o Kaurava, returned the
citizens disappointed to their city and informed they with tears in
their eyes, after offering their respects, the sages assembled about
the absence of the king. (Vedabase)