SECTION XIX.Parāçara said:—When Hiranyakashipu had heard that the magical charms (of the priests) had been baffled he sent for his son and asked him of the secret of his prowess,—"Prahlāda, thou art gifted with extraordinary prowess—is it the result of your self-exercise or the outcome of magical powers or thou art, from birth, gifted with it?"Being thus interrogated by his father the Asura boy Prahlāda bowed down to his father's feet and said,—"This not the outcome of magical powers, O father—nor is it natural with me; This is trifling to him in whose mind resides the undecaying. He who does not cherish malice against others, O father, and regards all like his own self, is not visited by any affliction inasmuch as the cause does not exist. He who tortures others in act, thought or speech, sows the seed of numberless miseries. I wish no evil to any; neither do nor speak it; I always meditate, in me, upon Keshava who is existent in all beings. Why should miseries, physical or mental, or those inflicted by elements, or the gods, affect whose soul is purified? Considering that Hari exists in all beings the learned should assiduously love all creatures". Parāçara said:—Having heard this the Daitya-king, seated on the summit of his palace, having his face darkened with ire, said to his attendants.—"Throw this vicious-souled one from this palace which is a hundredyojanasin height, down upon the tops of the mountains, so that his body may be crushed into pieces against the rocks". Thereupon all these Daityas and Dānavas hurled that boy down: and he fell down cherishing Hari in his mind. And Earth, the upholder of the world, approaching, received him falling who was devoted to Keshava the protector of the world. Thereupon beholding him unhurt and having no bone fractured, Hiranyakashipu said to Samvara the foremost of those conversant with charms:—"We have not been able to slay this vicious-minded lad; thou art cognisant of various charms: do thou slay him". Samvara said:—"Instantly shall I slay him, O king of Daityas: do thou behold my power of illusion which can invent thousands and myriads of artifices". Parāçara said:—Thereupon that silly Asura Samvara, desirous of destroying the boy, practised his magical charms against Prahlāda, looking upon all creatures with an impartial eye. With a heart tranquil and void of malice even against Samvara, O Maitreya, Prahlāda engaged in the meditation of the destroyer of Madhu. Thereupon to protect him the excellent and flaming discus Sudarshana was despatched by the Great God. Thereupon thousands of Samvara's illusions were baffled by the quick-coursing discus for the protection of that boy.Thereupon the Daitya-king spoke to the withering wind saying,—"Do thou, speedily, at my command, bring this vicious-minded boy to destruction". Saying "So be it" the wind immediately penetrated into his body—cold, cutting and insufferable, for his destruction. Perceiving that wind had entered into his body the Daitya boy again meditated, in his mind, upon the great upholder of the earth. And Janārddana, present in his mind, wroth, drank up that dreadful wind. And the wind thus met with its own destruction. All the magical charms being thus baffled, the wind being thus annihilated, the high-minded Prahlāda again repaired to the abode of his preceptor. And the preceptor instructed that boy daily in the science of polity essentially necessary for the administration of the government and invented by Usanas for the behoof of kings. When the preceptor found him well-versed in all political sciences and humble, he then communicated it to his father, saying,—"O lord of Daityas, thy son Prahlāda has become conversant with the principles of government as laid down by the descendant of Bhrigu". Thereat Hiranyakashipu said to his son,—"Prahlāda, how should a king conduct himself towards friends or foes and what steps he should take at the three periods (i.e.advance, retrogression and peace)? How should he behave towards his ministers, courtiers, the state and household officers, his emissaries, his subjects, those of doubtful allegiance and his open enemies? With whom should he make alliance; with whom enter into war; what sort of fortress he should build; how forest and mountain tribes should be brought down to subjection; how internal disturbances should be removed: all this and all other things you have read, do thou relate to me: I wish to hear thy mind".Thereupon bowing to the feet of his father, Prahlāda, who had humility as his ornament, said, with folded palms to that Daitya-king. "Forsooth I have been instructed in all these by my preceptor and I have learnt them; but I do not approve of all of them. For the subjection of friends and foes four expedients have been prescribed by all—namely—conciliation, gift, punishment, and sowing dissension. But O father, be not angry, I know neither friends nor enemies. O thou of mighty arms where there is nothing to be effected what is the use of resorting to the means for effecting it? O father, it is useless to talk of friend or foe in Govinda, who is identical with all beings, manifest all over the universe, the lord of it and the Great Soul. The Great Vishnu exists in thee, in me as well as in all other creatures; and then what is the use of making such distinction as he is friend and he is foe! It is useless therefore to cultivate such tedious and unprofitable sciences which contain but false knowledge. It is but proper, O father, to engage in the cultivation of the knowledge of self. O father, the idea that ignorance is knowledge arises from ignorance only. A boy, O lord of Asuras, regards the fire-fly as fire. That is (proper) action that liberates us from the bondage of the world and that is (true) knowledge that leads us to the path of emancipation; all other actions lead but to weariness and all other knowledge is turned only into cleverness of an artist. Considering all this knowledge as useless I shall relate to thee respectfully what is really profitable; do thou, O great king, hear it. Who does not think of a kingdom? Who does not desire for riches? But all these are acquirable by the piety accumulated in a pristine birth—so the pious obtain them both. O great king, all men desire to be great—but this greatness is not acquired by exertion, it is the destiny that confers it upon men. O lord, kingdoms are acquired by fate, even by the stupid, the ignorant, the cowardly and those who are ignorant of the science of government. Therefore, he, who longs for greatness, should try to acquire piety. He, who desires for final beatitude, should try to regard all people with an impartial eye. Gods, men, animals, birds, reptiles, all are but diverse manifestations of the eternal Vishnu and exist in a separate state. By him, who knows this, the whole world, moveable and immoveable, is considered as at one with him—all proceeding alike from Vishnu assuming the universal form. When a man obtains this knowledge, the undecaying and eternal Vishnu—the remover of all afflictions, is propitiated with him". Parāçara said:—Having heard this and got up from the excellent seat, in great rage, Hiranyakashipu spurned his son on the breast with his foot. And burning in ire and wringing his hands as if bent upon destroying the whole universe, he exclaimed: "Ho Viprachita! Ho Rāhu! Ho Vāli binding this boy with serpents, do ye throw him unto the deep: delay not or else the Daityas, the Dānavas and all other people shall be initiated into doctrines of this stupid and vicious boy. We have prevented him many a time and oft and still he persists in chanting the glories of our foe: it is proper to destroy the wicked boy at once". Parāçara said:—Thereupon obeying the mandate of their master the Daityas speedily bound him with ropes and threw him into the water. Thereupon with Prahlāda trembled the mighty deep; and being agitated throughout, it rose in mighty waves. Beholding the earth about to be submerged by the great ocean, Hiranyakashipu again said to the Daityas,—"O ye descendants of Diti! Do ye bury this wicked boy in the deep with rocks. Fire did not burn him; the weapons did not hurt him; the serpents could not bite him; nor the withering blast, poison, and the magical incantations bring about his destruction. He baffled the illusions (of Samvara), fell unhurt from the loftiest mountains, foiled the elephants of the skies. He is a wicked boy and his life is a perpetual source of miseries. Let him be buried down with rocks into the deep. If he remains in that wise for a thousand years he may lose his life". Thereupon the Daityas and Dānavas, attacking Prahlāda in the mighty deep with rocks, covered thousands ofyojanastherewith. And lying at the bed of the deep covered with racks, the high-minded Prahlāda, offered thus; with undisturbed mind, his praise to the undecaying:—"Salutation unto thee, O Pundarikāsha, salutation unto thee, O thou excellent Puhusha! Salutation unto thee, O thou the soul of all worlds! Salutation unto thee, O thou the wielder of sharp discus! Salutation unto the best of Brāhmanas! to the friend of Brāhmanas and of kine! to Krishna, the benefactor of the world and salutation to Govinda! Salutation to him, who as Brahmā creates the universe and who, being existent all over, preserves it. Salutation to thee, who dost at the end of Kalpa assume the form of Rudra, and who art tri-form. Thou art, Achyuta, the cause of gods, Yakhas, Asuras, Siddhas, serpents, choristers, dancers, goblins, demons, men, beasts, birds, insects, reptiles, plants, and stones, earth, fire, water, sky, wind, sound, touch, taste, colour, flavour, mind, intellect, soul, time, and the properties of nature; and these are all manifestations of thine. Thou art knowledge and ignorance, thou art truth and untruth; thou art poison and nectar; thou art the performance and continuance of acts and thou art the actions laid down in the Vedas. Thou art the enjoyer of the fruits of all actions and the means for effecting them. Thou, Vishnu, who art all, art the fruit of all acts of piety. Thou art in me, in others and spread all over the vast universe. Thy universal manifestation indicates might and goodness. O lord. The ascetics meditate upon thee, the priests offer sacrifice to thee. Thou, identical with progenitors and celestials, receivest burnt-offerings and oblations. The universe is a huge manifestation of thine; the world is lesser than that, O lord; and lesser than that are all the subtile elements and elementary being and thy subtlest form is the subtile principle within them that is called soul. Thou hast in thee a supreme soul, better than this soul and beyond the perception of all subtile elements and which cannot be conceived. Glory be to that Purusottam form of thine. And salutation be to that imperishable form of thine, O lord of gods, which is the soul of all creatures, another manifestation of thy might and which is the refuge of all qualities. I bow unto that supreme goddess who is beyond the perception of senses, the description of the tongue and mind and who is to be distinguished only by the wisdom of the truly wise. Salutation unto the Great God Vāsudeva, who is not separate from any thing and at the same time separate from all. Salutation again and again to that Great Spirit who has neither name nor form and whose existence can only be perceived. Salutation unto that Great Spirit, whose incarnate forms on earth the deities adore, being unable to behold his true form. Salutation unto that Great God Vishnu, the witness of all, who being present in all minds, beholds the good and evil of all. Salutation unto that Vishnu, from whom this world is not distinct. May He, who is the object of the world's meditation, its beginning, and who is undecaying, be propitiated with me. May that Hari have compassion upon me, who is the stay of all, in whom the universe is warped and woven and who is imperishable and undecaying. Salutation again and again unto Vishnu, in whom all things exist, from whom all things proceed and who is the supporter of all. Salutation to him who also am I, and who is everywhere and through whom all things are from me. I am all things and all things are from me who am eternal. I am undecaying eternal, the asylum of the supreme spirit. Brahmā is my appellation that is at the beginning and end of all things".
SECTION XIX.Parāçara said:—When Hiranyakashipu had heard that the magical charms (of the priests) had been baffled he sent for his son and asked him of the secret of his prowess,—"Prahlāda, thou art gifted with extraordinary prowess—is it the result of your self-exercise or the outcome of magical powers or thou art, from birth, gifted with it?"Being thus interrogated by his father the Asura boy Prahlāda bowed down to his father's feet and said,—"This not the outcome of magical powers, O father—nor is it natural with me; This is trifling to him in whose mind resides the undecaying. He who does not cherish malice against others, O father, and regards all like his own self, is not visited by any affliction inasmuch as the cause does not exist. He who tortures others in act, thought or speech, sows the seed of numberless miseries. I wish no evil to any; neither do nor speak it; I always meditate, in me, upon Keshava who is existent in all beings. Why should miseries, physical or mental, or those inflicted by elements, or the gods, affect whose soul is purified? Considering that Hari exists in all beings the learned should assiduously love all creatures". Parāçara said:—Having heard this the Daitya-king, seated on the summit of his palace, having his face darkened with ire, said to his attendants.—"Throw this vicious-souled one from this palace which is a hundredyojanasin height, down upon the tops of the mountains, so that his body may be crushed into pieces against the rocks". Thereupon all these Daityas and Dānavas hurled that boy down: and he fell down cherishing Hari in his mind. And Earth, the upholder of the world, approaching, received him falling who was devoted to Keshava the protector of the world. Thereupon beholding him unhurt and having no bone fractured, Hiranyakashipu said to Samvara the foremost of those conversant with charms:—"We have not been able to slay this vicious-minded lad; thou art cognisant of various charms: do thou slay him". Samvara said:—"Instantly shall I slay him, O king of Daityas: do thou behold my power of illusion which can invent thousands and myriads of artifices". Parāçara said:—Thereupon that silly Asura Samvara, desirous of destroying the boy, practised his magical charms against Prahlāda, looking upon all creatures with an impartial eye. With a heart tranquil and void of malice even against Samvara, O Maitreya, Prahlāda engaged in the meditation of the destroyer of Madhu. Thereupon to protect him the excellent and flaming discus Sudarshana was despatched by the Great God. Thereupon thousands of Samvara's illusions were baffled by the quick-coursing discus for the protection of that boy.Thereupon the Daitya-king spoke to the withering wind saying,—"Do thou, speedily, at my command, bring this vicious-minded boy to destruction". Saying "So be it" the wind immediately penetrated into his body—cold, cutting and insufferable, for his destruction. Perceiving that wind had entered into his body the Daitya boy again meditated, in his mind, upon the great upholder of the earth. And Janārddana, present in his mind, wroth, drank up that dreadful wind. And the wind thus met with its own destruction. All the magical charms being thus baffled, the wind being thus annihilated, the high-minded Prahlāda again repaired to the abode of his preceptor. And the preceptor instructed that boy daily in the science of polity essentially necessary for the administration of the government and invented by Usanas for the behoof of kings. When the preceptor found him well-versed in all political sciences and humble, he then communicated it to his father, saying,—"O lord of Daityas, thy son Prahlāda has become conversant with the principles of government as laid down by the descendant of Bhrigu". Thereat Hiranyakashipu said to his son,—"Prahlāda, how should a king conduct himself towards friends or foes and what steps he should take at the three periods (i.e.advance, retrogression and peace)? How should he behave towards his ministers, courtiers, the state and household officers, his emissaries, his subjects, those of doubtful allegiance and his open enemies? With whom should he make alliance; with whom enter into war; what sort of fortress he should build; how forest and mountain tribes should be brought down to subjection; how internal disturbances should be removed: all this and all other things you have read, do thou relate to me: I wish to hear thy mind".Thereupon bowing to the feet of his father, Prahlāda, who had humility as his ornament, said, with folded palms to that Daitya-king. "Forsooth I have been instructed in all these by my preceptor and I have learnt them; but I do not approve of all of them. For the subjection of friends and foes four expedients have been prescribed by all—namely—conciliation, gift, punishment, and sowing dissension. But O father, be not angry, I know neither friends nor enemies. O thou of mighty arms where there is nothing to be effected what is the use of resorting to the means for effecting it? O father, it is useless to talk of friend or foe in Govinda, who is identical with all beings, manifest all over the universe, the lord of it and the Great Soul. The Great Vishnu exists in thee, in me as well as in all other creatures; and then what is the use of making such distinction as he is friend and he is foe! It is useless therefore to cultivate such tedious and unprofitable sciences which contain but false knowledge. It is but proper, O father, to engage in the cultivation of the knowledge of self. O father, the idea that ignorance is knowledge arises from ignorance only. A boy, O lord of Asuras, regards the fire-fly as fire. That is (proper) action that liberates us from the bondage of the world and that is (true) knowledge that leads us to the path of emancipation; all other actions lead but to weariness and all other knowledge is turned only into cleverness of an artist. Considering all this knowledge as useless I shall relate to thee respectfully what is really profitable; do thou, O great king, hear it. Who does not think of a kingdom? Who does not desire for riches? But all these are acquirable by the piety accumulated in a pristine birth—so the pious obtain them both. O great king, all men desire to be great—but this greatness is not acquired by exertion, it is the destiny that confers it upon men. O lord, kingdoms are acquired by fate, even by the stupid, the ignorant, the cowardly and those who are ignorant of the science of government. Therefore, he, who longs for greatness, should try to acquire piety. He, who desires for final beatitude, should try to regard all people with an impartial eye. Gods, men, animals, birds, reptiles, all are but diverse manifestations of the eternal Vishnu and exist in a separate state. By him, who knows this, the whole world, moveable and immoveable, is considered as at one with him—all proceeding alike from Vishnu assuming the universal form. When a man obtains this knowledge, the undecaying and eternal Vishnu—the remover of all afflictions, is propitiated with him". Parāçara said:—Having heard this and got up from the excellent seat, in great rage, Hiranyakashipu spurned his son on the breast with his foot. And burning in ire and wringing his hands as if bent upon destroying the whole universe, he exclaimed: "Ho Viprachita! Ho Rāhu! Ho Vāli binding this boy with serpents, do ye throw him unto the deep: delay not or else the Daityas, the Dānavas and all other people shall be initiated into doctrines of this stupid and vicious boy. We have prevented him many a time and oft and still he persists in chanting the glories of our foe: it is proper to destroy the wicked boy at once". Parāçara said:—Thereupon obeying the mandate of their master the Daityas speedily bound him with ropes and threw him into the water. Thereupon with Prahlāda trembled the mighty deep; and being agitated throughout, it rose in mighty waves. Beholding the earth about to be submerged by the great ocean, Hiranyakashipu again said to the Daityas,—"O ye descendants of Diti! Do ye bury this wicked boy in the deep with rocks. Fire did not burn him; the weapons did not hurt him; the serpents could not bite him; nor the withering blast, poison, and the magical incantations bring about his destruction. He baffled the illusions (of Samvara), fell unhurt from the loftiest mountains, foiled the elephants of the skies. He is a wicked boy and his life is a perpetual source of miseries. Let him be buried down with rocks into the deep. If he remains in that wise for a thousand years he may lose his life". Thereupon the Daityas and Dānavas, attacking Prahlāda in the mighty deep with rocks, covered thousands ofyojanastherewith. And lying at the bed of the deep covered with racks, the high-minded Prahlāda, offered thus; with undisturbed mind, his praise to the undecaying:—"Salutation unto thee, O Pundarikāsha, salutation unto thee, O thou excellent Puhusha! Salutation unto thee, O thou the soul of all worlds! Salutation unto thee, O thou the wielder of sharp discus! Salutation unto the best of Brāhmanas! to the friend of Brāhmanas and of kine! to Krishna, the benefactor of the world and salutation to Govinda! Salutation to him, who as Brahmā creates the universe and who, being existent all over, preserves it. Salutation to thee, who dost at the end of Kalpa assume the form of Rudra, and who art tri-form. Thou art, Achyuta, the cause of gods, Yakhas, Asuras, Siddhas, serpents, choristers, dancers, goblins, demons, men, beasts, birds, insects, reptiles, plants, and stones, earth, fire, water, sky, wind, sound, touch, taste, colour, flavour, mind, intellect, soul, time, and the properties of nature; and these are all manifestations of thine. Thou art knowledge and ignorance, thou art truth and untruth; thou art poison and nectar; thou art the performance and continuance of acts and thou art the actions laid down in the Vedas. Thou art the enjoyer of the fruits of all actions and the means for effecting them. Thou, Vishnu, who art all, art the fruit of all acts of piety. Thou art in me, in others and spread all over the vast universe. Thy universal manifestation indicates might and goodness. O lord. The ascetics meditate upon thee, the priests offer sacrifice to thee. Thou, identical with progenitors and celestials, receivest burnt-offerings and oblations. The universe is a huge manifestation of thine; the world is lesser than that, O lord; and lesser than that are all the subtile elements and elementary being and thy subtlest form is the subtile principle within them that is called soul. Thou hast in thee a supreme soul, better than this soul and beyond the perception of all subtile elements and which cannot be conceived. Glory be to that Purusottam form of thine. And salutation be to that imperishable form of thine, O lord of gods, which is the soul of all creatures, another manifestation of thy might and which is the refuge of all qualities. I bow unto that supreme goddess who is beyond the perception of senses, the description of the tongue and mind and who is to be distinguished only by the wisdom of the truly wise. Salutation unto the Great God Vāsudeva, who is not separate from any thing and at the same time separate from all. Salutation again and again to that Great Spirit who has neither name nor form and whose existence can only be perceived. Salutation unto that Great Spirit, whose incarnate forms on earth the deities adore, being unable to behold his true form. Salutation unto that Great God Vishnu, the witness of all, who being present in all minds, beholds the good and evil of all. Salutation unto that Vishnu, from whom this world is not distinct. May He, who is the object of the world's meditation, its beginning, and who is undecaying, be propitiated with me. May that Hari have compassion upon me, who is the stay of all, in whom the universe is warped and woven and who is imperishable and undecaying. Salutation again and again unto Vishnu, in whom all things exist, from whom all things proceed and who is the supporter of all. Salutation to him who also am I, and who is everywhere and through whom all things are from me. I am all things and all things are from me who am eternal. I am undecaying eternal, the asylum of the supreme spirit. Brahmā is my appellation that is at the beginning and end of all things".
SECTION XIX.Parāçara said:—When Hiranyakashipu had heard that the magical charms (of the priests) had been baffled he sent for his son and asked him of the secret of his prowess,—"Prahlāda, thou art gifted with extraordinary prowess—is it the result of your self-exercise or the outcome of magical powers or thou art, from birth, gifted with it?"Being thus interrogated by his father the Asura boy Prahlāda bowed down to his father's feet and said,—"This not the outcome of magical powers, O father—nor is it natural with me; This is trifling to him in whose mind resides the undecaying. He who does not cherish malice against others, O father, and regards all like his own self, is not visited by any affliction inasmuch as the cause does not exist. He who tortures others in act, thought or speech, sows the seed of numberless miseries. I wish no evil to any; neither do nor speak it; I always meditate, in me, upon Keshava who is existent in all beings. Why should miseries, physical or mental, or those inflicted by elements, or the gods, affect whose soul is purified? Considering that Hari exists in all beings the learned should assiduously love all creatures". Parāçara said:—Having heard this the Daitya-king, seated on the summit of his palace, having his face darkened with ire, said to his attendants.—"Throw this vicious-souled one from this palace which is a hundredyojanasin height, down upon the tops of the mountains, so that his body may be crushed into pieces against the rocks". Thereupon all these Daityas and Dānavas hurled that boy down: and he fell down cherishing Hari in his mind. And Earth, the upholder of the world, approaching, received him falling who was devoted to Keshava the protector of the world. Thereupon beholding him unhurt and having no bone fractured, Hiranyakashipu said to Samvara the foremost of those conversant with charms:—"We have not been able to slay this vicious-minded lad; thou art cognisant of various charms: do thou slay him". Samvara said:—"Instantly shall I slay him, O king of Daityas: do thou behold my power of illusion which can invent thousands and myriads of artifices". Parāçara said:—Thereupon that silly Asura Samvara, desirous of destroying the boy, practised his magical charms against Prahlāda, looking upon all creatures with an impartial eye. With a heart tranquil and void of malice even against Samvara, O Maitreya, Prahlāda engaged in the meditation of the destroyer of Madhu. Thereupon to protect him the excellent and flaming discus Sudarshana was despatched by the Great God. Thereupon thousands of Samvara's illusions were baffled by the quick-coursing discus for the protection of that boy.Thereupon the Daitya-king spoke to the withering wind saying,—"Do thou, speedily, at my command, bring this vicious-minded boy to destruction". Saying "So be it" the wind immediately penetrated into his body—cold, cutting and insufferable, for his destruction. Perceiving that wind had entered into his body the Daitya boy again meditated, in his mind, upon the great upholder of the earth. And Janārddana, present in his mind, wroth, drank up that dreadful wind. And the wind thus met with its own destruction. All the magical charms being thus baffled, the wind being thus annihilated, the high-minded Prahlāda again repaired to the abode of his preceptor. And the preceptor instructed that boy daily in the science of polity essentially necessary for the administration of the government and invented by Usanas for the behoof of kings. When the preceptor found him well-versed in all political sciences and humble, he then communicated it to his father, saying,—"O lord of Daityas, thy son Prahlāda has become conversant with the principles of government as laid down by the descendant of Bhrigu". Thereat Hiranyakashipu said to his son,—"Prahlāda, how should a king conduct himself towards friends or foes and what steps he should take at the three periods (i.e.advance, retrogression and peace)? How should he behave towards his ministers, courtiers, the state and household officers, his emissaries, his subjects, those of doubtful allegiance and his open enemies? With whom should he make alliance; with whom enter into war; what sort of fortress he should build; how forest and mountain tribes should be brought down to subjection; how internal disturbances should be removed: all this and all other things you have read, do thou relate to me: I wish to hear thy mind".Thereupon bowing to the feet of his father, Prahlāda, who had humility as his ornament, said, with folded palms to that Daitya-king. "Forsooth I have been instructed in all these by my preceptor and I have learnt them; but I do not approve of all of them. For the subjection of friends and foes four expedients have been prescribed by all—namely—conciliation, gift, punishment, and sowing dissension. But O father, be not angry, I know neither friends nor enemies. O thou of mighty arms where there is nothing to be effected what is the use of resorting to the means for effecting it? O father, it is useless to talk of friend or foe in Govinda, who is identical with all beings, manifest all over the universe, the lord of it and the Great Soul. The Great Vishnu exists in thee, in me as well as in all other creatures; and then what is the use of making such distinction as he is friend and he is foe! It is useless therefore to cultivate such tedious and unprofitable sciences which contain but false knowledge. It is but proper, O father, to engage in the cultivation of the knowledge of self. O father, the idea that ignorance is knowledge arises from ignorance only. A boy, O lord of Asuras, regards the fire-fly as fire. That is (proper) action that liberates us from the bondage of the world and that is (true) knowledge that leads us to the path of emancipation; all other actions lead but to weariness and all other knowledge is turned only into cleverness of an artist. Considering all this knowledge as useless I shall relate to thee respectfully what is really profitable; do thou, O great king, hear it. Who does not think of a kingdom? Who does not desire for riches? But all these are acquirable by the piety accumulated in a pristine birth—so the pious obtain them both. O great king, all men desire to be great—but this greatness is not acquired by exertion, it is the destiny that confers it upon men. O lord, kingdoms are acquired by fate, even by the stupid, the ignorant, the cowardly and those who are ignorant of the science of government. Therefore, he, who longs for greatness, should try to acquire piety. He, who desires for final beatitude, should try to regard all people with an impartial eye. Gods, men, animals, birds, reptiles, all are but diverse manifestations of the eternal Vishnu and exist in a separate state. By him, who knows this, the whole world, moveable and immoveable, is considered as at one with him—all proceeding alike from Vishnu assuming the universal form. When a man obtains this knowledge, the undecaying and eternal Vishnu—the remover of all afflictions, is propitiated with him". Parāçara said:—Having heard this and got up from the excellent seat, in great rage, Hiranyakashipu spurned his son on the breast with his foot. And burning in ire and wringing his hands as if bent upon destroying the whole universe, he exclaimed: "Ho Viprachita! Ho Rāhu! Ho Vāli binding this boy with serpents, do ye throw him unto the deep: delay not or else the Daityas, the Dānavas and all other people shall be initiated into doctrines of this stupid and vicious boy. We have prevented him many a time and oft and still he persists in chanting the glories of our foe: it is proper to destroy the wicked boy at once". Parāçara said:—Thereupon obeying the mandate of their master the Daityas speedily bound him with ropes and threw him into the water. Thereupon with Prahlāda trembled the mighty deep; and being agitated throughout, it rose in mighty waves. Beholding the earth about to be submerged by the great ocean, Hiranyakashipu again said to the Daityas,—"O ye descendants of Diti! Do ye bury this wicked boy in the deep with rocks. Fire did not burn him; the weapons did not hurt him; the serpents could not bite him; nor the withering blast, poison, and the magical incantations bring about his destruction. He baffled the illusions (of Samvara), fell unhurt from the loftiest mountains, foiled the elephants of the skies. He is a wicked boy and his life is a perpetual source of miseries. Let him be buried down with rocks into the deep. If he remains in that wise for a thousand years he may lose his life". Thereupon the Daityas and Dānavas, attacking Prahlāda in the mighty deep with rocks, covered thousands ofyojanastherewith. And lying at the bed of the deep covered with racks, the high-minded Prahlāda, offered thus; with undisturbed mind, his praise to the undecaying:—"Salutation unto thee, O Pundarikāsha, salutation unto thee, O thou excellent Puhusha! Salutation unto thee, O thou the soul of all worlds! Salutation unto thee, O thou the wielder of sharp discus! Salutation unto the best of Brāhmanas! to the friend of Brāhmanas and of kine! to Krishna, the benefactor of the world and salutation to Govinda! Salutation to him, who as Brahmā creates the universe and who, being existent all over, preserves it. Salutation to thee, who dost at the end of Kalpa assume the form of Rudra, and who art tri-form. Thou art, Achyuta, the cause of gods, Yakhas, Asuras, Siddhas, serpents, choristers, dancers, goblins, demons, men, beasts, birds, insects, reptiles, plants, and stones, earth, fire, water, sky, wind, sound, touch, taste, colour, flavour, mind, intellect, soul, time, and the properties of nature; and these are all manifestations of thine. Thou art knowledge and ignorance, thou art truth and untruth; thou art poison and nectar; thou art the performance and continuance of acts and thou art the actions laid down in the Vedas. Thou art the enjoyer of the fruits of all actions and the means for effecting them. Thou, Vishnu, who art all, art the fruit of all acts of piety. Thou art in me, in others and spread all over the vast universe. Thy universal manifestation indicates might and goodness. O lord. The ascetics meditate upon thee, the priests offer sacrifice to thee. Thou, identical with progenitors and celestials, receivest burnt-offerings and oblations. The universe is a huge manifestation of thine; the world is lesser than that, O lord; and lesser than that are all the subtile elements and elementary being and thy subtlest form is the subtile principle within them that is called soul. Thou hast in thee a supreme soul, better than this soul and beyond the perception of all subtile elements and which cannot be conceived. Glory be to that Purusottam form of thine. And salutation be to that imperishable form of thine, O lord of gods, which is the soul of all creatures, another manifestation of thy might and which is the refuge of all qualities. I bow unto that supreme goddess who is beyond the perception of senses, the description of the tongue and mind and who is to be distinguished only by the wisdom of the truly wise. Salutation unto the Great God Vāsudeva, who is not separate from any thing and at the same time separate from all. Salutation again and again to that Great Spirit who has neither name nor form and whose existence can only be perceived. Salutation unto that Great Spirit, whose incarnate forms on earth the deities adore, being unable to behold his true form. Salutation unto that Great God Vishnu, the witness of all, who being present in all minds, beholds the good and evil of all. Salutation unto that Vishnu, from whom this world is not distinct. May He, who is the object of the world's meditation, its beginning, and who is undecaying, be propitiated with me. May that Hari have compassion upon me, who is the stay of all, in whom the universe is warped and woven and who is imperishable and undecaying. Salutation again and again unto Vishnu, in whom all things exist, from whom all things proceed and who is the supporter of all. Salutation to him who also am I, and who is everywhere and through whom all things are from me. I am all things and all things are from me who am eternal. I am undecaying eternal, the asylum of the supreme spirit. Brahmā is my appellation that is at the beginning and end of all things".
Parāçara said:—When Hiranyakashipu had heard that the magical charms (of the priests) had been baffled he sent for his son and asked him of the secret of his prowess,—"Prahlāda, thou art gifted with extraordinary prowess—is it the result of your self-exercise or the outcome of magical powers or thou art, from birth, gifted with it?"
Being thus interrogated by his father the Asura boy Prahlāda bowed down to his father's feet and said,—"This not the outcome of magical powers, O father—nor is it natural with me; This is trifling to him in whose mind resides the undecaying. He who does not cherish malice against others, O father, and regards all like his own self, is not visited by any affliction inasmuch as the cause does not exist. He who tortures others in act, thought or speech, sows the seed of numberless miseries. I wish no evil to any; neither do nor speak it; I always meditate, in me, upon Keshava who is existent in all beings. Why should miseries, physical or mental, or those inflicted by elements, or the gods, affect whose soul is purified? Considering that Hari exists in all beings the learned should assiduously love all creatures". Parāçara said:—Having heard this the Daitya-king, seated on the summit of his palace, having his face darkened with ire, said to his attendants.—"Throw this vicious-souled one from this palace which is a hundredyojanasin height, down upon the tops of the mountains, so that his body may be crushed into pieces against the rocks". Thereupon all these Daityas and Dānavas hurled that boy down: and he fell down cherishing Hari in his mind. And Earth, the upholder of the world, approaching, received him falling who was devoted to Keshava the protector of the world. Thereupon beholding him unhurt and having no bone fractured, Hiranyakashipu said to Samvara the foremost of those conversant with charms:—"We have not been able to slay this vicious-minded lad; thou art cognisant of various charms: do thou slay him". Samvara said:—"Instantly shall I slay him, O king of Daityas: do thou behold my power of illusion which can invent thousands and myriads of artifices". Parāçara said:—Thereupon that silly Asura Samvara, desirous of destroying the boy, practised his magical charms against Prahlāda, looking upon all creatures with an impartial eye. With a heart tranquil and void of malice even against Samvara, O Maitreya, Prahlāda engaged in the meditation of the destroyer of Madhu. Thereupon to protect him the excellent and flaming discus Sudarshana was despatched by the Great God. Thereupon thousands of Samvara's illusions were baffled by the quick-coursing discus for the protection of that boy.
Thereupon the Daitya-king spoke to the withering wind saying,—"Do thou, speedily, at my command, bring this vicious-minded boy to destruction". Saying "So be it" the wind immediately penetrated into his body—cold, cutting and insufferable, for his destruction. Perceiving that wind had entered into his body the Daitya boy again meditated, in his mind, upon the great upholder of the earth. And Janārddana, present in his mind, wroth, drank up that dreadful wind. And the wind thus met with its own destruction. All the magical charms being thus baffled, the wind being thus annihilated, the high-minded Prahlāda again repaired to the abode of his preceptor. And the preceptor instructed that boy daily in the science of polity essentially necessary for the administration of the government and invented by Usanas for the behoof of kings. When the preceptor found him well-versed in all political sciences and humble, he then communicated it to his father, saying,—"O lord of Daityas, thy son Prahlāda has become conversant with the principles of government as laid down by the descendant of Bhrigu". Thereat Hiranyakashipu said to his son,—"Prahlāda, how should a king conduct himself towards friends or foes and what steps he should take at the three periods (i.e.advance, retrogression and peace)? How should he behave towards his ministers, courtiers, the state and household officers, his emissaries, his subjects, those of doubtful allegiance and his open enemies? With whom should he make alliance; with whom enter into war; what sort of fortress he should build; how forest and mountain tribes should be brought down to subjection; how internal disturbances should be removed: all this and all other things you have read, do thou relate to me: I wish to hear thy mind".
Thereupon bowing to the feet of his father, Prahlāda, who had humility as his ornament, said, with folded palms to that Daitya-king. "Forsooth I have been instructed in all these by my preceptor and I have learnt them; but I do not approve of all of them. For the subjection of friends and foes four expedients have been prescribed by all—namely—conciliation, gift, punishment, and sowing dissension. But O father, be not angry, I know neither friends nor enemies. O thou of mighty arms where there is nothing to be effected what is the use of resorting to the means for effecting it? O father, it is useless to talk of friend or foe in Govinda, who is identical with all beings, manifest all over the universe, the lord of it and the Great Soul. The Great Vishnu exists in thee, in me as well as in all other creatures; and then what is the use of making such distinction as he is friend and he is foe! It is useless therefore to cultivate such tedious and unprofitable sciences which contain but false knowledge. It is but proper, O father, to engage in the cultivation of the knowledge of self. O father, the idea that ignorance is knowledge arises from ignorance only. A boy, O lord of Asuras, regards the fire-fly as fire. That is (proper) action that liberates us from the bondage of the world and that is (true) knowledge that leads us to the path of emancipation; all other actions lead but to weariness and all other knowledge is turned only into cleverness of an artist. Considering all this knowledge as useless I shall relate to thee respectfully what is really profitable; do thou, O great king, hear it. Who does not think of a kingdom? Who does not desire for riches? But all these are acquirable by the piety accumulated in a pristine birth—so the pious obtain them both. O great king, all men desire to be great—but this greatness is not acquired by exertion, it is the destiny that confers it upon men. O lord, kingdoms are acquired by fate, even by the stupid, the ignorant, the cowardly and those who are ignorant of the science of government. Therefore, he, who longs for greatness, should try to acquire piety. He, who desires for final beatitude, should try to regard all people with an impartial eye. Gods, men, animals, birds, reptiles, all are but diverse manifestations of the eternal Vishnu and exist in a separate state. By him, who knows this, the whole world, moveable and immoveable, is considered as at one with him—all proceeding alike from Vishnu assuming the universal form. When a man obtains this knowledge, the undecaying and eternal Vishnu—the remover of all afflictions, is propitiated with him". Parāçara said:—Having heard this and got up from the excellent seat, in great rage, Hiranyakashipu spurned his son on the breast with his foot. And burning in ire and wringing his hands as if bent upon destroying the whole universe, he exclaimed: "Ho Viprachita! Ho Rāhu! Ho Vāli binding this boy with serpents, do ye throw him unto the deep: delay not or else the Daityas, the Dānavas and all other people shall be initiated into doctrines of this stupid and vicious boy. We have prevented him many a time and oft and still he persists in chanting the glories of our foe: it is proper to destroy the wicked boy at once". Parāçara said:—Thereupon obeying the mandate of their master the Daityas speedily bound him with ropes and threw him into the water. Thereupon with Prahlāda trembled the mighty deep; and being agitated throughout, it rose in mighty waves. Beholding the earth about to be submerged by the great ocean, Hiranyakashipu again said to the Daityas,—"O ye descendants of Diti! Do ye bury this wicked boy in the deep with rocks. Fire did not burn him; the weapons did not hurt him; the serpents could not bite him; nor the withering blast, poison, and the magical incantations bring about his destruction. He baffled the illusions (of Samvara), fell unhurt from the loftiest mountains, foiled the elephants of the skies. He is a wicked boy and his life is a perpetual source of miseries. Let him be buried down with rocks into the deep. If he remains in that wise for a thousand years he may lose his life". Thereupon the Daityas and Dānavas, attacking Prahlāda in the mighty deep with rocks, covered thousands ofyojanastherewith. And lying at the bed of the deep covered with racks, the high-minded Prahlāda, offered thus; with undisturbed mind, his praise to the undecaying:—"Salutation unto thee, O Pundarikāsha, salutation unto thee, O thou excellent Puhusha! Salutation unto thee, O thou the soul of all worlds! Salutation unto thee, O thou the wielder of sharp discus! Salutation unto the best of Brāhmanas! to the friend of Brāhmanas and of kine! to Krishna, the benefactor of the world and salutation to Govinda! Salutation to him, who as Brahmā creates the universe and who, being existent all over, preserves it. Salutation to thee, who dost at the end of Kalpa assume the form of Rudra, and who art tri-form. Thou art, Achyuta, the cause of gods, Yakhas, Asuras, Siddhas, serpents, choristers, dancers, goblins, demons, men, beasts, birds, insects, reptiles, plants, and stones, earth, fire, water, sky, wind, sound, touch, taste, colour, flavour, mind, intellect, soul, time, and the properties of nature; and these are all manifestations of thine. Thou art knowledge and ignorance, thou art truth and untruth; thou art poison and nectar; thou art the performance and continuance of acts and thou art the actions laid down in the Vedas. Thou art the enjoyer of the fruits of all actions and the means for effecting them. Thou, Vishnu, who art all, art the fruit of all acts of piety. Thou art in me, in others and spread all over the vast universe. Thy universal manifestation indicates might and goodness. O lord. The ascetics meditate upon thee, the priests offer sacrifice to thee. Thou, identical with progenitors and celestials, receivest burnt-offerings and oblations. The universe is a huge manifestation of thine; the world is lesser than that, O lord; and lesser than that are all the subtile elements and elementary being and thy subtlest form is the subtile principle within them that is called soul. Thou hast in thee a supreme soul, better than this soul and beyond the perception of all subtile elements and which cannot be conceived. Glory be to that Purusottam form of thine. And salutation be to that imperishable form of thine, O lord of gods, which is the soul of all creatures, another manifestation of thy might and which is the refuge of all qualities. I bow unto that supreme goddess who is beyond the perception of senses, the description of the tongue and mind and who is to be distinguished only by the wisdom of the truly wise. Salutation unto the Great God Vāsudeva, who is not separate from any thing and at the same time separate from all. Salutation again and again to that Great Spirit who has neither name nor form and whose existence can only be perceived. Salutation unto that Great Spirit, whose incarnate forms on earth the deities adore, being unable to behold his true form. Salutation unto that Great God Vishnu, the witness of all, who being present in all minds, beholds the good and evil of all. Salutation unto that Vishnu, from whom this world is not distinct. May He, who is the object of the world's meditation, its beginning, and who is undecaying, be propitiated with me. May that Hari have compassion upon me, who is the stay of all, in whom the universe is warped and woven and who is imperishable and undecaying. Salutation again and again unto Vishnu, in whom all things exist, from whom all things proceed and who is the supporter of all. Salutation to him who also am I, and who is everywhere and through whom all things are from me. I am all things and all things are from me who am eternal. I am undecaying eternal, the asylum of the supreme spirit. Brahmā is my appellation that is at the beginning and end of all things".