MAHABHARATA Bk 13: Anusasana Parva – P2.3-Sec CXXXIII

[Anne Terri]

"GOD'S LIVING BIBLE ---- THE THIRD TESTAMENT ----- RESEARCH LIBRARY" ©*
The Mahabharata
of
Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa
Translated into English Prose from the Original Sanskrit Text
by
Kisari Mohan Ganguli
[1883-1896]

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Book 13:
Anusasana Parva – ( P2.3-Sections CXVI-CLV )

SECTION CXXXIII

"Maheswara said, 'Searching your memories, excellent are the duties ye all have recited. Listen all of you now to me as I declare some mysteries relating to religion and duty. Only those persons whose understanding has been set on religion and who are possessed of faith, should be instructed in respect of those mysteries of duty and religion that are fraught with high merits. Hear what the merits are that become his who, with heart free from anxiety, gives food everyday, for a month, to kine and contents himself with one meal a day throughout such period. The kine are highly blessed. They are regarded as the most sacred of all sacred things. Verily, it is they that are upholding the three worlds with the deities, the Asuras, and human beings. Respectful services rendered to them are fraught with high merit and grave consequences. That man who every day gives food to kine advances every day in religious merit. Formerly, in the Krita age I had expressed my approval of these creatures. Afterwards Brahman, born of the primeval lotus, solicited me (to show kindness towards kine). 1 It is for this reason that a bull to this day stands as the device on my standard overhead. I always sport with kine. Hence should kine be worshipped by all. Kine are possessed of great power. They are givers of boons. If worshipped, they would grant boons. That person who gives food to kine even for a single day receives from those beneficent creatures for that act a fourth part of the merits he may win by all his good acts in life.'"

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Footnotes

275:1 Anujnatah literally implies permitted. These creatures, i.e., the kine, were permitted by me, means, perhaps, that they became my favourites. Brahman, it is said, solicited Maheswara to accept some kine in gift. The latter did accept some, and adopt from that time the device of the bull on his flag.

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NEXT SECTION CXXXIV

THE MAHABHARATA of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa

The Anusasana Parva, like the Santi Parva before it, is a long hiatus in the narrative of the Mahabharata. Set on the deathbed of Bhishma, the Anusasana Parva is a huge treasure-trove of Brahmanic lore which is obviously a later interpolation in the epic.
PRODUCTION NOTES: (1/12/2004) The printed edition we used divided this book into two parts. Note that each part's page numbering starts at page one, so if you cite a page number in this etext for some reason, you will also need to cite the part. --John Bruno Hare.

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“God / Brahman Speaking To Anne Terri Through The Holy Spirit: This will be an ongoing endeavor, which will take many hours to build. I Begin this new section within The Third Testament - Research Library, to Bring forward one of the most important ancient texts of Hinduism, The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa as translated into English from Sanskrit. by Kisari Mohan Ganguli [1883-1896] In doing so, I have Asked of Anne to begin advanced studies on this, for the purposes of future links with other Hindu Study Guides currently in process. It is important to note that
The Mahabharata was written between 540 and 300 B.C. Most credit has been given to Vyasa. The Bhagavad Gita appears in Book 6. .... Juliet Sutherland, Project Manager. at sacred-texts.com, 2003, has asked that the Attribution appear with this public domain work as it is written below. AMEN”

*© NOTICE OF ATTRIBUTION
Scanned at sacred-texts.com, 2003. Proofed at Distributed Proofing, Juliet Sutherland, Project Manager. Additional proofing and formatting at sacred-texts.com, by J. B. Hare. This text is in the public domain. These files may be used for any non-commercial purpose, provided this notice of attribution is left intact.