दृष्ट्वा च तद्विस्मितास्ते बभूवु- स्तेषामिन्द्रस्तत्र शूरो जगाम। सोऽपश्यद्योषामथ पावकप्रभां यत्र देवी गङ्गा सततं प्रसूता
Seeing that, they were amazed; among them, Indra, the valiant one, went forward. There he saw a maiden, radiant like fire, where the goddess Ganga is ever born.
सा तत्र योषा रुदती जलार्थिनी गङ्गां देवीं व्यवगाह्य व्यतिष्ठत्। तस्याश्रुबिन्दुः पतितो जले य- स्तत्पद्ममासीदथ तत्र काञ्चनम्
There, that maiden, weeping and longing for water, entered the goddess Ganga and stood there. A tear of hers fell into the water, and at that spot a golden lotus appeared.
तदद्भुतं प्रेक्ष्य वज्री तदानी- मपृच्छत्तां योषितमन्तिकाद्वै। का त्वं भद्रे रोदिषि कस्य हेतो- र्वाक्यं तथ्यं कामयेऽहं ब्रवीहि
Beholding that wonder, Indra, wielder of the thunderbolt, then asked that maiden nearby: 'Who are you, good lady, and why do you weep? Tell me the truth—I wish to hear it.'
त्वं वेत्स्यसे मामिह याऽस्मि शक्र यदर्थं चाहं रोदिमि मन्दभाग्या। आगच्छ राजन्पुरतो गमिष्ये द्रष्टाऽसि तद्रोदिमि यत्कृतेऽहम्
'You will know who I am here, O Shakra, and why I, unfortunate, am weeping. Come, O king, before me—I will go, and you will see for what reason I weep.'
तां गच्छन्तीमन्वगच्छत्तदानीं सोऽपश्यदारात्तरुणं दर्शनीयम्। सिद्धासनस्थं युवतीसहायं क्रीडन्तमक्षैर्गिरिराजमूर्ध्नि
As she went, he followed her, and then saw from afar a handsome young man, seated in the posture of accomplishment, playing dice with maidens on the summit of the mountain king.
तमब्रवीद्देवराजो ममेदं त्वं विद्धि विद्वन्भुवनं वशे स्थितम्। ईशोऽहस्मीति समन्युरब्रवी- द्दृष्ट्वा तमक्षैः सुभृशं प्रमत्तम्
The king of the gods said to him: 'Know that this world is under my control, O wise one. I am the lord!'—so he spoke, angered, seeing him deeply absorbed in dice.
क्रुद्धं च शक्रं प्रसमीक्ष्य देवो जहाय शक्रं च शैरुदैक्षत। संस्तम्भितोऽभूदथ देवराज- स्तेनेक्षितः स्थाणुरिवावतस्थे
Seeing Shakra angry, the god abandoned him and looked at Shakra with a fierce gaze. Then, fixed in place by the king of the gods' look, he stood motionless like a pillar.
यदा तु पर्याप्तमिहास्य क्रीडया तदा देवीं रुदतीं तामुवाच। आनीयतामेष यतोऽहमारा- न्नैनं दर्पः पुनरप्याविशेत
But when his play had gone on long enough, he spoke to the weeping goddess: 'Bring him here, for I am weary; let pride not enter him again.'
ततः शक्रः स्पृष्टमात्रस्तया तु स्रस्तैरङ्गैः पतितोऽभूद्धरण्याम्। तमब्रवीद्भगवानुग्रतेजा मैवं पुनः शक्र कृथाः कथंचित्
Then, as Shakra was touched by her, his limbs slackened and he fell to the ground. The blessed one of fierce energy said to him: 'Never act thus again, Shakra, in any way.'
निवर्तयैनं च महाद्रिराजं बलं च वीर्यं च तवाप्रमेयम्। छिद्रस्य चैवाविश मध्यमस्य यत्रासते त्वद्विधाः सूर्यभासः
'Restrain him, O great mountain king, for your strength and power are immeasurable. Enter the opening of the middle one, where those like you, shining like the sun, dwell.'
स तद्विवृत्य विवरं महागिरे- स्तुल्यद्युतींश्चतुरोऽन्यान्ददर्श। स तानभिप्रेक्ष्य बभूव दुःखितः कच्चिन्नाहं भविता वै यथेमे
He opened the cave of the great mountain and saw four others of equal splendor. Seeing them, he became troubled: 'Will I too become like these?'
ततो देवो गिरिशो वज्रपाणिं विवृत्य नेत्रे कुपितोऽभ्युवाच। दरीमेतां प्रविश त्वं शतक्रतो यन्मां बाल्यादवमंस्थाः पुरस्तात्
Then the god, lord of mountains, angrily addressed Vajrapani, opening his eyes: 'Enter this cave, O Shatakratu, because you once scorned me in your youth.'
उक्तस्त्वेवं विभुना देवराजः प्रावेपताऽऽर्तो भृशमेवाभिषङ्गात्। स्रस्तैरङ्गैरनिलेनेव नुन्न- मश्वत्थपत्रं गिरिराजमूर्ध्नि
Thus addressed by the lord, the king of the gods trembled greatly, struck with fear. His limbs slack, he was like a leaf of the ashvattha tree shaken by the wind, on the mountain's summit.
स प्राञ्जलिर्वै वृषवाहनेन प्रवेपमानः सहसैवमुक्तः। उवाच देवं बहुरूपमुग्र- मद्याशेषस्य भुवनस्य त्वं भवाद्यः
With joined palms, trembling before the bull-bannered one, he was suddenly addressed thus. He spoke to the god of many forms, fierce: 'You are the first of all the worlds today.'
तमब्रवीदुग्रवर्चाः प्रहस्य नैवंशीलाः शेषमिहाप्नुवन्ति। एतेऽप्येवं भवितारः पुरस्ता- त्तस्मादेतां दरीमाविश्य शेष्य
Ugravarca, laughing, said to him: 'Those of such conduct do not attain what remains here. These too will meet the same fate in the future; therefore, enter this hollow tree and remain there.'
एषा भार्या भविता वो न संशयो योनिं सर्वे मानुषीमाविशध्वम्। तत्र यूयं कर्म कृत्वाऽविषह्यं बहूनन्यान्निधनं प्रापयित्वा
She will become your wife, without doubt. All of you should enter a human womb. There, after performing many difficult deeds and sending many others to their end—
कर्तव्यमन्यद्विविधार्थयुक्तम्
—you must accomplish other tasks, connected with various purposes.
गमिष्यामो मानुषं देवलोका- द्दुराधरो विहितो यत्र मोक्षः। देवास्त्वस्मानादधीरञ्जनन्यां धर्मो वायुर्मघवानश्विनौ च
We shall go from the world of the gods to the world of humans, where the difficult path to liberation is established. The gods—Dharma, Vayu, Maghavan, and the Ashvins—will enter us as fathers in the womb of a woman.
एतच्छ्रुत्वा वज्रपाणिर्वचस्तु देवश्रेष्ठं पुनरेवेदमाह। वीर्येणाहं पुरुषं कार्यहेतो- र्दद्यामेषां पञ्चमं मत्प्रसूतम्
Hearing these words, the wielder of the thunderbolt, foremost among the gods, spoke again: 'For the sake of this task, by my power, I will give them a fifth son, born from me.'
विश्वभुग्भूतधामा च शिबिरिन्द्रः प्रतापवान्। शान्तिश्चतुर्थस्तेषां वै तेजस्वी पञ्चमः स्मृतः
Vishvabhuk, the supporter of all beings, Shibi the mighty king, Shanti the fourth, and Tejasvi are remembered as the fifth among them.
तेषां कामं भगवानुग्रधन्वा प्रादादिष्टं सन्निसर्गाद्यथोक्तम्। तां चाप्येषां योषितं लोककान्तां श्रियं भार्यां व्यदधान्मानुषेषु
To them, the blessed one with the mighty bow granted the desired boon, as was fitting. And to them, he assigned as wife the woman beloved in all the worlds, as their fortune among humans.
तैरेव सार्धं तु ततः स देवो जगाम नारायणमप्रमेयम्। अनन्तमव्यक्तमजं पुराणं सनातनं विश्वमनन्तरूपम्
Then, together with them, that god went to Narayana, the immeasurable—eternal, unmanifest, unborn, ancient, everlasting, the universe itself, of infinite forms.
शुक्लमेकमपरं चापि कृष्णम्
One is white, another is black.
केशो योऽसौ वर्णतः कृष्ण उक्तः
He who is called Kesha is said to be black in color.
ये ते पूर्वं शक्ररूपा निबद्धा- स्तस्यां दर्यां पर्वतस्योत्तरस्य। इहैव ते पाण्डवा वीर्यवन्तः शक्रस्यांशः पाण्डवः सव्यसाची
Those who formerly assumed the forms of Indra, bound in that hollow of the northern mountain—here, these are the valorous Pandavas; among them, Savyasachi is a portion of Indra.
एवमेते पाण्डवाः संबभूवु- र्ये ते राजन्पूर्वमिन्द्रा बभूवुः। लक्ष्मीश्चैषां पूर्वमेवोपदिष्टा भार्या यैषा द्रौपदी दिव्यरूपा
Thus, these Pandavas were born, O King, who were formerly Indras. And this fortune was previously assigned to them—their wife, Draupadi of divine form.
कथं हि स्त्री कर्मणा ते महीतला- त्समुत्तिष्ठेदन्यतो दैवयोगात्। यस्या रूपं सोमसूर्यप्रकाशं गन्धश्चास्याः कोशमात्रात्प्रवाति
For how could a woman, by her own deeds, arise from the earth in any other way than by divine arrangement—she whose beauty shines like the moon and sun, and whose fragrance spreads from her very body?
इदं चान्यत्प्रीतिपूर्वं नरेन्द्र ददानि ते वरमत्यद्भुतं च। दिव्यं चक्षुः पश्य कुन्तीसुतांस्त्वं पुण्यैर्दिव्यैः पूर्वदेहैरुपेतान्
And now, O King, with affection I grant you another wondrous boon: see the sons of Kunti with divine sight, endowed with the merits and divine bodies of their previous births.
ततो व्यासः परमोदारकर्मा शुचिर्विप्रस्तपसा तस्य राज्ञः। चक्षुर्दिव्यं प्रददौ तांश्च सर्वान् राजाऽपश्यत्पूर्वदेहैर्यथावत्
Then Vyasa, of supremely noble deeds, pure, a sage, by his austerity, bestowed divine sight upon that king, and the king saw them all as they were in their former divine bodies.
ततो दिव्यान्हेमकिरीटमालिनः शक्रप्रख्यान्पावकादित्यवर्णान्। बद्धापीडांश्चारुरूपांश्च यूनो व्यूढोरस्कांस्तालमात्रान्ददर्श
Then he saw them adorned with golden crowns, shining like Indra, with the radiance of fire and the sun, with crested hair, beautiful in form, youthful, broad-chested, and tall as palm trees.