यः पुत्रो गुणसम्पन्नो मातापित्रोर्हितः सदा सर्वं सो ऽर्हति कल्याणं कनीयानपि स प्रभुः
A son endowed with virtues, who always acts for the benefit of his mother and father, deserves all auspiciousness; even if he is the youngest, he is master.
अर्हं पूरोरिदं राज्यं यः प्रियः प्रियकृत् तव वरदानेन शुक्रस्य न शक्यं वक्तुमुत्तरम्
This kingdom belongs to the worthy eldest; he who is dear to you and does what pleases you. By granting a boon to Śukra, it is not possible to speak otherwise.
पौरजानपदैस् तुष्टैर् इत्युक्तो नाहुषस्तदा अभिषिच्य ततः पूरुं राज्ये स्वसुतमात्मजम्
Then Nahusha, addressed by the satisfied citizens and subjects, anointed Pūru, his own son, as king.
दत्त्वा च पूरवे राज्यं वनवासाय दीक्षितः पुरात्स निर्ययौ राजा ब्राह्मणैस्तापसैः सह
Having given the kingdom to Pūru, the king undertook a vow for forest-dwelling, and departed from the city together with Brahmins and ascetics.
यदोस्तु यादवा जातास् तुर्वसोर्यवनाः सुताः द्रुह्योश्चैव सुता भोजा अनोस्तु म्लेच्छजातयः
From Yadu came the Yādavas, from Turvasu the Yavanas, from Druhyu the Bhojas, and from Anu the Mleccha tribes.
पूरोस्तु पौरवो वंशो यत्र जातो ऽसि पार्थिव इदं वर्षसहस्रात्तु राज्यं कुरुकुलागतम्
From Pūru came the Paurava lineage, in which you were born, O king. After a thousand years, the kingdom came to the Kuru dynasty.
एवं स नाहुषो राजा ययातिः पुत्रमीप्सितम् राज्ये ऽभिषिच्य मुदितो वानप्रस्थो ऽभवन्मुनिः
Thus King Nahusha, Yayāti, joyfully installed his desired son in the kingdom, and became a forest-dwelling sage.
उषित्वा वनवासं स ब्राह्मणैः सह संश्रितः फलमूलाशनो दान्तो यथा स्वर्गमितो गतः
Having lived in the forest with Brahmins, subsisting on fruits and roots, self-controlled, he departed as one who attained heaven.
स गतः स्वर्गवासं तु न्यवसन्मुदितः सुखी कालस्य नातिमहतः पुनः शक्रेण पातितः
He went to dwell in heaven, joyful and happy; but after not much time, he was cast down again by Śakra.
विवशः प्रच्युतः स्वर्गाद् अप्राप्तो मेदिनीतलम् स्थितश्चासीद् अन्तरिक्षे स तदेति श्रुतं मया
Helpless, he fell from heaven, not reaching earth, and remained in the intermediate space; this I have heard.
तत एव पुनश्चापि गतः स्वर्गमिति श्रुतिः राज्ञा वसुमता सार्धम् अष्टकेन च वीर्यवान् प्रतर्दनेन शिबिना समेत्य किल संसदि
Then again, it is said, he went to heaven, together with King Vasumat, Aṣṭaka, the mighty Pratardana, and Śibi, meeting in the assembly.
कर्मणा केन स दिवं पुनः प्राप्तो महीपतिः कथमिन्द्रेण भगवन् पातितो मेदिनीतले
By what deed did that king again attain heaven? How, O blessed one, was he cast down to earth by Indra?
सर्वमेतद् अशेषेण श्रोतुमिच्छामि तत्त्वतः कथ्यमानं त्वया विप्र देवर्षिगणसंनिधौ
I wish to hear all this in full, as it truly happened, narrated by you, O sage, in the presence of the assembly of divine sages.
देवराजसमो ह्य् आसीद् ययातिः पृथिवीपतिः वर्धनः कुरुवंशस्य विभावसुसमद्युतिः
Yayāti, king of the earth, was equal to the king of the gods, a nourisher of the Kuru lineage, radiant like fire.
तस्य विस्तीर्णयशसः सत्यकीर्तेर् महात्मनः श्रोतुमिच्छामि देवेश दिवि चेह च सर्वशः
Of him, whose fame was vast and whose truthfulness was renowned, whose greatness was immense, I wish to hear from you, O lord of gods, both in heaven and here, entirely.
हन्त ते कथयिष्यामि ययातेरुत्तमां कथाम् दिवि चेह च पुण्यार्थां सर्वपापप्रणाशिनीम्
Indeed, I shall tell you the excellent story of Yayāti, both in heaven and here, for the sake of merit, which destroys all sins.
ययातिर्नाहुषो राजा पूरुं पुत्रं कनीयसम् राज्ये ऽभिषिच्य मुदितः प्रवव्राज वनं तदा
Yayāti, King Nahusha, joyfully installed Pūru, his youngest son, in the kingdom, and then departed for the forest.
अन्तेषु स विनिक्षिप्य पुत्रान् यदुपुरोगमान् फलमूलाशनो राजा वने ऽसौ न्यवसच्चिरम्
Having entrusted his sons, with Yadu at the forefront, to their respective ends, the king dwelt for a long time in the forest, subsisting on fruits and roots.
स जितात्मा जितक्रोधस् तर्पयन् पितृदेवताः अग्नींश्च विधिवज्जुह्वन् वानप्रस्थविधानतः
He, who has mastered himself and conquered anger, offering satisfaction to ancestors and deities, and properly making oblations to the fires according to the rule of the forest-dweller.
अतिथीन् पूजयन्नित्यं वन्येन हविषा विभुः शिलोञ्छवृत्तिमास्थाय शेषान्नकृतभोजनः
Honoring guests always with offerings from the forest, the great one, adopting the practice of gathering grains, ate only leftover food, not food prepared for himself.
पूर्णं सहस्रं वर्षाणाम् एवंवृत्तिर् अभून्नृपः अम्बुभक्षः स चाब्दांस्त्रीन् आसीन् नियतवाङ्मनाः
For a full thousand years, such was his way of life, O king; he subsisted on water and for three years remained with controlled speech and mind.
ततस्तु वायुभक्षो ऽभूत् संवत्सरमतन्द्रितः पञ्चाग्निमध्ये च तपस् तेपे संवत्सरं पुनः
Then he became a subsister on air for a year, tireless, and performed austerity among five fires for another year.
एकपादस्थितश्चासीत् षण्मासान् अनिलाशनः पुण्यकीर्तिस्ततः स्वर्गं जगामावृत्य रोदसी
Standing on one foot, he lived for six months eating only air; renowned for his virtue, he ascended to heaven, traversing the realms.
स्वर्गतस्तु स राजेन्द्रो न्यवसद्देवसद्मनि पूजितस्त्रिदशैः साध्यैर् मरुद्भिर्वसुभिस्तथा
From heaven, that king dwelled in the abode of the gods, honored by the thirty gods, Sādhyas, Maruts, and Vasus.
देवलोकाद् ब्रह्मलोकं संचरन्पुण्यकृद्वशी अवसत्पृथिवीपालो दीर्घकालमिति श्रुतिः
From the world of the gods, he journeyed to the world of Brahma, the virtuous and self-controlled king, and dwelled there for a long time, as is heard.
स कदाचिन्नृपश्रेष्ठो ययातिः शक्रमागतः कथान्ते तत्र शक्रेण पृष्टः स पृथिवीपतिः
Once, the foremost king, Yayāti, came to Śakra; at the end of the story, Śakra questioned that lord of the earth.
यदा स पूरुस्तव रूपेण राजञ् जरां गृहीत्वा प्रचचार लोके तदा राज्यं सम्प्रदायैव तस्मै त्वया किमुक्तः कथयेह सत्यम्
When Pūru, in your form, O king, took on old age and wandered among people, then, after giving him the kingdom, what did you say to him? Tell me the truth here.
प्रकृत्यनुमते पूरुं राज्ये कृत्वेदमब्रुवम् गङ्गायमुनयोर्मध्ये कृत्स्नो ऽयं विषयस्तव मध्ये पृथिव्यास्त्वं राजा भ्रातरो ऽन्ते ऽधिपास्तव
With the approval of the people, I installed Pūru in the kingdom and said: 'Between the Ganges and Yamuna, this entire territory is yours. In the middle of the earth, you are king; your brothers are rulers at the borders.'
अक्रोधनः क्रोधनेभ्यो विशिष्टस् तथा तितिक्षुर् अतितिक्षोर् विशिष्टः अमानुषेभ्यो मानुषश्च प्रधानो विद्वांस्तथैवाविदुषः प्रधानः
One who is without anger is superior to those with anger; likewise, the tolerant is superior to the intolerant; among non-humans, the human is foremost; and the learned is foremost among the unlearned.
आक्रुश्यमानो नाक्रोशेन् मन्युमेव तितिक्षति आक्रोष्टारं निर्दहति सुकृतं चास्य विन्दति
When insulted, he does not insult in return, but endures the offense; he burns the insulter and attains good fortune.