Prem Sagar: Chapter LXXV

CHAPTER LXXV.

SHREE SHOOKDEO JEE said,--Raja! listen with attention, and I will now relate how Raja Joodisthur performed the sacrifice, and Sissoopal was slain, when the twenty thousand eight hundred Rajas went there, all the other Rajas from the surrounding countries, and from every quarter, whether descendants of the sun, or descendants of the moon, came also, and were ready at Hustinapoor. Then Shree Krishnù Chund and Raja Joodisthur together behaved with the utmost affability to all the Rajas, and made all the arrangements, and entrusted each with a specific duty in the sacrifice. After this, Shree Krishnù Chund Jee said to the Raja Joodisthur, "O great king! we five brothers, Bheem, Urjoon, Nukool, Suhdeo and myself, together with the other Rajas, will do all the extraneous work, and do you be so good as to send for the sages, priests and brahmins, and begin the sacrifice."

O great king! on hearing these words, Raja Joodisthur, having summoned all the priests, sages, and brahmins, said, "O great kings! order all things necessary for the sacrifice." At these words, the priests, sages and brahmins, having consulted their holy books, wrote down on a paper a list of all the articles required; and the Raja caused them to be procured immediately, and placed before them. The priests,

O great king! on hearing this speech, all the saints, sages and Rajas exclaimed, "Raja! Suhdeo Jee has spoken truly, Huri is worthy of our first adoration." Then Raja Joodisthur having seated Shree Krishnù Chund Jee upon a throne, together with his eight queens, offered adoration to him, presenting sandal, unbroken rice, flowers, perfume, lamps and consecrated food; after this he worshipped all the gods, saints, sages, brahmins and Rajas, arrayed them in dresses of different colours, made marks upon their foreheads with sandal and saffron, decorated them with garlands of flowers, and sprinkling perfume, the Raja, with due observance of what was right and fitting, behaved to them all with the most engaging politeness.

Having proceeded thus far in the narrative, Shree Shookdeo Jee said to the Raja Pureechit,--O great king! in this manner Raja Sissoopal being in the power of death, was casting many

O great king! having thus spoken, all the Rajas seizing their weapons, rose up and rushed towards Sissoopal to kill him. Shree Krishnù Chund, the root of joy, then prevented them, and said, "Do not use your arms against him, stand here and look on, he will bring destruction on himself presently, I will tolerate a hundred offences in him, because I have agreed to do so; but I will not tolerate more than a hundred, and therefore I have been drawing these lines."

O great king! on hearing this speech, all, having joined their hands, enquired from Shree Krishnù Chund, "O lord of compassion! what is the reason that you will pardon a hundred faults on his part, be pleased kindly to explain to us, that the doubts of our minds may be removed?" Krishnù said, When he (Sissoopal) was born, he had three eyes and four arms, when his father, Raja Dumadhok, was informed of this he sent for astrologers and great pundits and enquired, 'What sort of child will this be, consider and give me your answer?' On hearing what the Raja said, the pundits and astrologers, having consulted the Shastrùs, replied, 'O great king! this child will be possessed of great strength, and will be highly renowned, and we are also of opinion that this child will be destroyed by him, at meeting with whom one of his eyes and two of his arms shall fall down.' Having heard this, his mother, Muhadewee, the daughter of Soorsen, the sister of Basoodeo, my maternal aunt, was very sad, and passed day and night in anxious thought about her child; after some days,

O great king! having mentioned this account of Sissoopal, and obliterated the doubts of all the Rajas' minds, Shree Krishnù Jee counted the lines he had drawn separately for each offence, which amounted to more than a hundred. Krishnù then gave an order to the quoit, Soodursen, who instantly cut off Sissoopal's head. The brilliant light, which came forth from his body, went at once to the sky, and returning thence settled in the sight of all, on the mouth of Shree Krishnù Chund. On beholding this exploit, gods, men and sages began to raise cries of exultation and rain flowers. On that occasion, Shree Moorari, the benefactor of his worshippers, gave him a third deliverance, and performed his funeral obsequies.

Having heard thus much of the narrative, Raja Pureechit enquired from Shree Shookdeo Jee,--"O great king! please explain to me, how Krishnù gave Sissoopal a third deliverance?" Shookdeo Jee replied,--Raja! once he appeared as Hirunkusyp, and then Krishnù having descended upon the earth as half lion, half man, released him. On the second occasion he became Rawun, when Huri having descended as Ram, liberated him, the present is the third occasion, and therefore the present is the third release. Having heard this, the Raja said to the sage,--"O great king! be pleased now to proceed with the narrative." Shree Shookdeo Jee,