exceedingly sad; and he was also overpowered by the
sin of Brahmanicide on account of having killed the
three-headed son of Twashtri. And he betook himself
to the confines of the worlds, and became bereft of
his senses and consciousness. And overpowered
by his own sins, he could not be recognised.
And he lay concealed in water, just like a writhing
snake. And when the lord of celestials, oppressed
with the dread of Brahmanicide, had vanished from
sight, the earth looked as if a havoc had passed over
it. And it became treeless, and its woods withered;
and the course of rivers was interrupted; and the
reservoirs lost all their water; and there was distress
among animals on account of cessation of rains.
And the deities and all the great Rishis were in exceeding
fear; and the world had no king, and was overtaken
by disasters. Then the deities and the divine
saints in heaven, separated from the chief of the
gods, became terrified, and wondered who was to be
their king. And nobody had any inclination to
act as the king of the gods.’
“Salya said, ’Then all the Rishis and
the superior gods said, “Let the handsome Nahusha
be crowned as king of the gods. He is powerful
and renowned, and devoted to virtue ever more.’
And they all went and said to him, ‘O lord of
the earth, be thou our king.’ And Nahusha
intent on his welfare, spoke to those gods and saints
accompanied by the progenitors (of mankind), ’I
am feeble; I am not capable of protecting you; it is
a powerful person who should be your king; it is Indra
who hath always been possessed of strength.’
And all the gods, led by the saints, spoke again to
him, ’Aided by the virtue of our austerities,
rule thou the kingdom of heaven. There is no
doubt that we have all our respective fears. Be
crowned, O lord of monarchs, as the king of heaven.
Whatever being may stand within thy sight, whether
he be a god, an Asura, a Yaksha, a saint, a Pitri,
or a Gandharva, thou shalt absorb his power and (thereby)
wax strong. Always placing virtue before (all
other things), be thou the ruler of the worlds.
Protect also the Brahmarsis (Brahmana saints) and
the gods in heaven.’ Then, O lord of monarchs,
Nahusha was crowned king in heaven. And placing
virtue before (everything else), he became the ruler
of all the worlds. And though always of a virtuous
disposition, yet when he obtained that precious boon
and the kingdom of heaven, Nahusha assumed a sensual
turn of mind. And when Nahusha became the king
of the gods, he surrounded himself with celestial
nymphs, and with damsels of celestial birth, and took
to enjoyments of various kinds, in the Nandana groves,
on mount Kailasa, on the crest of Himavat, on Mandara.
the White hill Sahya, Mahendra and Malaya, as, also
upon seas and rivers. And he listened to various
divine narratives that captivated both the ear and
the heart, and to the play of musical instruments of
different sorts, and to sweet vocal strains.
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