hmanas, and by this acquire, O Brahmana, the sacred regions
hereafter.' And hearing these words of the queen, Vamadeva said, 'O thou
of beautiful eyes, thou hast saved this royal race. Beg thou an
incomparable boon. I will grant thee whatever thou mayst ask. And, O thou
faultless one, rule thou, O princess, these thy kinsmen and this great
kingdom of the Ikshvakus!' And hearing these words of Vamadeva the
princess said, 'This, O holy one, is the boon I seek, viz., that my
husband may now be freed from his sin, and that thou mayst be employed in
thinking of the weal of his son and kinsmen. This is the boon that I ask,
O thou foremost of Brahmanas!'

"Markandeya continued, 'Hearing these words of the queen, that Muni, O
thou foremost of the Kuru race, said, 'So be it.' And thereupon king Dala
became highly glad and gave unto the Muni his Vami steeds, having bowed
down unto him with reverence!'"

SECTION CLXLII

Vaisampayana said, "The Rishis, the Brahmanas, and Yudhishthira then
asked Markandeya, saying, 'How did the Rishi Vaka become so long lived?'

"Thus asked by them, Markandeya answered, 'The royal sage Vaka is a great
ascetic and endowed with long life. Ye need not enquire into the reason
of this.'

"Hearing this, O Bharata, the son of Kunti, king Yudhishthira the just,
along with his brothers, then asked Markandeya saying, 'It hath been
heard by us that both Vaka and Dalvya are of great souls and endowed with
immortality and that those Rishis, held in universal reverence, are the
friends of the chief of the gods. O Holy One, I desire to listen lo the
(history of the) meeting of Vaka and Indra that is full of both joy and
woe. Narrate thou that history unto us succinctly.'

"Markandeya said, 'When that horrible conflict between the gods and the
Asuras was over, Indra became the ruler of the three worlds. The clouds
showered rain copiously. And the dwellers of the world had abundance of
harvests, and were excellent in disposition. And devoted to virtue, they
always practised morality and enjoyed peace. And all persons, devoted to
the duties of their respective orders, were perfectly happy and cheerful,
and the slayer of Vala, beholding all the creatures of the world happy
and cheerful, became himself filled with joy. And he of a hundred
sacrifices, the chief of the gods seated on the back of his elephant
Airavata, surveyed his happy subjects, and he cast his eyes on delightful
asylums of Rishis, on various