that first of eloquent men.'

"'Yudhishthira said, "Having caused a great and horrid slaughter of
kinsmen, I have become an offender against all and a destroyer of the
earth. Having caused that Bhishma himself, that warrior who always fought
fairly, to be slain by the aid of deceit, how shall I approach him for
asking him (about duties and morality)?"'

"Vaisampayana continued, 'Moved by the desire of benefiting all the four
orders, the mighty armed and high-souled chief of Yadu's race once more
addressed that foremost of kings (in the following words).'

"'Vasudeva said, "It behoveth thee not to show such pertinacity in grief.
Do that, O best of kings, which the holy Vyasa has said. The Brahmanas, O
mighty-armed one, and these thy brothers of great energy, stand before
thee beseechingly like persons beseeching the deity of the clouds at the
close of summer. The unslain remnant of the assembled kings, and the
people belonging to all the four orders of thy kingdom of Kurujangala, O
king, are here. For the sake of doing what is agreeable to these
high-souled Brahmanas, in obedience also to the command of thy revered
senior Vyasa of immeasurable energy, and at the request of ourselves
that are thy well-wishers, and of Draupadi, O scorcher of foes, do what
is agreeable to us, O slayer of foes, and what is beneficial to the
world."'

"Vaisampayana continued, 'Thus addressed by Krishna, the high-souled king
(Yudhishthira) of eyes like lotus petals, rose from his seat for the good
of the whole world. The tiger among men, viz., Yudhishthira of great
fame, besought by Krishna himself, by the Island-born (Vyasa), by
Devasthana, by Jishnu, by these and many others, cast off his grief and
anxiety. Fully conversant with the declarations of the Srutis, with the
science that treats of the interpretation of those declarations, and with
all that men usually hear and all that deserve to be heard, the son of
Pandu obtained peace of mind and resolved upon that he should next do.
Surrounded by all of them like the moon by the stars, the king, placing
Dhritarashtra at the head of the train, set out for entering the city.
Desirous of entering the city, Kunti's son Yudhishthira, conversant with
every duty, offered worship unto the gods and thousands of Brahmanas. He
then ascended a new and white car covered with blankets and deerskins,
and unto which were yoked sixteen white bullocks possessed of auspicious
marks, and which had been sancti