great intelligence, Yudhishthira answered the chief of the
deities once more, saying, "O conqueror of Daityas, I venture not to dwell
anywhere separated from them. I desire to go there, where my brothers
have gone. I wish to go there where that foremost of women, Draupadi, of
ample proportions and darkish complexion and endued with great
intelligence and righteous of conduct, has gone."'"

The end of Mahaprasthanika-parva.

The Mahabharata

of

Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa

BOOK 18

Svargarohanika-parva

Translated into English Prose from the Original Sanskrit Text

by

Kisari Mohan Ganguli

[1883-1896]

Scanned and Proofed by Mantra Caitanya. Additional proofing and
formatting at sacred-texts.com, by J. B. Hare, October 2003.

1

Om! Having bowed down into Narayana, and to Nara, the foremost of men, as
also to the goddess Sarasvati, should the word "Jaya" be uttered.

"Janamejaya said, 'Having attained to Heaven, what regions were
respectively attained by my grandsires of old, viz., the Pandavas and the
sons of Dhritarashtra? I desire to hear this. I think that thou art
conversant with everything, having been taught by the great Rishi Vyasa
of wonderful feats.'

"Vaishampayana said, 'Listen now to what thy grandsires, Yudhishthira and
others, did after having attained to Heaven, that place of the deities.
Arrived at Heaven, king Yudhishthira the just, beheld Duryodhana endued
with prosperity and seated on an excellent seat. He blazed with
effulgence like the sun and wore all those signs of glory which belong to
heroes. And he was in the company of many deities of blazing effulgence
and of Sadhyas of righteous deeds. Yudhishthira, beholding Duryodhana and
his prosperity, became suddenly filled with rage and turned back from the
sight.

"'He loudly addressed his companions, saying, "I do not desire to share
regions of felicity with Duryodhana who was stained by cupidity and
possessed of little foresight. It was for him that friends, and kinsmen,
over the whole Earth were slaughtered by us whom he had afflicted greatly
in the deep forest. It was for him that the virtuous princess of Panchala,
Draupadi of faultless features, our wife, was dragged into the midst of
the assembly before all our seniors. Ye gods, I have no desire to even
behold Suyodhana. I wish to go there where my brothers are."

"'Narada, smiling, told him, "It should not be so, O king of kings. While
residing in