offerings), and by destroying a sacrifice Mahadeva secured
his share of sacrificial offerings: do thou, therefore, destroy this
serpent immediately without any misgivings in thy mind!'"

"'Bhishma continued, "The high-souled Gautami, although repeatedly incited
by the fowler for the destruction of the serpent did not bend her mind to
that sinful act. The serpent, painfully bound with the cord, sighing a
little and maintaining its composure with great difficulty, then uttered
these words slowly, in a human voice.

"'"The serpent said, 'O foolish Arjunaka, what fault is there of mine? I
have no will of my own, and am not independent. Mrityu sent me on this
errand. By his direction have I bitten this child, and not out of any
anger or choice on my part. Therefore, if there be any sin in this, O
fowler, the sin is his.'

"'"The fowler said, 'If thou hast done this evil, led thereto by another,
the sin is thine also as thou art an instrument in the act. As in the
making of an earthen vessel the potter's wheel and rod and other things
are all regarded as causes, so art thou, O serpent, (cause in the
production of this effect). He that is guilty deserves death at my hands.
Thou, O serpent, art guilty. Indeed, thou confessest thyself so in this
matter!'

"'"The serpent said, 'As all these, viz., the potter's wheel, rod, and
other things, are not independent causes, even so I am not an independent
cause. Therefore, this is no fault of mine, as thou shouldst grant.
Shouldst thou think otherwise, then these are to be considered as causes
working in unison with one another. For thus working with one other, a
doubt arises regarding their relation as cause and effect. Such being the
case, it is no fault of mine, nor do I deserve death on this account, nor
am I guilty of any sin. Or, if thou thinkest that there is sin (in even
such causation), the sin lies in the aggregate of causes.'

"'"The fowler said, 'If thou art neither the prime cause nor the agent in
this matter, thou art still the cause of the death (of this child).
Therefore, thou dost deserve death in my opinion. If, O serpent, thou
thinkest that when an evil act is done, the doer is not implicated
therein, then there can be no cause in this matter; but having done this,
verily thou deservest death. What more dost thou think?'

"'"The serpent said, 'Whether any cause exists or not,[1] no effect is
produced without an (intermediate) act. Therefore, causation being of no