, who, thanks to his unselfishness, had been rescued from
hell.

The grandson of Arjuna reigned at Hastinapur until he died of a
snake-bite, and his son instituted snake sacrifices, where this epic
was recited by a bard who learned it from the mouth of Vyasa. There is
also a continuation of the poem in three sections called the
Harivamca, which relates that Krishna is an incarnation of Vishnu, and
describes his exploits and the future doom of the world.

THE STORY OF THE DELUGE

The detached stories in the Mahabharata are a quaint account of the
Deluge, where we learn that an ascetic stood for ten thousand years on
one leg, before a small fish implored him to save him from the big
ones in the stream. This ascetic placed the petitioner first in an
earthen vessel of water, then in a tank, then in the Ganges, "the
favorite spouse of the ocean," and finally in the sea, for this fish
rapidly outgrew each receptacle. On reaching the ocean, the fish
informed the ascetic, _with a smile_, that the dissolution of the
earth was near. He also bade him build an ark provided with a long
rope, told him to enter in it with seven other sages and seeds of
every kind, and promised to appear as a horned fish to save him from
destruction. When the flood came, the horned fish, seizing the rope,
dragged the ark to the top of the Himalayas, where it rested securely.
There it declared, "I am Brahma who saved you," and directed the
ascetic, aided by his learned companions, to recreate everything by
means of the seeds.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 42: The long line quotations are from the translation of
Romesh Dutt, those in short lines from Griffeth's.]

THE STORY OF NALA AND DAMAYANTI

The romantic story of Nala and Damayanti was told to comfort the
eldest Pandav for losing all he had while dicing. It seems that once,
while hunting, Nala released a golden bird, because it promised to win
for him the affections of Princess Damayanti. Pleased with this
prospect, Nala let the bird go, and watched it fly in the direction of
Damayanti's palace. There the bird, caught by the princess, praised
Nala so eloquently that Damayanti fell in love with him, and, in order
to meet him, announced she was about to hold a Bride's Choice. On his
way to this tournament, Nala met four gods, all anxious to marry the
beautiful princess, and they, after obtaining his promise to execute
their wishes, bade him steal unseen into the palace and bid the
p