Vaisampayana continued,--“Then agreeable to the words of the Yaksha the
Pandavas rose up; and in a moment their hunger and thirst left them.
Thereupon Yudhishthira said, ‘I ask thee that art incapable of being
vanquished and that standest on one leg in the tank, what god art thou,
for I cannot take thee for a Yaksha! Art thou the foremost of the Vasus,
or of the Rudras, or of the chief of the Maruts? Or art thou the lord
himself of the celestials, wielder of the thunder-bolt! Each of these my
brothers is capable of fighting as hundred thousand warriors, and I see
not the warrior that can slay them all! I see also that their senses have
refreshed, as if they have sweetly awaked from slumber. Art thou a friend
of ours, or even our father himself? At this the Yaksha replied,-’O
child, I am even thy father, the Lord of justice, possessed of great
prowess! Know, bull of the Bharata race, that I came hither desirous of
beholding thee! Fame, truth, self-restraint, purity, candour, modesty,
steadiness, charity, austerities and Brahmacharya, these are my body! And
abstention from injury, impartiality, peace, penances, sanctity, and
freedom from malice are the doors (through which I am accessible). Thou
art always dear to me! By good luck thou art devoted to the five;[119]
and by good luck also thou hast conquered the six.[120] Of the six, two
appear in the first part of life; two in the middle part thereof; and the
remaining two at the end, in order to make men repair to the next world.
I am, good betide thee, the lord of justice! I came hither to test thy
merit. I am well-pleased to witness thy harmlessness; and, O sinless one,
I will confer boons on thee. Do thou, O foremost of kings, ask of me
boons. I shall surely confer them, O sinless one! Those that revere me,
never come by distress!’ Yudhishthira said,--‘A deer was carrying away
the Brahmana’s fire-sticks. Therefore, the first boon that I shall ask,
is, may that Brahmana’s adorations to Agni be not interrupted!’ The
Yaksha said,--‘O Kunti’s son endued with splendour, it was I who for
examining thee, was carrying away, in the guise of a deer, that
Brahmana’s fire-sticks!”
Vaisampayana continued,--“Thereupon that worshipful one said,--‘I give
thee this boon! Good betide thee! O thou that are like unto an immortal,
ask thou a fresh boon! Yudhishthira said,--‘We have spent these twelve
years in the forest; and the thirteenth year is come. May no one
recognise us, as we spend this year somewhere.’
Vaisampayana continued,-’Thereat that worshipful one replied,--‘I give
this boon unto thee!’ And then reassuring Kunti’s son having truth for
prowess, he also said, ‘Even if, O Bharata, ye range this (entire) earth
in your proper forms none in the three worlds shall recognise you. Ye
perpetuators of the Kuru race, through my grace, ye will spend this
thirteenth year, secretly and unrecognised, in Virata’s kingdom! And
every one of you will be able at will to assume any form he likes! Do ye
now present the Brahmana with his fire-sticks. It was only to test you
that I carried them away in the form of a deer! O amiable Yudhishthira,
do thou ask for another boon that thou mayst like! I will confer it on
thee. O foremost of men, I have not yet been satisfied by granting boons
to thee! Do thou my son, accept a third boon that is great and
incomparable! Thou, O king, art born of me, and Vidura of portion or
mine!” Thereat Yudhishthira said,--‘It is enough that I have beheld thee
with my senses, eternal God of gods as thou art! O father, whatever boon
thou wilt confer on me I shall surely accept gladly! May I, O lord,
always conquer covetousness and folly and anger, and may my mind be ever
devoted to charity, truth, and ascetic austerities! The Lord of justice
said,--‘Even by nature, O Pandava, hast thou been endued with these
qualities, for thou art the Lord of justice himself! Do thou again attain
what thou asked for!”
Vaisampayana continued,--“Having said these words, the worshipful Lord of
justice, who is the object of contemplation of all the worlds, vanished
therefrom; and the high-souled Pandavas after they had slept sweetly were
united with one another. And their fatigue dispelled, those heroes
returned to the hermitage, and gave back that Brahmana his firesticks.
That man who pursueth this illustrious and fame-enhancing story of the
revival (of the Pandavas) and the meeting of father and son (Dharma and
Yudhishthira), obtaineth perfect tranquillity of mind, and sons and
grandsons, and also a life extending over a hundred years! And the mind
of that man that layeth this story to heart, never delighteth in
unrighteousness, or in disunion among friends, or misappropriation of
other person’s property, or staining other people’s wives, or in foul
thoughts!