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Chapter 16: King Prithu Extolled(1) Maitreya said: 'The professional reciters, content about
hearing the king speak these nectarine words, praised him therefore according to the instructions of the sages: (2) 'We are at a loss to describe in full the
glories of you who as the foremost godhead has descended out of your
own mercy. Despite
of the fact that you appeared from the body of Vena, your glories
bewilder the minds of the foremost speakers. (3) Nevertheless we will, in accord with what the wise
have told us to do, try
to put the name of King Prithu, [of you who are] famed for being a
partial incarnation
of Lord Vishnu, in the sweetest words. Encouraged
in our attention for the liberality and praiseworthiness of your
activities, we shall do our best to sing your praises. (4)
This king will as the best
defender of the faith incite the entire world to follow dutifully.
Apart
from being the protector of the regulative principles of human nature
he is also the chastiser of all who act against them. (5)
He is the one and only who carries all the forms of all local deities
within himself. Based upon that justice each and everyone high and
low in due course of time will receive his
proper
share
and
prosper therefrom. (6)
All the riches this king
exacts will by him in due course of time be equally distributed over
all living beings, just like the all-powerful sun god distributes his
rays. (7)
He as the king will take up
the duty of mother earth to be always kind to the aggrieved and
tolerant towards the people who trample her face. (8)
As easy as
Indra answers with rain when there is a shortage of water and the
living entities have to suffer, that divine man of God, this embodiment
of the Lord, will protect the citizens. (9) The
whole world will thrive on the
glances and bright smiles of his beautiful and affectionate moonlike
face. 
(10)
The policies of this king are
unseen, his actions are confidential and secret, his accomplishments
are hidden and
there is no limit to his treasury. His soul, as the only reservoir of
all good qualities, will be covered just as it is with [the position
of] Varuna, the
king of the seas. (11) Born from Vena like fire from firewood, he is
difficult to approach and unbearable [for his enemies]. When one approaches him he stays at a distance. No one can defeat him. (12) He as the
neutral witness oversees the
activities inside as
well as outside of all living
beings, just [as inseparable] as
the life breath is of all the
embodied beings. (13)
Walking
the path of righteousness, he will not think of punishing the son of
his
enemy when he is not to be punished, nevertheless he will punish his
own son if he deserves it. (14) Like the sun god shining his light
everywhere, the circle of the influence of Prithu will unimpeded remain
the most powerful up to Mânasa mountain [the arctic region]. (15) The
entire world will be pleased by his personal activities and will
therefore call him 'the King Happy to the Mind of the Citizens'. (16) Firm in his determination and always
truthful, he in favor of the brahminical and of service to the
elderly, is the one of respect and the caring parent for the afflicted with whom all living beings seek their
shelter. (17) He is
as respectful towards other women as he is towards his
mother, unto his own wife he is like the other half of his body, unto
the
citizens he is like an affectionate father and he is a servant unto
those
who preach the word of God.
(18) All who are
embodied are as dear to him as himself, he increases the pleasure of
his friends and he intimately associates with those who are free from
attachment. This king is the hand chastising the wicked. (19) He
who
is
unmistakably
the
unchanging
Supreme
Lord
over the three worlds, descended as a partial [s'aktyâves'a] expansion of the Supersoul. He regards [the false security
of confiding in] the variegatedness of matter as meaningless, for
such a notion is born from nescience. (20) From the earliest
light of day over the hills on, he as the king of the world, uniquely
heroic will protect the globe as the master of all gods of men. From
his victorious chariot upholding the bow, he will be all around from
the south [to the north] like the sun passing [every year from south to
north in the celestial sky]. (21) For certain all kings of all places will
present themselves before him. With the locally worshiped deities the
wives of these kings will consider him the Original King who wields the
weapon of his disc in defense of his [His] reputation. (22) He
will milk the earth whom one knows in
the form of a cow,
as an extraordinary king and progenitor [the Prajâpati] he
will provide facilities for the populace and for a pastime he will
simply by the pointed ends of his bow level the mountains by breaking
them apart in preparing the earth [for agriculture], just like Indra,
the king
of heaven did [hitting the mountains with his thunderbolt]. (23) When he vibrating his bow of horn like a lion keeping his tail
high personally
travels the earth, he invincible in battle will drive
all warmongers everywhere into retreat. (24) The moment this king will have performed a
hundred as'vamedha [horse] sacrifices at the source of the
Sarasvatî river, his horse during the last of the hundred
sacrifices there will be stolen away by Lord Indra. (25) He
will
meet
the
worshipable
Sanat-kumâra
alone
in
the garden of his palace and
will, with his devotion being of worship, achieve the uncontaminated,
transcendental knowledge by which the Spirit of the Absolute Truth is
enjoyed. (26) He
will hear about the reputation
far and wide of his chivalry as
Prithu, the king of supreme power, being put in so many words in the form of songs and narrations. (27) Conquering
[his
opponents]
everywhere
with
no
one
checking
him he will, by the
grace of his own prowess, uproot the miseries of the citizens. He will be glorified as the
greatest soul by the leaders of
the
godly and the godless and become
the lord of the world.'
(10)
The policies of this king are
unseen, his actions are confidential and secret, his accomplishments
are hidden and
there is no limit to his treasury. His soul, as the only reservoir of
all good qualities, will be covered just as it is with [the position
of] Varuna, the
king of the seas. (11) Born from Vena like fire from firewood, he is
difficult to approach and unbearable [for his enemies]. When one approaches him he stays at a distance. No one can defeat him. (12) He as the
neutral witness oversees the
activities inside as
well as outside of all living
beings, just [as inseparable] as
the life breath is of all the
embodied beings. (13)
Walking
the path of righteousness, he will not think of punishing the son of
his
enemy when he is not to be punished, nevertheless he will punish his
own son if he deserves it. (14) Like the sun god shining his light
everywhere, the circle of the influence of Prithu will unimpeded remain
the most powerful up to Mânasa mountain [the arctic region]. (15) The
entire world will be pleased by his personal activities and will
therefore call him 'the King Happy to the Mind of the Citizens'. (16) Firm in his determination and always
truthful, he in favor of the brahminical and of service to the
elderly, is the one of respect and the caring parent for the afflicted with whom all living beings seek their
shelter. (17) He is
as respectful towards other women as he is towards his
mother, unto his own wife he is like the other half of his body, unto
the
citizens he is like an affectionate father and he is a servant unto
those
who preach the word of God.
(18) All who are
embodied are as dear to him as himself, he increases the pleasure of
his friends and he intimately associates with those who are free from
attachment. This king is the hand chastising the wicked. (19) He
who
is
unmistakably
the
unchanging
Supreme
Lord
over the three worlds, descended as a partial [s'aktyâves'a] expansion of the Supersoul. He regards [the false security
of confiding in] the variegatedness of matter as meaningless, for
such a notion is born from nescience. (20) From the earliest
light of day over the hills on, he as the king of the world, uniquely
heroic will protect the globe as the master of all gods of men. From
his victorious chariot upholding the bow, he will be all around from
the south [to the north] like the sun passing [every year from south to
north in the celestial sky]. (21) For certain all kings of all places will
present themselves before him. With the locally worshiped deities the
wives of these kings will consider him the Original King who wields the
weapon of his disc in defense of his [His] reputation. (22) He
will milk the earth whom one knows in
the form of a cow,
as an extraordinary king and progenitor [the Prajâpati] he
will provide facilities for the populace and for a pastime he will
simply by the pointed ends of his bow level the mountains by breaking
them apart in preparing the earth [for agriculture], just like Indra,
the king
of heaven did [hitting the mountains with his thunderbolt]. (23) When he vibrating his bow of horn like a lion keeping his tail
high personally
travels the earth, he invincible in battle will drive
all warmongers everywhere into retreat. (24) The moment this king will have performed a
hundred as'vamedha [horse] sacrifices at the source of the
Sarasvatî river, his horse during the last of the hundred
sacrifices there will be stolen away by Lord Indra. (25) He
will
meet
the
worshipable
Sanat-kumâra
alone
in
the garden of his palace and
will, with his devotion being of worship, achieve the uncontaminated,
transcendental knowledge by which the Spirit of the Absolute Truth is
enjoyed. (26) He
will hear about the reputation
far and wide of his chivalry as
Prithu, the king of supreme power, being put in so many words in the form of songs and narrations. (27) Conquering
[his
opponents]
everywhere
with
no
one
checking
him he will, by the
grace of his own prowess, uproot the miseries of the citizens. He will be glorified as the
greatest soul by the leaders of
the
godly and the godless and become
the lord of the world.'