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Mahabharata -Rajagopalachari
4.DEVAYANI AND KACHA
For the third time again, the Asuras killed
Kacha and very cleverly as they thought,
burnt his body, mixed the ashes in wine
and served it to Sukracharya who drank it,
suspecting nothing. Once more the cows
returned home without their keeper, and
once again Devayani approached her
father with her distressful appeal for
Kacha.
Sukracharya tried in vain to console his
daughter. "Though I have again and again
brought back Kacha to life," said he, "the
asuras seem bent upon killing him. Well,
death is the common lot, and it is not
proper for a wise soul like you to sorrow
at it. Your life is all before you to enjoy,
with youth and beauty and the goodwill of
the world."
Devayani deeply loved Kacha, and since
the world began, wise words have never
cured the ache of bereavement. She said:
"Kacha, the grandson of Angiras and the
son of Brihaspati, was a blameless boy,
who was devoted and tireless in our
service. I loved him dearly, and now that
he has been killed, life to me has become
bleak and insupportable. I shall therefore
follow in his path." And Devayani began
to fast. Sukracharya, heart-stricken by his
daughter's sorrow, became very angry
with the asuras, and felt that the heinous
sin of killing a brahmana would weigh
heavily on their fortunes.
He employed the Sanjivini art and called
upon Kacha to appear. By the power of
the Sanjivini Kacha dispersed as he was in
the wine which was inside Sukracharya's
body at the time, regained life, but
prevented by the peculiarity of his
location from coming out, he could only
answer to his name from where he was.
Sukracharya exclaimed in angry
amazement: "O brahmacharin, how did
you get into me? Is this also the work of
the asuras? This is really too bad and
makes me feel like killing the asuras
immediately and joining the devas. But
tell me the whole story."
Kacha narrated it all, in spite of the
inconvenience imposed by his position.
Vaisampayana continued: "The highsouled
and austere Sukracharya of immeasurable greatness, became angry at
the deceit practised on him in his wine,
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