se words of Vamadeva the
princess said, "This, O holy one, is the boon I seek, viz., that my
husband may now be freed from his sin, and that thou mayst be employed
in thinking of the weal of his son and kinsmen. This is the boon that I
ask, O thou foremost of Brahmanas!"'

"Markandeya continued, 'Hearing these words of the queen, that _Muni_, O
thou foremost of the Kuru race, said, "So be it." And thereupon king
Dala became highly glad and gave unto the _Muni_ his _Vami_ steeds,
having bowed down unto him with reverence!'"

SECTION CLXLII

Vaisampayana said, "The _Rishis_, the Brahmanas, and Yudhishthira then
asked Markandeya, saying, 'How did the _Rishi_ Vaka become so long
lived?'

"Thus asked by them, Markandeya answered, 'The royal sage Vaka is a
great ascetic and endowed with long life. Ye need not enquire into the
reason of this.'

"Hearing this, O Bharata, the son of Kunti, king Yudhishthira the just,
along with his brothers, then asked Markandeya saying, 'It hath been
heard by us that both Vaka and Dalvya are of great souls and endowed
with immortality and that those _Rishis_, held in universal reverence,
are the friends of the chief of the gods. O Holy One, I desire to listen
to the (history of the) meeting of Vaka and Indra that is full of both
joy and woe. Narrate thou that history unto us succinctly.'

"Markandeya said, 'When that horrible conflict between the gods and the
_Asuras_ was over, Indra became the ruler of the three worlds. The
clouds showered rain copiously. And the dwellers of the world had
abundance of harvests, and were excellent in disposition. And devoted to
virtue, they always practised morality and enjoyed peace. And all
persons, devoted to the duties of their respective orders, were
perfectly happy and cheerful, and the slayer of Vala, beholding all the
creatures of the world happy and cheerful, became himself filled with
joy. And he of a hundred sacrifices, the chief of the _gods_ seated on
the back of his elephant Airavata, surveyed his happy subjects, and he
cast his eyes on delightful asylums of _Rishis_, on various auspicious
rivers, towns full of prosperity, and villages and rural regions in the
enjoyment of plenty. And he also cast his eyes upon kings devoted to the
practice of virtue and well-skilled in ruling their subjects. And he
also looked upon tanks and reservoirs and wells and lakes and smaller
lakes all full of water and adored by best of Brahmanas in the
observa