orned by many flowering groves and woods. In these waters many
beautiful Apsaras were sporting. Beholding Suka who was bodiless, those
unclad aerial beings felt shame. Learning that Suka had undertaken his
great journey, his sire Vyasa, filled with affection, followed him behind
along the same aerial path. Meanwhile Suka, proceeding through that
region of the firmament that is above the region of the wind displayed
his Yoga-prowess and identified himself with Brahma.[1788] Adopting the
subtile path of high Yoga, Vyasa of austere penances, reached within the
twinkling of the eye that spot whence Suka first undertook his journey.
Proceeding along the same way, Vyasa beheld the mountain summit rent in
twain and through which Suka has passed. Encountering the Island-born
ascetic, the Rishis began to represent to him the achievements of his
son. Vyasa, however, began to indulge in lamentations, loudly calling
upon his son by name and causing the three worlds to resound with the
noise he made. Meanwhile, the righteous-souled Suka, who had entered the
elements, had become their soul and acquired omnipresence, answered his
sire by uttering the monosyllable Bho in the form of an echo. At this,
the entire universe of mobile and immobile creatures, uttering the
monosyllable Bho, echoed the answer of Suka. From that time to this, when
sounds are uttered in mountain-caves or on mountain-breasts, the latter,
as if in answer to Suka still echo them (with the monosyllable Bho).
Having cast off all the attributes of sound, etc., and showing his
Yoga-prowess in the manner of his disappearance, Suka in this way
attained to the highest station. Beholding that glory and puissance of
his son of immeasurable energy, Vyasa sat down on the breast of the
mountain and began to think of his son with grief. The Apsaras were
sporting on the banks of the celestial stream Mandakini, seeing the Rishi
seated there, became all agitated with grave shame and lost heart. Some
of them, to hide their nudity, plunged into the stream, and some entered
the groves hard by, and some quickly took up their clothes, at beholding
the Rishi. (None of them had betrayed any signs of agitation at sight of
his son). The Rishi, beholding these movements, understood that his son
had been emancipated from all attachments, but that he himself was not
freed therefrom. At this he became filled with both joy and shame. As
Vyasa was seated there, the auspicious god Siva, armed with P