vided the offerings among those that were dependent on him.
With what remained after serving those, the king satisfied his own
hunger. Devoted to truth, the monarch abstained from doing any injury to
any creature. With his whole soul, the king was devoted to that God of
gods, viz., Janarddana, who is without beginning and middle and end, who
is the Creator of the universe, and who is without deterioration of any
kind. Beholding the devotion to Narayana of that slayer of foes, the
divine chief of the celestials himself shared with him his own seat and
bed. His kingdom and wealth and spouses and animals were all regarded by
him as obtained from Narayana. He, therefore, offered all his possessions
to that great deity.[1796] Adopting the Sattwata ritual, king Uparichara,
with concentrated soul, used to discharge all his sacrificial acts and
observances, both optional and obligatory. In the place of that
illustrious king, many foremost Brahmanas, well conversant with the
Pancharatra ritual, used to eat before all others the food offered to the
god Narayana. As long as that slayer of foes continued to rule his
kingdom righteously, no untruth ever escaped his lips and no evil thought
ever entered his mind. With his limbs he never committed even the
slightest sin. The seven celebrated Rishis, viz., Marichi, Atri, Angiras,
Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, and Vasishta of great energy, who came to be
known by the name of Chitra-sikhandins, uniting together on the breast of
that foremost of mountains, viz., Meru, promulgated an excellent treatise
on duties and observances that was consistent with the four Vedas. The
contents of that treatise were uttered by seven mouths, and constituted
the best compendium of human duties and observances. Known, as already
stated, by the name of Chitra-sikhandins, those seven Rishis constitute
the seven (Pravriti) elements (of Mahat, Ahankara, etc.) and the Selfborn
Manu, who is the eighth in the enumeration, constituted original
Prakriti. These eight uphold the universe, and it was these eight that
promulgated the treatise adverted to. With their senses and minds under
complete control, and ever devoted to Yoga, these eight ascetics, with
concentrated souls, are fully conversant with the Past, the Present and
the Future, and are devoted to the religion of Truth.--This is good this
is Brahma,--this is highly beneficial,--reflecting in their minds in this
way, those Rishis created the worlds, and the science