o come back to life that were borne by me as
a woman.'"

"'Bhishma continued, "Thus addressed, Indra became highly pleased and said
unto her, 'O lady that art so truthful, let all thy children come back
into life. Do thou take another boon, O foremost of kings, in fact,
whatever boon thou likest. O thou of excellent vows, do thou take from me
whatever status thou choosest, that of woman or of man.'

"'"The lady said, 'I desire to remain a woman, O Sakra. In fact, I do not
wish to be restored to the status of manhood, O Vasava.'--Hearing this
answer, Indra once more asked her, saying,--'Why is it, O puissant one,
that abandoning the status of manhood thou wishest that of womanhood?'
Questioned thus, that foremost of monarchs transformed into a woman
answered, 'In acts of congress, the pleasure that women enjoy is always
much greater than what is enjoyed by men. It is for this reason, O Sakra,
that I desire to continue a woman; O foremost of the deities, truly do I
say unto thee that I derive greater pleasure in my present status of
womanhood. I am quite content with this status of womanhood that I now
have. Do thou leave me now, O lord of heaven.'--Hearing these words of
hers, the lord of the celestials answered,--'So be it,'--and bidding her
farewell, proceeded to heaven. Thus, O monarch, it is known that woman
derives much greater pleasure than man under the circumstances thou hast
asked."'"

SECTION XIII

"'Yudhishthira said, "What should a man do in order to pass pleasantly
through this and the other world. How, indeed, should one conduct
oneself? What practices should one adopt with this end in view?"

"'Bhishma said, "One should avoid the three acts that are done with the
body, the four that are done with speech, the three that are done with
the mind, and the ten paths of action. The three acts that are done with
the body and should be wholly avoided are the destruction of the lives of
other creatures, theft or appropriation of what belongs to other persons,
and the enjoyment of other people's wives. The four acts that are done
with speech, O king, and that should never be indulged in or even thought
of, are evil conversation, harsh words, publishing other people's faults,
and falsehood. Coveting the possessions of others, doing injury to
others, and disbelief in the ordinances of the Vedas, are the three acts
done with the mind which should always be avoided.[31] Hence, one should
never do any evil act in