o has created this universe. His origin is in his own
self; it is He who causes all things to exist through his own puissance.
He it is that has created the deities, the Asuras, the human beings, the
world, the Rishis, the Pitris, and all creatures. Desirous of creating,
that Lord of all creatures duly created the whole universe of life. Know
that good and evil, mobile and immobile, have all flowed from this One
who is Vishwaksena. Whatever exists, and whatever will spring into
existence, all is Kesava. This Krishna is also the death that overtakes
all creatures when their end comes. He is eternal and it is He who
upholds the cause of Righteousness. Whatever existed in the past, and
whatever we do not know, verily, all that also is this Vishwaksena.
Whatever is noble and meritorious in the universe, indeed, whatever of
good and of evil exists, all that is Kesava who is inconceivable. Hence,
it is absurd to think of anything that is superior to Kesava. Kesava is
even such. More than this, He is Narayana, the highest of the high,
immutable and unfading. He is the eternal and immutable cause of the
entire mobile and immobile universe with its beginning, middle, and end,
as also of all creatures whose birth follows their wish."'"

SECTION CLIX

"'Yudhishthira said, "Do thou tell us, O slayer of Madhu, what the
prosperity is that attaches to the worship of the Brahmanas. Thou art
well-conversant with this topic. Verily, our grandsire knows thee."

"'Vasudeva said, "Hear, O king, with rapt attention to me, O chief of
Bharata's race, as I recite to thee what the merits of the Brahmanas are,
in accordance with truth, O foremost one of Kuru's race! Once on a time
while I was seated at Dwaravati, O delighter of the Kurus, my son
Pradyumna, enraged by certain Brahmanas, came to me and said, 'O slayer
of Madhu, what merit attaches to the worship of the Brahmanas? Whence is
their lordship derived both here and hereafter? O giver of honours, what
rewards are won by constantly worshipping the Brahmanas? Do thou kindly
explain this clearly to me, for my mind is disturbed by doubts in respect
of this.' When these words were addressed to me by Pradyumna, I answered
him as follows. Do thou hear, O king, with close attention, what those
words were, 'O child of Rukmin, listen to me as I tell thee what the
prosperity is that one may win by worshipping the Brahmanas. When one
sets oneself to the acquisition of the well-known aggregate of