ifying the three worlds. It is called Heavenly Ganga. Plunging into
it, thou wilt go to thy own regions. Having bathed in this stream, thou
wilt be divested of thy human nature. Indeed, thy grief dispelled, thy
ailments conquered, thou wilt be freed from all enmities."

"'While, O Kuru king, the chief of the gods was saying so unto
Yudhishthira, the deity of Righteousness, in his embodied form, then
addressed his own son and said, "O king, I am greatly pleased, O thou of
great wisdom, with thee, O son, by thy devotion to me, by thy
truthfulness of speech, and forgiveness, and self-restraint. This,
indeed, is the third test, O king, to which I put thee. Thou art
incapable, O son of Pritha, of being swerved from thy nature or reason.
Before this, I had examined thee in the Dwaita woods by my questions,
when thou hadst come to that lake for recovering a couple of fire sticks.
Thou stoodst it well. Assuming the shape of a dog, I examined thee once
more, O son, when thy brothers with Draupadi had fallen down. This has
been thy third test; thou hast expressed thy wish to stay at Hell for the
sake of thy brothers. Thou hast become cleansed, O highly blessed one.
Purified of sin, be thou happy.

"'"O son of Pritha, thy brothers, O king, were not such as to deserve Hell.
All this has been an illusion created by the chief of the gods. Without
doubt, all kings, O son, must once behold Hell. Hence hast thou for a
little while been subjected to this great affliction. O king, neither
Arjuna, nor Bhima, nor any of those foremost of men, viz., the twins, nor
Karna, ever truthful in speech and possessed of great courage, could be
deserving of Hell for a long time. The princess Krishna too, O
Yudhishthira, could not be deserving of that place of sinners. Come,
come, O foremost one of the Bharatas, behold Ganga who spreads her
current over the three worlds."

"'Thus addressed, that royal sage, viz., thy grandsire, proceeded with
Dharma and all the other gods. Having bathed in the celestial river
Ganga, sacred and sanctifying and ever adored by the Rishis, he cast off
his human body. Assuming then a celestial form, king Yudhishthira the
just, in consequence of that bath, became divested of all his enmities
and grief. Surrounded by the deities, the Kuru king Yudhishthira then
proceeded from that spot. He was accompanied by Dharma, and the great
Rishis uttered his praises. Indeed, he reached that place where those
foremost of men, those he