Do not suffer thyself to be filled with wonder.
Affluence and its origin are not under one's control. Thy mind seems to
be like that of a child. It is the same as it was before. Open thy eyes,
O Maghavat, and adopt an understanding established on certitude and
truth. The gods, men, the Pitris, the Gandharvas, the snakes, and the
Rakshasas, were all under my sway in days gone by. Thou knowest this, O
Vasava! Their understandings stupefied by ignorance, all creatures used
to flatter me, saying, 'Salutations to that point of the compass whither
Virochana's son Vali may now be staying!' O lord of Sachi, I do not at
all grieve when I think of that honour (which is no longer paid to me). I
feel no sorrow for this fall of mine. My understanding is firm in this
respect, viz., that I will live obedient to the sway of the Ordainer. It
is seen that some one of noble birth, possessed of handsome features, and
endued with great prowess, lives in misery, with all his counsellors and
friends. This happens because of its having been ordained.[839]
Similarly, some one born in an ignoble race, devoid of knowledge, and
with even a stain on his birth, is seen, O Sakra, to live in happiness
with all his counsellors and friends.
This also happens because of its having been ordained. An auspicious and
beautiful woman, O Sakra, is seen to pass her life in misery. Similarly,
an ugly woman with every inauspicious mark is seen to pass her days in
great happiness. That we have now become so is not due to any act of
ours, O Sakra! That thou art now so is not due, O wielder of the
thunderbolt, to any act of thine.
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