Then
Yudhishthira ascending to heaven felt much pain. The celestial messenger
showed him hell by an act of deception. Then Yudhishthira, the soul of
justice, heard the heart-rending lamentations of his brothers abiding in
that region under the discipline of Yama. Then Dharma and Indra showed
Yudhishthira the region appointed for sinners. Then Yudhishthira, after
leaving the human body by a plunge in the celestial Ganges, attained to
that region which his acts merited, and began to live in joy respected by
Indra and all other gods. This is the eighteenth Parva as narrated by the
illustrious Vyasa. The number of slokas composed, O ascetics, by the great
Rishi in this is two hundred and nine.
"The above are the contents of the Eighteen Parvas. In the appendix
(Khita) are the Harivansa and the Vavishya. The number of slokas contained
in the Harivansa is twelve thousand."
These are the contents of the section called Parva-sangraha. Sauti
continued, "Eighteen Akshauhinis of troops came together for battle. The
encounter that ensued was terrible and lasted for eighteen days. He who
knows the four Vedas with all the Angas and Upanishads, but does not know
this history (Bharata), cannot be regarded as wise. Vyasa of immeasurable
intelligence, has spoken of the Mahabharata as a treatise on Artha, on
Dharma, and on Kama. Those who have listened to his history can never bear
to listen to others, as, indeed, they who have listened to the sweet voice
of the male Kokila can never hear the dissonance of the crow's cawing.
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