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कृतघ्नोपाख्यान (kRtaghnopAkhyAna)

 
Mahabharata
English
[Kṛtaghnopākhyāna(ṃ)] (“the episode about an ungrateful person”). § 658b (Āpaddh.): Bhīshma related: Gautama, a brahman, belonging to the middle country, devoid of Vedic learning, entered a village desirous of obtaining charity. In that village lived a robber (dasyu), possessed of great wealth, devoted to the brahmans, etc. He gave to Gautama a piece of new cloth, a widowed (bhartrā virahitāṃ) young woman, and a house. Gautama lived happily in that village of aborigines (śabarālaye) for many years, helping the relatives of his wife, the female slave (dāsī). He began to practise archery, and went into the woods and killed wild cranes (cakrāṅgān), etc., in abundance, and became like one of the robbers. One day a brahman, devoted to the study of the Vedas, etc., and who did never accept any food if given by a Śūdra, came to the house of his ancient friend Gautama. Seeing Gautama, who resembled a cannibal, he exhorted him to abandon his sinful mode of life. Gautama, repenting, agreed to leave this village next morning with his guest, who passed the night there, refraining touching anything (though hungry) (XII, 168). Next morning, when the guest had left the house, Gautama proceeded towards the sea, having met with a caravan of merchants. The caravan was assailed by an infuriated elephant, but Gautama managed to escape, and fled towards the north, not knowing whither he proceeded, wandering alone in the forest like a kimpurusha. At last he reached a delightful forest, resembling the very woods of Nandana, and inhabited by Y. and K., adorned with Śālas, etc., with Bhāruṇḍas (having faces resembling those of human beings), Bhūliṅgas, etc. Under a delightful banyan-tree (description) he fell asleep
when the sun had set, the king of cranes, Nāḍījaṅgha or Rājadharman, Kaśyapa's son, the child of a celestial maiden (devakanyāsutaḥ), one of the daughters of Daksha (v. 6343), and possessed of great wisdom and a friend of Brahmán, came home from Brahmaloka. Exhausted with hunger and thirst, Gautama thought of slaying him. Nāḍījaṅgha welcomed Gautama, and asked him to stay with him till the next morning (XII, 169). He, who equalled Yama himself in his knowledge of duties, made for him a bed of the śāla flowers, and offered him large fishes from the Bhāgīrathī, etc. Learning that he was desirous of going to the sea in order to earn wealth, he, quoting Bṛhaspati as to the fourfold means of earning wealth, directed him in the morning to his friend, the chief of the Rākshasas, Virūpāksha, about 3 yojanas away. Gautama reached the city of Meruvraja (description), and was welcomed by Virūpāksha (XII, 170). Though not satisfied with Gautama's antecedents, Virūpāksha, because Gautama was a brahman, and for the sake of Rājadharman, entertained him with the 1, 000 brahmans that were to be entertained in his house on the day of full moon of the Kārttika month (description). Some amongst them were selected to represent the V.-D., P., and the deities of fire. This he did every year on the Āshāḍhī and Māghī, and especially on the Kārttikī, after the expiry of the autumn, giving away gold, jewels, etc.
on this one day there was no fear of Rā. Gautama came away with much wealth, and returned to Rājadharman, who welcomed him. Having no food to live on by the way, he thought of slaying Rājadharman (XII, 170). This he did
having plucked off the feathers and the down, he roasted the flesh, and taking it up together with the gold he had brought, he quickly fled from the spot. The next day Virūpāksha became anxious because he had not for two mornings and two nights seen Rājadharman, who when returning from Brahmaloka every morning never went home without paying him a visit
he suspected that Gautama had slain him, and sent his son with other Rā. to inquire after him. Gautama was caught and brought to Meruvraja
as the Rā. refused to eat the flesh of that great sinner, he was hacked into pieces, which were given away to the robbers. But the very robbers, though cannibals, refused to eat the flesh of that vile man (XII, 172). Virūpāksha caused a funeral pyre, etc., to be made for Rājadharman. At that time the goddess Surabhi, the daughter of Daksha, appeared in the sky above the pyre
from her mouth froth mixed with milk fell upon the funeral pyre, and Rājadharman became revived. Indra came and related that once Rājadharman had absented himself from Brahmaloka and was cursed by Brahmán, who said that he should not die soon
“therefore he has come back to life.” Asked by Rājadharman on behalf of his “dear friend Gautama”, Indra sprinkled amṛta over Gautama, and restored him to life. Rājadharman embraced him with great joy, dismissed him with his wealth, and returned home. At the due hour he repaired to Brahmaloka and was honoured by Brahmán. Gautama begot many sinful children upon his Śūdrā wife. According to a heavy curse denounced upon him by the gods, he afterwards had to sink into a terrible hell for many years. “All this was recited to me formerly by Nārada.”
वाचस्पत्यम्
Sanskrit
कृतघ्नोपाख्यान
न०
 कृतघ्नविशेषस्योपाख्यानम् । भारतशान्तिपर्व्वान्तर्गते १६८ अध्यायमारभ्य १७३ अध्यायपर्य्यन्तेग्रन्थे नाडीजङ्घशब्दे विवृतिः । “कुतः कृतघ्नस्य यशःकुतः स्थानं कुतः सुखम् । अश्रद्धेयः कृतघ्नोहि कृ-तघ्ने नास्ति निष्कृतिः । मित्रद्रोहो न कर्त्तव्यः पुरुषेणविशेषतः । मित्रध्रुक् नरकं घोरमनन्तं पतिपद्यते ।कृतज्ञेन सदा भाव्यं मित्रकार्य्येण चैवह । मित्राच्च लभतेसर्व्वं मित्रात् पूजां लभेत च । मित्राद्भोगांश्च भुञ्जीतमित्रेणापत्सु मुच्यते । सत्कारैरुत्तमैर्मित्रं पूजयेतविचक्षणः । परित्याज्यो बुधैः पापः कृतघ्नो निरप-त्रपः । मित्रद्रोही कुलाङ्गारः पापकर्म्मा नराधमः ।एष धर्म्मभृतां श्रेष्ठ! प्रोक्तः पापो मया तव । मित्रद्रो-ही कृतघ्नोवै किंभूयः श्रोतुमिच्छसि” । भा० आ० १७३ अ०