44.  The meaning is that in consequence of thy abandonment of prosperity and kingdom and, therefore, of the means of effecting thy salvation by sacrifice and gifts and other act, of piety, thou shalt have to he re-born and to renew this mental battle with thy doubts.

45.  This is a difficult verse, and I am not sure that I have understood it correctly.  Gantavyam is explained by Nilakantha as connected with paramavyaktarupasya.  According to Nilakantha, this means that thou shouldst go to, i.e. conquer, and identify thyself with, the param or foe of that which is of unmanifest form, the mind; of course, this would mean that Yudhishthira should identify himself with his own soul, for it is the soul which is his foe and with which he is battling.  Such conquest and identification implies the cessation of the battle and, hence, the attainment of tranquillity.

46.  The condition of Draupadi’s lock,—­i.e., thou hast been restored to the normal condition.  Draupadi had kept her locks dishevelled since the day they had been seized by Duhsasana.  After the slaughter of the Kurus, those locks were bound up as before, or restored to their normal condition.

47.  The Bengal tiger acts as a fisher to both animals and men.  When the tiger goes on a fishing expedition, what it usually does is to catch large fishes from shallow streams and throw them landwards far from the water’s edge.  The poor beast is very often followed, unperceived, by the smaller carnivorous animals, and sometimes by bands of fishermen.  I have seen large fishes with the claw-marks of the tiger on them exposed for sale in a village market.

48.  The sense seems to be that unless kings perform such penances they cannot escape hell.  Such penances, however, are impossible for them as long as they are in the midst of luxuries.  To accept wealth and not use it, therefore, is impracticable.

49. i.e., Thou art not liberated from desire.

50.  The false speech, in this instance, consists in professing one’s self to be really unattached white enjoying wealth and power, i.e., the hypocritical profession of renunciation in the midst of luxuries.  As already said by Yudhishthira, such renunciation is impracticable.

51.  The path of the Pitris means the course of Vedic rites by which one attains to bliss hereafter.  The path of the gods means the abandonment of religious rites for contemplation and pious conduct.

52.  This truth has been expressed in various forms of language in various passages of the Mahabharata.  The fact is, the unification of infinite variety and its identification with the Supreme Soul is attainment of Brahma.  One, therefore, that has attained to Brahma ceases to regard himself as separate from the rest of the universe.  Selfishness, the root of sin and injury, disappears from him.

53. i.e., Sacrifice.

54.  Literally, ’thy resolution is of one kind, while thy acts are of another kind!’