thou of great splendour, I pray thee to grant me a single boon.'

"The king said, 'O best of regenerate persons, I am ready to grant thee a
hundred of boons, what dost thou say then of one only? From the affection
I bear thee and the reverence in which I hold thee, there is nothing that
I cannot give thee.'

"The priest said, 'I desire to have only one boon, O king, thou hast been
pleased with me. Swear that thou wouldst tell me the truth instead of any
untruth.'

"Bhishma continued, 'Thus addressed by the priest, O Yudhishthira, the
king said unto him--So be it. If what thou wouldst ask me be known to me,
I shall certainly tell thee truly. If on the other hand, the matter be
unknown to me, I shall not say anything.'

"The priest said, 'Every day, on occasions of obtaining my benedictions,
when, again, I am engaged in the performance of religious rites on thy
behalf, on occasions also of the Homa and other rites of propitiation,
why is it that thou laughest upon beholding me? Seeing thee laugh at me
on all occasions, my mind shrinks with shame. I have caused thee to
swear, O king, that thou wouldst answer me truly. It does not behove thee
to say what is untrue. There must be some grave reason for thy behaviour.
Thy laughter cannot be causeless. Great is my curiosity to know the
reason. Do thou speak truly unto me.'

"The king said, 'When thou hast addressed me in this strain, O regenerate
one, I am bound to enlighten thee, even if the matter be one that should
not be divulged in thy hearing. I must tell thee the truth. Do thou
listen to me with close attention, O regenerate one. Listen to me, O