Śuka

Śuka was the son of the sage Vyāsa, also called Dvaipāyana, who divided the Veda and made the Mahābhārata. He was born from the fire-sticks on Mount Meru by the grace of the god Śiva, and the Vedas, the ancient sacred knowledge of the brahmins, came to him as soon as he was born. He learned the way of freedom from his father, walked on foot to Mithilā to put his questions to King Janaka, sat unmoved among the women of the palace, and heard from the king that he already stood where he wished to go. Taught by the divine sage Nārada, he resolved to leave the round of birth. He rose from the Himālaya into the sky, split a mountain peak as he passed, and became one with all things, so that when his father called his name, the whole world answered.