Duryodhana began taunting Dharmarāja who had remained silent all this while. He said, “O great king! Bhīma, Arjuna, and the twins are your followers. They listen to your words. So please answer my question. Have you lost Kṛṣṇā or have you not?” With these words, Duryodhana who was overcome with greed, cast a lustful glance at Draupadī and let out an evil guffaw. He tried to humiliate Bhīma with his gestures. He pulled back his lower garment and...
Duśśāsana pulled Draupadī’s garment and taunted her in vulgar language, even as she lamented, looking helplessly at the pale faces of her husbands. Her garment was dropping off her shoulder. Looking at this, Bhīma was greatly pained and told Dharmarāja in a furious tone, “O King! Gamblers never go to the extent of pledging their servants out of compassion for them. The Kauravas, through deception, have won over everything that was in our...
Vidura’s advice fell on deaf ears. Śakuni said to Dharmarāja, “Yudhiṣṭhira, you’ve lost a lot of wealth. Tell us if there is something you haven’t yet lost!”
Yudhiṣṭhira replied, “I know how much of wealth I have – my riches are immeasurable. Why do you ask, Śakuni? I can pledge any amount I want – ayuta, prayuta, padma, arbuda. śaṅkha, nikharva, samudra [1], anything..!”
Śakuni threw the dice and said, “Look! I won!” Yudhiṣṭhira lost a large...
Yudhiṣṭhira welcomed Vidura with great joy at Khāṇḍavaprastha. He enquired after the wellbeing of Dhṛtarāṣṭra and his sons. Observing that Vidura’s face lacked joy, he asked, “Dear uncle, what’s the matter? It looks like you’re not happy! Is everything alright? Are the children and citizens coping well with Dhṛtarāṣṭra?” Vidura said, “The king his children are keeping well. He’s pleased with his obedient children. He enquired after your...
Thus, all the impediments that had come in the way of performing the Rājasūya-yāga were removed; Yudhiṣṭhira completed the yāga successfully under the protection of Kṛṣṇa. All the guests returned to their hometowns after seeking his permission. Yudhiṣṭhira gave them bountiful gifts and bade them farewell with great affection. Kṛṣṇa too expressed his wish to return to his city of Dvārakā. Yudhiṣṭhira expressed his gratitude to Kṛṣṇa and said, “...
With the killing of Jarāsandha, the greatest obstacle for the Rājāsūyayāga was removed. But Yudhiṣṭhira still needed to subdue the other kings or have a treaty of peace with them and gather their tributes. And so, his four brothers, upon his approval, went on a conquest to defeat kings in all directions (digvijaya). Arjuna went to the North, Bhīma to the East, Sahadeva to the South, and Nakula to the West. They defeated the kings there and...
SABHĀ-PARVA
Maya was a sculptor of the rākṣasas. He was one of the few who remained alive without getting charred to death when the Khāṇḍava forest burned; out of his gratitude towards Arjuna for letting him live, he built a palatial sabhā as per the latter’s request. Maya gave Bhīma a mahāgadā (great mace) and Arjuna a conch named Devadatta.
Dharmarāja, who started ruling from Indraprastha, adhered to dharma and was quite courageous; he carried...
In the north, Arjuna went to Gaṅgādvāra, the Agastyavaṭa in the Himalayan region, Vasiṣṭha mountain, Hiraṇyabindu, and other pilgrimage centres; in the east, he went to the Naimisāraṇya, River Kauśikī, Gayā, Gaṅgā, Mahendra mountain, Maṇalūra, and other places; in the south, he went to the Pañca-tīrtha[1] and other places; in the west, he visited several famous pilgrimage centres and finally came to Prabhāsapura. In all those sacred places, he...
Vidura said, “Dear king! Friends must indeed say only that which brings welfare; words that are disagreeable don’t fall on your ears; Bhīṣma and Droṇa have spoken words that are beneficial to you.[1] You don’t have any close friends who are more intelligent than them; they are old and wise; they see you and the Pāṇḍavas with the same eyes; they are firm adherents on the path of dharma and men of high integrity; they have never wished for...
Duryodhana’s spies brought news that Draupadī was married off to the Pāṇḍavas; the archer who bent the bow, strung it, and shot the target was none other than Arjuna; the one who lifted and whirled Śalya, uprooted trees, and vanquished everyone in combat without himself losing his composure was Bhīma. The kings who had assumed that the Pāṇḍavas had perished in the fire that burnt down house of lac were overjoyed when they heard about the escape...