Read Mahabharata Vol. 2 (Penguin Translated Texts) Online
Authors: Bibek Debroy
‘Having heard this, the intelligent Vidura knew that the door to
kali
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was nigh. On seeing that the path to destruction was about to be opened, he quickly came to Dhritarashtra. The brother came to the great-souled elder brother and bowing down, with his head touching the other’s feet, uttered these words. “O king! O lord! I do not approve of the decision you have taken. You should act in such a way that discord does not arise among your sons
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because of this gambling.” Dhritarashtra replied, “O Kshatta! If the gods in heaven show us
their favour, there is no doubt that there will be no quarrel between my sons and my other sons. Auspicious or not auspicious, benign or malign, let this gambling match between relatives, occur, as it is certainly destined. When I and Bhishma, bull among the Bharata lineage, are there, no evil can possibly occur, even if fate has decreed it. Immediately ascend a chariot that is yoked with steeds with the speed of the wind. Go to Khandavaprastha and bring Yudhishthira. O Vidura! I tell you that there will be no going back on my decision. I think it is supreme destiny that has led to this.” Having heard this, the intelligent Vidura thought that this should not be. Extremely unhappy, he went to the immensely wise son of the river.’
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Janamejaya asked, ‘How did that eventful gambling match among the brothers take place, which caused so much misery to my grandfathers, the Pandavas? O you who are immersed in the brahman! Who were the kings who were present in that sabha? Who among them approved of the match and who did not? O brahmana! O supreme among brahmanas! I wish to hear all this in detail, because this was the cause of the destruction of the world.’
The suta said, ‘Having been thus addressed by the king, Vyasa’s powerful student, knowledgeable in all the Vedas, recounted everything as it had happened.’
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Vaishampayana said, ‘O supreme among the Bharata lineage! O great king! If you wish to hear it, then listen. I will tell you in detail
what happened. Knowing Vidura’s views, Dhritarashtra, the son of Ambika, again privately spoke these words to Duryodhana, “O Gandhari’s son! Forget the dice, Vidura does not approve of it. The immensely intelligent one will not speak in vain. I think what Vidura has said is for my supreme welfare. O son! Act accordingly, for I think that it will be for your welfare too. Vidura knows all the sacred texts, with their mysteries, that the illustrious and wise
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devarshi Brihaspati, preceptor of Vasava, taught to the intelligent king of the gods. O son! I always follow his counsel. O king! The intelligent Vidura is considered as foremost among the Kurus, like the immensely wise Uddhava is acclaimed among the Vrishnis. O son! Dissension brings destruction to the kingdom, so give up the idea. You have obtained what the supreme texts say are what a son should obtain from his father and mother. O son! You have obtained the rank of your father and grandfather. You have studied, you have become learned in the sacred texts. You have always been reared at home. You are the eldest among your brothers and you have been established in the kingdom. Do you not consider this fortunate? You obtain the best of food and garments, unobtainable by other men. O mighty-armed one! O son! Having obtained this, why do you grieve? O mighty-armed one! This great kingdom of your father and grandfather is prospering. When you rule it, you shine like the lord of the gods in heaven. I know you to be wise. Then what is the reason for this grief? Why is your misery swelling up? Tell me.”
‘Duryodhana replied, “I am an evil man that I eat and dress, despite what I see. It has been said that a man who does not feel envy is a wretch. O Indra among kings! O lord! This ordinary prosperity does not please me. I am miserable on seeing the blazing prosperity of Kunti’s son. The entire earth is subject to Yudhishthira’s suzerainty. I am telling you that I am miserable, since I am still
established here, alive. The Chaitrakis, the Koukuras, the Karaskaras and the Lohajanghas live in Yudhishthira’s abode, like prostrate slaves. The Himalayas, the oceans, the regions along the shores that produce all the gems and all others are inferior to Yudhishthira’s abode. O lord of the earth! Since I was the eldest and foremost, Yudhishthira offered me homage and appointed me to the task of receiving the gems. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Of the riches that were brought there, supreme and invaluable, one could not see the near end, nor the far one. My hands were too tired to receive all those riches. When those who had brought riches from distant places had left, I was still tired. Having brought gems from Bindusarovar,
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Maya constructed a platform of crystal. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! On seeing the place full of lotuses, I took it to be water. On seeing me draw up my clothes, Vrikodara laughed at me. He thought me to be devoid of riches and deluded by the superior wealth of the enemy. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Had I possessed the ability, I would have killed Vrikodara there. The derision of a rival burns me. O lord of men! I again saw a similar pond full of lotuses. Thinking it to be made out of crystal, I fell into the water. At this, Krishna and Partha
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laughed out loudly at me, and so did Droupadi and the other women. This pained my heart. My garments having become wet, the servants gave me others on the king’s
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orders and this too made me more miserable. O lord of men! Listen when I tell you about another trick. In trying to go out through what looked like a door, but wasn’t a door, I hit my head against a crystal slab and got hurt. Then, on seeing this from a distance, the twins were amused. In great sorrow, they held me in their arms. Sahadeva then repeatedly told me, as if amazed, ‘O king! This is the door. Pass this way.’ I saw jewels there, whose names I had not even heard of earlier. That is the reason why my heart is burning.”’
‘Duryodhana said, “O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Listen to the main treasures I saw at the Pandava’s, brought by the lords of the earth from everywhere. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! On seeing those riches, grown and mined, I no longer feel myself to be conscious. Kamboja gave riches in the form of skins of
eda
,
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fine cat skins lined with gold, the best skins from deer, three hundred horses with parrot-like noses that were grey and of mixed colours and three hundred she-camels fattened with palm,
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pulses
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and nuts.
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All the
govasana
and
dasamiya
brahmanas came to please the immensely fortunate and great-souled Dharmaraja.
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They brought three kharvas of tribute, but were barred entry, and stood at the gate. When they brought beautiful and golden water pots
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and offered their tribute in those, they were allowed entry. O great king! As tribute, the shudra kings who lived in Bharukaccha
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brought one hundred thousand slave girls from the Karpasika region. They were dark and slender, with long hair and adorned in golden ornaments. They also brought
ranku
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hides, fit for the best of brahmanas, and horses from the Gandhara region. The men whose crops depend on the showers of Indra,
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those who are born near the mouths of rivers,
along the shores and banks of oceans and rivers, the Vairamas, the Paradas, the Vangas and the Kitavas, brought many riches and many jewels—goats, cattle, gold, donkeys, camels, honey from fruit and different types of garments. But restrained, they stood at the door.
‘“Maharatha King Bhagadatta, the brave ruler of Pragjyotisha and the strong ruler of the mlechhas, came with yavanas. He brought a tribute of thoroughbred horses, as swift as the wind, but was barred and stood at the gate. After presenting a receptacle that was like iron
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and swords with handles of ivory, Bhagadatta of Pragjyotisha left. I saw that many people from different directions were refused admission at the gate, though they brought rich tributes of gold and silver—with two eyes, three eyes, one eye on the forehead, those who wore headdresses, those who had no fixed abode, Bahukas, cannibals and those with only one foot. They brought horses that were as swift as thought, with the colours of
indragopa
s
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and parrots, or with the colours of the rainbow
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or red like the evening sky.
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They were of many shades and there were also seized forest horses,
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with the speed of the mind.
‘“They also gave him
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rich tributes of the best quality of gold. There were Chinas, Hunas, Shakas,
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Oudras,
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those who live inside mountains, Varshneyas, Harahunas, dark ones and those who live in the Himalayas. I do not remember the order of those who were barred entry at the gate. They gave much tribute in many forms. There were tens of thousands of asses, giant in form and with black necks. They were famous everywhere and trained well, capable of
killing hundreds. There were large and colourful garments pleasant to the touch, from Bahlika
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and China. There was wool, ranku
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hides, silk, jute, cotton and thousands of other garments. They had the colour of lotuses and were soft, though not made of cotton. There were hides. There were long and sharp swords, double-edged swords,
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spears, battleaxes and a hundred battleaxes from the other side of the ocean.
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They brought juices, fragrances and many jewels in thousands. But despite the tribute, they were barred entry and stood at the gate. Shakas, Tukharas, Kankas, Romashas
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and men with horns brought as tribute one hundred million
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horses that could travel great and long distances. With crores of tribute of many kinds and unlimited gold, they stood at the door and were barred entry. Expensive seats, vehicles, beds, and many kinds of chariots adorned with gems and gold, made of ivory and decorated with gold, well-trained horses covered with tiger skins, many kinds of cushions, thousands of gems,
naracha
s,
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half-narachas, many kinds of weapons—this was the great tribute paid by the king from the east,
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when he entered the great-souled Pandava’s sacrificial arena.”’
‘Duryodhana said, “O unblemished one! Listen to me as I describe the large and varied tribute, full of riches, given by the kings for the sake of the sacrifice. The kings who live along the
banks of the river Shailoda, between Mounts Meru and Mandara, and enjoy the pleasurable shade of bamboo
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—the Khasas, Ekashanas, Jyohas, Pradaras, Dirghavenus, Pashupas, Kunindas, Tanganas and Paratanganas brought large masses of
pipilika
gold in vessels, gathered by ants.
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The strong residents of the mountains brought as tribute dark and coloured tails of yaks and others that were as white as moonbeams, a lot of sweet honey from the flowers of the Himalayas, garlands and water from the northern Kuru region and immensely powerful herbs from northern Kailasa. They bowed and stood at the gate of King Ajatashatru, but were denied entry. O lord of the earth! There were kings from the other side of the Himalayas, from the mountains where the sun rises, from the banks of Varishena and Lohitya,
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from the banks of the ocean and kiratas who live on roots and fruit and wear skins. They brought large masses of sandal and aloe wood,
kaliya
,
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skins, jewels, gold, fragrances, ten thousand kirata slave girls, beautiful animals and birds from distant regions and copious quantities of radiant gold from the mountains. But despite all this tribute, they were refused entry and waited at the gate.
‘“O lord of the earth! Kayavyas, Daradas, Darvas, Shuras, Vaiyamakas, Oudumbaras, Durvibhagas, Paradas, Bahlikas, Kashmiras, Kundamanas, Pourakas, Hamsakayanas, Shibis, Trigartas, Youdheyas, the kings of Madra and Kekaya, Ambashthas, Koukuras, Tarkshyas, Vastrapas, Pahlavas,
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Vasatas, Mouleyas, Kshudrakas, Malavas, Shoundikas, Kukkuras, Shakas, Angas, Vangas, Pundras, Shanavatyas, Gayas, Sujatayas, Shrenimanas—all illustrious kshatriyas with weapons in their hands—brought hundreds of tribute for Ajatashatru. The chiefs from Vanga and Kalinga, from Tamralipta and Pundraka,
brought garments and silk from the Koushiki.
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On the instructions of the king, the gatekeepers told them, ‘If you bring large and great tribute, only then will you be admitted.’ So they each gave one thousand elephants, with tusks like the shafts of ploughs, caparisoned in gold and covered in cushions with the colour of lotuses. They were as large as mountains, always in rut and came from the shores of Kamyaka Lake. They were covered in armour, patient and trained well. They
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then entered the gate. These and many other masses came from all the directions. There were other great-souled ones who offered many gems. The gandharva kin Chitraratha, Vasava’s friend, gave four hundred horses with the speed of the wind. The gandharva Tumburu happily gave one hundred horses that had the colour of mango leaves, with gold harnesses. O Kouravya! O lord of the earth! The famous king of the Shukaras gave many hundreds of valuable elephants. As tribute, Virata from Matsya gave two thousand rutting elephants, caparisoned in gold. O king! King Vasudana from the kingdom of Pamshu gave twenty-six elephants and one thousand horses, all harnessed in gold. O lord of men! They had great speed and strength and were of the right age. He offered this and many other riches to Pandava. O lord of the earth! Yajnasena gave Pritha’s sons fourteen thousand servant girls, ten thousand male servants with their wives and twenty-six chariots pulled by elephants. He offered his entire kingdom for the sacrifice. The Simhalas offered the best jewels found in the ocean, lapis lazuli, pearls and conch shells and hundreds of covers for housing elephants. Many dark-complexioned men, eyes copper-red and attired in garments adorned with gems, brought tribute and waited at the gate, having been refused entry.