Mahabharata Vol. 2 (Penguin Translated Texts) (29 page)

Vaishampayana said, ‘O great king! When the Parthas were defeated in gambling with the dice and had left for the forest, Dhritarashtra began to worry a lot. Dhritarashtra, lord of the people, was seated, worrying, sighing and with his mind distracted. At that time, Sanjaya
⁵²
told him, “O lord of the earth! You have obtained the entire earth, with all its riches. O king! The Pandavas have left from the kingdom. Why are you grieving?” Dhritarashtra replied, “The maharatha Pandavas are terrible in battle and have allies. Knowing that the enmity will occur, should one not sorrow?” Sanjaya said, “O king! This great enmity is the consequence of your great deed. There will be complete destruction of the entire world and all the relatives. Though restrained by Bhishma, Drona and Vidura, your shameless and evil-minded son Duryodhana sent the Pratikamin, the son of a suta, to bring the Pandavas’ beloved wife Droupadi, the follower of dharma.”

‘Dhritarashtra replied, “When the gods wish to defeat a man, they first take his intelligence away, so that his vision becomes distorted. When destruction is nigh and intelligence is clouded, an improper course of action appears as the proper course of action and sticks to the heart. That which is evil appears in the form of that which is good and that which is good appears in the form of that which is evil. When destruction is near, they appear thus and one is content. Destiny does not arrive with a club and strike one on the head with it. The strength of time is that it makes the opposite seem to be right. By dragging the ascetic Panchali into the middle of the sabha, those evil ones have caused this terrible calamity that makes the hair on the body stand up. She is beautiful and she is not born from a womb.
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She has been born from the fire. She is illustrious and is knowledgeable in all dharma. Who but a deceitful gambler
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could overpower her
and drag her into the middle of an assembly hall? Following the dharma of women,
⁵⁵
the one with the beautiful hips was covered in blood. Panchali was in single garment. She looked at the Pandavas, robbed of their riches, deprived of their thoughts, robbed of their wife, robbed of their prosperity, deprived of all their pleasures and reduced to a state of servitude. Bound by the noose of dharma, they were unable to exhibit their valour. Among all the assembled Kurus, Duryodhana and Karna spoke harsh and insulting words to the angry, defiant and miserable Krishna. O Sanjaya! The earth itself would be burnt down because of those wretched eyes. Would anything have been left of my sons? On seeing Krishna being dragged into the sabha, all the women of the Bharata lineage, who had assembled with Gandhari, loudly cried out in anguish. No agnihotras were offered in the evening, because the brahmanas were enraged at Droupadi’s oppression. Terrible winds began to blow, as if the destruction of the beings had arrived. Terrible meteors descended from the sky and Rahu swallowed the sun. This was not the time of parvani. But a terrible fear was created in the minds of the subjects. Fearful fires blazed from the places where chariots are kept. All the flagstaffs crumbled, signifying disaster for the Bharatas. In Duryodhana’s agnihotra, jackals howled in terrible tones. From all the directions, donkeys brayed back in response. O Sanjaya! Bhishma then left with Drona and so did Kripa, Somadatta and the maharatha Bahlika. At that time, prompted by Vidura, I told Krishna that I would grant her whatever boon she desired. Panchali then chose the Pandavas, whose energy is unlimited. I then allowed them to leave, with their chariots and their bows. It is then that the immensely wise Vidura, who knows all the dharma, spoke, ‘O descendants of the Bharata lineage! This dragging of Krishna into the assembly hall will bring about your destruction. The daughter of the king of Panchala is the supreme Shri. It was decreed by destiny that Panchali would marry the Pandavas. The angry Parthas will never pardon her humiliation. Nor will the mighty archers, the Vrishnis, or the immensely energetic Panchalas. They are protected by Vasudeva, always fixed on the truth. Surrounded by the Panchalas,
Bibhatsu will return. Among them, there will be the immensely strong and mighty archer Bhimasena. He will come whirling his club, like the staff of death. No kings will be able to withstand the sound of the intelligent Partha’s Gandiva, or the speed of Bhima’s club. Therefore, it seems to me that one should always have peace, and not war, with the Parthas. I have always thought that the Pandavas are stronger than the Kurus. With the force of his arms, Bhima killed in battle the immensely radiant and powerful King Jarasandha. O bull among the Bharata lineage! You must ensure peace with the Pandavas. Without any hesitation, act impartially vis-à-vis the two parties.’ O son of Gavalgana!
⁵⁶
Thus did Kshatta utter words that were steeped in dharma and artha. But out of the affection I bear for my son, I did not accept these words.”’

The word
aranya
means forest and in the eighteen-parva classification of the Mahabharata, Aranyaka Parva comes third. This parva is about the Pandavas’ sojourn in the forest. The word vana also means forest and this parva is also sometimes called Vana Parva
.
Aranyaka Parva has 299 chapters and is the second longest parva after Shanti Parva. In the 100-parva classification of the Mahabharata, Sections 29 through 44 constitute Aranyaka Parva. Following the practice we have followed, there are two numbers we have used when we give numbers to the chapters. The first number is a consecutive one, from the beginning, and the second number (within brackets) is the numbering within Aranyaka Parva.

This section has has 327 shlokas and eleven chapters.

Chapter 298(1): 42 shlokas
Chapter 299(2): 79 shlokas
Chapter 300(3): 33 shlokas
Chapter 301(4): 10 shlokas
Chapter 302(5): 20 shlokas
Chapter 303(6): 22 shlokas
Chapter 304(7): 24 shlokas
Chapter 305(8): 23 shlokas
Chapter 306(9): 12 shlokas
Chapter 307(10): 23 shlokas
Chapter 308(11): 39 shlokas

The first section within Aranyaka Parva is also called Aranyaka Parva, the word aranyaka having already been explained.

Janamejaya asked, ‘O supreme among brahmanas! When the Parthas were defeated at the gambling match through deceit by the evil-hearted sons of Dhritarashtra and their advisers and were angered, and also heard the harsh words uttered by those who created the enmity, what did the Kouravyas, my ancestors and supreme among men, do? Equal to Shakra in their energy, but having been
suddenly dislodged from their riches and confronted with great misery, how did the Parthas spend their time in the forest? Who followed those who had attained that great misfortune? What did they eat? How did they conduct themselves? Where did those great-souled ones dwell? O best among brahmanas! How did twelve years pass in the forest for those great-souled ones who were the destroyers of enemies? How did the princess,
¹
supreme among women, immensely fortunate and always devoted to her husbands, one who always spoke the truth, endure the terrible misery of living in the forest, though she did not deserve it? O one blessed with the power of austerities! I wish to hear about the characters of those greatly radiant and energetic ones. O brahmana! Tell me, because my curiosity is great.’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Having been defeated at the gamble with dice by the evil-hearted sons of Dhritarashtra and their advisers, the Pandavas were angered and left Gajasahrya. They emerged through the gate of the city known as Vardhamana. With Krishna
²
and with all their weapons, they headed towards the north. Indrasena
³
and the other servants, fourteen in number, followed them in swift chariots, accompanied by their wives. On learning that they were leaving, the citizens were overwhelmed with great grief. They assembled together, and speaking to each other, fearlessly censured Bhishma, Vidura, Drona and Goutama
⁴
repeatedly. “Everything in this lineage is insecure. We are not secure. Our houses are not secure, when the evil Duryodhana, aided by Soubala, Karna and Duhshasana, are covetous of the kingdom. When there is no lineage, there is no good conduct and no dharma, how can there be happiness? Duryodhana hates his superiors. He has abandoned good conduct and his well-wishers. He is avaricious of riches and insolent. He is mean and his character is reprehensible. Where Duryodhana is king, the earth cannot remain healthy. Let us
all go where the virtuous Pandavas are going. They are great-souled and not given to wrath. They have control over their senses and enemies. They are modest and the performers of deeds. Their conduct is in accordance with dharma.” Having spoken these words, all together, they followed the Pandavas.

‘With hands joined in salutation, they spoke to the sons of Kunti and the sons of Madri. “O fortunate ones! Where will you go, leaving us who share in your grief? We will follow you, wherever you are going. We are greatly distressed at learning that you have been defeated by reprehensible enemies, in ways that are not in accordance with dharma. All of us are anxious. We have always been devoted to your happiness and well-being. We are devoted and attached to you. We have always been engaged in that which brings you pleasure. We do not wish to be completely destroyed by living in a kingdom that is ruled by a bad king. O bulls among men! Listen. We will tell you about merits and demerits that result from associating with those who possess good qualities and evil ones. Garments, water, sesame seeds and the ground become fragrant through association with flowers. It is the same from association with good qualities. Association with foolish ones gives birth to a net of delusion. Regular association with the righteous gives birth to dharma. Therefore, those who desire equanimity should associate with the wise, the old, the good, the austere and the righteous. One should serve those who are pure in three ways—learning, birth and deeds. They are superior to the sacred texts. Without performing rites, we will obtain merit by associating with righteous and meritorious ones, just as one obtains demerit by serving evil ones. The sight and touch of, and conversing and sitting with, evil ones, diminish those who follow dharma and make men unsuccessful. Association with mean ones diminishes the intelligence of men. Association with those who are medium gives birth to mediocrity and association with the best makes one supreme. There are qualities that are talked about in the world as giving rise to dharma, kama and artha. These have been mentioned in the Vedas and are sanctioned by the good and are the sources of conduct in the world.
These good qualities exist in you, separately and collectively. We wish to ensure our welfare and desire to live among those who possess these good qualities.” Yudhishthira replied, “We are fortunate that our subjects, with the brahmanas at the forefront, driven by affection and compassion, credit us with good qualities that we do not possess. With my brothers, I am requesting you. For the sake of that affection and compassion, do not act otherwise. Our grandfather Bhishma, the king,
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Vidura, our mother and all our well-wishers are there in Nagasahrya. If you wish to do something for our pleasure, all of you must unite to take care of them and protect them. They are beside themselves with sorrow and grief. You have assembled from distant places. Please return now. It is certain that we will meet again. Let your minds be driven by affection for our kin, whom we leave in your care. Please perform this act, because that is the act that is placed supreme in my heart. If you do this, you will satisfy me and show me homage.” Having been thus advised by Dharmaraja, the subjects raised a terrible sound of wailing. “Alas! O king!” They were miserable and extremely grief-stricken. Remembering the good qualities of the Parthas, though unwilling, they returned after meeting the Pandavas.

‘When the citizens returned, the Pandavas ascended their chariots and went to a large banyan tree named Pramana, situated on the banks of the Jahnavi.
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The Pandavas reached the banyan tree at the close of the day. The brave warriors touched the pure water and spent the night there. Stricken with grief, they spent the night there, subsisting only on water. Some brahmanas had followed them out of the love they bore for them, with their disciples and relatives. Some maintained the fire,
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while others did not. Surrounded by those who knew the brahman, the king
⁸
was radiant. At the hour that is both beautiful and terrible,
⁹
the fires were lit and after chanting the name of the brahman, conversations continued. In voices that were
as soft as those of swans, the foremost among the brahmanas consoled the king, supreme among Kurus, and they spent the entire night.’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Those performers of unsullied deeds
¹⁰
were ready to leave for the forest. When night had passed and morning dawned, the brahmanas who subsisted by begging for alms stood before them. At that, Kunti’s son Yudhishthira spoke to them. “We have been robbed of everything. We have been robbed of our kingdom. We have been robbed of our prosperity. In our sorrow, we will now go to the forest and live on fruit, roots and meat. The forest is full of many dangers and has many predators and serpents. It seems to me that without a doubt, you will face many difficulties there. The sufferings of brahmanas overwhelm even the gods, not to speak of men. O brahmanas! Return where you wish to go.” The brahmanas replied, “O king! We are ready to travel where you are travelling. Please do not abandon those who are devoted to you and those who can see what true dharma is. The gods themselves show compassion for their devotees, especially brahmanas who follow good conduct.” Yudhisthira said, “O brahmanas! I too always have supreme devotion towards brahmanas. But the difficulties of my associates overwhelm me. My brothers are capable of collecting fruit, roots and deer. But they are deluded by the misery and the sorrow that has overtaken them, by the oppression faced by Droupadi and by the robbing of the kingdom. Since they are so miserable and wretched, I cannot impose painful tasks on them.”
¹¹
The brahmanas replied, “O lord of the earth! Do not have any thoughts in your heart about our subsistence. We will follow you. We will find our food ourselves in the forest. We will bring you good fortune through our meditation
and our prayers. We will entertain you in the forest through stories and ourselves be happy.” Yudhishthira said, “There is no doubt that it will be this way. We will find pleasure in associating with brahmanas. But because of the lowly condition to which I have been reduced, I only see my own inferiority. How can I witness all of you collecting your own food and suffer undeserved difficulties because of your affection for me? Shame on the evil sons of Dhritarashtra!” Having said this, the king sat down on the ground and began to sorrow.

‘There was a learned brahmana named Shounaka. He was skilled in
samkhya yoga
¹²
and he spoke to the king, “There are a thousand reasons for grief and a hundred reasons for fear that delude people every day. But not those who are learned. Intelligent ones like you do not get caught in deeds that are counter to knowledge and afflicted by many faults, so that welfare is destroyed. O king! The eight
¹³
forms of knowledge exist in you. This is the best of everything and destroys evil, and is in conformity with
shruti
¹⁴
and
smriti.
¹⁵
When calamities arise because of penury or hardship, or are caused by the deeds of kin, learned ones like you don’t become miserable because of physical or mental sorrow. Listen. I will recount to you the shlokas that the great-souled Janaka
¹⁶
chanted in earlier times, for imparting stability to one’s soul. ‘The world is engulfed in two kinds of misery, those resulting from the mind and from the body. Individually and collectively, listen to the means of alleviating them. There are four kinds of reasons behind physical sorrow—disease, the touch of something painful, labour and distance from loved things. Mental
and physical pain can be reduced through treatment, or by not thinking about them. These are the two courses of action. That is the reason intelligent physicians first try to pacify mental pain by saying that which brings pleasure and offering objects that bring pleasure. Just as a hot iron ball affects the water in a pot, mental pain affects the body. Just as water quenches fire, knowledge quenches mental ailments. When the mind is pacified, the body is also pacified. The root of all mental ailments is affection. Affection makes a man attached and that leads to misery. Attachment is the root of all unhappiness and attachment causes fear. Every kind of unhappiness and happiness results from attachment. It is attachment that leads to the desire for material objects. Both are evil, but the former has been said to be more serious.
¹⁷
The fire in a hollow tree burns down the entire tree, right to the roots. Like that, the evil of attachment, no matter how small, destroys dharma and artha. He who has withdrawn is not detached. But one who can see the faults
¹⁸
from proximity is dispassionate, bears no hatred and is detached from objects. Therefore, one should not be attached to one’s allies, one’s friends or the riches one has accumulated. Learning destroys attachment to that which results from one’s body. Like water on a lotus leaf, one who is united with the learning of the sacred texts has controlled his soul and is not touched by affection. A man overcome with attachment is immersed in desire. From the desire that is created, thirst expands.
¹⁹
Thirst is everything evil and always disturbs man. It is terrible and leads to a lot that is against dharma. It ties one down in sin. Those who cannot give it up are deluded. It does not decay with the body’s decay. It is like a fatal disease. He who discards this thirst, becomes happy. This thirst has no beginning and no end. It destroys men from inside their bodies. Like a fire that has no origin but has arisen, it destroys. Like kindling is destroyed by the fire that it has created, one who has not controlled his soul is destroyed through his natural avarice. Just as those who are alive are scared of death, those who have riches are
always scared of the king, water, fire, thieves and relatives. A meat in the air is devoured by birds, on the ground by predatory beasts and in the water by fish. But one with riches is devoured everywhere. To some men, riches are the source of disaster. A man who is addicted to the superiority of riches will never attain superiority. Therefore, the acquisition of riches always increases the delusion of the mind and is the source of miserliness, insolence, vanity, fear and anxiety. The wise ones know that riches are the source of miseries in bodies. There is misery in earning riches, preserving it and in its decay. Its destruction brings unhappiness. Its expenditure brings unhappiness. Even then, people murder for riches. There is unhappiness in giving up riches. But there is unhappiness also in preserving it. Since its possession brings such misery, one should not think about its loss. Deluded ones are always dissatisfied, the learned are content. There is no end to thirst. Contentment is the supreme happiness. The learned ones know that youth, beauty, life, collection of riches, prosperity and association with loved ones are temporary and never crave for these. Therefore, one should refrain from accumulation of riches and consequent unhappiness. One who has accumulated riches is never seen without difficulties. For this reason, those who are righteous praise those who have no desire for wealth. It is better not to touch mud than wash after touching it.’
²⁰
O Yudhisthira! Therefore, you should not have a desire for riches. If you wish to act in accordance with dharma, free yourself from desire for riches.”