Mahabharata Vol. 2 (Penguin Translated Texts) (34 page)

Vaishampayana said, ‘Having uttered these words, the soft-spoken Krishna
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wept and covered her face in her hands, soft as the bud of a lotus. On her upraised, full and well-formed breasts, marked with all the auspicious marks, Panchali showered teardrops of grief. She wiped her eyes and sighed repeatedly. In a voice choked with tears, she uttered these angry words, “O Madhusudana! I have no husbands. I have no sons. I do not have a brother or a father. Nor do I have any relatives. When I was oppressed by inferior ones, you ignored me, unmoved by sorrow. My grief that Karna laughed at me then will never be pacified.” Then Krishna spoke to her in that assembly of warriors, “O beautiful one! The wives of those who have angered you will weep like this. They will see the dead bodies lying on the ground, bereft of life. Their bodies will be covered with Bibhatsu’s arrows and will be drenched with blood. Do not sorrow. I will do whatever the Pandavas can do. I will make you a promise. You will be the queen of kings. The heavens may fall, the Himalayas may be rent asunder, the earth may splinter and the ocean may dry up. O Krishna! But my words will not be falsified.” Dhrishtadyumna said, “I will kill Drona. Shikhandi will kill the grandfather. Bhimasena will kill Duryodhana. Dhananjaya will kill Karna. O sweet-smiling one!
With the aid of Rama
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and Krishna, we are invincible in battle even with the slayer of Vritra,
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not to speak of Dhritarashtra’s sons.” When these words were uttered, all the warriors looked towards Vasudeva and in their midst, the mighty-armed Keshava spoke these words.’

‘Vasudeva said, “O lord of the earth!
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O king! Had I been present in Dvaraka earlier, this misfortune would not have befallen you. O invincible one! Even if I had not been invited to the gambling match by the Kouravas, by Ambika’s son
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and by King Duryodhana, I would have gone and prevented the gambling by pointing out the many evils that result. I would have brought in Bhishma, Drona, Kripa and Bahlika. For your sake, I would have told the king who is Vichitravirya’s son,
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‘O Kourava! O Indra among kings! O lord! Make your sons desist from this gambling.’ I would have pointed out the evils through which you have been removed from your seat and through which, in earlier times, Virasena’s son was deprived of his kingdom.
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O lord of the earth! Whatever has not been eaten up
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is destroyed through gambling. I would have described how the addiction to gambling lasts continuously. Women, gambling, hunting and drinking are four things that arise out of desire. O king! It has been said that these lead to loss of prosperity. Those who are learned in the sacred texts hold that while this is true of all of them, it can be especially seen in the case of gambling. On a single day, one may lose all one’s property. Misery is certain. Wealth
that has not been enjoyed is lost. Only harsh words are left. O Kouravya!
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I would have recounted these and other bitter topics. O mighty-armed one! I would have spoken to Ambika’s son about these effects of gambling. O descendant of the Kuru lineage!
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If my words had been accepted by him, the dharma of the Kurus would have remained undisturbed. O Indra among kings! O best of the Bharata lineage! If he had not accepted my soft words, which are like medicine,
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I would have restrained him through force. In similar fashion, I would have destroyed all the courtiers and gamblers, ill-wishers masquerading as well-wishers. O Kouravya! It was my absence from Anarta
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that led to all your misfortunes from gambling. O Pandu’s son! O best of the Kurus! When I reached Dvaraka, I learnt everything about your misfortunes from Yuyudhana.
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O Indra among kings! As soon as I heard this, my mind was filled with great anxiety. O lord of the earth! I have swiftly come here, in a desire to see you. O bull among the Bharata lineage! All of us are beset with great difficulties, since we find you and your brothers immersed in this misfortune.”’

‘Yudhishthira asked, “O Krishna! O descendant of Vrishni!
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Why were you absent? Where did you go and what did you do on your travels?”

‘Krishna replied, “O bull among the Bharata lineage! O best of men! I went to Shalva’s city Soubha to destroy it. Listen to the reasons. O best of the Bharata lineage! The valiant King Shishupala,
Damaghosha’s son, immensely energetic, mighty-armed and greatly famous, was killed by me at your rajasuya sacrifice over the issue of who should be given the homage. Because of his anger, that evil-souled one did not wish to see me receive it. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! On hearing that he had been killed, Shalva was filled with terrible rage. He went to the empty Dvaraka, because I was with you then. O king! He went there ascended on Soubha,
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which could go wherever it wished. In cruel fashion, he fought with the young bulls among the Vrishnis. He slew many brave Vrishni youth and the evil-minded one destroyed all the parks in the city. The mighty-armed one then shouted, ‘Where is that wretch of the Vrishni lineage? Where has the evil-souled Vasudeva, son of Vasudeva, gone?
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He is desirous of doing battle and I will destroy his pride in battle. O Anartas!
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Tell me truthfully where he is, and I will go there. I will return after killing the slayer of Kamsa and Keshi. I truthfully swear on my weapons that I will not return without killing him. Where is he? Where is he? The lord of Soubha wished to fight me in battle and rushed around, from one place to another. That mean one has performed an evil deed. He is treacherous. I am angry at the killing of Shishupala. I will send him to Yama’s abode today. Through his evil nature, he has killed my brother Shishupala, lord of the earth.
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I will kill him on the ground. Though a king, my brother was only a child. He wasn’t killed in proper battle. The brave one was killed when he wasn’t ready. I will kill Janardana.’ O great king! Thus did he lament.

‘“O descendant of the Kuru lineage!
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Thus abusing me, he took to the sky on Soubha, which is capable of going wherever it wishes. O Kouravya! On returning there, I learnt everything that the evil
minded and evil-souled king of Marttikavata had said about me. O Kouravya! O king! With eyes red with rage, I made up my mind. I resolved in my mind to kill him. O Kourava! I heard about his oppression of Anarta, his abuse of me, his great insolence and his evil deeds. O lord of the earth! I therefore left to destroy Soubha. When I was looking for him, I found him whirling in the ocean. O king! I blew on Panchajanya,
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which had been obtained from the water, and challenging Shalva to battle, got ready. At that time, a terrible battle took place between me and the danavas there. They were all vanquished and laid low on the ground by me. O mighty-armed one! It was this task that kept me from coming to you in Hastinapura then, though I had heard about the terrible gambling match.”’

‘Yudhishthira asked, “O Vasudeva! O mighty-armed one! O immensely intelligent one! Tell me in detail about the destruction of Soubha, because I am not satisfied with what you have said.”

‘Vasudeva replied, “O best of the Bharata lineage! When he heard that the mighty-armed King Shroutashrava
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had been killed by me, Shalva marched on the city of Dvaravati. O Pandu’s son!
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The evil-minded Shalva laid siege to the city from every side, arranged his battle formations and stationed himself in the air.
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That lord of the earth fought with the city from there. He attacked from everywhere and the battle began. O best of the Bharata lineage! O king! The city was ready everywhere, with flags, gates, troops, fences, machines, miners, barricaded streets, turrets, towers, hair-graspers,
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catapults
that hurled flaming missiles, water vessels,
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kettledrums, musical instruments, army drums, kindling, straw, grass, shataghnis,
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ploughs, bhushundis, rocks, clubs, weapons, battleaxes, iron shields and machines that hurled fire and iron. O bull among the Bharata lineage! Everything was in accordance with what is laid down in the sacred texts. There was a stock of many types of objects and it was guarded by Gada, Samba, Uddhava and the like. O tiger among the Kuru lineage! They were men capable of repulsing attacks. There were warriors from famous lineages, their valour having been witnessed in battle. The middle and upper parts of the fortifications were protected well and the upper parts had cavalry and infantry. Ugrasena, Uddhava and the others announced in the city that no one should drink, so that there should not be carelessness in protection. Knowing that they would be killed by King Shalva if they were intoxicated, all the Vrishnis and the Andhakas remained sober. The guards entrusted with the treasuries of Anarta swiftly drove out all the actors, dancers and singers. O Kouravya! The bridges were destroyed. All the boats were forbidden to ply. The moats were fortified with spikes. O best of the Kuru lineage! Because of the impending war, the reservoirs were destroyed. For a krosha
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on every side, the ground was made uneven.
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O unblemished one! Our fortress is naturally difficult to access. It is guarded well by nature. Nature has equipped it with special types of weapons. O best of the Bharata lineage! It was protected well. That city was stocked with every kind of weapon, like Indra’s abode. O king! At the time when Soubha advanced, the
city of the Vrishnis and the Andhakas was such that nothing could come out or go in without a seal.
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O Kourava! O Indra among kings! Everywhere, along the roads and the open spaces where the roads meet, there were forces and many elephants and horses. O mighty-armed one! The soldiers had been paid wages and rations. They had been given weapons and armour. Nothing was pending. No one was given too little pay. No one was paid in excess. No one was shown preference. There was no one whose valour had not been tested. O king! Thus Dvaraka was prepared well. The soldiers had been paid a lot. O lotus-eyed one! It was defended by King Ahuka.”’
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‘Vasudeva said, “O Indra among kings! But Shalva, the lord of Soubha, came to the city with many men, elephants and forces. The army controlled by King Shalva had four kinds of forces.
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The army settled itself on plain ground, where there were plenty of sources of water. But the army avoided cremation grounds, temples of the gods, anthills and
chaitya
s.
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O king! The army formations were divided such that all the roads were covered and Shalva’s troops encompassed all the nine slopes.
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There was every kind of weapon and the soldiers were skilled in use of every kind of weapon. There were masses of chariots, elephants and horses, with infantry and flags. The army was well paid and well fed and bore all the marks
of courage. There were colourful pennants and colourful chariots and bows. O Kouravya! O bull among men! He settled in Dvaraka, and like the king of the birds, attacked with great strength.

‘“On seeing King Shalva’s strength, all the young descendants
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of the Vrishni lineage emerged, to do battle with him. O Kourava! They were unable to bear the invasion of King Shalva—Charudeshna, Samba and maharatha Pradyumna. They emerged in their chariots, all adorned in colourful attire and flags. They fought with King Shalva’s warriors, who were like bulls. Samba took up his bow and in a happy frame of mind, fought with Kshemavriddhi, Shalva’s adviser and the general of his army. O best of the Bharata lineage! Just as the one with one thousand eyes
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unleashes rain, Jambavati’s son
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unleashed a great volley of arrows. O great king! Stationary like the Himalayas, the general Kshemavriddhi withstood that terrible shower of arrows. O Indra among kings! Then, using his powers of maya, Kshemavriddhi unleashed a greater net of arrows on Samba. But Samba tore apart that net of maya with his own maya and showered one thousand arrows on his
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chariot. Samba pierced the general Kshemavriddhi and oppressed by Samba’s arrows, he fled on his swift horses. When Shalva’s cruel general fled, a powerful daitya named Vegavan attacked my son. O Indra among kings! O king! But Samba is the extender of the Vrishni lineage. Though Vegavan attacked him with force, the brave one withstood it. O Kounteya! The brave Samba, whose valour is based on truth, swiftly hurled a fast club at Vegavan. O king! Struck by it, Vegavan fell down on the ground, like a giant tree, rotten at the roots, collapses when struck by the wind. When that brave and giant asura was killed by the club, my son entered the enemy’s large army and began to fight. O great king! The danava Vivindhya was a maharatha and a great archer. O king! He then began to fight with Charudeshna and a terrible duel ensued between Charudeshna and
Vivindhya, like that between Vritra and Vasava
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in ancient times. O great king! Enraged with each other, they shot arrows at each other and roared like mighty lions. Rukmini’s son
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then fixed a great weapon to his bow and chanted mantras over it. Its radiance was like that of the sun and it was capable of destroying the enemy. O king! In great rage, my son, the maharatha, challenged Vivindhya and let loose his weapon. The asura fell down dead.

‘“On seeing Vivindhya dead and his army agitated, Shalva returned again on Soubha, which could go anywhere at will. Then the entire army of the residents of Dvaraka was alarmed, when they saw the mighty-armed Shalva arrive on earth in Soubha.
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O Kounteya! O great king! Then Pradyumna came out and reassembled the army. He told the inhabitants of Anarta, ‘All of you stay where you are and all of you watch me fight. In this battle, I will repel with force Soubha and its king. O Yadavas! Today I will destroy the soldiers of the lord of Soubha, using my hands to let loose iron weapons, that are like serpents, from my bow. Be reassured and do not be scared. Soubha’s king will be destroyed. Attacked by me, the evil-souled one will be destroyed, together with Soubha.’ O descendant of the Pandu lineage!
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When Pradyumna thus spoke with a happy heart, the brave warriors stood where they were and happily, began to fight again.”’