450(153)
Vaishampayana said, ‘Then the bull among the Bharata lineage started to gather large numbers of those precious, divine, unblemished and colourful flowers. Suddenly, a large storm arose. It swiftly threw up the stones from below. It was harsh to the touch and carried with it the portents of battle. A giant meteor descended, immensely fiery in the storm. Covered in the darkness, the sun’s rays were dimmed and it lost its radiance. While Bhima resorted to his terrible valour, a terrible whirlwind gathered. The earth began to tremble and a storm of dust descended. The directions turned red. Animals and birds screamed in harsh voices. Everything was covered in darkness and nothing could be seen.’
‘On seeing these extraordinary happenings, Yudhishthira, Dharma’s son and the foremost among speakers, spoke these words. “Who is attempting to overcome us? O Pandavas! You are always powerful in battle. Be fortunate and prepared. From what I can see, the time for displaying our valour has come.” Having spoken these words, the king looked around. But Yudhishthira, Dharma’s son, could not see Bhima. Then the destroyer of enemies asked Krishna and the twins, who were close by, about his brother Bhima, the performer of terrible deeds in battle. “O Panchali! Did Bhima desire to perform some deed? Or has the brave one, who is addicted to valour, already performed some courageous deed? Portents can suddenly be seen in all the directions. They indicate a great battle and foretell great dangers.” The intelligent Krishna, his sweet-smiling and beloved queen, who always wished to bring him pleasure, replied to his words, “O king! A sougandhika was brought here by the wind today. I showed it to Bhimasena and lovingly told the brave one to bring many more back to me, if he should see them, and return quickly. O king! To bring me pleasure, the mighty-armed Pandava must have gone to the north-eastern direction.” Having heard these words, the king told the twins, “In that case, let us immediately go where Vrikodara has gone. Let the rakshasas bear the brahmanas who are exhausted and tired, as the case may be. O Ghatotkacha! You are the equal of the immortals. You carry Krishna. It is my certain view that Bhima has gone a long distance away. He has been away for a long time and he is like the wind in his speed. In swiftly leaping over the ground, he is like Vinata’s son.721 He will leap up into the sky and descend, as he pleases. O those who roam in the night!722 With the aid of your powers, we will follow him, before he causes any offence to the siddhas and those who are learned in the brahman.” They agreed to these words.
‘O bull among the Bharata lineage! They were all led by Hidimba’s son, who was foremost among them and knew the region around Kubera’s pond. In a delighted frame of mind, they grasped the Pandavas and many other brahmanas, together with Lomasha. All of them travelled together until they saw the grove and the extremely beautiful pond with sougandhika lotuses. They saw the intelligent and great-souled Bhima along its banks and the bodies of the large-eyed yakshas that he had slain. He was standing on the banks of the river,723 his club raised in his two arms, like Yama with a staff in his hand at the time of the destruction of beings. On seeing him, Dharmaraja embraced him again and again. He spoke to him in gentle words. “O Kounteya! What have you done? O fortunate one! Because of your courage, you have brought displeasure to the gods. If you wish to bring me pleasure, never commit such deeds again.” After having thus instructed Kounteya, they collected lotuses and amused themselves in that lotus pond, like the immortals.
‘At that time, the guards appeared. Their bodies were gigantic and they were armed with rocks. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! When they saw Dharmaraja, maharshi Lomasha, Nakula, Sahadeva and all the other bulls among brahmanas, they prostrated themselves in humility. Dharmaraja pacified those roamers of the night and they became calm. With Kubera’s permission, the bulls among the Kurus lived there for some time and sported themselves.’
Section Thirty-Four
Jatasura-vadha Parva
This parva has sixty-one shlokas and one chapter.
Vadha means to kill or slay and this section is about Bhima killing the demon named Jatasura.
451(154)
Vaishampayana said, ‘The Pandavas lived comfortably on that mountain. When the rakshasas and Bhimasena’s son1 had left, and they were without Bhimasena, who had gone to roam around as he willed, a rakshasa abducted Dharmaraja, the twins and Krishna.2 He had pretended to be a brahmana skilled in mantras and well versed in weapons. Having said this, he had served the Pandavas every day. He lived with the Parthas, covetous of their quivers and bows and waited for his chance. He was known by the name of Jatasura. When Bhimsena, the destroyer of enemies, went out to hunt, he assumed a different form. It was distorted, terrible and gigantic. Having grasped all the weapons and seizing Droupadi and the three Pandavas, he fled. But with a great deal of effort, Pandava Sahadeva extricated himself. Shouting for Bhimasena, he ran in the direction that the immensely strong one had taken.
‘While he was thus being abducted, Dharmaraja Yudhishthira told him, “O stupid one! Dharma declines in you, but you do not see it. Whether one is a human or whether one belongs to inferior species, the gandharvas, the yakshas and the rakshasas, birds and animals, draw their sustenance from humans and so do you. If there is prosperity in our world, there is prosperity in your world too. If our world suffers, the gods suffer along with us. They prosper through worship and oblations to the gods and the ancestors,3 offered through rituals. O rakshasa! We are the guardians and the protectors of the kingdom. If kingdoms are unprotected, how can there be prosperity? How can there be happiness? Unless there has been an act of injury, no rakshasa should ever harm a king. O one who lives off men! We have not committed the least bit of injury. One should never injure friends and those who are trustful, those whose food has been partaken of and those who have provided shelter. You found shelter with us. We showed you honour and you lived happily. O one who is not wise! Having partaken of our food, how can you abduct us? Since your conduct is fruitless, your age is fruitless and your intelligence is fruitless, you deserve a fruitless death—and these words will not be fruitless today. If you are truly evil-minded and devoid of all dharma, then return our weapons and win Droupadi after vanquishing us in battle. But if you are driven by ignorance in your mind and persist in performing this act, you will follow that which is not dharma and will only obtain ill fame in this world. O rakshasa! You have today laid your hands on this human woman. It is as if you have stirred up a vessel and drunk poison from it.” Then Yudhishthira bore down heavily on him and oppressed by this weight, he4 could not travel very fast.
‘Yudhishthira told Nakula and Droupadi, “Do not be frightened of this stupid rakshasa. I have robbed him of his speed. Pavana’s mighty-armed son cannot be far away.5 He will arrive in an instant and the rakshasa will have no future.” O king! On seeing that the rakshasa was deluded of his intelligence, Sahadeva spoke to Kunti’s son, Yudhishthira. “O king! Nothing brings greater merit to a kshatriya than to fall in the field of battle and give up his life, or triumph over an enemy. O scorcher of enemies! Let us fight him in the field of battle. Either he will kill us, or we will kill him. O mighty-armed one! O king! The time and the place are right. O one for whom valour is truth! The time has come to show the dharma of kshatriyas. Whether we triumph or whether we are slain, we will attain the supreme objective. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! If the rakshasa is still alive when the sun sets, I will no longer be able to say that I am a kshatriya. O rakshasa! Stop! I am Pandava Sahadeva. Either kill me and take them today, or fall senseless.” While he was speaking thus, Bhimasena appeared by chance. The mighty-armed one looked like Vasava6 with his vajra. He saw his two brothers and the famous Droupadi, and Sahadeva on the ground, challenging the rakshasa. He saw the stupid rakshasa, who had lost his path, his intelligence having been robbed by time. Driven by destiny, he was roaming around here and there.
‘On seeing his brothers and Droupadi being thus abducted, the mighty-armed Bhima was overcome with rage and told the rakshasa, “I had got to know about you earlier, when I saw you s
crutinize our weapons. But though I did not have my trust in you, I did not kill you then. You were in the form of a brahmana and you had not uttered any unpleasant words towards us. You did what brought us pleasure and you did nothing that brought us displeasure. You were in the form of an innocent brahmana who was a guest. Anyone who kills such a person, even if he knows him to be a rakshasa, goes to hell. That apart, the time for your killing was not ripe. That time is ripe now, since your inclination is of this nature. Extraordinary destiny has made you abduct Krishna. You have swallowed the hook that stretches from the line of fate, like a fish in the water. How will you escape from me today? You will not be able to reach the region you have left for and where your mind has already gone. You will not be able to reach and you will traverse the path travelled by Baka and Hidimba.”7 The rakshasa was driven by destiny. Having been thus addressed by Bhima, he was frightened and threw them all down.8 Then he approached, so as to fight. His lips trembling in anger, he told Bhima, “O deluded one! I did not lose my directions because I was deluded. I was waiting for your sake. I have heard about the rakshasas whom you killed in battle. With your blood, I will offer funeral oblations to them today.” Having been thus addressed, Bhima smilingly licked the corners of his mouth. He was bursting with rage, like time and death personified.
‘With great force, he dashed at the rakshasa, to engage him in a bout of wrestling. On seeing that Bhima stood ready to fight, the rakshasa also forcefully dashed towards him, like Bali towards the wielder of the vajra.9 When they were about to engage in that terrible battle with arms, Madri’s two sons10 were also extremely angered and rushed forward. But Vrikodara, Kunti’s son, laughingly restrained them. He said, “Behold. I am capable of handling this rakshasa. O king!11 By myself, with my brothers, by the dharma that I have observed well and by my oblations, I swear that I will finish off this rakshasa.” Having said this, the two brave ones challenged each other. The rakshasa and Vrikodara grasped each other with their arms. They did not spare each other. Angrily, Bhima and the rakshasa engaged each other in a terrible battle, like a god and a danava. Uprooting trees, the two immensely strong ones hurled them at each other, roaring like clouds when the summer season is over. Those two, supreme among strong ones, shattered the trunks of trees with the force of their thighs. They rushed at each other, each desirous of victory. The duel with trees went too, causing the destruction of many large trees, like that ancient battle between the brothers Vali and Sugriva, lions among apes.12 For some time, they repeatedly hurled trees at each other and struck each other, continuously roaring. When all the trees in the region had been torn down, and in an attempt to kill each other they had reduced them to hundreds of heaps, they immediately took up rocks. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Those two immensely strong ones fought, like a king of mountains fighting with clouds. Those hard and terrible rocks flew around, like the vajra. They repeatedly struck each other with these. They were insolent because of their strength. After this, they rushed at each other and grasped each other with their arms, tugging like elephants. They struck each other with extremely terrible fists. The two great-souled ones raised a noise by gnashing their teeth. Then Bhima clenched his fist, like a serpent with five heads, and struck the rakshasa’s neck with great force. The rakshasa was exhausted from the force of Bhimasena’s blow with the fist. On seeing this, Bhimasena grasped the one who was extremely tired. The mighty-armed one, equal to the immortals, raised him up in his two arms. With great force, Bhima then flung him down on the ground. Pandava shattered all his limbs. Holding him with his elbow, he detached the head from the trunk. As a result of Bhimasena’s force, Jatasura’s head was severed and fell down on the ground, drenched in blood, the eyes bulging and the teeth clenched, like a fruit dislodged from a tree. Having killed him, the mighty archer went to Yudhishthira. The foremost among brahmanas praised him, like the Maruts praise Vasava.’
Section Thirty-Five
Yaksha-yuddha Parva
This parva has 727 shlokas and eighteen chapters.
Chapter 452(155): 90 shlokas
Chapter 453(156): 31 shlokas
Chapter 454(157): 70 shlokas
Chapter 455(158): 59 shlokas
Chapter 456(159): 35 shlokas
Chapter 457(160): 37 shlokas
Chapter 458(161): 29 shlokas
Chapter 459(162): 16 shlokas
Chapter 460(163): 53 shlokas
Chapter 461(164): 58 shlokas
Chapter 462(165): 23 shlokas
Chapter 463(166): 23 shlokas
Chapter 464(167): 28 shlokas
Chapter 465(168): 30 shlokas
Chapter 466(169): 35 shlokas
Chapter 467(170): 69 shlokas
Chapter 468(171): 17 shlokas
Chapter 469(172): 24 shlokas
Yuddha means battle or fight and the section is named after a fight between Bhima and the yakshas. In this section, the Pandavas visit the sage Vrishaparva on Mount Gandhamadana and then travel to the hermitage of the sage Arshtishena, where they dwell, waiting for Arjuna’s return. Reminiscent of Section 33, Droupadi sends Bhima to search for celestial flowers. Bhima fights with yakshas and rakshasas and kills the rakshasa Maniman. The Pandavas meet Kubera and Indra. Arjuna returns and recounts his adventures, repeating much of what has already been said in Sections 31 and 32 (Volume 1). These parts of Section 35 are not only repetitive, and sometimes inconsistent, they don’t quite seem to belong. The only new information is about Arjuna’s fight with the nivatakavacha demons and the demons who inhabited Hiranyapura.
452(155)
Vaishampayana said, ‘When the rakshasa had been killed, the lord Kounteya, the king,1 returned to Narayana’s hermitage and began to live there again. One day, he assembled all his brothers, together with Droupadi, and remembering his brother Jaya,2 told them, “Pure in our ways, we have lived in the forest and four years have passed. Bibhatsu promised that in the fifth year, he would come to the king of the mountains, the supreme peak that is white at the top. In a desire to meet him, we should also go to that region. The immensely energetic Partha3 had decided on the time and had earlier made an agreement with me. ‘I will live as a student for five years.’ We will see Gandivadhanva, the destroyer of enemies, there, after he has returned from the world of the gods with the weapons he has obtained.” Having uttered these words, the Pandava consulted all the brahmanas and informed all the ascetics about the reasons. Having thus pleased the ones who were terrible in their austerities, Partha4 circumambulated them. The brahmanas approved, because this was auspicious and would bring about welfare. “O bull among the Bharata lineage! These difficulties will soon be replaced by happiness. O one learned in dharma! After having traversed the road, you will protect the earth in accordance with the dharma of kshatriyas.”5 Then the king accepted the words of these ascetics.
‘The destroyer of enemies departed with his brothers and the brahmanas. The fortunate one was accompanied by Droupadi and followed by Hidimba’s son6 and the other rakshasas and protected by Lomasha. He travelled part of the way on foot. In other parts, the immensely energetic one, who was rigid in his vows, together with his brothers, was carried by the rakshasas. Reflecting on the many difficulties, King Yudhishthira headed in a northern direction, infested by lions, tigers and elephants. He saw the mountains Mainaka and Kailasa, the foothills of Gandhamadana and the tall peak of Meru. There were many auspicious streams higher up on the mountains. He reached the sacred plateau of the Himalayas on the seventeenth day. O king! Near Gandhamadana, the Pandava saw the auspicious crest of the Himalayas, covered with many trees and creepers and the extremely holy hermitage of Vrishaparva, surrounded by many trees in blossom that grew along whirlpools of water. The destroyers of enemies, the Pandavas, approached rajarshi Vrishaparva, with dharma in his soul. When he welcomed them, their exhaustion vanished. The rajarshi welcomed those bulls of the Bharata lineage, as if they were his sons. Thus honoured, those destroyers of enemies remained there for seven nights. On the eight
h day, after consulting the rishi Vrishaparva who was famous in the worlds, they decided to start on their journey. One by one, they introduced the brahmanas to Vrishaparva. He honoured them, and they remained in his charge for the moment, like relatives. The Pandavas also left their supreme garments and pure ornaments in Vrishaparva’s hermitage. He7 was learned, skilled, knowledgeable on everything concerning dharma and knew the past and the future. The one who was learned in dharma instructed the bulls of the Bharata lineage, like his sons. Having obtained his permission, the brave and great-souled ones left in a northern direction, accompanied by Krishna and the great-souled brahmanas. King Vrishaparva went with them for a short distance. Then entrusting the Pandavas to the immensely energetic brahmanas, and instructing and blessing the sons of Kunti, Vrishaparva returned, after having given them directions about the road to follow.
‘Truth was valour for Kounteya Yudhishthira. He proceeded on foot with his brothers, through a region that was infested with many kinds of animals. They sometimes dwelt on the slopes of mountains, covered with many different kinds of trees. On the fourth day, the Pandavas reached Mount Shveta. It looked like a gigantic cloud and was beautiful, with plenty of water. The beautiful top was covered with jewels and gold and had many peaks. They followed the route that had been indicated by Vrishaparva and saw many mountains in that region. They climbed higher up the mountain, with extremely inaccessible caverns and many impenetrable spots, without any discomfort. Dhoumya, Krishna and the great rishi Lomasha travelled together, and none of them faltered. Those immensely valiant ones reached the great Mount Malyavan. It was full of the noise of many animals and birds and was populated by many kinds of birds. It was extremely beautiful and was frequented by masses of monkeys. There were sacred ponds full of lotuses. There were pools and extensive groves. With their body hair standing up, they happily saw Mount Gandhamadana, the habitation of kimpurushas, frequented by vidyadharas and lady kinnaras, infested with elephants and lions and innumerable sharabhas.8 They reached a region that resounded with the sweet sounds of many animals. With all this, Gandhamadana resembled the pleasure garden of Nandana.9 In a happy frame of mind, Pandu’s brave sons slowly entered this beautiful and sacred forest that brought delight to the mind and the heart. With Droupadi and the great-souled brahmanas, the brave ones heard the delightful, pleasant, melodious and charming sounds emerging from the mouths of birds.
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