Mahabharata Vol. 3 (Penguin Translated Texts)

by Debroy, Bibek

  Vaishampayana said, ‘Her eyes were dilated. She saw that they were about to seize her and remonstrated with them again. She cried out in fear, “Do not touch me.” She also sought help with the priest, Dhoumya. Jayadratha grasped her by her upper garment, but she forcibly pushed him away. Pushed by her, that evil one fell, like a tree that has been uprooted. However, she was seized again with great force and the princess began to sigh repeatedly. Krishna showed obeisance at Dhoumya’s feet and then Krishna was made to ascend the chariot. Dhoumya said, “Without vanquishing the maharathas, you cannot take her away. O Jayadratha! You should remember the ancient dharma of the kshatriyas. There is no doubt that you will reap the fruits of this mean and evil act. You will encounter the brave Pandavas, with Dharmaraja at the forefront.” The famous princess was being carried away. Having said this, Dhoumya followed, by entering the ranks of the infantry.’

  550(253)

  Vaishampayana said, ‘Having roamed in all the directions separately and having killed deer, boars and buffaloes, the Parthas, foremost among archers on earth, assembled together. The great forest teemed with deer and predators and was full of birds. On hearing the resounding cries of the deer, Yudhishthira spoke to his brothers. “The birds and animals are headed in the direction that has been lit up by the sun. They are making harsh noises and seem to be in great excitement, as if this mighty forest has been invaded by enemies. Let us hasten, forgetting the deer. My mind is burning with a raging fire. My intelligence is clouded. The breath of life in my body is tormented. Kamyaka now appears to me like a pond that has been robbed of its serpents by Suparna,18 a kingdom that is without its king and its fortune, or a pot that has been emptied of its liquor by drunkards.” The brave ones then headed for the hermitage on excellent chariots, yoked to Saindhava19 steeds that had the speed of the wind or a storm. While they returned, they beheld a jackal howling hideously on the left hand side. On noticing it, the king20 spoke to Bhima and Dhananjaya. “This jackal has appeared on our left hand side and the inferior animal is speaking. This clearly shows that the evil Kurus must have mounted a fierce attack on us.” They had gone out for a hunt in the great forest. They now entered the grove21 and saw the maid who used to serve their beloved wife. She was weeping.

  ‘O Indra among kings! Indrasena swiftly descended from the chariot and rushing to the maid, who was stricken with grief, spoke these words. “Why are you lamenting and why have you fallen down on the ground? I hope evil ones have not caused violence to the princess Droupadi. Her form is without blemish and her eyes are extremely large. Her form is equal to the bulls among the Kurus. Even if the goddess has entered into the earth, ascended to heaven or plunged into the sea, the Parthas will follow her steps there, because Dharmaraja is gravely tormented. They are the destroyers of their enemies and bear their difficulties, unvanquished. This supreme jewel is as dear to them as their own lives. Who is the foolish one who will dare to carry her away? Does he not know that she has protectors now? She is like the walking heart of the Pandavas. Whose body will now be horribly pierced by sharp and terrible arrows that will then enter the earth? O timid one! Do not sorrow over her. Know that Krishna will return today. Having killed all their enemies, the Parthas will be united with Yajnaseni.” Wiping her beautiful face, the maid then spoke to the charioteer Indrasena. “Ignoring the ones who are like five Indras, Jayadratha violated this place and abducted Krishna. The traces remain and are still fresh. The broken branches have not yet faded. Swiftly turn22 and pursue. The princess cannot have gone far. All of you are the equals of Indra. Prepare yourselves with large, expensive and handsome armour. Grasp your great bows and arrows and swiftly travel along her steps. Else, she may be confounded through scolding and sticks. Her face will dry and her mind will be bewildered. She may give up her body to an unworthy person, like sacred oblations thrown into ashes.23 Else, she may become an oblation to the fire, like a chaff of grain. Else, a wreath may be flung onto a burning ground. While the officiating brahmana is inattentive, the offering of soma on the altar may be licked by a dog. When you went for a hunt in the great forest, the jackal has destroyed the lotus.24 Your loved one’s face has a fine nose and beautiful eyes. Her brilliant and pure face is as beautiful as the moonlight. Let it not be touched by an evil one, like a dog that eats up a sacrificial cake. Follow her swiftly. Hasten, lest time passes you by.”

  ‘Yudhishthira said, “O fortunate one! Be quiet and control your words. You should not speak harsh words while we are here. Whether kings or princes, if they are deluded because of the insolence of their strength, they are certain to be deceived.”’

  Vaishampayana said, ‘Saying this, they departed swiftly. They followed the remaining trails of the others. Like predatory beasts, they sighed repeatedly. They twanged their mighty bows. Then they saw the dust raised by the soldiers, thrown up from the hooves of the horses. Dhoumya was in the midst of the infantry and he addressed Bhima, asking him to attack. The princes comforted Dhoumya, who was extremely miserable in his mind, and asked him to return happily. Then they swooped down on that army, like hawks on raw meat. They were like the great Indra in their valour. They were angered at Yajnaseni’s molestation. On seeing their beloved stationed on Jayadratha’s chariot, their rage flared up. Vrikodara, Dhananjaya, the twins and the king, all mighty archers, called out to the king of Sindhu to stop. At this, the enemies lost all sense of direction.’

  551(254)

  Vaishampayana said, ‘On seeing Bhimasena and Arjuna, the intolerant kshatriyas raised a terrible roar in that forest. On seeing the foremost pennants of those bulls among the Kurus, the evil-souled King Jayadratha was robbed of his energy. He spoke to Yajnaseni, resplendent on his chariot. “O Krishna! Five great chariots are advancing. I think they must be your husbands. You know them. O beautiful one! Point out to me the separate Pandavas, riding on their separate chariots.”

  ‘Droupadi replied, “O foolish one! How will it help you to know those great archers, now that you have performed your terrible and evil deed? My brave husbands have arrived here and you will have no remnants left in this war. However, you are about to die and everything should be told to such a person. It is the dharma that I should answer your question. On having seen Dharmaraja and his younger brothers, I suffer no pain or fear on account of you. Two beautiful drums25 sweetly sound at the top of his pennant. They are named Nanda and Upananda. He knows how to decide about the true nature of dharma and those who are successful, always follow him. His complexion is like that of pure gold. His nose is high. He is lean and his eyes are large. He is known as the foremost among the Kurus, Yudhishthira, the son of Dharma, and my husband. He provides refuge even to an enemy. He is brave among men and is a follower of dharma, ready to give up his life for it. O foolish one! For your own welfare, run to him quickly. Discard your weapons and join your hands in salutation. You will see a mighty-armed one seated on his chariot, like a fully grown shala tree. He is biting his lips and his brows are furrowed. His name is Vrikodara and he is my husband. He is immensely strong and brave and is drawn by well-controlled and strong horses. The deeds that he has done are superhuman. He is known on earth by the name of Bhima. Nothing is left of those who commit crimes against him. He never forgets an enemy. He thinks of every possible way to avenge the enmity and even after that, he is not pacified. He is gentle, generous, forbearing and famous. He is brave among men. He is in control of his senses and serves his elders. He is Yudhishthira’s brother and disciple. His name is Dhananjaya and he is my husband. Desire, fear or avarice will never cause him to abandon dharma. He never performs a cruel act. His energy is equal to that of the fire-god. He is Kunti’s son and he withstands and represses all his enemies. He is knowledgeable about everything concerning dharma and artha. The learned one removes the fear from those who are frightened. It is said that his form is the most beautiful on earth. All the Pandavas protect him. He is devoted to his vows and he is dearer to me than my life. This brave one is Nakula, my husband. The second one is light
of hand and fights with the sword. He is mighty and intelligent and he is Sahadeva. O foolish one! You will witness his deeds in battle today, like Shatakratu against the army of the daityas. He is brave and skilled in the use of weapons. He is wise and learned. He performs acts that bring pleasure to the king, the son of Dharma. He is like the moon and the sun in his energy. He is the youngest of the Pandavas and is loved by them. There is no other man who is his equal in intelligence. He is eloquent in an assembly of the wise. He is brave and always intolerant. He is wise and learned. He is Sahadeva, my husband. He is ready to give up his life or enter the fire, rather than act against dharma. He is always wise and devoted to the dharma of kshatriyas. He is brave among men and is dearer to Kunti than her life. Like a boat filled with gems on the edge of the ocean, riding on the back of a shark26 and destroyed, you will see the soldiers in your army destroyed and freed27 by the sons of Pandu. I have thus described to you the sons of Pandu, whom you have foolishly shown disrespect for. If you escape from them with an uninjured body, you will have been reborn, though you are still alive.”’

  Vaishampayana said, ‘Then the five Parthas, equal to five Indras, ignored the terrified infantry, standing with hands joined in salutation. They angrily attacked the army of chariots from all sides, with dark showers of arrows.’

  552(255)

  Vaishampayana said, ‘While this was going on, the king of Saindhava told the kings, “Stand firm. Attack. Surround them.” When the soldiers saw Bhima, Arjuna and the twins with Yudhishthira, the terrible sound of battle arose. On seeing those tigers among men, intoxicated with their strength, like tigers, those from Shibi, Sindhu and Trigarta were despondent. Bhima grasped a mace that was constructed entirely out of iron and was decorated with gold. He rushed towards Saindhava, who had been driven by destiny. Then Kotikashya placed himself in between. He surrounded and attacked Vrikodara with a large number of chariots. Though the arms of the warriors hurled many spears, javelins and iron arrows at him, Bhima did not tremble at all. With his mace, Bhima slew an elephant, the rider and fourteen foot soldiers who were in the vanguard of Saindhava’s army. Wishing to seize Souvira, in the vanguard, Partha28 slew five hundred maharathas, who hailed from the mountains. In an instant, in that battle, the king29 himself killed one hundred brave and chief Souvira warriors who had attacked him. Nakula was seen to descend from his chariot, with a sword in his hand. Like scattered seeds, he severed the heads of those who were guarding at the rear. Like peacocks falling from a tree, Sahadeva fought warriors on elephants from his chariot and struck them down with his iron arrows. Then Trigarta descended from his great chariot with a bow. He was skilled with the club and slew the four horses of the king.30 On seeing the foot soldier who was near, King Dharmaraja, Kunti’s son, pierced him in the chest with an arrow that was in the shape of a half-moon. Struck in the chest, the brave one began to vomit blood and fell down before Partha,31 like a tree that had been uprooted. Since his horses had been slain, Dharmaraja, together with Indrasena, descended from his chariot and climbed onto Sahadeva’s giant chariot. Picking out Nakula, Kshemankara and Mahamukha attacked him from both sides with showers of sharp arrows. While they showered arrows on him like monsoon clouds, Madri’s son slew them with one large arrow32 each. Suratha, the king of Trigarta, was skilled in fighting with elephants. He stood on the pole of his chariot and had Nakula’s chariot destroyed by an elephant. But Nakula wasn’t frightened and descended from his chariot. He held a sword and a shield in his hand. He whirled them and stood his ground, as immobile as a mountain. Suratha desired to kill Nakula and dispatched his supreme elephant, which angrily attacked with its trunk raised. But Nakula approached the elephant and sliced off the elephant’s trunk and tusks, from the roots, with his sword. The elephant was adorned with anklets. It lowered its head, and with a giant roar, fell down on the ground, crushing the riders through this fall. Having accomplished this great deed, Madri’s brave and maharatha son ascended Bhimasena’s chariot to find some rest. On seeing King Kotikashya rush towards the battle, Bhima sliced off his charioteer’s head, who was goading the horses, with an arrow that had the head of a razor. The king did not realize that his charioteer had been slain by the mighty-armed one. With the charioteer killed, the horses ran hither and thither on the field of battle. He33 was without a charioteer and wished to flee. But Bhima Pandava, supreme among warriors, killed him with a javelin he hurled with his hand. Using sharp and iron arrows, Dhananjaya cut off the heads and bows of twelve from Souvira. With his arrows, the atiratha34 slew in battle Shibis, the foremost among Ikshvakus, Trigartas and Saindhavas, as soon as they came within range. Many elephants with flags and many warriors with pennants were seen to have been killed by maharatha Savyasachi. Headless torsos and torso-less heads were strewn all over the entire earth. Dogs, vultures, herons, crows, ravens, kites, jackals and birds feasted on the flesh and blood of warriors who had been slain.

  ‘On seeing that the brave ones had been killed, Jayadratha, the king of Sindhu, was terrified. He freed Krishna and got ready to run away. His soldiers were in disarray and he lowered Droupadi.35 Then that worst of men ran towards the forest to save his life. On seeing Droupadi, with Dhoumya at the forefront, Dharmaraja asked Madri’s brave son to pick her up on his chariot.36 After Jayadratha had run away, Vrikodara slew the remaining soldiers with iron arrows. On seeing that Jayadratha was running away, Savyasachi restrained Bhima from killing off Saindhava’s soldiers. Arjuna said, “I do not see Jayadratha on the field of battle. It is because of that evil one that we confronted this calamity. O fortunate one! Let us search for him. Why are you killing these soldiers? This is a pointless task. What do you think?” Having been thus addressed by the wise Gudakesha,37 Bhimasena looked at Yudhishthira and eloquently spoke these words. “The foremost warriors of the enemy have been killed. Others have fled in different directions. O king! Take Droupadi with you and return from here. O Indra among kings! Take Droupadi to the hermitage with the twins and great-souled Dhoumya and comfort her. I will not allow the stupid king of Saindhava to escape alive, even if he escapes to the nether regions or has Shakra as a charioteer.” Yudhishthira replied, “O mighty-armed one! Though he is evil in his soul, Saindhava does not deserve to be killed. We must think of Duhshala and the illustrious Gandhari.” On hearing these words, Droupadi was agitated. Though bashful, she angrily spoke to Bhima. The wise one addressed her husbands, Bhima and Arjuna. “If you wish to do something that brings me pleasure, kill that wretch of a man. Saindhava is wicked, evil in his intelligence and brings ill fame to his lineage. An enemy who carries away one’s wife, though there is no cause for enmity, or steals the kingdom, should not be allowed to live, even if he craves pardon in battle.” Having been thus addressed, the two tigers among men went to search for Saindhava. The king returned with Krishna, together with the priest.

  ‘When he entered the hermitage, he saw that the seats and the pots were strewn around. Markandeya and the other brahmanas had been dispersed. The assembled brahmanas had been lamenting over Droupadi and the immensely wise one met them, together with his wife and brothers. On seeing that the king had returned and Droupadi had been brought back again, after the defeat of Sindhu and Souvira, they were delighted. Surrounded by them, the king seated himself there. The radiant Krishna entered the hermitage with the twins.

  ‘On learning that the enemy had travelled only one krosha, Bhima and Arjuna spurred their horses and swiftly rushed after him. Manly Arjuna performed an extraordinary act. He killed Saindhava’s horses from a distance that was one krosha away. He possessed divine weapons and he wasn’t disturbed in times of difficulty. He performed this difficult task with arrows that had mantras invoked over them. Then the brave Bhima and Dhananjaya rushed at the terrified and solitary Saindhava, who had lost his horses and was disturbed in his senses. Saindhava saw that his horses had been killed and was extremely miserable. Dhananjaya had performed an extremely valorous task. He38 made up his mind to run away towards the forest. But seeing that
he was running away, mighty-armed Phalguna followed him and spoke these words. “With such valour, how did you think of abducting a woman by force? O prince! Turn around. Flight does not become you. Leaving your followers in the midst of an enemy, how can you run away?” But though addressed by Partha,39 Saindhava did not turn around. The strong Bhima suddenly rushed at him, exclaiming, “Stay! Stay!” “Don’t kill him,” responded the compassionate Partha.’

  553(256)

  Vaishampayana said, ‘On seeing the two brothers raise their weapons, Jayadratha was extremely miserable. He wished to live and fled swiftly. But the powerful Bhimasena descended from his chariot and chased the one who was running away. He angrily grasped him by the hair on his head. Raising him up, he angrily crushed him down on the ground. Then grasping the king by the neck, he thrashed him. When he had regained his senses, he expressed a desire to rise up. But the mighty-armed one kicked him in the head with his feet. Bhima struck him with his thighs and his fists. Oppressed by these blows, the king lost consciousness. But Phalguna restrained the angry Bhimasena, saying, “O Kourava! For Duhshala’s sake, remember what the king40 has said.” Bhimasena replied, “This wicked and stupid one does not deserve to be alive. This worst of men has oppressed Krishna, who did not deserve it. How can I possibly do what the compassionate king has said? Out of your childish intelligence, you are also always trying to restrain me.” Having said this, with an arrow that had a head shaped like a half-moon, Vrikodara shaved off his head until there were five tufts of hair left,41 though he42 said nothing. Vrikodara then told the king, “O stupid one! If you wish to remain alive, listen to what I am telling you. In public gatherings and assemblies, you must say that you are our slave. I will then grant you your life. This is known to be the custom of the victorious.” King Jayadratha was scared for his life and agreed. He told Bhima, tiger among men and one who makes the field of battle beautiful, that it would be this way.