Mahabharata Vol. 2 (Penguin Translated Texts) (26 page)

‘Vidura said, “Prahlada was the king of the daityas and his son was Virochana. For the sake of a maiden, he
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quarrelled with Sudhanva, the son of Angirasa. We have heard that out of desire for the maiden, they wagered their lives, each claiming that he was superior. When they were thus debating, they asked Prahlada, ‘Who among us is superior? Answer the question and do not lie.’ He was scared of this dispute and looked at Sudhanva. As flaming as the curse
of a brahmana, Sudhanva angrily told him, ‘O Prahlada! If you utter a lie or if you do not answer at all, the wielder of the vajra will use the vajra to splinter your head into a hundred parts.’ When Sudhanva spoke these words, the daitya trembled like the leaf of a fig tree.
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He went to the immensely energetic Kashyapa to consult him. Prahlada said, ‘O illustrious one! You are learned in the ways of dharma, for the gods, the demons and the brahmanas. Listen to this problem and tell me what dharma is. Please tell me, because I am asking you. In the hereafter, what worlds are attained by one who does not answer a question or answers it falsely?’ Kashyapa answered, ‘He who knows the answer to a question but does not answer it out of desire, anger or fear, brings upon himself a thousand of Varuna’s nooses. It takes an entire year for one of these nooses to be loosened. Therefore, one who knows the truth should speak the truth openly. When dharma is pierced with what is not dharma and goes to a sabha and those who are in the assembly hall do not take out the dart, it will pierce them. In a sabha where an act of censure is not condemned, half the demerit is attached to the head of that assembly, one fourth to the culprit and one fourth to those who do not condemn it. On the other hand, in a sabha where an act of censure is condemned, the head is free of sin and so are the ones assembled there, and demerit descends on the perpetrator. O Prahlada! Those who answer falsely to a question asked about dharma, destroy the merits of good deeds for seven generations of ancestors and seven generations of descendants. The grief of one whose property has been stolen, whose son has been killed, who has lost all in debt, who has been extorted by a king, or of a woman who has no husband, or of one distanced from his companions, or the misery of a co-wife, or of one deprived because of witnesses
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—the lord of the thirty gods
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has declared these miseries to be equal. He who speaks falsely obtains all these miseries. One becomes a witness because of what he has directly seen, heard or understood. Therefore, a witness who speaks the truth never
deviates from dharma and artha.’ Having heard Kashyapa’s words, Prahlada spoke to his son. ‘Sudhanva is superior to you, just as Angirasa is superior to me. Sudhanva’s mother is superior to your mother. O Virochana! Sudhanva is the lord of your life.’ Sudhanva replied, ‘Since you have not deviated from dharma out of affection towards your son, I set your son free and he will live for a hundred years.’ Hearing this about supreme dharma, let all those who are in this sabha reflect upon the supreme answer to Krishna’s question.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘On hearing Vidura’s words, none of the kings uttered a single word. Karna told Duhshasana, “Take Krishna away to the quarters meant for the servant girls.” The ascetic lady
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was trembling, in shame and complained to the Pandavas, when Duhshasana dragged her in the middle of the sabha.’

‘Droupadi said, “I have a duty to perform, an act that I had not performed earlier, because dragged through the force of this powerful one, I had lost my senses. I offer my homage to all my superiors who are in this assembly of Kurus. Let it not be my crime that I have not done this before.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Dragged with even greater force, the ascetic lady was even more miserable. She did not deserve this. She fell down on the ground and lamented in the sabha.

‘Droupadi said, “The assembled kings set their eyes on me in the arena of the svayamvara. Until being brought to this sabha, I have never been seen by anyone since, anywhere. One who has earlier not seen the wind or the sun in her house, has today been seen by this assembly of Kurus in the middle of the sabha. Earlier, the Pandavas have not allowed the wind to touch me in my house. They now bear it when I am touched by this evil-hearted one. Time has deviated. The
Kurus permit their daughter and daughter-in-law, unworthy of such treatment, to be thus oppressed. Earlier, it has been heard that pure and chaste wives are not brought into the middle of a sabha. Where is the dharma of the lords of the earth? According to dharma, it has earlier been heard that wives are not brought into an assembly hall. That earlier eternal dharma has been lost among the Kouravas. How is it that the chaste wife of the Pandus, the sister of Parshata’s son
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and a friend to Vasudeva, has been brought into this assembly of kings? O Kouravas! I am Dharmaraja’s wife and I was born in the same varna as he. Tell me whether I am a slave or not a slave, and I will act accordingly. O Kouravas! This mean one, the bringer of ill repute to the Kouravas, is firmly molesting me and I cannot bear it any longer. O kings! O Kouravas! I want you to answer, whatever you might think, and I will act accordingly. Have I been won or have I not been won?”

‘Bhishma replied, “O fortunate one! I have already said that the course of dharma is supreme. Even the great-souled brahmanas in this world are incapable of comprehending its course. When a powerful man uses force, that is perceived as dharma by the world. But if a feeble one speaks about dharma, that is not regarded as dharma by others. I am incapable of answering your question certainly. The issue is subtle, deep, complicated and important. It is certain that all the Kurus have become addicted to avarice and delusion. Without a doubt, the destruction of the lineage will occur soon. O fortunate one! The lineage into which you have been born and the one in which you are established as a daughter-in-law, never deviates from the path of dharma, regardless of the disaster that might befall. O Panchali! Since you look at dharma, even though you are suffering, it is conduct that you yourself follow. Drona and the other elders, knowledgeable in dharma, sit here with lowered heads, as if their bodies are hollow.
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It is my view that Yudhishthira is the supreme authority on the question. He should himself say whether you have been won or have not been won.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘The kings who were there were scared of Dhritarashtra’s son. They said nothing, good or bad, though they witnessed these many events and saw her crying, like a female osprey that has been hurt. On seeing that the sons and grandsons of the kings were silent, Dhritarashtra’s son
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smiled and spoke these words to the daughter of the king of Panchala, “O Yajnaseni! Let the question now be placed before the immensely powerful Bhima, Arjuna, Sahadeva and your husband Nakula. Let them reply to your words. O Panchali! Let them declare before all these aryas that Yudhishthira is not your lord. They must establish Dharmaraja as a liar.
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You will then be freed from servitude. The great-souled son of Dharma is always established in dharma. He is the equal of Indra. Let him himself declare whether he is your lord or not. When he has spoken, you must quickly decide whom to love. All the Kouravas who are in this sabha are immersed in your affliction. Though they are aryas at heart, they cannot appropriately resolve the issue. They therefore look to your husbands for an answer.” Hearing these words of the king of the Kurus, all those who were present in the assembly loudly applauded him. Some happily waved their garments. But sounds of “alas” were also heard. On hearing these pleasant words, all the kings in the assembly applauded the righteous act of the foremost among the Kurus. Turning their faces, all the kings looked at Yudhishthira. He was learned in the principles of dharma. What would he say? What would Bibhatsu, the Pandava who was undefeated in battle, say? What would Bhimasena and the twins say? They were curious and wondered. When the noise had died down, Bhimasena grasped his large arms, smeared with sandalwood paste, and spoke. “Had Dharmaraja Yudhishthira not been our superior and had he not been our lord of our lineage, we would not have tolerated this. He owns the merit of our austerities and he is even the lord of our lives. If he
considers himself to have been won, then all of us have been won. But for that, no one who walks the ground of the earth with his feet would have escaped with his life after touching Panchali’s hair. Look at my long and round arms, like iron clubs. Once inside them, not even Shatakratu can escape. But bound in the noose of dharma, out of respect for him
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and restrained by Arjuna, I am not doing anything dreadful. If I am once freed by Dharmaraja, I will make my arms perform the act of swords and kill these evil sons of Dhritarashtra, the way a lion kills small animals.” At that, Bhishma, Drona and Vidura spoke and said, “Restrain yourself. With you, everything is possible.”’

‘Karna said, “There are three who can own no property—a slave, a student and a woman. O fortunate one! You are the wife of a slave and have nothing of your own. You have no lord and are like the property of slaves. Enter
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and serve us. That is the task for you in this household. O Princess! All the sons of Dhritarashtra are now your masters and not the sons of Pritha. O beautiful one! Choose another one for your husband, one who will not make you a slave through gambling. Remember the eternal rule among slaves. Sexual acts with one’s masters are never censured. Nakula, Bhimasena, Yudhishthira, Sahadeva and Arjuna have been won over. O Yajnaseni! Enter as a slave. The ones who have been won over can no longer be your husbands. Valour and virility are of no use to Partha
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now. In the middle of the sabha, he has gambled away the daughter of Drupada, the king of Panchala.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘On hearing these words, Bhimasena couldn’t bear it any more. Like a man tormented, he breathed deeply. But he
was devoted to the king
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and tied down in the noose of dharma. He tried to burn him
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down with the anger in his eye. Bhima said, “I cannot be angry at the words of the son of a suta.
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It is truly the case that the dharma of slaves is upon us. O lord of men!
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Our enemies would not have dared hold me down, had you not staked her.” Hearing Radheya’s words, King Duryodhana then spoke to Yudhishthira, who sat silent, as if he had lost his senses. “O king! Bhima, Arjuna and the twins always follow your instructions. Answer the question as to whether you think Krishna has been won.” Having thus spoken to Kounteya, he became insolent with arrogance. He looked invitingly at Panchali and grasped his garment. Smiling at Radheya and tormenting Bhima, he exposed his left thigh to Droupadi, who was looking at him.
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It was like the stem of a plantain tree, like the trunk of an elephant, as proud as the vajra and was marked with all the auspicious signs. On witnessing this, Vrikodara enlarged his red eyes. Among all the kings in the sabha, he spoke to them in compelling words. “If he fails to break that thigh with a club in a great battle, let Vrikodara not go to the worlds where his ancestors have gone.” When he was thus enraged, sparks of fire issued out of every opening in his body, as if from the hollow of a tree that is on fire.

‘Vidura said, “O kings! Look out for the extreme danger that emanates from Bhimasena. Watch, for this is like Varuna’s noose. The great calamity that the gods had destined for the descendants of the Bharata lineage in ancient times, has come to pass. Dhritarashtra’s sons have transgressed in gambling. They are now quarrelling about a lady in a sabha. There is great danger to what you have already
obtained and what you wish to obtain.
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The counsel of the Kurus is now based on evil advice. O Kurus! Know this to be dharma. If it is wrongly diagnosed, this entire assembly will be tainted. If this gambler had staked her before, he would not have been won and would have still been her master. But if a man puts up a stake when he is not the lord of anything, winning that stake is like obtaining riches in a dream. O Kurus! You have listened to Gandhari’s son!
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But do not deviate from the path of dharma.”

‘Duryodhana responded, “I am willing to abide by Bhima’s words, Arjuna’s words and the words of the twins. O Yanjanseni! If they say that Yudhishthira wasn’t their lord, then you will be freed from slavery.”

‘Arjuna said, “This great-souled King Dharmaraja, Kunti’s son, was certainly our master when he first played with us as stake. But whose lord was he, once he had lost himself? O assembled Kurus! All of you should decide that.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘At that time, in King Dhritarashtra’s house, a jackal cried at the agnihotra.
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O king! Donkeys brayed in response and from every direction, terrible birds joined in. Vidura, who was knowledgeable in everything, heard these terrible sounds, and so did Subala’s daughter.
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Bhishma, Drona and the learned Goutama
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heard and said, “Peace! Peace!” On hearing those terrible omens, Gandhari and the learned Vidura became miserable and told the king.
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Then the king spoke these words. “O evil-minded Duryodhana! You have been destroyed. In this assembly hall of the bulls among the Kurus, in this sabha, you have used insolent words against a woman, especially a lawfully wedded wife like Droupadi.” Having spoken these words, the intelligent Dhritarashtra stopped, for he was concerned about the welfare of his relatives. Using his knowledge and intelligence, he spoke these words, so as to pacify Krishna Panchali.

‘Dhritarashtra said, “O Panchali! Choose from me whatever boon you desire. You are a chaste lady who follows supreme dharma and you are the most special of my daughters-in-law.”

‘Droupadi replied, “O bull among the Bharata lineage! If you wish to grant me a boon, I will choose this. The illustrious Yudhishthira, who follows all the ways of dharma, should not be a slave. Let these young boys, who do not know of Prativindhya’s
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intelligence, refer to him as the son of a slave when he arrives. He has been the son of a king earlier, like no man anywhere and ever. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! He will die if he is brought up as the son of a slave.”