Mahabharata Vol. 3 (Penguin Translated Texts) (35 page)

‘“In that battle, with all my showers of arrows, I was not able to oppress them. But they oppressed me. Thus hard-pressed by many who were accomplished in weapons and were skilled warriors, I felt
pain in that great battle. A great fear took hold of me. In the battle, I bowed down to Rudra, god of the gods. Saying, ‘May there be welfare to all beings,’ I used the great weapon famous by the name of roudra, capable of destroying all enemies. I then saw a man with three heads, nine eyes, three faces and six arms, with hair blazing like the sun and the fire.
²⁰⁶
O scorcher of enemies! There were giant serpents with flaming tongues on his head. O bull among the Bharata lineage! On beholding that terrible and eternal roudra weapon, I lost my fear and attached it to Gandiva. I bowed in obeisance to the three-eyed and infinitely energetic Sharva.
²⁰⁷
O descendant of the Bharata lineage! I discharged it, to defeat the lords of the danavas. O lord of the earth! As soon as I discharged it, it assumed thousands of different forms everywhere—deer, lions, tigers, bears, buffaloes, serpents, cattle, elephants, marsh-deer, sharabhas, bulls, boars, cats, hyenas, ghosts,
bhurunda
s,
²⁰⁸
vultures, garudas, sharks,
²⁰⁹
pishachas, yakshas, haters of gods, guhyakas, nairritas, large fish with mouths like elephants, owls and masses of fish and tortoises, all brandishing many kinds of weapons and swords. There were yatudhanas,
²¹⁰
wielding clubs and maces. There were many other beings in different forms. They filled up the universe when that weapon was discharged. Those many different forms—with three heads, four tusks, four faces and four arms—devoured the flesh, fat and marrow of the danavas. They continuously killed the ones who had gathered there. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! In an instant, I also killed the danavas with arrows that were destructive of enemies, as hard as the vajra and as radiant as lightning, blazing like the sun and the fire.

‘“On seeing them destroyed through weapons shot from Gandiva, deprived of life and hurled down from the sky, I once again bowed to the god who destroyed Tripura.
²¹¹
On seeing that they had been
destroyed, with all their celestial ornaments, shattered by the roudra weapon, the charioteer of the gods was extremely delighted. On seeing that I had performed a task that was impossible even for the gods, Matali, Shakra’s charioteer, worshipped me. He joined his hands in salutation and said in a happy voice, ‘The task that you have accomplished was impossible for the gods and the asuras. Even the lord of the gods could not have achieved this in battle. This great city that roamed around in the sky could not have been destroyed by the gods and the asuras. O brave one! You have vanquished it through the strength of your own valour, weapons and austerities.’ When the city had been destroyed and the danavas killed, all the lamenting women emerged from the city. They were smitten by grief, their hair was dishevelled and they were miserable like ospreys. They threw themselves down on the ground, sorrowing over their sons, fathers and husbands. In miserable tones, they loudly grieved over their dead lords. They beat their breasts with their hands and the garlands and ornaments were thrown away. The city of the danavas was overcome with sorrow, misery and distress. It had lost all its splendour and all its lords had been slain. It was no longer radiant. Like a city of the gandharvas, like a pond deserted by elephants and like a forest that is full of dry trees, that city disappeared.

‘“With a happy mind, Matali quickly took me from the field of battle to the abode of the king of the gods. I had accomplished my task. I had destroyed Hiranyapura and killed the great asuras and the nivatakavachas. I returned to Shakra. O immensely radiant one! Matali recounted my deeds in detail to the Indra of the gods, completely and exactly as it had happened—the destruction of Hiranyapura, the use of maya, the way it was repulsed and the slaying of the immensely powerful nivatakavachas in battle. On hearing this, the illustrious Purandara, the one with the thousand eyes, was delighted. In the midst of the Maruts, he spoke words like, ‘Wonderful’ and ‘Well done’. Together with the other gods, the king of the gods repeatedly congratulated me and spoke these gentle words. ‘In battle, you have accomplished a deed that was impossible for the gods and the asuras. O Partha! By slaying my enemies, you have paid a great preceptor’s
fee. O Dhananjaya! You will always remain as steady in battle. You will know what has to be done and will not be confounded in using these weapons. The gods, the danavas, the rakshasas, the yakshas, the asuras and the gandharvas, together with masses of birds and serpents, will not be able to withstand you in battle. O Kounteya! Through the strength of your arms, Kunti’s son, Yudhishthira, with dharma in his soul, will conquer the earth and protect it.’”’

‘Arjuna said, “At some point, on seeing that I had recovered from the wounds of the arrows and was comfortable, the king of the gods told me, ‘O descendant of the Bharata lineage! All the divine weapons are yours now. There is no man on earth who is capable of vanquishing you. O son! When you are engaged in the field of battle, Bhishma, Drona, Kripa, Karna and Shakuni, together with all the other kings, are not worth one-sixteenth of you.’
²¹²
The lord Maghavan then gave me this divine and impenetrable armour and a golden garland. He also gave me the conch shell Devadatta, which emits a great sound. Indra himself fixed this celestial diadem on my head. Shakra then gave me these divine garments and celestial ornaments, beautiful and many in number. O king! Thus honoured, I lived happily in Indra’s abode, together with the children of the gandharvas. Extremely pleased with me, Shakra, together with the immortals, told me, ‘O Arjuna! The time for your departure has come. Your brothers are remembering you.’ O descendant of the Bharata lineage! O king! Thus did I spend five years in Indra’s abode, remembering the discord that was brought on us because of the gambling. Then, when you came to Mount Gandhamadana, I saw you on the peak, surrounded by your brothers.”

‘Yudhishthira replied, “O descendant of the Bharata lineage! O Dhananjaya! You have obtained those weapons through good fortune. It is also through good fortune that you satisfied the king and the lord who is the king of the gods. O scorcher of enemies! O unblemished one! It is through good fortune that you beheld the lord Sthanu himself, together with the goddess, and satisfied him in the duel.
²¹³
O bull among the Bharata lineage! It is through good fortune that you managed to meet the lokapalas. It is through good fortune that all of us have prospered and have set our eyes on you again. I now think that we have conquered the goddess earth, with her garland of cities, and have vanquished the sons of Dhritarashtra. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! But I wish to see those divine weapons with which you killed the valorous nivatakavachas.”

‘Arjuna said, “When it is dawn tomorrow, you will see all those divine weapons with which I destroyed the terrible nivatakavachas.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Having thus recounted the incidents connected with his return, Dhananjaya spent the night there, together with his brothers.’

Vaishampayana said, ‘When the night had passed, Dharmaraja Yudhishthira awoke and performed the necessary rituals, together with his brothers. Then he told Arjuna, the beloved of his brothers. “O Kounteya! Show us the weapons with which you destroyed the danavas.” O king! O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Then the immensely energetic Pandava Dhananjaya showed the celestial weapons that had been given by the gods, in due order, and after establishing himself in supreme purity. The earth was like his chariot and the radiant Dhananjaya seated himself on that. The trees
on the mountain were like its axles and the beautiful bamboos like the spokes. He looked resplendent in his bright armour. He grasped the bow Gandiva and the conch shell Devadatta, born from the waters. In that radiance, mighty-armed Kounteya prepared to show those divine weapons, one after the other.

‘As he got ready to employ those divine weapons, the earth and all its trees began to tremble under his feet. The rivers and the great ocean began to tremble. The mountains were rent asunder. The winds stopped blowing. The one with the thousand rays
²¹⁴
stopped shining. The fires stopped burning. The Vedas were no longer manifest to those who were twice-born.
²¹⁵
O Janamejaya! The beings that lived in the interiors of the earth were oppressed. All of them trembled and emerged. Covering their faces, they joined their hands in salutation and surrounded Pandava. Burnt by those weapons, they prayed to Dhananjaya. The brahmarshis, the siddhas, the maharshis and all mobile beings stood there. So did supreme rajarshis, gods, yakshas, rakshasas, gandharvas and birds. The grandfather
²¹⁶
himself arrived, together with all the lokapalas, and the illustrious Mahadeva, with all his companions. O great king! Vayu covered Pandava with colourful, fragrant and divine flowers from every side. Instructed by the gods, the gandharvas sung many songs. O king! Masses of apsaras began to dance there. At that tumultuous time, instructed by the gods, Narada arrived. O king! He spoke these words, worthy of hearing, to Partha. “O Arjuna! O Arjuna! O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Do not discharge these divine weapons. They should never be used when there is no target. Even when there is a target, one should not use them unless one is hard-pressed. O descendant of the Kuru lineage! Such a use of these weapons is a great sin. O Dhananjaya! If these weapons are properly preserved, as you have been taught, there is no doubt that they will lead to great happiness.
O Pandava! But if they are not preserved well, they will lead to the destruction of the three worlds. Therefore, never attempt this again. O Ajatashatru!
²¹⁷
You will behold the weapons when Partha uses them in battle for the destruction of the enemies.” O bull among men! After having restrained Partha, all the gods, and all the others who had assembled there, departed the way they had come. O Kouravya!
²¹⁸
When they had left, the Pandavas, together with Krishna, began to live happily in that forest.’

This parva has 201 shlokas and six chapters.

Chapter 470(173): 22 shlokas

Chapter 471(174): 24 shlokas

Chapter 472(175): 21 shlokas

Chapter 473(176): 51 shlokas

Chapter 474(177): 33 shlokas

Chapter 475(178): 50 shlokas

Ajagara
means a boa constrictor, literally something that swallows a goat
(aja).
The Pandavas retrace their steps to Vrishaparva’s hermitage and Badari and then go to visit King Subahu. From there, they go to the origins of the Yamuna and Dvaitavana, on the banks of the Sarasvati. Bhima is then grasped by Nahusha in the form of a boa and this is why this section is called Ajagara Parva. The highlight of this section is a dialogue between Yudhishthira and Nahusha, in the form of a boa.

Janamejaya asked, ‘When that great charioteer, skilled in weapons, returned from the abode of Vritra’s slayer, what did the Parthas
accomplish next, now that they had been rejoined by the brave Dhananjaya?’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Those Indras among men lived in that forest. The brave ones sported there on that beautiful mountain, the lovely pleasure ground of the lord of riches, with Arjuna, equal to Indra himself. On seeing those unmatched houses and pleasure grounds covered with many trees, Kiriti,
¹
Indra among men, always immersed in his weapons and with the bow in his hand, roamed around a lot. Through the favours of King Vaishravana, those sons of a king had found an abode and no longer desired what beings want.
²
That time was a blessing for them. They were united with Partha and lived for four years there and these years they spent there seemed like a single night. With the earlier six, it was now ten years that the Pandavas had peacefully dwelt in the forest.

‘Once, Vayu’s intrepid son was seated near the king, together with Jishnu and the twins, the equals of the king of the gods.
³
In private, he gently spoke these beneficial words. “O king of the Kurus! In order to ensure that your oath remained true and to do that which would make you happy, we followed you into the forest and did not kill Suyodhana, together with his followers. We have lived here for eleven years. We are deserving of happiness, but Suyodhana has grasped that happiness. We should now deceive that scoundrel, lacking in intelligence and conduct. Let us happily resort to a life that will be incognito.
⁴
O king! On your instructions, we lived without anxiety and spent this time roaming in the forest. He will be deluded because
we have lived nearby and will not get to know if we move to a distant region. Having spent one year in hiding, we will easily uproot that worst of men. O Indra among kings! On that scoundrel among men, Suyodhana, surrounded by all his followers, we will reap the enmity, with all its fruits and flowers. O Dharmaraja! Accept the world as your own. O god among men! Kill this grief. We are capable of roaming this mountain that is like heaven. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Your fragrant deeds may be destroyed in this world of the mobile and the immobile. But by regaining the kingdom of the bulls among the Kurus, you are capable of performing great deeds and great rituals. O Indra among men! You are always capable of obtaining whatever you want from Kubera. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Set your heart on the slaying of those who hate you and on punishing them, because they have oppressed you. O king! The wielder of the vajra is himself incapable of withstanding your terrible energy. O Dharmaraja! Nor will any pain be caused to you even if you confront all the gods. The one with Suparna on his banner and Shini’s grandson are both engaged in that which ensures your welfare.
⁵
O god among kings! The foremost among the Shinis, the equal of Krishna in strength, is engaged likewise.
⁶
Krishna, together with the Yadavas, is engaged in that which will ensure your welfare. O god among men! So are these brave and skilled twins. Our prime objective is an increase in your influence. Encountering the enemies, we will pacify them.” On ascertaining what was in their mind, the great-souled son of Dharma circumambulated Vaishravana’s abode.
⁷

‘The energetic one was knowledgeable about dharma and artha. Dharmaraja bid adieu to the houses, the rivers, the lakes and all the rakshasas. He glanced down at the path through which he had ascended and looked again at the mountain and said, “O Indra among mountains! When my deeds are done, when my well-wishers and I
have triumphed over the enemies and have won the kingdom, I will behold you again, for performing austerities with a restrained soul.” Surrounded by all his brothers and the brahmanas, the lord of the Kurus was again carried along a similar path, with all the others, by Ghatotkacha—over mountains and waterfalls. On seeing them ready to leave, the maharshi
⁸
cheerfully instructed them, like a father to his sons. Together with Lomasha, they happily went to the sacred abode of the dwellers of heaven. Similarly instructed by Arshtishena, the Parthas, foremost among men, went and saw the beautiful tirthas, hermitages and many other great ponds.’

Vaishampayana said, ‘That supreme of mountains had cascading waterfalls and was full of kinnaras, birds and cardinal elephants.
⁹
The bulls among the Bharatas had lived happily there and found no pleasure in leaving it. But when the bulls among the Bharatas once again beheld Kailasa, Kubera’s beloved mountain that looked like an ocean of clouds, they found great joy. The brave ones saw passes in the mountains, pens for cattle in the mountains, crevasses in the mountains and many sharp falls, with plains and lowlands here and there. There were other large forests, inhabited by many animals and deer. Armed with bows and swords, those foremost among men confidently went further. There were beautiful groves, rivers and ponds and caverns and recesses in the mighty mountains. By day and by night, those bulls among men always found places to rest there. After resting in this difficult terrain and traversing Kailasa, whose form is unthinkable, they reached Vrishaparva’s supreme and beautiful hermitage. On meeting them, King Vrishaparva heartily welcomed them. Overcoming all confusion, they gave Vrishaparva a complete
account of their safe stay.
¹⁰
They happily spent a night in that sacred hermitage, favoured by gods and maharshis. The brave ones then went to the giant Badari and happily dwelt there again. Then those great-souled ones, foremost among men, arrived at Narayana’s region. They saw Kubera’s lotus pond, favoured by gods and siddhas, and became devoid of grief. Pandu’s sons, foremost among all men, saw those lotuses and became devoid of grief. They pleasured there, just as brahmana rishis enjoy themselves when they live in Nandana.

‘Having spent a happy month in Badari, in due course, they went to the land of Subahu, the king of the kiratas, following the route that other brave ones had traversed earlier. They passed the lands of
china
s,
¹¹
tukhara
s,
¹²
darada
s,
¹³
darva
s
¹⁴
and
kuninda
s
¹⁵
full of many jewels. The brave ones crossed the difficult terrain of the Himalaya region and saw Subahu’s city. When he heard that all the sons and grandsons of kings had arrived, King Subahu was delighted and came out to welcome them. The bulls of the Kuru lineage greeted him in return. They met Subahu with all the charioteers headed by Vishoka, with Indrasena, with the servants, with the cooks and with their supervisors.
¹⁶
They stayed there happily for a night. Retaining all the charioteers and the chariots, they dismissed Ghatotkacha and his followers. They continued towards Yamuna, the king of mountains.
¹⁷
That mountain is full of springs. Its red and pale slopes are covered with a mantle of snow. The foremost among men reached the sacrificial pole Vishakha and lived there.
¹⁸
The great forest was
like Chaitraratha
¹⁹
and was infested by boars, many animals and birds. Those foremost among hunters safely spent another year in that forest. In a cavern in that mountain, Vrikodara came upon an extremely strong serpent. It was oppressed by hunger and had the terrible form of death itself. Thereupon, his soul was pained through depression and delusion. But Yudhishthira, supreme among those who uphold dharma and whose energy is infinite, freed Vrikodara in an island there, when all his limbs had been grasped by the grasper.
²⁰
The twelfth year had arrived and the Kurus pleasantly spent the time in the forest. They lived in the forest that was like Chaitraratha. They were fortunate and radiant in their austerities. Then the foremost ones among those who are devoted to the knowledge of arms, went to the neighbourhood of the desert. They went to Sarasvati and found Lake Dvaitavana, wishing to live there. On seeing them come to Dvaitavana and settling down there, the residents of that region arrived. They were engaged in austerities and restrained, devoted to rituals and meditation. They came with grass, water, vessels, offerings and stones for grinding. Sarasvati’s banks were covered with many plakshas,
²¹
aksha
s,
²²
rohitaka
s,
²³
cane,
snuha
s,
²⁴
badaris,
²⁵
khadira
s,
²⁶
shirisha
s,
²⁷
bilvas,
²⁸
ingudas,
²⁹
pilu
s,
³⁰
shamis
³¹
and
karira
s.
³²
This was a place loved by yakshas, gandharvas and maharshis. It was the sacrificial ground of the gods themselves. Those
sons of a god among men lived there happily, roaming delightedly along the banks of the Sarasvati.’

Janemejaya asked, ‘O sage! How can Bhima, whose prowess is terrible and who has the strength of ten thousand elephants, have been overcome by dreadful fear on account of an ajagara? The insolent one challenged the lord of riches, of the Pulastya lineage, in battle.
³³
He encountered and killed the foremost among yakshas and rakshasas at the lotus pond. You said that the destroyer of enemies was overcome by distress and fear. I am curious and wish to hear this in detail.’

Vaishampayana said, ‘O king! Having left the hermitage of King Vrishaparva, those foremost among archers lived in the forest that possessed many wonders. On seeing that beautiful forest, frequented by gods and gandharvas, Vrikodara began to roam around as he wished, bow and sword in his hands. He saw the pure regions on the Himalaya mountains, visited by masses of apsaras and frequented by gods, rishis and siddhas. It resounded everywhere with the sounds of chakoras, chakravaka birds, jivas,
³⁴
jivakas,
³⁵
cuckoos and
bhringaraja
s.
³⁶
It was covered with trees that were always full of flowers and fruit, tender because of the touch of snow. There was plenty of shade and it was pleasant to the mind and the eye. He saw mountainous streams tinged with the colour of lapis lazuli. The water was touched by snow and there were tens of thousands of geese and karandavas.
³⁷
There were forests of devadaru trees
³⁸
that seemed to
act like a net for the clouds. These were mixed with yellow sandalwood and tall
kaliyaka
s.
³⁹
He went hunting on the flat terrain of the desert. The immensely strong one shot the deer with arrows that were pure.
⁴⁰

‘Then he saw a gigantic serpent that makes one’s body hair stand up. It had entered a mountainous cavern and had covered the entire cave with its body. Its coils were piled as high as a mountain. Its colour was yellow like turmeric and its colourful skin was speckled with circular marks like the sun and the moon. Its mouth was as wide as a cave and was adorned with four teeth. It constantly licked the corners of its mouth. Its eyes blazed and were copper-red in hue. Like destiny and like Yama, it struck terror in all beings. Through the moist hissing of its breath, it seemed to be reprimanding. The hungry boa suddenly grasped Bhimasena and forcefully seized him with both his arms. Because of the boon it had received, Bhimasena instantly lost his senses as soon as it touched him. The strength of Bhimasena’s arms might have been more than that of others and his strength might have been able to withstand ten thousand elephants. But the energetic one was completely overcome by the serpent. Bhima trembled slowly, but he was completely unable to move. He was equal to ten thousand elephants. He had the shoulders of a lion. His arms were strong. But grasped, he lost his mettle. He was deluded because of the grant of the boon. For some time, the brave one tried terribly hard to extricate himself. But he did not succeed at all.’

Vaishampayana said, ‘The energetic Bhimasena was thus overcome by the serpent. He began to think about the great and extraordinary valour of the serpent. He told the great serpent, “O serpent! If you so desire, please tell me. O best of serpents! Who
are you and what will you do with me? I am Pandava Bhimasena, immediately younger to Dharmaraja. I possess the vigour equal to that of ten thousand elephants. How can I have been brought under your power? Many lions with manes, tigers, buffaloes and elephants have been encountered and slain by me in battle. O supreme among serpents! Danavas, pishachas and immensely strong rakshasas have not been able to withstand the force of my arms. Do you have the strength of knowledge or do you have the gift of a boon? In spite of my endeavours, you have been able to overpower me. O serpent! It is certain in my mind that the valour of men is useless, since you have been able to withstand my great strength.” When the brave Bhima, whose deeds are unsullied, was speaking in this way, the serpent encircled him in one gigantic coil.