SECTION 191 (Swayamvara Parva continued)

SECTION 191

(Swayamvara Parva continued)

"Vaisampayana said, 'When the king Drupada expressed his desire of bestowing his daughter on that Brahmana who had shot the mark, all those monarchs who had been invited to the Swayamvara, looking at one another, were suddenly filled with wrath. And they said, 'Passing us by and treating the assembled monarchs as straw this Drupada desireth to bestow his daughter, on a Brahmana! Having planted the tree he cutteth it down when it is about to bear fruit. The wretch regardeth us not: therefore let us slay him. He deserveth neither our respect nor the veneration due to age. Owing to such qualities of his, we shall, therefore, slay this wretch that insulteth all kings, along with his son. Inviting all the monarchs and entertaining them with excellent food, he disregardeth us at last. In this assemblage of monarchs like unto a conclave of the celestials, doth he not see a single monarch equal unto himself? The Vedic declaration is well-known that the Swayamvara is for the Kshatriyas. The Brahmanas have no claim in respect of a selection of husband by a Kshatriya damsel. Or, ye kings, if this damsel desireth not to select any one of us as her lord, let us cast her into the fire and return to our kingdoms. As regards this Brahmana, although he hath, from officiousness or avarice, done this injury to the monarchs, he should not yet be slain; for our kingdoms, lives, treasures, sons, grandsons, and whatever other wealth we have, all exist for Brahmanas. Something must be done here even unto him, so that from fear of disgrace and the desire of maintaining what properly belongeth unto each order, other Swayamvaras may not terminate in this way.'

"Having addressed one another thus, those monarchs endued with arms like unto spiked iron maces, took up their weapons and rushed at Drupada to slay him then and there. And Drupada beholding those monarchs all at once rushing towards him in anger with bows and arrows, sought, from fear, the protection of the Brahmanas. But Bhima and Arjuna of the Pandavas, capable of chastising all foes, advanced to oppose those monarchs rushing towards them. Then the monarchs with gloved fingers and upraised weapons rushed in anger at the Kuru princes, Bhima and Arjuna, to slay them. Then Bhima tore up like anelephant a large tree and divested it of its leaves. And with that tree Bhima stood, like unto the mace-bearing Yama armed with his fierce mace, near Arjuna. And beholding that feat of his brother, Jishnu, himself also of inconceivable feats, wondered much. And beholding those feats of both Jishnu and his brother, Krishna of superhuman intelligence and inconceivable feats, addressing his brother, Baladeva, said, 'That hero there, of tread like that of a mighty lion, who draweth the large bow in his hand four full cubits in length, is Arjuna! There is no doubt, O Sankarshana, about this, if I am Vasudeva. That other hero who having speedily torn up the tree hath suddenly become ready to drive off the monarchs is Vrikodara! For no one in the world, except Vrikodara, could today perform such a feat in the field of battle. And that other youth of eyes like unto lotus-petals, of full four cubits height, who had a little before, left the amphitheatre, is Yudhishthira. The two other youths, I suspect, the sons of the twin Aswins. I heard that the sons of Kunti along with their mother Pritha had all escaped from the conflagration of the house of lac.' Then Halayudha, addressing his younger brother Krishna, said with great satisfaction, 'O, I am happy to hear, as I do from sheer good fortune, that our father's sister Pritha with her sons have all escaped from death!'"