The Slaying of Śiśupāla 15

English (machine translation) 15

Language: English

15.1

Then the king of Cedi could not endure the honour paid to the Foe of Mura
by the son of Pāṇḍu in that assembly; for the mind of the proud is jealous of another's advancement.

15.2

Already having hostility against the wielder of Śārṅga, a deeper rage now seized him
because of his worship, as a fever seizes an embodied being at the season when the bodily humours are balanced.

15.3

As if threatening the entire gathering of kings, he slowly shook his head,
the rays of its crown-jewels trembling, with which he had shaken the three worlds with lightning power.

15.4

Weeping with wrath, his broad cheeks bathed in dense perspiration,
his hands rough with drops of sweat, he shone like a rutting elephant discharging in three streams.

15.5

Having tossed aside the kings, he repeatedly shook his body that was profusely sweating
and scattering abundant droplets of water, like the Primeval Boar risen from the ocean of dissolution.

15.6

For a moment, he, whose shoulders were adorned and hard as jointed mountain peaks, clung to a pillar,
shaking it and shaking the entire assembly even more.

15.7

Made tawny by the gleam of golden armlets, his arms shone
as if surrounded on all sides by masses of flames of the fire of wrath.

15.8

With curved brows and a forehead hardened by deep knitting of the brows, his cruel face became
as though a third eye had once again taken its place upon it.

15.9

Turning intensely red and set upon recklessness, his gaze, fearless of the blade of the sword,
settled upon the assembly as if upon a companion.

15.10

With clenched fist he struck his own thigh, hard as a boulder of an enormous mountain, / with a resounding crash heard by the terrified, fickle, and trembling people.

15.11

Thus he grew exceedingly enraged: indeed, when encountering a great unpleasantness, / even a disciplined mind suffers agitation, how much more so one by nature unrestrained?

15.12

First forming a bud born of bodily agitation, that unperturbed one, / bound to yield the fruit of future conflict, caused the flower of his anger to blossom forth with words.

15.13

Then, making the assembly resound, fearless, with a voice deep as the rumble of a rain-filled cloud, / he spoke under the sway of intense rage, with extremely harsh and distinct syllables:

15.14

“Since you have honoured here, O son of Pṛthā, Murajit, who is unhonoured by the virtuous, / ah, great affection is displaying itself! For a person regards whatever is beloved as possessing virtues.

Since this respectful guest-offering, due to a king, has been offered here to the foe of Mura who is no king, / he enjoys it like a village beast enjoying the sacrificial offering, while the fires that are the earthly lords are blazing!

15.16

‘You do not speak an untruth’—thus are you proclaimed in the world by the beat of drums; / yet, as you revere the contemptible Hari, your falseness blossoms forth by your very deed!

15.17

How is this improper title of yours, ‘King of Dharma,’ recited? / Or do people indeed call Tuesday, though extremely inauspicious, ‘Auspicious’?

15.18

Or if, O sons of Pṛthā, this Śauri is somehow the most worthy of honour for you, / why were all these rulers of the earth invited here—only to be insulted?

15.19

Or perhaps, being simpletons, you do not understand duty whose observance is hard to grasp; / here the son of the river, a diseased-headed wretch of ruined intellect, careless, has been protected in vain!

15.20

You yourself, O son of Śaṃtanu, declared the group deserving of the respectful guest-offering; / among them, which one is this foe of Mura, whom you praise in vain like a faultless bard?

15.21

Leaving aside the lofty assembly of earth-holders, you, utterly stupid, / constantly intent and fickle toward what is low—clearly you are the son of the river running downward!

15.22

And it is not fitting for you, dear sir, to accept an honour worthy of kings; / consider, O Kṛṣṇa, ‘Who am I?’ Ignorance of oneself is clearly the abode of calamities.

15.23

How can it be believed that some demon named Madhu was slain by you? / Having crushed bees with a stick, you are renowned as ‘Slayer of Madhu’ because you destroy honey!

15.24

For you who took refuge in the couch of Mucukunda, whose vigour was curtailed by the lord of Magadha, / ah, weakling, your ‘strength’ is established only through your companionship with the son of Rohiṇī!

15.25

Deceiving people with falsehoods, clever in trickery, a magician, / you enjoy the affection of the daughter of Nagnajit, and are mistakenly believed to have desired truth!

15.26

You who did not hold your discus in battle, trembling with fear of the enemy host— / you constantly bear this chariot-wheel in the worlds merely for the convention: ‘Discus-Bearer’!

15.27

Though destitute of fortune in the world, because you married the daughter of the ocean / whose name is given to her by her kinsmen, you have therefore achieved the fame: ‘Lord of Śrī’!

15.28

Because, though you never showed valour against enemies in battle, / you somehow placed your foot in the sky, you are designated in the world as ‘Valorous’!

15.29

If you bore the earth in former times, this too turns out to be a virtue; / otherwise, how could you, who caused others to lose their land, be spoken of by people as ‘Earth-Supporter’?

15.30

This is also your fortunate state: that although compared for an instant with all kings, / because you held a small mountain with your tired palm, you are called on earth ‘Equal to the Earth-Holders’!

15.31

Unable, while engaged in auspicious deeds, to conquer Naraka—harsh in its ripening, / your intellect being unskilful—you conquered the son of the earth for world renown!

15.32

This body of yours, a gathering of all faults, has been abandoned / by all virtues; O devoid of virtues, why do you vainly undertake the exertion of abandoning the triad of guṇas?

15.33

This honour paid to you in the world, O rogue devoid of virtues, / is utterly absurd and causes laughter, like a comb upon a head devoid of hair!

15.34

That before the eyes of the sons of Pṛthā this reverence was shown to him / as to a wild dog, just like [an insult] to lions—this is an utter humiliation for you, O lords of the earth!

15.35

If this man, like an outcaste who slaughters an ox, has slain a bull [and destroyed virtue], / his impure body deserves no touch, and certainly no honour worthy of kings!

15.36

If his mind did not soften towards Pūtanā with the thought, ‘She is a woman’— / while he, remorseless at heart, drank her milk, she was indeed by law even his mother!

15.37

The overturning of the cart, the breaking of the trees, the holding up of the mountain, and the rest— / what wonder can there be for steadfast minds at the deed this fickle fellow performed?

15.38

This other king-beast, who protected beasts, caused the slaying of the son of Ugrasena, / a deed hard for men to perform—this alone was extraordinary!

15.39

Having thus uttered arrogant words, along with the splitter of the Veṇu, / he, unable to endure, having borne the burden of the enemy's army, clapped his hands and laughed aloud.

15.40

Even at the bitter words of the king of Cedi, Mādhava underwent no perturbation; / who among people is able with mere words to shake a good man steadfast in truth?

15.41

And the Yadu kings, though he was reviling [their lord], did not become enraged; / their minds were restrained by Śauri’s agreement, for people surely follow the intention of their master.

15.42

Bound by the unbreakable cord of his own word, Acyuta / mentally counted first which number this offense of his was, who was repeatedly committing transgressions.

15.43

Not all the wrongs done by his enemy entered the path of his memory; / indeed, the best of men, who remember virtues they have perceived, are not adept at remembering every fault.

15.44

Then, as the king insulted Śauri, the son of the heavenly river spoke words / that imitated the roar of the agitated ocean when the wind shakes the earth.

15.45

Then, not taking into account that censure of himself out of his own dignity, / the son of the Jāhnavī, agitated by the insult to the foe of Mura, spoke these words:

15.46

‘This worship of Acyuta has been performed by me today in the assembly, and let it not be endured: / whoever objects, let him bend his bow; this foot has been placed upon the heads of all kings!’

15.47

As if having comprehended the meaning of the words uttered by Bhīṣma, instantly / the host of kings belonging to Śiśupāla’s party was plunged into excessive agitation.

15.48

With copper eyes indicated by dark pupils, reddened with rage, / Bāṇa’s face blazed forth to terrify the world, like the solar orb with its fiery rays.

15.49

Blazing with blossoms that were fierce, reddened, wide-opened eyes, throbbing,
with a body copper-red as the morning sun, Druma stood like another Upas tree.

15.50

By the fire of relentless hatred that had dried up all inner coolness,
fanned by the wind of wrath, Naraka's son flared up violently like a dry tree.

15.51

As he wished to utter something, the face of Uttamaujas seemed distorted like Rāhu's face,
with a gleaming row of white teeth, as if swallowing the moon.

15.52

Laughter immediately revealed the angry form of the enraged Dantavakra,
terrible to his ring of foes, with a roar like a mountain cliff shattered by a thunderbolt.

15.53

Wrath, coming from elsewhere, took possession of the group of kings;
for Rukmin, his own resentment, born of the abduction of his sister, welled up.

15.54

Subala struck with his foot the earth, whose mountain-bindings loosened,
its ocean waters trembling at the shores, the hoods of the Lord of Serpents bent down.

15.55

Yet even as the kings grew enraged at the worship of the Discus-Handed,
Āhuka felt great joy, as if a friend, seeing in his heart the arrival of conflict.

15.56

Blocked in his speech by immense fury, the dark Yavana took on a terrible aspect,
his gaping, dreadful cave of a mouth open as if to devour the whole universe as he sought to speak.

15.57

With the great iron-club-like bars of his arms extended, Vasu, stepping forward in haste
to slay all the kings, stumbled over his own trailing garment.

15.58

Thus the circle of kings took on diverse distorted forms, appearing terrifying
before Hari, the Bodhisattva, whose mind remained unshaken, like the host of Māra.

15.59

Then the kings, desirous of battle and feeling no improper fear, rose up impetuously,
the crystals [of the floor] sparkling with the reflected light of their thick diadem rays in the assembly.

15.60

With their eyes fluttering like flowers, their lips like petals, and their broad creeper-like arms shaken,
the assembled kings, like trembling trees, lent the assembly the illusion of a grove struck by a swift wind.

15.61

They counted Hari as straw, nor did they reckon the lord of the Kurus;
weighing the three worlds by their pride, the kings did not fear the son of the River.

15.62

Then, sighing heavily, his body trembling with anguish, his tooth-rays scattering sparks of fire,
this king of Cedi spewed the venom of his speech like a hooded serpent:

15.63

"Kings! Why do you not, along with these five sons of paramours,
strike down this servant deserving of death, together with this aged king's daughter?

15.64

Or rather, you who do not reckon the might of the hosts of gods, stay where you are!
What amount of matter is this man? He is not even fit to look upon my face in battle!

15.65

Let that man, whom the son of the River and the son of Dharma know in this supreme assembly,
go to the touchstone of battle; what use is mere speech? Let him be good or bad!

15.66

When he has soon entered into battle with me, let the earth drink his blood,
drunk first by the points of my sharp arrows, along with the flocks of birds!"

15.67

Having spoken thus harshly, he then abruptly disregarded the conciliatory words
uttered by the son of Pṛthā—'Do not go!'—and departed from the assembly.

15.68

Naturally courteous, and feeling pity for one who had come to their home,
the Pāṇḍavas, their minds magnified by forbearance, did not grow angry at their mother's sister's son.

15.69

Then, as Damaghoṣa's son set forth, his desire unopposed, from the sacrificial ground of the king of the earth,
the sons of kings swiftly followed him, as if they were his retinue.

15.70

With swift horses he quickly sped through the streets;
he paid no heed to the desires of the women who rushed out in eager haste to see him.

15.71

While the people on the road stared for a moment, whispering to one another, 'What is this?',
he, his mind devoid of hesitation, reached his camp and quickly assembled his army.

15.72

Filled by the rapid blast of breath from the hurrying conch-blower's mouth,
his war-conch resounded, its blast echoing against the slopes of the mountain ridges.

15.73

His war-drum was struck, its deep native sound absorbing heavy echoes,
raising a dreadful, harsh roar like that assembled at the end of the world.

15.74

All at once, crowded with all the people moving about in confusion and agitation,
that encampment assumed the likeness of the firmament with the orb of stars set in motion all around.

15.75

Looking most terrifying and attaining the likeness of a mountain
veiled in a sheet of smoke, the kings quickly clad themselves in armour.

15.76

Another king, in anger, ground to fine dust between his two palms
the massive armour that had been brought with difficulty after a long time by a bewildered servant.

15.77

In the tumult of the army spreading with the rising frenzy of battle,
the attendants somehow managed to mount the defensive wicker cage upon the elephant shedding musth.

15.78

And on all sides, the kings of vast bodies, with radiant solar discs on their polished gold ornaments,
spread across the earth like the sons of Śrī with their obvious fiery energy.

15.79

Moving amid the dense ring of dust raised by the fellies of their wheels,
the chariots fell upon them like lightning bolts, distressing the creatures with their heavy rumblings.

15.80

Bearing bodies whose radiant breastplates had the lustre of the hared moon,
the kings then left incomplete their drinking of wine with the ladies of the inner apartments.

15.81

The wine-cup raised for her beloved fell from the failing hand of the royal maiden—
heavy with a swarm of bees descending upon the lotus placed in it.

15.82

Displacing the intoxication of the women, whose vision was blurred, grief itself brought about its very symptoms:
severe trembling of limbs, a pitiable state, pale cheeks, and broken speech.

15.83

Spoken to by the youths eager to depart for the conflict,
the fair-eyed women, their voices choked with grief in their throats, responded only with swiftly flowing tears.

15.84

The beloved women were embraced by their lovers, eager to depart, with broad chests
firm like vast mountain surfaces, bursting their excellent tunics by the pressure of the women's full breasts.

15.85

The graceful woman, desiring victory and auspicious fortune for her beloved, shed no tears from her eyes;
she did not even notice the bracelet slipping from her arm, which drooped down towards the ground.

15.86

As her dearest lord was about to depart, the newly married beauty cast her gaze at his pair of feet
like a shackle, possessing the splendour of a dark blue lotus petal.

15.87

The broken utterance spoken by the child—'Where are you going, father, where are you going?'—
its sense clear from habit, broke the warrior's resolve, his distress heightened by the mother's rebukes.

15.88

Another woman, out of jealousy, said to her lover passionate for battle:
'Deceiver! You wish to sport in unceasing lovemaking with the heavenly nymphs—that is why you are joyful!'

15.89

Even though restrained, a tear fell from the bow-browed woman as her lover departed; / for those of exceedingly innocent minds who bear a sincere love, this alone is fitting.

15.90

Together with collyrium, the stream of tears from the fair-bodied woman's lotus eyes / shone about her cheek-surface like the trail of the fire of grief.

15.91

Obstructing for just a moment, as he walked a few steps, the tinkling of the falling bracelets / from the slipping pair of arms of the bow-browed lady was heard like a sneeze in front [as an ill omen].

15.92

Going swiftly along the ground like the sky on the path of her dearest lover, / a certain woman with her spotless, trailing garment slipping away shone like a great meteor.

15.93

Even as the company of kings faced the battle, the warriors' wives, their minds solely resolute on following their husbands in death, / whose tears were caused [only] by their miserable dependents, did not waver in their steadfast resolve.

15.94

As if knowing that sight of him would be exceedingly hard to attain again, / the young woman with an unsated mind gazed unblinkingly at her departing husband with the intense gaze of her eyes.

15.95

“May you now return safely from the battle!”—this blessing affectionately spoken by the husband / was immediately and forcibly contradicted by the tears falling from the pair of eyes of the warrior's wife.

15.96

A certain woman, covered with dust, imitated the sky, the beauty of her moon-face broken; some, bereft of splendour, their inner faculties agitated, bore a burning distress like the quarters of space; / others whirled like whirlwinds; others shook at every step like the earth: thus the women proclaimed in advance the future misfortune at the departure of the kings.

Commentaries (2)

Sarvaṅkaṣā — Mallinātha Sūri, Sanskrit
Śiśupālavadhaṭīkā — Mallinātha, Sanskrit

Linked texts (1)

Śiśupālavadha — Māgha, Sanskrit