Mahabharata 1.150: pañcāśadadhikaśatatamo'dhyāyaḥ

1.150.1

vaiśaṃpāyana uvāca |
kariṣya iti bhīmena pratijñāte tu bhārata |
ājagmuste tataḥ sarve bhaikṣamādāya pāṇḍavāḥ || 1 ||

(Vaka-vadha Parva continued)

"Vaisampayana said, 'After Bhima had pledged himself to accomplish the task, saying, 'I will do it,' the Pandavas, O Bharata, returned home with the alms they had obtained during the day. Then Yudhishthira, the son of Pandu from Bhima's countenance alone, suspected the nature of the task he had undertaken to accomplish. Sitting by the side of his mother, Yudhishthira asked her in private, 'What is the task, O mother, that Bhima of terrible prowess seeketh to accomplish? Doth he do so at thy command or of his own accord?' Kunti replied, 'Bhima, that chastiser of foes, will at my command, do this great deed for the good of the Brahmana and the liberation of this town.'

"Yudhishthira said, 'What rash act hast thou done, O mother! It is difficult of being performed and almost amounteth to suicide! The learned never applaud the abandonment of one's own child. Why dost thou, O mother, wish to sacrifice thy own child for the sake of another's? Thou hast, O mother, by this abandonment of thy child, acted not only against the course of human practices but also against the teachings of the Vedas, That Bhima, relying on whose arms we sleep happily in the night and hope to recover the kingdom of which we have been deprived by the covetous son of Dhritarashtra, that hero of immeasurable energy, remembering whose prowess Duryodhana and Sakuni do not sleep a wink during the whole night and by whose prowess we were rescued from the palace of lac and various other dangers, that Bhima who caused the death of Purochana, and relying on whose might we regard ourselves as having already slain the sons of Dhritarashtra and acquired the whole earth with all her wealth, upon what considerations, O mother, hast thou resolved upon abandoning him? Hast thou been deprived of thy reason? Hath thy understanding been clouded by the calamities thou hast undergone?'

"On hearing these words of her son, Kunti said, 'O Yudhishthira, thou needst not be at all anxious on account of Vrikodara. I have not come to this resolve owing to any weakness of understanding. Respected by him, and with our sorrows assuaged, we have, O son, been living in the house of this Brahmana, unknown to the sons of Dhritarashtra. For requiting, O son, that Brahmana, I have resolved to do this. He, indeed, is a man upon whom good offices are never lost. The measure of his requital becometh greater than the measure of the services he receiveth. Beholding the prowess of Bhima on the occasion of (our escape from) the house of lac, and from the destruction also of Hidimva, my confidence in Vrikodara is great. The might of Bhima's arms is equal unto that of ten thousand elephants. It was, therefore, that he succeeded in carrying you all, each heavy as an elephant, from Varanavata. There is no one on earth equal unto Bhima in might; he may even overcome that foremost of warriors, the holder of the thunderbolt himself. Soon after his birth he fell from my lap on the breast of the mountain. By the weight of his body the mass of stone on which he fell down broke in pieces. From this also, O son of Pandu, I have come to know Bhima's might. For this reason have I resolved to set him against the Brahmana's foe. I have not acted in this from foolishness or ignorance or from motive of gain. I have deliberately resolved to do this virtuous deed. By this act, O Yudhishthira, two objects will be accomplished; one is a requital of the services rendered by the Brahmana and the other is the acquisition of high religious merit. It is my conviction that the Kshatriya who rendereth help unto a Brahmana in anything acquireth regions of bliss hereafter. So also a Kshatriya who saveth the life of a Kshatriya achieveth that great fame in this world as in the other. A Kshatriya rendering help unto a Vaisya also on this earth certainly acquires world-wide popularity. One of the kingly tribe should protect even the Sudra who cometh to him for protection. If he doeth so, in his next life he receiveth his birth in a royal line, commanding prosperity and the respect of other kings. O scion of Puru's race, the illustrious Vyasa of wisdom acquired by hard ascetic toil told me so in bygone days. It is therefore, that I have resolved upon accomplishing this.'"

"Vaisampayana said, 'After Bhima had pledged himself to accomplish the task, saying, 'I will do it,' the Pandavas, O Bharata, returned home with the alms they had obtained during the day. Then Yudhishthira, the son of Pandu from Bhima's countenance alone, suspected the nature of the task he had undertaken to accomplish. Sitting by the side of his mother, Yudhishthira asked her in private, 'What is the task, O mother, that Bhima of terrible prowess seeketh to accomplish? Doth he do so at thy command or of his own accord?' Kunti replied, 'Bhima, that chastiser of foes, will at my command, do this great deed for the good of the Brahmana and the liberation of this town.'

1.150.2

ākāreṇaiva taṃ jñātvā pāṇḍuputro yudhiṣṭhiraḥ |
rahaḥ samupaviśyaikastataḥ papraccha mātaram || 2 ||

1.150.3

kiṃ cikīrṣatyayaṃ karma bhīmo bhīmaparākramaḥ |
bhavatyanumate kaccidayaṃ kartumihecchati || 3 ||

1.150.4

kuntyuvāca |
mamaiva vacanādeṣa kariṣyati paraṃtapaḥ |
brāhmaṇārthe mahatkṛtyaṃ moṣkāya nagarasya ca || 4 ||

1.150.5

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
kimidaṃ sāhasaṃ tīkṣṇaṃ bhavatyā duṣkṛtaṃ kṛtam |
parityāgaṃ hi putrasya na praśaṃsanti sādhavaḥ || 5 ||

"Yudhishthira said, 'What rash act hast thou done, O mother! It is difficult of being performed and almost amounteth to suicide! The learned never applaud the abandonment of one's own child. Why dost thou, O mother, wish to sacrifice thy own child for the sake of another's? Thou hast, O mother, by this abandonment of thy child, acted not only against the course of human practices but also against the teachings of the Vedas, That Bhima, relying on whose arms we sleep happily in the night and hope to recover the kingdom of which we have been deprived by the covetous son of Dhritarashtra, that hero of immeasurable energy, remembering whose prowess Duryodhana and Sakuni do not sleep a wink during the whole night and by whose prowess we were rescued from the palace of lac and various other dangers, that Bhima who caused the death of Purochana, and relying on whose might we regard ourselves as having already slain the sons of Dhritarashtra and acquired the whole earth with all her wealth, upon what considerations, O mother, hast thou resolved upon abandoning him? Hast thou been deprived of thy reason? Hath thy understanding been clouded by the calamities thou hast undergone?'

1.150.6

kathaṃ parasutasyārthe svasutaṃ tyaktumicchasi |
lokavṛttiviruddhaṃ vai putratyāgātkṛtaṃ tvayā || 6 ||

1.150.7

yasya bāhū samāśritya sukhaṃ sarve svapāmahe |
rājyaṃ cāpahṛtaṃ kṣudrairājihīrṣāmahe punaḥ || 7 ||

1.150.8

yasya duryodhano vīryaṃ cintayannamitaujasaḥ |
na śete vasatīḥ sarvā duḥkhācchakuninā saha || 8 ||

1.150.9

yasya vīrasya vīryeṇa muktā jatugṛhādvayam |
anyebhyaścaiva pāpebhyo nihataśca purocanaḥ || 9 ||

1.150.10

yasya vīryaṃ samāśritya vasupūrṇāṃ vasuṃdharām |
imāṃ manyāmahe prāptāṃ nihatya dhṛtarāṣṭrajān || 10 ||

1.150.11

tasya vyavasitastyāgo buddhimāsthāya kāṃ tvayā |
kaccinna duḥkhairbuddhiste viplutā gatacetasaḥ || 11 ||

1.150.12

kuntyuvāca |
yudhiṣṭhira na saṃtāpaḥ kāryaḥ prati vṛkodaram |
na cāyaṃ buddhidaurbalyādvyavasāyaḥ kṛto mayā || 12 ||

"On hearing these words of her son, Kunti said, 'O Yudhishthira, thou needst not be at all anxious on account of Vrikodara. I have not come to this resolve owing to any weakness of understanding. Respected by him, and with our sorrows assuaged, we have, O son, been living in the house of this Brahmana, unknown to the sons of Dhritarashtra. For requiting, O son, that Brahmana, I have resolved to do this. He, indeed, is a man upon whom good offices are never lost. The measure of his requital becometh greater than the measure of the services he receiveth. Beholding the prowess of Bhima on the occasion of (our escape from) the house of lac, and from the destruction also of Hidimva, my confidence in Vrikodara is great. The might of Bhima's arms is equal unto that of ten thousand elephants. It was, therefore, that he succeeded in carrying you all, each heavy as an elephant, from Varanavata. There is no one on earth equal unto Bhima in might; he may even overcome that foremost of warriors, the holder of the thunderbolt himself. Soon after his birth he fell from my lap on the breast of the mountain. By the weight of his body the mass of stone on which he fell down broke in pieces. From this also, O son of Pandu, I have come to know Bhima's might. For this reason have I resolved to set him against the Brahmana's foe. I have not acted in this from foolishness or ignorance or from motive of gain. I have deliberately resolved to do this virtuous deed. By this act, O Yudhishthira, two objects will be accomplished; one is a requital of the services rendered by the Brahmana and the other is the acquisition of high religious merit. It is my conviction that the Kshatriya who rendereth help unto a Brahmana in anything acquireth regions of bliss hereafter. So also a Kshatriya who saveth the life of a Kshatriya achieveth that great fame in this world as in the other. A Kshatriya rendering help unto a Vaisya also on this earth certainly acquires world-wide popularity. One of the kingly tribe should protect even the Sudra who cometh to him for protection. If he doeth so, in his next life he receiveth his birth in a royal line, commanding prosperity and the respect of other kings. O scion of Puru's race, the illustrious Vyasa of wisdom acquired by hard ascetic toil told me so in bygone days. It is therefore, that I have resolved upon accomplishing this.'"

1.150.13

iha viprasya bhavane vayaṃ putra sukhoṣitāḥ |
tasya pratikriyā tāta mayeyaṃ prasamīkṣitā |
etāvāneva puruṣaḥ kṛtaṃ yasminna naśyati || 13 ||

1.150.14

dṛṣṭvā bhīmasya vikrāntaṃ tadā jatugṛhe mahat |
hiḍimbasya vadhāccaiva viśvāso me vṛkodare || 14 ||

1.150.15

bāhvorbalaṃ hi bhīmasya nāgāyutasamaṃ mahat |
yena yūyaṃ gajaprakhyā nirvyūḍhā vāraṇāvatāt || 15 ||

1.150.16

vṛkodarabalo nānyo na bhūto na bhaviṣyati |
yo'bhyudīyādyudhi śreṣṭhamapi vajradharaṃ svayam || 16 ||

1.150.17

jātamātraḥ purā caiṣa mamāṅkātpatito girau |
śarīragauravāttasya śilā gātrairvicūrṇitā || 17 ||

1.150.18

tadahaṃ prajñayā smṛtvā balaṃ bhīmasya pāṇḍava |
pratīkāraṃ ca viprasya tataḥ kṛtavatī matim || 18 ||

1.150.19

nedaṃ lobhānna cājñānānna ca mohādviniścitam |
buddhipūrvaṃ tu dharmasya vyavasāyaḥ kṛto mayā || 19 ||

1.150.20

arthau dvāvapi niṣpannau yudhiṣṭhira bhaviṣyataḥ |
pratīkāraśca vāsasya dharmaśca carito mahān || 20 ||

1.150.21

yo brāhmaṇasya sāhāyyaṃ kuryādartheṣu karhicit |
kṣatriyaḥ sa śubhām̐llokānprāpnuyāditi me śrutam || 21 ||

1.150.22

kṣatriyaḥ kṣatriyasyaiva kurvāṇo vadhamokṣaṇam |
vipulāṃ kīrtimāpnoti loke'smiṃśca paratra ca || 22 ||

1.150.23

vaiśyasyaiva tu sāhāyyaṃ kurvāṇaḥ kṣatriyo yudhi |
sa sarveṣvapi lokeṣu prajā rañjayate dhruvam || 23 ||

1.150.24

śūdraṃ tu mokṣayanrājā śaraṇārthinamāgatam |
prāpnotīha kule janma sadravye rājasatkṛte || 24 ||

1.150.25

evaṃ sa bhagavānvyāsaḥ purā kauravanandana |
provāca sutarāṃ prājñastasmādetaccikīrṣitam || 25 ||

1.150.26

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
upapannamidaṃ mātastvayā yadbuddhipūrvakam |
ārtasya brāhmaṇasyaivamanukrośādidaṃ kṛtam |
dhruvameṣyati bhīmo'yaṃ nihatya puruṣādakam || 26 ||

"Having heard these words of his mother, Yudhishthira said, 'What thou, O mother, hast deliberately done, moved by compassion for the afflicted Brahmana, is, indeed, excellent Bhima will certainly come back with life, after having slain the cannibal, inasmuch as thou art, O mother, always compassionate unto Brahmanas. But tell the Brahmana, O mother, that he doth not do anything whereby the dwellers in this town may know all about it, and make him promise to keep thy request.'

(Vaka-vadha Parva continued)

"Having heard these words of his mother, Yudhishthira said, 'What thou, O mother, hast deliberately done, moved by compassion for the afflicted Brahmana, is, indeed, excellent Bhima will certainly come back with life, after having slain the cannibal, inasmuch as thou art, O mother, always compassionate unto Brahmanas. But tell the Brahmana, O mother, that he doth not do anything whereby the dwellers in this town may know all about it, and make him promise to keep thy request.'

"Vaisampayana continued, 'Then, when the night passed away, Bhimasena, the son of Pandu, taking with him the Rakshasa's food set out for the place where the cannibal lived. The mighty son of Pandu, approaching the forest where the Rakshasa dwelt, began to eat himself the food he carried, calling loudly to the Rakshasa by name. The Rakshasa, inflamed with anger at Bhima's words, came out and approached the place where Bhima was.

"Of huge body and great strength, of red eyes, red beard, and red hair, he was terrible to behold, and he came, pressing deep the earth with his tread. The opening of his mouth, was from ear to ear and his ears themselves were straight as arrows. Of grim visage, he had a forehead furrowed into three lines. Beholding Bhima eating his food, the Rakshasa advanced, biting his nether lip and expanding his eyes in wrath. And addressing Bhima he said, 'Who is this fool, who desiring to go to the abode of Yama, eateth in my very sight the food intended for me?' Hearing these words, Bhima, O Bharata, smiled in derision and disregarding the Rakshasa, continued eating with averted face. Beholding this, the cannibal uttered a frightful yell and with both arms upraised ran at Bhima desiring to kill him, there and then. Even then disregarding the Rakshasa and casting only a single glance at him, Vrikodara, that slayer of hostile heroes continued to eat the Rakshasa's food. Filled with wrath at this, the Rakshasa struck, from behind with both his arms a heavy blow on the back of Vrikodara, the son of Kunti. But Bhima, though struck heavily by the mighty Rakshasa, with both his hands, did not even look up at the Rakshasa but continued to eat as before. Then the mighty Rakshasa, inflamed with wrath, tore up a tree and ran at Bhima for striking him again. Meanwhile the mighty Bhima, that bull among men had leisurely eaten up the whole of that food and washing himself stood cheerfully for fight. Then, O Bharata, possessed of great energy, Bhima, smiling in derision, caught with his left hand the tree hurled at him by the Rakshasa in wrath. Then that mighty Rakshasa, tearing up many more trees, hurled them at Bhima, and the Pandava also hurled as many at the Rakshasa. Then, O king, the combat with trees between that human being and the Rakshasa, became so terrible that the region around soon became destitute of trees. Then the Rakshasa, saying that he was none else than Vaka, sprang upon the Pandava and seized the mighty Bhima with his arms. That mighty hero also clasping with his own strong arms the strong-armed Rakshasa, and exerting himself actively, began to drag him violently. Dragged by Bhima and dragging Bhima also, the cannibal was overcome with great fatigue. The earth began to tremble in consequence of the strength they both exerted, and large trees that stood there broke in pieces. Then Bhima, beholding the cannibal overcome with fatigue, pressed him down on the earth with his knees and began to strike him with great force. Then placing one knee on the middle of the Rakshasa's back, Bhima seized his neck with his right hand and the cloth on his waist with his left, and bent him double with great force. The cannibal then roared frightfully. And, [paragraph continues] O monarch, he also began to vomit blood while he was being thus broken on Bhima's knee.'"

1.150.27

yathā tvidaṃ na vindeyurnarā nagaravāsinaḥ |
tathāyaṃ brāhmaṇo vācyaḥ parigrāhyaśca yatnataḥ || 27 ||