SECTION CCXXIII
(Haranaharana Parva)
"Vaisampayana said, 'When the heroes of the
Vrishni race began to speak repeatedly in this strain, Vasudeva uttered these
words pregnant with deep import and consistent with true morality. Gudakesa
(the conqueror of sleep or he of the curly hair), by what he hath done, hath
not insulted our family. He hath without doubt, rather enhanced our respect.
Partha knoweth that we of the Satwata race are never mercenary. The son of Pandu
also regardeth a self-choice as doubtful in its results. Who also would approve
of accepting a bride in gift as if she were an animal? What man again is there
on earth that would sell his offspring? I think Arjuna, seeing these faults in
all the other methods took the maiden away by force, according to the
ordinance. This alliance is very proper. Subhadra is a renowned girl. Partha
too possesseth renown. Perhaps, thinking of all this, Arjuna hath taken her
away by force. Who is there that would not desire to have Arjuna for a friend,
who is born in the race of Bharata and the renowned Santanu, and the son also
of the daughter of Kuntibhoja? I do not see, in all the worlds with Indra and
the Rudras, the person that can by force vanquish Partha in battle, except the
three-eyed god Mahadeva. His car is well-known. Yoked thereunto are those
steeds of mine. Partha as a warrior is well-known; and his lightness of hand is
well-known. Who shall be equal to him? Even this is my opinion: go ye
cheerfully after Dhananjaya and by conciliation stop him and bring him back. If
Partha goes to his city after having vanquished us by force, our fame will be
gone. There is no disgrace, however, in conciliation.' Hearing, O monarch,
those words of Vasudeva, they did as he directed. Stopped by them, Arjuna
returned to Dwaraka and was united in marriage with Subhadra. Worshipped by the
sons of Vrishni's race, Arjuna, sporting there as he pleased, passed a whole
year in Dwaraka. The last year of his exile the exalted one passed at the
sacred region of Pushkara. After the twelve years were complete he came back to
Khandavaprastha. He approached the king first and then worshipped the Brahmanas
with respectful attention. At last the hero went unto Draupadi. Draupadi, from
jealousy, spoke unto him, saying, 'Why tarriest thou here, O son of Kunti? Go
where the daughter of the Satwata race is! A second tie always relaxeth the
first one upon a faggot!' And Krishna lamented much in this strain. But
Dhananjaya pacified her repeatedly and asked for her forgiveness. And returning
soon unto where Subhadra, attired in red silk, was staying, Arjuna, sent her
into the inner apartments dressed not as a queen but in the simple garb of a
cowherd woman. But arrived at the palace, the renowned Subhadra looked
handsomer in that dress. The celebrated Bhadra of large and slightly red eyes
first worshipped Pritha. Kunti from excess of affection smelt the head of that
girl of perfectly faultless features, and pronounced infinite blessing upon
her. Then that girl of face like the full moon hastily went unto Draupadi and
worshipped her, saying, 'I am thy maid!' Krishna rose hastily and embraced the
sister of Madhava from affection, and said, 'Let thy husband be without a foe!'
Bhadra then, with a delighted heart, said unto Draupadi, 'So be it!' From that
time, O Janamejaya, those great warriors, the Pandavas, began to live happily,
and Kunti also became very happy.'
"Vaisampayana continued, 'When that scorcher
of foes, viz., Kesava of pure soul and eyes, like lotus-petals, heard that the
foremost of the Pandavas, viz., Arjuna, had reached his own excellent city of
Indraprastha, he came thither accompanied by Rama and the other heroes and
great warriors of the Vrishni and the Andhaka tribes, and by his brothers and
sons and many other brave warriors. And Saurin came accompanied by a large army
that protected him. And there came with Saurin, that oppressor of foes, viz.,
the exceedingly liberal Akrura of great intelligence and renown, the
generalissimo of the brave Vrishni host. And there also came Anadhrishti of
great prowess, and Uddhava of great renown, of great intelligence, of great
soul, and a disciple of Vrihaspati himself. And there also came Satyaka and
Salyaka and Kritavarman and Satwata; and Pradyumna and Samva and Nisatha and
Sanku; and Charudeshna, and Jhilli of great prowess, and Viprithu also and
Sarana of mighty arms and Gada, the foremost of learned men. These and many
other Vrishnis and Bhojas, and Andhakas came to Indraprastha, bringing with
them many nuptial presents. King Yudhishthira, hearing that Madhava had
arrived, sent the twins out to receive him. Received by them, the Vrishni host
of great prosperity entered Khandavaprastha well-adorned with flags and
ensigns. The streets were well-swept and watered and decked with floral wreaths
and bunches. These were, again, sprinkled over with sandalwood water that was
fragrant and cooling. Every part of the town was filled with the sweet scent of
burning aloes. And the city was full of joyous and healthy people and adorned
with merchants and traders. That best of men, viz., Kesava of mighty arms,
accompanied by Rama and many of the Vrishnis, Andhakas and Bhojas, having
entered the town, was worshipped by the citizens and Brahmanas by thousands. At
last Kesava entered the palace of the king which was like unto the mansion of
Indra himself. Beholding Rama, Yudhishthira received him with due ceremonies.
The king smelt the head of Kesava and embraced him. Govinda, gratified with the
reception, humbly worshipped Yudhishthira. He also paid homage unto Bhima, that
tiger among men. Yudhishthira the son of Kunti then received the other
principal men of the Vrishni and the Andhaka tribes with due ceremonies.
Yudhishthira reverentially worshipped some as his superiors, and welcomed
others as equals. And some he received with affection and by some he was
worshipped with reverence. Then Hrishikesa of great renown gave unto the party
of the bridegroom much wealth. And unto Subhadra he gave the nuptial presents
that had been given to her by her relatives. Krishna gave unto the Pandavas a
thousand cars of gold furnished with rows of bells, and unto each of which were
put four steeds driven by well-trained charioteers. He also gave unto them ten
thousand cows belonging to the country of Mathura, and yielding much milk and
all of excellent colour. Well-pleased, Janardana also gave them a thousand
mares with gold harnesses and of colour white as the beams of the moon. He also
gave them a thousand mules, all well-trained and possessing the speed of the
wind, of white colour with black manes. And he of eyes like lotus-petals also
gave unto them a thousand damsels well-skilled in assisting at bathing and at
drinking, young in years and virgins all before their first-season,
well-attired and of excellent complexion, each wearing a hundred pieces of gold
around her neck, of skins perfectly polished, decked with every ornament, and
well-skilled in every kind of personal service. Janardana also gave unto them
hundreds of thousands of draft horses from the country of the Valhikas as
Subhadra's excellent dower. That foremost one of Dasarha's race also gave unto
Subhadra as her peculium ten carrier-loads of first class gold possessing the
splendour of fire, some purified and some in a state of ore. And Rama having
the plough for his weapon and always loving bravery gave unto Arjuna, as a
nuptial present, a thousand elephants with secretions flowing in three streams
from the three parts of their bodies (the temple, the ears, and the anus) each
large as a mountain summit, irresistible in battle, decked with coverlets and
bells, well-adorned with other golden ornaments, and equipped with excellent
thrones on their backs. And that large wave of wealth and gems that the Yadavas
presented, together with the cloths and blankets that represented its foam, and
the elephants its alligators and sharks, and the flags its floating weeds
swelling into large proportions, mingled with the Pandu ocean and filled it to
the brim, to the great sorrow of all foes. Yudhishthira accepted all those
presents and worshipped all those great warriors of the Vrishni and the Andhaka
races. Those illustrious heroes of the Kuru, the Vrishni, and the Andhaka races
passed their days in pleasure and merriment there like virtuous men (after
death) in the celestial regions. The Kurus and the Vrishnis with joyous hearts
amused themselves there, setting up at times loud shouts mingled with clappings
of the hand. Spending many days in sports and merriment there, and worshipped
by the Kurus all the while, the Vrishni heroes endued with great energy then
returned to the city of Dwaravati. And the great warriors of the Vrishni and
the Andhaka races set out with Rama in the van, carrying with them those gems
of the purest rays that had been given them by those foremost ones of Kuru's
race. And, O Bharata, the high-souled Vasudeva remained there with Arjuna in
the delightful city of Indraprastha. And the illustrious one wandered over the
banks of the Yamuna in search of deer. And he sported with Arjuna piercing with
his shafts deer and wild boars. Then Subhadra, the favourite sister of Kesava,
gave birth to an illustrious son, like Puloma's daughter, (the queen of heaven)
bringing forth Jayanta. And the son that Subhadra brought forth was of long
arms, broad chest, and eyes as large as those of a bull. That hero and
oppressor of foes came to be called Abhimanyu. And the son of Arjuna, that
grinder of foes and bull among men, was called Abhimanyu because he was
fearless and wrathful. And that great warrior was begotten upon the daughter of
the Satwata race by Dhananjaya, like fire produced in a sacrifice from within
the sami wood by the process of rubbing. Upon the birth of this child,
Yudhishthira, the powerful son of Kunti, gave away unto Brahmanas ten thousand
cows and coins of gold. The child from his earliest years became the favourite
of Vasudeva and of his father and uncles, like the moon of all the people of
the world. Upon his birth, Krishna performed the usual rites of infancy. The
child began to grow up like the Moon of the bright fortnight. That grinder of
foes soon became conversant with the Vedas and acquired from his father the
science of weapon both celestial and human, consisting of four branches and ten
divisions.
"Endued with great strength, the child also
acquired the knowledge of counteracting the weapons hurled at him by others,
and great lightness of hand and fleetness of motion forward and backward and
transverse and wheeling. Abhimanyu became like unto his father in knowledge of
the scriptures and rites of religion. And Dhananjaya, beholding his son, became
filled with joy. Like Maghavat beholding Arjuna, the latter beheld his son
Abhimanyu and became exceedingly happy. Abhimanyu possessed the power of
slaying every foe and bore on his person every auspicious mark. He was
invisible in battle and broad-shouldered as the bull. Possessing a broad face
as (the hood of) the snake, he was proud like the lion. Wielding a large bow,
his prowess was like that of an elephant in rut. Possessed of a face handsome
as the full-moon, and of a voice deep as the sound of the drum or the clouds,
he was equal unto Krishna in bravery and energy, in beauty and in features. The
auspicious Panchali also, from her five husbands, obtained five sons all of
whom were heroes of the foremost rank and immovable in battle like the hills.
Prativindhya by Yudhishthira, Sutasoma by Vrikodara, Srutakarman by Arjuna,
Satanika by Nakula, and Srutasena by Sahadeva,--these were the five heroes and
great warriors that Panchali brought forth, like Aditi bringing forth the
Adityas. And the Brahmanas, from their foreknowledge, said unto Yudhishthira
that as the son of his would be capable of bearing like the Vindhya mountains
the weapons of the foe, he should be called Prativindhya. And because the child
that Draupadi bore to Bhimasena was born after Bhima had performed a thousand
Soma sacrifices, he came to be called Sutasoma. And because Arjuna's son was
born upon his return from exile during which he had achieved many celebrated
feats, that child came to be called Srutakarman. While Nakula named his son
Satanika after a royal sage of that name, in the illustrious race of Kuru.
Again the son that Draupadi bore to Sahadeva was born under the constellation
called Vahni-daivata (Krittika), therefore was he called after the
generalissimo of the celestial host, Srutasena (Kartikeya). The sons of
Draupadi were born, each at the interval of one year, and all of them became
renowned and much attached to one another. And, O monarch, all their rites of
infancy and childhood, such as Chudakarana and Upanayana (first shave of the
head and investiture with the sacred threads) were performed by Dhaumya
according to the ordinance. All of them, of excellent behaviour and vows, after
having studied the Vedas, acquired from Arjuna a knowledge of all the weapons,
celestial and human. And, O tiger among kings, the Pandavas, having obtained
sons all of whom were equal unto the children of the celestials and endued with
broad chests, and all of whom became great warriors, were filled with
joy.'"
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