Indian Myth and Legend
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Stately pavilions were erected for the kings who came to attend the great sacrifice: their turrets were high, and they were swan-white and flecked with radiant gold. Silver and gold adorned the walls of the rooms, which were richly perfumed and carpeted and furnished to befit the royal guests.
Then the rajahs came to Indra-prastha in all their splendour and greeted mighty Yudhishthira. Those who were friends brought gifts, and those who had been subdued in battle brought tribute. White-haired and blind old Dhritarashtra came, and with him were Kripa and Bhishma and Vidura. Proud Duryodhana and his brethren came also, professing friendship, and Karna came with bow and spear and mace. Drona and his son, and their enemies Drupada and his son, were there also, and Balarama, Krishna's brother, and their father Vasudeva. And among many others were jealous Sishupala257, King of Chedi258, and his son, and both wore bright golden armour.
Many Brahmans assembled at Indra-prastha, and Krishna honoured them and washed their feet. The gifts that were given to these holy sages were beyond computation. In great numbers came men of every caste also; and all were feasted at banquets, so that the words “Take ye and eat” were heard continuously on every hand.
Now there were deep and smouldering jealousies among the assembled rajahs, and when the time came to honour him who was regarded as the greatest among them by presenting the Arghya259, their passions were set ablaze. First Bhishma spake forth and said that the honour was due to Krishna, the pious one, who was the noblest and greatest among them all. “Krishna,” he said, “is the origin of all things; the universe came into being for him alone. He is the incarnation of the Creator, the everlasting one, who is beyond man's comprehension.”
When the Arghya was given unto Krishna, Sishupala, the Rajah of Chedi, arose in wrath and said: “It ill becomes thee, O Yudhishthira, to honour thus an uncrowned chieftain. Gathered about thee are ruling kings of highest fame. If the honour be due to age, then Vasudeva can claim it before his son; if it is due to the foremost rajah, then Drupada should be honoured; if it is due to wisdom, Drona is the most worthy; if it is due to holiness, Vyasa is the greatest. Drona's son hath more knowledge than Krishna, Duryodhana is peerless among younger men, Kripa is the worthiest priest, and Karna the greatest archer. For what reason should homage be paid unto Krishna, who is neither the holiest priest, the wisest preceptor, the greatest warrior, nor the foremost chieftain? To the shame of this assembly be it said that it doth honour the murderer of his own rajah, this cowherd of low birth.”
So spake Sishupala, the tiger-hearted one, and terrible was his wrath. He hated Krishna, because that he had carried away by force the beautiful Rukmini, who had been betrothed unto himself, the mighty Rajah of Chedi.
Krishna then spoke. Calm was he of voice and demeanour, but his eyes were bright. Unto the rajahs he said: “Hear me, O ye princes and kings! The evil-tongued Sishupala is descended from a daughter of our race, and in my heart I have never sought to work ill against a kinsman. But once, when I went eastward, he sacked my sea-swept Dwaraka and laid low its temple; once he broke faith with a rajah and cast him into prison; once he seized the consort of a king by force; and once he disguised himself as the husband of a chaste princess and deceived her. And I have suffered because of his sins, nor sought vengeance, because that he was of our own race. He hath even come after my consort Rukmini, and is worthy of death.”
As he spoke, the faces of many rajahs grew red with shame and anger, but Sishupala laughed aloud and made answer: “I seek no mercy from Krishna, nor do I fear him.”
Then Krishna thought of his bright, resistless discus, and immediately it was in his hand. In anger he spake forth and said: “Hear me, ye lords of earth! I have promised the pious mother of Sishupala to pardon a hundred sins committed by her son. And I have fulfilled my vow. But now the number is more than full, and I will slay him, O ye mighty rajahs, before your eyes.”
Having spoken thus, Krishna flung the discus, and it struck Sishupala on the neck, so that his head was severed from his body. He fell down like to a cliff struck by the thunderbolt. Then the assembled rajahs beheld a great wonder, for the passion-cleansed soul of Sishupala issued from his body, beautiful as the sun in heaven, and went towards Krishna. Its eyes were like to lotus blooms, and its form like to a flame; and it adored Krishna and entered into his body.260
The rajahs all looked on, silent and amazed, while thunder bellowed out of heaven, and lightning flashed, and rain poured down in torrents. Some grew angry, and laid hands on their weapons to avenge the death of Sishupala; others rejoiced that he had been slain; the Brahmans chanted the praises of Krishna.
Yudhishthira commanded his brothers to perform the funeral rites over the dead with every honour. So the body of Sishupala was burned and the oblation poured forth. Then his son was proclaimed Rajah of Chedi.
Thereafter the great sacrifice was performed with solemnity and in peace. Krishna, who had maintained the supremacy of Yudhishthira by slaying a dangerous and jealous rival, looked on benignly.
Holy water was sprinkled by the Brahmans, and all the monarchs made obeisance and honoured Yudhishthira, saying: “Thou hast extended the fame of thy mighty sire, Pandu, and thou art become even greater than he was. Thou hast graced with this sacrifice thine high station and fulfilled all our hopes. Now, O emperor over all, permit us to depart to our own homes, and bestow thy blessing upon us.”
So one by one they took leave of Yudhishthira and went away, and the four Pandavas accompanied the greatest of them to the confines of their kingdoms. Krishna was the last to bid farewell.
Said Yudhishthira: “Unto thee I owe all things. Because thou wert here, O valorous one, I was able to perform the great sacrifice.”
Krishna said: “Monarch of all! rule thou over thy people with a father's wisdom and care. Be unto them like rain which nourisheth the parched fields; be a shade in hot sunshine; be a cloudless heaven bending over all. Be thou ever free from pride and passion; ever rule with power and justice and holiness, O Yudhishthira.”
So he spake from his chariot and then went his way, and Yudhishthira turned homeward with tear-dimmed eyes.
Now when Duryodhana had witnessed the triumph of the Pandavas, his heart burned with jealous rage. He envied the splendour of the palaces at Indra-prastha; he envied the glory achieved by Yudhishthira. Well he knew that he could not overcome the Pandavas in open conflict, so he plotted with his brethren to accomplish their fall by artifice and by wrong.
As in after-time the wise Sanjaya said: “The gods first deprive of his reason that man unto whom they ultimately send disgrace and defeat”.
But Duryodhana had to work the will of the Creator under the influence of fate, and it was doomed that the Pandavas should suffer for a time at his hands.
CHAPTER XV
The Great Gambling Match
Duryodhana's Plot—Shakuni the Gambler—Loaded Dice—Challenge to Yudhishthira—An Unequal Contest—Pandavas lose Kingdom and become Slaves—Draupadi Staked and Lost—How Duhsasana humbled her—Pandava Queen's Appeals—Treated as a Menial—Attempt to Disrobe her—Taunted by Karna—Bhima's Terrible Vows—Alarming Omens—Pandavas regain Liberty—Second Gambling Match—Pandavas go into Exile.
Now Shakuni, Prince of Gandhara,261 and brother of Dhritarashtra's queen, was renowned for his skill as a gambler. He always enjoyed good fortune because that he played with loaded dice. Duryodhana plotted with him, desiring greatly to subjugate the Pandavas, and Shakuni said: “Be advised by me. Yudhishthira loves the dice, although he knows not how to play. Ask him to throw dice with me, for there is no gambler who is my equal in the three worlds. I will put him to shame. I will win from him his kingdom, O bull among men.”
Duryodhana was well pleased at this proposal, and he went before his blind father, the maharajah, and prevailed upon him to invite the Pandavas to Hastinapur for a friendly gambling match, despite the warnings of the royal counsellors.
Said Dhritarashtra: “If the gods are merciful, my sons will cause no dispute. Let it be as fate hath ordained. No evil can happen so long as I am near, and Bhishma and Drona are near also. Therefore, let the Pandavas be invited hither as my son desireth.”
So Vidura, who feared trouble, was sent unto Indra-prastha to say: “The maharajah is about to hold a great festival at Hastinapur, and he desires that Yudhishthira and his brethren, their mother Pritha and their joint wife Draupadi, should be present. A great gambling match will be played.”
When Yudhishthira heard these words, he sorrowed greatly, for well he knew that dice-throwing was ofttimes the cause of bitter strife. Besides, he was unwilling to play Prince Shakuni, that desperate and terrible gambler.... But he could not refuse the invitation of Dhritarashtra, or, like a true Kshatriya, disdain a challenge either to fight or to play with his peers.
So it came to pass that the Pandava brethren, with Pritha, their mother, and their joint wife Draupadi, journeyed to Hastinapur in all their splendour. Dhritarashtra welcomed them in the presence of Bhishma and Drona and Duryodhana and Karna; then they were received by Queen Gandhari, and the wives of the Kaurava princes; and all the daughters-in-law of the blind maharajah became sad because that they were jealous of the beauty of Draupadi and the splendour of her attire.
The Pandava lords and ladies went unto the dwelling which had been prepared for them, and there they were visited in turn by the lords and ladies of Hastinapur.
On the day that followed, Yudhishthira and his brethren went together to the gambling match, which was held in a gorgeous pavilion, roofed with arching crystal and decorated with gold and lapis lazuli: it had a hundred doors and a thousand great columns, and it was richly carpeted. All the princes and great chieftains and warriors of the kingdom were gathered there. And Prince Shakuni of Gandhari was there also with his false dice.
When salutations had passed, and the great company were seated, Shakuni invited Yudhishthira to play.
Said Yudhishthira: “I will play if mine opponent will promise to throw fairly, without trickery and deceit. Deceitful gambling is sinful, and unworthy a Kshatriya; there is no prowess in it. Wise men do not applaud a player who winneth by foul means.”
Shakuni said: “A skilled gambler ever playeth with purpose to vanquish his opponent, as one warrior fighteth another less skilled than himself to accomplish his overthrow. Such is the practise in all contests; a man plays or fights to achieve victory.... But if thou art in dread of me, O Yudhishthira, and afraid that thou wilt lose, 'twere better if thou didst not play at all.”
Said Yudhishthira: “Having been challenged, I cannot withdraw. I fear not to fight or to play with any man.... But first say who doth challenge and who is to lay stakes equally with me.”
Then Duryodhana spoke, saying: “O rajah, I will supply jewels and gold and any stakes thou wilt of as great value as thou canst set down. It is for me that Shakuni, my uncle, is to throw the dice.”
Said Yudhishthira: “This is indeed a strange challenge. One man is to throw the dice and another is to lay the stakes. Such is contrary to all practice. If, however, thou art determined to play in this fashion, let the game begin.”
Well did the Rajah of Indra-prastha know then that the match would not be played fairly. But he sat down, notwithstanding, to throw dice with Shakuni.
At the first throw Yudhishthira lost; indeed, he lost at every throw on that fatal day. He gambled away all his money and all his jewels, his jewelled chariot with golden bells, and all his cattle; still he played on, and he lost his thousand war elephants, his slaves and beautiful slave girls, and the remainder of his goods; and next, he staked and lost the whole kingdom of the Pandavas, save the lands which he had gifted to the Brahmans. Nor did he cease to play then, despite the advice offered him by the chieftains who were there. One by one he staked and lost his brethren; and he staked himself and lost also.
Said Shakuni: “You have done ill, Yudhishthira, in staking thine own self, for now thou hast become a slave; but if thou wilt stake Draupadi now and win, all that thou hast lost will be restored unto thee.”
Yudhishthira said: “So be it. I will stake Draupadi.”
At these words the whole company was stricken with horror. Vidura swooned, and the faces of Bhishma and Drona grew pallid; many groaned; but Duryodhana and his brethren rejoiced openly before all men.
Shakuni threw the dice, and Yudhishthira lost this the last throw. In this manner was Draupadi won by Duryodhana.
Then all the onlookers gazed one upon another in silence and wide-eyed. Karna and Duhsasana262 and other young princes laughed aloud.
Duryodhana rose proudly and spake unto Vidura, saying: “Now hasten unto Draupadi and bid her to come hither to sweep the chambers with the other bondswomen.”
Vidura was made angry, and answered him: “Thy words are wicked, O Duryodhana. Thou canst not command a lady of royal birth to become a household slave. Besides, she is not thy slave, because Yudhishthira did stake his own freedom before he staked Draupadi. Thou couldst not win aught from a slave who had no power to stake the princess.”
But Duryodhana cursed Vidura, and bade one of his servants to bring Draupadi before him.
Said Vidura: “Duryodhana is this day deprived of his reason. Dishonesty is one of the doors to hell. By practising dishonesty Duryodhana will accomplish yet the ruin of the Kauravas.”
The beautiful Draupadi was sitting at peace within the fair dwelling set apart for the Pandavas on the banks of the Ganges; its walls and towers were mirrored on the broad clear waters. Then suddenly, as a jackal enters stealthily the den of a lion, the menial sent by Duryodhana entered the palace and stood before high-born Draupadi.
Said this man: “O queen, the mighty son of Pandu hath played and lost; he hath lost all, even his reason, and he hath staked thee, and thou hast been won by Duryodhana. And now Duryodhana bids me to say that thou art become his slave, and must obey him like to other female slaves. So come thou with me, for thou must henceforth engage in menial work.”
Draupadi was astounded when he spake these words, and in her anguish she cried: “Have I heard thee aright? Hath my husband, the king, staked and lost me in his madness? Did he stake and loose aught beside?”
Said the man: “Yudhishthira hath lost all his riches and his kingdom; he staked his brethren and lost them one by one; he staked himself and lost; and then he staked thee, O queen, and lost also. Therefore, come thou with me.”
Draupadi rose in her pride and spoke angrily, saying: “If my lord did stake himself and become a slave, he could not wager me, for a slave owns neither his own life nor the life of another. Speak, therefore, unto my husband these words, and unto Duryodhana say: ‘Draupadi hath not been won’.”
The man returned to the assembly and spake unto Yudhishthira the words which Draupadi had said, but he bowed his head and was silent.
Duryodhana was made angry by the defiant answer of the proud queen, and he said unto his brother Duhsasana: “The sons of Pandu are our slaves, and thy heart is without fear for them. Go thou to the palace and bid the princess, my humble menial, to come hither quickly.”
Red-eyed and proud Duhsasana hastened to the palace. He entered the inner chambers and stood before Draupadi, who was clad in but a single robe, while her hair hung loosely.
Said the evil-hearted Kaurava: “O princess of Panchala with fair lotus eyes, thou hast been staked and lost fairly at the game of hazard. Hasten, therefore, and stand before thy lord Duryodhana, for thou art now his bright-eyed slave.”
Draupadi heard and trembled. She covered her eyes with her hands before the hated Duhsasana; her cheeks turned pale and her heart sickened. Then suddenly she leapt up and sought to escape to an inner room. But the evil-hearted prince seized her by the hair, for he no longer feared the sons of Pandu, and the beautiful princess quivered and shook in her loose attire like to a sapling which is shaken by the storm wind. Crouching on her knees, she cried angrily, while tears streamed from her lotus eyes: “Begone! O shameless prince. Can a modest woman appear before strangers in loose attire?”
4
THE ORDEAL OF QUEEN DRAUPADI
From the painting by Warwick Goble
Said stern and cruel Duhsasana: “Even if thou wert naked now, thou must follow me. Hast thou not become a slave, fairly staked and fairly won? Henceforth thou wilt serve among the other menials.”
Trembling and faint, Draupadi was dragged through the streets by Duhsasana. When she stood before the elders and the chieftains in the pavilion she cried: “Forgive me because that I have come hither in this unseemly plight....”
Bhishma and Drona and the other elders who were there hung their heads in shame.
Unto Duhsasana Draupadi said angrily: “Cease thy wickedness! Defile me no longer with unclean hands. A woman's hair is sacred.”
Sacred indeed were the locks of the Pandava queen, for they had been sprinkled with water sanctified by mantras at the imperial sacrifice.
Weeping, she cried: “Hear and help me, O ye elders. You have wives and children of your own. Will you permit this wrong to be continued. Answer me now.”
But no man spake a word.
Draupadi wept and said: “Why this silence?… Will no man among ye protect a sinless woman?… Lost is the fame of the Kauravas, the ancient glory of Bharata, and the prowess of the Kshatriyas!… Why will not the sons of Pandu protect their outraged queen?… And hath Bhishma lost his virtue and Drona his power?… Will Yudhishthira no longer defend one who is wronged?… Why are ye all silent while this deed of shame is done before you?”
As she spake thus, Draupadi glanced round the sons of Pandu one by one, and their hearts thirsted for vengeance. Bhishma's face was dark, Drona clenched his teeth, and Vidura, white and angry, gazed upon Duhsasana with amaze while he tore off Draupadi's veil and addressed her with foul words. When she looked towards the Kaurava brethren, Duhsasana said: “Ha! on whom darest thou to look now, O slave?”
Shakuni and Kama laughed to hear Draupadi called a slave, and they cried out: “Well spoken, well spoken!”
Duhsasana endeavoured to strip the princess naked before the assembly; but Draupadi, in her distress, prayed aloud to Krishna, invoking him as the creator of all and the soul of the universe, and entreated him to help her. Krishna heard her, and multiplied her garments so that Duhsasana was unable to accomplish his wicked purpose.
Karna spake to Draupadi and said: “'Tis not thy blame, O princess, that thou hast fallen so low. A woman's fate is controlled by her husband; Yudhishthira hath gambled thee away. Thou wert his, and must accept thy fate. Henceforward thou wilt be the slave of the Kaurava princes. Thou must obey them and please them with thy beauty.... 'Tis meet that thou shouldst now seek for thyself a husband who will love thee too well to stake thee at dice and suffer thee to be put to shame.... Be assured that no one will blame a humble menial, as thou now art, who looks with eyes of love upon great and noble warriors. Remember that Yudhishthira is no longer thy husband; he hath become a slave, and a slave can have no wife.... Ah! sweet Princess of Panchala, those whom thou didst choose at thy swayamvara have gambled and lost thee; their kingdom they have lost, and their power also.”
At these words Bhima's bosom heaved with anger and with shame. Red-eyed he scowled upon Karna; he seemed to be the image of flaming Wrath. Unto Yudhishthira he spake grimly, saying: “If you hadst not staked our freedom and our queen, O king and elder brother, this son of a charioteer would not have taunted us in this manner.”
Yudhishthira bowed his head in shame, nor answered a word.
Arjuna reproved Bhima for his bitter words; but Pritha's mighty son, the slayer of Asuras, said: “If I am not permitted to punish the tormentor of Draupadi, bring me a fire that I may thrust my hands into it.”
A deep uproar rose from the assembly, and the elders applauded the wronged lady and censured Duhsasana. Bhima clenched his hands and, with quivering lips, cried out:
“Hear my terrible words, O ye Kshatriyas.... May I never reach Heaven if I do not yet seize Duhsasana in battle and, tearing open his breast, drink his very life blood!…”
Again he spoke and said: “If Yudhishthira will permit me, I will slay the wretched sons of Dhritarashtra without weapons, even as a lion slays small animals.”
Then Bhishma and Vidura and Drona cried out: “Forbear, O Bhima! Everything is possible in thee.”
Duryodhana gloried in his hour of triumph, and unto the elder of the Pandava brethren spake tauntingly and said: “Yudhishthira, thou art spokesman for thy brethren, and they owe thee obedience. Speak and say, thou who dost ever speak truly, hast thou lost thy kingdom and thy brethren and thine own self? O Yudhishthira, hast thou lost even the beauteous Draupadi? And hath she, thy wedded wife, become our humble menial?”
Yudhishthira heard him with downcast eyes, but his lips moved not.... Then Karna laughed; but Bhishma, pious and old, wept in silence.
Then Duryodhana cast burning eyes upon Draupadi, and, baring his knee, invited her, as a slave, to sit upon it.
Bhima gnashed his teeth, for he was unable to restrain his pent-up anger. With eyes flashing like lightning, and in a voice like to thunder he cried out: “Hear my vow! May I never reach Heaven or meet my ancestors hereafter if, for these deeds of sin, I do not break the knee of Duryodhana in battle, and drink the blood of Duhsasana!”
The flames of wrath which leapt on the forehead of Bhima were like red sparks flying from tough branches on a crackling fire.
Dhritarashtra was sitting in his palace, nor knew aught of what was passing. The Brahmans, robed in white, were chanting peacefully their evening mantras, when a jackal howled in the sacrificial chamber. Asses brayed in response, and ravens answered their cries from all sides. Those who heard these dread omens exclaimed: “Swashti! Swashti!”263
Dhritarashtra shook with terror, and when Vidura had told him all that had taken place, he said: “The luckless and sinful Duryodhana hath brought shame upon the head of Rajah Drupada's sweet daughter, and thus courted death and destruction. May the prayers of a sorrowful old man remove the wrath of Heaven which these dark omens have revealed.”
Then the blind maharajah was led to Draupadi, and before all the elders and the princes he spoke to her, kindly and gently, and said: “Noble queen and virtuous daughter, wife of pious Yudhishthira, and purest of all women, thou art very dear unto my heart. Alas! my sons have wronged thee in foul manner this day. O forgive them now, and let the wrath of Heaven be averted. Whatsoever thou wilt ask of me will be thine.”
Said Draupadi: “O mighty maharajah, thou art merciful; may happiness be thy dower. I ask of thee to set at liberty now my lord and husband Yudhishthira. Having been a prince, it is not seemly that he should be called a slave.”
Dhritarashtra said: “Thy wish is granted. Ask a second boon and blessing, O fair one. Thou dost deserve more than a single boon.”
Said Draupadi: “Let Arjuna and Bhima and their younger brethren be set free also and allowed to depart now with their horses and their chariots and their weapons.”
Dhritarashtra said: “So be it, O high-born princess. Ask yet another boon and blessing and it will be granted thee.”
Said Draupadi: “I seek no other boon, thou generous monarch: I am a Kshatriya by birth, and not like to a Brahman, who craveth for gifts without end. Thou hast freed my husbands from slavery: they will regain their fortunes by their own mighty deeds.”
Then the Pandava brethren departed from Hastinapur with Pritha and Draupadi, and returned unto the city of Indra-prastha.