Vaisampayana continued, "On that Rakshasa having been slain, that lord,
the royal son of Kunti, returned to the hermitage of Narayana and began
to dwell there. And once on a time, remembering his brother Jaya
(Arjuna), Yudhishthira summoned all his brothers, together with Draupadi
and said these words, 'We have passed these four years peacefully
ranging the woods. It hath been appointed by Vibhatsu that about the
fifth year he will come to that monarch of mountains, the excellent
cliff Sweta, ever graced with festivities held by blooming plants and
maddened Kokilas and black bees, and peacocks, and chatakas and
inhabited by tigers, and boars and buffaloes, and gavayas, and deer, and
ferocious beasts; and sacred; and lovely with blown lotuses of a hundred
and a thousand petals, and blooming lilies and blue lilies and
frequented by the celestials and the Asuras. And we also, eagerly
anxious of meeting him on his arrival have made up our minds to repair
thither. Partha of unrivalled prowess hath appointed with me, saying, "I
shall remain abroad for five years, with the object of learning military
science." In the place like unto the region of the gods, shall we behold
the wielder of Gandiva arrive after having obtained the weapons.' Having
said this, the Pandava summoned the Brahmanas, and the sons of Pritha
having gone round the ascetics of rigid austerities and thereby pleased
them, informed them of the matter mentioned above. Thereupon the
Brahmanas gave their assent, saying, 'This shall be attended by
prosperity and welfare. O foremost of the Bharatas, these troubles shall
result in happiness. O pious one, gaining the earth by the Kshatriya
virtue, thou shall govern it.' Then in obedience to these words of the
ascetics, that represser of foes, Yudhishthira, set out with his
brothers and those Brahmanas, followed by the Rakshasa and protected by
Lomasa. And that one of mighty energy, and of staunch vows, with his
brothers, at places went on foot and at others were carried by the
Rakshasas. Then king Yudhishthira, apprehending many troubles, proceeded
towards the north abounding in lions and tigers and elephants. And
beholding on the way the mountain Mainaka and the base of the
Gandhamadana and that rocky mass Sweta and many a crystal rivulet higher
and higher up the mountain, he reached on the seventeenth day the sacred
slopes of the Himalayas. And, O king, not far from the Gandhamadana,
Pandu's son beheld on the sacred slopes of the Himavan covered with
various trees and creepers the holy hermitage of Vrishaparva surrounded
by blossoming trees growing near the cascades. And when those repressers
of foes, the sons of Pandu, had recovered from fatigue, they went to the
royal sage, the pious Vrishaparva and greeted him. And that royal sage
received with affection those foremost of Bharatas, even as his own
sons. And those repressers of foes passed there seven nights, duly
regarded. And when the eighth day came, taking the permission of that
sage celebrated over the worlds, they prepared to start on their
journey. And having one by one introduced unto Vrishapava those
Brahmanas, who, duly honoured, remained in his charge as friends; and
having also entrusted the highsouled Vrishaparva with their remaining
robes, the sons of Pandu, O king, left in the hermitage of Vrishaparva
their sacrificial vessels together with their ornaments and jewels. And
wise and pious and versed in every duty and having a knowledge of the
past as well as the future, that one gave instructions unto those best
of the Bharatas, as unto his own sons. Then taking his permission those
high-souled ones set out towards the north. And as they set out the
magnanimous Vrishaparva followed them to a certain distance. Then having
entrusted the Pandavas unto the care of the Brahmanas and instructed and
blessed them and given directions concerning their course, Vrishaparva
of mighty energy retraced his steps.
"Then Kunti's son, Yudhishthira of unfailing prowess, together with his
brothers, began to proceed on foot along the mountain path, inhabited by
various kinds of beasts. And having dwelt at the mountain slopes,
densely overgrown with trees, Pandu's son on the fourth day reached the
Sweta mountain, like unto a mighty mass of clouds, abounding in streams
and consisting of a mass of gold and gems. And taking the way directed
by Vrishaparva, they reached one by one the intended places, beholding
various mountains. And over and over they passed with ease many
inaccessible rocks and exceedingly impassable caves of the mountain. And
Dhaumya and Krishna and the Parthas and the mighty sage Lomasa went on
in a body and none grew tired. And those highly fortunate ones arrived
at the sacred and mighty mountain resounding with the cries of birds and
beasts and covered with various trees and creepers and inhabited by
monkeys, and romantic and furnished with many lotus-lakes and having
marshes and extensive forests. And then with their down standing erect,
they saw the mountain Gandhamadana, the abode of Kimpurushas, frequented
by Siddhas and Charanas and ranged by Vidyadharis and Kinnaris and
inhabited by herds of elephants and thronged with lions and tigers and
resounding with the roars of Sarabhas and attended by various beasts.
And the war-like sons of Pandu gradually entered into the forest of the
Gandhamadana, like unto the Nandana gardens, delightful to the mind and
heart and worthy of being inhabited and having beautiful groves. And as
those heroes entered with Draupadi and the high-souled Brahmanas, they
heard notes uttered by the mouths of birds, exceedingly sweet and
graceful to the ear and causing delight and dulcet and broken by reason
of excess of animal spirits. And they saw various trees bending under
the weight of fruits in all seasons, and ever bright with flowers--such
as mangoes and hog-plums and bhavyas and pomegranates, citrons and jacks
and lakuchas and plantains and aquatic reeds and parvatas and champakas
and lovely kadamvas and vilwas, wood-apples and rose-apples and kasmaris
and jujubes and figs and glomerous figs and banians and aswatthas and
khirikas and bhall atakas and amalkas and bibhitakas and ingudas and
karamardas and tindukas of large fruits--these and many others on the
slopes of the Gandhamadana, clustered with sweet and nectarine fruits.
And besides these, they beheld champakas and asokas and ketakas and
vakulas and punnagas and saptaparnas and karnikaras, and patals, and
beautiful kutajas and mandaras, and lotuses, and parijatas, and
kovidaras and devadarus, and salas, and palmyra palms, and tamalas, and
pippalas, and salmalis and kinsukas, and singsapas, and saralas and
these were inhabited by Chakoras, and wood-peckers and chatakas, and
various other birds, singing in sweet tones pleasing to the ear. And
they saw lakes beautiful on all sides with aquatic birds, and covered
all around with kumudas, and pundarikas, and kokanadas, and utpalas, and
kalharas, and kamalas and thronged on all sides with drakes and ruddy
geese, and ospreys, and gulls and karandavas, and plavas, and swans, and
cranes, and shags, and other aquatic birds. And those foremost of men
saw those lotus-lakes beautified with assemblages of lotuses, and
ringing with the sweet hum of bees, glad, and drowsy on account of
having drunk the intoxicating honey of lotuses, and reddened with the
farina falling from the lotus cups. And in the groves they beheld with
their hens peacocks maddened with desire caused by the notes of
cloud-trumpets; and those woods-loving glad peacocks drowsy with desire,
were dancing, spreading in dalliance their gorgeous tails, and were
crying in melodious notes. And some of the peacocks were sporting with
their mates on kutaja trees covered with creepers. And some sat on the
boughs of the kutajas, spreading their gorgeous tails, and looking like
crowns worn by the trees. And in the glades they beheld the graceful
sindhuvaras like unto the darts of Cupid. And on the summits of the
mountain, they saw blooming karnikaras bearing blossoms of a golden hue,
appearing like ear-rings of excellent make. And in the forest they saw
blossoming kuruvakas, like unto the shafts of Cupid, which smiteth one
with desire and maketh him uneasy. And they saw tilakas appearing like
unto beauty-spots painted on the forehead of the forest. And they saw
mango trees graced with blossoms hummed over by black bees, and serving
the purpose of Cupid's shafts. And on the slopes of the mountain there
were diverse blossoming trees, looking lovely, some bearing flowers of a
golden hue, and some, of the hue of the forest-conflagration, and some,
red and some sable, and some green like unto lapises. And besides these,
there were ranges of salas and tamalas and patalas and vakula trees,
like unto garlands put on by the summits of the mountain. Thus gradually
beholding on the slopes of the mountain many lakes, looking transparent
like crystal, and having swans of white plumage and resounding with
cries of cranes, and filled with lotuses and lilies, and furnished with
waters of delicious feel; and also beholding fragrant flowers, and
luscious fruits, and romantic lakes, and captivating trees, the Pandavas
penetrated into the forest with eyes expanded with wonder. And (as they
proceeded) they were fanned by the breeze of balmy feel, and perfumed by
kamalas and utpalas and kalharas and pundarikas. Then Yudhishthira
pleasantly spake unto Bhima saying, 'Ah! O Bhima, beautiful is this
forest of the Gandhamadana. In this romantic forest there are various
heavenly blossoming wild trees and creepers, bedecked with foliage and
fruit, nor are there any trees that do not flower. On these slopes of
the Gandhamadana, all the trees are of sleek foliage and fruit. And
behold how these lotus-lakes with fullblown lotuses, and ringing with
the hum of black bees, are being agitated by elephants with their mates.
Behold another lotus-lake girt with lines of lotuses, like unto a second
Sree in an embodied form wearing garlands. And in this excellent forest
there are beautiful ranges of woods, rich with the aroma of various
blossoms, and hummed over by the black bees. And, O Bhima, behold on all
sides the excellent sporting ground of the celestials. By coming here,
we have attained extra-human state, and been blessed. O Partha, on these
slopes of the Gandhamadana, yon beautiful blossoming trees, being
embraced by creepers with blossoms at their tops, look lovely. And, O
Bhima, hark unto the notes of the peacocks crying with their hens on the
mountain slopes. And birds such as chakoras, and satapatras, and
maddened kokilas, and parrots, are alighting on these excellent
flowering trees. And sitting on the twigs, myriads of jivajivakas of
scarlet, yellow and red hues, are looking at one another. And the cranes
are seen near the spots covered with green and reddish grass, and also
by the side of the cascades. And those birds, bhringarajas, and
upachakras, and herons are pouring forth their notes charming to all
creatures. And, lo! with their mates, these elephants furnished with
four tusks, and white as lotuses, are agitating that large lake of the
hue of lapises. And from many cascades, torrents high as several palmyra
palms (placed one upon another) are rushing down from the cliffs. And
many argent minerals splendid, and of the effulgence of the sun, and
like unto autumnal clouds, are beautifying this mighty mountain. And in
some places there are minerals of the hue of the collyrium, and in some
those like unto gold, in some, yellow orpiment and in some, vermilion,
and in some, caves of red arsenic like unto the evening clouds and in
some, red chalk of the hue of the rabbit, and in some, minerals like
unto white and sable clouds; and in some, those effulgent as the rising
sun, these minerals of great lustre beautify the mountain. O Partha, as
was said by Vrishaparva, the Gandharvas and the Kimpurushas, in company
with their loves, are visible on the summits of the mountain. And, O
Bhima, there are heard various songs of appropriate measures, and also
Vedic hymns, charming to all creatures. Do thou behold the sacred and
graceful celestial river Mahaganga, with swans, resorted to by sages and
Kinnaras. And, O represser of foes, see this mountain having minerals,
rivulets, and beautiful woods and beasts, and snakes of diverse shapes
and a hundred heads and Kinnaras, Gandharvas and Apsaras.'"
Vaisampayana said, "Having attained excellent state, those valiant and
warlike repressers of foes with Draupadi and the high-souled Brahmanas
were exceedingly delighted at heart, and they were not satiated by
beholding that monarch of mountains. Thereafter they saw the hermitage
of the royal sage Arshtishena, furnished with flowers and trees bearing
fruits. Then they went to Arshtishena versed in all duties of rigid
austerities, skeleton-like, and having muscles bare."