Vaisampayana said,--"The kings present in that assembly, from fear of
Duryodhana, uttered not a word, good or ill, although they beheld
Draupadi crying piteously in affliction like a female osprey, and
repeatedly appealing to them. And the son of Dhritarashtra beholding
those kings and sons and grand sons of kings all remaining silent,
smiled a little, and addressing the daughter of the king of Panchala,
said,--'O Yajnaseni, the question thou hast put dependeth on thy
husbands--on Bhima of mighty strength, on Arjuna, on Nakula, on
Sahadeva. Let them answer thy question. O Panchali, let them for thy
sake declare in the midst of these respectable men that Yudhishthira is
not their lord, let them thereby make king Yudhishthira the just a
liar. Thou shalt then be freed from the condition of slavery. Let the
illustrious son of Dharma, always adhering to virtue, who is even like
Indra, himself declare whether he is not thy lord. At his words, accept
thou the Pandavas or ourselves without delay. Indeed, all the Kauravas
present in this assembly are floating in the ocean of thy distress.
Endued with magnanimity, they are unable to answer thy question,
looking at thy unfortunate husbands.'"
Vaisampayana continued,--"Hearing these words of the Kuru king, all who
were present in the assembly loudly applauded them. And shouting
approvingly, they made signs unto one another by motions of their eyes
and lips. And amongst some that were there, sounds of distress such as
'O!' and 'Alas!' were heard. And at these words of Duryodhana, so
delightful (to his partisans), the Kauravas present in that assembly
became exceedingly glad. And the kings, with faces turned sideways,
looked upon Yudhishthira conversant with the rules of morality, curious
to hear what he would say. And every one present in that assembly
became curious to hear what Arjuna, the son of Pandu never defeated in
battle, and what Bhimasena, and what the twins also would say. And when
that busy hum of many voices became still, Bhimasena, waving his strong
and well-formed arms smeared with sandalpaste spake these words,--'If
this high-souled king Yudhishthira the just, who is our eldest brother,
had not been our lord, we would never have forgiven the Kuru race (for
all this). He is the lord of all our religious and ascetic merits, the
lord of even our lives. If he regardeth himself as won, we too have all
been won. If this were not so, who is there amongst creatures touching
the earth with their feet and mortal, that would escape from me with
his life after having touched those locks of the princess of Panchala?
Behold these mighty, well-formed arms of mine, even like maces of iron.
Having once come within them, even he of a hundred sacrifices is
incapable of effecting an escape. Bound by the ties of virtue and the
reverence that is due to our eldest brother, and repeatedly urged by
Arjuna to remain silent, I am not doing anything terrible. If however,
I am once commanded by king Yudhishthira the just, I would slay these
wretched sons of Dhritarashtra, making slaps do the work of swords,
like a lion slaying a number of little animals.'"
Vaisampayana continued,--"Unto Bhima who had spoken these words Bhishma
and Drona and Vidura said, 'Forbear, O Bhima. Everything is possible
with thee.'