Vaisampayana said, "That bull among men--Dhritarashtra--the son of
Amvika, having heard of this wonderful way of life--so above that of
men--of the sons of Pandu, was filled with anxiety and grief. And
overwhelmed with melancholy and sighing heavily and hot, that monarch,
addressing his charioteer Sanjaya, said, 'O charioteer, a moment's peace
I have not, either during the day or the night, thinking of the terrible
misbehaviour of my sons arising out of their past gambling, and thinking
also of the heroism, the patience, the high intelligence, the unbearable
prowess, and the extraordinary love unto one another of the sons of
Pandu. Amongst the Pandavas, the illustrious Nakula and Sahadeva, of
celestial origin and equal unto the chief himself of the celestials in
splendour, are invincible in battle. They are firm in the wielding of
weapons, capable of shooting at a long distance, resolute in battle, of
remarkable lightness of hand, of wrath that is not easily quelled,
possessed of great steadiness, and endued with activity. Possessed of
the prowess of lions and unbearable as the Aswins themselves, when they
will come to the field of battle with Bhima and Arjuna in front, I see,
O Sanjaya, that my soldiers will all be slain without a remnant. Those
mighty warriors of celestial origin, unrivalled in battle by anybody,
filled with rage at the remembrance of that insult to Draupadi, will
show no forgiveness. The mighty warriors of the Vrishnis also, and the
Panchalas of great energy, and the sons of Pritha themselves, led by
Vasudeva of unbaffled prowess, will blast my legions. O charioteer, all
the warriors on my side assembled together, are not competent to bear
the impetus of the Vrishnis alone when commanded by Rama and Krishna.
And amongst them will move that great warrior Bhima of terrible prowess,
armed with his iron mace held on high and capable of slaying every hero.
And high above the din will be heard the twang of the _Gandiva_ loud as
the thunder of heaven. The impetus of Bhima's mace and the loud twang of
the Gandiva are incapable of being stood against by any of the kings on
my side. It is then, O Sanjaya, that obedient as I have been to the
voice of Duryodhana, I shall have to call back the rejected counsels of
my friends--counsels that I should have attended to in time.'
"Sanjaya said, 'This hath been thy great fault, O king, _viz_., that
though capable, thou didst not, from affection prevent thy son from
doing what he hath done. The slayer of Madhu, that hero of unfading
glory, hearing that the Pandavas had been defeated at dice, soon went to
the woods of _Kamyaka_ and consoled them there. And Draupadi's sons also
headed by Dhrishtadyumna, and Virata, and Dhrishtaketu, and those mighty
warriors, the Kekayas, all went there. All that was said by these
warriors at the sight of Pandu's son defeated at dice, was learnt by me
through our spies. I have also told thee all, O king. When the slayer of
Madhu met the Pandavas, they requested him to become the charioteer of
Phalguna in battle. Hari himself, thus requested, answered them, saying,
_so be it_. And even Krishna himself beholding the sons of Pritha
dressed in deer skins, became filled with rage, and addressing
Yudhishthira, said, "That prosperity which the sons of Pritha had
acquired at Indraprastha, and which, unobtainable by other kings, was
beheld by me at the _Rajasuya_ sacrifice, at which, besides, I saw all
kings, even those of the Vangas and Angas and Paundras and Odras and
Cholas and Dravidas and Andhakas, and the chiefs of many islands and
countries on the sea-board as also of frontier states, including the
rulers of the Sinhalas, the barbarous _mlecchas_, the natives of Lanka,
and all the kings of the West by hundreds, and all the chiefs of the
sea-coast, and the kings of the Pahlavas and the Daradas and the various
tribes of the Kiratas and Yavanas and Sakras and the Harahunas and
Chinas and Tukharas and the Sindhavas and the Jagudas and the Ramathas
and the Mundas and the inhabitants of the kingdom of women and the
Tanganas and the Kekayas and the Malavas and the inhabitants of Kasmira,
afraid of the prowess of your weapons, present in obedience to your
invitation, performing various offices,--that prosperity, O king, so
unstable and waiting at present on the foe, I shall restore to thee,
depriving thy foe of his very life. I shall, O chief of the Kurus,
assisted by Rama and Bhima and Arjuna and the twins and Akrura and Gada
and Shamva and Pradyumna and Ahuka and the heroic Dhrishtadyumna and the
son of Sisupala, slay in battle in course of a day Duryodhana and Karna
and Dussasana and Suvala's son and all others who may fight against us.
And thou shalt, O Bharata, living at Hastinapura along with thy
brothers, and snatching from Dhritarashtra's party the prosperity they
are enjoying, rule this earth." Even these, O king, were Krishna's words
unto Yudhishthira, who, on the conclusion of Krishna's speech, addressed
him in that meeting of heroes and in the hearing of all those brave
warriors headed by Dhrishtadyumna, saying, "O Janardana, I accept these
words of thine as truth. O thou of mighty arms, do thou, however, slay
my enemies along with all their followers on the expiry of thirteen
years. O Kesava, promise this truly unto me. I promised in the presence
of the king to live in the forest as I am now living." Consenting to
these words of king Yudhishthira the just, his counsellors headed by
Dhrishtadyumna soon pacified the incensed Kesava with sweet words and
expressions suitable to the occasion. And they also said unto Draupadi
of pure deeds in the hearing of Vasudeva himself, these words, "O lady,
in consequence of thy anger, Duryodhana shall lay down his life. We
promise it, O thou of the fairest complexion. Therefore, grieve no more.
O Krishna, those that mocked thee, beholding thee won at dice, shall
reap the fruit of their act. Beasts of prey and birds shall eat their
flesh, and mock them thus. Jackals and vultures will drink their blood.
And, O Krishna, thou shalt behold the bodies of those wretches that
dragged thee by the hair prostrate on the earth, dragged and eaten by
carnivorous animals. They also that gave thee pain and disregarded thee
shall lie on the earth destitute of their heads, and the earth herself
shall drink their blood." These and other speeches of various kinds were
uttered there, O king, by those bulls of the Bharata race. All of them
are endued with energy and bravery, and marked with the marks of battle.
On the expiration of the thirteenth year, those mighty warriors, chosen
by Yudhishthira and headed by Vasudeva, will come (to the field of
battle). Rama and Krishna and Dhananjaya and Pradyumna and Shamva and
Yuyudhana and Bhima and the sons of Madri and the Kekaya princes and the
Panchala princes, accompanied by the king of Matsya, these all,
illustrious and celebrated and invincible heroes, with their followers
and troops, will come. Who is there that, desiring to live, will
encounter these in battle, resembling angry lions of erect manes?'
"Dhritarashtra said, 'What Vidura told me at the time of the game at
dice, "If thou seekest, O king, to vanquish the Pandavas (at dice), then
certainly a terrible blood-shed ending in the destruction of all the
Kurus will be the result," I think it is about to be realised. As Vidura
told me of old, without doubt a terrible battle will take place, as soon
as the pledged period of the Pandavas expireth.'"