(Vaka-vadha Parva)
"Janamejaya asked, 'O first of Brahmanas, what did the Pandavas, those
mighty car-warriors, the sons of Kunti, do after arriving at Ekachakra?'
"Vaisampayana said, 'Those mighty car-warriors, the sons of Kunti, on
arriving at Ekachakra, lived for a short time in the abode of a Brahmana.
Leading an eleemosynary life, they beheld (in course of their wanderings)
various delightful forests and earthly regions, and many rivers and lakes,
and they became great favourites of the inhabitants of that town in
consequence of their own accomplishments. At nightfall they placed before
Kunti all they gathered in their mendicant tours, and Kunti used to divide
the whole amongst them, each taking what was allotted to him. And those
heroic chastisers of foes, with their mother, together took one moiety of
the whole, while the mighty Bhima alone took the other moiety. In this way,
O bull of Bharata's race, the illustrious Pandavas lived there for some
time.
"'One day, while those bulls of the Bharata race were out on their tour of
mendicancy, it so happened that Bhima was (at home) with (his mother)
Pritha. That day, O Bharata, Kunti heard a loud and heart-rending wail of
sorrow coming from within the apartments of the Brahmana. Hearing the
inmates of the Brahmana's house wailing and indulging in piteous
lamentations, Kunti, O king, from compassion and the goodness of her heart,
could not bear it with indifference. Afflicted with sorrow, the amiable
Pritha, addressing Bhima, said these words full of compassion. "Our woes
assuaged, we are, O son, living happily in the house of this Brahmana,
respected by him and unknown to Dhritarashtra's son. O son, I always think
of the good I should do to this Brahmana, like what they do that live
happily in others' abodes! O child, he is a true man upon whom favours are
never lost. He payeth back to others more than what he receiveth at their
hands. There is no doubt, some affliction hath overtaken this Brahmana. If
we could be of any help to him, we should then be requiting his services."
"'Hearing these words of his mother, Bhima said, "Ascertain, O mother the
nature of the Brahmana's distress and whence also it hath arisen. Learning
all about it, relieve it I will however difficult may the task prove."
"Vaisampayana continued 'While mother and son were thus talking with each
other, they heard again, O king, another wail of sorrow proceeding from
the Brahmana and his wife. Then Kunti quickly entered the inner apartments
of that illustrious Brahmana, like unto a cow running towards her tethered
calf. She beheld the Brahmana with his wife, son and daughter, sitting
with a woeful face, and she heard the Brahmana say, "Oh, fie on this
earthly life which is hollow as the reed and so fruitless after all which
is based on sorrow and hath no freedom, and which hath misery for its lot!
Life is sorrow and disease; life is truly a record of misery! The soul is
one: but it hath to pursue virtue, wealth and pleasure. And because these
are pursued at one and the same time, there frequently occurs a
disagreement that is the source of much misery. Some say that salvation is
the highest object of our desire. But I believe it can never be attained.
The acquisition of wealth is hell; the pursuit of wealth is attended with
misery; there is more misery after one has acquired it, for one loves
one's possessions, and if any mishap befalls them, the possessor becomes
afflicted with woe. I do not see by what means I can escape from this
danger, nor how I can fly hence, with my wife to some region free from
danger. Remember, O wife, that I endeavoured to migrate to some other
place where we would be happy, but thou didst not then listen to me.
Though frequently solicited by me, thou, O simple woman, said to me, 'I
have been born here, and here have I grown old; this is my ancestral
homestead.' Thy venerable father, O wife, and thy mother also, have, a
long time ago, ascended to heaven. Thy relations also had all been dead.
Oh why then didst thou yet like to live here? Led by affection for thy
relatives thou didst not then hear what I said. But the time is now come
when thou art to witness the death of a relative. Oh, how sad is that
spectacle for me! Or perhaps the time is come for my own death, for I
shall never be able to abandon cruelly one of my own as long as I myself
am alive. Thou art my helpmate in all good deeds, self-denying and always
affectionate unto me as a mother. The gods have given thee to me as a true
friend and thou art ever my prime stay. Thou hast, by my parents, been
made the participator in my domestic concerns. Thou art of pure lineage
and good disposition, the mother of children, devoted to me, and so
innocent; having chosen and wedded thee with due rites, I cannot abandon
thee, my wife, so constant in thy vows, to save my life. How shall I
myself be able to sacrifice my son a child of tender years and yet without
the hirsute appendages (of manhood)? How shall I sacrifice my daughter
whom I have begotten myself, who hath been placed, as a pledge, in my
hands by the Creator himself for bestowal on a husband and through whom I
hope to enjoy, along with my ancestors, the regions attainable by those
only that have daughters' sons? Some people think that the father's
affection for a son is greater; others, that his affection for a daughter
is greater; mine, however, is equal. How can I be prepared to give up the
innocent daughter upon whom rest the regions of bliss obtainable by me in
after life and my own lineage and perpetual happiness? If, again, I
sacrifice myself and go to the other world, I should scarcely know any
peace, for, indeed, it is evident that, left by me these would not be able
to support life. The sacrifice of any of these would be cruel and
censurable. On the other hand, if I sacrifice myself, these, without me,
will certainly perish. The distress into which I have fallen is great; nor
do I know the means of escape. Alas, what course shall I take today with
my near ones. It is well that I should die with all these, for I can live
no longer."'"