(Vaivahika Parva continued)
" said, ', on hearing this, observed, O great Rishi, it was only when I had not heard this from thee you that I had sought to act in the way I told thee you of. Now, however, that I know all, I cannot be indifferent to what hath has been ordained by the gods. Therefore do I resolve to accomplish what thou you hast have said. The knot of destiny cannot be untied. Nothing in this world is the result of our own acts. That which had been appointed by us in view of securing one only bridegroom hath has now terminated in favour of many. As (in a former life) had repeatedly said, 'O, give me a husband!' the great god himself even gave her the boon she had asked. The god himself knows the right or wrong of this. As regards myself, when hath has ordained so, right or wrong, no sin can attach to me. Let these with happy hearts take, as ordained, the hand of with the rites.'
" continued, 'Then the illustrious , addressing the just, said, 'This day is an auspicious day, O son of ! This day the moon has entered the constellation called Pushya. Take thou you the hand of today, thyself first before thy your brothers!' When had said so, king and his son made preparations for the wedding. And the monarch kept ready various costly articles as marriage presents. Then he brought out his daughter , decked, after a bath, with many jewels and pearls. Then there came to witness the wedding all the friends and relatives of the king, ministers of state, and many Brahmanas and citizens. And they all took their seats according to their respective ranks. Adorned with that concourse of principal men, with its yard decked with lotuses and lilies scattered thereupon then, and beautified with lines of troops, king 's palace, festooned around with diamonds and precious stones, looked like the firmament studded with brilliant stars. Then those princes of the Kuru line, endued with youth and adorned with ear-rings, attired in costly robes and perfumed with sandal-paste, bathed and performed the usual religious rites and accompanied by their priest who was possessed of the splendour of fire, entered the wedding hall one after another in due order, and with glad hearts, like mighty bulls entering a cow-pen. Then , well-conversant with the Vedas, igniting the sacred fire, poured with due mantras libations of clarified butter into that blazing element. And calling there, , acquainted with mantras, united him with . Walking round the fire the bridegroom and the bride took each other's hand. After their union was complete, the priest , taking leave of , that ornament of battles, went out of the palace. Then those mighty car-warriors,--those perpetuators of the Kuru line,--those princes attired in gorgeous dresses, took the hand of that best of women, day by day in succession, aided by that priest. O king, the celestial Rishi told me of a very wonderful and extraordinary thing in connection with these marriages, viz., that the illustrious princess of slender waist regained her virginity every day after a previous marriage. After the weddings were over, king gave unto to those mighty car-warriors diverse kinds of excellent wealth. And the king gave unto to them one hundred cars with golden standards, each drawn by four steeds with golden bridles. And he gave them one hundred elephants all possessing auspicious marks on their temples and faces and like unto to a hundred mountains with golden peaks. He also gave them a hundred female servants all in the prime of youth and clad in costly robes and ornaments and floral wreaths. And the illustrious monarch of the Lunar race gave unto to each of those princes of celestial beauty, making the sacred fire a witness of his gifts, much wealth and many costly robes and ornaments of great splendour. The sons of endued with great strength, after their wedding were over, and after they had obtained like unto to a second Sri along with great wealth, passed their days in joy and happiness, like so many Indras, in the capital of the king of the Panchalas,'"
(Vaivahika Parva continued)
" said, 'King , after his alliance with the Pandavas, had all his fears dispelled. Indeed, the monarch no longer stood in fear even of the gods. The ladies of the illustrious 's household approached and introduced themselves unto to her, mentioning their respective names, and worshipped her feet with heads touching the ground. also, attired in red silk and her wrists still encircled with the auspicious thread, saluting her mother-in-law with reverence, stood contentedly before her with joined palms. , out of affection, pronounced a blessing upon her daughter-in-law endued with great beauty and every auspicious mark and possessed of a sweet disposition and good character, saying, 'Be thou you unto to thy your husband as Sachi unto to , Swaha unto to , Rohini unto to , Damayanti unto to Nala, Bhadra unto to , Arundhati unto to , Lakshmi unto to ! O amiable one, be thou you the mother of long-lived and heroic children, and possessed of everything that can make thee you happy! Let luck and prosperity ever wait on thee you! Wait thou you ever on husbands engaged in the performance of grand sacrifices. Be thou you devoted to thy your husbands. And let thy your days be ever passed in duly entertaining and reverencing guests and strangers arrived at thy your abode, and the pious and the old; children and superiors. Be thou you installed as the Queen of the kingdom and the capital of Kurujangala, with thy your husband the just! O daughter, let the whole earth, conquered by the prowess of thy your husbands endued with great strength, be given away by thee you unto to Brahmanas at horse-sacrifice! O accomplished one whatever gems there are on earth possessed of superior virtues, obtain them, O lucky one, and be thou you happy for a full hundred years! And, O daughter-in-law, as I rejoice today beholding thee you attired in red silk, so shall I rejoice again, when, O accomplished one, I behold thee you become the mother of a son!'
" continued, 'After the sons of had been married, () sent unto to them (as presents) various gold ornaments set with pearls and black gems (lapis lazuli). And () also sent unto to them costly robes manufactured in various countries, and many beautiful and soft blankets and hides of great value, and many costly beds and carpets and vehicles. He also sent them vessels by hundreds, set with gems and diamonds. And also gave them female servants by thousands, brought from various countries, and endued with beauty, youth and accomplishments and decked with every ornament. He also gave them many well-trained elephants brought from the country of Madra, and many excellent horses in costly harness, cars drawn by horses of excellent colours and large teeth. The slayer of Madhu, of immeasurable soul, also sent them coins of pure gold by crores upon crores in separate heaps. And the just, desirous of gratifying , accepted all those presents with great joy.'"
(Viduragamana Parva)
" said, 'The news was carried unto to all the monarchs (who had come to the Self-choice of ) by their trusted spies that the handsome had been united in marriage with the sons of . And they were also informed that the illustrious hero who had bent the bow and shot the mark was none else than , that foremost of victorious warriors and first of all wielders of the bow and arrows. And it became known that the mighty warrior who had dashed , the king of Madra, on the ground, and who in wrath had terrified the assembled monarchs by means of the tree (he had uprooted), and who had taken his stand before all foes in perfect fearlessness, was none else than , that feller of hostile ranks, whose touch alone was sufficient to take the lives out of all foes. The monarchs, upon being informed that the Pandavas had assumed the guise of peaceful Brahmanas, wondered much. They even heard that with all her sons had been burnt to death in the conflagration of the house of lac. They, therefore, now regarded the Pandavas in the light of persons who had come back from the region of the dead. And recollecting the cruel scheme contrived by , they began to say, 'O, fie on , fie on of the Kuru race!'
"After the Self-choice was over, all the monarchs (who had come thither there), hearing that had been united with the Pandavas, set out for their own dominions. And , hearing that had selected the owner of white steeds () as her lord, became greatly depressed. Accompanied by his brothers, , his uncle (), and the prince set out with a heavy heart for his capital. Then , blushing with shame, addressed his brother softly and said, 'If had not disguised himself as a Brahmana, he could never have succeeded in obtaining . It was for this disguise, O king, that no one could recognise him as . Fate, I ween, is ever supreme. Exertion is fruitless; fie on our exertions, O brother! The Pandavas are still alive!' Speaking unto to one another thus and blaming (for his carelessness), they then entered the city of Hastinapura, with cheerless and sorrowful hearts. Beholding the mighty sons of , escaped from the burning house of lac and allied with , and thinking of and and the other sons of all accomplished in fight, they were struck with fear and overcome with despair.
"Then , having learnt that had been won by the Pandavas and that the sons of had come back (to Hastinapura) in shame, their pride humiliated, became filled with joy. And, O king, approaching , said, 'The Kurus are prospering by good luck!' Hearing those words of , the son of , wondering, said in great glee, 'What good luck, O ! What good luck!' From ignorance, the blind monarch understood that his eldest son had been chosen by 's daughter as her lord. And the king immediately ordered various ornaments to be made for . And he commanded that both and his son should be brought with pomp to Hastinapura. It was then that told the monarch that had chosen the Pandavas for her lords, and that those heroes were all alive and at peace, and that they had been received with great respect by king . And he also informed that the Pandavas had been united with the many relatives and friends of , each owning large armies, and with many others who had come to that self-choice.
"Hearing these words of , said, 'Those children are to me as dear as they were to . Nay no, more. O listen to me why my affection for them now is even greater! The heroic sons of are well and at ease. They have obtained many friends. Their relatives, and others whom they have gained as allies, are all endued with great strength. Who amongst monarchs in prosperity or adversity would not like to have with his relatives as an ally?'
" continued, 'Having heard these words of the monarch, said, 'O king, let thy your understanding remain so without change for a hundred years!' Having said this returned to his own abode. Then, O monarch, there came unto to , and the , . Addressing the monarch, they said, 'We cannot, O king, speak of any transgression in the presence of ! We have now found thee you alone, and will, therefore, say all we like! What is this that thou you hast have, O monarch, desired to do? Dost do thou you regard the prosperity of thy your foes as if it were thy your own, that thou you hast have been applauding the Pandavas, O foremost of men, in the presence of ? O sinless one, thou you actest not, O king, in the way thou you shouldst should! O father, we should now act every day in such a way as to weaken (the strength of) the Pandavas. The time hath has come, O father, for us to take counsel together, so that the Pandavas may not swallow us all with our children and friends and relatives.'"