Chapter
5
Yajńas and the Penance of Elders
Dharmaraja
(Yudhisthhira) accepted the advice of Vâsudeva, as well as the
benedictions of Vyâsa.
He sent his brothers, with the army, to bring the
gold that had been
thrown aside by the brahmins. They left after
purifying themselves by
partaking consecrated offerings. They discovered the
quantities of gold
that had been given as presents to the priests at
the conclusion of the
sacrifice by Emperor Maruth in the past. They had
dropped the gold on
the sides of the roads along which they returned
home. The army
collected these and conveyed them to the capital on
camels, elephants,
chariots and carts. It took them some days to reach
Hastinapura with
all that load. They unloaded the gold, amidst the
acclamations of the
people.
The
citizens
were amazed at the success of the expedition; they
extolled the good
fortune of the Pândavas. They welcomed into
the city the
princes and the gold shouting "Jay, Jay" until their
throats were
hoarse, jumping and dancing in joy. They pictured
among themselves the
grandeur and magnificence of the sacrifice, for
which this gold was
brought.
Preparations
were
started that very day for the construction of the
ritual altar and
the necessary adjuncts on the bank of the Ganga;
the sacred area
was many square miles in extent. The ground was
levelled and cleaned.
The dais was built; beautiful buildings arose on the
vast area. Porches
and verandas were added. Decorations like flags and
festoons
embellished the structures.
When the
holy
day neared, chieftains, brahmins, scholars and sages
moved from all
directions towards the sacred place, hastening each
other in their
enthusiasm to reach early. They took residence in
the quarters allotted
to them, according to their status and needs. They
spent the night
counting minutes, in joyful expectation of the
extravagant but
efficacious yajńa that they could witness
when the dawn
brings in another day.
The
morning
came. The auspicious moment approached. The priests
took up their
positions and got ready to take the vows of
initiation. They stood up
facing Lord Krishna and the King and said, "0 King!
we understand that
you have resolved to perform not one but three As'vamedhas.
Is
that correct? If so, do you desire us to perform
them, one after the
other? Or, shall we repeat every formula and rite,
thrice and have them
all concurrently? If you make it known, we shall
arrange the
participants and performing priests accordingly."
At this,
Dharmaraja
replied, "what can I say when you know best; I shall
agree to whatever
advice you offer; I seek only the consent of Vâsudeva
for
whatever course we adopt" and he turned towards Krishna
with
pleading eyes. Krishna left the decision to
the brahmins. They
discussed among themselves for a while and announced
at last that the
effect of "three As'vamedhas" can be secured
by repeating each mantra
thrice and presenting the brahmins presiding over
the rituals thrice
the usual fees. Vâsudeva indicated His
approval of this
suggestion, and taking his cue from this, Dharmaraja
declared that he
was agreeable. He desired that the yajńa
might be
inaugurated.
The recitation of the mantras
by the brahmins shook both earth and sky.
The preliminary rites
were gone through and the sacrificial horses
proceeded on their planned
round. They were caparisoned in great style and they
carried on their
foreheads the declaration challenging any one to
take them into custody
if he dared. When He, who is the recipient of all yajńas,
(yajńaswarűpa) has taken the role of the
presiding
authority, no words can describe the fortune of the
participants and
the witnesses. It drew to a successful close with
the Valedictory
Oblation (purna-âhuthi).
The
experts in
sacrificial mantras, the sages and the brahmins were
loaded with
presents and fees. Enormous numbers of cows, large
areas of land, and
vast quantities of gold were gifted away by the
King. The whole nation
was filled with happiness. Every one was praising
the yajńa
as indescribably superb. All who came were fed
sumptuously at all
hours. Sages and ascetics who saw all this
lavishness extolled the yajńa
of Dharmaraja as grander even than the yajńa
performed by emperor Maruth in the past!
They were delighted
they got the chance to partake in this yajńa.
People
once claimed that the yajńa of Maruth was
presided over
by Indra, the
Ruler of the Gods and they felt that it made it
incomparably superior
to any other sacrifice. But now, they congratulated
Dharmaraja on
securing the yajńaswarűpa (Vâsudeva)
Himself to preside over the yajńa, a piece
of good
fortune far superior to Maruth's and far
more difficult to
secure.
At the
end of
the yajńa, those who had come from far off
places
returned; others too turned home. The kings and
chieftains took
respectful leave of Dharmaraja and went back
to their own
principalities. The kinsmen of the King stayed for a
few days more and
left at their convenience to their places. (See also
S.B.
1.11).
However,
Lord
Krishna chose to spend some more time with the
Pândavas;
so, He stayed on in Hastinapura. The Pândavas were
delighted at
this signal act of grace; they made suitable
arrangements for the
residence of the Lord; they served Him every day,
they filled their
eyes with His beauty, they filled their hearts with
His gracious words
of instruction; they spent the days in supreme joy.
After some time
spent thus in the Pandava capital, Krishna returned
to Dvârakâ,
taking Arjuna with Him. The inhabitants of Dvârakâ
were
overjoyed when their Lord returned to His capital.
They welcomed Him in
enthusiastic reverence. They feasted on the darshan
of the Lord
and were immersed in ânanda.
The
Penance of Elders
Meanwhile,
news
came to Hastinapura that Vidura his uncle
was moving about on
the environs of the city in the guise of a monk; it
travelled from
mouth to mouth and at last reached the ears of Dharmaraja,
the
King. The news was received with surprise and joy.
He sent a few scouts
to discover whether the news was authentic, and
soon, they brought the
welcome information that Vidura had actually
come and was
present. Dharmaraja could not contain
himself with excitement.
"Ah! How
happy
you have made me!", he exclaimed. "This holy moment
has made the dried
trunk of the tree of hope put forth leaves again.
Oh, I can now see and
serve Vidura who fostered us and guarded us
and guided us, I
who feared I might not get the chance at all."
The
heartening
news was spread by courtiers among the queens and
princesses and women
of the royal household. Dharmaraja did not
rest; he spoke about
the great event to everyone around him; he sought
out others to share
with them the joy. He issued orders to the army that
appropriate
arrangements should be made to welcome into the
capital the brother of
his late father, sage Vidura, foremost among
the votaries of
the Lord. The citizens too were alerted and asked to
prepare a grand
reception.
They
decorated
the streets and mansions on each side of them; they
erected arches and
hung festoons and hoisted flags. They allotted
galleries and seats on
every road for children, women, and the aged, so
that they might have a
fine and clear view of the procession and of the
great Sage. It was an
inspiring sight to see many old men and women
hobbling on with their
sticks, eager to get a glimpse of Vidura,
whom they extolled as
the very embodiment of dharma, as the very
god-father of the Pândavas.
Some thought at first that the sighting of Vidura
on the
outskirts of the city must have been in someone's
dream, and not in
actual fact. They had lived long enough to swallow
the rumor without
personal verification. For, they never could believe
that Vidura
would ever come back to Hastinâpura. They
grouped
themselves on vantage points and got ready for the
great moment when
they could rest their eyes on the saint. All along
the route, every
building was overflowing with humanity; the trees
carried strings of
adventurous youth, full of excitement and
expectation, shouting in
acclamation of the oncoming guest.
The King
decked
in ceremonial robes ascended the royal chariot and
started out of the
palace with his brothers to bring home the famous
votary of the Lord.
Vidura
appeared before them walking barefoot, slow and
dignified, with matted
hair and wearing the robes of a monk. The King and
his brothers
stepped down from their vehicles, bowed
reverentially to the feet of Vidura
and walked behind him, at a respectful distance. The
citizens ran
forward and fell at Vidura's feet, in spite of the
earnest entreaties
of the guards that they should desist. The Pândavas
could not
express welcome in words; their joy was
immeasurable. So, their eyes
spoke it, with tears of gratitude. They clasped Vidura
in their
arms and prayed to him that he should get into the
chariot so that the
thick ranks of onlookers on all the roads might get
darshan to
their hearts' content. Vidura was persuaded to
agree. Seated in the
royal chariot of the King, Vidura gave darshan
to the people
who had amassed en route. At last, the procession
reached the palace.
It was a sweet flood of song and joy that flowed
along the roads of the
city that day.
Some of
the
citizens were so overcome with joy that they were
rooted to the spot.
The arduous life of tapas that Vidura had
undertaken had so
transmuted his personality that he appeared a
different person, a
person glowing with divine aura, like Indra,
the king of Gods.
The people were describing their exultation in their
own words to one
another. Many shed tears remembering the trials and
tribulations which
Vidura had undergone and the peace that he had
acquired. The queens and
princesses too had darshan from inside the purdah
and
they were supremely happy.
The
first painting on this page of Krishna with the
Pândavas as the
legs of His horse
is titled: 'Krishna riding a composite horse',
India, Andhra Pradesh, c.1800. Courtesy: LACMA.