The Mahabharata/Book 1: Adi Parva/Section 189

Section CLXXXIX. ( *Svayamvara Parva continued.* ) Vaisampayana said, "Then those youthful princes adorned with ear-rings, vieing with one another and each regarding himself accomplished in arms and gifted with might, stood up brandishing their weapons. And intoxicated with the pride of beauty, prowses, lineage, knowledge, wealth, and youth, they were like Himalyan elephants in the season of rut with crowns split from excess of temporal juice. And beholding each other with jealousy and influenced by the god of Desire, they suddenly rose up from their royal seats, exclaiming 'Krishnā shall be mine.' And the Kshatriyas assembled in that amphitheatre, each desirous of winning the daughter of Drupada, looked like the celestials (of old) standing round Umā the daughter of the King of mountains. Afflicted with the shafts of the god of the flowery bow and with hearts utterly lost in the contemplation of Krishnā, those princes descended into the amphitheatre for winning the Panchala maiden and began to regard even their best friends with jealousy. And there came also the celestials on their cars, with the Rudras and the Adityas, the Vasus and the twin Aswinas, the Sadhyas and all the Marutas, and Kuvera with Yama walking ahead. And there came also the Daityas and the Suparnas, the great Nagas and the celestial Rishis, the Guhyakas and the Charanas, and Viswavasu and Narada and Parvata, and the principal Gandharvas with the Apsaras. And Halāyaudha (Vala-deva) and Janarddana (Krishna) and the chiefs of the Vrishni, Andhaka, and Yādava tribes who obeyed the leadership of Krishna, were also there, viewing the scene. And beholding those elephants in rut—the five (Pandavas)—attracted towards Draupadi like mighty elephants towards a lake overgrown with lotuses, or like fire covered with ashes, Krishna the foremost of Yadu heroes began to reflect. And he said unto Rama (Valadeva),—'That is Yudhish-thira; that is Bhima with Jishnu (Arjuna); and those are the twin heroes.' And Rama surveying them slowly cast a glance of satisfaction on Krishna. Biting their nether lips in wrath, the other heroes there—sons and grandsons of kings—with their eyes and hearts and thoughts set on Krishnā, looked with expanded eyes on Draupadi alone without noticing the Pandavas. And the sons of Prithā also, of mighty arms, and the illustrious twin heroes, beholding Draupadi, were all likewise struck by the shafts of Kāma. And crowded with celestial Rishis and Gandharvas and Suparnas and Nagas and Asuras and Sidhyas, and filled with celestial perfumes and scattered over with celestial flowers, and resounding with the kettle-drum and the deep hum of infinite voices, and echoing with the softer music of the flute, the Vina, and the tabor, the cars of the celestials, could scarcely find a passage through the firmament. Then those princes—Karna, Duryodhana, Shālva, Shalya, Aswathamā, Krātha, Sunitha, Vakra, the rulers of Kalinga and Banga, Pāndya, Paundra, the ruler of Videha, the chief of the Yavanas,—and many other sons and grandsons of kings,—sovereigns of territories with eyes like lotus leaves,—one after another began to exhibit their prowess for (winning) that maiden of unrivalled beauty. Adorned with crowns, garlands, bracelets, and other ornaments, endued with mighty arms, possest of prowess and vigor and bursting with strength and energy, those princes could not, even in imagination, string that bow of extraordinary stiffness. "And (some amongst) those kings in exerting with swelling lips—each according to his strength, education, skill, and energy,—to string that bow, were tossed on the ground and lay perfectly motionless for some time. Their strength spent and their crowns and garlands loosened from their persons, they began to pant for breath and their ambition of winning that fair maiden was cooled. Tossed by that tough bow, and their garlands and bracelets and other ornaments disordered, they began to utter exclamations of woe. And beholding the plight of those monarchs, Karna that foremost of all wielders of the bow went to where the bow was, and quickly raising it stringed it soon and placed the arrows on the string. And beholding the son of Surya—Karna of the Suta tribe—like unto fire, or Soma, or Surya himself, resolved to shoot the mark, those foremost of bowmen—the sons of Pandu—regarded the mark as already shot, and brought down upon the ground. But seeing Karna, Draupadi loudly said, 'I will not elect a Suta for my lord!' Then Karna, laughing in vexation and casting a glance on the Sun, threw aside the bow already drawn to a circle. "Then when all those Kshatiyas gave up the task, the heroic king of the Chedis—mighty as Yama himself—the illustrious and determined Shishupāla the son of Damaghosa, in endeavouring to string the bow, himself fell upon his knees on the ground. Then king Jarāsandha endued with great strength and powers, approaching the bow stood there for some moments fixed and motions like a mountain. Tossed by the bow, he too fell upon his knees on the ground. And rising up, the monarch left the amphitheatre for returning to his kingdom. Then the great hero Salya the king of Madra, endued with great strength, in endeavouring to string the bow fell upon his knees on the ground. At last when in that assemblage consisting of highly respectable people, all the monarchs had become the subjects of derisive talk, that foremost of heroes—Jishnu the son of Kunti—desired to string the bow and place the arrows on the bowstring." Thus ends the hundred and eighty-ninth Section in the Svayamvara of the Adi Parva.