When Sanjaya (the son of Gavalgana) heard his king wail and sigh like a serpent, he consoled Dhritarashtra with these words of great importance.
Note: Sauti narrated to the ascetics in Naimisha Forest, the words spoken by Sanjaya to King Dhritarashtra. The words below were spoken by Sanjaya to console the king.
O King, you have heard Ved Vyasa and Sage Narada speak of immensely powerful men who have exerted great effort in the world. These men, who were born into grand royal families shone with worthy qualities. They were well-versed in the science of celestial weapons. They were akin to Indra in their glory. They conquered the world with justice, performed sacrifices with fit offerings to the brahmanas, and were greatly renowned in the world. But, in the end, they had to succumb to the influence of time.
Note: Sanjaya names a few such great kings to Dhritarashtra. I have listed them in bullet points for ease of comprehension.
Saivya: the valiant maharatha.
Srinjaya: one of the greatest conquerors.
Suhotra, Rantideva, and Kakshivanta: kings that were great in their glory.
Valhika, Damana, Saryati, Ajita, and Nala.
Viswamitra: the destroyer of foes.
Amvarisha: of immense strength.
Marutta, Manu, Ikshaku, Gaya, and Bharata.
Rama: the son of Dasaratha.
Sasavindu and Bhagiratha.
Kritavirya and Janamejava: the greatly fortunate kings.
Yayati: who was assisted by the celestials in performing sacrifices and by whose sacrificial altars were spread across the entire earth.
When Saivya was afflicted due to the loss of his children, Rishi Narada told him the story of these twenty-four kings.
There were many other noble-minded and virtuous kings who lived before these great monarchs. They were:
Puru
Kuru
Yadu
Sura and Viswasrawa of great glory
Anuha
Yuvanaswu
Kakutstha
Vikrami
Raghu
Vijava
Virihorta
Anga
Bhava
Sweta
Vripadguru
Usinara
Sata-ratha
Kanka
Duliduha
Druma
Dambhodbhava
Para
Vena
Sagara
Sankriti
Nimi
Ajeya
Parasu
Pundra
Sambhu
The holy Deva-Vridha, Devahuya, Supratika, and Vrihad-ratha
Mahatsaha
Vinitatma
Sukratu
Nala: the king of the Nishadas
Satyavrata
Santabhaya
Sumitra
The chief Subala
Janujangha
Anaranya
Arka
Priyabhritya
Chuchi-vrata
Balabandhu
Nirmardda
Ketusringa
Brhidbala
Dhrishtaketu
Brihatketu
Driptaketu
Niramaya
Abikshit
Chapala
Dhurta
Kritbandhu
Dridhe-shudhi
Mahapurana-sambhavya
Pratyanga
Paraha
Sruti
O great one, even before these, there were hundreds and thousands and millions of kings of great power, wisdom, valor, generosity, magnanimity, faith, truth, purity, simplicity, and mercy who could not avoid death. Their records have been published by sacred bards of former times. They all met the same fate in the end, even though they were blessed with every virtue.
On the other hand, O King, your sons had an evil disposition. They harbored the desire to harm others and were inflamed with great passion and greed.
You are intelligent, wise, and well-versed in the sastras, O king. Those whose understanding is guided by the sastras never sink under the pressure of misfortune. You know that fate is sometimes kind, and sometimes, severe. Nobody can avert the decrees of fate. Nobody can change the way marked out for him by Divine will. Therefore, it is not appropriate for you to grieve for that which had to happen.
Existence and non-existence, pleasure and pain: everything is rooted in time. It is time that creates everything and it is time that destroys it also. It is time that burns creatures and it is time that extinguishes the fire. All states (the good and the evil), in the three worlds, are caused by time. Time destroys things and creates them anew. Time alone is awake when all things are asleep. No one can overcome time. Time passes over all things without stopping. You know very well, O great King, that everything in the past, present, and future are offsprings of time. Do not throw away your reason, O King, and fall into such intense grief.
Note: After narrating the words of Sanjaya, Sauti tells the ascetics in Naimisha Forest, that Ved Vyasa took these principles as a fact and composed a holy Upanishad (the Mahabharata) that was published to the world by the sacred bards, in the Puranas composed by them.
Note: In the previous post, Sauti gave a very brief summary of the Mahabharata, beginning with King Pandy retiring to the forest and ending with the great war at Kurukshetra. In this post, Sauti describes what happens when Dhritarashtra learns about the loss of the Kauravas and the destruction of his race. He is overcome with grief and recollects all the incidents that gave him an intuitive feeling they were heading toward great destruction. Through this lamentation, we also get a summary of all the important events beginning from the Pandavas escaping from the house of lac till the end of the war.
When King Dhritarashtra heard about the victory of the Pandavas in the great war at Kurukshetra, he remembered the decisions of Duryodhana, Karna, and Sakuni and said the following words to Sanjaya:
“Listen to all I have to say about this war, Sanjay, without feeling contempt for me. You are intelligent, wise, and well-versed in the shastras. I was never inclined to go to war, nor did want to destroy my race. I thought of Pandu’s sons as my own. My own sons despised me because I am old and they insisted on doing things they knew were harmful. I am blind, and because of my affection for them, I did not oppose their behavior. I was foolish in my affection for Duryodhana, who himself was constantly growing in folly rather than wisdom. He was unable to accept the wealth and good fortune that the sons of Pandu had acquired. To make matters worse, he was insulted for his awkwardness while walking in their assembly hall. He did not have the strength to defeat the sons of Pandu on the battlefield, nor did he want to put in the effort to obtain wealth and good fortune for himself. As a result, with the help of the king of Gandhara (Sakuni) he conspired to play an unfair game of dice with the Pandavas.”
“Now, I will tell you Sanjaya, everything that happened in the past and my thoughts about those events. You will soon realize that I could see, ahead of time, the consequences of those actions.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Arjuna had successfully bent the bow and pierced the strange target at Draupadi’s swayamvara.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Arjuna had married Subhadra (Krishna’s sister) after kidnapping her in Dwarka, and her brothers, Krishna and Balarama, entered the Pandava’s capital city, Indraprastha, as friends of Arjuna without any resentment.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Arjuna, using his celestial arrow, prevented the downpour caused by Indra (the king of the Gods) and gratified Agni by allowing him to devour the Khandavaprastha forest.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the Pandavas along with their mother, Kunti, had escaped from the house of lac, and they were assisted by none other than Vidura, in escaping.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the brave Panchalas had joined the Pandavas after Arjuna pierced the target at Draupadi’s swayamvara.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard Bhima had slain the king of Magadha, Jarasandha, with his bare arms.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the Pandavas had performed the grand Rajasuya Yagna after conquering all the other kings and chiefs.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Draupadi, her eyes filled with tears and heart filled with suffering, had been dragged into court during her season of impurity, wearing only one garment,”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the wicked wretch Dussasana attempted to strip Draupadi of that single garment, and he kept on pulling the cloth without reaching its end.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Yudhishthira’s powerful brothers remained loyal to him even after he had lost the entire kingdom upon being defeated by Sakuni in the game of dice.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Yudhishthira’s virtuous brothers followed him to the forest and made every effort to reduce his discomfort.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the Snatakas and noble-minded Brahmins who lived on alms followed Yudhishthira into the forest.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Arjuna had obtained that great weapon, the Pasupata, after pleasing the god of gods (Tryambaka), who had appeared to Arjuna in the form of a hunter.
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the just and renowned Arjuna had visited the celestial regions and obtained obtained celestial weapons from Indra himself.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that after obtaining the celestial weapons, Arjuna vanquished the Kalakeyas and Paulomas who had become arrogant on account of a boon they had obtained that made them invincible even to the celestials,”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Arjuna, the chastiser of enemies, vanquished the asuras who were threatening Indra’s region.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Bhima, accompanied by the other sons of Kunti along with Vaisravana, reached the country that was not accessible to humans.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that my sons were captured by the Gandharvas when they went to Goshayatra (upon Karna’s advice) and were later freed by Arjuna.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Dharma (the God of justice) disguised himself as a Yaksha and proposed certain questions to Yudhishthira.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that my sons had failed to discover the Pandavas, who were staying at Virata’s palace, in their year of disguise.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the main warriors from my side had been vanquished by the noble Arjuna who had fought all of them alone.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Vasudeva, of the race of Madhu, who had once covered the whole earth with one foot, was keenly interested in the welfare of the Pandavas.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the king of Matsya had offered his virtuous daughter (Uttara) to Arjuna, and the latter accepted her for his son, Abhimanyu.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Yudhishthira, who had lost all his wealth, who was exiled and separated from his connections, had still managed to assemble an army of seven akshauhinis.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard Narada mention that Krishna and Arjuna, were in reality, Nara and Narayana, and he had seen them together in the regions of Brahma.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Krishna who was keen to make peace between the Kauravas and Pandavas (for the benefit of mankind) had to leave unsuccessfully after meeting the Kauravas.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Krishna showed himself as the entire universe when Karna and Duryodhana tried to imprison him.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Krishna consoled a sorrowful Kunti before leaving.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the Pandavas were counseled by Krishna and Bhishma, and Drona (son of Bharadwaj) blessed them.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Karna refused to fight until Bhishma was on the battlefield.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that three powerful energies (Krishna, Arjuna, and the bow Gandiva) had come together.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Krishna showed Arjuna all the worlds within his body when the latter was filled with hesitation and compassion on the battlefield.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Bhishma, the destroyer of foes, killed tens of thousands of charioteers every day in the battle, but had not slain any of the five Pandavas.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Bhishma (the righteous son of Ganga) had himself told the Pandavas how they could defeat him in battle.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Arjuna placed Shikhandin before him in his chariot and wounded Bhishma of infinite courage.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the aged hero Bhishma, after having slain several warriors of the Shomaka race, was overcome by wounds and lay on a bed of arrows.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Arjuna pierced the ground to bring forth a spring of water to quench Bhishma’s thirst when he was lying with thirst on the bed of arrows.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Vayu, Indra, and Surya united as allies for the success of the sons of Kunti, and beasts of prey created fear in us through their inauspicious presence.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Drona who fought on the battlefield using various modes of warfare, did not slay any of the superior Pandavas.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the Maharatha Sansaptakas of our army appointed for slaying Arjuna were slain by Arjuna himself.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that our impenetrable forces defended by Bharadwaja himself were entered singlehandedly by Abhimanyu – the brave son of Subhadra.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that our Maharathas who were incapable of overcoming Arjuna in battle, celebrated with jubilant faces after surrounding and slaying the boy Abhimanyu.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the foolish Kauravas were shouting in joy after slaying the boy Abhimanyu, and, hearing the news, Arjuna made the famous speech referring to Saindhava.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Arjuna had vowed to slay Saindhava and fulfilled his vow in the presence of his enemies.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that when Arjuna’s horses were exhausted, Krishna released them, made them drink water, harnessed them, and continued to guide them as before.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that when Arjuna’s horses were exhausted, Arjuna stayed in his chariot and succeeded in keeping his attackers at bay.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Yuyudhana (of the Vrishni race) created much confusion and fear in Drona’s unbearably powerful army and, having done so, returned to Krishna and Arjuna.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that even though Karna had overpowered Bhima, he allowed the latter to go after addressing him in contemptuous terms and dragging him with the end of his bow.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Drona, Kritivarma, Salya, and the son of Drona could not prevent Saindhava from being slain by Arjuna.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Krishna, through his strategy, had caused Karna to use the celestial weapon (the Sakti) given to him by Indra, on Ghatotkacha.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the Sakti that would have certainly slain Arjuna, had to be used by on Ghatotkacha in the battle between Karna and Gjatotkacha.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Dhrishtadyumna broke the rules of battle and slew Drona when the latter was alone in his chariot and had resolved to end his life.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Nakula (the son of Madri) in the presence of the entire army engaged the son of Drona in a one-on-one combat and rode his chariot around him in circles proving himself equal in prowess to Drona’s son.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that upon the death of Drona, his son misused the weapon called Narayana but failed to achieve the destruction of the Pandavas.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Bhima drank the blood of Duhsasana on the battlefield without anyone being able to prevent him.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the infinitely brave Karna, invincible in battle, was slain by Arjuna in that war between brothers that was mysterious even to the Gods.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Yudhishthira the just overcame, in battle, Duhsasana, the heroic son of Drona, and the fierce Kritivarman.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the brave king of Madra (Salya) dared Krishna in battle but was slain by Yudhishthira.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the wicked Suvala (Sakuni), who had magical powers, and was the root cause of the game of dice and the ensuing feud, was slain in battle by Sahadeva.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the exhausted Duryodhana took refuge in a lake and lay there alone without his chariot and without any strength.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the Pandavas, accompanied by Krishna, went to that lake and started insulting Duryodhana, who was incapable of putting up with such harsh words.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that Duryodhana was unfairly slain according to the counsel of Krishna.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that the son of Drona committed a horrible deed when slaying the Panchals and the sons of Draupadi.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that when the son of Drona was pursued by Bhima, he discharged a dangerous weapon (the Aihshika) and injured the embryo in Uttara’s womb.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that when the son of Drona discharged the Brahmashira, Arjuna successfully repelled it with another weapon called the Sasti, and ultimately, the son of Drona had to give up the jewel-like outgrowth on his head.”
“O Sanjaya, I had no hope of success when I heard that when the son of Drona injured the embryo in Uttara’s womb, he was cursed by both Ved Vyasa and Krishna.”
“Alas! Gandhari, who now doesn’t have any children, grandchildren, parents, brothers, and relatives, is to be pitied.”
“The Pandavas have achieved the difficult task of recovering a kingdom without a rival.”
“Alas! I have heard that only ten warriors are alive after the war. Three from our side and seven from the Pandavas’ camp. In this dreadful conflict, eighteen akshauhinis of kshatriyas have been slain. There is utter darkness around me and I am so overcome with emotion, that I might lose consciousness.”
Dhritarashtra thus cried over his fate and became overcome with extreme sadness. He lost consciousness for some time, but soon came back to his senses and addresses Sanjaya, saying: “After all that has happened, O Sanjaya, after all that has happened, I wish to end my life immediately. I do not find any purpose in this life now.”
https://draupadiparashakti.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/draupadi-blanc.png00Paraghttps://draupadiparashakti.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/draupadi-blanc.pngParag2022-10-24 06:15:272023-09-23 12:02:53Dhritarashtra’s Lamentation: A Summary of Main Events till the end of the War
