Chapter 33

‘Vaisampayana said, “Hearing these words of Yajnaseni, Bhimasena, sighingin wrath, approached the king and addressed him, saying, ‘Walk, Omonarch, in the customary path trodden by good men, (before thee) inrespect of kingdoms. What do we gain by living in the asylum of ascetics,thus deprived of virtue, pleasure, and profit? It is not by virtue, norby honesty, nor by might, but by unfair dice, that our kingdom hath beensnatched by Duryodhana. Like a weak offal-eating jackal snatching theprey from mighty lions, he hath snatched away our kingdom. Why, Omonarch, in obedience to the trite merit of sticking to a promise, dostthou suffer such distress, abandoning that wealth which is the source ofboth virtue and enjoyments? It was for thy carelessness, O king, that ourkingdom protected by the wielder of the Gandiva and therefore, incapableof being wrested by Indra himself, was snatched from us in our verysight. It was for thee, O monarch, that, ourselves living, our prosperitywas snatched away from us like a fruit from one unable to use his arms,or like kine from one incapable of using his legs. Thou art faithful inthe acquisition of virtue. It was to please thee, O Bharata, that we havesuffered ourselves to be overwhelmed with such dire calamity. O bull ofthe Bharata race, it was because we were subject to thy control that weare thus tearing the hearts of our friends and gratifying our foes. Thatwe did not, in obedience to thee, even then slay the sons ofDhritarashtra, is an act of folly on our part that grieveth me sorely.This thy abode, O king, in the woods, like that of any wild animal, iswhat a man of weakness alone would submit to. Surely, no man of mightwould ever lead such a life. This thy course of life is approved neitherby Krishna, nor Vibhatsu, nor by Abhimanyu, nor by the Srinjayas, nor bymyself, nor by the sons of Madri. Afflicted with the vows, thy cry isReligion! Religion! Hast thou from despair been deprived of thymanliness? Cowards alone, unable to win back their prosperity, cherishdespair, which is fruitless and destructive of one’s purposes. Thou hastability and eyes. Thou seest that manliness dwelleth in us. It is becausethou hast adopted a life of peace that thou feelest not this distress.These Dhritarashtras regard us who are forgiving, as really incompetent.This, O king, grieveth me more than death in battle. If we all die infair fight without turning our backs on the foe, even that would bebetter than this exile, for then we should obtain regions of bliss in theother world. Or, if, O bull of the Bharata race, having slain them all,we acquire the entire earth, that would be prosperity worth the trial. Wewho ever adhere to the customs of our order, who ever desire grandachievements, who wish to avenge our wrongs, have this for our boundenduty. Our kingdom wrested from us, if we engage in battle, our deeds whenknown to the world will procure for us fame and not slander. And thatvirtue, O king, which tortureth one’s own self and friends, is really novirtue. It is rather vice, producing calamities. Virtue is sometimes alsothe weakness of men. And though such a man might ever be engaged in thepractice of virtue, yet both virtue and profit forsake him, like pleasureand pain forsaking a person that is dead. He that practiseth virtue forvirtue’s sake always suffereth. He can scarcely be called a wise man, forhe knoweth not the purposes of virtue like a blind man incapable ofperceiving the solar light. He that regardeth his wealth to exist forhimself alone, scarcely understandeth the purposes of wealth. He isreally like a servant that tendeth kine in a forest. He again thatpursueth wealth too much without pursuing virtue and enjoyments,deserveth to be censured and slain by all men. He also that ever pursuethenjoyments without pursuing virtue and wealth, loseth his friends andvirtue and wealth also. Destitute of virtue and wealth such a man,indulging in pleasure at will, at the expiration of his period ofindulgence, meeteth with certain death, like a fish when the water inwhich it liveth hath been dried up. It is for these reasons that theythat are wise are ever careful of both virtue and wealth, for a union ofvirtue and wealth is the essential requisite of pleasure, as fuel is theessential requisite of fire. Pleasure hath always virtue for its root,and virtue also is united with pleasure. Know, O monarch, that both aredependent on each other like the ocean and the clouds, the ocean causingthe clouds and the clouds filling the ocean. The joy that one feeleth inconsequence of contact with objects of touch or of possession of wealth,is what is called pleasure. It existeth in the mind, having no corporealexistence that one can see. He that wisheth (to obtain) wealth, seekethfor a large share of virtue to crown his wish with success. He thatwisheth for pleasure, seeketh wealth, (so that his wish may be realised).Pleasure however, yieldeth nothing in its turn. One pleasure cannot leadto another, being its own fruit, as ashes may be had from wood, butnothing from those ashes in their turn. And, O king, as a fowler killeththe birds we see, so doth sin slay the creatures of the world. He,therefore, who misled by pleasure or covetousness, beholdeth not thenature of virtue, deserveth to be slain by all, and becometh wretchedboth here and here-after. It is evident, O king, that thou knowest thatpleasure may be derived from the possession of various objects ofenjoyment. Thou also well knowest their ordinary states, as well as thegreat changes they undergo. At their loss or disappearance occasioned bydecrepitude or death, ariseth what is called distress. That distress, Oking, hath now overtaken us. The joy that ariseth from the five senses,the intellect and the heart, being directed to the objects proper toeach, is called pleasure. That pleasure, O king, is, as I think, one ofthe best fruits of our actions.

“Thus, O monarch, one should regard virtue, wealth and pleasure one afteranother. One should not devote one self to virtue alone, nor regardwealth as the highest object of one’s wishes, nor pleasure, but shouldever pursue all three. The scriptures ordain that one should seek virtuein the morning, wealth at noon, and pleasure in the evening. Thescriptures also ordain that one should seek pleasure in the first portionof life, wealth in the second, and virtue in the last. And, O thouforemost of speakers, they that are wise and fully conversant with properdivision of time, pursue all three, virtue, wealth, and pleasure,dividing their time duly. O son of the Kuru race, whether independence ofthese (three), or their possession is the better for those that desirehappiness, should be settled by thee after careful thought. And thoushouldst then, O king, unhesitatingly act either for acquiring them, orabandoning them all. For he who liveth wavering between the twodoubtingly, leadeth a wretched life. It is well known that thy behaviouris ever regulated by virtue. Knowing this thy friends counsel thee toact. Gift, sacrifice, respect for the wise, study of the Vedas, andhonesty, these, O king, constitute the highest virtue and are efficaciousboth here and hereafter. These virtues, however, cannot be attained byone that hath no wealth, even if, O tiger among men, he may have infiniteother accomplishments. The whole universe, O king, dependeth upon virtue.There is nothing higher than virtue. And virtue, O king, is attainable byone that hath plenty of wealth. Wealth cannot be earned by leading amendicant life, nor by a life of feebleness. Wealth, however, can beearned by intelligence directed by virtue. In thy case, O king, begging,which is successful with Brahmanas, hath been forbidden. Therefore, Obull amongst men, strive for the acquisition of wealth by exerting thymight and energy. Neither mendicancy, nor the life of a Sudra is what isproper for thee. Might and energy constitute the virtue of the Kshatriyain especial. Adopt thou, therefore, the virtue of thy order and slay theenemies. Destroy the might of Dhritarashtra’s sons, O son of Pritha, withmy and Arjuna’s aid. They that are learned and wise say that sovereigntyis virtue. Acquire sovereignty, therefore, for it behoveth thee not tolive in a state of inferiority. Awake, O king, and understand the eternalvirtues (of the order). By birth thou belongest to an order whose deedsare cruel and are a source of pain to man. Cherish thy subjects and reapthe fruit thereof. That can never be a reproach. Even this, O king, isthe virtue ordained by God himself for the order to which thou belongest!If thou tallest away therefrom, thou wilt make thyself ridiculous.Deviation from the virtues of one’s own order is never applauded.Therefore, O thou of the Kuru race, making thy heart what it ought to be,agreeably to the order to which thou belongest, and casting away thiscourse of feebleness, summon thy energy and bear thy weight like one thatbeareth it manfully. No king, O monarch, could ever acquire thesovereignty of the earth or prosperity or affluence by means of virtuealone. Like a fowler earning his food in the shape of swarms of littleeasily-tempted game, by offering them some attractive food, doth one thatis intelligent acquire a kingdom, by offering bribes unto low andcovetous enemies. Behold, O bull among kings, the Asuras, though elderbrothers in possession of power and affluence, were all vanquished by thegods through stratagem. Thus, O king, everything belongeth to those thatare mighty. And, O mighty-armed one, slay thy foes, having recourse tostratagem. There is none equal unto Arjuna in wielding the bow in battle.Nor is there anybody that may be equal unto me in wielding the mace.Strong men, O monarch, engage in battle depending on their might, and noton the force of numbers nor on information of the enemy’s plans procuredthrough spies. Therefore, O son of Pandu exert thy might. Might is theroot of wealth. Whatever else is said to be its root is really not such.As the shade of the tree in winter goeth for nothing, so without mighteverything else becometh fruitless. Wealth should be spent by one whowisheth to increase his wealth, after the manner, O son of Kunti, ofscattering seeds on the ground. Let there be no doubt then in thy mind.Where, however, wealth that is more or even equal is not to be gained,there should be no expenditure of wealth. For investment of wealth arelike the ass, scratching, pleasurable at first but painful afterwards.Thus, O king of men, the person who throweth away like seeds a little ofhis virtue in order to gain a larger measure of virtue, is regarded aswise. Beyond doubt, it is as I say. They that are wise alienate thefriends of the foe that owneth such, and having weakened him by causingthose friends to abandon him thus, they then reduce him to subjection.Even they that are strong, engage in battle depending on their courage.One cannot by even continued efforts (uninspired by courage) or by thearts of conciliation, always conquer a kingdom. Sometimes, O king, menthat are weak, uniting in large numbers, slay even a powerful foe, likebees killing the despoiler of the honey by force of numbers alone. (Asregards thyself), O king, like the sun that sustaineth as well as slayethcreatures by his rays, adopt thou the ways of the sun. To protect one’skingdom and cherish the people duly, as done by our ancestors, O king,is, it hath been heard by us, a kind of asceticism mentioned even in theVedas. By ascetism, O king, a Kshatriya cannot acquire such regions ofblessedness as he can by fair fight whether ending in victory or defeat.Beholding, O king, this thy distress, the world hath come to theconclusion that light may forsake the Sun and grace the Moon. And, Oking, good men separately as well as assembling together, converse withone another, applauding thee and blaming the other. There is this,moreover, O monarch, viz., that both the Kurus and the Brahmanas,assembling together, gladly speak of thy firm adherence to truth, in thatthou hast never, from ignorance, from meanness, from covetousness, orfrom fear, uttered an untruth. Whatever sin, O monarch, a king committethin acquiring dominion, he consumeth it all afterwards by means ofsacrifices distinguished by large gifts. Like the Moon emerging from theclouds, the king is purified from all sins by bestowing villages onBrahmanas and kine by thousands. Almost all the citizens as well as theinhabitants of the country, young or old, O son of the Kuru race, praisethee, O Yudhishthira! This also, O Bharata, the people are saying amongstthemselves, viz., that as milk in a bag of dog’s hide, as the Vedas in aSudra, as truth in a robber, as strength in a woman, so is sovereignty inDuryodhana. Even women and children are repeating this, as if it were alesson they seek to commit to memory. O represser of foes, thou hastfallen into this state along with ourselves. Alas, we also are lost withthee for this calamity of thine. Therefore, ascending in thy carfurnished with every implement, and making the superior Brahmanas utterbenedictions on thee, march thou with speed, even this very day, uponHastinapura, in order that thou mayst be able to give unto Brahmanas thespoils of victory. Surrounded by thy brothers, who are firm wielders ofthe bow, and by heroes skilled in weapons and like unto snakes ofvirulent poison, set thou out even like the slayer Vritra surounded bythe Marutas. And, O son of Kunti, as thou art powerful, grind thou withthy might thy weak enemies, like Indra grinding the Asuras; and snatchthou from Dhritarashtra’s son the prosperity he enjoyeth. There is nomortal that can bear the touch of the shafts furnished with the feathersof the vulture and resembling snakes of virulent poison, that would beshot from the Gandiva. And, O Bharata, there is not a warrior, nor anelephant, nor a horse, that is able to bear the impetus of my mace when Iam angry in battle. Why, O son of Kunti, should we not wrest our kingdomfrom the foe, fighting with the aid of the Srinjayas and Kaikeyas, andthe bull of the Vrishni race? Why, O king, should we not succeed inwresting the (sovereignty of the) earth that is now in the hands of thefoe, if, aided by a large force, we do but strive?”