Chapter 54
“Sanjaya said, ‘Then Kritavarma, and Kripa, and the son of Drona and theSuta’s son, O sire, and Uluka, and Subala’s son (Shakuni), and the kinghimself, with his uterine brothers, beholding the (Kuru) army afflictedwith the fear of
“Sanjaya said, ‘Then Kritavarma, and Kripa, and the son of Drona and theSuta’s son, O sire, and Uluka, and Subala’s son (Shakuni), and the kinghimself, with his uterine brothers, beholding the (Kuru) army afflictedwith the fear of
“Bhishma said, ‘Thus commanded, the lady said,–Be it so. She thenbrought oil (for rubbing the Rishi’s body therewith) and a piece of clothfor his wear during the ablutions.
“Yudhishthira said, ‘Thou hast said, O grandsire, that the foundation ofall evils is covetousness. I wish, O sire, to hear of ignorance indetail.’
“Dhritarashtra said,–‘Tell me, O Sanjaya, thou of great intelligence, ofthe regions to the north and the east side of Meru, as also of themountains of Malyavat, in detail.[50]
“Aswatthaman said, ‘The kine, O Karna, have not yet been won, nor havethey yet crossed the boundary (of their owner’s dominions), nor have theyyet reached Hastinapura.
Janamejaya said,–“O thou foremost of all conversant with the Vedas, howdid that game at dice take place, fraught with such evil to the cousinsand through which my grand-sires, the son of Pandu, were plunged intosuch sorrow?
“Sanjaya said, ‘During the progress of that battle in which so manyKshatriyas sank down, the loud twang of Gandiva, O sire, was heard abovethe din on that spot, O king, where the son of Pandu was engaged inslaughtering the samsaptakas, the Kosalas, and the Narayana forces.
“Yudhishthira said, ‘I ask, O chief of Bharata’s race, what is the originof the saying, about discharging all duties jointly at the time of aperson’s taking the hand of his spouse in marriage?
“Yudhishthira said, ‘O grandsire, O thou of virtuous soul, what, indeed,is said to be productive of great merit[458] for a person attentivelyengaged in the study of the Vedas and desirous of acquiring virtue?
“Dhritarashtra said,–‘Tell me truly, O Sanjaya, the names of all theVarshas, and of all the mountains, and also of all those that dwell onthose mountains.