Adhyaya 120

Verse 1

इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत वनपर्वके अन्तर्गत तीर्थयात्रापर्वमें लोमशती र्थयात्राके प्रसंगमें बलरामवाक्यविषयक एक सौ उतन्नीसवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ ॥/ ११९ ॥। अप ऋषाज [हुक है आम - इस प्रकारके वृक्षोंको प्रत्यक्ष देखना मृत्युसूचक माना गया है। विशर्त्याधिकशततमो< ध्याय: सात्यकिके शॉौर्यपूर्ण उद्बार तथा युधिष्ठिरद्वारा श्रीकृष्णके वचनोंका अनुमोदन एवं पाण्डवोंका पयोष्णी नदीके तटपर निवास सात्यकिरुवाच न राम काल: परिदेवनाय यदुत्तरं त्वत्र तदेव सर्वे समाचरामो हानतीतकालं युधिष्ठिरो यद्यपि नाह किंचित्‌

Baladeva said: “Rāma, this is not the time for lamentation. Whatever the proper course is in this situation, let us all carry it out. Yudhiṣṭhira, though he says nothing, is not one to let the right moment pass without acting.”

Verse 2

सात्यकिने कहा--बलरामजी! यह समय बैठकर विलाप करनेका नहीं है। अब आगे जो कुछ करना है उसीको हम सब लोग मिलकर करें। यद्यपि महाराज युधिष्ठटिर हमसे कुछ नहीं कहते हैं तो भी हमें अब व्यर्थ समय न बिताकर कौरवोंको उचित उत्तर देना चाहिये ।।

Balarāma said to Sātyaki: “This is not the time to sit and lament. Whatever must be done next, let all of us decide together and do it. Even if King Yudhiṣṭhira says nothing to us, we should not waste time; we must give the Kauravas a fitting reply. In this world, those who are ‘protected’—those with many supporters—do not undertake tasks by themselves alone; in their undertakings their allies and well-wishers become their strength, just as Śibi and others, the grandsons of Yayāti, took part in the work of his deliverance.”

Verse 3

येषां तथा राम समारभन्‍न्ते कार्याणि नाथा: स्वमतेन लोके । ते नाथवन्तः पुरुषप्रवीरा नानाथवत्‌ कृच्छुमवाप्लुवन्ति

O Rāma, in this world those eminent men whose undertakings are set in motion by their supporters, acting on their own counsel, are truly counted as “protected.” They do not fall into hardship like the helpless.

Verse 4

कस्मादिमौ रामजनार्दनौ च प्रद्युम्नसाम्बी च मया समेतौ । वसन्त्यरण्ये सहसोदरीयै- स्त्रैलोक्पनाथानभिगम्य पार्था:

Balarāma said: “Why is it that these two—Rāma (Balarāma) and Janārdana (Kṛṣṇa)—and also Pradyumna and Sāmba, are all here together with me, and yet the Pārthas (the sons of Kuntī), even after approaching the lords of the three worlds, continue to dwell in the forest along with their brothers?”

Verse 5

निर्यातु साध्वद्य दशार्हसेना प्रभूतनानायुधचित्रवर्मा | यमक्षयं गच्छतु धार्त॑राष्ट्र: सबान्धवो वृष्णिबलाभिभूत:

Balarāma said: “Let the Daśārha (Vṛṣṇi) army set out this very day—well-equipped with abundant and varied weapons, and clad in splendid, many-hued armor. Let the son of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, overpowered by the might of the Vṛṣṇis, go to the abode of Yama together with his kinsmen.”

Verse 6

त्वं होव कोपात्‌ पृथिवीमपीमां संवेष्टयेस्तिष्ठतु शार्ड्र्धन्चा । स धार्तराष्ट्रं जहि सानुबन्ध॑ वृत्रं यथा देवपतिम॑हिन्द्र:

Balarāma said: “Indeed, in your wrath you could even wrap this whole earth in your blazing power—let it stand so. Strike down that son of Dhṛtarāṣṭra together with his allies and followers, just as Indra, lord of the gods, slew Vṛtra.”

Verse 7

भ्राता च मे य:ः स सखा गुरुश्न जनार्दनस्यात्मसममश्ष पार्थ: । यदर्थमैच्छन्‌ मनुजा: सुपुत्रं शिष्यं गुरुश्नाप्रतिकूलवादम्‌

Baladeva said: “That Pārtha (Arjuna)—who is my brother, my friend, and also my revered elder, and who is as dear to Janārdana (Kṛṣṇa) as his own self—should stand apart for this purpose. The time has now come to accomplish that very aim for which people desire a noble son and a disciple who does not speak against his teacher: to uphold loyalty, restraint, and right conduct when duty calls.”

Verse 8

यदर्थमभ्युद्यतमुत्तमं तत्‌ करोति कर्माग्रयमपारणीयम्‌ । तस्यास्त्रवर्षाण्यहमुत्तमास्त्रै- विंहत्य सर्वाणि रणेडभिभूय

Balarāma said: “That very purpose for which a worthy disciple or son takes up the finest weapons and performs foremost deeds of immeasurable prowess—this is the moment to fulfill it. On the battlefield I shall, with my supreme missiles, shatter the enemy’s entire rain of weapons and, overcoming them in combat, rout all their forces.”

Verse 9

कायाच्छिर: सर्पविषाग्निकल्पै: शरोत्तमैरुन्मथितास्मि राम । खड्गेन चाहं निशितेन संख्ये कायाच्छिरस्तस्य बलात्‌ प्रमथ्य

Balarāma said: “Rāma, I am being torn and shaken by excellent arrows—terrible like serpents, poison, and fire. Yet in the thick of battle, with my keen sword I shall, by force, wrench his head from his body and strike it down.”

Verse 10

ततो<स्य सर्वाननुगान्‌ हनिष्ये दुर्योधन चापि कुरूँश्व॒ सर्वान्‌ आत्तायुधं मामिह रौहिणेय पश्यन्तु भैमा युधि जातहर्षा:

“Then I shall slay all his followers, and Duryodhana as well—indeed all the Kurus. O son of Rohiṇī, let these Bhīma-like warriors, their spirits risen in the heat of battle, behold me here with weapons in hand.”

Verse 11

निघ्नन्तमेक॑ कुरुयो धमुख्या- नग्निं महाकक्षमिवान्तकाले । प्रद्युम्नमुक्तान्‌ निशितान्‌ न शक्ता: सोढुं कृपद्रोणविकर्णकर्णा:

Baladeva declares that, like a vast conflagration at the end of time reducing heaps of dry grass to ash, he alone will strike down the foremost warriors of the Kuru host, in full view of all. He adds that even renowned masters and champions—Kṛpa, Droṇa, Vikarṇa, and Karṇa—lack the strength to endure the razor-sharp arrows released by Pradyumna.

Verse 12

जानामि वीर्य च जयात्मजस्य कार्ष्णिर्भवत्येष यथा रणस्थ: । साम्ब: ससूतं सरथं भुजाभ्यां दुःशासन शास्तु बलात्‌ प्रमथ्य

Baladeva said: “I know the valor of Jayā’s son. When he stands upon the battlefield, he appears like a true descendant of Kṛṣṇa himself. Let the heroic Sāmba, by sheer strength, crush the enemy host and subdue Duḥśāsana—seizing him together with his charioteer and chariot in his own two arms.”

Verse 13

न विद्यते जाम्बवतीसुतस्य रणे विषदह्ां हि रणोत्कटस्य । एतेन बालेन हि शम्बरस्य दैत्यस्य सैन्यं सहसा प्रणुन्नम्‌

Baladeva said: “For the son of Jāmbavatī—fierce in the press of battle—there is no room for despondency in war. Indeed, even while still a boy, he swiftly shattered the army of the demon Śambara.”

Verse 14

वृत्तोरुरत्यायतपीनबाहु- रेतेन संख्ये निहतो<श्वचक्र: । को नाम साम्बस्य महारथस्य रणे समक्ष रथमभ्युदीयात्‌

Baladeva said: “With his rounded thighs and long, powerful arms, he has already destroyed whole formations of horsemen in the press of battle. Who, on the field of war, could possibly ride out to face the chariot of Sāmba, that great chariot-warrior?”

Verse 15

यथा प्रविश्यान्तरमन्तकस्य काले मनुष्यो न विनिष्क्रमेत | तथा प्रविश्यान्तरमस्य संख्ये को नाम जीवन पुनरात्रजेत

Balarāma said: “Just as, when the final hour arrives, a man who has fallen into the very embrace of Antaka (Death) can never escape from there, so too—having entered into this hero’s grasp on the battlefield—what warrior could possibly return alive again?”

Verse 16

द्रोणं च भीष्मं च महारथौ तौ सुतैर्वृत॑ चाप्पथ सोमदत्तम्‌ । सर्वाणि सैन्यानि च वासुदेव: प्रधक्ष्यते सायकवल्लिजालै:

Baladeva said: “If the blessed Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the son of Vasudeva, so wills, he can burn to ashes with the blazing net of his arrows Droṇa and Bhīṣma—those two renowned great chariot-warriors—along with Somadatta surrounded by his sons, and indeed all the armies as well. The point is not mere power, but the restraint of power in service of dharma.”

Verse 17

कि नाम लोकेष्वविषह्ाुमस्ति कृष्णस्य सर्वेषु सदेवकेषु । आत्तायुथस्योत्तमबाणपाणे- श्रक्रायुधस्याप्रतिमस्य युद्धे

Baladeva said: “What, indeed, in all the worlds—together with the gods—could be unbearable or impossible for Kṛṣṇa? Bearing weapons, holding excellent arrows in his hands, and wielding the discus like Indra’s own weapon, he is unmatched in battle.”

Verse 18

ततोडनिरुद्धो5प्यसिचर्मपाणि- महीमिमां धार्तराष्ट्रविसंज्ञै: । ह्वतोत्तमाड्रैन्निहतै: करोतु कीर्णा कुशैवेदिमिवाध्वरेषु

Then let even Aniruddha—weapon in hand, sword and shield—cover this very earth with the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra lying senseless, their heads struck down in battle, just as in sacrificial rites the altar is strewn and overlaid with kuśa grass. The image frames the coming slaughter as a grim inversion of ritual order: the battlefield becomes an altar, and the fallen become the dreadful ‘covering’ spread across the ground.

Verse 19

गदोल्मुकौ बाहुकभानुनीथा: शूरश्न संख्ये निशठ: कुमार: । रणोत्कटौ सारणचारुदेष्णौ कुलोचितं विप्रथयन्तु कर्म

Baladeva said: “Let Gada and Ulmuka, and Bāhuka, Bhānu, and Nītha; let the heroic youth Niśaṭha in the thick of battle; and let Sāraṇa and Cārudeṣṇa, fierce in the press of war—each display deeds worthy of their lineage. In this righteous struggle, may their valor uphold the honor of their house and fulfill the duty that falls upon kinsmen in a time of conflict.”

Verse 20

सवृष्णि भोजान्धकयो धमुख्या समागता सात्वतशूरसेना । हत्वा रणे तान्‌ धृतराष्ट्रपुत्रा- ल्‍लोके यश: स्फीतमुपाकरोतु

Balarāma said: “May the valorous host of the Yādavas—foremost among them the Vṛṣṇis, Bhojas, and Andhakas—assemble in strength, strike down the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra in battle, and thereby spread far and wide their bright renown in the world.”

Verse 21

ततो<भिमन्यु: पृथिवीं प्रशास्तु यावद्‌ व्रतं धर्मभृतां वरिष्ठ: । युधिष्ठिर: पारयते महात्मा द्यूते यथोक्त कुरुसत्तमेन

Then (Balarāma said): “Let Abhimanyu govern the earth until the great-souled Yudhiṣṭhira—foremost among upholders of dharma—has fully completed the vow he undertook, as declared at the time of the dice-game by that best of the Kurus.”

Verse 22

अस्मप्प्रमुक्तिविशिखैर्जितारि- स्ततो महीं भोक्ष्यति धर्मराज: । निर्धार्तराष्ट्रां हतसूतपुत्रा- मेतद्धि नः कृत्यतमं यशस्यथम्‌

Balarāma said: “After completing his vow, the Dharmarāja will conquer his enemies by the very arrows released by us, and then he will enjoy sovereignty over this earth. By that time the earth will be emptied of Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s sons, and the charioteer’s son Karṇa will have been slain. If this comes to pass, it will be for us the most fitting deed—one that greatly increases our fame.”

Verse 23

वायुदेव उवाच असंशयं माधव सत्यमेतद्‌ गृह्नीम ते वाक्यमदीनसत्त्व । स्वाभ्यां भुजाभ्यामजितां तु भूमिं नेच्छेत्‌ कुरूणामृषभ: कथंचित्‌

Vāyudeva said: “O Mādhava, this is unquestionably true. O you of undaunted spirit, I accept your words. Yet the bull among the Kurus would never, under any circumstance, desire to take land that he has not won by the strength of his own arms.”

Verse 24

न होष कामाजन्न भयान्न लोभाद्‌ युधिष्ठटिरो जातु जह्यात्‌ स्वधर्मम्‌ भीमार्जुनौ चातिरथौ यमौ च तथैव कृष्णा द्रुपदात्मजेयम्‌

Vāyu said: “Not out of desire, nor out of fear, nor out of greed would Yudhiṣṭhira ever abandon his own dharma. In the same way, Bhīma and Arjuna—mighty warriors of the highest rank—along with the twin sons of Mādrī, and likewise Kṛṣṇā, the daughter of Drupada, would not forsake their rightful path of conduct.”

Verse 25

उभौ हि युद्धे5प्रतिमौ पृथिव्यां वृकोदरश्रैव धनंजयश्न । कस्मान्न कृत्स्नां पृथिवीं प्रशासे- न्माद्रीसुताभ्यां च पुरस्कृतोडयम्‌

Vāyu said: “Indeed, on this earth, both Vṛkodara (Bhīma) and Dhanaṃjaya (Arjuna) are without equal in battle. With these two—and with the two sons of Mādrī at his side—why should this Yudhiṣṭhira not be able to govern the entire earth?”

Verse 26

यदा तु पञ्चालपतिर्महात्मा सकेकयश्षेदिपतिर्वयं च । युध्येम विक्रम्य रणे समेता- स्तदैव सर्वे रिपवो हि न स्यु:

But when the great-souled lord of the Pañcālas, together with the king of the Kaikayas, the ruler of Cedi, and we as well, unite and display our valor in battle, then at that very moment all our enemies will cease to exist.

Verse 27

युधिछिर उवाच नेदं चित्र माधव यद्‌ ब्रवीषि सत्य॑ तु मे रक्ष्यतमं न राज्यम्‌ । कृष्णस्तु मां वेद यथावदेक: कृष्णं च वेदाहमथो यथावत्‌

Yudhiṣṭhira said: “O Mādhava, what you say is no wonder for a hero like you. But for me, the safeguarding of truth is the highest duty—not the gaining of a kingdom. Kṛṣṇa alone truly knows me as I am, and I too know Kṛṣṇa’s real nature as it is.”

Verse 28

यदैव काल पुरुषप्रवीरो वेत्स्यत्ययं माधव विक्रमस्य । तदा रणे त्वं च शिनिप्रवीर सुयोधनं जेष्यसि केशवश्व

“O Mādhava, foremost hero of the Śini line! When Kṛṣṇa, the best of men, knows that the time has come to display his prowess, then on the battlefield you and Keśava together will conquer Suyodhana (Duryodhana).”

Verse 29

प्रतिप्रयान्त्वद्य दशार्हवीरा दृष्टोडस्मि नाथैर्नरलोकनाथी: । धर्मेडप्रमादं कुरुताप्रमेया द्रष्टास्मि भूय: सुखिन: समेतान्‌

Let the heroic Daśārhas depart today. I have been blessed to see you—my protectors, indeed guardians of the whole world of men. This meeting has brought me great joy. O immeasurably mighty heroes, remain ever vigilant in the practice and protection of dharma. May I see you all again, happy and gathered together as friends.

Verse 30

तेडन्योन्यमामन्त्रय तथाभिवाद्य वृद्धान्‌ परिष्वज्य शिशुंश्व॒ सर्वान्‌ । यदुप्रवीरा: स्वगृहाणि जग्मु- स्‍्ते चापि तीर्थान्यनुसंविचेरु:

After taking leave of one another, offering due salutations to the elders, embracing the children with heartfelt affection, and meeting all others in the proper manner, they departed for their desired destinations. The heroes of the Yadus returned to their own homes, while the Pāṇḍavas, as before, resumed their wandering among the sacred fords, continuing their disciplined life of pilgrimage and restraint.

Verse 31

विसृज्य कृष्णं त्वथ धर्मराजो विदर्भराजोपचितां सुतीर्थाम्‌ जगाम पुण्यां सरितं पयोष्णीं सभ्रातृभृत्य: सह लोमशेन

Having taken leave of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Dharmarāja Yudhiṣṭhira, together with Lomasa, his brothers, and his attendants, went to the bank of the holy river Payoshnī, revered by the king of Vidarbha and graced with excellent sacred fords.

Verse 32

सुतेन सोमेन विमिश्रतोयां पय: पयोष्णीं प्रति सो5ध्युवास । द्विजातिमुख्यैर्मुदितैर्महात्मा संस्तूयमान: स्तुतिभिर्वराभि:

Its waters were mingled with Soma, the sacrificial draught. Having gone to the bank of the Payoshnī, the great-souled king drank that water and took up his stay there. Then the foremost of the twice-born, gladdened at heart, praised him with excellent hymns.

Verse 120

इति श्रीमहाभारते वनपर्वणि तीर्थयात्रापर्वणि लोमशतीर्थयात्रायां यादवगमने विंशत्यधिकशततमो<ध्याय:

Thus, in the Śrī Mahābhārata, within the Vana Parva—specifically the section on the pilgrimage to sacred fords—during Lomasa’s pilgrimage narrative and the episode concerning the arrival/going of the Yādavas, ends the one-hundred-and-twentieth chapter.