“The Brahmana continued, ‘King Drupada (after this), suffering at
heart, wandered among many ashrama of Brahmanas in search of superior Brahmanas
well-skilled in yagna rites. Buried with grief and eagerly yearning for children,
the king always said, ‘Oh, I have no offspring surpassing all in
accomplishments.’ The monarch (Drupada),
from great disheartenment, always said, ‘Oh, fie on those children that I have
and on my relatives!’ Ever thinking of revenging himself on Drona, the monarch
sighed constantly. O Bharata (Janamejaya), that best of kings (Drupada)
after much thought, saw no way of overcoming, by his Kshatriya might, the skills,
discipline, training and accomplishment of Drona.
“Wandering along the banks of the Yamuna and the
Ganga, the monarch once came upon a sacred asyhrama of Brahmanas. There was in
that ashrama no Brahmana who was not a Snaataka, no one who was not of rigid
vows (Vrata in Sanskrit), and none who was not Dharmic to a high degree. The king saw there two
Brahmana sages named Yaaja and Upayaaja, both of rigid vows (Vrata in
Sanskrit) and souls under complete
control and belonging to the most superior order. They were both devoted to the
study of the ancient institutes and sprung from the race of Kaashyapa. Those
best of Brahmanas were well-able to help the king (Drupada) in the attainment of his objective. The
king then, with great attention and singleness of purpose, began to go after
this pair of excellent Brahmanas.
“Discovering the superior accomplishments of the two
was the younger one (Rishi Upajaaya), the king met in private Upayaaja of rigid
vows (Vrata in Sanskrit), by the
offer of every desirable objects. Employed in paying homage to the feet of Upayaaja,
always addressing in sweet words and offering him every object of human desire,
Drupada, after worshipping that Brahmana, addressed him (one day), saying, ‘O Upayaaja, O Brahmana, if you,
perform those yagna rites by (virtue of) which I may obtain a son who may slay Drona, I promise you ten
thousand cows, or whatever else may be agreeable to you, O first of Brahmanas,
truly am I ready to make gifts to you.’
“Thus addressed by the king, the Rishi (Upayaaja) replied, saying, ‘I
cannot (perform such rites).’ But
Drupada without accepting this reply as final, once more began to serve and pay
homage to that Brahmana. O monarch (Janamejaya), then after the expiration of a year, Upayaaja – that first of Brahmanas,
addressing Drupada in sweet tone, said, ‘My elder brother (Yaaja), one day, while wandering through the deep
forest, took up a fruit that had fallen upon a spot the purity of which he did
not care to enquire about. I was following him (at the time) and observed this unworthy act of his.
Indeed, he entertains no hesitation in accepting things impure. In accepting
that (particular) fruit he saw not
any wrongdoing of sinful nature; Indeed, he who does
not observe purity (in one instance) is not very likely to observe it in the
other instances. When he
lived in the house of his Guru, employed in studying the institutes, he always
used to eat the remainings of other people's food (which is deemed impure). He always speaks approvingly of food and
entertains no dislike for anything. Arguing from these, I believe that my
brother desires earthy acquisitions. O king, therefore go to him; he will perform
spiritual work for you.’
“Hearing these words of Upayaaja, king Drupada, though
entertaining a low opinion of Yaaja, still went to his abode. Worshipping Yaaja
who was (still)
worthy of respect, Drupada said to him, ‘O master, you perform spiritual work
for me and I will give you eighty thousand cows! Enmity with Drona burns my
heart; it is your duty therefore to cool that heart of mine. Foremost of those knowledgeable
with the Vedas, Drona is also skilled in the Brahmaastra and for this, Drona
has overcome me in a contest arising from (damaged) friendship. Gifted with great intelligence, the son of Bharadwaja (Drona) is (now) the chief Guru of the Kurus. There is no Kshatriya in this world
superior to him. His bow is full six cubits long (cubit approximately equal
to the length of a forearm) and looks frightening,
and his arrows are capable of slaying every living being. That great bowman,
the high-souled son of Bharadwaja, habited as a Brahmana, is destroying the
Kshatriya power all over the earth. Indeed, he is like a second Jamadagnya (Parashurama) intended for the destruction of the
Kshatriya race. There is no man on earth who can overcome the terrible force of
his weapons. Like a blazing fire fed with clarified butter, Drona, possessed of
Brahma might (Brahma Teja in Sanskrit)
and uniting it with Kshatriya might (Kshatra Bala in Sanskrit), consumes every opponent in battle. But (your) Brahma force (Brahma Teja in Sanskrit) is greater in itself than (Drona's) Brahma Teja united with Kshatra Bala.
Therefore, as I am inferior (to Drona)
in consequence of my possession of Kshatriya might alone, I request the aid of your
Brahma force, having obtained you so superior to Drona in knowledge of Brahma.
O Yaaja, perform that yagna by means of which I may obtain a son invincible in
battle and capable of slaying Drona. I am ready to give you ten thousand cows.’
“Hearing these words of Drupada, Yaaja said, ‘So be
it.’ Yaaja then began to recollect the various ceremonies relating to the
particular yagna. Knowing the affair to be a very important one, he asked the
assistance of Upayaaja who asked nothing. Then Yaaja promised to perform the yagna
for the destruction of Drona. Then the Maharishi Upayaaja spoke to king Drupada
of everything required for the grand yagna (by aid
of fire) from which the king was to
obtain offspring. He said, ‘O king, a child shall be born to you as you desire,
endued with great capabilities, great energy, and great strength.’
“The Brahmana continued, 'Then king Drupada, driven by
the desire of obtaining a son who was to slay Drona, began, for the success of
his wish, to make the necessary preparations. (And
when everything was complete) Yaaja,
after having poured libations of clarified butter on the yagna agni, commanded
Drupada's queen, saying, ‘Come here, O queen, O daughter-in-law of Prishata! A
son and a daughter have arrived for you!’
“Hearing this, the queen said, ‘O Brahmana, my mouth
is yet filled with saffron and other perfumed things. My body also bears many
sweet scents; I am hardly fit for accepting (the
sanctified butter which is to give me offspring). Wait for me a little, O Yaaja! Wait for that happy completion.’
“Yaaja, however, replied, ‘O lady, whether you come or
wait, why should not the objective of this yagna be accomplished when the offering
has already been prepared by me and sanctified by Upayaaja's invocations?’
“The Brahmana continued, ‘Having said this, Yaaja
poured the sanctified libation on the fire, from where arose from those flames
a child resembling a Deva, who possessing the brightness of fire, was terrible
to look. With a crown on this head and his body encased in excellent armour (Kavacha in Sanskrit), sword
in hand, and bearing a bow and arrows, he frequently sent forth loud roars. Immediately
after his birth, he ascended an excellent chariot and went about in it for some
time. Then the Panchalas in great joy shouted, ‘Excellent, Excellent.’ The very
earth seemed at that time unable to bear the weight of the Panchalas mad with
joy. Then, marvellous to say, the voice of some invisible spirit in the skies (Asariri
in Sanskrit) said, ‘This prince has been
born for the destruction of Drona. He shall dispel all the fears of the
Panchalas and spread their fame. He shall also remove the sorrow of the king.’
“There arose, after this from the centre of the yagna
platform, a daughter also, called Paanchali, who, blessed with great good
fortune, was exceedingly beautiful. Her eyes were black, and large as
lotus-petals, her complexion was dark, and her (hair)locks were blue and curly. Her nails were
beautifully convex, and bright as burnished copper; her eye-brows were fair,
and breast was deep. Indeed, she very much resembled the daughter of a Deva
born among men.
“Her body gave out fragrance like that of a blue
lotus, perceivable from a distance of full two miles. Her beauty was such that
she had no equal on earth. Like a Deva herself, she could be desired (in marriage) by a Deva, a
Danava, or a Yaksha. When this girl of fair hips was born an invisible voice (Asariri
in Sanskrit) said, ‘This
dark-complexioned girl will be the first of all women, and she will be the
cause of the destruction of many Kshatriyas. This slender-waisted one will, in
time, accomplish the purpose of Devas, and along with her many dangers will
overtake the Kauravas.’
“On hearing these words, the Panchalas uttered a loud lion-like
roar, and the earth was unable to bear the weight of that joyous assembly. Then
seeing the boy and the girl, the daughter-in-law of Prishata (Drupada’s wife), desiring to
have them, approached Yaaja and said, ‘Let not these know any one else except
myself as their mother.’ Yaaja, desiring to do good to the king said, ‘So be
it!’
“Then the Brahmanas (present
there), their expectations fully satisified,
gave names upon the new-born pair, ‘Let this son of king Drupada, they said, be
called Dhrishtadyumna, because of his excessive boldness and because of his
being born like Dyumna with a natural armour (Kavacha in Sanskrit) and weapon.’ They also said, ‘Because this
daughter is so dark in complexion, she should be called Krishna (the dark).’
“The
Brahmana (who
is narrating this to Pandavas) continued,
‘Thus were born those twins of the great yagna of Drupada. The great Drona,
bringing the Panchala prince (Dhrishtadyumna) into his own abode, taught him all weapons in return of half the
kingdom he had formerly taken from Drupada. The high-souled son of Bharadwaja,
regarding destiny to be inevitable, did what would continue his own great
deeds.’”
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