03.176
Vaiśampāyana said.
Thus powerful Bhīmasena, having fallen under the serpent's control, pondered upon the serpent's very wondrous and great strength. (03-176-1)
And, desiring, he spoke to the great serpent: "Tell me, O serpent, who are you, O best of serpents? And what will you do with me?" (03-176-2)
I am Bhimasena, the son of Pandu, next after Dharmarāja. Though possessing strength equal to ten thousand elephants, how have I been brought under your control by you? (03-176-3)
Lions, tigers, buffaloes, and elephants, having assembled many times, were slain by me in battle. (03-176-4)
Even the dānavas, piśācas, and rākṣasas of great strength are unable to endure the force of my arm, O best of serpents. (03-176-5)
What is the use of knowledge's power or of receiving a boon from you? Even when I make every effort, I am completely under your control by your doing. (03-176-6)
My firm conviction is that the valor of men is false; for just as, for me, this great strength of the elephant has been overpowered by you. (03-176-7)
As Bhīma, the heroic doer of fearless deeds, was speaking thus, the great serpent coiled itself around him from all sides. (03-176-8)
Having seized the mighty-armed one, then that serpent, having released his strong arms, spoke this speech. (03-176-9)
By good fortune, today you, O mighty-armed, have become food for the hungry by the will of the gods. By good fortune, the cherished lives of embodied beings truly belong to great Time (death). (03-176-10)
O subduer of foes, the way I obtained this serpentine state must surely be declared by me to you today. Listen, O best of beings. (03-176-11)
I have indeed reached this state from the anger of the wise; desiring to know the end of the serpent's curse, I narrate that. (03-176-12)
Nahuṣa by name, the royal sage, has clearly come to your notice; he was your forefather among the ancestors, the son who was the originator of Ayu's lineage. (03-176-13)
I am the one who, on account of Agastya’s curse (and) disrespecting the Brāhmaṇas, has fallen into this condition; see this fate of mine. (03-176-14)
If you who are not to be slain and who are exceedingly pleasant to look at are coming, today I will employ a means. See what kind it is. (03-176-15)
O best of men, truly, no one who has fallen into captivity is ever released by me in any way, be it an elephant, a buffalo, or anyone else, even at the sixth period. (03-176-16)
You are not one who exists among animal births just as an ordinary serpent; you have accepted this boon of mine, O best of the Kauravas. (03-176-17)
The illustrious one, O best of sages, said, "By falling quickly from the top of the aerial car and from Indra's seat by me, bring about the end of the curse." (03-176-18)
He, the radiant one, completely filled with compassion, said to me: "Liberation will be yours, O king, after a certain passage of time." (03-176-19)
From then I fell to the ground, but my memory did not abandon me. I still retain the traditions, and the Purāṇa I possess is just as I had previously understood. (03-176-20)
The sage said to me: 'He who is able to answer your spoken questions in detail, he will free you from the curse.' (03-176-21)
O king, for someone who is seized by you, even if the being is stronger or superior, everyone will quickly lose strength. (03-176-22)
Thus I also heard the words of those compassionate Brahmins, and when affection had arisen in my heart, then those twice-born disappeared. (03-176-23)
I, who am the most evil-doer, dwell in the unclean hell; having obtained this serpent birth, I await death, O greatly radiant one. (03-176-24)
Mighty-armed Bhimasena spoke to the serpent: "I am not angry at you, O great serpent, nor do I blame myself." (03-176-25)
Therefore, whether what is destined not to be or what is to be, a person, in happiness and sorrow, upon their arising or departure, should not let the mind become dejected there. (03-176-26)
Who is able to avert fate by human effort? I consider fate alone as supreme; human effort is fruitless. (03-176-27)
See how, although relying on the strength of my arm, due to the blow of fate, I have today come to this unforeseen state here. (03-176-28)
But it is not for my own destruction that I grieve today, but for my brothers abandoned in the forest, deprived of the kingdom. (03-176-29)
The Himalayas, and this region, very difficult to traverse and filled with yakṣas and rākṣasas—those beings, looking intently at me, will fall upon me in excitement. (03-176-30)
After hearing that all is lost, then, or otherwise, they will become dispirited and inactive; the virtuous ones, indeed, are troubled by me because of my greed for kingship. (03-176-31)
Or else, wise Arjuna will not succumb to despondency. He, the master of all weapons, is invincible even to gods, gandharvas, and rākṣasas. (3-176-32)
He, the mighty-armed and greatly powerful, is capable in a single day, by his vigor, even of dislodging the king of the gods from his position. (03-176-33)
But what then is to be said of Dhṛtarāṣṭra's son, who is addicted to wicked gambling, hated by everyone, and given over to deceit and greed? (03-176-34)
And I grieve for our mother too, that miserable woman, longing for her son, who always desires for us a greatness surpassing that of others. (03-176-35)
O serpent, how indeed will all the desires of that destitute woman become fruitless for me after my destruction? (03-176-36)
Nakula and Sahadeva, the twin sons of Yama, always obedient to the teacher, are made arrogant by my strength and are forever proud of their manliness. (03-176-37)
My thought is that, after my destruction, they will become dispirited and lose their strength and valor, greatly diminished. (03-176-38)
At that time, Vṛkodara (Bhīma) lamented much in that way; bound by the coils of the serpent, he was not able to move. (03-176-39)
But Yudhiṣṭhira, O son of Kunti, became uneasy in his mind, pondering the terrible misfortunes and portents. (03-176-40)
Indeed, Śivā, standing in the southern blazing quarter, frightened, wails a terrible, inauspicious sound from his hermitage. (03-176-41)
A quail with one wing, eye, and foot, terrible in appearance, vomiting blood, was seen facing the sun and uttering a dreadful sound. (03-176-42)
A dry and fierce wind blew, dragging along pebbles; and all the cries of beasts and birds came from the left. (03-176-43)
A black crow behind him cries "go, go", and again and again, his right arm trembles like this. (03-176-44)
His heart and left foot are also turning, and there has been an inauspicious change in his left eye. (03-176-45)
He, the wise king Yudhiṣṭhira, feeling great fear and doubt, asked Draupadī, "Where is Bhīma?", O Bhārata. (03-176-46)
Pañcālī told him about Bhīma, who had been gone for a long time. Then the mighty-armed king departed, accompanied by Dhaumya. (03-176-47)
He told Dhanañjaya (Arjuna) that Draupadī should be protected. He also instructed Nakula and Sahadeva regarding the brāhmaṇas. (03-176-48)
Having traced the footprint from that hermitage, the lord saw the earth, distinguished by the marks of Bhīma. (03-176-49)
As the hero ran at wind-like speed in pursuit of the deer, trees broken by the force of his thighs and the wind were thrown aside on the path. (3-176-50)
He, having followed those signs, then saw in the mountain cave his younger brother, seized and rendered motionless by the king of serpents. (03-176-51)
