04.002
Bhīma spoke.
Saying as the chief of cattle keepers, I, called by the name herdsman, will approach king Virata—this is my resolve. (04-2-1)
I shall prepare soups; I am skilled in the kitchen. The dishes previously made by well-trained cooks—I will also surpass them, creating delight. (04-2-2)
I will bring even large heaps of wood; seeing that substantial work, the king will be pleased. (04-2-3)
O king, whether they are elephants, the strong, or mighty bulls—if it is necessary for me to subdue them, I will subdue them as well. (04-2-4)
And whoever among the instigators may stir up trouble in assemblies, I will kill those, increasing his delight. (04-2-5)
But I will not kill these warriors in any way; rather, I will cause them to fall in such a way that they do not perish. (04-2-6)
I will say this to the one asking: "I was Yudhiṣṭhira's cowherd, cook, and task-assigner." (04-2-7)
O lord of the people, I shall protect myself by myself as I roam. Thus I promise: I will wander in this manner. (04-2-8)
Yudhiṣṭhira said.
Agni, having assumed the form of a Brāhmaṇa, once approached the best of men, wishing to burn the Khāṇḍava forest together with Dāśārha. (04-2-9)
What action will Dhananjaya, the son of Kunti, who is of great strength, great arms, unconquered, and the delight of the Kurus, perform? (04-2-10)
He who, having reached that forest fire, satisfied the fire, having conquered Indra with a single chariot and slain the serpent-demons, that best of fighters named Arjuna—what could he not do? (04-2-11)
The sun is the foremost among those who shine; among bipeds, the brāhmaṇa is the best; among snakes, the venomous serpent; and among the powerful, fire is the best. (04-2-12)
Among weapons, the thunderbolt is the best; among cows, Kakudmī is the best; among lakes, the ocean is the most excellent; among those that shower rain, the rain-cloud is the best. (04-2-13)
Dhritarashtra is best among men as Airavata is among elephants; a son surpasses all beloved ones, and a wife is the best among friends. (04-2-14)
Just as among all kinds there are distinguished ones, O Vṛkodara, so too the young Guḍākeśa is the best among all bowmen. (04-2-15)
He, O Bhārata, who is not inferior to Indra or to Vāsudeva—the wielder of the Gāṇḍīva bow, he whose horses are white, Bībhatsu—what will he do? (04-2-16)
After residing for five years in the abode of Sahasrākṣa (Indra), the shining one, having a god-like form, obtained the divine weapons. (04-2-17)
I consider him the twelfth among the Rudras and the thirteenth among the Ādityas; whose two arms are long and have skin hardened by striking against the bowstring, and whose shoulders, both right and left, are formed like the burden-bearing parts (humps) of cows. (04-2-18)
Just as Himalaya is foremost among the mountains, as the ocean is among rivers, as Indra is among the gods, and as Agni is among the Vasus. (04-2-19)
Just as the tiger is among deer and Garuda among birds, what will Arjuna, who is the best among those being equipped for battle, accomplish? (04-2-20)
Arjuna said.
I promise, 'I am a eunuch'—thus I will act, O king. Indeed, for me, the two great bowstring pullings are difficult to accomplish, O king. (04-2-21)
O king, I, having put on earrings resembling fire in both ears and my hair tied in a braid, am also called Bṛhannaḍā. (04-2-22)
Reciting the story called Akhyayika in a feminine character again and again, I will entertain the king and other people in the inner palace. (04-2-23)
O king, I shall teach the women in the palace of Virāṭa song, dance, and various kinds of musical instruments. (04-2-24)
Speaking of the general conduct of creatures, performing many deeds, O son of Kunti, I shall conceal my true self by (my own) illusion. (04-2-25)
I shall say to the king, O Bhārata, that I am a servant of Draupadī in the house of Yudhiṣṭhira, and that I have lived there, when questioned. (04-2-26)
O king, by this method I shall dwell happily and in disguise in the house of Virāṭa, just as Nala (did). (04-2-27)
