Mahabharata 05 (eng)..

UDYOGA PARAVA
SECTION VIII
Vaisampayana continued, 'Then with a glad heart, Kunti's son, accompanied by Krishna as well as
by the flower of the Dasarha race, came back to Yudhishthira.'
SECTION VIII
Vaisampayana said, 'O king, having learnt the news from the messengers, Salya, accompanied by a
large body of troops and by his sons, all of whom were mighty in battle, was coming to the Pandavas.
His encampment covered an area of one and a half yojana, so large was the force owned by that
best of men. He was the master, O king, of an Akshauhini and had great prowess and valour. And
there were in his army heroes bearing armour of various colours, with diverse kinds of banners and
bows and ornaments and cars and animals, all wearing excellent garlands, and various robes and
ornaments. And hundreds and thousands of foremost of Kshatriyas were the leaders of his troops,
dressed and decorated in the manner of their native land. And he proceeded by slow marches, giving
rest to his troops, towards the place where the Pandava was. And the creatures of the earth felt
oppressed and the earth trembled under the tread of his troops. And king Duryodhana, hearing that
magnanimous and mighty hero was on his way, hastened towards him and paid him honours, O best
of the Bharata race and caused finely decorated places of entertainment to be constructed at different
spots for his reception, on beautiful sites, and whither many artists were directed to entertain the
guests. And those pavilions contained garlands and meat and the choicest viands and drinks, and
wells of various forms, capable of refreshing the heart, and tanks of various forms, and edibles, and
roomy apartments. And arriving at those pavilions, and waited upon like a very god by the servants
of Duryodhana located at different spots, Salya reached another house of entertainment resplendent
as a retreat of the celestials. And there, greeted with choice creature-comforts fit for beings superior
to man, he deemed himself superior even to the lord himself of the gods and thought meanly of Indra
as compared with himself. And that foremost of Kshatriyas, well-pleased, asked the servants,
saying, 'Where are those men of Yudhishthira, who have prepared these places of refreshment? Let
those men who made these be brought to me. I deem them worthy of being rewarded by me. I must
reward them, let it so please the son of Kunti!' The servants, surprised, submitted the whole matter
to Duryodhana. And when Salya was exceedingly pleased and ready to grant even his life, Duryodhana,
who had remained concealed, came forward and showed himself to his maternal uncle. And
the kind of the Madras saw him and understood that it was Duryodhana who had taken all the trouble
to receive him. And Salya embraced Duryodhana and said, 'Accept something that you may desire.'
Duryodhana thereupon said, 'O thou auspicious one, let thy word be true, grant me a boon. I ask
thee to be the leader of all my army.'
Vaisampayana continued, 'And hearing this, Salya said, 'Be it so! What else is to be done?' And the
son of Gandhari repeated again and again, 'It is done.' And Salya said, 'O Duryodhana, O best of
men, go to thy own city. I shall proceed to pay a visit to Yudhishthira, the subduer of foes. O king, I
shall speedily come back, O ruler of men. That best of men, Pandu's son Yudhishthira, must, by all
means, be visited by me.' And bearing this Duryodhana said, 'O king, O ruler of the earth, having
seen the Pandava, come speedily back. I depend entirely upon thee, O king of kings. Remember the
boon that thou hast granted me.' And Salya answered, 'Good betide thee! I shall come speedily
back. Repair to thy own city, O protector of men.' And then those two kings Salya and Duryodhana
embraced each other. And having thus greeted Salya, Duryodhana came back to his own city. And
Salya went to inform the sons of Kunti of that proceeding of his. And having reached Upaplavya,
and entered the encampment, Salya saw there all the sons of Panda. And the mighty-armed Salya
having met the sons of Panda, accepted as usual water for washing his feet, and the customary gifts
of honour including a cow. And the king of the Madras, that slayer of foes, first asked them how
they were, and then with great delight embraced Yudhishthira, and Bhima, and Arjuna, and the sons
of his sister the two twin-brothers. And when all had sat down, Salya spoke to Yudhishthira, the son
of Kunti, saying, 'O tiger among kings, O thou delighter of the race of Kuru, is it all well with thee?
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