Mahabharata VOL I2 - HolyBooks.com

234 MAHABHABATAwhose accomplishment thou desirest from me ? Tell me what is thatwhich thou wishest to see or ask or hear ? O sinless one, I shall accomplishit.1 "SECTION XXIX(Putradarsana Parva)Janamejaya said, "Tell me. O learned Brahmana, what thatwonderful feat was which the great Rishi Vyasa of high energy accomplishedafter his promise to the old king, made when Dhritarashtra,that lord of Earth, that foremost one of Kuru's race, had taken up hisabode in the forest, with his wife and with his daughter-in-law Kunti ;and after, indeed, Vidura had left his own body and entered intoYudhishthira, and at the time when all the sons of Pandu were stayingin the ascetic retreat. For how many days did the Kuru king Yudhishthiraof unfading glory stay, with his men, in the woods? On whatfood, O puissant one, did the high-souled Pandavas support themselves,with their men, and wives, while they lived in the woods ? O sinlessone, do thou tell me this."Vaisampayana said, "With the permission of the Kuru king, thePandavas, O monarch, with their troops and the ladies of their household,supported themselves on diverse kinds of food and drink andpassed about a month in great happiness in that forest. Towards theclose of that period, O sinless one, Vyasa came there. While all thoseprinces sat around Vyasa, engaged in conversation on diverse subjects,other Rishis came to that spot. They were Narada, and Parvata andDevala ofaustere penances, and Viswavasu and Tumvuru, and Chitrasena,O Bharata. Endued with severe penances, the Kuru kingYudhishthira, with the permission of Dhritarashtra, worshipped themaccording to due rites. Having obtained that worship from Yudhishthira,all of them sat down on sacred seats (made of Kusa grass), as alsoon excellent seats made of peacock feathers. After they had all takentheir seats, the Kuru king of high intelligence took his seat there,surrounded by the sons of Pandu. Gandhari and Kunti and Draupadi,and she of the Sattwata race, and other ladies of the royal householdalso sat down. The conversation that then arose was excellent and hadreference to topics connected with piety, and the Rishis of old, and thedeities and the Asuras. At the close of that conversation Vyasa ofgreat energy, that foremost of eloquent men, that first of all personsconversant with the Vedas, highly gratified, addressed the blind monarchand once more said, 'Burning as thou art with grief on accountof thy children, I know, O king of kings, what object is cherished bythee in thy heart. The sorrow that always exists in the heart of Gandhari,that which exists in the heart of Kunti, and that also which is