The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Translated into English Prose: Sabha Parva
Religion
The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa Translated into English Prose: Sabha Parva
Epic literature, Sanskrit
gate-keepers at the command of the king, that if they could wait and
bring good tribute they could obtain admission. Then the kings of those
nations each gave a thousand elephants furnished with tusks like unto
the shafts of ploughs and decked with girdles made of gold, and covered
with fine blankets and therefore, resembling the lotus in hue. And they
were all darkish as rocks and always musty, and procured from the sides
of the Kamyaka lake, and covered with defensive armour. And they were
also exceedingly patient and of the best breed. And having made these
presents, those kings were permitted to enter. O king, these and many
others, coming from various regions, and numberless other illustrious
kings, brought jewels and gems unto this sacrifice. And Chitraratha,
also the king of Gandharvas, the friend of Indra, gave four hundred
horses gifted with the speed of the wind. And the Gandharva Tumvuru
gladly gave a hundred horses of the colour of mango leaf and decked in
gold. And, O thou of the Kuru race, the celebrated king of the Mlechcha
tribe, called the Sukaras, gave many hundreds of excellent elephants.
And Virata, the king of Matsya, gave as tribute two thousand elephants
decked in gold. And king Vasudana from the kingdom of Pansu presented
unto the son of Pandu six and twenty elephants and two thousand horses,
O king, all decked in gold and endued with speed and strength and in
full vigour of youth, and diverse other kinds of wealth. And Yajnasena
presented unto the sons of Pandu for the sacrifice, fourteen thousand
serving-girls and ten thousand serving-men with their wives, many
hundreds of excellent elephants, six and twenty cars with elephants
yoked unto them, and also his whole kingdom. And Vasudeva of the
Vrishni race, in order to enhance the dignity of Arjuna, gave fourteen
thousands of excellent elephants. Indeed, Krishna is the soul of Arjuna
and Arjuna is the soul of Krishna, and whatever Arjuna may say Krishna
is certain to accomplish. And Krishna is capable of abandoning heaven
itself for the sake of Arjuna, and Arjuna also is capable of
sacrificing his life for the sake of Krishna. And the Kings of Chola
and Pandya, though they brought numberless jars of gold filled with
fragrant sandal juice from the hills of Malaya, and loads of sandal and
aloe wood from the Dardduras hills, and many gems of great brilliancy
and fine cloths inlaid with gold, did not obtain permission (to enter).
And the king of the Singhalas gave those best of sea-born gems called
the lapis lazuli, and heaps of pearls also, and hundreds of coverlets
for elephants. And numberless dark-coloured men with the ends of their
eyes red as copper, attired in clothes decked with gems, waited at the
gate with those presents. And numberless Brahmanas and Kshatriyas who
had been vanquished, and Vaisyas and serving Sudras, from love of
Yudhishthira, brought tribute unto the son of Pandu. And even all the
Mlechchas, from love and respect, came unto Yudhishthira. And all
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