Yudhishthira moves to Hastinapura

We have taken a rather long break from the main story going briefly into the tales of the sixteen kings and into their background. Vyasa had narrated them to Yudhishthira to console him for the loss of his kith and kin.

Yudhishthira could forget his own sorrows to a great extent after hearing to the wise words of Vyasa. Then, he had several questions relating to the duties of a king. How many different types of sin are their and what are the remedies for them? To the query of the Pandava, the sage went into the different categories of sins and the atonements for them.

The sage guessed that the Pandava was thinking of his own sin when he asked the question. Vyasa pointed out that for a king the performance of the great horse sacrifice would suffice to free himself from the sin of all the crimes committed in a war. The sage concluded asking the Pandava prince to leave his sorrow behind and get on with his duties.

Yudhishthira had further queries on the type of food that can be eaten and not, and the type of gifts and the qualification of the right persons to receive them. Vyasa gave appropriate clarification on those issues. The Pandava, then, wanted to know of the codes of conduct of people in the main four professions (castes). The sage said. “If you want to know about them, the best person to ask will be Bhishma. Your grand father had learnt them directly from Brihaspati, the teacher of the gods. Go to him before he leaves this world. He will tell you all in detail”.

But, Yudhishthira was reluctant. He asked. “How can I go to him now, after I got him down in the war through devious means?

It was Krishna who responded to that point. “Do not think of all that happened in the war now. You need to get the codes of conduct from your grandfather to rule the land as a model king. You need to approach him for the sake of the country and your subjects. Take it as your duty.”

Yudhishthira in Hastinapura

(Apparently, the first thing for Yudhishthira to do was to establish himself as the new king and move to the original capital city of the Kurus before approaching Bhishma)

Accordingly, the Pandava discarded all the sorrow and the feeling of guilt from his mind and started to Hatinapura in a chariot driven by sixteen white horses. Bhima led the horses. Nakula and Sahadeva swayed two fans, made of the white and bushy tail of the Camara deer (Caamara), which is the royal insignia. Dhritarashtra and Gandhari were carried in a well decorated palanquin ahead of others. Elders like Vidura, Kunti and Vyasa moved in front in separate chariots. Krishna followed behind in his own chariot, accompanied by Satyaki.

The Brahmins walked ahead chanting verses from the Vedas and blessing the Pandavas with long life. Several bards moved along with them singing songs of praise to Yudhishthira and his brothers. The procession was accompanied by horse mounted soldiers on either side. Ordinary citizens in large numbers followed the royal entourage on foot.

The residents of Hastinapura gave a tumultuous welcome to their new ruler. The entire city was decorated with white garlands and flags in various colours. Aromatic smell emanated from every nook and corner of the palace by the burning of incense and other sweet smelling substances. Women thronged along the wide avenues leading to the palace to get a view of the royal procession. Yudhishthira had already won their hearts during his earlier reign.

A dissenting voice

The party entered Hastinapura in due course. The palace was already kept ready for anointing the new king. Brahmins in large number had gathered in the hall. They all proclaimed “victory” to Yudhishthira.

A voice could be heard from among them that said. “Yudhishthira, you do not deserve this after killing all your elders and teachers!” The face of all who heard the inauspicious remark fell at that time. Yudhishthira, too, looked down and meekly admitted his mistake.

But, the rest of the Brahmins protested loudly in unison. They said. “We do not support this man who is definitely not one of us. May he perish for uttering this falsehood!” It is said that the body of the person immediately went up in flames by the meditative power of all the Brahmins assembled.

All were baffled by the sudden drama that took place. Then, they heard Krishna speaking. “This man was, in fact, a demon with the name Carvaka who came in the guise of a Brahmin. He was destined to this death.”

The story of Carvaka

Krishna, then, went to tell the story of Carvaka. He was a demon of the first epoch (Krita Yuga). He meditated on Brahma for a long time and made the god appear before him. When asked for a boon of his choice the demon asked for protection from all living beings. Brahma refused to grant an all powerful boon like that. Instead, the demon was asked to limit his choice. He, then, agreed to leave out Brahmins, who posed no threat to him because of their meek nature, from the list. Brahma blessed him accordingly.

“Carvaka, then, started tormenting all creatures, especially the gentle folks like the Brahmins and their rituals. When complained, Brahma asked all to be patient. The demon was destined to be doomed in the fourth epoch (Kali Yuga) in the presence of the Pandavas. That was how all this happened. True to the condition in the boon, the wrath of the Brahmins reduced the demon to ashes.”

We shall get to the actual coronation in the next episode.