MAHA BHARATHAM – NANGANALLUR J K SIVAN
part 2.
Pandavas lived in peace and prosperity after they escaped the plot to murder them while sleeping inside the lac palace, and married Drowpathi. They became more powerful every day.
King Dhritarashtra was prevailed upon by the wise counsels of the elders to make peace with the Pandavas; and so he invited them home amidst the rejoicings of the people and gave them half of the kingdom.
Pandavas accepted the kingdom granted by the old blind king Dhridharashtra.,.Pandavas built a beautiful city, called Indraprastha, and extended their dominions, laying all the people under tribute to them. The eldest Pandava, Yudhishthira, declared himself the emperor over all the kings of ancient India, for which he decided to perform Râjasuya Yajna or Imperial Sacrifice, in which the conquered kings and friends participated. The guest kings came with large tribute and swore allegiance, and help the performance of the sacrifice by personal services.
Krishna, who was Pandava’s best friend and a relative, presided over the ceremony of Rajasuya Yaga. Some obstacles to Yudhishtra’s claiming to be the emperor in the form of a few bad kings had to be removed. Jarâsandha was one such great obstacle. He wanted to offer in a sacrifice the head of hundred kings, in a big yaga, and for this purpose he had already eighty-six kings caught and kept as captives in jail. Jarasandha could not get the remaining 14 kings before commencing his grand yaga because he was killed by Bhima, the second Panda after fourteen days of vigorous and continuous wrestling. Krishna asked Bhima to release and set free 86 kings kept in jail by Jarasandha..
Then the four younger brothers went out with armies on a conquering expedition, each in a different direction, and brought all the kings under subjection to Yudhishthira. Returning, they laid all the vast wealth they secured at the feet of the eldest brother to meet the expenses of the great sacrifice.
As such, the Rajasuya yaga,sacrifice, was celebrated in a grand manner and all the 86 liberated kings came, along with those conquered by Pandavas.assembled at the Yaga and rendered homage to Emperor Yudhishthira. King Dhritarashtra and his sons were also invited to attend and take a share in the performance of the sacrifice. At the conclusion of the sacrifice, Yudhishthira was crowned emperor, and declared as lord paramount.
Yudhishtra being crowned as the king of kings, sowed the future feud between the envious and jealous Duryodhana and the mighty Pandavas. Duryodhana returned to his capital Hasthinapura after the Rajasuya Yaga, filled with jealousy against Yudhishthira, as their sovereignty and vast splendour and wealth were more than he could bear; Duryodhana began devising plans to effect the Pandavas’ fall by guile, as he knew that to overcome them by force was beyond his power. To continue.
