Citizens Discover the Burnt House and Suspect Foul Play

When the night passed, the people of Varanavata went quickly to the site. The house was still smoking. They put out the last of the fire and saw what was left: the building had been constructed entirely of lac, a resinous wood that burns fast and hot. In the ashes, they found the adviser Purochana, burnt to death. The citizens spoke to each other, their conclusions immediate. "There is no doubt," they said. "The evil Duryodhana committed this act to destroy the Pandavas. Without a doubt, this was done with Dhritarashtra's knowledge. Otherwise, he would have prevented his own son from burning Pandu's heirs." Their judgment extended to the entire Kuru court. "Indeed, Shantanu's son, Drona, Vidura, Kripa and the other Kouravas haven't followed the dictates of dharma either." They decided to send a message. "Let us send the news to the evil-hearted Dhritarashtra," they said, "that his supreme desire has been fulfilled and that he has burnt to death the Pandavas." As they stirred through the ashes, looking for the remains of the princes, they found other bodies — a hunter woman and her five sons, all burnt. While cleaning up the site, the digger assigned to the task covered the opening to the escape tunnel with debris. None of the men present noticed it. The Pandavas' secret path out of the city remained hidden.