Gandharvas and Apsaras Entertain the Assembly
With Arjuna seated beside Indra, the celestial court stirs to life. Led by Tumburu, the gandharvas begin to sing and chant, and a host of apsaras — Ghritachi, Menaka, Rambha, Urvashi, and many others — rise to dance, moving in ways that steal the mind and the intelligence of even the perfected beings watching.
The court was assembled. Arjuna was seated. And now the heavens began to entertain their own.
Headed by Tumburu, the gandharvas — skilled in songs and chants — began to sing. Their voices filled the assembly hall, weaving through the sacred chants that had only just fallen silent. They chanted and sang, and then they engaged in supreme dancing.
The apsaras rose.
Ghritachi. Menaka. Rambha. Purvachitti. Svayamprabha. Urvashi. Mishrakeshi. Dundu. Gouri. Varuthini. Gopali. Sahajanya. Kumbhayoni. Prajagara. Chitrasena. Chitralekha. Saha. Madhurasvara.
These and other beautiful lotus-eyed ones danced there.
They were engaged in captivating the minds of the siddhas (the perfected beings). The sides of their hips were wide and their breasts bounced as they moved. They stole the mind and the intelligence with their side-long glances, their gestures, and their sweetness.
Arjuna watched. The gods watched. The sages watched. And for that moment, the court of heaven was nothing but sound and motion and the unbearable beauty of beings made for nothing else. Aranyaka Parva, Chapter 341