Vyasa

Aranyaka Parva›The Pandavas' Ascent of Mount Gandhamadana

Bhima Proposes All Travel Together to Find Arjuna

Why "Major"?

Causal ReachTop 86%
Character WeightTop 89%
State ChangeTop 90%
Narrative RecallTop 50%

~1 min read

Draupadi is exhausted and miserable, but her longing to see Arjuna is undimmed. Yudhishthira suffers the same ache. The group is divided on whether to press forward or turn back — until Bhima speaks, declaring that none of them will be left behind, and that he will carry Draupadi and the twins over the mountains himself if he must.

Draupadi was exhausted. The mountains had worn her down — the uneven paths, the constant climbing, the cold. But her desire to see Arjuna had not faded. She would travel, she said, no matter what. Yudhishthira suffered too. Not being able to see Arjuna was an acute pain, and he knew it would only grow worse without Sahadeva, Bhima, and Draupadi beside him. The group was caught between two impossible directions: return without Arjuna, or push deeper into terrain that seemed to reject them. Bhima made the decision. He told Yudhishthira: let the chariots go back — all of them, with the servants, the cooks, the superintendents of the kitchen, anyone you think should return. But I will not leave you here, in these mountains infested with rakshasas, in this uneven and difficult region. Draupadi is devoted to her vows. She will not return without you. Sahadeva is always devoted to you — I know his mind, and he will never return. All of us wish to see Savyasachi (Arjuna, the left-handed archer). All of us are desirous. Therefore, all of us will travel together. If the chariots could not pass over the mountains with their many caverns, they would travel on foot. "Do not worry," Bhima said. "I will carry Panchali wherever she is incapable of travelling on her own. This is what I have decided in accordance with my intelligence. I will also carry these two delicate warriors who are the delight of Madri — Nakula and Sahadeva — over difficult terrain, if they are incapable of doing it themselves." Yudhishthira heard his brother's words and blessed him. "Since you have spoken like this, let your strength increase, so that you are capable of carrying Draupadi on this long journey, and also the twins. No one else can do it. May your strength, fame, devotion to dharma and deeds increase. O mighty-armed one! If you are able to carry your brothers and Krishna, may you not suffer from exhaustion. May defeat never confront you." The plan was set. They would go together, or not at all.

Aranyaka Parva, Chapter 438