Bhima Proposes Ending Forest Life and Going Incognito
After ten years of exile — four of them on Gandhamadana mountain with Arjuna returned — Bhima sees that Duryodhana has stolen their happiness while they wait. In private, he urges Yudhishthira to end the peaceful forest life, spend a year incognito, and then attack. Yudhishthira listens, then circumambulates Kubera's abode — and prepares to leave.
The Pandavas had spent four years on Gandhamadana mountain with Arjuna. With the six years that had come before, it was now ten years that they had lived peacefully in the forest.
They had found an abode through the favours of King Vaishravana — Kubera, the lord of riches — and the time had been a blessing. The houses and pleasure grounds were unmatched, covered with many trees. Arjuna, always immersed in his weapons and with the bow in his hand, roamed the mountain freely. The years on Gandhamadana passed like a single night.
But Bhima had not forgotten what they had lost.
One day, seated near Yudhishthira in private, together with Arjuna and the twins, Bhima spoke. He chose his words carefully — gently, but with the weight of eleven years of restraint behind them.
"O king of the Kurus," he began, "we followed you into the forest and did not kill Suyodhana, together with his followers — all to ensure that your oath remained true and to do what would make you happy. We have lived here for eleven years. We are deserving of happiness, but Suyodhana has grasped that happiness. We should now deceive that scoundrel, lacking in intelligence and conduct. Let us happily resort to a life that will be incognito."
He laid out the plan: they had lived nearby without anxiety, roaming the forest. Duryodhana would be deluded by their proximity and would not notice if they moved to a distant region. One year in hiding. Then they would uproot him.
"On that scoundrel among men, Suyodhana, surrounded by all his followers, we will reap the enmity, with all its fruits and flowers. O Dharmaraja! Accept the world as your own. Kill this grief."
He reminded Yudhishthira of what he was capable of. The wielder of the vajra — Indra himself — was incapable of withstanding Yudhishthira's terrible energy. Krishna and Satyaki were both engaged in ensuring his welfare. The twins were brave and skilled. Their prime objective was an increase in his influence.
"Encountering the enemies," Bhima said, "we will pacify them."
Yudhishthira heard his brother's counsel. He understood what was in Bhima's mind — and in the minds of all his brothers. The great-souled son of Dharma circumambulated Vaishravana's abode.
He was ready to leave. Aranyaka Parva, Chapter 470