Yudhishthira Hosts the Arrived Kings in Lavish Mansions
With the world's royalty now camped outside his city, Yudhishthira faces the immense logistical task of hosting them. He orders a city within a city built: magnificent, white-walled mansions, each stocked with every luxury and comfort. The kings, shown every honour, retire to these temporary palaces, their arrival complete, before emerging to witness the heart of the sacrifice.
The kings had arrived. Now they had to be housed. On Dharmaraja Yudhishthira’s instructions, dwelling houses were provided for every one of them — not mere tents or quarters, but palaces built for the occasion. They had many rooms and were adorned with artificial lakes and groves of trees. There, Dharma’s son showed each king the best of honours, the homage due to a sovereign guest.
Having been received with this due homage, all the kings went to their assigned mansions. The dwellings were as tall as the peaks of Mount Kailasa, beautiful and stocked with every kind of desirable object. They were surrounded on every side by strongly built, white walls that gleamed in the sun. Nets of gold decorated the interiors, and the floors were paved with precious stones. The stairs were gentle and easy to climb. Expensive seats and carpets awaited them.
The air was perfumed with the finest aloe wood, and the halls were decorated with wreaths and garlands. The structures were a brilliant white, like a swan’s feathers, visible from the distance of a yojana (several miles). Their doors were wide, permitting easy entry, and were characterized by every quality of excellent craftsmanship. They were constructed out of many metals and looked, from a distance, like the shining peaks of the Himalayas.
After resting in these splendid accommodations for some time, the royal lords went to see Dharmaraja Yudhishthira at work. They found him surrounded by many sadasyas (ritual officiants and learned brahmanas seated in the sacrificial assembly), donating innumerable gifts as part of the sacrificial rites. The place, crowded with these sadasyas, with the assembled kings, and with great-souled brahmanas, looked as beautiful and awe-inspiring as the vault of the sky crowded with immortals.