Duryodhana’s outburst was long and bitter; maybe he just needed to let off steam with someone, but he chose the wrong person. There were many things Sakuni could have said to ease his nephew’s pain, but among the many, he chose the least appropriate. On the other hand, not all those complaints had real foundation. There was no doubt that the court elders loved the Pandavas and took special care of them, but it was not at all true that Duryodhana had been set aside. In addition, the five young men lived in the forest without any ease, and they had to endure the pain of seeing their father dead, so it was natural that the Kurava elders tried to make them feel loved and protected. But he too, Duryodhana, was at the center of displays of affection, although obviously it was not quite as it was before the Pandavas came. A normal young man his age would have been satisfied with that attention, but unfortunately he was not a normal person; he had a big problem, intrinsic to his nature: he was envious and he couldn’t stand anyone who had something more than him. His jealousy was proportional to Bhima’s strength and Arjuna’s ability.
“I imagined something like that,” Sakuni replied. ‘I was seriously considering the situation. I know that the Pandavas have exceptional qualities that seem to be almost of divine origin. There are no young people like them in the world. Pandu’s sons will march against you and your brothers in order to eliminate you. I have no doubt that this will happen. When they are older, they will take command of this vast kingdom by birthright, and they will surely rule with force. So, what would be left for you and your siblings? At most, the command of some provinces, and you would always be subject to the presumptuous cousins. Some might say that they have such a good soul that you would feel the weight for the fact that they would be the supreme rulers. But, we know that power rises to the head and makes one lose all virtue.
“My nephew, I agree with you; all this makes me think that one day, considering you a potential enemy, Pandu’s sons will march against you and your brothers in order to destroy you. I have no doubt that this is what is going to happen.”
Why had Sakuni said those words to his nephew? He probably felt that things would inevitably have to go that way, but there were other reasons as well. Let us not forget that he was Duryodhana’s direct uncle and that logically, he preferred to have him as king of the Bharatas rather than Yudhisthira, whose power he feared. If in the future Gandhari’s young son were to become king, his kingdom, that of the Gandharas, would profit him greatly. He certainly couldn’t predict what turns the future would take.
“But what can be done anyway?” resumed Duryodhana. “Yudhisthira is the heir by right and we cannot persuade my father, Bhishma and all the elders to go against the Scriptural ordinances that have always been observed by every noble family. There is nothing for us to do.”
“A prince like you, who belongs to a lineage famous all over the world for bravery and intelligence,” retorted his uncle in a combative tone, “must never feel inert in the face of difficulties, but always has the duty to act with great vigor; your future and that of your family members, including myself, are at stake. Act strongly. It is not true that nothing can be done to solve this situation. For every problem there is a solution; you just need to know how to find it.”
Duryodhana was struck by those words. Until then he had considered it as a curse from which it was impossible to escape, reason why he had lived next to it with resignation, but now, listening to his uncle’s words, a light of hope lit up in his heart and the first diabolical ideas began to flow quickly within him corroded by envy.
“ We must remove power from the Pandavas as soon as possible,” Sakuni insisted, “because over time they will make new friends and alliances, and their power will increase to the point where they will become truly invincible.”
Convinced by Sakuni, Duryodhana released his envy from any inhibition.
“It is true, we must act against what is the primary source of their strength and I know what it is: Bhima. We can see it even when we play. Whoever attacks Yudhisthira, Bhima immediately intervenes with his superhuman strength and frees him from all danger. And the more time passes, the stronger he becomes. If we want to get rid of the Pandavas we must first eliminate Bhima.”
So, having informed Duhssasana, the younger brother, they agreed on the plan to poison Bhima and throw him into the river. The plan did not seem difficult to achieve because no one would have ever suspect that Duryodhana might reach such a point. His animosity towards his cousins was well known, but that seemed rather to be a passing zeal among young people.
The three conspirators mixed poison into the food of the Pandava, who, after eating it, fell to the ground apparently lifeless. Then they tied him up and threw him into the Ganges. Convinced that they had managed to kill him and, fully satisfied with their wickedness, they returned to the palace.
Meanwhile, Bhima’s body had been swallowed by the waters of the river and was sinking inexorably towards to the bottom.
In the depths of the Ganges lived many poisonous snakes that, escorting that human presence, feared being in danger so they attacked it, biting him repeatedly. The Nagas’ poison, mixed with what Bhima had ingested, caused a chemical reaction that acted as an antidote. Seeing that body move despite their powerful poison, they were amazed and ran to inform their ruler, Vasuki, of the strange event. He wanted to go to the place in person to ascertain what was happening and immediately recognized that the unconscious person was Bhima.
“Without knowing it, you have saved the life of the brave son of Pandu,” Vasuki proclaimed, “who will help us rid the world of the unwanted power of the asuras. Watch him and heal him. As soon as he is about to wake up, run and warn me.”
Bhima slept soundly for a few days. Then he began to feel his consciousness return. But the moment he opened his eyes, what was his amazement at seeing himself surrounded by snakes. As soon as the Nagas realized that their host was awakening, they hastened to call Vasuki. So, at that moment they were all there, at his bedside.
“Where am I? And who are you? Why am I in these waters?”
“I am Vasuki, Maharshi Kashyapa’s eldest son. You sunk in these waters and were about to die from a powerful poison you ingested, but they saved you by biting you. You must know that you are protected by the Supreme Brahman, the Divine Person himself, who watches over you and your brothers. Know that very difficult times are approaching and that your lives will be constantly in danger. Do not trust your cousins: they are evil souls, especially Duryodhana, who is envious of you. He was the one who put the poison in your food, and if it wasn’t for your divine birth and the protection you enjoy with your brothers, you would be dead. Come back to them, and from now on watch carefully.”
Vasuki gave Bhima a divine potion to drink which multiplied his already considerable physical strength. As a result of that elixir, he again sank into a deep sleep and slept for eight days.
After spending two more days in the company of Vasuki, the Pandava returned to earth.
Bhima told all that had happened to his brothers, who by then had experienced moments of great anguish.
“From now on we will have to be very careful, as it seems that Duryodhana’s childhood period is over and he intends to commit evil deeds,” concluded Yudhisthira.
Kunti, Vidura, and Bhishma, having learned of that terrible event, began to seriously worry.
When Duryodhana learned that Bhima was still alive, he reunited with Sakuni and Duhssasana to devise other plans to get rid of the intrusive cousins.
This is a section of the book “Maha-bharata, Vol. 1”.
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