they removed to Khandavaprastha, which was
in unreclaimed desert. Then those heroes of unfading splendour, viz., the
Pandavas, with Krishna at their head, arriving there, beautified the
place and made it a second heaven. And those mighty car-warriors,
selecting with Dwaipayana's assistance a sacred and auspicious region,
performed certain propitiatory ceremonies and measured out a piece of
land for their city. Then surrounded by a trench wide as the sea and by
walls reaching high up to the heavens and white as the fleecy clouds or
the rays of the moon, that foremost of cities looked resplendent like
Bhogavati (the capital of the nether kingdom) decked with the Nagas. And
it stood adorned with palatial mansions and numerous gates, each
furnished with a couple of panels resembling the out-stretched wings of
Garuda. And it was protected with gateways looking like the clouds and
high as the Mandara mountains. And well-furnished with numerous weapons
of attack the missiles of the foes could not make slightest impression on
them. And they were almost covered with darts and other missiles like
double-tongued snakes. The turrets along the walls were filled with armed
men in course of training; and the walls were lined with numerous
warriors along their whole length. And there were thousands of sharp
hooks and Sataghnis (machines slaying a century of warriors) and numerous
other machines on the battlements. There were also large iron wheels
planted on them. And with all these was that foremost of cities adorned.
The streets were all wide and laid out excellently; and there was no fear
in them of accident. And decked with innumerable mansions, the city
became like unto Amaravati and came to be called Indraprastha (like unto
Indra's city). In a delightful and auspicious part of the city rose the
palace of the Pandavas filled with every kind of wealth and like unto the
mansion of the celestial treasurer (Kuvera) himself. And it looked like a
mass of clouds charged with lightning.

"When the city was built, there came, O king, numerous Brahmanas
well-acquainted with all the Vedas and conversant with every language,
wishing to dwell there. And there came also unto that town numerous
merchants from every direction, in the hope of earning wealth. There also
came numerous persons well-skilled in all the arts, wishing to take up
their abode there. And around the city were laid out many delightful
gardens adorned with numerous trees bearin