without a sin or guile,

And the others by Yudhishthir, Pandu's twin-born sons are they,
With these sons the righteous Pritha 'scaped where death and danger lay,

For the jealous, fierce Duryodhan darkly schemed their death by fire,
But the righteous sons of Pandu 'scaped his unrelenting ire!"

Krishna rose amidst the monarchs, strove the tumult to appease,
And unto the angry suitors spake in words of righteous peace,

Monarchs bowed to Krishna's mandate, left Panchala's festive land,
Arjun took the beauteous princess, gently led her by the hand.

BOOK III

RAJASUYA

(The Imperial Sacrifice)

A curious incident followed the bridal of Draupadi. The five sons of
Pandu returned with her to the potter's house, where they were
living on alms according to the custom of Brahmans, and the brothers
reported to their mother that they had received a great gift on that
day. "Enjoy ye the gift in common," replied their mother, not knowing
what it was. And as a mother's mandate cannot be disregarded,
Draupadi became the common wife of the five brothers.

The real significance of this strange legend is unknown. The custom
of brothers marrying a common wife prevails to this day in Thibet and
among the hill-tribes of the Himalayas, but it never prevailed among
the Aryan Hindus of India. It is distinctly prohibited in their laws
and institutes, and finds no sanction in their literature, ancient or
modern. The legend in the _Maha-bharata_, of brothers marrying a wife
in common, stands alone and without a parallel in Hindu traditions
and literature.

Judging from the main incidents of the Epic, Draupadi might rather be
regarded as the wife of the eldest brother Yudhishthir. Bhima had
already mated himself to a female in a forest, by whom he had a son,
Ghatotkacha, who distinguished himself in war later on. Arjun too
married the sister of Krishna, shortly after Draupadi's bridal, and
had by her a son, Abhimanyu, who was one of the heroes of the war. On
the other hand, Yudhishthir took to him self no wife save Draupadi,
and she was crowned with Yudhishthir in the Rajasuya or Imperial
Sacrifice. Notwithstanding the legend, therefore, Draupadi might be
regarded as wedded to Yudhishthir, though won by the skill of Arjun,
and this assumption would be in keeping with Hindu customs and laws,
ancient and modern.

The jealous Duryodhan heard that his contrivance to kill his cousins
at Varanavata had failed. He also heard that