24. THE INVITATION :

DURYODHANA and Sakuni went to
Dhritarashtra. Sakuni opened the
conversation. He said: "O king,
Duryodhana is wan with grief and anxiety.
You are paying no attention to his
unbearable sorrow. Why this unconcern?"



Dhritarashtra who doted on his son
embraced Duryodhana and said: "I do not
see why you should be disconsolate. What
is here that you already do not enjoy? The
whole world is at your feet. When you are
surrounded by all kinds of pleasures like
the very gods, why should you pine in
sorrow? You have learnt the Vedas,
archery, and other sciences from the best
of masters. As my first born, you have
inherited the throne. What is left you to
wish for? Tell me."



Duryodhana replied: "Father, like
anybody else, rich or poor, I eat and cover
my nakedness, but I find life unbearable.
What is the use of leading such a life?"
And then he revealed in detail the envy
and hatred that were eating into his vitals
and depriving life of its savour. He
referred to the prosperity he had seen in
the capital of the Pandavas that to him
was bitterer than loss of his all would
have been.



He burst out: "Contentment with one's lot
is not characteristic of a kshatriya. Fear
and pity lower the dignity of kings. My
wealth and pleasures do not give me any
satisfaction since I have witnessed the
greater prosperity of Yudhishthira. O
king, the Pandavas have grown, while we
have shrunk."



Dhritarashtra said: "Beloved child, you
are the eldest son of my royal spouse and
me and heir to the glory and greatness of
our renowned race. Do not cherish any
hatred towards the Pandavas. Sorrow and
death will be the sole result of hatred of
kith and kin, especially when they are
blameless. Tell me, why do you hate the
guileless Yudhishthira? Is not his
prosperity ours too? Our friends are his
friends. He has not the least jealousy or
hatred towards us. You are equal to him in
heroism and ancestry. Why should you be
jealous of your brother? No. You should
not be jealous." Thus said the old king
who, though overfond of his son, did not
occasionally hesitate to say what he felt to
be just.



Duryodhana did not at all like the advice
of his father, and his reply was not very
respectful.



He replied: "The man without common
sense, but immersed in learning, is like a
wooden ladle immersed in savoury food
which it neither tastes nor benefits from.
You have much learning of statecraft but
have no state wisdom at all, as your
advice to me clearly shows. The way of
the world is one thing and the
administration of a state is quite another.



Thus has Brihaspati said: 'Forbearance
and contentment, though the duties of
ordinary men, are not virtues in kings.'
The kshatriya's duty is a constant seeking
of victory."



Duryodhana spoke thus quoting maxims
of politics and citing examples and
making the worse appear the better
reason.



Then Sakuni intervened and set forth in
detail his infallible plan of inviting
Yudhishthira to play the game of dice,
defeating him utterly and divesting him of
his all without recourse to arms.


The wicked Sakuni wound up with
saying: "It is enough if you merely send
for the son of Kunti to play the game of
dice. Leave the rest to me."
Duryodhana added: "Sakuni will win for
me the riches of the Pandavas without a
fight, if you would only agree to invite
Yudhishthira."


Dhritarashtra said: "Your suggestion does
not seem proper. Let us ask Vidura about
it. He will advise us rightly."



But Duryodhana would not hear of
consulting Vidura. He said to his father:
"Vidura will only give us the platitudes of
ordinary morality, which will not help us
to our object. The policy of kings must be
very different from the goody maxims of
textbooks, and is sterner stuff of which the
test is success. Moreover, Vidura does not
like me and is partial to the Pandavas.
You know this as well as I do."



Dhritarashtra said: "The Pandavas are
strong. I do not think it wise to antagonize
them. The game of dice will only lead to
enmity. The passions resulting from the
game will know no bounds. We should
not do it."



But Duryodhana was importunate: "Wise
statesmanship lies in casting off all fear
and protecting oneself by one's own
efforts. Should we not force the issue
while yet we are more powerful than they
are? That will be real foresight. A lost
opportunity may never come again, and it
is not as though we invented the game of
dice to injure the Pandavas. It is an
ancient pastime which kshatriyas have
always indulged in, and if it will now
serve us to win our cause without
bloodshed, where is the harm?"



Dhritarashtra replied: "Dear son, I have
grown old. Do as you like. But the line
that you are taking does not appeal to me.
I am sure you will repent later. This is the
work of destiny."



In the end, out-argued and through sheer
fatigue and hopelessness of dissuading his
son, Dhritarashtra assented, and ordered
the servants to prepare a hall of games.
Yet he could not forbear consulting
Vidura in secret about the matter.
Vidura said: "O king, this will
undoubtedly bring about the ruin of our
race by raising up unquenchable hate."



Dhritarashtra, who could not oppose the
demand of his son, said: "If fortune favors
us I have no fear regarding this game. If
on the contrary, fortune goes against us,
how could we help it? For, destiny is allpowerful.
Go and invite Yudhishthira on
my behalf to come and play dice." Thus
commanded, Vidura went to Yudhishthira
with an invitation.



The weak-witted Dhritarashtra, overpersuaded,
yielded to the desire of his son
through his attachment to him in spite of
the fact that he knew this was the way that
destiny was working itself out.