Race to Vidarbha

नारायणं नमस्कृत्य नरं चैव नरोत्तमम्

 देवीं सरस्वतीं चैव ततो जयम् उदीरयेत्

महाभरत

Mahābharata

As retold by

Michael Dolan, B.V. Mahāyogi

Nala and Damayanti

Bridhad Aswa said, And it came to pass just as Damayanti had ordered. The wise old Sudeva went to Ayodhya and gave the news to King Rituparna.

Rituparna rewarded him and thought, “I have heard of the beauty of tis Damayanti. I shall compete for her hand. But I must hurry. There is no time at all. Her ceremony will be tomorrow and Vidarbha is several leagues from here. I will need fast horses.”

And so the King immediately went to Vahuka and said, “Ready the horses! It’s time to prove your skill.”

The dwarf brought out the king’s horses and said, “Where to, master?”

And as he arose on the chariot, King Rituparna said, “We need to hurry. The beautiful princess Damayanti has announced a new svayamvara. All great kings and princes will be in attendance. She will choose her suitor from among them. He will be the next king of Vidarbha who wins her hand. I intend to ride to Vidarbha in a single day. It’s quite a distance, but with your skill at horses we can make it.”

Brihad Ashwa said, “Imagine how Nala felt, my dear Son of Kunti.

“While King Nala had abandoned Damayanti, somehow he expected her to keep faith. It never occurred to him that she would find another. Even as he was still under the influence of Kali, his heart burned in sorrow. ‘How could Damayanti choose another?’ he thought.  ‘Has she have given me up for dead?’ he thought. ‘Am I nothing to her?’ 

And so,  Nala was determined to go to Vidarbha and see Damayanti. Could it be true that she would pick another prince? Or was it all just a ruse? And Vahuka selected  four lean and muscular stallions. They were fresh and ready to run with wide nostrils and swelling cheeks. 

But when the king saw them, he said, “These horses are quite lean and skinny. Are you sure they can run to Vidarbha in one day?” 

 “Notice the curl on the forehead? These horses were born in Sindhu and are fleet as the wind. Trust me. But if you see any others that you like better, choose them and I will take them instead.”

“You know best,” said the king.

Vahuka yoked  the horses to the chariot, Vahuka the dwarf turned to Rituparna the king and said, “We’re ready. It’s a challenge to ride to Vidarbha in a single day. But we shall ride like the wind.” And so saying, he held the reins that the king could mount.

As the king mounted the chariot, he said,

“Ah but poor Nala died in the forest. Or how is it possible that such a great king abandoned his wife. No, Nala must be dead. And so young Damayanti has announced a new svayamvara. All great kings and princes will be in attendance. Who knows,” said Rituparna, smiling, “Even one such as you can compete. Let’s get a move on.” And so together they made ready their horses and chariot.

The king’s personal driver, Varshneya drove the chariot, but Nala soothed and guided the horses, using the divine mantras he had learned so long ago. As they flew across the plains the wheels barely touched the ground. The horses were fleet of foot and raced as they never had before. The king, Rituparna, was pleased. 

But Varshneya had known Nala. They had often worked the horses together. And seeing the dwarf endowed with such skill in horses, Varshneya admired him in wonder.

’Who is this man?’ he thought. ‘He drives the horses as if he were Matali, the charioteer of Indra himself. This rough dwarf is the great horseman I have ever seen, with the exception of King Nala of Vishadha. Only the great Nala had such skill with horses. But Nala died in the forest and his widow is even now seeking a new prince. Could this be Nala? And if not Nala, then who? Sometimes the gods, disguised, wander among us. His deformity of body confuses my judgment. But they are equal in age. How could  Vahuka know the same science as Nala? Perhaps Nala has been cursed to take this form. This Vahuka has all of Nala’s virtues, except appearance. But appearances deceive. He must be Nala,’ concluded Varshneya who had once been Nala’s driver.

The king himself admired the great of Vahuka who effortlessly guided the horses over mountains and rivers, woods and lakes.  They flew like a bird at the speed of the wind; the chariot wheels barely touched the earth. And as they raced along, the king’s royal sash was carried away by the wind. He said, “O Vahuka, I dropped something just a moment ago. Let us return and pick it up.” But Nala in the form of Vahuka smiled and said, “Sire, your sash is far behind us now; we have gone a league since then. We may not turn back.”

And the king again wondered at the great skill of his horse-keeper and thought to himself, “Perhaps he can teach me what he knows.” 

Now the king had great skill at mathematics. He thought, ‘Each one has his own knowledge; his is horses, mine is numbers.’ He could calculate the number of leaves on a tree by counting the branches. And so to impress Nala, he told him how many leaves and fruits were on a tamarind tree that they passed. 

Nala stopped the horses. He lost his kingdom when his brother Pushkar cheated him at dice. His ignorance of mathematics had cost him dearly, and now he could see his redemption. He returned to the tree and carefully counted the leaves. “How is it possible that you have dominated the science of numbers so well?” 

And the king taught him the trick, saying, “I know many things. If you like I can teach you. But in return I must learn from you how you dominate horses.”

Vahuka the dwarf said, “It may be easy if you know how. But this skill really eludes me. I would like to learn about the laws of probability and how to calculate odds at dice playing. I am not very expert in dice. In fact as a consequence of some bad bets I made, I am in the condition you see me now, reduced to poverty. Teach me about mathematics, dice, and the laws of probability, and I shall teach you everything I know about horses.”

They stopped along the road there and made camp for the night, for Vahuka was sure he could still make Vidarbha by sunrise. And all through the night, Nala taught the king the  different mantras for controlling horses and the king taught Nala everything he needed to know to win at dice.”

By early morning, Nala had mastered mathematics and the art of throwing dice.

With this, Kali knew that at last he was defeated. He had suffered long with the poison of the Naga prince, but now he had lost control of Nala. He came out of his body, ending his possession of that miserable king, and vomiting the poison of the viper Karkotaka. And as Kali left the body of Nala, so did the curse that had caused him such great misfortune. And Nala, seeing his demon tormentor was about the curse Kali, who cowered before him. 

But Kali, who was visible only to Nala said, “O King of men have mercy on this poor devil. When you abandoned Damayanti on my account, she cursed me. Since that time I have only known pain, scorched by the Snake-king’s poison. Spare me, and I will grant you a boon. Wherever men remember your name they shall be free of the influence of Kali. I am the demon of the iron age to come. Inspired by me, men will do awful things. They will rain fire from the heavens and scorch the earth. But those who remember how King Nala suffered at Kali’s hands shall escape my spell. Your name will be their refuge if you spare me. Do not curse one who begged for shelter at your feet.” And so saying, Kali split a Vibhitak tree and entered into it, becoming invisible. 

Then Nala, freed from Kali at last, was joyful. He mounted the chariot where King Rituparna had been waiting. He urged his fleet horses reciting mantras, and so they flew over the earth.  His soul delighted, they raced on to Vidarbha. King Rituparna wondered to see the dwarf so inspired, for Nala had not assumed his royal form. That would wait until Damayanti’s approval, for he still had within the folds of his garments the special cloth given him by Karkotaka the snake-king.

And so it was that they raced once again towards the city of Vidarbha where the svayamvara ceremony of Damayanti was to be held.