of the sons of Pandu?  Piercing whose breasts will terrible shafts stick to the ground to-day?  Do not weep for her, O timid girl, for know thou that Krishna will come back this very day, and the sons of Pritha, having slain their foes, will again be united with Yagnaseni!’ Thus addressed by him, Dhatreyika, wiping her beautiful face, replied unto Indrasena the charioteer, saying, ’Disregarding the five Indra-like sons of Pandu, Jayadratha hath carried away Krishna by force.  The track pursued by him hath not yet disappeared, for the broken branches of trees have not yet faded.  Therefore, turn your cars and follow her quickly, for the princess cannot have gone far by this time!  Ye warriors possessed of the prowess of Indra, putting on your costly bows of handsome make, and taking up your costly bows and quivers, speed ye in pursuit of her, lest overpowered by threats or violence and losing her sense and the colour of her cheeks, she yields herself up to an undeserving wight, even as one poureth forth, from the sacrificial ladle, the sanctified oblation on a heap of ashes.  O, see that the clarified butter is not poured into an unigniting fire of paddy chaff; that a garland of flowers is not thrown away in a cemetery.  O, take care that the Soma juice of a sacrifice is not licked up by a dog through the carelessness of the officiating priests!  O, let not the lily be rudely torn by a jackal roaming for its prey in the impenetrable forest.  O, let no inferior wight touch with his lips the bright and beautiful face of your wife, fair as the beams of the moon and adorned with the finest nose and the handsomest eyes, like a dog licking clarified butter kept in the sacrificial pot!  Do ye speed in this track and let not time steal a march on you.’

“Yudhishthira said, ’Retire, good woman, and control thy tongue.  Speak not this way before us.  Kings or princes, whoever are infatuated with the possession of power, are sure to come to grief!’”

Vaisampayana continued, “With these words, they departed, following the track pointed out to them, and frequently breathing deep sighs like the hissing of snakes, and twanging the strings of their large bows.  And then they observed a cloud of dust raised by the hoofs of the steeds belonging to Jayadratha’s army.  And they also saw Dhaumya in the midst of the ravisher’s infantry, exhorting Bhima to quicken his steps.  Then those princes (the sons of Pandu) with hearts undepressed, bade him be of good cheer and said unto him, ’Do thou return cheerfully!’—­And then they rushed towards that host with great fury, like hawks swooping down on their prey.  And possessed of the prowess of Indra, they had been filled with fury at the insult offered to Draupadi.  But at sight of Jayadratha and of their beloved wife seated on his car, their fury knew no bounds.  And those mighty bowmen, Bhima and Dhananjaya and the twin brothers and the king, called out Jayadratha to stop, upon which the enemy was so bewildered as to lose their knowledge of directions.”