“Vaisampayana said, ’Hear, O king, what those descendants of Kuru did while they dwelt thus in disguise in the city of the Matsyas, worshipping the king thereof.  By the grace of the sage Trinavindu and of the high-souled lord of justice, the Pandavas continued to live unrecognised by others in the city of Virata.  O lord of men, Yudhishthira, as courtier made himself agreeable to Virata and his sons as also to all the Matsyas.  An adept in the mysteries of dice, the son of Pandu caused them to play at dice according to his pleasure and made them sit together in the dice-hall like a row of birds bound in a string.  And that tiger among men, king Yudhishthira the Just, unknown to the monarch, distributed among his brothers, in due proportion, the wealth he won from Virata.  And Bhimasena on his part, sold to Yudhishthira for price, meat and viands of various kinds which he obtained from the king.  And Arjuna distributed among all his brothers the proceeds of worn-out cloths which he earned in the inner apartments of the palace.  And Sahadeva, too, who was disguised as a cowherd gave milk, curds and clarified butter to his brothers.  And Nakula also shared with his brothers the wealth the king gave him, satisfied with his management of the horses.  And Draupadi, herself in a pitiable condition, looked after all those brothers and behaved in such a way as to remain unrecognized.  And thus ministering unto one another’s wants, those mighty warriors lived in the capital of Virata as hidden from view, as if they were once more in their mother’s womb.  And those lords of men, the sons of Pandu, apprehensive of danger from the son of Dhritarashtra, continued to dwell there in concealment, watching over their wife Draupadi.  And after three months had passed away, in the fourth, the grand festival in honour of the divine Brahma which was celebrated with pomp in the country of the Matsyas, came off.  And there came athletes from all quarters by thousands, like hosts of celestials to the abode of Brahma or of Siva to witness that festival.  And they were endued with huge bodies and great prowess, like the demons called Kalakhanjas.  And elated with their prowess and proud of their strength, they were highly honoured by the king.  And their shoulders and waists and necks were like those of lions, and their bodies were very clean, and their hearts were quite at ease.  And they had many a time won success in the lists in the presence of kings.  And amongst them there was one who towered above the rest and challenged them all to a combat.  And there was none that dared to approach him as he proudly stalked in the arena.  And when all the athletes stood sad and dispirited, the king of the Matsyas made him fight with his cook.  And urged by the king, Bhima made up his mind reluctantly, for he could not openly disobey the royal behest.  And that tiger among men then having worshipped the king, entered the spacious arena, pacing with the careless steps of a tiger.