sorry for having (as he believed) killed Bhima, Vasudeva, that foremost of men, said these words, Do not grieve, O Dhritarashtra, for thou hast not slain Bhimasena!  That is an iron statue, O king, which has been broken by thee!  Understanding that thou wert filled with rage, O bull of Bharatas race, I dragged the son of Kunti away from within the jaws of Death.  O tiger among kings, there is none equal to thee in strength of body.  What man is there, O mighty-armed one, that would endure pressure of thy arms?  Indeed, as no one can escape with life from an encounter with the Destroyer himself, even so no body can come out safe from within thy embrace.  It was for this that yonder iron statue of Bhima, which had been caused to be made by thy son, had been kept ready for thee.  Through grief for the death of thy sons, thy mind has fallen off from righteousness.  It is for this, O great king, that thou seekest to slay Bhimasena.  The slaughter of Bhima, however, O king, would do thee no good.  Thy sons, O monarch, would not be revived by it.  Therefore, do thou approve of what has been by us with a view to secure peace and do not set thy heart on grief!”

Section 13

Vaishampayana said, “Certain maid-servants then came to the king for washing him.  After he had been duly washed, the slayer of Madhu again addressed him, saying, Thou hast, O king, read the Vedas and diverse scriptures.  Thou hast heard all old histories, and everything about the duties of kings.  Thou art learned, possessed of great wisdom, and indifferent to strength and weakness.  Why then dost thou cherish such wrath when all that has overtaken thee is the result of thy own fault?  I spoke to thee before the battle.  Both Bhishma and Drona, O Bharata, did the same, as also Vidura and Sanjaya.  Thou didst not, however, then follow our advice.  Indeed, though exhorted by us, thou didst not yet act according to the counsels we offered, knowing that the Pandavas were superior to thee and thine, O Kauravya, in strength and courage.  That king who is capable of seeing his own faults and knows the distinctions of place and time, obtains great prosperity.  That person, however, who, though counselled by well-wishers, does not accept their words, good or bad, meets with distress and is obliged to grieve in consequence of the evil policy he pursues.  Observe thou a different course of life now, O Bharata!  Thou didst not keep thy soul under restraint, but suffered thyself to be ruled by Duryodhana.  That which has come upon thee is due to thy own fault.  Why then dost thou seek to slay Bhima?  Recollecting thy own faults, govern thy wrath now.  That mean wretch who had, from pride, caused the princess of Pancala to be brought into the assembly has been slain by Bhimasena in just revenge.  Look at thy own evil acts as also at those of thy wicked-souled son.  The sons of Pandu are perfectly innocent.  Yet have they been treated most cruelly by thee and him.”