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Mahābhārata The History of the Great India
<< 21 Drona meets Drupada >>
 |  | Full dedication to his guru makes Arjuna the best of Drona's students. The sage Vaisampayana, speaking to King Janamejaya, tells the history of the brahmana Drona, who will become the teacher of the Pandavas. As the Mahabharata continues, Drona visits his former friend and classmate Drupada, who has now become a king.
| | | Sri Vaisampayana continued:
My dear king, the mighty Drona, son of Bharadvaja, approached Drupada, son of Prsata, and said, "O king, know me to be your friend Drona."
| | | [Drupada was embarrassed by the raggedy brahmana who had addressed him in such an intimate way. Not realizing that his old friend had acquired extraordinary weapons from Lord Parasurama, the king replied to Drona unkindly.]
| | | King Drupada said:
Brahmana, your understanding of things is not very mature, nor is it at all sound, for you come in such a forward manner and tell me that I am your intimate friend. Nowhere at all, O simple one, do we find such friendship between exalted monarchs and persons bereft of opulence and wealth. Close friendships fade away in time, for men themselves are worn out by time. Your intimate friendship with me was justified and proper in the past because we were both students in a similar situation. But nowhere in this world do we ever see friendship that does not suffer the effects of aging. Selfish desires pull friendship apart, and anger cuts it to pieces. You should not depend so much on aging friendships, but rather find new ones for yourself.
| | | O best of the twice-born, you and I once enjoyed a friendship because it was practical at that time. A poor man cannot be the friend of an affluent man, nor a weak man a friend to a hero. What is the value of a friend of the past? When two people have similar wealth and are born in families of similar nobility, there can be friendship and marital ties between them, but not between the rich and the poor.
| | | An unschooled man cannot be a friend to a scholar, nor can a man with no chariot be a friend to a chariot warrior. Kings do not fraternize with nonroyalty. What need is there for a friend of the past?
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