|
Mahābhārata The History of the Great India
<< 45 Hidimba, The Man-Eater >>
 |  | Not far from the forest where the Pandavas slept lived Hidimba, a Raksasa, a monstrous creature who preyed on human flesh. He made his home in a huge Sala tree and possessed great power and might. His deformed features were hideous. He had bright yellow eyes, a gaping mouth with saber-like teeth, and an insatiable lust for human flesh. Afflicted by hunger, he was roaming the night when he happened to spy from a distance the sleeping Pandavas and their mother. Shaking his head, its hairs harsh and grizzly, and scratching it with his fingers pointed upward, the Raksasa opened wide his great mouth and yawned, looking again and again toward the sleeping princes.
| | | The wicked giant, who preyed with terrible strength on human flesh, smelled the aroma of human meat and said to his sister, "After a long time, some food has come that I really like. My mouth is watering with relish, and my tongue is licking my lips. Finally I can sink my eight deadly razor-sharp teeth into juicy, fleshy bodies. I shall step over these human necks and rip open the jugular veins, and then I shall drink lots of hot, foaming blood. Go and find out who they are, sleeping so confidently in the forest.
| | | "The aroma of human meat is very strong, and it gives me great pleasure. Go kill all those humans and bring me their bodies. You have nothing to fear from them, for they sleep in my domain. We shall very nicely prepare the meat of those humans, and then we shall feast together. Quickly, do what I say!"
| | | Obeying her brother's order, the Raksasi monster, jumping from one tree to another, went swiftly to where the Pandavas slept, O best of the Bharatas. Arriving there, she saw the Pandavas and their mother, Prtha, sleeping on the ground, and she saw the invincible Bhimasena standing guard over them. But when she saw Bhimasena standing as tall and sturdy as the trunk of a Sala tree and incomparably handsome, the Raksasi desired him.
| | | "That dark, handsome man has powerful arms, shoulders like a lion, and a body that seems to glow. His neck is thick and precious like a conch shell, and his eyes are like the petals of a lotus. He is fit to be my husband! I shall never execute the cruel order of my brother. The love a woman feels for her husband is much stronger than her friendship with a brother. If I kill these people, my brother and I will be satisfied for an hour or so, but if I don't kill them I shall enjoy forever".
| | | Able to change her body at will, the Raksasi then took the form of a gorgeous human female, adorned herself with celestial ornaments, and very slowly, like a bashful creeper, approached the mighty-armed Bhimasena.
| | | Hidimba smiled at Bhima and said, "Where have you come from, noble man, and who are you? Who are the men who sleep here as handsome as gods? And who is this very delicate woman, tan and luminous, who has come here to the forest with you and lies sleeping as securely as if she were in her own house? She doesn't know that the wild jungle is inhabited by Raksasas and that a most wicked Raksasa named Hidimba dwells in this very place. That evil Raksasa is my brother, and he sent me here because he wants to eat the flesh of all of you, O divine one. But when I look upon you, as handsome as a child of the gods, I desire no one else for my husband. I tell you the truth.
| | | "Now that you know this, please treat me properly. My mind and body desire you, so accept me as I have accepted you. O innocent one, be my husband, and I shall save you from that man-eating Raksasa. Then, O mighty-armed, we shall live together, with the mountains as our citadel. I can fly through space and wander where I will. Come with me, and discover pleasure you have never known before!"
| | | Bhimasena said, "My dear Raksasi, what man would abandon his mother, an older brother, and younger brothers like these when he has the power to protect them? How can a man like me hand over his sleeping brothers and mother as food for the Raksasas and go off pining for romance?"
| | | The Raksasi said, "Whatever you like I shall do. Wake them all up, and I shall gladly save all of you from the man-eating Raksasa".
| | | Bhimasena said, "O Raksasi, my brothers and mother are peacefully sleeping in these woods, and I will not wake them all up out of fear of your wicked brother. O timid one, O lady of lovely eyes, neither Raksasas, humans, Gandharvas, nor Yaksas can withstand my prowess. Either go or stay, good woman. Do as you like, or send at once your man-eating brother, my thin beauty".
|
|
| |
|---|
English
Español
Pусский
Português