Having thus spoken, and delivered Koontee’s message, Akroor Jee took leave, and returned home. And having heard all the intelligence which Akroor brought from Hustinapoor, Shree Krishnù and Buldeo, the gods of all the gods, sat down after the fashion of men, and engaged in thought, revolved in their minds, how they might remove the burthens of the world.
Shree Shookdeo, the sage, having recited thus much of the history to the Raja Pureechit, said,—O lord of the earth! I have related the first half of history, comprising what took place in the forest of Bruj and at Muttra, I will now relate the last half, if I obtain the power of the lord of Dwarka.
CHAPTER LI.
We now write the last half of the history. Shree Shookdeo, the sage, said,—O great king! I will relate, how Shree Krishnù Chund conquered Joorasindhoo and his army, destroyed the right of the dead, released Moochkoond, and, having left Bruj, took up his abode in Dwarka: listen with the greatest attention.
The Raja Oogursen ruled over Muttra with great skill and policy; and Shree Krishnù and Bulram, like servants, were obedient to his orders. Under his government all his subjects were happy; except the widows of Kuns, who were greatly grieved at the loss of their husband. They could not sleep, and had no sensation of hunger or thirst. During the whole eight puhurs, they were in a state of sorrow.
One day the two sisters, being deeply engaged in thought, said to each other, “A woman has no excellence without her husband, as the subject has no excellence without his lord, or night without the moon. As we have lost our husbands, we ought not to stay here now; and it is better for us to go and live in the house of our father.”
O great king! the two queens, having thus determined, sent for a ruth, and travelled in it from Muttra to their father’s house, in the Behar country; and with tears related to him, how Shree Krishnù and Bulram had destroyed Kuns and all evil spirits.
On hearing their account, Joorasindhoo entered his court in great wrath, and said, “What powerful men are these, who have been born in the family of Judoo, and have made my daughters widows, after destroying the very powerful Kuns and all evil spirits? I will attack them with my whole army; and destroying with fire the city of Muttra, and all the family and descendants of Judoo, will carry off Bulram and Krishnù bound and alive: otherwise my name is not Joorasindh.”
Having thus spoken, he wrote letters to all the neighbouring Rajas, asking them to come to him with their armies; as he was about to revenge himself for the death of Kuns, by destroying all the descendants of Judoo, and making their race extinct. On receiving Joorasindhoo’s letters, all the Rajas of the different countries came quickly with their forces; and Joorasindhoo also arranged and prepared his army.
At length when Joorasindhoo took his departure from the Behar country to Muttra with all his army of demons, he had twenty-three complete armies with him; each army consisting of 21,817 charioteers and as many men mounted on elephants: 109,350 foot soldiers and 66,000 horsemen. Such were the twenty-three complete armies he had with him, each demon of which was powerful beyond description. O great king! when Joorasindhoo, accompanied with all his army of evil spirits, advanced, sounding the kettle-drum, the guardians of the ten quarters began to shake and tremble, and the gods to fly through fear. The earth apart began to be agitated, like the roof of a house, from the load. At length, after some days’ progress he arrived, and surrounded the city of Muttra on all sides. Upon this, the inhabitants of the city went in the greatest alarm to Shree Krishnù Chund, and exclaimed, “O great king! Joorasindhoo has encompassed our city on all sides; what shall we do, and where shall we go?”