How did Vidura try to stop Duryodhana from carrying on with his evil design?
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Answer:
The tournament was a huge crowd puller, with unexpected events like the entry of Karna. The people of Hastinapura tasted just an ounce of enmity between the Kauravas and Pandavas during the tournament. Kauravas never stopped hating their cousins. Duryodhana constantly brooded over them. Anything that happened in favor of Pandavas looked evil to him. He feared greatly for the growing strength and popularity of Pandavas. Unfortunately, he was surrounded by many evil people, who were actually planning to destroy him. He took them to be his friends, while rejecting the advices from wise people like Bhishma. His parents, Gandhari and Dhritarastra were good, but their wisdom was blurred by the love they had towards him. Eventually, Dhritarastra, who initially loved Pandavas a lot, started hating them. On the other hand, Duryodhana’s evil friends suggested him a plan to kill Pandavas. But all this while, Pandavas were not idle. They too were vigilant. Their spies mingled with the people in the palace and gathered information about the plans being made to kill them. But they were not sure what they were exactly planning.
One day, Duryodhana came to Pandavas with a beaming and smiling face. “Dear Brothers, I would like to present a beautiful palace to them in the kingdom of Varnavata”, he said, “People of Varnavata love you a lot. You will have a great time there”. Pandavas knew that it was a part of the plan which was being made to kill them. But they didn’t know what exactly they were planning. They accepted the invitation and went to the palace. The palace looked stunning with beautiful paintings and sculptures everywhere. It felt as if the Gods from heaven came down to design that wonderful palace. Pandavas felt very happy for the present and thought that their cousin Duryodhana was not so evil. They started living there.
After a couple of days, Vidura, the brother of Dhritarastra came to Pandavas. Pandavas welcomed him and treated him with utmost devotion. Before leaving the palace, Vidura, in a low whisper, informed Pandavas that the palace in which they were living was not safe. “This palace is made out of wax and many inflammatory materials”, he said, “Kauravas are planning to set this palace to fire and kill all of you”.
“But don’t worry my dear sons”, he added,”Some of my people mingled with the workmen and designed a secret underground passage which will lead you out of this palace safely. My men will raise an alarm if there is any danger. They will lead you safely out of the palace. The passage will be leading you to a place near the river Ganga, where I will be waiting for you with a boat”. The words of Vidura relieved Pandavas from the fear. They thanked him for the help, without which they would have died. Vidura left for Hastinapura after that.
As expected, the palace was set on fire by the men of Kauravas. The people who worked for Vidura alarmed Pandavas as soon as the building was set to fire. They were led to the secret underground passage, through which they were to escape. The passage led them to a place near the river Ganga, where Vidura waited with a boat for them to escape. Vidura suggested Pandavas that it is safe for them to remain underground for some days.