elephants. Related to Vasudeva and having the sons of king Drupada as
their brothers-in-law, who that is subject to decrepitude and death
would undertake to cope with them in battle? O bull of the Bharata race,
let there be peace between thee and Pandavas! Follow thou my counsels
and surrender not thyself to anger!'

"O king, thus admonished by Maitreya, Duryodhana began to slap his thigh
resembling the trunk of the elephant, and smilingly began to scratch the
ground with his foot. And the wicked wretch spake not a word, but hung
down his head. And, O monarch, beholding Duryodhana thus offer him a
slight by scratching the earth silently, Maitreya became angry. And, as
if commissioned by fate, Maitreya, the best of Munis, overwhelmed by
wrath, set his mind upon cursing Duryodhana! And then, with eyes red in
anger, Maitreya, touching water, cursed the evil-minded son of
Dhritarashtra, saying, 'Since, slighting me thou declinest to act
according to my words, thou shalt speedily reap the fruit of this thy
insolence! In the great war which shall spring out of the wrongs
perpetrated by thee, the mighty Bhima shall smash that thigh of thine
with a stroke of his mace!'

"When the Muni had spoken so, king Dhritarashtra began to pacify the
sage, in order that what he had said might not happen. But Maitreya
said, 'O king, if thy son concludeth peace with the Pandavas, this curse
of mine, O child, will not take effect, otherwise it must be as I have
said!'"

Vaisampayana said, "Desirous of ascertaining the might of Bhima, that
foremost of kings, the father of Duryodhana, then asked Maitreya,
saying, 'How was Kirmira slain by Bhima?'