A \ B \ C \ D \ E \ F \ G \ H \ I \ J \ K \ L \ M \ N \ O \ P \ R \ S \ T \ U \ V \ W \Z

The Mahabharata of Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa, Volume 4 by or: Kisari Mohan Ganguli

O >> or: Kisari Mohan Ganguli >> The Mahabharata of Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa, Volume 4






SECTION LXXX

"Vaisampayana said, 'That lady of eyes like lotus petals, having indulged
in copious lamentations, and burning with grief, at last lost her senses
and fell down on the Earth. Regaining consciousness and seeing Ulupi, the
daughter of the snake chief, queen Chitrangada endued with celestial
beauty, said unto her these words, 'Behold. O Ulupi, our ever-victorious
husband slain in battle, through thee, by my son of tender years. Art
thou conversant with the practices of the respectable? Art thou a wife
devoted to thy lord? It is through thy deed that thy husband is laid low,
slain in battle. If Dhananjaya hath offended against thee in every
respect, do thou forgive him I solicit thee, do thou revive that hero. O
righteous lady, thou art conversant with piety. Thou art, O blessed one,
known (for thy virtues) over the three worlds. How is it that having
caused thy husband to be slain by my son, thou dost not indulge in grief?
O daughter of the snake chief, I do not grieve for my slain son. I grieve
for only my husband who has received this hospitality from his son.'
Having said these words unto the queenly Ulupi, the daughter of the snake
chief, the illustrious Chitrangada proceeded to where her husband lay on
the Earth and addressing him, said, 'Rise, O dear lord, thou occupiest
the foremost place in the affections of the Kuru king (Yudhishthira).
Here is that steed of thine. It has been set free by me. Verily, O
puissant one, this sacrificial steed of king Yudhishthira the just,
should be followed by thee. Why then dost thou lie still on the Earth? My
life-breaths depend on thee, O delighter of the Kurus. How is it that he
who is the giver of other people's life-breaths casts off his own
life-breaths today? Behold, O Ulupi, this goodly sight of thy husband
lying prostrate on the ground. How is it that thou dost not grieve,
having caused him to be slain through my son when thou didst excite with
thy words? It is fit that this boy should succumb to the power of death
and lie thus on the ground beside his own sire. Oh, let Vijaya, let him
that is called Gudakesa, let this hero with reddish eyes, come back O
life. O blessed lady, polygamy is not fault with men. Women only incur
fault by taking more than one husband. Do not, therefore, harbour such
thoughts (of vengeance).[196] This relationship was ordained by the
Supreme ordainer himself. It is, besides, an eternal and unchangeable
one. Do thou attend to that relationship. Let thy union (with Dhananjaya)
be made true. If, having slain thy husband through my son, thou dost not
revive him today before my eyes, I shall then cast off my life-breaths.
Without doubt, O reverend lady, afflicted as I am with grief and deprived
as I am of both husband and son, I shall sit here today in Praya in thy
very sight!' Having said so unto the daughter of the snake chief, who was
a co-wife with her to Arjuna, the princess Chaitravahini sat in Praya, O
king, restraining speech.'[197]

"Vaisampayana continued, 'Ceasing to lament, the cheerless queen, taking
upon her lap the feet of her husband, sat there, sighing heavily and
wishing also the restoration of her son to life. King Vabhruvahana then,
regaining consciousness, saw his mother seated in that guise on the field
of battle. Addressing her he said, 'What can be more painful than the
sight of my mother, who has been brought up in luxury, lying on the bare
ground beside her heroic husband stretched thereon? Alas, this slayer of
all foes, this foremost of all wielders of weapons, hath been slain by me
in battle, It is evident that men do not die till their hour comes.[198]
Oh, the heart of this princess seems to be very hard since it does not
break even at the sight of her mighty-armed and broad-chested husband
lying dead on the ground. It is evident that one does not die till one's
hour comes, since neither myself, nor my mother is deprived of life (at
even such a sight). Alas, alas, the golden coat of mail of this foremost
hero of Kuru's race, slain by me, his son, knowingly, is lying on the
ground, cut off from his body. Alas, ye Brahmanas, behold my heroic sire
lying prostrate on the Earth, on a hero's bed, slain by his son. What
benefit is done to this hero, slain by me in battle, by those Brahmanas
who were commissioned to attend upon this foremost one of Kuru's race
engaged in following the steed? Let the Brahmanas direct what expiation
should now be undergone by me, a cruel and sinful wretch, that has slain
his own sire in battle. Having slain my own sire, I should, suffering
every kind of misery, wander over the Earth, cruel that I am, covering
myself with his skin. Give me the two halves of my sire's head to day,
(so that I may wander over the Earth with them for that period), for
there is no other expiation for me that have slain my own sire. Behold, O
daughter of the foremost of snakes, thy husband slain by me. Verily, by
slaying Arjuna in battle I have accomplished what is agreeable to thee. I
shall today follow in the track by which my sire has gone. O blessed one,
I am unable to comfort myself. Be happy today, O mother, seeing myself
and the wielder of Gandiva both embrace death today. I swear to thee by
truth itself (that I shall castoff my life-breaths).' Having said these
words, the king, deeply afflicted with grief, O monarch, touched water,
and exclaimed in sorrow, 'Let all creatures, mobile and immobile, listen
to me. Do thou also listen to me, O mother. I say the truth, O best of
all daughters of the snakes. If this best of men, Jaya, my sire, does not
rise up, I shall emaciate my own body, sitting on the field of battle.
Having slain my sire, there is no rescue for me (from that dire sin).
Afflicted as I am with the sin of slaying my sire, I shall without doubt
have to sink in Hell. By slaying a heroic Kshatriya one becomes cleansed
by making a gift of a hundred kine. By slaying my sire, however, so dire
has been my sin that my I rescue is impossible. This Dhananjaya, the son
of Pandu, was the one hero endued with mighty energy. Possessed of
righteous soul, he was the author of my being. How can I be rescued after
having slain him? Having uttered these lamentations, the high-souled son
of Dhananjaya, king Vabhruvahana, touched water and became silent, vowing
to starve himself to death.'

"Vaisampayana continued, 'When the king of Manipura, that chastiser of
foes, afflicted with grief, along with his mother, sat down to starve
himself to death, Ulupi then thought of the gem that has the virtue of
reviving a dead man. The gem, the great refuge of the snakes, thus
thought of, came there. The daughter of the prince of snakes taking it
up, uttered these words that highly gladdened the combatants standing on
the field. 'Rise up, O son. Do not grieve. Jishnu has not been vanquished
by thee. This hero is incapable of being vanquished by men as also by the
deities with Vasava himself at their head I have exhibited this illusion,
deceiving your senses, for the benefit of this foremost of men, viz., thy
illustrious sire. O thou of Kuru's race, desirous of ascertaining the
prowess of thyself, his son, this slayer of hostile heroes, O king, came
here for battling with thee. It was for that reason, O son, that thou
wert urged by me to do battle. O puissant king, O son, do not suspect
that thou hast committed any, even the least, fault, by accepting his
challenge. He is a Rishi, of a mighty soul, eternal and indestructible. O
dear son, Sakra himself is incapable of vanquishing him in battle. This
celestial gem has been brought by me, O king. It always revives the
snakes as often as they die. O puissant king, do thou place this gem on
the breast of thy sire. Thou shalt then see the son of Pandu revived.'
Thus addressed, the prince who had committed no sin, moved by affection
for his sire, then placed that gem on the breast of Pritha's son of
immeasurable energy. After the gem had been placed on his breast; the
heroic and puissant Jishnu became revived. Opening his red eyes he rose
up like one who had slept long. Beholding his sire, the high-souled hero
of great energy, restored to consciousness and quite at his ease,
Vabhruvahana worshipped him with reverence. When that tiger among men, O
puissant one, awoke from the slumber of death with every auspicious sign
of life, the chastiser of Paka rained down celestial flowers.
Kettle-drums struck by nobody, produced their music deep as the roar of
the cloud. A loud uproar was heard in the welkin consisting of the
words--Excellent, Excellent! The mighty-armed Dhananjaya, rising up and
well-comforted, embraced Vabhruvahana and smelled his head. He saw
sitting at a distance from his son, this latter's mother afflicted with
grief, in the company of Ulupi. Dhananjaya asked,--'Why is it that every
thing in the field of battle seems to bear the indications of grief,
wonder, and joy? If, O slayer of foes, the cause is known to thee, do
thou then tell me. Why has thy mother come to the field of battle? Why
also has Ulupi, the daughter of the prince of snakes, come here? I know
that thou hadst fought this battle with me at my own command. I desire to
know what the cause is that has brought out the ladies.' The intelligent
ruler of Manipura, thug questioned by Dhananjaya, gratified him by
bending his head in reverence, and then said,--'Let Ulupi be questioned.'



SECTION LXXXI

"Arjuna said, 'What business brought thee here, O daughter (-in-law) of
Kuru's race, and what also is the cause of the arrival on the field of
battle of her who is the mother of the ruler of Manipura? Dost thou
entertain friendly motives towards this king, O daughter of a snake? O
thou of restless glances, dost thou wish good to me too? I hope, O thou
of ample hips, that neither I, nor this Vabhruvahana here, have, O
beautiful lady, done any injury to thee unconsciously? Has Chitrangada of
faultless limbs, descended from the race of Chitravahana, done thee any
wrong?' Unto him, the daughter of the prince of snakes answered
smilingly, 'Thou hast not offended me, nor has Vabhruvahana done me any
wrong; nor this prince's mother who is always obedient to me as a
hand-maid. Listen, how all this has been brought about by me. Thou
shouldst not be angry with me. Indeed, I seek to gratify thee by bending
my head in reverence. O thou of Kuru's race, all this has been done by me
for thy good, O puissant one. O mighty-armed Dhananjaya, hear all that I
have done. In the great battle of the Bharata princes, thou hadst slain
the royal son of Santanu by unrighteous ways. What I have done has
expiated thy sin. Thou didst not overthrow Bhishma while battling with
thee. He was engaged with Sikhandin. Relying on him as thy help, thou
didst compass the overthrow of Santanu's son. If thou hadst died without
having expiated thy sin, thou wouldst then have fallen without doubt into
Hell in consequence of that sinful act of thine. Even this which thou
hast got from thy son is the expiation of that sin. Formerly, O ruler of
Earth, I heard this said by the Vasus while they were in the company of
Ganga, O thou of great intelligence. After the fall of Santanu's son,
those deities, viz., the Vasus, coming to the banks of Ganga, bathed in
her waters, and calling the goddess of that stream, they uttered these
terrible words having the sanction of Bhagirathi herself,
viz.,--Santanu's son Bhishma has been slain by Dhananjaya. Verily, O
goddess, Bhishma then was engaged with another, and had ceased to fight.
For this fault we shall today denounce a curse on Dhananjaya.--To this,
the goddess Ganga readily assented, saying,--Be it so!--Hearing these
words I became very much afflicted and penetrating into the nether
regions represented everything to my sire. Informed of what had happened,
my sire became plunged in grief. Repairing to the Vasus, he solicited
them for thy sake, repeatedly gratifying them by every means in his
power. They then said unto him, 'Dhananjaya has a highly blessed son who,
endued with youth, is the ruler of Manipura. He will, standing on the
field of battle, cast Dhananjaya down on the Earth. When this will
happen, O prince of snakes, Arjuna will be freed from our curse. Do thou
go back.--Thus addressed by the Vasus, he came back and informed me of
what had happened. Having learnt all this, O hero, I have freed thee from
the curse of the Vasus even in this way. The chief of the deities himself
is incapable of vanquishing thee in battle. The son is one's own self. It
is for this that thou hast been vanquished by him. I cannot be held, O
puissant one, to have committed any fault. How, indeed, wouldst thou hold
me censurable?'--Thus addressed (by Ulupi), Vijaya became cheerful of
heart and said unto her, 'All this that thou hast done, O goddess, is
highly agreeable to me.' After this, Jaya addressed his son, the ruler of
Manipura, and said unto him in the hearing of Chitrangada, the daughter
(-in-law) of Kuru's house, the Horse-sacrifice of Yudhishthira will take
place on the day of full moon in the coming month of Chaitra. Come there,
O king, with thy mother and thy counsellors and officers.' Thus addressed
by Partha, king Vabhruvahana of great intelligence, with tearful eyes,
said these words to his sire, 'O thou that art conversant with every
duty, I shall certainly repair, at thy command, to the great
Horse-sacrifice, and take upon myself the task of distributing food among
the regenerate ones. For, however, showing thy grace towards me, thou
enter thy own city with thy two wives. Let no scruple, be thine as
regards this, O thou that art fully acquainted with every duty. O lord,
having lived for one night in thy own mansion in happiness, thou mayst
then follow the steed, O foremost of victorious warriors. The
ape-bannered son of Kunti, thus addressed by his son, answered the child
of Chitrangada, saying 'Thou knowest, O mighty-armed one, what vow I am
observing. O thou of large eyes, till the termination of this my vow, I
cannot enter thy city. O foremost of men, this sacrificial horse wanders
at will. (I have to follow it always.) Blessings on thee! I must go away.
Place I have none wherein to rest for even a short while.' The son of the
chastiser of Paka then, duly worshipped by his son and obtaining the
permission of his two wives, left the spot and proceeded on his way.'"



SECTION LXXXII

"Vaisampayana said, 'The (sacrificial) steed, having wandered over the
whole Earth bounded by the ocean, then ceased and turned his face towards
the city called after the elephant. Following as he did that horse, the
diadem-decked Arjuna also turned his face towards the Kuru capital.
Wandering at his will, the steed then came to the city of Rajagriha.
Beholding him arrived within his dominion, O monarch, the heroic son of
Sahadeva, observant of Kshatriya duties, challenged him to battle. Coming
out of his city, Meghasandhi, mounted on his car and equipt with bow and
arrows and leathern fence, rushed towards Dhananjaya who was on foot.
Possessed of great energy, Meghasandhi approaching Dhananjaya, O king,
said these words from a spirit of childishness and without any skill.
'This steed of thine, O Bharata, seems to move about, protected by women
only. I shall take away the horse. Do thou strive to free him. Although
my sires did not teach thee in battle, I, however, shall do the duties of
hospitality to you. Do thou strike me, for I shall strike thee.' Thus
addressed, the son of Pandu, smiling the while, answered him, saying, 'To
resist him who obstructs me is the vow cast on me by my eldest brother.
Without doubt, O king, this is known to thee. Do thou strike me to the
best of thy power. I have no anger.' Thus addressed, the ruler of Magadha
first struck the son of Pandu, showering his arrows on him like the
thousand-eyed Indra showering heavy downpour of rain. Then, O chief of
Bharata's race, the heroic wielder of Gandiva, with shafts sped from his
excellent bow, baffled all the arrows shot carefully at him by his
antagonist. Having thus baffled that cloud of arrows, the ape-bannered
hero sped a number of blazing arrows at his foe that resembled snakes
with fiery mouths. These arrows he shot at his flag and flag-staff and
car and poles and yoke and the horses, sparing the body of his foe and
his car-driver. Though Partha who was capable of shooting the bow with
the left hand (as well as with the right) spared the body of the prince
of Magadha, yet the latter thinking that his body was protected by his
own prowess, shot many arrows at Partha. The wielder of Gandiva, deeply
struck by the prince of Magadha, shone like a flowering Palasa (Butea
frondosa) in the season of spring. Arjuna had no desire of slaying the
prince of Magadha. It was for this that, having struck the son of Pandu,
he succeeded in remaining before that foremost of heroes. Then
Dhananjaya, becoming angry, drew his bow with great force, and slew his
antagonist's steeds and then struck off the head of his car-driver. With
a razor-headed shaft he then cut off Meghasandhi's large and beautiful
bow, and then his leathern fence. Then cutting off his flag and
flag-staff, he caused it to fall down. The prince of Magadha, exceedingly
afflicted, and deprived of his steeds and bow and driver, took up a mace
and rushed with great speed at the son of Kunti. Arjuna then with many
shafts of his equipt with vulturine feathers cut off into fragments, that
mace of his advancing foe which was adorned with bright gold. Thus cut
off into fragments, that mace with its begemmed bonds and knots all
severed, fell on the Earth like a she-snake helplessly hurled down by
somebody. When his foe became deprived of his car, his bow, and his mace,
that foremost of warriors, viz., the intelligent Arjuna, did not wish to
strike him. The ape-bannered hero then, comforting his cheerless foe who
had been observant of Kshatriya duties, said unto him these words, 'O
son, thou hast sufficiently displayed thy adherence to Kshatriya duties.
Go now. Great have been the feats, O king, which thou hast accomplished
in battle although thou art very young in years. The command I received
from Yudhishthira was that kings who oppose me should not be slain. It is
for this thou livest yet, O monarch, although thou hast offended me in
battle. Thus addressed, the ruler of Magadha considered himself
vanquished and spared. Thinking then that it was his duty to do so, he
approached Arjuna and joining his hands in reverence worshipped him. And
he said, 'Vanquished have I been by thee. Blessed be thou, I do not
venture to continue the battle. Tell me what I am to do now for thee.
Regard thy behest as already accomplished. Comforting him again, Arjuna
once more said unto him, 'Thou shouldst repair to the Horse-sacrifice of
our king which takes place at the coming full moon of Chaitra.' Thus
addressed by him, the son of Sahadeva said, 'So be it,'--and then duly
worshipped that horse as also Phalguna, that foremost of warriors. The
sacrificial horse then, equipt with beautiful manes, proceeded at his
will along the sea-coast, repairing to the countries of the Bangas, the
Pundras, and the Kosalas. In those realms Dhananjaya, with his bow
Gandiva, O king, vanquished innumerable Mlechecha armies one after
another.'"



SECTION LXXXIII

"Vaisampayana said, 'Worshipped by the ruler of Magadha, Pandu's son
having white steeds yoked unto his car, proceeded along the south,
following the (sacrificial) steed. Turning round in course of his
wanderings at will, the mighty steed came upon the beautiful city of the
Chedis called after the oyster.[199] Sarabha, the son of Sisupala, endued
with great strength, first encountered Arjuna in battle and then
worshipped him with due honours. Worshipped by him, O king, that best of
steeds then proceeded to the realms of the Kasis, the Angas, the Kosalas,
the Kiratas, and the Tanganas. Receiving due honours in all those realms,
Dhananjaya turned his course. Indeed, the son of Kunti then proceeded to
the country of the Dasarnas. The ruler of that people was Chitrangada who
was endued with great strength and was a crusher of foes. Between him and
Vijaya occurred a battle exceedingly terrible. Bringing him under his
sway the diadem-decked Arjuna, that foremost of men, proceeded to the
dominions of the Nishada king, viz., the son of Ekalavya. The soon of
Ekalavya received Arjuna in battle. The encounter that took place between
the Kuru hero and the Nishadas was so furious as to make the hair stand
on end. Unvanquished in battle, the valiant son of Kunti defeated the
Nishada king who proved an obstacle to the sacrifice. Having subjugated
the son of Ekalavya, O king, the son of Indra, duly worshipped by the
Nishadas, then proceeded towards the southern ocean. In those regions
battle took place between the diadem-decked hero and the Dravidas and
Andhras and the fierce Mahishakas and the hillmen of Kolwa. Subjugating
those tribes without having to accomplish any fierce feats, Arjuna
proceeded to the country of the Surashtras, his footsteps guided by the
horse. Arrived at Gokarna, he repaired thence to Prabhasa. Next he
proceeded to the beautiful city of Dwaravati protected by the heroes of
the Vrishni race. When the beautiful sacrificial horse of the Kuru king
reached Dwaravati, the Yadava youths, used force against that foremost of
steeds. King Ugrasena, however, soon went out and forbade those youths
from doing what they meditated. Then the ruler of the Vrishnis and the
Andhakas, issuing out of his palace, with Vasudeva, the maternal uncle of
Arjuna, in his company, cheerfully met the Kuru hero and received him
with due rites. The two elderly chiefs honoured Arjuna duly. Obtaining
their permission, the Kuru prince then proceeded to where the horse he
followed, led him. The sacrificial steed then proceeded along the coast
of the western ocean and at last reached the country of the five waters
which swelled with population and prosperity. Thence, O king, the steed
proceeded to the country of Gandharas. Arrived there, it wandered at
will, followed by the son of Kunti. Then occurred a fierce battle between
the diadem-decked hero and the ruler of Gandharas, viz., the son of
Sakuni, who had a bitter rememberance of the grudge his sire bore to the
Pandavas.'



SECTION LXXXIV

"Vaisampayana said, 'The heroic son of Sakuni, who was a mighty
car-warrior among the Gandharas, accompanied by a large force, proceeded
against the Kuru hero of curly hair.[200] That force was properly equipt
with elephants and horses and cars, and was adorned with many flags and
banners. Unable to bear and, therefore, burning to avenge, the slaughter
of their king Sakuni, those warriors, armed with bows, rushed together at
Partha. The unvanquished Vibhatsu of righteous soul addressed them
peacefully, but they were unwilling to accept the beneficial words of
Yudhishthira (through Arjuna). Though forbidden by Partha with sweet
words, they still gave themselves up to wrath and surrounded the
sacrificial steed. At this, the son of Pandu became filled with wrath.
Then Arjuna, carelessly shooting from Gandiva many shafts with razor-like
heads that blazed with splendour, cut off the heads of many Gandhara
warriors. While thus slaughtered by Partha, the Gandharas, O king,
exceedingly afflicted, set free the horse, moved by fear and desisted
from battle. Resisted, however, by those Gandhara combatants who still
surrounded him on every side, the son of Pandu, possessed of great
energy, felled the heads of many, previously naming those whom he thus
despatched. When the Gandhara warriors were thus being slain all around
him in battle, the royal son of Sakuni came forward to resist the son of
Pandu. Unto the Gandhara king who was fighting with him, impelled by
Kshatriya duty, Arjuna said, 'I do not intend to slay the kings who fight
with me, in consequence of the commands of Yudhishthira. Cease, O hero,
to fight with me. Do not court defeat.' Thus addressed the son of Sakuni,
stupefied by folly, disregarded that advice and covered with many swift
arrows the Kuru hero who resembled Sakra himself in the feats he
accomplished in battle. Then Partha, with a crescent-shaped arrow, cut
off the head-gear of his foe. Of immeasurable soul, he also caused that
head-gear to be borne along a great distance like the head of Jayadratha
(after he had cut it off in the battle of Kurukshetra). Beholding this
feat, all the Gandhara warriors became filled with wonder. That Arjuna
voluntarily spared their king was well understood by them. The prince of
the Gandharas then began to fly away from the field, accompanied by all
his warriors who resembled a flock of frightened deer. The Gandharas,
through fear, lost their senses and wandered over the field, unable to
escape. Arjuna, with his broad-headed shafts, cut off the heads of many.
Many there were who lost their arms in consequence of Arjuna's arrows,
but so stupefied were they with fear that they were not aware of the loss
of that limb. Verity, the Gandhara army was exceedingly afflicted with
those large shafts which Partha sped from Gandiva. That army, which then
consisted of frightened men and elephants and horses, which lost many
warriors and animals, and which had been reduced to a rabble and put to
rout, began to wander and wheel about the field repeatedly. Among those
foes who were thus being slaughtered none could be seen standing in front
of the Kuru hero famed for foremost of feats. No one could be seen who
was able to bear the prowess of Dhananjaya. Then the mother of the ruler
of the Gandharas, filled with fear, and with all the aged ministers of
state, came out of her city, bearing an excellent Arghya for Arjuna. She
forbade her brave son of steady heart from fighting any longer, and
gratified Jishnu who was never fatigued with toil. The puissant Vibhatsu
worshipped her and became inclined to show kindness towards the
Gandharas. Comforting the son of Sakuni, he said, 'Thou hast not, O
mighty-armed hero, done what is agreeable to me by getting thy heart upon
these measures of hostility. O slayer of heroes, thou art my brother, O
sinless one.[201] Recollecting my mother Gandhari, and for the sake of
Dhritarashtra also, I have not taken thy life. It is for this, O king,
that thou livest still. Many of thy followers, however, have been slain
by me. Let not such a thing happen again. Let hostilities cease. Let not
thy understanding again go astray. Thou shouldst go to the
Horse-sacrifice of our king which comes off on the day of full moon of
the month of Chaitra.'

Copyright (c) 2007. bestextbooks.com. All rights reserved.

Edmund Burke - "The Works of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, Vol. V. (of 12)"

Elizabeth Miller - "The City of Delight"

Richard Harding Davis - "The Deserter"

B. A. Hathaway - "1001 Questions and Answers on Orthography and Reading"

Audio slideshow: Robert Shaw discusses his production of Sylvia Plath's only play
Articles published by guardian.co.uk Books

Stephen King fan publishes Shining's Jack Torrance's novel
Three Women was first heard as a radio drama and then published as a poem. Robert Shaw explains his desire to stage the piece as it was intended

Video: Costa prize winners

A Stephen King fan has published an 80-page version of the book which novelist Jack Torrance obsessively writes during King's The Shining, where his descent into madness is revealed when his wife discovers that his work consists of just one phrase, endlessly repeated.

Torrance, played by Jack Nicholson in terrifying form in Stanley Kubrick's 1980 film, is a frustrated writer who goes with his wife and son to spend the winter in the isolated Overlook Hotel in an attempt to get the novel he has always wanted to write started. But the hotel's grisly past and unquiet ghosts have their way with him, and his wife Wendy eventually finds that the manuscript he has been working on actually only contains the phrase "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy", typed over and over again.

Now New York artist Phil Buehler, who describes himself as "a big fan of Stanley Kubrick and Stephen King", has self-published a book credited to Torrance, repeating the phrase throughout but formatting each page differently, using the words to create different shapes from zigzags to spirals.

"The idea has probably been marinating for years, because I loved the movie and the Stephen King book," said Buehler. "I'd just finished my own obsessive art project [and] it was an idea I had over the Christmas holidays."

He said he decided to stick to type and formatting that could have been created on a typewriter, with the first ten pages duplicating shots of Torrance's work from the film. "I thought 'if he continues to get crazier, what would those pages look like?'" he said. "I hit writer's block about 60 pages in, and I had to get to 80 - that went on for about a week." His fiancée, who had neither read the book nor seen the film, became a little concerned about his actions. "I finally showed her the movie, and she realised I wasn't really losing it," said Buehler.

He's included a spoof review from the blog OverThinkingIt.com on the book's back jacket, which compares it to "the best of Beckett" in its "lack of forward momentum", and considers the struggles of the author, "heroically pitting himself against the Sisyphusean sentence". "It's that metatextual struggle of Man vs. Typewriter that gives this book its spellbinding power," the review says. "Some will dismiss it as simplistic; that's like dismissing a Pollack canvas as mere splatters of paint."

So far, Buehler says that around 1,000 people have viewed the book, for sale on Blurb.com for $8.95 in paperback, or $22.95 in hardback, and he's sold "a few" copies, with sales now starting to pick up steam. "A few people have asked me to sign it - they're looking it as a piece of art rather than a funny thing to give to a Kubrick fan," he said. "If you're not a Kubrick or King fan, you might not even get it."

guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds