Arjuna

by Anuja Chandramouli

  Unable to bear the harshness of his verbal assault (which was all the more brutal because of the truths it contained), Kunti almost swooned but then softly said, ‘It is a pity death has not claimed me, for no mother should hear such words from her son. But I have earned it in full measure. I understand your hatred and anger, but I want you to know that my love for you and Arjuna is the same. Is it too much to ask that I not be forced to choose between my sons as they insist on fighting each other?

  I came here hoping to do my bit to avert a terrible tragedy. But there was another reason as well. Just once, I wanted to see my firstborn look at me the way my other sons do – with love and respect. And on hearing my wretched story, extend towards me some of the kindness and generosity you are famed for – perhaps a little understanding and even forgiveness. But I was asking for too much. Your hatred for me is palpable and it has impaled my soul like a cruel spear.’ So saying, Kunti dissolved in tears of the deepest misery.

  Seeing her thus, Karna felt his anger fade away as quickly as it had come. His own eyes welled with tears and he wondered at his treacherous heart which filled to the brim with love for the woman who sobbed wretchedly in front of him, while simultaneously breaking at the memory of the terrible injury she had done him. He realised that verbally lashing his mother in order to make her hurt the way she had hurt him, would do little to redress the wrongs that she had done him. Nothing was going to change. There was no turning back for either of them.

  ‘Tears cannot do much at this stage. There is no changing the past and there is no altering the future. My path is fixed and I will go wherever it takes me. Do not worry about your five sons. I promise that at the end of this war you will still be the mother of five. Upon my honour, I give you my word that Yudhishthira, Bheema, Nakula and Sahadeva will be spared by me, though killing them is an easy feat for me to accomplish. However, Arjuna and I will do battle unto death and at the end of our epic clash, only one shall remain standing. We will let destiny decide who it is to be. And you should not worry too much about your precious Arjuna, for we both know who destiny’s favourite child is, don’t we?’

  Having uttered those sardonic words, Karna turned away from the woman who had turned him away from her life and almost destroyed him in the process. He decided that he would not think of the events of the past few days, as they would only demoralise him and sap his resolve and strength, which he would need in the days to come. For the time had come to fight – for honour, glory and immortality.

  17

  Kurukshetra

  Shortly after this episode in Karna’s life, the great armies gathered by Duryodhana and Yudhishthira rode to battle. Duryodhana handed the command of his army over to Bhishma. Before accepting, the Grandsire placed two conditions before the Prince. He said that he loved the Pandavas and Kauravas equally and therefore would not be able to bring himself to harm the five brothers. Instead, he would kill ten thousand soldiers every day. The second condition was that Duryodhana would have to choose between himself and Karna, as he refused to share the battlefield with a base, despicable character like Karna.

  On hearing this, Karna sprang to his feet, quivering with rage. ‘You don’t have to make the choice, Duryodhana. I refuse to serve under this old man who does nothing but undermine me, not realizing that he does not help our cause by demoralising me thus. Let him go ahead and fight to the best of his flagging abilities. Shikandin will finish him off in a trice as he, or I should perhaps say ‘she’, was born to do, and then I will return to the battlefield to achieve what he most certainly cannot!’ And with those heated words, Karna stormed off.

  And on the tenth day of battle, Bhishma fell to the arrows of Arjun. When news of the Grandsire’s fall came to Karna, he felt a wave of sadness wash over him. Now he would never win the grand old man’s approval and prove himself worthy of his approbation. He had secretly wanted Bhishma to think of him as a hero, but it appeared that it was too late to dazzle the great warrior with his feats of valour. While he brooded thus, Karna felt compelled to visit the Grandsire.

  He waited patiently for all the visitors to leave the warrior lying on his bed of arrows, before going to pay his last respects. Expecting to be received with scorn and contempt, Karna was surprised when Bhishma smiled at him and waving the guards away, beckoned him closer. He knelt down next to the aged warrior and asked, ‘What have I done to make you hate me thus? Why do you despise me so? Is it my lowly birth? Or do you perceive me to be an evil man?’

  Bhishma sighed wearily and replied slowly, ‘I do not hate or despise you, Karna. It is true that I have been harsh with you, but I had specific reasons for treating you the way I did. The secret of your birth is known to me. It pained me deeply to see Kunti’s firstborn pick his brother as his mortal enemy and then egg Duryodhana on in his designs to destroy the rest of your brothers. You have always been the driving force behind his villainy and together, the two of you have brought this calamity upon us all. I foresaw it and that is why I tried to demoralise you. I wished to take the edge off your potential for destruction and stop you from encouraging Duryodhana to annihilate his own kith and kin.’

  Karna spoke hesitantly, ‘If you know about my birth, then do you think of me also as your grandson? Am I blessed enough to have that good fortune?’

  ‘Yes child, you are dear to me and as much my grandson as the others. But an extremely headstrong and wayward one! That is the reason why I had to be harder on you than the rest.’ Bhishma smiled fondly at the radiantly handsome warrior at his side before continuing, ‘I suppose, it would be futile to ask you to take your rightful place by the side of your brothers?’

  Karna nodded. ‘No force on earth will induce me to leave Duryodhana now. With you gone, we are like babes deprived of their mother, and the Pandavas will have an easy task of finishing us off. Death is close at hand, and we can all smell it in the very air we breathe. Duryodhana will need me all the more now and I shall be there for him and stay true to him even if it means having to forfeit my worthless life.’

  ‘It is as I expected. But remember that we are fortunate to live in an age where Lord Vishnu has chosen to take form as an avatar and honour us with his presence amongst us. It is a golden era and will be much talked about in the ages to come. Therefore, we should all strive to conduct ourselves with the utmost propriety, so that we may serve as examples for future generations. Your extreme hatred and jealousy of Arjuna clouds your reason and makes you go against the grain of your nature and do shameful things. Be prudent and conduct yourself with temperance.’

  Karna bristled a little but realizing that the Grandsire was merely trying to counsel him on dharma for his own good, he held his temper in check and replied, ‘I know that my flaws are many but despite what you think, I have always striven to do the right thing and keep my legacy free from blemish. And Krishna himself assured me that people will hold my memory in high esteem and regard me as a hero long after I have departed from this world. In fact, I can say with confidence that I will be more beloved than Arjuna. History will judge me to be the true hero, my shortcomings notwithstanding; for unlike him, I have not had the Goddess of Fortune pandering to my every whim. Perhaps it is just as well that Mother Kunti cast me away, otherwise I would have been forced to live in the shadow of her three sons and deprived of any chance for glory, the way the Pandava twins have been. And that would have been unendurable for me.’

  Bhishma shook his head sadly. ‘This is exactly what I warned you about. You let your baser emotions overpower you and lose sight of the path of good conduct and righteousness. The sons of Madri have never had cause for complaint as they are blessed to be a part of the Pandava fold, and they know it. Their three elder brothers dote on them, as does Kunti.

  Though Sahadeva is not from her womb, he is her favourite. And how have they been deprived of the chance of glory? The Pandavas would not be the Pandavas without them. Did you know that Yudhishthira, Bheema and Arjuna, do nothing without consulting Sahadeva first? H
is refined intellect is highly valued by his brothers and he is the brain of that group. And if he is the brain behind the Pandavas, then Nakula is the life and spirit. His perennial good cheer keeps them all going when the road is rocky and full of peril. And most importantly, the twins have never envied the more famous twosome, Arjuna and Bheema, or their eldest brother Yudhishthira, who was born to rule the world, but rather, they take pride in their achievements as if they were their own. Sometimes we have to learn our lessons from those of tender years and this is such an instance. Cast your envy aside, Karna, and allow yourself to be the noble man you are.’

  ‘It is ironic that, despite the fact that I disagree with almost everything you say, I am still happy that you have said these things to me. For I have often longed for the day when you would stop looking at me as if I were a particularly loathsome insect and counsel me like a grandfather. That day has come and I am glad to know that you harbour no ill-will towards me. I will try to get rid of my lowly passions and be the hero you would like me to be. But I cannot and will not leave Duryodhana the way you wish me to. It is my destiny to fight, and fight I will, with the aim to win. If that is not possible, then I will die with honour and go to the warriors’ heaven!’

  ‘You make me proud, for a truer friend would be hard to find. But you don’t have much time left. Go now and fight for honour and glory! My blessings will follow you and give you heart as you take the path destiny has allotted for you!’ And the grand old man placed his hand on Karna’s forehead and blessed him.

  On returning to camp, Karna was besieged on all sides by his cronies, who were thrilled that he would be fighting for them instead of languishing in his tent, unable to settle his differences with the Grandsire. Duryodhana was particularly happy and he roared to all within hearing: ‘My friend fights on the morrow! And it will be the day the Goddess of Victory joins forces with the Kauravas! With Karna on our side, we need fear nothing!’

  The eleventh day of battle saw Karna pick up his weapons and ride into battle in a blaze of glory. His men were jubilant and cheered vigorously as he rode to take his position on the battlefield. He filled the gaping void left by Bhishma’s absence so effectively that he soon emerged as the champion of the Kaurava forces and the scourge of the Pandavas.

  Initially, remembering the words of Bhishma, Karna was careful not to let his violent emotions get in the way of good conduct and focused solely on the task of winning the war for Duryodhana and enhancing his own legacy for posterity. He also remembered his promise to Kunti. On four different occasions he had– Nakula, Sahadeva, Bheema, and Yudhishthira at his mercy but he spared their lives, contenting himself with merely jabbing them with a few viciously aimed barbs where he pointed out the ignominy of receiving one’s life as alms from a hated adversary, together with the helpful suggestion that they ought to leave the fighting to the real men and seek safety in the lap of their mother like children. Seeing the hatred on the faces of his brothers, Karna was saddened despite himself. Surely a time would come when the truth would be revealed to them, and they would think more kindly of him for sparing them. While Karna mused thus, the vanquished foursome could do little about their humiliation. But they all lost no time in lodging bitter complaints with Arjuna about how obnoxious their tormentor-in-chief was, and urging him to hasten the demise of their sworn enemy.

  As the battle raged on with heavy losses being sustained on both sides and victory nowhere in sight, passions ran high and soon the demons that were caged within the breast of every man on the battlefield, fought to find release. And when the fragile bonds of civilized conduct snapped, those demons burst forth to befoul the hallowed grounds of Kurukshetra.

  Karna, caught up in the heat and blood of battle, found himself fighting hard to maintain his equilibrium. His newfound self-control vanished when Arjuna’s son, Abhimanyu, penetrated Drona’s deadly chakravyuha and began laying waste to the Kaurava army. When he saw the lad, who was the spitting image of his father in spirit and flesh and heard the paeans of exaggerated praise Drona heaped on him, Karna felt the senseless hatred and malice he bore the father turn towards the son. Abhimanyu, like Arjuna, had the air of someone who was used to being loved. The adoration of all who knew him surrounded him like a shield and gave off a shimmering aura that was singularly repellent to Karna.

  Perhaps Karna sensed that he would never realise his dream of killing Arjuna while Krishna stood at the latter’s side. The loss of his divine armour and ear-rings to Indra; the warning that the deadliest weapon in his possession was not meant for Arjuna; the constant reminders by those who were supposedly on Duryodhana’s side, about his rival’s superiority; the ramifications of the curses placed on him by Parashurama and the old Brahmin – were all insurmountable obstacles in his quest to take the life of his mortal enemy. He felt the hand of fate that day and chafed at its injustice. Perhaps this was the only chance he would have of doing his worst enemy irreparable harm and he seized the opportunity.

  Maddened by a venomous impulse beyond his control, Karna wrung out from Drona the means of killing Arjuna’s son, and led the pack of human wolves that shamelessly surrounded, disarmed, and slaughtered the mere lad who was nevertheless one of the greatest warriors the world had seen. And with that single heinous act, Karna blackened his soul and tarnished his image for all time.

  On the following day, Arjuna aided by Krishna, fulfilled his oath to send Jayadratha to the abode of Yama, despite the best efforts of Karna and the rest of the Kauravas to shield him. When Jayadratha’s head was summarily despatched from the battlefield by a cluster of arrows from Arjuna’s inexhaustible quiver, Duryodhana was beside himself with grief and fury. He chided both Karna and Drona saying, ‘You have both proved your extreme uselessness to me today. The Acharya has failed to take Yudhishthira captive like he swore to do; and to compound his ineptitude, he has let Arjuna snatch Jayadratha away from under his nose and allowed thousands of my men to perish. As for you Karna, despite having four of the Pandavas within your grasp, you chose to let them escape; thereby proving you have an unrivalled capacity for utter stupidity.

  When I berated you for your foolish lapse in judgment, you assured me that these four brothers were beneath you and that you would kill Arjuna and bring this battle to a swift conclusion. But to the best of my knowledge that has not happened, for Arjuna is very much alive and seems hellbent on destroying my army to the last man. If I had known that the two of you were fit only for talking and not for fighting, I would have left you behind with the women. And there is no need to look so affronted! I speak the truth and if you wish to prove me wrong, I encourage you both to pick up your idling weapons and fight like the valiant men you claim to be!’

  Given the sharp edge of Duryodhana’s acerbic tongue, Drona and Karna seethed with rage. Like maddened elephants they charged into the fray despite the fact that at the onset of the battle, it had been agreed that the fighting would be suspended after sunset. They tore the Pandava attack apart with their combined fury. Unable to withstand this onslaught, the Pandava forces fled in abject terror. Karna chased after them, picking them off like ripe fruit so that men lay piled up around him, high as mountains, as far as the eye could see.

  Yudhishthira was alarmed and begged Arjuna to confront Karna. The third Pandava assented, eager to fight his arch rival. He asked Krishna to take him towards the rampaging warrior. But his charioteer appeared not to have heard him, for he drove towards Bheema’s son Ghatotkacha instead, and addressed him: ‘Ghatotkacha! Your father and his loved ones need you. Karna appears to be consumed by fearsome bloodlust and he is claiming hundreds of lives even as we speak. Our men are fleeing in all directions. It is also time for you to avenge the death of your beloved cousin and friend, Abhimanyu. It was accursed Karna who spearheaded the attack against him and had him slaughtered. You and Arjuna alone are capable of fighting Karna, but I am sending you forth on this vital mission as it is the twilight hour and the powers of the Rakshasas are considerably enhanced at this
time. So I suggest you make haste and show that scoundrel what happens to cowards who disarm their opponents from behind without warning!’

  Ghatotkacha’s eyes turned red with fury when he was reminded of the treacherous manner in which Abhimanyu had been slain. ‘I am privileged to be able to serve my kin. But it is useless to fight villains like Karna using the honourable code of conduct prescribed by the Kshatriyas. Tonight, I will fight like a Rakshasa, using all the powers at my disposal. All who oppose me shall perish without mercy. Abhimanyu will be avenged and I will have had the fortune to perform the ultimate service for my father and loved ones!’ Ghatotkacha bowed to Krishna and Arjuna, and charged off in the direction of Karna.

  Krishna, watching him go, was satisfied. His friend looked at him in puzzlement and wondered what exactly he was up to. But before he could question him, his charioteer took him to another part of the battlefield where the fighting was heavy and Arjuna found himself engaged in the task of keeping his men and their hopes of victory alive; and he forgot about the questions that had remained unasked on his lips.

  Ghatotkacha, with his Rakshasa hordes, descended on the Kaurava forces like a swarm of deadly hornets. He used the powers which were unique to his kind to create terrifying illusions that infested the minds of the common soldiers and filled them with a sense of profound horror. They felt their spines and hearts crumble to pieces and began to question their own sanity. They fled in droves, caught up in paroxysms of horror. Karna, however, was unperturbed and proceeded to counter Ghatotkacha’s every move expertly. While the mighty antagonists were engaged thus, the Rakshasa Alayudha approached Duryodhana and asked permission to engage the Pandava forces in combat with his followers. He had a personal score to settle with them as Bheema had slaughtered many of his allies. Duryodhana was glad to receive this timely offer of assistance and quickly gave his permission for the Rakshasa to attack.