SECTION 27
“SANJAYA SAID, ‘THE white steeded (Arjuna) also, O monarch, routed thy force even as the winds, approaching a heap of cotton, scatters it on all sides. Against him rushed the Trigartas, the Sivis, the Kauravas, the Salwas, the samsaptakas, and that force which consisted of the Narayanas. And Satyasena and Candradeva, and Mitradeva and Satrunjaya, and Susruta’s son, and Citrasena, and Mitravarman, O Bharata, and the king of the Trigartas surrounded by his brothers and by his sons that were all mighty bowmen accomplished in diverse weapons, suddenly advanced, shooting and scattering showers of shafts in that battle, against Arjuna, like a fierce current of water towards the ocean. Those warriors in hundreds of thousands, approaching Arjuna, seemed to melt away like snakes at sight of Garuda. Though slaughtered in battle, they did not still leave the son of Pandu like insects, O monarch, never receding from a blazing fire. Satyasena, in that encounter, pierced that son of Pandu with three arrows, and Mitradeva pierced him with three and sixty, and Candradeva with seven. And Mitravarman pierced him with three and seventy arrows, and Susruta’s son with seven. And Satrunjaya pierced him with twenty, and Susharma with nine. Thus pierced in that encounter by many, Arjuna pierced all those kings in return. Indeed, piercing the son of Susruta with seven arrows, he pierced Satyasena with three, Satrunjaya with twenty and Candradeva with eight, Mitradeva with a hundred, Srutasena with three, Mitravarman with nine, and Susharma with eight. Then slaying king Satrunjaya with a number of arrows whetted on stone, he smote off from his trunk, the head, decked with headgear, of Susruta’s son. Without any delay he then, with a number of other shafts, despatched Candradeva to the abode of Yama. As regards the other mighty car-warriors vigorously contending with him, he checked each of them with five arrows. Then Satyasena filled with rage, hurled a formidable lance in that battle aiming at Krishna and uttered a leonine roar. That ironmouthed lance having a golden shaft, piercing through the left arm of the high-souled Madhava, penetrated into the Earth. Madhava being thus pierced with that lance in great battle the goad and the reins, O king, fell down from his hands. Beholding Vasudeva’s limb pierced through, Pritha’s son Dhananjaya mustered all his wrath and addressing Vasudeva said, “O mighty-armed one, bear the car to Satyasena, O puissant one, so that I may, with keen shafts, despatch him to Yama’s abode.” The illustrious Keshava then, quickly taking up the goad and the reins, caused the steeds to bear the car to the front of Satyasena’s vehicle. Beholding the Ruler of the Universe pierced, Pritha’s son Dhananjaya, that mighty car-warrior, checking Satyasena with some keen arrows, cut off with a number of broad-headed shafts of great sharpness, the large head of that king decked with earrings, from off his trunk at the head of the army. Having thus cut off Satyasena’s head, he then despatched Citravarman with a number of keen shafts, and then the latter’s driver, O sire, with a keen calf-toothed arrow. Filled with rage, the mighty Partha then, with hundreds of shafts, felled the samsaptakas in hundreds and thousands. Then, O king, with a razor-headed arrow equipped with wings of silver, that mighty car-warrior cut off the head of the illustrious Mitrasena. Filled with rage he then struck Susharma in the shoulder-joint. Then all the samsaptakas, filled with wrath, encompassed Dhananjaya on all sides and began to afflict him with showers of weapons and make all the points of the compass resound with their shouts. Afflicted by them thus, the mighty car-warrior Jishnu, of immeasurable soul, endued with prowess resembling that of Sakra himself, invoked the Aindra weapon. From that weapon, thousands of shafts, O king, began to issue continually. Then O king, a loud din was heard of falling cars with standards and quivers and yokes, and axles and wheels and traces with chords, of bottoms of cars and wooden fences around them, of arrows and steeds and spears and swords, and maces and spiked clubs and darts and lances and axes, and Sataghnis equipped with wheels and arrows. Thighs and necklaces and Angadas and Keyuras, O sire, and garlands and cuirasses and coats of mail, O Bharata, and umbrellas and fans and heads decked with diadems lay on the battle-field. Heads adorned with earrings and beautiful eyes, and each resembling the full moon, looked, as they lay on the field, like stars in the firmament. Adorned with sandal-paste, beautiful garlands of flowers and excellent robes, many were the bodies of slain warriors that were seen to lie on the ground. The field of battle, terrible as it was, looked like the welkin teeming with vapoury forms. With the slain princes and Kshatriyas of great might and fallen elephants and steeds, the Earth became impassable in that battle as if she were strewn with hills. There was no path on the field for the wheels of the illustrious Pandava’s car, engaged as he was in continually slaying his foes and striking down elephants and steeds with his broad-headed shafts. It seemed, O sire, that the wheels of his car stopped in fright at the sight of his own self careering in that battle through that bloody mire. His steeds, however, endued with the speed of the mind or the wind, dragged with great efforts and labour those wheels that had refused to move. Thus slaughtered by Pandu’s son armed with the bow, that host fled away almost entirely, without leaving even a remnant, O Bharata, contending with the foe. Having vanquished large numbers of the samsaptakas in battle, Pritha’s son Jishnu looked resplendent, like a blazing fire without smoke.’”
SECTION 28
“SANJAYA SAID, ‘KING Duryodhana, O monarch, himself fearlessly received Yudhishthira, as the latter was engaged in shooting large numbers of shafts. The royal Yudhishthira the just, speedily piercing thy son, that mighty car-warrior, as the latter was rushing towards him with impetuosity, addressed him, saying, “Wait, Wait.” Duryodhana, however, pierced Yudhishthira, in return, with nine keen arrows, and filled with great wrath, struck Yudhishthira’s driver also with a broad-headed shaft. Then king Yudhishthira sped at Duryodhana three and ten arrows equipped with wings of gold and whetted on stone. With four shafts that mighty car-warrior then slew the four steeds of his foe, and with the fifth he cut off from his trunk the head of Duryodhana’s driver. With the sixth arrow he felled the (Kuru) king’s standard on the Earth, with the seventh his bow, and with the eighth his scimitar. And then with five more shafts king Yudhishthira the just deeply afflicted the Kuru monarch. Thy son, then, alighting from that steedless car, stood on the Earth in imminent danger. Beholding him in that situation of great peril, Karna and Drona’s son and Kripa and others rushed suddenly towards the spot, desirous of rescuing the king. Then the (other) sons of Pandu, surrounding Yudhishthira, all proceeded to the encounter, upon which, O king, a fierce battle was fought. Thousands of trumpets then were blown in that great engagement, and a confused din of myriad voices arose there, O king. There where the Pancalas engaged the Kauravas, in battle, men closed with men, and elephants with foremost of elephants. And car-warriors closed with car-warriors, and horse with horse. And the various couples of battling men and animals, of great prowess and armed with diverse kinds of weapons and possessed of great skill presented a beautiful sight, O king, over the field. All those heroes endued with great impetuosity and desirous of compassing the destruction of one another, fought beautifully and with great activity and skill. Observing the (sanctioned) practices of warriors, they slew one another in battle. None of them fought from behind others. For only a very short time that battle presented a beautiful aspect. Soon it became an encounter of mad men, in which the combatants showed no regard for one another. The car-warrior, approaching the elephant, pierced the latter with keen shafts and despatched it to Yama’s presence by means of straight arrows. Elephants, approaching steeds, dragged down many of them in that battle, and tore them (with their tusks) most fiercely in diverse places. Large numbers of horsemen also, encompassing many foremost of steeds, made a loud noise with their palms, and closed with them. And those horsemen slew those steeds as they ran hither and thither, as also many huge elephants as these wandered over the field, from behind and the flanks. Infuriate elephants, O king, routing large numbers of steeds, slew them with their tusks or crushed them with great force. Some elephants, filled with wrath pierced with their tusks horses with hor
semen. Others seizing such with great force hurled them to the ground with violence. Many elephants, struck by foot-soldiers availing of the proper opportunities, uttered terrible cries of pain and fled away on all sides. Among the foot-soldiers that fled away in that great battle throwing down their ornaments, there were many that were quickly encompassed on the field. Elephant-warriors, riding on huge elephants, understanding indications of victory, wheeled their beasts and causing them to seize those beautiful ornaments, made the beasts to pierce them with their tusks. Other foot-soldiers endued with great impetuosity and fierce might, surrounding those elephant-warriors thus engaged in those spots began to slay them. Others in that great battle, thrown aloft into the air by elephants with their trunks, were pierced by those trained beasts with the points of their tusks as they fell down. Others, suddenly seized by other elephants, were deprived of life with their tusks. Others, borne away from their own divisions into the midst of others, were, O king, mangled by huge elephants which rolled them repeatedly on the ground. Others, whirled on high like fans, were slain in that battle. Others, hither and thither on the field, that stood full in front of other elephants had their bodies exceedingly pierced and torn. Many elephants were deeply wounded with spears and lances and darts in their cheeks and frontal globes and parts between their tusks. Exceedingly afflicted by fierce car-warriors and horsemen stationed on their flanks, many elephants, ripped open, fell down on the Earth. In that dreadful battle many horsemen on their steeds, striking foot-soldiers with their lances, pinned them down to the Earth or crushed them with great force. Some elephants, approaching mail-clad car-warriors, O sire, raised them aloft from their vehicles and hurled them down with great force upon the Earth in that fierce and awful fight. Some huge elephants slain by means of cloth-yard shafts, fell down on the Earth like mountain summits riven by thunder. Combatants, encountering combatants, began to strike each other with their fists, or seizing each other by the hair, began to drag and throw down and mangle each other. Others, stretching their arms and throwing down their foes on the Earth, placed their feet on their chests and with great activity cut off their heads. Some combatant, O king, struck with his feet some foe that was dead, and some, O king, struck off with his sword, the head of a falling foe, and some thrust his weapon into the body of a living foe. A fierce battle took place there, O Bharata, in which the combatants struck one another with fists or seized one another’s hair or wrestled with one another with bare arms. In many instances, combatants, using diverse kinds of weapons, took the lives of combatants engaged with others and, therefore, unperceived by them. During the progress of that general engagement when all the combatants were mangled in battle, hundreds and thousands of headless trunks stood up on the field. Weapons and coats of mail, drenched with gore, looked resplendent, like cloths dyed with gorgeous red. Even thus occurred that fierce battle marked by the awful clash of weapons. Like the mad and roaring current of the Ganga it seemed to fill the whole universe with its uproar. Afflicted with shafts, the warriors failed to distinguish friends from foes. Solicitous of victory, the kings fought on because they thought that fight they should. The warriors slew both friends and foes, with whom they came in contact. The combatants of both the armies were deprived of reason by the heroes of both the armies assailing them with fury. With broken cars, O monarch, the fallen elephants, and steeds lying on the ground, and men laid low, the Earth, miry with gore and flesh, and covered with streams of blood, soon became impassable. Karna slaughtered the Pancalas while Dhananjaya slaughtered the Trigartas. And Bhimasena, O king, slaughtered the Kurus and all the elephant divisions of the latter. Even thus occurred that destruction of troops of both the Kurus and the Pandavas, both parties having been actuated by the desire of winning great fame, at that hour when the Sun had passed the meridian.’”
SECTION 29
“DHRITARASHTRA SAID, ‘I have heard from thee, O Sanjaya, of many poignant and unbearable griefs as also of the losses sustained by my sons. From what thou hast said unto me, from the manner in which the battle has been fought, it is my certain conviction, O Suta, that the Kauravas are no more. Duryodhana was made carless in that dreadful battle. How did Dharma’s son (then) fight, and how did the royal Duryodhana also fight in return? How also occurred that battle which was fought in the afternoon? Tell me all this in detail, for thou art skilled in narration, O Sanjaya.’
“Sanjaya said, ‘When the troops of both armies were engaged in battle, according to their respective divisions, thy son Duryodhana, O king, riding on another car and filled with rage like a snake of virulent poison, beholding king Yudhishthira the just, quickly addressed his own driver, O Bharata, saying, “Proceed, proceed, quickly take me there, O driver, where the royal son of Pandu, clad in mail shineth under yon umbrella held over his head.” Thus urged by the king, the driver, in that battle, quickly urged his royal master’s goodly car towards the face of Yudhishthira. At this, Yudhishthira also, filled with rage and looking like an infuriate elephant, urged his own driver saying, “Proceed to where Suyodhana is.” Then those two heroes and brothers and foremost of car-warriors encountered each other. Both endued with great energy, both filled with wrath, both difficult of defeat in battle, approaching each other, those two great bowmen began to mangle each other with their arrows in that battle. Then king Duryodhana, in that encounter, O sire, with a broad-headed arrow whetted on stone, cut in twain the bow of the virtuous monarch. Filled with rage, Yudhishthira could not brook that insult. Casting aside his broken bow, with eyes red in wrath, Dharma’s son took up another bow at the head of his forces, and then cut off Duryodhana’s standard and bow. Duryodhana then, taking up another bow, pierced the son of Pandu. Filled with rage, they continued to shoot showers of shafts at each other. Desirous of vanquishing each other, they resembled a pair of angry lions. They struck each other in that battle like a couple of roaring bulls. Those mighty car-warriors continued to career, expecting to find each other’s lapses. Then wounded with shafts sped from bows drawn to their fullest stretch the two warriors, O king, looked resplendent like flowering Kinsukas. They then, O king, repeatedly uttered leonine roars. Those two rulers of men, in that dreadful battle, also made loud sounds with their palms and caused their bows to twang loudly. And they blew their conchs too with great force. And they afflicted each other very much. Then king Yudhishthira, filled with rage, struck thy son in the chest with three irresistible shafts endued with force of thunder. Him, however, thy royal son quickly pierced, in return, with five keen shafts winged with gold and whetted on stone. Then king Duryodhana, O Bharata, hurled a dart capable of slaying everybody, exceedingly keen, and resembling a large blazing brand. As it advanced, king Yudhishthira the just, with sharp shafts, speedily cut it off into three fragments, and then pierced Duryodhana also with five arrows. Equipped with golden staff, and producing a loud whizz, that dart then fell down, and while falling, looked resplendent like a large brand with blazing flames. Beholding the dart baffled, thy son, O monarch, struck Yudhishthira with nine sharp and keen-pointed arrows. Pierced deeply by his mighty foe, that scorcher of foes quickly took up an arrow for aiming it at Duryodhana. The mighty Yudhishthira then placed that arrow on his bow-string. Filled with rage and possessed of great valour, the son of Pandu then shot it at his foe. That arrow, striking thy son, that mighty car-warrior, stupefied him and then (passing through his body) entered the Earth. Then Duryodhana, filled with wrath, uplifting a mace of great impetuosity, rushed at king Yudhishthira the just, for ending the hostilities (that raged between the Kurus and the Pandus). Beholding him armed with that uplifted mace and resembling Yama himself with his bludgeon, king Yudhishthira the just hurled at thy son a mighty dart blazing with splendour, endued with great impetuosity, and looking like a large blazing brand. Deeply pierced in the chest by that dart as he stood on his car, the Kuru prince, deeply pained, fell down and swooned away. Then Bhima, recollecting his own vow, addressed Yudhishthira, saying, “This one should not be slain by thee, O king.” At this Y
udhishthira abstained from giving his foe the finishing blow. At that time Kritavarma, quickly advancing, came upon thy royal son then sunk in an ocean of calamity. Bhima then, taking up a mace adorned with gold and flaxen chords, rushed impetuously towards Kritavarma in that battle. Thus occurred the battle between thy troops and the foe on that afternoon, O monarch, every one of the combatants being inspired with the desire of victory.’”
SECTION 30
“SANJAYA SAID, ‘PLACING Karna at their van, thy warriors, difficult of defeat in fight, returned and fought (with the foe) a battle that resembled that between the gods and the Asuras. Excited by the loud uproar made by elephants and men and cars and steeds and conchs, elephant-men and car-warriors and foot-soldiers and horsemen, in large numbers, filled with wrath advanced against the foe and slew the latter with strokes of diverse kinds of weapons. Elephants and cars, steeds and men, in that dreadful battle were destroyed by brave warriors with sharp battle axes and swords and axes and shafts of diverse kinds and by means also of their animals. Strewn with human heads that were adorned with white teeth and fair faces and beautiful eyes and goodly noses, and graced with beautiful diadems and earrings, and every one of which resembled the lotus, the Sun, or the Moon, the Earth looked exceedingly resplendent. Elephants and men and steeds, by thousands, were slain with hundreds of spiked clubs and short bludgeons and darts and lances and hooks and Bhusundis and maces. The blood that fell formed a river like currents on the field. In consequence of those car-warriors and men and steeds and elephants slain by the foe, and lying with ghastly features and gaping wounds, the field of battle looked like the domains of the king of the dead at the time of universal dissolution. Then, O god among men, thy troops, and those bulls amongst the Kurus, viz., thy sons resembling the children of the celestials, with a host of warriors of immeasurable might at their van, all proceeded against Satyaki, that bull of Sini’s race. Thereupon that host, teeming with many foremost of men and steeds and cars and elephants, producing an uproar loud as that of the vast deep, and resembling the army of the Asuras or that of the celestials, shone with fierce beauty. Then the son of Surya, resembling the chief of the celestials himself in prowess and like unto the younger brother of Indra, struck that foremost one of Sini’s race with shafts whose splendour resembled the rays of the Sun. That bull of Sini’s race also, in that battle, then quickly shrouded that foremost of men, with his car and steeds and driver, with diverse kinds of shafts terrible as the poison of the snake. Then many Atirathas belonging to thy army, accompanied by elephants and cars and foot-soldiers, quickly approached that bull among car-warriors, viz., Vasusena, when they beheld the latter deeply afflicted with the shafts of that foremost hero of Sini’s race. That force, however, vast as the ocean, assailed by foes possessed of great quickness viz., the Pandava warriors headed by the sons of Drupada, fled away from the field. At that time a great carnage occurred of men and cars and steeds and elephants. Then those two foremost of men, viz., Arjuna and Keshava, having said their daily prayer and duly worshipped the lord Bhava, quickly rushed against thy troops, resolved to slay those foes of theirs. Their foes (i.e., the Kurus) cast their eyes cheerlessly on that car whose rattle resembled the roar of the clouds and whose banners waved beautifully in the air and which had white steeds yoked unto it and which was coming towards them. Then Arjuna, bending Gandiva and as if dancing on his car, filled the welkin and all the points of the compass, cardinal and subsidiary, with showers of shafts, not leaving the smallest space empty. Like the tempest destroying the clouds, the son of Pandu destroyed with his arrows many cars looking like celestial vehicles, that were well-adorned, and equipped with weapons and standards, along with their drivers. Many elephants also, with the men that guided them, adorned with triumphal banners and weapons, and many horsemen with horses, and many foot-soldiers also, Arjuna despatched with his arrows to Yama’s abode. Then Duryodhana singly proceeded against that mighty car-warrior who was angry and irresistible and resembled a veritable Yama, striking him with his straight shafts. Arjuna, cutting off his adversary’s bow and driver and steeds and standard with seven shafts, next cut off his umbrella with one arrow. Obtaining then an opportunity, he sped at Duryodhana an excellent shaft, capable of taking the life of the person struck. Drona’s son, however, cut off that shaft into seven fragments. Cutting off then the bow of Drona’s son and slaying the four steeds of the latter with his arrow, the son of Pandu next cut off the formidable bow of Kripa too. Then cutting off the bow of Hridika’s son, he felled the latter’s standard and steeds. Then cutting off the bow of Duhshasana, he proceeded against the son of Radha. At this, Karna, leaving Satyaki quickly pierced Arjuna with three arrows and Krishna with twenty, and Partha again repeatedly. Although many were the arrows that he shot while slaying his foes in that battle, like Indra himself inspired with wrath, Karna yet felt no fatigue. Meanwhile Satyaki, coming up, pierced Karna with nine and ninety fierce arrows, and once more with a hundred. Then all the foremost heroes among the Parthas began to afflict Karna. Yudhamanyu and Shikhandi and the sons of Draupadi and the Prabhadrakas, and Uttamauja and Yuyutsu and the twins and Dhrishtadyumna, and the divisions of the Cedis and the Karushas and the Matsyas and Kaikeyas, and the mighty Chekitana, and king Yudhishthira of excellent vows, all these, accompanied by cars and steeds and elephants, and foot-soldiers of fierce prowess, encompassed Karna on all sides in that battle, and showered upon him diverse kinds of weapons, addressing him in harsh words and resolved to compass his destruction. Cutting off that shower of weapons with his sharp shafts, Karna dispersed his assailants by the power of his weapons like the wind breaking down the trees that stand on its way. Filled with wrath, Karna was seen to destroy car-warriors, and elephants with their riders, and horses with horse-men, and large bands of foot-soldiers. Slaughtered by the energy of Karna’s weapons, almost the whole of that force of the Pandavas, deprived of weapons, and with limbs mangled and torn, retired from the field. Then Arjuna, smiling the while, baffled with his own weapons the weapons of Karna and covered the welkin, the Earth, and all the points of the compass with dense shower of arrows. The shafts of Arjuna fell like heavy clubs and spiked bludgeons. And some amongst them fell like Sataghnis and some fell like fierce thunderbolts. Slaughtered therewith, the Kaurava force consisting of infantry and horse and cars and elephants, shutting its eyes, uttered loud wails of woe and wandered senselessly. Many were the steeds and men and elephants that perished on that occasion. Many, again, struck with shafts and deeply afflicted fled away in fear.
The Sanskrit Epics Page 557