‘ “On seeing the white horses advance, with Krishna as the charioteer, the king of Madra spoke to Karna. ‘Behold the standard of the great-souled one. The chariot is coming here, with white horses and with Krishna as the charioteer. O Karna! He is slaying the enemies in the battle. He is the one about whom you had enquired. Kounteya is stationed there, touching Gandiva bow. If you can kill him today, that will be greatly beneficial for us. The army of the sons of Dhritarashtra is being routed in every direction. It is terrified of Arjuna, who is swiftly slaying large numbers of the enemy. Abandoning all the soldiers, Dhananjaya is hastening here. His body swelling with anger, I think he is coming for your sake. I do not think Partha is interested in fighting with anyone else other than you. He is blazing with anger because you have worsted Vrikodara. He has seen that you deprived Dharmaraja of his chariot and severely wounded him. Shikhandi, Satyaki, Parshata Dhrishtadyumna, Droupadi’s sons, Yudhamanyu, Uttamouja and the two brothers, Nakula and Sahadeva, are looking on. O scorcher of enemies! Partha is advancing violently, alone on a chariot. His eyes are red with anger. In his rage, he wishes to kill all the archers. There is no doubt that he has abandoned all the other soldiers and is spiritedly advancing towards us. O Karna! Advance and repulse him. There is no other archer who can. I do not see any other archer in this world who is like you and can counter the angry Arjuna in a battle, like a shoreline. I do not see anyone protecting him, at the rear, or along the flanks. Behold. He is advancing alone towards you, with thoughts of success in his mind. In the battle, you are the only one who can withstand the two Krishnas in an encounter. O Radheya! It is your burden that you must fight against Dhananjaya. You are as accomplished as Bhishma, Drona, Drona’s son and Kripa. Drive your chariot against Savyasachi and counter Pandava. He is like a snake with a flickering tongue. He is roaring like a bull. O Karna! He is bent on destruction, like a tiger. Slay Dhananjaya. The maharatha sons of Dhritarashtra have been driven away in the battle. In their fear of Arjuna, the kings are quickly glancing at him. There is no man other than you who can dispel the fear of the warriors who are running away in terror. O descendant of the suta lineage! There is no one other than you. In this battle, you are an island of refuge to all the Kurus. O tiger among men! They are stationed here, desiring assurance from you. You have advanced against and defeated in battle those who are invincible, those from Videha, Ambashtha, Kamboja, Nagnajit and Gandhara. O Radheya! Exert yourself now and counter Pandava and Varshneya Vasudeva, loved by Kiriti.’
‘ “Karna replied, ‘O Shalya! You seem to be in your natural state now and amicable towards me. O mighty-armed one! It is evident that you are frightened of Dhananjaya. Behold the strength of my arms today. Behold my learning. I will single-handedly slay the large army of the Pandavas and the two Krishnas, tigers among men. I tell you this truthfully. Without killing those two brave warriors, I will not retreat. Or I will be slain by them and will lie down. Victory in a battle is uncertain. But I will be successful in my objective, whether I kill them, or whether I am killed. It is said that no one like him has been born in this world. He is supreme among rathas. That is what we have heard. I will fight against the Partha who is like that. Behold my manliness in the great battle. The foremost among rathas is advancing on his chariot. The Kourava prince is borne on swift horses. Perhaps he will convey me towards a calamity today and perhaps with Karna’s death, all of this will end. This prince’s hands do not sweat. They are thick and large and marks have been created on them.679 He is firm and accomplished in the use of weapons. He is light in the use of his hands. There is no warrior who is Pandaveya’s equal. He grasps many arrows tufted with the feathers of herons. He shoots them as if they were but one. They descend at the distance of one krosha and do not deviate from their aim. Where is the warrior on earth who is his equal? With Krishna as his second, the spirited atiratha Pandaveya satisfied the fire.680 The great-souled Krishna obtained the chakra there and Pandava Savyasachi the bow Gandiva. The mighty-armed one, whose spirit does not wane, also obtained the chariot, with a fierce and loud roar. It is yoked to white horses. He obtained giant quivers that are divine in form and are inexhaustible. The bearer of oblations681 also gave him celestial weapons. He slew the daityas in Indra’s world and destroyed all the kalakeyas in a battle.682 He obtained the conch shell Devadatta there. Who possesses greater fame than him on earth? He faced the immensely generous Mahadeva himself in a battle and satisfied him.683 He thus obtained the extremely terrible pashupata, the great weapon that can destroy the three worlds. The various guardians of the world assembled and gave him weapons that have no measure. The lion among men swiftly slew in battle the assembled kalakhanja asuras. In Virata’s city, alone on a chariot, he defeated all of us who were assembled there. He retrieved the wealth of cattle from us and robbed the maharathas of their garments. He possesses these qualities of a valiant one and the revered Krishna is his second in the battle. Keshava is infinite in his valour. He is Narayana himself in disguise and protects him. Even if all the worlds assembled together and tried for ten thousand years, they would be incapable of describing his684 qualities. The great-souled one possesses a conch shell, a chakra and a sword in his hands. He is Vishnu and Jishnu and the son of Vasudeva.685 On seeing the two Krishnas together on a single chariot, both fear and valour are generated in my heart. Both of them are brave and accomplished, firm in the use of weapons. They are maharathas who can withstand anything. Phalguna and Vasudeva are like this. O Shalya! Which other person is capable of advancing against them? I will bring them down in the battle, or the two Krishnas will kill me today.’”
‘Sanjaya said, “Having spoken these words to Shalya, Karna, the slayer of enemies, roared like a cloud in that battle. He approached your son and honoured him. He then spoke these words to the foremost among the Kurus who had assembled—the mighty-armed Kripa and the lord from Bhoja,686 the king of Gandhara and his son, the son of the preceptor,687 his younger brothers, the foot soldiers and the other horse riders and elephant riders. ‘Swiftly advance against Achyuta and Arjuna from every direction and restrain them, so that they are exhausted. O kings! Then those two lords will be severely wounded and I will be able to kill them cheerfully today.’ Those spirited ones agreed. Wishing to kill Arjuna, the best of the brave ones attacked, like rivers and streams full of water dashing towards the great ocean. Arjuna received them there in the battle. The enemies could not discern when he affixed supreme arrows and released them. They were oppressed by Dhananjaya’s arrows. Men, horses and elephants were slain and fell down. He was as radiant as the energetic sun that arises at the end of a yuga. Gandiva was like a circular disc and the arrows were like rays. The Kouravas were incapable of glancing towards Jaya. He was like a sun that hurts the eyes of people. Kripa, Bhoja and your son himself attacked him and shot arrows. They wished to kill him and were skilled. They shot supreme arrows in that great battle, making the best of efforts. Pandava swiftly severed those arrows and pierced each of his foes in the chest with three arrows each. Arjuna drew Gandiva back to a full circle and scorched them like the radiant sun. The arrows were like fierce rays and he was like the solar disc when it is midway between Shuchi and Shukra.688
‘ “Drona’s son pierced Dhananjaya with ten supreme arrows and then struck Achyuta with three. He struck the four horses with four and released many supreme arrows at the ape.689 While he was extending his bow to its complete extent, Dhananjaya used three arrows to sever it and sliced down his charioteer’s head with a kshurapra arrow. Dhananjaya struck the four horses of Drona’s son with four arrows, his standard with three and brought him down from his chariot. He690 became angry and picked up another bow that was ornamented with diamonds and other precious stones. It had excellent joints and was as radiant as the great and supreme serpent Takshaka, resting on a mountain. The great personage placed his other weapons on the ground and strung the bow himself. Drona’s son then afflicted those unvanquished and supreme men691 with supreme arrows and pierced them from a close distan
ce. Kripa, Bhoja and your son showered down torrents of arrows on the one who was like a sun.692 Partha used his arrows to sever Kripa’s bow, with an arrow fixed to it, and struck his horses, standard and charioteer with arrows. He enveloped your son with arrows and severing his bow and standard, roared. The powerful one slew Kritavarma’s horses and severed his sparkling standard. He also slaughtered horses and charioteers, and destroyed supreme elephants, horses, chariots and their standards. Your large army was shattered, like an embankment devastated by water. Dhananjaya then swiftly advanced, like Shatakratu for Vritra’s death. He was followed by other chariots that raised their standards again, prepared well and ready to fight with the enemy. Maharathas Shikhandi, Shini’s descendant and the twins followed Dhananjaya’s chariot, countering the enemy with sharp arrows, shattering them and roaring fiercely. The brave Kurus and Srinjayas killed each other in great rage, shooting extremely energetic arrows. They were like supreme gods and asuras693 in ancient times. They desired victory or heaven. O scorcher of enemies! Elephants, horses and chariots fell down. They roared loudly and struck each other separately with arrows that were released well. In the great battle, the supreme warriors fought with each other. The great-souled ones created darkness because of the arrows. O king! The ten directions and the sky could not be discerned. The sun’s radiance was covered in darkness.” ’
Chapter 1208(58)
‘Sanjaya said, “Dhananjaya saw that the foremost among the Kurus had attacked Bhimasena with great force and that he was submerged. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Wishing to save him, he struck the soldiers of the son of a suta with arrows. Dhananjaya conveyed brave ones amongst the enemy to the world of the dead. Some of his nets of arrows covered the sky. Others were invisible, but killed your soldiers. He filled the sky with arrows and they seemed to be like a flock of birds. O great king! Dhananjaya was like a destroyer of the Kurus. Partha used broad-headed arrows, kshurapras and sparkling iron arrows to mangle the bodies and sever the heads. Severed bodies, dislodged armour and heads were strewn around everywhere. Foot soldiers fell down and warriors were spread around. O king! Destroyed by Dhananjaya’s arrows, chariots, horses, men and elephants were on the field of battle and made it look like a giant Vaitarani river. As they fought, wheels of chariots were shattered, sometimes without horses and sometimes yoked to horses. With charioteers slain, or with charioteers, chariots were scattered around on the ground. The warriors wore golden armour and golden ornaments. They were on well-trained elephants that were also armoured. The wrathful drivers angered them by urging them on towards Arjuna. Kiriti slew and brought down four hundred of these through his showers of arrows. They were like the summits of large mountains, with living beings still atop them. Struck by Dhananjaya’s arrows, the elephants were strewn around on the ground. Arjuna’s chariot passed through them, like the sun penetrating a mass of clouds. Elephants, men and horses were slain and many chariots were fragmented. With their armour dislodged by arrows, warriors who were fierce in battle lost their lives. Phalguna crossed over that path of battle, which was strewn around in this fashion. He stretched Gandiva and it let out a great and terrible twang. The sound was as awful as that of thunder, resounding amidst dark clouds. Struck by Dhananjaya’s arrows, the army was routed. It was as if a large boat was tossed around on the ocean by a great tempest. Arrows and weapons of many forms issued out of Gandiva. They flamed like meteors and lightning and scorched your soldiers. It was like a grove of bamboos burning on a giant mountain in the night. That was how your large army seemed to blaze, oppressed by the arrows. Yours soldiers were crushed, burnt and destroyed by Kiriti. They were killed and wounded by the arrows and fled in all the directions. It was as if a herd of deer was being devoured by a conflagration in a large forest. When they were consumed by Savyasachi, such was the state of the Kurus.
‘ “In the battle, they abandoned the mighty-armed Bhimasena. The army of the Kurus was anxious and all of them desired to retreat. Thus, the Kurus were defeated by Bibhatsu and routed. Having clashed against Bhimasena, they were made to withdraw in a short while. Phalguna approached Bhima and consulted with him. He told him that Yudhishthira’s wounds had been attended to. Having obtained Bhimsena’s permission, Dhananjaya departed. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! The earth and the sky resounded with the clatter of his chariot. Ten of your terrible sons, bulls among the enemy, and all born after Duhshasana, surrounded Dhananjaya. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Those cruel ones seemed to dance around and attacked him with their arrows, like an elephant with flaming torches.694 Madhusudana guided the chariot so that they were on the right side. On seeing that Arjuna was advancing towards them, those brave ones retreated. Partha swiftly used iron arrows and arrows in the shape of a half-moon to destroy their standards, chariots and bows and bring them down. He then used ten other broad-headed arrows to sever their heads.695 The eyes were red with rage. The teeth bit the lips. Fallen down on the ground, those faces looked like stars that had been dislodged from the firmament. Ten immensely forceful, gold-tufted and broad-headed arrows brought down ten Kouravas who possessed golden clubs. When they had been pierced, the slayer of enemies departed.” ’
Chapter 1209(59)
‘Sanjaya said, “The one with the supreme ape on his standard advanced at great speed. Ninety brave Kuru rathas wished to fight with him and attacked him. In the battle, those tigers among men surrounded Arjuna, tiger among men. However, the white horses were extremely swift and were decorated in gold. They were decorated with nets of pearls and Krishna drove it towards Karna’s chariot. As Dhananjaya, the slayer of enemies, advanced towards Karna’s chariot, the chariots of the samshaptakas696 also followed him, showering down arrows with a desire to kill. The brave Arjuna used his sharp arrows to swiftly kill all ninety of them, with their charioteers, bows and standards. Slain by Kiriti’s many different kinds of arrows, they fell down, like siddhas and their celestial vehicles from heaven, when their stores of meritorious deeds have been exhausted. O supreme among the Kuru lineage! O foremost among Bharatas! At this, the fearless Kurus attacked Phalguna, with their chariots, elephants and horses. They released weapons. Supreme and mighty elephants that belonged to your son’s large army obstructed Dhananjaya in the battle. The great archers, the Kurus, used lances, swords, spears, javelins, clubs, scimitars and arrows to envelop the descendant of the Kuru lineage.697 The Kurus showered down weapons. However, Pandava used arrows that were like the rays of the sun to strike them down. At this, on the instructions of your son, mlecchas who were astride thirteen hundred crazy elephants struck Partha from the side. They used barbed arrows, hollow arrows, iron arrows, spears, javelins, spikes, kampanas and catapults to afflict Partha’s chariot. Having been struck by the shower of weapons released by the yavanas698 on elephants, Phalguna smiled and severed those with his sharp broad-headed arrows and arrows in the form of a half-moon. All those elephants were struck by large arrows of many different forms. With their flags and riders, they were brought down, like mountains shattered by thunder. Those gold-tufted arrows afflicted and killed the giant elephants that had golden harnesses. They fell down, like mountains that were on fire. O lord of the earth! In that great roar, Gandiva’s twang could be heard. Men, elephants and horses shrieked and lamented. O king! The elephants were killed and fled in different directions. With their riders slain, the horses ran away in the ten directions. O great king! Chariots were without their rathas and so were the steeds. Thousands of them were seen, like the cities of the gandharvas. O great king! Horse riders ran hither and thither. They were seen there, brought down by Partha’s arrows. At that time, Pandava showed the strength of his arms. Single-handedly, he defeated the riders, the elephants and the chariots in the battle.
‘ “O bull among the Bharata lineage! O king! Bhimasena saw that Kiriti was surrounded by a large army consisting of three kinds of forces.699 O king! He abandonded the few remaining rathas who were left on your side and swiftly advanced towards Dhananjaya’s chariot. On
seeing that Bhima was advancing towards his brother Arjuna, the soldiers who had not been killed were distressed and fled. There were some extremely fast horses that had not been killed by Arjuna. In the great battle, with the club in his hand, Bhima slaughtered them. It700 was as fierce as the night of destruction and fed on men, elephants and horses. It was extremely terrible and could shatter walls, mansions and the gates of cities. Bhima used that club against the men, elephants and horses who were around. O venerable one! He slew many horses and horse riders. Pandava crushed men and horses plated in bronze armour and terrified them. He uprooted them with the club. Slain, they fell down with a great noise. He then ascended his chariot again and followed Arjuna from the rear. The army of the enemy was slain or devoid of spirit and retreated. Those soldiers were immobile and distracted. On seeing this, Arjuna shrouded them with arrows that robbed lives. As they clung to each other, there were severe woes of lamentation. At that time, your soldiers whirled around like a circle of fire. With the armour shattered by arrows, the soldiers blazed. Overflowing with blood, they looked like a flowering grove of ashoka trees. On seeing Savyasachi’s valour there, all the Kurus there lost all hope of Karna remaining alive. In the battle, they could not withstand the downpour of Partha’s arrows. Having been defeated by the wielder of Gandiva, the Kurus retreated. Slaughtered by Partha’s arrows, they abandoned the battle. They were terrified and fled in different directions, calling out to the son of a suta. Partha followed them, showering down many hundreds of arrows. The Pandava warriors, with Bhimasena at the forefront, were delighted.
Mahabharata: Volume 7 Page 30
