SECTION 10
“SANJAYA SAID, ‘AFTER the fall of the mighty bowman Drona on that day, O Bharata, and after the purpose had been baffled of that mighty car-warriors, viz., the son of Drona, and after the vasty army, O monarch, of the Kauravas had fled away, Partha, having arrayed his own troops, stayed on the field with his brothers. Perceiving him staying on the field, thy son, O bull of Bharata’s race, seeing his own army running away, rallied them with great courage. Having caused his divisions to take up their stand, thy son, O Bharata, relying on the might of his arms, fought for a long time with his foes, the Pandavas, who, having gained their end, were filled with joy and had been struggling for hours together. On the approach there of the evening twilight, he caused the troops to be withdrawn. Having caused the withdrawal of their troops, and having entered their own encampment, the Kauravas held with one another a consultation about their own welfare, seated like the celestials on costly couches overlaid with rich coverlets, and on excellent seats and luxurious beds. Then king Duryodhana, addressing those mighty bowmen in agreeable and highly sweet expression, spoke the following words suited to the occasion.
“‘Duryodhana said, “Ye foremost of intelligent men, declare all of you, without delay, your opinions! Under these circumstances, ye kings, what is necessary and what is still more necessary?’”
“Sanjaya continued, ‘When that prince of men had spoken those words, those lions among men, seated on their thrones, made various gestures expressive of their desire of battle. Observing the indications of those who were all desirous of pouring their lives as libations on the battle-fire, and beholding the monarch’s face radiant as morning Sun, the preceptor’s son endued with intelligence and accomplished in speech, said these words: “Enthusiasm, opportunity, skill and policy, — these are the means declared by the learned, to be capable of accomplishing all ends. They are, however, dependent on destiny. Those foremost of men we had on our side, equal unto the celestials, mighty car-warriors all, possessed of policy, devoted, accomplished, and loyal, have been slain. For all that we should not despair of victory. If all these means be properly applied, even destiny may be made propitious. All of us, therefore, O Bharata, shall install Karna, that foremost of men, endued besides with every accomplishment, in the command of the army! Making Karna our commander, we shall crush our foes. This Karna is endued with great might; he is a hero, accomplished in weapons, and incapable of defeat in battle. Irresistible as Yama himself, he is quite competent to vanquish our foes in battle!” Hearing these words from the preceptor’s son, O king, at that time, built great hopes on Karna. Cherishing the hope in his heart that after the fall of Bhishma and Drona, Karna would vanquish the Pandavas, and comforted (by it), O Bharata, Duryodhana then, filled with joy at having heard those words of Ashvatthama, steadying his mind and relying on the might of his arms, said unto Radha’s son, O monarch, these words that were fraught with affection and regard, and that were true, delightful, and beneficial to himself: “O Karna, I know thy prowess, and the great friendship thou bearest to me! For all that, O mighty-armed one, I shall address to thee certain words that are for thy good! Having heard them, O hero, do that which may appear desirable to thee! Thou art endued with great wisdom, and thou art even my supreme refuge! Those two Atirathas that were my Generals, viz., Bhishma and Drona, have been slain. Be thou my General, thou that art mightier than they! Both of those great bowmen were advanced in years. They were, besides, partial to Dhananjaya. Still both those heroes were respected by me, O son of Radha, at thy word! Viewing his relationship of grandsire unto them, the sons of Pandu, O sire, were spared in dreadful battle by Bhishma for ten successive days! Thyself also having laid aside thy weapons, the valiant Bhishma was slain in great battle by Phalguni with Shikhandi before him! After that great bowman had fallen and betaken himself to his bed of arrows, it was at thy word, O tiger among men, that Drona was made our leader! By him also were the sons of Pritha spared, in consequence, as I think, of their relationship unto him of pupils. That old man also has been slain by Dhrishtadyumna more speedily. I do not see, even on reflection, another warrior equal to thee in battle, — thee, that is, whose prowess could not be measured by even those two foremost of warriors that have been slain in the fight! Without doubt, thou alone today art competent to win victory for us! Before, in the middle, and later on, thou hast accordingly acted for our good. Therefore, like a leader, it behoveth thee, in this battle, to bear the burden thyself. Thyself install thy own self in the Generalship. Like the celestial generalissimo, the lord Skanda of unfading prowess, (supporting the celestial army), do thou support this Dhartarashtra host! Like Mahendra slaying the Danavas, destroy thou all the throngs of our foes! Beholding thee staying in battle, the Pandavas, those mighty car-warriors, will, with the Pancalas, fly away from battle, like the Danavas at sight of Vishnu. Do thou, therefore lead this vast force! When thou shalt stand resolved on the field, the Pandavas of wicked hearts, the Pancalas, and the Srinjayas, will all fly away with their friends. As the risen Sun, scorching everything by his energy, destroyeth the thick gloom, even so do thou destroy our foes!’”
“Sanjaya continued, ‘Strong became that hope, O king, in the heart of thy son, viz., that where Bhishma and Drona had been slain, Karna would vanquish the Pandavas. Cherishing that hope within his heart, he said unto Karna, “O Suta’s son, Partha never wishes to fight, standing before thee!” Karna said, “I have, O son of Gandhari, said before in thy presence, even these words, ‘vanquish all the Pandavas with their sons and Janardana!’ I shall become thy General. In this there is no doubt. Tranquilise thyself, O monarch, I consider the Pandavas to be already vanquished!”’“
“Sanjaya continued, ‘Thus addressed, O monarch, king Duryodhana then stood up with all the monarchs, like He of a hundred sacrifices with the gods, for honouring Karna with the command of the army, like the celestials for honouring Skanda. Then, O monarch, all the kings headed by Duryodhana, desirous of victory, installed Karna in the command, according to the rites enjoined by the ordinance. With golden and earthen jars filled to the brim with water and sanctified with mantras, with tusks of elephants and horns of rhinoceroses and mighty bulls, with other vessels decked with jewels and gems, with also fragrant herbs and plants, and with other articles collected in abundance, Karna, seated at his ease on a seat made of udumvara wood and overlaid with silken cloth, was invested with the command, according to the rites in the scriptures. Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, and respectable Shudras, praised that high-souled one after he was bathed on that excellent seat. Thus installed in the command, O king, that slayer of foes, the son of Radha, caused, by presents of Niskas and kine and other wealth, many foremost of Brahmanas to utter blessings on him. “Vanquish the Parthas with Govinda and all their followers,” even these were the words that the eulogists and the Brahmanas said (unto him), O bull among men! (And they also said) “Slay the Parthas and the Pancalas, O son of Radha, for our victory, like risen Sun ever destroying Darkness with his fierce rays! The sons of Pandu with Keshava are not able to even look at the shafts shot by thee, like owls unable to gaze at the burning rays of the Sun! The Parthas with the Pancalas are incapable of standing before thee armed with weapons, like the Danavas before Indra in battle!” Installed in the command, Radha’s son of incomparable splendour looked resplendent in beauty and radiance like a second Sun. Having installed the son of Radha (thus) in the command of the army, thy son, urged on by Death, regarded himself as one who had his purpose accomplished. That chastiser of foes, Karna, also, O king, having obtained the command, ordered the troops to be arrayed, at the rise of the Sun. Surrounded by thy sons, O Bharata, Karna looked resplendent like Skanda surrounded by the celestials, in the battle having Saraka for its evil root.’”
SECTION 11
“DHRITARASHTRA SAID, ‘AFTER having obtained the command of the army, and after he had been addressed by the king himself in those sweet and brotherly words, and after he had ordered the troops to be arrayed at the h
our of sunrise, tell me, O Sanjaya, what did Vikartana’s son Karna do?’
“Sanjaya said, ‘Having learnt Karna’s wishes, thy sons, O bull of Bharata’s race, ordered the troops to be arrayed with joyful music. While it still wanted a long period for the coming of the dawn, a loud noise of “Array, Array!” O king, suddenly arose among thy troops. And the uproar that arose, became tremendous and touched the very heavens, of foremost of elephants and fenced cars while under process of equipment, of foot-soldiers and steeds, O monarch, while putting on their armour or in course of being harnessed, and of combatants moving with activity and shouting unto one another! Then the Suta’s son bearing a gold-backed bow appeared (on the field) in his car possessed of the splendour of the radiant Sun, crowned with many banners, equipped with a white standard, with steeds of the hue of cranes, bearing the device of the elephants’ rope, filled with a hundred quivers, furnished with mace and wooden fence, freighted with shataghnis and rows of bells and darts and lances and spears, and supplied with many bows. And the Suta’s son appeared on the field, blowing his conch, O king; decorated with a net-work of gold, and shaking his formidable bow adorned with pure gold. Beholding the mighty bowman Karna, that foremost of car-warriors, seated on his car, difficult of approach and resembling the risen Sun that destroys the gloom, none amongst the Kauravas, O tiger among men, recked, O sire, the loss of Bhishma or Drona or other men! Speeding the warriors, O sire, with the blasts of his conch, Karna caused the vast army of the Kauravas to be drawn out. Having arrayed the troops in the makara array, that mighty bowman, that scorcher of foes, viz., Karna, proceeded against the Pandavas from desire of victory. In the tip of the beak of that makara, O king, was stationed Karna himself. In the two eyes were the brave Shakuni and the mighty car-warrior Uluka. In the head was Drona’s son and in the neck were all the uterine brothers. In the middle was king Duryodhana supported by a large force. In the left foot, O monarch, was stationed Kritavarma accompanied by the Narayana troops, and those invincible warriors, the gopalas. In the right foot, O king, was Gotama’s son of prowess incapable of being baffled, surrounded by those mighty bowmen viz., the Trigartas and by the Southerners. In the left hind-foot was stationed Shalya with a large force raised in the country of Madras. In the right (hind-foot), O monarch, was Sushena of true vows, surrounded by a 1,000 cars and 300 elephants. In the tail were the two royal brothers of mighty energy, viz., Citra and Citrasena surrounded by a large force.
“‘When, O great king, that foremost of men, Karna, thus came out, king Yudhishthira the just, casting his eyes on Arjuna, said these words: “Behold, O Partha, how the Dhartarashtra force, O hero, in this battle, protected by heroes and mighty car-warriors, hath been arrayed by Karna! This vast Dhartarashtra force hath lost its bravest warriors. They that remain, O mighty-armed one, are feeble, equal, as I think, to straw! Only one great bowman, viz., the Suta’s son, shineth in it! That foremost of car-warriors is incapable of being vanquished by the three worlds with their mobile and immobile creatures, including the gods, Asuras and Gandharvas, and the Kinnaras and great serpents! If thou slayest him today, O mighty-armed one, the victory will be thine, O Phalguna! The thorn also which for twelve years hath been planted in my heart will then be plucked out! Knowing this, O thou of mighty arms, form thou the array that thou wishest!” Hearing those words of his brother, that Pandava of the white steeds disposed his army in counter array after the form of the half moon. On the left side was stationed Bhimasena, and on the right was stationed the great bowman Dhrishtadyumna. In the middle of the array were the king and Dhananjaya the son of Pandu. Nakula and Sahadeva were at the rear of king Yudhishthira the just. The two Pancala princes, Yudhamanyu and Uttamauja, became the protectors of (Arjuna’s) car wheels. Protected by the diadem-decked Arjuna himself, they did not quit Arjuna for a moment. The remaining kings, possessed of great courage, clad in mail, stood in the array, each in the position assigned to him, according to the measure of his enthusiasm and resolution, O Bharata. Having thus formed their great array, O Bharata, the Pandavas, and the mighty bowmen of thy army set their hearts on battle. Beholding thy army disposed into battle array by the Suta’s son in battle Duryodhana with all his brethren regarded the Pandavas to be already slain. Similarly Yudhishthira, O king, beholding the Pandava army disposed in array, regarded the Dhartarashtras with Karna to be already slain. Then conches, and kettle-drums, and tabours, and large drums, and cymbals, and Dindimas, and Jharjharas, were loudly blown and beaten on all sides! Indeed, those loud-sounding instruments were blown and beaten, O king, among both the armies. Leonine roars also arose, uttered by brave warriors for victory. And there also arose, O king, the noise of neighing steeds and grunting elephants, and the fierce clatter of car-wheels. None, O Bharata, (in the Kaurava army), at that time, felt the loss of Drona, seeing the great bowman Karna clad in mail and stationed at the head of the array. Both armies, O monarch, teeming with joyous men, stood, eager for battle and (ready) to destroy each other without delay. There, the two heroes, viz., Karna and the son of Pandu, excited with wrath at sight of each other, and both firmly resolved, stood or careered, O king, through their respective divisions. The two armies, as they advanced to meet each other, seemed to dance (in joy). From the wings and the side-wings of both, warriors desirous of battle came forth. Then commenced the battle, O monarch, of men, elephants, steeds, and cars, engaged in destroying one another.’”
SECTION 12
“SANJAYA SAID, ‘THEN those two vast armies, teeming with rejoicing men and steeds and elephants, resembling in splendour the celestial and the Asura hosts, meeting together, began to strike each other. Men, cars, steeds, elephants, and foot-soldiers of fierce prowess, made sturdy strokes destructive of bodies and sin. Lion-like men strewed the Earth with the heads of lion-like men, each resembling the full moon or the sun in splendour and the lotus in fragrance. Combatants cut off the heads of combatants, with crescent-shaped and broad-headed shafts and razor-faced arrows and axes, and battle-axes. The arms of men of long and massive arms, cut off by men of long and massive arms, falling upon the Earth, shone, decked with weapons and bracelets. With those writhing arms adorned with red fingers and palms, the Earth looked resplendent as if strewn with fierce five-headed snakes slain by Garuda. From elephants and cars and steeds, brave warriors fell down, struck by foes, like the denizens of heaven from their celestial cars on the exhaustion of their merits. Other brave warriors fell down by hundreds, crushed in that battle by brave combatants with heavy maces spiked clubs and short bludgeons. Cars also, in that tumultuous fight, were crushed by cars, and infuriate elephants by infuriate compeers, and horsemen by horsemen. Men destroyed by cars, and cars by elephants, and horsemen by foot-soldiers, and foot-soldiers by horsemen, dropped down on the field, as also cars and steeds and foot-soldiers destroyed by elephants and cars and steeds and elephants by foot-soldiers, and cars and foot-soldiers and elephants by steeds and men and elephants by cars. Great was the carnage made of car-warriors and steeds and elephants and men by men and steeds and elephants and car-warriors, using their hands and feet and weapons and cars. When that host was being thus struck and slain by heroic warriors the Parthas, headed by Vrikodara, advanced against us. They consisted of Dhrishtadyumna and Shikhandi and the five sons of Draupadi and the Prabhadrakas, and Satyaki and Chekitana with the Dravida forces, and the Pandyas, the Cholas, and the Keralas, surrounded by a mighty array, all possessed of broad chests, long arms, tall statures, and large eyes. Decked with ornaments, possessed of red teeth, endued with the prowess of infuriate elephants, attired in robes of diverse colours, smeared with powdered scents, armed with swords and nooses, capable of restraining mighty elephants, companions in death, and never deserting one another, equipped with quivers, bearing bows adorned with long locks, and agreeable in speech were the combatants of the infantry files led by Satyaki, belonging to the Andhra tribe, endued with fierce forms and great energy. Other brave warriors such as the Cedis, the Pancalas, the Kaikayas, the Karushas, the
Kosalas, the Kanchis, and the Maghadhas, also rushed forward. Their cars and steeds and elephants, all of the foremost kind, and their fierce foot-soldiers, gladdened by the notes of diverse instruments, seemed to dance and laugh. In the midst of that vast force, came Vrikodara, riding on the neck of an elephant, and surrounded by many foremost of elephant-soldiers, advancing against thy army. That fierce and foremost of elephants, duly equipped, looked resplendent, like the stone-built mansion on the top of the Udaya mountain, crowned with the risen Sun. Its armour of iron, the foremost of its kind, studded with costly gems, was as resplendent as the autumnal firmament bespangled with stars. With a lance in his outstretched arm, his head decked with a beautiful diadem, and possessed of the splendour of the meridian Sun at autumn, Bhima began to burn his foes. Beholding that elephant from a distance, Kshemadhurti, himself on an elephant, challenging, rushed cheerfully towards Bhima who was more cheerful still. An encounter then took place between those two elephants of fierce forms resembling two huge hills topped with trees, each, fighting with the other as it liked. Those two heroes, then, whose elephants thus encountered each other, forcibly struck each other with lances endued with the splendour of solar rays, and uttered loud roars. Separating, they then careered in circles with their elephants, and each taking up a bow began to strike the other. Gladdening the people around with their loud roars and the slaps on their armpits and the whizz of the arrows, they continued to utter leonine shouts. Endued with great strength, both of them, accomplished in weapons, fought, using their elephants with upturned trunks and decked with banners floating on the wind. Then each cutting off the other’s bow, they roared at each other, and rained on each other showers of darts and lances like two masses of clouds in the rainy season pouring torrents of rain. Then Kshemadhurti pierced Bhimasena in the centre of the chest with a lance endued with great impetuosity, and then with six others, and uttered a loud shout. With those lances sticking to his body, Bhimasena, whose form then blazed with wrath, looked resplendent like the cloud-covered Sun with his rays issuing through the interstices of that canopy. Then Bhima carefully hurled at his antagonist a lance bright as the rays of the Sun, coursing perfectly straight, and made entirely of iron. The ruler of the Kulutas then, drawing his bow, cut off that lance with ten shafts and then pierced the son of Pandu with sixty shafts. Then Bhima the son of Pandu, taking up a bow whose twang resembled the roar of the clouds, uttered a loud shout and deeply afflicted with his shafts the elephants of his antagonist. Thus afflicted in that battle by Bhimasena with his arrows, that elephant, though sought to be restrained, stayed not on the field like a wind-blown cloud. The fierce prince of elephants owned by Bhima then pursued his (flying) compeer, like a wind-blown mass of clouds pursuing another mass driven by the tempest. Restraining his own elephant valiant Kshemadhurti pierced with his shafts the pursuing elephant of Bhimasena. Then with a well-shot razor-headed arrow that was perfectly straight, Kshemadhurti cut off his antagonist’s bow and then afflicted that hostile elephant. Filled with wrath, Kshemadhurti then, in that battle, pierced Bhima and struck his elephant with many long shafts in every vital part. That huge elephant of Bhima then fell down, O Bharata! Bhima, however, who had jumped down from his elephant and stood on the Earth before the fall of the beast, then crushed the elephant of his antagonist with his mace. And Vrikodara then struck Kshemadhurti also, who, jumped down from his crushed elephant, was advancing against him with uplifted weapon. Kshemadhurti, thus struck, fell down lifeless, with the sword in his arm, by the side of his elephant, like a lion struck down by thunder beside a thunder-riven hill. Beholding the celebrated king of the Kulutas slain, thy troops, O bull of Bharata’s race exceedingly distressed, fled away.’”
The Sanskrit Epics Page 551
