Chapter 30

“Sanjaya said, ‘Vrikodara, however, could not brook that slaughter of hisarmy. He struck Valhika with sixty and Karna with ten arrows. Drona then,desirous of slaying Bhima, quickly struck the latter, in his very vitals,many straight and whetted shafts of keen edge. Desirous again of allowingno time, he once more struck him with, six and twenty shafts whose touchresembled that of fire and which were all like snakes of virulent poison.Then Karna pierced him with a dozen shafts, and Aswatthaman with seven,and king Duryodhana also with six. The mighty Bhimasena, in return,pierced them all. He struck Drona with fifty shafts, and Karna with ten.And piercing Duryodhana with a dozen shafts, and Drona with eight, heengaged in that battle uttering a loud shout. In that encounter in whichthe warriors fought reckless of their lives and in which death was easyof attainment, Ajatasattru despatched many warriors, urging them torescue Bhima. Those heroes of immeasurable energy, viz., the two son ofMadri and Pandu, and others headed by Yuyudhana, quickly proceeded toBhimasena’s side. And those bulls among men, filled with rage and unitingtogether, advanced to battle, desirous of breaking the army of Drona thatwas protected by many foremost of bowmen. Indeed, those greatcar-warriors of mighty energy, viz., Bhima and others, fell furiouslyupon Drona’s host. Drona, however, that foremost of car-warriors,received without any anxiety, all those mighty car-warriors, of greatstrength,–those heroes accomplished in battle. Disregarding theirkingdoms and casting off all fear of death, the warriors of thy armyproceeded against the Pandavas. Horsemen encountered horsemen, andcar-warriors encountered car-warriors. The battle proceeded, dartsagainst darts, swords against swords, axes against axes. A fierceencounter with swords took place, producing a terrible carnage. And inconsequence of the collision of elephants against elephants the battlebecame furious. Some fell down from the backs of elephants, and some fromthe backs of steeds, with heads downwards. And others, O sire, fell downfrom cars, pierced with arrows. In that fierce press, as some one felldown deprived of armour, an elephant might be seen attacking him in thechest and crushing his head. Elsewhere might be seen elephants crushingnumbers of men fallen down on the field. And many elephants, piercing theearth with their tusks (as they fell down), were seen to tear therewithlarge bodies of men. Many elephants, again, with arrows sticking to theirtrunks, wandered over the field, tearing and crushing men by hundreds.And some elephants were seen pressing down into the earth fallen warriorsand steeds and elephants cased in armour of black iron, as if these wereonly thick reeds. Many kings, graced with modesty, their hour havingcome, laid themselves down (for the last sleep) on painful beds, overlaidwith vultures’ feathers. Advancing to battle on his car, sire slew son;and son also, through madness all losing regard, approached-sire inbattle. The wheels of cars were broken; banners were torn; umbrellas felldown on the earth. Dragging broken yokes, steeds ran away. Arms withswords in grasp, and heads decked with ear-rings fell down. Cars, draggedby mighty elephants, thrown down on the ground, were reduced tofragments. Steeds with riders fell down, severely wounded by elephants.That fierce battle went on, without anybody showing any regard for anyone. ‘Oh father!–Oh son!–Where art thou, friend?–Wait!–Where dostthou go!–Strike!–Bring! Slay this one!’–these and diverse other cries,with loud laughs and shouts, and roars were uttered and heard there. Theblood of human beings and steeds and elephants, mingled together. Theearthy dust disappeared. The hearts of all timid persons becamecheerless. Here a hero getting his car-wheel entangled with the car-wheelof another hero, and the distance being too near to admit of the use ofother weapons, smashed that other’s head by means of his mace. Bravecombatants, desirous of safety where there was no safety, dragged oneanother by the hair, and fought fiercely with fists, and teeth and nails.Here was a hero whose upraised arm with sword in grasp was cut off, Thereanother’s arm was lopped off with bow, or arrow or hook in grasp. Hereone loudly called upon another. There another turned his back on thefield. Here one severed another’s head from his trunk, getting him withinreach. There another rushed with loud shouts Upon an enemy. Here one wasfilled with fear at another’s roar. There another slew with sharp shaftsa friend or a foe. Here an elephant, huge as a hill, slain with a longshaft, fell down en the field and lay like a flat island in a riverduring the summer season. There an elephant, with sweat trickling downits body, like a mountain with rills flowing adown its breast, steed,having crushed by its tread a car-warrior with his steeds and charioteeron the field. Beholding brave warriors, accomplished in arms and coveredwith blood, strike one another, they that were timid and of weak hearts,lost their senses. In fact, all became cheerless. Nothing could anylonger be distinguished. Overwhelmed with the dust raised by the troops,the battle became furious. Then the commander of the Pandava forcessaying, ‘This is the time,’ speedily led the Pandavas on those heroesthat are always endued with great activity. Obeying his behest, themighty-armed Pandavas, smiting (the Katirava army) proceeded towardsDrona’s car like swans towards a lake,–‘Seize him,’—‘Do not flyaway,’–‘Do not fear,’–‘Cut into pieces,’–these uproarious cries wereheard in the vicinity of Drona’s car. Then Drona and Kripa, and Karna andDrona’s son, and king Jayadratha, and Vinda and Anuvinda of Avanti, andSalya, received those heroes. Those irresistible and invincible warriors,however, viz., the Panchalas and the Pandavas, inspired by noblesentiments, did not, though afflicted with shafts, avoid Drona. ThenDrona, excited with great rage, shot hundreds of shafts, and caused agreat carnage amongst the Chedis, the Panchalas, and the Pandavas. Thetwang of his bowstring and the slaps of his palms, were, O sire, heard onall sides. And they resembled the roar of thunder and struck fear intothe hearts of all. Meanwhile, Jishnu, having vanquished large number ofSamsaptakas, quickly came to that place where Drona was grinding thePandava troops. Having crossed many large lakes whose waters wereconstituted by blood, and whose fierce billows and eddies wereconstituted by shafts, and having slain the Samsaptakas, Phalguni showedhimself there. Possessed of great fame and endued as he was with theenergy of the Sun himself, Arjuna’s emblem, viz., his banner bearing theape, was beheld by us to blaze with splendour. Having dried up theSamsaptaka ocean by means of weapons that constituted his rays, the sonof Pandu then blasted the Kurus also, as if he were the very Sun thatarises at the end of the Yuga. Indeed, Arjuna scorched all the Kurus bythe heat of his weapons, like the fire[61] that appears at the end of theYuga, burning down all creatures. Struck by him with thousands of shafts,elephant warriors and horsemen and car-warriors fell down on the earth,with dishevelled hair, and exceedingly afflicted with those arrowyshowers, some uttered cries of distress. Others set up loud shouts. Andsome struck with the shafts of Partha, fell down deprived of life.Recollecting the practices of (good) warriors, Arjuna struck not thosecombatants among the foe that had fallen down, or those that wereretreating, or those that were unwilling to fight. Deprived of their carsand filled with wonder, almost all the Kauravas, turning away from thefield, uttered cries of Oh and Alas and called upon Karna (forprotection). Hearing that din made by the Kurus, desirous of protection,Adhiratha’s son (Karna), loudly assuring the troops with the words ‘Donot fear’ proceeded to face Arjuna. Then (Karna) that foremost of Bharatacar-warriors, that delighter of all the Bharatas, that first of allpersons acquainted with weapons, invoked into existence the Agneyaweapon. Dhananjaya, however, baffled by means of his own arrowy downpoursthe flights of arrows shot by Radha’s son, that warrior of the blazingbow, that hero of bright shafts. And similarly, Adhiratha’s son alsobaffled the shafts of Arjuna of supreme energy. Resisting Arjuna’sweapons thus by his own, Karna uttered loud shouts and shot many shaftsat his antagonist. Then Dhristadyumna and Bhima and the mightycar-warrior Satyaki, all approached Karna, and each of them pierced inwith three straight shafts. The son of Radha, however, checking Arjuna’sweapons by his own arrowy showers, cut off with three sharp shafts thebows of those three warriors. Their bows cut off, they looked like snakeswithout poison. Hurling darts at their foe from their respective cars,they uttered loud leonine shouts. Those fierce darts of great splendourand great impetuosity, looking like snakes, hurled from those mightyarms, coursed impetuously towards Karna’s car. Cutting each of thosedarts with three straight arrows and speeding many arrows at the sametime at Partha, the mighty Karna uttered a loud shout. Then Arjunapiercing Karna with seven shafts, despatched the latter’s younger brotherby means of his sharp shafts. Slaying Satrunjaya thus with six arrows,Partha, with a broad-headed shaft, struck off Vipatha’s head as thelatter stood on his car. In the very sight of the Dhritarashtras,therefore, as also of the Suta’s son, the three uterine brothers of thelatter were despatched by Arjuna unaided by any one. Then Bhima, jumpingdown from his own car, like a second Garuda, slew with his excellentsword five and ten combatants amongst those that supported Karna.Mounting once more on his car and taking up another bow, he pierced Karnawith ten shafts and his charioteer and steeds with five. Dhrishtadyumnaalso taking up a sword and a bright shield; despatched Charmavarman andalso Vrihatkshatra, the ruler of the Naishadhas. The Panchala princethen, mounting upon his own car and taking up another bow, pierced Karnawith three and seventy shafts, and uttered a loud roar. Sini’s grandsonalso, of splendour equal to that of Indra himself, taking up another bowpierced Suta’s son with four and sixty shafts and roared like a lion. Andcutting off Karna’s bow with a couple of well-shot shafts, he once morepierced Karna on the arms and the chest with three arrows. The kingDuryodhana, and Drona and Jayadratha, rescued Karna from theSatyaki-ocean, as the former was about to sink into it. And foot-soldiersand steeds and cars and elephants, belonging to thy army and numbering byhundreds, all accomplished in smitting rushed to the spot where Karna wasfrightening (his assailants). Then Dhrishtadyumna, and Bhima andSubhadra’s son, and Arjuna himself, and Nakula, and Sahadeva, began toprotect Satyaki in that battle. Even thus went on that fierce battle forthe destruction of bowmen belonging to thy army and of the enemy’s. Allthe combatants fought, reckless of their very lives. Infantry and carsand steeds and elephants were engaged with cars and infantry.Car-warriors were engaged with elephants and foot-soldiers and steeds,and cars and foot-soldiers were engaged with cars and elephants. Andsteeds were seen engaged with steeds, and elephants with elephants, andfoot-soldiers with foot-soldiers. Even thus did that battle, marked bygreat confusion, take place, enhancing the delight of cannibals andcarnivorous creatures, between those high-souled men facing one anotherfearlessly. Indeed, it largely swelled the population of Yama’s kingdom.Large numbers of elephants and cars and foot-soldiers and steeds weredestroyed by men, cars, steeds and elephants. And elephants were slain byelephants, and car-warriors with weapons upraised by car-warriors, andsteeds by steeds, and large bodies of foot-soldiers. And elephants wereslain by cars, and large steeds by large elephants and men by steeds; andsteeds by foremost of car-warriors. With tongues lolling out, and teethand eyes pressed out of their places, with coats of mail and ornamentscrushed into dust, the slaughtered creatures fell down on the field.Others, again, of terrible mien were struck and thrown down on the earthby others armed with diverse and excellent weapons and sunk into theearth by the tread of steeds and elephants, and tortured and mangled byheavy cars and car wheels. And during the progress of that fierce carnageso delightful to beasts of prey and carnivorous birds and cannibals,mighty combatants, filled with wrath, and slaughtering one anothercareered over the field putting forth all their energy. Then when boththe hosts were broken and mangled, the warriors bathed in blood, lookedat each other. Meanwhile, the Sun went to his chambers in the westernhills, and both the armies, O Bharata, slowly retired to their respectivetents.