Chapter 30

“Sanjaya said, ‘Placing Karna at their van, thy warriors, difficult ofdefeat in fight, returned and fought (with the foe) a battle thatresembled that between the gods and the Asuras. Excited by the louduproar made by elephants and men and cars and steeds and conchs,elephant-men and car-warriors and foot-soldiers and horsemen, in largenumbers, filled with wrath advanced against the foe and slew the latterwith strokes of diverse kinds of weapons. Elephants and cars, steeds andmen, in that dreadful battle were destroyed by brave warriors with sharpbattle axes and swords and axes and shafts of diverse kinds and by meansalso of their animals. Strewn with human heads that were adorned withwhite teeth and fair faces and beautiful eyes and goodly noses, andgraced with beautiful diadems and earrings, and everyone of whichresembled the lotus, the Sun, or the Moon, the Earth looked exceedinglyresplendent. Elephants and men and steeds, by thousands, were slain withhundreds of spiked clubs and short bludgeons and darts and lances andhooks and Bhusundis and maces. The blood that fell formed a river likecurrents on the field. In consequence of those car-warriors and men andsteeds and elephants slain by the foe, and lying with ghostly featuresand gaping wounds, the field of battle looked like the domains of theking of the dead at the time of universal dissolution. Then, O god amongmen, thy troops, and those bulls amongst the Kurus, viz., thy sonsresembling the children of the celestials, with a host of warriors ofimmeasurable might at their van, all proceeded against Satyaki, that bullof Sini’s race. Thereupon that host, teeming with many foremost of menand steeds and cars and elephants, producing an uproar loud as that ofthe vast deep, and resembling the army of the Asuras or that of thecelestials, shone with fierce beauty. Then the son of Surya, resemblingthe chief of the celestials himself in prowess and like unto the youngerbrother of Indra, struck that foremost one of Sini’s race with shaftswhose splendour resembled the rays of the Sun. That bull of Sini’s racealso, in that battle, then quickly shrouded that foremost of men, withhis car and steeds and driver, with diverse kinds of shafts terrible asthe poison of the snake. Then many Atirathas belonging to thy army,accompanied by elephants and cars and foot-soldiers, quickly approachedthat bull among car-warriors, viz., Vasusena, when they beheld the latterdeeply afflicted with the shafts of that foremost hero of Sini’s race.That force, however, vast as the ocean, assailed by foes possessed ofgreat quickness viz., the Pandava warriors headed by the sons of Drupada,fled away from the field. At that time a great carnage occurred of menand cars and steeds and elephants. Then those two foremost of men, viz.,Arjuna and Keshava, having said their daily prayer and duly worshippedthe lord Bhava, quickly rushed against thy troops, resolved to slay thosefoes of theirs. Their foes (i.e., the Kurus) cast their eyes cheerlesslyon that car whose rattle resembled the roar of the clouds and whosebanners waved beautifully in the air and which had white steeds yokedunto it and which was coming towards them. Then Arjuna, bending Gandivaand as if dancing on his car, filled the welkin and all the points of thecompass, cardinal and subsidiary, with showers of shafts, not leaving thesmallest space empty. Like the tempest destroying the clouds, the son ofPandu destroyed with his arrows many cars looking like celestialvehicles, that were well-adorned, and equipped with weapons andstandards, along with their drivers. Many elephants also, with the menthat guided them, adorned with truimphal banners and weapons, and manyhorsemen with horses, and many foot-soldiers also, Arjuna despatched withhis arrows to Yama’s abode. Then Duryodhana singly proceeded against thatmighty car-warrior who was angry and irresistible and resembled averitable Yama, striking him with his straight shafts. Arjuna, cuttingoff his adversary’s bow and driver and steeds and standard with sevenshafts, next cut off his umbrella with one arrow. Obtaining then anopportunity, he sped at Duryodhana an excellent shaft, capable of takingthe life of the person struck. Drona’s son, however, cut off that shaftinto seven fragments. Cutting off then the bow of Drona’s son and slayingthe four steeds of the latter with his arrow, the son of Pandu next cutoff the formidable bow of Kripa too. Then cutting off the bow ofHridika’s son, he felled the latter’s standard and steeds. Then cuttingoff the bow of Duhshasana, he proceeded against the son of Radha. Atthis, Karna, leaving Satyaki quickly pierced Arjuna with three arrows andKrishna with twenty, and Partha again repeatedly. Although many were thearrows that he shot while slaying his foes in that battle, like Indrahimself inspired with wrath, Karna yet felt no fatigue. MeanwhileSatyaki, coming up, pierced Karna with nine and ninety fierce arrows, andonce more with a hundred. Then all the foremost heroes among the Parthasbegan to afflict Karna. Yudhamanyu and Shikhandi and the sons of Draupadiand the Prabhadrakas, and Uttamauja and Yuyutsu and the twins andDhrishtadyumna, and the divisions of the Cedis and the Karushas and theMatsyas and Kaikeyas, and the mighty Chekitana, and king Yudhishthira ofexcellent vows, all these, accompanied by cars and steeds and elephants,and foot-soldiers of fierce prowess, encompassed Karna on all sides inthat battle, and showered upon him diverse kinds of weapons, addressinghim in harsh words and resolved to compass his destruction. Cutting offthat shower of weapons with his sharp shafts, Karna dispersed hisassailants by the power of his weapons like the wind breaking down thetrees that stand on its way. Filled with wrath, Karna was seen to destroycar-warriors, and elephants with their riders, and horses with horse-men,and large bands of foot-soldiers. Slaughtered by the energy of Karna’sweapons, almost the whole of that force of the Pandavas, deprived ofweapons, and with limbs mangled and torn, retired from the field. ThenArjuna, smiling the while, baffled with his own weapons the weapons ofKarna and covered the welkin, the Earth, and all the points of thecompass with dense shower of arrows. The shafts of Arjuna fell like heavyclubs and spiked bludgeons. And some amongst them fell like Sataghnis andsome fell like fierce thunderbolts. Slaughtered therewith, the Kauravaforce consisting of infantry and horse and cars and elephants, shuttingits eyes, uttered loud wails of woe and wandered senselessly. Many werethe steeds and men and elephants that perished on that occasion. Many,again, struck with shafts and deeply afflicted fled away in fear.

“‘Whilst thy warriors were thus engaged in battle from desire of victory,the Sun approaching the Setting Mountain, entered it. In consequence ofthe darkness, O king, but especially owing to the dust, we could notnotice anything favourable or unfavourable. The mighty bowmen (amongstthe Kauravas), fearing a night-battle, O Bharata, then retired from thefield, accompanied by all their combatants. Upon the retirement of theKauravas, O king, at the close of the day, the Parthas, cheerful athaving obtained the victory, also retired to their own encampment,jeering at their enemies by producing diverse kinds of sounds with theirmusical instruments, and applauding Acyuta and Arjuna. After those heroeshad thus withdrawn the army, all the troops and all the kings utteredbenediction upon the Pandavas. The withdrawal having been made, thosesinless men, the Pandavas, became very glad, and proceeding to theirtents rested there for the night. Then rakshasas and pishacas, andcarnivorous beasts, in large numbers came to that awful field of battleresembling the sporting ground of Rudra himself.’