Chapter 73

“Sanjaya said, ‘Once more Keshava of immeasurable soul said these wordsunto Arjuna, who, O Bharata, was advancing (to battle), firmly resolvedupon slaying Karna, ‘Today is the seventeenth day, O Bharata, of thisterrible massacre of men and elephants and steeds. At the outset vast wasthe host that belonged to you. Encountering the foe in battle, that hosthas been very much reduced in numbers, O king! The Kauravas also, OPartha, were numerous at first, teeming with elephants and steeds.Encountering thee, however, as their foe, they have been nearlyexterminated in the van of battle! These lords of Earth and theseSrinjayas, united together, and these Pandava troops also, obtaining thyinvincible self as their leader, are maintaining their ground on thefield. Protected by thee, O slayer of foes, the Pancalas, the Matsyas,the Karushas, and the Cedis, have caused a great destruction of thy foes.Who is there that can vanquish the assembled Kauravas in battle? On theother hand, who is there that can vanquish the mighty car-warriors of thePandavas protected by thee? Thou, however, art competent to vanquish inbattle the three worlds consisting of the gods, the asuras, and humanbeings, united together. What need I say then of the Kaurava host? Savethee, O tiger among men, who else is there, even if he resemble Vasavahimself in prowess, that could vanquish king Bhagadatta? So also, Osinless one, all the lords of earth, united together, are incapable, OPartha, of even gazing at this vast force that is protected by thee. Soalso, O Partha, it is owing to their having been always protected by theethat Dhrishtadyumna and Shikhandi succeeded in slaying Drona and Bhishma.Who, indeed, O Partha, could vanquish in battle those two mightycar-warriors of the Bharatas, Bhishma and Drona, both of whom were enduedwith prowess equal to that of Sakra himself? Save thee, O tiger amongmen, what other man in this world is able to vanquish those fierce lordsof akshauhinis, those unreturning and invincible heroes, all accomplishedin weapons and united together, Shantanu’s son Bhishma, and Drona, andVaikartana, and Kripa, and Drona’s son, and king Duryodhana himself?Innumerable divisions of soldiers have been destroyed (by thee), theirsteeds and cars and elephants having been mangled (with thy shafts).Numberless Kshatriyas also, wrathful and fierce, hailing from diverseprovinces, have been destroyed by thee. Teeming with horses andelephants, large bodies of combatants of diverse Kshatriya clans, such asthe Govasas, the Dasamiyas, the Vasatis, O Bharata, and the Easterners,the Vatadhanas, and the Bhojas that are very sensitive of their honour,approaching thee and Bhima, O Bharata, have met with destruction. Ofterrible deeds and exceedingly fierce, the Tusharas, the Yavanas, theKhasas, the Darvabhisaras, the Daradas, the Sakas, the Kamathas, theRamathas, the Tanganas the Andhrakas, the Pulindas, the Kiratas of fierceprowess, the Mlecchas, the Mountaineers, and the races hailing from thesea-side, all endued with great wrath and great might, delighting inbattle and armed with maces, these all–united with the Kurus andfighting wrathfully for Duryodhana’s sake were incapable of beingvanquished in battle by anybody else save thee, O scorcher of foes! Whatman, unprotected by thee, could advance, beholding the mighty andswelling host of the Dhartarashtras arrayed in order of battle? Protectedby thee, O puissant one, the Pandavas, filled with wrath, and penetratinginto its midst, have destroyed that host shrouded with dust andresembling a swollen sea. Seven days have elapsed since the mightyJayatsena, the ruler of the Magadhas, was slain in battle by Abhimanyu.After that, 10,000 elephants, of fierce feats, that used to follow thatking, were slain by Bhimasena with his mace. After that, other elephants,and car-warriors, by hundreds, have been destroyed by Bhima in thatexercise of his might. Even thus, O Partha, during the progress of thisawful battle, the Kauravas, with their steeds and carwarriors andelephants, encountering Bhimasena and thee, O son of Pandu, have fromhence repaired to the region of Death. The van of the Kaurava army, OPartha, having been struck down by the Pandavas, Bhishma shot showers offierce shafts, O sire! Conversant with the highest weapons, he shroudedthe Cedis, the Pancalas, the Karushas, the Matsyas, and the Kaikayas withthe shafts, and deprived them of life! The welkin became filled withgold-winged and straight coursing shafts, capable of piercing the bodiesof all foes, that issued out of his bow. He slew thousands ofcar-warriors, shooting showers of shafts at a time. In all, he slew a100,000 men and elephants of great might. Abandoning the diverse motions,each of a new kind, in which they careered, those wicked kings andelephants, while perishing, destroyed many steeds and cars and elephants.Indeed, numberless were the shafts that Bhishma shot in battle.Slaughtering the Pandava host for ten days together, Bhishma made theterraces of numberless cars empty and deprived innumerable elephants andsteeds of life. Having assumed the form of Rudra or of Upendra in battle,he afflicted the Pandava divisions and caused a great carnage amongstthem. Desirous of rescuing the wicked Suyodhana who was sinking in araftless sea, he slaughtered many lords of Earth among the Cedis, thePancalas, and the Kaikayas, and caused a great massacre of the Pandavaarmy teeming with cars and steeds and elephants. Innumerablefoot-soldiers among the Srinjayas, all well-armed, and other lords ofearth, were incapable of even looking at that hero when he careered inbattle like the Sun himself of scorching splendour. At last the Pandavas,with all their resources, made a mighty effort, and rushed against thatwarrior who, inspired with the desire of victory, used to career inbattle even in this way. Without availing himself of any aid, he routed,however, the Pandavas and the Srinjayas in battle, and came to beregarded as the one foremost hero in the world. Encountering him,Shikhandi, protected by thee, slew that tiger among men with his straightshafts. Having obtained thee that art a tiger among men (as his foe),that grandsire is now stretched on a bed of arrows, like Vritra when heobtained Vasava for his foe. The fierce Drona also slaughtered thehostile army for five days together. Having made an impenetrable arrayand caused many mighty car-warriors to be slain, that great car-warriorhad protected Jayadratha (for some time). Fierce as the Destroyerhimself, he caused a great carnage in the nocturnal battle. Endued withgreat valour, the heroic son of Bharadwaja consumed innumerablecombatants with his arrows. At last, encountering Dhrishtadyumna, heattained to the highest end. If, on that day, thou hadst not checked inbattle all the (Dhartarashtra) car-warriors headed by the Suta’s son,Drona then would never have been slain. Thou heldst in check the wholeDhartarashtra force. It was for this, O Dhananjaya, that Drona could beslain by the son of Prishata. What other Kshatriya, save thee, could inbattle achieve such feats for compassing the slaughter of Jayadratha.Checking the vast (Kaurava) army and slaying many brave kings, thoukilledest king Jayadratha, aided by the might and energy of thy weapons.All the kings regarded the slaughter of the ruler of the Sindhus to havebeen exceedingly wonderful. I, however, do not regard it so; thou didstit and thou art a great car-warrior. If this vast assemblage ofKshatriyas, obtaining thee as a foe, suffer extermination in course ofeven a whole day, I should, I think, still regard these Kshatriyas to betruly mighty. When Bhishma and Drona have been slain, the terribleDhartarashtra host, O Partha, may be regarded to have lost all itsheroes. Indeed, with all its foremost warriors slain, with its steeds,cars, and elephants destroyed, the Bharata army looketh today like thefirmament, reft of the Sun, the Moon, and stars. Yonder host of fierceprowess, O Partha, hath been shorn of its splendours today like the Asurahost in days of yore shorn of its splendours by Sakra’s prowess. Theremnant of that grand master now consists of only five greatcar-warriors, viz., Ashvatthama, Kritavarma, Karna, Shalya, and Kripa.Slaying those five great car-warriors today, O tiger among men, be thou ahero that hath killed all his foes, and bestow thou the Earth with allher islands and cities on king Yudhishthira. Let Pritha’s sonYudhishthira of immeasurable energy and prosperity, obtain today thewhole earth with the welkin above it, the waters on it, and the netherregions below it. Slaying this host like Vishnu in days of yore slayingthe Daityas and the Danavas, bestow the Earth on the king like Haribestowing (the three worlds) on Sakra. Let the Pancalas rejoice today,their foes being slain, like the celestials rejoicing after the slaughterof the Danavas by Vishnu. If in consequence of thy regard for thatforemost of men, viz., thy preceptor Drona, thou cherishest compassionfor Ashvatthama, if, again, thou hast any kindness for Kripa for the sakeof respect that is due to a preceptor, if, approaching Kritavarma, thoudost not despatch him today to Yama’s abode in consequence of the honourthat is due to one’s kinsmen by the mother’s side, if, O lotus-eyed one,approaching thy mother’s brother, viz., Shalya, the ruler of the Madras,thou dost not from compassion slay him, I ask thee, do thou, with keenshafts, O foremost of men slay Karna today with speed, that vile wretchof sinful heart who cherisheth the fiercest hate for the son of Pandu.This is thy noblest duty. There is nothing in it that would be improper.We approve of it, and here is no fault in the act. The wicked-souledKarna is the root, O thou of unfading glory, of that attempt, O sinlessone, made in the night for burning thy mother with all her children, andof that conduct which Suyodhana adopted towards you in consequence ofthat match at dice. Suyodhana always hopeth for deliverance throughKarna. Filled with rage, he endeavours to afflict me also (in consequenceof that support). It is the firm belief of Dhritarashtra’s royal son, Ogiver of honours, that Karna, without doubt, will slay all the Prithas inbattle. Though fully acquainted with thy might, still, O son of Kunti,Dhritarashtra’s son hath selected war with you in consequence of hisreliance on Karna. Karna also always says, ‘I will vanquish the assembledParthas and that mighty car-warrior, viz., Vasudeva of Dasharha’s race’.Buoying up the wicked-souled son of Dhritarashtra, the wicked Karnaalways roareth in the (Kuru) assembly. Slay him today, O Bharata. In allthe acts of injury, of which Dhritarashtra’s son hath been guilty towardsyou, the wicked-souled Karna of sinful understanding hath been theleader. I saw the heroic son of Subhadra of eyes like those of a bull,slain by six mighty car-warriors of cruel heart belonging to theDhritarashtra army. Grinding those bulls among men, viz., Drona, Drona’sson, Kripa and other heroes, he deprived elephants of their riders andmighty car-warriors of their cars. The bull-necked Abhimanyu, thatspreader of the fame of both the Kurus and the Vrishnis, deprived steedsalso of their riders and foot-soldiers of weapons and life. Routing the(Kaurava) divisions and afflicting many mighty car-warriors, hedespatched innumerable men and steeds and elephants to Yama’s abode. Iswear by Truth to thee, O friend, that my limbs are burning at thethought that while the son of Subhadra was thus advancing, consuming thehostile army with his shafts, even on that occasion the wicked-souledKarna was engaged in acts of hostility to that hero, O lord! Unable, OPartha, to stay in that battle before Abhimanyu’s face, mangled with theshafts of Subhadra’s son, deprived of consciousness, and bathed in blood,Karna drew deep breaths, inflamed with rage. At last, afflicted witharrows, he was obliged to turn his back upon the field. Eagerly desirousof flying away and becoming hopeless of life, he stayed for some time inbattle, perfectly stupefied and exhausted with the wounds he hadreceived. At last hearing those cruel words of Drona in battle–wordsthat were suited to the hour–Karna cut off Abhimanyu’s bow. Made bowlessby him in that battle, five great car-warriors then, well-versed in theways of foul warfare, slew that hero with showers of shafts. Upon theslaughter of that hero, grief entered the heart of everyone. Only, thewicked-souled Karna and Suyodhana laughed in joy. (Thou rememberest also)the harsh and bitter words that Karna cruelly said unto Krishna in the(Kuru) assembly, in the presence of the Pandavas and Kurus, ‘ThePandavas, O Krishna, are dead! They have sunk into eternal hell! O thouof large hips, choose other lords now, O thou of sweet speeches! Enternow the abode of Dhritarashtra as a serving woman, for, O thou of curvingeye-lashes, thy husbands are no more! The Pandavas will not, O Krishna,be of any service to thee today! Thou art the wife of men that areslaves, O princess of Pancala, and thou art thyself, O beautiful lady, aslave! Today only Duryodhana is regarded as the one king on earth; allother kings of the world are worshipping the agency by which hisadministration is kept up. Behold now, O amiable one, how all the sons ofPandu have equally fallen! Overwhelmed by the energy of Dhritarashtra’sson, they are now silently eyeing one another. It is evident that theyare all sesame seeds without kernel, and have sunk into hell. They willhave to serve the Kaurava (Duryodhana), that king of kings, as hisslaves.’ Even these were the foul words that that wretch, viz., thesinful Karna of exceedingly wicked heart, spoke on that occasion, in thyhearing, O Bharata! Let gold-decked shafts whetted on stone and capableof taking the life of him at whom they are sped, shot by thee, quench(the fire of) those words and all the other wrongs that thatwicked-souled wight did unto thee. Let thy shafts quench all those wrongsand the life also of that wicked wight. Feeling the touch of terriblearrows sped from Gandiva, let the wicked-souled Karna recollect today thewords of Bhishma and Drona! Let foe-killing cloth-yard shafts, equippedwith the effulgence of lightning, shot by thee, pierce his vital limbsand drink his blood! Let fierce and mighty shafts, of great impetuosity,sped by thy arms, penetrate the vitals of Karna today and despatch him toYama’s abode. Let all the kings of the earth, cheerless and filled withgrief and uttering wails of woe, behold Karna fall down from his cartoday, afflicted with thy arrows. Let his kinsmen, with cheerless faces,behold Karna today, fallen down and stretched at his length on the earth,dipped in gore and with his weapons loosened from his grasp! Let thelofty standard of Adhiratha’s son, bearing the device of the elephant’srope, fall fluttering on the earth, cut off by thee with a broad-headedarrow. Let Shalya fly away in terror, abandoning the gold-decked car (hedrives) upon seeing it deprived of its warrior and steeds and cut offinto fragments with hundreds of shafts by thee. Let thy enemy Suyodhanatoday, beholding Adhiratha’s son slain by thee, despair of both his lifeand kingdom. Yonder, O Partha, Karna, equal unto Indra in energy, or,perhaps, Sankara himself, is slaughtering thy troops with his shafts.There the Pancalas, though slaughtered by Karna with his whetted shafts,are yet, O chief of Bharata’s race, rushing (to battle), for serving thecause of the Pandavas. Know, O Partha, that is prevailing over thePancalas, and the (five) sons of Draupadi, and Dhrishtadyumna andShikhandi, and the sons of Dhrishtadyumna, and Satanika, the son ofNakula, and Nakula himself, and Sahadeva, and Durmukha, and Janamejaya,and Sudharman, and Satyaki! The loud uproar made by those allies ofthine, viz., the Pancalas, O scorcher of foes, as they are being struckby Karna in dreadful battle, is heard. The Pancalas have not at all beeninspired with fear, nor do they turn away their faces from the battle.Those mighty bowmen are utterly reckless of death in great battle.Encountering even that Bhishma who, single-handed, had encompassed thePandava army with a cloud of shafts, the Pancalas did not turn away theirfaces from him. Then again, O chastiser of foes, they always strove withalacrity to vanquish forcibly in battle their great foe, viz., theinvincible Drona, that preceptor of all wielders of the bow, that blazingfire of weapons, that hero who always burnt his foes in battle. They havenever turned their faces from battle, afraid of Adhiratha’s son. Theheroic Karna, however, with his shafts, is taking the lives of thePancala warriors endued with great activity as they are advancing againsthim, like a blazing fire taking the lives of myriads of insects. The sonof Radha, in this battle, is destroying in hundreds the Pancalas that areadvancing against him,–those heroes, that are resolved to lay down theirlives for the sake of their allies! It behoveth thee, O Bharata, tobecome a raft and rescue those brave warriors, those great bowmen, thatare sinking in the raftless ocean represented by Karna. The awful form ofthat weapon which was obtained by Karna from that foremost of sages,viz., Rama of Bhrigu’s race, hath been displayed. Scorching all thetroops, that weapon of exceedingly fierce and awful form is blazing withits own energy, surrounding our vast army. Those arrows, sped fromKarna’s bow, are coursing in battle thick as swarm of bees, and scorchingthy troops. Encountering Karna’s weapon in battle, that is irresistibleby persons not having their souls under control, there the Pancalas, OBharata, are flying away in all directions! Yonder, Bhima, ofunappeasable wrath, surrounded on all sides by the Srinjayas, is fightingwith Karna, O Partha, afflicted by the latter with keen shafts! Ifneglected, Karna will, O Bharata, exterminate the Pandavas, theSrinjayas, and the Pancalas, like a neglected disease whose germ hasentered the body. Save thee I do not see another in Yudhishthira’s armythat would come home safe and sound, having encountered the son of Radhain battle. Slaying that Karna today with thy keen shafts, O bull amongmen, act according to thy vow, O Partha, and win great fame. I tell theetruly, thou only art able to vanquish in battle the Kaurava host withKarna amongst them, and no one else, O foremost of warriors! Achievingthis great feat, viz., slaying the mighty car-warrior Karna, attain thyobject, O Partha, and crowned with success, be happy, O best of men!'”