Mahabharata: Vol. 5 (16 page)

‘Sanjaya said, “O
great king! You are a worthy person and the question that you have asked is fitting.
However, you should not ascribe the fault to Duryodhana. One who suffers because of
his own evil conduct, should not blame other men. This is not right and you should
not do this. O great king! A man who is reprehensible in all his conduct deserves to
be killed by everyone because of those censurable deeds. The Pandavas are not wise
about deceitful ways. They waited, with their followers and advisers. They looked
towards you and bore it. They forgave and dwelt for a long time in the forest. O
lord of the earth! Hear about this gathering of horses, elephants and infinitely
energetic kings, which I have seen through sight obtained through the strength of
yoga. Do not sorrow in your mind. O lord of men! All this has been preordained
earlier. I bow down before your father, Parashara’s wise son.
²⁴
Through his favours, I have obtained divine and supreme wisdom. O king! I have
sight beyond the senses and can hear from a great distance. I know the minds of
others and am acquainted with the past and the future. I always know about rising
and travelling through the sky. The great-souled one has granted me the boon of not
being touched by weapons in battle. Listen in detail to the wonderful and
extraordinary account. The great battle between the Bharatas makes the body hair
stand up.

‘“O great king! When
the soldiers were arrayed in accordance with the prescribed battle formations,
Duryodhana spoke to
Duhshasana. ‘O Duhshasana! Let the
chariots be yoked immediately for Bhishma’s protection. Instruct all our
soldiers to advance swiftly. What I have thought about for many years, has now come
to pass. With their soldiers, the Pandavas and the Kurus have met. I do not think
that there is anything in this battle more important than Bhishma’s
protection. If he is protected, he will kill the Parthas and the Somakas, together
with the Srinjayas. That pure-souled one has said, “I will not kill
Shikhandi. I have heard that he was a woman earlier. Therefore, I will avoid him in
battle.” It is my view that because of this, Bhishma must be specially
protected. Let all my soldiers station themselves, resolving to kill Shikhandi. Let
all the soldiers from the east and the west, the south and the north, skilled in
weapons, protect the grandfather. If unprotected, an extremely strong lion can be
killed by a wolf. Let a lion not be killed by the jackal Shikhandi. Yudhamanyu
protects Phalguna’s
²⁵
left and Uttamouja protects the right. Phalguna protects Shikhandi. Partha
protects the one whom Bhishma will avoid. O Duhshasana! Act so that Gangeya is not
slain.’

‘“When night had
passed, a great roar arose from all the lords of the earth. ‘Yoke!
Yoke!’ O descendant of the Bharata lineage! The sound of conch shells and
drums was like the roar of lions. There was the neighing of horses and the clatter
of the wheels of chariots. Elephants trumpeted. Warriors roared. They slapped their
arms and there was a tumultuous sound everywhere. O great king! When the sun arose,
all the soldiers in the large armies of the Kurus and the Pandavas arose and
completed all the arrangements. O Indra among kings! Your sons and the Pandavas
possessed elephants and chariots decorated with gold. They could be seen in their
radiance, like clouds streaked with lightning. An array of many chariots could be
seen, like cities. Your father was extremely resplendent, like the full moon. The
warriors were stationed in their battle formations, with bows, scimitars, swords,
²⁶
clubs, javelins, spears and other shining weapons.
O lord
of the earth! There were elephants, chariots, infantry and horses. There were
hundreds and thousands of them, spread like a net. Resplendent standards of many
different kinds could be seen. They were brilliant and there were thousands of them,
belonging to us and to the enemy. They were golden and were adorned with jewels.
They blazed like the fire. The kings possessed thousands of radiant standards. They
shone like the great Indra’s standard and resembled the great
Indra’s abode. The brave ones who desired to fight, glanced at them.
Indras among men were at the forefront of their troops. Their weapons were raised.
They had colourful guards on their palms and possessed quivers. Their eyes were like
those of bulls. Shakuni Soubala, Shalya, Jayadratha from Sindhu, Vinda and Anuvinda
from Avanti, Sudakshina from Kamboja, Shrutayudha from Kalinga, King Jayatsena,
Brihadbala from Koshala and Satvata Kritavarma—these ten tigers among men
were brave and possessed arms like clubs. They were performers of sacrifices at
which a lot of gifts were donated. Each of them headed one
akshouhini
.
²⁷
Other than this, there were many others who followed Duryodhana. There were
immensely strong kings and princes, knowledgeable about policy. They could be seen
armoured, heading their armies. All of them were attired in black deerskin. They had
standards and wore garlands of
munja
grass.
²⁸
They prepared themselves for Duryodhana’s sake and were ready to go
to Brahma’s world.
²⁹
They stationed themselves, heading the ten large armies. The eleventh large
army of Kourava, Dhritarashtra’s son, stood in front of all the soldiers,
with Shantanu’s son at the head. The undecaying one was in a white
headdress. He had white horses and was clad in white armour. O great king! Bhishma
could be seen like the rising moon. Stationed on his silver chariot, Bhishma had a
standard with a golden palm tree. He could be seen by the Kurus
and the Pandavas like the one with the sharp rays,
³⁰
enveloped by white clouds. Dhrishtadyumna, the great Srinjaya archer, was at
the forefront
³¹
and they looked like small animals, glancing at a large and yawning lion. With
Dhrishtadyumna at the forefront, all of them trembled repeatedly. O descendant of
the Bharata lineage! These are the eleven large divisions of your army. The seven
divisions of the Pandavas were also protected by great men. They were like two
oceans meeting at the end of an era, infested with crazy sharks
³²
and giant crocodiles. O king! We have not seen or heard of anything like this
earlier, like those armies encountering each other in the prescribed
manner.”’

‘Sanjaya said, “Just
as the illustrious Krishna Dvaipayana Vyasa had said, in that fashion, all the lords
of the earth assembled for the encounter. On that day, the moon approached Magha.
³³
The seven large and blazing planets
³⁴
appeared in the sky. When the sun
arose, it seemed to be
divided into two parts. When the blazing sun arose in the sky, it had a flaming
crest. The directions blazed. Desiring to feed on bodies, flesh and blood, jackals
and crows cried out. Each day, the aged grandfather of the Kurus and
Bharadvaja’s son arose and with concentration, wished that the Parthas
might not be killed and that the sons of Pandu might be victorious. Those undecaying
scorchers of enemies fought for your sake only because they had taken a pledge. Your
father, Devavrata, was knowledgeable about every aspect of dharma. He summoned all
the lords of the earth and spoke these words to them. ‘O kshatriyas! This
great door that leads to heaven has been opened up. Pass through it and go the
worlds of Shakra and Brahma.
³⁵
This is the eternal path, indicated by the ancient ones, and those who have
preceded them. Honour yourselves by fighting with great attention. Through such
deeds, Nabhaga, Yayati, Mandhata, Nahusha and Nriga have been successful and have
reached the supreme goal. It is adharma for a kshatriya to die from disease in his
home. The eternal dharma is to die in the field of battle.’ O bull among
the Bharata lineage! Having been thus addressed by Bhishma, all the lords of the
earth went to the heads of their armies and were resplendent in their supreme
chariots. O bull among the Bharata lineage! But because of Bhishma, Vaikartana
Karna, together with his advisers and relatives, cast aside his weapons in that
battle. Without Karna, your sons and all the kings on your side marched out. They
roared like lions and this resounded in the ten directions. There were white
umbrellas and flags and pennants, elephants and horses. With charioteers, chariots
and infantry, the army was splendid. There was the sound of drums and cymbals and
also the noise of kettledrums. The earth trembled because of the roar of the wheels
of chariots. The maharathas had golden armlets and bracelets and bows. They were as
radiant as mobile mountains.

‘“Bhishma’s standard had a large palm tree with five
stars. The general of the Kuru army was like the clear sun. O bull among the Bharata
lineage! O king! As instructed by Shantanu’s son,
all
the kings and great archers who were on your side stationed themselves. With all the
kings, Shaibya Govasana
³⁶
advanced on a king among elephants that was bedecked with flags and deserved to
carry kings. Ashvatthama, whose complexion was like the lotus, was at the head of
all the soldiers. He was ready and his standard was adorned with a lion’s
tail. Shrutayudha, Chitrasena, Purumitra, Vivimshati, Shalya, Bhurishrava, maharatha
Vikarna—these seven great archers were adorned in excellent armour. They
rode their chariots and followed Drona’s son, ahead of Bhishma. Their
great standards were resplendent on their supreme chariots. The golden flags were
seen to be blazing. Drona, foremost among preceptors, had a golden altar on his
standard, adorned with a water pot and the sign of a bow. Duryodhana’s
large standard had a bejewelled elephant and led hundreds and thousands of soldiers.
Pourava, Kalinga, Sudakshina from Kamboja, Kshemadhanva, Sumitra and other rathas
were in front of him.
³⁷
The king of Magadha guided the forces from the front, on an extremely expensive
chariot that bore the standard of a bull. He was protected by the lord of Anga
³⁸
and the great-souled Kripa. That extremely large army from the east looked like
scattered autumn clouds. The immensely famous Jayadratha stationed himself at the
forefront of the soldiers.
³⁹
He had a beautiful silver standard, marked with the sign of a boar. A hundred
thousand chariots, eight thousand elephants and sixty thousand horses were under his
command. O king! Commanded by the lord of Sindhu, foremost among standard bearers,
that large army was resplendent with chariots, elephants and horses. Together with
Ketumat, the lord of all the Kalingas advanced with sixty thousand chariots and ten
thousand elephants. His large elephants were like
mountains.
They were adorned with implements of war,
⁴⁰
spears, quivers and standards and were beautiful. Kalinga was resplendent with
a standard that bore the sign of a tree. He had a white umbrella and golden whisks.
O king! Ketumat was also on an elephant, with a colourful and supreme goad.
⁴¹
He was stationed in that battle, like the sun amidst clouds. King Bhagadatta
was stationed on a supreme elephant and was radiant in his energy. He was like the
wielder of the vajra. Vinda and Anuvinda from Avanti were regarded as
Bhagadatta’s equal. They rode on the shoulders of elephants and followed
Ketumat. O king! Instructed by Drona, the king who was Shantanu’s son, the
son of the preceptor,
⁴²
Bahlika and Kripa, the arrays of chariots were arranged in
vyuha
s
⁴³
with excellent heads. The elephants were the body. The horses were the sides.
That fierce formation was ready to descend and attack on all
sides.”’

‘Sanjaya said, “O
great king! After some time, a tumultuous sound could be heard, when the warriors
prepared to fight, and it made the heart tremble. There were the sounds of conch
shells and drums. Elephants trumpeted. The wheels of the chariots thundered and the
earth seemed to be torn apart. The horses neighed. The warriors roared. O
unassailable one! The armies of your sons and those of the Pandavas encountered each
other and trembled. The elephants and the chariots were decorated with gold and were
seen to be radiant, like clouds with lightning. O lord of men! Those on your side
had many different kinds of standards. They were adorned with golden rings and shone
like the fire. O descendant of
the Bharata lineage! Those on
your side
⁴⁴
and those on the side of the enemy were seen to be as pure as the great
Indra’s standard, in the great Indra’s abode. The brave ones
were clad in golden armour. They blazed like the fiery sun. Armoured, they seemed to
be like the blazing planets. They held upraised weapons and wore guards on their
palms. They possessed standards. They had eyes like bulls. They were great archers
and placed themselves at the forefront. O lord of men! Among your sons, there were
those who protected Bhisma from the rear—Duhshasana, Durvisaha, Durmukha,
Duhsaha, Vivimshati, Chitrasena and maharatha Vikarna. There were also Satyavrata,
Purumitra, Jaya, Bhurishrava and Shala. They were followed by twenty thousand
chariots. Abhishaha, Shurasena, Shibi, Vasati, Shalva, Matysa, Ambashtha, Trigarta,
Kekaya, Souvira, Kitava and those from the east, west and the north
Malava—all the brave ones from these twelve regions
⁴⁵
advanced, ready to give up their lives. They protected the grandfather with an
array of large chariots. With an army that consisted of ten thousand swift
elephants, the king of Magadha followed that array of chariots. Those who protected
the wheels of chariots and the feet of the elephants in the midst of that army
numbered six million. The infantry marched in advance, with bows, shields and swords
in their hands. There were many hundreds and thousands of them and they fought with
nails and lances. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! O great king! The eleven
akshouhinis of your sons looked like the Ganga separated from the
Yamuna.”’