Mahabharata Vol. 6 (Penguin Translated Texts) (26 page)

‘“The immensely strong Bhimasena recovered his senses. In that encounter, he grasped an iron javelin with a golden handle. From his chariot, he swiftly hurled it towards Kritavarma’s chariot. Released from Bhima’s arms, it was like a snake that has cast off its skin. Flaming extremely fiercely, it headed towards Kritavarma. On seeing it suddenly descend towards him, with a hue like that of the fire at the time of the destruction of a yuga, Hardikya used two arrows to slice it into two. That javelin, decorated with gold, was severed and fell down on the ground. O king! It illuminated the directions, like a giant meteor that has been dislodged from the sky. On seeing that the javelin had been destroyed, Bhima was extremely enraged. He picked up another bow that was forceful and made a great sound. In that battle, Bhimasena angrily attacked Hardikya and struck him between the breasts with five arrows. O king! Bhima was terrible in his strength and all this was because of your evil policy. O venerable one! Bhimasena mangled Bhoja in all his limbs. In that field of battle, he was as beautiful as a red
ashoka
tree that was blooming. However, that great archer only laughed. In that battle, he angrily struck Bhimasena with three arrows and then firmly and carefully, pierced those maharathas back with three arrows each. They also pierced him back with seven arrows each.

‘“O descendant of the Bharata lineage! In that encounter, the maharatha laughed and wrathfully used a kshurapra arrow to sever Shikhandi’s bow. On seeing that his bow had been severed, Shikhandi became angry. In that encounter, he grasped a sword and a brilliant shield that was marked with one hundred moons. He whirled that giant shield, which was decorated with gold and dispatched the sword towards Kritavarma’s chariot. O king! In that encounter, the giant sword severed his bow and arrow and fell down on the
ground, like a stellar body dislodged from the firmament. At the same time, in the battle, those maharathas quickly and severely pierced Kritavarma with arrows. O foremost among the Bharata lineage! Hardikya, the destroyer of enemy heroes, discarded the giant bow, which had been shattered. In that encounter, he picked up another bow and pierced each of the Pandavas with three arrows. He pierced Shikhandi with three arrows, and then yet again with another five. The immensely illustrious Shikhandi picked up another bow and countered Hridika’s son with arrows that had heads made out of the nails of tortoises. O king! In that battle, Hridika’s son became angry and powerfully attacked Yajnasena’s maharatha son, the one who was responsible for the death of the great-souled Bhishma in the battle. O king! The brave and powerful one attacked him, like a tiger against an elephant. Those two were like flaming fires, or two elephants in charge of the directions. Those destroyers of enemies clashed against each other with a torrent of arrows and released showers of arrows at each other from the best of bows. They released hundreds of arrows, like the rays of two suns in the sky. Those two maharathas tormented each other with their sharp arrows. Those two brave ones were as resplendent as suns at the end of a yuga. Kritavarma fiercely struck Yajnasena’s maharatha son with seventy-three arrows and pierced him again with another seven. Severely pierced and wounded, he sat down on the floor of his chariot, letting go of his bow and arrows and becoming unconscious. O bull among the Bharata lineage! On seeing him thus distressed in the battle, those on your side honoured Hardikya and waved their garments around in the air. On discerning that Shikhandi was thus afflicted by Hardikya’s arrows, his charioteer swifly bore the maharatha away from the field of battle.

‘“On seeing Shikhandi on the floor of the chariot in the battle, the Parthas quickly surrounded Kritavarma with chariots. Maharatha Kritavarma accomplished a supreme wonder there. In that battle, he single-handedly repulsed the Parthas and their followers. Having defeated the Parthas, maharatha Kritavarma vanquished the Chedis, the Panchalas, the Srinjayas and the Kekayas, all of whom were immensely valorous. In the battle, the Pandavas were slaughtered by
Hardikya. In that encounter, they were unable to retain their spirits and fled in all directions, bereft of their senses. In the battle, Hardikya defeated the sons of Pandu, with Bhimasena at the forefront. He was stationed there, like a fire without smoke. Those maharathas were driven away by Hardikya in the battle. They were afflicted by his shower of arrows and were forced to retreat.”’

‘Sanjaya said, “O king! Listen attentively to what you have asked. Those soldiers were driven away by the great-souled Hardikya. They were overcome by shame and those on your side were delighted. The Pandus were immersed in fathomless waters, without a refuge, and sought refuge. O king! In that great battle, on hearing the fierce roars emitted by those on your side, Shini’s descendant swiftly attacked Kritavarma.
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Hardikya Kritavarma angrily covered Shini’s descendant with sharp arrows and Satyaki also became enraged. In the encounter, Shini’s descendant released an extremely sharp and broad-headed arrow at Kritavarma and shot another four arrows at him. These slew his horses and the broad-headed arrow severed his bow. Satyaki, for whom truth was his valour, used sharp arrows to pierce his charioteer and those who guarded his rear and thus deprived him of his chariot. He then afflicted the soldiers with arrows with drooping tufts. Oppressed by the arrows of Shini’s descendant, the army scattered. Satyaki, for whom truth was his valour, then swiftly departed. O king! Listen to what that valiant one did to your soldiers.

‘“O great king! He passed through the giant ocean that was Drona’s army. Delighted at having vanquished Kritavarma in the battle, the brave one spoke these words to his charioteer. ‘Proceed slowly and fearlessly.’ On seeing your forces, with a large number of chariots, horses, elephants and infantry, he again spoke to the
charioteer. ‘The army on the left, which is like a cloud, is Drona’s. It has a large army of elephants and Rukmaratha is at the forefront.
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O charioteer! There are many of them and they are unassailable in a battle. Instructed by Duryodhana, they are ready to give up their lives and are waiting for me. All these princes are great archers and are brave in fighting. These foremost of rathas come from Trigarta and their standards are embellished with gold. These brave ones are stationed there, desiring to fight with me. O charioteer! Urge the horses quickly and take me there. While Bharadvaja’s son looks on, I will fight with the Trigartas.’ The charioteer was obedient to Satvata’s instructions and slowly proceeded there, on a chariot that possessed the complexion of the sun and was radiant with flags. Supreme horses were harnessed to it and they were obedient to the charioteer. In a battle, they possessed the speed of the wind and their complexions were like the
kunda
flower,
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the moon, or silver. The chariot bore him there, drawn by supreme horses that had the complexion of conch shells. In every direction, the brave ones surrounded him with an army of elephants. They showered many kinds of sharp arrows that could easily penetrate. Satvata also used sharp arrows to fight with that army of elephants. He was like a giant cloud that showers down on a mountain at the end of the summer. The arrows were like the vajra or thunder to the touch and slaughtered the elephants. They were driven away from the field of battle by Shini’s brave descendant. Their tusks were broken. They were covered in blood. Their temples and frontal lobes were shattered. Their ears, faces and trunks were lopped off. They were without riders and flags. Their armour and bells were fragmented. The giant standards were brought down. O king! The blankets were torn apart. With the riders slain, they roamed around in different directions. They shrieked and roared in many ways, like the thunder of the clouds. They were mangled by Satvata’s iron and vatsadanta arrows.

‘“When that army of elephants was routed, maharatha Jalasandha
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urged the elephant that he was riding towards the chariot with the silvery horses. The brave one had a golden complexion and was adorned with armlets made of purified gold. He had earrings, a diadem and a conch shell and was smeared with red sandalwood paste. There was a flaming garland made out of gold around his head. There were golden and resplendent chains on his chest and around his neck. He was seated on the head of his elephant and stretched a golden bow. O great king! He was as radiant as a cloud tinged with lightning. On seeing Magadha suddenly descend on him on a supreme elephant, Satyaki countered him, like the shoreline driving back the ocean. The elephant was checked by the supreme arrows of Shini’s descendant. O king! On seeing this, the immensely strong Jalasandha became enraged in that battle. Angrily, the great archer Jalasandha pierced Shini’s grandson on his broad chest with arrows that were capable of bearing great loads. He then used another yellow, sharp and broad-headed arrow to sever the bow of the brave one from the Vrishni lineage, just as he was drawing it. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Once the bow had been severed, the brave one from Magadha laughed and pierced Satyaki with five sharp arrows. He was pierced by many arrows released by the valiant Jalasandha. But the mighty-armed one did not waver and it was extraordinary. Without any fear, the powerful one thought about the arrows he should use. He took up another bow. Asking Jalasandha to wait, Shini’s descendant laughed and severely struck him on his broad chest with sixty arrows. He then used a yellow kshurapra arrow to sever Jalasandha’s giant bow in his hand and pierced him with three arrows. Jalasandha cast aside the bow, which had an arrow still affixed to it. O venerable one! He swiftly hurled a lance towards Satyaki. In that great battle, this pierced Madhava’s left arm and penetrated the earth, like a giant and fierce serpent that was sighing. When his left arm had been pierced, Satyaki, for whom truth was his valour, struck Jalasandha with thirty sharp arrows.
The immensely strong Jalasandha picked up a sword and a giant shield that was made out of the hide of bulls and was marked with the signs of one hundred moons. He whirled the sword and hurled it at Satvata. Severing the bow of Shini’s descendant, the sword fell down on the ground. When it fell down on the ground, it looked like a circle of fire. He
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picked up another bow that was capable of shattering all bodies. It was as large as the trunk of a shala tree and its roar was like that of Indra’s vajra. He angrily stretched that bow and pierced Jalasandha with an arrow. The supreme one of the Madhava lineage laughed and used two kshurapra arrows to sever Jalasandha’s arms, with their ornaments and their armlets. Those arms were like clubs and fell down from that supreme of elephants. They fell down on the ground, like two five-headed serpents falling down from a mountain. With a third kshurapra arrow, Satyaki severed his head, possessing beautiful teeth and a handsome jaw and adorned with charming earrings. When the head and arms had been cut down, the torso looked fearful and sprinkled Jalasandha’s elephant with his blood. O lord of the earth! Having swiftly slain Jalasandha, Satvata brought down the housing from the elephant’s shoulder.
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Jalasandha’s elephant was covered with blood, all over its limbs. He was hanging upside down from that supreme seat. Afflicted by Satvata’s arrows, the giant elephant fled, uttering terrible and piteous shrieks, and crushing its own soldiers.

‘“O venerable one! On seeing that Jalasandha had been slain by the bull among the Vrishni lineage, a giant roar of lamentation arose among your soldiers. Your warriors retreated and fled in different directions. They were interested in running away and not in defeating the enemy. O king! At this time, Drona, supreme among those who wielded weapons, quickly approached maharatha Yuyudhana, borne on his swift horses. On seeing that Shini’s descendant was rampaging, many bulls among the Kurus angrily surrounded Satyaki, together
with Drona. A battle commenced between the Kurus, with Drona, and Satvata. O king! It was a terrible clash, like that between the gods and the asuras.”’

‘Sanjaya said, “O great king! All of them swiftly fought with Yuyudhana. They were skilled in striking and made endeavours. They showered down a storm of arrows. He struck Drona with seventy-seven sharp arrows. Durmarshana struck him with twelve arrows, Duhsaha with ten. Vikarna struck him on his left side and between the breasts with thirty sharp arrows that were tufted with the feathers of herons. Durmukha struck him with ten arrows and Duhshasana with eight. O venerable one! Chitrasena pierced Shini’s descendant with two arrows. Duryodhana brought down a great shower of arrows on Madhava. O king! In that battle, other maharathas also afflicted him. Your maharatha sons countered him from all directions. However, Shini’s descendant pierced each of them back with separate arrows. He struck Bharadvaja’s son with three arrows, Duhsaha with nine, Vikarna with twenty-five, Chitrasena with seven, Durmarshana with twelve, Vivimshati with four, Satyavrata with nine and Vijaya with ten arrows. The maharatha struck Rukmangada’s bow and brandished his own bow. Satyaki then quickly advanced against your maharatha son.
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While everyone looked on, he severely pierced the king, supreme among the wielders of all weapons, with his arrows and a battle commenced between the two. Both of them affixed and released sharp arrows. In that battle, those two maharathas rendered each other invisible. Pierced by Satyaki, the king of the Kurus looked extremely beautiful. A lot of blood flowed from his body, like the sap from a sandalwood tree. Satvata was also pierced by a mass of arrows released by your son. He
was as beautiful as a golden sacrificial stake that had been erected. O king! In that battle, the Madhava archer suddenly severed the Kuru king’s bow with a kshurapra arrow and laughed. When the bow had been severed, he released many arrows and pierced the enemy with those swift-acting arrows. In the battle, the king could not tolerate these signs of victory on the part of his foe. He grasped another unassailable bow that possessed a golden back and quickly pierced Satyaki with a hundred arrows. He was severely and powerfully struck by your archer son. Overcome by sentiments of intolerance, he began to afflict your son. On seeing that the king was oppressed, your maharatha sons showered powerful arrows on Satvata and enveloped him. When he was shrouded by your maharatha sons in many ways, he pierced each of them with five arrows and pierced them again with seven each. He swiftly struck Duryodhana with eight arrows. Laughing, he severed his bow and frightened the enemy. With more arrows, he brought down his standard, which was decorated with a bejewelled elephant. He used four sharp arrows to slay his four horses. The immensely illustrious one then brought down the charioteer with a kshurapra arrow. The maharatha countered the king of the Kurus with many arrows that were capable of penetrating the inner organs and was delighted. O king! Having been thus struck in the battle by the supreme arrows released by Shini’s descendant, your son, Duryodhana, suddenly fled. The archer king mounted Chitrasena’s chariot and a great lamentation arose in the world on seeing that the king was about to be devoured by Satyaki, like the moon by Rahu.