Mahabharata: Volume 7 (15 page)

‘ “‘He smiled and asked the masses of gods, “Who will be my charioteer?” The gods replied, “O lord of the gods! There is no doubt that whoever you employ, will be your charioteer.” He told the gods again, “You decide who is superior to me. Decide this yourselves and make him the charioteer.” Having heard the words of the great-souled one, the gods went to the grandfather and having obtained his reassurance, spoke these words. “O god! We have done everything that you asked us to, for destroying the enemies of the thirty gods. The one with the bull on his banner is completely pleased with us. We have constructed a chariot and equipped it with many wonderful weapons. But we do not know who should be the charioteer of that supreme chariot. Therefore, let the best of the gods be appointed as the charioteer. O god! O lord! You should ensure that the words
that you spoke become successful. O illustrious one! You told us earlier that you would do that which would be beneficial for us. You should act in accordance with that. The supreme of chariots has parts from all the gods. It is irresistible and will drive away the enemy. The one with the Pinaka in his hand is the warrior. He is ready and will strike terror among the danavas. The four Vedas have become the best of steeds. With all the mountains, the earth is the great-souled one’s chariot. The nakshatras have obediently become the ornaments. But we do not see a charioteer for that warrior. O god! O grandfather! When such are the chariot, the horses and the warrior, the charioteer must be someone who is special in every way, just as the armour, the weapons and the bow are. But except you, we do not see someone who can be a charioteer. O lord! You are the one who is superior to the gods in all the qualities. Ascend swiftly as a charioteer and control those supreme horses.” It has been heard, that in this fashion, the gods bowed down their heads before the grandfather who is the lord of the three worlds and sought his favours, so that he might become the charioteer. Brahma said, “O residents of heaven! There is nothing false in everything that you have said. I will control the horses when Kapardin
³⁴²
fights.” The illustrious god, the grandfather who was the creator of the worlds, was appointed by the gods as the charioteer of the great-souled Ishana. When he swiftly ascended the chariot, worshipped by the worlds, the horses, which possessed the speed of the wind, quickly lowered their heads and sank down on their knees on the ground. Maheshvara also ascended. The great grandfather of the three worlds successfully grasped the reins and urged those horses, which possessed the speed of thought and the wind. When the granter of boons
³⁴³
ascended and left in the direction of the asuras, the lord of the universe
³⁴⁴
smiled and said, “Excellent! Wonderful! O god! Go to the spot of the daityas. Urge the horses diligently. Behold the strength of my my arms today. I will slay the enemies in the battle.”
At this, he
³⁴⁵
urged the horses, which were as fleet as the wind. O king! He went towards the city that was protected by the daityas and the danavas.

‘ “‘Sharva
³⁴⁶
strung the bow and affixed the arrow. He affixed the
pashupata
weapon and thought of Tripura. O king! Having stationed himself there, he angrily stretched his bow. At that point, the cities united and became one. The three cities united and became one and a tumultuous sound of delight arose among the great-souled gods. All the masses of gods, siddhas and supreme rishis became full of joy and uttered words of praise, signifying victory. Tripura manifested itself before the one who wanted to slay the asuras, the god whose form was indescribable and fierce and whose energy was intolerable. The illustrious one, the lord of the worlds, drew his celestial bow. The one who is the essence of the three worlds released the arrow towards Tripura. He consumed the large numbers of asuras and flung them into the western ocean. Thus, Tripura was burnt and the remaining danavas scorched by the angry Maheshvara for the welfare of the three worlds. The one with three eyes then pacified the flames that resulted from his wrath and said, “Do not reduce the world to ashes.” At this, nature, the gods, the worlds and the rishis returned to their natural states and satisfied the infinitely energetic Sthanu with eloquent words of grave import. On receiving the permission of the illustrious one, all of them returned to where they had come from. Having accomplished their objective, the gods, with Prajapati at the forefront, were satisfied. Thus did the illustrious Brahma, the grandfather who is the controller of the worlds, control the horses, and you should do the same for the great-souled Radheya. O tiger among kings! There is no need to debate whether you are especially superior to Krishna, Karna and Phalguna. O unblemished one! He
³⁴⁷
is like Rudra in a battle and you are like Brahma. Like the asuras, if the two of you are united, you can vanquish my enemies. O Shalya! Act so that Karna can swiftly oppress and slay Kounteya, the one
with the white horses, with Krishna as his charioteer. Karna, the kingdom and our foundation is based on you.

‘ “‘There is another account I will tell you about. Listen to it. A brahmana who knew about dharma recounted it in my father’s presence. Hear these wonderful words, full of reasons, deeds and objectives. O Shalya! Do what must be done and do not reflect. The immensely energetic Jamadagni was born in the lineage of the Bhargavas. He had a famous son named Rama,
³⁴⁸
with energy and all the qualities. So that he might be able to please Bhava and obtain weapons, he performed terrible austerities. He was cheerful in his soul, controlled and restrained his senses. At this, Mahadeva was satisfied and pleased by his devotion. Shankara knew what was in his mind and showed himself. The god said, “O Rama! I am satisfied with you. O fortunate one! I know what you wish for. If you purify your soul, you will get everything that you want. When you become pure, I will give you all the weapons. O Bhargava! Those weapons burn down a person who is incapable and undeserving.” Having been thus addressed by the god of the gods who wields a trident, Jamadagni’s great-souled son bowed his head in obeisance and told the lord, “O lord of the gods! If you think that I am a person who is capable of bearing those weapons, you should give me those weapons, since I have always served you.” He performed austerities and resorted to control and discipline. He worshipped, offered gifts and sacrifices and honoured him with oblations and mantras. He worshipped Sharva for a large number of years. Mahadeva was satisfied with the great-souled Bhargava. In the presence of the gods, he spoke about his
³⁴⁹
many qualities. “Rama is firm in his vows and is always devoted to me.” The lord, the destroyer of enemies, was pleased and spoke about his qualities in many different ways, in the presence of the gods and the ancestors. At this time, the daityas became extremely powerful. Because of their insolence and delusion, they afflicted the residents of heaven. At this, all the gods united and made up their minds to kill them. They made every effort to kill the enemy, but were
incapable of vanquishing them. The gods then went and spoke to Maheshvara. They pleased him with their devotion and asked him to kill the large numbers of the enemy. Having obtained a promise from the god that the enemies would be destroyed, the gods summoned Bhargava Rama. Shankara told him, “O Bhargava! For the sake of the welfare of the worlds and to please me, kill the enemies of the assembled gods.” Rama replied, “O lord of the gods! O Maheshvara! Without the weapons, what strength do I possess, that I should kill the danavas? All of them are accomplished in the use of weapons and are indomitable in battle.” The god said, “On my instructions, go. You will kill the danavas. Having vanquished the enemy, you will obtain many qualities.” Having heard these words, he agreed wholeheartedly. Rama offered benedictions and left in the direction of the danavas. He killed the enemies of the gods, who were proud, insolent and powerful. Bhargava struck them with the touch of the vajra. The danavas inflicted wounds on the body of Jamadagni’s son, supreme among the brahmanas. However, at Sthanu’s touch, all those wounds disappeared. The illustrious god was pleased at his deed and granted boons to the great-souled Bhargava, who was knowledgable about the brahman. The god of the gods, the wielder of the trident, was pleased and said, “From the descent of the weapons, there are wounds on your body. O descendant of the Bhrigu lineage! These prove the superhuman deed you have achieved. As you desired, accept these divine weapons from me.” He obtained the weapons and all the boons that he wished for. Having obtained these diverse objects, Rama lowered his head before Shiva. The immensely ascetic one took the permission of the lord of the gods and departed. This is the ancient account that was told by the rishi.

‘ “‘Bhargava imparted all his knowledge of dhanurveda to the great-souled Karna, tiger among men, having been extremely pleased with him. O king! Had Karna not been a deserving person, the descendant of the Bhrigu lineage would not have given him those celestial weapons. I therefore think that Karna cannot have been born in the lineage of a suta. I think that he is the son of a god, born in the lineage of kshatriyas. The maharatha is long in his arms and possessed earrings and armour. How can a doe give birth to
such a tiger? Behold his thick arms, which are like the trunk of a king of elephants. Behold his thick chest, capable of withstanding all enemies.’” ’

‘ “D
uryodhana said, ‘Thus did the illustrious god, the grandfather of all the worlds, become the charioteer, when Rudra was the ratha. It is a duty for the charioteer of a chariot to be braver than the ratha. O tiger among men! Therefore, you should control the horses in the battle.’”

‘Sanjaya said, “At this, Shalya, the lord of Madra, was delighted and embraced your son. He spoke these words to Duryodhana, the slayer of enemies. ‘O king! O son of Gandhari! O handsome one! If this is what you think, I will do everything that brings pleasure to you. O best of the Bharatas! I will perform whatever task I am thought to be fit for. With my entire heart, I will bear the burden of any task. For the sake of what is beneficial, I may speak words to Karna, pleasant and unpleasant. You and Karna should pardon all of them.’ Karna replied, ‘O king of Madra! Like Brahma for Ishana and like Keshava for Partha, may you always serve us for our benefit.’ Shalya said, ‘There are four kinds of conduct not followed by those who are
arya
s—self-censure, self-glorification, speaking ill of others and adulation of others. O learned one! I will speak words for your own good. They may be full of self-praise. But listen to them attentively. O lord! In knowledge, skills of medication, controlling and avoiding distractions,
³⁵⁰
I am like Matali, fit to be Shakra’s charioteer. O unblemished one! O son of a suta! When you are engaged in warring with Partha in the battle, I will guide your horses. Do not be anxious on that account.’” ’

‘ “D
uryodhana said, ‘O Karna! This king of Madra will act as your charioteer. He is superior to Krishna and is like Matali, the charioteer of the king of the gods. Just as Matali controls the horses yoked to Hari’s
³⁵¹
chariot, Shalya will control the ones that are yoked to yours. With you as the warrior on that chariot and with the king of Madra as the charioteer, it is certain that this foremost of chariots will vanquish Partha in the battle.’”

‘Sanjaya said, “Duryodhana then spoke again to the spirited king of Madra. ‘O king! Control these supreme horses in the battle. Protected by you, Radheya will defeat Dhananjaya.’ O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Having been thus addressed, he
³⁵²
agreed and ascended the chariot. When Shalya approached, Karna was delighted in his mind and spoke to the charioteer. ‘O charioteer! Swiftly prepare my chariot and equip it.’ That supreme and victorious chariot was like a city of the gandharvas. Having prepared it, the lord
³⁵³
brought it and said, ‘May you be victorious.’ Karna, foremost among rathas, worshipped the chariot in accordance with the prescribed rites. It had earlier been sanctified by a priest who was knowledgeable about the brahman. He circumambulated it carefully and prayed to the sun. The king of Madra was nearby and he asked him to climb onto it first. That great and supreme chariot of Karna’s was unassailable. The immensely energetic Shalya ascended, like a lion atop a mountain. O king! On seeing that Shalya was stationed, Karna ascended his supreme chariot, like the sun atop clouds tinged with lightning. Ascended on the same chariot, they were like Aditya and Agni together.
³⁵⁴
They were as resplendent as clouds in the firmament, tinged with Surya and Agni together. Those two brave ones, supreme among resplendent ones, were praised. They were like Indra and Agni, praised by priests and assisting priests at a sacrifice. Shalya
controlled the horses. Karna stood on the chariot and extended his terrible bow, like the sun in its halo. On the best of chariots, Karna, tiger among men, with his arrows like rays, looked like the sun on Mandara.

‘ “The infinitely energetic and immensely brave Radheya was on the chariot and ready to leave. Duryodhana spoke these words. ‘O brave one! O Adhiratha’s son! Drona and Bhishma were incapable of accomplishing this extremely difficult task in the battle, while all the archers looked on. Accomplish it. I have always been convinced in my mind that maharatha Bhishma and Drona would kill Arjuna and Bhimasena. O brave one! They were unable to accomplish that valiant deed in this great battle. O Radheya! Like the one with the vajra in his hand, accomplish that task. O Radheya! Seize Dharmaraja, or kill Dhananjaya, Bhimasena and the twins who are the sons of Madri. O fortunate one! May you be victorious. O bull among men! Depart. Reduce all the soldiers of the sons of Pandu to ashes.’ Thousands of trumpets and tens of thousands of drums were sounded. The sound of those musical instruments was like the sound of clouds in the sky.

‘ “Accepting those words and stationed on the chariot, the supreme of rathas, Radheya, addressed Shalya, who was skilled in fighting. ‘O mighty-armed one! Urge the horses, so that I can kill Dhananjaya, Bhimasena, the twins and King Yudhishthira.
³⁵⁵
O Shalya! Let Dhananjaya behold the strength of my arms today, when I shoot hundreds and thousands of arrows shafted with the feathers of herons. O Shalya! I will unleash supremely energetic arrows today, for the destruction of the Pandavas and for Duryodhana’s victory.’ Shalya replied, ‘O son of a suta! Why do you disrespect the Pandavas? All of them are great archers and know about all the weapons. All of them are maharathas. They do not retreat, are immensely fortunate. They cannot be vanquished and truth is their valour. They are capable of generating fear in Shatakratu himself. O Radheya! When you hear the twang of Gandiva in battle, like the
tumultuous sound of thunder, you will no longer speak in this way.’ O lord of men! Disregarding the words spoken by the king of Madra, Karna glanced towards Shalya and asked him to proceed.

‘ “O scorcher of enemies! On seeing that the great archer, Karna, was stationed and ready to fight, all the Kouravas were filled with delight and let out a roar. There was the sound of drums and kettledrums. There was the sound of arrows and the roars uttered by those spirited ones. Those on your side emerged to do battle, resolved to die, rather than retreat. As Karna advanced, the warriors were delighted. O king! The earth trembled and let out a mighty roar. The seven great planets and the sun seemed to be moving. Showers of meteors could be seen and the directions seemed to be blazing. Thunder descended and fierce winds began to blow. Large numbers of animals and birds kept your army to the right, signifying great fear.
³⁵⁶
When Karna advanced, his horses fell down on the ground. Bones showered down from the sky, portending fear. The weapons seemed to be blazing and the standards trembled. O lord of the earth! The mounts released tears. O venerable one! These, and many other ominous signs, were seen there. They signified the extremely terrible destruction of the Kouravas. However, because they were confounded by destiny, none of them paid any attention to these. On seeing the son of the suta advance, all the men on earth cried out for his victory. The Kouravas thought that the Pandavas had already been vanquished.

‘ “Vaikartana Vrisha, elephant among rathas and the slayer of enemy heroes, was stationed on his chariot. He thought of the deaths of the brave Bhishma and Drona and blazed like a fire. On seeing Partha’s unequalled deeds, he was consumed by pride and insolence. He blazed in anger and sighing deeply, spoke these words to Shalya. ‘When I am stationed on my chariot with my bow and enraged, I will not be frightened of the great Indra, with the vajra in his hand. On seeing that Bhishma and the best of others are lying down, do not be anxious. They
³⁵⁷
were like the great Indra and Vishnu.
They were unmatched and unblemished. They were the ones who crushed the best of chariots, horses and elephants. It was as if they could not be slain, but they were killed by the enemy. Nevertheless, I am not alarmed in this battle. The preceptor was a bull among brahmanas and was knowledgeable about great weapons. On seeing the extremely powerful kings, with their men, horses, elephants and chariots, slain by arrows, why did he not kill all of them in the battle? O Kurus! Remembering Drona in the great battle, I am telling you this truthfully. Listen to me. Other than me, there is no one who is capable of withstanding Arjuna, when he advances in the battle, in the form of a fierce Death. Drona possessed learning, serenity, strength, fortitude, great weapons and good policy. When that great-souled one had to succumb to death, I think that all the others are distressed now. When I think about it, there is nothing in this world that is certain. Everything is always the outcome of action. When the preceptor has been brought down, who can proudly say with certainty that he will be alive till today’s sunrise?
³⁵⁸
There is no doubt that weapons, strength, valour, deeds, good policy and supreme weapons cannot ensure human happiness, since the preceptor has been slain by the enemy in battle. His energy was like that of the sun or the fire. He was equal to Vishnu and Purandara in valour. He was always like Brihaspati and Ushanas
³⁵⁹
in policy. He was extremely difficult to withstand, but weapons could not save him. Our women and children are weeping. The manliness of the sons of Dhritarashtra has been defeated. O Shalya! Know that I have to accomplish the task. Therefore, advance towards the soldiers of the enemy, where the Pandava king who is unwavering in his aim and Bhimasena and Arjuna are stationed. There are Vasudeva, the Srinjayas, Satyaki and the twins. Who, other than me, can withstand them? O lord of Madra! Therefore, advance swiftly in the battle, towards the Panchalas, Pandavas and Srinjayas. I think that I will kill those assembled ones in the battle, or follow Drona’s lead.
³⁶⁰
O Shalya! Do
not think that I will not advance into the midst of those brave ones. I cannot tolerate this dissension among friends.
³⁶¹
I will give up my life and follow Drona. Whether wise or foolish, when one’s lifespan is over, one cannot escape with one’s life and advances into Yama’s mouth. O learned one! Therefore, I will advance against Partha. I cannot negate my destiny. O king! The son of Vichitravirya’s son
³⁶²
has always been kind towards me. To accomplish his objective and attain his end, I will give up my beloved pleasures and my life, which is so difficult to abandon. This expensive chariot is covered with the skins of tigers. Its axles don’t make a sound. The three frames are golden and the trivenu is made out of silver. It is yoked to excellent horses. Rama
³⁶³
gave it to me. O Shalya! Behold the colourful bows, standard, clubs, arrows with fierce forms, flaming sword, supreme weapons and the white conch shell that has a fierce sound. It
³⁶⁴
has flags and clatters like the sound of the thunder. It is yoked to white horses and is adorned with superb quivers. Stationed on this chariot, I will use my force to slay Arjuna, bull among rathas, in the battle. Even if Death, the destroyer of everything, diligently protects the son of Pandu in the encounter, I will engage with him and kill him in the encounter, or follow the path to Yama, along which, Bhishma has led. Even if Yama, Varuna, Kubera, Vasava, together with all their followers, unite to protect Pandava in this battle, I will defeat him. What is the need to speak more?’

‘ “On hearing the words of the one who was delighted at the prospect of battle and was bragging, the valiant king of Madra showed him disrespect and laughed at him. To restrain him, he gave him the following reply. ‘O Karna! Desist. Refrain from such bragging. You are delighted and are saying that which should not be said. Where is Dhananjaya, supreme among men? And where are you, an extremely stupid person? The abode of the Yadus was
protected by Upendra.
³⁶⁵
It was like heaven, protected by the king of the immortals. Who other than Arjuna, supreme among men, could have violently abducted that beautiful lady, while he looked on?
³⁶⁶
He has a power and valour like that of the king of the gods. Where is the man, other than Arjuna, who at the time of the slaughter of the animal, could have challenged Bhava, the lord of all lords and the creator of the three worlds, to a battle?
³⁶⁷
To honour Agni, Jaya
³⁶⁸
vanquished asuras, gods, giant serpents, men, birds, pishachas, yakshas and rakshasas with his arrows and gave him the oblations he desired.
³⁶⁹
Do you remember how Dhritarashtra’s son was seized by the enemy and was freed by that supreme among men, using arrows that were as bright as the rays of the sun? In that wilderness, he killed large numbers of the enemy. You were the first to run away then. Do you remember how Dhritarashtra’s quarrelsome son was freed and the Pandava defeated large numbers of those who travel through the skies?
³⁷⁰
At the time of the seizure of the cattle, all of them, though they possessed large numbers of forces and mounts, were vanquished by that supreme of men. The preceptor, the preceptor’s son and Bhishma were also there. Why did you not defeat Arjuna then?
³⁷¹
This supreme and excellent encounter has presented itself now, for the sake of your destruction. O son of a suta! If you do not run away, because of fear of the enemy, you will be slain today, when you advance to fight.’ The lord of Madra spoke many such harsh
words cheerfully, praising your enemy. Vrisha, the leader of the Kuru forces, became supremely enraged and spoke these words to the lord of Madra. ‘Let it be that way. Even if it is that way, why are you praising him, when a battle is about to commence between him and me? If he defeats me in this great battle, will it be said that the words uttered by you have been spoken well?’ The lord of Madra agreed with this and did not say anything in reply. Wishing to fight, Karna asked the lord of Madra to depart. The ratha left in the direction of the enemy with the white horses, with Shalya as his charioteer. He killed enemies in the battle, like the sun destroying darkness. Karna was on a chariot yoked to white horses, covered with the skins of tigers. He left cheerfully. He saw the standards of the Pandavas and quickly asked about where Dhananjaya was.” ’