Mahabharata Vol. 6 (Penguin Translated Texts) (60 page)

‘“Drona’s son was the only one who advanced against the enemy, like a crocodile against a current. Indomitable in battle, he killed many kinds of Pandu soldiers. He was like a crazy elephant in his valour and freed himself from many difficult situations. When he saw that the soldiers were running away, having made up their minds to flee, Drona’s son approached Duryodhana and spoke to him. ‘O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Why are the soldiers running away and why are they frightened? O Indra among kings! They are running away in the battle. Why are you not restraining them? O lord of men! You do not seem to be your natural self either. Karna and the other kings are also not stationed here. In no other encounter have the soldiers run away in this fashion. O mighty-armed one! O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Why have your soldiers been reduced to this state? O king! Has a lion among rathas in your army been killed? O Kourava! Tell me everything about why this state has come to pass.’ Having heard what Drona’s son said, Duryodhana, the bull among kings, was incapable of telling him the terrible and unpleasant news. Your son was immersed in an ocean of grief, like a shattered boat. On seeing Drona’s son stationed on his chariot, his voice choked with tears. The king shame-facedly told Sharadvata, ‘O fortunate one! Before all the others, you explain why all the soldiers are running away.’ The king went to Sharadvata and repeatedly entreated him that he should tell Drona’s son about how Drona had been brought down.

‘“Kripa said, ‘We placed Drona, supreme among rathas on earth, ahead of us and began to fight with only the Panchalas. A battle with a melee of the Kurus and the Somakas then commenced. They roared at each other and brought down weapons on each other’s bodies. Drona, bull among men, released the brahmastra and killed hundreds and thousands of enemies with his broad-headed arrows. In particular, goaded by destiny, Pandavas, Kekayas, Matsyas and Panchalas approached Drona’s chariot in that battle and were destroyed. With
his brahmastra, Drona consumed and sent one thousand lions among rathas and two thousand elephants to the land of the dead. His grey hair hung down up to his ears. He was dark. He was eighty-five years old. However, in that encounter, the aged Drona roamed around like one who was sixteen years old. He destroyed the soldiers and killed the kings. Though the Panchalas were angered, they were made to retreat. Part of the forces was shattered and retreated. The conqueror of enemies
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invoked a divine weapon that was as resplendent as a sun that has arisen. The powerful one reached amidst the Pandus, with his arrows as rays. Your father was like the midday sun and was difficult to look at. They were scorched by Drona, as if by the blazing sun. Their valour was scorched. They lost their enterprise. They were bereft of their senses. On seeing that they were afflicted by Drona’s arrows, Madhusudana, who wished for the victory of the sons of Pandu, spoke these words. “He is supreme among the wielders of weapons. He is like the leader of a herd of leaders. He is incapable of being vanquished by the enemy in battle, even if it were to be the slayer of Vritra himself. O Pandavas! Therefore, abandon dharma and seek to ensure victory. Otherwise, the one on the golden chariot will kill all of you in the battle. It is my view that he will not fight if Ashvatthama has been killed. Therefore, let someone utter a falsehood and tell him that he
¹¹⁵
has been killed in the battle.” Dhananjaya, Kunti’s son, did not approve of these words. But all the others approved, Yudhishthira with great difficulty. Bhimasena shame-facedly told your father that Ashvatthama had been killed, but your father did not believe him. Suspecting that this was a lie, your father, who was devoted to his son, asked Dharmaraja whether you had actually been killed or not. Yudhishthira was scared of speaking a lie, but was addicted to the prospect of victory. He said that Ashvatthama had been killed and indistinctly added that it was an elephant. This belonged to Indravarma from Malava and was as large as a mountain. It was killed by Bhima. He
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approached Drona and spoke these
words. “You are wielding weapons for Ashvatthama’s sake. You live for the sake of beholding him. He has always been your beloved son. But he has been brought down.” On hearing this extremely unpleasant news, the preceptor was distressed. He gave up his divine weapons and no longer fought, as he had earlier. He was extremely anxious and his senses were numb with grief. On seeing this, the son of the king of Panchala, the performer of cruel deeds, attacked. The one who knew about the nature of the worlds
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saw the one who was destined to be the cause of his death. In the battle, he abandoned his divine weapons and decided to die.
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Parshata grasped his hair with his left hand. Ignoring the loud words spoken by the brave ones, he severed his head. Everyone said, “Do not kill the one who should not be killed.” Arjuna jumped down from his chariot and quickly ran, with his arms raised. He repeatedly exclaimed, “O one who knows about dharma! Let the preceptor remain alive. Do not kill him.” O bull among men! But though he was restrained by the Kouravas and by Arjuna, he cruelly killed your father. That is the reason all the soldiers are running away, afflicted by fear. O unblemished one! With your father slain, we have also lost all initiative.’”

‘Sanjaya said, “On hearing of his father’s death in the battle, Drona’s son was overcome by fierce rage, like a snake that has been stepped on, by the foot.”’

This parva has 538 shlokas and eight chapters.

Chapter 1143(166): 60 shlokas
Chapter 1144(167): 50 shlokas
Chapter 1145(168): 39 shlokas
Chapter 1146(169): 62 shlokas
Chapter 1147(170): 61 shlokas
Chapter 1148(171): 69 shlokas
Chapter 1159(172): 94 shlokas
Chapter 1150(173): 103 shlokas

This section is named after the release (moksha) from the divine narayana weapon. Angry at Drona’s death, Ashvatthama invokes the naryana astra, which was obtained from Narayana. This weapon cannot be countered by fighting and Krishna advises the Pandavas to lay down their weapons. Ashvatthama then kills Pourava Vriddhakshatra, Sudarshana from Malava and the prince of Chedi. Asvatthama’s divine weapons are countered by Krishna and Arjuna. The section ends with the praise of Shiva. This section also ends Drona Parva and the fifteenth day of the war.

‘Dhritarashtra said, “O Sanjaya! On hearing that his aged brahmana father had been killed by Dhrishtadyumna
through adharma, what did Ashvatthama say? Human, varuna, agneya, brahma, aindra and narayana weapons were always vested in the valiant one.
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O Sanjaya! He was always devoted to dharma. On hearing that the preceptor had been killed by Dhrishtadyumna through the use of adharma, what did Ashvatthama say? The great-souled one obtained his knowledge of Dhanurveda from Rama.
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Wishing to be like a preceptor towards his son, he gave him all these divine weapons. There is only one person in the world whom men desire to possess qualities that are superior to those in their own selves. That is the son. There is no one else. All great-souled preceptors pass on the secrets to their sons and to their devoted students. O Sanjaya! He especially obtained all those skills. In a battle, Sharadvati’s brave son has become like a second Drona. He is like Rama in knowledge of the sacred texts and like Purandara in battle. He is Kartavirya’s equal in valour and Brihaspati’s equal in intelligence.
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The young one is like a mountain in his fortitude and like the fire in his energy. He is like the ocean in gravity and like a serpent’s venom in his anger. He is firm in wielding the bow and has conquered exhaustion. He is the foremost among rathas in the world. He is as swift as the wind in speed. He roams around like an enraged Yama. When he is stationed in battle, the earth itself seems to suffer. Truth is his valour and the brave one is not distressed in battle. He has learnt the Vedas. He knows about sacrifices. He is skilled in Dhanurveda. Like the great ocean and like Rama, Dasharatha’s son, he is not agitated. In the battle, a person who followed dharma was killed by Dhrishtadyumna through the use of adharma. On hearing about the preceptor’s death, what did Ashvatthama say? The great-souled one was created for Dhrishtadyumna’s death, just as Panchala, Yajnasena’s son, was generated for Drona’s destruction. He
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was
killed violently by a cruel and wicked one who did not possess foresight. On hearing about the preceptor’s death, what did Ashvatthama say?”

‘Sanjaya replied, “O bull among men! On hearing that his father had been killed through deception by the wicked one, Drona’s son’s eyes filled with tears and he was angry. O Indra among kings! Because of the rage, his body seemed divine. It was like that of the Destroyer, wishing to consume beings at the end of a yuga. He repeatedly wiped his eyes, which were full of tears. He sighed in anger and spoke these words to Duryodhana. ‘My father was brought down by inferior ones after he had cast aside his weapons. A wicked act has been committed by those who should have upheld the standard of dharma. Dharma’s son acted ignobly and cruelly. I have heard everything about all that now. If one is engaged in a battle, there will either be victory, or there will be defeat. O king! Of the two, death is always praised. If death results in a battle where the fight is according to norms of fairness, there should not be sorrow. This is what brahmanas have said. There is no doubt that my father has gone to the world reserved for heroes. I should not sorrow for that tiger among men because he has been slain. However, though he was engaged in dharma, his hair was seized while all the soldiers looked one. That is tearing out my vitals. Because of desire, anger, ignorance, insolence and folly, acts of adharma are performed to subdue others. In that way, Parshata has performed this great act of adharma. The evil-souled one has acted cruelly and has certainly disregarded me. Dhrishtadyumna will witness the extremely terrible consequences of that. He has performed an extremely ignoble deed and so has the liar Pandava. They resorted to deception against the preceptor, when he had cast aside his weapons. That is the reason the earth will drink Dharmaraja’s blood today. I will use every means to kill Panchala. I will kill Dhrishtadyumna, the perpetrator of a wicked deed, in the battle, whether the task be a gentle or a violent one. O Kourava! Having killed Panchala, I will obtain peace. O tiger among men! This is the reason men desire sons, so that they may be saved from great calamities in this world and the next. My father was reduced to a miserable state, as if he had no relatives,
and this was while I, his son and his student, was still alive, like a mountain. Shame on my divine weapons. Shame on my arms. Shame on my valour. Though he possessed a son, Drona’s hair was seized. O supreme among the Bharata lineage! I will act so that I am freed of the debt I owe to my father, who has now gone to the world hereafter. Noble ones never praise themselves. However, because I am angry at my father’s death, I am now speaking about my manliness. The Pandavas, with Janardana, will witness my valour today. I will crush all the soldiers, as if it is the end of a yuga. O bull among men! While I am stationed on my chariot, gods, gandharvas, asuras and rakshasas will be incapable of defeating me in the battle today. In the world, there is no one superior to me and Arjuna in use of weapons. I will blaze amidst the soldiers, like the rays of the sun, and use weapons created by the gods. In the battle today, I will use them against the son of the one with the lean horses.
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I will exhibit my valour and crush the Pandavas. O king! Today, all the directions will be enveloped with showers of my sharp arrows and those on our side will see this. I will shroud everything with nets of arrows that make a fearful noise. I will bring down the enemy, like trees uprooted by a violent storm. O Kouravya! Bibhatsu, Janardana, Bhimasena, the twins, King Yudhishthira, the evil-souled Parshata, Shikhandi and Satyaki do not know the weapons that I possess, or techniques for releasing and withdrawing them. In earlier times, Narayana appeared before my father in the form of a brahmana, who worshipped him in accordance with the proper rites and tendered him offerings. Having received them himself, the illustrious one offered to grant him a boon. My father asked for the supreme narayana weapon. O king! The illustrious one, supreme among the gods, told him,
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“There will never be another man who will be as great a warrior as you. O brahmana! However, you must never use this suddenly. This weapon never returns without killing the enemy at whom it has been aimed. O lord! But it is impossible to know
whom it will not kill. It might even slay those who should not be killed. Therefore, it should not be used.
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O scorcher of enemies! In a battle, this great weapon must not be used to kill those who are running away, those who have cast aside their weapons, enemies who have yielded and those who have sought refuge. In a battle, if it is used to kill those who should not be slain, it will always oppress the user himself.” My father received it. The lord also told me, “In a battle, with this weapon, your energy will blaze and you will be able to shower down many divine weapons.” Having said this, the illustrious lord went to heaven. That is how my relative
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obtained the narayana weapon. With it, I will drive away the Pandavas, Panchalas, Matysas and Kekayas in the encounter, like Sachi’s consort
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against the asuras. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! With this, my arrows will be showered wherever I wish and destroy the valour of the enemy. I will be stationed in the battle and bring down innumerable showers of stones and use arrows with iron heads to drive away the maharathas. There is no doubt that I will bring down many different kinds of battleaxes. O scorcher of enemies! With the great
narayanastra
, I will destroy the enemy and repulse the Pandavas. The wicked Panchala hates his friends, brahmanas and his preceptor. He has performed an extremely despised deed and will not escape from me with his life.’ Having heard Drona’s son, the army returned.

‘“Those supreme among men blew on giant conch shells. Cheerfully, they sounded drums and thousands of smaller drums. The earth roared with the sound of hooves and wheels. That tremendous sound echoed on earth, the sky and heaven. The Pandavas heard that sound, which was like the thunder of clouds. Those best of rathas united and consulted each other. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Having spoken those words, Drona’s son touched water and invoked the divine narayana weapon.”’

‘Sanjaya said, “When the narayana weapon was invoked, violent winds mixed with rain began to blow, though there were no clouds in the sky. The earth trembled and the great oceans were agitated. Instead of flowing towards the ocean, the rivers flowed in an opposite direction. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! The summits of mountains were shattered. Small animals kept the sons of Pandu to the right.
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There was darkness and the sun became dim. Different kinds of carnivorous beings cheerfully descended there. O lord of the earth! The gods, danavas and gandharvas were terrified. On seeing ferocity, all the kings became extremely anxious. They were pained and lost their senses on witnessing the terrible and fearful form of the weapon used by Drona’s son.”

‘Dhritarashtra said, “O Sanjaya! In that battle, Drona’s son was angry because his father had been killed. He was tormented by severe sorrow and made the soldiers
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rally again. On seeing that the Kurus were attacking, what consultations did the Pandavas hold, so that Dhrishtadyumna might be protected? Tell me everything.”

‘Sanjaya replied, “Earlier, Yudhishthira had seen that the sons of Dhritarashtra were running away. Now he heard them make a tremendous noise and spoke to Arjuna. ‘The preceptor, Drona, has been killed by Dhrishtadyumna in the battle, like the great asura, Vritra, slain by the one with the vajra in his hand. O Dhananjaya! The Kurus lost all hope of being victorious in the battle. They were miserable in their minds. They fled, making up their minds to protect themselves. With their parshnis and charioteers slain, some swiftly fled on their chariots. The kings were without flags, standards and umbrellas and the poles of their chariots were shattered. The seats of the chariots were broken. Some lost their senses and climbed onto horses. Some were frightened and themselves urged the horses of their chariots with their feet. With the yokes, wheels and axles
broken, some were distressed and quickly fled. Others were dislodged from the backs of elephants and pinned there by iron arrows. Elephants were killed by the storms of arrows and driven away in the ten directions. Others lost their weapons and armour and their mounts took to the ground. Others were crushed by broken wheels and horses and elephants. As they fled from the enemy in fear, they loudly called out to fathers and sons. They lost their energy and were overcome by depression. They could no longer recognize each other. Some removed the armour from the severely wounded bodies of sons, fathers, friends and brothers and washed them with water. After Drona was killed, the army was quickly reduced to such a state. How has it returned again? If you know this, tell me. There are the sounds of horses neighing and elephants trumpeting. This is mingling with the loud sound from the roaring of chariot wheels. This great and fierce sound has arisen in the ocean of the Kurus. It is repeatedly arising and is making those on my side tremble. It is my view that this will swallow up the three worlds, together with Indra. I think that this fierce and loud roar is being made by the wielder of the vajra himself. On Drona being killed, Vasava is appearing on the side of the Kouravas. Our body hair is standing erect and the rathas and elephants are anxious. O Dhananjaya! What is this extremely fierce uproar that can be heard there? The Kouravas were in a shattered state. Which maharatha, like the lord of the gods, has rallied them for the sake of fighting in this battle?’

‘“Arjuna said, ‘They are ready to perform fierce deeds, basing themselves on patience. The Kouravas are making a noise and blowing on conch shells, depending on the valour of a person. After the preceptor cast aside his weapons and was slain, there should be no doubts about who that person is. The sons of Dhritarashtra have resorted to him and are roaring. The mighty-armed one is modest. He is like a crazy elephant in his gait. His face is glossy and he is the performer of fierce deeds. He has freed the Kurus from their fear. When he was born, Drona gave the wealth of one thousand cows to brahmanas. That Ashvatthama is roaring. As soon as he was born, the brave one neighed like Uchchaihshrava and the earth and the
three worlds trembled because of this. On hearing this, an invisible voice named him Ashvatthama then.
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O Pandava! That brave one is roaring now. There was the one
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who was killed by Parshata, as if he was without a protector. It was an extremely cruel deed and his protector is now stationed there. Panchala grievously seized my preceptor’s hair. Because of that, and because of his own manliness, Drona’s son will not forgive him. Because of the kingdom, you have also spoken a falsehood to the preceptor. Though you know about dharma and are known as a virtuous person, you have performed an extremely grave deed of adharma. “Pandava knows about all forms of dharma. He is also my student. He will not utter a lie.” Thinking this, he
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believed what you said. You spoke a lie, though you garbed it in the guise of truth when you spoke to the preceptor, since you said that an elephant had been killed. At this, he discarded his weapons and became indifferent. O king! He was bereft of his senses and became distracted. O lord! You saw what happened. Affectionate towards his son, he was unwilling to fight and was full of sorrow. Abandoning eternal dharma, the preceptor was killed by the student.
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Though he had cast aside his weapons, your preceptor was killed and this was adharma. If you can, protect Parshata with all your advisers. With his relative slain, he will now be devoured by the preceptor’s angry son. Even if all of us try, we will not be able to protect Parshata today. He
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is extremely affectionate towards all beings. On hearing that his father was seized by the hair, he will destroy us in the battle today. I loudly exclaimed that the preceptor should be protected. However, transgressing his own dharma, the student slew the preceptor. We have already spent most of our lives and only a little bit is left. But now, even that little bit has been tainted by this great act of adharma.
He
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was always like a father in his affection. According to dharma, he was also our father.
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To obtain the kingdom for a brief period, we have killed our preceptor. O lord of the earth! Dhritarashtra gave the entire earth to Bhishma and Drona and his sons, who were even more valuable. Having obtained such a livelihood from him, he always treated the others
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well. The preceptor always loved us, even more than his son. He was not subjugated by us in the battle. He was killed by your words, when he cast aside his weapons. Had he fought, even Shatakratu
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would not have been able to kill him. The preceptor was aged. He always did what was good for us. But we injured him. We have performed an ignoble deed for the sake of the kingdom and because of our limited intelligence. My preceptor had always known that I, Vasava’s son, would have given up everything out of affection for him—sons, brothers, fathers, wives, and even life itself. But because of desire for the kingdom, I ignored him when he was being killed. O king! O lord! Because of that, I am covered with shame and have attained hell. He was a brahmana. He was an aged preceptor. He had cast aside his weapons. He was like a sage. We have killed him today, for the sake of the kingdom. It is better for us to be dead than to remain alive.’”’