SECTION LV
"Duryodhana said, 'Fear not, O king. Nor shouldest you grieve for us. O
monarch, O lord, we are quite able to vanquish the foe in battle. When
the Parthas had been exiled to the woods, there came unto them the slayer
of Madhu with a vast army in battle array and capable of crushing hostile
kingdoms; and there also came unto them the Kekayas, and Dhrishtaketu,
and Dhrishtadyumna of Pritha's race and numerous other kings in their
train; and all those great car-warriors were assembled in a place not far
from Indraprastha; and having assembled together they censured you and
all the Kurus. And O Bharata, all those warriors with Krishna at their
head paid their homage unto Yudhishthira clad in deerskin and seated in
their midst. And all those kings then suggested to Yudhishthira that he
should take back the kingdom. And all of them desired to slay you with
all the followers. And hearing of all this, O bull of the Bharata race, I
addressed Bhishma and Drona and Kripa, struck with fear, O king, at the
prospect of the ruin that threatened our kindred. And I said unto them,
'I think the Pandavas will not abide by the agreement made by them;
Vasudeva desireth our utter extinction. I think also that with the
exception of Vidura all of you will be slain, although the chief of the
Kurus, Dhritarashtra, conversant with morality, will not be included in
the slaughter, O sire, effecting our complete destruction, Janardana
wisheth to bestow upon Yudhishthira the entire kingdom of the Kurus. What
should be done? Shall we surrender, or fly, or shall we fight the foe
giving up every hope of life? If, indeed, we stand up against them, our
defeat is certain, for all the kings of the earth are under
Yudhishthira's command. The people of the realm are all annoyed with us,
and all our friends also are angry with us. All the kings of the earth
are speaking ill of us, and especially all our friends and relatives.
There can be no fault in our surrender, for from time immemorial, the
weaker party is known to conclude peace. I grieve, however, for that lord
of men, my, blind father, who may, on my account, be overtaken by woe and
misery that is endless. [It is known to thee, O king, even before this,
that your other sons were all opposed to the foe for pleasing me only].
Those mighty car-warriors, the sons of Pandu, will, indeed, avenge their
wrongs by destroying the whole race of king Dhritarashtra with all his
counsellors.--(It was thus that I addressed them, and) seeing me
afflicted by great anxiety and my senses tortured, Drona and Bhishma and
Kripa and Drona's son then addressed me, saying, 'Fear not, O represser
of foes, for if the foe wage hostilities with us, they will not be able
to vanquish us when we take the field. Every one of us is singly capable
of vanquishing all the kings of the earth. Let them come. With keen-edged
arrows we will curb their pride. Inflamed with anger upon the death of
his father, this Bhishma (amongst us) in days of old had conquered all
the kings of the earth, on a single car. O Bharata, his wrath excited,
that best of the Kurus smote numberless ones amongst them, whereupon from
fear, they are surrendered to this Devavrata seeking his protection. That
Bhishma, united with us, is still capable of vanquishing the foe in
battle. Let your fears, therefore, O bull of the Bharata race, be all
dispelled.'
"Duryodhana continued, 'Even this was the resolve then formed by these
heroes of immeasurable energy. The whole earth was formerly under the
foe's command. Now, however, they are incapable of vanquishing us in
battle, for our enemies, the sons of Pandu, are now without allies and
destitute of energy. O bull of the Bharata race, the sovereignty of the
earth now resteth in me, and the kings also, assembled by me, are of the
same mind with me in weal or woe. Know thou, O best of the Kuru race,
that all these kings, O slayer of foes, can, for my sake, enter into the
fire or the sea. They are all laughing at thee, beholding you filled
with grief and including in these lamentations like one out of his wits,
and affrighted at the praises of the foe. Every one amongst these kings
is able to withstand the Pandavas. Indeed, sire, every one regardeth
himself; let your fears, therefore, be dispelled. Even Vasava himself is
not capable of vanquishing my vast host. The Self-create Brahma himself,
if desirous of slaying it, cannot annihilate it. Having given up all
hopes of a city, Yudhishthira craveth only five villages, affrighted, O
lord, at the army I have assembled and at my power. The belief thou
entertainest in the prowess of Vrikodara, the son of Kunti, is unfounded.
O Bharata, you knowest not the extent of my prowess. There is none on
earth equal to me in an encounter with the mace. None have ever surpassed
me in such an encounter, nor will any surpass me. With devoted
application and undergoing many privations, I have lived in my
preceptor's abode. I have completed my knowledge and exercises there. It
is for this that I have no fear either of Bhima or of others. When I
humbly waited upon Sankarshana (my preceptor), blessed be thou, it was
his firm conviction that Duryodhana hath no equal in the mace. In battle
I am Sankarshana's equal, and in might there is none superior to me on
earth. Bhima will never be able to bear the blow of my mace in battle. A
single blow, O king, that I may wrathfully deal unto Bhima will
certainly, O hero, carry him without delay to the abode of Yama. O king,
I wish to see Vrikodara mace in hand. This hath been my long-cherished
desire. Struck in battle with my mace, Vrikodara, the son of Pritha, will
fall dead on the ground, his limbs shattered. Smitten with a blow of my
mace, the mountains of Himavat may split into a hundred thousands
fragments. Vrikodra himself knoweth this truth, as also Vasudeva and
Arjuna, that there is no one equal to Duryodhana in the use of mace. Let
thy fears, therefore, caused by Vrikodara. be dispelled, for I will
certainly slay him in fierce conflict. Do not, O king, give way to
melancholy. And after I have slain him, numerous car-warriors of equal or
superior energy, will, O bull among the Bharatas, speedily throw Arjuna
down. Bhishma, Drona Kripa and Drona's son, Karna and, Bhurisravas,
Salya, the king of Pragjyotish, and Jayadratha, the king of the
Sindhus,--every one of these, O Bharata, is singly capable of slaying the
Pandavas. When united together, they will, within a moment, send Arjuna
to the abode of Yama. There, indeed, is no reason why the united army of
all the kings will be incapable of vanquishing Dhananjaya singly. A
hundred times shrouded by immeasurable arrows shot by Bhishma and Drona
and Drona's son and Kripa, and deprived of strength, Partha will have to
go unto Yama's abode. Our grandsire born of Ganga is, O Bharata, superior
to Santanu himself. Like unto a regenerate saint, and incapable of being
withstood by the very celestials, he took his birth amongst men. There is
no slayer of Bhishma, O king, on earth, for his father, being gratified,
gave him the boon,--Thou shalt not die except when it is your own wish.
And Drona took his birth in a water-pot from the regenerate saint
Bharadwaja. And from Drona hath taken birth his son, having a knowledge
of the highest weapons. And this the foremost of preceptors. Kripa also,
hath taken his birth from the great Rishi Gautama. Born in a clump of
heath this illustrious one, I think, is incapable of being slain. Then
again, O king, the father, mother and maternal uncle of
Aswatthaman,--these three,--are not born of woman's womb. I have that
hero also on my side. All these mighty car-warriors, O king, are like
unto celestials, and can, O bull of the Bharata race, inflict pain on
Sakra himself in battle. Arjuna is incapable of even looking at any one
of these singly. When united together, these tigers among men will
certainly slay Dhananjaya. Karna also, I suppose, is equal unto Bhishma
and Drona and Kripa. O Bharata, Rama himself had told him,--Thou art
equal unto me. Karna had two ear-rings born with him, of great brilliance
and beauty; for Sachi's gratification Indra begged them of that repressor
of foes, in exchange, O king, of an infallible and terrible shaft. How
would Dhananjaya, therefore, escape with life from Karna who is protected
by that arrow? My success, therefore, O king, is as certain as a fruit
held fast in my own grasp. The utter defeat also of my foes is already
bruited about on earth. This Bhishma, O Bharata, killeth every day ten
thousand soldiers. Equal unto him are these bowmen, Drona, Drona's son
and Kripa. Then, O repressor of foes, the ranks of the Samsaptaka
warriors have made this resolution,--Either we will slay Arjuna or that
Ape-bannered warrior will slay us. There are other kings also, who firm
in their resolve of slaying Savyasachin, regard him as unequal to
themselves. Why dost you then apprehend danger from the Pandavas? When
Bhimasena will be slain, O Bharata, who else (amongst them) will fight?
Tell me this, O repressor of foes, if you knowest any amongst the foes.
The five brothers, with Dhrishtadyumna and Satyaki,--these seven warriors
of the enemy, O king, are regarded as their chief strength. Those,
however, amongst us, that are our chief warriors, are Bhishma, Drona,
Kripa, Drona's son, Karna, Somadatta, Vahlika, and Salya, the king of
Pragjyotisha, the two kings (Vindha and Anuvinda) of Avanti, and
Jayadratha; and then, O king, your sons Dussasana, Durmukha, Dussaha,
Srutayu; Chitrasena, Purumitra, Vivingsati, Sala, Bhurisravas, and
Vikarna. O king, I have assembled one and ten Akshauhinis. The army of
the enemy is less than mine, amounting only to seven Akshauhinis. How
then can I be defeated? Vrihaspati hath said that an army which is less
by a third ought to be encountered. My army, O king, exceedeth that of
the foe by a third. Besides, O Bharata, I know that the enemy hath many
defects, while mine, O lord, are endued with many good virtues. Knowing
all this, O Bharata, as also the superiority of my force and the
inferiority of the Pandavas, it behoveth you not to lose your senses.
'Having said this, O Bharata, that conqueror of hostile chiefs,
Duryodhana, asked Sanjaya again, anxious to known more about the doings
of the Pandavas.'"
--------------------END OF PARVA 5 : UPA-PARVA 55 ---------------------
