SECTION LXXI
Sanjaya said, "Beholding his brothers and the other kings engaged in
battle with Bhishma, Dhananjaya, with weapons upraised, rushed against
the son of Ganga. Hearing the blare of Panchajanya and the twang of the
bow Gandiva, and seeing also the standard of Pritha's son, a great fear
entered our hearts. And the standard that we behold, O king, of the
wielder of Gandiva bore the device of lion's tail and looked like a
blazing mountain in the welkin. Beautiful and of celestial workmanship,
it was variegated with diverse hues, and looking like a risen comet it
could not be obstructed by trees. And in that great battle, the warriors
beheld Gandiva, the back of whose staff was decked with pure gold, and
which looked beautiful like a flash of lightning in the midst of a mass
of clouds in the firmament. And while slaying the combatants of your army,
the shouts we heard uttered by Arjuna seemed to resemble the loud roars
of Indra himself, and the slaps also of his palms were frightfully loud.
Like a roaring mass of clouds charged with lightning and aided by a
raging tempest, Arjuna incessantly poured his arrowy showers on all
sides, completely shrouding the ten points of the compass. Dhananjaya
then possessed of terrible weapons, quickly proceeded towards the son of
Ganga. Deprived of four senses in consequence of his weapons, we could
not then distinguish the East from the West. And your warriors, then, O
bull of Bharata's race,--their animals tired, steeds slain, and hearts
depressed,--thoroughly confounded[396] and huddling close to one another,
sought Bhishma's protection along with all your sons. And in that battle
Bhishma the son of Santanu became their protector. Struck with fear,
car-warriors jumping down from their cars, cavalry soldiers jumping down
from the backs of their steeds, and the foot-soldiers where they stood,
all began to fall down on the earth. Hearing the twang of Gandiva that
resembled the roar of the thunder, all your warriors were struck with fear
and seemed, O Bharata, to melt away. Then, O king, with many huge and
fleet steeds of the Kamvoja breed, and surrounded by many thousand of
Gopas with a large Gopayana force and supported by the Madras, the
Sauviras, the Gandharas and the Trigartas, and surrounded by all the
principal Kalingas, the king of the Kalingas, and king Jayadratha
accompanied by all the kings and supported by a large force of diverse
races with Dussasana at their head, and fourteen thousand principal
horsemen, urged by your son, surrounded the son of Suvala (for supporting
him). Then in that battle, all the Pandavas, united together, and riding
on separate cars and animals, began, O bull of Bharata's race, to
slaughter your troops.[397] And the dust raised by car-warriors and steeds
and foot-soldiers, looking like a mass of clouds, made the field of
battle exceedingly awful. And with a large force consisting of elephants,
steeds and cars, and armed with lances and bearded darts and broad-headed
shafts, Bhishma engaged in battle with the diadem decked (Arjuna). And
the king of Avanti engaged with the ruler of Kasi, and the ruler of the
Sindhus engaged with Bhimasena. And king Yudhishthira with his sons and
counsellors engaged with Salya, the famous chief of the Madras. And
Vikarna engaged with Sahadeva, and Chitrasena with Sikhandin. And the
Matsyas, O king, engaged with Duryodhana, and Sakuni; and Drupada and
Chekitana, and that mighty car-warrior Satyaki engaged in battle with the
high-souled Drona aided by his son. And Kripa and Kritavarman both rushed
against Dhrishtadyumna. And thus, all over the field, rushing bodies of
horses, of elephants and cars, engaged with one another in battle. And
although there were no clouds in the sky, yet flashes of lightning were
seen. And all the points of the compass were covered with dust. And, O
king, fierce meteors were seen failing with thundering noise. And violent
winds blew and a shower of dust fell from above. And the sun, covered by
the dust raised by the troops, disappeared in the firmament. And all the
warriors, covered by that dust and battling with weapons, were deprived
of their senses. And the sound made by weapons, all capable of
penetrating through every armour and hurled from heroic arms, became a
tremendous uproar. And, O bull of Bharata's race, weapons hurled from
excellent arms and possessed of stellar brightness, illumined the whole
welkin. And variegated shields made of bull's hides and embossed with
gold were strewn, O bull of Bharata's race, all over the field. And heads
and limbs were seen falling on all sides, cut off with swords and
scimitars possessed of solar effulgence. And great car-warriors, the
wheels, axles, and boxes of whose cars were broken, fell down on the
ground, their steeds slain and their tall standards tumbling down.[398]
And many car-warriors having been slain, their steeds, mangled with
weapons, fell down as they ran dragging the cars (to which they were
yoked). And, in many places over the field, excellent steeds, afflicted
with arrows, with limbs mangled, and with their traces on, ran, dragging
the car-yokes after them. And many car-warriors, with their charioteers
and steeds, were seen, O king, to be crushed by single elephants endued
with great strength.[399] And in that battle, in the midst of large
forces, many elephants, scenting the odour of the temporal juice of their
compeers, began to snuff the breeze repeatedly. And the whole field was
strewn with slain elephants, deprived of life by means of broad-headed
shafts and falling down with the wooden edifices and the guides on their
backs. And many elephants, in, the midst of large forces crushed, with
the standards and warriors on their backs, by huge compeers urged by
their guides, fell down on the field. And many car-shafts, O king, were
seen to be broken in that battle by huge elephants using their trunks,
each of which resembled the trunk of the prince of elephants (called
Airavata). And many car-warriors also, in that conflict, the Jalas of
whose cars had been broken, were like branches of trees dragged down by
tuskers, seized by the hair of their heads and, thrashed violently on the
ground, were crushed into shapeless masses. And other huge elephants,
dragging cars that were entangled with other cars, ran in all directions
shrieking loudly. And those elephants, thus dragging those cars, looked
like others of their species dragging lotus-stalks growing in lakes. And
thus was that vast field of battle strewn over with cavalry soldiers and
foot-soldiers and great car-warriors and standards."
--------------------END OF PARVA 6 : UPA-PARVA 71 ---------------------
