SECTION CXXI
"Dhritarashtra said, 'Were there, O Sanjaya, no mighty car-warriors in
that army of mine who could slay or resist that Satyaki while he
proceeded (towards Arjuna)? Of prowess incapable of being baffled, and
endued with might equal to that of Sakra himself, alone he achieved feats
in battle like the great Indra amidst the Danavas! Or, perhaps, the track
by which Satyaki proceeded was empty? Alas, possessed of true prowess,
alone he hath crushed numberless warriors! Tell me, O Sanjaya, how the
grandson of Sini, alone as he was, passed through that vast force
struggling with him in battle?'
"Sanjaya said, 'O king, the fierce exertions and the uproar made by thy
host which abounded with cars and elephants and steeds and foot-soldiers,
resembled what is seen at the end of the yuga. O giver of honours, when
thy assembled host was (daily) mustered, it seemed to me that another
assemblage like that of your army had never been on earth. The gods and
the Charanas, who came there said, 'This muster will be the last of its
kind on earth.' Indeed, O king, never had such an array been formed
before as that which was formed by Drona on the day of Jayadratha's
slaughter. The uproar made by those vast bodies of soldiers rushing at
one another in battle resembled that of the ocean itself lashed into fury
by the tempest. In that host of thine, as also in that of the Pandavas,
there were hundreds and thousands of kings, O best of men. The noise made
by those angry heroes of fierce deeds while engaged in battle was
tremendous and made the hair-stand on end. Then Bhimasena and
Dhrishtadyumna, O sire, and Nakula and Sahadeva and king Yudhishthira the
Just, loudly shouted, 'Come, Strike, Rush! The brave Madhava and Arjuna
have entered the hostile army! Do that quickly by which they may easily
go to where Jayadratha's car is.' Saying this, they urged their soldiers.
And they continued, 'If Satyaki and Arjuna be slain, Kurus will have
achieved their objects, and ourselves shall be defeated. All of you,
therefore, uniting together, quickly agitate this ocean-like army (of the
foe) like impetuous winds agitating the deep.' The warriors, O king, thus
urged by Bhimasena and the prince of the Panchalas, smothered the
Kauravas, becoming reckless of their very lives. Endued with great
energy, all of them, desiring death in battle, at the point or the edge
of weapons in expectation of heaven, showed not the least regard for
their lives in fighting for their friends. Similarly, your warriors, O
king, desirous of great renown, and nobly resolved upon battle, stood on
the field, determined to fight. In that fierce and terrible battle,
Satyaki having vanquished all the combatants proceeded towards Arjuna.
The rays of the sun being reflected from the bright armour of the
warriors, the combatants were obliged to withdraw their eyes from those.
Duryodhana also, O king, penetrated the mighty host of the high-souled
Pandavas vigorously struggling in battle. The encounter that took place
between him on the one side and them on the other, was exceedingly
fierce, and great was the carnage that occurred there on the occasion.'
"Dhritarashtra said, 'When the Pandava host was thus proceeding to
battle, Duryodhana, in penetrating it, must have been placed in great
distress. I hope, he did not turn his back upon the field, O Suta! That
encounter between one and the many in dreadful battle, the one, again,
being a king, seems to me to have been very unequal. Besides, Duryodhana
hath been brought up in great luxury, in wealth and possessions, he is a
king of men. Alone encountering many, I hope he did not turn back from
fight.'
"Sanjaya said, 'Listen to me, O king, as I describe, O Bharata, that
wonderful battle fought by your son, that encounter between one and the
many. Indeed, the Pandava army was agitated by Duryodhana in that battle,
like an assemblage of lotus-stalks in a lake by an elephant. Seeing then
that army thus smitten by your son, O king, the Panchalas headed by
Bhimasena rushed at them. Then Duryodhana pierced Bhimasena with ten
arrows and each of the twins with three and king Yudhishthira with seven.
And he pierced Virata and Drupada with six arrows, and Sikhandin with a
hundred. And piercing Dhrishtadyumna with twenty arrows, he struck each
of the five sons of Draupadi with three arrows. With his fierce shafts he
cut off hundreds of other combatants in that battle, including elephants
and car-warriors, like the Destroyer himself in wrath exterminating
creatures. In consequence of his skill cultured by practice and of the
power of his weapons, he seemed, as he was engaged in striking down his
foes, to bend his bow incessantly drawn to a circle whether when aiming
or letting off his shafts. Indeed, that formidable bow of his, the back
of whose staff was decked with gold, was seen by people to be drawn into
a perpetual circle as he was employed in slaying his enemies. Then king
Yudhishthira, with a couple of broad-headed shafts, cut off the bow of
thy son, O you of Kuru's race, as the latter struggled in fight. And
Yudhishthira also pierced him deeply with ten excellent and foremost of
shafts. Those arrows, however, touching the armour of Duryodhana, quickly
broke into pieces. Then the Parthas, filled with delight surrounded
Yudhishthira, like the celestials and great Rishis in days of old
surrounding Sakra on the occasion of the slaughter of Vritra. Thy valiant
son then, taking up another bow, addressed king Yudhishthira, the son of
Pandu, saying, 'Wait, Wait,' and rushed against him. Beholding your son
thus advancing in great battle, the Panchalas, cheerfully and with hopes
of victory, advanced to receive him. Then Drona, desirous of rescuing the
(Kuru) king, received the rushing Panchalas, like a mountain receiving
masses of rain-charged clouds driven by tempest. The battle then, O king,
that took place there was exceedingly fierce, making the hair stand on
end, between the Pandavas, O you of mighty arms, and your warriors.
Dreadful was the carnage of all creatures that then took place,
resembling the sport of Rudra himself (at the end of the Yuga). Then
there arose a loud uproar at the place where Dhananjaya was. And that
uproar, O lord, making the hair stand on end, rose above all other
sounds. Thus, O mighty-armed one, progressed the battle between Arjuna
and your bowmen. Thus progressed the battle between Satyaki and your men in
the midst of your army. And thus continued the fight between Drona and his
enemies at the gate of the array. Thus, indeed, O lord of the earth,
continued that carnage on the earth, when Arjuna and Drona and the mighty
car-warrior Satyaki were all excited with wrath.'"
--------------------END OF PARVA 7 : UPA-PARVA 121 ---------------------
