Jayadratha-Vadha Parva — The fierce fight

Dhritarastra said Was there then, O Sanjaya, no mighty carwarrior in my entire army who could resist or slay Satyaki as he proceeded forward?

Of indomitable prowess and possessed of strength equal to that of Indra himself, singlehanded he achieved feats amidst my troops like Indra achieving feats amidst the Danavas.

Perhaps the track through which Satyaki passed was empty. Possessed of prowess in the true sense of the term, he alone has crushed numerous hosts, of mine.

Tell me O Sanjaya, how the single-handed grandson Sini passed through that host of mine, which was fighting vigorously against him?

Sanjaya said O monarch, the exertion and din that were then made by your troops, O king, teeming with cars, elephants, foot-soldiers, resembled that which occurs at the end of a Yuga.

0 bestower of honour, when your assembled host daily increased in numerical strength before, I thought that another muster like that of your army had never been on earth.

The Gods and the Charanas that then came there said, "this muster will be the last of its kind on the earth."

O king, the array, which was formed by Drona in view of a slaughter of Jayadratha, was such that its equal had never been formed on the face of the earth.

Then the din that was made by the armies as they rushed to battle with one another, was as tremendous as one created by the ocean agitated with the vehemence of a mighty tempest.

In those two assembled hosts of the Pandavas and the Kurus, O foremost of men,

innumerable rulers of earth, numbering by hundred and thousand, were enrolled.

Horripilating, dreadful and deafening was the uproar set up by those enraged heroes of resolute deeds, as they proceeded to battle.

Then Bhimasena, Dhrishtadyumna, Nakula, Sahadeva, the virtuous king Yudhishthira, O sire, exclaimed sayingपार्थिवानां समेतानां बहून्यासन् नरोत्तम।

"Come, strike, rush quickly; the two heroes, scion of Madhu's race and the son of Pandu, have entered into the Kuru army.

Do you so act, as they may proceed easily towards the chariot of Jayadratha. Speaking thus, they urged their troops on.

(They again said)-"If those two heroes be slain, then the Kurus will have their objects fulfilled and we shall be defeated. Therefore do you united exert yourselves for agitating this host, like the tempest of tremendous vehemence agitating the ocean. O king, urged on by the Panchala prince and by Bhimasena.

They fell to slaughter the Kurus thoroughly disregarding their own dear lives. Possessed of i great energy, all of them desiring death in

battle, at the edge of weapon, with a view to attain to heaven, showed not the least regard for their lives in fighting for the good of their friends, so also, O monarch, your warriors, desirous of great renown.

And setting their hearts resolutely on battle, remained on the field, determined to to fight to the bitter end. In that dreadful and horible battle.

Satyaki having vanquished all the warriors advanded towards Arjuna. The combatants were compelled to turn their eyes away from the coats of mails covering the warriors, as the reflected the rays of the sun directly. O monarch, Duryodhana then penetrated through the mighty host of the illustrious sons of Pandu striving hard in battle. Then the battle that was there fought between him and them was extremely terrible and the carnage horrible.

Dhritarastra said When the Pandava host was thus advancing and when he was involved in great danger, I hope, O son of a charioteer, Duryodhana did not turn his back on the field of battle.

That battle between the one and the many, that one again being a king by birth, seems to me to be very unfair.

Brought up in great luxury, attended with great prosperity and the ruler of the worlds, that single-handed son of mine, I hope, did not turn his face away from the field of battle, encountering odds in battle.

Sanjaya said The battle, O king, that was then fought, between your son on the one side and the numerous Pandavas on the other, was indeed wonderful. Hear me as I relate it.

Then the Pandava troops were completely crushed by Duryodhana like a forest of lotuses destroyed by an elephant.

Then, o king, beholding the troops shattered by your son, the Panchalas headed by Bhimasena, rushed upon Duryodhana.

Thereupon your son pierced Bhimasena, the son of Pandu, with ten shafts and each of the twins Nakula and Sahadeva with three and the virtuous king Yudhishthira with seven.

He pierced Virata and Drupada with six, Sikhadin with a hundred, Dhristadyumna with twenty and the sons of Draupadi with three arrows each.

He then cut-off many other warriors hundreds in number and elephants and cars in

battle with his fierce shafts, like the wrathful god of Death slaying the created beings.

Owing to his skill acquired through practies and to the powers of his weapons, he appeared, when striking down his foes, to wield his bow, continuously drawn to a circle whether when aiming or discharging his shafts.

Then men beheld his mighty bow of golden staff, as he slew his foes, to be always drawn to a circle.

Thereafter king Yudhishthira cut-off with a Pair of Vallas the bow of your son, who had been exerting to the best of his prowess in battle, O foremost of the Kurus.

He then pierced the latter with ten excellent shafts all well-directed. But striking against Duryodhana's armour they were shattered into pierces and fell down on the earth.

Then the Parthas filled with delight surrounded Yudhishthira, like the celestials and the sages surrounding Shakra on the occasion of the slaughter of Vritra.

Thereafter your highly puissant Duryodhana taking up another bow and addressing king Yudhishthira saying "wait wait" rushed against that son of Pandu.

Then beholding your son rush to battle with fury, the Panchalas always intent on securing victory received him with delight. son

Drona then encountered that division of the Panchalas, from a desire for rescuring the king, like a mountain with slanting masses of raincharged clouds driven by the tempest.

Thereupon, O king, there commenced a awful combat making the hair stand erect between the Pandavas and your troops, O mighty-armed one.

The carnage was terrible like that when Rudra slays in sport all creatures at the end of a Yuga. Then arose a loud uproar the place where Dhananjaya was.

That sound surpassed all other sounds and O lord, made the hair stand erect. Thus, O mighty-armed one, the battle between Arjuna and your warriors went on (with unmitigated fury).

Thus progressed the battle between Satyaki and your men, in the centre of your army and there also raged the battle between Drona and his enemies at the head of his array.

Thus continued that dreadful destruction of creatures when, O ruler of men, Arjuna, Drona and the mighty car-warrior Satyaki were excited with wrath.