गोहरण पर्व — अर्जुन और कृपाचार्य का युद्ध

Vaishampayana said Seeing the Kuru army arranged in order of battle, the son of Pandu, Partha, addressing Virata's son said :

Do you go where Kripa, the son of Sharadvata is, by the southern side of the car the flag of which has an emblem of a golden altar.

Hearing the words of Arjuna, Virata's son, without loss of time, urged his silver white steeds decked in golden armour.

Making them one by one proceed by swifter course, he urged those those horses resembling the moon as if they were angry.

Well-versed in the management of horses, Uttara, having neared the Kuru army, turned back his horses, fleet as the wind.

A skillful charioteer as he was the Matsya Prince, sometimes wheeling about, sometimes proceeding in circles and again turning to the left, bewildered the Kurus.

Going round, the powerful and fearless son of Virata, approached Kripa's car and stood before him.

Then Arjuna with force blew that great conch Devadatta emitting a great sound and announced his name.

Blown on the battle-field by the powerful Vishnu the sound of that conch appeared like that of the clapping of a mountain.

Seeing that the conch was not broken into a hundred pieces when blown by Arjuna, the Kuru warriors spoke highly of it.

Having reached the very sky that sound came back and was heard again like that of thunderbolt when hurled by Indra against a mountain.

Unable to bear that sound and desirous of fighting that heroic, powerful and undaunted car-warrior, Sharadvata's son Kripa of great strength and prowess, enraged with Arjuna, took up the conch born in a great ocean and blew it with great force.

Covering the three worlds with the sound thereof and taking up the huge bow he twanged it.

While those two highly powerful carwarriors, resembling the sun, fought with each other they appeared like two autumnal clouds.

Then Sharadvata's son speedily wounded Partha, the slayer of hostile heroes with ten swift coursing sharpened arrows capable of piercing into the very vitals.

And drawing his huge bow Gandiva wellknown in the world Partha too discharged many Narachas capable of piercing into the very vitals.

Then with sharpened arrows "Kripa sundered into hundreds and thousands of pieces those blood-drinking shafts before they could reach (him).

Thereupon displaying various movements in anger, the great car-warrior Partha covered all sides with a downpour of arrows.

Covering the entire sky with his arrows, that powerful warrior of exceeding energy, the son of Pritha assailed Kripa with hundreds of shafts.

Afflicted with those sharpened shafts resembling flame of fire and worked up with anger, Kripa, assailing soon the high-souled Partha of incomparable energy with ten thousand shafts, sent out a war cry in battle. Then the heroic Arjuna taking up his bow speedily bored through the four horses of his enemy with four dreadful straight and gold winged arrows shot from the Gandiva. Then pierced by sharpened arrows resembling flames of fire those horses all on a sudden sprang up and Kripa fell off from his place. Then seeing Gautama dislodged the son of Kunti.

The slayer of hostile heroes, did not wound him for keeping his prestige. Again regaining his position Gautama speedily pierced Savyasachin with ten sharpened and Kanka feathered arrows. Then with one sharpened arrow Partha cut off his bow and gloves. Then he cut off Kripa's coat of mail with sharp arrows capable of piercing to the very vitals but he did not wound him. Then divested of the coat of mail his body appeared.

Like a serpent casting off its coating at the proper time. On his bow being cut off by Partha, taking up another.

Gautama made it ready. And it appeared wonderful. The son of Kunti cut off that too with arrows having depressed knots.

In this way that slayer of hostile heroes, the son of Pandu, cut off other bows as soon as they were taken up, one after the other, by the son of Sharadvata.

Having all his bows thus sundered that highly powerful hero took up a javelin from his car resembling a lightning and hurled it at the son of Pandu.

While that golden javelin came coursing through the sky, burning like a huge fire-brand Arjuna cut it off with ten arrows.

As soon as that fell on the ground sundered into a hundred pieces by the intelligent Partha, Kripa took up another ready bow.

And immediately struck Partha with ten sharp arrows. Then the highly energetic Partha, worked up with rage, discharged thirteen sharp and fiery arrow3; with one he cut off the yoke, with four the four horses and with the sixth he cut off the head of the charioteer with three, the great car-warrior, pierced in battle, the three bamboo poles, and with two his two wheels.

With the twelfth arrow he cut off his most excellent standard, and with the thirteenth resembling the thunder-bolt, Phalguni the equal of Indra, as if smiling, struck Kripa on the breast. Then with his bow cut off, dislodged from his car, his horses and charioteer slain, leaping down and taking up a mace, he soon hurled it at Arjuna. That shining and greatly polished mace hurled by him, came back baffled by Arjuna's shafts. Then to rescue the revengeful son of Sharadvata, all the soldiers covered Partha in battle on all sides with a downpour of shafts. Then turning the horses to the left and making the circle called Yamaka, Virata's son withstood all those warriors. Then taking Kripa with them, who had been dislodged from his car, all those leading warriors led him away from Dhananjaya, the son of Kunti. f