Mahabharata: Volume 7 (59 page)

‘S
anjaya said, “On seeing that Bhimasena had approached, Duryodhana was not distressed in his soul. He roared loudly and attacked him with force. Like horned bulls, they clashed against each other. As they struck each other, there were great and thunderous sounds. That tumultuous battle commenced and it made the body hair stand up. Wishing to triumph, they fought each other in that battle, like Indra and Prahlada.
²²
The spirited ones fought with clubs and blood covered all their limbs. The great-souled ones looked like flowering kimshukas. That great and extremely terrible battle raged on. As they roamed around, the sky was beautiful, as if covered with swarms of fireflies.
²³
That fierce and tumultuous clash raged on for some time. As they fought, both scorchers of enemies were exhausted. Having rested for a short while, those scorchers of enemies again grasped their sparkling clubs and attacked each other. Those immensely valorous bulls among men looked like strong elephants, intolerant with pride and wishing to indulge in intercourse. With clubs in their hands, those infinitely valorous ones glanced towards each other. The gods, the gandharvas and the danavas were overcome by supreme wonder. On seeing Duryodhana and Vrikodara wield those clubs, all the beings were uncertain about who would be victorious. The brothers, supreme among strong ones, attacked each other again. They circled around each other, seeking to detect a weakness in each other. O king! The spectators saw that they raised those heavy and terrible clubs, which were like Yama’s staff or Indra’s vajra.

‘ “In that encounter, when Bhimasena struck with his club, in an instant, it produced a terrible and fierce sound. Dhritarashtra’s son saw that Pandava was striking dexterously and powerfully with his club and was astounded. O descendant of the Bharata
lineage! As the brave Vrikodara roamed around, executing many different kinds of motions, he looked resplendent. They protected themselves and attacked each other. They repeatedly wounded each other, like hungry cats over food. Bhimasena moved around in many different kinds of motions. He executed circular motions in different spots, wonderful zigzag movements, advancing and retreating. He countered strikes, struck, avoided and chased. He adopted positions that were meant for attack. He defended, restrained himself, leapt up and leapt down. Both of them were skilled in fighting with clubs and wielded them, high and low. The best among the Kuru lineage roamed around in this way, striking each other and avoiding each other. The extremely strong ones sported, executing circular motions. With clubs in their hands, those powerful ones whirled around. O king! Dhritarashtra’s son struck from the right side. Bhimasena struck from the left side. O great king! As Bhima strode around in that field of battle, Duryodhana struck him on his flank. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! When Bhima was thus struck by your son, he whirled his heavy club, thinking about how he should strike. O great king! Bhimasena’s upraised and terrible club was seen to be like Indra’s vajra or like Yama’s staff. On seeing that Bhimasena was whirling his club around, your son, the scorcher of enemies, raised his terrible club and struck him again. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Your son’s club descended with the violence of a storm. A tumultuous sound was raised and sparks were generated. Suyodhana was energetic and radiant. As he roamed around and executed many kinds of circular motions, he again got the better of Bhima. When Bhima used his gigantic club to strike with great force, smoke and sparks of fire were generated and there was also a loud and terrible sound. On seeing that Bhimasena was whirling his club, the radiant Suyodhana whirled his heavy club, which possessed the essence of stone. The great-souled one’s club had the violence of a storm. Beholding this, all the Pandus and the Somakas were terrified. They were seen in that encounter, as if they were sporting in the field of battle. Those two scorchers of enemies violently struck each other with their clubs. They were like elephants, goring each other with their tusks. O great king! With blood flowing down, they were
beautiful. Thus did the battle, terrible in form, rage on. At the end of the day, it was cruel, like that between Vritra and Vasava.

‘ “On seeing that Bhima was stationed, your immensely strong son executed wonderful and colourful motions and attacked Kounteya. Bhima became angry. With great force, he struck that gold-decorated club.
²⁴
O great king! Sparks began to fly and there was a clap, as if lightning was mixed with thunder. O great king! Hurled powerfully by Bhimasena, the club descended and made the earth tremble. Kouravya could not tolerate that his club should be countered in the clash. He was like a crazy elephant, angered at the sight of another elephant. O king! Enraged and having made up his mind, from the left, he powerfully struck Kounteya on the head with the club. O great king! Struck in this way by your son, Pandava Bhima did not tremble and it was extraordinary. O king! It was wonderful and all the soldiers honoured him. Despite being struck by the club, Bhima did not waver and did not retreat a step. Bhima, terrible in his valour, picked up a flaming club, decorated with gold, which was heavier and hurled this towards Duryodhana.
²⁵
However, displaying his dexterity, the immensely strong Duryodhana freed himself from that thrust and it was extremely wonderful. O king! The club hurled by Bhima was baffled and fell down with the loud noise of a storm and made the earth tremble. Repeatedly resorting to the
koushika
²⁶
technique of jumping up and circling, he
²⁷
discerned when Bhimasena would strike down with the club and deceived him. Having thus deceived Bhima, the immensely strong one, supreme among the Kuru lineage, angrily struck him in the chest with the club. Struck by the club in that great encounter, Bhima was stupefied. Having been struck by your son, he did not know what he should do. O king! At that time, the Somakas and the Pandavas were severely distressed and miserable in their minds. Having been struck, he
²⁸
became as enraged as an
elephant and attacked your son, like an elephant against another elephant. The proud Bhima attacked your son with the club. He rushed forward with force, like a lion against a wild elephant. O king! He was skilled in releasing the club. Approaching the king, he used the club to strike in your son’s direction. Duryodhana was struck in the flank by Bhimasena. He was stupefied by this blow and sank down on his knees on the ground. O lord of the earth! At this, the Srinjayas let out a loud roar. O best of the Bharata lineage! On hearing the roar of the Srinjayas, your son, bull among men, became angry. The mighty-armed one raised himself, like an angry serpent that was sighing. He glanced towards Bhimasena and burnt him down with his sight. With the club in his hand, the great-souled one, best among the Bharata lineage, attacked and, in that clash, struck the great-souled Bhimasena on his head. Bhima was terrible in his valour. Though he was struck on his head, he did not waver, like a mountain. O king! Struck by the club in that encounter, blood began to flow from Partha and he was as beautiful as an elephant with a shattered temple.

‘ “Dhananjaya’s brave elder brother then picked up a club that was made out of iron and was capable of slaying heroes. It made a sound like that of the vajra. The destroyer of enemies struck powerfully with this. Struck in this way by Bhimasena, your son fell down, with his body trembling. He was like a blossoming shala tree in a large forest, whirled around by the force of a storm. On seeing that your son had fallen down on the ground, the Pandavas roared in delight. Your son recovered his senses and rose, like an elephant from a lake. The king was always intolerant. He skilfully circled around and struck Pandava, who was stationed before him, making him lose control over his limbs and fall down on the ground. In that encounter, on seeing that the infinitely energetic Bhima had fallen down on the ground, Kourava roared like a lion. Though he
²⁹
was like the thunder in his energy, the descent of the club shattered his body armour. At this, a loud roar was heard in the firmament, made
by the residents of heaven and the apsaras. The immortals showered down many kinds of excellent flowers. On seeing that the supreme among men had fallen down on the ground, great fear entered the hearts of the enemies. Because of the force of Kourava’s blow, the firm armour had been shattered. However, he
³⁰
recovered his senses in a short while and wiped away the blood from his face. Resorting to his fortitude and recovering his strength, Vrikodara dilated his eyes and steadied himself.” ’

‘S
anjaya said, “On seeing the clash between the two foremost ones of the Kuru lineage, Arjuna spoke to the illustrious Vasudeva. ‘Between those two brave ones who are fighting, who do you think is superior? O Janardana! Who possesses the greater qualities? Tell me.’

‘ “Vasudeva replied, ‘They are equal in what they have learnt, but Bhima is stronger. However, Dhritarashtra’s son is superior to Vrikodara because of the efforts that he has undertaken. Using dharma, Bhimasena will not be able to win this encounter. He will be able to kill Suyodhana only if he fights through unfair means. It has been heard that the gods defeated the asuras through the use of maya. The slayer of Bala robbed Vritra of his energy through maya. O Dhananjaya! At the time of gambling with the dice, Bhima took a pledge that in the encounter, he would shatter Suyodhana’s thighs with a club. This destroyer of enemies needs to accomplish that pledge. The king uses maya
³¹
and has to be brought down through maya. If he uses his strength and fights through fair means, King Yudhishthira will face a hardship. O Pandava! I am saying this again. Listen to me. It is because of Dharmaraja’s transgression that this
fear has again confronted us. Having performed the great deed of slaying the Kurus, with Bhishma as the leader, he had obtained victory and fame and an end to the enmity with the adversary. However, having obtained the victory, he has once again placed himself in a situation of uncertainty. O Pandava! This has been great stupidity on Dharmaraja’s part. He has staked the entire victory on the outcome of a single encounter. Suyodhana is accomplished and brave. He is firm in his resolution. There is an ancient song by Ushanas
³²
and we have heard it. I will recite the shloka, with its deep meaning. Listen. “Those who have been routed, wishing to protect their lives, but rally and return, must be feared. They will be single-minded in their resolution.” Suyodhana was routed. With his soldiers slain, he had immersed himself in a lake. He had been defeated. Hopeless about obtaining the kingdom, he had wished to go to the forest. Which wise one would challenge such a person to a duel again? Suyodhana may now obtain the kingdom that we had won. Having made up his mind, he has practised with the club for thirteen years. Wishing to kill Bhimasena, he leaps up and moves diagonally. If the mighty-armed one does not slay him through unfair means, Kourava, Dhritarashtra’s son, will be the king.’

‘ “Hearing Keshava’s words, the great-souled Dhananjaya glanced in Bhimasena’s direction and slapped his thigh with his hand.
³³
Understanding the sign, Bhima roamed around with his club in the battle. He executed wonderful circular motions and doubled back. He circled to the right and the left and alternated between the two. O king! Pandava roamed around confounding the enemy. In that fashion, your son was also skilled in executing motions with the club. Wishing to kill Bhimasena, he roamed around, executing dexterous and wonderful motions. They whirled terrible clubs that had been smeared with sandalwood paste and unguents. They were like two angry Yamas, wishing to bring an end to the hostility. Those foremost ones, bulls among men, wished to kill each other. They fought like two Garudas who were after the same serpent. O king! Both of them
executed wonderful circular motions. Because of the descent of the clubs, sparks of fire were generated there. In the encounter, those brave and powerful ones struck each other equally. O king! They were like two oceans agitated by storms. Like crazy elephants, they struck each other equally. Thunderous sounds were generated from the blows of the clubs. That fierce and terrible clash continued. As they fought, both scorchers of enemies were exhausted. Having rested for some time, those scorchers of enemies again angrily grasped their giant clubs and attacked. O Indra among kings! They fought a terrible battle with the descending clubs and severely wounded each other. With eyes like bulls, they spiritedly rushed towards each other. Those brave ones fiercely struck each other, like buffaloes stuck in mud. All their limbs were mangled and they were covered with blood. They looked like two flowering kimshukas on the Himalayas.

‘ “Partha showed Duryodhana a weakness and smiling, he suddenly extended himself forwards.
³⁴
Vrikodara was learned about fighting. On seeing the advance, the strong one powerfully hurled the club. O lord of the earth! Seeing that the club had been hurled, your son moved from the spot and baffled, it fell down on the ground. Having respectfully warded off that blow, your son, supreme among the Kuru lineage, struck Bhimasena with the club. Struck severely by that blow and with blood flowing down, the infinitely energetic one was stupefied. However, in that encounter, Duryodhana did not realize that Pandava was afflicted. Though his body suffered great pain, Bhima bore himself. He
³⁵
thought that he was still steady and ready to strike back in the encounter. That is the reason your son did not strike him again. O king! Having rested for a while, the powerful Bhimasena attacked Duryodhana, who was stationed before him, with force. O bull among the Bharata lineage! On seeing that the angry and infinitely energetic one was attacking, he wished to save himself from the blow. Your great-minded son made up his mind to take a stand. O king! He leapt up, wishing to deceive Vrikodara.
However, Bhimasena understood what the king wished to do. He dashed forward, roaring like a lion. O king! As the king leapt up to avoid the blow, Pandava powerfully struck him on the thighs with the club. He was terrible in his deeds and struck with a force like that of the vajra. Duryodhana’s handsome thighs were fractured. The tiger among men fell down, making the earth resound. O lord of the earth! Your son’s thighs were fractured by Bhimasena.

‘ “Fierce winds began to blow and showers of dust fell down. The earth, with its trees, shrubs and mountains, began to tremble. The brave one was the lord of all the kings on earth. When he fell down, a great sound was heard and there were blazing and fearful winds. When the lord of the earth fell down, giant meteors descended. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! There were showers of blood and showers of dust. When your son was brought down, Maghavan
³⁶
showered these down. O bull among the Bharata lineage! Large roars were heard in the firmament, made by the yakshas, the rakshasas and the pishachas. Because of that terrible roar, animals and birds emitted many more terrible sounds in all the directions. When your son was brought down, the remaining horses, elephants and men emitted loud roars. When your son was brought down, there were the loud sounds of drums, conch shells and cymbals and a sound seemed to emerge from inside the ground. O king! In all directions, headless torsos, fearful in form, with many feet and many legs, were seen to dance around, generating fear. O king! When your son was brought down, those who held standards, weapons and arms trembled. O supreme among kings! Lakes and wells vomited blood. Extremely swift-flowing rivers began to flow in a reverse direction. Men looked like women and women looked like men. O king! This is what happened when your son, Duryodhana, was brought down. O bull among the Bharata lineage! On seeing these evil portents, all the Panchalas and the Pandavas were anxious in their minds. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! The gods, the gandharvas and the apsaras went away, wherever they wished to go, after that wonderful encounter between your sons was over. O Indra among kings! So
did the siddhas, the bards and the charanas. Having praised those two lions among men, the brahmanas went away, to wherever they had come from.” ’