Mahābhārata

M. N. Dutt: Sanjaya said Hear, O king, attentively how that great thousands of the Kurus and the Pandavas took place when they encountered each other.

M. N. Dutt: After the Suta's son had been killed by the illustrious son of Pandu and after the troops had been repeatedly collected and had repeatedly been routed and after a terrible ensaught had taken place, O foremost of men in battle after Karna's death, Partha began to utter leonine shouts. At that time your sons were possessed by great fear.

M. N. Dutt: Indeed, after Karna's death, there was no warrior in your army who could rally the troops or show his prowess.

M. N. Dutt: They then looked like ship-wrecked merchants on the vast sea without a raft to save themselves. When their protector was slain by the diadem-decked Arjuna, they were like persons on the vast sea desirous of reaching safely some shore.

M. N. Dutt: Indeed, O king, after the slaughter of the Suta's son, your troops, panic-stricken and mangled with arrows, were like helpless men like a herd of deer attacked by a hon.

M. N. Dutt: Defeated by Savyasachin, they retired in the evening, like bulls with broken horns or snakes shorn of their fangs.

M. N. Dutt: Their foremost of heroes slain, themselves thrown into confusion and cut with keen arrows, your sons, O king, upon the slaughter of the Suta's son, fled away in fear.

M. N. Dutt: Deprived of weapons and coats of mail, all of them were bewildered and know not where to fly. Looking on all sides, many of them began to kill one another.

M. N. Dutt: Many fell down or became pale, thinking-It is ine whom Vibhatsu is pursuing!—It is me whoin Vrikodara is pursuing!-Some riding on quick horses, some on fleet cars and some on fleet elephants, many great car-warriors fled away from fear, leaving behind the footsoldiers.

M. N. Dutt: Cars were broken by elephants, horsemen were crushed by great car warriors and the foot were smashed and slain by bodies of horse, as they fled away from the field of action.

M. N. Dutt: After the fall of the Suta's son, your troops became like straggling travellers in a forest abounding with robbers and beasts of prey.

M. N. Dutt: Some elephants whose riders had been killed and others whose trunks had been cut off, stricken with fear, saw the entire universe full of Partha.

M. N. Dutt: Beholding his troops flying away in fear of Bhimasena, Duryodhana, then, with cries of Oh and Alas, addressed his driver, saying-If I stand it the rear of the army, armed with my bow, Partha then will never be able to go beyond me. Drive quickly the horses, therefore.

M. N. Dutt: When I will display my courage in battle Dhananjaya, the son of Kunti, will not dare go beyond ine like the ocean never venturing to transgress its banks,

M. N. Dutt: Today, killing Arjuna with Govinda and the proud Vrikodara and the rest of my enemies. I will free myself from the debt I owe to Karna.”—Hearing these words of the Kuru king worthy of an honorable man, his driver slowly urged those horse adorned with trappings of gold.

M. N. Dutt: At the time many brave warriors, deprived of elephants and horscs and cars and five and twenty thousand foot, procecded slowly for battle.

M. N. Dutt: Then Bhimasena, worked up with wrath and Dhrishtadyumna the son of Prishata, encircling those soldiers with the help of four kinds of forces destroyed them with arrows.

M. N. Dutt: All of them fought vigorously with Bhima and Prishata's son. Many amongst them challenged the two Pandava herocs mentioning their naimes.

M. N. Dutt: Surrounded by them in battle, Bhima became angry with them. Quickly getting down from his car, he began to fight, with his mace.

M. N. Dutt: Depending on the might of his own arms, Vrikodara, the son of Kunti, who was on his car, observing the rules of fair fight, did not fight with those focs who were struck down on earth.

M. N. Dutt: Armed with his heavy mace made entirely of iron and adorned with gold and resembling the Destroyer himself at the end of Yuga, Bhima slew them all like Yama destroying crcatures with his club.

M. N. Dutt: These foot-soldiers, worked up with great anger, having lost their friends and kinsmen, were prepared to cast away their lives and rushed in that battle towards Bhima like insects towards a blazing fire.

M. N. Dutt: Indeed those warriors, stricken with fear and invincible in battle, approaching Bhimasena, suddenly died like living creatures at the look of the Destroyer.

M. N. Dutt: Armed with sword and mace, Bhima inoved on like a hawk and killed your twenty-five thousand warriors.

M. N. Dutt: Having killed that brave division, the powerful Bhima, of invincible prowess, once more stood, with Dhrishtadyumna before him.

M. N. Dutt: In the meantime the highly energetic Dhananjaya proceeded towards the car-division of the Kurus. The twin sons of Madri and the mighty car-warrior Satyaki, all strong, cheerfully rushed against Shakuni for slaying him.

M. N. Dutt: Having slain with keen the numerous cavalry of Shakuni, those Pandava heroes quickly proceeded against Shakuni himself, whereupon a fierce encounter took place.

M. N. Dutt: Then Dhananjaya, O king, penetrated into the midst of the car-detachment of the Kauravas, expanding his bow Gandiva known over the three worlds.

M. N. Dutt: Beholding that car having white horses yoked to it and Krishna for its driver coming arrows towards them, with Arjuna as the warrior on it, your troops fled away in fear.

M. N. Dutt: Deprived of cars and horses and struck with arrows from every side, five and twenty thousand foot-soldiers proceeded towards Partha and surrounded him.

M. N. Dutt: Then that mighty car-warriors amongst the Panchalas, viz., Dhrishtadyumna with Bhimasena at the head quickly killed them and gained victory.

M. N. Dutt: The son of the Panchala king, viz., the celebrated Dhrishtadyumna, was a great bowman possessed of great beauty and a repressor of foes.

M. N. Dutt: Seeing Dhrishtadyumna to whose car were yoked steeds white as pigeons and whose standard was made of lofty Kovidara, your troops fled away in fear.

M. N. Dutt: The celebrated sons of Madri, with Satyaki among them, followed by the Gandhara king who was quick in the use of weapons, soon appeared befoie us.

M. N. Dutt: Chekitana and Shikhandhin and the five sons of Draupadi, having killed a large number of your troops, blew their conchs.

M. N. Dutt: Seeing all your troops flying away from the field, those Pandava heroes pursued and killed them like bulls pursuing defeated bulls.

M. N. Dutt: Then the mighty Savyasachin, the son of Pandu, beholding the remaining portion of your army still fighting was filled with anger, O king.

M. N. Dutt: Suddenly, O monarch, he covered the remnant of your army with arrows. The dust, however, that was then raised, covered the sky, for which we could not see anything.

M. N. Dutt: Darkness also spread over the place and the field of battle was covered with arrows. Your troops, O monarch, then fled away in fear on all sides.

M. N. Dutt: When his army was thus broken, the Kuru king, O monarch, rushed against both friends and foes.

M. N. Dutt: Then Duryodhana challenged all the Pandavas to battle, O chief of Bharata's race, like the Asura Vali in days of yore challenging all the celestials.

M. N. Dutt: The Pandavas then, collected in a body and filled with rage, chastising him repeatedly and discharging various weapons, proceeded against Duryodhana.

M. N. Dutt: The latter, however, fearlessly struck his foes with arrows. The prowess of your sons was exceedingly wonderful, since all the Pandavas together were unable to overcome him. At this time Duryodhana saw his troops, exceedingly mangled with shafts and about to fiy away. Rallying them then, O monarch, your son, resolved on battle battle and desirous of gladdening them, addressed those warriors saying "I do not see a place on plain or mountain whither if you fly, the Pandavas will not kill you! What use then in flight?

M. N. Dutt: The Pandava army has now been reduced to a small number. The two Krishna have been greatly wounded. If all of us make a stand here, we are sure to gain victory.

M. N. Dutt: If, however, you fly away, the Pandavas, pursuing you, will slay you all. Death in battle, therefore, conduces to our good.

M. N. Dutt: Death in the field of battle while fighting according to Kshatriya custom, is welcome. Such death begets no grief. By meeting with such a death, a person enjoys eternal happiness in the other world.

M. N. Dutt: Let all the Kshatriyas assembled here me. It were better that they should submit to the angry Bhimasena than that they should neglect the duties practiced by them from the days of their fore-fathers.

M. N. Dutt: There is no act more sinful for a Kshatriya than to fly away from the battle-field. You Kauravas, there is no greater path to heaven than the duty of battle.

M. N. Dutt: The warrior acquires in a day the blissful regions of the other world that take many long years for others to acquire."-Obeying those words of the king, Kshatriya car-warriors once more rushed against the Pandavas, unable to put up with their discomfiture and firinly resolved to display their prowess.

M. N. Dutt: Then began a battle once more that was highly terrific, between your troops and the enemy, that resembled the one between the gods and demons.

M. N. Dutt: Your son Duryodhana then, O monarch, with all his troops, rushed against the Pandavas with Yudhishthira at the head.

M. N. Dutt: Sanjaya said Beholding the boxes of cars as also the cars of great warriors and the elephants and footsoldiers, O king, killed in battle-seeing the field of battle appear dreadful like the sporting ground of Rudra-seeing the ignominious death obtained by hundreds and thousands of kings-seeing also the prowess of Partha after the retreat of your son with a sorrowful heart and when your troops, filled with anxiety and fallen into great distress, O Bharata, were deliberating about their next course, hearing also the loud lamentations of the Kaurava warriors that were being smitten and marking the displaced and disordered tokens of great kings, the energetic, old, eloquent and compassionate Kuru leader Kripa, approached king Duryodhana and angrily said to him:-"O Duryodhana, listen, O Bharata, to these words. Having them, O monarch, act according to them, O sinless one, if you like.

Corresponding verse not found in M. N. Dutt's version.

M. N. Dutt: Sanjaya said Beholding the boxes of cars as also the cars of great warriors and the elephants and footsoldiers, O king, killed in battle-seeing the field of battle appear dreadful like the sporting ground of Rudra-seeing the ignominious death obtained by hundreds and thousands of kings-seeing also the prowess of Partha after the retreat of your son with a sorrowful heart and when your troops, filled with anxiety and fallen into great distress, O Bharata, were deliberating about their next course, hearing also the loud lamentations of the Kaurava warriors that were being smitten and marking the displaced and disordered tokens of great kings, the energetic, old, eloquent and compassionate Kuru leader Kripa, approached king Duryodhana and angrily said to him:-"O Duryodhana, listen, O Bharata, to these words. Having them, O monarch, act according to them, O sinless one, if you like.

Corresponding verse not found in M. N. Dutt's version.

M. N. Dutt: Sanjaya said Beholding the boxes of cars as also the cars of great warriors and the elephants and footsoldiers, O king, killed in battle-seeing the field of battle appear dreadful like the sporting ground of Rudra-seeing the ignominious death obtained by hundreds and thousands of kings-seeing also the prowess of Partha after the retreat of your son with a sorrowful heart and when your troops, filled with anxiety and fallen into great distress, O Bharata, were deliberating about their next course, hearing also the loud lamentations of the Kaurava warriors that were being smitten and marking the displaced and disordered tokens of great kings, the energetic, old, eloquent and compassionate Kuru leader Kripa, approached king Duryodhana and angrily said to him:-"O Duryodhana, listen, O Bharata, to these words. Having them, O monarch, act according to them, O sinless one, if you like.

M. N. Dutt: There is no path, O monarch, that is better than the duty of battle, Taking recourse to that path, Kshatriyas, O best of Kshatriyas, fight.

M. N. Dutt: He who follows Kshatriya practices, fights with son, father, brother, sister son and maternal uncle and relatives and kinsmen.

M. N. Dutt: If he is killed in battle, there is great merit in it. Similarly, there is great sin if he flies from the field. It is for this that the life of a Kshatriya is exceedingly hard.

M. N. Dutt: I will say a few wholesome words to you about this. After the fall of Bhishma and Drona and the mighty car-warrior Karna, after the slaughter of Jayadratlia and your brothers, O sinless one and your son Lakshmana, what is there now for us to do?

M. N. Dutt: They, upon whom we had laid all burdens and been enjoying the kingdoin, have all repaired to regions of blessedness attainable by persons conversant with the knowledge of Brahma, casting off their bodies.

M. N. Dutt: As regards ourselves, deprived of those great car-warriors of numerous accomplishments, we shall have to pass our time in sorrow, having caused many kings to die.

M. N. Dutt: When all those heroes were alive even then Vibhatsu could not be defeated. Having Krishna, for his cyes, that mighty armed hero is incapable of being defeated by the very gods!

M. N. Dutt: The vast Kaurava army, approaching his monkey-emblem standard that is high as Indra's pole set up in the spring and that is cffulgent as Indra's bow, has always shaken in fear.

M. N. Dutt: At the leonine shouts of Bhimasena and the blare of Panchajanya and the twang of Gandiva, our hearts will be paralyzed.

M. N. Dutt: Moving like flashes of lighting and closing our eyes Arjuna's Gandiva is seen to resemble a circle of fire.

M. N. Dutt: Adorned with pure gold, that bow, as it is shaken, looks like lightning moving about on all directions.

Corresponding verse not found in M. N. Dutt's version.

M. N. Dutt: Quick-coursing and white horses endued with the splendour of the Moon or the Kusha grass, that run as if devouring the skies, are yoked to his car.

M. N. Dutt: Urged on by Krishna, like masses of clouds driven by the wind and decked with golden trappings, they hear Arjuna to battle.

M. N. Dutt: That foremost of warriors, Arjuna, burnt that great force of yours like a rising fire consuming dry grass in the forest in the winter.

M. N. Dutt: Possessed of the splendour of Indra himself, while penetrating into our army we have seen Dhananjaya look like an elephant with four tusks.

M. N. Dutt: While agitating your army and terrorizing the kings we have seen Dhananjaya resemble an elephant agitating a lake full of lotuses.

M. N. Dutt: While terrifying all the warriors with the twang of his bow, we have again seen the son of Pandu resemble a lion striking terror to sinaller aniinals.

M. N. Dutt: Those two foremost of bowinen in all the worlds, viz., the two Krishnas clad in mail, are looking highly beautiful.

M. N. Dutt: Today is the seventeenth day of this dreadful battle, O Bharata, of those that are being killed in the midst of this fight.

M. N. Dutt: The diverse detachments of your army are routed and dispersed like autumnal clouds scattered by the wind.

M. N. Dutt: Savyasachin, O monarch, made your army tremble and reel like a boat exposed to danger by a storm on the bosom of the ocean.

M. N. Dutt: Where was the Suta's son, where was, I, where were you, where was Hridika's son, where your brother Dussasana accompanied by his brothers, when Jayadratha was slain?

M. N. Dutt: Upon holding Jayadratha and finding him within the range of his arrows, Arjuna, displaying his prowess upon all your kinsmen and brothers and allies and maternal uncles and placing his feet upon their heads, killed king Jayadratha before us all. What then is there for us to do now? Who is there among your troops now that would defeat the son of Pandu?

Corresponding verse not found in M. N. Dutt's version.

M. N. Dutt: Thai high-souled warrior is a master of many sorts of celestial weapons. The twang, of Gandiva, deprives us of our energies.

M. N. Dutt: This army of yours that is now without a leader is like a night without the Moon or like a river that is dried up with all the trees on its banks broken by elephants.

M. N. Dutt: The mighty-armed Arjuna of white horses will, at his pleasure, move about amidst your army having no commander, like a blazing fire amid a heap of grass.

M. N. Dutt: The vigour of those two, viz., Satyaki and Bhimasena, would rend all the mountains or dry up all the oceans!

M. N. Dutt: The words that Bhima spoke in the midst of the assembly have all been nearly fulfilled by him, O monarch. That which remains unaccomplished will again be accomplished by him.

M. N. Dutt: While Karna was fighting with the unconquerable ariny of the Pandavas, it was vigorously protected by the wilder of Gandiva.

M. N. Dutt: You have done many misdeeds without any cause, by the righteous Pandavas. The fruits of those acts have now come.

M. N. Dutt: For Accomplishing your own object you had, with great care, mustered together a large force. That huge force as also yourself, O best of Bharatas, have fallen into great danger.

M. N. Dutt: Preserve your own self now, for self in the stay of everything. If the support is broken, O sire, everything attached thereto is scattered on every side.

M. N. Dutt: He that is being weakened should seek peace by conciliation. He that is prosperous should make war. This is the policy taught by Brihaspati.

M. N. Dutt: We are now inferior to the sons of Pandu as regards the strength of our army. Therefore, O lord, I think peace with the Pandavas is conducive to our good.

M. N. Dutt: He that does not know what is for his good or knowing disregards what is for his good, is soon deprived of his kingdom and never obtains any good.

M. N. Dutt: If by submission to king Yudhishthira we may still have the kingdom even that would be for our good and not O king, to suffer through folly defeat at the hand of the Pandavas.

M. N. Dutt: Yudhishthira is merciful. At the request of Vichitravirya's son and of Govinda, he will allow you to be the king.

M. N. Dutt: Whatever Hrishikesha will say to the victorious king Yudhishthira and Arjuna and Bhimasena, all of them will, forsooth, obey.

M. N. Dutt: Krishna will not, I think, be able to disobey the words of Dhritarashtra of Kuru's race, nor will the son of Pandu be able to disregard those of Krishna.

M. N. Dutt: The end of hostilities with the sons of Pritha is what I consider to be for your good, I do not say this to you from any mean motives nor for saving my life. I say, king, that which I think beneficial. You will recollect these words when no the verge of death if you neglect them now. Old Kripa, the son of Sharadvata, weepingly said these words. Breathing hard breaths, he was beside himself with sorrow.