07.006
Core and Pancharatra: Drona arranged the Kaurava army in a cart formation, while Dharmaraja arranged the Pandava army in the Krauncha formation.
Sanjaya said:
Bharadvaja, the great chariot-warrior, having assumed command, organized the troops and set out to battle alongside your sons.
The Sindhu king, the Kalinga king, Vikarna, and your son took their positions on the right side, ready for battle.
Shakuni, the supporter, accompanied by the finest horses and warriors, proceeded with the Gandharans and their impeccable spear fighters.
Kṛpa, Kṛtavarmā, Citrasena, and Viviṃśati, led by Duḥśāsana, were vigilantly guarding the left flank.
Their allies, the Kambojas, led by Sudakshina, advanced swiftly with horses, accompanied by the Shakas and Yavanas.
The Madras, Trigartas, Sambasthas, and the inhabitants of the western and northern regions, along with the Shibis, Shurasenas, and Shudras, were together with the Maladas.
The people of Sauvira, gamblers, easterners, and southerners, all have placed your son in front and are positioned behind the charioteer's son.
Karna, the son of Vikartana, encouraged all the armies and took his position at the forefront of all the archers.
His radiant and massive form inspired joy among his own troops; in the elephant division, the one with the great banner shone with the brilliance of the sun.
After witnessing Bhishma's distress, no one considered Karna. All the kings, along with the Kauravas, became free from sorrow.
Joyful and many warriors gathered there spoke: Indeed, having seen Karna in battle, the Pandavas will not stand in the fight.
Karna is indeed capable of defeating the gods along with Indra in battle; what then of the sons of Pandu, who are devoid of valor and prowess in battle?
The sons of Pritha were protected by the strong-armed Bhishma in battle. However, Karna will undoubtedly destroy them with his sharp arrows.
Thus, speaking joyfully to each other, they worshipped and praised Karna, O lord of the people, and then departed.
Our forces were arranged in a cart formation by Droṇa, while the others, O king, had the Krauncha formation arranged by Dharmaraja, who was pleased, O Bharata.
At the forefront of their formation, the best among men, Viṣvaksena and Dhanañjaya, stood raising the monkey-bannered flag.
The leader of all armies and the mark of all archers, the comet that travels the sun's path, is Arjuna of immeasurable energy.
The great-souled Pāṇḍava's army was illuminated, just as the blazing sun illuminates the earth at the end of an age.
Let Arjuna, the foremost, wield the Gandiva, the supreme among bows; and let Vasudeva, the Sudarshana, the supreme among discs, of all beings.
The chariot drawn by four white horses, embodying these powers, stood ahead of others like the formidable wheel of time poised for action.
Thus, these two great souls, Karna and Dhananjaya (Arjuna), are the leaders of the army's strength, representing your side and the enemies' side respectively.
Then, filled with intense excitement and the desire to kill each other, Karna and the Pandava faced each other in battle.
As Bhāradvāja, the great chariot-warrior, suddenly left, the earth shook with a dreadful internal sound.
Then the tumultuous sky covered the sun, as the wind-blown dust, intense like a mass of silk, spread across.
In a cloudless sky, flesh, bones, and blood rained down. Vultures, hawks, herons, cranes, and crows in thousands circled above your army, O king, at that time.
The jackals howled with terrifying sounds, moving anticlockwise around your army repeatedly, eager to devour flesh and thirsty for blood.
A bright, fiery meteor fell into the battlefield, shaking and thundering, its tail covering everything completely.
O king, when the army leader departed, the great surrounding became like the sun, with lightning and thunder.
These and many other very terrible omens appeared in the battle, foretelling the destruction of the lives of heroes.
Then the battle began between the Kuru and Pandava armies, eager for mutual destruction, and the sound echoed throughout the world.
The Pāṇḍavas and Kauravas, filled with intense rage, engaged in fierce combat against each other, launching sharp arrows in their quest for victory.
The greatly radiant and skilled archer of the Pandavas swiftly attacked the army, showering it with hundreds of sharp arrows.
Upon seeing Drona rise, the Pandavas, along with the Srinjayas, responded separately with showers of arrows, O king.
The great army, disturbed and broken by Drona, scattered along with the Panchalas like clouds driven by the wind.
Droṇa, by employing numerous divine weapons in the battle, swiftly tormented the Pāṇḍavas and Sṛñjayas.
The Pāñcālas, led by Dhṛṣṭadyumna, trembled as they were being slaughtered by Droṇa, just as demons are by Vāsava.
Then the heroic Yajnaseni, skilled in divine weapons and a great chariot-warrior, attacked Drona's army from multiple directions with a barrage of arrows.
The strong one, having warded off the showers of arrows from Drona, then killed the army of the Kurus in parts.
After gathering his forces, Drona, the mighty-armed, arranged his army in battle and attacked Parshata.
He unleashed a massive volley of arrows at Pārṣata, akin to how Indra, in his wrath, would suddenly attack the Dānavas.
The Pāṇḍavas and Sṛñjayas, trembling under the assault of Droṇa's arrows, were repeatedly shattered like other animals by a lion.
Then Droṇa, the mighty warrior, charged towards the Pāṇḍava army with the speed and ferocity of a wheel of fire, creating a scene that appeared almost miraculous, O king.
The chariot, imagined like a city moving in the sky according to the scriptures, with fluttering flags, resounding and with prancing horses, adorned with a pure crystal flag, tormented the enemies. Mounted on this best chariot, he destroyed the army of enemies.
