07.031
Core and Pancharatra: The rallied Pandava army under the leadership of Bhima defeats the combined army of Drona and Karna. Fifteen brothers of Duryodhana are killed by Bhima along with other prominent warriors by Satyaki and Drushtadyumna.
Sanjaya said:
Vrikodara, unable to tolerate the army's counterattack, struck Bahlika with sixty arrows and Karna with ten.
Droṇa, with his sharp iron-tipped arrows, aimed to end life by swiftly striking the vital parts.
Karna shot twelve arrows, Ashwatthama seven, and King Duryodhana six, all aimed at him.
The mighty Bhimasena also struck all of them, targeting Drona with fifty arrows and Karna with ten arrows.
Duryodhana, with twelve arrows, and Drona's son, with eight swift arrows, advanced towards them in battle, creating a tumultuous roar.
Ajatashatru, seeing the inevitability of death, urged the warriors to protect Bhima.
The sons of Madri and the Pandavas, led by Yuyudhana, approached the mighty Bhimasena.
The warriors, eager and united, gathered together, protected by great archers, with the desire to conquer Drona's army.
The mighty warriors, including Bhima, approached with their chariots. Drona, known as the best among charioteers, received them with composure.
Your greatly powerful and mighty charioteers, heroes glorious in battle, set aside their fear of death and advanced towards the Pāṇḍavas.
The horsemen attacked each other, and similarly, the charioteers clashed with the chariots. There was a fierce battle involving spears, swords, and axes.
The inferior sword-fight turned fierce, and the battle among the groups of elephants was extremely terrible.
One person fell from the elephant, another from the horse, but was headless. A man was pierced by an arrow and fell from the chariot, and another, O lord.
In the midst of the battle, the elephant trampled on the chest and crushed the head of another warrior who had fallen and was without armor.
The elephants, with their tusks, attacked and killed many fallen men and charioteers on the ground.
Elephants, adorned with human entrails and horns, roamed in hundreds, trampling hundreds of men.
The elephants trampled over the fallen men, horses, chariots, and elephants, crushing them as if they were mere reeds, despite their bronze and iron armor.
The kings, filled with shame, lie on beds covered with vulture feathers, matured by time, enduring great sorrow.
In this situation, the father indeed kills the son using a chariot, while the son, driven by delusion, acts disrespectfully towards the father.
The axle was broken, the flag was torn, and the umbrella had fallen to the ground. The horse, having taken the broken half of the yoke, ran away.
The arm wielding the sword fell, and the head with its earrings was severed; the strong elephant threw and crushed the chariot on the ground.
The charioteer struck the elephant with a spear, causing it to fall lifeless. The horse, along with its rider, also fell, being severely struck by the elephant.
A boundless and terrible war unfolded. Alas, father! Alas, son! Friend, where are you? Stop, where are you going?
Various voices are heard uttering, "Attack, bring, destroy this with smiling, whistling, and roaring."
The battlefield was covered with the blood of men, horses, and elephants. As the dust settled, a sense of faintness overcame the fearful warriors.
There was a fierce battle involving hair-pulling and fist-fighting with nails and teeth among the heroes on the island who desired to conquer it.
There, the hero's raised arm with the sword was severed, and similarly, another's arm with the bow, arrow, and goad was also cut off.
One person shouted at another here, while another turned away and ran. Yet another removed the head from the body of someone who had arrived.
One person rushed towards the sound, while another quickly fled from it. One attacked his own people, and then another killed others with sharp arrows.
Here, the elephant, resembling a mountain peak, was struck down by an iron arrow and collapsed on the ground like a dam breaking in the summer.
In the same manner, the elephant, resembling a flowing mountain, attacked the charioteer, standing over him on the ground along with the horse and the charioteer.
Upon witnessing the heroes striking with their weapons and smeared with blood, many cowards, who were weak at heart, were overcome by delusion.
Everything became chaotic and nothing could be perceived. The army, scattered by dust, moved without order.
Then the general quickly urged the Pandavas, saying 'this is the time', as they were always in haste.
Following his command, the illustrious sons of Pandu moved like swans departing from a lake, advancing towards Drona's chariot.
There was a tumultuous sound as the fearful warriors, running at each other, seized and cut, all directed towards Durdharsha's chariot.
Then Droṇa, Kṛpa, Karṇa, Aśvatthāmā (son of Droṇa), King Jayadratha, Vindānuvinda of Avanti, and Śalya held back the enemy forces.
The Panchalas, along with the Pandavas, engaged in their noble duty, were irresistible and formidable. Despite being wounded by arrows, they did not surrender to Drona.
Then, in his fury, Droṇa unleashed hundreds of arrows, causing a great massacre among the Cedis, Panchalas, and Pandavas.
The sound of his bowstring echoed in all directions, O gentle one, resembling the clash of thunderbolts, instilling fear in many of the Pandavas.
During this time, the mighty Arjuna, having slain the Trigartas, proceeded to the place where Drona was attacking the Pandavas.
Arjuna, having slain the Saṁśaptakas, emerged from the great lake filled with a whirlpool of arrows and blood.
We beheld the shining mark of his glory, radiant like the sun, by the splendor of the monkey-banner.
He, like the sun at the end of the Pandava age, dried up the ocean of the Trigartas with his weapon rays and scorched the Kauravas as well.
Arjuna, with the brilliance of his weapons, burned all the Kurus, appearing like a comet rising at the end of an age.
The warriors on elephants, horses, and chariots, struck by a multitude of arrows released by him, fell to the ground, their weapons scattered, afflicted by the arrows.
Some cried out in pain, while others screamed again. Some, struck by Arjuna's arrows, fell lifeless.
Arjuna, adhering to his warrior's vow, refrained from killing those warriors who were either rising, had fallen, or were retreating.
The Kuru warriors, with their chariots and horses shattered, mostly turned away in retreat, crying out in despair, 'Karna, Karna, alas, alas!'
Adhirathi, upon hearing the cries of those seeking refuge, assured them "Do not fear" and proceeded towards Arjuna.
He, the foremost among the Bharata charioteers and the joy of all Bharatas, then revealed the Agneya weapon, renowned among the masters of weaponry.
Arjuna, the holder of the shining bow, dispersed the flood of arrows with his own net of arrows. He blocked the weapon with another weapon and roared as he released his arrows.
Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Bhīma, and Sātyaki, the great warriors, attacked Karna with three straight arrows each as they approached him.
Radheya skillfully countered Arjuna's weapon with a barrage of arrows and then proceeded to cut the bows of the three warriors with three precise arrows.
They, though their weapons were cut off, lifted their chariot spears and roared fiercely like lions, similar to venomless serpents.
They, with the tips of their arms moving with great speed and resembling serpents, shining with great power, went towards Adhirathi.
The strong Karṇa, cutting those with sharp arrows in sets of three, roared as he released arrows towards Arjuna.
Arjuna, after piercing Karna with seven swift arrows, struck Karna's younger brother with three sharp arrows.
Then Arjuna, having slain Śatruñjaya with six straight arrows, swiftly severed Vipāṭa's head from his chariot with an arrow.
In front of the son of a charioteer, three brothers of the sons of Dhritarashtra were killed by the crowned one, as observed by all.
Then Bhima leaped from his chariot like Garuda and struck the ears with his mighty sword, totaling fifteen.
Once more, he ascended his chariot, took another bow, and struck Karna with ten arrows, and the charioteer and horses with five.
Dhṛṣṭadyumna, with his shining sword and shield, also killed Candravarman, Bṛhatkṣatra, and Paurava.
Then, the son of Drupada mounted his chariot, took another bow, and pierced Karna with seventy-three arrows while roaring in the battle.
The son of Śini, taking another bow that shone like Indra's weapon, pierced the son of a charioteer with sixty-four arrows and roared like a lion.
With two expertly released arrows, he severed Karna's bow and then struck Karna again with three arrows on his arms and chest.
Then Duryodhana, Drona, the king, and Jayadratha lifted Karna, who was sinking, from the ocean of Satyaki.
Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Bhīma, Arjuna, the son of Subhadra, Nakula, Sahadeva, and Satyaki all protected each other in the battle.
Thus, this greatly fierce battle was fought for the destruction of all archers, where both your warriors and the enemies abandoned their lives.
The army consisted of foot-soldiers, chariots, elephants, and horses, with charioteers and infantry, all arranged in a strategic formation.
Horses were seen with horses, elephants with elephants, charioteers with charioteers, and foot soldiers with foot soldiers, all appearing entangled together.
Thus, the battle was very delightful and pleasing to the flesh-eating beings, as it expanded the kingdom of Yama through the great fearless warriors.
Then, in the battle, men, chariots, horses, and elephants were killed one by one; elephants were killed by elephants, chariots by charioteers with raised weapons, horses by horses, and foot soldiers by groups of foot soldiers.
Chariots, elephants, and great horses, along with men and excellent charioteers, lay on the ground, their tongues, teeth, and eyes removed, their armor and ornaments shattered, all gone to destruction.
Thus, they were killed by others using various actions and excellent weapons, falling to the ground with a frightening appearance. They were crushed and trampled by the feet of horses and elephants, and in great distress, they were ultimately killed by the wheels and hooves of chariots.
In the terrible destruction of people there, beasts, birds, and demons delight. Greatly powerful and angry, they wandered, destroying each other with strength.
Then, O Bharata, as the sun set behind the mountain, the armies, greatly crushed and observing each other in a flood of blood, slowly ceased their fear and retreated to their camps.
