07.150
Core and Pancharatra: Description of Ghatotkacha. Witnessing the fierce battle with illusions, the distressed Kaurava army fled away. Only Karna is able to withstand the illusion and agility of Ghatotkacha, and that too with considerable effort. In the process, Ghatotkacha is playing with Karna's mind by saying - "Stand now, son of a charioteer, you shall not leave alive. Today, I will destroy your faith in battle on the battlefield."
Dhritarashtra said:
The battle between Karna, the son of Vikartana, and the demon Ghatotkacha took place at midnight. How did that battle unfold?
What kind of battle did that terrible demon fight? And what were his chariot, magic, and all his weapons like?
Sanjaya, you are knowledgeable, so tell me about the measurements of his horses, the chariot-banner, and the bow, as well as the kind of armor and neck-guard he possesses.
Sanjaya said:
He is described as having red eyes, a large body, a copper-colored face, a deep belly; his hair stands upright, he has a tawny beard, ears shaped like conches, and a large jaw.
He had a terrifying appearance with a mouth torn from ear to ear, sharp fangs, very long coppery tongue and lips, hanging eyebrows, and a thick nose.
He is blue-bodied with a red neck, mountain-sized and fearsome; possessing a great body, arms, head, and immense power.
He is blooming, rough to touch, with huge swollen muscles, large buttocks, a hidden navel, and a loose, great growth.
In the same manner, the great illusionist adorned with hand ornaments and armlets, bore a golden chain and a fiery garland on his chest, resembling a mountain.
His crown, made of gold and adorned with various forms, shone brightly like an archway on his head.
He wore earrings that shone like the young sun, a golden and auspicious garland, and an ample bronze armor that was very splendid.
The great chariot, resounding with the noise of a hundred bells, adorned with red flags and banners, covered with bear skin, and measuring four units, stood majestically.
The chariot, equipped with all the best weapons and adorned with a flag, was seated and fitted with eight wheels, producing a deep sound like that of a cloud.
There, terrifying horses, resembling elephants, with red eyes and desirous of speed, were yoked and strong, carrying forward.
The demon Virupaksha, with his charioteer whose face and earrings shone brightly, seized the horses in battle with rays resembling those of the sun. Together with Varuna, he stood like the sun.
A massive banner, as if attached to a mountain by a great cloud, is raised high on his chariot, reaching the sky. A red-headed vulture, a flesh-eater, appears extremely terrifying.
The bow, with a circumference of twelve cubits, was clearly visible as its firm bowstring was stretched, echoing the sound of Indra's thunderbolt.
During the night that stole heroes, Karna approached, covering all directions with arrows the size of chariot axles.
As he stood firm on the chariot, his bow was thrown, and the sound of the bow was heard, resonating like the crack of a thunderbolt.
Frightened by him, your armies, O Bharata, trembled like the great waves of the ocean.
Radheya, with a smile on his face, quickly blocked the approaching Virupaksha and Vibhishana.
Then Karna approached him, hissing as he came near, like an elephant approaching another elephant, or like a leader of the herd approaching a bull.
The tumultuous clash between the two was as fierce as the legendary battles between Karna and Rakshasa, and Indra and Shambara, O king.
They both swiftly took up their bows, which emitted a terrifying sound, and began to cover each other with a barrage of powerful arrows, attacking fiercely.
Then, with their fully drawn and released arrows having bent joints, they obstructed each other by piercing through the bronze armor.
They attacked each other fiercely, like tigers with claws and great elephants with tusks, using chariot spikes and arrows.
They were cutting the limbs and joining the arrows, but being burned by showers of arrows, they were unable to look up.
Those two, though wounded and covered in blood, stood out like red ochre mountains with water flowing down.
The two warriors, with their limbs pierced by the tips of arrows, continued to pierce each other without trembling, striving against one another with great splendor.
The night battle began and continued for a long time, appearing evenly matched, O king, between Karna and the Rakshasa in the fight.
As he strung and shot sharp arrows, the sound of his bow frightened both his own and the enemies. When Karna targets Ghatotkacha, our king is concerned.
Then the best among the weapon experts manifested a divine weapon. Observing the divine weapon employed by Karna, Ghatotkacha, the son of Pandu and a demon, created a great illusion.
He was surrounded by a great army of demons with terrible forms, bearing a spear and mace, and with hands like mountain trees.
Upon seeing him with his great bow raised, the kings became distressed, as if they were witnessing the approach of the destroyer of all beings, bearing the fierce rod of time.
The terrifying roar released by Ghatotkacha frightened the elephants, causing them to urinate, and the men trembled in great fear.
Then, at midnight, a very fierce and great stone rain was released all around by the superior forces of the demons.
Iron discs, missiles, javelins, and spears fall unceasingly, along with pikes, hundred-killers, and swords, creating a relentless barrage.
Upon witnessing the fierce and terrible battle, the kings, along with your sons and warriors, were distressed and fled away.
There, Karṇa, who was proud and boasted of his weaponry strength, remained undisturbed and dispelled the illusion crafted by Ghaṭotkaca using his arrows.
When the illusion was dispelled, Ghatotkacha, in anger, released terrible arrows that struck Karna.
Then, in the great battle, the arrows, smeared with blood, pierced the ear and entered the earth like enraged serpents.
The son of a charioteer, though angry and quick-handed, showed his might by bypassing Ghatotkacha and piercing him with ten arrows.
Ghatotkacha, having been severely wounded in his vital parts by Karna, the son of a charioteer, took up the divine thousand-spoked discus in great distress.
The angry son of Bhimasena hurled the sharp-edged, jewel-adorned weapon, resembling the rising sun, with the intent to kill the great chariot-warrior.
The object, thrown with immense speed and scattered by Karna's arrows, fell uselessly to the ground, akin to the futile resolve of an unfortunate person.
Ghatotkacha, in his fury, upon seeing the discus fall, enveloped Karna with his arrows, just as Swarbhanu (Rahu) eclipses the sun.
The son of a charioteer, displaying the valor of Rudra and Indra, remained unshaken and swiftly enveloped Ghatotkacha's chariot with a barrage of arrows.
The golden-limbed mace, thrown by the furious Ghatotkacha, spun through the air but was struck down by Karna's arrows.
Then, rising into the sky like a roaring dark cloud, the huge-bodied being showered a rain of trees from the sky.
Then Karna, known for his cunning, attacked the son of Bhimasena in the sky with his arrows, just as the Sun penetrates a cloud with its rays.
Karṇa, having destroyed all the horses and shattered the chariot into a hundred fragments, rained arrows like a cloud pouring rain.
There was not a single unbroken space of two fingers on his body. In a moment, he vanished, covered like a dog.
In the battle, they could not see his horses, chariot, flag, or Ghatotkacha, as all were covered by a multitude of arrows.
He countered Karna's divine weapon with his own and engaged in illusory warfare against the son of a charioteer.
He fought Karna using illusion and agility, remaining unseen as he moved through the sky amidst a shower of arrows.
Bheemasena, known for his great magical prowess, conjured a powerful illusion that seemed to bewilder everyone, O esteemed Kuru, O Bharata.
He, with an evil face, transformed the faces into ugly ones and devoured the divine weapons of the charioteer's son through illusion.
Once more, the mighty warrior was shattered into a hundred fragments in the battle, lifeless and devoid of spirit, he was seen falling from the sky. Believing him to be slain, the Kuru heroes let out a triumphant roar.
Then, with new and different bodies, he appeared everywhere in all directions. Again, he was immense, with a hundred heads and a hundred bellies.
The mighty-armed demon appeared like the mountain Mainaka, and then he became thumb-sized again.
It moved like an agitated wave of the ocean, swirling in all directions.
After splitting the earth, he submerged into the waters once more. Then, he was seen emerging again from another place.
He descended once more and stood on the gold-adorned chariot, appearing to cover the earth, sky, and directions with illusion.
Having approached Karna's chariot, with his earrings and face trembling, he spoke calmly to the son of a charioteer, O lord of the people.
"Stand now, son of a charioteer, you shall not leave alive. Today, I will destroy your faith in battle on the battlefield."
Thus, having spoken, the demon with eyes red from anger, fierce in valor, leaped into the sky and laughed loudly. He struck the ear like a lion strikes an elephant.
Ghatotkacha attacked Karna, the foremost among charioteers, with massive arrows, resembling a cloud pouring rain. Karna, however, managed to disperse the incoming shower of arrows.
Upon witnessing his illusion being destroyed by Karna, Ghatotkacha, the mighty warrior, conjured another illusion while vanishing from sight, O best of the Bharatas.
He transformed into a great mountain, towering with peaks and densely packed with trees, spears, javelins, swords, clubs, and flowing streams of water.
Karṇa was not disturbed upon seeing the mountain, which appeared like a mass of collyrium and was bearing fierce weapons with its precipices.
Karna, smiling as if in confidence, then discharged a divine weapon. Consequently, the lord of mountains was shattered and destroyed by the weapon.
Then he transformed into a dark cloud with Indra's bow in the sky and fiercely showered stones upon the son of Suta.
Then Karna, the son of Vikartana, the best among those skilled in weaponry, fixed the wind weapon and dispersed the dark clouds.
Karṇa, with his volleys of arrows, enveloped all directions and struck down the weapon launched by Ghaṭotkaca, O great king.
Then, with a smile on his face during the battle, the mighty son of Bhimasena conjured a great illusion aimed at Karna, the great charioteer.
Upon seeing Ghatotkacha, the best among charioteers, returning unperturbed and surrounded by many demons, he was reassured.
They were like lions and tigers, possessing the prowess of intoxicated elephants, and were mounted on elephants, chariots, and horses.
Ghatotkacha, surrounded by fierce warriors with various weapons and armors, resembled Indra with the Maruts. Upon seeing this, the great archer Karna engaged in battle with the demon.
Ghatotkacha, after piercing Karna with five swift arrows, let out a terrifying roar that frightened all the kings.
Then, with a gesture of reverence, Ghatotkacha swiftly severed the great array of arrows and the bow that was held in Karna's hand.
Then Karṇa, taking another strong and heavy bow, drew it with force, resembling the raised bow of Indra.
Then Karṇa, the great warrior, sent forth his arrows with golden tips, designed to slay enemies, flying towards the demons.
The troop of broad-chested demons was struck by arrows, resembling a wild herd of elephants being attacked by a lion.
The lord, having annihilated the demons with his arrows, along with their horses, charioteers, and elephants, burned them as the fire consumes all beings at the end of an era.
After defeating the demoness army, the son of Suta shone brilliantly, reminiscent of how Lord Maheshvara once shone in heaven after burning Tripura.
O venerable one, among the thousands of kings and the sons of Pandu, no one is able to even look at him, O prince.
Except for Ghatotkacha, O king, the demon lords of great strength, endowed with Bhima's strength and valor, were as angry as Yama.
From his angry eyes, fire emerged, resembling great meteors, O king, with flames and drops of oil.
Striking the surface with the surface, biting with teeth, and mounting the chariot again created by illusion.
He, equipped with vehicles resembling elephants and having demon-like faces, angrily instructed the charioteer not to carry the son of the charioteer.
He, the best of charioteers, went with a terrible form by chariot to engage in a duel with the son of a charioteer, once again, O lord of men.
The enraged demon once again hurled the eight-wheeled, extremely terrifying thunderbolt, crafted by Rudra, at the charioteer's son.
Karṇa, after jumping, seized her and placed the bow on the chariot. He then threw it and jumped down from his own chariot.
The one with great radiance turned the chariot with its horses, charioteer, and flag into ashes and entered the earth by piercing it, leaving the gods there astonished.
Karna was easily worshipped by all beings, and he, having leaped, took the great weapon crafted by the gods.
After completing his actions, Karṇa once more mounted his chariot in the battlefield. Then, the son of a charioteer, known for tormenting his enemies, unleashed his arrows.
O giver of honor, what Karna accomplished in the battle witnessed by Bhima was impossible for anyone else among all beings.
He, resembling a mountain being struck by torrents of arrows, vanished again like a mystical city of the Gandharvas.
Thus, the great illusionist, with his skill and speed, destroyed the divine weapons, proving himself to be the destroyer of enemies.
As the weapons were being destroyed by the demon's illusion, Karna remained unperturbed and fought back against the demon.
Then the mighty son of Bhimasena, in his anger, transformed himself into many forms to intimidate the kings.
Then, from all directions, lions, tigers, and bears arrived, along with fire-tongued serpents and birds, all with iron faces.
He was overwhelmed by the sharp arrows released from Karna's bow and vanished on the spot, resembling a city, mountain, and forest.
The demons, goblins, fiends, and wolves attacked from all sides, intending to devour the ear. Then, they frightened him with fierce words.
Karna, with his many terrible weapons raised and smeared with blood, pierced each of them with his swift arrows.
He countered the demonic illusion with a divine weapon and struck the chariot with his arrows.
In the sight of that demon, they fell to the ground, broken, with deformed limbs and severed backs by arrows.
Hidimba, with his illusions shattered, then caused the death of Karna, known as Vaikartana. After saying this, he vanished.
