08.033
Core and Pancharatra: When Karna forces Yudhisthira to retreat in the direct attack, King Yudhisthira orders a counterattack. In the counterattack led by Bhimasena, Kaurava army starts retreating.
Sanjaya said:
Karna, after piercing through that army, attacked Dharmaraja, surrounded by thousands of chariots, elephants, horses, and infantry.
The bull, undisturbed, shot down the thousands of diverse weapons sent by the enemies with hundreds of fierce arrows.
He completely severed their heads, arms, and thighs. Those who were killed fell to the earth, while others, shattered, ran away.
The Dravidas, Andhras, and Nishadas, once again urged by Satyaki, launched an attack on Karna's infantry in the battle, with the intent to kill.
They fell to the ground together, their arms and helmets shattered by Karna's arrows, resembling a forest of sala trees felled at once.
In this way, countless warriors were slain in the battle, their bodies covering the earth and their glory spreading in all directions.
Then the Pandavas and Panchalas restrained Karna, the son of Vikartana, in battle as if he were an angry destroyer, like restraining a disease with mantras and herbs.
He crushed them and attacked Yudhishthira again, like a very severe disease that is beyond the cure of mantras and medicines.
He was restrained by the Pandavas, Panchalas, and Kekayas, who were greedy for the kingdom, and he could not surpass them, just as death cannot surpass one who knows Brahman.
Then Yudhishthira, his eyes red with anger, addressed Karna, who was standing close by and had been restrained, as the slayer of enemy warriors.
"Karna, Karna, listen to the words of the son of a charioteer, who is seen in vain. You always compete in battle with the glorious Arjuna. Thus, you constantly trouble us, being aligned with the counsel of Dhritarashtra's son."
Show all your strength, valor, and enmity towards the Pandavas today, as you stand in your great manliness. Today, I will dispel your faith in battle in this great war.
After speaking thus, O great king, the son of Pandu then proudly pierced Karna with ten sharp arrows adorned with golden shafts.
The son of a charioteer, a great archer, smilingly pierced the enemy with nine arrows having calf-teeth, O descendant of Bharata.
Then, the hero, with two razors, killed the two sons of Draupadi, who were the protectors of the wheel, in the battle with arrows having bent joints.
Those two heroes of Dharmaraja stand shining beside the chariot, like the Punarvasu stars near the moon.
Yudhishthira once more shot thirty arrows at Karna. He also hit Sushena and Satyasena with three arrows each.
Shalya struck with ninety arrows, and the son of the charioteer with seventy-three. He also struck his protectors with three straight-moving arrows each.
Then, with a smile, the great charioteer wielded his bow, pierced the king with an arrow, and joyfully roared after striking him sixty times.
Then the valiant warriors of the Pandavas charged towards Yudhishthira to shield him from the son of a charioteer, fiercely attacking Karna with arrows.
Satyaki, Chekitana, Yuyutsu, Pandya, Dhrishtadyumna, Shikhandi, the sons of Draupadi, and the Prabhadrakas were all present.
Yama and his brother, Bhimasena, along with the son of Shishupala, the Karushas, Matsyas, Kekayas, Kashis, and Kosalas, swiftly moved to stop Vasushena.
Janamejaya and Pāñcālya attacked Karna with a variety of arrows, including those with boar ears, iron tips, reeds, sharp points, calf teeth, splits, razor heads, and bird faces.
With various fierce weapons and mounted on chariots, elephants, and horses, they surrounded Karna from all sides with the intent to kill.
He was attacked from all sides by the foremost warriors of the Pandavas and in response, he released the Brahma weapon, filling all directions with arrows.
Then, the arrow with a great flame, fueled by Karna's strength, burned through the Pandava forces, moving beautifully across the battlefield.
The great archer, with a smile, countered the mighty weapons of the noble ones and skillfully cut the bow of the lord of men with his arrows.
Then Karna, after taking careful aim for ninety moments, pierced the king's armor in battle with his sharp arrows.
The golden armor shone brightly as it fell, resembling a cloud with lightning, left by the sun and struck by the wind.
The body of the lord of men, with its fallen armor, shone brightly, adorned with divine jewels, resembling the clear night sky.
Arjuna, stripped of his armor and smeared with blood from the arrows, in his anger, hurled an iron spear at the charioteer.
He struck her, who appeared like a burning figure in the sky, with seven arrows. She, being severed, fell to the ground by the arrows of the great archer.
Yudhishthira then joyfully roared after striking Karna on his arms, forehead, and heart with four spears.
Karna, covered in blood and filled with rage, breathed like a serpent. He severed the flag with an arrow and struck the Pandava with three arrows. He also cut his quiver and shattered his chariot into pieces.
Thus, Arjuna, distressed and unable to stand against Karna, retreated as his charioteer was slain.
Radheya approached him, touched his shoulder with his hand, and with a smile, said mockingly, "O king, Pāṇḍava."
How could someone born in a noble family, adhering to the warrior's duty, abandon their enemies in battle while protecting their own life in the great war?
My opinion is that you are not skilled in the duties of a warrior. You are more suited to the Brahmanical path, engaged in self-study and sacrificial duties.
"Do not fight, O son of Kunti, nor approach the heroes. Do not speak harshly to them, and do not enter the great battle."
After addressing Arjuna, the mighty warrior released his attack, devastating the Pandava army as if wielding a thunderbolt against demons. Then, feeling a sense of shame, the lord of men swiftly departed, O king.
Then, as King Acyuta was departing, he was followed by the Cedis, Pandavas, Panchalas, and the great warrior Satyaki. Along with them were the heroic sons of Draupadi and the sons of Madri, the Pandavas.
Then Karna, upon seeing Yudhishthira's army, turned away. Accompanied by the Kauravas and heroes, he followed them from behind.
Then, the sons of Dhritarashtra raised a tumultuous sound, like the roaring of lions, with the blaring of conches, the beating of drums, and the twanging of bows.
Yudhishthira, the descendant of Kuru, swiftly mounted his chariot and witnessed the might of Karna, O great king.
Upon witnessing the torment of their strength, Dharmaraja Yudhishthira, in anger, commanded the warriors to kill him by the thousands.
Then, with the king's permission, all the great warriors of the Pandavas, led by Bhimasena, launched an attack on the sons.
O Bhārata, there arose a great tumultuous noise from all sides, as the warriors, along with elephants, horses, chariots, and foot soldiers, clashed with their weapons.
The warriors, urging each other with cries of 'Arise, strike, go forth, attack,' fought fiercely and killed each other on the battlefield.
There, it appeared as if the sky was filled with a shadow of clouds, with showers of arrows, surrounded by the best of warriors striking each other.
In the battle, the warriors, stripped of their banners, flags, and umbrellas, without horses, charioteers, and weapons, with mutilated limbs and parts, fell on the ground, diminished and slain.
The finest elephants, along with their riders, were struck down and fell like mountain peaks shattered by a thunderbolt.
The battlefield was strewn with armors, ornaments, and bodies that were cut, broken, and disordered. Horses with their riders fell, and heroes were slain by the thousands.
In the battle, the opposing heroes killed thousands of infantry groups, along with scattered weapons, limbs, elephants, horses, and chariots.
The earth was entirely covered with the heads of warriors, whose eyes were wide and coppery, and whose faces resembled lotuses and the moon.
Thus, the people heard the sound in the vast sky, created by aircraft and groups of apsaras with songs and musical instruments.
The celestial nymphs, in thousands, ascend the aerial cars with the slain and mutilated heroes who are facing their enemies, and depart.
Upon witnessing the great wonder directly, driven by their desire for heaven, the delighted heroes quickly approached one another.
The charioteers, along with other charioteers, fought marvelously in the battle; similarly, foot soldiers with foot soldiers, elephants with elephants, and horses with horses.
In the ongoing battle, as elephants, horses, and men were being destroyed and the army was enveloped in dust, they mistakenly killed their own kinsmen and others their enemies.
The battle was intense, shining with tooth-to-tooth and nail-to-nail combat. It included fist-fighting and wrestling, leading to the destruction of the body's sins.
In the battle, there was a great slaughter of elephants, horses, and men. A river of blood flowed from their bodies, carrying away many of the fallen.
In the midst of a throng of men, horses, and elephants, with riders atop them, flows a river with red waters and a terrifying appearance, carrying along the red mud and bodies of men, horses, and elephants, striking fear into the hearts of the timid.
Those who seek victory reach her ultimate shore, navigating with depth, floating, immersing, and emerging, while others follow.
But they, with their limbs smeared in red and clothed in blood-red armor and weapons, bathed in that river, drank the blood, and became weary, O best of the Bharatas.
We see almost everything around us—chariots, horses, men, elephants, weapons, ornaments, garments, and armors—being struck down and killed. The earth, sky, heaven, and all directions appear red.
O Bharata, there was a great sorrow spreading through the army, caused by the overwhelming presence of the red, perceived through smell, touch, taste, form, and sound.
Your army, though smashed by Bhimasena and his group, was once again charged by the heroes led by Satyaki's chariots.
The great souls attacked with such irresistible force that the sons' mighty army was turned away, O king.
The battlefield was a chaotic scene, filled with scattered chariots, horses, elephants, and men, with armor and shields destroyed, and weapons and bows discarded.
Your army fled in all directions, shaken and terrified, just like a herd of elephants would scatter when attacked by a lion in a vast forest.
