Droṇaparva Chapter -5 (Twelfth day war

द्रोणपर्व - Droṇaparva (द्वादश दिवसीय युद्धम् - भाग-२)

अध्यायः – 5 ::Chapter-5 (Twelfth day war – Part-2)

Shlokas	No. of Shlokas
सञ्जय उवाच॥ परिणाम्य निशां तां तु भारद्वाजो महारथः । बहूक्त्वा च ततो राजन्राजानं च सुयोधनम् ॥ 1॥ विधाय योगं पार्थेन संशप्तकगणैः सह । निष्क्रान्ते च रणात्पार्थे संशप्तकवधं प्रति ॥ 2॥ व्यूढानीकस्ततो द्रोणः पाण्डवानां महाचमूम् । अभ्ययाद्भरतश्रेष्ठ धर्मराजजिघृक्षया ॥ 3॥ ततो युधिष्ठिरः प्रेक्ष्य व्यूहं तमतिमानुषम् । अजय्यमरिभिः सङ्ख्ये पार्षतं वाक्यमब्रवीत् ॥ 4॥ ब्राह्मणस्य वशं नाहमियामद्य यथा प्रभो । पारावतसवर्णाश्व तथा नीतिर्विधीयताम् ॥ 5॥ धृष्टद्युम्न उवाच॥ द्रोणस्य यतमानस्य वशं नैष्यसि सुव्रत । अहमावारयिष्यामि द्रोणमद्य सहानुगम् ॥ 6॥ मयि जीवति कौरव्य नोद्वेगं कर्तुमर्हसि । न हि शक्तो रणे द्रोणो विजेतुं मां कथञ्चन ॥ 7॥ सञ्जय उवाच॥ एवमुक्त्वा किरन्बाणान्द्रुपदस्य सुतो बली । पारावतसवर्णाश्वः स्वयं द्रोणमुपाद्रवत् ॥ 8॥ अनिष्टदर्शनं दृष्ट्वा धृष्टद्युम्नमवस्थितम् । क्षणेनैवाभवद्द्रोणो नातिहृष्टमना इव ॥ 9॥ द्रोणमावारितं दृष्ट्वा भृशायस्तस्तवात्मजः । नानालिङ्गैः शरव्रातैः पार्षतं सममोहयत् ॥ 10॥ तयोर्विषक्तयोः सङ्ख्ये पाञ्चाल्यकुरुमुख्ययोः । द्रोणो यौधिष्ठिरं सैन्यं बहुधा व्यधमच्छरैः ॥ 11॥ अनिलेन यथाभ्राणि विच्छिन्नानि समन्ततः । तथा पार्थस्य सैन्यानि विच्छिन्नानि क्वचित्क्वचित् ॥ 12॥ वर्तमाने तथा युद्धे घोररूपे भयङ्करे । मोहयित्वा परान्द्रोणो युधिष्ठिरमुपाद्रवत् ॥ 13॥ ततो युधिष्ठिरो द्रोणं दृष्ट्वान्तिकमुपागतम् । महता शरवर्षेण प्रत्यगृह्णादभीतवत् ॥ 14॥ ततो हलहलाशब्द आसीद्यौधिष्ठिरे बले । जिघृक्षति महासिंहे गजानामिव यूथपम् ॥ 15॥ दृष्ट्वा द्रोणं ततः शूरः सत्यजित्सत्यविक्रमः । युधिष्ठिरं परिप्रेप्सुमाचार्यं समुपाद्रवत् ॥ 16॥ तत आचार्यपाञ्चाल्यौ युयुधाते परस्परम् । विक्षोभयन्तौ तत्सैन्यमिन्द्रवैरोचनाविव ॥ 17॥ ज्ञात्वा सत्यजिता द्रोणं ग्रस्यमानमिवाहवे । वृकः शरशतैस्तीक्ष्णैः पाञ्चाल्यो द्रोणमर्दयत् ॥ 18 ततः सत्यजितश्चापं छित्त्वा द्रोणो वृकस्य च । षड्भिः ससूतं सहयं शरैर्द्रोणोऽवधीद्वृकम् ॥ 19॥ अथान्यद्धनुरादाय सत्यजिद्वेगवत्तरम् । साश्वं ससूतं विशिखैर्द्रोणं विव्याध सध्वजम् ॥ 20॥ स तन्न ममृषे द्रोणः पाञ्चाल्येनार्दनं मृधे । ततस्तस्य विनाशाय सत्वरं व्यसृजच्छरान् ॥ 21॥ स सत्यजितमालक्ष्य तथोदीर्णं महाहवे । अर्धचन्द्रेण चिच्छेद शिरस्तस्य महात्मनः ॥ 22॥ पाञ्चालाः केकया मत्स्याश्चेदिकारूषकोसलाः । युधिष्ठिरमुदीक्षन्तो हृष्टा द्रोणमुपाद्रवन् ॥ 23॥ ततो युधिष्ठिरप्रेप्सुराचार्यः शत्रुपूगहा । व्यधमत्तान्यनीकानि तूलराशिमिवानिलः ॥ 24॥ निर्दहन्तमनीकानि तानि तानि पुनः पुनः । द्रोणं मत्स्यादवरजः शतानीकोऽभ्यवर्तत ॥ 25॥ तस्य नानदतो द्रोणः शिरः कायात्सकुण्डलम् । क्षुरेणापाहरत्तूर्णं ततो मत्स्याः प्रदुद्रुवुः ॥ 26॥ ततो द्रोणः सत्यसन्धः प्रभिन्न इव कुञ्जरः । अभ्यतीत्य रथानीकं दृढसेनमपातयत् ॥ 27॥ ततो राजानमासाद्य प्रहरन्तमभीतवत् । अविध्यन्नवभिः क्षेमं स हतः प्रापतद्रथात् ॥ 28॥ युधामन्युं चतुःषष्ट्या त्रिंशता चैव सात्यकिम् । विद्ध्वा रुक्मरथस्तूर्णं युधिष्ठिरमुपाद्रवत् ॥ 29॥ ततो युधिष्ठिरः क्षिप्रं कितवो राजसत्तमः । अपायाज्जवनैरश्वैः पाञ्चाल्यो द्रोणमभ्ययात् ॥ 30॥ तत्रारावो महानासीदेकं द्रोणं जिघांसताम् । पाण्डवानां निवृत्तानां नानावर्णैर्हयोत्तमैः ॥ 31॥	31 (285)
Sanjaya said, 'After spending the night, the great warrior Bharadwaja's son spoke to Suyodhana, the king, saying, 'I am yours! I have made plans for Partha to confront the Samsaptakas.' Once Partha set out to defeat the Samsaptakas, Drona, leading his troops ready for battle, moved forward to capture king Yudhishthira, the just ruler. Seeing that formidable army, which no enemy could defeat, Yudhishthira turned to Prishata's son and said, 'O lord, you who own steeds as white as doves, let us take measures to ensure that I do not fall into Drona's hands.' Dhrishtadyumna replied, 'Fear not, noble one; Drona shall never overpower you, no matter how hard he tries. I will hold him back today along with all his men. As long as I live, you, O descendant of Kuru, need not worry. Drona will not defeat me in battle.' "Sanjaya went on, 'After saying this, the strong son of Drupada, whose horses were as grey as pigeons, shot his arrows and charged at Drona. Seeing his terrible fate represented by Dhrishtadyumna standing before him, Drona became extremely gloomy. Noticing Drona's hesitation, your son Durmukha quickly attacked Prishata's son, bewildering him with a storm of arrows of various types. As the battle raged on between the prince of the Panchalas and the renowned warrior of Kuru's lineage, Drona relentlessly decimated many divisions of Yudhishthira's forces. Like clouds scattering under the wind, Yudhishthira's army was dispersed in many places on the field by Drona. In this fierce and terrible conflict, Drona bewildered his enemies and finally charged at Yudhishthira.' 'Sanjaya continued, 'Then Drona, seeing Yudhishthira close, welcomed him with a dense hail of arrows. A loud uproar arose among Yudhishthira's troops, reminiscent of the trumpeting of elephants when their leader is attacked by a fierce lion. Observing Drona, the valiant Satyajit, whose strength was unmatched, rushed towards the teacher, eager to protect Yudhishthira. Both the teacher and the Panchala prince, both possessed of great power, clashed fiercely, stirring up each other’s troops, like Indra and Bali.'. Drona, the punisher of enemies, witnessed his opponent's brave maneuvers on the battlefield and decided in his mind to send him to the afterlife. The teacher skillfully severed Satyajit's bow, then swiftly shot him with ten arrows that pierced deeply. After also breaking the bows of Satyajit and Vrika, Drona used six arrows to kill Vrika along with his charioteer and horses. In response, Satyajit armed himself with a sturdier bow and struck Drona, wounding his steeds, charioteer, and banner. Infuriated by this assault from the Panchala prince, Drona quickly retaliated with arrows. As he saw Satyajit growing stronger in the fierce battle, Drona beheaded the renowned warrior with a crescent arrow. The warriors from Panchala, Kekaya, Matsya, Chedi, Karusha, and Kosala, seeing Drona, rushed towards him, eager to save Yudhishthira. However, Drona, the killer of many, focused on capturing Yudhishthira and began to annihilate their ranks like a fire devouring cotton. Then Satanika, the younger brother of the Matsya king, charged at Drona while he was busy destroying the troops. Drona swiftly cut off Satanika's head, adorned with earrings, as he shouted at him. This caused the Matsya warriors to flee in terror. Then Drona, with unmatched precision and as formidable as an elephant with broken tusks, charged through the Pandavas' ranks and struck down Dridhasena. He approached King Kshema, who was fighting bravely, and hit him with nine arrows. Kshema, struck fatally, fell from his chariot. Drona then targeted Sikhandin with twelve arrows and Uttamaujas with twenty. He shot Yudhamanyu with sixty-four arrows and Satyaki with thirty. Then, Drona, in his golden chariot, swiftly moved towards Yudhishthira. In that moment, Yudhishthira, the finest of kings, quickly fled from his teacher, urged on by his swift horses. Then Panchala charged at Drona.
सञ्जय उवाच॥ तथा तेषु निवृत्तेषु प्रत्युद्यातेषु भागशः । स्वयमभ्यद्रवद्भीमं नागानीकेन ते सुतः ॥ 1॥ स नाग इव नागेन गोवृषेणेव गोवृषः । समाहूतः स्वयं राज्ञा नागानीकमुपाद्रवत् ॥ 2॥ स युद्धकुशलः पार्थो बाहुवीर्येण चान्वितः । अभिनत्कुञ्जरानीकमचिरेणैव मारिष ॥ 3॥ ते गजा गिरिसङ्काशाः क्षरन्तः सर्वतो मदम् । भीमसेनस्य नाराचैर्विमुखा विमदीकृताः ॥ 4॥ विधमेदभ्रजालानि यथा वायुः समन्ततः । व्यधमत्तान्यनीकानि तथैव पवनात्मजः ॥ 5॥ तेष्वनीकेषु सर्वेषु विद्रवत्सु समन्ततः । प्राग्ज्योतिषस्ततो भीमं कुञ्जरेण समाद्रवत् ॥ 6॥ येन नागेन मघवानजयद्दैत्यदानवान् । स नागप्रवरो भीमं सहसा समुपाद्रवत् ॥ 7॥ श्रवणाभ्यामथो पद्भ्यां संहतेन करेण च । व्यावृत्तनयनः क्रुद्धः प्रदहन्निव पाण्डवम् ॥ 8॥ ततः सर्वस्य सैन्यस्य नादः समभवन्महान् । हा हा विनिहतो भीमः कुञ्जरेणेति मारिष ॥ 9॥ तेन नादेन वित्रस्ता पाण्डवानामनीकिनी । सहसाभ्यद्रवद्राजन्यत्र तस्थौ वृकोदरः ॥ 10॥ ततो युधिष्ठिरो राजा हतं मत्वा वृकोदरम् । भगदत्तं सपाञ्चालः सर्वतः समवारयत् ॥ 11॥ तं रथै रथिनां श्रेष्ठाः परिवार्य समन्ततः । अवाकिरञ्शरैस्तीक्ष्णैः शतशोऽथ सहस्रशः ॥ 12॥ स विघातं पृषत्कानामङ्कुशेन समाचरन् । गजेन पाण्डुपाञ्चालान्व्यधमत्पर्वतेश्वरः ॥ 13॥ तदद्भुतमपश्याम भगदत्तस्य संयुगे । तथा वृद्धस्य चरितं कुञ्जरेण विशां पते ॥ 14॥ ततो राजा दशार्णानां प्राग्ज्योतिषमुपाद्रवत् । तिर्यग्यातेन नागेन समदेनाशुगामिना ॥ 15॥ तयोर्युद्धं समभवन्नागयोर्भीमरूपयोः । सपक्षयोः पर्वतयोर्यथा सद्रुमयोः पुरा ॥ 16॥ प्राग्ज्योतिषपतेर्नागः संनिपत्यापवृत्य च । पार्श्वे दशार्णाधिपतेर्भित्त्वा नागमपातयत् ॥ 17॥ तोमरैः सूर्यरश्म्याभैर्भगदत्तोऽथ सप्तभिः । जघान द्विरदस्थं तं शत्रुं प्रचलितासनम् ॥ 18॥ उपसृत्य तु राजानं भगदत्तं युधिष्ठिरः । रथानीकेन महता सर्वतः पर्यवारयत् ॥ 19॥ स कुञ्जरस्थो रथिभिः शुशुभे सर्वतो वृतः । पर्वते वनमध्यस्थो ज्वलन्निव हुताशनः ॥ 20॥ मण्डलं सर्वतः श्लिष्टं रथिनामुग्रधन्विनाम् । किरतां शरवर्षाणि स नागः पर्यवर्तत ॥ 21॥ ततः प्राग्ज्योतिषो राजा परिगृह्य द्विपर्षभम् । प्रेषयामास सहसा युयुधानरथं प्रति ॥ 22॥ शिनेः पौत्रस्य तु रथं परिगृह्य महाद्विपः । अभिचिक्षेप वेगेन युयुधानस्त्वपाक्रमत् ॥ 23॥ बृहतः सैन्धवानश्वान्समुत्थाप्य तु सारथिः । तस्थौ सात्यकिमासाद्य सम्प्लुतस्तं रथं पुनः ॥ 24॥ स तु लब्ध्वान्तरं नागस्त्वरितो रथमण्डलात् । निश्चक्राम ततः सर्वान्परिचिक्षेप पार्थिवान् ॥ 25॥ ततो ध्वनिर्द्विरदरथाश्वपार्थिवै र्भयाद्द्रवद्भिर्जनितोऽतिभैरवः । क्षितिं वियद्द्यां विदिशो दिशस्तथा समावृणोत्पार्थिव संयुगे तदा ॥ 26॥ स तेन नागप्रवरेण पार्थिवो भृशं जगाहे द्विषतामनीकिनीम् । पुरा सुगुप्तां विबुधैरिवाहवे विरोचनो देववरूथिनीमिव ॥ 27॥ भृशं ववौ ज्वलनसखो वियद्रजः समावृणोन्मुहुरपि चैव सैनिकान् । तमेकनागं गणशो यथा गजाः समन्ततो द्रुतमिव मेनिरे जनाः ॥ 28॥	28 (313)
Sanjaya reported, 'As the armies clashed fiercely, your son Duryodhana charged towards Bhimasena, leading his elephant troops. It was like one elephant confronting another, or a bull facing off with a bull. Bhimasena, called forth by the king, charged at the Kaurava's elephant division. A skilled warrior with mighty strength, Pritha's son swiftly broke through their ranks. These massive elephants, towering like hills and oozing ichor from their wounds, were battered by Bhimasena’s arrows and forced to retreat. Just as the wind scatters dark clouds, so too did this son of the wind chase away the Kaurava's elephant brigade. As the broken troops scattered in fear, the king of Pragjyotisha charged towards Bhima on his elephant. The beast, enraged with curled legs and rolling eyes, seemed poised to crush the son of Pandu like a raging flame, slamming Vrikodara's chariot into dust. But Bhima, undaunted, dashed beneath the elephant. Well-versed in the technique called Anjalikabedha, he struck the elephant with his bare arms. The formidable elephant, intent on destroying him, began to twist and turn like a potter's wheel. With the strength of ten thousand elephants, the valiant Vrikodara emerged from beneath Supratika and faced it directly. The elephant, however, grabbed Bhima with its trunk and tried to slam him to the ground with its knees, aiming to kill him.' Twisting the elephant's trunk, Bhima managed to free himself and slipped back beneath the massive creature. He waited there, anticipating the arrival of a threatening elephant from his own army. When he finally emerged from under the beast, Bhima dashed away with remarkable speed. A loud cry from the troops echoed, declaring, 'Oh no, Bhima has been killed by the elephant!' The Pandava forces, terrified by the sight of the elephant, quickly retreated to where Vrikodara was waiting. Meanwhile, King Yudhishthira, believing Vrikodara to be dead, surrounded Bhagadatta with the support of the Panchalas. With numerous chariots encircling him, the skilled warrior Yudhishthira launched a hail of arrows at Bhagadatta. The mountain king, using his iron hook to deflect the barrage of arrows, then turned his elephant against both the Pandavas and the Panchalas. Indeed, your majesty, the spectacle we witnessed from old Bhagadatta and his elephant was truly remarkable. Then the leader of the Dasarnas charged at the king of Pragjyotisha, riding a swift elephant with sweat drenching him, aiming to strike Supratika from the side. The clash between these two gigantic elephants resembled a battle of massive, forest-covered mountains from ancient times. Bhagadatta's elephant turned and attacked the Dasarna king's elephant, tearing its side and bringing it down instantly. Bhagadatta himself, wielding seven bright lances that shone like sunlight, killed his rival who was about to tumble from his seat on the elephant. Meanwhile, Yudhishthira surrounded King Bhagadatta with many chariots, bombarding him with arrows. Positioned on his elephant, encircled by fierce charioteers, he shone vividly like a raging fire atop a mountain in a thick forest. He stood undaunted amidst the closely packed chariots filled with skilled archers, all unleashing arrows at him. Then, the king of Pragjyotisha, pressing down on his massive elephant, directed it towards Yuyudhana's chariot. That enormous beast seized Sinis's grandson's chariot and hurled it away with tremendous force. Yuyudhana managed to escape just in time. His charioteer, leaving behind the powerful Sindhu horses, quickly followed Satyaki and stopped where he did. Meanwhile, the elephant broke free from the line of chariots and began to knock down any kings who tried to block its path. Elephants, charioteers, horses, and kings fled in terror, creating a loud and terrifying noise that echoed across the earth, sky, and heavens, filling all directions in that battle. On the mightiest of elephants, King Bhagadatta charged into the enemy ranks like the ancient Asura Virochana, who once fought valiantly against the celestial forces protected by the gods. A fierce wind rose, a cloud of dust veiled the sky and the troops, and people saw that singular elephant as if it were many, moving across the battlefield.'"