Mahabharata: Volume 8 (18 page)

‘Gandhari said, “Look at Somadatta’s son, brought down by Yuyudhana.
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O Madhava! From a close distance, many birds are tugging away at him. O Janardana! On account of his son, Somadatta is tormented by sorrow and is seen to be censuring Yuyudhana, the great archer. Bhurishrava’s mother is overcome by grief. The unblemished one is comforting her husband, Somadatta.
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‘O great king! It is through good fortune that you have not seen this terrible destruction of the Bharatas. This fearful carnage of the Kurus was like that at the end of a yuga. Your brave son had a sacrificial altar on his standard and donated a lot. He performed many rites and sacrifices. It is through good fortune that you have not seen him slain now. Your daughters-in-law are fearfully lamenting a lot, like female cranes near an ocean. O great king! It is through good fortune that you do not hear them. They are clad in single garments and the dark hair on their heads is dishevelled. With their sons slain, with their lord slain, the daughters-in-law are running around. That tiger among men is being devoured by carnivorous beasts. His arm was severed and brought down by Arjuna. It is good fortune that you are not seeing this. Together with Bhurishrava, Shala was brought down in the battle.
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It is through good fortune that you do not see all your widowed daughters-in-law now. Somadatta’s great-souled son possessed a golden umbrella and a sacrificial altar on his standard. They were shattered on the terrace of his chariot. It is good fortune that you have not seen this.’ With Bhurishrava slain by Satyaki, his dark-eyed wives have surrounded their husband. They are grieving. They are lamenting a lot, afflicted by grief on account of their husband. O Keshava! They are falling downwards towards the ground. Alas! This is terrible. How could Bibhatsu have performed such a fearful deed? The brave one performed sacrifices and while he was distracted, he severed his arm.
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Satyaki perpetrated a deed that was more wicked. He
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was attacked when he had controlled his soul and was ready to give up his life. O Madhava! ‘You followed dharma. You are alone. But you were finally slain by two who followed adharma.’ This is what the wives of the one with the sacrificial altar on his standard are screaming. The wife of the one who had a sacrificial altar on his standard has a waist that can be circled by two hands.
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She has placed her husband’s arm on her lap and is lamenting piteously. This arm used to untie her girdle. It used to crush her thick breasts. That arm used to caress her navel, her thighs and her loins and remove her lower garment. Partha is the performer of unblemished deeds. In Vasudeva’s presence, while he
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was fighting with another one in the battle and was distracted, he was brought down. That beautiful one may be silent, but is censuring you. ‘O Janardana! When you are in an assembly, what will you say and tell them? Will you yourself say that Arjuna performed a great deed, or will the one with the diadem say so?’ The co-wives are sorrowing over their husband and her in the same way, as if they are her daughters-in-law.
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‘“Shakuni, the king of Gandhara, was powerful. Truth was his valour. He was slain by Sahadeva, a maternal uncle by a sister’s son.
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He was earlier fanned with two whisks that had golden handles. He is now lying down and is being fanned by the wings of birds. He used to perform many hundreds and thousands of different kinds of maya. However, his maya has been consumed by the energy of the Pandavas. He was wise about deceit and vanquished Yudhishthira through the use of maya in the assembly hall.
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He won the extensive kingdom and has won the right to be reborn. O Krishna! Birds have surrounded Shakuni on every side. The deceitful one became accomplished for the sake of bringing about the destruction of my sons. He is the one who was addicted to this great enmity with the Pandavas. He has brought about the death of my sons, his own self and that of his followers. O lord! My sons have conquered worlds through their weapons. In that way, this evil-minded one has also won worlds through weapons. O Madhusudana! Even there, because of his evil intelligence, he will create dissension between my sons and the brothers.”’

‘Gandhari said, “Look at the invincible Kamboja, who was like a covering for Kamboja.
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O Madhava! He possessed shoulders like a bull. He has been slain and is lying down in the dust. His arms used to be smeared with sandalwood paste and are covered with blood now. When his miserable wife saw them, she lamented in grief. ‘These arms were as thick as clubs. They possessed auspicious palms and fingers. When I was in their embrace, I used to be full of desire. O lord of men! Without you, what will be my end now?’ Her relatives are far away and she is without a protector. Her voice
is exceedingly melodious. Even when they are scorched by heat, the beauty of many kinds of garlands does not vanish. In that way, though these women are exhausted, beauty has not abandoned their bodies.

‘“O Madhusudana! The brave king of Kalinga is lying down. Look at his immensely large arms, encased in blazing armlets.

‘“O Janardana! Jayatsena was the lord of Magadha. Look at him. He is surrounded by the weeping women from Magadha. O Janardana! They possess long eyes and excellent voices. Their lamentations are pleasant to hear and are confounding my mind. They have thrown away all their ornaments. They are weeping, oppressed by grief. Each of the women from Magadha possessed her own bed. But they are lying down on the ground.

‘“Brihadbala was the prince and lord of Kosala. He has been separately surrounded by these women, who are weeping over their husband. The arrows of Krishna’s son were struck with the strength of his arms and they are plucking them out from his body.
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As they are doing this, they are miserable and are repeatedly losing their senses. O Madhava! All of them are overcome by the heat and the exhaustion. Their faces are as beautiful as wilting lotuses.

‘“All the five brave brothers from Kekaya were slain by Drona. They are lying down, wearing beautiful armlets. They were headed towards Drona. Their armour was made out of molten gold. Their standards, chariots and garlands were coppery in hue. They are illuminating the ground, like blazing and radiant fires.

‘“O Madhava! Look. Drupada was brought down by Drona in the battle. He was like a giant elephant, slain in the forest by a giant lion. O Pundarikaksha! The king of Panchala’s umbrella is large and pale. It is shining, like the sun in the autumn sky. The wives and daughters-in-law of the aged Drupada are miserable. Having burnt the king of Panchala, they are circumambulating him, keeping him to the right.

‘“The great archer, Dhrishtaketu, was a bull among the Chedis. The brave one was killed by Drona. Bereft of their senses, the women
have moved him. O Madhusudana! Having countered Drona’s weapons, the great archer was crushed. He has been slain and is lying down, like a tree brought down by a river. The brave maharatha, Dhrishtaketu, was the lord of Chedi. Having slain thousands of enemy in the battle, he has been slain and is lying down. The birds are tugging at him and his wives are tending to him. O Hrishikesha! The king of Chedi has been slain, with his forces and his relatives. Truth was his valour and the brave son of the daughter of Dasharha is lying down.
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The beautiful women have placed the king of Chedi on their laps and are weeping. O Hrishikesha! His son has an excellent face and beautiful earrings. Look at him. He has been mangled by Drona with many arrows in the battle. As long as his father was fighting with the enemy, it is certain that he did not abandon him. O Madhusudana! He has never moved from that brave one’s rear. O mighty-armed one! In that way, my son’s son, Lakshmana, the destroyer of enemy heroes, followed his father.

‘“O Madhava! Look at Vinda and Anuvinda from Avanti. They have fallen down. They are like flowering shala trees, destroyed by a storm at the end of winter. Their armlets and armour are golden. They wield arrows, swords and bows. Their eyes are like those of bulls. They are lying down, with unblemished garlands.

‘“All the Pandavas, together with you, cannot be killed. They were freed from Drona, Bhishma, Vaikartana Kripa, Duryodhana, Drona’s son, maharatha Saindhava, Somadatta, Vikarna and the brave Kritavarma. Those bulls among men could have slain even the gods with the force of their weapons. However, they have been killed in the battle. Behold the progress of time. O Madhava! It is certain that there is no burden that is too heavy for destiny, since these brave ones, bulls among kshatriyas, have been slain by kshatriyas. O Krishna! When you came to Upaplavya and returned unsuccessfully again, my spirited sons were already
killed.
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That is what Shantanu’s son and the wise Vidura told me then. ‘Do not show any affection towards your sons.’ O son! What they saw, was certain to have come true. O Janardana! In a short while, my sons were consumed and became ashes.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Having said this, Gandhari was oppressed by grief and fell down on the ground. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Her senses were distracted by her grief and she abandoned her fortitude. Because she was overcome by sorrow on account of her sons, her body was overcome by rage. With her senses distressed, Gandhari ascribed the blame to Shouri.
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‘Gandhari said, “O Krishna! The Pandavas and the sons of Dhritarashtra were malicious towards each other. O Janardana! Why was their destruction ignored by you? You were capable. You had many servants and were stationed with a large army. Both sides were capable of listening to your words. O Madhusudana! You wilfully ignored the destruction of the Kurus. O mighty-armed one! Therefore, you will have to reap the fruits of what you have done. O wielder of the chakra and the club! I have earned something through my austerities and through serving my husband. You may be difficult to fathom. But through that, I am cursing you. The relatives, the Kurus and the Pandavas, slaughtered each other. O Govinda! Since you ignored this, you will slay your own relatives. O Madhusudana! When thirty-six years have elapsed, your relatives will be killed, your advisers will be killed and your sons will be killed. You will wander around in the forest. You will confront a horrible death. With the sons slain, with the kin and relatives killed, your wives will be tormented, as the women of the Bharata lineage are now.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Having heard these terrible words, the great-minded Vasudeva smiled a little and replied to Queen Gandhari. “O beautiful one! No one other than me can destroy the circle of the Vrishnis. O kshatriya lady! I know what has already been decided. You have acted in accordance with what has been
ordained. The Yadavas cannot be killed by any other men, or by gods and danavas. They will confront their destruction at each other’s hands.” When Dasharha said this, the Pandavas lost their senses. They became extremely anxious and no longer wished to remain alive.’

‘Vasudeva said, “Get up! O Gandhari! Arise! Do not sorrow unnecessarily. The Kurus have confronted destruction because of your crimes. Your evil-souled son was jealous and extremely insolent. You honoured Duryodhana and thought that his evil deeds were virtuous. But they were cruel, full of enmity and harsh. They transgressed the commands of seniors. You committed the sin yourself. Why are you trying to blame it on me? If one sorrows over someone who is dead, something that has been destroyed, or something that has already happened, one imposes sorrow on a sorrow and thereby, causes a double calamity. A brahmana lady gives birth for austerities, a cow for a draught animal, a mare for
running, a shudra for a servant and a vaishya for animal husbandry. However, a princess like you gives birth for slaughter.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘On again hearing Vasudeva’s unpleasant words, Gandhari became silent. Her eyes were anxious and full of tears. Rajarshi Dhritarashtra had dharma in his soul and dispelled the darkness caused by limited intelligence. He asked Dharmaraja Yudhishthira, “O Pandava! You know the number of soldiers who are alive. If you know the number of those who have been slain, tell me.” Yudhishthira replied, “One billion,
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twenty thousand and sixty-six crore—that is the number slain in this battle of kings.
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O Indra among kings! In addition, twenty-four thousand, one hundred and sixty-five brave ones are missing.” Dhritarashtra asked, “O Yudhishthira! Where have those best of men gone? Tell me. O mighty-armed one! It is my view that you know everything.” Yudhishthira replied, “They cheerfully offered their bodies as oblations in the supreme battle. Truth was their valour and they have gone to worlds that are like that of the king of the gods. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Those who were cheerful in their minds, thinking that everyone is mortal, were slain in the battle and have encountered the gandharvas. Those who were unwillingly stationed in the battle and wished to be spared have been slain with weapons and have gone towards the
guhyaka
s.
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However, there were great-souled ones who were weakened and deprived of weapons. They were abandoned by others and severely afflicted. Even then, they attacked the enemy. Though they were severed by sharp weapons, they were devoted to the dharma of kshatriyas. Those extremely radiant and brave ones were slain and went to Brahma’s abode. O king! There were some who were slain in the field of battle without doing anything remarkable. They have
obtained the region of Uttarakuru.”
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Dhritarashtra asked, “O son! What is this strength of knowledge, through which you can perceive like a
siddha
?
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O mighty-armed one! If it can be heard by me, tell me about it.” Yudhishthira replied, “Because of your instructions, I roamed around in the forest earlier. In that connection, I visited the
tirtha
s and obtained this blessing.
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At that time, I saw devarshi Lomasha and acquired this knowledge. Earlier, through the yoga of knowledge, I had obtained divine sight.”

‘Dhritarashtra said, “O descendant of the Bharata lineage! There are people who have relatives and those who do not have relatives. Let the bodies of all those be burnt in accordance with the proper rites. Some have no one to perform the rites and fires have not been lit for some. O son! For whom can we perform the rites? There are many rites to be performed. O Yudhishthira! There are those who have obtained the worlds through their deeds, but are being dragged here and there by birds and vultures.”’

Vaishampayana said, ‘Having been thus addressed, the immensely wise Yudhishthira, Kunti’s son, instructed Sudharma,
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Dhoumya,
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the suta Sanjaya, the immensely intelligent Vidura, Kouravya Yuyutsu and all the servants and charioteers, with Indrasena
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at their head. “Perform the funeral rites for everyone. Let the bodies of those who have no one to look after them not be destroyed.” Having heard Dharmaraja’s command, Kshatta,
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suta Sanjaya, Sudharma, Dhoumya, Indrasena and the others brought sandalwood, aloe, yellow fragrant wood, clarified butter, oil, fragrances and cotton garments. They made piles of woods and these expensive objects. They added
the shattered chariots and other implements. O descendant of the Bharata lineage! Having carefully prepared the pyres and observed the prescribed rites, they burnt the foremost among the kings, following the due order—King Duryodhana and his one hundred brothers, Shalya, King Shala, Bhurishrava, King Jayadratha, Abhimanyu, Duhshasana’s son, Lakshmana,
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King Dhrishtaketu, Brihanta, Somadatta, more than one hundred Srinjayas, King Kshemadhanva,
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Virata, Drupada, Panchala Shikhandi, Parshata Dhrishtadyumna, valiant Yudhamanyu, Uttamouja, the king of Kosala, Droupadi’s sons, Shakuni Soubala, Achala, Vrishaka,
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King Bhagadatta, the intolerant Karna Vaikartana and his sons, the great archers from Kekaya, the maharathas from Trigarta, Ghatotkacha, Indra among rakshasas, Baka’s brother,
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King Alambusa, King Jalasandha and hundreds and thousands of other kings. O king! Flows of clarified butter were poured and the blazing fires burnt them. For some of those great-souled ones, sacrifices meant for the ancestors were performed. Some chanted sama hymns. Others sorrowed over the ones who were dead. The sounds of women weeping mixed with the sama chants. During that night, a lassitude overcame all beings. The blazing fires flamed, without any smoke. They were seen to be like planets surrounded by clouds in the firmament. There were those who had come from many countries and had no one to tend to them. On Dharmaraja’s instructions, Vidura brought all of them together and piled them in thousands of heaps. Pyres were lit with wood, sprinkled with oil and they were attentively burnt. Yudhishthira, king of the Kurus, performed the rites for them. After this, with Dhritarashtra at the forefront, he went towards the Ganga.’