Mahabharata · Book 7 · Drona Parva
Mahabharata, Book 7, Section XLVIIIद्रोणपर्व
Kisari Mohan Ganguli’s English prose (1883–96), beside the Sanskrit of adhyāya 7.48.
Sanskrit
स कर्णं कर्णिना कर्णे पुनर्विव्याध फाल्गुनिः।
शरैः पञ्चाशता चैनमविध्यत्कोपयन्भृशम्।।
प्रतिविव्याध राधेयस्तावद्भिरथ तं पुनः।
शरैराचितसर्वाङ्गो बह्वशोभत भारत।।
कर्णं चाप्यकरोत्क्रुद्धो रुधिरोत्पीडवाहिनम्।
कर्णोऽपि विबभौ शूरः शरैश्छिन्नोऽसृगातप्लुः।
`सन्धानुगतपर्यन्तः शरदीव दिवाकरः'।।
तावुभौ शरचित्राङ्गौ रुधिरेण समुक्षितौ।
बभूवतुर्महात्मानौ पुष्पिताविव किंशुकौ।।
अथ कर्णस्य सचिवान्षट् शूरांश्चित्रयोधिनः।
साश्वसूतध्वजरथान्सौभद्रो निजघान ह।।
तथेतरान्महेष्वासान्दशभिर्दशभिः शरैः।
प्रत्यविध्यदसम्भ्रान्तस्तदद्भुतमिवाभवत्।।
मागधस्य तथा पुत्रं हत्वा षड्भिरजिह्मगैः।
साश्वं ससूतं तरुणमश्वकेतुमपातयत्।।
मार्तिकावतकं भोजं ततः कुञ्जरकेतनम्।
क्षुरप्रेण समुन्मथ्य ननाद विसृजन्शरान्।।
तस्य दौःशासनिर्विद्ध्वा चतुर्भिश्चतुरो हयान्।
सूतमेकेन विव्याध दशभिश्चार्जुनात्मजम्।।
ततो दौःशासनिं कार्ष्णिर्विद्ध्वा सप्तभिराशुगैः।
संरम्भाद्रक्तनयनो वाक्यमुच्चैरथाब्रवीत्।।
पिता तवाहवं त्यक्त्वा गतः कापुरुषो यथा।
दिष्ट्या त्वमपि जानीषे योद्धुं न त्वद्य मोक्ष्यसे।।
एतावदुक्त्वा वचनं कर्मारपरिमार्जितम्।
नाराचं विससर्जास्मै तं द्रौणिस्त्रिभिराच्छिनत्।।
तस्यार्जुनिर्ध्वजं छित्त्वा शल्यं त्रिभिरताडयत्।
तं शल्यो नवभिर्बाणैर्गार्ध्रपत्रैरताडयत्।।
हृद्यसम्भ्रान्तवद्राजंस्तदद्भुतमिवाभवत्।
तस्यार्जुनिर्ध्वजं छित्त्वा हत्वोभौ पार्ष्णिसारथी।।
तं विव्याधायसैः षड्भिः सोपाक्रामद्रथान्तरम्।
शत्रुञ्जयं चन्द्रकेतुं मेघवेगं सुवर्चसम्।।
सूर्यभासं च पञ्चैतान्हत्वा विव्याध सौबलम्।
तं सौबलस्त्रिभिर्विद्ध्वा दुर्योधनमथाब्रवीत्।।
सर्व एनं विमथ्नीमः पुरैकैकं हिनस्ति नः।
अथाब्रवीत्पुनर्द्रोणं कर्णो वैकर्तनो रणे।।
पुरा सर्वान्प्रमथ्नाति ब्रूह्यस्य वधम्माशु नः।
ततो द्रोणो महेष्वासः सर्वांस्तान्प्रत्यभाषत।।
अस्ति वाऽस्यान्तरं किञ्चित्कुमारस्याथ पश्यत।
अन्वस्य पितरं चाद्य चरतः सर्वतो दिशम्।।
शीघ्रतां नरसिंहस्य पाण्डवेयस्य पश्यत।
धनुर्मण्डलमेवास्य रथमार्गेषु दृश्यते।।
संदधानस्य विशिखाञ्शीघ्रं चैव विमुञ्चतः।
आरुजन्नपि मे प्राणान्मोहयन्नपि सायकैः।।
प्रहर्षयति मां भूयः सौभद्रः परवीरहा।
अतिमानं दधात्येष सौभद्रो विचरन्रणे।।
अन्तरं यस्य संरब्धा न पश्यन्ति महारथाः।
अस्यतो लघुहस्तस्य दिशः सर्वा महेषुभिः।
न विशेषं प्रपश्यामि रणे गाण्डीवधन्वनः।।
सञ्जय उवाच।
अथ कर्णः पुनर्द्रोणमाहार्जुनिशराहतः।
स्थातव्यमिति तिष्ठामि पीड्यमानोऽभिमन्युना।।
तेजस्विनः कुमारस्य शराः परमदारुणाः।
क्षिण्वन्ति हृदयं मेऽद्य घोराः पावकतेजसः।।
तमाचार्योऽब्रवीत्कर्णं शनकैः प्रहसन्निव।
अभेद्यमस्य कवचं युवा चाशुपराक्रमः।।
उपदिष्टा मया चास्य पितुः कवचधारणा।
तामेष निखिलां वेत्ति ध्रुवं परपुरञ्जयः।।
शक्यं त्वस्य धनुश्छेत्तुं ज्यां च बाणैः समाहितैः।
अभीषूंश्च हयांश्चैव तथोभौ पार्ष्णिसारथी।।
एतत्कुरु महेष्वास राधेय यदि शक्यते।
अथैनं विमुखीकृत्य पश्चात्प्रहरणं कुरु।।
सधनुष्को न शक्योऽयमपि जेतुं सुरासुरैः।
विरथं विधनुष्कं च कुरुष्वैनं यदीच्छसि।।
`पुनः स्थितेन केनापि दुःशको जेतुमार्जुनिः'।।
सञ्जय उवाच।
तदाचार्यवचः श्रुत्वा कर्णो वैकर्तनस्त्वरन्।
अस्यतो लघुहस्तस्य पृष्ठतो धनुराच्छिनत्।।
अश्वानस्यावधीद्दोणो गौतमः पार्ष्णिसारथी।
शेषास्तु च्छिन्नधन्वानं शरवर्षैरवाकिरन्।।
त्वरमाणास्त्वराकाले विरथं षण्महारथाः।
शरवर्षैरकरुणा बालमेकमवाकिरन्।।
स च्छिन्नधन्वा विरथः स्वधर्ममनुपालयन्।
खङ्गचर्मधरः श्रीमानुत्पपात विहायसा।।
मार्गैः सकौशिकाद्यैश्च लाघवेन बलेन च।
आर्जुनिर्व्यचरद्य्वोम्नि भृशं वै पक्षिराडिव।।
मय्येव निपतत्येष सासिरित्यूर्ध्वदृष्टयः।
विव्यधुस्तं महेष्वासं समरे छिद्रदर्सिनः।।
क्षुरप्रेण महातेजास्त्वरमाणः सपत्नजित्।।
राधेयो निशितैर्बाणैर्व्यधमच्चर्म चोत्तमम्।।
व्यसिचर्मेषुपूर्णाङ्गः सोऽन्तरिक्षात्पुनः क्षितिम्।
आस्थितश्चक्रमुद्यम्य द्रोणं क्रुद्धोऽभ्यधावत।।
स चक्ररेणूकज्ज्वलशोभिताङ्गो
बभावतीवोज्ज्वलचक्रपाणिः।
रणेऽभिमन्युः क्षणमास रौद्रः
स वासुदेवानुकृतिं प्रकुर्वन्।।
स्रुतरुधिरकृतैकरागवस्त्रो
भ्रुकुटिपुटाकुलितोऽतिसिंहनादः।
प्रभुरमितबलो रणेऽभिमन्यु--
र्नृपवरमध्यगतो भृशं व्यराजत्।।
।। इति श्रीमन्महाभारते द्रोणपर्वणि अभिमन्युवधपर्वणि
त्रयोदशदिवसयुद्धे अष्टचत्वारिंशोऽध्यायः।। 48 ।।
English Ganguli
“Sanjaya said, ‘Having thus slain one of their foremost warriors, and having been afflicted with their arrows, we came back to our encampment in the evening, covered with blood. Steadfastly gazed at by the enemy, we slowly left, O monarch, the field of battle, having sustained a severe loss and nearly deprived of our senses. Then came that wonderful hour intervening between day and night. Inauspicious howls of jackals were heard. The sun, with the pale-red hue of the filaments of the lotus, sank low in the horizon, having approached the western hills. And he took away with him the splendour of our swords and darts, rapiers and car-fences, and shields and ornaments. Causing the firmament and the earth to assume the same hue, the sun assumed his favourite form of fire. The field of battle was strewn with the motionless bodies of innumerable elephants deprived of life, looking like crests of cloud-capped hills riven by the thunder, and lying about with their standards and hooks and riders fallen from their backs. The earth looked beautiful with large cars crushed to pieces, and with their warriors and charioteers and ornaments and steeds and standards and banners crushed, broken and torn. Those huge cars, O king, looked like living creatures deprived of their lives by the foe with his shafts. The field of battle assumed a fierce and awful aspect in consequence of large number of steeds and riders all lying dead, with costly trappings and blankets of diverse kinds scattered about, and tongues and teeth and entrails and eyes of those creatures bulging out of their places. Men decked with costly coats of mail and ornaments and robes and weapons, deprived of life, lay with slain steeds and elephants and broken cars, on the bare ground, perfectly helpless, although deserving of costly beds and blankets. Dogs and jackals, and crown and cranes and other carnivorous birds, and wolves and hyenas, and ravens and other food-drinking creatures, all diverse tribes of Rakshasas, and large number of Pisachas, on the field of battle, tearing the skins of the corpse and drinking their fat, blood and marrow, began to eat their flesh. And they began to suck also the secretions of rotten corpses, while the Rakshasas laughed horribly and sang aloud, dragging dead bodies numbering thousands. An awful river, difficult to cross, like the Vaitarani itself, was caused there by foremost of warriors. Its waters were constituted by the blood (of fallen creatures). Cars constituted the rafts (on which to cross it), elephants formed its rocks, and the heads of human beings, its smaller stones. And it was miry with the flesh (of slain steeds and elephants and men). And diverse kinds of costly weapons constituted the garlands (floating on it or lying on its banks). And that terrible river flowed fiercely through the middle of the field of battle, wafting living creatures to the regions of the dead. And large numbers of Pisachas, of horrible and repulsive forms, rejoiced, drinking and eating in that stream. And dogs and jackals and carnivorous birds, all eating of the same food, and inspiring living creatures with terror, held their high carnival there. And the warriors, gazing on that field of battle which, enhancing the population of Yama’s domain, presented such an awful sight, and where human corpses rising up, began to dance, slowly left it as they beheld the mighty car-warrior Abhimanyu who resembled Sakra himself, lying on the field, his costly ornaments displaced and fallen off, and looking like a sacrificial fire on the altar no longer drenched with clarified butter.’"