INDIA. PART II. harmonize with they are said to have delivered embassy. thenticity of the Yuyutsu. ent with the post held by Bhishma as Generalissimo HISTORY OF of the allied armies of the Kauravas, and the esteem and respect in which both were held by the sons of Dhritarashtra. At the same time such a declaration Introduced to is perfectly in accordance with the mythical speeches the speeches said to have been delivered by those warriors at the at Krishna's Council held at Hastinapur to receive Krishna as an ambassador from the Pándavas. Accordingly it seems highly probable that the incident has been introduced to harmonize the violent partisanship which they exhibited at the Council in favour of the Pandavas, with the fact that they were prepared to fight to the death in behalf of the Kauravas. The desertion of Yuyutsu from the Kauravas to the Dubious auPándavas is somewhat dubious. It may be either desertion of an actual fact, or a mythical interpolation. He is said to have been a son of the Maháraja, but only half-brother to the Kauravas; and it is easy to conceive of a jealousy between the half-brothers which may have led to the desertion of Yuyutsu on such an occasion. At the same time, the existence of Yuyutsu is doubtful. The blind Maháraja is not likely to have had a son by any woman save his wife Gándhári. Moreover, as all the Kauravas are said to have been ultimately slain upon the field of battle, the Maharaja would have been doomed to the fate, so terrible in the eyes of a Hindú, of dying without leaving a son behind him. The introduction of Yuyutsu as a son by another mother, and the preservation of his life by a timely desertion, saved the Maháraja from so dire a calamity. war. The story of the commencement of the battle, First day of the and the combats which ensued on the first day of the war, may now be related as follows: HISTORY OF Battle between Bhishma and Bhima, and their respective armies. battle. Now after Yudhishthira had returned to the army of the Pándavas, Bhishma advanced with the troops of the Kauravas, and Bhíma marched out from amongst the Pándavas to confront him. And Bhishma blew his war-shell which sounded like the roar of a lion. And Krishna and Arjuna sounded their shells in reply, standing in a huge chariot drawn by white horses; for Krishna drove the chariot of Arjuna on all the days of the war. At that moment there was a mighty uproar throughout the plain; and the air was filled with the beating of drums and the sounding of warshells; and the men shouted, and the elephants roared, and the horses neighed, so that the earth and air resounded with a clangour which seemed to reach the sky. Then Bhíma cried out with a voice of thunder, louder than all the other noises; and the Kauravas were deafened at his cries, and were as fearful as children who had seen a demon; and they Character of the hurled a shower of darts at him. Then Duryodhana advanced with ten of his brethren, and they shot their arrows at Bhíma and his soldiers, and thus the battle commenced; and the shouting of the combatants, and the gleaming of the cuirasses, and the flashing of the swords and spears, were like a storm of thunder and lightning. And the other Pandavas came out to help Bhíma, and there was as good a battle among them as has ever been seen or heard, whilst the dust dimmed the light of the sun, and the sword-strokes fell like heavy rain upon a mountain. And Single combats. Yudhishthira fought Sálya, and Dhrishta-dyumna fought Drona, and Drupada fought Jayadratha, and there were very many other single combats between renowned warriors whose names need not be declared. And they fought fairly for about an hour or two, each man against his own foe, and those who were mounted fought against those who were mounted, and those who were on foot against those who Disregard of the were on foot; but then, like drunken Asuras, they forgot rules of fighting all the laws of fair fighting, and fell to in great confusion. Combat between And Abhimanyu, son of Arjuna, seeing that the battle was the youthful Abhimanyu and going against the Pandavas, went out against Bhishma, and the patriarch Bhishma. fought with great valour; and he cut down the ensign on INDIA. PART II. Praises be Bhishma upon Uttar and Sálya. Bhishma's chariot, and passed on and killed some and HISTORY OF wounded many; and as he was returning, many darts were thrown at him, but he regarded them as so many drops of water; and Bhishma bestowed great praise upon Abhimanyu, stowed by and said that of all the heroes he had ever known, he had the prowess of Abhimanyu. never before seen a youth, whose age was only sixteen years, perform such prodigies of valour. And Uttar, son of Combat between Raja Viráta, was mounted on an elephant, and fought against Sálya; and his elephant overturned Sálya's chariot with his trunk, and Sálya fell to the ground; but Sálya rose up and discharged an arrow at Uttar, who thereupon fell senseless from the elephant, and was carried off by his father's people; and Sálya slew the elephant, and it fell to the ground like a tower. Then Bhishma charged the Combat between soldiers of the Pándavas and made great havoc, but Arjuna Arjuna. went out against him; and Bhishma attacked Arjuna first, and the two fought together for a long while, until the sun set and the drums beat to quarters, and the first day of the great war of Bhárata was fully over. Bhishma and logue between and Krishna. The foregoing account of the first day of the Mythical diawar of Bhárata is followed in the Mahá Bhárata by Yudhishthira a dialogue between Yudhishthira and Krishna, which is both puerile and mythical. The language is poor and the matter contemptible, whilst it seems to have been inserted for the sole purpose of associating Krishna with the war. As, however, it may serve as a fair specimen of the many dialogues which are introduced into the story, it may be reproduced here, as follows: the Yudhishthira and havoc commit complains of the ted by Bhishma, retiring. Now when it was night, Yudhishthira went to lodgings of Krishna, together with his brethren, Dhrishta-dyumna, and other warriors; and he said to him :- and proposes "You have seen, O Krishna, how Bhishma has fought this day, and how in his old age he so handled our army, that had not Arjuna stood out against him we should have been wholly discomfited: These people of mine compared with PART II. Consoled by the of Krishna, who dwells on the prowess of Arjuna and Dhrishtadyumna. HISTORY OF Bhishma are like moths around a lighted lamp; and I INDIA. believe it would be better for me to dismiss them all, and retire to the jungle, or step aside and slay myself.” Krishna remonstrances answered :-" O Raja, why do you despair so soon, when you have so many valiant brethren, and such famous warriors on your side? What if Bhishma did make havoc in your army, such is the nature of war, and a tiger does not fall back at the first rebuff: Moreover, towards evening time Arjuna made equal havoc amongst the Kauravas: Besides, no army ought to despair which has Dhrishta-dyumna in command." And Dhrishta-dyumna was much pleased at the words of Krishna, and the spirit of Yudhishthira was revived; so they all took leave of Krishna and returned to their own quarters. Narrative of the war from the second to the tenth day. Second day of the war. The Pandavas repulsed by Bhishma, but rallied by Arjuna. The narrative of the war from the second to the tenth day contains some curious incidents, but demands no preliminary explanation. The story may be accordingly related as follows: Now on the morning of the second day, the two armies appeared again upon the plain in battle array; and Duryodhana commended the care which the Kauravas had taken of Bhishma on the preceding day, and desired that they would now be equally mindful. Then Bhishma and the Kauravas rushed upon their enemy, and at the first onset they drove the Pándavas back; and Arjuna seeing this, requested Krishna, who was his charioteer, to drive him against Bhishma. And Duryodhana reproached Bhishma, in that he had quarrelled with Karna, who was the only Bhishma reluc- Warrior in the world who was fitted to oppose Arjuna. And with Arjuna. Bhishma replied :-" Shame be upon me for being a Kshatriya, for however reluctant I may be, I am compelled by honour to fight my beloved Arjuna." And he immediately set out to do battle with Arjuna, and the two heroes fought and wounded each other. Meanwhile Dhrishta-dyumna was Bhima attacked engaged in a hard contest with Drona. At this moment by the Raja of Magadha and Bhíma came up and was stopped by the Raja of Magadhá, and hemmed in by the people of the Raja; and Bhíma took tantly engages his army. INDIA. PART II. his mace and struck about him in all directions, and at HISTORY OF every stroke he killed several elephants, and such a battle took place between them as was fought in olden time between Indra and the Asuras. And the son of the Raja of Slays a son of the Raja of Magadhá came up and killed Bhíma's charioteer and his Magadhá. four horses, and Bhíma slew him with one blow of his mace. Then the Raja of Magadhá, to revenge the death of his son, drove his elephant at Bhíma, who was now without horses and his elephant or driver; and Bhíma leaped down from his chariot, and Vaults on an elephant and slays rushed forward with his sword, when another son of the a second son. Raja of Magadhá interposed with his elephant; and Bhíma put his hands upon the tusks of the elephant and vaulted upon his back, and cut off the head of the young man and threw it at the feet of his father. And the Raja of Magadhá Slays the Raja almost died with grief at the death of both his sons, and at a single blow. had a fierce battle with Bhíma; but at length Bhíma lifted up his great mace and slew both the Raja and his elephant at a single blow. Then the Raja's troops fell upon Bhíma, but he blew the shell of victory, and his own army heard it and came to his rescue; and the Kauravas were greatly troubled when they heard that the Raja of Magadhá and his two sons were amongst the slain. slays a son of Duryodhana, Arjuna. After this there was a great battle between Abhimanyu, Abhimanyu son of Arjuna, and Lakshmana, a son of Duryodhana. The Duryodhana. two youths fought bravely together, and Abhimanyu gained the victory and slew the son of Duryodhana. And when Attacked by Duryodhana saw that his son was dead, he flew with many and rescued by of his Rajas to attack Abhimanyu, and the Pándavas cried out:-"They are murdering Abhimanyu by force of numbers." And Arjuna heard these words, and pounced like a Flight of all the falcon upon Duryodhana and all his forces; and all the sound of ArjuRajas fled at the very sound of his chariot, and left their arms, and their horses, and their elephants, and everything else behind them, for there was no one amongst them who would face Arjuna. And Duryodhana called upon them by name to rally round him, but no one heeded his words, and Duryodhana finding himself alone was compelled to fly in like manner. So Arjuna gained the victory, and he and Rajas at the na's chariot. |