By Nirooshitha Sethuram, Yogaratna
Graphics by Sheralee (Shambhavi) Hancherow
Fourteenth Day Continues
Karna engaged in a fierce battle with Ghatotkacha, but Ghatotkacha’s supernatural powers proved to be insurmountable.
Karna, unable to counter the peculiar and magical combat techniques employed by Ghatotkacha, unleashed a variety of weapons upon him. Ghatotkacha rendered them ineffective by constantly shifting his form.
One moment, he would appear on the ground, and in the next, he would be standing in the sky. He would be visible one moment and vanish the next, concealing his whereabouts completely.
Amidst these magical feats, his weapons were decimating the Kauravas. The Kaurava army commanders cried out, warning that unless Ghatotkacha was killed, their entire army would soon be destroyed.
Duryodhana trembled in awe as he witnessed Ghatotkacha’s immense power. Seeing his soldiers being decimated, he urged Karna to use the Vasavi Shakti weapon he had obtained from Lord Indra. Karna, however, reserved that weapon specifically for Arjuna and insisted that he could kill Ghatotkacha even without using it.
Duryodhana’s mounting fear compelled him to once again urge Karna to use the Vasavi Shakti weapon. Compelled by his friend Duryodhana, Karna wielded the weapon, which was immensely powerful. However, it could only be used once. Once its purpose was fulfilled, it would return to Lord Indra. Karna had somewhat been relying on this weapon to kill Arjuna.
Karna, with a swift motion, placed the Vasavi Shakti weapon onto his bow and aimed it at Ghatotkacha. With a thunderous roar, he unleashed the weapon, which sliced through the air with the speed of lightning.
Sensing the imminent danger, Ghatotkacha instinctively transformed himself into a colossal mountain, rising majestically into the sky.
The Vasavi Shakti weapon struck true, piercing Ghatotkacha’s chest and fulfilling its destined purpose. As the weapon returned to Lord Indra, Ghatotkacha, struck by its power, collapsed upon the Kaurava forces, leaving them in disarray.
The colossal mountain form that Ghatotkacha assumed before being pierced by the Shakthi weapon obliterated an entire akshauhini division of the Kaurava army. While the Kauravas celebrated their forces’ survival amidst the devastation of that single division, Karna was consumed by anxiety about how to eliminate Arjuna.
The Pandavas were mourning the loss of Abhimanyu, who was killed on the 13th day of the battle, and now Ghatotkacha, who was killed on the 14th day.
Yet Krishna’s divine plan to strip Karna of his most potent weapon had succeeded, thereby increasing Arjuna’s survival throughout the war. Although Krishna inwardly rejoiced at Arjuna’s survival, he chose to remain silent about it.
Realizing that the losses were sufficient, Krishna blew his conch, and the battle of the 14th night came to an end.
Fifteenth Day
Commencing on the fifteenth day, Drona fought fiercely, determined to secure Duryodhana’s victory at all costs.
Devoid of compassion, Drona mercilessly annihilated the Pandava troops, disregarding all the agreed-upon codes of warfare. He was utterly disgusted with life due to Duryodhana’s incessant accusations of his partiality towards the Pandavas, coupled with his indiscriminate slaughter of innocent lives, which contradicted Drona’s beliefs as a brahmin.
The combat between Arjuna and Drona was a terrifying spectacle. Arjuna, employing all his skills, fought fiercely against Drona for an extended period. Eventually, the teacher and the disciple parted ways to engage other warriors.
Drona displayed extraordinary prowess, leaving everyone except the Pandava brothers and their army commander, Dhrishtadyumna, shaken by his onslaught. His arrows, released from his bow, tore through the air unimpeded and struck their targets with precision. With a single burst of force, Drona unleashed several arrows, striking terror into the Pandava forces with his might. The battle against Drona was fierce and unrelenting.
Krishna drove Arjuna’s chariot in a different direction, towards Duryodhana. His younger brother Dhushasana, Karna and Shakuni were there to support Duryodhana.
Arjuna confronted all four of them, unleashing a torrential rain of arrows that obscured the sky. Unable to withstand Arjuna’s assault, the four of them scattered and moved in different directions.
Karna, alone, warned Arjuna before leaving, “The moment for confrontation is drawing near. Be prepared.” Arjuna replied, “Farewell, Karna. Go and come back safely.”
At the other end of the battlefield, Drona was mercilessly reducing everyone to ashes with his Agni Astras. Enraged, King Drupada embarked on a mission to stop him. After a fierce battle, Drupada, unable to withstand Drona’s relentless assault, was struck in the chest by an arrow and collapsed onto his chariot.
Killing his childhood friend brought no joy to Drona. Instead, he was overwhelmed with memories of his youth, spent with his friend. A painful realization washed over him as to how fate had compelled him to act in such a manner.
Thus, Drupada, the father of Draupadi and Dhrishtadyumna, fulfilled his role and met his demise. Dhrishtadyumna rushed to avenge his father’s death, but Drona easily routed him.
Drona laid many warriors to rest by wielding his celestial weapons. He decimated the ranks of horse warriors and elephants, leaving a torrent of blood that transformed the battlefield into a sea of crimson.
As the tide of battle turned in his favor, Drona devised a final plan. He intended to unleash the Brahmastra, a devastating weapon capable of annihilating the entire Pandava army.
Arjuna requested Krishna to turn his chariot towards Drona, who was dispersing the Pandava forces. Arjuna engaged Drona in another head-on confrontation. Arrows flew, and celestial weapons hissed through the air. The sound of the bowstring was louder than the battle cry.
Both warriors fought with equal prowess. Drona fought with complete disregard for his own life, and no one could approach him. Krishna understood the turmoil within Drona’s mind, his disgust with life and his readiness to leave this world.
Realizing Drona’s intention to unleash the Brahmastra, Krishna believed that Drona would swiftly end the battle. He also realized that Drona could not be defeated through respectable means. Krishna felt that victory could only be achieved by diverting Drona. He also knew that Drona could never be killed unless he surrendered his weapons. However, this would not work unless they could convince him of the death of his beloved son, Ashwatthama.
Krishna advised Bhima to attack Ashwatthama, an elephant belonging to the Kaurava army. Bhima struck Ashwatthama with his mace, causing the elephant to curl up, collapse, and die instantly. Krishna advised Yudhishthira on what to say if Drona questioned him. Yudhishthira refused to lie and had to be coaxed into telling the truth.
After killing the elephant, Bhima approached the section of Drona’s army and shouted in a loud voice so that Drona would hear it, “I have killed Ashwatthama.” Having said that, Vyasa states that Bhima, a warrior who had never experienced such humiliation even in his dreams, felt ashamed when he uttered those words.
Disgusted with himself, Drona was on the verge of taking up the Brahmastra and unleashing it. The words about Ashwatthama’s death reached Drona’s ears. Believing Bhima had killed his son, Drona stood frozen on the spot. At that moment, he had forgotten Ashwatthama’s immortality.
Devastated by the grief of losing his son, the war frenzy within him subsided, and he returned to a normal state of mind. With a heavy, hot, and darkening vision, he let the bow in his hand fall to the ground. He inspected the battlefield, looking at the murders he had committed and the flood of blood that had surged from them. He was shocked when he reflected on what he had done in the war-induced frenzy, unaware of his own actions. He looked up, wondering if there was any purpose left in fighting.
Knowing even under the most compelling circumstances of falsehood, Yudhishthira’s lips would not betray him. He approached Yudhishthira, asking him one last time to confirm whether Ashwatthama’s death was true. Upon learning of Drona’s approach, Krishna had already prepared Yudhishthira to answer any question Drona might ask by stating that the elephant named Ashwatthama had been killed by Bhima.
To ensure Drona only heard the confirmation of the death and missed the qualifying suffix, Krishna had also prepared a loud noise to be raised when Yudhishthira uttered the word “elephant,” creating a din that muffled Yudhishthira’s final words.
Upon arriving where Yudhishthira was, Drona inquired about the truth of Ashwatthama’s demise. Yudhisthira with a heavy heart, said “Yes, Ashwatthama is dead…” loudly on the battlefield but whispered “the elephant” under his breath to legally tell a half-truth that tricked Guru Drona.
In response to Krishna’s instructions, the Pandava army blew their conches and war drums to prevent Drona from hearing the final two words, “the elephant.”
Vyasa explained that as soon as those false words escaped his lips, Yudhishthira’s chariot, which had hovered above the ground, descended and touched the earth. Yudhishthira’s virtue and adherence to truth had kept his chariot above the ground, but the moment he uttered this deceptive truth for victory, his merit shattered and his chariot dropped down.
This epic shows that even the most righteous person incurs a significant spiritual cost when they choose untruth or unrighteousness, even for a noble or victorious outcome.
Overwhelmed by his deep affection for his son, Drona succumbed to despair and collapsed. But a few moments later, he regained his composure and realized he had to fight to uphold the vow he had made.
At this moment, again due to the need, Bhima approached Drona and began showering him with insults. “Among all the brahmins on earth, you are the most despicable one who fails to fulfill the duties of a brahmin. You are fully aware that the vow of non-killing is the supreme virtue, and that the brahmin lineage is the very foundation of that virtue. Despite being born into that caste, you engage in the shameful act of killing. Why did you descend into such sin?” He scolded him, “You’ve entered the kshatriya struggle.” Bhima said that, by joining forces with those driven by greed for material gain, Drona was destroying lives just like a butcher.
Drona, already grieving the loss of his son, lost all interest in worldly life upon hearing this insult. Unable to take up arms again after discharging his bow and quiver, he sat in the center of the chariot and entered a state of yogic meditation.
Taking advantage of this moment, Dhrishtadyumna approached Drona, having set out specifically to kill him to avenge his father’s death and to fulfill his vow. Subsequently, he severed Drona’s head with his sword, thereby fulfilling the purpose of his own birth. Drona’s body rolled onto the ground, and his true form ascended towards the celestial realm.
More to come…
- Karna & Ghatotkacha https://ca.pinterest.com/pin/768497123962255476/
- Ghatotkacha is killed. https://www.facebook.com/100066478603876/posts/do-you-know-the-story-of-ghatotkacha-mahabharata-says-ghatotkacha-was-the-son-of/138125034573233/
- Drona Image by S.A. Hancherow/Canva
- Krishna & Arjuna https://ca.pinterest.com/pin/750130881732593702/
- Brahmastra weapon https://srottam.com/the-story-of-brahmastra/
- Bhima slays Ashwatthama, the elephant. https://indus-meetindus.blogspot.com/2017/03/kurukshaetra-war-day-15.html
- Yudhishthira & Drona https://www.sawanonlinebookstore.com/killing-of-ghatotkacha-and-drona/
- Drona is killed by Dhrishtadyumna https://glorioushinduism.com/2018/06/15/dronacharya/