The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, Volume 3: Books 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12
General
The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa, Volume 3: Books 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12
Epic literature, Sanskrit
steedless and carless by him in the very sight of Yuyudhana, of
Dhrishtadyumna, of the twins (Nakula and Sahadeva), of the heroic
Shikhandi, as also in the very sight of the sons of Draupadi, and all the
Pancalas! Having vanquished those innumerable foes, Karna of mighty
energy then vanquished me, O thou of mighty arms, although I exerted
myself resolutely in battle! Pursuing me then and without doubt,
vanquishing all my protectors, that foremost of warriors addressed me in
diverse harsh speeches. That I am still alive, O Dhananjaya, is due to
the prowess of Bhimasena. What more need I say? I am unable to bear that
humiliation! For thirteen years, O Dhananjaya, through fear of Karna, I
did not obtain any sleep by night or any comfort by day! Filled with
hatred of Karna, I burn, O Dhananjaya! Like the bird Vaddhrinasa I fled
from Karna, knowing that the time for my own destruction had come. The
whole of my time had passed in the thought as to how I would accomplish
the destruction of Karna in battle! Awake or asleep, O son of Kunti, I
always beheld Karna (with my mind's eye). Wherever I was, the universe
appeared to me to be full of Karna! Inspired with the fear of Karna,
wherever I used to go, O Dhananjaya, thither I beheld Karna standing
before my eyes! Vanquished in battle, with my steeds and car, by that
hero who never retreated from battle, alive I was let off by him! What
use have I of life or of kingdom either, since Karna, that ornament of
battle, today cried fie on me? That which I had never before met with at
the hands of Bhishma or Kripa or Drona in battle, that I met with today
at the hands of the Suta's son, that mighty car-warrior! It is for this,
O son of Kunti, that I ask thee today about thy welfare! Tell me in
detail how thou hast slain Karna today! In battle Karna was equal unto
Sakra himself. In prowess he was equal unto Yama. In weapons he was equal
unto Rama. How then hath he been slain? He was regarded as a mighty
car-warrior, conversant with all modes of warfare. He was the foremost of
all bowmen, and the one man amongst all men! O prince, the son of Radha
was always worshipped by Dhritarashtra and his son, for thy sake! How
then hath he been slain by thee? In all engagements, Dhritarashtra's son,
O Arjuna, used to regard Karna as thy death, O bull among men! How then,
O tiger among men, hath that Karna been slain by thee in battle? Tell me,
O son of Kunti, how that Karna hath been slain by thee! How, while he was
engaged in battle, didst thou, O tiger among men, strike off his head in
the very sight of all his friends like a tiger tearing off the head of a
ruru deer? That Suta's son who in battle searched all the points of the
compass for finding thee, that Karna who had promised to give a car with
six bulls of elephantine proportions unto him that would point thee out,
I ask: doth that Karna of wicked soul lie today on the bare ground, slain
with thy keen arrows equipped with Kanka feathers? Having slain the
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