DHRITARASHTRA

#1

O Sanjaya, please tell me what took place at Kurukshetra, also known as the field of dharma, which is where my family and the Pandavas gathered to fight.

SANJAYA

#2

After taking in the sight of the Pandava army arrayed for battle, the prince Duryodhana approached his instructor Drona and started a conversation with him.

#3

O my guru, take a look at this formidable army of Pandavas that has been put together by your own talented disciple, the son of Drupada.

#4

Yuyudhana, Virata, and the mighty Drupada are just a few examples of other valiant warriors and great archers who can stand shoulder to shoulder with Bhima and Arjuna.

#5

Dhrishtaketu, Chekitana, the valiant king of Kashi, Purujit, Kuntibhoja, the great leader Shaibya, and Shaibya, the son of Shaibya.

#6

In addition to Draupadi’s sons, the mighty Yudhamanyu, the brave Uttamaujas, and the son of Subhadra are also included in this number. All of these have command over powerful chariots.

#7-8

O most excellent of brahmins, listen to the names of those who are distinguished among our own forces: Bhishma, Karna, and the victorious Kripa; Ashvatthama, Vikarna, and the son of Somadatta.

#9

There are also a great number of others, all of whom are skilled warriors who are willing to give up their lives for my benefit. They are armed with a variety of different types of weapons.

#10

Our army is limitless, and Bhishma commands it; in contrast, their force is limited, and Bhima is in charge of it.

#11

Everyone should take their rightful place and maintain their steadfast support for Bhishma!

#12

At that time, the mighty Bhishma, the grandsire and oldest of all the Kurus, roared like a lion and blew his conch horn in order to encourage Duryodhana.

#13

And after Bhishma, a tremendous racket emanating from drums, conches, and cow horns could be heard in the distance.

#14

Then Sri Krishna and Arjuna, who were standing in a powerful chariot pulled by white horses, blew the divine conchs that were in their possession.

#15

Arjuna blew the conch that was called Devadatta, and Sri Krishna blew the conch that was called Panchajanya. Paundra, the enormous conch, was blown by the powerful Bhima.

#16

King Yudhishthira, son of Kunti, blew the conch Anantavijaya. Nakula and Sahadeva also blew their conches at the same time.

#17

Then, the king of Kashi, the foremost archer, the mighty warrior Shikhandi, Dhrishtadyumna, Virata, the unconquerable Satyaki, and others appeared.

#18

Drupada, along with all of Draupadi’s sons, as well as the able-bodied son of Subhadr, joined in.

#19

And the commotion ripped through the centre of Duryodhana’s army. In point of fact, the sound was turbulent, and it reverberated all throughout the heavens and the earth.

#20

After seeing that your son’s armies were positioned where they were supposed to be and that the battle was about to begin, Arjuna addressed Sri Krishna with the following words: O Dhritarashtra, lord of the earth.

ARJUNA

#21

0 Please, Krishna, make your way between the two armies in my chariot.

#22

I want to meet everyone who is interested in fighting alongside me. Who exactly will this conflict be waged against?

#23

I want to see those who have gathered to fight for Duryodhana, those who seek to please the evil-minded son of Dhritarashtra by participating in battle.

SANJAYA

#24

Upon hearing these words from Arjuna, Sri Krishna, who was riding his magnificent chariot, takes it between the two armies.

#25

Arjuna, in front of Bhishma and Drona and all the kings of the earth, said, “Behold, all the Kurus have gathered together.”

#26

And while Arjuna was standing in the middle of the two armies, he saw sons and grandsons, fathers and grandfathers, teachers and uncles, and brothers.

#27

Relatives and friends of the family. Observing that his relatives had taken up positions of opposition,

#28

Arjuna was overcome with grief and despair. Despondent, he uttered the following words:

ARJUNA

O Krishna, I see members of my own family who are eager to fight here.

#29

And I can feel the weakness spreading throughout my limbs; my mouth is dry, my body is shaking, and the hair on the back of my neck is standing on end.

#30

My entire body is on fire, and the Gandiva bow that I was holding just slipped out of my grasp. My head seems to be spinning, and I am unable to stand up straight.

#31

These omens portend ill for us in the future. Killing our friends and family members in combat is not going to accomplish anything positive, in my opinion.

#32

O Krishna, I don’t care about winning, and I don’t care about having a kingdom or having pleasures. What good is a kingdom? What good is pleasure? What good is life?

#33

If those for whose sake we desire these things — if those for whose sake we desire these things —

#34

Individuals with familial ties — including educators, fathers, sons, grandfathers, uncles, in-laws, grandsons, and others — have committed to fighting in this conflict, giving up both their wealth and their lives.

#35

Even if they were to kill me, I would not want to kill them—not even to become the master of all three worlds. Even if they were to kill me, I would not want to kill them. How much less would that be just for the earth?

#36

O Krishna, what possible sense of fulfilment could we get from murdering Dhritarashtra’s sons? Even though these men are wicked, our actions would make us sinners if we took their lives.

#37

Because of our familial ties, it would be irresponsible of us to kill any of Dhritarashtra’s children. How can we expect to find joy if we take the lives of members of our own family?

#38

Despite the fact that they are blinded by their avarice and do not see any wrong in destroying families or injuring friends, we do see these wrongs.

#39

Why shouldn’t we make an effort to steer clear of this sin?

#40

Traditions passed down through generations are lost whenever a family falls into disarray. The spiritual underpinnings of a life are destroyed along with them, and the family loses its sense of cohesion as a result.

#41

In a society that lacks a sense of unity, the women in the family are more likely to become corrupt, and when a society’s women are corrupt, the society is more likely to descend into anarchy.

#42

The social upheaval is a living hell for the family, and it is also hell for those who were responsible for destroying the family. It throws off the course of the spiritual evolution that was set in motion by our ancestors.

#43

These terrible deeds, which violate the unity of life, would result in the obliteration of the ageless spiritual foundations upon which the family and society are built.

#44

It is said that those individuals whose family dharma has been destroyed can be found residing in hell.

#45

This is a serious offence! Because of our insatiable desire for the luxuries that come with ruling a kingdom, we are willing to murder our own relatives.

#46

It would be better for me if the sons of Dhritarashtra attacked me in battle while they were armed and killed me while I was defenceless and without a weapon.

SANJAYA

#47

These are the words that Arjuna uttered while he was overcome with grief. And with that, he threw away his bow and all of his arrows and proceeded to sit down in the middle of the battlefield in his chariot.