Kurukshetra War - Day 9

  

 

   With the hour for the sunrise nearing fast, under the leadership of Pithamaha Bhishma, his vast force formed the mighty Sarvatobhadra Vyuha (Square) while the Pandavas with their legions formed the Mandala Vyuha (Galaxy). Thus, forming the mighty formations, endued with bravery, both the armies waited for the sunrise with valor to fight and win.

          As the sun granted vision to the world, conchs were blown and drums were beaten and both the armies rushed against each other, wielding their best skills in battling. Rushing with wrath, forgetting their relation with one another, the mighty warriors began striking each other with all their strength and mightiness. The mighty Bhishma invoked his celestial weapon and covered the battlefield with dusty clouds which encased the sun, making the Pandava troops tough to fight. Slaughtering of the Pandava army started with the sunrise and the day for many Pandava soldiers ended the moment it started.  Invoking his celestial weapon, Krishna’s adoring Abhimanyu removed the clouds of dust and proceeded towards the Kaurava army, leading in front, exterminating the Kaurava soldiers who were standing on his way. Abhimanyu, singly,began to break the array formed by Bhishma and continued forward. The Pandava troops headed by Bhīma, followed Abhimanyu and rushed against Bhishma, filled with rage.

          Abhimanyu proceeded with cheered heart as he dusted the arrow showers of the mighty Krpacharya, Aswathama and King Jayadratha in a flash. Unceasingly, the unsurpassed adorable hero Abhimanyu kept stretching his bow’s strings and with the sound of his bow, the swiftness of his steeds and the speed in shooting arrows, he terrified the hearts of the Kaurava warriors. The foes were unable to find a window of opportunity to strike or even to raise their weapon against Abhimanyu. His perfectly aimed shafts slaughtered the mighty Kings of tribes in the Kaurava army and even the elephants fell dead instantly. Dronacharya was both impressed and perplexed when Abhimanyu responded to him with an arrow shower and swiftly crossed him, before even he could lift his bow.

          Witnessing Abhimanyu slaughtering the army, Duryodhana turning towards Alambusha, said – “Singly Abhimanyu is slaughtering my army in the very morning itself. Even the mighty Dronacharya and Aswathama are not able to slay him. Go and slay him before he slaughters most of our army. We will focus on slaying Arjuna and in defending Pithamaha and Dronacharya.”

         

Alambusha decapitating Pandava soldier!

     Alambusha, the Rakshasa, on the command of Duryodhana proceeded against Abhimanyu with a loud roar. Beholding Alambusha approaching, the terrified Pandava warriors started running in all directions.  Alambusha began to slaughter the Pandava soldiers with his shafts. Beholding his prowess, the UpaPandavas rushed against him and started piercing him with their celestial weapons.  Not ceasing for a moment, the UpaPandavas kept hitting Alambusha. Alambusha, deeply pierced in his heart by a celestial arrow of Prathivindhya, fell unconscious in his chariot. Regaining his consciousness, raged Alambusha responded to their shafts with his pointy blazing arrows. He slew the steeds and the charioteers of the UpaPandavas. Witnessing Alambusha’s prowess, Abhimanyu rushed to defend his brothers. Seeing Abhimanyu, delighted Alambusha struck him with his pointy arrows and soon begun the battle between those two mighty warriors. Though the duel was fierce with both showering arrows at each other, with time passing by, Abhimanyu took control of the duel. Abhimanyu’s arrows pierced Alambusha in his chest and as a result, Alambusha started using his sorcery and illusion powers. He covered the whole place with darkness and started hitting Abhimanyu by being invisible. Alambusha’s smile did not last long as Abhimanyu well versed in finding the person who is invisible, shot arrows at Alambusha. Invoking the blazing Bhaskarastra, Abhimanyu defused the darkness and brought back vision to his warriors.Alambusha’s further sorcery and illusions too were thwarted by Abhimanyu. Pierced by Abhimanyu’s shafts, frightened Alambusha ran away.

          With Alambusha vanquished, courageous Abhimanyu started slaughtering the Kaurava troops. Beholding Abhimanyu, Bhishma rushed against him, feeling proud at the prowess of his grandson. Defended by 50 of Duryodhana’s brothers, Bhishma engaged in conflict with Abhimanyu. Struck by the mighty Bhishma and his warriors from all directions, with spirited heart, Abhimanyu responded to the warriors through his sharp pointy arrows and skills, singly.  Witnessing Abhimanyu, Arjuna rushed to the spot. Bhishma ceased Arjuna from proceeding towards Abhimanyu and started attacking Arjuna.

Meanwhile, the mighty Krpacharya and Aswathama who were protecting Bhishma engaged in a conflict with King Satyaki. With Satyaki cutting the string of Krpacharya’s bow and also slaying the charioteer, Krpacharya was removed from the field by his uncontrollable steeds. Satyaki then hit Aswathama with his blazing arrows in the chest and Aswathama fell unconscious. Witnessing his son lying unconscious, raged Dronacharya rushed against Satyaki and cut of the flag standard of Satyaki’s chariot. In the meantime, regaining his conscious, Aswathama too started battling with Satyaki and seeing the prowess of Satyaki, Arjuna too joined to defend him and started engaging in a duel with Dronacharya.

Meanwhile, Bhishma encountered Bhīma and the battle between Bhīma and Bhishma was so fierce that, Bhishma unleashed his not much used prominent skills and talents on Bhīma and made him drown in his shower of darts.

The duel between Arjuna and Dronacharya was nothing like common archers’ combat. The preceptor and the student dueled forgetting their relation and love for each other. Feeling proud at times on seeing Arjuna’s prowess, the old preceptor said – “Exceptional skill Arjuna! None can match your prowess in archery! Not even me! As a preceptor, I feel proud to say that my student surpassed me in his talents and skills. Proceed Arjuna…continue your duel with me and perform your Kshatriya duty.”

Bowing to his preceptor, Arjuna continued the battle. The twangs of their bow strings echoed among the mountains. Trying to defend Dronacharya, Trigartha King Susarman rushed against Arjuna along with his son and his division of army. Beholding the Trigarthas approaching him, Arjuna invoked the Vayavya Astra. The storm formed as the result of Arjuna’s celestial weapon disturbed the wind around the Trigarthas and smacked them. Unable to proceed, the warriors tried to push themselves against the fierce storm. The wind blustered few warriors, standards of chariots and weapons of soldiers. Witnessing Arjuna’s prowess, Dronacharya swiftly invoked the Sailastra and suppressed the storm created by Arjuna. Arjuna, using his sharp pointy arrows made the Trigarthas flee from the battlefield.

Elephant warriors against Bhima!

Witnessing the prowess exhibited by Arjuna and Bhīma, annoyed Duryodhana rushed against Arjuna, deploying the elephant division of King Bhagadatta and Srutayush to defend Bhishma. Meanwhile, King Saguni and King Bhurisravas battled against the mighty Sahadeva and Nakula. Beholding King Yudhistra battling defend less, Bhishma proceeded against him while the delighted Bhīma was engaged in crushing the four tusked elephant and their foremost warriors with his mighty mace. Slaughtered by Bhīma, those colossal elephants cried like a whining kid and fell on the ground, making the ground to tremble and also in the meantime, crushing the Kaurava warriors who were battling alongside. In few moments, Bhīma has made a hill out of the dead elephants in the mid of the battlefield and he stood on its top, drenched in blood while his mace was smeared with flesh and was gushing blood. The look of Bhīma invoked fear in the hearts of the Kaurava warriors, not to forget, even in few Pandava warriors.

As the sun was scorching the battlefield standing in his meridian, grandsire Bhishma, who was rushing against King Yudhistra, encountered the King and his division of army comprising the Somakas. Every time Bhishma’s bow releases arrows, hundreds of Somakas’ soldiers were slaughtered. Within moments, the slaughter increased from hundreds to thousands. Witnessing the cruel slaughter of the Somakas, Dhrishtadyumna and his Panchala troops rushed against Pithamaha who was scorching the Pandava army like the second sun. Though encountered by Dhrishtadyumna, Sikandi, King Virata and King Drupada, Bhishma’s prowess in slaying thousands of foes ceased not. Encountering thousands of arrows and javelins from the mighty Panchala warriors, still, unhurt by any of those weapons Bhishma kept decimating the Somakas. Even engaged in such a prowess, slaughtering thousands and defending him and his legion and at the same time, responding to Panchala warriors’ attacks, the immeasurably souled magnificent Pithamaha responded not to Sikandi’s attacks. 

Beholding Bhishma’s blazing attacks, the UpaPandavas and King Satyaki, along with King Yudhistra and the Kaikeya princes rushed against him. The Pandava troops kept surging towards Bhishma and his legion, desirous of death to their foes. Meanwhile, witnessing Arjuna crushing Susarman’s legion, Duryodhana and his army engaged in battling against Arjuna. Turning his eyes on Arjuna, in order to defend King Duryodhana and save the Trigarthas, Bhishma rushed against Arjuna. The Pandava army encompassed Arjuna while he was slaying the Trigarthas. The battle at that time was so fierce that none showed any respect for their lives.

King Drupada encountered Dronacharya while King Satyaki duelled with Kritavarman. Abhimanyu faced Chitrasena and Durmukha. Abhimanyu vanquished Chitrasena in the duel as Bhīma, who was battling with Prince Lakshmana and King Valikha vanquished the King and out of fear, King Valikha ascended Prince Lakshmana’s chariot and fled away.

Meanwhile, Duchadhana and King Saguni along with their legion and a mighty ten thousand more brave knights battled against Sahadeva, Nakula and King Yudhistra. Like lightning, the King, along with Sahadeva and Nakula slayed the mighty ten thousand Knights with their pointy shafts. They then began to slaughter the troops of King Saguni and Duchadhana. Defeating Kritavarman, Satyaki battled against Bhishma and vetoed him from reaching Arjuna.

          The Pandava warriors were delighted to see their troops vanquishing the foes in all directions. On the command of Duryodhana, King Salya proceeded against King Yudhistra, Sahadeva and Nakula. Though King Yudhistra and the sons of Madri succeeded in piercing King Salya’s armor and in breaking his standard, raged on the near loss, King Salya fought back showing no mercy for his beloved nephews. King Salya’s arrows pierced King Yudhistra and his two brothers in their chest. Witnessing King Salya’s rage, Bhīma rushed towards him. Routing King Salya and his army in a jiffy, Bhīma, accompanied by his brothers, proceeded against the mighty souled Bhishma who was fast approaching Arjuna, crushing the Pandava army.

          King Yudhistra and his brothers (excluding Arjuna), King Satyaki and Dhrishtadyumna along with their legion enclosed grandsire. Bhishma, blazing like an erupting volcano erupted pointy gold-winged darts from his mighty bow, which devoured the foremost chariots, Knights, archers, skirmishers, swordsmen and foot soldiers of the Pandava army. Penetrating the armor of the warriors, the arrows pierced the chest and vital parts and plunged out in the back. Thousands of warriors fell dead, hundreds of steeds were slaughtered, elephants, pierced in many parts fell like a huge rock falling from the hill, chariots’ wheels were broken into pieces and the standards fell off along with the charioteer and the Kings and princes in it. The foremost Kshatriyas of small tribes in the Pandava army were slaughtered in a split of a second.

          14,000 chariot warriors comprising the Kshatriyas of the Chedis, the Karushas, the Kasis and many other small tribes who rushed against the mighty Bhishma were all slaughtered by the arrows of the grandsire.  The grounded chariots, wrecked wheels, slayed charioteers and warriors, dead steeds, broken carts that were carrying arrows all formed a barrier between Bhishma and the army of King Yudhistra, making it tough for the chariots and steeds to steer towards Bhishma. Terrified on seeing the raged Bhishma, the Pandava troops fled in all directions.

Arjuna against Bhishma!

     Beholding the prowess of Bhishma, Arjuna, in order to save his warriors, rushed against Bhishma for a duel. Drenched on the showers of arrows from both the foremost archers of the world, thousands and thousands of soldiers were slain. Though the sun has reduced his sweltering heat waves, Bhishma, like a scorching sun burnt the foes with his rays of arrows. Arjuna broke the standard and the flag of Pithamaha. Responding to Bhishma’s arrows, he also broke the bow and covered Pithamaha with dense arrows. Though Bhishma stood unarmed for few moments, feeling proud on the prowess of Arjuna, he took another bow and started pouring blazing arrows on Arjuna. Though the sound of the twang was heard only once, the arrows that sprouted from the bow was in thousands, killing thousands of Pandava soldiers. Arjuna’s darts failed to protect his warriors or cease the massacre caused by Bhishma.

     Unable to witness the intensely blazing form of the mighty souled Bhishma who exterminated the mighty chariot warriors of the Somakas today, the terrified sun reduced his rays of vision and set behind Mountain Asta. Beholding the sunset, King Yudhistra blew his conch, believing that the twilight is not only upon the world but also for his army. With that, the tired warriors retired to their camp after a grueling day. Gladdened on hearing the conches, the Pandava troops begun to withdraw reflecting cheerlessness in the near loss they have faced today while, the Kaurava warriors, returned to their camps, extremely cheered and definite of their victory in the battle tomorrow.