THE GREAT KURUKSHETRA WAR - FIFTEENTH DAY

On the fifteenth day, Bhima proceeded to kill an elephant named Ashwathama, and loudly proclaimed that Ashwathama was dead. Drona was disheartened, and laid down his weapons. He was then killed by Dhristadyumna.

On the fifteenth day of the Great War, the two armies resumed the fight at sunrise. There were fierce encounters between Duryodhana and Nakula, Duhsasana and Sahadeva, Drona and Arjuna. Bhima was engaged in cumulative fight with the Kaurava princes. The fight continued upto noon. Drona and Arjuna fought using divine missiles for a long time, and the single combat was a treat for others to see. It was an indecisive fight. Sri Krishna exhorted Arjuna to clinch the issue. Arjuna said, "Madhava, he is my preceptor who is more than a god to me. I cannot shoot to kill. I can fight in self defence only. Drona turned his attention on the Pandava forces and the whole battlefield was soon littered with dead bodies of elephants, horses, soldiers and wreckage of chariots. Yudhisthira followed by Bhima, Nakula and Sahadeva approached Sri Krishna and said, "Destroyer of the demons, look at Drona; he has killed Drupada and Virata and is now in full swing. Who can stem his advance? Arjuna is suffering from sentimentality."

Sri Krishna replied, "You have caught the point. Even if Arjuna, let us be frank, wants to finish him, Drona will not die as long as he wields the bow in his hand. I will give you a clue. His inordinate love for Asvatthama whom he wanted to bring up as a prince is the root cause for the great Brahman to take to arms early in his life. If you tell him that his most beloved son ‘Asvatthama is dead' he will loose all interest in life. He cannot outlive the shock for a minute." Arjuna said, "I am unequal to the task" Yudhisthira said, "I feel it is unjust and unbecoming of me." Sri Krishna added,, "Yudhisthira, you can sacrifice one life to save thousands and thousands of lives. Please think over the matter. Otherwise, you will be responsible for total annihilation of your army." Bhima said in exultation, " Mahadeva, I have just just now killed an elephant named Asvatthama belonging to the Kalinga battalion. I will go and tell the preceptor "Asvatthama is dead". This is an excellent ruse."

Bhima dashed towards Drona and said, "Great Brahmin, your attention please; I am extremely sorry to report to you that I have killed Asvatthama." Drona dropped his bow involuntarily, from his hands. He said musing aloud, "I do not believe it." Bhima reiterating, said, "Believe it or not, great preceptor, I think it is my duty to convey the news to you. I have in fact done the most unpleasant duty." Greatly agitated, Drona said, "I have lived to hear the most terrible news." Bhima continued, "Great preceptor, Brahmins are expected to be kind -hearted. You preach that non violence is the highest ideal. But you practice brutal violence. Revered sire, you know justice is on our side; yet you are fighting on the side of injustice. If Bhishma and you refused to take part on the side of unrighteousness, Duryodhana would not have embarked on this war. Life is very dear to old people and they cling to life unlike the young who dare to die. Abhimanyu died; Asvatthama died. Bhishma does not die. You don't die. You want to kill us who are like your own children." Drona was pricked. He dashed to Dharmaputra and said, ": Great soul, you are an embodiment of truth and never utter a lie for the sovereignty of the three worlds. Please tell me whether my son Asvatthama died."


Dharmaputra was placed on the horns of a terrible dilemma. He was tossed between the ideal of truth and the temptation of success. He said in a loud tone, "Died Asvatthama" and added in a low pitch, "the elephant". At the instance of Sri Krishna, the Pandava army blew their conches and bugles immediately after Yudhisthira uttered the first part of the sentence, "Died Asvatthama" and the next part, "the elephant" was actually drowned in the tumultuous noise. Drona was never with his role he was obliged to play in the great war. He recollected Bhima's words. He decided to renounce the world and threw away all the weapons and sat on the floor of the chariot spreading the mat made of the sacred grass in the lotus pose of a yogi. Soon he was immersed in transcendental meditation and mystic trance.

Dhrishtadyumna who was waiting for the opportunity like a wolf pounced upon the chariot and cut off the head of Drona to the consternation of all those around, amidst shouts of denunciation. A visible blaze of light emanated from the body of Drona and ascended to heaven. Arjuna was distressed beyond measure and chided Dhrishtadyumna and Bhima. "I am sorry you have done the most heinous crime. Asvatthama will not tolerate this and will try to avenge the death of his father. Terrible retribution is ahead of us." Bhima said. "Arjuna you are forgetting that we have carried out the bidding of Sri Krishna. Moreover this is a war. This is polity. Let us be prepared for all eventualities." Dhrishtadyumna was more blunt. He told Arjuna, " Savyasachi, you need not quote scriptures to us. I have fulfilled my destiny as I am born to kill Drona. You have killed Bhishma, the grandsire by adopting questionable means. Bhagadatta, your father's companion was killed by you. Let me not speak about Bhurisrava. Anyway, Drona has deceived his disciples and joined the opposite camp. He is not even neutral.

I have no regrets." Satyaki was enraged at the words of Dhrishtadyumna. He said, "You are speaking nonsense" If you open your mouth I will cut off your tongue." Dhrishtadyumna and Satyaki crossed swords. Bhima rushed to them and separated the two." Sahdeva said to both, "Dear comrades at arms you are not saviours. For the sake of Dharmaputra, you both must work united. The enemy is not yet defeated." Yudhisthira and Sri Krishna pacified the two warriors.

Asvatthama who learnt about the dismal subterfuge played on his father was enraged beyond measure. In a fit of uncontrollable vengeance, he hurled the "Naryana Astra", the supreme missile at the Pandava army as a burning ball of revolving fire. Everybody was aghast, Sri Krishna said, " Dear comrades at arms, this is an unassailable supra missile. However it does not harm non combatants. Please get down your vehicles and lay down your arms." The whole Pandava army laid down the arms. Arjuna and Sri Krishna got down from the chariot and stood bare- footed on the ground. But Bhima alone stuck to his arms and did not descend from the chariot. He said, "What a naïve remedy! If we lay down our arms with hands up, it is acknowledging our defeat. I can't do it." Sri Krishna cried aloud, "We must stoop to conquer; get down." Soon the fire engulfed Bhima's chariot. Bhima hurled the rain missile at it. But it proved ineffective and hot vapour enveloped the battlefield. Sri Krishna and Arjuna rushed to Bhima and got him down the chariot by force. Bhima too stood on the ground unarmed and he was saved.

Sri Krishna explained, "Defeat and death are the obverse and reverse futile of the same coin. Thus we are able to render this omnifatal missile futile." Duryodhana congratulated Asvatthma hilariously and asked him to renew the missile. Asvatthama replied I am helpless. This omnifatal missile if used a second time will recoil on us. Sri Krishna has rendered it ineffective. It is our bad luck." So saying he threw his bow and arrows on the ground together with his armour and helmet and walked away from the battlefield in utter despair and desolation, brooding over his inability to avenge the death of his revered father. The Pandava army resumed the fight which continued till sunset. The Kaurava armies repaired to their camps in grief and gloom. The Pandava forces returned to their camps in exultation and excitement. Dhrisshtra asked Sanjaya, "Why did not Karna hurl the unfailing Sakthi missile of Indra against Arjuna all these days? He wasted it on Ghatotkacha." Sanjaya replied, "In fact every night the Kauravas discussed the matter and reminded Karna and asked him to hurl it at Arjuna. But Karna used to forget about it all through the day. Some attribute his forgetfulness to the curse of his preceptor Parasurama.

In fact Karna argued with the Kaurava princes one night, "There is no use of hurling Indra's sakthi at Arjuna. I can depend upon my own prowess and I possess another infallible missile the "Sarpamukhastra" specially intended for him. Even if Arjuna is killed, Sri Krishna will continue the fight and Yudhisthira will be crowned King. Even if all the Pandavas are slain, wily Krishna will install Kunti or Draupadi on the throne. Tomorrow I will hurl the missile at Sri Krishna." But next day as usual he forgot all about it. I think Karna well known for all or his magnanimity and professional excellence, developed his professorial absent -mindedness. Anyway, destiny's working is inscrutable." All these days he forgot to hurl the infallible missile at Arjuna or Sri Krishna. Ultimately urged by Duryodhana and the Kaurava warriors, Karna killed Ghatotkacha, who seemed at the moment most menacingly invincible. Thus the most dangerous warriors on the Pandava side were killed by Karna, on the spur of the moment, within a second.