TWO
When the two forces were face to face, a hush fell on them: a moment of stillness. All eighteen aksauhinis were like armies in a painting. Then, at the heart of that numinous silence, a strange thing happened. Yudhishtira peeled off his armor and put down his bow. He removed his sandals, climbed down from his chariot with the white banner and walked barefoot toward the enemy!
For a moment, no one moved. Then Bheema, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva all laid down their weapons and followed their brother. Krishna, who wore no armor and carried no weapon today, went with Arjuna.
When he caught up with Yudhishtira, Arjuna said anxiously, “What are you doing?”
Bheema asked hoarsely, “Where are you going, Yudhishtira, without your weapons?”
Nakula said, “You are making me afraid, my brother!”
And Sahadeva, “You are exposing yourself to the enemy!”
Yudhishtira did not look at his brothers. He strode on toward the Kaurava army. Krishna said quietly, “A kshatriya who seeks his elders’ blessings before he goes out to fight is certain to win his war. Your brother wants to get Bheeshma, Drona, Kripa and Shalya’s blessings, before he fights them.”
The Kaurava soldiers began to jeer when they saw Yudhishtira coming.
“He is coming to beg his Pitama to stop the war.”
“He has lost his nerve, seeing our army.”
“The coward.”
Yudhishtira walked on toward Bheeshma’s chariot. The ring of warriors around Bheeshma parted to let the Pandavas through. Bheeshma waited for Yudhishtira with a smile. The Pandava emperor, Dharma’s son, noblest of men, came up to his grandsire and, with tears in his eyes, prostrated himself on the earth at the patriarch’s feet; and so did his brothers. His old eyes teary, as well, Bheeshma laid his hands on their heads, then, raised them up and embraced them.
Yudhishtira said, “Pitama, we have not been able to prevent the war. I have come for your blessing, so my brothers and I will win.”
Bheeshma said, “My son, victory already belongs to you. Krishna is on your side and where he is so is dharma. Alas, men are slaves to wealth and I must fight against you today. The throne I renounced a life ago has supported me all these years. My duty is to fight for the king who has kept me; but Yudhishtira, my love and my blessings are with you, because yours is the cause of dharma in this war. Jaya vijayi bhava! Fight and be victorious, noble child.”
Yudhishtira went to Drona and Kripa, his gurus and to his uncle Shalya. He prostrated himself before each of them and asked for their blessing and their permission for him to fight them. They gave both to the Pandava, warmly. To Drona, Yudhishtira said, “My lord, besides your blessing, I seek your advice. How can I win this war?”
Drona said, “King of dharma, victory is already yours. I hate to fight against you, but I, too, owe my livelihood to the Kuru throne. I cannot betray the king who has kept me these long years. Yet I do have some advice for you.” He called Yudhishtira nearer. In a low voice, he said, “I myself can only be killed when I lay down my weapons; it is a boon I have from my guru. Remember that when my time to die arrives, as it must during this war.”
Yudhishtira knelt again before his master. As the Pandava approached Shalya, Krishna saw Karna come out to look at the armies. Quietly, the Dark One sought him out. Taking him aside, Krishna said urgently, “I am told you will take no part in the fighting until Bheeshma dies.” He gripped Karna’s arm, “It is still not too late, Karna, come away with me now! At least for a few days, fight for the Pandavas. Fight Bheeshma, who has mocked you repeatedly and let the world see your worth. When you have killed the old man, you can go back to Duryodhana and Arjuna will fight you then.”
Karna began to laugh. “I am not a child, my Lord, that you can persuade me with children’s temptations!”
“We are all children of one kind or another,” replied Krishna.
Karna said, “I am moved to see how much you love the Pandavas and, perhaps, even me. But I have already told you, Krishna, my life and my loyalty belong to Duryodhana. It would break his heart if I did what you ask.” He laughed again to think of it. “Even for a few days!” Then, he was full of sorrow. “Krishna, leave me to my fate; not even you can change what was written for Karna before he was born. Go now. I thank you for your concern, but I am with the Kauravas.”
Krishna turned away sadly. When Yudhishtira had the blessings of his Pitama and his gurus, he turned back to his own army. As he walked across the empty ground between the two forces, a thought struck him. He stopped and turned back to the legions of Hastinapura. Loudly he called, “If there are any Kaurava soldiers who want to fight for dharma, they are welcome to join us!”
The Pandava’s arms were opened wide to receive anyone who came to him. A lone voice called, “I will join you if you will have me, Yudhishtira!”
A fine kshatriya and a loyal childhood friend, came forward. It was Yuyutsu who, from his earliest days, had preferred the friendship of the Pandavas to that of his half-brothers; Yuyutsu, who had once warned Bheema that Duryodhana meant to kill him.
Yudhishtira welcomed Yuyutsu, embracing him; while, some way off, Duryodhana was tight with fury. Yudhishtira said loudly, so all the Kaurava army heard him, “At least now, when my uncle Dhritarashtra dies, he will have one son left alive to offer tarpana for him.”
He glanced at Bheema, who shone ominously on that field. For a moment, the Kauravas felt a tremor of fear as they remembered Bheema’s oath that he would kill Dhritarashtra’s hundred sons. Back among their own soldiers, the Pandavas donned their armor again. They picked up their weapons and they were stern and fearsome to behold. They climbed into their chariots and their legions seethed around them. Conches were blown, trumpets blared; the drums of both armies rolled like spring thunder.
Duryodhana watched the Pandava army forming the formidable fighting Vajra and he rode up to Drona. The Kaurava said, “Here we are at last, my lord. The moment of fate is upon us, the moment we have waited a lifetime for.”
Drona stared across Kurukshetra at the sea of men massed against them. Weapons and armor flashed in the sun, vivid banners waved; the whinnying of horses filled the crisp air and the lusty shouting of footsoldiers, to embolden themselves. Excitement swept the field, over both armies. Drona smiled at his pupil and said, “Yes, Duryodhana, the moment of truth is upon us. Do you see the enemy, all the kshatriyas?”
Duryodhana’s gaze was riveted to the Pandava force. As in a dream, he said, “I see Yudhishtira’s vast legions, Acharya, I see his jewel-like vyuha. I see your sishya Dhrishtadyumna at its head. I see Satyaki, his eyes full of fire, I see mighty Bheema and Arjuna in Krishna’s chariot. I see all these matchless kshatriyas turned out against us and my blood thrills to the occasion. So many of these warriors are your disciples. All your lessons will find final fruition today, as if this war is being fought for just that. I exult at it, Acharya. Truly, this is the most glorious day of our lives!”
His pale eyes ranged over the enemy ranks. “Look, beyond the front lines are Drupada and Virata, side by side, masters of experience. How youthful they seem, their faces flushed with anticipation. Beyond them are Dhrishtaketu, Chekitana and the lord of Kasi, breathless for the fighting to begin. Acharya, I see the pulse throbbing at their temples and they moisten their lips in eagerness. Beside them, are Purujit, Kuntibhoja and Saibya; flanking Arjuna’s chariot, are Drupada’s other sons, Yud-dhamanyu and Uttamaujas, so tall and bright. And, away to their left, another cluster of maharathi-kas: Draupadi’s brilliant princes, Abhimanyu a crest-jewel at their head.”
Drona listened to Duryodhana in surprise, that the Kaurava was so admiring of the enemy. Now, Duryodhana turned his gaze back to his own legions. He said, “But we are greater than the sea of men that confronts us, my lord. For here, we have you, Acharya and Pitama Bheeshma who has never known defeat in battle and Acharya Kripa and the tameless Karna. Aswatthama and Vikarna are with me and Somadatta’s son Bhoorisravas, who is as strong as a hundred men. These are just a few of the kshatriyas, who have come to risk their lives for my sake. If the enemy is a sea, Acharya, we are an ocean; and we shall drown them!”
Drona, the master, could not help but smile fondly at his sishya, so dauntless on the brink of war. Drona thought, regretfully, what a magnificent king this prince would have been but for his one overmastering weakness: his envy. Duryodhana was saying, “Truly, we have an ocean with us, my lord. Yet, to my mind, Pitama Bheeshma is our key to victory. The Pandavas will not contain him; the rest of us must guard him with our lives at all times.”
From across the Kaurava army, his fond grandsire Bheeshma saw Duryodhana, with Drona at his side. Bheeshma saw a frown knit Duryodhana’s brow and, wanting to hearten his favorite grandchild, the Kuru patriarch raised his war-conch and blew an echoing blast on it; then he threw back his head and let out a roar. Duryodhana turned with a smile and waved to his Pitama. But to answer Bheeshma’s bass, from across the battlefield, from the Pandava army, floated the crystal notes of an unearthly conch. That sound was at once beautiful and terrible and it shook the Kaurava soldiers to their very souls. In Arjuna’s chariot, his dark sarathy had raised the Panchajanya to his lips!
Now both armies erupted with conches of every pitch, ringing back and forth across Kurukshetra. Arjuna echoed Krishna’s clarion call with a long note of his own on the Devadatta. Bheema raised his Paundra to his lips and thunder rolled across the field. Yudhishtira took up the Anantavijaya and blew into the echo of Bheema’s sea-call, a sound as tremendous as his brother made. Nakula and Sahadeva blew in unison on the Sughosha and the Manipushpaka.
After being taken briefly unawares by the Pandavas’ conches, the hundred Kauravas raised their own sankhas and blew resoundingly on them. Without a moment’s hiatus, they were answered by Kasiraja, Shikhandi, Dhrishtadyumna, Satyaki, Virata, Drupada, Draupadi’s sons and Abhimanyu. All these kshatriyas blew on their great sea-conches at once; heaven and earth quaked at the sound they made.