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Kurukshetra War

(Redirected from Mahabharata War)

The Kurukshetra War (Sanskrit: कुरुक्षेत्र युद्ध), also called the Mahabharata War, is a war described in the Hindu epic poem Mahabharata, arising from a dynastic struggle between two groups of cousins, the Kauravas and the Pandavas, for the throne of Hastinapura. The war is used as the context for the dialogues of the Bhagavad Gita.

Kurukshetra War

c. 1700 watercolour from Mewar depicts the Pandava and Kaurava armies arrayed against each other.
Location
Kurukshetra
Result
Territorial
changes
  • Reunification of the Kuru cities of Hastinapura and Indraprastha under the Pandavas.
  • Restoration of Panchala lands held by Drona to the Panchala Kingdom.
  • Truce and status quo ante bellum
    • Belligerents
  • Territory-less Pandavas of Kuru
  • Krishna
  • Magadha
  • Panchala
  • Matsya
  • Chedi
  • Kunti
    • Other allies    		 Other allies
    Commanders and leaders

    Overlord
    Yudhishthira
    Commander-in-chief
    Dhrishtadyumna (day 1-18) †
    Other-Commanders
    Bhima
    Drupada †
    Virata †

    Chekitana †
    Satyaki
    . Shikhandi †

    Strategist
    Krishna    		 Overlords
    Dhritrashtra Surrendered
    Duryodhana †
    Commanders-in-chief
    Bhishma (day 1-10) †
    Drona (day 11-15) †
    Karna (day 16-17) †
    Shalya (day 18) †
    Ashwatthama (night raid) Surrendered
    Other-Commanders Dushasana †
    Jayadratha †
    Kripa Surrendered
    Kritavarma Surrendered
    Bhurishravas †
    Bahlika †
    Bhagadatta †
    Sudakshina †
    Strategist
    Shakuni †
    Strength
    7 Akshauhinis
    153,090-100,300,000[1] chariots and chariot riders
    10,000–153,090 elephants and elephant riders
    459,270–1,000,000 horses and horse riders
    765,450–1,000,000,000 infantry [2]
    (total 1,530,900 soldiers-1,003,830,900)    		 11 Akshauhinis
    240,570 chariots and chariot riders
    240,570 elephants and elephant riders
    721,710 horses and horse riders – 100,000,000 horses (mentioned possibly as a hyperbole)[3]
    1,202,850 infantry
    6,000,000 protecting elephants and chariots[4]
    140,000,000 Pishachas
    280,000,000 Rakshasa
    420,000,000 Yaksha
    100,000,000 Narayani Sena[5][6]
    (total 8,450,700 - 1,048,405,700 soldiers)
    Casualties and losses
    Almost total (1,530,892 soldiers)
    only 8 known survivors - the Pandavas, Krishna, Satyaki, and Yuyutsu.    		 Almost total (2,405,697 soldiers)
    only 3 known survivors - Ashwatthama, Kripa, and Kritavarma
    Yudhishthira gives a different number which is 1,660,020,000 dead and 24,165 missing.[7]

    Background

    Main article: Mahabharata

    The Mahābhārata is an account of the life and deeds of several generations of a ruling dynasty called the Kuru clan.[8] Central to the epic is an account of a war that took place between two rival families belonging to this clan.[9] Kurukshetra (literally "Region of the Kurus"), also known as Dharmakshetra (the "Region of Dharma"),[10] was the battleground on which the Kurukshetra War was fought.[11] The first Mahābhārata says that this site was chosen because a sin committed on land was forgiven because of the land's sanctity.[12]

    The events of the war make up more than a quarter of the Mahabharata. These chapters are considered among the oldest in the Mahabharata.

    Historicity and dating

    See also: Historicity of the Mahabharata

    The historicity of the war remains the subject of scholarly discussion.[13][14][15] The Battle of the Ten Kings, mentioned in the Rigveda, may have formed the core of the Kurukshetra war's story. The war was greatly expanded and modified in the Mahabharata's account, which makes it dubious.[16] Attempts have been made to assign a historical date to the Kurukshetra war, with research suggesting c. 1000 BCE.[14] However, popular tradition claims that the war marks the transition to the Kali Yuga, dating it to c. 3102 BCE.[17]

     
    The approximate extent of Āryāvarta during the late Vedic period (ca. 1100-500 BCE). Aryavarta was limited to northwest India and the western Ganges plain, while Greater Magadha in the east was habitated by non-Vedic Indo-Aryans, who gave rise to Jainism and Buddhism.[18][19]
     
    Modern bronze sculpture of Chariot with Krishna and Arjuna during the Kurukshetra War.

    Literary traces

    Although the Kurukshetra War is not mentioned in Vedic literature, its prominence in later literature led British Indologist A. L. Basham to conclude that there was a great battle at Kurukshetra which, "magnified to titanic proportions, formed the basis of the story of the greatest of India's epics, the Mahābhārata". Acknowledging that later "generations looked upon it as marking an end of an epoch", he suggested that rather than being a civil war it might have been "a muddled recollection of the conquest of the Kurus by a tribe of Mongol type from the hills". He saw it as useless to the historian and dates the war to the ninth century BCE based on archaeological evidence and "some evidence in the Brahmana literature itself to show that it cannot have been much earlier".[20][note 1]

    Puranic literature presents genealogical lists associated with the Mahābhārata narrative. There are two pieces of evidence of the Puranas: there is the direct statement[where?] that there were 1,015 (or 1,050) years between the birth of Parikshit (Arjun's grandson) and the accession of Mahapadma Nanda, commonly dated to 382 BCE, which would yield an estimate of about 1400 BCE for the Bharata battle,[22] which would imply improbably long reigns on average for the kings listed in the genealogies.[23]

    There are also analyses of parallel genealogies in the Puranas between the times of Adhisimakrishna (Parikshit's great-grandson) and Mahapadma Nanda. Pargiter estimated 26 generations by averaging 10 different dynastic lists and assuming 18 years for the average duration of a reign, arrived at an estimate of 850 BCE for Adhisimakrishna and approximately 950 BCE for the Bharata battle.[24]

    Scholarly dating

    Despite the inconclusiveness of the data, attempts have been made to assign a historical date to the Kurukshetra War. The existing text of the Mahābhārata went through many revisions, and mostly belongs to the period between c. 500 BCE and 400 CE.[25][26][note 2] Within the frame story of the Mahābhārata, the kings Parikshit and Janamejaya are featured significantly as scions of the Kuru clan,[28] and Michael Witzel concludes that the general setting of the epic has a historical precedent in the Vedic period, where the Kuru kingdom was the center of political power during roughly 1200 to 800 BCE.[28] According to Professor Alf Hiltebeitel, the Mahābhārata is essentially mythological.[29] Indian historian Upinder Singh wrote:

    Whether a bitter war between the Pandavas and the Kauravas ever happened cannot be proved or disproved. It is possible that there was a small-scale conflict, transformed into a gigantic epic war by bards and poets. Some historians and archaeologists have argued that this conflict may have occurred in about 1000 BCE.[14]

    According to Finnish Sindhologist Asko Parpola, the war may have taken place during the later phase of the Painted Grey Ware, c/ 750–350 BCE.[30]

    Popular tradition holds that the war marks the transition to Kali Yuga and dates it to 3102 BCE. A number of other proposals have been put forward:

    • Vedveer Arya gives a date of 3162 BCE, by distinguishing between the Śaka and Śakanta eras and applying correction of 60 years to the date given in popular tradition and based on Aihole inscription.[31]
    • B. N. Achar used planetarium software to argue that the Mahabharata War took place in 3067 BCE.[32]
    • Dieter Koch dates the war to 1198 BCE using planetarium software on the basis super-conjunctions mentioned in the text.[33]
    • Kesheo Lakshman Daftari, one of the members of the Calendar Reform Committee which prepared the Indian national calendar, holds that the war took place in 1197 BCE.[34]
    • V. S. Dubey claims that the war happened near 950 BCE.[35]

    Associations with archaeological cultures

    Indian archeologist B. B. Lal used the same approach with a more conservative assumption of the average reign to estimate a date of 836 BCE and correlated it with archaeological evidence from Painted Grey Ware (PGW) sites, the association being strong between PGW artifacts and places mentioned in the epic.[36] John Keay confirmed it and also dated the battle to have taken place in 950 BCE.[37]

    According to Parpola, the war may have taken place during the later phase of the Painted Grey Ware culture, c. 750-350 BCE.[30] He noted that the Pandava heroes are not being mentioned in the Vedic literature from before the Grhyasutras.[30] Parpola suggests that the Pandavas were Iranic migrants, who came to South Asia around 800 BCE.[38]

    Excavations in Sinauli unearthed burials with the remains of carts[a] belonging to the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture (OCP).[39] Several authors proposed to relate the Rig Vedic culture and the war to the OCP, instead of the PGW.[40][41] While the carts are dated to 1800–1500 BCE (±150),[42] Gupta and Mani state that "in the present state of archaeological evidence OCP seems to be a stronger contender for the Mahābhārata association", dating the war to the 4th millennium BCE.[43] Parpola sees the finds as ox-pulled carts, indicating support for his proposal for a first wave of Indo-Aryan migrations into the Indian subcontinent at the beginning of the 2nd millennium BCE, prior to the migration of the Rig Vedic people.[39][note 3]

    Mahabharata account of the war

    Beginning

    In the beginning, Sanjaya gives a description of the various continents of the Earth, the other planets, and focuses on the Indian subcontinent, then gives an elaborate list of kingdoms, tribes, provinces, cities, towns, villages, rivers, mountains, and forests of the ancient Indian subcontinent (Bharata Varsha). He also explains the military formations adopted by each side on each day, the death of each hero and the details of each war-racing.

    Krishna's peace mission

     
    Krishna Pleads with Dhritarashtra to Avoid War

    As a last attempt at peace is called for in Rajadharma, Krishna travels to the Kingdom of Hastinapura to persuade the Kauravas to see reason, avoid bloodshed of their kin, and to embark upon a peaceful path with him as the "divine" ambassador of the Pandavas. Duryodhana is insulted that Krishna turns down his invitation to accommodate himself in the royal palace. Duryodhana plots to arrest Krishna and insult, humiliate, and defame him in front of the entire royal court of Hastinapura as a challenge to the prestige of the Pandavas and declaration of an act of open war.

    At the formal presentation of the peace proposal by Krishna in the Kuru Mahasabha at the court of Hastinapura, Krishna asks Duryodhana to return Indraprastha to the Pandavas and restore the status quo, or at least give five villages, one for each of the Pandavas; Duryodhana refuses. Krishna's peace proposals are ignored and dismissed, and Duryodhana publicly orders his soldiers to arrest Krishna despite warnings from the elders. Krishna laughs and displays his divine form, radiating intense light. He curses Duryodhana that his downfall was certain at the hands of the one who was sworn to tear off his thigh. His peace mission utterly insulted by Duryodhana, Krishna returns to the Pandava camp at Upaplavya to inform the Pandavas that the only course left to uphold the principles of virtue and righteousness is war. During his return, Krishna meets Karna, Kunti's firstborn (before Yudhishthira), and asks him to help his brothers and fight on the side of dharma. However, as he is being helped by Duryodhana, Karna says to Krishna that he would battle against the Pandavas as he had a debt to pay.

    War preparations

     
    Krishna, and Arjuna on the chariot, 18th-19th century painting

    Duryodhana and Arjuna go to Krishna at Dvaraka to ask for his and his army's help. Duryodhana arrives first and finds Krishna asleep. Duryodhana chooses a seat at Krishna's head and waits for him to awaken, while Arjuna sits and waits at Krishna's feet. When Krishna woke up, he saw Arjuna first and gave him the first right to make his request. Krishna tells Arjuna and Duryodhana that he would give the Narayani Sena consisting of gopas[44][45][46][47] to one side and himself as a non-combatant to the other. Since Arjuna is given the first opportunity to choose, Duryodhana worries that Arjuna would choose the mighty army of Krishna. When given the choice of either Krishna's army or Krishna himself on their side, Arjuna chooses Krishna. Arjuna asks Krishna to be his charioteer, who agrees. Both Duryodhana and Arjuna returned satisfied.

    The Pandavas gather their armies while camping at Upaplavya in Virata's territory. Contingents arrive from across the country.

    Pandava Army

     
    A manuscript illustration of the Battle of Kurukshetra, fought between the Kauravas and the Pandavas, recorded in the Mahābhārata

    Yudhishthira asks his brothers to organize their army. The Pandavas have seven akshauhinis with the help of their allies. After consulting his commanders, the Pandavas appoint Dhrishtadyumna as the Major General of the Pandava Army.

    Kaurava Army

    The Kaurava Army is made up of 11 akshauhinis. This includes the Narayani Sena of Krishna, which originally included seven maharathis (Krishna, Balarama, Samba, Ahuka, Charudeshna, Chakradeva, and Satyaki) and seven athirathis (Kritavarma, Anadhrishti, Samika, Samitinjaya, Kanka, Sanku, and Kunti).[citation needed] Duryodhana asks Bhishma to command the Kaurava Army. Bhishma accepts on the condition that, while he would fight the battle sincerely, he would not harm the five Pandava brothers. He also says that Karna would rather not fight under him, but serve as Duryodhana's bodyguard as long as he was in the battlefield. Having little choice, Duryodhana agrees to Bhishma's conditions and makes him the Major General of the Kaurava Army, while Karna is debarred from fighting. Karna joins the war later when Bhishma is severely wounded by Arjuna.

    Neutral parties

    The Kingdom of Vidarbha, Vidura, and Balarama are the neutral parties in this war. Rukmi, King of Vidarbha, wanted to join the war, but Arjuna refuses because he had lost to Krishna during Rukmini's svayamvara and he boasted about his war strength and army, and Duryodhana does not want Arjuna's reject. Vidura does not want to see bloodshed and is insulted by Duryodhana.

    Course of the war

    Before the battle

     
    War council at Kuru

    The Mahābhārata states that in the year in which the war took place, three solar eclipses took place within a thirty-day period; eclipses are considered ill omens in Hindu astrology.[48]

    On the first day of the war, as would be on all the following days, the Kaurava Army stood facing west and the Pandava Army east. The Pandava Army was organised by Yudhishthira and Arjuna in the diamond (vajra) formation.

    Ten akshauhinis of the Kaurava Army were arranged in a phalanx. The eleventh was put under the immediate command of Bhishma, partly to protect him. The safety of the supreme commander Bhishma was central to Duryodhana's strategy, as he had placed all his hope on the great warrior's abilities.

    The Bhagavad Gita

    Main article: Bhagavad Gita
     
    Krishna displays his Vishvarupa (universal form) to Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra.

    When the war is declared and the two armies face each other, Arjuna realises that he would have to kill his dear granduncle Bhishma and his respected teacher Drona. Despondent and confused about what is right and what is wrong, Arjuna turns to Krishna for divine advice and teachings. Krishna, who Arjuna chose as his charioteer, advised him of his duty. Krishna instructs Arjuna not to yield to degrading impotence and to fight his kin. He also reminds him that it is a war between righteousness and unrighteousness (dharma and adharma), and it is Arjuna's duty to slay anyone who supported the cause of unrighteousness, or sin. Krishna reveals his divine form and explains that he is born on earth in each eon when evil raises its head.[49]

    Before the battle begins, Yudhishthira drops his weapons, takes off his armor, and walks towards the Kaurava Army with folded hands in prayer. He falls on Bhishma's feet to seek his blessing for success in battle, and he is blessed. Yudhishthira returned to his chariot and the battle was ready to commence.

    Day 1

    The Pandavas suffered heavy losses and are defeated at the end of the first day. Virata's sons, Uttara and Sweta, are slain by Shalya and Bhishma. Krishna consoles Yudhishthira saying that eventually, victory would be his.

    Day 2

    Arjuna, realizing that something needs to be done quickly to reverse the Pandava losses, decides to kill Bhishma. Krishna locates Bhishma's chariot and steers Arjuna toward him. Arjuna tries to engage Bhishma in a duel, but the Kaurava soldiers protect him and attack Arjuna. Arjuna and Bhishma fight a fierce battle over hours. Drona and Dhrishtadyumna similarly engage in a duel, and Drona defeats Dhrishtadyumna, who is saved by Bhima. Duryodhana sends the troops of Kalinga to attack Bhima and most of them, including the King of Kalinga, are killed. Bhishma comes to relieve the battered Kalinga forces. Satyaki, who was assisting Bhima, shoots at Bhishma's charioteer and kills him. Bhishma's horses bolt and carry Bhishma away from the battlefield.

    Day 3

    The Kauravas concentrate their attack on Arjuna, whose chariot becomes covered with arrows and javelins. Arjuna builds a fortification around his chariot with an unending stream of arrows from his bow. Abhimanyu and Satyaki join forces to defeat Shakuni's Gandhara forces. Bhima and Ghatotkacha attack Duryodhana in the rear. Bhima's arrows hit Duryodhana, who collapses in his chariot. His charioteer drives him off the battlefield, and Duryodhana's forces scatter. Bhishma restores order and Duryodhana returns to lead the army. He is angry at Bhishma for what he saw as leniency towards the five Pandava brothers, and spoke harshly of him. Bhishma, stung by this unfair charge, returns to the battlefield.

    Arjuna attacks Bhishma to restore order. Arjuna and Bhishma duel again.

    Day 4

     
    Kurukshetra War

    Bhishma commands the Kaurava Army to move on the offensive. When the Kauravas form a chakravyuha, Abhimanyu enters it but is surrounded and attacked by Kaurava princes. Arjuna joins to help him. Bhima appears and attacks the Kauravas. Duryodhana sends a huge force of war elephants at Bhima, who leaves his chariot and attacks them singlehandedly with his iron mace. The elephants scatter and stampede into the Kaurava forces. Duryodhana orders an all-out attack on Bhima, who kills eight of Duryodhana's brothers before being struck by an arrow from Dushasana, the second-eldest Kaurava, in the chest and sits down in his chariot dazed.

    At the end of the fourth day, Duryodhana goes to Bhisma and asks him how could the Pandavas, facing a superior force against them, have the upper hand. Bhishma says that the Pandavas have justice on their side and advises Duryodhana to seek peace.

    Day 5

    The Pandava Army suffers from Bhishma's attacks. Satyaki is being beaten by Drona, but Bhima drives by and rescues him. Arjuna kills thousands of soldiers sent by Duryodhana to attack him. Bhima engages Bhishma in a duel with no clear winner. Drupada and his son Shikhandi go to help Bhima, but they are stopped by Vikarna, one of Duryodhana's brothers, who attacks and injures them badly.

    Day 6

    Drona kills many Pandava soldiers and both armies' formations are broken. Bhima penetrates the Kaurava formation and attacks Duryodhana, who is defeated but rescued. The Upapandavas (sons of Draupadi) fight against Ashwatthama and destroy his chariot.

    Day 7

    Drona kills Shanka, one of Virata's son. Yuyutsu is injured by Kripa in a sword fight. Nakula and Sahadeva fight Duryodhana's brothers but are overwhelmed by the number of them.

    Day 8

    Bhima kills 17 of Dhritarashtra's sons. Iravan, the son of Arjuna, kills five of Shakuni's brothers. Duryodhana deploys the Rakshasa warrior Alambusha, who kills Iravan.

    Day 9

    Bhishma destroys Pandava armies. Arjuna heads to Bhishma but fights him half-heartedly. Krishna, overwhelmed by anger at the apparent inability of Arjuna to kill Bhishma, rushes towards the Kaurava commander. Ghatotkacha kills the rakshasa Alambusha.

    Realising that the war could not be won as long as Bhishma was standing, Krishna suggests placing a transgender in the field to face him.

    Day 10

     
    Bhishma on a deathbed of arrows, from a collection of the Smithsonian Institution

    The Pandavas put Shikhandi, who had been a woman in a prior life, in front of Bhishma, as Bhishma has taken a vow not to attack a woman. Shikhandi's arrows fell on Bhishma without hindrance. Arjuna positions himself behind Shikhandi, protecting himself from Bhishma's attack and aimed his arrows at the weak points in Bhishma's armor and defeats him.

    The Kauravas and Pandavas gathered around Bhishma and at his request, Arjuna places three arrows under Bhishma's head to support it. Bhishma had promised his father, King Shantanu, that he would live until Hastinapura was secured from all directions. To keep this promise, Bhishma used the boon of Ichcha Mrityu (self-wished death) given to him by his father. After the war ended, when Hastinapura had become safe from all sides and after giving lessons on politics and Vishnu Sahasranama to the Pandavas, Bhishma dies on the first day of Uttarayana.

    Day 11

    With Bhishma unable to continue, Karna joins the battlefield. Duryodhana makes Drona the Major General of the Kaurava forces according to Karna's advice. Duryodhana wants to capture Yudhishthira alive; killing Yudhishthira in battle would only enrage the Pandavas more, while holding him as a hostage would be strategically useful. Drona cuts down Yudhishthira's bow, and Arjuna stops Drona from capturing Yudhishthira.

    Day 12

    Drona tells Duryodhana that it would be difficult to capture Yudhishthira as long as Arjuna is present. He orders the Samsaptakas (the Trigarta warriors headed by Susharma, who had vowed to either conquer or die) to keep Arjuna busy in a remote part of the battlefield, an order which they readily obey on account of their old hostilities with the Pandava scion. Arjuna defeats them before the afternoon, then faces Bhagadatta, who had been creating havoc among the Pandava troops, and defeated Bhima, Abhimanyu and Satyaki. Arjuna and Bhagadatta fight and the latter is killed. Drona continues his attempts to capture Yudhishthira, however his attacks were repelled by Prativindhya that day. The Pandavas, however, fought hard and delivered severe blows to the Kaurava Army, frustrating Drona's plans.

    Day 13

    Drona's goal remains to capture Yudhishthira. Among the Pandavas, only Arjuna and Krishna knew how to penetrate this formation, and to prevent them from doing so, the Samsaptakas led by Susharma challenge Arjuna and keep him busy at a remote part of the battlefield the whole day.

    On the other side of the battlefield, the remaining four Pandavas and their allies find it impossible to break Drona's chakra formation. Yudhishthira instructed Abhimanyu to break the chakra/padma formation. Abhimanyu knows how to enter the chakra formation, but not know how to exit, so the Pandava follow to protect him from any potential danger. As soon as Abhimanyu enters the formation, Jayadratha stops them with help from a boon obtained from Shiva, and defeats Bhima and Satyaki.

    Inside the chakra/kamala formation, Abhimanyu kills many warriors, including Vrihadvala (the king of Kosala); the king of Asmaka, Martikavata (the son of Kritavarma); Rukmaratha (the son of Shalya); and Shalya's younger brother, Lakshmana (the son of Duryodhana) and Dushasana's second son, Dushmanara.

    The Kaurava commanders devise a strategy to prevent Abhimanyu from causing further damage to their force. Following Drona's instructions, six warriors attacks Abhimanyu and deprived him of his chariot, bow, sword, and shield. Abhimanyu picks up a mace; smashes Ashwatthma's chariot (upon which the latter fled); and slays one of Shakuni's brothers numerous troops, and elephants before being killed by the son of Dushasana in a mace-fight.[50]

    Upon learning of the death of his son, Arjuna vows to kill Jayadratha.

    Day 14

     
    Karna kills Ghatotkacha

    While searching for Jayadratha on the battlefield, Arjuna kills seven akshauhinis of Kaurava soldiers. By Shakuni's plot, Duryodhana hides Jayadratha in their camp. Arjuna uses divyastra to carry Jayadratha's head to his father leading to his own father's death. Many maharathis including Drona and Karna try to protect Jayadratha but fail to do so. Arjuna warns that everyone who supported adharma would be killed.

    While Arjuna destroys the rest of the Shakatavyuha, Vikarna, the third eldest Kaurava, challenges Arjuna to an archery fight. Arjuna asks Bhima to kill Vikarna, but Bhima refuses because Vikarna had defended the Pandavas during the Draupadi Vastrapaharanam. Bhima and Vikarna shoot arrows at each other, before Bhima kills Vikarna with his mace. Drona kills Vrihatkshatra, the King of Kekeya, and Dhrishtakethu, the King of Chedi.

    Dushasana's first son, Drumsena, is slain by Prativindya, the eldest son of Draupadi and Yudhishthira, in a duel. When the bright moon rose, Ghatotkacha killed warriors like Alambusha and Alayudha while flying in the air. Karna fights him and releases Vasava Shakti, a divine weapon given to him by Indra. Ghatotkacha grows in size and falls on the Kaurava Army as he dies, killing an akshauhini of them.

    Day 15

    After Drupada and Virata are killed by Drona, Bhima and Dhrishtadyumna fight him. Because Drona has the Brahmanda astra, Krishna tells Yudhishthira that Drona would give up his arms if his son Ashwatthama were dead. Yudhishthira lies to Drona. Which disheartens Dronacharya, and he lays his weapons down before being killed by Dhrishtadyumna to avenge his father's death and satisfy his vow. Kunti secretly meets Karna and asks him to spare the Pandavas, as they were his younger brothers. Karna promises Kunti that he would spare them except for Arjuna, but also added that he would not fire the same weapon against Arjuna twice.

    Day 16

     
    On the left Karna with Salya as chariot driver versus Arjuna with Krishna on the right, Cirebon wayang glass painting, Java, Indonesia.

    Karna is made the Major General of the Kaurav Army. He is surrounded and attacked by Pandava generals, who are unable to defeat him. Karna inflicts heavy damage on the Pandava Army.

    Day 17

     
    Krishna declaring the end of Mahabharata War by blowing Panchajanya, the Conch Shell.

    Bhima shatters Dushasana's chariot. Bhima seizes Dushasana, rips his right arm from his shoulder, and kills him, tearing open his chest, drinking his blood, and carrying some to smear on Draupadi's untied hair, fulfilling his vow made when Draupadi was humiliated. Arjuna kills Susharma, Trigartas, and Samsaptakas. Karna later defeats Satyaki, Shikhandi, the Pandava brothers Nakula, Sahadeva, Yudhishthira and Bhima in battle but spares their lives. Karna kills multiple akshauhinis of the Pandava Army and kills the Panchalas. Karna resumes dueling with Arjuna. During their duel, Karna's chariot wheel gets stuck in the mud and Karna asks for a pause. Krishna reminded Arjuna about Karna's ruthlessness on Abhimanyu while he was similarly left without chariot and weapons. Hearing his son's fate, Arjuna shoots an arrow that decapitates Karna.

    Day 18

    Shalya takes over as the Major General of the remaining Kaurava forces. Yudhishthira kills him in spear combat and Sahadeva kills Shakuni. Nakula kills Shakuni's son Uluka. Realizing that he had been defeated, Duryodhana flees the battlefield and takes refuge in the lake, where the Pandavas catch up with him. Under the supervision of the now-returned Balarama, a battle between Bhima and Duryodhana begins. Bhima breaks the rules under instructions from Krishna and strikes Duryodhana below the waist, leaving him mortally wounded.

    Ashwatthama, Kripa, and Kritavarma gather at Duryodhana's deathbed and promise to avenge him. With Ashwatthama as general, they attack the Pandavas' camp later that night and kill all the Pandavas' remaining army including their children.[51]

    Aftermath

     
    Return of heroes slain in war following chanting by Vyasa.

    Only eleven major warriors survive the war: the five Pandavas, Krishna, Satyaki, Ashwatthama, Kripa, Yuyutsu and Kritavarma. Yudhishthira is crowned King of Hastinapura. After ruling for 36 years, he renounces the throne and passes the title on to Arjuna's grandson Parikshit. Draupadi and four Pandavas—Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva - die during the journey. Yudhishthira, the lone survivor and being of pious heart, is invited by Yama to enter the heavens as a mortal.

    See also

    Notes

    1. ^ These carts, often dubbed as "chariots", does not have any spokes on their wheels like the chariots (Sanskrit: Ratha) mentioned in Vedic or epic literature; the wheels are solid with no spokes.
    1. ^ In discussing the dating question, historian A. L. Basham says: "According to the most popular later tradition the Mahabharata War took place in 3102 BCE, which in the light of all evidence, is quite impossible. More reasonable is another tradition, placing it in the 15th century BCE, but this is also several centuries too early in the light of our archaeological knowledge. Probably the war took place around the beginning of the 9th century BCE; such a date seems to fit well with the scanty archaeological remains of the period, and there is some evidence in the Brahmana literature itself to show that it cannot have been much earlier."[21] Basham cites H.C. Raychaudhuri, Political History of Ancient India, pp.27ff.
    2. ^ Indian archeologist Swaraj Prakash Gupta and K.S. Ramachandran : "Divergence of views regarding the Mahabharata war is due to the absence of reliable history of the ancient period. This is also true of the historical period, where also there is no unanimity of opinion on innumerable issues. Dr Mirashi accepts that there has been interpolation in the Mahabharata and observes that, 'Originally it (Mahabharata) was a small poem of 8,800 verses and was known by the name Jaya (victory), then it swelled to 24,000 verses and became known as Bharata, and, finally, it reached the present stupendous size of the one lakh verses, passing under the name Mahabharata.'"[27]
    3. ^ See also Giacomo Benedetti, Mahābhārata and archaeology: the chariot of Sanauli and the position of Painted Grey Ware and The Chronology of Puranic Kings and Rigvedic Rishis in Comparison with the Phases of the Sindhu–Sarasvati Civilization, dating the Mahabharata War at 1432 BCE.

    References

    1. ^ "The Mahabharata, Book 6: Bhishma Parva: Bhagavat-Gita Parva: Section L". www.sacred-texts.com. Archived from the original on 25 March 2023. Retrieved 25 March 2023. And Nakula and Sahadeva placed themselves on the left wing. And on the joints of the wings were placed ten thousand cars and on the head a hundred thousand, and on the back a hundred millions and twenty thousand and on the neck a hundred and seventy thousand.
    2. ^ The Mahābhārata. New Delhi: Penguin. 2009. p. 291. ISBN 978-0-14-044681-4.
    3. ^ "The Mahabharata, Book 5: Udyoga Parva: Uluka Dutagamana Parva: Section CXCIX". www.sacred-texts.com. Archived from the original on 25 March 2023. Retrieved 25 March 2023. And he was followed by Sauchitti, who steadily adhered to truth and was invincible in battle, and Srenimat, and Vasudeva and Vibhu, the son of the ruler of Kasi, with twenty thousand cars, and hundred million steeds of high mettle, each bearing scores of bells on its limbs, and twenty thousand smiting elephants with tusks as long as plough-shares, all of good breed and divided temples and all resembling moving masses of clouds.
    4. ^ "The Mahabharata, Book 6: Bhishma Parva: Bhagavat-Gita Parvad: Section XVIII". www.sacred-texts.com. Archived from the original on 25 March 2023. Retrieved 25 March 2023. And with a division that consisted of ten thousand active elephants, the king of Magadha followed that large car division. They that protected the wheels of the cars and they that protected the elephants, numbered full six millions.
    5. ^ "The Mahabharata, Book 5: Udyoga Parva: Section VII". www.sacred-texts.com. Archived from the original on 27 March 2023. Retrieved 27 March 2023.
    6. ^ "The Mahabharata, Book 3: Vana Parva: Draupadi-harana Parva: Section CCLXXIX". www.sacred-texts.com. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 26 March 2023. One hundred and forty millions of Pisachas, twice as many man-eating Rakshasa of terrible deed, and thrice as many Yaksha do my bidding!
    7. ^ The Mahābhārata. New Delhi: Penguin. 2009. p. 593. ISBN 978-0-14-044681-4. Dhristarashtra asks Yudhishthira the number of battle casualties: he reports that 1,660,020,000 men are dead and 24,165 missing.
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    15. ^ Insoll, Timothy. Case Studies in Archaeology and World Religion: The Proceedings of the Cambridge Conference. Archaeopress. p. 166.
    16. ^ Murthy, S. S. N. (8 September 2016). "The Questionable Historicity of the Mahabharata". Electronic Journal of Vedic Studies. 10 (5): 1–15. doi:10.11588/ejvs.2003.5.782. ISSN 1084-7561. Archived from the original on 26 January 2019. Retrieved 26 January 2019.
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    20. ^ Basham 1954, p. 39-40.
    21. ^ Basham 1954, p. 40.
    22. ^ A.D. Pusalker, History and Culture of the Indian People, Vol I, Chapter XIV, p.273
    23. ^ FE Pargiter, Ancient Indian Historical Tradition, p.180. He shows estimates of the average as 47, 50, 31 and 35 for various versions of the lists.
    24. ^ Pargiter, op.cit. p.180-182
    25. ^ The Sauptikaparvan of the Mahabharata: The Massacre at Night. Oxford University Press. 1998. p. 13. ISBN 9780192823618.
    26. ^ Singh 2009, p. 18-21.
    27. ^ Swaraj Prakash Gupta; K.S. Ramachandran (2006). "Mahabharata: Myth and Reality". In Singh (ed.). Delhi: Ancient History. Social Science Press. p. 86. ISBN 978-8187358299. Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2016.
    28. ^ a b Witzel 1995.
    29. ^ Hiltebeitel 2005, p. 5594.
    30. ^ a b c Parpola 2015, p. 299.
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    32. ^ Singh 2010, p. Chapter 7, Pp. 202-252, 302.
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    34. ^ Daftari, K. L. (1942). "The Astronomical Method and Its Application to the Chronology of Ancient India". pp. 40–45.
    35. ^ "Experts dig up 950BC as epic war date". Times of India. 1 February 2015. Archived from the original on 18 January 2022. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
    36. ^ B. B. Lal, Mahabharata and Archaeology in Gupta and Ramachandran (1976), p.57-58
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    38. ^ Parpola 2015, p. 299-300.
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    40. ^ Parpola 2020, p. 176.
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    Sources

      Media related to Kurukshetra War at Wikimedia Commons

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