Arjuna Gains the Upper Hand over Ashvatthaman

Verse 1 (4.60.1)

तं पार्थः प्रतिजग्राह वायुवेगमिवाचलः । शरजालेन महता वर्षमाण इवाम्बुदः ॥

taṃ pārthaḥ pratijagrāha vāyuvegamivācalaḥ | śarajālena mahatā varṣamāṇa ivāmbudaḥ

Partha received him as a mountain receives the rush of the wind, and, like a raining cloud, met him with a great net of arrows.

Note on the text: Wikisource reads वायुवेगमिवाचलः and वर्षमाण इवाम्बुदः for vāyuvegam ivoddhatam and varṣamāṇam ivāmbudam: Partha meets Ashvatthaman as a mountain meets the wind, and himself rains arrows like a cloud.

Verse 2 (4.60.2)

तयोर्देवासुरसमः सन्निपातो महानभूत् । किरतोः शरजालानि वृत्रवासवयोरिव ॥

tayordevāsurasamaḥ sannipāto mahānabhūt | kiratoḥ śarajālāni vṛtravāsavayoriva

Between the two of them, as they hurled nets of arrows at each other, there was a great clash like that of the gods and the asuras, like that of Vritra and Vasava (Indra).

Verse 3 (4.60.3)

न स्म सूर्यस्तदा भाति न च वाति समीरणः । शरगाढे कृते व्योम्नि छायाभूतमिवाभवत् ॥

na sma sūryastadā bhāti na ca vāti samīraṇaḥ | śaragāḍhe kṛte vyomni chāyābhūtamivābhavat

The sun no longer shone, nor did the wind blow; with the sky packed tight with arrows, everything became like one great shadow.

Verse 4 (4.60.4)

महांश्चटचटाशब्दो योधयोर्युध्यमानयोः । दह्यतामिव वेणूनामासीत्परमदारुणः ॥

mahāṃścaṭacaṭāśabdo yodhayoryudhyamānayoḥ | dahyatāmiva veṇūnāmāsītparamadāruṇaḥ

As the two warriors fought, there arose a great crackling sound, most terrible, like that of burning bamboo.

Verse 5 (4.60.5)

हयांस्तस्यार्जुनः सङ्ख्ये कृतवानल्पतेजसः । ते राजन्न प्रजानन्ति दिशं कांचन मोहिताः ॥

hayāṃstasyārjunaḥ saṅkhye kṛtavānalpatejasaḥ | te rājanna prajānanti diśaṃ kāṃcana mohitāḥ

In the fight Arjuna sapped the strength of his horses, O king, and, bewildered, they no longer knew one direction from another.

Note on the text: Corrected अल्पतेजसाः → अल्पतेजसः (misprint in Wikisource; stray ā; the accusative plural of alpatejas). Wikisource reads हयांस्तस्यार्जुनः सङ्ख्ये … अल्पतेजसः and the plural ते … प्रजानन्ति … मोहिताः for hayān asyārjunaḥ sarvān … alpajīvitān and sa … prajānāti … mohitaḥ, so that it is the horses that are bewildered.

Verse 6 (4.60.6)

ततो द्रौणिर्महावीर्यः पार्थस्य विचरिष्यतः । विवरं सूक्ष्ममालोक्य ज्यां नुनोद क्षुरेण सः ॥

tato drauṇirmahāvīryaḥ pārthasya vicariṣyataḥ | vivaraṃ sūkṣmamālokya jyāṃ nunoda kṣureṇa saḥ

Then the mighty son of Drona, watching Partha as he ranged about, spied a small opening and struck at his bowstring with a razor-headed arrow.

Note on the text: Corresponds to critical edition 4.54.6ab–cd (Wikisource reads ज्यां नुनोद क्षुरेण सः for jyāṃ ciccheda kṣureṇa ha).

Verse 7 (4.60.7)

तदस्यापूजयन्देवाः कर्म दृष्ट्वाऽतिमानुषम् । न शक्तोऽन्यः पुमान्स्थातुमृते द्रौणेर्धनंजयम् ॥

tadasyāpūjayandevāḥ karma dṛṣṭvā'timānuṣam | na śakto'nyaḥ pumānsthātumṛte drauṇerdhanaṃjayam

The gods praised that superhuman feat when they saw it: no man but Drona's son could have stood against Dhananjaya.

Note on the text: Line 1 is critical edition 4.54.6ef; line 2 is not in its constituted text but is in its apparatus as 4.54.6f*0964 (found in the vulgate recension; it reads ṛte pārthaṃ, where Wikisource has ऋते द्रौणेः).

Verse 8 (4.60.8)

ततो द्रौणिर्धनुर्व्यस्य व्यपक्रम्य नरर्षभः । पुनरप्यभ्यहन्पार्थं हृदये कङ्कपत्रिभिः ॥

tato drauṇirdhanurvyasya vyapakramya nararṣabhaḥ | punarapyabhyahanpārthaṃ hṛdaye kaṅkapatribhiḥ

Then Drona's son, bull among men, drew back a little, plied his bow, and struck Partha again in the chest with heron-feathered arrows.

Note on the text: Wikisource reads धनुर्व्यस्य, नरर्षभः and अभ्यहन् for dhanūṃṣy aṣṭau, nararṣabham and abhyāhanat, recension variants.

Verse 9 (4.60.9)

ततः पार्थो महाबाहुः प्रहसन्स्वनवत्तदा । योजयामास च तदा मौर्व्या गाण्डीवमोजसा ॥

tataḥ pārtho mahābāhuḥ prahasansvanavattadā | yojayāmāsa ca tadā maurvyā gāṇḍīvamojasā

Then the mighty-armed Partha, laughing aloud, strung the Gandiva with a bowstring by sheer strength.

Verse 10 (4.60.10)

तं दृष्ट्वा क्रुद्धमायान्तं प्रभिन्नमिव कुञ्जरम् । क्रुद्धः समाह्वयामास द्रौणिर्युद्धाय भारत ॥

taṃ dṛṣṭvā kruddhamāyāntaṃ prabhinnamiva kuñjaram | kruddhaḥ samāhvayāmāsa drauṇiryuddhāya bhārata

Seeing him come on in anger like an elephant in rut, Drona's son angrily challenged him to fight, O Bharata.

Note on the text: Corrected ऋद्धम् → क्रुद्धम् and ऋद्धः → क्रुद्धः (misprints in Wikisource; dropped क् in both, which leaves "prosperous" where "angry" is meant; the apparatus reads kruddham and kruddhaḥ). Not in the critical edition (found in the vulgate recension); the critical edition records it in its apparatus as 4.54.8d*0967.

Verse 11 (4.60.11)

ततोऽर्धचन्द्रमाहृत्य तेन पार्थः समाहतः । चिच्छेद तस्य चापं च सूतं चाश्वं च तेजसा । विव्याध निशितैश्चापि शरैराशीविषोपमैः ॥

tato'rdhacandramāhṛtya tena pārthaḥ samāhataḥ | ciccheda tasya cāpaṃ ca sūtaṃ cāśvaṃ ca tejasā | vivyādha niśitaiścāpi śarairāśīviṣopamaiḥ

Then Partha, who had been struck by him, took up a crescent-headed arrow and with his might cut down his bow, his charioteer and his horse, and pierced him with sharp arrows like venomous snakes.

Note on the text: Corrected अर्धचन्द्रपाहृत्य → अर्धचन्द्रमाहृत्य (misprint in Wikisource; प for म) and आशीविपोपमैः → आशीविषोपमैः (misprint; प for ष; the apparatus reads āśīviṣopamaiḥ). Line 1 is a variant of critical edition 4.54.9ab (tato 'rdhacandram āvṛtya tena pārthaḥ samāgamat); lines 2–3 are in its apparatus as 4.54.9b*0968, lines 1–2 (Wikisource reads चाश्वं च तेजसा for cāśvān rathasya vai).

Verse 12 (4.60.12)

सोऽन्यं रथं समास्थाय प्रत्यायाद्रथिपुङ्गवः । वारणेनेव मत्तेन मत्तो वारणयूथपः ॥

so'nyaṃ rathaṃ samāsthāya pratyāyādrathipuṅgavaḥ | vāraṇeneva mattena matto vāraṇayūthapaḥ

Mounting another chariot, that bull among chariot-fighters came back to the fight, like a rutting elephant, lord of a herd, against a rutting elephant.

Note on the text: Line 1 is in the critical edition's apparatus as 4.54.9b*0968, line 3; line 2 is critical edition 4.54.9cd.

Verse 13 (4.60.13)

ततः प्रववृते युद्धं पृथिव्यामेकवीरयोः । रणमध्ये द्वयोरेव सुमहद्रोमहर्षणम् ॥

tataḥ pravavṛte yuddhaṃ pṛthivyāmekavīrayoḥ | raṇamadhye dvayoreva sumahadromaharṣaṇam

Then, in the midst of the field, a battle began between those two, the foremost heroes on earth—a vast battle that made the hair stand on end.

Verse 14 (4.60.14)

तौ वीरौ कुरवः सर्वे ददृशुर्विस्मयान्विताः । युध्यमानौ महात्मानौ द्विरदाविव संगतौ ॥

tau vīrau kuravaḥ sarve dadṛśurvismayānvitāḥ | yudhyamānau mahātmānau dviradāviva saṃgatau

All the Kurus, filled with wonder, watched those two great-souled heroes fighting like two elephants locked together.

Verse 15 (4.60.15)

तौ समाजघ्नतुर्वीरौ परस्परजयैषिणौ । शरैराशीविषाकारैर्ज्वलद्भिरिव पावकैः ॥

tau samājaghnaturvīrau parasparajayaiṣiṇau | śarairāśīviṣākārairjvaladbhiriva pāvakaiḥ

The two heroes, each eager to conquer the other, struck at each other with arrows like venomous snakes, like blazing fires.

Note on the text: Removed a stray space in शरैराशीविषाकारैर् (misprint in Wikisource, which splits the word as शरै राशीविषाकारैर्). Wikisource reads परस्परजयैषिणौ and पावकैः for anyonyaṃ puruṣarṣabhau and pannagaiḥ.

Verse 16 (4.60.16)

अक्षयाविषुधी दिव्यौ पाण्डवस्य महात्मनः । तेन पार्थो रणे शूरस्तस्थौ गिरिरिवाचलः ॥

akṣayāviṣudhī divyau pāṇḍavasya mahātmanaḥ | tena pārtho raṇe śūrastasthau giririvācalaḥ

The great-souled Pandava had two divine, inexhaustible quivers; and so Partha stood firm in the battle like a mountain.

Verse 17 (4.60.17)

अश्वत्थाम्नः पुनर्बाणाः क्षिप्रमभ्यस्यतो रणे । जग्मुः परिक्षयं शीघ्रमभूत्तेनाधिकोऽर्जुनः ॥

aśvatthāmnaḥ punarbāṇāḥ kṣipramabhyasyato raṇe | jagmuḥ parikṣayaṃ śīghramabhūttenādhiko'rjunaḥ

But the arrows of Ashvatthaman, shooting fast in the fight, were soon spent, and so Arjuna gained the upper hand.