Epic Retold: The Mahabharata in Tweets (26 page)

I stare at him in disbelief. Karna, my brother!

I recall the taunts in my childhood. The incitement during the dice game. The murder of Abhimanyu. And the more recent killing of my son.

I take aim.

‘No, Bhima!’ Visoka says again. ‘It would be a great sin to kill your own brother to avenge your son!’

Suddenly, I lose my determination. Feeling empty, I sit down.

When Visoka drives away, I hear Karna’s scornful voice behind, ‘Go, blockhead! Tell your mother I spared you out of kindness!’

Visoka stops the chariot in a secluded area.

‘Your mother met Karna just before the war,’ he says. ‘She told him the truth and asked him to join the Pandavas.’

‘Karna knows?’

Visoka said he had overheard Kunti speaking to Karna. On his way to Kurukshetra, he had stopped on the banks of the Ganga at dawn.

There he had seen Kunti. Wanting to pay his respects, he stopped. But Kunti was with Karna, who had just finished his morning prayers.

Not wanting to intrude, Visoka waited out of sight. He heard Karna laugh at Kunti’s request.

‘Karna said he was the son of Athiratha, not Kunti,’ Visoka says. ‘That nothing would make him join the Pandavas now.

‘But he promised to seek out only Arjuna. He said if he died or he killed Arjuna, your mother would still have five sons.’

I struggle to absorb Visoka’s words. Mother! How many more terrible secrets did that woman carry in her heart?

The Karna who laughed at me all my life, the Karna I ridiculed during the exhibition game a long time ago—he is my brother, my king!

And somewhere on this wretched battlefield lies the body of my son, his chest split open by my own brother!

I stir after a long time, my mind still a whirl. There is one thing I know I must do. Reading my mind perfectly, Visoka whips the horses.

As we head in the direction of Ghatotkacha’s last battle, I shed a silent tear for the mother who waited for his return.

DRONA

EPISODE 36

TWEETS 48

It is late morning when Visoka shakes me awake. Sleep—who would have thought it would bless me so completely on a night like this?

The dust rising from the northern sector signals the crucial battle of the day. Under Drishtadyumna, the Panchala army is engaging Drona.

‘The Kauravas are weakened, particularly Drona’s division,’ Visoka says. ‘Ghatotkacha ran through them like a tempest last night!’

Seizing the opportunity, Drishtadyumna has concentrated our might on Drona. If the teacher falls today, the war will be ours.

But the news from the battlefield is not encouraging. Drona is fighting like a tiger, countering the Panchala’s moves with remarkable skill.

I arrive to find Yudhistira in the second line, impatiently watching the battle. He stops me as I hasten to support Drishtadyumna.

‘Finish off Bhagadatta’s elephant force,’ Yudhistira says. ‘Once they are out of the way, there will be no protection for their chariots.’

Arjuna did immeasurable damage to the Kauravas when he killed Bhagadatta and destroyed part of his force the previous day.

With no leader and no one to mount the dreaded Supratika, our own elephant force has the upper hand. Switching to Kesava, I begin my attack.

There is wisdom in Yudhistira’s plan. The ground troops had suffered severely at Ghatotkacha’s hands. If I can destroy their chariots today…

As the noon sun beats down on us mercilessly, messengers arrive with bad news: Drupada and Virata have fallen, both to Drona’s arrows.

In the distance I see Arjuna withdraw from facing Ashwathma and drive towards Yudhistira. Krishna must have something on his mind.

Yudhistira looks unhappy when I reach the spot. Krishna looks impatient.

‘But that would be untruth!’ Yudhistira is saying. ‘To say Ashwathma is dead… I cannot do that in good conscience!’

‘Drona has cost us too many lives today, Yudhistira,’ Krishna responds. ‘Drupada, Virata—too many people have died for you already!

‘To kill Drona we must break his spirit. If you say his son is dead, he will believe it. Drona must fall today!’

When Yudhistira demurs, Krishna points to a fallen elephant. ‘I name that beast Ashwathma,’ he says. ‘Ashwathma is dead! That is not a lie!’

At Krishna’s insistence, Yudhistira rides to where Drishtadyumna is facing Drona. Visoka keeps pace with his chariot.

As we draw near, I shout out, ‘Arjuna has killed him! Ashwathma is dead!’

Our jubilant soldiers pick up the cry. When Drona looks towards us, Arjuna holds his bow high, as if in victory.

Yudhistira proclaims hoarsely, ‘Ashwathma is dead!’ Then, softly, he mutters to himself, ‘Ashwathma the elephant, I mean!’

The Panchala army screams its celebration, forgetting even to kill. The battle comes to a standstill. The next events are a blur.

Across the lines, I see Drona lower his bow. Suddenly he looks frail. I see Drishtadyumna’s chariot leaping forward.

When the dust settles, the Panchala prince is standing on the deck of Drona’s chariot. He holds the teacher by his hair.

The sword flashes. Drona’s thin body folds down into a pool of blood.

Drishtadyumna’s face is fearsome as he throws the severed head into the midst of the Kaurava troops.

Then, without sheathing his drenched sword, he jumps into his chariot and makes his way to the camp.

As the fighting halts, I drive off the field, towards Yudhistira’s tent. Drishtadyumna is there, still in his chariot, his head bowed.

Seeing me, he smiles tiredly, slowly steps down from the deck. I am surprised when Satyaki, who had followed me in, turns at him.

‘Monster! Only a Panchala can be so dishonourable! Drona was an elder, a brahmin! How dare you behead him?’

Drishtadyumna is calm when he answers Satyaki. ‘There is nothing fair in war. Have you not learnt that yet, Satyaki? War means killing!’

Arjuna, who had just arrived, supports Satyaki. ‘That was not killing, that was murder,’ he says. ‘Despicable!’

Drishtadyumna loses his composure. He responds angrily.

‘Dishonourable? Despicable? Tell me, which part of this war is honourable? Why are we in this war in the first place?

‘Was it honourable for the Kauravas to cheat you out of your kingdom? Was it honourable for you all to pawn my sister?

‘The teachers, the elders who know right from wrong, where was their honour when they lined up against you?

‘Where was Drona’s honour when he surrounded Abhimanyu with six others? Was it honourable to crush the boy’s head when he fell unconscious?’

When Satyaki mutters something more about cowardice and honour, Drishtadyumna reaches for his sword. Satyaki rushes forward.

‘Enough!’ I roar, stepping in front of Satyaki. Arjuna, Yudhistira and Krishna hold Drishtadyumna back. ‘Have we all gone mad?

‘All this while we schemed for Drona’s death. And when that finally happens, we fight over its righteousness!

‘I support Drishtadyumna. There is nothing righteous about this war!

‘We have killed our own flesh and blood by the foulest of means. We have lied and cheated. All of us, including you, righteous Yudhistira!

‘None of us has the right to point a finger at another! Not you, Satyaki. Not you, Arjuna. Not even you, Krishna!’

There is silence. Then, letting go of Drishtadyumna, Krishna looks at me.

‘Bhima is right,’ he says. ‘Fighting will not help us. As for righteousness, right and wrong are not easy to discern in battle.

‘All of us are here because we believe in this cause. We believe this war will right a wrong.

‘And as warriors, our ultimate duty is to defeat the enemy. Morality in battle is a luxury we can ill-afford at every turn.’

Slowly I release Satyaki. Krishna’s words bring me no comfort. I feel the war has already defeated us. All of us.

DUSHASANA

EPISODE 37

TWEETS 56

On the sixteenth day, it is Karna who leads the Kauravas into battle.

We had thought Kripa would replace Drona. Or Ashwathma. Both are more experienced than Karna. But Duryodhana had stood by his old friend.

Watching the Kaurava lines take shape under their new commander-in-chief, I note with grim satisfaction the missing flags in their ranks.

Bhishma, Drona, Jayadratha, Bhagadatta and Bhoorisravas will fight no more. Nor will several of Duryodhana’s brothers, including Chitrasena.

The list of fallen heroes on our side is long as well. Drupada, Virata, Abhimanyu, Iravan, Uttara… and Ghatotkacha.

The Kaurava army is arrayed today in the Makara Vyuha. The Crocodile Phalanx. Karna has set himself at the snout of the beast.

The minute the conches blow, Karna engulfs our ranks like a firestorm. The Kauravas seem to have found new energy under him.

I had never thought of Karna as a strategist. But the adjustments he has made to the conventional phalanx make it more dangerous.

Leaving his place at the head of the formation at will, he leads a series of raids on our left and right flanks, catching us off guard.

Ashwathma, thirsty for revenge, supports Karna, targeting the Panchala forces. Our ranks are in disarray very quickly.

My first challenge is from Kshemadhurti. The king of Kulutas confronts me as I head to support Drishtadyumna against Kripa.

Kshemadhurti has, perhaps, counted on holding me off with his fine archery skills. But I am in no mood for a protracted exchange.

Reading my mind perfectly, Visoka pretends to circle, then suddenly whips the horses into a dead run straight at his chariot.

I see alarm on the king’s face as the distance closes. When I leap on to his deck roaring, he hurriedly reaches for his sword.

Bones crunch under my mace. The sword tumbles from Kshemadhurti’s lifeless hand. I hear his charioteer scream.

Ignoring the stricken driver, I vault back into my vehicle. The Panchalas still need my help.

Drishtadyumna is visibly relieved when I ride up to him. He looks exhausted. Disengaging from Kripa, he drives away to rest.

The old brahmin is fiery-eyed today. It is clear he is out to avenge Drona. Twice he tries to pursue Drishtadyumna. Twice I cut him off.