As Duryodhana lies on the ground. Mahabharta 166

Bheema cannot contain himself after he strikes Duryodhana down. He looks at the people around him. 'Look! They ridiculed us, called us cows! We now call them the same! Cows! Cows! We did not depend on either fire or  dice or deceit! It was just the strength of our arms. We have killed all those who made fun of us and treated us with contempt.' Bheema then kicks Duryodhana on his head, calling him a Cheat!

Yudhisthira stops Bheema, 'Bheema, it is all over! You have fulfilled your vows! Do not do things which are unlucky. He should not be kicked, it is not dharma. In any case we are related, very recently he was the lord of 11 akshohini army! We should feel sorry for his plight, it is not right to make fun!'

Yudhisthira then gets emotional and laments, 'Duryodhana! Do not grieve! We must all face the consequences of our karma. You brought this on yourself by to your misdeeds! Your brothers had the same fate. Your near and dears were destroyed! Their wives, now widowed will curse you!'

Balarama is very upset and angry! 'It is a shame. Bheema hit below the navel. I have never seen this happen in a fight with clubs. It is not allowed. He is doing as he likes and is breaking rules!'  Totally enraged, he picks up his yoke and rushes to hit Bheema with it. Krishna stops him very politely! 'Pandavas are our natural friends from the beginning, they are pure and brave.  They are also related, children of our aunt! They were cheated by their enemies. Moreover Bheema had vowed to break Duryodhana's thigh. It is khsatriya dharma to keep your vows. In addition, Maitreya had cursed Duryodhana that Bheema would break his thighs. This had to happen, hence I did not see any wrong doing here! Stop being angry!' 

Balarama is still unhappy, 'Whatever you say! One should not give up dharma to fulfil desires! I feel upset that Bheema fulfilled his vows by going against dharma. He will get a bad name in the world for this. Duryodhana will attain heaven for his right conduct in the war!' and immediately leaves for Dwaraka.

Bheema then speaks to Dharmaraja 'Here! The whole world is yours now. Duryodhana, who was the root cause for all your troubles, is lying on the ground defeated! The rest, the fierce warriors are all dead!'  Dharmaraja  agrees that with the blessings of Krishna, they have destroyed their enemy and are victorious. They all celebrate by blowing their individual conch and the whole sky is filled with its reverberating sound.

Krishna suggest that they move from there 'It is not right to keep talking in front of the fallen enemy. Let us go from here. He is lying here having lost his honor, by collecting a group of sinners around him and by not listening to the sound advice of his elders, Vidura and Bheeshma. He refused to give a share to pandavs even when they begged for it. He is now lying here like a log. What is the use of hurting him further! Let us go!'    

The contemptuous words of Krishna has the desired effect. Duryodhana lifts himself up, like a snake whose tail is cut, and stares angrily at Krishna, 'Are you not ashamed of the many things you have done? Was it not adharma?'   Duyodhana then lists out things which Krishna initiated in the warfare which were not honest and caused the death to many who were conducting themselves correctly in the war, including himself, Drona, and Bheeshma. Of using Ghatokacha as a pawn to save Arjuna and so on. Krishna responds that Duryodhana only reaped what he had sown and it was due to his evil actions! He recounts all the things Duryodhana did against the pandavas.

Duryodhana replies, 'As long as I lived, I tried to educate myself. Did charity. Enjoyed being a king. Defeated enemies and I am now dying the way a kshatriya who practices dharma, dies! Is there a better way to die? I will now go to heaven with all my heroic relatives and friends! Whereas you will all be unhappy with your low thoughts and deeds!' 

I had thought that the story ended with the fall of Duryodhana! With a bang, as it were! But I see that the author keeps going back to the events again and again with slightly different view points. Nothing seems to be in black and white, there are shades of grey. It is in fact confusing or very clear depending on your understanding of human nature or for that matter nature of gods! 

I wondered about Duryodhana's place in history and here is what I find:
http://ancientindians.wordpress.com/history/puranas/mahabharatam/duryodhana/

.........you will see that Duryodhana was a respected and loved king in Uttaranchal. He was clearly more than unpleasant to Draupadi (Panchali, the princess of Punjab, his sister-in-law), but his people loved him and remember him to this day, to the extent that they worship him as God. It is said that Dehradhun was named after Duryodhana and the people here are spoken of as very nice people.


....This wonderland is called as Jaunsar-Bawar in Dehradun district and Rawain in Uttarkashi district. There the people are culturally distinct from their Garhwali or Kumaoni brethren. The Jaunsaris are one of the few polyandrous societies anywhere and they tend to be more liberal and their women enjoy greater freedom of choosing and divorcing. Jaunsaris are also famous for their colourful clothes and festivals.


.....Lakhamandal is in the same area where Duryodhana had tried to get the Pandavas burnt to death in the Lakshagriha or the palace made of wax. The land is replete with icons of the Mahabharata age. The local people consider themselves as inheritors of them. It is believed that the kingdom of Raja Viraat was also in the same region.


.....This entire region of sporadic villages is considered to be the domain of Duryodhana Maharaj. The man whom the spirit of Duryodhana visits is called Maali. He issues orders while the spirit has taken over his ‘subjects’ carry them out undefiantly. In other cases, Sayanas, or the elderly, of the villages issue orders, which are final. But, if problems still remain or are not solved, Duryodhana Maharaj is approached for the final and unquestionable judgement.


......The reason being that complaints are hardly directed to the government representatives like Patwari because Duryodhana is the final word. Duryodhana’s entry into this magnificent land is filled with myths and still sung by locals and narrated through Jaagars, a form of invoking the deities. Dr Nautiyal says that legend has it that during Dwapara Yuga, King Duryodhana, after travelling through Kashmir and Kullu, arrived in Hanol situated in Jaunsar-Bawar region where he was mesmerised by the sheer natural beauty.


....He thought it was the place for him and appealed to Lord Mahasu, the reigning local deity, that a piece of valley, next to Himalaya, be given to him, which Lord Mahasu accepted and bestowed upon him this region instructing him to look after the people carefully. Even today, inhabitants of Har-Ki-Doon believe that their king Duryodhana is the one who looks after them.


...It is only Jakhol village where an idol of Duryodhana has been installed. Incidentally, Jakhol is the seat of the Lord and also it is here where his main temple is seated. Other such village temples do not have idols of Duryodhana. The icon is carried to each temple turnwise. When the customary journey is concluded it is taken back to the main seat in Jakhol.

Bheema defeats Duryodhana. Mahabharata 165

Krishna is worried about the outcome of a combat between Duryodhana and Bheema. He thinks that there is no way Bheema can win in a fair fight as Duryodhana has better skills. But, Bheema is confident! He tells Krishna not to worry. 'I will surely kill Suyodhana. My club is longer and heavier and I will fight with it. You all can watch me!'

Bheema then  looks at Duryodhana, standing like a lone elephant separated from its herd and challenges him, 'Duryodhana! It is time for you to recall all the harm you and your father did to us. Remember the disgrace Draupadi had to go through because of you. It is time  for  you  to pay for your evil deeds! I have killed all your brothers, only you are left. I will kill you also with my club! Come on!' Duryodhana retorts, 'Vrukodhara! There is no point in praising yourself. I will fulfil your desire for a fight. Don't you know that I have greater skills than you! Don't thunder like a cloud without rain! Show your powers in a fight!'

Meanwhile, they have a surprise visitor. Balarama returns from his pilgrimage.  And he hears about the impending war between his two students and comes there directly. Both Bheema and Duryodhana were his disciples. After being honoured by everyone and polite enquiries are made about each others well being, he takes a seat along with others to watch the contest.

Both fight like two intoxicated elephants. They both exhibit great versatality and skill. They avoid each others blows. If they get hit, they recover quickly! They keep fighting for a long time. Krishna speaks to Arjuna, 'Bheema has taken a vow to break Duryodhana's thigh. He must fulfil his vow. It will not happen if he depends only on his power and fights in a just manner. A cheat should be defeated only by deceitful means, if not Yudhisthira will be in difficulties. One who has lost everything and is fighting for his life will fight extremely well as he has nothing to lose, but everything to gain. It is very difficult to defeat such warriors! Hence, if Bheema does not kill him, even if by unfair means, it is certain that a kaurava will be our king again.'

Arjuna realising the gravity of the situation, catches the eye of Bheema and touches his left thigh. Bheema understands, he starts moving in circular, doubling back and forward, zig-zag and many different ways to confuse Duryodhana. Duryodhana does not get carried away by his moves and waits for a chance to hit Bheema. Once Bheema faints with the blow he receives, but Duryodhana thinks that Bheema has taken a pause to change his tactics and Bheema recovers quickly. As they keep fighting, Duryodhana once jumps to avoid a blow and Bheema aims his club at Duryodhana's thigh and breaks it and Duryodhana falls.

 Duryodhana falls, like a huge tree falling! Bheema goes near him, 'Wicked man! You called the scantily clad Krishne a cow in midst of the sabha and made fun of her. Enjoy now the fruits of your action!' and kicks his head with his left foot. 

Duryodhana who had given up is goaded to fight! Mahabharata 164

As reality hits Duryodhana, he says  he cannot envisage a life without his nears and dears. He offers the kingdom to Yudhisthira and tells him he has no desire to live and that he will wear the clothes of an ascetic and go to the forest. He tells Yudhisthira 'Go and enjoy the kingdom I own and ruled!'

Yudhisthira declines. 'Don't keep grumbling under water. Come up! While you may imagine that you can offer me the kingdom, I will not accept. It is not khsatriya dhrama to receive a gift. I will claim the kingdom after our victory. Why did you not give it earlier when we asked for it?  You refused to yield land,  even the size of a needle point. No king will offer his kingdom when he is invited to fight a war! Is this a ploy to save your life? There is no way we can let you go now! If we both are alive, people will always worry about the future, they will never be sure who will come out victorious in the end. You have tried to kill us earlier, by any means. You have to bear the consequences and pay with your life. Come out and fight!'

Similarly many others taunt Duryodhana. Unable to bear their harsh words, he agrees to fight but says, 'You are many! You have chariots, weapons and I am all alone. I have no chariot, no weapons and no armour! I am also injured. It is not right that you ask me to fight in this condition. I am not afraid of you! If  provoked I am sure to defeat you and force you to retreat. I still say that it is not dharma to make me fight now. Just wait for a while, I will come out and kill each one of you and pay you back for killing Drona, Karna, Bheeshma and others.'

Yudhisthira compliments Duryodhana for finally accepting that it is khsatriya dharma to fight and offers, 'You choose your weapon and the person you want to fight. The rest of us will watch. If you win, the kingdom is yours and if you die you go to heaven.'  Duryodhana accepts as he is required to fight only one of them. He chooses the club as his weapon and is willing to fight a गदायुद्ध with one of them. Yudhisthira agrees and asks him to come out and prove his manhood!

Angered by this insult, Duryodhana comes out of the water like a wild elephant, with an iron club on his shoulder . His body is covered with blood and he challenges, 'Whoever it is, let him come and fight, it does not matter that I am injured, I am tired and I was in water all this while!

 Krishna is dismayed  by the offer and he scolds Yudhisthira, 'How could you have offered that he could fight with any one? What type of bravery is this?  What if he had chosen you or  Arjuna or Nakula or Sahadeva?  There is no one but Bheema or Arjuna who can fight him. Even they are not as experienced as Duryodhana. With the intention of killing Bheema he has been practising  the last thirteen years! Bheema may be stronger than Duryodhana, but is not as skilled!'

 'You always do something like this and get into problems!'

Yudhisthira read the future well and is right in thinking that there is no hope for peace for him as long as Duryodhana is alive, but almost messes it up by making a grand gesture of letting Duryodhana choose his weapon and the opponent. No wonder Krishna, the strategist is upset!

It is not surprising that Duryodhana tries to somehow save himself . His survival instincts are strong.
Another question that crops up is; if Shakuni were still alive, would he have stopped Duryodhana from fighting Bheema and made him choose a weaker opponent?

Both pandavas and kauravas go looking for Duryodhana. Mahabharata 163

Sanjaya learns about Suyodhana's hiding place and informs Ashwatthama, Krupa and Krithavarma. They reach the water tank and address Duryodhana, who is in it. 'Maharaja! Come out! Continue to fight. We are all here. If we win, we keep the kingdom. If we die, we attain swarga. Pandavas also have lost most of their army and many of the survivors are injured. If we go and attack, they will not able to stop us!'

Duryodhana, still inside, says that he is fortunate that while so many are dead, they are still alive. He agrees with the suggestion, but thinks as both he and they are very tired, it is better to resume the fight the next day. But Ashwatthama does not agree and tries to convince Duryodhana that he should come out immediately to fight. Promises that he will kill all the pandavas who are now rejoicing. He vows that he will not remove his armour till he has killled them all.

In the meantime pandavas, worried that Duryodhana is still alive, send spies to look for him. The spies return without any news of Duryodhana. At the same time, a group of hunters, who supply meat to Bheema every day, overhear the conversation between Duryodhana and his commanders  and expecting to be rewarded by Bheema, rush to inform him. Pandavas come to know the hiding place and proceed there with Krishna and other warriors. Seeing the pandavas approach, Krithavarma and others take leave of Duryodhana and take shelter under a banyan tree.

 Yudhisthira and Krishna decide not to let Duryodhana get away with his clever magic act. Yudhisthira shouts, 'Hey, after being the cause of death of your clan and many khsatriyas, are you now trying to save your life by hiding in the water?  Come out and fight! What happened to your pride and self-respect? Looking at the way  you are sleeping cooly in the water, it appears the claim that you are a great hero proves to be a big lie! Remember you are born in a good khsatriya family, that too in the kuru vamsha. Retreating from a battle is unworthy, a sure way to miss going to heaven! If you want to follow khsatria dharma, do not try to save your life. Fight and defeat us and enjoy your kingdom or die fighting!'

Duryodhana replies from within the water, 'If animals are afraid for their life, it is no surprise! But I have not run away for that reason. I have lost everything, my chariot, arrows and my charioteer and I am tired. I will rest for a while and then I will come out and fight.'  Yudhisthira retorts, 'We had our rest before we came to look for you! Come out, Win and get yout kingdom or die and go to heaven'.

Duryodhana is not ready, 'Where is the need for any kingdom? All my brothers are dead. Having lost brothers who were precious like gems and supreme khsatriya kings, why should I now aspire for mere land?What is the use of the kingdom, when Drona and Karna are dead and Bheeshma is lying on a bed of arrows? You can have it!  Which king will want to rule all alone by himself?'

The eighteenth day of war! Mahabharata 162

Shalya leaves the battle ground with Karna's body, while pandavas celebrate the death of Karna, with shouts of victory, blow the conch and beat the drums. Duryodhana leads the despondent karuavas back to the camp. Shalya praises Karna and consoles Duryodhana, 'Fate is helping pandavas and destiny is against us, what can we do?'

Arjuna prostrates before Yudhisthira and his brother lifts him up and embraces him. Brothers congratulate each other and embrace. Krishna tells Yudhisthira, 'With Karna's death, we can take it that kauravas and the kings supporting them are also gone! While it would not have been possible to kill Karna, even if the three worlds were fighting him, he is dead because of your anger.'

Yudhisthira replies, 'Govinda, it is because of  your calmness, kindness that we were able to defeat the great and very successful warrior Karna. I am able to sleep well and without worries tonight because of this.' Krishna says, 'Yudhisthira, I am only a means to your happiness.  Bheema, Arjuna and the rest of your heroic brothers, Dhristadhyumna and many other relatives and friends are the real reasons for your happiness. You will always enjoy my trust and confidence.'  

After Karna dies Kripaacharya suggests a truce with pandavas. But Duryodhana does not agree. He decides to continue with the war and appoints Shalya as his army commander. The next day  Shalya chooses the सर्वतोभद्र (safe from all directions!) formation. Shalya occupies the front of the formation and Krithavarma is on the left and Krupa on the right. Ashwatthama is at the back. Duryodhana is in the middle!

On Krishna's advice, Yudhisthira takes command of the army and faces Shalya. They decide that Arjuna will face Krithavarma and Bheema takes on Krupa. It is the eighteenth day of the war and the last day! The day starts with Nakula killing, Chitrasena, Susharma and Satyasena, children of Karna. Bheema, Satyaki, Nakula and Sahadeva converge on Shalya from four sides to help Yudhisthira and begin shooting arrows. Yudhisthira invokes Shaktayuda and uses it against Shalya. Blood spurts out from Shalya's eyes, ears, nose and mouth and Shalya falls off from his chariot and dies.

Seeing that their commander is dead, Kaurava soldiers disperse, running in all directions. Duryodhana stops them, takes over and giving them encouragement begins to fight. But the bravery of Arjuna nullifies this effort. Satyaki kills Salva and defeats Krithavarma.  Dhristadhymna defeats Duryodhna and runs him out of the battle field. As he goes out of sight, Krupa, Krithavarma and Ashwatthama go looking for Duryodhana.

Dhrishtadhyumna later starts demolishing the remaining karurava army. Bheema seeks out the surviving younger brothers of Duryodhana and beats them all to death. Sahadeva kills Shakuni and Ulaka. After Shakuni's fall, the soldiers helping him attack Sahadeva. Bheema and Arjuna go to help,  defeats and kills them all. Kaurava army is practically destroyed on that day. Duryodhana reappears and collects the remaining soldiers and orders them to kill Dhristadhyumna. They obey, but are  killed in no time. Thus kaurava eleven akshohini army, thousands of kings all die and only Duryodhana remains.

Duryodhana looks around and sees total emptiness, there is no one to fight along with him. He sees the pandavas celebrating all round. He looses his confidence. In just a few days, a man who had eleven akshohini army, now has nothing. There is no one to accompany him, there are no chariots, even his horse is dead. Duryodhana lifts up his mace and starts walking towards east. He nears a tank and applies his knowledge of जलस्तम्भ, enters the tank and hides in it.

King Shalya on his way to meet Pandavas is enticed by the hospitality of Duryodhana. MB blog 104

At the request of the pandavas, Shalya the king of Madhra, brother of Madhri, is on his way to meet them accompanied by his children and his large army. Duryodhana comes to know and orders wayside pavilions be built for them to rest and to treat them with great hospitality. King Shalya, immensely pleased, 'Call the people who built these pavilions, I want to reward them.' Duryodhana who was behind the scenes all this while comes forward to claim credit. Shalya very happy embraces him and asks him, 'What can I do for you?' Duryodhan answers 'Uncle, please lead the entire kaurava army!' and Shalya having asked, accepts ! Duryodhana departs, a very happy man.

Shalya then goes on to meet Yudhisthira, embraces him affectionately and recounts what transpired on his way and his promise to  Duryodhana. Yudhisthira reacts with, 'It is just as well! But please do us a favor. Vasudeva and you are considered equal in a combat. When the time comes for Karna and Arjuna to fight, you will be required to become  Karna's charioteer. Uncle, if you have any regard for me, you should protect Arjuna! You must destroy Karna's confidence. I know it should not be done, but do it for us!'

Shalya agrees, 'True! I will attack his ego by arguing with him word to word. It is easier to defeat him if his confidence is low! I will do whatever I can. I know that you have suffered in many ways. All this will end  and you will soon be happy. Do not feel bad. It happens even to devatas!'  And tells him a story where god Indra and his wife face difficulties and finally overcome them. (The message is that even gods get into trouble!) 

Visiting Mahabharata 17 ... Duryodhana (revisited in 2011)

On the same day as Bheema was born, Ghandari's eldest son was born. He was named Duryodhana, his father Dhritarastra was very pleased. He spoke to his brother Vidura, as he had some concerns. He wondered whether the first son of Pandu, being older had the right to the throne.
He was also worried about the inauspicious omens at the time of his son's birth. Vidura looked grave. He said 'my brother, these omens prophecy that your son will be the cause of the destruction of the entire world'. The king shocked asked 'How can I avert this calamity?'
Vidura's reply was even more shocking, he suggested that the child must be put to death for the good of humanity. 'The wise say that, for the sake of the family, one can be abandoned, the family may be abandoned for the sake of the village, the village for the sake of community; and everything, even this world, may be abandoned for the sake of saving the soul'.

Anyway, Dhirtharashtra does not heed this advice and abandon his first born. He also fathers a daughter Dussala and  hundred more sons!

( I did not expect this shocking advice from Vidura, but babies do get abandoned, put to death sometimes. The occurrence, an aberration, is fortunately very rare. However, abortion is more prevalent while controversial. Some are aborted due to probable birth defects detected by tests and others as they are detected to be female.

Can one  imagine a day when, if 'evil' can be detected not by an omen or prophecy but by medical tests, aborting them would be accepted by a society? Hard to visualise!  Definition of 'evil' would be very tricky! Killing an infant does occur in the animal world. It is all very disturbing and unsavory aspects of life. -Post Anna Hazare movement, would Vidura define corruption as 'evil'?)

Author Kamala, I am not sure why, does not explain how these hundred sons, a big number, arrived. What I remember is close to Samhita's version! To quote "Meanwhile, Gandhari , Dhritarashtra's wife gave birth to a lump of flesh. The whole palace was in gloom. Vyasa arrived and instructed Gandhari to cut the lump into hundred pieces and put them in oil. After nine months the hundred pieces turned into hundred boys. They were called the Kauravas. They hated their cousins Pandavas. The first two sons, Duryodhana and Dushasana were the leaders of the Kauravas."