Bhismaparwa: The Death of Bhisma Putra Baratha in the Land of Kurusetra

The atmosphere on the battlefield, Kurushetra. Before the battle at Kurushetra, the leading kings of ancient India gather. Bhishma wears a white robe and drapery, while Arjuna rides a golden chariot with Krishna as his charioteer. They are ready in their respective positions. The descent of the Bhagawad Gita. Arjuna asks Krishna to take him to the middle of the battlefield, where he sees his relatives and friends ready to fight. Arjuna feels weak and does not have the heart to kill them, so he wants to retreat. Krishna then gives a sacred sermon, this sermon is known as the Bhagavad Gita, which is the essence of the Vedic teachings and is highly respected in Hinduism. Pre-war salute by Yudhisthira just before the battle, Yudhisthira takes off his armor and walks towards the Kaurava army. The Pandavas are shocked, but Krishna smiles knowing what he means. Yudhisthira approaches Bhishma and prostrates himself at his feet with devotion.

Image of Krishna advising Arjuna (source: personal collection)

Yuyutsu sided with the Pandavas. When Yudhistira arrived at the battlefield. He called out to invite allies. Yuyutsu from the Kaurava side declared his loyalty to the Pandavas and was ready to fight under their banner, making Yudhistira happy. The Massacre of Bhishma. The battle began with both sides fully armed. Bhishma attacked the Pandava knights. destroying everything that stood in his way. Abhimanyu warned his uncle and tried to attack Bhishma, but the Pandavas' efforts failed on the first day. Uttara and Sweta were killed. Yudhisthira became pessimistic, but Krishna assured that victory would belong to the Pandavas. Arjuna's duel with Bhishma. On the second day, Arjuna was determined to turn things around. he tried to attack Bhishma, but the Kaurava army protected Bhishma strongly. Arjuna killed many Kaurava troops and finally had a fierce duel with Bhishma. Meanwhile, Drona continued to attack Drhistadyumna and broke his arrows many times.

Image of the conflict between Bhisma and Arjuna (source: personal collection)

Day Two In Kurukshetra. Duryodhana sends the Kalinga army to attack Bhima, but fails. Setyaki shoots Bhishma's charioteer, causing his horse to carry the chariot away. At the end of the second day, the Kauravas are defeated. Day Three In Kurukshetra On the third day, Bhishma leads the Kaurava army in an eagle formation, while the Pandavas form a crescent formation. The Kaurava army focuses on attacking Arjuna, but many are lost. Abhimanyu and Setyaki destroy the Gandhara army. Bhishma fights half-heartedly against Arjuna, until Duryodhana reprimands him. After that, Arjuna and Krishna try to attack Bhishma. Krishna's patience runs out. Krishna is angry and decides to kill Bhishma, takes his chakra and runs towards him. Bhishma surrenders, feeling lucky if he dies at Krishna's hands. Arjuna chases and stops Krishna by holding his feet. Krishna stops at the tenth step.

Picture of krishna's anger (source: personal collection)

Arjuna appeals to Krishna. Arjuna asks Krishna to calm his anger and vows to destroy the Kuru race on Krishna's orders. Krishna is satisfied and his anger subsides, although he still holds the chakra. They then continue the fight and destroy many of the Kaurava troops. Bhima's bravery. The fourth day is the day when Bhima shows his bravery. Bhishma orders the Kaurava army to move. Abhimanyu is surrounded Abhimanyu is surrounded by the Kaurava knights and then attacked, Arjuna sees this and helps Abhimanyu. Bhima appears at the critical moment and attacks the Kaurava knights with a mace. Duryodhana sends an army of elephants Duryodhana sends an army of elephants to attack Bhima. Bhima gets down from the chariot and attacks them one by one with his steel mace, throwing and slamming them towards the Kaurava army. Bhima's fury Bhima attacks the Kauravas and kills eight of Duryodhana's brothers before being shot and falling. Gatotkaca is angry, and Bhishma orders the troops to retreat. on the day of the great massacre. Drona slaughters many Pandawa soldiers and the formations of both sides fall apart. On the eighth day, Bhima killed Dhritarashtra's eight sons, while Arjuna's son, Iravan, was killed by the Kauravas.

Image of Bima going berserk (source: personal collection)

The Fall of Bhishma. The Pandavas did not know how to defeat Bhishma, so they infiltrated his camp to seek answers. Bhishma welcomed them with blessings and revealed his weaknesses. After hearing all of Bhishma's explanations, Arjuna discussed with Krishna, who tried to make Arjuna realize what was right and wrong. On the tenth day, the Pandava army led by Srikandi reached the front line. Srikandi attacked Bhishma but was ignored. Bhishma only teased Srikandi for not wanting to attack Srikandi who had a womanly personality. Seeing Bhishma avoiding Srikandi, Arjuna shot Bhishma several times. Dozens of arrows pierced Bhishma's body. Bhishma fell from his chariot. The Pandava army cheered. It was dusk that day. Both sides stopped their fight, they surrounded Bhishma who was lying down not touching the ground because he was supported by arrows. Bhishma told the knights to give him pillows, but he refused to accept any pillows. Then he told Arjuna to give him a pillow. Arjuna stuck three arrows under Bhishma's head as a pillow. Bhishma approved of Arjuna's action, and he said that he chose the day of his death when the solstice was in the north.

Image of Bhisma who has been defeated (source: personal collection)