![]() | This article may contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may interest only a particular audience.(November 2017) |
Kurukshetra War | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
c. 1700 watercolour from Mewar depicts the Pandava and Kaurava armies arrayed against each other. | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
| Other allies | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Overlord Yudhishthira Commander-in-chief Dhrishtadyumna (day 1-18) † Other-Commanders Arjuna Bhima Drupada † Virata † Abhimanyu † Upapandavas † Satyaki Shikhandi † Nakula Sahadeva Strategist Krishna |
Overlords Dhritrashtra ![]() Duryodhana † Commanders-in-chief Bhishma (day 1-10) † Drona (day 11-15) † Karna (day 16-17) † Shalya (day 18) † Ashwatthama (night raid) ![]() Other-Commanders Dushasana † Jayadratha † Kripa ![]() Kritavarma ![]() 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] |
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.
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.
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.
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.
One hundred and forty millions of Pisachas, twice as many man-eating Rakshasa of terrible deed, and thrice as many Yaksha do my bidding!
Dhristarashtra asks Yudhishthira the number of battle casualties: he reports that 1,660,020,000 men are dead and 24,165 missing.
© MMXXIII Rich X Search. We shall prevail. All rights reserved. Rich X Search