Reincarnation Of Draupadi (Completed)

Ch 52: Karna's Death

Karna had Arjuna on his mind and asked Shalya to drive him to Arjuna. However, Shalya, his charioteer, brought him first to Yudhisthira. Yudhisthira drew first blood as his weapon knocked out Karna. But Yudhisthira was no match for Karna and Karna soon had him at his mercy. But, in keeping with his promise to Kunti,

Karna spared him. “You have forgotten all that Guru Dronacharya had taught you. You really need to brush up your knowledge.” With that, Karna allowed the grievously injured Yudhisthira to retreat. On the other side, Nakula finally managed to kill Shakuni.  

Yudhisthira’s injuries and retreat enraged the brothers Nakula and Sahadeva and they drove over to Karna and together attacked him, but they were no match for him and were easily beaten by the great warrior. “Select some youngster to play with,” commented Karna, as he allowed them to retreat.

Karna found Bheema advancing towards him in great rage. The two fought ferociously. In the beginning, Karna seemed to be toying with Bheema but soon Bheema redoubled his efforts and put Karna on the defensive.

Duryodhana, not wanting Karna to be killed under any circumstances, sent several of his brothers to assist Karna. But Bheema, who by now was on top of the situation, kept chopping down Duryodhana’s brothers one by one as if they were cattle fodder. This way Duryodhana lost 98 brothers including Vikarna.

Then Bheema turned his attention to Dushasana. Bhima tore his arm and drank the blood from his heart. Draupadi could finally tie her hairs with the blood from Dushashana’s heart.

On seventeenth day, the battle between the two warriors began again in right earnest. Then, the wheel of Karna's chariot gets stuck in the ground.

With the wheels of his chariot stuck, Karna had no option but to lay his ‘Vijaya’ (bow) aside and got off his chariot to free its wheel, Arjuna released an arrow that knocked down Karna’s elephant-bearing standard.

Karna then appealed to Arjuna to wait till he freed the wheel of his stuck chariot, pointing to the code of battle that called for righteous behaviour.

As Arjuna raised his bow, Gandeev, Karna instinctively stretched his hand to collect his bow, Vijaya. Then, as he remembered his boon to his mother, he checked himself.

Krishna directed Arjuna to seize the opportunity and kill Karna when he was thus without his weapons. Arjuna accordingly released the arrow ‘Anjilik’ and killed Karna, finally achieving victory over his long-time adversary.

There was great jubilation in the Pandava camp. Duryodhana was, of course, inconsolable. Krishna, too, was sad, for the world had lost its finest warrior, its greatest danaveera. Kunti was sad for her own reasons; Karna was her son whom she loved but did not acknowledge on account of her situation when he was born and whom she parted with at birth.

When the time came for the last rites of this great warrior, Kunti informed Yudhisthira and the brothers who Karna was. They were aghast but proud as each recalled how Karna had each at his mercy and yet had spared them all. Yudhisthira then told his mother that by keeping Karna’s birth a secret she had allowed them to cause the death of their brother.

When Draupadi came to know Karna's death. She could hold the heartbreak no longer and she fell to the floor in a disheveled heap as her grief poured out in a flood of uncontrollable tears. Her lips started trembling and covered her face with shaking hands. She muttered to herself in quavering voice "I thought I have someone I love in this world. But, he is no longer alive in this world."

At hospital, A single tear squeezed out of Yajna's eyes and opened her eyes.