eed to the highest region of blessedness. These five were
myself, Dhananjaya, the son of Pritha, and Drona's son, Aswatthaman, and
Vasudeva of Vrishni's race, and king Yudhishthira the just, the son of
Pandu. Nobody else, O king, could see that glory of the wise Drona,
devoted to Yoga, while passing out of the world. In fact, all human
beings were unconscious of the fact that the preceptor attained to the
supreme region of Brahman, a region mysterious to the very gods, and one
that is the highest of all. Indeed, none of them could see the preceptor,
that chastiser of foes, proceed to the region of Brahman, devoted to Yoga
in the company of the foremost of Rishis, his body mangled with arrows
and bathed in blood, after he had laid aside his weapons. As regards
Prishata's son, though everybody cried fie on him, yet casting his eyes
on the lifeless Drona's head, he began to drag it. With his sword, then,
he lopped off from his foe's trunk that head,--his foe remained
speechless the while. Having slain Bharadwaja's son. Dhrishtadyumna was
filled with great joy, and uttered leonine shouts, whirling his sword. Of
a dark complexion, with white locks hanging down to his ears, that old
man of five and eighty years of age, used, for thy sake only, to career
on the field of battle with the activity of a youth of sixteen. The
mighty-armed Dhananjaya, the son of Kunti, (before Drona's head was cut
off) had said, "O son of Drupada, bring the preceptor alive, do not slay
him. He should not be slain." Even thus all the troops also had cried
out. Arjuna, in particular, melted with pity, had cried out repeatedly.
Disregarding, however, the cries of Arjuna as also these of all the
kings, Dhrishtadyumna slew Drona, that bull among men, on the terrace of
his car. Covered with Drona's blood, Dhrishtadyumna then jumped from the
car down upon the ground. Looking red like the sun, he then seemed to be
exceedingly fierce. Thy troops beheld Drona slain even thus in that
battle. Then Dhrishtadyumna, that great bowman, O king, threw down that
large head of Bharadwaja's son before the warriors of thy army. Thy
soldiers, O monarch, beholding the head of Bharadwaja's son, set their
hearts on flight and ran away in all directions. Meanwhile Drona,
ascending the skies, entered the stellar path. Through the grace of the
Rishis Krishna (Dwaipayana), the son of Satyavati, I witnessed, O king,
the (true circumstances about the) death of Drona. I beheld that
i