Bṛhadbala

Bṛhadbala was the king of Kośala, a great kingdom in the eastern Gaṅgā region, around Ayodhyā. He came from the Ikshvāku line, the solar dynasty, which also gave the world Bhagavān Rāma. He joined the Kauravas at the Kurukshetra war and was killed by Abhimanyu on the thirteenth day.

Lineage and kingdom

Bṛhadbala ruled Kośala, the old kingdom of the Ikshvāku solar line. He was a descendant of that dynasty, one of the most ancient royal houses of Bhārata. He was also called Kosalādhīśvara (ruler of Kośala). Although his line was so honoured, he sided with Duryodhana and the Kauravas. That placed him against the Pāṇḍavas, who had wide support among the kingdoms that followed dharma.

In Bhīma’s list of eighteen kings

In the Udyoga Parva, Chapter 74, Bhīma names eighteen kings whose deaths in the war would bring the end, or heavy loss, of their lineages (kula-kshaya). Bṛhadbala is among those named. The list shows the full cost of the war.

The war under Bhīshma

The Bhīshma Parva (Chapters 43–122) covers the ten days of battle under Bhīshma’s command. Bṛhadbala is named there as one of the Kaurava commanders who fought and who stood in the guard formations around Bhīshma. He was a strong warrior and a clear presence in the Kaurava array through those ten days.

Death at the hands of Abhimanyu

The Droṇa Parva calls Bṛhadbala a mahāratha, one of the foremost chariot-warriors of his age. On the thirteenth day, Droṇācārya formed the Cakravyūha (wheel formation, also called Padmavyūha). Jayadratha guarded its entrance. He stopped every Pāṇḍava except Abhimanyu from going in. Inside, Abhimanyu fought alone against huge forces.

After Abhimanyu had wrecked the Kaurava forces and made even Duryodhana flee, six great mahārathas surrounded him. They were Droṇācārya, Karṇa, Kṛpācārya, Aśvatthāman, Bṛhadbala and Kṛtavarman. Together they tried to overcome what no single warrior could.

In the great duel Bṛhadbala fought Abhimanyu again and again:

• He was among those who showered arrows on Abhimanyu as he was encircled. In one phase he shot eight arrows at him.
• He shot fifty arrows at Abhimanyu in a long exchange. Abhimanyu shot twenty arrows back at Bṛhadbala alone.
• At last Bṛhadbala struck Abhimanyu on the chest with one arrow and wounded him. Abhimanyu at once destroyed Bṛhadbala’s four horses, his flag, his bow and his charioteer, all together. All fell to the ground.

Without his chariot, Bṛhadbala took up sword and shield. He leapt from the wreck, meaning to cut off Abhimanyu’s head. Before he reached him, Abhimanyu pierced his heart with a single arrow. Bṛhadbala fell dead.

His fall is named in several places in the Droṇa Parva as one of the great deeds of Abhimanyu’s last battle. After Abhimanyu died, the Pāṇḍavas praised his deeds to comfort Arjuna. They recalled that Abhimanyu had killed the great Kośala king Bṛhadbala, with ten thousand soldiers, before he fell himself. His death was a heavy loss for the Kaurava side.

The Strī Parva

In the Strī Parva, Chapter 25, Gāndhārī walks the battlefield and comes upon Bṛhadbala of Kośala. His wives have gathered round him, weeping aloud. The arrows that Abhimanyu drove deep into his body in the Cakravyūha battle still stand in it. These arrows had caused his death. His wives try in their grief to pull them out. The pain of it makes them faint again and again. Gāndhārī sees this as part of her long lament for the Kaurava allies and the Pāṇḍava-side warriors who fell in the war.

The Strī Parva thus shows the death of this king of the ancient Ikshvāku solar line at the hands of Arjuna’s young son through the grief of his widowed queens.

Sources

• Mahābhārata, Udyoga Parva, Chapter 74
• Mahābhārata, Bhīshma Parva, Chapters 43–122
• Mahābhārata, Droṇa Parva
• Mahābhārata, Strī Parva, Chapter 25