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Question-Kaurav and Paandav Armies

About Kaurav and Paandav Armies
According to Bhaagvat one Akshauhinee army is composed of
21,870 chariots, 
21,870 elephant, 
109,350 foot soldiers, and 
65,600 horse riders. 

According to Mahaabhaarat Paandav had 7 Akshauhinee army and
Kaurav had 11 Akshauhinee army. Thus both had :-

Akshauhinee = Paandav Army (x7) Kaurav Army (x11)
21,870  Chariots 21,870 x 7=153,090 Chariots 21,870 x 11=240,570 Chariots
21,870  Elephants 21,870 x 7=153,090 Elephants 21,870 x 11=240,570 Elephants
109,350 Foot Soldiers 109,350 x 7=765,450 Soldiers 109,350 x 11=1,202,850 Soldiers
65,610  Horses 65,610 x 7=459,270 Horses 65,610 x 11=721,710 Horses
Total = 218,700 heads 218,700 x 7=1,530,900 Heads 218,700 x 11=2,405,700 Heads
Total People on both sides  = 1,530,900  +  2,405,700  =   3,936,600

If they had this much army with them then we have to count their numbers, given at various places. Certainly those numbers exceed not in tens or hundreds, but in thousands. Some examples are given here:-


Example 1 :  7-Drone Parv, Sec 50
On 2nd day, Dhrishtdyumn places
      10,000
  +100,000
  +120,000
  +170,000
  +  30,000
=  430,000        chariots at various places.

According to Mahaabhaarat, Paandav had only seven Akshauhinee army - means 21,870 x 7 = 153,090 chariots. And Bheeshm killed 10,000 people a day, then how Dhrishtdyumn placed so many chariots of his army on the 2nd day of the war? From where did he bring these extra chariots?
[G-6-War/7-geetaa-2]


Example 2 :  7-Drone Parv, Sec 6
When Duryodhan requests Drone to be the Commander of his army, he says - "These 11 Akshauhinee troops are obedient to you. Disposing these troops you slay your enemies."

Bheem, Arjun, Ghatotkach had been killing Kaurav army everyday, still Duryodhan had 11 Akshauhinee army on 11th day of war? How come?
[ G-6-War/15]


Example 3 :  7-Drone Parv, Sec 6
Drone killed more than 2 Akshauhinee army of Paandav, before he was killed by Dhrishtdyumn.

It means that Paandav had at least 2 Akshauhinee army - means 218,690 x 2 = about 435,000 or exactly 437,380 heads, less after Drone had died.

Certainly it is separate from those 10,000 people who were killed daily by Bheeshm at least for 9 days as he promised - if we do not consider the 10th day as his full day - it means he killed at least 90,000 people. So the total loss was of Paandav army till 15th day was about 435,000 + 90,000 = 525,000 (more than 2 Akshauhinee army)

It means that Paandav still had at least 1 million army after 15 days of war.
[G-6-War, 15-battle-11]


Example 4 : 7-Drone Parv, Sec 45
In this section, almost in the end, it is written that after Brihadwal fell, some 10,000 kings broke and fled.

If 10,000 kings were with Kaurav at that time, then how many kings were with Paandav? Maybe 75%, or say 50%. But were there so many kings in Bhaarat Varsh? And if there were so many kings at that time, it means that most kings owned only a city as a country?

Secondly, all the 11 and 7 Akshauhinee's armies' kings have already been counted by Bheeshm before the war started. They are very few - less than 11 towards Kaurav's side, and less than 7 on Paandav's side. This means that so many thousand kings came without their armies? This may prove that they really owned only a city as their country, and they did not have any army in their country.
[6-War, 17-battle 13-1]


Example 5 : 7-Drone Parv, Sec
In this section also Duryodhan tells Jayadrath that his 11 Akshauhinee army would protect him from Arjun who had taken vow to kill him on account of killing of Abhimanyu.

Till then 13 days had passed, thousands and thousands of people from both armies were already killed, then how his 11 Akshauhinee army was still there?
[G-6-War/18]


Krishn-Baanaasur War :
After the Mahaabhaarat War, Krishn invaded Shonitpur, Baanaasur's capital, to get back His grandson Aniruddh. At that time He had 12 Akshauhinee army with Him.
[Bhaagvat, 10/u14]

According to Mahaabhaarat, Kaurav had 11 Akshauhinee army which included Krishn's one Akshauhinee Naaraayanee army, and everybody knows that both Paandav and Kaurav's armies were destroyed completely, as Dhritraashtra was reported that only 10 people were alive after the war - 5 Paandav, Ashwatthaamaa, Kripaachaarya, Saatyaki, Kritvarmaa, and Yuyutsu. Then how come that after a few years Krishn again had 12 Akshauhinee army? It was more than Kaurav's 11 Akshauhinee army, and if it was there, why it didn't fight from Paandav's side?


Both Armies on 18th Day
Sanjaya Reports of both Armies to Dhritraashtra on the 18th Day (6-War, 36-battle-18)

Kaurav Army                                           Paandav Army
11,000 chariots,                                         6,000 chariots
10,700 elephants,                                       6,000 elephants
full 200,000 horses and                             10,000 horses
3 million foot soldiers                               1 million foot soldiers

On 18th day, Bheem killed
800 chariot-riders
800 horse riders
10,000 Foot soldiers

Both Armies After 18th Day
Then Dhritraashtra asked Yudhishthir - "Tell me, if you know it, how many were killed and how many escaped with life?"
Yudhishthir said - "1,660,020,000 men have been killed; and only 240,165 are still alive."

(G-7-Postwar/3)

But everybody knows that only 10 people remained alive --
5 Paandav,  Saatyaki and Yuyutsu
Kripaachaarya, Ashwatthaamaa, and Kritvarmaa

And how come that with 18 Akshauhinmee army there were only 3,936,600 heads and 1,660,020,000 were killed? And 240,165 were alive?

 

 

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Created by Sushma Gupta On 05/27/04
Contact: sushmajee@yahoo.com
Modified on 01/31/13