Supratika

Supratika - the elephant - is one of the eight Diggajas, each representing the eight quarters, mentioned in Puranas. Supratika was also the elephant used by Bhagadatta in the Kurukshetra war.

Supratika - a Diggaja

The eight Diggajas - male elephants that bear the world together are: Airavata, Pundarika, Vamana, Kumuda, Anjana, Pushpadanta, Sarvabhauma, and Supratika. Supratika represents is located in the north-east direction, the quarter of Soma. Anjanavati is the wife of Supratika.

Bhagadatta’s elephant

On the twelfth day of the Kurukshetra war, Duryodhana sent a large elephant division against Bhima. Bhima killed all the elephants with his mace. This created a havoc among the Kaurava army and they fled for their life in all directions. Angered by this, the king of Pragjyotisha, Bhagadatta, seated on Supratika, charged against Bhima. The elephant rushed forward and crushed Bhima's chariot into pieces, killing his charioteer and horses. But Bhima escaped destruction by jumping off his chariot. He got underneath the elephant and severed its vital points causing exceeding pain. Enraged at this, the elephant got mad and tried to throw him off. In an instant, it caught Bhima with its trunk and was about to crush him under the knees. But Bhima managed to escape from its hold and again got underneath the elephant and in between its limbs and started attacking it. Bhima was hopeful that another elephant from the Pandava side would come for his rescue in the meanwhile. But when he got underneath the elephant for the second time, hiding in between its legs, the Kaurava army thought he had been slain by the beast.

Yudhishthira, Bhima's elder brother, was struck in grief and urged his forces to destroy Bhagadatta and Supratika. The king of Dasharna charged against them. In the great battle that took place between Supratika and Dasharna's elephant, Supratika crushed Dasharna's elephant to death. Utilising his time, Bhima emerged from beneath Supratika and fled. The Pandava army was relieved when they saw Bhima alive.

On the 12th day of war

When those troops, thus broken, fled away in all directions, the ruler of the Pragjyotishas then advanced against Bhima, upon his elephant. With its two (fore) legs and trunk contracted, filled with rage, and with eyes rolling, that elephant seemed to consume the son of Pandu (like a blazing fire). It pounded Vrikodara's car with the steed yoked thereto into dust. Then Bhima ran forward and got under the elephant's body, for he knew the science called Anjalikabedha. Indeed, the son of Pandu fled not. Getting under the elephant's body, he began to strike it frequently with his bare arms. He smote that invincible elephant which was bent upon slaying him. Thereupon, the latter began to quickly turn round like a potter's wheel. Endued with the might of ten thousand elephants, the blessed Vrikodara, having struck that elephant thus, came out from under Supratika's body and stood facing the latter. Supratika then, seizing Bhima by its trunk, threw him down by means of its knees. Indeed, having seized him by the neck, that elephant wished to slay him. Twisting the elephant's trunk, Bhima freed himself from its twine, and once more got under the body of that huge creature. He waited there, expecting the arrival of a hostile elephant of his own army. Coming out from under the beast's body, Bhima then ran away with great speed. Then a loud noise was heard, made by all the troops, to the effect, “Alas, Bhima has been slain by the elephant!” The Pandava host, frightened by that elephant, suddenly fled away to where Vrikodara was waiting.

Meanwhile, king Yudhishthira, thinking Vrikodara to have been slain, surrounded Bhagadatta on all sides, aided by the Panchalas. Having surrounded him with numerous cars, king Yudhishthira that foremost of car-warriors, covered Bhagadatta with keen shafts by hundreds and thousands. Then Bhagadatta, that king of the mountainous regions, frustrating with his iron hook that shower of arrows, began to consume both the Pandavas and the Panchalas by means of that elephant of his. Indeed, the feat that was then beheld, achieved by old Bhagadatta with his elephant, was highly wonderful.

Then the ruler of the Dasharnas rushed against the king of the Pragjyotisha, on a fleet elephant with temporal sweat trickling down, for attacking Supratika in the flank. The battle then that took place between those two elephants of awful size, resembled that between two winged mountains overgrown with forests in days of old. Then the elephant of Bhagadatta, wheeling round and attacking the elephant of the king of the Dasharnas, ripped open the latter's flank and slew it outright. Then Bhagadatta himself with seven lances bright as the rays of the sun, slew his (human) antagonist seated on the elephant just when the latter was about to fall down from his seat.

Piercing king Bhagadatta then (with many arrows), Yudhishthira surrounded him on all sides with a large number of cars. Staying on his elephant amid car-warriors encompassing him all around, he looked resplendent like a blazing fire on a mountain-top in the midst of a dense forest. He stayed fearlessly in the midst of those serried cars ridden by fierce bowmen, all of whom showered upon him their arrows. Then the king of the Pragjyotisha, pressing (with his toe) his huge elephant, urged him towards the car of Yuyudhana.

That prodigious beast, then seizing the car of Shinis grandson, hurled it to a distance with great force. Yuyudhana, however, escaped by timely flight. His charioteer also, abandoning the large steeds of the Sindhu breed, yoked unto that car, quickly followed Satyaki and stood where the latter stopped. Meanwhile the elephant, quickly coming out of the circle of cars, began to throw down all the kings (that attempted to bar his course). These bulls among men, frightened out of their wits by that single elephant coursing swiftly, regarded it in that battle as multiplied into many. Indeed, Bhagadatta, mounted on that elephant of his, began to smite down the Pandavas, like the chief of the celestials mounted on Airavata smiting down the Danavas (in days of old). As the Panchalas fled in all directions, loud and awful was the noise that arose amongst them, made by their elephants and steeds.

While the Pandava troops were thus destroyed by Bhagadatta, Bhima, excited with rage, once more rushed against the ruler of the Pragjyotisha. The latter's elephant then frightened the steeds of advancing Bhima by drenching them with water spouted forth from its trunk, and thereupon those animals bore Bhima away from the field.

Then Kriti's son, Ruchiparvan, mounted on his car, quickly rushed against Bhagadatta, scattering showers of arrows and advancing like the Destroyer himself. Then Bhagadatta, that ruler of the hilly regions, possessed of beautiful limbs, despatched Ruchiparvan with a straight shaft to Yama's abode.

Upon the fall of the heroic Ruchiparvan, Subhadra's son and the sons of Draupadi, and Chekitana, and Dhrishtaketu, and Yuyutsu began to afflict the elephant. Desiring to slay that elephant, all those warriors, uttering loud shouts, began to pour their arrows on the animals, like the clouds drenching the earth with their watery down-pour. Urged then by its skilful rider with heel, hook, and toe the animal advanced quickly with trunk stretched, and eyes and cars fixed. Treading down Yuyutsu's steeds, the animal then slew the charioteer. Thereupon, Yuyutsu, abandoning his car, fled away quickly.

Then the Pandava warriors, desirous of slaying that prince of elephants, uttered loud shouts and covered it quickly with showers of arrows. At this time, Dhritarashtra’s son, excited with rage, rushed against the car of Subhadra's son. Meanwhile, king Bhagadatta on his elephant, shooting shafts on the foe, looked resplendent like the Sun himself scattering his rays on the earth. Arjuna's son then pierced him with a dozen shafts, and Yuyutsu with ten, and each of the sons of Draupadi pierced him with three shafts and Dhrishtaketu also pierced him with three. That elephant then, pierced with these shafts, shot with great care, looked resplendent like a mighty mass of clouds penetrated with the rays of the sun. Afflicted with those shafts of the foe, that elephant then, urged by its riders with skill and vigour, began to throw hostile warriors on both his flanks. Like a cowherd belabouring his cattle in the forest with a goad, Bhagadatta repeatedly smote the Pandava host. Like the cawing of quickly retreating crows when assailed by hawks, a loud and confused noise was heard among the Pandava troops who fled away with great speed. That prince of elephants, struck by its rider with hook, resembled, a winged mountain of old. It filled the hearts of the enemy with fear, like to what merchants experience at sight of the surging sea. Then elephants and car-warriors and steeds and kings, flying away in fear, made, as they fled, a loud and awful din that filled the earth and sky and heaven and the cardinal and subsidiary directions in that battle. Mounted on that foremost of elephants, king Bhagadatta penetrated the hostile army like the Asura Virochana in days of old into the celestial host in battle well-protected by the gods. A violent wind began to blow; a dusty cloud covered the sky and the troops; and people regarded that single elephant as multiplied into many, coursing all over the field.

While Partha and Krishna were thus engaged with the ruler of the Pragjyotishas, all creatures regarded them to be very near the jaws of Death. Indeed, from the neck of his elephant, Bhagadatta scattered showers of shafts on the two Krishnas, staying upon their car. He pierced Devaki's son with many arrows made wholly of black iron, equipped with wings of gold, whetted on stone, and shot from his bow, drawn to the fullest stretch. Those shafts whose touch resembled that of fire, equipped with beautiful feathers, and shot by Bhagadatta, passing through Devaki's son, entered the earth. Partha then cut off Bhagadatta's bow and slaying next the warrior that protected his elephant from the flank, began to fight with him as if in sport. Then Bhagadatta hurled at him fourteen lances of sharp points, that were bright as the rays of the sun. Arjuna, however, cut each of those lances into three fragments. Then Indra's son cut open the armour in which that elephant was eased, by means of a thick shower of arrows. The armour thus cut off, fell down on the earth. Exceedingly afflicted with arrows shot by Arjuna, that elephant, deprived of its coat of mail, looked like a prince of mountains destitute of its cloudy robes and with streaks of water running down its breast.

Partha suddenly overwhelmed Bhagadatta with clouds of whetted arrows. Then, the mighty-armed and high-souled Arjuna fearlessly struck a long arrow between the frontal globes of his enemy's elephant. That arrow, splitting the elephant like the thunder splitting a mountain, penetrated into its body to the very wings, like a snake penetrating into an ant-hill. Though urged repeatedly then by Bhagadatta, the elephant refused to obey like a poor man's wife her lord. With limbs paralysed, it fell down, striking the earth with its tusks. Uttering a cry of distress, that huge elephant gave up the ghost.

Supratika - a Muni born as an elephant

In the Mahabharata, there also is a story of two brothers - Vibhavasu and Supratika - who were ascetics. They fought over the division of their property and the elder brother Vibhavasu cursed his younger brother to be born as an elephant. Supratika also cursed his brother to be born as a tortoise. Thus cursed by each other, the brothers were born as an elephant and an tortoise, who were eaten by Garuda on his way to steal the Amrita.