SRIMAD BHAGAVATAM: CANTO 4

Maitreya said: 'Dhruva ['the immovable one'] married Bhrami ['the turning around'], daughter of the Prajâpatî S'is'umâra ['the dolphin', 'the galaxy'] and named her sons Kalpa ['epoch'] and Vatsara ['tropical year'].

The great sage Maitreya said: My dear Vidura, thereafter Dhruva Mahârâja married the daughter of Prajâpati Sisumara, whose name was Bhrami, and two sons named Kalpa and Vatsara were born of her. (Vedabase)

Text 2

With another wife called Ilâ ['the comfort'], a daughter of Vâyu [the demigod of the air], did the powerful one beget a son called Utkala ['he who carries the load'] and a jewel of a girl.

The greatly powerful Dhruva Mahârâja had another wife, named Ila, who was the daughter of the demigod Vayu. By her he begot a son named Utkala and a very beautiful daughter. (Vedabase)

Text 3

But Uttama ['the one of excel', Dhruva's brother], who did not marry, was during a hunt in the Himalaya range killed by a very powerful Yaksha [an evil spirit]; his mother [Suruci] followed thereafter.

Dhruva Mahârâja's younger brother Uttama, who was still unmarried, once went on a hunting excursion and was killed by a powerful Yaksa in the Himalaya Mountains. Along with him, his mother, Suruci, also followed the path of her son [she died]. (Vedabase)

Text 4

Dhruva hearing about the death of his brother swore, filled with lamentation, angered revenge and got on his chariot of victory to leave for the city of the Yakshas.

When Dhruva Mahârâja heard of the killing of his brother Uttama by the Yakshas in the Himalaya Mountains, being overwhelmed with lamentation and anger, he got on his chariot and went out for victory over the city of the Yakshas, Alakapuri. (Vedabase)

Text 5

Heading in the northern direction the king saw in a valley of the Himalayas inhabited by followers of Lord S'iva, a city full of ghostly people.

Dhruva Mahârâja went to the northern direction of the Himalayan range. In a valley he saw a city full of ghostly persons who were followers of Lord S'iva. (Vedabase)

Text 6

There the mighty-armed one blew his conchshell resounding , o ruler, fearfully in the sky in all directions so that the wives of the Yakshas became most afraid.

Maitreya continued: My dear Vidura, as soon as Dhruva Mahârâja reached Alakapuri, he immediately blew his conchshell, and the sound reverberated throughout the entire sky and in every direction. The wives of the Yakshas became very much frightened. From their eyes it was apparent that they were full of anxiety. (Vedabase)

Text 7

Thereupon appeared the very powerful soldiers of Kuvera, who couldn't tolerate the sound of the conchshell, and attacked him with all kinds of weapons.

O hero Vidura, the greatly powerful heroes of the Yakshas, unable to tolerate the resounding vibration of the conchshell of Dhruva Mahârâja, came forth from their city with weapons and attacked Dhruva. (Vedabase)

Text 8

He, the hero and powerful bowman, with all of them falling over him, could fight many adversaries simultaneously and killed them one after another, shooting his arrows three at a time.

Dhruva Mahârâja, who was a great charioteer and certainly a great bowman also, immediately began to kill them by simultaneously discharging arrows three at a time. (Vedabase)

Text 9

By those arrows aimed at their heads, lauded they that action of him, being convinced of the fact that they without fail for sure all would be defeated.

When the heroes of the Yakshas saw that all their heads were being thus threatened by Dhruva Mahârâja, they could very easily understand their awkward position, and they concluded that they would certainly be defeated. But, as heroes, they lauded the action of Dhruva. (Vedabase)

Text 10

Unable to tolerate that they would be trampled like serpents under his feet, tried they to retaliate, striking back with twice as much arrows at the same time.

Just like serpents, who cannot tolerate being trampled upon by anyone's feet, the Yakshas, being intolerant of the wonderful prowess of Dhruva Mahârâja, threw twice as many arrows--six from each of their soldiers--and thus they very valiantly exhibited their prowess. (Vedabase)

Text 11-12:

Eager to counter the actions of him and his charioteer, they, a 130.000 men strong, very angry showered thereupon all kinds of feathered arrows, bludgeons, swords, tridents, pointed lances, spears and fire weapons.

The Yaksa soldiers were 130,000 strong, all greatly angry and all desiring to defeat the wonderful activities of Dhruva Mahârâja. With full strength they showered upon Mahârâja Dhruva, along with his chariot and charioteer, various types of feathered arrows, parighas [iron bludgeons], nistrims'as [swords], prâras'ûlas [tridents], paras'vadhas [lances], s'aktis [pikes], rishtis [spears] and bhus'undi weapons. (Vedabase)

Text 13

Behind that constant shower of weapons disappeared the master of war, like a mountain covered by an outpour of rain, completely out of sight.

Dhruva Mahârâja was completely covered by an incessant shower of weapons, just as a mountain is covered by incessant rainfall. (Vedabase)

Text 14

In the sky resounded a tumult of disappointment from the perfected ones witnessing the fight who assumed that this grandson of Manu, setting like the sun in the ocean of Yakshas, had been killed.

All the Siddhas from the higher planetary systems were observing the fight from the sky, and when they saw that Dhruva Mahârâja had been covered by the incessant arrows of the enemy, they roared tumultuously, "The grandson of Manu, Dhruva, is now lost!" They cried that Dhruva Mahârâja was just like the sun and that now he had set within the ocean of the Yakshas. (Vedabase)

Text 15

The Yakshas exclaimed that the victory was theirs, but then from the fighting appeared his chariot like the sun does from the mist.

The Yakshas, being temporarily victorious, exclaimed that they had conquered Dhruva Mahârâja. But in the meantime Dhruva's chariot suddenly appeared, just as the sun suddenly appears from within foggy mist. (Vedabase)

Text 16

His twanging divine bow created the lamentation of his enemies, scattering the different weapons with his arrows just like the wind scatters an array of clouds.

Dhruva Mahârâja's bow and arrows twanged and hissed, causing lamentation in the hearts of his enemies. He began to shoot incessant arrows, shattering all their different weapons, just as the blasting wind scatters the assembled clouds in the sky. (Vedabase)

Text 17

The sharp arrows released from his bow had pierced the shields and entered the bodies of the demons, just like thunderbolts do over mountains.

The sharp arrows released from the bow of Dhruva Mahârâja pierced the shields and bodies of the enemy, like the thunderbolts released by the King of heaven, which dismantle the bodies of the mountains. (Vedabase)

Text 18-19:

The battlefield, as it bewilders the mind of heroes, began to glimmer from the by the arrows severed heads with garlands and turbans, beautiful with earrings and helmets, and the cut off thighs and arms that with beautiful bracelets and armlets were like golden palm trees.

The great sage Maitreya continued: My dear Vidura, the heads of those who were cut to pieces by the arrows of Dhruva Mahârâja were decorated very beautifully with earrings and turbans. The legs of their bodies were as beautiful as golden palm trees, their arms were decorated with golden bracelets and armlets, and on their heads there were very valuable helmets bedecked with gold. All these ornaments lying on that battlefield were very attractive and could bewilder the mind of a hero. (Vedabase)