Charioteer from Quora

 

A warrior par excellence should guard his charioteer also from getting injured or killed. Here the charioteer in question was Narayan himself.

Keeping aside the divinity factor,Krishna was the best charioteer anyone ever had. His agility,skills and intelligence could never let the opponent warrior overpower him at all. Drona vouched this fact on 14 th day to Duryodhan.

The one who was driven by Krishna was Arjun,the best of the lot,who was ever alert,fast and smart..as per even his arch rival Karna..quoting his words here.

Having said that every charioteer would get targeted by the rivals and Krishna was no exception.

There was no rule that warriors should not strike charioteers as some people claimed in their posts.

It was quite common to kill charioteers in war..Karna,Aswathama,Duryodhana and the Like got their charioteers killed in Kurukshetra battle.

Krishna was struck by the above mentioned warriors

Some of the occasions where they targeted Krishna..

Karna shot arrows at Krishna in his final battle with Arjuna on 17 th day

At that time, Karna, glancing obliquely at Dhananjaya, pierced that foremost of persons, viz., Krishna, with ten shafts whetted on stone and equipped with peacock feathers. Then Dhananjaya, piercing Karna with a dozen well-shot and keen arrows equipped with heads like the boar's ear, sped a cloth-yard shaft endued with the energy of a snake of virulent poison and shot from his bow-string stretched to his ear. That foremost of shafts, well shot by Arjuna, penetrated through Karna's armour, and as if suspending his life breaths, drank his blood and entered the earth, its wings also having been drenched with gore. Endued with great activity, Vrisha, enraged at the stroke of the shaft, like a snake beaten with stick, shot many mighty shafts, like snakes of virulent poison vomiting venom. And he pierced Janardana with a dozen shafts and Arjuna with nine and ninety

Bhishma also shot arrows and injured Krishna.

Then, O sire, Bhishma with great strength pierced both Vasudeva and Dhananjaya with keen shafts all over their bodies. And mangled by those shafts of Bhishma, those two tigers among men looked like two roaring bulls with the scratches of horns on their bodies. And once again, excited with rage, Bhishma covered the two Krishnas on all sides with shafts in hundreds and thousands. And with those keen shafts of his, the enraged Bhishma caused him of Vrishni's race to shiver

Drona also attacked Krishna …

Like a mass of clouds pouring torrents of rain, the Drona cloud rained shower on the Partha-mountain. Possessed of great energy, Arjuna received that arrowy downpour, O king, by invoking the Brahma weapon, and cut off all those arrows by arrows of his own. Drona then afflicted Partha of white steeds with five and twenty arrows. And he struck Vasudeva with seventy arrows on the chest and arms. Partha then, of great intelligence, smiling the while resisted the preceptor in that battle who was incessantly shooting sharp arrows.

Both Krishna and Arjuna deserve applause for safeguarding themselves against the onslaught of Maharathis Of Kuru army.

Krishna was the target too.

On 14 th day Srutayudha attacked Krishna with the mace given to him by Varuna with a warning that it should not be hurled on unarmed persons.

Srutayudha disobeyed that injunction. With that hero-slaying mace he attacked Janardana, The valiant Krishna received that mace on one of his well-formed and stout shoulders. It failed to shake Sauri, like the wind failing to shake the Vindhya mountain. That mace, returning unto Srutayudha himself, struck that brave and wrathful king staying on his car, like an ill-accomplished act of sorcery injuring the performer himself, and slaying that hero fell down on the earth.

Sanjaya admitted to Dhritarashtra that they always asked Karna to use Vasavi Sakti on Arjuna or Krishna

Sanjaya said, 'Returning from battle every day, O monarch, all of us, O foremost one of Kuru's race, used to debate in the night and say unto Karna. Tomorrow morning, O Karna, this dart should be hurled at either Kesava or Arjuna.' When, however, the morning came, O king, through destiny, both Karna and the other warriors forgot that resolution. I think destiny to be supreme, since Karna, with that dart in his hands, did not slay in battle either Partha or Devaki's son, Krishna.

Infact Arjuna used to get more enraged if the opponents struck Krishna..he would come down heavily on them in response

Duryodhana, O king, pierced each of the Krishnas in that battle with nine shafts resembling snakes of virulent poison. And once more the Kuru king showered his shafts on Krishna and the son of Pandu. Beholding these showers of arrows (shot by their king), thy warriors were filled with joy. They beat their musical instrument and uttered leonine roar. Then Partha, excited with rage in that battle, licked the corners of his mouth. Casting his eyes on his enemy's body, he saw not any part that was not well-covered with that impenetrable armour. With some sharp-pointed shafts then, well-shot from his bow, and each of which resembled Death himself, Arjuna slew his antagonist's steeds and then his two Parshni charioteers. And soon also the valiant Partha cut off Duryodhana's bow and the leathern fence of his fingers. Then, Savyasachin commenced to cut off his enemy's car in fragments. And with a couple of keen arrows he made Duryodhana carless. And then Arjuna pierced both the palms of the Kuru king. Beholding that great bowman afflicted with the shafts of Dhananjaya and fallen into great distress, many warriors rushed to the spot, desirous of rescuing him.