s animals, Drona's son quickly
getting up on Salya's car, showered his shafts on the heir of the
Panchala king. And beholding Dhrishtadyumna engaged in battle with
Drona's son, the son of Subhadra, O Bharata, quickly came up scattering
his sharp arrows. And, O bull of Bharata's race, he pierced Salya with
five and twenty, and Kripa with nine arrows, and Aswatthaman with eight.
Drona's son, however, quickly pierced Arjuna's son with many winged
arrows, and Salya pierced him with twelve, and Kripa with three sharp
arrows. Thy grandson Lakshmana then, beholding Subhadra's son engaged in
battle, rushed at him, excited with rage. And the battle commenced
between them. And the son of Duryodhana, excited with rage, pierced
Subhadra's son with sharp shafts in that combat. And that (feat), O king,
seemed highly wonderful. The light-handed Abhimanyu then, O bull of
Bharata's race, excited with rage, quickly pierced his cousin with five
hundred arrows. Lakshmana also, with his shafts, then cut off his
(cousin's) bow-staff at the middle, at which, O monarch, all the people
sent forth a loud shout. Then that slayer of hostile heroes, the son of
Subhadra, leaving aside that broken bow, took up another that was
beautiful and tougher.[367] And thereupon those two bulls among men, thus
engaged in combat and desirous of counteracting each other's feats,
pierced each other with sharp shafts. King Duryodhana then, O monarch,
beholding his mighty son thus afflicted by thy grandson (Abhimanyu),
proceeded to that spot. And when thy son turned (towards that spot), all
the kings surrounded the son of Arjuna on every side with crowds of cars.
Incapable of being defeated in battle and equal in prowess unto Krishna
himself, that hero, O king, thus surrounded by those heroes, was not
agitated in the least. Then Dhananjaya, beholding Subhadra's son engaged
in battle, rushed to that spot, excited with wrath, desirous of rescuing
his own son. Thereupon the kings (on the Kuru side), headed by Bhishma
and Drona and with cars, elephants and steeds, rushed impetuously at
Savyasachin. Then a thick earthly dust, suddenly raised by foot-soldiers
and steeds and cars and cavalry troopers, covering the sky appeared on
the view. And those thousands of elephants and hundreds of kings, when
they came within reach of Arjuna's arrows, were all unable to make any
further advance. And all creatures there set up loud wails, and the
points of the compass became dark. And