with gold and covered with
tiger-skins, looked beautiful as they moved on the field of battle. And
the shouts of warriors engaged in battle from desire of vanquishing one
another, became as loud as leonine roars. And that encounter which we
beheld between the heroic Srinjayas and the Kurus, was fierce in the
extreme and highly wonderful. And in consequence of the arrows shot all
around, we could not, O king, distinguish, O chastiser of foes, the
firmament, the sun and the cardinal and the subsidiary points of the
compass. And the splendour, like that of the blue lotus, of darts with
polished points, of bearded lances hurled (at the foe), of well-tempered
sabres and scimitars, of variegated coats of mail and of the ornaments
(on the persons of the warriors), illumined the welkin and the cardinal
and the subsidiary points with its effulgence. And the field of battle in
many places, O king, shone in consequence of the bodies of monarchs whose
effulgence resembled that of the moon and the sun. And brave
car-warriors, tigers among men shone in that battle, O king, like the
planets in the firmament. And Bhishma, that foremost of car-warriors,
excited with rage, checked the mighty Bhimasena in the very sight of the
troops. And the impetuous shafts shot by Bhishma, furnished with golden
wings, and whetted on stone, and rubbed with oil pierced Bhima in that
battle. Then Bhimasena endued with great strength hurled at him, O
Bharata, a dart of fierce impetuosity that resembled a wrathful snake.
But Bhishma in that combat cut off with straight shafts that dart with
staff made of gold and difficult of being borne, as it coursed
impetuously towards him. And with another broad-headed shaft, sharp and
well-tempered, he cut off Bhimasena's bow, O Bharata, into two parts.
Then, O king, in that battle, Satyaki, coming quickly towards Bhishma,
pierced thy sire with innumerable keen-edged and sharp-pointed shafts of
fierce impetuosity shot from his bowstring drawn to the ear. Then
Bhishma, aiming an exceedingly fierce shaft, felled the charioteer of the
Vrishni hero from his box in the car. And when the charioteer of
Satyaki's car was thus slain, his steeds, O king, bolted away. Endued
with the speed of the tempest or the mind, they ran wild over the field.
Then cries were uttered by the whole army which became a loud uproar. And
exclamation of oh and alas arose from the high-souled warriors of the
Pandava army. And those cries-said--'Run, s