ona). Bhimasena, within a moment, deprived king Valhika of his
steeds, car and charioteer, in the very sight of all the troops. Fallen
into a situation of great danger and with fear in his heart, O king,
Valhika, that best of men, jumping down from that vehicle, quickly
mounted upon the car of Lakshmana in that battle. Satyaki, having checked
Kritavarman in that dreadful battle, fell upon the grandsire and rained
on him shafts of diverse kinds.[470] Piercing the grandsire with sixty
whetted shafts winged with feathers, he seemed to dance on his car,
shaking his large bow. The grandsire then hurled at him a mighty dart
made of iron, decked with gold, endued with great velocity, and beautiful
as a daughter of the Nagas. Beholding that irresistible dart, resembling
Death himself, coursing towards him, that illustrious warrior of the
Vrishni race baffled it by the celerity of movements. Thereupon that
fierce dart, unable to reach him of the Vrishni race, fell down on the
earth like a large meteor of blazing splendour. Then he of Vrishni's
race, O king, taking up with a firm hand his own dart of golden
effulgence, hurled it at the car of the grandsire. That dart, hurled in
that dreadful battle with the strength of Satyaki's arms, coursed
impetuously like the fatal night, coursing speedily towards a (doomed)
man. As it coursed, however, towards him with great force, Bhishma cut it
in twain, O Bharata, with a couple of horse-shoe-headed arrows of keen
edge, and thereupon it fell down on the earth. Having cut that dart, that
grinder of foes, viz., Ganga's son, excited with wrath and smiling the
while struck Satyaki in the chest with nine arrows. Then the Pandava
warriors, O elder brother of Pandu, with their cars, elephants, and
steeds,[471] surrounded Bhishma in that battle, for the sake of rescuing
him of Madhu's race. Then commenced again a fierce battle, making the
hair to stand on end, between the Pandavas and the Kurus both of whom
were desirous of victory."

SECTION CVI

Sanjaya said, "Beholding Bhishma excited with wrath in battle,
surrounded on all sides by the Pandavas like the Sun in the firmament, O
king, by the clouds at the end of summer, Duryodhana, O monarch,
addressed Dussasana, saying, 'This heroic and great bowman Bhishma, this
slayer of heroes, hath, O bull of Bharata's race, been surrounded on all
sides by the brave Pandavas. It is thy duty, O hero, to protect that
illustrious one. Protected by us in b