n beings, elephants and steeds, that destruction by the
foe of thy army in battle, Bhishma could not brook. That invincible and
great bowman, then, reckless of his very life poured upon the Pandavas,
the Panchalas, and the Srinjayas, showers of long shafts and calf-toothed
and crescent-shaped arrows. And with weapons, O monarch, he checked with
his shafts and with showers of other weapons, both offensive and
defensive, all sped with energy and wrath, the five foremost of mighty
car-warriors of the Pandavas, who had been struggling vigorously in
battle. Excited with wrath, he slaughtered in that battle countless
elephants and steeds. And that bull among men, O monarch, throwing down
many car-warriors from their cars,[473] and horsemen from their horses,
and crowds of foot soldiers, and elephant-warriors from the backs of the
beasts they rode, struck terror into the foe. And the Pandava warriors
all rushed together upon Bhishma singly, upon that mighty car-warrior
struggling in battle with great activity, like the Asuras rushing
together upon him with the thunderbolt in hand. Shooting on all sides his
whetted arrows whose touch resembled that of Indra's thunder, he seemed
to the enemy to have assembled a terrible visage. While fighting in that
battle, his large bow, resembling that of Sakra himself, seemed to be
always drawn to a circle. Beholding those feats in battle, thy sons, O
monarch, filled with exceeding wonder, worshipped the grandsire. The
Parthas cast their eyes, with cheerless hearts, upon thy heroic sire
struggling in battle, like the celestials upon (the Asura) Viprachitti
(in days of old).[474] They could not resist that warrior who then
resembled the Destroyer himself with wide-open mouth. In that battle on
the tenth day, Bhishma, with his sharp shafts, consumed the division of
Sikhandin like a conflagration consuming a forest. Him resembling an
angry snake of virulent poison, or the Destroyer urged by Death himself,
Sikhandin pierced with three shafts in the centre of the chest. Deeply
pierced therewith, Bhishma saw that it was Sikhandin (who was piercing
him). Excited with wrath, but unwilling (to fight with Sikhandin) Bhishma
laughingly said, 'Whether thou choosest to strike me or not, I will never
fight with thee. Thou art that Sikhandin still which the Creator had made
thee first'.[475] Hearing these words of his, Sikhandin, deprived of his
senses by wrath, and licking the corners of his mouth addressed