a hundred fragments when blown by Arjuna, the
Kurus with all their warriors began to applaud it highly. And having
reached the very heavens, that sound coming back was heard even like the
crash of the thunderbolt hurled by Maghavat on the mountain breast.
Thereupon that heroic and intrepid and mighty car-warrior, Saradwat's son
Kripa, endued with strength and prowess, waxing wroth at Arjuna, and
unable to bear that sound and eager for fight, took up his own
sea-begotten conch and blew it vehemently. And filling the three worlds
with that sound, that foremost of car-warriors took up a large bow and
twanged the bow-string powerfully. And those mighty car-warriors, equal
unto two suns, standing opposed to each other, shone like two masses of
autumnal clouds. Then Saradwat's son quickly pierced Partha, that slayer
of hostile heroes, with ten swift and whetted arrows capable of entering
into the very vitals. And Pritha's son also, on his part, drawing that
foremost of weapons, the Gandiva, celebrated over the world, shot
innumerable iron-arrows, all capable of penetrating into the very core of
the body. Thereupon Kripa, by means of whetted shafts, cut into hundreds
and thousands of fragments, those blood-drinking arrows of Partha before
they could come up. Then that mighty car-warrior, Partha also, in wrath
displaying various manoeuvres, covered all sides with a shower of arrows.
And covering the entire welkin with his shafts, that mighty warrior of
immeasurable soul, the son of Pritha, enveloped Kripa with hundred of
shafts. And sorely afflicted by those whetted arrows resembling flames of
fire, Kripa waxed wroth and quickly afflicting the high-souled Partha of
immeasurable prowess with ten thousand shafts, set up on the field of
battle a loud roar. Then the heroic Arjuna quickly pierced the four
steeds of his adversary with four fatal arrows shot from the Gandiva,
sharp and straight, and furnished with golden wings. And pierced by means
of those whetted arrows resembling flames of fire those steeds suddenly
reared themselves, and in consequence Kripa reeled off his place. And
seeing Gautama thrown off his place, the slayer of hostile heroes, the
descendant of the Kuru race, out of regard for his opponent's dignity,
ceased to discharge his shafts at him. Then regaining his proper place,
Gautama quickly pierced Savyasachin with ten arrows furnished with
feathers of the Kanka bird. Then with a crescent-shaped arrow of keen
edg