y person can never be fruitless. Let the fruition of your
desires proceed from this.' Thus addressed by him, the dwellers of heaven
replied, 'We have been deprived of our energy by Vritra. Be thou the
refuge of the dwellers of heaven. Behold, O lord, our bodies beaten and
bruised by his strokes. We seek thy protection. Be thou our refuge, O
Maheswara!' The god of gods, called Sarva, then said, 'Ye gods, it is
well-known to you how this action, fraught with great strength, terrible
and incapable of being resisted by persons destitute of ascetic merit,
originated, springing from the energy of Tvashtri (the divine artificer).
As regards myself, it is certainly my duty to render aid to the dwellers
of heaven. O Sakra, take this effulgent armour from off my body. And, O
chief of the celestials, put it on, mentally uttering these mantras.'

"'Drona continued, "Having said these words, the boon-giving (Siva) gave
that armour with the mantras (to be uttered by the wearer). Protected by
that armour, Sakra proceeded against the host of Vritra in battle. And
although diverse kinds of weapons were hurled at him in that dreadful
battle, yet the joints of that armour could not be cut open. Then the
lord of the celestials slew Vritra, and afterwards gave unto Angiras that
armour, whose joints were made up of mantras. And Angiras imparted those
mantras to his son Vrihaspati, having a knowledge of all mantras. And
Vrihaspati imparted that knowledge to Agnivesya of great intelligence.
And Agnivesya imparted it to me, and it is with the aid of those mantras,
O best of kings, that I, for protecting thy body, tie this armour on thy
body."'

"Sanjaya continued, 'Having said these words Drona, that bull among
preceptors, once more addressed thy son, of great splendour, saying, "O
king, I put this armour on thy body, joining its pieces with the aid of
Brahma strings. In days of yore, Brahma himself had thus put it on Vishnu
in battle. Even as Brahma himself had put this celestial armour on Sakra
in the battle caused by the abduction of Taraka, I put it on thee."
Having thus, with mantras, donned that armour duly on Duryodhana, the
regenerate Drona sent the king to battle. And the mighty-armed king,
cased in armour by the high-souled preceptor, and accomplished in
smiting, and a thousand infuriated elephants endued with great prowess,
and a hundred thousand horses, and many other mighty car-warriors,
proceeded towards the car of Arjuna. And the