rough earth and sky and all the points of
the compass, aided by his powers of illusion. Approaching then the
vicinity of Karna's car, Ghatotkacha, with his ear-rings waving,
fearlessly addressed the Suta's son, O monarch, and said, "Wait a little,
O Suta's son. Whither shalt thou go with life, avoiding me. I shall
today, on the field of battle, quell thy desire of fight." Having said
those words, that Rakshasas, of cruel prowess and eyes red like copper in
wrath, soared aloft into the sky and laughed aloud. Like a lion smiting a
prince of elephants, he began to strike Karna, pouring upon him a shower
of shafts, each of the measure the Aksha, of a car. Indeed, he poured
that arrowy shower upon Karna, that bull among car-warriors, like a cloud
pouring torrents of rain on a mountain, Karna destroyed that shower of
arrows from a distance. Beholding his illusion destroyed by Karna, O bull
of Bharata's race, Ghatotkacha once more created an illusion and made
himself invisible. He became a high mountain with many summits and
abounding with tall trees. And from that mountain incessantly issued
streams of lances and spears and swords and clubs. Seeing that mountain,
which resembled a mighty mass of antimony, with its streams of fierce
weapons, on the welkin, Karna was not at all agitated. Smiling the while,
Karna invoked into existence a celestial weapon. Cut off with that
weapon, that huge mountain was destroyed. Then the fierce Ghatotkacha,
becoming a blue cloud with a rainbow, in the welkin, began to pour upon
the Suta's son a shower of stones. Vikartana's son, Karna, who was called
also Vrisha, that foremost of all persons acquainted with weapons, aiming
a Vayavya weapon, destroyed that dart-cloud. Then covering all the points
of the compass with innumerable shafts, he destroyed a weapon that had
been aimed at him by Ghatotkacha. The mighty son of Bhimasena then
laughing loudly in that battle, once more invoked into existence an
all-powerful illusion against the mighty car-warrior Karna. Once more
beholding that foremost of warriors, viz., Ghatotkacha, fearlessly
approaching him, surrounded by a large number of Rakshasas that resembled
lions and tigers and infuriated elephants in prowess, some riding on
elephants, some on cars, and some on horseback, all armed with diverse
weapons and clad in diverse kinds of mail and diverse kinds of ornaments;
in fact, beholding Ghatotkacha surrounded by those fierce Rakshasas like
Vasava by