he air, possessing excellent mouths, adorned with housings of
gold, and looking like blazing mountains, from desire of crushing him to
pieces. And many Mekalas and Utkalas, and Kalingas, and Nishadas, and
Tamraliptakas, also advanced against Nakula, showering their shafts and
lances, desirous of slaying him. Then the Pandus, the Pancalas, and the
Somakas, filled with rage, rushed with speed for the rescue of Nakula
shrouded by those warriors like the Sun by the clouds. Then occurred a
fierce battle between those car-warriors and elephant-men, the former
showering their arrows and shafts the latter their lances by thousands.
The frontal globes and other limbs and the tusks and adornments of the
elephants, exceedingly pierced with shafts, were split and mangled. Then
Sahadeva, with four and sixty impetuous arrows, quickly slew eight of
those huge elephants which fell down with their riders. And Nakula also,
that delighter of his race, bending his excellent bow with great vigour,
with many straight shafts, slew many elephants. Then the Pancala prince,
and the grandson of Sini (Satyaki) and the sons of Draupadi and the
Prabhadrakas, and Shikhandi, drenched those huge elephants with showers
of shafts. Then in consequence of those rain-charged clouds constituted
by the Pandava warriors, those hills constituted by the elephants of the
foe, fell, struck down by torrents of rain formed by their numerous
shafts, like real mountains struck down with a thunder-storm. Those
leaders of the Pandava car-warriors then, thus slaying those elephants of
thine cast their eyes on the hostile army, which, as it fled away at that
time resembled a river whose continents had been washed away. Those
warriors of Pandu's son, having thus agitated that army of thine,
agitated it once more, and then rushed against Karna.'"

23

"Sanjaya said, 'While Sahadeva, filled with rage, was thus blasting thy
host, Duhshasana, O great king, proceeded against him, the brother
against the brother. Beholding those two engaged in dreadful combat, all
the great car-warriors uttered leonine shouts and waved their garments.
Then, O Bharata, the mighty son of Pandu was struck in the chest with
three arrows by thy angry son armed with bow. Then Sahadeva, O king,
having first pierced thy son with an arrow, pierced him again with
seventy arrows, and then his driver with three. Then Duhshasana, O
monarch, having cut off Sahadeva's bow in that great battle, pierced
Sah