Chapter 113

“Sanjaya said, ‘Shooting clouds of arrows, all those warriors,accomplished in smiting, carefully, O monarch, encountered Yuyudhana.Drona struck him with seven and seventy shafts of great keenness. AndDurmarshana struck him with a dozen, Duhsasana, struck him with tenshafts. And Vikarna also pierced him on the left side as also on thecentre of the chest with thirty keen shafts equipped with Kanka feathers.And Durmukha struck him with ten shafts, and Duhsasana with eight,Chitrasena, O sire, pierced him with a couple of shafts. And Duryodhana,O king, and many other heroes, afflicted that mighty car-warrior withdense showers of shafts in that battle. Though checked on all sides bythose mighty car-warriors, viz., thy sons, Yuyudhana of Vrishni’s racepierced each of them separately with his straight shafts. Indeed, hepierced the son of Bharadwaja with three shafts, and Duhsasana with nine,and Vikarna with five and twenty, and Chitrasena with seven, andDurmarshana with a dozen, and Vivinsati with eight, and Satyavrata withnine, and Vijaya with ten shafts. And having pierced Rukmangada also thatmighty car-warrior, viz., Satyaki, shaking his bow, speedily proceededagainst thy son (Duryodhana). And Yuyudhana, in the sight of all men,deeply pierced with his arrows the king, that greatest of car-warriors inthe whole world. Then commenced a battle between those two. Both shootingkeen arrows and both aiming countless shafts, each of those mightycar-warriors made the other invisible in that battle. And Satyaki,pierced by the Kuru king, looked exceedingly resplendent as bloodcopiously ran adown his body, like a sandal tree shedding its juicysecretions. Thy son also pierced by Satwata with clouds of shafts, lookedbeautiful like a stake set up (at a sacrifice) decked all over with gold.Then Madhava, O king, in that battle, cut off with razor-faced arrow,smiling the while, the bow of the Kuru king. And then he pierced thebowless king with countless arrows. Pierced with arrows by that foe ofgreat activity, the king could not brook this indication of the enemy’ssuccess. Duryodhana then, taking up another formidable bow, the back ofwhose staff was decked with gold, speedily pierced Satyaki with a hundredarrows. Deeply pierced by thy mighty son armed with the bow, Yuyudhanabecame inflamed with wrath and began to afflict thy son. Beholding theking thus afflicted, thy sons, those mighty car-warriors, shroudedSatyaki with dense showers of arrows, shot with great force. Whilst beingthus shrouded by those mighty car-warriors, viz., thy multitude of sons,Yuyudhana pierced each of them with five arrows, and once more withseven. And soon he pierced Duryodhana with eight swift arrows and,smiling the while, cut off the latter’s bow that frightened all foes. Andwith a few arrows he also felled the king’s standard adorned with ajewelled elephant. And slaying then the four steeds of Duryodhana withfour arrows, the illustrious Satyaki felled the king’s charioteer with arazor-faced shaft. Meanwhile, Yuyudhana, filled with joy, pierced themighty car-warrior, viz., the Kuru king, with many arrows capable ofpenetrating into the very vitals. Then, O king, thy son Duryodhana, whilebeing thus struck in that battle with those excellent arrows of Sini’sgrandson, suddenly fled away. And the king, quickly mounted the car ofChitrasena, armed with the bow. Beholding the king thus attacked bySatyaki in battle, and reduced to the position of Soma in the firmamentwhile seized by Rahu, cries of woe arose from every section of the Kuruhost. Hearing that uproar, the mighty car-warrior Kritavarman quicklyproceeded to that spot where the puissant Madhava. was battling. AndKritavarman proceeded, shaking his bow, and urging his steeds, and urginghis charioteer with the words, ‘Go with speed, Go with speed!’ BeholdingKritavarman rushing towards him like the Destroyer himself with wide-openmouth, Yuyudhana, O king, addressed his driver, saying, ‘ThatKritavarman, armed with arrows, is rushing in his car towards me withspeed. Then, with his steeds urged to their greatest speed, and on hiscar duly equipped, Satyaki came upon the ruler of the Bhojas, theforemost of all bowmen. Then those two tigers among men, both inflamedwith rage, and both resembling fire encountered each other like twotigers endued with great activity. Kritavarman pierced Sini’s grandsonwith six and twenty whetted arrows of keen points, and the latter’sdriver with five arrows. And skilled in battle, the son of Hridikapierced, with four mighty shafts, the four excellent and well-brokensteeds of Satyaki that were of the Sindhu breed. Owning a standard deckedwith gold, and adorned with golden mail, Kritavarman, shaking hisformidable bow, whose staff was decked with gold, thus checked, Yuyudhanawith shafts equipped with golden wings. Then the grandson of Sini,desirous of seeing Dhananjaya, sped with great activity eight arrows atKritavarman. That scorcher of foes, then, deeply pierced by that mightyfoe,–that invincible warrior,–began to tremble like a hill during anearthquake. After this, Satyaki, of prowess incapable of being baffled,speedily pierced Kritavarman’s four steeds with three and sixty keenarrows, and his driver also with seven. Indeed, Satyaki, then aiminganother arrow of golden wings, that emitted blazing flames and resembledan angry snake, or the rod of the Destroyer himself, pierced Kritavarman.That terrible arrow, penetrating through his antagonist’s effulgentarmour decked with gold, entered the earth, dyed with blood. Afflictedwith the shafts of Satwata, and bathed in blood in that battle,Kritavarman throwing aside his bow with arrow, fell upon his car. Thatlion-toothed hero of immeasurable prowess, that bull among men, afflictedby Satyaki with his arrows, fell on his knees upon the terrace of hiscar. Having thus resisted Kritavarman who resembled the thousand-armedArjuna of old, or Ocean himself of immeasurable might, Satyaki proceededonwards. Passing through Kritavarman’s division bristling with swords anddarts and bows, and abounding in elephants and steeds and cars, and outof the ground rendered awful in consequence of the blood shed by foremostKshatriyas numbering by hundreds, that bull among the Sinis proceededonwards in the very sight of all the troops, like the slayer of Vritrathrough the Asura array. Meanwhile, the mighty son of Hridika, taking upanother huge bow, stayed where he was, resisting Pandavas in battle.'”