Chapter 133

“Sanjaya said, ‘Beholding thy sons lying (on the field), Karna of greatprowess filled with great wrath, became hopeless about his life. AndAdhiratha’s son regarded himself guilty, seeing thy sons slain before hiseyes in battle by Bhima. Then Bhimasena, recollecting the wrongs formerlyinflicted by Karna, became filled with rage and began with deliberatecare to pierce Karna with many keen arrows. Then Karna, piercing Bhimawith five arrows, smiling the while, once more pierced him with seventyarrows, equipped with golden wings and whetted on stone. Disregardingthese shafts shot by Karna, Vrikodara pierced the son of Radha in thatbattle with a hundred straight shafts. And once more, piercing him in hisvitals with five keen arrows, Bhima, O sire, cut off with a broad-headedarrow the bow of the Suta’s son. The cheerless Karna then, O Bharata,taking up another bow shrouded Bhimasena on all sides with his arrows.Then Bhima, slaying Karna’s steeds and charioteer, laughed a laugh,having thus counteracted Karna’s feats. Then that bull amongst men, viz.,Bhima, cut off with his arrows the bow of Karna. That bow, O king, ofloud twang, and the back of whose staff was decked with gold, fell down(from his hand). Then the mighty car-warrior Karna alighted from his carand taking up a mace in that battle wrathfully hurled it at Bhima.Beholding that mace, O king, impetuously coursing towards him, Vrikodararesisted it with his arrows in the sight of all thy troops. Then the sonof Pandu, gifted with great prowess and exerting himself with greatactivity, shot a thousand arrows at the Suta’s son, desirous of takingthe latter’s life. Karna, however, in the dreadful battle, resisting allthose shafts with his own, cut off Bhima’s armour also with his arrows.And then he pierced Bhima with five and twenty small shafts in the sightof all the troops. All this seemed exceedingly wonderful. Then, Omonarch, Bhima, excited with rage, sped nine straight shafts at theSuta’s son. Those keen shafts, piercing through Karna’s coat of mail andright arm, entered the earth like snakes into an ant-hill. Shrouded withshowers of shafts shot from Bhimasena’s bow, Karna once more turned hisback upon Bhimasena. Beholding the Suta’s son turn back and flying awayon foot, covered all over with the arrows of Kunti’s son, Duryodhanasaid, ‘Go ye quickly from all sides towards the car of Radha’s son.”Then, O king, thy sons, hearing these words of their brother that wereto them a surprise, rushed towards the son of Pandu for battle, shootingshowers of shafts. They were Chitra, and Upachitra, and Charuchitra, andSarasan, and Chitrayudha, and Chitravarman. All of them were well-versedin every mode of warfare. The mighty car-warrior, Bhimasena, however,felled each of those sons of thine thus rushing against him, with asingle arrow. Deprived of life, they fell down on the earth like treesuprooted by a tempest. Beholding those sons of thine, all mightycar-warriors, O king, thus slain, Karna, with tearful face, recollectedthe word of Vidura. Mounting upon another car that was duly equipped,Karna, endued with great prowess, quickly proceeded against the son ofPandu in battle. Piercing each other with whetted arrows, equipped withwings of gold, the two warriors looked resplendent like two masses ofclouds penetrated by the rays of the sun. Then the son of Pandu, excitedwith rage, cut off the armour of Suta’s son with six and thirtybroad-headed arrows of great sharpness and fierce energy. Themighty-armed Suta’s son also, O bull of Bharata’s race, pierced the sonof Kunti with fifty straight arrows. The two warriors then, smeared withred sandal-paste with many a wound caused by each other’s arrows, andcovered also with gore, looked resplendent like the risen sun and themoon. Their coats of mail cut off by means of arrows, and their bodiescovered with blood, Karna and Bhima then looked like a couple of snakesjust freed from their sloughs. Indeed, those two tigers among men mangledeach other with their arrows, like two tigers mangling each other withtheir teeth. The two heroes incessantly showered their shafts, like twomasses of clouds pouring torrents of rain. Those two chastisers of foestore each other’s body with their arrows, like two elephants tearing eachother with the points of their tusks. Roaring at each other and showeringtheir arrows upon each other, causing their cars to trace beautifulcircles. They resembled a couple of mighty bulls roaring at each other inthe presence of a cow in her season. Indeed, those two lions among menthen looked like a couple of mighty lions endued with eyes red in wrath,these two warriors endued with great energy fought on like Sakra andVirochana’s son (Prahlada). Then, O king, the mighty-armed Bhima, as hestretched his bow with his two hands, looked like a cloud charged withlightning. Then mighty Bhima-cloud, having the twang of the bow for itsthunder and incessant showers of arrows for its rainy downpour, covered,O king, the Karna-mountain. And once more Pandu’s son, Bhima of terribleprowess, O Bharata, shrouded Karna with a thousand shafts shot from hisbow. And as he shrouded Karna with his winged shafts, equipped with Kankafeathers, thy sons witnessed his extra ordinary prowess. GladdeningPartha himself and the illustrious Kesava, Satyaki and the two protectorsof (two) wheels (of Arjuna’s car), Bhima fought even thus with Karna.Beholding the perseverance of Bhima who knew his own self, thy sons, Omonarch, all became cheerless.'”