“Dhritarashtra said, ‘When the troops were thus engaged and thus
proceeded against one another in separate divisions, how did Partha and
the warriors of my army endued with great activity fight? What also did
Arjuna do towards the car-warriors of the Samsaptakas? And what, O
Sanjaya, did the Samsaptakas, in their turn, do to Arjuna?’
“Sanjaya said, ‘When the troops were thus engaged and proceeded against
one another, thy son Duryodhana himself rushed against Bhimasena, leading
his elephant division. Like an elephant encountering an elephant, like a
bull encountering a bull, Bhimasena, summoned by the king himself, rushed
against that elephant division of the Kaurava army. Skilled in battle and
endued with great might of arms, Pritha’s son, O sire, quickly broke that
elephant division. These elephants, huge as hills, and with ichor
trickling down from every part of their bodies, were mangled and forced
to turn back by Bhimasena with his arrows. Indeed, as the wind, when it
riseth, driveth away gathering masses of clouds, so did that son of
Pavana rout that elephant force of the Kauravas. And Bhima, shooting his
arrows at those elephants, looked resplendent like the risen sun,
striking everything in the world with his rays. Those elephants,
afflicted with the shafts of Bhima, became covered with blood and looked
beautiful like masses of clouds in the welkin penetrated with the rays of
the sun. Then Duryodhana, excited with wrath, pierced with the sharp
shafts that son of the Wind-god who was causing such a slaughter among
his elephants. Then Bhima, with eyes red in wrath, desirous of
despatching the king to Yama’s abode, pierced him speedily with many
sharp shafts. Then Duryodhana, mangled all over with arrows and excited
with rage, pierced Bhima, the son of Pandu, with many shafts endued with
the effulgence of solar rays, smiling the while. Then the son of Pandu,
with a couple of broad-headed arrows, quickly cut off Duryodhana’s bow as
also his standard, bearing the device of a jewelled elephant, decked with
diverse gems. Beholding Duryodhana thus afflicted, O sire, by Bhima, the
ruler of the Angas on his elephant came there for afflicting the son of
Pandu. Thereupon, Bhimasena deeply pierced with a long arrow that prince
of elephants advancing with loud roars, between its two frontal globes.
That arrow, penetrating through its body, sank deep in the earth. And at
this the elephants fell down like a hill riven by the thunder. While the
elephant was falling down, the Mleccha king also was falling down it. But
Vrikodara, endued with great activity, cut off his head with a
broad-headed arrow before his antagonist actually fell down. When the
heroic ruler of the Angas fell, his divisions fled away. Steeds and
elephants and car-warriors struck with panic, crushed the foot-soldiers
as they fled.
“‘When those troops, thus broken, fled away in all directions, the ruler
of the Pragjyotishas then advanced against Bhima, upon his elephant.[50]
With its two (fore) legs and trunk contracted, filled with rage, and with
eyes rolling, that elephant seemed to consume the son of Pandu (like a
blazing fire). And it pounded Vrikodara’s car with the steed yoked
thereto into dust. Then Bhima ran forward and got under the elephant’s
body, for he knew the science called Anjalikabedha. Indeed, the son of
Pandu fled not. Getting under the elephant’s body, he began to strike it
frequently with his bare arms. And he smote that invincible elephant
which was bent upon slaying him. Thereupon, the latter began to quickly
turn round like a potter’s wheel. Endued with the might of ten thousand
elephants, the blessed Vrikodara, having struck that elephant thus, came
out from under Supratika’s body and stood facing the latter. Supratika
then, seizing Bhima by its trunk, threw him down by means of its knees.
Indeed, having seized him by the neck, that elephant wished to slay him.
Twisting the elephant’s trunk, Bhima freed himself from its twine, and
once more got under the body of that huge creature. And he waited there,
expecting the arrival of a hostile elephant of his own army. Coming out
from under the beast’s body, Bhima then ran away with great speed. Then a
loud noise was heard, made by all the troops, to the effect, “Alas, Bhima
hath been slain by the elephant!” The Pandava host, frightened by that
elephant, suddenly fled away, O king, to where Vrikodara was waiting.
Meanwhile, king Yudhishthira, thinking Vrikodara to have been slain,
surrounded Bhagadatta on all sides, aided by the Panchalas. Having
surrounded him with numerous cars, king Yudhishthira that foremost of
car-warriors, covered Bhagadatta with keen shafts by hundreds and
thousands. Then Bhagadatta, that king of the mountainous regions,
frustrating with his iron hook that shower of arrows, began to consume
both the Pandavas and the Panchalas by means of that elephant of his.
Indeed, O monarch, the feat that we then beheld, achieved by old
Bhagadatta with his elephant, was highly wonderful. Then the ruler of the
Dasarnas rushed against the king of the Pragjyotisha, on a fleet elephant
with temporal sweat trickling down, for attacking Supratika in the flank.
The battle then that took place between those two elephants of awful
size, resembled that between two winged mountains overgrown with forests
in days of old. Then the elephant of Bhagadatta, wheeling round and
attacking the elephant of the king of the Dasarnas, ripped open the
latter’s flank and slew it outright. Then Bhagadatta himself with seven
lances bright as the rays of the sun, slew his (human) antagonist seated
on the elephant just when the latter was about to fall down from his
seat. Piercing king Bhagadatta then (with many arrows), Yudhishthira
surrounded him on all sides with a large number of cars. Staying on his
elephant amid car-warriors encompassing him all around, he looked
resplendent like a blazing fire on a mountain-top in the midst of a dense
forest. He stayed fearlessly in the midst of those serried cars ridden by
fierce bowmen, all of whom showered upon him their arrows. Then the king
of the Pragjyotisha, pressing (with his toe) his huge elephant, urged him
towards the car of Yuyudhana. That prodigious beast, then seizing the car
of Sini’s grandson, hurled it to a distance with great force. Yuyudhana,
however, escaped by timely flight. His charioteer also, abandoning the
large steeds of the Sindhu breed, yoked unto that car, quickly followed
Satyaki and stood where the latter stopped. Meanwhile the elephant,
quickly coming out of the circle of cars, began to throw down all the
kings (that attempted to bar his course). These bulls among men,
frightened out of their wits by that single elephant coursing swiftly,
regarded it in that battle as multiplied into many. Indeed, Bhagadatta,
mounted on that elephant of his, began to smite down the Pandavas, like
the chief of the celestials mounted on Airavata smiting down the Danavas
(in days of old).[51] As the Panchalas fled in all directions, loud and
awful was the noise that arose amongst them, made by their elephants and
steeds. And while the Pandava troops were thus destroyed by Bhagadatta,
Bhima, excited with rage, once more rushed against the ruler of the
Pragjyotisha. The latter’s elephant then frightened the steeds of
advancing Bhima by drenching them with water spouted forth from its
trunk, and thereupon those animals bore Bhima away from the field. Then
Kriti’s son, Ruchiparvan, mounted on his car, quickly rushed against
Bhagadatta, scattering showers of arrows and advancing like the Destroyer
himself. Then Bhagadatta, that ruler of the hilly regions, possessed of
beautiful limbs, despatched Ruchiparvan with a straight shaft to Yama’s
abode.[52] Upon the fall of the heroic Ruchiparvan, Subhadra’s son and
the sons of Draupadi, and Chekitana, and Dhrishtaketu, and Yuyutsu began
to afflict the elephant. Desiring to slay that elephant, all those
warriors, uttering loud shouts, began to pour their arrows on the
animals, like the clouds drenching the earth with their watery down-pour.
Urged then by its skilful rider with heel, hook, and toe the animal
advanced quickly with trunk stretched, and eyes and cars fixed. Treading
down Yuyutsu’s steeds, the animal then slew the charioteer. Thereupon, O
king, Yuyutsu, abandoning his car, fled away quickly. Then the Pandava
warriors, desirous of slaying that prince of elephants, uttered loud
shouts and covered it quickly with showers of arrows. At this time, thy
son, excited with rage, rushed against the car of Subhadra’s son.
Meanwhile, king Bhagadatta on his elephant, shooting shafts on the foe,
looked resplendent like the Sun himself scattering his rays on the earth.
Arjuna’s son then pierced him with a dozen shafts, and Yuyutsu with ten,
and each of the sons of Draupadi pierced him with three shafts and
Dhrishtaketu also pierced him with three. That elephant then, pierced
with these shafts, shot with great care, looked resplendent like a mighty
mass of clouds penetrated with the rays of the sun. Afflicted with those
shafts of the foe, that elephant then, urged by its riders with skill and
vigour, began to throw hostile warriors on both his flanks. Like a
cowherd belabouring his cattle in the forest with a goad, Bhagadatta
repeatedly smote the Pandava host. Like the cawing of quickly retreating
crows when assailed by hawks, a loud and confused noise was heard among
the Pandava troops who fled away with great speed. That prince of
elephants, struck by its rider with hook, resembled, O king, a winged
mountain of old. And it filled the hearts of the enemy with fear, like to
what merchants experience at sight of the surging sea.[53] Then elephants
and car-warriors and steeds and kings, flying away in fear, made, as they
fled, a loud and awful din that, O monarch, filled the earth and sky and
heaven and the cardinal and subsidiary directions in that battle. Mounted
on that foremost of elephants, king Bhagadatta penetrated the hostile
army like the Asura Virochana in days of old into the celestial host in
battle well-protected by the gods. A violent wind began to blow; a dusty
cloud covered the sky and the troops; and people regarded that single
elephant as multiplied into many, coursing all over the field.’”