“Dhritarashtra said, ‘How, indeed, did that battle take place when at
dead of night Vikartana’s son, Karna, and the Rakshasa Ghatotkacha
encountered each other? What aspect did that fierce Rakshasa then
present? What kind of car did he ride, and what was the nature of his
steeds and what of his weapons? What was the size of his steeds, of the
standard of his car, and of his bow? What was the kind of armour he wore,
and what head-gear had he on? Asked by me, describe all this, for thou
art skilled in narration, O Sanjaya!’
“Sanjaya said, ‘Of blood-red eyes, Ghatotkacha was of gigantic form. His
face was of the hue of copper. His belly was low and sunken. The bristles
on his body all pointed upwards. His head was green. His ears were like
arrows. His cheek-bones were high. His mouth was large, extending from
ear to ear. His teeth were keen, and four of these were high and pointed.
His tongue and lips were very long and of a coppery hue. His brows were
long-extending. His nose was thick. His body was blue, and neck red. Tall
as a hill, he was terrible to behold. Of gigantic frame, gigantic arms,
and gigantic head, he was endued with great might. Ugly and of hard
limbs, the hair on his head was tied upwards in a frightful shape. His
hips were large and his navel was deep. Of gigantic frame, the
circumference of his body, however, was not great. The ornaments on his
arms were proportionate. Possessed of great powers of illusion, he was
decked also in Angadas. He wore a cuirass on his breast like a circle of
fire on the breast of a mountain. On his head was a bright and beautiful
diadem made of gold, with every part proportionate and beautiful, and
looking like an arch. His ear-rings were bright as the morning sun, and
his garlands were made of gold and exceedingly bright. He had on his body
a gigantic armour of brass of great effulgence. His car was decked with a
hundred tinkling bells, and on his standard waved numerous blood-red
banners. Of prodigious proportions, and of the measure of a nalwa, that
car was covered with bear-skins. Equipped with all kinds of mighty
weapons, it possessed a tall standard and was adorned with garlands,
having eight wheels, and its clatter resembled the roar of the clouds.
His steeds were like infuriated elephants, and possessed of red eyes; of
terrible aspect, they were variegated in hue, and endued with great speed
and might. Above all fatigue, and adorned with long manes and neighing
repeatedly, they bore that hero to battle. A Rakshasa of terrible eyes,
fiery mouth, and blazing ear-rings, acted as his driver, holding the
reins, bright as the rays of the sun, of his steeds in battle. With that
driver he came to battle like Surya with his driver Aruna. Looking like a
high mountain encircled with a mighty cloud, a very tall standard, that
touched the heavens, was set up on his car. A carnivorous and awful
vulture of blood-red body perched on it. He came, forcibly drawing his
bow whose twang resembled the thunder of Indra, and whose string was very
hard, and which measured a dozen cubits in length and one cubit in
breadth.[231] Filling all the points of the compass with shafts of the
measure of the Aksha of a car, the Rakshasa rushed against Karna on that
night that was so destructive of heroes. Staying proudly on his car, as
he stretched his bow, the twang that was heard resembled that sound of
the roaring thunder. Frightened by him, O Bharata, all thy troops
trembled like the surging waves of the ocean. Beholding that frightful
Rakshasa of horrible eyes advancing against him, Radha’s son, as if
smiling, withstood him speedily. And Karna proceeded against the smiling
Rakshasa, smiting him in return from a near point, like an elephant
against an elephant or the leader of a bovine herd against the leader of
another herd. The collision that took place between them, i.e., Karna and
the Rakshasa, O king, became terrible and resembled that between Indra
and Samvara. Each taking a formidable bow of loud twang, struck and
covered the other with powerful shafts. With straight shafts sped from
bows drawn to their fullest stretch, they mangled each other, piercing
their coats of mail made of brass. With darts of the measure of Akshas,
and shafts also they continued to mangle each other, like a couple of
tigers or of mighty elephants with their teeth or tusks. Piercing each
other’s body, aiming shafts at each other, scorching each other with
clouds of arrows, they became incapable of being gazed at. With limbs
pierced and mangled with shafts, and bathed in streams of blood, they
looked like two hills of chalk with rivulets running down their breasts.
Those two mighty car-warriors, both struggling vigorously, both with
limbs pierced with keen-pointed shafts, and each mangling the other,
failed, however to make each other tremble. For a long time, that
nocturnal combat between Karna and the Rakshasas in which both seemed to
sport, making life itself the stake, continued equally. Aiming keen
shafts and shooting them to the utmost measure of his might, the twang of
Ghatotkacha’s bow inspired both friends and foes with fear.[232] At that
time, O king, Karna could not prevail over Ghatotkacha. Seeing this, that
foremost of all persons acquainted with weapons, invoked into existence
celestial weapons. Beholding a celestial weapon aimed at him by Karna,
Ghatotkacha, that foremost of Rakshasas invoked into existence his
Rakshasa illusion. He was seen surrounded by a large force of
terrible-looking Rakshasas, armed with lances, large rocks and hills and
clubs.[233] Beholding Ghatotkacha advancing with a mighty weapon uplifted
(in his hands) like unto the Destroyer himself of all creatures armed
with his fierce and fatal club, all the kings there were struck with
fear. Terrified at the leonine roars uttered by Ghatotkacha, the
elephants passed urine, and all the combatants trembled with fear. Then
there fell on all sides a thick rain of rocks and stones poured incessantly
by the Rakshasas, who had, in consequence of midnight, became inspired with
greater strength.[234] Iron wheels and Bhusundis, and darts, and lances
and spears and Sataghnis and axes also began to fall incessantly.
Beholding that fierce and terrible battle, all the kings, as also thy
sons and the combatants, fled away in fear. Only one amongst them, viz.,
Karna, proud of the power of his weapons, and feeling a noble pride,
trembled not. Indeed, with his shafts he destroyed that illusion invoked
into existence by Ghatotkacha. Beholding his illusion dispelled,
Ghatotkacha, filled with rage began to shoot deadly shafts from desire of
slaying the Suta’s son. Those shafts, bathed in blood, piercing through
Karna’s body in that dreadful battle, entered the earth like angry
snakes. Then the valiant son of the Suta, filled with rage and possessed
of great lightness of hands, prevailing over Ghatotkacha, pierced the
latter with ten shafts. Then Ghatotkacha, thus pierced by the Suta’s son
in his vital parts and feeling great pain, took up a celestial wheel
having a thousand radii. The edge of that wheel was sharp as a razor.
Possessed of the splendour of the morning sun, and decked with jewels and
gems, Bhimasena’s son hurled that wheel at the son of Adhiratha, desirous
of making an end of the latter. That wheel, however, of great power and
hurled also with great might, was cut off into pieces by Karna with his
shafts, and fell down, baffled of its object, like the hopes and purposes
of an unfortunate man. Filled with rage upon beholding his wheel baffled,
Ghatotkacha covered Karna with showers of shafts, like Rahu covering the
sun. The Suta’s son, however, endued with the prowess of Rudra or of
Indra’s younger brother or of Indra, fearlessly shrouded Ghatotkacha’s
car in a moment with winged arrows. Then Ghatotkacha, whirling a
gold-decked mace, hurled it at Karna. Karna, however, with his shafts,
cutting it off, caused it to fall down. Then soaring into the sky and
roaring deep like a mass of clouds, the gigantic Rakshasa poured from the
welkin a perfect shower of trees. Then Karna pierced with his shafts
Bhima’s son in the sky, that Rakshasa acquainted with illusions, like the
sun piercing with his rays a mass of clouds. Slaying then all the steeds
of Ghatotkacha, and cutting also his car into a hundred pieces, Karna
began to pour upon him his arrows like a cloud pouring torrents of rain.
On Ghatotkacha’s body there was not even two finger’s breadth of space
that was not pierced with Karna’s shafts. Soon the Rakshasa seemed to be
like a porcupine with quills erect on his body. So completely was he
shrouded with shafts that we could not in that battle, any longer see
either the steeds or the car or the standard of Ghatotkacha or
Ghatotkacha himself. Destroying then by his own weapon, the celestial
weapon of Karna, Ghatotkacha, endued with the power of illusion, began to
fight with the Suta’s son, aided by his powers of illusion. Indeed, he
began to fight with Karna, aided by his illusion and displaying the
greatest activity. Showers of shafts fell from an invisible source from
the welkin. Then Bhimasena’s son, endued with great prowess of illusion,
O foremost of the Kurus, assumed a fierce form, aided by those powers,
began to stupefy the Kauravas, O Bharata! The valiant Rakshasa, assuming
many fierce and grim heads, began to devour the celestial weapons of the
Suta’s son. Soon again, the gigantic Rakshasa, with a hundred wounds on
his body seemed to lie cheerlessly, as if dead, on the field. The Kaurava
bulls then, regarding Ghatotkacha deed, uttered loud shouts (of joy).
Soon, however, he was seen on all sides, careering in new forms. Once
more, he was seen to assume a prodigious form, with a hundred heads and a
hundred stomachs, and looking like the Mainaka mountain.[235] Once again,
becoming small about the measure of the thumb, he moved about
transversely or soared aloft like the swelling surges of the sea. Tearing
through the earth and rising on the surface, he dived again into the
waters. Once seen here, he was next seen at a different place. Descending
then from the welkin, he was seen standing, clad in mail, on a car decked
with gold, having wandered through 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 the Maruts, the mighty bowman Karna began to battle with him
fiercely. Then Ghatotkacha piercing Karna with five shafts, uttered a
terrible roar frightening all the kings. Once more shooting an Anjalika
weapon, Ghatotkacha quickly cut off the bow of Karna’s hand along with
the arrowy shower the latter had shot. Karna then taking out another bow
that was strong and capable of bearing a great strain and that was as
large as Indra’s bow, drew it with great force. Then Karna shot some
foe-slaying shafts of golden wings at those sky-ranging Rakshasas.
Afflicted with those shafts, the large foes of broad chested Rakshasas
looked agitated like a herd of wild elephants afflicted by a lion.
Destroying with his shafts those Rakshasas along with their steeds and
diverse elephants, the puissant Karna looked like the divine Agni
consuming all creatures at the time of the universal dissolution. Having
destroyed that Rakshasa host, the Suta’s son looked resplendent like the
god Maheswara in heaven after having consumed the triple city (of the
Asuras). Among those thousands of kings on the Pandava side, O sire,
there was not a single one, O monarch, that could even look at Karna
then, save the mighty Ghatotkacha, that prince of Rakshasas, who was
endued with terrible energy and strength, and who, inflamed with rage,
then looked like Yama himself. From his eyes, as he was excited with
wrath, flames of fire seemed to emit, like blazing drops of oil from a
couple of burning brands. Striking his palm against palm and biting his
nether lip, the Rakshasa was once more seen on a car that had been
created by his illusion, and unto which were yoked a number of asses,
looking like elephants and having the faces of Pisachas. Excited with
wrath, he addressed his driver, saying, “Bear me towards the Suta’s son.”
Then that foremost of car-warriors proceeded on that terrible-looking car
of his, for once more fighting a single combat with the Suta’s son, O
king! The Rakshasa, excited with rage, hurled at the Suta’s son an Asani
of Rudra’s workmanship, terrible and furnished with eight wheels. Karna,
placing his bow on his car, jumped down on the earth and seizing that
Asani hurled it back at Ghatotkacha. The latter, however, had quickly
descended from his car (before the weapon could reach it). The Asani,
meanwhile, of great effulgence, having reduced the Raksha’s car to ashes,
with its steeds, driver, and standard, piercing through the earth,
disappeared within its bowels, at which the gods were filled with wonder.
Then all creatures applauded Karna, who, having jumped down from his car,
had seized that Asani. Having achieved that feat, Karna once more
ascended his car. The Suta’s son, that scorcher of foes, then began to
shoot his shafts. Indeed, O giver of honours, there is none else amongst
all living creatures who can accomplish what Karna accomplished in that
frightful battle. Struck by Karna with shafts like a mountain with
torrents of rain, Ghatotkacha once more disappeared from the field of
battle like the melting forms of vapour in the sky. Contending in this
way, the gigantic Rakshasa, that slayer of foes, destroyed the celestial
weapons of Karna by means of his activity as also his power of illusion.
Seeing his weapons destroyed by the Rakshasa, aided by his powers of
illusion, Karna, without being inspired with fear, continued to fight
with the cannibal. Then, O monarch, the mighty son of Bhimasena excited
with wrath, divided his own self into many parts, frightening all the
mighty car-warriors (of the Kuru army). Then there came on the field of
battle lions, and tigers, and hyenas, and snakes with fiery tongues, and
birds with iron beaks. As regards Ghatotkacha himself, struck with the
keen arrows that were sped from Karna’s bow, that huge Rakshasa, looking
like (Himavat) the prince of mountains, disappeared then and there. Then
many Rakshasas and Pisachas and Yatudhanas, and large numbers of wolves
and leopards, of frightful faces rushed towards Karna for devouring him.
These approached the Suta’s son, uttering fierce howls for frightening
him. Karna pierced every one of those monsters with many swift-winged and
terrible shafts that drank their blood. At last, using a celestial
weapon, he destroyed that illusion of the Rakshasa. He then, with some
straight and fierce shafts, struck the steeds of Ghatotkacha. These, with
broken and maimed limbs, and their backs cut by those shafts, fell down
on the earth, in the very sight of Ghatotkacha. The son of Hidimva,
seeing his illusion dispelled, once more made himself invisible, saying
unto Karna, the son of Vikartana, “I will presently compass thy
destruction.”’”