SECTION CXXXI
"Sanjaya said, 'Then the carless Karna, thus once more completely
defeated by Bhima, mounted another car and speedily began to pierce the
son of Pandu. Like two huge elephants encountering each other with the
points of their tusks, they struck each other with shafts, shot from
their bows drawn to the fullest stretch. Then Karna, striking Bhimasena
with showers of shafts, uttered a loud roar, and once more pierced him in
the chest. Bhima, however, in return, pierced Karna with ten straight
arrows and once more with twenty straight arrows. Then Karna, piercing
Bhima, O king, with nine arrows in the centre of the chest, struck the
latter's standard with a sharp shaft. The son of Pritha then pierced
Karna in return with three and sixty arrows, like a driver striking a
mighty elephant with the hook, or a rider striking a steed with a whip.
Deeply pierced, O king, by the illustrious son of Pandu, the heroic Karna
began to lick with his tongue the corners of his mouth, and his eyes
became red in rage. Then, O monarch, Karna, sped at Bhimasena, for his
destruction, a shaft capable of piercing everybody, like Indra hurling
his thunderbolt. That shaft equipped with beautiful feathers sped from
the bow of the Suta's son, piercing Partha in that battle, sank deep into
the earth. Then the mighty-armed Bhima, with eyes red in wrath, hurled
without a moment's reflection, at the Suta's son, a heavy six-sided mace,
adorned with gold measuring full four cubits in length, and resembling
the bolt of Indra in force. Indeed, like Indra slaying the Asuras with
his thunderbolt, that hero of Bharata's race, excited with wrath, slew
with that mace the well-trained steeds of the foremost breed, of
Adhiratha's son. Then, O bull of Bharata's race, the mighty-armed Bhima,
with a couple of razor-faced arrows, cut off the standard of Karna. And
then he slew, with a number of shafts his enemy's charioteer. Abandoning
that steedless and driverless and standardless car, Karna. O Bharata,
cheerlessly stood on the earth, drawing his bow. The prowess that we then
beheld of Radha's son was extremely wonderful, inasmuch as that foremost
of car-warriors, though deprived of car, continued to resist his foe.
Beholding that foremost of men, viz., the son of Adhiratha, deprived of
his car, Duryodhana, O monarch, said unto (his brother) Durmukha, 'There,
O Durmukha, the son of Radha hath been deprived of his car by Bhimasena.
Furnish that foremost of men, that mighty car-warrior with a car.'
Hearing these words of Duryodhana, your son Durmukha, O Bharata, quickly
proceeded towards Karna and covered Bhima with his shafts. Beholding
Durmukha desirous of supporting the Suta's son in that battle, the son of
the Wind god was filled with delight and began to lick the corners of his
mouth. Then resisting Karna the while with his shafts, the son of Pandu
quickly drove his car towards Durmukha. And in that moment, O king, with
nine straight arrows of keen points, Bhima despatched Durmukha to Yama's
abode, Upon Durmukha's slaughter, the son of Adhiratha mounted upon the
car of that prince and looked resplendent, O king, like the blazing sun.
Beholding Durmukha lying prostrate on the field, his very vital pierced
(with shafts) and his body bathed in blood, Karna with tearful eyes
abstained for a moment from the fight. Circumambulating the fallen prince
and leaving him there, the heroic Karna began to breathe long and hot
breaths and knew not what to do. Seizing that opportunity, O king,
Bhimasena shot at the Suta's son four and ten long shafts equipped with
vulturine feathers. Those blood-drinking shafts of golden wings, endued
with great force illuminating the ten points as they coursed through the
welkin, pierced the armour of the Suta's son, and drank his life-blood, O
king, and passing through his body, sank into the earth and looked
resplendent like angry snakes, O monarch, urged on by Death himself, with
half their bodies inserted within their holes. Then the son of Radha,
without reflecting a moment, pierced Bhima in return with four and ten
fierce shafts adorned with gold. Those fierce-winged arrows, piercing
through Bhima's right arms, entered the earth like birds entering a grove
of trees. Striking against the earth, those arrows looked resplendent,
like the blazing rays of the sun while proceeding towards the Asta hills.
Pierced in that battle with those all-piercing arrows, Bhima began to
shed copious streams of blood, like a mountain ejecting streams of water.
Then Bhima pierced the Suta's son in return with three shafts endued with
the impetuosity of Garuda and he pierced the latter's charioteer also
with seven. Then, O king, Karna thus afflicted by Bhima's might, became
exceedingly distressed. And that illustrious warrior then fled, forsaking
the battle, borne away by his fleet steeds. The Atiratha Bhimasena,
however, drawing his bow adorned with gold, stayed in battle, looking
resplendent like a blazing fire.'"
--------------------END OF PARVA 7 : UPA-PARVA 131 ---------------------
