Mahabharata Drona Parva Chapter 201:3

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Mahabharata Drona Parva (Drona-vadha Parva) Chapter 201:3


Then Drona's son, in that battle, covered the angry prince with winged shafts. And once more, he pierced the latter with ten shafts, remembering the slaughter of his father. Then cutting off the standard and bow of the Panchala prince with a couple of well-shot shafts, equipped with heads like razors, Drona's son began to grind his foe with other arrows. In that dreadful battle, Aswatthaman made his antagonist steedless and driverless and carless, and covered his followers also with thick showers of shafts. At this, the Panchala troops, O king, mangled by means of those arrowy showers fled away in fear and great affliction. Beholding the troops turning away from battle and Dhrishtadyumna exceedingly afflicted, the grandson of Sini quickly urged his car against that of Drona's son. He then afflicted Aswatthaman with eight keen shafts. And once more striking that angry warrior with twenty shafts of diverse kinds, he pierced Aswatthaman's driver, and then his four steeds with four shafts. With great deliberations and displaying a wonderful lightness of hand, he cut off Aswatthaman's bow and standard, Satyaki then cut into fragments the gold-decked car of this foe together with its steeds. And then he deeply pierced Aswatthaman in the chest with thirty arrows in that battle.

Thus afflicted, O king, (by Satyaki), and shrouded with arrows, the mighty Aswatthaman knew not what to do. When the preceptor's son had fallen into that plight, thy son, that car-warrior, accompanied by Kripa and Karna and others began to cover the Satwata hero with arrows. All of them began quickly to pierce Satyaki from every side with keen shafts, Duryodhana pierced him with twenty, Saradwat's son, Kripa, with three. And Kritavarman pierced him with ten, and Karna with fifty. And Duhsasana pierced him with a hundred arrows, and Vrishasena with seven. Satyaki, however, O king, soon made all those great car-warriors fly away from the field, deprived of their cars. Meanwhile, Aswatthaman, O bull of Bharata's race, recovering consciousness, and sighing repeatedly in sorrow, began to think of what he should do. Riding then upon another car, that scorcher of foes, viz., the son of Drona, began to resist Satyaki, shooting hundreds of arrows. Beholding Aswatthaman once more approaching him in battle, the mighty car-warrior, Satyaki, once more made him carless and caused him to turn back.

Then the Pandavas, O king, beholding the prowess of Satyaki, blew their conchs with great force and uttered loud leonine roars. Having deprived Aswatthaman of his car thus, Satyaki, of unbaffled prowess, then slew three thousand mighty car-warriors of Vrishasena's division. And then he slew fifteen thousand elephants of Kripa's force and fifty thousand horses of Sakuni. Then, the valiant son of Drona, O monarch, riding upon another car, and highly enraged with Satyaki, proceeded against the latter, desirous of slaying him. Beholding him approach again, the grandson of Sini, that chastiser of foes, once more pierced and mangled him with keen shafts, fiercer than those he had used before.

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