Mahabharata Karna parva Chapter 61:3

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Mahabharata Karna parva Chapter 61:3

"'Thy son resisted Bhimasena in that battle, in a trice Bhima made that ruler of men steedless and driverless and carless and standardless, at which the (Pandava) troops became highly glad. Then thy son, O king, went away from Bhimasena's presence. The whole Kuru army, at this, rushed against Bhimasena. Tremendous became the din made by those combatants inspired with the desire of slaying Bhimasena. Yudhamanyu, piercing Kripa, quickly cut off his bow. Then Kripa, that foremost of all wielders of weapons, taking up another bow, felled Yudhamanyu's standard and driver and umbrella on the Earth. At this, the mighty car-warrior Yudhamanyu retreated on his car, driving it himself. Uttamauja covered the terrible son of Hridika, endued with terrible prowess, with a thick shower of arrows like a cloud pouring torrents of rain on a mountain. The battle between them, O scorcher of foes, became so awful that its like, O monarch, I had never seen before. Then Kritavarma, O king, in that encounter, suddenly pierced Uttamauja in the chest, at which the latter sat down on the terrace of his car. His driver then bore away that foremost of car-warriors. Then the whole Kuru army rushed at Bhimasena. Duhshasana and Subala's son, encompassing the son of Pandu with a large elephant force, began to strike him with small arrows. Then Bhima, causing the wrathful Duryodhana to turn his back on the field by means of hundreds of arrows, quickly rushed towards that elephant force. Beholding that elephant-force advance impetuously against him, Vrikodara became filled with great rage and invoked his celestial weapons. And he began to strike elephants with elephants like Indra striking the Asuras. While engaged in slaughtering those elephants, Vrikodara, in that battle, covered the welkin with his shafts like myriads of insects covering a fire. Like the wind scattering masses of clouds, Bhima quickly scattered and destroyed crowds of elephants united together in thousands. Covered all over with networks of gold, as also with many gems, the elephants looked exceedingly beautiful in that battle like clouds charged with lightning. Slaughtered by Bhima, those elephants, O king, began to fly away. Some amongst them, with their hearts pierced, fell down on the Earth. With those fallen and failing elephants adorned with gold, the Earth looked beautiful there, as if strewn with broken mountains. With the fallen elephant-warriors of blazing resplendence and adorned with gems, the Earth looked beautiful as if strewn with planets of exhausted merit. Then elephants, with their temples, frontal globes, and trunks deeply pierced, fled in hundreds in that battle, afflicted with the shafts of Bhimasena. Some amongst them, huge as hills, afflicted with fear and vomiting blood, ran away, their limbs mangled with arrows, and looked on that account, like mountains with liquid metals running down their sides. People then beheld the two arms of Bhima, resembling two mighty snakes, smeared with sandal-paste and other pounded unguents, continually employed in drawing the bow. Hearing the sound of his bow-string and palms that resembled the peal of thunder, those elephants, ejecting urine and excreta, ran away in fear. The feats of the single-handed Bhima of great intelligence, on that occasion, shone like those of Rudra, himself, while engaged in destroying all creatures.'"

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