faint.  Recovering consciousness Karna attacked Arjuna with greater care than before.  Then Karna and Arjuna, both foremost of victorious warriors, desirous of vanquishing each other, fought madly on.  And such was the lightness of hand they both displayed that (each enveloped by the other’s shower of arrows) they both became invisible (unto the spectators of their encounter).  ’Behold the strength of my arms.’—­’Mark, how I have counteracted that feat,’—­those were the words—­intelligible to heroes alone—­in which they addressed each other.  And incensed at finding the strength and energy of Arjuna’s arms unequalled on the earth, Karna, the son of Surya, fought with greater vigour.  And parrying all those impetuous arrows shot at him by Arjuna, Karna sent up a loud shout.  And this feat of his was applauded by all the warriors.  Then addressing his antagonist, Karna said, ’O thou foremost of Brahmanas, I am gratified to observe the energy of thy arms that knoweth no relaxation in battle and thy weapons themselves fit for achieving victory.  Art thou the embodiment of the science of weapons, or art thou Rama that best of Brahmanas, or Indra himself, or Indra’s younger brother Vishnu called also Achyuta, who for disguising himself hath assumed the form of a Brahmana and mustering such energy of arms fighteth with me?  No other person except the husband himself of Sachi or Kiriti, the son of Pandu, is capable of fighting with me when I am angry on the field of battle.’  Then hearing those words of his, Phalguna replied, saying, ’O Karna, I am neither the science of arms (personified), nor Rama endued with superhuman powers.  I am only a Brahmana who is the foremost of all warriors and all wielders of weapons.  By the grace of my preceptor I have become accomplished in the Brahma and the Paurandara weapons.  I am here to vanquish thee in battle.  Therefore, O hero, wait a little.’

“Vaisampayana continued, ’Thus addressed (by Arjuna), Karna the adopted son of Radha desisted from the fight, for that mighty chariot-fighter thought that Brahma energy is ever invincible.  Meanwhile on another part of the field, the mighty heroes Salya and Vrikodara, well-skilled in battle and possessed of great strength and proficiency, challenging each other, engaged in fight like two elephants in rut.  And they struck each other with their clenched fists and knees.  And sometimes pushing each other forward and sometimes dragging each other near, sometimes throwing each other down; face downward, and sometimes on the sides, they fought on, striking, each other at times with their clenched fists.  And encountering each other with blows hard as the clash of two masses of granite, the lists rang with the sounds of their combat.  Fighting with each other thus for a few seconds, Bhima the foremost of the Kuru heroes taking up Salya on his arms hurled him to a distance.  And Bhimasena, that bull amongst men, surprised all (by the dexterity of his feat) for though he threw Salya on the ground