horses then in terrific combat, Rama, fighting with
great coolness, covered me with swarms of winged arrows,
shot with remarkable lightness of hand. At this,
O mighty-armed one, I also began to shoot arrows with
great lightness of hand for obstructing Rama’s
arrowy shower. Then those arrows shot by myself
and Rama covering the welkin all around, stayed even
there (without failing down). And, thereupon,
enveloped by clouds of arrows the very sun could not
shed its rays through them. And the very wind,
obstructed by those clouds, seemed to be unable to
pass through them. Then, in consequence of the
obstructed motion of the wind, the rays of the sun,
and the clash of the arrows against one another, a
conflagration was caused in the welkin. And then
those arrows blazed forth in consequence of the fire
generated by themselves, and fell on the earth, consumed
into ashes! Then Rama, O Kaurava, filled with
rage, covered me with hundreds and thousands and hundreds
of thousands and hundreds of millions arrows!
And I also, O king, with my arrows resembling snakes
of virulent poison, cut into fragments all those arrows
of Rama and caused them to fall down on the earth
like snakes cut into pieces. And it was thus,
O best of the Bharatas, that combat took place.
When, however, the shades of evening approached, my
preceptor withdrew from the fight.’”
“Bhishma said, ’The next day, O bull of
Bharata’s race, frightful again was the combat
that wok place between me and Rama when I encountered
him once more. That hero of virtuous soul, conversant
with celestial weapons,—the lord Rama,
from day to day, began to use diverse kinds of celestial
weapons. Regardless of life itself, which is so
difficult of being sacrificed, in that fierce combat,
O Bharata, I baffled all those weapons with such of
mine as are capable of baffling them. And, O
Bharata, when diverse weapons were in this way neutralised
and baffled by means of counter-weapons, Rama, of
mighty energy began to contend against me in that
battle, reckless of his own life. Seeing all his
weapons baffled, the high-souled son of Jamadagni
then hurled at me a fierce lance, blazing like a meteor,
with flaming mouth, filling the whole world, as it
were, with its effulgence, and resembling the dart
hurled by Death himself! I, however, with my
arrows cut into three fragments that blazing dart
rushing against me, and resembling in effulgence the
sun that rises at end of the Yuga! At this, breezes
charged with fragrant odours began to blow (around
me). Beholding that dart of his cut off, Rama,
burning with anger, hurled a dozen other fierce darts.
Their forms, O Bharata, I am incapable of describing
in consequence of their great effulgence and speed.
How, indeed, shall I describe their forms? Beholding
those diverse-looking darts approach me from all sides,
like long tongues of fire and blazing forth with fierce
energy like the dozen suns that arise at the time
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