a full hundred of the enemy and Visalaksha full four hundred, both those mighty warriors penetrated into the heart of the great Trigarta host.  And having entered into the thick of the Trigarta host, those famous and mighty heroes began to deprive their antagonists of their senses by causing a closer conflict to set in—­a conflict, in which the combatants seized one another by the hair and tore one another with their nails.[29] And eyeing the point where the cars of the Trigartas had been mustered in strong numbers, those heroes at last directed their attack towards it.  And that foremost of car-warriors, king Virata also, with Suryadatta in his van and Madiraksha in his rear, having destroyed in that conflict five hundred cars, eight hundred horses, and five warriors on great cars, displayed various skilful manoeuvres on his car on that field of battle.  And at last the king came upon the ruler of the Trigartas mounted on a golden chariot.  And those high-souled and powerful warriors, desirous of fighting, rushed roaring against each like two bulls in a cow-pen.  Then that bull among men, irrepressible in battle, Susarman, the king of the Trigartas, challenged Matsya to a single combat on car.  Then those warriors excited to fury rushed against each other on their cars and began to shower their arrows upon each other like clouds pouring torrents of rain.[30] And enraged with each other, those fierce warriors, both skilled in weapons, both wielding swords and darts and maces, then moved about (on the field of battle) assailing each other with whetted arrows.  Then king Virata pierced Susarman with ten shafts and each of his four horses also with five shafts.  And Susarman also, irresistible in battle and conversant with fatal weapons, pierced king of Matsya with fifty whetted shafts.  And then, O mighty monarch, in consequence of the dust on the field of battle, the soldiers of both Susarman and Matsya’s king could not distinguish one another.’”

SECTION XXXIII

“Vaisampayana said, ’Then, O Bharata, when the world was enveloped in dust and the gloom of night, the warriors of both sides, without breaking the order of battle, desisted for a while.[31] And then, dispelling the darkness the moon arose illumining the night and gladdening the hearts of the Kshatriya warriors.  And when everything became visible, the battle once more began.  And it raged on so furiously that the combatants could not distinguish one another.  And then Trigarta’s lord, Susarman with his younger brother, and accompanied by all his cars, rushed towards the king of Matsya.  And descending from their cars, those bulls among Kshatriyas, the (royal) brothers, mace in hand, rushed furiously towards the cars of the foe.  And the hostile hosts fiercely assailed each other with maces and swords and scimitars, battle-axes and bearded darts with keen edges and points of excellent temper.  And king Susarman, the lord of the Trigartas having