the field, like Sakra repulsing Maya in days of old.  That scorcher of foes, the Rakshasa, then, thus repulsed and struck repeatedly by his adversary, exhibited his great powers of illusion by causing a thick darkness to set in.  Then all the combatants there, O king, were covered by that darkness.  Neither could Abhimanyu be seen, nor could friends be distinguished from foes in that battle.  Abhimanyu, however, beholding that thick and awful gloom, invoked into existence.  O son of Kuru’s race, the blazing solar weapon.  Thereupon, O king, the universe once more became visible.  And thus he neutralised the illusion of that wicked Rakshasa.  Then that prince of men, excited with wrath and endued with great energy, covered that foremost of Rakshasa in that battle with many straight shafts.  Diverse other kinds of illusion were conjured up there by that Rakshasa.  Conversant with all weapons, the son of Phalguni however, neutralised them all.  The Rakshasa then, his illusions all destroyed, and himself struck with shafts, abandoned his car even there, and fled away in great fear.  After that Rakshasa addicted to unfair fight had been thus vanquished, the son of Arjuna began to grind thy troops in battle, like a juice-blind prince of wild elephants agitating a lake overgrown with lotus.[465] Then Bhishma the son of Santanu, beholding his troops routed, covered Subhadra’s son with a thick shower of arrows.  Then many mighty car-warriors of the Dhartarashtra army, standing in a ring round that single hero, began to strike him forcibly with their shafts.  That hero then, who resembled his sire in prowess and who was equal to Vasudeva in valour and might,—­that foremost of all wielders of weapons,—­achieved diverse feats in that battle that were worthy of both his sire and maternal uncle.  Then the heroic Dhananjaya, excited with wrath and desirous of rescuing his son, arrived at the spot where the latter was slaughtering thy troops as he came along.  And similarly, O king, thy sire Devavrata in that battle approached Partha like Rahu approaching the sun.[466] Then thy sons, O monarch, supported by cars, elephants, and steeds, surrounded Bhishma in that battle and protected him from every side.  And so also the Pandavas, O king, clad in mail and surrounding Dhananjaya, engaged in fierce battle, O bull of Bharata’s race.  Then Saradwat’s son (Kripa), O king, pierced Arjuna who was staying in front of Bhishma, with five and twenty shafts.  Thereupon, like a tiger attacking an elephant, Satyaki, approaching Kripa, pierced him with many whetted shafts from desire of doing what was agreeable to the Pandavas.  Gautama in return, excited with wrath, quickly pierced him of Madhu’s race in the chest with nine arrows winged with the feathers of the Kanka bird.  Sini’s grandson also, excited with wrath, and forcibly drawing his bow, quickly sped at him an arrow capable of taking his life.  The fiery son of Drona, however, excited with wrath, cut in twain that arrow as it coursed