dropped down from his hand.  And he struck the five sons of Draupadi with five arrows.  And from wrath, he slew the steeds of Bhimasena.  And with three shafts winged with feathers, he cut down Bhimasena’s standard bearing the device of a lion.  And with three other shafts he pierced Bhima’s charioteer.  Deeply pierced by Bhagadatta in that battle, and exceedingly pained, Visoka thereupon, O chief of the Bharatas, sat down on the terrace of the car.  Then, O king, that foremost of car-warriors, viz., Bhima, thus deprived of his car, quickly jumped down from his large vehicle taking up his mace.  Beholding him with mace upraised and looking like a crested hill, all thy troops, O Bharata, became filled with great fear.  Just at this time that son of Pandu who had Krishna for his charioteer, O king, slaughtering the foe on all sides as he came, appeared at that spot where those tigers among men, those mighty car-warriors, viz., Bhimasena and Ghatotkacha, sire and son, were engaged with the ruler of the Pragjyotishas.  Beholding his brothers, those mighty car-warriors, engaged in battle, that son of Pandu quickly commenced to fight, profusely scattering his shafts, O chief of the Bharatas.  Then that mighty car-warrior, viz., king Duryodhana, speedily urged on a division of his troops abounding with cars and elephants.  Towards that mighty division of the Kauravas thus advancing with impetuosity, Arjuna of white steeds rushed with great impetuosity.  Bhagadatta also, upon that elephant of his, O Bharata, crushing the Pandava ranks, rushed towards Yudhishthira.  Then commenced a fierce battle between Bhagadatta, O sire, and the Panchalas, the Srinjayas, and the Kekayas, with upraised weapons.  Then Bhimasena, in that battle told both Kesava and Arjuna in detail about the slaughter of Iravat as it had occurred.”

SECTION XCVII

Sanjaya said, “Hearing that his son Iravat had been slain, Dhananjaya was filled with great grief and sighed like a snake.  And addressing Vasava in the midst of battle, he said these words, ’Without doubt, the high-souled Vidura of great wisdom had before seen (with his mind’s eye) this awful destruction of the Kurus and the Pandavas.  It was for this that he forbade king Dhritarashtra.[456] In this battle, O slayer of Madhu, many other heroes have been slain by the Kaurava and many amongst the Kauravas have similarly been slain by ourselves.  O best of men, for the sake of wealth vile acts are being done.  Fie upon that wealth for the sake of which such slaughter of kinsmen is being perpetrated.  For him that hath no wealth, even death would be better than the acquisition of wealth by the slaughter of kinsmen.  What, O Krishna, shall we gain by slaying our assembled kinsmen?  Alas, for Duryodhana’s, fault, and also of Sakuni the son of Suvala, as also through the evil counsels of Karna, the Kshatriya race is being exterminated, O slayer of Madhu, I now