then his standard.  Thereupon, the other sons of Draupadi, desirous of rescuing that brother of theirs, rushed at him.  And soon they made Karna’s son invisible by means of their arrowy showers.  Against them thus smiting (the son of Karna), many car-warriors headed by Drona’s son (Aswatthama) rushed.  And those, O monarch, quickly covered those mighty car-warriors, viz., the sons of Draupadi, with diverse kinds of arrows like clouds pouring rain on mountain breasts.  Thereupon, the Pandavas, from affection for their sons, quickly encountered those assailants.  The battle then that took place between thy troops and those of the Pandavas, was exceedingly fierce and made the hairs stand on their ends, resembling as it did that between the Gods and the Danavas.  Even thus did the heroic Kauravas and the Pandavas, excited with rage, fight, eyeing one another (furiously) and having incurred one another’s animosity for past offences.  The bodies of those heroes of immeasurable energy then seemed, in consequence of (the) wrath (that inspired them), to resemble those of Garuda and (mighty) Nagas battling in the sky.  And with Bhima and Karna and Kripa and Drona and Drona’s son and Prishata’s son and Satyaki, the field of battle looked resplendent like the all-destructive sun that rises at the end of the Yuga.  The battle that took place between those mighty men engaged with mighty antagonists and all smiting one another was fierce in the extreme, resembling that (of yore) between the Danavas and the gods.  Then Yudhishthira’s host, uttering a shout, loud as that of the surging sea, began to slaughter thy troops, the great car-warriors of thy army having fled away.  Beholding the (Kaurava) host broken and excessively mangled by the foe, Drona said, ‘Ye heroes, ye need not fly away.’  Then he (Drona) owning red steeds, excited with wrath and resembling a (fierce) elephant with four tusks, penetrated into the Pandava host and rushed against Yudhishthira.  Then Yudhishthira pierced the preceptor with many whetted arrows equipped with Kanka feathers; Drona, however, cutting off Yudhishthira’s bow, rushed impetuously at him.  Then the protector of Yudhishthira’s car-wheels, Kumara, the renowned prince of the Panchalas, received the advancing Drona, like the continent receiving the surging sea.  Beholding Drona, that bull among Brahmanas, held in check by Kumara, loud leonine shouts were heard there with cries of ’Excellent, Excellent!’ Kumara then, in that great battle, excited with rage, pierced Drona with an arrow in the chest and uttered many leonine shouts.  Having checked Drona in battle, the mighty Kumara, endued with great lightness of hand, and above all fatigue, pierced him with many thousands of arrows.  Then that bull among men (Drona) slew that protector of Yudhishthira’s car-wheels, Kumara, that hero observant of virtuous vows and accomplished in both mantras and weapons.  And then penetrating into the midst of the (Pandava) host and careering in all directions, that bull among