“Sanjaya said, ’Hear, O king, how we and the enemy both stood for battle on that occasion and what was then the strength of the two armies. 11,000 cars, O bull of Bharata’s race, 10,700 elephants, and full 200,000 horses, and three millions of foot, composed the strength of thy army. 6,000 cars, 6,000 elephants, 10,000 horses, and one million of foot, O Bharata, were all that composed the remnant of the Pandava force in the battle.  These, O bull of Bharata’s race, encountered each other for battle.  Having distributed their forces in this way, O monarch, ourselves, excited with wrath and inspired with desire of victory, proceeded against the Pandavas, having placed ourselves under the command of the ruler of the Madras.  Similar, the brave Pandavas, those tigers among men, desirous of victory, and the Pancalas possessed of great fame, came to battle.  Even thus, O monarch, all those tigers among men, desirous of slaughtering their foes, encountered one another at dawn of day, O lord.  Then commenced a fierce and terrible battle between thy troops and the enemy, the combatants being all engaged in striking and slaughtering one another.’”

9

“Sanjaya said, ’Then commenced the battle between the Kurus and the Srinjayas, O monarch, that was as fierce and awful as the battle between the gods and the Asuras.  Men and crowds of cars and elephants, and elephant-warriors and horsemen by thousands, and steeds, all possessed of great prowess, encountered one another.  The loud noise of rushing elephants of fearful forms was then heard there resembling the roars of the clouds in the welkin, in the season of rains.  Some car-warriors, struck by elephants, were deprived of their cars.  Routed by those infuriate animals other brave combatants ran on the field.  Well-trained car-warriors, O Bharata, with their shafts, despatched large bodies of cavalry and the footmen that urged and protected the elephants, to the other world.  Well-trained horsemen, O king, surrounding great car-warriors, careered on the field, striking and slaying the latter with spears and darts and swords.  Some combatants armed with bows, encompassing great car-warriors, despatched them to Yama’s abode, the many unitedly battling against individual ones.  Other great car-warriors, encompassing elephants and foremost warriors of their own class, slew some mighty one amongst that fought on the field, careering all around.  Similarly, O king, elephants, encompassing individual car-warriors excited with wrath and scattering showers of shafts, despatched them to the other world.  Elephant-warrior rushing against elephant-warrior and car-warrior against car-warrior in that battle slew each other with darts and lances and cloth-yard shafts, O Bharata.  Cars and elephants and horses, crushing foot-soldiers in the midst of battle, were seen to make confusion worse confounded.  Adorned with yak-tails, steeds rushed on all sides, looking like the swans found on the plains at the foot of Himavat.  They rushed with