elephants and all the horse and 3,000 foot, proceed with thee!  Supported by these, slay Shakuni!” At this, 700 elephants ridden by combatants armed with the bow, and 5,000 horses, and the valiant Sahadeva, and 3,000 foot-soldiers, and the sons of Draupadi all rushed against Shakuni difficult of defeat in battle.  Subala’s son, however, of great valour, O king, prevailing over the Pandavas and longing for victory, began to slay their forces from the rear.  The horsemen, infuriate with rage, belonging to the Pandavas endued with great activity, penetrated the division of Subala’s son, prevailing over the latter’s car-warriors.  Those heroic horsemen, staying in the midst of their own elephants, covered the large host of Subala’s son with showers of shafts.  In consequence of thy evil counsels, O king, dreadful was the battle that then ensued in which maces and lances were used and in which heroes only took part.  The twang of bow-string was no longer heard there, for all the car-warriors stood as spectators of that fight.  At that time no difference could be seen between the contending parties.  Both the Kurus and the Pandavas, O bull of Bharata’s race, beheld the darts hurled from heroic arms course like meteors through the welkin.  The entire welkin, O monarch, shrouded with falling swords of great brightness, seemed to become exceedingly beautiful.  The aspect presented, O chief of the Bharatas, by the lances hurled all around, became like that of swarms of locusts in the welkin.  Steeds, with limbs bathed in blood in consequence of wounds inflicted by horsemen themselves wounded with arrows, dropped down on all sides in hundreds and thousands.  Encountering one another and huddled together, many of them were seen to be mangled and many to vomit blood from their mouths.  A thick darkness came there when the troops were covered with a dusty cloud.  When that darkness shrouded everything, O king, we beheld those brave combatants, steeds and men, move away from that spot.  Others were seen to fall down on the Earth, vomiting blood in profusion.  Many combatants, entangled with one another by their locks, could not stir.  Many, endued with great strength, dragged one another from the backs of their horses, and encountering one another thus, slew one another like combatants in a wrestling match.  Many deprived of life, were borne away on the backs of the steeds.  Many men, proud of their valour and inspired with desire of victory, were seen to fall down on the Earth.  The Earth became strewn over with hundreds and thousands of combatants bathed in blood, deprived of limbs, and divested of hair.  In consequence of the surface of the Earth being covered with elephant-riders and horsemen and slain steeds and combatants with blood-stained armour and others armed with weapons and others who had sought to slay one another with diverse kinds of terrible weapons, all lying closely huddled together in that battle fraught with fearful carnage, no warrior could