rselves are of the same race;
both they and we tread upon the same earth, why dost thou think that
victory will declare itself for only the Pandavas? Bhishma, Drona, Kripa,
the unconquerable Karna, Jayadratha, Somadatta, and Aswatthaman--all
mighty bowmen and endued with great energy,--are incapable of being
vanquished by Indra himself united with the celestials. What sayst thou
then, O father of the Pandavas? All these noble and heroic kings of the
earth, bearing weapons, O father, are quite capable, for my sake, of
withstanding the Pandavas, while the latter are not capable of even
gazing at my troops. I am powerful enough to encounter in battle the
Pandavas with their sons. O Bharata, all those rulers of the earth, who
are anxious for my welfare, will certainly seize all the Pandavas like a
herd of young deer by means of net. I tell thee, in consequence of our
crowds of cars and snares of arrows, the Panchalas and the Pandavas will
all be routed.'

"Dhritarashtra said, 'O Sanjaya, this my son speaketh like a mad man, for
he is incapable of vanquishing in battle Yudhishthira the just. This
Bhishma truly knoweth the might of the famous, powerful, virtuous, and
high-souled Pandavas and their sons, for he doth not wish a battle with
those illustrious ones. But tell me again O Sanjaya, of their movements.
Tell me, who are inciting those illustrious and mighty bowmen endued with
great activity, like priests enkindling (Homa) fires with libations of
clarified butter?'

"Sanjaya said, 'O Bharata, Dhrishtadyumna is always urging the Pandavas
to war, saying, "Fight ye, best among the Bharatas. Do not entertain the
least fear. All those rulers of the earth, who, courted by
Dhritarashtra's son, will become in that fierce encounter targets of
showers of weapons,--indeed, I alone will encounter all those angry kings
assembled together with their relatives, like a whale seizing little
fishes from the water. Bhishma and Drona and Kripa and Karna and Drona's
son and Salya and Suyodhana,--them all I withstand, like the bank
resisting the swelling sea." Unto him saying thus, the virtuous king
Yudhishthira said, "The Panchalas and the Pandavas wholly depend upon thy
prowess and steadiness. Rescue us safely from the war. I know, O
mighty-armed one, that thou art firm in the duties of the Kshatriya
order. Thou art, indeed, quite competent to smite alone the Kauravas.
When the latter, eager for fight, will stand before us, what thou, O
r