y
strokes destructive of bodies and sin. Lion-like men strewed the Earth
with the heads of lion-like men, each resembling the full moon or the sun
in splendour and the lotus in fragrance. Combatants cut off the heads of
combatants, with crescent-shaped and broad-headed shafts and razor-faced
arrows and axes, and battle-axes. The arms of men of long and massive
arms, cut off by men of long and massive arms, falling upon the Earth,
shone, decked with weapons and bracelets. With those writhing arms
adorned with red fingers and palms, the Earth looked resplendent as if
strewn with fierce five-headed snakes slain by Garuda. From elephants and
cars and steeds, brave warriors fell down, struck by foes, like the
denizens of heaven from their celestial cars on the exhaustion of their
merits. Other brave warriors fell down by hundreds, crushed in that
battle by brave combatants with heavy maces spiked clubs and short
bludgeons. Cars also, in that tumultuous fight, were crushed by cars, and
infuriate elephants by infuriate compeers, and horsemen by horsemen. Men
destroyed by cars, and cars by elephants, and horsemen by foot-soldiers,
and foot-soldiers by horsemen, dropped down on the field, as also cars
and steeds and foot-soldiers destroyed by elephants and cars and steeds
and elephants by foot-soldiers, and cars and foot-soldiers and elephants
by steeds and men and elephants by cars. Great was the carnage made of
car-warriors and steeds and elephants and men by men and steeds and
elephants and car-warriors, using their hands and feet and weapons and
cars. When that host was being thus struck and slain by heroic warriors
the Parthas, headed by Vrikodara, advanced against us. They consisted of
Dhrishtadyumna and Shikhandi and the five sons of Draupadi and the
Prabhadrakas, and Satyaki and Chekitana with the Dravida forces, and the
Pandyas, the Cholas, and the Keralas, surrounded by a mighty array, all
possessed of broad chests, long arms, tall statures, and large eyes.
Decked with ornaments, possessed of red teeth, endued with the prowess of
infuriate elephants, attired in robes of diverse colours, smeared with
powdered scents, armed with swords and nooses, capable of restraining
mighty elephants, companions in death, and never deserting one another,
equipped with quivers, bearing bows adorned with long locks, and
agreeable in speech were the combatants of the infantry files led by
Satyaki, belonging to the Andhra tribe, endued with