SECTION CVIII

“Sanjaya said, ’Having fled away from Bhima, Alamvusha, in another part of the field, careered fearlessly in battle.  And while he was thus fearlessly careering in battle, the son of Hidimva rushed impetuously at him and pierced him with keen shafts.  The battle between those two lions among Rakshasas became terrible.  Both of them invoked into existence illusions like Sakra and Samvara (in days of old).  Alamvusha, excited with rage, attacked Ghatotkacha.  Indeed, that encounter between those two foremost of Rakshasas resembled that of old between Rama and Ravana, O lord!  Then Ghatotkacha having pierced Alamvusha, in the centre of the chest with twenty long shafts, repeatedly roared like a lion.  Smilingly, O king, Alamvusha also, repeatedly piercing the invincible son of Hidimva, uttered loud roars in joy, filling the entire welkin.  Then, those two foremost of Rakshasas, endued with great might, became filled with rage.  They fought with each other, displaying their powers of illusion, but without any of them getting any advantage over the other.  Each, creating a hundred illusions, stupefied the other.  Both accomplished in producing’ illusions, O king, that Ghatotkacha displayed in battle, were all destroyed, O monarch, by Alamvusha, producing similar illusions of his own.  Beholding that prince of Rakshasas, viz., Alamvusha, who was accomplished in producing illusions, fight in that manner, the Pandavas became filled with anxiety, they then caused him to be surrounded by many foremost of car-warriors.  Bhimasena and others, O monarch, all rushed in rage against him.  Hemming him, O sire, on all sides by means of numberless cars, they shrouded him from every side with shafts, like men in a forest encompassing an elephant with blazing brands.  Baffling that shower of weapons by means of the illusion of his own weapons, freed himself from that press of cars like an elephant from a forest conflagration.  Then drawing his terrible bow whose twang resembled the thunder of Indra, he pierced the son of the Wind-god with five and twenty shafts, and Bhimasena’s son with five, and Yudhishthira with three, and Sahadeva with seven, and Nakula with three and seventy, and each of the five sons of Draupadi with five shafts, and uttered a loud roar.  Then Bhimasena pierced him in return with nine shafts, and Sahadeva with five.  And Yudhishthira pierced the Rakshasa with a hundred shafts.  And Nakula pierced him with three shafts.  The son of Hidimva having pierced him with five hundred shafts, Alamvusha once more pierced him with seventy, and that mighty warrior uttered a loud roar.  With that loud roar of Ghatotkacha the earth shook, O king, with her mountains and forests and with her trees and waters.  Deeply pierced on all sides by those great bowmen and mighty car-warriors, Alamvusha pierced each of them in return with five arrows.  Then that Rakshasa, O chief of the Bharatas,