07.143
Core and Pancharatra: Battle between Nakula and Chitrasena, Duryodhana's brother, Nakula wins. Battle between Drupada and Karna's son Vṛṣasena, where Drupada faces defeat. Dushasana takes on Prativindya.
Sanjaya said:
Shatanika was rapidly destroying your army with his arrows, but your son Chitrasena intervened and stopped him, O Bharata.
Nakula struck Citraseṇa deeply with an iron arrow, but Citraseṇa retaliated by shooting ten sharp arrows at him.
Citraseṇa, the great king, once again attacked Śatānīka in the battle, hitting him in the chest with nine sharp arrows.
Nakul, with his arrows, removed the armor with bent joints from the body, and it seemed as if it was a wonderful feat.
Your son, without his armor, shone brightly, O king, as he shed his skin like a snake in due course.
Then Nakula, with his sharp arrows, cut off the flag and the bow of the warrior who was striving in battle, O great king.
He, the great chariot-warrior, though with a broken bow and without armor in battle, took another bow, O great king, to tear the enemy apart.
Then, in a swift and angry move, Citrasena, the great chariot warrior of the Bharatas, struck Nakula with nine arrows during the battle.
Then, Shatānīka, in his anger, killed the four horses and the charioteer of Citrasena, O lord, demonstrating his prowess as the best of men.
Citrasena, the great warrior, leapt from his chariot and struck Nakula with twenty-five arrows, demonstrating his strength.
While engaged in that action, Nakula's son cut off the jewel-adorned bow with a crescent-shaped arrow during the battle.
He, having his bow broken, his chariot, horses, and charioteer slain, quickly mounted the chariot of the noble Hārdikya.
Vṛṣasena quickly approached Drupada, who was with his army and desiring to confront Drona, and scattered hundreds of arrows at that time.
Yajnasena, in the battle, struck Karna's son, the great chariot-warrior, with sixty arrows in his arms and chest, O sinless one.
Vṛṣasena, in his anger, attacked Yajñasena, who was standing on the chariot, with numerous sharp arrows, hitting him in the chest.
O great king, those two warriors, both pierced and covered with arrows, shone in the battlefield like a pair of hunting dogs with spears.
In the great battle, the thin cover was cut by golden-feathered, straight-pointed arrows, and soaked with a stream of blood, they shone brilliantly.
They appeared in the battlefield, shining like golden, bright and wonderful wish-fulfilling trees, and like fully blossomed Butea trees.
Then Vṛṣasena, O king, struck Drupada with nine arrows, and then again with seventy and three more arrows.
Then, Karna's son, releasing thousands of arrows, appeared majestic, O great king, like a rain-bearing cloud.
Then, O king, the army of Drupada, having been cut and scattered by arrows, fled the battlefield at the terrifying midnight.
The earth, surrounded by the abandoned and burning lamps all around, shone brightly, O king, like a cloudless sky filled with stars.
"O great king, during the rainy season, the earth appeared resplendent with fallen bracelets, much like a cloud adorned with lightning."
Then, the Somakas, terrified by Karna's son, fled just as the demons did in fear of Indra during the battle with Taraka.
The Somakas, being afflicted in battle and fleeing, shone brightly illuminated by the lamps, O great king.
Karna's son, having defeated them in battle, shone brightly like the midday sun, O Bharata.
Among the thousands of kings, both yours and others, Vṛṣasena alone stood out, shining and mighty.
After defeating the valiant warriors and great charioteers of the Somakas in battle, he swiftly proceeded to the place where King Yudhishthira was present.
Then, Duḥśāsana, your son, the great chariot-warrior, confronted Prativindhya, who was fiercely attacking the enemies in the battle.
The meeting of those two, O king, was indeed wonderful, like the conjunction of Mercury and Venus in a clear sky.
Prativindhya, engaged in a challenging task during the battle, was struck on the forehead by Duhshasana with three arrows.
He, having been deeply pierced by your strong son who is an archer, shone with his mighty arms like a mountain with peaks.
In the battle, Prativindhya, a great chariot warrior, struck Duhshasana with nine arrows and then pierced him again with seven more.
In that place, O Bhārata, your son accomplished a formidable task. He brought down the powerful horses of Prativindhya with his arrows.
He shot down the charioteer and the flag with an arrow, and pierced the chariot of the archer hundreds of times, O king.
In his anger, he skillfully severed the flags, quivers, reins, and yokes into tiny pieces using arrows with curved joints, O mighty one.
Without his chariot, the righteous warrior stood firm with his bow and engaged your son in battle, unleashing a torrent of arrows.
He skillfully cut off his opponent's bow with a razor-sharp arrow. Then, using ten arrows, he tormented the opponent whose bow had been severed.
Seeing him without his chariot there, his brothers, the great warriors, quickly followed with a large army.
Drenched, he then took the shining chariot of Sutasoma and, O great king, pierced your son with the bow.
Then, all your men, surrounding your son, advanced into the battle with a great army.
Then, O Bharata, the battle began between your forces and theirs at the dreadful hour of midnight, expanding the realm of Yama.
