Mahabharata VOL I2 - HolyBooks.com

ASWAMEDHA PABVA 141in battle. Thus occurred innumerable battles in diverse countries, Omonarch, between Arjuna and the rulers ofdiverse realms who came toencounter him. I shall, O sinless king, narrate to thee those battlesonly which raged with great fury and which were the principal onesamong all he fought.''SECTION LXXIVVaisampayana said, "A battle took place between the diademdecked(Arjuna) and the sons and grandsons of the Trigartas whosehostility the Pandavas had incurred before and all of whom were wellknownas mighty car-warriors. Having learnt that that foremost ofsteeds, which was intended for the sacrifice, had come to their realm,those heroes, casing themselves in mail, surrounded Arjuna. Mountedon their cars, drawn by excellent and well-decked horses, and withquivers on their backs, they surrounded that horse, O king, and endeavouredto capture The it. diadem-decked Arjuna. reflecting on thatendeavour of theirs, forbade those heroes, with conciliatory speeches,chastiser of foes. Disregarding Arjuna's message, they assailed him withtheir shafts. The diadem-decked Arjuna resisted those warriors whowere under the sway of darkness and passion. Jishnu, addressed themsmilingly and said, 'Desist, ye unrighteous ones. Life is a benefit (thatshould not be thrown away).' At the time of his setting out, he hadbeen earnestly ordered by king Yudhishthira the just, not to slay thoseKshatriyas whose kinsmen had been slain before on the field of Kurukshetra.Recollecting these commands of king Yudhishthira the justwho was endued with great intelligence, Arjuna asked the Trigartas toforbear. But they disregarded Arjuna's injunction. Then Arjunavanquished Suryavarman, the king of the Trigartas, in battle, by shootingcountless shafts at him and laughed in scorn. The Trigarta warriors,however, filling the ten points with the clatter of their cars and carwheels,rushed towards Dhananjaya. Then Suryavarman, displayinghis great lightness of hand, pierced Dhananjaya with hundreds ofstraight arrows, O monarch. The other great bowmen who followedthe king and who were all desirous of compassing the destruction ofDhananjaya, shot showers of arrows on him. With countless shafts shotfrom his own bow-string, the son of Pandu, O king, cut off those cloudsof arrows upon which they fell down. Endued with great energy, Ketuvarman,the younger brother of Suryavarman, and possessed of youthfulvigour, fought, for the sake of his brother, against Pandu's sonpossessed of great fame. Beholding Ketuvarman approaching towardshim for battle, Vibhatsu, that slayer of hostile heroes, slew him withmany sharp-pointed arrows. Upon Ketuvarmana's fall, the mighty carwarriorDhritavarman, rushing on his car towards Arjuna, showered aO