Ghatotkacha-Vadha Parva — The lighting up of the troops

Sanjaya said That terrible and awe-inspiring battle having taken place when the world was enveloped with darkness and dust, o lord of the earth.

The warriors, who remained on the field of battle) could not distinguish one another. It was by conjecture and uttering their names that those foremost of the Kshatriyas fought with one another.

When that terrible destruction of men, horses, elephants and foot-soldiers was going on, those heroes viz., Drona, Karna, Kripa, Bhima, the son of Prishata and Satvata.

Began, O best of the Bharatas, to afflict each other and the troops. The soldiers, (thus) terribly slaughtered by those great car-warriors.

And surrounded by that dense gloom, took to flight in all directions. And with their minds (greatly) agitated (with terror) they ran away on all sides.

And, Ogreat king, while flying away in all directions they were (pursued) and killed. In that engagement thousands of great carwarriors slaughter one another.

(And) in that blinding darkness, (the soldiers) lost their senses. (All this is no doubt due to the evil counsels of your son. And that (dismal) darkness prevailing all around, all the creatures, may the very foremost of the combatants themselves, O Bharata, were seized with terror and their senses forsook them, o Bharata in that battle.

Dhritarashtra said When drowned in that blinding darkness you were agitated by the Pandavas and were deprived of your energy, what became the state of your minds?

When the world was thus enveloped with darkness, how, O Sanjaya, their and my armies were disclosed to view again!

Sanjaya said Then all the survivors of the slaughtered army (of the Kurus) were, in obedience to the order of their commanders, again drawn up in battle array.

And Drona (took his station) at the van, Shalya at the rear and the sons of Drona and Subala (respectively placed themselves) at the right and left flanks (of that array). And king (Duryodhana) himself, O monarch, was, during that night, engaged in protecting all the troops.

(And) consoling all the foot-soldiers and also the lords of the earth, Duryodhana said to them "leaving aside your great weapons, take in hand blazing lamps.”

In obedience to the command of that foremost of kings they gladly took (burning) lamps, in their hands. large numbers of celestials, sages, Gandharvas and Rishis and hosts of Vidyadharas, Apsaras.

Nagas, Yakshas, Uragas and Kinnaras, stationed in the firmament, cheerfully took up lamps. Lamps, filled with perfumed oil, were seen to fall from the lands of) the regents of the cardinal points.

Specially Narada and Parvata sent down for the sake of the foremost of the Kurus many such lamps, dispelling the darkness. On that night, the army (of the Kurus) looked brilliant by virtue of the lustre of these) lamps.

The precious ornaments (wom by the combatants) and of the blazing celestial weapons that were hurled (by the Kaurava army against their enemies). Five lamps were placed on each car and three on each maddened elephants.

Upon each horse (was placed) a huge lamp. It was in this way that the Kuru warriors were illuminated. The lamps, being thus placed in due order, very lighted up your army.

Nay, all the troops thus disclosed to view by the foot-soldiers carrying oilified lamps in their hands, looked as brilliant as the clouds in the firmament during the night with flashes of lightning (plying amidst them).

When the army was thus lighted up, Drona, like the fire, scorching everything around, looked resplendent, O king of kings, with his golden armour on, like the mid-day sun of blazing rays.

The lustre of the lamps (falling upon the golden Ornaments) the bright cuirasses and bow and the will-tempered weapons, was reflected from them.

The rays (of these lamps) falling upon maces entwined with strings, bright Parighas, cars and darts as they whirled along, created innumerable lamps.

O king, umbrellas and yak-tails and scimitars and flaming brands and necklaces of gold as they were being whirled looked exceedingly brilliant.

And, O king, that army illuminated by the lustre of the weapons, by the splendour of those lamps and by the brilliancy of the ornaments, looked highly resplendent.

Well-tempered and beautiful weapons dyed with blood and wielded by the warriors shed a blazing lustre like flashes of lightning in the firmament at the end of the hot season.

The faces, of the combatants who were trembling by the impetuosity of their speed and rushing furiously against their enemies striking them down, shone at that time like great lotuses shaken by the wind.

On that dreadful night that army blazed up (by the light of those lamps) looked as terrible as the splendour of the sun during the progress of the conflagration of a great forest teeming with trees.

Seeing our army (thus) lighted up, the sons of Pritha urging all their foot-soldiers through their entire army, acted in the same way (as we did).

(And they) placed seven lamps on each elephant, ten on each car, two on the back of every horse and many on the flank and rear and the standards.

(Innumerable) blazing lamps were placed on the flanks and the rear and the van of and within and all around the entire army. Thus were the two hosts lighted up.

Through the entire army, the infantry became mixed up with throngs of elephants, cars and horses. And like them (i.e. the footsoldiers) several other persons, also taking flaming brands in their hands, lighted up the army of the son of Pandu.

By virtue of (the lustre of) those lamps that army became fiercely blazed up like a blazing fire made fiercely illuminated by the rays of the sun, the maker of day.

The splendour of those two (armies) reaching beyond the earth, the firmament and all the cardinal points began to increase. By that light their army as well as yours became crearly disclosed to view.

All the celestials, the Gandharvas, the Yakshas, the gods, the Siddhas and the Apsaras, awakened by that light which reached the skies, appeared on the scene.

The field of battle, thronged with the celestials, the Gandharvas, the Yakshas, the Siddhas, the Apsaras and the spirits of the dead combatants about to enter the celestials regions, appeared like a second heaven.

Crowded with cars, horses and elephants lighted up by these lamps and (teeming with) furious warriors and steeds slain or careering madly, that mighty host, consisting of men, horses and elephants drawn up in battle array, looked like the array of the celestials and the Asuras (in days of yore).

That nocturnal battle between the god-like combatants raged furiously like a tempest. The rush of arrows formed its fierce winds, the mighty car-warriors and elephants its clouds, the shafts its showers and the blood (of the combatants and the animals) its torrent of rain.

In that encounter that foremost of the Brahmanas, he magnanimous (Drona) endued with the energy of a great fire began to afflict the Pandavas like the noon day sun, (scorching everything) at the end of the rainy season.