"Sanjaya said, 'Beholding the Parthas headed by Dhrishtadyumna stationed for battle, that crusher of foes, viz., Karna, rushed impetuously against the Pancalas. Like swans rushing towards the sea, the Pancalas, longing for victory, rushed as quickly against that high-souled warrior advancing to the encounter. Then the blare of thousands of conchs, as if piercing the heart by its shrillness, arose from both hosts, and the fierce peal also of thousands of drums. The sound also of diverse musical instruments and the noise made by elephants and steeds and cars, and the leonine shouts of heroes, that arose there, became exceedingly awful. It seemed that the whole Earth with her mountains and trees and oceans, the entire welkin covered with wind-tossed clouds, and the whole firmament with the Sun, the Moon, and the stars, trembled with that sound. All creatures regarded that noise to be even such and became agitated. Those amongst them that were endued with little strength fell dead. Then Karna, excited with great wrath, quickly invoking his weapons, began to smite the Pandava army like Maghavat smiting the army of the Asuras. Penetrating then into the Pandava host and shooting his arrows, Karna slew seven and seventy foremost of warriors among the Prabhadrakas. Then that foremost of car-warriors, with five and twenty sharp shafts equipped with goodly wings, slew five and twenty Pancalas. With many cloth-yard shafts equipped with wings of gold and capable of piercing the bodies of all foes, that hero slew the Cedis by hundreds and thousands. While he was employed in achieving those superhuman feats in battle, large throngs of Pancala cars, O king, quickly surrounded him on all sides. Aiming then, O Bharata, five irresistible shafts, Karna, otherwise called Vaikartana or Vrisha, slew five Pancala warriors. The five Pancalas, O Bharata, that he slew in that battle were Bhanudeva and Citrasena and Senavindu and Tapana and Surasena.Mbh 8.48.2a · Mahabharata · Karna-parva
Mbh 8.48.2a
Mahabharata · translated by Kisari Mohan Ganguli
Themes in this passage
WarNatureAngerDesireLeadershipStrengthWealth
War in other traditions
The same theme, as Christianity, Taoism, Islam and Hellenism address it.
For Israel and the Philistines had put the battle in array, army against army.1 Samuel 17:21 · Bible · 1 Samuel
A master of the art of war has said, 'I do not dare to be the host (to commence the war); I prefer to be the guest (to act on the defensive). I do not dare to advance an inch; I prefer to retire a foot.' This is called marshalling the ranks where there are no ranks; baring the arms (to fight) where there are no arms to bare; grasping the weapon where there is no weapon to grasp; advancing against the enemy where there is no enemy.Tao Te Ching 69.1 · Tao Te Ching
Those who believe do battle for the cause of Allah; and those who disbelieve do battle for the cause of idols. So fight the minions of the devil. Lo! the devil's strategy is ever weak.Quran 4:76 · Quran · Women
He spoke, then rush’d amid the warrior crew, And sent his voice before him as he flew, Loud, as the shout encountering armies yield When twice ten thousand shake the labouring field; Such was the voice, and such the thundering sound Of him whose trident rends the solid ground. Each Argive bosom beats to meet the fight, And grisly war appears a pleasing sight.Iliad 14.15 · Iliad · 14
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