Chapter XXXIII - Comingled fighting

Rama said:—

1. ^[1]Sir, relate to me in short and promptly, about this warfare, as my ears are delighted with narratives of this kind.

Vasishtha said:—

2. These ladies then, in order to have a better view of the battle below, ascended in their imaginary aerial cars vimanas, to a more retired spot in the higher regions of the sky.

3. At this interval, there began a mingled fight of the forces face to face, with a commingled shout of the two armies, as the dashing of the waves against one another in the raging sea.

4. At this instant, Viduratha the lord of the realm, (formerly Padma—the husband of Lila), seeing a daring warrior of the hostile force attack one of his soldiers, struck him impatiently on the breast, with the blow of a ponderous mallet.

5. Then the battle raged with the impetuosity of the rolling waves of the stormy main, and the arms on both sides, flamed with living fire and flash of fiery lightnings.

6. Now the edges of waving swords (larattarat), glittered in the sky, and cracking and clashing noise (Kanakana), filled the air with a hideous crackling (kadkada).

7. Then flew the winged arrows, overshadowing the beams of the sun, and emitting a booming noise (hunkara), which hushed the rattling clamour (gharghara) of summer clouds.

8. Armours clashed against armours (Kankata), with a clanking noise (tankara), and shot forth the sparks of glistening fire (Kanatkana); and arms, hashing (ch'hina-bhinna) and slashing (Khanda-khanda) against arms, filled the air with their fragments flying like birds in the air.

9. The shaking (dodulya) shanks and arms of the army, appeared as a moving forest (dordruma) on the land, and the twangings of their bows (tankara), and rumbling of the disks (krenkara), drove away the birds of the air, and crackled like the rattling drive of wheels (dravat) in heaven.

10. The hissing of their loosened strings (halhala), resembled the (ghunghuna) buzzing of bees, heard in the samadhi yoga (by shutting the ears).

11. Iron shafts like sleets of hailstones, pierced the heads of the soldiers, and the (ranat) crashing of armours (sanghatta), broke the arms of the warriors in mail (Kankata sankata).

12. Weapons struck on brazen armours with a howling noise (hunkara), made a clanking sound by the stroke (tankara), and flying like drifts of rain water (tartara), pierced the face of the air on all sides: (literally, denticulated—dantura dingmukha).

13. The striking of steel on one another (sanghatta), made the hands ring with a jingling sound (jhanjhanat); and the continued rapping on the arms, (asphota), and clapping of hands, (karasphota), raised a pattering and chattering sound (chat chat and pat pat).

14. The whizzing noise of unsheathing the sword (shitkara), and the hissing of the sparks of fire (sansana); the flinging of arrows in all ways (sadatkara), and the flying of darts, likened the rustling of falling leaves (Kharkhara) in autumn.

15. The spouting of life blood (dhakdhak), from the throats separated from the bodies, the mangled limbs and heads, and the broken swords filled the whole space.

16. The flame of fire flaring (sphurat) from the armours;emblazoned the hairs of the warriors, and the fighting and falling (ranatpatat) of swordsmen, raised a giddy and loud jingling of their weapons (jhanjhana).

17. The lofty elephants pierced by the spears of the Kunta lancers, poured out torrents of red-hot blood; while the tusky tribe was goring whole bodies of them with their shrill cries (chitkara).

18. Others crushed by the ponderous maces of their antagonists, creaked grievously under the blows; while the heads of the slain soldiers, swam in the rivers of blood over the plain.

19. Here the hungry vultures were pouncing from above, and there the sky was covered by a cloud of dust; and the weaponless combatants, were engaged in Kesakesi fighting, by holding each other down by the hairs.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

The whole of this chapter abounds in onomatopoeian alliterations, and is more a play upon words than display of sense. It is interesting however, for these jingling words in the language, as also for the names of the warlike weapons in use among the ancients.