Shloka 18
वासवाशनिनिर्घोषं दृढज्यमतिविक्षिपन्,तस्यां वीरापहारिण्यां निशायां कर्णम भ्ययात् । वीरोंका संहार करनेवाली उस रात्रिमें इन्द्रके वज़्की भाँति भयानक टंकार करनेवाले और सुदृढ़ प्रत्यंचावाले एक हाथ चौड़े एवं बारह अरत्नि लंबे धनुषको खींचता और रथके धुरेके समान मोटे बाणोंसे सम्पूर्ण दिशाओंको आच्छादित करता हुआ घटोत्कच ([पूर्वोक्त रथपर आरूढ़ हो) कर्णकी ओर चला
sañjaya uvāca | vāsavāśani-nirghoṣaṁ dṛḍha-jyam ati-vikṣipan, tasyāṁ vīrāpahāriṇyāṁ niśāyāṁ karṇam abhyayāt |
Sañjaya said: In that night which was a snatcher-away of heroes, Ghaṭotkaca advanced toward Karṇa, drawing and powerfully hurling with a firmly strung bow whose roar was like Indra’s thunderbolt—filling the directions with thick, axle-like arrows. The scene intensifies the moral darkness of nocturnal warfare: valor is displayed, yet the night itself is portrayed as consuming warriors, underscoring the tragic, dehumanizing momentum of battle.
संजय उवाच