Adorned with crowns, garlands,
bracelets, and other ornaments, endued with mighty arms, possessed of
prowess and vigour and bursting with strength and energy, those princes
could not, even in imagination, string that bow of extraordinary
stiffness.
"And (some amongst) those kings in exerting with swelling lips each
according to his strength, education, skill, and energy,--to string that
bow, were tossed on the ground and lay perfectly motionless for some time.
Their strength spent and their crowns and garlands loosened from their
persons, they began to pant for breath and their ambition of winning that
fair maiden was cooled. Tossed by that tough bow, and their garlands and
bracelets and other ornaments disordered, they began to utter exclamations
of woe. And that assemblage of monarchs, their hope of obtaining Krishna
gone, looked sad and woeful. And beholding the plight of those monarchs,
Karna that foremost of all wielders of the bow went to where the bow was,
and quickly raising it strung it and placed the arrows on the string. And
beholding the son of Surya--Karna of the Suta tribe--like unto fire, or
Soma, or Surya himself, resolved to shoot the mark, those foremost of
bowmen--the sons of Pandu--regarded the mark as already shot and brought
down upon the ground. But seeing Karna, Draupadi loudly said, 'I will not
select a Suta for my lord.' Then Karna, laughing in vexation and casting
glance at the Sun, threw aside the bow already drawn to a circle.
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