Krishna Pursues Shalva to Marttikavata and the Ocean

Krishna passed over many countries, mountains thick with trees, lakes and rivers, until he reached Marttikavata. There he learned that Shalva had already left the city on Soubha. He followed after him. He reached the bay of the ocean where large waves billowed, and found Shalva on Soubha, in the middle of the ocean. The evil-souled one saw Krishna from a distance and challenged him again and again to battle. Krishna shot many arrows from Sharnga, his great bow — arrows capable of piercing the heart. But the arrows failed to reach Shalva's city. Soubha hovered one krosha up in the sky, and Krishna's soldiers could not see the object they were aiming at. Rage engulfed him. Shalva began to rain thousands of showers of arrows on Krishna. He showered arrows on Krishna's soldiers, on his charioteer Daruka, and on his horses. But without thinking about this, Krishna continued to fight. Shalva's followers in battle shot hundreds and thousands of curved arrows at Krishna. The asuras covered his horses, his chariot, and Daruka himself with arrows that were capable of piercing the heart. At that time, Krishna could not see the horses, the chariot, or his charioteer Daruka. He and his soldiers were invisible because of those arrows. Then Krishna released many tens of thousands of arrows from his bow, invoking them with divine and prescribed mantras. The beautiful arrows released from his bow in that great battle entered the bodies of the danavas like locusts addicted to blood. Sounds of wailing increased inside Soubha. Those who had been killed by those sharp arrows fell into the great ocean. Having lost their arms and their necks, they assumed the form of headless trunks. With terrible roars, the danavas continued to fall down. All of Krishna's soldiers could only look on, like spectators at the enclosure of a performance. But they happily cheered him on, clapping their hands and roaring like lions.