Having recited thus much of the history, Shree Shookdeo Jee said,--Raja! the gods, seated at that time in their chariots in the sky, beheld the descendants of Judoo fighting with the demons, and a mighty battle raging, Krishnù stood looking on, whilst Bulram fought. Kettle-drums sounded, bards sang war-songs, panegyrists celebrated the praises of the combatants, horsemen encountered horsemen, elephant riders elephant riders, charioteers charioteers, and foot soldiers foot soldiers. In every direction heroes and brave men attacked and engaged each other; and cowards, leaving the field, ran off with their lives. The wounded stood writhing with pain, headless trunks, with swords in their hands, wandered about in every direction, and bodies were heaped upon bodies, from which a river of blood flowed; the elephants, which were lying dead here and there, appeared like islands, and their trunks like alligators. Muhadeo, accompanied by ghosts, goblins and spirits, wore a garland of heads, which he had selected; and vultures, jackals and dogs tore and fought with each other for the corpses of the slain, and, rending them in pieces, devoured them. Crows plucked out eyes from their sockets, and carried them off. At length, in sight of the gods, Bulram destroyed the army of demons, in the manner that a husbandman would reap a field. Joorasindhoo and Sissoopal, when their whole army was destroyed, took a few wounded men with them, and flying arrived and made a stand at the same place. Sissoopal, expressing great regret and shaking his head, said to Joorasindhoo, “It is not right I should live, having lost my honour, and brought disgrace on my family; with your permission, therefore, I will return to the battle, and die fighting; if not, I will take up my abode in the forest; I will become a devotee, and abandon all worldly hopes; my good name and character are lost, why should I live, and preserve life by submitting to disgrace?” Joorasindhoo replied, “O great king! you are a man of understanding and great experience; how shall I advise you? The wise do not allow themselves to be troubled by the events that occur, because another being is the disposer of good and evil; man has no power, but is under the authority of, and subservient to, another; as the juggler makes the wooden puppet dance as he pleases, so is man in the power of his Maker, who acts according to his own will, for which reason you should not be elated in prosperity, nor depressed in adversity; but look upon every thing as a dream. I advanced seventeen times to attack the city of Muttra with twenty-three complete armies, and my whole army was seventeen times slain by this Krishnù; I did not give myself any uneasiness, nor was I at all elated when on the eighteenth occasion I destroyed his forces, he ran away and climbed up a hill, which I set on fire; it is impossible to know how he escaped with life, his nature is not to be understood.” Joorasindhoo after this again said, “O great