“So be it,” declared Girisha, and as he was thus instructed, Maya—the mighty conqueror of cities—constructed an extraordinary iron city, Saubha, and presented it to King Shalva. With this wish-fulfilling, formidable, and impenetrable vehicle in his possession, Shalva, his heart still burning with enmity toward the Vrishnis, set out for Dvaravati. Upon reaching Krishna’s city, Shalva besieged it with his vast army. He unleashed destruction upon the suburbs and gardens, and soon, the city’s gates and their towers, its palaces, balconies, pleasure grounds, and lofty mansions all came under a relentless shower of weapons. Stones, trees, thunderbolts, venomous serpents, and torrents of gravel rained down, while a fierce whirlwind arose, filling every direction with choking dust. Thus, Krishna’s beloved city was tormented by the assault of Saubha, finding no peace—just as the earth had once been thrown into turmoil by the attack of Tripura. Witnessing his people so afflicted, the glorious and heroic Pradyumna mounted his chariot and called out, “Do not fear!” At his side rallied Satyaki, Charudeshna, Samba, Akrura and his younger brother, Hardikya, Bhanuvinda, Gada, Shuka, Sarana, and many other great archers and commanders. With chariots, elephants, horses, and infantry, they marched forth, armed and resolute. Soon, a tumultuous and hair-raising battle erupted between the Shalvas and the Yadus, fierce as the battles of gods and demons. Pradyumna, son of Rukmini, wielded divine weapons that instantly dispelled all the magical illusions conjured by the lord of Saubha—just as the sun’s rays chase away the darkness of night. With twenty-five arrows, their shafts golden and tips of iron, he pierced Shalva’s army commander; with a hundred arrows he struck Shalva himself; with single arrows he felled the soldiers; with ten arrows each, their leaders; and with three arrows each, their vehicles. The wondrous might of Pradyumna’s deeds amazed all, friend and foe alike, and they honored him. Yet, Maya’s creation, wrought of powerful illusion, appeared in many forms and sometimes in one, now seen, now unseen, impossible for the enemy to comprehend. At times Saubha was on the ground, then in the sky, on mountain peaks, or plunging into water, spinning wildly like a wheel of firebrands in its dire state. Wherever Shalva, his city, and his army appeared, the chiefs of the Sātvatas loosed their arrows. Afflicted by these missiles—blazing like fire and the sun, deadly as venomous serpents—Shalva’s forces became bewildered and driven back. Yet, though the Vṛṣṇis were greatly tormented by the torrents of weapons from Shalva’s army, they did not abandon the fight, each intent on conquering both worlds. In the midst of this chaos, Dyumān, a minister of Shalva who had previously overpowered Pradyumna, approached with a heavy mace and struck Pradyumna’s chest, roaring mightily. Pradyumna, his chest shattered, was carried from the battlefield by his charioteer, the righteous son of Dāruka. Regaining consciousness after a moment, Pradyumna rebuked his charioteer: “How improper it is, O charioteer, that you have withdrawn me from battle! Never has it been heard that a Yadu has left the field, save for a charioteer whose mind is unmanly and who has incurred sin. What shall I say to my fathers, Rāma and Keśava, having retreated? What answer will I give? Surely, my brothers’ wives will laugh, saying, ‘How, how did your cowardice become known in battle?’” The charioteer replied, “O lord, knowing righteousness, I acted thus; a charioteer must protect a warrior in distress, and a warrior his charioteer. Knowing this, I withdrew you, for you had fallen unconscious, struck by the enemy’s mace.” Thus concludes the seventy-sixth chapter, “The Battle with Shalva,” in the tenth book, second half, of the Śrīmad Bhāgavata Mahāpurāṇa, the scripture for the paramahaṃsas. Now, the destruction of Shalva and his Saubha by the Lord: Śrī Śuka continued—having purified himself with water and bow in hand, Pradyumna said to his charioteer, “Take me to Dyumān, the hero.” Smiling, Rukmini’s son struck down Dyumān, who was attacking his own troops, with eight iron arrows. With four arrows he felled Dyumān’s four horses, with one he struck the charioteer, with two he shattered the bow and the banner, and with another he struck Dyumān’s head. Meanwhile, Gada, Satyaki, Samba, and others slew the forces of the lord of Saubha; the warriors of Saubha, their necks severed, fell into the sea. Thus, as the Yadus and Shalvas slaughtered each other, the battle raged, fierce and tumultuous, for twenty-seven days and nights. During this time, Krishna had been invited by the son of Dharma to Indraprastha. After the completion of the Rājasūya sacrifice and the slaying of Shishupala, Krishna took leave of the elders of the Kuru dynasty, the sages, Pritha, and her sons. Observing terrible omens, he returned to Dvaraka. There, he said, “I have come here with noble friends; the kings allied with the Chedi are surely about to attack my city.” Seeing the devastation among his own people, Krishna arranged for the defense of Dvaraka and spoke to Daruka about Saubha and King Shalva: “Charioteer, bring my chariot quickly to Shalva’s presence; do not be alarmed, for this king of Saubha is a master of illusion.” Thus addressed, Daruka mounted the chariot and drove forth; all, both friend and foe, beheld Arjuna’s younger brother entering the fray. Shalva, whose forces were nearly destroyed, saw Krishna and, with a terrible roar, hurled a spear at Krishna’s charioteer in the midst of battle.