Mahabharata 5.94.26

5.94.26

rāma uvāca |
ityuktvā śaravarṣeṇa sarvataḥ samavākirat |
dambhodbhavastāpasaṃ taṃ jighāṃsuḥ sahasainikaḥ || 26 ||

"Rama continued, 'Although thus addressed, the king still pressed them for giving him battle. The Rishis, however, continually soothed him and overlooked his importunity. King Dambhodbhava, still desirous of battle, repeatedly summoned those Rishis to fight. Nara, then, O Bharata, taking up a handful of grass-blades, said, 'Desirous of battle as thou art, come, O Kshatriya, and fight! Take up all thy arms, and array thy troops. I will curb thy eagerness for battle hereafter!' Dambhodbhava then said, If, O ascetic, thou thinkest this weapon of thine fit to be used against us, I shall fight with thee though thou mayest use that weapon, for I have come hither desirous of fighting.' Saying this, [paragraph continues] Dambhodbhava with all his troops, desirous of slaying that ascetic, covered all sides with a shower of arrows. That ascetic, however, by means of those blades of grass, baffled all those terrible shafts of the king that were capable of mangling the bodies of hostile warriors. The invincible Rishi then let off towards the king his own terrible weapon made of grass-blades and which was incapable of being counteracted. And highly wonderful was that which happened, for that ascetic, incapable of missing his aim, pierced and cut off, by those grass-blades alone, the eyes and ears and noses of the hostile warriors, aided also by his power of illusion.