" The laws of war are honourable and humane."
The use of poisoned and mischievously barbed arrows, and fire arrows, are prohibited.
Unarmed and wounded men were to be spared and those who had broken weapons or who surrendered themselves and begged for there lives were to be freed.
" The different "PURANAS" contain allusions to works on the art of war, called DHANUR VEDA or the science of bows, none of which unfortunately have been preserved, but from the "Agni Purana" " we learn that the bow was the principle weapon of war."
"The Hindus says the ABBE DUBOIS have 32 different kinds of weapons, and each of the 32 Gods has his own peculiar weapon*/
" Krishna and Ram are armed with a battle-axe and a bow and arrow.
Vishnu holds the 'Chakra'( steel quoit).
Kartikeya, the God of war, and Ravan the giant, bear in their hundred arms a display of every species of military offensive weapon.
Indra, the god of the Kshatriyas, is represented as riding on an elephant, and armed with the sword and 'chakra,' the battle-axe and the thunder-bolt."
( extract taken form Wheeler, Vol III p21) - pg 9 Illustrated Handbook of Indian Arms ( IHIA )
" Rockets, or weapons of fire . "AGNY ASTRA" were certainly known at a very early period. as described in the ( IHIA) paragraph one page 10. " They were a kind of fire-tipped dart, discharged horizontally from bamboo, and were used against cavalry. The invention is ascribed by the "PURANAS" to Visvacarma, their Vulcan, who for 100 years forged all the weapons for the wars between the good and bad sprits. The knowledge , however, of manufacture of gunpowder or some material composed of sulphur and saltpetre, and the use of projectile probably died out before the historic times, and only an inflammable projectile or naphtha ball was used till the revival of firearms from the West."
We will have to leave this period and continue in brief of the further invasions of this time: