gṛhītvā - seizing; śṛṅgayoḥ - by the horns; tam - him; vai - indeed; aṣṭādaśa - eighteen; padāni - steps; saḥ - He; pratyapovāha - threw back; bhagavān - the Supreme Lord; gajaḥ - an elephant; prati-gajam - a rival elephant; yathā - like.

The Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa seized Ariṣṭāsura by the horns and threw him back eighteen steps, just as an elephant might do when fighting a rival elephant.