Shloka 20
वज्रदत्तेन सह अर्जुनयुद्धम्
Arjuna’s engagement with Vajradatta during the Aśvamedha circuit
स तैर्विद्धो महानागो विस्रवन् रुधिरं वभौ । गैरिकाक्तमिवाम्भोडडद्रिरबहुप्रस्रवणं तदा
sa tair viddho mahānāgo visravan rudhiraṃ vabhau | gairikāktaṃ ivāmbhoda-drir bahu-prasravaṇaṃ tadā ||
Vaiśampāyana sprach: Von jenen Pfeilen durchbohrt, begann der mächtige Elefant Ströme von Blut zu vergießen. In jenem Augenblick glich er einem regenbringenden Berg, rotockerfarben gezeichnet, aus dem viele Quellen hervorbrechen—ein Bild, das das Leid der Gewalt und den harten Preis kriegerischen Handelns schärfer hervortreten lässt.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the tangible suffering produced by warfare: even when battle is framed within kṣatriya-duty, its immediate reality is pain and bloodshed. The poet’s vivid simile invites ethical reflection on the cost of violence rather than glorifying it.
An elephant, struck by multiple arrows, bleeds profusely. The narrator compares the blood streaming from its wounds to a rain-cloud mountain with many springs, visually intensifying the scene’s brutality.