Shloka 396
नारायणास्त्र-शमनं द्रौणि-प्रहारश्च
Pacification of the Nārāyaṇāstra and Drauni’s Renewed Assault
तस्मिन्नेव पदे यत्ता निगृह्नन्ति सम भारत । भरतनन्दन! मदस्रावी विशाल हाथी मदकी धारा बहानेवाले दूसरे गजराजोंसे सहसा भिड़कर एक-दूसरेको यत्नपूर्वक काबूमें कर लेते थे
tasminneva pade yattā nigṛhṇanti sma bhārata | bharatanandana! madasrāvī viśāla-hastī mada-kī dhārā bahānevale dvitīya gajarājaiḥ sahasā bhiḍitvā anyonyaṃ yatnapūrvakaṃ kābūṃ meṃ kar lete sma |
Sañjaya sprach: Genau dort, auf demselben Boden, o Bhārata — Freude der Bharatas —, prallten jene gewaltigen Elefanten, im Musth, aus den Schläfen strömend und ganze Rinnen der Brunstflüssigkeit vergießend, plötzlich mit anderen Elefantenfürsten zusammen und rangen mit aller Kraft darum, einander zu bezwingen und unter Kontrolle zu bringen.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the raw force and frenzy of war through the image of musth-elephants struggling to subdue one another; ethically, it underscores how battle amplifies overpowering impulses and the contest for control—both literal (restraining an opponent) and symbolic (the difficulty of restraint amid violence).
Sañjaya describes a moment in the battle where massive, rutting elephants collide with other great elephants and grapple intensely, each trying to overpower and restrain the other on the spot.