Mahabharata — Karna Parva, Shloka 36
अदहत् पाण्डवीं सेनां रथाश्चवगजसंकुलाम् | मज्जन्तमप्लवे मन्दमुज्जिहीर्ष: सुयोधनम्
adahat pāṇḍavīṁ senāṁ rathāś ca vagaja-saṅkulām | majjantaṁ aplave mandam ujjihīrṣaḥ suyodhanam ||
Sañjaya sprach: Er setzte das Heer der Pāṇḍava in Brand—gedrängt von Wagen, Pferden und Elefanten—um Suyodhana emporzureißen, der ohne jede Rettungshoffnung hilflos in das Unheil versank. Der Vers deutet das Gemetzel als verzweifelten Schutz des eigenen Anführers, während er zugleich die moralische Finsternis des Krieges verdichtet.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how loyalty to a leader in crisis can drive extreme violence: the impulse to ‘save’ one’s own side may eclipse broader ethical restraint, revealing the tragic moral cost of war.
Sañjaya reports that a warrior devastates the Pāṇḍava forces—packed with chariots, horses, and elephants—motivated by the aim of rescuing Suyodhana (Duryodhana), portrayed as helplessly ‘sinking’ without any means of escape.