Shloka 14
रथैव॑रेषून्मथितै: सुकल्पै: सयोधश-्त्रैश्व वरायुधैर्ध्वजै: । विशीर्णयोक्त्रैविनिकृत्तबन्धनै- निकृत्तचक्राक्षयुगत्रिवेणुभि:
rathavareṣūnmathitaiḥ sukalpaiḥ sayodhaśastraiś ca varāyudhair dhvajaiḥ | viśīrṇayoktrair vinikṛttabandhanair nikṛttacakrākṣayugatriveṇubhiḥ ||
Śalya sprach: „Selbst die vorzüglichsten Streitwagen sind durch den Aufprall der Pfeile zermalmt worden—mitsamt ihren Kriegern, Waffen, erlesenen Rüstungen und Bannern. Die Zügel sind zerrissen, die Bindungen durchtrennt; Räder, Achsen, Joche und die hölzernen tri-veṇu-Beschläge sind in Stücke gehauen.“
शल्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the fragility of worldly power in war: even the best-made instruments of might—chariots, weapons, and standards—are quickly reduced to fragments. It implicitly cautions against pride in material strength and highlights the relentless, consuming nature of battle.
Śalya describes the battlefield aftermath: arrows have smashed elite chariots and everything associated with them—fighters, arms, banners, and key chariot components like reins, bindings, wheels, axles, yokes, and structural wooden fittings—leaving them broken and scattered.