Mahabharata (Gita Press) 11.21.4 - Stree Parva, Adhyaya 21, Shloka 4
अध्याय २१ — गान्धार्या वैकर्तनदर्शनम्
Gāndhārī’s Viewing of Vaikartana/Karṇa
यं सम पाण्डवसंत्रासान्मम पुत्रा महारथा: । प्रायुध्यन्त पुरस्कृत्य मातज्रा इव यूथपम्
yaṁ sama-pāṇḍava-saṁtrāsān mama putrā mahārathāḥ | prāyudhyanta puraskṛtya mātangā iva yūthapam ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana sprach: „Denselben Helden, den meine Söhne—große Mahārathas—einst an die Spitze stellten und hinter dem sie kämpften, wie Elefanten, die sich um den Führer der Herde scharen, und dessen bloße Gegenwart die Pāṇḍavas in Furcht versetzte—ihn hat Savyasācī Arjuna auf dem Schlachtfeld erschlagen, wie ein Löwe einen anderen Löwen fällt, oder wie ein Elefant im Musth einen rivalisierenden Elefantenkönig niederwirft.“
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how even the most relied-upon champions—those set at the very front as protectors and sources of confidence—can fall in war. It highlights the fragility of martial power and the tragic inevitability that fuels the Stree Parva’s ethical reflection on violence and loss.
Vaiśaṃpāyana describes a key battlefield reversal: a formidable warrior, formerly advanced by the Kauravas as their spearhead and a terror to the Pāṇḍavas, has been killed by Arjuna. The event is intensified through animal similes (lion vs lion; musth elephant vs musth elephant) to convey equal strength and decisive defeat.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Mahabharata (Gita Press) in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.