Shloka 36
Śākadvīpa–Pramāṇa–Varṇana
Measurements and Description of Śākadvīpa
असम्बद्धा महाराज तान् निगृह्नन्ति ते गजा: । पुष्करै: पद्मसंकाशैविंकसद्धिमहाप्र भै:
asambaddhā mahārāja tān nigṛhṇanti te gajāḥ | puṣkaraiḥ padma-saṅkāśair vikaśad-dhima-hāprabhaiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “O King, those elephants seize and crush them without restraint, striking with their lotus-like trunks—fully spread, radiant, and blazing with great splendor—amid the tumult of battle.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and practical truth that war, once set in motion, tends to become indiscriminate and uncontrollable; power (here, elephants) can overwhelm human intention, reminding rulers of the grave responsibility involved in choosing conflict.
Sañjaya describes to Dhṛtarāṣṭra how elephants on the battlefield are overpowering combatants, using their lotus-like, fully spread trunks to seize and crush, intensifying the chaos of the fight.