Shloka 47

Chapter 51: Saṃdhyākāla-saṃhāra

Evening Withdrawal after Arjuna’s Counter-Advance

Devanagari script

तावकानां रथा: सप्त समन्तात्‌ पर्यवारयन्‌ । मद्रराजमभभीप्सन्तो मृत्योर्दष्टान्तरं गतम्‌

Transliteration

tāvakānāṁ rathāḥ sapta samantāt paryavārayan | madrarājam abhīpsanto mṛtyor daṣṭāntaraṁ gatam ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: Your seven chariot-warriors surrounded on all sides Śalya, king of Madra—who had fallen into the very jaws of death—seeking to protect him as they saw Śveta charging forward with the prowess of a maddened elephant.

Word by Word

• तावकानाम्: of your (people)
• तावकानाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तावक
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• रथाः: chariots
• रथाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: रथ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• सप्त: seven
• सप्त: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सप्त
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• समन्तात्: on all sides / from all around
• समन्तात्: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: समन्तात्

• पर्यवारयन्: they surrounded / enclosed
• पर्यवारयन्: Kriya
• Type: Verb
• Root: परि+वृ
• Form: Imperfect (Lan), 3, Plural, Parasmaipada

• मद्रराजम्: the king of Madra (Shalya)
• मद्रराजम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: मद्रराज
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• अभभीप्सन्तः: desiring / wishing
• अभभीप्सन्तः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: अभि+भीप्स्
• Form: Present active participle (शतृ), Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• मृत्योः: of death
• मृत्योः: Apadana
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृत्यु
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• दष्ट-अन्तरम्: the gap between the teeth (jaws)
• दष्ट-अन्तरम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: दष्ट + अन्तर
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• गतम्: gone (into)
• गतम्: Karma
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम्
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Masculine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (implied addressee by 'tāvakānām')
• Śalya (Madrarāja)
• Śveta
• seven Kaurava chariot-warriors (collective)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even amid violent conflict, the epic highlights a warrior’s duty of loyalty and protection toward comrades and leaders. The impulse to shield Śalya—described as caught in death’s jaws—reflects the battlefield ethic that one must not abandon an ally in peril, even when facing a formidable opponent.

What is happening in the narrative?

As Śveta charges with overwhelming force, seven chariot-warriors from the Kaurava side quickly form a protective ring around Śalya, the king of Madra, to save him from imminent destruction.