Shloka 19
भीमसेनस्य प्रतिघातः—भगदत्तगजप्रहारः—घटोत्कचमायायुद्धम्
Bhīma’s Counteroffensive, Bhagadatta’s Elephant Assault, and Ghaṭotkaca’s Māyā Engagement
ततः प्रववृते युद्ध व्यतिषक्तरथद्धिपम्
tataḥ pravavṛte yuddhaṁ vyatiṣakta-ratha-dvipam
Sañjaya said: “Then the battle truly commenced, with chariots and war-elephants intermingled and locked together in close, chaotic engagement—an escalation into full-scale combat where order gives way to the pressing demands and moral strain of war.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse does not present a direct doctrinal teaching; it underscores the ethical pressure-point of the epic: once war is set in motion, it rapidly becomes entangled and uncontrollable, testing discernment (dharma-buddhi) amid confusion and force.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the fighting has fully begun, describing the battlefield as densely interwoven with chariots and elephants, indicating close-quarters clashes and the intensification of combat.