Shloka 15
भीष्मस्य दुर्योधनं प्रति उपालम्भः
Bhīṣma’s Reproof to Duryodhana
शरशव्त्यूष्टिनाराचैर्निघ्नन्तो गजयोधिन: । भिन्दिपालैस्तथा शूलैर्मुद्गरैः सपरश्वधै:
sañjaya uvāca | śaraśaktyūṣṭhinārācair nighnanto gajayodhinaḥ | bhindipālaiś tathā śūlair mudgaraiḥ saparaśvadhaiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “The warriors fighting from elephants struck down their foes with arrows, javelins, and iron clubs; and likewise with bhindipālas, spears, maces, and axes. The scene conveys the relentless, many-weaponed violence of the battle, where martial skill is turned wholly toward destruction rather than restraint.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse is primarily descriptive rather than doctrinal: it highlights how, in war, power and skill manifest as relentless harm through many instruments. In ethical reflection, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring tension between kṣatriya warfare as duty and the tragic human cost of unrestrained violence.
Sañjaya reports intense fighting in which elephant-mounted warriors are striking down opponents using a range of weapons—arrows, javelins, heavy clubs, darts, spears, maces, and axes—emphasizing the ferocity and variety of combat on the battlefield.