Shloka 26

Devanagari script

रथिनो हस्तियन्तारो हयारोहा: पदातय:

Transliteration

rathino hastiyantāro hayārohāḥ padātayaḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: There were chariot-warriors, elephant-drivers, horsemen, and foot-soldiers.

Word by Word

• रथिनः: chariot-warriors
• रथिनः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: रथिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• हस्तियन्तारः: elephant-drivers (mahouts)
• हस्तियन्तारः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: हस्तियन्तृ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• हयारोहाः: horse-riders
• हयारोहाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: हयारोढ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• पदातयः: foot-soldiers, infantry
• पदातयः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पदाति
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• chariots
• war-elephants
• horses
• infantry

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how war mobilizes every class of fighter—chariot, elephant, cavalry, and infantry—suggesting the scale of collective involvement and the moral weight of decisions that draw entire societies into violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya is describing the composition of the forces on the battlefield, listing the principal military arms present: chariot-fighters, elephant corps, cavalry, and foot-soldiers.