Shloka 45
जयद्रथवधः — The Slaying of Jayadratha
Sunset Vow and Curse-Condition
पज्च षट् सप्त चाष्टौ च बिभेद यवनान् शरै: । वे कानतक खींचकर छोड़े हुए और अविच्छिन्न गतिसे परस्पर सटकर निकलते हुए बाणोंद्वारा पाँच, छ, सात और आठ यवनोंको एक ही साथ विदीर्ण कर डालते थे || ४४३ || काम्बोजानां सहसैश्न शकानां च विशाम्पते,कृतवांस्तत्र शैनेय: क्षपयंस्तावकं॑ बलम् | प्रजानाथ! सात्यकिने आपकी सेनाका संहार करते हुए वहाँकी भूमिको सहस्रों काम्बोजों, शकों, शबरों, किरातों और बर्बरोंकी लाशोंसे पाटकर अगम्य बना दिया था। वहाँ मांस और रक्तकी कीच जम गयी थी
pañca ṣaṭ sapta cāṣṭau ca bibheda yavanān śaraiḥ |
kāmbojānāṁ sahasraiś ca śakānāṁ ca viśāṁpate | kṛtavāṁs tatra śaineyaḥ kṣapayaṁs tāvakaṁ balam ||
Sañjaya said: Drawing his bow and releasing his arrows in an unbroken stream, Sātyaki split apart five, six, seven—indeed even eight—Yavanas at once. O lord of men, as he destroyed your forces there, the son of Śini made the ground impassable by strewing it with the bodies of thousands of Kāmbojas and Śakas. The field became a mire of flesh and blood—an image of war’s ruthless efficiency and its terrible moral cost.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights the paradox of righteous warfare: extraordinary martial skill can fulfill a warrior’s duty, yet the battlefield’s carnage underscores the grave human and moral cost that accompanies victory.
Sañjaya reports that Sātyaki, fighting fiercely, shoots in rapid succession and pierces multiple enemy warriors at once, devastating contingents such as the Yavanas, Kāmbojas, and Śakas and making the ground impassable with fallen bodies.