Shloka 64
अलंबलवधः (Alaṃbala-vadhaḥ) / The Slaying of Alaṃbala and the Advance toward Karṇa
अश्वांश्व चतुरः श्वेतान् निजघान शितै: शरै: । छित्त्वा ध्वजं रथं चैव शतधा पुरुषर्षभ
aśvāṃś ca caturaḥ śvetān nijaghāna śitaiḥ śaraiḥ | chittvā dhvajaṃ rathaṃ caiva śatadhā puruṣarṣabha ||
Sañjaya said: With keen arrows he struck down the four white horses; and, having cut the banner and even the chariot into a hundred pieces—O best of men—he pressed the attack with relentless precision.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the harsh wartime ethic in which strategic disabling of an enemy’s mobility and symbols (horses, banner, chariot) becomes a measure of prowess; it reflects how dharma in battle is framed as disciplined effectiveness, even amid destructive outcomes.
Sañjaya reports a combat moment where a warrior shoots sharp arrows to kill four white horses and then cuts down the opponent’s banner and chariot, splintering them into many pieces, indicating a decisive tactical blow in the chariot-war setting.