Shloka 67
स तेन नागप्रवरेण पार्थिवो भृशं जगाहे द्विषतामनीकिनीम् । पुरा सुगुप्तां विबुधैरिवाहवे विरोचनो देववरूथिनीमिव,उस गजराजके द्वारा राजा भगदत्तने शत्रुओंकी सेनामें अच्छी तरह प्रवेश किया। जैसे पूर्वकालमें देवासुर-संग्रामके समय देवताओंद्वारा सुरक्षित देव-सेनामें विरोचनने प्रवेश किया था
sa tena nāgapravareṇa pārthivo bhṛśaṁ jagāhe dviṣatām anīkinīm | purā sugupṭāṁ vibudhair ivāhave virocano deva-varūthinīm iva ||
Sañjaya said: Mounted upon that foremost of elephants, the king (Bhagadatta) drove deep and forcefully into the enemy host. It was like Virocana of old, in the battle of gods and asuras, breaking into the well-guarded army-formation of the gods.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the power of determined force and strategic momentum in war, while implicitly reminding the reader that such valor, though admirable as kṣatriya prowess, operates within the morally fraught arena of violence and destruction.
Sañjaya describes Bhagadatta, riding a great elephant, charging into and penetrating the enemy ranks. To convey the scale of the feat, he compares it to the ancient mythic image of Virocana breaking into the well-guarded formation of the gods during a devas–asuras battle.