Shloka 23
द्रोणपर्व — अध्याय २७: सुशर्माह्वानम्, अर्जुनस्य प्रतिनिवर्तनम्, भगदत्तेन गजप्रहारः
विप्रविद्धकुथा नागाश्छिन्नभाण्डा: परासव: । सारोहास्तु रणे पेतुर्मथिता मार्गणैर्भूशम्
vipraviddhakuthā nāgāś chinnabhāṇḍāḥ parāsavaḥ | sārohās tu raṇe petur mathitā mārgaṇair bhūśam ||
Sañjaya said: The elephants, their trappings torn and their bodies pierced, were left lifeless. Their riders too, shattered by volleys of arrows, fell in the battle onto the ground.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the harsh reality of warfare: even the mightiest forces—armored elephants and their riders—can be swiftly undone. Ethically, it points to the grave cost of conflict and the fragility of life amid the pursuit of victory.
Sañjaya describes a battlefield moment where war-elephants, pierced and stripped of their trappings, lie dead, and their riders—overwhelmed by arrow volleys—fall to the earth.