Shloka 116

Devanagari script

रथैर्तताश्वसूतैश्व हतारोहैश्न वाजिभि:,रथोंके घोड़े और सारथि, घोड़ोंके सवार, हाथियोंके आरोही, महावत और स्वयं हाथी भी मारे गये थे। महाराज! इन सबने परस्पर प्रहार करके घोर जनसंहार मचा दिया था

Transliteration

rathair tathāśvasūtaiś ca hatārohāś ca vājibhiḥ |

Translation

Sañjaya said: Chariots too lay shattered, along with their horses and charioteers; the mounted riders and the steeds were slain. In that dreadful clash, each side struck the other without restraint, and the field was filled with a grim slaughter—an image of war’s consuming violence and the moral darkness that follows when fury eclipses discernment.

Word by Word

रथैःby/with chariots

तथाand also

अश्वसूतैःby/with horse-drivers (charioteers)

चand

हतारोहैःby/with slain riders (i.e., riders who were killed)

नnot

वाजिभिःby/with horses

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

chariots (ratha)

horses/steeds (vājin/aśva)

charioteers (sūta)

riders/mounted warriors (āroha)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the dehumanizing momentum of war: when mutual retaliation becomes the sole rule, destruction spreads to warriors and the very instruments of battle. Ethically, it warns how anger and vengeance can eclipse discrimination (viveka), producing collective ruin even when framed as kṣatriya-duty.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the intensity of the fighting: chariots, horses, charioteers, and mounted fighters are being cut down in large numbers. The description emphasizes a chaotic, reciprocal onslaught leading to severe carnage.