Shloka 16
श्रेण्यश्व॒ बहुला: क्षीणा: प्रदीर्णाश्वरथद्विपा: । नानाजनपदाश्षोग्रा: क्षत्रियाणाममर्षिणाम्,“अमर्षशील क्षत्रियोंके बहुत-से दल थे, जो बड़े भयंकर और अनेक जनपदोंके निवासी थे, वे सब-के-सब नष्ट हो गये, उनके घोड़े, रथ और हाथी भी धूलमें मिल गये
śreṇyaśvā bahulāḥ kṣīṇāḥ pradīrṇāśvarathadvipāḥ | nānājanapadāś cogrāḥ kṣatriyāṇām amarṣiṇām ||
Sañjaya said: “Many battle-formations of the wrathful Kṣatriyas—fierce warriors drawn from diverse regions—were utterly worn down and destroyed. Their horses, chariots, and elephants too were shattered and reduced to ruin, swallowed up in the dust of the battlefield.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the impermanence of martial power and the heavy cost of wrath-driven conflict: even vast, fearsome forces drawn from many lands can be swiftly reduced to dust, reminding the listener that pride in strength and numbers is fragile before the realities of war and fate.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the battlefield outcome: numerous fierce Kṣatriya contingents from various regions have been annihilated, and their war-assets—horses, chariots, and elephants—have been broken and destroyed amid the dust and chaos of combat.