Shloka 7

Devanagari script

धनंजयशराभ्यस्तै: स्यन्दनाश्वरथद्विपै: । संछिन्नभिन्नविध्वस्तैर्व्यज्राज़ावयवै: स्तृता,जिनपर अर्जुनके बाणोंकी बारंबार मार पड़ी थी, वे रथके घोड़े, रथ और हाथी छिज्न- भिन्न और विध्वस्त हो गये थे; उनका एक-एक अंग अथवा अवयव कटकर अलग हो गया था। इन सबके द्वारा वहाँकी भूमि आच्छादित हो गयी थी

Transliteration

dhanañjayaśarābhyastaiḥ syandanāśvarathadvipaiḥ | sañchinnabhinnavidhvastair vyajāḍāva-yavaiḥ stṛtā ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: The ground there became covered with the shattered remnants of chariots, horses, and elephants—again and again struck by the arrows of Dhanañjaya (Arjuna). Cut apart, split, and utterly wrecked, their limbs and parts lay scattered, bearing witness to the relentless force of battle and the terrible cost of martial prowess.

Word by Word

धनंजय-शर-अभ्यस्तैःby those repeatedly struck by Dhananjaya’s arrows

स्यन्दन-अश्व-रथ-द्विपैःby chariots, horses, chariot(-parts)/cars, and elephants

संछिन्न-भिन्न-विध्वस्तैःby (things) cut off, shattered, and destroyed

व्यज्र-आस्र-अवयवैःby hard/bone-like, blood-smeared limbs (scattered parts)

स्तृता(the earth/ground) was strewn/covered

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Dhanañjaya (Arjuna)

arrows

chariots

horses

elephants

battlefield ground

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the grim reality of war: even when framed as kṣatriya-duty, martial excellence produces widespread destruction. It invites reflection on the ethical weight of violence and the impermanence of power and bodies amid conflict.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes the battlefield after repeated volleys from Arjuna: chariots, horses, and elephants have been cut to pieces and ruined, their parts scattered so densely that the ground is covered with the wreckage.