Shloka 18
स नागराज: सनियन्तृको5पतत् तथा हतो बश्रुसुतेषुभिर्भुशम् । स चापि देवावृधसूनुरर्दित: पपात नुन्न: सहदेवसूनुना,अन्तमें बश्रुपुत्रके बाणोंसे अत्यन्त आहत होकर वह गजराज भी संचालकसहित धरतीपर लोट गया। फिर वह देवावृधकुमार भी सहदेवके पुत्रसे पीड़ित हो धराशायी हो गया
sa nāgarājaḥ sa-niyantr̥ko 'patat tathā hato bāhru-suteṣubhir bhuśam | sa cāpi devāvr̥dha-sūnur arditaḥ papāta nunnaḥ sahadeva-sūnunā ||
Sañjaya said: Struck down with great force by the arrows of Bāhru’s sons, the lordly elephant collapsed to the ground together with its driver. And the son of Devāvṛdha too—harassed and driven back by Sahadeva’s son—fell down, brought low in the press of battle. The scene underscores the relentless reciprocity of war: prowess meets counter-prowess, and even the mighty are felled when dharma has yielded to the logic of the battlefield.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the fragility of power in war: even formidable forces (a war-elephant and a notable warrior) can be brought down swiftly. Ethically, it reflects how the battlefield operates by reciprocal force rather than deliberative dharma—valor and skill decide outcomes, and attachment to might proves unreliable.
Sañjaya reports that a great elephant, along with its driver, is felled by the arrows of Bāhru’s sons. In the same sequence, the son of Devāvṛdha, pressed and wounded by Sahadeva’s son, also falls to the ground.