Shloka 35
Śālva’s Elephant Assault and the Counterstroke (शाल्वस्य नागारूढाभ्यवहारः)
'पृष्ठभागमें रहकर युद्ध करते समय मुझे अर्जुन किसी ओरसे भी लाँघनेका साहस नहीं कर सकते। ठीक वैसे ही, जैसे महासागर अपने तटप्रान्तको नहीं लाँघ पाता है ।। पश्य सैन्यं महत् सूत पाण्डवै: समभिद्रुतम् । सैन्यरेणुं समुद्धूतं पश्यस्वैनं समन््तत:,'सारथे! देखो, पाण्डव मेरी विशाल सेनाको खदेड़ रहे हैं और सैनिकोंके दौड़नेसे उठी हुई धूल जो सब ओर छा गयी है उसपर भी दृष्टिपात करो
sañjaya uvāca | pṛṣṭhabhāge me sthitvā yuddhaṃ kurvataḥ mām arjunaḥ kutaścid api laṅghituṃ na śaknoti | yathā mahāsāgaraḥ sva-taṭa-prāntaṃ na laṅghayituṃ śaknoti || paśya sainyaṃ mahat sūta pāṇḍavaiḥ samabhidrutam | sainya-reṇuṃ samuddhūtaṃ paśyasvainaṃ samantataḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “While I remain in the rear and fight, Arjuna cannot dare to overstep me from any side—just as the great ocean cannot cross beyond its own shoreline. Look, charioteer: the Pandavas are pressing hard upon the vast army, and see also the dust raised by the rushing troops, spreading everywhere.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the psychology of war: leaders use metaphors of natural limits (the ocean and its shore) to project steadfastness and to steady their side’s morale, even amid chaos. It also underscores how perception—dust, movement, pressure—shapes judgment on the battlefield.
Sanjaya reports a moment of intense pressure: the Pandavas are driving against a large army, raising dust that blankets the field. Addressing the charioteer, the speaker points to the visible signs of the assault and asserts that even Arjuna cannot ‘overstep’ his defensive position, likening it to the ocean’s inability to cross its own boundary.