Shloka 67

Śālva’s Elephant Assault and the Counterstroke (शाल्वस्य नागारूढाभ्यवहारः)

Devanagari script

तानापतत एवाशु व्यूढानीका: प्रहारिण:

Transliteration

tān āpatata evāśu vyūḍhānīkāḥ prahāriṇaḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: Those fierce warriors, their battle-formations already arrayed, rushed in at once and swiftly fell upon the enemy, intent on striking.

Word by Word

• तान्: them
• तान्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• आपतत: fell upon / attacked
• आपतत: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: आपत् (आ + पत्)
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Plural

• एव: indeed / just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• आशु: quickly
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: आशु

• व्यूढ-अनीकाः: with arrayed formations / in battle order
• व्यूढ-अनीकाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: व्यूढ (वि + ऊह्, कृदन्त) + अनीक
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• प्रहारिणः: strikers / assailants
• प्रहारिणः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रहारिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• armies/battle-formations (anīkāḥ)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how organized power (vyūḍhānīkāḥ) and the will to strike (prahāriṇaḥ) can propel conflict forward rapidly, reminding readers that in war, discipline and speed amplify destruction—raising ethical questions about restraint and the governance of force by dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the combatants, already drawn up in formation, swiftly rush upon their opponents and begin attacking, marking an intensification of the battle’s action.