Shloka 343
अध्याय २२ — अमर्याद-युद्धवर्णन
Unrestrained Battle Description and Śakuni’s Rear Assault
प्रभिन्नयोर्यथा सक्तं मत्तयोर्वरहस्तिनो: । भरतश्रेष्ठ) रणभूमिमें उन दोनोंका महान् युद्ध ऐसा जान पड़ता था, मानो मदकी धारा बहानेवाले दो उत्तम मतवाले हाथी आपसमें जूझ रहे हों
prabhinnayor yathā saktaṁ mattayor vara-hastinoḥ | bharataśreṣṭha raṇabhūmau tayor mahad yuddham evaṁ babhūva, yathā mada-dhārā-prasrāviṇau dvau uttamau mattau hastinau parasparaṁ yujyete ||
Sañjaya said: O best of the Bharatas, the great battle between those two on the field of war appeared like the clash of two superb, intoxicated elephants, their temples streaming with rut, locked fast against each other. The image underscores the blind momentum of martial fury—power meeting power—where prowess, pride, and rage drive combat beyond restraint.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse offers an ethical-laden image of war: when combatants are seized by 'mada' (intoxicating fury/pride), they collide like musth elephants—powerful yet driven by impulse. It cautions that martial prowess without restraint can become blind momentum, intensifying destruction.
Sañjaya describes to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the intensity of a duel on the battlefield. He likens the two fighters’ close, forceful engagement to two prime elephants in musth grappling head-on, emphasizing the ferocity and stalemate-like pressure of their encounter.