Shloka 28
Bhīmasena’s Kalinga Engagement and the Approach of Bhīṣma (भीमसेन-कालिङ्ग-संग्रामः)
पुंस्त्वादतिमदत्वाच्च केचित् तत्र महागजा: । साश्वारोहान् हयाञ्जघ्नु: करै: सचरणैस्तथा,वहाँ कितने ही महान् गज अत्यन्त मदोन्मत्त तथा पुरुष होनेके कारण सूँड़ों और पैरोंसे घोड़ों और घुड़सवारोंका संहार कर डालते थे
puṁstvād atimadattvāc ca kecit tatra mahāgajāḥ | sāśvārōhān hayān jaghnuḥ karaiḥ sacaraṇais tathā ||
Sañjaya dijo: Allí, algunos elefantes poderosos—enloquecidos por el musth y por su agresiva fuerza viril—dieron muerte a caballos y jinetes por igual, derribándolos con la trompa y aplastándolos bajo sus patas. La escena muestra cómo, en la furia del combate, aun las nobles bestias de guerra se vuelven instrumentos de destrucción indiscriminada, arrasando a montura y hombre.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the dehumanizing momentum of war: once unleashed, martial power—here embodied by musth-maddened elephants—can become indiscriminate, crushing both rider and mount. It implicitly cautions that strength without restraint (saṁyama) turns into destructive excess.
Sañjaya describes a battlefield moment where powerful elephants, crazed with musth and aggression, kill horses and mounted warriors by striking with their trunks and trampling with their feet.