Shloka 26
Chapter 12: Arjuna’s suppression of the Saṃśaptakas and duel with Aśvatthāmā
Drauṇi
तयो: समभवद् युद्ध द्विपयोरुग्ररूपयो: । यदृच्छया द्रुमवतोर्महापर्वतयोरिव
tayoḥ samabhavad yuddhaṃ dvipayor ugrarūpayoḥ | yadṛcchayā drumavator mahāparvatayor iva || sa śaraiḥ kṣatasarvāṅgaḥ sātyakiḥ satyavikramaḥ | rarāja samare rājan sapuṣpa iva kiṃśukaḥ ||
Dijo Sañjaya: Entre aquellos dos terribles señores de los elefantes se trabó una lucha feroz, como si dos grandes montañas cubiertas de árboles hubiesen chocado por azar. Y Sātyaki—con todo el cuerpo herido por flechas, pero firme en su verdadero valor—resplandecía en aquel combate, oh Rey, como un árbol kiṃśuka en plena floración.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya endurance and steadfast courage: even when pierced by arrows, a warrior like Sātyaki maintains true valor and radiance. It also frames battlefield events as moving under the pressure of fate (yadṛcchayā), reminding the listener that human effort and destiny intertwine in war.
Sañjaya describes a violent clash between two mighty elephants, likening it to the collision of two forested mountains. In the same scene, he praises Sātyaki, who—though wounded all over—continues fighting and appears resplendent, compared to a kiṃśuka tree covered in blossoms.