Shloka 28

Devanagari script

एते पर्वतशृज्ञाणां तुल्या हैमवता गजा: । संछिन्नकुम्भा: पार्थेन प्रपतन्त्यद्रयो यथा,'ये हिमाचलप्रदेशके हाथी, जो पर्वत-शिखरोंके समान जान पड़ते हैं, पर्वतोंक समान धराशायी हो रहे हैं। अर्जुनने इनके कुम्भस्थल काट डाले हैं

Transliteration

ete parvataśṛṅgāṇāṃ tulyā haimavatā gajāḥ | saṃchinnakumbhāḥ pārthena prapatanty adrayo yathā ||

Translation

Dijo Arjuna: «Estos elefantes de la región del Himalaya, que se alzan como cumbres de montaña, ahora se desploman como peñascos que se desprenden del monte: Pārtha (Arjuna) les ha cercenado los globos frontales.»

Word by Word

एतेthese

पर्वत-शृङ्गाणाम्of mountain-peaks

तुल्याःequal, like

हैमवताःHimalayan

गजाःelephants

संछिन्न-कुम्भाःwhose temples are cut off

पार्थेनby Partha (Arjuna)

प्रपतन्तिfall down

अद्रयःmountains

यथाas, like

Speaker

अजुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Arjuna (Pārtha)

Himavat (Himalaya region)

Elephants (gajāḥ)

Mountain peaks/crags (parvataśṛṅga, adrayaḥ)

Elephant frontal globes/temples (kumbha)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the terrifying scale of war and the kṣatriya battlefield ethos: martial prowess, when unleashed, brings down even the mightiest forces. Ethically, it highlights the tragic grandeur of combat—strength and stature offer no immunity when duty-driven violence prevails.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the thick of battle, Arjuna’s arrows strike down massive Himalayan elephants. With their frontal globes (kumbhas) cut, they topple like mountain crags, emphasizing both the elephants’ enormity and Arjuna’s overwhelming effectiveness.