Shloka 9

Devanagari script

तथैव तव सैन्यस्य पार्थेन च महात्मना । नवमेघप्रतीकाशा: पातिता बहुधा गजा:,इसी प्रकार महात्मा अर्जुनने आपकी सेनाके नूतन मेघके समान काले रंगवाले बहुत-से हाथी मार गिराये

Transliteration

tathaiva tava sainyasya pārthena ca mahātmanā | navamegha-pratīkāśāḥ pātitā bahudhā gajāḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya dit : «De même, dans ton armée, bien des éléphants—sombres comme des nuées de pluie tout juste formées—furent abattus en grand nombre par le magnanime Pārtha (Arjuna).»

Word by Word

तथाthus, in the same way

एवindeed, just

तवof you, your

सैन्यस्यof the army

पार्थेनby Partha (Arjuna)

चand

महात्मनाby the great-souled one

नवnew

मेघclouds

प्रतीकाशाःresembling, like

पातिताःfelled, caused to fall

बहुधाin many ways; greatly; repeatedly

गजाःelephants

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Dhṛtarāṣṭra

Pārtha (Arjuna)

Kaurava army

elephants

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 offers a sober epic perspective on warfare: even when a warrior acts within kṣatriya-dharma, the outcome is still mass destruction. Sañjaya’s report highlights prowess while implicitly reminding the listener of war’s heavy cost.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya is describing to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the progress of the Kurukṣetra battle, stating that Arjuna (Pārtha), described as mahātmā, has felled many elephants in the Kaurava forces—elephants compared in color and mass to newly formed rain-clouds.