Shloka 36
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय ९६: सौभद्रस्य आक्रमणम्, अलम्बुसस्य प्रतिविधानम्
Abhimanyu’s assault; Alambusa’s counter-engagement
केचिट्धस्तैर्द्धिधा च्छिन्नैश्छिन्नगात्रास्तथापरे | निपेतुस्तुमुले तस्मिंश्छिन्नपक्षा इवाद्रय:
sañjaya uvāca | kecid hastair dvidhā chinnaiś chinnagātrās tathāpare | nipetus tumule tasmiṃś chinnapakṣā ivādrayaḥ ||
Sañjaya dit : Dans cette bataille terrible et tumultueuse, certains éléphants tombèrent la trompe tranchée en deux ; d’autres, les membres taillés en pièces, s’effondrèrent en tas, tels des montagnes dont on aurait coupé les ailes.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the catastrophic cost of war: even the mightiest beings (war-elephants) are reduced to ruin. Ethically, it functions as a stark reminder of the suffering produced by adharma-driven conflict and the impermanence of power and bodily strength.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield scene where elephants are being grievously wounded—trunks split, limbs severed—and falling repeatedly amid the uproar, compared to wing-shorn mountains collapsing.