Mahabharata 11.21.4 — Stree Parva, Adhyaya 21, Shloka 4
अध्याय २१ — गान्धार्या वैकर्तनदर्शनम्
Gāndhārī’s Viewing of Vaikartana/Karṇa
यं सम पाण्डवसंत्रासान्मम पुत्रा महारथा: । प्रायुध्यन्त पुरस्कृत्य मातज्रा इव यूथपम्
yaṁ sama-pāṇḍava-saṁtrāsān mama putrā mahārathāḥ | prāyudhyanta puraskṛtya mātangā iva yūthapam ||
जिसे आगे करके—पाण्डवों में भय उत्पन्न करने वाले उस वीर को—मेरे महारथी पुत्र वैसे युद्ध करते थे जैसे झुंड के हाथी अपने यूथपति को आगे रखकर लड़ते हैं; उसी को सव्यसाची अर्जुन ने रणभूमि में मार गिराया।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how even the most relied-upon champions—those set at the very front as protectors and sources of confidence—can fall in war. It highlights the fragility of martial power and the tragic inevitability that fuels the Stree Parva’s ethical reflection on violence and loss.
Vaiśaṃpāyana describes a key battlefield reversal: a formidable warrior, formerly advanced by the Kauravas as their spearhead and a terror to the Pāṇḍavas, has been killed by Arjuna. The event is intensified through animal similes (lion vs lion; musth elephant vs musth elephant) to convey equal strength and decisive defeat.
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