Shloka 10

Devanagari script

गजा: पदाता रथिनस्तुरगाश्न विशाम्पते । व्यतिष्ठन्‌ वागुराकारा: शतशो5थ सहस्रश:,प्रजानाथ! हाथी, घोड़े, पैदल और रथी, शत्रुओंको बाँधनेके लिये जाल-से बनकर एक- एक जगह सैकड़ों और हजारोंकी संख्यामें खड़े थे

Transliteration

gajāḥ padātā rathinas turagāś ca viśāmpate | vyatiṣṭhan vāgurākārāḥ śataśo 'tha sahasraśaḥ ||

Translation

Wahai pelindung rakyat, gajah, infanteri, para kesatria kereta, dan kuda-kuda berdiri di posnya—berbaris laksana jala untuk menjerat musuh—di sana-sini, beratus-ratus dan beribu-ribu jumlahnya.

Word by Word

गजाःelephants

पदाताःfoot-soldiers

रथिनःchariot-warriors

तुरगाःhorses

नृपतेO king

व्यतिष्ठन्stood / were stationed

वागुराकाराःhaving the form of a net (net-like)

शतशःby hundreds / in hundreds

अथand then / also

सहस्रशःby thousands / in thousands

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

viśāmpati (the king addressed, i.e., Dhṛtarāṣṭra)

elephants

infantry

chariot-warriors

horses

net/snare (vāgura)

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 highlights disciplined organization and strategic coordination in war: forces are arranged like a net to contain and overpower the opponent. Ethically, it reflects the Mahābhārata’s recurring tension—skill and order in battle can be admirable as kṣatriya-dharma, yet the same efficiency also intensifies destruction.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to the king that the battlefield forces—elephants, foot-soldiers, charioteers, and cavalry—have taken positions in large numbers, forming a net-like array intended to trap or bind the enemy’s movement.