Shloka 9

Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 29 — Arjuna’s defeat of Vṛṣaka–Acalā and the neutralization of Śakuni’s māyā

Devanagari script

शीर्णवर्मा स तु गज: शरै: सुभृशमर्दित: । बभौ धारानिपाताक्तो व्यभ्र: पर्वतराडिव,कवच कट जानेपर हाथीको बाणोंके आघातसे बड़ी पीड़ा होने लगी। वह खूनकी धारासे नहा उठा और बादलोंसे रहित एवं (गैरिकमिश्रित) जलधारासे भीगे हुए गिरिराजके समान शोभा पाने लगा

Transliteration

śīrṇavarmā sa tu gajaḥ śaraiḥ subhṛśamarditaḥ | babhau dhārānipātākto vyabhraḥ parvatarāḍ iva ||

Translation

Gajah itu, baju zirahnya telah hancur dan tubuhnya dihantam anak panah tanpa henti, tampak menggetarkan: bermandikan aliran darah, laksana gunung agung yang tersiram derasnya air tanpa awan di langit.

Word by Word

शीर्णवर्माwhose armor is shattered

सःhe/that

तुbut/indeed

गजःelephant

शरैःby arrows

सुभृशम्excessively, greatly

अर्दितःtormented, afflicted

बभौshone, appeared

धारानिपाताक्तःsmeared/covered with the fall of streams (i.e., drenched by streaming blood)

व्यभ्रःcloudless

पर्वतराट्king of mountains

इवlike, as

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

elephant (gaja)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the stark cost of war: even powerful, protected creatures suffer intensely. The poetic comparison to a cloudless mountain washed by torrents conveys both grandeur and tragedy, prompting reflection on the ethical weight of violence and the collateral suffering of non-combatants and animals in battle.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates a battlefield scene in which an elephant, its armour broken, is struck repeatedly by arrows. Covered in streaming blood, it is likened to a great mountain drenched by rainfall, emphasizing the ferocity of the fighting in the Droṇa Parva.