Shloka 13

कर्णपर्व — पञ्चदशोऽध्यायः | Karṇa Parva, Chapter 15: Pāṇḍya’s Advance and Aśvatthāmā’s Counterstroke

Devanagari script

छिन्नत्रिवेणुचक्राक्षान्‌ हतयोधाश्वसारथीन्‌

Transliteration

chinna-triveṇu-cakrākṣān hata-yodhāśva-sārathīn

Translation

Sañjaya berkata: Ia menebas mereka yang tiang kereta dan poros roda keretanya telah patah, lalu membunuh para prajurit, kuda, dan saisnya. Begitu kendaraan perang dilumpuhkan, para penopangnya—manusia dan hewan—pun segera ditumpas.

Word by Word

• छिन्नत्रिवेणुचक्राक्षान्: whose tri-veṇu wheels and axles were cut/broken
• छिन्नत्रिवेणुचक्राक्षान्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: छिन्न-त्रिवेणु-चक्र-अक्ष
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• हतयोधाश्वसारथीन्: whose warriors, horses, and charioteers were slain
• हतयोधाश्वसारथीन्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हत-योध-अश्व-सारथि
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• chariot (ratha) components: pole/shafts, wheels, axles
• warriors
• horses
• charioteers

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse does not offer a direct moral injunction; it highlights the grim mechanics of dharma-yuddha as narrated in the epic—victory is pursued by disabling the enemy’s chariots and then eliminating the fighters and support (horses, charioteers). It implicitly raises the ethical weight of warfare: efficiency in combat entails comprehensive destruction.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports a phase of intense fighting in which an unnamed combatant (contextually, the principal warrior being described in the surrounding verses) breaks enemy chariot parts—poles/shafts, wheels, and axles—and kills the associated warriors, horses, and charioteers, indicating rout and devastation among chariot-borne troops.