Shloka 16
श्रेण्यश्व॒ बहुला: क्षीणा: प्रदीर्णाश्वरथद्विपा: । नानाजनपदाश्षोग्रा: क्षत्रियाणाममर्षिणाम्
śreṇyaśvā bahulāḥ kṣīṇāḥ pradīrṇāśvarathadvipāḥ | nānājanapadāś cogrāḥ kṣatriyāṇām amarṣiṇām ||
Sañjaya berkata: Banyak barisan tempur para Kṣatriya yang mudah tersulut amarah—garang dan datang dari berbagai negeri—telah terkikis habis dan binasa. Kuda-kuda, kereta-kereta perang, dan gajah-gajah mereka pun hancur berkeping, lenyap ditelan debu medan laga.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the impermanence of martial power and the heavy cost of wrath-driven conflict: even vast, fearsome forces drawn from many lands can be swiftly reduced to dust, reminding the listener that pride in strength and numbers is fragile before the realities of war and fate.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the battlefield outcome: numerous fierce Kṣatriya contingents from various regions have been annihilated, and their war-assets—horses, chariots, and elephants—have been broken and destroyed amid the dust and chaos of combat.