Shloka 35
Adhyāya 74 (Book 6, Bhīṣma-parva): Bhīma–Duryodhana re-engagement and afternoon escalation
अदृश्यन्त ससूताश्च साश्वा: सरथयोधिन: । एकेन बलिना राजन् वारणेन विमर्दिता:,राजन! कितने ही रथारोही युद्धस्थलमें एक ही महाबली गजराजके द्वारा घोड़ों और सारथियोंसहित कुचले हुए दिखायी पड़ते थे
adṛśyanta sasūtāś ca sāśvāḥ sarathayodhinaḥ | ekena balinā rājan vāraṇena vimarditāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: O King, there were seen on the battlefield many chariot-warriors—together with their charioteers and horses—crushed and trampled by a single mighty elephant. The scene revealed how, in war, strength and momentum can overwhelm even well-equipped fighters, turning pride in arms into sudden ruin.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the fragility of human power in war: even trained chariot-warriors with horses and charioteers can be undone in an instant by overwhelming force. It implicitly cautions against arrogance in martial strength and highlights the tragic cost inherent in kṣatriya conflict.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that, on the battlefield, many chariot-fighters were visibly crushed—along with their horses and charioteers—by a single powerful elephant, emphasizing the elephant’s devastating charge amid the fighting.