Shloka 16
Adhyāya 86: Irāvān’s Lineage, Cavalry Clash, and the Māyā-Duel Ending in Irāvān’s Fall
इरावांस्तु ततो राजन्ननुविन्दस्य सायकै: । चतुर्भिश्चतुरो वाहाननयद् यमसादनम्,राजन्! उस समय इरावानने अपने चार बाणोंद्वारा अनुविन्दके चारों घोड़ोंको यमलोक पहुँचा दिया
irāvāṁs tu tato rājann anuvindasya sāyakaiḥ | caturbhiś caturo vāhān anayad yamasādanam ||
Sañjaya said: Then, O King, Irāvān, with four arrows, struck down Anuvinda’s four horses, sending them to the abode of Yama. In the relentless ethics of battlefield duty, the warrior disables the enemy’s mobility, turning the tide through decisive, targeted force rather than indiscriminate slaughter.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a battlefield ethic within kṣatriya-dharma: force is applied with tactical purpose—here, disabling the opponent’s chariot team—showing how duty in war often operates through strategic, targeted actions that determine outcomes while remaining within the accepted codes of combat.
Sañjaya reports to the king that Irāvān shoots four arrows and kills Anuvinda’s four horses, effectively neutralizing Anuvinda’s chariot mobility and sending the horses ‘to Yama’s abode,’ a poetic way of stating that they were slain.