Shloka 36

Devanagari script

ततोडर्जुनो<स्त्रवीर्येण निजघ्ने तां वरूथिनीम्‌ । तत्र व्यज्रीकृता: पेतु: शतशो<5थ रथद्विपा:,तब अर्जुन अपने अस्त्र-बलसे उस कौरव-सेनाका विनाश करने लगे। वहाँ सैकड़ों रथ और हाथी अंग-भंग होनेके कारण धराशायी हो गये

Transliteration

tato 'rjuno 'stravīryeṇa nijaghne tāṁ varūthinīm | tatra vyajrīkṛtāḥ petuḥ śataśo 'tha rathadvipāḥ ||

Translation

Sanjaya said: Then Arjuna, by the prowess of his missiles, struck down that battle-array. There, hundreds of chariots and elephants, their limbs and fittings shattered, fell to the ground. The scene underscores how martial skill, when unleashed in war, brings swift destruction upon even well-formed forces, raising the grim ethical weight of violence even amid a dharma-conflict.

Word by Word

ततःthen, thereafter

अर्जुनःArjuna

अस्त्रवीर्येणby the power of (his) weapons

निजघ्नेstruck down, slew

ताम्that (her/it)

वरूथिनीम्army, host

तत्रthere

व्यज्रीकृताःdismembered, broken-limbed

पेतुःfell down

शतशःby hundreds, in hundreds

अथthen, and

रथद्विपाःchariots and elephants

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Arjuna

Kaurava army (varūthinī)

chariots (ratha)

elephants (dvipa)

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?

Even within a dharma-framed war, the text does not romanticize violence: it highlights the real, large-scale ruin produced by weapon-skill. The ethical tension lies in fulfilling kṣatriya duty while recognizing the heavy cost borne by living beings and armies.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Arjuna, using powerful astras, breaks the Kaurava battle formation; as a result, hundreds of chariots and elephants are shattered and collapse on the battlefield.