Shloka 16
ततो रथसहस्रेण महारथशतेन च,अभ्यद्रवन्त शैनेयमसंख्येयाश्ष पत्तय: । तत्पश्चात् एक हजार रथी, सौ महारथी, एक हजार हाथी और दो हजार घुड़सवारोंके साथ बहुत-से महारथी और असंख्य पैदल सैनिक सात्यकिपर नाना प्रकारके बाणोंकी वर्षा करते हुए टूट पड़े
tato rathasahasreṇa mahārathaśatena ca, abhyadravanta śaineyam asaṅkhyeyāś ca pattayaḥ |
Then, with a thousand chariots and a hundred great chariot-warriors, countless infantrymen charged straight at Śaineya (Sātyaki). In the press of battle, they rushed upon him in massed formation, intent on overwhelming a single hero by sheer numbers—an image of war’s ruthless calculus, where valor is tested not only by skill but by the moral strain of violence multiplied.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the harsh reality of dharma in war: even a righteous or renowned warrior may be met not with equal combat but with overwhelming force. It underscores endurance and steadfastness under unjust or disproportionate pressure—an ethical tension repeatedly explored in the Mahābhārata’s battlefield narratives.
Sañjaya reports that a large force—specified as a thousand chariots and a hundred mahārathas, along with innumerable infantry—charges directly at Śaineya (Sātyaki), attempting to crush him through a coordinated mass attack.