Shloka 58
शबलास्तु बृहन्तो<श्वा दान्ता जाम्बूनदस्रज: । युद्धे सत्यधृतिं क्षैमिमवहन् प्रांशव: शुभा:,चितकबरे, विशालकाय, वशगमें किये हुए, सुवर्णकी मालासे विभूषित तथा ऊँचे कदवाले सुन्दर अअभ्रोंने क्षेमकुमार सत्यधृतिको युद्धभूमिमें पहुँचाया
sañjaya uvāca |
śabalās tu bṛhanto ’śvā dāntā jāmbūnada-srajaḥ |
yuddhe satya-dhṛtiṃ kṣaimim avahan prāṃśavaḥ śubhāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: The tall, well-trained, dappled horses—adorned with garlands of Jāmbūnada gold—noble and high-stepping, bore Kṣemakumāra Satyadhṛti onto the battlefield. The scene underscores how royal splendor and disciplined strength are pressed into the service of war, carrying a named warrior into the moral trial of combat.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how disciplined power and royal magnificence (trained horses, gold garlands) become instruments within war; it implicitly contrasts outward splendor with the inward ethical burden of entering battle, a recurring Mahābhārata concern about duty and consequence.
Sañjaya describes a warrior named Satyadhṛti (called Kṣemakumāra/Kṣemi) being brought onto the battlefield by tall, well-trained, dappled horses adorned with gold garlands—an image of martial procession and readiness for combat.