Shloka 13
Jayadrathasya varaprāptiḥ (जयद्रथस्य वरप्राप्तिः) — Jayadratha’s boon and the restraint of the Pāṇḍava advance
रथनागाश्वमनुजानर्दयन् निशितै: शरै: । सम्प्रविश्याकरोद् भूमिं कबन्धगणसंकुलाम्,उस सेनामें प्रवेश करके उसने अपने तीखे बाणोंद्वारा रथों, हाथियों, घोड़ों और पैदल मनुष्योंको पीड़ित करते हुए सारी रणभूमिको बिना मस्तकके शरीरोंसे पाट दिया
rathanāgāśvamanūjān ardayan niśitaiḥ śaraiḥ | sampraviśyākarod bhūmiṃ kabandhagaṇasaṅkulām ||
Sañjaya said: Entering into that army, he tormented chariots, elephants, horses, and foot-soldiers with his sharp arrows, and he made the whole battlefield a mass of headless trunks. The verse underscores the grim momentum of war: prowess expressed as slaughter, where martial success is measured by devastation rather than restraint, pressing the listener to confront the ethical cost of violence even when performed within the codes of battle.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse does not preach a doctrine directly; it confronts the reader with the moral weight of war. Even when combat follows the warrior code, the outcome is horrific—success manifests as widespread suffering—inviting reflection on dharma, restraint, and the human cost of righteous conflict.
Sañjaya describes a warrior entering the opposing army and, with sharp arrows, afflicting chariots, elephants, horses, and infantry, leaving the battlefield strewn with headless bodies—an image of overwhelming martial assault and rout.