Shloka 20
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 45: Saubhadra–Lakṣmaṇa-saṃyoga and Kaurava Counter-Encirclement
ससूताश्चध्वजं तस्य स्यन्दनं तं च मारिष । आचितं समपश्याम श्वाविधं शललैरिव,आर्य! सारथि, घोड़े और ध्वजसहित अभिमन्युके उस रथको मैंने उसी प्रकार बाणोंसे व्याप्त देखा, जैसे साही (सेह)-का शरीर काँटोंसे भरा रहता है
sasūtāś ca dhvajaṃ tasya syandanaṃ taṃ ca māriṣa | ācitaṃ samapaśyāma śvāv-idhaṃ śalalair iva ||
Sañjaya said: “O venerable one, I saw his chariot—together with its charioteer, horses, and banner—so completely covered with arrows that it looked like the body of a porcupine bristling with quills.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the stark reality of war: even the finest instruments of valor—chariot, banner, horses, and charioteer—are vulnerable. It highlights endurance amid overwhelming assault and the impartial clarity of truthful narration.
Sañjaya reports to the listener that he saw the warrior’s chariot, along with its driver, horses, and standard, densely pierced and covered by arrows—so thickly that it resembled a porcupine bristling with quills.