Shloka 26
अध्याय ९१ — शैनेयस्य गजानीकभेदनं जलसंधवधश्च
Chapter 91: Sātyaki breaks the elephant array and slays Jalasaṃdha
हस्तिभि: पतितैर्भिन्नैस्तव सैन्यमदृश्यत । अन्तकाले यथा भूमिर्व्यवकीर्णा महीधरै:,राजन! बाणोंसे छिन्न-भिन्न होकर धरतीपर पड़े हुए हाथियोंसे आपकी सेना वैसी ही दिखायी देती थी, जैसे प्रलयकालमें यह पृथ्वी इधर-उधर बिखरे हुए पर्वतोंसे आच्छादित देखी जाती है
hastibhiḥ patitair bhinnais tava sainyam adṛśyata | antakāle yathā bhūmir vyavakīrṇā mahīdharaiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Your army appeared strewn with elephants—fallen to the ground and hacked apart by arrows—so that it looked like the earth at the end of time, when the land is seen covered and scattered over with mountains thrown out of place. The image underscores the moral horror of war: strength and grandeur (elephants, like mountains) become signs of ruin when dharma collapses into unchecked slaughter.
संजय उवाच