Shloka 18
द्रोण–सात्यकि-युद्धम्
Droṇa–Sātyaki Engagement
विसूताश्वध्वजा: पेतु: संछिन्नायुधजीविता: । रथिनो रथमुख्येभ्य: सहसा शरपीडिता:,अर्जुनके बाणोंसे पीड़ित हुए बहुतेरे रथी सारथि, अश्व, ध्वज, अस्त्र-शस्त्र और प्राणोंसे भी वंचित हो सहसा श्रेष्ठ रथोंसे नीचे जा गिरे
sañjaya uvāca | visūtāśvadhvajāḥ petuḥ sañchinnāyudhajīvitāḥ | rathino rathamukhyebhyaḥ sahasā śarapīḍitāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Struck down by Arjuna’s arrows, many chariot-warriors fell suddenly from their finest chariots—bereft of charioteers, horses, and banners, their weapons shattered and their very lives cut off. The verse underscores the swift, impersonal devastation of battle: prowess and status collapse in an instant when violence is unleashed, reminding the listener of war’s ethical gravity and the fragility of embodied life.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the sudden collapse of worldly supports—status, equipment, and even life—under the force of war. Ethically, it presses the listener to recognize battle’s grave cost: martial excellence can be awe-inspiring, yet its immediate fruit is destruction, urging sobriety about violence even within kṣatriya duty.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Arjuna’s arrows are striking the opposing chariot-warriors so fiercely that many fall at once from their best chariots, with charioteers, horses, banners, and weapons disabled or destroyed, and with lives being cut short.