Shloka 40
अध्याय २६ — शल्यस्य सारथ्य-नियोजनं, कर्णस्य प्रस्थानं, उत्पातदर्शनं च
Chapter 26: Śalya appointed as charioteer; Karṇa’s departure; portents
सीदमानानि चक्राणि समूहुस्तुरगा भूशम्
sīdamānāni cakrāṇi samūhus turagā bhūśam
Sañjaya reports that the chariot-wheels began to sink, and the horses churned up the earth—an ominous battlefield sign suggesting strain, disorder, and the heavy burden of war pressing upon men and machines alike.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how war disrupts the natural and moral order: even the instruments of battle falter, hinting at ominous consequences and the weight of adharma and violence that makes progress itself ‘sink’.
Sañjaya describes a battlefield moment where chariot wheels sink into the ground and the horses, struggling, churn up the earth—vividly conveying chaos, difficulty of movement, and an inauspicious turn in the fighting.