Shloka 16
अध्याय २९: कर्णस्य शल्यं प्रति शापस्मरणं च युद्धनिश्चयः | Chapter 29: Karṇa recalls curses to Śalya and declares resolve for battle
रथान् विमानप्रतिमान् मज्जयन् सायुधध्वजान् । स सारथींस्तदा बाणैरभ्राणीवानिलोडवधीत्,जैसे वायु मेघोंकी घटाको छिन्न-भिन्न कर देती है, उसी प्रकार उस समय अर्जुनने अपने बाणोंद्वारा विमान-जैसे रथोंको आयुध, ध्वज और सारथियोंसहित नष्ट कर दिया
rathān vimānapratimān majjayan sāyudhadhvajān | sa sārathīṁs tadā bāṇair abhrāṇīvānilo 'vadadhīt ||
Sañjaya said: At that time Arjuna, like the wind that shatters masses of clouds, destroyed with his arrows those chariots that looked like aerial cars—sinking them and cutting them down together with their weapons, banners, and charioteers. The verse underscores the relentless, impersonal force of battle, where skill and resolve can erase even splendid war-machines and their crews in an instant.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even the most magnificent instruments of power—splendid chariots with arms and standards—are fragile before decisive skill and time; the epic simile (wind scattering clouds) highlights the transience of martial glory and the sweeping, impersonal momentum of war.
Sañjaya reports that Arjuna, in the thick of battle, shoots down and overwhelms many splendid chariots, destroying them along with their weapons, banners, and charioteers, as wind breaks apart dense cloud formations.