Shloka 63
कृष्णेन अर्जुनस्य प्रोत्साहनम् — Kṛṣṇa’s Exhortation to Arjuna
Prelude to Karṇa’s Slaying
नागाश्च समरे उयड़ं ममृदु: शीघ्रगा नृप । हाथी हाथियोंसे भिड़कर एक-दूसरेको संताप देने लगे। उस समरांगणमें घोड़े घोड़ों, रथी रथियों एवं पैदल पैदलसमूहों, अश्वसमुदायों तथा रथों और हाथियोंका भी मर्दन कर रहे थे। नरेश्वर! इसी प्रकार रथी हाथी और घोड़ोंका तथा शीघ्रगामी हाथी उस युद्धस्थलमें हाथी सेनाके अन्य तीन अंगोंको रौंदने लगे
sañjaya uvāca | nāgāś ca samare yuddhe mṛdūḥ śīghragā nṛpa | hastī hastibhir āhūya parasparaṃ santāpayām āsuḥ | tatra samaraṅgaṇe aśvā aśvaiḥ rathino rathibhiḥ padātayaḥ padātibhiḥ samūhāś ca aśvasamudāyā rathāś ca hastinaś ca mardayām āsuḥ | nareśvara! evaṃ rathino hastinaś ca aśvān ca tathā śīghragā hastinaḥ tasmin yuddhasthale hastisenāyā anyān trīn aṅgān api ruroduḥ |
Sanjaya said: O king, in that battle the elephants, swift in their charge, pressed against other elephants and tormented one another. On that field, horses clashed with horses, chariot-warriors with chariot-warriors, and foot-soldiers with foot-soldiers; masses of cavalry, chariots, and elephants crushed and trampled all around. Thus, O lord of men, chariot-fighters bore down upon elephants and horses, and the fast-moving elephants, in the very midst of the fight, trampled the other three limbs of the elephant-corps—horse, chariot, and infantry—so that the ordered structure of the army dissolved into mutual destruction.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how war collapses orderly formations into indiscriminate mutual harm: even the structured fourfold army (elephants, chariots, cavalry, infantry) becomes a scene of trampling and torment, highlighting the ethical cost and dehumanizing momentum of battle.
Sanjaya describes the melee: elephants collide with elephants; horses, charioteers, and infantry engage their counterparts; and the fast-charging elephants end up trampling not only enemies but also the other arms of the army, intensifying confusion and destruction on the battlefield.