Shloka 34

Devanagari script

महाद्विपानां सरलद्रुमोपमा: करा निकृत्ता: प्रपतन्त्यमी क्षुरै: । किरीटिना तेन पुन: ससादिन: शरैनिकृत्ता: कुलिशैरिवाद्रय:,अर्जुनके छुरनामक बाणोंसे कटे हुए ये बड़े-बड़े हाथियोंके शुण्डदण्ड देवदारुके समान गिर रहे हैं। फिर उन्हीं किरीटीके बाणोंसे छिन्न-भिन्न हो वज्रके मारे हुए पर्वतोंके समान वे हाथी सवारोंसहित धराशायी हो रहे हैं

Transliteration

mahādvipānāṁ saraladrumopamāḥ karā nikṛttāḥ prapatanty amī kṣuraiḥ | kirīṭinā tena punaḥ sasādinaḥ śarair nikṛttāḥ kuliśair ivādrayaḥ ||

Translation

The great elephants’ trunk-like forelimbs, likened to tall pine trees, are being severed by those razor-edged shafts and fall to the ground. Then, struck again by that Kirīṭin’s arrows, the elephants collapse with their riders, shattered like mountains split by a thunderbolt—an image of the battle’s relentless force and the terrible cost of martial prowess.

Word by Word

महाद्विपानाम्of the great elephants

सरलद्रुमोपमाःcomparable to pine/deodar trees

कराःhands / trunks (lit. hands)

निकृत्ताःcut off

प्रपतन्तिfall down

अमीthese (those here)

क्षुरैःwith razors / razor(-like arrows)

किरीटिनाby the diademed one (Arjuna)

तेनby him / with that

पुनःagain, further

ससादिनःwith riders / riders (lit. those having sat [on them])

शर-निकृत्ताःcut down by arrows

कुलिशैःby thunderbolts

इवlike, as

अद्रयःmountains

Speaker

विशोक उवाच

Characters & Entities

Kirīṭin (Arjuna)

elephants (war elephants)

riders (sādins)

kṣura (razor-edged arrows)

śara (arrows)

kuliśa/vajra (thunderbolt)

adri (mountains)

sarala-druma (pine/deodar-like trees)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the overwhelming power of disciplined martial skill in war while simultaneously highlighting the grim consequences of battle—strength and duty (kṣatriya action) unfold amid unavoidable destruction.

What is happening in the narrative?

A narrator describes Arjuna (Kirīṭin) cutting down the elephants’ trunk/forelimb-like members with razor-edged arrows; the elephants then collapse with their riders, compared to mountains shattered by a thunderbolt.