Shloka 5

Devanagari script

ते हयाः प्रत्यपद्यन्त वसुधां विगतासव: । चरता लोकवीरेण प्रहता: सव्यसाचिना,रणभूमिमें विचरते हुए विश्वविख्यात वीर सव्यसाची अर्जुनके द्वारा मारे गये वे घोड़े और घुड़सवार प्राणहीन होकर पृथ्वीपर गिर पड़े

Transliteration

te hayāḥ pratyapadyanta vasudhāṁ vigatāsavaḥ | caratā lokavīreṇa prahatāḥ savyasācinā ||

Translation

Sanjaya said: Struck down by the world-renowned hero Savyasācin (Arjuna) as he ranged across the battlefield, those horses collapsed to the earth, their life-breath departed. The scene underscores the grim inevitability of war, where even noble steeds become casualties amid a warrior’s relentless duty in combat.

Word by Word

तेthose

हयाःhorses

प्रत्यपद्यन्तfell down / came down (to)

वसुधाम्the earth/ground

विगतासवःlifeless (with life departed)

चरताby (him) moving/roaming

लोकवीरेणby the hero of the world

प्रहताःstruck down / slain

सव्यसाचिनाby Savyasācin (Arjuna)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Arjuna (Savyasācin)

horses

earth (vasudhā)

battlefield (raṇabhūmi, implied by context)

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 highlights the harsh moral reality of warfare: even non-combatants like horses perish when warriors fulfill their martial duty. It invites reflection on the cost of conflict and the inevitability of death within the kṣatriya sphere of action.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports that Arjuna, moving about on the battlefield, strikes down enemy horses (and by implication their riders), causing them to fall lifeless to the ground.