Shloka 20
Bhīmasena’s Kalinga Engagement and the Approach of Bhīṣma (भीमसेन-कालिङ्ग-संग्रामः)
हयैरपि हयारोहाश्चलामरापीडधारिभि: । हंसैरिव महावेगैरन्योन्यमभिविद्रुता:,चँवर और कलंगीसे सुशोभित हंस-तुल्य सफेद एवं महान् वेगशाली घोड़ोंपर बैठे हुए कितने ही घुड़सवार एक-दूसरेपर धावा कर रहे थे
hayair api hayārohāś calāmarāpīḍadhāribhiḥ | haṃsair iva mahāvegair anyonyam abhividrutāḥ ||
サンジャヤは言った。「また、ヤクの尾の払子がひるがえり、冠飾りを戴いた騎馬の戦士たちも、白く、巨翼の白鳥のごとく疾い馬に乗り、互いに向かって猛然と突撃した。」
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse does not state a direct moral injunction; it heightens awareness of how war can appear magnificent—swift white horses, royal emblems, disciplined riders—yet that very magnificence is directed toward mutual destruction. It invites reflection on the ethical ambiguity of martial glory: beauty and prowess do not remove the burden of violence.
Sañjaya is narrating the Kurukṣetra battle to Dhṛtarāṣṭra. Here he depicts cavalry units: horsemen adorned with cāmaras and crests, mounted on fast white horses likened to swans, charging at each other in close combat.