Shloka 40
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 95 — Sātyaki’s Breakthrough and the Routing of Allied Contingents
चुक्रुशुश्व निपेतुश्च बश्रमुश्चापरे दिश: । भशं त्रस्ताश्न बहव: स्वानेव ममृदुर्गजा:
cukruśuś ca nipetuś ca bhīṣmam uś cāpare diśaḥ | bhayaṁ trastāś ca bahavaḥ svān eva mamṛdur gajāḥ ||
サンジャヤは言った。「多くが叫び、倒れた。ほかの方角でも大きな騒擾が起こった。恐怖に駆られた多くの象は乱れ走り、味方すら踏みにじった。」
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how fear in war destroys order: even powerful assets like war-elephants become dangerous when panic overrides control, leading to harm of one’s own side. It implies the ethical need for steadiness, discipline, and responsible command amid violence.
Sañjaya describes a moment of battlefield turmoil: cries arise, some fall, alarm spreads across the field, and frightened elephants run amok, trampling their own troops in the confusion.