Shloka 21
कर्णस्य दानप्रतिज्ञा–शल्योपदेश–वाक्ययुद्धम्
Karna’s Gift-Vows, Shalya’s Counsel, and the Battle of Words
विद्राव्य च बहूनश्वान् नागा राजन् मदोत्कटा: । विषाणैश्वापरे जघ्नुर्ममृदुश्चापरे भूशम्,राजन! कितने ही मदोन्मत्त हाथी भी बहुत-से घोड़ोंको खदेड़कर उन्हें दाँतोंसे दबाकर मार डालते अथवा वेगपूर्वक पैरोंसे कुचल डालते थे
vidrāvya ca bahūn aśvān nāgā rājan madotkaṭāḥ | viṣāṇaiś cāpare jaghnur mamṛduś cāpare bhūśam ||
サンジャヤは言った。王よ、ムストの狂気に燃える多くの象が、夥しい馬を追い散らした。あるものは牙で突き裂き押し潰して殺し、あるものは突進の勢いで踏みにじった。この光景は戦の残虐な奔流を示す――力と狂乱が生きものを呑み込み、戦場は、道徳的選択を超えて生きものを暴力へ駆り立てる場所となる。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse is primarily descriptive, yet it implicitly highlights the dehumanizing and indiscriminate nature of war: even animals, driven by rut and battlefield chaos, become instruments of mass harm. It invites reflection on the ethical cost of conflict, where life is crushed by forces of frenzy and power rather than guided by dharma.
Sañjaya reports to the king that elephants, maddened with rut, are routing cavalry. Some kill horses by pressing and goring with their tusks; others trample them into the ground as they surge forward, intensifying the carnage on the battlefield.