Mahabharata 7.148.83 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 148, Shloka 83
अध्याय १४८ — कर्णप्रभावः, धृष्टद्युम्नस्य विरथता, तथा घटोत्कच-आह्वानम्
Chapter 148: Karṇa’s Pressure, Dhṛṣṭadyumna Unhorsed, and the Summoning of Ghaṭotkaca
द्विपान द्विपगतांश्वैव हयान् हयगतानपि । तथा स रथिनश्वैव न्यहन् रुद्र: पशूनिव
dvipān dvipagatāṁś caiva hayān hayagatān api | tathā sa rathinaś caiva nyahan rudraḥ paśūn iva ||
അവൻ ആനകളെയും ആനപ്പുറത്തിരുന്നവരെയും, കുതിരകളെയും അശ്വാരോഹികളെയും, അതുപോലെ രഥങ്ങളോടുകൂടിയ രഥികളെയും—സംഹാരകനായ രുദ്രൻ ജീവികളെ നശിപ്പിക്കുന്നതുപോലെ—വധിച്ചു വീഴ്ത്തി।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how war can become a force of sheer annihilation, likened to Rudra’s destructive power. Ethically, it invites reflection on the tension between kṣatriya duty in battle and the frightening ease with which mass killing can appear ‘natural’ or ‘cosmic,’ risking the eclipse of compassion and restraint.
Sañjaya reports that a formidable warrior is cutting down multiple divisions—elephants with riders, horses with riders, and chariots with their fighters—so relentlessly that his action is compared to Rudra destroying creatures.
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