Shloka 36
Adhyāya 74 (Book 6, Bhīṣma-parva): Bhīma–Duryodhana re-engagement and afternoon escalation
गन्धहस्तिमदस्त्रावमात्राय बहवो रणे । संनिपाते बलौघानां वीतमाददिरे गजा:
sañjaya uvāca | gandhahastimadāstrāvamātrāya bahavo raṇe | sannipāte balaughānāṃ vītam ādadire gajāḥ ||
Sañjaya berkata: Dalam pertempuran itu, di tengah pertembungan padat bala tentera, banyak gajah—terangsang oleh bau musth dan sekadar jejak harum mabuk musth gajah perang yang wangi—menangkap gajah-gajah lain seolah-olah itulah gajah tersebut, lalu dalam kegilaan pembunuhan menjatuhkan bahkan yang sudah lemah. Pemandangan itu menunjukkan bahawa apabila kekeliruan dan dahaga darah perang memuncak, pertimbangan runtuh dan keganasan merebak melampaui niat, menimpa juga yang sedia rapuh.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how the chaos of war overwhelms discrimination: even a mere trace of scent can trigger frenzy, leading to mistaken aggression and harm to the weak. Ethically, it underscores war’s tendency to expand violence beyond rightful targets and the need for restraint and clarity (dharma) even amid conflict.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield melee where many elephants, excited by the smell of rut from a powerful fragrant war-elephant, mistakenly seize other elephants as if they were that one and bring them down—so intense is the slaughter and confusion among the massed armies.