Shloka 17
अध्याय २९: कर्णस्य शल्यं प्रति शापस्मरणं च युद्धनिश्चयः | Chapter 29: Karṇa recalls curses to Śalya and declares resolve for battle
गजान् गजप्रयन्तृश्च वैजयन्त्यायुधध्वजान् | सादिनो<श्चांश्व पत्तींश्ष शरैनिन्यि यमक्षयम्
gajān gajaprayantṝṁś ca vaijayanty-āyudha-dhvajān | sādino 'śvāṁś ca pattīṁś ca śaraiḥ ninye yamākṣayam ||
Sañjaya berkata: Dengan anak panahnya dia menghantar ke alam Yama gajah-gajah dan pemandunya, para pahlawan yang membawa panji vaijayantī serta senjata, juga para penunggang kuda, kuda-kuda, dan askar berjalan kaki—menumbangkan mereka dalam arus pertempuran yang tidak mengenal belas.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the grim inevitability of death in war and the sweeping reach of martial force: in the kṣatriya arena, entire arms of the army—elephants, cavalry, and infantry—can be destroyed in moments. It implicitly invites reflection on the cost of conflict and the ethical weight borne by warriors and leaders who choose war.
Sañjaya reports a fierce phase of the battle in which a powerful archer (implied by context) strikes down multiple divisions of the opposing force. By his arrows he kills elephants with their drivers, standard-bearers with victory-banners, horsemen with horses, and foot-soldiers, sending them to Yama’s realm.