Shloka 303

Devanagari script

अवारयच्छरैस्ती4॥णैर्महाद्विपमिवाड्कुशै: । तब क्रोधमें भरे हुए राजा युधिष्ठिरने पैदलों और घुड़सवारोंके साथ आते हुए शल्यको अपने तीखे बाणोंसे उसी प्रकार रोक दिया, जैसे महावत अंकुशोंकी मारसे विशालकाय हाथीको आगे बढ़नेसे रोक देता है

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | avārayac charais tīkṣṇair mahādvipam ivāṅkuśaiḥ |

Translation

Sanjaya berkata: Dikuasai amarah, Raja Yudhiṣṭhira menahan Śalya yang mara bersama infantri dan kavaleri, menghentikannya dengan anak panah yang tajam—seperti seorang mahout mengekang gajah besar daripada menerjang ke hadapan dengan menghentaknya menggunakan cangkuk gading (goad).

Word by Word

अवारयत्stopped, checked

शरैःwith arrows

तीक्ष्णैःsharp

महाद्विपम्a huge elephant

इवlike, as

अङ्कुशैःwith goads

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

Yudhiṣṭhira

Śalya

arrows (śara)

elephant (mahādvipa)

elephant-goad (aṅkuśa)

infantry

cavalry

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even in anger and violence, effective leadership requires restraint and disciplined action. The simile of the mahout and elephant highlights controlled power—checking a dangerous advance through skill rather than uncontrolled fury.

What is happening in the narrative?

Śalya advances in battle supported by infantry and cavalry. Yudhiṣṭhira, enraged, halts his advance by showering sharp arrows, likened to a mahout stopping a huge elephant with a goad.