Shloka 17

भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय ६६: तुमुलसंग्रामवर्णनम्

The Tumult of Battle Described

Devanagari script

तत्र तत्र हतैश्नापि मनुष्यगजवाजिभि:

Transliteration

tatra tatra hataiś cāpi manuṣya-gaja-vājibhiḥ

Translation

ସଞ୍ଜୟ କହିଲେ—ଏଠି ସେଠି ହତ ମନୁଷ୍ୟ, ହାତୀ ଓ ଘୋଡ଼ା ପଡ଼ିଥିଲେ; ହତମାନଙ୍କରେ ଭୂମି ଛାଇଯାଇ, ସମସ୍ତ ଦିଗରେ ରଣବିନାଶର ଚିହ୍ନ ପ୍ରକଟ ହୋଇଥିଲା।

Word by Word

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र
• Form: Avyaya (locative adverb)

• तत्र: there (here and there)
• तत्र: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र
• Form: Avyaya (locative adverb)

• हतैः: by the slain / with the killed
• हतैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हत
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural (PPP of √हन्)

• अपि: also/even
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि
• Form: Avyaya

• मनुष्य-गज-वाजिभिः: by men, elephants, and horses
• मनुष्य-गज-वाजिभिः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: मनुष्य + गज + वाजिन्
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• men (manuṣyāḥ)
• elephants (gajāḥ)
• horses (vājinaḥ)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the indiscriminate cost of war: life is lost across ranks and species alike. In the Mahābhārata’s ethical frame, such imagery presses the listener to weigh kṣatriya-duty against the tragic consequences that follow when conflict becomes all-consuming.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya is describing the battlefield scene: in many places the field is filled with the dead—humans, elephants, and horses—conveying the scale and chaos of the fighting.