Shloka 18

अर्जुनस्य शीघ्रप्रयाणं भीम-शकुनियुद्धं च

Arjuna’s Rapid Advance and the Bhīma–Śakuni Encounter

Devanagari script

ततः: सेनापती राजन्‌ पाण्डवस्य महारथ:

Transliteration

tataḥ senāpatī rājan pāṇḍavasya mahārathaḥ

Translation

ਸੰਜਯ ਨੇ ਆਖਿਆ—ਤਦ, ਹੇ ਰਾਜਨ! ਪਾਂਡਵਾਂ ਦਾ ਸੈਨਾਪਤੀ—ਉਹ ਮਹਾਰਥੀ…

Word by Word

• ततः: then; thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततस्
• Form: Avyaya (ablatival adverb: 'from that/thereupon')

• सेनापतिः: the commander of the army
• सेनापतिः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: सेनापति
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• राजन्: O king
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन्
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• पाण्डवस्य: of the Pandava
• पाण्डवस्य: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाण्डव
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• महारथः: a great chariot-warrior
• महारथः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: महारथ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Pāṇḍavas
• senāpati (Pāṇḍava commander-in-chief, unspecified in this half-verse)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even in the chaos of war, order is maintained through dharma-informed leadership: the senāpati bears responsibility for strategy and protection of the host, embodying disciplined command rather than mere violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that, at this point in the battle, the Pāṇḍava commander-in-chief—described as a mahāratha—takes action, marking a shift to the next tactical or combat development.