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Shloka 256

भीमसेनस्य बहुमहारथसंयुगः

Bhīmasena’s Engagement with Multiple Mahārathas

न्यपतन्त गतप्राणा: शतशो5थ सहस्रश: । राजन! जिनके सवार मार दिये गये थे, ऐसे हाथी और घोड़े सैकड़ों और हजारोंकी संख्यामें निष्प्राण होकर पड़े थे

nyapatanta gataprāṇāḥ śataśo ’tha sahasraśaḥ |

Sañjaya disse: Ó rei, centenas e até milhares tombavam, sem vida — elefantes de guerra e cavalos cujos cavaleiros haviam sido mortos — jazendo inertes por todo o campo de batalha, testemunho sombrio da ruína que se segue quando o combate consome tanto os homens quanto as criaturas presas ao seu serviço.

न्यपतन्तfell down
न्यपतन्त:
TypeVerb
Rootपत् (पतति)
FormImperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Plural, Parasmaipada
गतप्राणाःlifeless; whose life had gone
गतप्राणाः:
Karta
TypeAdjective
Rootगतप्राण (gata-prāṇa)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
शतशःby hundreds; in hundreds
शतशः:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootशतशस्
अथand then; and
अथ:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootअथ
सहस्रशःby thousands; in thousands
सहस्रशः:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootसहस्रशस्

संजय उवाच

S
Sañjaya
R
Rājan (Dhṛtarāṣṭra, implied addressee)
W
war-elephants
H
horses
R
riders (implied)

Educational Q&A

The verse underscores the moral cost of war: death spreads beyond warriors to animals and dependents, highlighting impermanence and the collateral suffering that accompanies armed conflict even when framed within kṣatriya duty.

Sañjaya reports to the king that the battlefield is strewn with lifeless elephants and horses in vast numbers, especially those whose riders have already been killed, emphasizing the scale and devastation of the fighting.