Shloka 28

भीमसेनस्य बहुमहारथसंयुगः

Bhīmasena’s Engagement with Multiple Mahārathas

Devanagari script

आविद्धरथनागाश्चं पतितध्वजसंकुलम्‌

Transliteration

āviddharathanāgāś caṁ patitadhvajasaṅkulam

Translation

Sañjaya disse: “O campo estava repleto de carros e elefantes de guerra atingidos e lançados à confusão, e apinhado de estandartes caídos.”

Word by Word

• आविद्ध: pierced, transfixed
• आविद्ध: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आ + √व्यध् (विध्) / आविद्ध (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: neuter, nominative, singular

• रथ: chariot
• रथ: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: रथ
• Form: masculine, stem (in compound), —

• नाग: elephant
• नाग: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाग
• Form: masculine, stem (in compound), —

• अश्वम्: horse
• अश्वम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: अश्व
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• पतित: fallen
• पतित: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √पत् / पतित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: masculine, stem (in compound), —

• ध्वज: banner, flag
• ध्वज: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: ध्वज
• Form: masculine, stem (in compound), —

• संकुलम्: crowded, filled, thronged
• संकुलम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संकुल
• Form: neuter, nominative, singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• ratha (chariots)
• nāga (war-elephants)
• dhvaja (banners/standards)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the stark impermanence of martial glory: banners, chariots, and elephants—symbols of power—collapse in the chaos of war, reminding the listener that pride and worldly might are fragile amid adharma-driven conflict.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes the battlefield scene as densely packed and chaotic—chariots and elephants have been struck, and many standards have fallen—conveying the intensity and disorder of the ongoing combat.