Shloka 16

Devanagari script

ततो रथसहस्रेण महारथशतेन च

Transliteration

tato rathasahasreṇa mahārathaśatena ca, abhyadravanta śaineyam asaṅkhyeyāś ca pattayaḥ |

Translation

Então, com mil carros e cem grandes guerreiros de carro, e com incontáveis infantes, avançaram diretamente contra Śaineya (Sātyaki). Em seguida, com mil combatentes em carros, cem mahārathas, mil elefantes e dois mil cavaleiros, além de muitos mahārathas e uma multidão incontável de soldados a pé, precipitaram-se sobre Sātyaki, derramando sobre ele uma chuva de flechas de muitos tipos.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (तद्-प्रातिपदिकात् अव्यय)

• रथसहस्रेण: with a thousand chariots
• रथसहस्रेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: रथसहस्र
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• महारथशतेन: with a hundred great chariot-warriors
• महारथशतेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: महारथशत
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• अभ्यद्रवन्त: ran towards, charged
• अभ्यद्रवन्त: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: द्रु (धावने)
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Plural

• शैनेयम्: Sātyaki (the son of Śini)
• शैनेयम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: शैनेय (सात्यकि)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• असंख्येयाः: countless
• असंख्येयाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: असंख्येय
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• पत्तयः: foot-soldiers
• पत्तयः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पत्ति
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Śaineya (Sātyaki)
• ratha (chariot)
• mahāratha (great chariot-warrior)
• pattayaḥ (infantry)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the harsh reality of dharma in war: even a righteous or renowned warrior may be met not with equal combat but with overwhelming force. It underscores endurance and steadfastness under unjust or disproportionate pressure—an ethical tension repeatedly explored in the Mahābhārata’s battlefield narratives.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that a large force—specified as a thousand chariots and a hundred mahārathas, along with innumerable infantry—charges directly at Śaineya (Sātyaki), attempting to crush him through a coordinated mass attack.