Shloka 56

Śālva’s Elephant Assault and the Counterstroke (शाल्वस्य नागारूढाभ्यवहारः)

Devanagari script

तदद्भुतमपश्याम तव पुत्रस्य पौरुषम्‌

Transliteration

tad adbhutam apaśyāma tava putrasya pauruṣam

Translation

Disse Sañjaya: “Vimos aquela maravilhosa demonstração da viril bravura de teu filho.”

Word by Word

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• अद्भुतम्: wonderful, marvelous
• अद्भुतम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अद्भुत
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• अपश्याम: we saw
• अपश्याम: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश्
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 1st, Plural, Parasmaipada

• तव: of you, your
• तव: Sambandha
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: युष्मद्
• Form: —, Genitive, Singular

• पुत्रस्य: of (your) son
• पुत्रस्य: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• पौरुषम्: manliness, valor
• पौरुषम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पौरुष
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (implied by 'tava')
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra's son (implied; typically Duryodhana in this context)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The line highlights how martial valor (pauruṣa) can appear “wondrous” in war, yet it also implicitly raises the ethical tension of admiring prowess amid a destructive conflict—an important Mahābhārata theme where kṣatriya excellence is praised while the tragedy of war remains in view.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya, reporting events from the battlefield to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, remarks that they witnessed an astonishing feat of bravery performed by the king’s son, emphasizing the son’s visible heroism in the ongoing war.