Mahabharata 9.23.41 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 23, Shloka 41

Chapter 23: Śakuni Reports, Kaurava Advance, and Arjuna’s Penetration of the Host

Devanagari script

अश्वारोहास्तु संरब्धा: पाण्डवानां तरस्विनाम्‌ । प्राविशन्‌ सौबलानीकमभ्यतिक्रम्य तान्‌ रथान्‌

Transliteration

aśvārōhās tu saṃrabdhāḥ pāṇḍavānāṃ tarasvinām | prāviśan saubalānīkam abhyatikramya tān rathān |

Translation

Disse Sañjaya: Os cavaleiros dos Pāṇḍavas, velozes e valentes, inflamados de fúria, transpassaram aqueles guerreiros de carros e investiram diretamente no exército de Saubala.

Word by Word

• अश्वारोहाः: horsemen
• अश्वारोहाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अश्वारोह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• तु: but/indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• संरब्धाः: enraged, impetuous
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संरब्ध (कृदन्त; √रभ्)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• पाण्डवानाम्: of the Pandavas
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाण्डव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• तरस्विनाम्: of the mighty/impetuous
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तरस्विन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• प्राविशन्: entered
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-√विश्
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Plural

• सौबलानीकम्: the army/host of Saubala (Shakuni)
• सौबलानीकम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: सौबल + अनीक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• अभ्यतिक्रम्य: having overstepped/passed beyond
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अभि-√अति-क्रम्
• Form: Absolutive (Gerund, -ya)

• तान्: those
• तान्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• रथान्: chariots (i.e., chariot-warriors)
• रथान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: रथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Pāṇḍavas
• Saubala (Śakuni, son of Subala)
• Saubala’s army
• horsemen (cavalry)
• chariots/chariot-warriors

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how intense anger and urgency in war can drive warriors to daring, formation-breaking actions; it implicitly contrasts disciplined order with the disruptive force of rage, reminding that kṣatriya valor often operates under powerful emotions that must be mastered to remain aligned with dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that the Pāṇḍavas’ swift cavalry, in a surge of fury, bypassed the line of enemy chariot-warriors and penetrated into the host led by Saubala (Śakuni), indicating a tactical breakthrough into the Kaurava formation.