Shloka 122
Daiva–Puruṣakāra Discourse and the Elephant-Corps Engagement (भीमगजानीक-सम्भ्रान्ति)
“वीरवर! बड़े सौभाग्यकी बात है कि कलिंगराज भानुमान्, राजकुमार केतुमान्, कलिंगवीर शक्रदेव तथा अन्य बहुसंख्यक कलिंग-सैनिक आपके द्वारा युद्धमें मारे गये ।।
vīravara! baḍe saubhāgyakī bāta hai ki kaliṅgarāja bhānumān, rājakumāra ketumān, kaliṅgavīra śakradeva tathā anya bahusaṅkhyaka kaliṅga-sainika āpake dvārā yuddhe māre gaye. svabāhubalavīryeṇa nāgāśvarathasaṅkulaḥ | mahāpuruṣabhūyiṣṭho dhīrayodhaniṣevitaḥ ||
सञ्जय उवाच—वीरवर! महद् भाग्यमिदं यत् त्वया समरे कलिङ्गराजो भानुमान्, राजकुमारः केतुमान्, कलिङ्गवीरः शक्रदेवश्च, अन्ये च बहवः कलिङ्गसैनिकाः निहताः। स्वबाहुबलवीर्येण नागाश्वरथसंकुलं रणाङ्गणं कृतं; महापुरुषभूयिष्ठं धीरयोधनिषेवितं च तत्।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames battlefield success as ‘saubhāgya’ (good fortune) and highlights kṣatriya-dharma: valor, steadfastness, and personal effort (svabāhu-bala-vīrya) are praised, while the grim cost—many slain warriors—is presented as the accepted currency of righteous war in epic ethics.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, praising a hero’s martial achievement: key Kaliṅga leaders (Bhānumān, Ketumān, Śakradeva) and many Kaliṅga troops have been killed, and the battlefield is described as densely packed with elephants, horses, and chariots, frequented by resolute warriors.