Shloka 26
Chapter 12: Arjuna’s suppression of the Saṃśaptakas and duel with Aśvatthāmā
Drauṇi
तयो: समभवद् युद्ध द्विपयोरुग्ररूपयो: । यदृच्छया द्रुमवतोर्महापर्वतयोरिव,जैसे वृक्षोंसे भरे हुए दो महान् पर्वत दैवेच्छासे परस्पर टकरा रहे हों, उसी प्रकार उन भयानक रूपधारी दोनों गजराजोंमें भारी युद्ध छिड़ गया स शरै: क्षतसर्वाज्र: सात्यकि: सत्यविक्रम: । रराज समरे राजन् सपुष्प इव किंशुक
tayoḥ samabhavad yuddhaṃ dvipayor ugrarūpayoḥ | yadṛcchayā drumavator mahāparvatayor iva || sa śaraiḥ kṣatasarvāṅgaḥ sātyakiḥ satyavikramaḥ | rarāja samare rājan sapuṣpa iva kiṃśukaḥ ||
सञ्जय उवाच— तयोः समभवद् युद्धं द्विपयोरुग्ररूपयोः । यदृच्छया द्रुमवतोर्महापर्वतयोरिव ॥ स शरैः क्षतसर्वाङ्गः सात्यकिः सत्यविक्रमः । रराज समरे राजन् सपुष्प इव किंशुकः ॥
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya endurance and steadfast courage: even when pierced by arrows, a warrior like Sātyaki maintains true valor and radiance. It also frames battlefield events as moving under the pressure of fate (yadṛcchayā), reminding the listener that human effort and destiny intertwine in war.
Sañjaya describes a violent clash between two mighty elephants, likening it to the collision of two forested mountains. In the same scene, he praises Sātyaki, who—though wounded all over—continues fighting and appears resplendent, compared to a kiṃśuka tree covered in blossoms.