Shloka 16
Irāvān-nidhana-anantaraṃ Ghaṭotkaca-nādaḥ
After Irāvān’s fall: Ghaṭotkaca’s roar and the clash with Duryodhana
सत्वरं च रणे राजंस्तस्य वाहान् महात्मन: । निजघान शरै:ः क्षिप्रं सूतं च सुमहाबल:
sa-tvaraṁ ca raṇe rājan tasya vāhān mahātmanaḥ | nijaghāna śaraiḥ kṣipraṁ sūtaṁ ca sumahābalaḥ ||
அரசே! பின்னர் அந்த மாபெரும் வலிமையாளர் போரில் உடனே அந்த உயர்ந்த மனத்தவனின் குதிரைகளை அம்புகளால் வீழ்த்தி, விரைவில் சாரதியையும் கொன்றான்.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a pragmatic aspect of kṣatriya-dharma in war: victory often depends on disabling an opponent’s mobility and support system (horses and charioteer), showing how quickly fortune shifts when the instruments of power are cut down.
Sañjaya reports to the king that a very powerful fighter rapidly kills the horses of a noble warrior’s chariot and then kills the charioteer, effectively neutralizing that chariot in the midst of combat.