Shloka 19

Devanagari script

शकटानि रथाश्रैव तावदेव करेणव: । खराणां पुरुषाणां च परिसंख्या न विद्यते,महाराज! साठ हजार ऊँट, एक करोड़ बीस लाख घोड़े, एक लाख हाथी, एक लाख रथ, एक लाख छकड़े और उतनी ही हथिनियाँ थीं। गधों और मनुष्योंकी तो गिनती ही नहीं थी

Transliteration

śakaṭāni rathāś caiva tāvad eva kareṇavaḥ | kharāṇāṃ puruṣāṇāṃ ca parisaṃkhyā na vidyate, mahārāja |

Translation

มีเกวียนและรถศึกมากเท่า ๆ กัน และช้างพัง (ช้างเพศเมีย) ก็มีเท่ากันด้วย แต่ข้าแต่มหาราช จำนวนลาและผู้คนที่ใช้แรงงานนั้นนับไม่ถ้วน

Word by Word

शकटानिcarts/wagons

रथाःchariots

चand

एवindeed/just

तावत्so many; to that extent

एवexactly/only

करेणवःfemale elephants (cows)

खराणाम्of donkeys

पुरुषाणाम्of men/people

चand

परिसंख्याcount/numbering

नnot

विद्यतेexists/is found

महाराजO great king

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

mahārāja (the king addressed)

śakaṭa (carts)

ratha (chariots)

kareṇu (female elephants)

khara (donkeys)

puruṣa (men)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how royal undertakings can reach such magnitude that they exceed ordinary measures of accounting, implicitly drawing attention to the vast material resources and human labor required—and inviting reflection on restraint, responsibility, and the ethical weight of power.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana is describing the enormous numbers of vehicles and animals involved; carts, chariots, and female elephants are said to be in equal measure, while the donkeys and the men are so numerous that they cannot be counted.