Shloka 29

भीमसेनस्य कौरवसुतवधः तथा श्रुतर्वावधः

Slaying of Kaurava princes and the fall of Śrutarvā

Devanagari script

तत्रैकबाणनिहतानपश्याम महागजान्‌ । पतितान्‌ पात्यमानांश्व निर्भिनज्नान्‌ सव्यसाचिना

Transliteration

tatraika-bāṇa-nihatān apaśyāma mahā-gajān | patitān pātyamānāṁś ca nirbhinna-jñān savyasācinā ||

Translation

ณ ที่นั้น เราได้เห็นช้างใหญ่ล้มลงด้วยศรเพียงดอกเดียว—บางตัวล้มแล้ว บางตัวยังถูกล้มลงไม่ขาดสาย—ร่างกายถูกสวียสาจิน (อรชุน) ยิงจนฉีกขาด

Word by Word

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र

• एक-बाण-निहतान्: slain by a single arrow
• एक-बाण-निहतान्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एकबाणनिहत
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• अपश्याम: we saw
• अपश्याम: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश्
• Form: Imperfect (Lan), 1st, Plural

• महागजान्: great elephants
• महागजान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: महागज
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• पतितान्: fallen
• पतितान्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पतित
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• पात्यमानान्: being made to fall (being felled)
• पात्यमानान्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पात्यमान
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• निर्भिन्नान्: split asunder, torn open
• निर्भिन्नान्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निर्भिन्न
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• सव्यसाचिना: by Savyasācin (Arjuna)
• सव्यसाचिना: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: सव्यसाचिन्
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Savyasācin (Arjuna)
• mahāgajās (great elephants)
• bāṇa (arrow)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the awe-inspiring power of a warrior’s skill and the stark reality of war: even the mightiest beings can be destroyed instantly. Implicitly, it invites reflection on the ethical gravity of battlefield action, even when undertaken as kṣatriya-dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports what was witnessed on the battlefield: Arjuna (called Savyasācin) is felling huge elephants with single arrows; some lie already dead while others are still being brought down, their bodies visibly torn by the strikes.