Shloka 6
अध्याय २६ — शल्यस्य सारथ्य-नियोजनं, कर्णस्य प्रस्थानं, उत्पातदर्शनं च
Chapter 26: Śalya appointed as charioteer; Karṇa’s departure; portents
ते त्वर्जुन॑ समासाद्य योधा: शतसहस्रश: । अगच्छन् विलयं सर्वे तारक्ष्य दृष्टवे पन्नगा:
te tv arjuna samāsādya yodhāḥ śatasahasraśaḥ | agacchan vilayaṁ sarve tārakṣya-dṛṣṭve pannagāḥ ||
Sinabi ni Sañjaya: “Ngunit nang ang mga mandirigmang iyon—daan-daang libo—ay lumapit kay Arjuna, silang lahat ay agad na napuksa. Kung paanong ang mga ahas ay nawawalan ng buhay sa pagtanaw pa lamang kay Tārakṣya (Garuḍa), gayon din sila: pagdating pa lamang kay Arjuna, pumasok na sila sa mga panga ng Kamatayan.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the overwhelming, almost fated power of a divinely-protected hero in righteous war: when adharma-driven forces rush in blindly, they can meet swift ruin—like serpents before Garuḍa—highlighting the ethical warning against reckless aggression and the inevitability of death in battle.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that immense numbers of warriors surged toward Arjuna, but the moment they reached him they were destroyed; the poet intensifies Arjuna’s battlefield dominance through the image of serpents perishing at the sight of Garuḍa.