Shloka 120
Vāsudeva-Māhātmya: Duryodhana’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Theological Account of Keśava
तस्मिन् सुघोरे नृपसम्प्रहारे हताः प्रवीरा: सरथाश्चसूता: । गजाश्न नाराचनिपाततप्ता महापताका: शुभरुक्मकक्ष्या:
tasmin sughore nṛpa-samprahāre hatāḥ pravīrāḥ sa-rathāś ca sūtāḥ | gajāś ca nārāca-nipāta-taptā mahā-patākāḥ śubha-rukma-kakṣyāḥ ||
三阇耶说：在那极其可怖的诸王会战中，许多最杰出的勇士被杀——连同他们的战车与御者一并覆灭。那些悬大旗、束金带的战象，被坠落的箭矢灼击；力竭神昏，骤然仆倒于地。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the devastating, indiscriminate consequences of war: even the greatest heroes and mighty war-elephants fall. It implicitly warns that royal ambition and martial pride, when unleashed in conflict, lead to widespread suffering and the swift collapse of life and power.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield during the Kurukṣetra war: prominent warriors are killed along with their chariots and charioteers, and bannered elephants—struck and pained by heavy arrows—lose strength and consciousness and collapse.