Shloka 19
Bhīṣma’s Stuti of Keśava and Counsel on Nara–Nārāyaṇa (भीष्म-स्तवः; नरनारायण-प्रसङ्गः)
गजौघवेगोद्धतसादितानां श्रुत्वा विषेदु: सहसा मनुष्या: । आर्तस्वनं सादिपदातियूनां विषाणगात्रावरताडितानाम्,हाथियोंके वेगसे कुचलकर कितने ही घुड़सवार और पैदल युवक मारे गये। वे उनके दाँतों और नीचेके अंगसे कुचलकर हताहत हो रहे थे। सहसा उनकी आर्त चीत्कार सुनकर सभी मनुष्योंको बड़ा खेद होता था ततः स मद्रकान् हत्वा दशैव दशभि: शरै: | पृष्टरक्षं जघानाशु भल्लेन कृतवर्मण: तत्पश्चात् दस बाणोंसे मद्रदेशीय दस योद्धाओंको मारकर तुरंत ही एक भल्लके द्वारा कृतवमकि पृष्ठ-रक्षकको मार डाला
sañjaya uvāca |
gajaughavegoddhatasāditānāṃ śrutvā viṣeduḥ sahasā manuṣyāḥ |
ārtasvanaṃ sādipadātiyūnāṃ viṣāṇagātrāvaratāḍitānām ||
tataḥ sa madrakān hatvā daśaiva daśabhiḥ śaraiḥ |
pṛṣṭharakṣaṃ jaghānāśu bhallena kṛtavarmaṇaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Hearing the sudden cries of anguish of the young horsemen and foot-soldiers—crushed and mangled by the onrushing mass of elephants, struck down by tusks and battered by their limbs—men were at once overcome with grief and dismay. Then, after slaying ten Madra warriors with ten arrows, he swiftly struck down Kṛtavarman’s rear-guard protector with a broad-headed shaft.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the human cost of war: even amid kṣatriya duty and tactical success, the cries of the wounded evoke grief and moral unease. It highlights how battlefield prowess coexists with the ethical weight of suffering inflicted on living beings.
Sañjaya describes a chaotic moment where an elephant onslaught crushes young cavalry and infantry, causing widespread distress. Immediately after, a warrior (contextually one of the principal fighters in the scene) kills ten Madra combatants with ten arrows and then swiftly fells Kṛtavarman’s rear-guard protector with a bhalla.