ततः पार्ष्ण्यङ्कुशाङ्गुष्ठैः कृतिना चोदितो द्विपः ॥
प्रसारितकरः प्रायात् स्तब्धकर्णेक्षणो द्रुतम् ॥
सो ऽधिष्ठाय पदा वाहान् युयुत्सोः सूतम् आरुजत् ॥
पुत्रस् तु तव संभ्रान्तः सौभद्रस्याप्लुतो रथम् ॥
tataḥ pārṣṇyaṅkuśāṅguṣṭhaiḥ kṛtinā codito dvipaḥ ||
prasāritakaraḥ prāyāt stabdhakarṇekṣaṇo drutam ||
so 'dhiṣṭhāya padā vāhān yuyutsoḥ sūtam ārujat ||
putras tu tava saṃbhrāntaḥ saubhadrasyāpluto ratham ||
Then, urged on by the heel, goad, and thumb of the skilled driver, the elephant, with trunk outstretched, ears and eyes frozen still, rushed forward swiftly. Treading with his foot, he crushed the horses and the charioteer of Yuyutsu; and your son, in confusion, leapt across onto the chariot of Subhadra's son.
eb6f5a531675 · published Jul 19, 2026, 3:11:21 PM UTC
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The formidable elephant obeys the driver's most delicate signals — "heel, goad, thumb": colossal power entrusted to the smallest, barely perceptible control. This image carries the thought that the greatest might is good only in the hand of a skilled guide. And Yuyutsu, losing his horses and charioteer, finds refuge on Abhimanyu's chariot — once again comradeship saves in distress. It is telling that the brother who left the Kauravas finds shelter with his Pandava nephew. The verse teaches that formidable strength is fearsome precisely because it obeys a skilled will down to the slightest sign; that might without guiding reason is blind, but with it is invincible; and that in the hour of ruin, a comrade's hand saves — Yuyutsu, having chosen the truth, finds support among those he joined in good conscience.