Shloka 27
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय ९६: सौभद्रस्य आक्रमणम्, अलम्बुसस्य प्रतिविधानम्
Abhimanyu’s assault; Alambusa’s counter-engagement
गजवाजिमनुष्याणां शोणितान्त्रतरड्रिणी । प्रावर्तत नदी तत्र केशशैवलशाद्धला,हाथी, घोड़े और मनुष्योंके रक्त और आँतोंकी एक भयंकर नदी बह चली, जिसमें केश सेवार और घासके समान जान पड़ते थे
sañjaya uvāca |
gajavājimanuṣyāṇāṃ śoṇitāntrataradriṇī |
prāvartata nadī tatra keśaśaivalasādṛśā ||
قال سانجيا: هناك اندفع نهرٌ مروّعٌ يجري—تيّاره من دماء الفيلة والخيل والناس وأحشائهم. وفي ذلك السيل الكالح بدت خصلاتُ الشعر كأنها طحالبُ الماء وعشبٌ على الضفاف.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes the ethical gravity of war by depicting its consequences in visceral imagery: violence dehumanizes and desecrates the world, reminding the listener that even ‘righteous’ conflict carries immense suffering and moral burden.
Sañjaya narrates the battlefield scene: the slaughter is so intense that it is poetically described as a river flowing with blood and entrails of elephants, horses, and men, with hair floating like algae—an image of overwhelming carnage.