Shloka 21

उपायैः पूर्ववधकथनम् / Strategic Justifications for Prior Eliminations

Devanagari script

ततः समभवद्‌ युद्ध संध्यायामतिदारुणम्‌

Transliteration

tataḥ samabhavad yuddhaṃ sandhyāyām atidāruṇam

Translation

قال سنجيا: ثم عند الشفق قامت معركةٌ—بالغةُ الفظاعة—تُعلن انعطافًا كئيبًا: إذ تحوّل عنفُ النهار إلى ساعةٍ أشدَّ خطرًا، حين يخبو الضوء وتعلو الحميّة، فيتضاعف معهما الثمنُ الأخلاقي والإنساني للحرب.

Word by Word

• ततः: then; thereafter
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततस्
• Form: Avyaya (ablatival adverb: 'from that/thereupon')

• समभवत्: arose; happened; came to be
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू
• Form: लङ् (imperfect), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्

• युद्धम्: battle; fighting
• युद्धम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: युद्ध
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गम्, प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• संध्यायाम्: at twilight; in the evening
• संध्यायाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: संध्या
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गम्, सप्तमी विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• अतिदारुणम्: exceedingly dreadful; very terrible
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अतिदारुण
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गम्, प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्तिः, एकवचनम् (युद्धम् इति विशेषणम्)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• yuddha (battle)
• sandhyā (twilight)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores how war escalates beyond control: even the liminal time of twilight becomes a stage for intensified cruelty, inviting reflection on the ethical degradation and suffering that prolonged conflict produces.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that, as evening approached, a fierce and terrifying engagement broke out, marking a particularly grim phase of the fighting.