Shloka 27
Aśvatthāmā’s Stuti of Rudra and Śiva’s Empowerment (सौप्तिकपर्व, अध्याय ७)
पद्मोत्पलापीडधरास्तथा मुकुटधारिण: । माहात्म्येन च संयुक्ताः शतशो5थ सहस्रश:
padmotpalāpīḍadharās tathā mukuṭadhāriṇaḥ | māhātmyena ca saṃyuktāḥ śataśo 'tha sahasraśaḥ ||
قال سانجيا: «كانوا يحملون أكاليل وأطواقًا من اللوتس واللوتس الأزرق، ويرتدون التيجان. وقد اقترنت بهم مهابةٌ إلهية، فبدوا مئاتٍ وآلافًا.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even amid the moral darkness of the Sauptika episode, the text uses regal and auspicious symbols (lotus-wreaths, crowns, majesty) to mark the presence of extraordinary beings and to remind the listener that events unfold under forces larger than human rage—inviting discernment about power, legitimacy, and the ethical weight of actions in war.
Sañjaya describes a multitude of majestic figures appearing—adorned with lotus/blue-lotus head-ornaments and crowns—present in vast numbers (hundreds and thousands), emphasizing their splendor and supernatural stature within the unfolding Sauptika Parva scene.