Shloka 58
Babhruvāhana’s Lament and Appeal for Expiation (प्रायश्चित्त-याचना)
किमिदं लक्ष्यते सर्व शोकविस्मयहर्षवत् । रणाजिरममित्रघ्न यदि जानासि शंस मे,'शत्रुओंका संहार करनेवाले वीर पुत्र! यह सारा समरांगण शोक, विस्मय और हर्षसे युक्त क्यों दिखायी देता है? यदि जानते हो तो मुझे बताओ
kim idaṃ lakṣyate sarvaṃ śoka-vismaya-harṣavat | raṇājiram amitraghna yadi jānāsi śaṃsa me ||
বৈশম্পায়নে ক’লে— “হে অমিত্ৰঘ্ন বীৰপুত্ৰ! এই সমগ্ৰ ৰণক্ষেত্ৰ কিয় একেলগে শোক, বিস্ময় আৰু হর্ষে ভৰা যেন দেখা যায়? যদি জানো, তেন্তে মোক কোৱা।”
वैशमग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral complexity of war: the same battlefield can simultaneously evoke sorrow for loss, wonder at extraordinary events, and joy at victory or resolution—inviting reflection on how dharma is experienced through mixed human emotions.
The narrator Vaiśaṃpāyana addresses a heroic ‘slayer of foes’ and asks why the battlefield appears charged with three contrasting moods—grief, astonishment, and joy—requesting an explanation for this unusual atmosphere.