Shloka 55
अध्याय ५८ — वानरध्वजस्य महेन्द्रास्त्रप्रयोगः
Chapter 58: Arjuna’s Deployment of the Indra-Weapon
ततो नागा रथाश्रैव वाजिनश्न विशाम्पते । शोणिताक्ता व्यदृश्यन्त पुष्पिता इव किंशुका:,जनमेजय! उस समय हाथीसवार, रथी और घुड़सवार लोहूलुहान होकर फूले हुए पलाश वृक्षके समान दिखायी देते थे
tato nāgā rathāś caiva vājināś ca viśāmpate | śoṇitāktā vyadṛśyanta puṣpitā iva kiṃśukāḥ, janamejaya |
তাৰ পাছত, হে জনমেজয়! হাতীসওৱাৰ, ৰথী আৰু অশ্বাৰোহীসকল ৰক্তে লেপটে, ফুলে ভৰা কিঞ্চুক (পলাশ) গছৰ দৰে দেখা গৈছিল।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a striking simile to reveal the ethical tension of war: what resembles natural beauty (trees in bloom) is actually the result of bloodshed. It invites reflection on how violence can be aesthetically framed yet remains morally grave.
In the midst/aftermath of fighting, the narrator describes the battlefield scene: elephant troops, chariot fighters, and horsemen are covered in blood and thus look visually like red-flowering kiṃśuka (palāśa) trees.