Shloka 21
Kuru-Sainika-Āśvāsana and Vijayaghoṣaṇa
Reassuring the Kuru Soldiers; Proclaiming Victory
शरसंघमहावर्ता नागनक्रां दुरत्ययाम् । महारथमहाद्वीपां शड्खदुन्दुभिनि:स्वनाम् | चकार च तदा पार्थों नदीं दुस्तरशोणिताम्
śarasaṅgha-mahāvartā nāga-nakrāṁ duratyayām | mahāratha-mahādvīpāṁ śaṅkha-dundubhi-niḥsvanām || cakāra ca tadā pārtho nadīṁ dustara-śoṇitām |
বৈশম্পায়নে ক’লে—তেতিয়া পাৰ্থে তাত ৰক্তৰ এক দুস্তৰ নদী সৃষ্টি কৰিলে। তীৰৰ গুচ্ছ আছিল তাৰ মহাবৰ্ত; হাতী আৰু গ্ৰাহসদৃশ যুদ্ধজন্তুৱে তাক দুৰতিক্ৰম কৰি তুলিছিল। মহাৰথবোৰ তাৰ মাজত বিশাল দ্বীপৰ দৰে থিয় হৈ আছিল; আৰু শঙ্খ-দুন্দুভিৰ নিনাদেই আছিল তাৰ কলকল ধ্বনি।
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a powerful metaphor to show the moral weight and terrifying consequences of warfare: when a warrior fulfills kṣatriya-duty, the battlefield can become like a natural catastrophe—suggesting both the inevitability of conflict in certain dharmic contexts and the grave human cost that accompanies it.
Vaiśampāyana describes Arjuna’s overwhelming martial prowess: his arrows, chariots, and the din of conches and drums are poetically recast as features of a fearsome ‘river of blood’—with whirlpools, crocodiles, and islands—emphasizing how difficult it is for enemies to withstand or cross his onslaught.