Shloka 26
Bhīṣma-parva Adhyāya 16 — Saṃjaya’s Boon, Bhīṣma’s Protection, and the Dawn Arraying of Armies
उन्मत्तमकरावर्तो महाग्राहसमाकुलौ
unmattamakarāvarto mahāgrāhasamākulau
Sañjaya said: The battlefield was like a raging whirlpool of maddened crocodiles—churning, turbulent, and crowded with great alligators—an image for the war’s uncontrollable violence and the peril that engulfs all who enter it.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a stark simile to convey that war becomes a self-sustaining vortex of danger: once entered, it seizes and overwhelms. Ethically, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring warning that violence, even when framed by duty, carries chaotic consequences that can engulf all sides.
Sañjaya is describing the scene of battle to Dhṛtarāṣṭra. He characterizes the battlefield as a terrifying, churning whirlpool filled with predatory creatures, intensifying the sense of imminent peril and the ferocity of the combat.