Shloka 128
प्रवर्तितामर्जुनबाणसड्चै- मेंदोवसासृक्प्रवहां सुभीमाम् । हतप्रवीरां च तथैव दृष्ट्वा सेनां कुरूणामथ फाल्गुनेन
pravartitām arjunabāṇasaṅghair medovasāsṛk-pravahāṁ subhīmām | hatapravīrāṁ ca tathaiva dṛṣṭvā senāṁ kurūṇām atha phālgunena ||
Sañjaya said: Seeing the Kuru host set in motion and driven into a dreadful state by volleys of Arjuna’s arrows—streaming with fat, marrow, and blood, and bereft of its foremost heroes—(the king’s mind was shaken) at the sight of what Phālguna had wrought.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical gravity of war: even when a warrior acts within kṣatriya-dharma, the reality of battle is horrific and costly. It invites reflection on duty performed without delusion, alongside clear awareness of suffering caused.
Sañjaya describes the Kuru army being violently overwhelmed by Arjuna (Phālguna). Under the barrage of arrows, the host becomes a dreadful scene of blood and bodily matter, and its leading heroes are cut down—signaling a decisive turn in the fighting.