Shloka 686
भीष्मस्य मध्याह्नयुद्धवर्णनम् / Mid-day Battle Description: Bhīṣma Engaged by the Pāñcālas
वैदूर्यमणिदण्डैश्व॒ पतितैरड्कुशै: शुभै: । उनके कारण वह युद्धस्थल जलके स्रोत बहानेवाले पर्वतोंसे युक्त-सा प्रतीत होता था। वहाँ नाना प्रकारके रंगवाले कम्बल, हाथियोंके झूल तथा वैदूर्यमणिके दण्डवाले सुन्दर अंकुश गिरे हुए थे
vaidūryamaṇidaṇḍaiś ca patitair aṅkuśaiḥ śubhaiḥ |
Sañjaya said: “There lay scattered fine elephant-goads, their handles set with vaidūrya (cat’s-eye) gems—fallen amid the wreckage of battle. Such costly implements, cast down in the dust, made the field appear like a mountain-land from which streams flow—rich with ‘sources’ and channels, as if the very wealth and order of royal life had been broken and poured out by war.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores impermanence: objects of royal control and luxury—meant to signify order, mastery, and prosperity—lie discarded in war. It hints at the ethical cost of conflict, where even symbols of governance become debris.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield’s aftermath: splendid elephant-goads with jewel-inlaid handles have fallen and lie scattered, contributing to a vivid picture of shattered martial and royal equipment strewn across the ground.