Shloka 86
दुःशासन-सहदेव-संक्षोभः; भीम-राधेय-गदायुद्धम्; द्रोण-पार्थ-अस्त्रसंग्रामः
Duhshasana–Sahadeva Clash; Bhima–Karna Mace Exchange; Drona–Arjuna Astra Duel
द्यौरिवादित्यचन्द्राद्यैर्ग्रहै: कीर्णा युगक्षये । प्रलयकालमें सूर्य और चन्द्रमा आदि ग्रहोंसे व्याप्त हुए द्युलोककी जैसी शोभा होती है, उसी प्रकार इधर-उधर फेंके पड़े हुए राजाओंके सुवर्णचित्रित छत्रोंद्वारा उस रणभूमिकी भी शोभा हो रही थी
dyaur ivāditya-candrādyair grahaiḥ kīrṇā yuga-kṣaye | pralaya-kāle sūrya-candrama-ādi-grahaiḥ vyāptaḥ dyulokaḥ yathā śobhate, tathā iha-tatra kṣipta-patitaiḥ rājñāṃ suvarṇa-citritaiḥ chatraiḥ sā raṇa-bhūmir api śobhate |
As the sky at the end of an age shines when it is strewn with the sun, the moon, and other heavenly bodies in the time of dissolution, so too that battlefield was made strangely resplendent by the kings’ gold-ornamented parasols lying scattered here and there. The image underscores the grim irony of war: emblems of sovereignty and honor become mere debris, while the scene’s beauty is inseparable from ruin.
संयज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights impermanence and the ethical irony of war: symbols of royal dignity (parasols) become scattered remnants, and even ‘beauty’ on the battlefield is inseparable from destruction—prompting reflection on the cost of adharma-driven conflict and the fragility of worldly power.
The speaker describes the battlefield after intense fighting: kings have fallen, and their gold-decorated parasols lie thrown about. The scene is compared to the sky at cosmic dissolution, filled with luminaries—an elevated simile that intensifies the grandeur and horror of the moment.