Shloka 5
Aśvatthāmā’s Lamentation, Vow of Retaliation, and the Manifestation of the Nārāyaṇāstra (द्रोणपर्व, अध्याय १६६)
उल्काशतै: प्रज्वलितै रणभूमिवव्यराजत । दहामानेव लोकानामभावे च वसुंधरा,सैकड़ों प्रजजलित उल्काओं (मशालों)-से वह रणभूमि ऐसी शोभा पा रही थी, मानो प्रलयकालमें यह सारी पृथ्वी दग्ध हो रही हो
sañjaya uvāca | ulkāśataiḥ prajvalitaiḥ raṇabhūmir vyarājata | dahamāneva lokānām abhāve ca vasuṃdharā ||
Sañjaya said: The battlefield shone brilliantly, lit by hundreds of blazing firebrands, as though—at the world’s end—the earth itself were burning and all beings were being consumed.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses pralaya-like (end-of-world) imagery to highlight the moral gravity of war: even when framed as dharma, unchecked violence can mirror cosmic destruction, urging discernment, restraint, and awareness of war’s human cost.
Sañjaya vividly reports the scene of the night-lit battlefield, blazing with hundreds of torches/firebrands, making the earth appear as if it were burning at the time of universal dissolution.