Shloka 373
अपश्यन् रथिनो युद्ध विचित्र चित्रयोधिनाम् । रथके विचित्र पैंतरोंसे विचरनेवाले तथा विचित्र युद्ध करनेवाले उन महारथियोंका विचित्र रथोंसे व्याप्त वह विचित्र युद्ध वहाँ सब रथी दर्शककी भाँति देखने लगे
sañjaya uvāca | apaśyan rathino yuddhaṃ vicitraṃ citrayodhinām | rathake vicitra-paitarair vicarantam tathā vicitra-yuddha-kāriṇām | tān mahārathīnām vicitra-rathaiḥ vyāptaṃ tad vicitra-yuddhaṃ tatra sarve rathinaḥ darśakavat paśyanti sma |
Sañjaya said: The chariot-warriors beheld that astonishing battle—filled with fighters of many kinds. With chariots moving in intricate feints and maneuvers, and with those great champions engaging in varied and artful modes of combat, the field became crowded with wondrous chariots. There, the chariot-fighters watched that strange, spectacle-like warfare almost as onlookers—momentarily arrested by its sheer complexity and display.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how war can become a mesmerizing spectacle of skill and tactics, momentarily turning even seasoned warriors into mere observers. Ethically, it hints at the danger of aesthetic fascination with violence—where the display of prowess can eclipse sober attention to dharma and the human cost of battle.
Sañjaya describes a phase of the battle dominated by chariots and great chariot-warriors executing complex maneuvers and varied fighting styles. The battlefield is so filled with chariots and tactical feints that the combat appears ‘wondrous’ and ‘strange,’ and the chariot-fighters are depicted as watching it like spectators.