Shloka 16

Cakravyūha-saṃkalpaḥ, Saṃśaptaka-āhvānaṃ, Saubhadra-vikrīḍitam

Drona Parva, Adhyāya 32

Devanagari script

नरान्त्रै: केचिदपरे विषाणालग्नसंश्रयै:

Transliteration

narāntraiḥ kecid apare viṣāṇālagna-saṁśrayaiḥ

Translation

Sañjaya said: Some lay with their entrails spilling out, and others clung to horns, their bodies caught and hanging there—such were the dreadful sights on that battlefield. The narration lays bare the moral cost of war: when dharma collapses into unchecked violence, the human body and dignity are reduced to horrific spectacle.

Word by Word

• नरान्त्रैः: with human entrails
• नरान्त्रैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर + अन्त्र
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• केचित्: some (persons)
• केचित्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: किम्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• अपरे: others
• अपरे: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: अपर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• विषाणालग्नसंश्रयैः: with (things) having supports fastened to horns / with horn-fastened supports
• विषाणालग्नसंश्रयैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विषाण + लग्न + संश्रय
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• संजय (Sañjaya)
• विषाण (horns)
• नरान्त्र (human entrails)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse functions as a stark ethical reminder: war, even when framed by claims of dharma, produces extreme bodily suffering and dehumanizing scenes. It cautions against romanticizing violence and highlights the grave karmic and moral weight of conflict.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports gruesome battlefield sights: some warriors lie with their entrails exposed, while others are caught and hanging upon horns. The line is part of a broader depiction of the chaos and carnage during the fighting in Droṇa Parva.