Shloka 39
अभिमन्यु-परिवेष्टनम्
Encirclement and Counterassault of Abhimanyu
निकृत्तचर्मकवचान् शकृन्मूत्रासृगाप्लुतान् । निपातयजन्नश्ववरांस्तावकान् स व्यरोचत
nikṛttacarmakavacān śakṛnmūtrāsṛgāplutān | nipātayajann aśvavarāṁs tāvakān sa vyarocat ||
Sañjaya said: Cutting down your finest horses—stripped of their protective hide and armor and drenched in dung, urine, and blood—he kept felling them, and in that grim work he shone forth. The verse underscores how battlefield “glory” is inseparable from horrific bodily reality, exposing the ethical cost of martial prowess.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse juxtaposes martial brilliance with the degrading physical realities of war—blood, excrement, and ruin—inviting reflection on the ethical and human cost behind celebrated battlefield prowess.
Sañjaya describes a warrior (unnamed in this verse) cutting down the Kauravas’ best horses; the animals’ coverings and armor are torn away, and they are soaked in bodily fluids, yet the warrior is said to ‘shine’ amid the slaughter.