Shloka 7
अध्याय ९१ — शैनेयस्य गजानीकभेदनं जलसंधवधश्च
Chapter 91: Sātyaki breaks the elephant array and slays Jalasaṃdha
उदभ्रान्तनयनैर्वक्त्रै: संदष्टौष्ठपुटै: शुभै: । सकुण्डलशिरस्त्राणैर्वसुधा समकीर्यत,कुण्डल और टोपोंसहित उन रथियोंके घूमते हुए नेत्रों तथा दाँतोंद्वारा चबाये जाते हुए ओठोंवाले सुन्दर मुखोंसे सारी रणभूमि पट गयी
udbhrāntanayanair vaktraiḥ saṃdaṣṭauṣṭhapuṭaiḥ śubhaiḥ | sakuṇḍalaśirastrāṇair vasudhā samakīryata ||
Sañjaya said: The earth was strewn all over with beautiful faces—eyes rolling in bewilderment, lips clenched and bitten by the teeth—along with their earrings and helmets. Thus the battlefield became covered with the grim remnants of the fallen, revealing the terrible moral cost of war.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the harsh reality and ethical weight of war: even the 'beautiful' human form becomes a scattered remnant on the battlefield. It implicitly warns that martial duty (kṣatriya-dharma) carries grave consequences, and victory is inseparable from suffering and loss.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield after intense fighting: severed heads/faces with rolling eyes and bitten lips lie scattered on the ground, along with earrings and helmets, so that the earth appears covered with these remains.