Shloka 393
Karṇa-parva Adhyāya 20 — Yudhiṣṭhira–Duryodhana Encounter and Escalation of Arms
हतानां वदनान्यासन् गात्राणि च महाहवे । उस महासमरमें मारे गये योद्धाओंके मुख और शरीर कुचले हुए कमलों और कुम्हलायी हुई मालाओंके समान श्रीहीन हो गये थे
sañjaya uvāca | hatānāṃ vadanāny āsan gātrāṇi ca mahāhave |
Sañjaya said: In that great battle, the faces and bodies of the slain had lost all beauty—like crushed lotuses and withered garlands.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical and existential weight of war: physical splendor and heroic pride are transient, and violence culminates in suffering and the loss of all outward beauty—prompting reflection on dharma, restraint, and the true cost of conflict.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield aftermath to Dhṛtarāṣṭra: the slain fighters lie with faces and bodies disfigured and devoid of radiance, compared to crushed lotuses and withered garlands, intensifying the scene’s pathos.