Shloka 67
कृष्णोपदेशः, अर्जुनस्य क्षमा-याचनम्, कर्णवध-अनुज्ञा
Krishna’s Counsel, Arjuna’s Apology, and Authorization for Karṇa’s Slaying
प्राज्ञासिष्म वयं ते वा शरैर्मुक्ते: सहस्रश: । राजन! वहाँ छूटे हुए सहस्रों बाणोंसे न तो सूर्यकी प्रभा दिखायी देती थी, न दिशाएँ और न विदिशाएँ ही दृष्टिगोचर होती थीं। हम या हमारे शत्रु भी पहचाने नहीं जाते थे ।। मध्याह्ले तपतो राजन् भास्करस्य महाप्रभा:
sañjaya uvāca | prājñāsiṣma vayaṃ te vā śarair mukteḥ sahasraśaḥ | rājan! tatra chūṭeṣu sahasreṣu bāṇeṣu na sūryasya prabhā dṛśyate sma, na diśo na vidiśaś ca dṛśyante sma | na vayaṃ na vā ripavo ’pi pratyabhijñāyante sma || madhyāhne tapato rājan bhāskarasya mahāprabhāḥ |
Sañjaya said: “O King, when thousands upon thousands of arrows were released, the field became so choked with shafts that the sun’s radiance could not be seen; neither the directions nor the intermediate quarters were discernible. In that blinding storm of missiles, neither we nor even our enemies could be recognized. Even at midday, O King, when the sun blazes with great brilliance…”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how violence and mass warfare overwhelm clarity and discernment: even the sun and directions vanish, and friend and foe become indistinguishable—an ethical reminder that war breeds confusion and dehumanization.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that an intense exchange of countless arrows has filled the battlefield so completely that sunlight and orientation are lost, and combatants cannot recognize one another, despite it being midday.