Shloka 12
कृष्णेन अर्जुनस्य प्रोत्साहनम् — Kṛṣṇa’s Exhortation to Arjuna
Prelude to Karṇa’s Slaying
निष्काणामथ शूराणां शरीराणां च धन्विनाम् | चर्मणां सपताकानां संघास्तत्रापतन् भुवि
niṣkāṇām atha śūrāṇāṁ śarīrāṇāṁ ca dhanvinām | carmaṇāṁ sapatākānāṁ saṅghās tatrāpatann bhuvi, bhārata |
Sañjaya said: O Bhārata, there on the ground fell heaps upon heaps—severed heads, arms, and thighs; great earrings and other ornaments; golden neck-plates (niṣkas); the bodies of bow-wielding heroes; and piles of shields and banners. The scene lays bare the terrible cost of war, where valor and adornment alike are reduced to lifeless remnants, warning how violence strips away dignity and worldly splendor.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the grim reality and moral weight of war: even heroic bodies and symbols of honor (ornaments, banners) become mere debris. It implicitly cautions against attachment to worldly splendor and highlights the human cost that accompanies kṣatriya warfare.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra what he ‘sees’ on the battlefield: heaps of severed limbs and heads, fallen ornaments, and the bodies of archers, along with piles of shields and banners scattered on the earth after intense fighting.