Shloka 48
अध्याय २२ — अमर्याद-युद्धवर्णन
Unrestrained Battle Description and Śakuni’s Rear Assault
यथाप्राणं यथाश्रेष्ठं मध्याद्ले वै सुदारुणे वर्मणां तत्र राजेन्द्र व्यदृश्यन्तोज्ज्वला: प्रभा:,वह भयंकर दिखायी देनेवाली तीव्र धूलि सर्वथा शान्त हो गयी। भारत! राजेन्द्र! तब मैं फिर उस दारुण मध्याह्नकालमें अपने बल और श्रेष्ठताके अनुसार अनेक द्वन्द्युद्ध देखने लगा। योद्धाओंके कवचोंकी प्रभा वहाँ अत्यन्त उज्ज्वल दिखायी देती थी
sañjaya uvāca | yathāprāṇaṃ yathāśreṣṭhaṃ madhyāhne vai sudāruṇe varmaṇāṃ tatra rājendra vyadṛśyantojjvalāḥ prabhāḥ |
Sañjaya said: “In that dreadful midday hour, as each warrior’s strength and excellence allowed, I again beheld many single combats. O king, there the radiance of the warriors’ armor appeared exceedingly bright.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores a kṣatriya battlefield ethic: combat unfolds according to each warrior’s actual strength and excellence, and the narrator’s role is to report the scene without distortion—highlighting both human limitation and martial duty amid terror.
Sanjaya describes the battle at a harsh midday moment: numerous one-on-one duels are taking place, and the warriors’ armors gleam intensely, creating a vivid, almost blinding battlefield spectacle.