Shloka 16
Kurukṣetra-anudarśanam — Rāma-hradāḥ and the Question of Kṣatra Continuity (शान्ति पर्व, अध्याय ४८)
वैशम्पायन उवाच ततो यथावत् स गदाग्रज: प्रभु: शशंस तस्मै निखिलेन तत्त्वतः । युधिष्ठिरायाप्रतिमौजसे तदा यथाभवत् क्षत्रियसंकुला मही
vaiśampāyana uvāca | tato yathāvat sa gadāgrajaḥ prabhuḥ śaśaṃsa tasmai nikhilena tattvataḥ | yudhiṣṭhirāyāpratimaujase tadā yathābhavat kṣatriyasaṅkulā mahī ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Then the Lord, the elder brother of Gadā (Kṛṣṇa), related to him—fully and truthfully, in proper order—everything as it really was. To Yudhiṣṭhira, whose splendor was incomparable, he explained how, at that time, the earth came to be filled and covered with the fallen bodies of kṣatriyas.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes truthful, complete, and orderly recounting of events—especially the catastrophic cost of war—so that a dharmic ruler can reflect ethically on violence, responsibility, and the consequences of kṣatriya conflict.
After Yudhiṣṭhira’s inquiry, Kṛṣṇa (called Gadāgraja) begins to narrate in full detail how the earth became strewn with the slain kṣatriyas—setting the stage for a sober account of the war’s devastation.