Shloka 22

भीमसेनस्य गदायुद्ध-प्रभावः

The Battlefield Impact of Bhīmasena’s Mace Combat

Devanagari script

नाप्यन्तरिक्ष न दिशो न भूमिर्न च भास्कर: । प्रजज्ञे भरतश्रेष्ठ शस्त्रसड्चै: किरीटिन:,भरतश्रेष्ठ] उस समय कौरवोंको अपने दुःसह एवं भयंकर अन्यायका परिणाम प्रत्यक्ष दिखायी देने लगा। किरीटधारी अर्जुनके शस्त्रसमूहोंसे सब कुछ आच्छादित हो जानेके कारण आकाश, दिशा, पृथ्वी और सूर्य किसीका भी भान नहीं होता था

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | nāpy antarikṣaṃ na diśo na bhūmir na ca bhāskaraḥ | prajajñe bharataśreṣṭha śastrasaṅghaiḥ kirīṭinaḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya dit : Ô meilleur des Bhārata, alors on ne distinguait ni le ciel, ni les directions, ni la terre, ni même le soleil : tant les volées d’armes, denses et serrées, qu’Arjuna, le diadémé, déchaînait, recouvraient toute chose. Dans cette tempête aveuglante de traits, les Kaurava commencèrent à voir, comme sous leurs yeux, l’insoutenable et terrible conséquence de leur propre faute.

Word by Word

• {'sañjaya uvāca': 'Sañjaya said', 'na api': 'not even

• nor also', 'antarikṣam': 'the mid-air

• atmosphere', 'diśaḥ': 'directions

• quarters', 'bhūmiḥ': 'earth

• ground', 'bhāskaraḥ': 'the sun (the shining-maker)', 'prajajñe': 'was perceived/recognized

• became manifest (from √jñā, with pra-)', 'bharataśreṣṭha': 'O best of the Bharatas (address to Dhṛtarāṣṭra)', 'śastra-saṅghaiḥ': 'by masses/hosts of weapons

• dense volleys', 'kirīṭinaḥ': 'of the diadem-wearer

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (implied by address 'bharataśreṣṭha')
• Arjuna (kirīṭin)
• Sun (bhāskara)
• Sky/atmosphere (antarikṣa)
• Directions (diś)
• Earth (bhūmi)
• Weapons/missiles (śastra)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the moral logic of the epic: adharma (unjust conduct) ripens into visible suffering. The Kauravas’ earlier wrongdoing is portrayed as returning upon them in the form of overwhelming battlefield terror, suggesting that ethical failure has inevitable consequences.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes Arjuna (the diadem-wearer) releasing such dense masses of weapons that the sky, directions, earth, and even the sun cannot be discerned. The battlefield becomes visually and psychologically engulfed, and the Kauravas feel the dreadful outcome of their actions.