Shloka 11
Śalya–Bhīma Gadāyuddham (मद्रराज-भीमसेन गदायुद्धम्)
मेदोमज्जास्थिसिकतामुष्णीषचयफेनिलाम् । संग्रामजलदापूर्णा प्रासमत्स्यसमाकुलाम्
medomajjāsthisikatāmuṣṇīṣacayaphenilām | saṅgrāmajaladāpūrṇā prāsamatsyasamākulām
Sañjaya dit : «(Ce champ de bataille) écumait de monceaux de graisse, de moelle, d’os, d’éclats pareils à du gravier et de casques entassés ; il était rempli des nuées d’orage de la guerre et foisonnait de “poissons” sous forme de lances — image d’un monde où la violence fait du champ un effroyable océan en tumulte.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a stark metaphor to show how war dehumanizes and reduces life to bodily remnants and broken gear. Ethically, it underscores the cost of adharma and the tragic fallout even when combat is framed as duty—inviting reflection on restraint, responsibility, and the gravity of choosing violence.
Sañjaya is vividly describing the battlefield to Dhṛtarāṣṭra. He portrays it like a turbulent sea: froth made of bodily substances and heaps of helmets, ‘war-clouds’ filling it, and spears likened to fish swarming within—emphasizing the chaos and horror of the ongoing combat in Droṇa Parva.