Shloka 493
Adhyāya 18 — Sequential Duels and Formation Pressure
Ulūka–Yuyutsu; Śakuni–Sutasoma; Kṛpa–Dhṛṣṭadyumna; Kṛtavarmā–Śikhaṇḍin
क्लृप्तश्मश्रुभिराकीर्णा पूर्णचन्द्रनि भर्महीम् । 'यहाँकी भूमि राजाओंके मनोहर कुण्डलयुक्त, चन्द्रमा और नक्षत्रोंके समान कान्तिमान् एवं दाढ़ी-मूँछवाले पूर्ण चन्द्रतुल्य मुखोंसे ढक गयी है
kḷptasmaśrubhir ākīrṇā pūrṇacandranibhair mahīm |
Sañjaya dit : La terre ici s’est trouvée épaissement couverte de rois—aux moustaches et aux barbes soigneusement taillées—dont les visages resplendissaient comme la pleine lune. Leur beauté, comparée à la lune et aux étoiles et rehaussée de ravissantes boucles d’oreilles, gît désormais éparse sur le champ de bataille, faisant du sol lui-même un spectacle funeste de royauté abattue et du prix de la guerre.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the impermanence of worldly splendor: even radiant, ornamented kings—symbols of power and beauty—can be reduced to bodies covering the earth. It implicitly warns that war and ambition culminate in loss, and that dharma must be weighed against the human cost.
Sañjaya is reporting to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the aftermath/scene of battle: the ground is covered with fallen kings and warriors, described poetically as full-moon-faced and ornamented, emphasizing both their former grandeur and their present ruin.