Shloka 5
स संनिपातस्तु तयोर्महान भूत् सुरेशवैरोचनयोर्यथा पुरा । शरैविंनुन्नाड्शनियन्तृवाहयो: सुदुःसहो<न्यै: कठुशोणितोदक:
sa sannipātas tu tayor mahān bhūt sureśa-vairocanayor yathā purā | śarair vinunnāḍaśa-niyantrivāhayor suduḥsaho 'nyaiḥ kaṭu-śoṇitodakaḥ ||
Sañjaya dit : Le heurt de ces deux-là devint immense, tel jadis le combat d’Indra, seigneur des dieux, contre Bali, fils de Virocana. Criblés par des volées de flèches, leurs corps—ainsi que les cochers et les chevaux—furent déchirés, et là s’écoula un âpre torrent de sang comme de l’eau. Ce combat était insoutenable pour tous les autres, ne fût-ce que pour le regarder.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a moral tension central to the Mahābhārata: even when framed as heroic duty, war’s ‘greatness’ is inseparable from widespread suffering. The epic simile (Indra vs. Bali) magnifies the scale, while the imagery of blood flowing like water reminds the listener that glory is purchased with unbearable pain.
Sañjaya describes an intense duel between two principal warriors (contextually, the leading champions on the battlefield). Their encounter swells into a colossal fight, compared to the mythic conflict of Indra and Bali; arrows mutilate bodies, charioteers, and horses, and the battlefield runs with blood, making the scene dreadful for onlookers.