Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 79
Kārttikeya-Abhiṣecana: Mātṛgaṇa-Nāma Saṃkīrtana and Skanda’s Commission
वक्त्रैर्ननाविधैयें तु शूणु ताउज्जनमेजय । कूर्मकुक्कुटवकत्रा श्नव शशोलूकमुखास्तथा
vaktrair nānāvidhaiḥ ye tu śṛṇu tān ujjana-mejaya | kūrma-kukkuṭa-vaktrāḥ śvāna-śaśolūka-mukhās tathā ||
Vaiśampāyana dit : «Écoute, ô Janamejaya, ces êtres aux visages de mille sortes : les uns avaient visage de tortue et de coq ; d’autres, bouche de chien, de lièvre et de hibou.»
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the Mahābhārata’s use of extraordinary and unsettling imagery to convey the moral and psychological atmosphere of war—where disorder, fear, and ominous signs accompany adharma and impending destruction.
Vaiśampāyana continues describing strange beings with various animal-like faces, addressing King Janamejaya directly, as part of a larger account of ominous or terrifying phenomena connected with the events of the war.