Shloka 6
धृतराष्ट्राश्रमगमनम् — The Pandavas’ Procession to Dhritarashtra’s Hermitage
गन्धर्वाप्सरसश्वैव पिशाचा गुहराक्षसा: । तथा पुण्यजनाश्रैव सिद्धा देवर्षयोडपि च
vyāsa uvāca | gandharvāpsarasaś caiva piśācā guhyarākṣasāḥ | tathā puṇyajanāś caiva siddhā devarṣayo 'pi ca ||
व्यास ने कहा—गन्धर्व और अप्सराएँ, पिशाच, गुह्यक और राक्षस; तथा पुण्यजन, सिद्ध और देवर्षि भी—ये सब देह धारण करके यहाँ आए और कुरुक्षेत्र के रणांगण में मारे गए।
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse expands the moral and metaphysical horizon of the Kurukṣetra war: its consequences are not confined to human society. When adharma ripens into large-scale violence, many strata of beings become entangled, underscoring karma, inevitability of consequence, and the gravity of collective wrongdoing.
Vyāsa enumerates various non-human and celestial classes—Gandharvas, Apsarases, Piśācas, Guhyakas, Rākṣasas, Puṇyajanas, Siddhas, and Devarṣis—stating that they too came to Kurukṣetra in embodied forms and were slain, portraying the war as a vast, multi-realm convergence.