Shloka 8
सुदुर्गमा सुविषमा घोरात्यर्थ सुदुर्दशा । रणभूमिरभूद् राजन् महावैतरणी यथा
sudurgamā suviṣamā ghorātyartha sudurdaśā | raṇabhūmir abhūd rājan mahāvaitaraṇī yathā ||
Sañjaya berkata: Wahai Raja, medan perang menjadi amat sukar dilalui, sangat tidak rata, dan mengerikan melampaui batas—seakan-akan Mahā-Vaitaraṇī itu sendiri, lambang bencana yang tak tertanggungkan.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and existential cost of war: when violence dominates, the world becomes like a hell-crossing—dangerous, chaotic, and saturated with suffering—implying a warning about adharma and the consequences of unchecked conflict.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the battlefield has turned extraordinarily perilous and dreadful, using the image of the great Vaitaraṇī to convey the scale of terror and devastation unfolding in the fighting.