Shloka 8
निकृत्तचक्रेषुयुगै: सयोक्तृभि: प्रविद्धतृणीरपताककेतुभि: । सुवर्णजालावततैर्भशाहतै- महारथौचैर्जलदैरिवावृता
nikṛttacakreṣuyugaiḥ sayoktṛbhiḥ praviddhatṛṇīrapatākaketubhiḥ | suvarṇajālāvatataiḥ bhṛśāhataiḥ mahārathaucchaiḥ jaladair ivāvṛtāḥ ||
Śalya berkata: “Medan laga ini kini tertutup, laksana awan, oleh tumpukan kereta-kereta agung. Roda, poros, kuk, dan tali-temalinya telah tertebas; para sais masih bersama keretanya. Tabung panah terlempar; panji, bendera, dan tanda kebesaran roboh. Kereta yang dahulu berselubung jala emas itu kini hancur parah.”
शल्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the impermanence of martial splendor: even chariots adorned with gold and lofty standards are reduced to wreckage. It implicitly warns against pride in power and ornament, reminding the listener that war swiftly strips away external grandeur and exposes the stark cost of violence.
Śalya describes the battlefield after intense fighting: great chariots lie scattered and disabled—wheels and yoking parts severed, quivers and flags thrown down, and once-gilded vehicles badly battered. The mass of ruined chariots is compared to clouds covering the field, conveying the scale of devastation.