Shloka 17
Aśvatthāmā’s Stuti of Rudra and Śiva’s Empowerment (सौप्तिकपर्व, अध्याय ७)
ऋक्षमार्जारवदना व्याप्रद्वीपिमुखास्तथा । काकवकत्रा: प्लवमुखा: शुकवक्त्रास्तथैव च
sañjaya uvāca |
ṛkṣa-mārjāra-vadanā vyāghra-dvīpi-mukhās tathā |
kāka-vaktrāḥ plava-mukhāḥ śuka-vaktrās tathaiva ca ||
Sañjaya berkata: “Sebagian dari makhluk itu berwajah seperti beruang dan kucing; yang lain bermulut seperti harimau dan macan tutul. Ada yang bermuka gagak, ada yang bermuka kera, dan ada pula yang bermuka seperti burung nuri.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how the atmosphere surrounding nocturnal violence becomes morally and psychologically ‘bestial’: predatory, uncanny, and fear-inducing. In the Sauptika context, it functions as a warning-sign of adharma—when slaughter is pursued in darkness, the world appears filled with distorted, animalistic forms.
Sañjaya is narrating to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the terrifying sights associated with the night episode of the Sauptika Parva. He lists beings (or apparitions) with faces resembling various animals and birds—bears, cats, tigers, leopards, crows, monkeys, and parrots—intensifying the dread and ominous tone of the scene.