Mahabharata 9.45.86 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 45, Shloka 86

Kārttikeya-Abhiṣecana: Mātṛgaṇa-Nāma Saṃkīrtana and Skanda’s Commission

Devanagari script

कृकलासमुखाश्वैव विरजो<म्बरधारिण: । व्यालवक्त्रा: शूलमुखाश्षण्डवक्त्रा: शुभानना:

Transliteration

kṛkalāsamukhāś caiva virajāmbaradhāriṇaḥ | vyālavaktrāḥ śūlamukhāḥ ṣaṇḍavaktrāḥ śubhānanāḥ ||

Translation

Waiśampāyana berkata: “Sebagian berwajah seperti kadal; sebagian mengenakan busana putih tanpa noda. Ada yang bermuka seperti ular, ada pula yang bermuka laksana mata tombak. Pada sebagian wajah tampak amarah garang seakan menetes, sedangkan pada yang lain bersemayam ketenangan lembut yang membawa pertanda baik.”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'kṛkalāsa', 'definition': 'lizard (often understood as a gecko/chameleon-like reptile)'}, {'term': 'mukha', 'definition': 'face

• countenance'}, {'term': 'viraja', 'definition': 'spotless

• free from dust/impurity'}, {'term': 'ambara', 'definition': 'garment

• cloth'}, {'term': 'dhāriṇ', 'definition': 'wearing

• one who holds'}, {'term': 'vyāla', 'definition': 'serpent

• dangerous beast'}, {'term': 'vaktra', 'definition': 'face

• mouth (synonym of mukha)'}, {'term': 'śūla', 'definition': 'spear

• sharp stake'}, {'term': 'śubha', 'definition': 'auspicious

• благоприятный'}, {'term': 'ānana', 'definition': 'face

• mouth'}, {'term': 'caiva', 'definition': 'and indeed

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores how, in times of adharma and catastrophic war, the world appears morally and psychologically distorted: beings and signs seem uncanny, reflecting inner states like rage and calm. It cautions that ethical collapse is mirrored by unsettling portents and a breakdown of ordinary order.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes a frightening, otherworldly scene in which various beings (or apparitions) appear with grotesque and weapon-like faces, some clothed in spotless white, some radiating fury, others seeming gentle—an ominous tableau accompanying the climactic violence of the war.