Shloka 17

समुद्रवर्णनम् (Description of the Ocean) — Kadrū and Vinatā approach the sea

Devanagari script

परिघैरायसैस्तीकणै: संनिकर्षे च मुष्टिभि: । निध्नतां समरे<न्योन्यं शब्दो दिवमिवास्पृशत्‌,उस समरांगणमें दूरवर्ती देवता और दानव लोहेके तीखे परिघोंसे एक-दूसरेपर चोट करते थे और निकट आ जानेपर आपसमें मुक्का-मुक्की करने लगते थे। इस प्रकार उनके पारस्परिक आघात-प्रत्याघातका शब्द मानो सारे आकाशमें गूँज उठा

Transliteration

parighair āyasais tīkṣṇaiḥ saṃnikarṣe ca muṣṭibhiḥ | nidhnatāṃ samare 'nyonyaṃ śabdo divam ivāspṛśat ||

Translation

Śaunaka said: In the battle, they struck one another with sharp iron clubs; and when they closed in at close quarters, they fought with their fists. The din of their mutual blows and counterblows seemed to rise and touch the very heavens—an image of war’s consuming fury, where strength overwhelms restraint and the world is filled with the consequences of unchecked hostility.

Word by Word

• {'parigha': 'iron club, bludgeon, mace-like weapon', 'āyasa': 'made of iron', 'tīkṣṇa': 'sharp, keen-edged, piercing', 'saṃnikarṣa': 'close contact, proximity, close quarters', 'muṣṭi': 'fist

• also a fist-blow', 'nidhnatām': 'of those striking/smiting (genitive plural present participle)', 'samara': 'battle, combat', 'anyonya': 'one another, mutually', 'śabda': 'sound, noise, din', 'divam': 'heaven, sky', 'iva': 'as if, like', 'āspṛśat': 'touched, reached'}

Speaker

शौनक उवाच

Characters & Entities

• शौनक (Śaunaka)
• परिघ (iron clubs)
• मुष्टि (fists)
• दिव/दिवम् (heaven/sky)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores how violence escalates: from weapon-strikes at a distance to fist-fighting at close quarters, producing a heaven-reaching uproar. Ethically, it serves as a narrative warning about the overpowering momentum of conflict when restraint and discernment are lost.

What is happening in the narrative?

Śaunaka describes a fierce combat scene in which fighters batter each other with sharp iron clubs, then grapple at close range with fists. The mutual impacts create a tremendous roar that seems to fill the sky.