Shloka 34
भीष्मरथाभिमुख्यं — Arjuna’s advance with Śikhaṇḍin; Duḥśāsana’s interception
अस्थिसंघातसम्बाधा केशशैवलशाद्वला । रथद्गदा शरावर्ता हयमीना दुरासदा,वह हड्डियोंके समूहरूपी शिलाखण्डोंसे भरी थी। केश ही उसमें सेवार और घासके समान जान पड़ते थे। रथ कुण्ड और बाण भँवरके समान प्रतीत होते थे। घोड़े ही उस दुर्गम नदीके मत्स्य थे
sañjaya uvāca |
asthisaṅghātasambādhā keśaśaivalśādvalā |
rathadgādā śarāvartā hayamīnā durāsadā ||
Sañjaya said: “That dreadful river of battle was choked with heaps of bones like rocky masses. Hair upon it looked like algae and grass. Chariots and maces appeared as its pools, arrows as its whirlpools, and horses as the fish within it—making it perilous and hard to cross.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a stark metaphor—war as a river filled with bones, hair, weapons, and horses—to highlight the horrific cost of violence and the moral peril of conflict, urging reflection on dharma and the human consequences of battle.
Sañjaya continues his vivid report of the Kurukṣetra war to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, portraying the battlefield as a terrifying river that is difficult to cross, emphasizing the chaos and carnage of the fighting.