Shloka 77

Devanagari script

सैन्यानां युध्यमानानां निध्नतामितरेतरम्‌ । असौम्यरूपा पृथिवी शोणिताक्ताभवत्‌ तदा,उस समय एक-दूसरेको मारनेवाले युद्धपरायण सैनिकोंके रक्तसे रंजित हो वहाँकी सारी पृथ्वी भयानक हो गयी थी

Transliteration

sainyānāṃ yudhyamānānāṃ nidhnatām itaretaram | asaumyarūpā pṛthivī śoṇitāktābhavat tadā ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: As the armies, intent on battle, struck down one another, the earth at that time—smeared with blood—took on a grim and inauspicious aspect. The scene underscores how mutual slaughter in war, even when pursued as duty, visibly stains the world with the moral weight of violence.

Word by Word

• सैन्यानाम्: of the armies / of the troops
• सैन्यानाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: सैन्य
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Plural

• युध्यमानानाम्: of those fighting
• युध्यमानानाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: युध्
• Form: शतृ (present active participle), Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Plural

• निघ्नताम्: of those striking down / killing
• निघ्नताम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन्
• Form: शतृ (present active participle) with नि-, Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Plural

• इतरेतरम्: one another (mutually)
• इतरेतरम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इतरेतर
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Accusative, Singular (used adverbially)

• असौम्यरूपा: having a dreadful form
• असौम्यरूपा: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: असौम्यरूप
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• पृथिवी: the earth
• पृथिवी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथिवी
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• शोणिताक्ता: smeared with blood
• शोणिताक्ता: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शोणिताक्त
• Form: क्त (past passive participle) from अञ्ज्/अक्त with prefix आ-; used adjectivally, Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• अभवत्: became / was
• अभवत्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• तदा: then
• तदा: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• armies (sainyāni)
• earth (pṛthivī)
• blood (śoṇita)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the stark ethical cost of warfare: when people kill one another, the very earth appears defiled and ominous. It invites reflection on how even duty-driven combat carries visible and moral consequences, emphasizing the gravity of हिंसा (violence) and the need for discernment in dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the intensity of the battle: soldiers on both sides are mutually slaughtering each other, and the ground is drenched with blood, making the battlefield look terrifying and inauspicious.