Shloka 18
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय २: संजयस्य दिव्यदृष्टिप्रदानम् तथा निमित्तवर्णनम्
Granting Sañjaya Divine Sight and the Description of Omens
अभ्यग्र॑ च प्रपश्यन्ति युद्धमानन्दिनो द्विजा: । क्रव्यादा भक्षयिष्यन्ति मांसानि गजवाजिनाम्,'ये पक्षी अत्यन्त आनन्दित होकर युद्धस्थलको बहुत निकटसे आकर देखते हैं। इससे सूचित होता है कि मांसभक्षी पशु-पक्षी आदि प्राणी हाथियों और घोड़ोंके मांस खायेंगे। भयकी सूचना देनेवाले कंक पक्षी कठोर स्वरमें बोलते हुए सेनाके बीचसे होकर दक्षिण दिशाकी ओर जाते हैं
abhyagraṁ ca prapaśyanti yuddham ānandino dvijāḥ | kravyādā bhakṣayiṣyanti māṁsāni gajavājinām ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “Birds, delighted by the prospect of battle, are seen coming very near and watching the fighting. This portends that flesh-eating creatures will soon feed on the bodies of elephants and horses.” The scene functions as an ominous ethical warning: war, driven by human ambition, inevitably becomes a feast for scavengers and a field of suffering for all beings.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the moral cost of war: when humans choose violence, the natural world responds with grim inevitability—scavengers gather, and death becomes certain. It serves as a dharmic warning that warfare degrades life and invites widespread suffering beyond the combatants.
As the armies prepare and the conflict looms, ominous signs appear: birds crowd close to the battlefield, seemingly delighted, indicating that many will die and that carnivores will feed on the fallen, including elephants and horses.