Shloka 55
Varṣa-Parvata-Nivāsinām Varnanam
Description of Regions, Mountains, and Their Inhabitants
बहुवाद्याश्न कौरव्य सुदामान: सुमल्लिका: । वध्रा: करीषकाश्नलापि कुलिन्दोपत्यकास्तथा,पुण्ड्र, भर्ग, किरात, सुदृष्ट, यामुन, शक, निषाद, निषध, आनर्त, नैर#ऋत, दुर्गाल, प्रतिमत्स्य, कुन्तल, कोसल, तीरग्रह, शूरसेन, ईजिक, कन्यकागुण, तिलभार, मसीर, मधुमान, सुकन्दक, काश्मीर, सिन्धुसौवीर, गान्धार, दर्शक, अभीसार, उलूत, शैवाल, बाह्लिक, दार्वी, वानव, दर्व, वातज, आमरथ, उरग, बहुवाद्य, सुदाम, सुमल्लिक, वध्र, करीषक, कुलिन्द, उपत्यक, वनायु, दश, पार्श्वरोम, कुशबिन्दु, कच्छ, गोपालकक्ष, जांगल, कुरुवर्णक, किरात, बर्बर, सिद्ध, वैदेह, ताम्रलिप्तक, ओण्ड्, म्लेच्छ, सैसिरिध्र और पार्वतीय इत्यादि
sañjaya uvāca | bahuvādyāś ca kauravya sudāmānaḥ sumallikāḥ | vadhraḥ karīṣakāś caiva kulindopatyakās tathā | puṇḍrā bhargāḥ kirātāḥ sudṛṣṭā yāmunāḥ śakāḥ | niṣādā niṣadhā ānartā nairṛtā durgālāḥ | pratimatsyāḥ kuntalāḥ kosalās tīragrahāḥ śūrasenāḥ | ījikāḥ kanyakāguṇāḥ tilabhārā masīrā madhumānaḥ sukandakāḥ | kāśmīrāḥ sindhusauvīrā gāndhārā darśakāḥ abhīsārāḥ | ulūtāḥ śaivālāḥ bāhlīkāḥ dārvī vānavāḥ darvāḥ | vātajāḥ āmarathāḥ uragāḥ vanāyavaḥ daśāḥ pārśvaromāḥ | kuśabindavaḥ kacchāḥ gopālakakṣāḥ jāṅgalāḥ kurūvarṇakāḥ | kirātā barbarāḥ siddhā vaidehāḥ tāmraliptakāḥ oṇḍāḥ | mlecchāḥ saisiridhrāḥ pārvatīyāś ca ityādayaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “O descendant of Kuru, there were also many other peoples—Sudāmānas, Sumallikas, Vadhras, Karīṣakas, the Kulindas of the mountain-valleys, Puṇḍras, Bhargas, Kirātas, Yāmunas, Śakas, Niṣādas, Niṣadhas, Ānartas, Nairṛtas, and many more—Pratimatsyas, Kuntalas, Kosalas, Śūrasenas, Kāśmīras, Sindhu-Sauvīras, Gāndhāras, Abhīsāras, Bāhlīkas, and numerous forest- and hill-dwelling groups, including Mlecchas and Parvatīyas.” In this catalogue of tribes, Sañjaya emphasizes the vast, multi-regional gathering of forces—an image of the war’s sweeping reach and the moral weight of a conflict that draws in peoples from every direction.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse functions less as a moral maxim and more as an ethical framing device: by naming a wide range of peoples, it highlights how a dynastic dispute expands into a pan-regional catastrophe, implying the heavy responsibility borne by leaders whose choices draw countless communities into suffering.
Sañjaya is reporting to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the composition of the assembled forces, listing many tribes and regions that have come to the battlefield. It is part of the broader description of the armies and the vast scope of the impending war.