Shloka 32
कुण्डली मुकुटी खड्गी रक्तचन्दनरूषित: । शिरसा धारयन् दीप्तां तपनीयमयीं स्रजम्
kuṇḍalī mukuṭī khaḍgī raktacandana-rūṣitaḥ | śirasā dhārayan dīptāṃ tapanīya-mayīṃ srajam ||
Sañjaya said: “Adorned with earrings and a crown, bearing a sword, and smeared with red sandalwood paste, he carried upon his head a radiant garland made of pure gold.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse is primarily descriptive rather than didactic: it highlights the outward marks of kingship and warrior readiness—ornaments, weapons, and auspicious anointing—suggesting how power and duty (kṣatriya role) are publicly signaled in the epic’s war setting.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, describing a warrior/royal figure’s appearance: he is ornamented (earrings, crown), armed (sword), ritually/auspiciously anointed with red sandalwood, and bears a shining golden garland on his head—an image of splendor amid the battlefield narrative.