Shloka 5
Aśvatthāmā’s Lamentation, Vow of Retaliation, and the Manifestation of the Nārāyaṇāstra (द्रोणपर्व, अध्याय १६६)
उल्काशतै: प्रज्वलितै रणभूमिवव्यराजत । दहामानेव लोकानामभावे च वसुंधरा,सैकड़ों प्रजजलित उल्काओं (मशालों)-से वह रणभूमि ऐसी शोभा पा रही थी, मानो प्रलयकालमें यह सारी पृथ्वी दग्ध हो रही हो
sañjaya uvāca | ulkāśataiḥ prajvalitaiḥ raṇabhūmir vyarājata | dahamāneva lokānām abhāve ca vasuṃdharā ||
Sañjaya said: The battlefield shone brilliantly, lit by hundreds of blazing firebrands, as though—at the world’s end—the earth itself were burning and all beings were being consumed. The image underscores how war, though pursued in the name of duty, can resemble cosmic ruin when violence overwhelms restraint.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses pralaya-like (end-of-world) imagery to highlight the moral gravity of war: even when framed as dharma, unchecked violence can mirror cosmic destruction, urging discernment, restraint, and awareness of war’s human cost.
Sañjaya vividly reports the scene of the night-lit battlefield, blazing with hundreds of torches/firebrands, making the earth appear as if it were burning at the time of universal dissolution.