Shloka 18

Devanagari script

निहतै: क्षत्रिय: श्रै्नानाजनपदेश्वरै: । जयगृद्धैर्व॒ता भूमिर्दारुणा समपद्यत,विजयकी अभिलाषा रखनेवाले विभिन्न जनपदोंके स्वामी क्षत्रियवीर उस युद्धमें मारे गये। उनकी लाशोंसे पटी हुई पृथ्वी बड़ी भयानक जान पड़ती थी

Transliteration

nihatāiḥ kṣatriyaiḥ śrāinānājanapadeśvaraiḥ | jayagṛddhair vṛtā bhūmir dāruṇā samapadyata |

Translation

Sañjaya said: The earth became dreadful to behold, covered all around with the slain—kṣatriya heroes who were rulers of many realms, men consumed by the hunger for victory. The scene exposes the grim moral cost of ambition in war: the very desire to win turns the battlefield into a terrifying field of death.

Word by Word

निहतैःby the slain

क्षत्रियैःby kshatriyas (warriors)

श्रेणीनानाजनपदेश्वरैःby lords of various districts/realms (of many groups)

जयगृद्धैःby those greedy for victory

वृताcovered

भूमिःthe earth

दारुणाterrible, dreadful

समपद्यतbecame, came to be

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

bhūmi (the earth/battlefield)

kṣatriyas (warrior rulers)

janapadas (realms/territories)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical burden of war: when rulers become ‘greedy for victory,’ the pursuit of triumph produces a landscape of horror. It implicitly warns that victory-desire, unchecked by dharma and restraint, culminates in widespread destruction.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes the battlefield after intense fighting: many kṣatriya rulers from different realms have been killed, and the ground is covered with their bodies, making the earth appear terrifying.