Shloka 30
Yudhiṣṭhira–Droṇa Saṃgrāma
Engagement and Countermeasures
हेमरूप्यमयै: शृज्ैननौषधिविदीपितान् | तथा मन्दारवृक्षैश्न पुष्पितिरपशोभितान्,सोने और चाँदीके शिखर तथा फूलोंसे भरे हुए पारिजातके वृक्ष उन पर्वतीय प्रान्तोंकी शोभा बढ़ा रहे थे तथा भाँति-भाँतिकी तेजोमयी ओषधियाँ वहाँ अपना प्रकाश फैला रही थीं
hemarūpyamayaiḥ śṛṅgair nānāuṣadhividīpitān | tathā mandāravṛkṣaiś ca puṣpitaiḥ paryupaśobhitān ||
Sañjaya said: Those mountain tracts were lit up by many radiant, luminous herbs, and further adorned on every side by flowering mandāra trees; their peaks, as if fashioned of gold and silver, heightened the splendor of the landscape. The description underscores a vision of extraordinary, almost otherworldly beauty standing in stark contrast to the surrounding violence of war, reminding the listener that nature’s grandeur and auspicious signs can coexist with human conflict.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse offers a reflective contrast: even during the devastation of war, the world retains signs of beauty and auspiciousness. It subtly invites discernment—human actions may be violent, yet the larger order of nature and the sacred imagination of the epic continue to display splendor, prompting ethical reflection on the dissonance between outer grandeur and inner human conduct.
Sañjaya is describing a striking landscape—mountain regions with peaks gleaming like gold and silver, illuminated by radiant herbs and beautified by flowering mandāra trees. This functions as vivid scene-setting within the Drona Parva’s war narrative.