Shloka 8
अध्याय ९१ — शैनेयस्य गजानीकभेदनं जलसंधवधश्च
Chapter 91: Sātyaki breaks the elephant array and slays Jalasaṃdha
पुण्डरीकवनानीव विध्वस्तानि समन्तत: । विनिकीर्णानि योधानां वदनानि चकाशिरे,सब ओर बिखरे हुए योद्धाओंके मुख कटकर गिरे हुए कमल-समूहोंके समान सुशोभित होने लगे
puṇḍarīkavanānīva vidhvastāni samantataḥ | vinikīrṇāni yodhānāṁ vadanāni cakāśire ||
Sañjaya said: All around, the faces of the warriors—scattered and shattered—shone like groves of white lotuses laid waste. The simile heightens the grim irony of battle: what is naturally pure and beautiful (the lotus) is invoked to describe the horrific aftermath of violence, underscoring the ethical cost of war even amid heroic narratives.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse conveys the moral and emotional weight of war: poetic beauty is used to depict devastation, reminding the listener that even ‘glorious’ battle results in irreversible loss and suffering.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the gruesome battlefield scene—warriors lie destroyed and scattered, their faces visible everywhere—likened to a ruined expanse of white lotus groves.