Shloka 37
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 95 — Sātyaki’s Breakthrough and the Routing of Allied Contingents
निहता: शेरते स्मान्ये बीभत्सोर्निशितै: शरै: । गजपृष्ठगता म्लेच्छा नानाविकृतदर्शना:,अर्जुनके तीखे बाणोंसे मारे जाकर दूसरे-दूसरे म्लेच्छ-सैनिक हाथीकी पीठपर ही लेट गये थे। उनकी नाना प्रकारकी आकृति बड़ी विकृत दिखायी देती थी
nihatāḥ śerate smānye bībhatsor niśitaiḥ śaraiḥ | gajapṛṣṭhagatā mlecchā nānāvīkṛtadarśanāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Struck down by the sharp arrows of Bībhatsu (Arjuna), other Mleccha warriors lay slain right there upon the backs of their elephants. Their bodies, twisted into many unnatural postures, appeared grotesquely deformed—an image that underscores the brutal, dehumanizing cost of battle even when fought by a righteous champion.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the grim reality of war: even when a renowned dharmic hero like Arjuna fights with skill and purpose, the battlefield produces grotesque suffering and dehumanizing scenes. It implicitly cautions that victory in righteous warfare still carries heavy moral and human costs.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Arjuna’s keen arrows have killed groups of Mleccha fighters who were riding elephants; their corpses remain sprawled on the elephants’ backs, appearing distorted and dreadful.