Shloka 35
Adhyāya 18 — Sequential Duels and Formation Pressure
Ulūka–Yuyutsu; Śakuni–Sutasoma; Kṛpa–Dhṛṣṭadyumna; Kṛtavarmā–Śikhaṇḍin
नानाविधानि शस्त्राणि प्रगृह्य जयगृद्धिन: । जीवन्त इव दृश्यन्ते गतसत्त्वास्तरस्विन:,“विजयकी अभिलाषा रखनेवाले वेगशाली वीर सैनिक हाथोंमें नाना प्रकारके अस्त्र- शस्त्र लिये प्राणशून्य हो गये हैं तो भी जीवित-से दिखायी देते हैं
nānāvidhāni śastrāṇi pragṛhya jayagṛddhinaḥ | jīvanta iva dṛśyante gatasattvāstarasvinaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “Those swift warriors, driven by the craving for victory, are seen as if still alive—though their life-force has departed—because they lie with many kinds of weapons still clutched in their hands.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tragic irony of war: the drive for victory can so dominate a person that even in death the body appears ‘still fighting,’ weapons clenched. It implicitly warns against jayagṛddhi—victory-obsession—which eclipses discernment and leads to destruction, reminding the listener of the impermanence of life and the ethical cost of unchecked ambition.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the battlefield scene: swift fighters who sought victory now lie dead, yet they look almost alive because they still hold various weapons. The description intensifies the horror and immediacy of the carnage in Karṇa Parva.