Shloka 35
Karṇa-parva Adhyāya 20 — Yudhiṣṭhira–Duryodhana Encounter and Escalation of Arms
ध्वजा: शिरांसि च्छत्राणि द्विपहस्ता नृणां भुजा: । क्षुरेर्भल्लार्धचन्द्रैश्न च्छिन्ना: पेतुर्महीतले,ध्वज, मस्तक, छत्र, हाथीकी सूँड़ तथा मनुष्योंकी भुजाएँ--ये सब-के-सब क्षुरों, भल्लों तथा अर्धचन्द्रोंद्रारा कटकर भूतलपर पड़े थे
sañjaya uvāca |
dhvajāḥ śirāṃsi cchatrāṇi dvipahastā nṛṇāṃ bhujāḥ |
kṣuraiḥ bhallārdhacandraiś ca cchinnāḥ petur mahītale ||
Sañjaya said: “Standards, severed heads, and fallen parasols—along with the trunks of elephants and the arms of men—cut down by razor-edged blades, barbed darts, and crescent-headed arrows, all dropped upon the earth. The scene proclaimed the ruthless momentum of battle, where pride and protection alike were brought low, and the cost of violence became visible in scattered emblems of rank and shattered bodies.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the stark impermanence of power and status in war: banners and royal parasols—symbols of authority—fall alongside severed limbs and heads. Ethically, it confronts the listener with the tangible cost of violence even within the framework of kṣatriya-dharma, where duty in battle does not erase the tragedy of destruction.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield at a moment of intense fighting: sharp weapons and specialized arrows are cutting down standards, parasols, elephant trunks, and warriors’ arms, which then fall scattered on the ground—an image of overwhelming carnage and collapsing martial order.