Shloka 5
अध्याय २९: कर्णस्य शल्यं प्रति शापस्मरणं च युद्धनिश्चयः | Chapter 29: Karṇa recalls curses to Śalya and declares resolve for battle
परिघमुसलशक्तितोमरै- नखरभुशुण्डिगदाशतैहता: । द्विरदनरहया: सहस्रशो रुधिरनदीप्रवहास्तदाभवन्,उस समय परिघ, मूसल, शक्ति, तोमर, नखर, भुशुण्डी और गदाओंकी सौ-सौ चोटें खाकर हजारों हाथी, मनुष्य और घोड़े खूनकी नदी बहाने लगे
sañjaya uvāca | parigha-muśala-śakti-tomarair nakhara-bhuśuṇḍi-gadā-śatair hatāḥ | dvirada-nara-hayāḥ sahasraśo rudhira-nadī-pravahās tadābhavan ||
Sañjaya said: Then, struck down by hundreds of blows from iron clubs, pestles, spears, javelins, claw-like weapons, bhuśuṇḍīs, and maces, thousands upon thousands of elephants, men, and horses fell—until the battlefield seemed to pour forth streams like rivers of blood. The verse underscores the moral weight of war: when dharma collapses into unchecked violence, victory is purchased at the cost of immense, indiscriminate suffering.
संजय उवाच