Shloka 69

Devanagari script

तेषामापततां शब्दस्तीव्र आसीद्‌ विशाम्पते

Transliteration

teṣām āpatatāṃ śabdas tīvra āsīd viśāmpate

Translation

Sañjaya said: “O lord of the people, as they rushed in, the sound of their onslaught was fierce and overwhelming.”

Word by Word

• तेषाम्: of them
• तेषाम्: Adhikarana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: masculine/neuter, genitive, plural

• आपतताम्: of (those) rushing/charging
• आपतताम्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: आपत् (धातु: पत् with उपसर्ग आ)
• Form: present (śatṛ/śānac-based participial form used as verbal adjective), plural

• शब्दः: sound, noise
• शब्दः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शब्द
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• तीव्रः: intense, fierce
• तीव्रः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तीव्र
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• आसीत्: was
• आसीत्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: imperfect (laṅ), 3rd, singular

• विशाम्: of the people/subjects
• विशाम्: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: विश्
• Form: feminine, genitive, plural

• पते: O lord
• पते: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पति
• Form: masculine, vocative, singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Dhṛtarāṣṭra (implied by the address viśāmpate)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the palpable, escalating force of war: violence is not only seen but heard, and its intensity overwhelms the senses—serving as a sober reminder of the grave human cost and moral weight of battle.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports to the king (addressed as viśāmpate) that as the warriors surged forward to attack, the resulting clamor—shouts, weapons, chariots, and impact—rose into a fierce, piercing din.