Shloka 39
आयोधनदर्शनम्
Viewing the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra
क्रव्यादै: कृष्पमाणानामपरेषां महात्मनाम् | शातकौम्भ्य: सत्रजनश्चित्रा विप्रकीर्णा: समन्ततः,“दूसरे महामनस्वी वीरोंको मांसाहारी जीव इधर-उधर खींच रहे हैं, जिससे सोनेकी बनी हुई उनकी विचित्र मालाएँ सब ओर बिखर गयी हैं
kravyādaiḥ kṛṣyamāṇānām apareṣāṃ mahātmanām | śātakaumbhyaḥ srajaś citrā viprakīrṇāḥ samantataḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “Other great-souled warriors are being dragged about by flesh-eating creatures; as they are pulled, their wondrous garlands made of gold have been scattered in all directions.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical and existential shock of war: even the ‘great-souled’ and honored warriors, once adorned with golden garlands, are reduced to bodies dragged by scavengers. It highlights impermanence and the moral cost of violence, inviting reflection on dharma and the consequences of conflict.
In the Stree Parva’s lamentation setting after the Kurukṣetra war, the narrator describes the battlefield’s grim scene: carrion-eaters pull at the fallen heroes, and their ornate golden garlands are torn off and scattered everywhere.