Shloka 16
तप्तकाञ्चनवर्माणस्तालध्वजरथव्रजा: । भासयन्ति महीं भासा ज्वलिता इव पावका:,इन सबके कवच तपाये हुए सुवर्णके बने हैं और इनके रथसमूह तालचिह्नलित ध्वजाओंसे सुशोभित हैं। ये राजकुमार अपनी प्रभासे प्रज्वलित अग्निके समान भूतलको प्रकाशित कर रहे हैं
taptakāñcanavarmāṇas tāladhvajarathavrajāḥ | bhāsayanti mahīṃ bhāsā jvalitā iva pāvakāḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “Clad in armor of heated, gleaming gold, and moving in a host of chariots marked with palm-tree banners, they illumine the earth with their radiance—like fires blazing in full flame.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the seductive brilliance of martial power—golden armor and radiant chariot-hosts—while, in the Stree Parva’s context of mourning, it implicitly contrasts outward splendor with the tragic cost of war, reminding readers of the impermanence of worldly glory.
Vaiśampāyana describes a group of princes/warriors advancing in chariots with palm-emblem banners, wearing shining golden armor; their collective radiance is compared to blazing fire as it seems to light up the earth.