Dvārakā’s Distress and the Saubha Engagement (द्वारकाव्यग्रता तथा सौभयुद्धम्)
न तस्योरसि नो मूर्थ्नि न काये न भुजद्धये । अन्तरं पाण्डवश्रेष्ठ पश्याम्यनिचितं शरै:,पाण्डवश्रेष्ठ! उसकी छातीमें, मस्तकपर, शरीरके अन्य अवयवोंमें तथा दोनों भुजाओंमें थोड़ा-सा भी ऐसा स्थान नहीं दिखायी देता था, जिसमें बाण न चुभे हुए हों। जैसे मेघके वर्षा करनेपर गेरू आदि धातुओंसे युक्त पर्वत लाल पानीकी धारा बहाने लगता है, वैसे ही वह बाणोंसे छिदे हुए अपने अंगोंसे भयंकर रक्तकी धारा बहा रहा था
na tasyorasi no mūrdhni na kāye na bhujadvaye | antaraṃ pāṇḍavaśreṣṭha paśyāmyanicitaṃ śaraiḥ ||
Vāyu said: “O best of the Pāṇḍavas, I see no space—on his chest, on his head, on his body, or on either arm—that is not pierced by arrows. Like a mountain rich in red minerals that, when drenched by rainclouds, begins to pour forth crimson streams, so he—his limbs riddled with shafts—was letting loose a dreadful torrent of blood.”
वायुदेव उवाच
The verse underscores the stark reality of bodily vulnerability in conflict: even the strongest warrior’s body can be utterly overwhelmed. By stressing the total absence of an unpierced spot, it evokes the ethical gravity of violence and the transience of physical power, prompting reflection on restraint, duty, and the human cost of warfare.
Vāyu describes to the foremost Pāṇḍava a warrior whose chest, head, body, and arms are so densely struck that no space remains untouched by arrows. The scene is intensified through a simile: like a mineral-rich mountain releasing red streams under rain, the arrow-riddled body pours out terrifying flows of blood.