Shloka 32
भीष्म-युधिष्ठिर-संमर्दः
Bhīṣma’s Pressure on Yudhiṣṭhira; Śikhaṇḍī’s Approach; Evening Withdrawal
ते शरा हेमपुड्खाग्रा व्यदृश्यन्त महीतले । विकर्णरुधिरक्लिन्ना वमन्त इव शोणितम्
te śarā hemapuḍkhāgrā vyadṛśyanta mahītale | vikarṇarudhiraklinnā vamanta iva śoṇitam ||
サンジャヤは言った。金の矢羽と金の鏃を持つその矢は、地に散らばって見えた。ヴィカルナの血に塗れ、血を吸い込んだそれらは、まるで血を吐き出しているかのようであった—戦の残酷な代価と、武人の務めを果てまで貫くことが肉体にもたらす結末を、冷ややかに突きつける光景である。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse offers no direct moral injunction, but its imagery functions ethically: it confronts the listener with the physical reality of war—splendor (golden arrows) inseparable from suffering (blood). In the Mahābhārata’s moral universe, such descriptions caution that even ‘duty-bound’ combat carries grave human cost.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield aftermath: arrows with golden fletchings and tips lie on the earth, drenched in Vikarṇa’s blood, appearing as if they are spewing blood—indicating that Vikarṇa has been grievously wounded (or struck down) amid the fighting.