Shloka 31
अपतन्त रथौघाश्ष तत्र तत्र सहस्रश: | माननीय नरेश! भारत! अश्वसमूह तथा रथवृन्द दावानलसे दग्ध हुए वृक्षोंके अग्रभागके समान दिखायी दे रहे थे और जहाँ-तहाँ सहस्रों रथसमूह गिरे पड़े थे || ३० ई ।। तत् सैन्यं भयसंविग्नं ददाह युधि भारत
sañjaya uvāca |
apatanta rathaughās tatra tatra sahasraśaḥ |
mānanīya nareśa bhārata aśvasamūha tathā rathavṛnda dāvānalena dagdhavṛkṣāgrabhāgavat dṛśyante sma yatra tatra sahasraśo rathaughā nipatitāḥ ||
tat sainyaṃ bhayasaṃvignaṃ dadāha yudhi bhārata ||
サンジャヤは言った。「ああ、尊ぶべき王よ、バーラタの末裔よ。戦車の隊列はここかしこで幾千と崩れ落ちた。馬の群れと戦車の塊は、山火事に焼き尽くされて黒く焦げた樹々の梢のように見え、至る所に数知れぬ戦車が倒れ伏していた。その軍勢は恐怖に揺さぶられ、戦場において戦の火に呑み尽くされつつあった、バーラタよ。」
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical cost of war: fear spreads through armies, and mass destruction follows swiftly. It implicitly warns that violence, once unleashed, consumes not only bodies and weapons but also courage and stability—highlighting impermanence and the tragic momentum of conflict.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that on the battlefield chariot-formations are collapsing in huge numbers. Horses and chariots appear like treetops scorched by a forest-fire, and the army, gripped by fear, is being consumed amid the fighting.