Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 50 — Arjuna’s foreboding and lament for Abhimanyu; Kṛṣṇa’s dharma-consolation
तथा तदायोधनमुमग्रदर्शनं निशामुखे पितृपतिराष्ट्रवर्धनम् । निरीक्षमाणा: शनकैर्जहुर्नरा: समुत्थिता नृत्तकबन्धसंकुलम्,प्रदोषकालमें यमराजके राज्यकी वृद्धि करनेवाली वह युद्धभूमि बड़ी भयंकर दिखायी देती थी। वहाँ सब ओर नाचते हुए कबन्ध (धड़) व्याप्त हो रहे थे। यह सब देखते हुए उभय पक्षके योद्धाओंने वहाँसे धीरे-धीरे चलकर उस युद्धस्थलको त्याग दिया
tathā tadā yodhanam ugra-darśanaṁ niśā-mukhe pitṛ-patirāṣṭra-vardhanam | nirīkṣamāṇāḥ śanakair jahur narāḥ samutthitā nṛtta-kabandha-saṅkulam, pradoṣa-kāle ||
サンジャヤは言った。夕暮れになると、その戦場は見るも恐ろしい姿を現し、祖霊の主ヤマ――死の王――の国土のごとく、死の支配が膨れ上がっているかのようであった。四方に首なき胴(カバンダ)が起き上がり、舞うようにうごめいて満ちているのを見て、両軍の戦士たちはゆるやかに退き、戦場を捨て去った。
संजय उवाच
The verse highlights the moral and existential cost of war: the battlefield becomes like Yama’s expanding realm, confronting warriors with the grotesque aftermath of violence. Even those committed to kṣatriya duty recoil, suggesting that dharma in war is shadowed by suffering and the inevitability of death.
At twilight the battlefield looks extremely dreadful, crowded with headless torsos that appear to move like dancers. Witnessing this, warriors from both sides slowly withdraw and leave the battlefield as evening falls.