Shloka 3

अध्याय १ — न्यग्रोधवनोपवेशनम् तथा द्रौणिनिश्चयः

Night at the Banyan and Drauṇi’s Resolve

Devanagari script

सेनानिवेशमभितो नातिदूरमवस्थिता: । निकृत्ता निशितै: शस्त्रै: समन्तात्‌ क्षतविक्षता:,जहाँ सेनाकी छावनी थी, उस स्थानके पास थोड़ी ही दूरपर वे तीनों विश्राम करने लगे। उनके शरीर तीखे शस्त्रोंक आधातसे घायल हो गये थे। वे सब ओरसे क्षत-विक्षत हो रहे थे

Transliteration

senāniveśam abhito nātidūram avasthitāḥ | nikṛttā niśitaiḥ śastraiḥ samantāt kṣata-vikṣatāḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: Not far from the army’s encampment, those men halted and lay down to rest. Cut and struck by keen weapons, they were wounded and mangled on every side—bearing on their bodies the harsh aftermath of the night’s violence and the moral weight of war’s cruelty.

Word by Word

सेना-निवेशम्the army-camp/encampment

अभितःaround, on all sides of

नnot

अति-दूरम्too far (a great distance)

अवस्थिताःhaving stayed/being stationed

निकृत्ताःcut down, mangled

निशितैःwith sharp

शस्त्रैःweapons

समन्तात्from all sides, all around

क्षत-विक्षताःwounded and torn/mutilated

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

senāniveśa (army encampment)

śastrāṇi (weapons)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores the inevitable human cost of warfare: even the victors or survivors carry wounds and disfigurement. It implicitly warns that violence—especially when unrestrained—produces suffering that spreads in all directions, raising ethical questions about dharma in battle.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes the immediate aftermath near the army camp: the men involved have withdrawn a short distance and are resting, but their bodies show severe injuries from sharp weapons, emphasizing the grim, physical consequences of the conflict.