Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 87
Kārttikeya-Abhiṣecana: Mātṛgaṇa-Nāma Saṃkīrtana and Skanda’s Commission
आशीविषाश्षीरधरा गोनासावदनास्तथा । स्थूलोदरा: कृशाज्श्च स्थूलाड्राश्न कृुशोदरा:
āśīviṣāḥ śīradharā gonāsā-vadanās tathā | sthūlodarāḥ kṛśāś ca sthūlā dīrghāś ca kṛśodarāḥ ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは語った。「毒蛇が頸のフードを高く掲げ、また別の者はゴナーサ（ある種の蝮）に似た顔をしていた。腹の太い者もいれば痩せた者もあり、巨大で長大な者もいれば、腹の細い者もいた。」
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse does not state a direct moral injunction; its ethical force is indirect. By invoking many terrifying kinds of serpents, it intensifies the atmosphere of peril and suggests how violence and hostility breed an environment where danger multiplies in countless forms.
Vaiśampāyana describes the presence/appearance of numerous varieties of poisonous snakes—hooded, viper-faced, large, long, or lean—using vivid cataloguing to convey dread and the ominous tone surrounding events in the Shalya Parva.