Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 90
Kārttikeya-Abhiṣecana: Mātṛgaṇa-Nāma Saṃkīrtana and Skanda’s Commission
पार्शाननाश्व बहवो नानादेशमुखास्तथा । तथा कीटपतड्डानां सदृशास्या गणेश्वरा:
pārśānana-aśvā bahavo nānādeśa-mukhās tathā | tathā kīṭa-pataṅgānāṃ sadṛśāsyā gaṇeśvarāḥ ||
ヴァイシャンパーヤナは語った。猛獣のような顔を持つ馬が数多くおり、また別の馬は、その口がさまざまな国土と種族から来たかのように見えた。同じく、隊を率いる者の中には、昆虫や飛ぶ生き物に似た顔を持つ者もいた—不吉で不自然な群像が、戦の終末に迫る暴虐の恐怖をいよいよ濃くした。
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses grotesque, unnatural imagery—beast-faced horses and insect-faced leaders—to signal moral and cosmic disorder. In the Mahābhārata’s ethical frame, such portents reflect the spread of adharma and the terrifying consequences of unchecked violence.
Vaiśampāyana describes a frightening, abnormal spectacle among the forces—horses and commanders appearing with uncanny, non-human faces. The description functions as an ominous sign within the war narrative, heightening dread and foreshadowing calamity.