Shloka 24

कार्त्तिकेयाभिषेकः — Consecration of Kārttikeya and the Enumeration of His Retinue

Devanagari script

निकाया भूतसंघानां परमाद्भुतदर्शना: । विकृता विकृताकारा विकृताभरणध्वजा:,उनके साथ आये हुए भूतसंघोंके शरीर देखनेमें बड़े ही अद्भुत, विकृत और विकराल थे। उनके आभूषण और ध्वज भी बड़े विकट थे

Transliteration

nikāyā bhūtasaṅghānāṃ paramādbhuta-darśanāḥ | vikṛtā vikṛtākārā vikṛtābharaṇa-dhvajāḥ ||

Translation

त्या भूतगणांचे समुदाय पाहण्यास परम अद्भुत होते—विकृत, विकराळ आकाराचे; त्यांचे आभूषण व ध्वजही भयावह व विचित्र होते।

Word by Word

निकायाःbodies/groups (hosts)

भूत-संघानाम्of the hosts of spirits

परम-अद्भुत-दर्शनाःof supremely wondrous appearance

विकृताःdeformed

विकृत-आकाराःhaving distorted forms

विकृत-आभरण-ध्वजाःwith grotesque ornaments and banners

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśaṃpāyana

bhūta-saṅgha (hosts of spirits)

ābharaṇa (ornaments)

dhvaja (banners/standards)

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 how adharma-saturated violence and impending catastrophe are mirrored by ominous, unsettling phenomena; the grotesque ‘bhūta’ imagery functions as a moral and psychological sign of disorder, fear, and the breakdown of auspiciousness around the battlefield.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana describes the arrival/presence of supernatural spirit-hosts whose bodies, ornaments, and banners look bizarre and terrifying, heightening the sense of dread and portent in the Shalya Parva war narrative.