Shloka 106
चेष्टन्तो विविधाश्रैष्टा व्यदृश्यन्त महाहवे । कुरुश्रेष्ठ! बाणोंके आघातसे कटे हुए योद्धा उस महासमरमें अनेक प्रकारकी चेष्टाएँ करते और छटपटाते दिखायी देते थे
ceṣṭanto vividhāḥ śreṣṭhā vyadṛśyanta mahāhave | kuruśreṣṭha bāṇānām āghātāt kaṭitā yoddhāḥ tasmin mahāsamare nānāvidhāś ceṣṭāḥ kurvantaḥ chaṭpaṭāyanta iva vyadṛśyanta |
Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai yang terbaik daripada kaum Kuru, dalam pertempuran besar itu para pahlawan terunggul—yang rebah akibat hentaman anak panah—kelihatan melakukan pelbagai gerak yang tidak terkawal, menggeliat dan meronta dalam kesakitan. Pemandangan itu menyingkap harga perang yang kejam, ketika yang gagah pun direndahkan menjadi penderita yang tidak berdaya.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the harsh reality and moral weight of war: even the ‘best’ warriors become helpless under violence. It implicitly warns that glory in battle is inseparable from suffering and loss, inviting reflection on responsibility and the consequences of conflict.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that, amid the great fighting, warriors struck and cut by arrows were visibly writhing and making varied, involuntary movements on the battlefield—an eyewitness-style depiction of the carnage.