Shloka 32

अध्याय २६ — शल्यस्य सारथ्य-नियोजनं, कर्णस्य प्रस्थानं, उत्पातदर्शनं च

Chapter 26: Śalya appointed as charioteer; Karṇa’s departure; portents

Devanagari script

शतघ्नीनां सचक्राणां भुजानां चोरुभि: सह । कण्ठसूत्राज़दानां च केयूराणां च मारिष

Transliteration

śataghnīnāṃ sacakrāṇāṃ bhujānāṃ corubhiḥ saha | kaṇṭhasūtrāz-dānāṃ ca keyūrāṇāṃ ca māriṣa

Translation

Sañjaya berkata: “Wahai yang mulia, ada juga śataghnī dan jentera beroda, serta lengan yang terpenggal bersama paha—beserta kalung leher dan gelang lengan.” Maka medan perang pun berselerak dengan perhiasan yang pecah dan anggota tubuh yang tercerai-berai, menjadi saksi akan harga ngeri pembunuhan yang tidak benar ini.

Word by Word

शतघ्नीनाम्of the sataghnīs (missiles/engines of war)

सचक्राणाम्of those with wheels

भुजानाम्of arms

चand

ऊरुभिःwith thighs

सहtogether with

कण्ठसूत्राजदानाम्of neck-threads and ajadas (neck-ornaments/garlands)

चand

केयूराणाम्of armlets

चand

मारिषO noble one / O sir

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sanjaya

śataghnī (weapon)

cakra (wheels of war-engines/vehicles)

kaṇṭhasūtra (neck-ornament/cord)

keyūra (armlet)

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 grim reality of war: not only bodies but also the symbols of status and identity (ornaments) are reduced to debris. It implicitly warns that violence strips away human dignity and reveals the impermanence of worldly distinctions.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya is describing the battlefield to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, listing weapons and the scattered remains of warriors—severed limbs and fallen ornaments—emphasizing the scale and horror of the fighting in the Karṇa Parva.