Shloka 96
Kārttikeya-Abhiṣecana: Mātṛgaṇa-Nāma Saṃkīrtana and Skanda’s Commission
चित्रमालाधरा: केचित् केचिद् रोमाननास्तथा । विग्रहैकरसा नित्यमजेया: सुरसत्तमै:,कोई विचित्र माला धारण किये हुए थे और किन्हींके मुखपर बहुत-से रोयें जमे हुए थे। उन सबको लड़ाई-झगड़ेमें ही रस आता था। वे सदा श्रेष्ठ देवताओंके लिये भी अजेय थे
citra-mālā-dharāḥ kecit kecid romānanaḥ tathā | vigrahaika-rasā nityam ajeyāḥ sura-sattamaiḥ ||
Vaiśampāyana said: Some of them wore wondrous garlands, while others had faces thick with hair. Ever delighting only in strife, they were perpetually invincible—even to the foremost of the gods. The description underscores a terrifying class of warriors whose very nature is bound to conflict, suggesting how war can become an identity rather than a duty.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a moral danger: when conflict becomes one’s sole ‘taste’ (eka-rasa), war turns from a reluctant duty into a defining appetite. Such fixation magnifies destructive power and makes reconciliation difficult, implicitly warning that valor without restraint can oppose dharma.
Vaiśampāyana is describing formidable beings/warriors distinguished by strange garlands and hair-covered faces. Their constant delight in fighting marks them as fearsome combatants, portrayed as unconquerable even by the greatest gods.