Shloka 13
आयोधनदर्शनम्
Viewing the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra
रुद्राक्रीडनिभं दृष्टवा तदा विशसन स्त्रिय: । महाहें भ्यो5थ यानेभ्यो विक्रोशन्त्यो निपेतिरे,रुद्रकी क्रीडास्थलीके समान उस रणभूमिको देखकर वे स्त्रियाँ अपने बहुमूल्य रथोंसे क्रन्दन करती हुई नीचे गिर पड़ी
rudrākrīḍanibhaṃ dṛṣṭvā tadā viśasan striyaḥ | mahāhebhyo 'tha yānebhyo vikrośantyo nipetire ||
Disse Vaiśampāyana: Ao verem aquele campo de batalha, semelhante ao próprio recinto de brincadeira de Rudra na destruição, as mulheres—uivando em lamento—caíram de seus grandes elefantes e de outras conduções.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical cost of war: violence does not end with victory or defeat but radiates suffering to families and civilians. The Rudra-simile intensifies the sense that uncontrolled destruction, even if politically ‘necessary,’ leaves a moral and emotional ruin that dharma must reckon with.
In the Stree Parva’s lamentation scenes after the Kurukṣetra war, women arrive to view the battlefield. On seeing the slaughtered field—likened to Rudra’s fearsome arena—they cry out and collapse from their elephants and other conveyances, overwhelmed by grief.