Shloka 653
कृष्णोपदेशः, अर्जुनस्य क्षमा-याचनम्, कर्णवध-अनुज्ञा
Krishna’s Counsel, Arjuna’s Apology, and Authorization for Karṇa’s Slaying
क्रौज्चपृष्ठारुणं रौद्रं बाणजालं व्यदृश्यत । राजेन्द्र! उन दोनोंने आकाशमें बाणोंका भयंकर जाल-सा बिछा दिया, जो क्रौंच पक्षीके पृष्ठभागके समान लाल और भयानक दिखायी देता था
sañjaya uvāca | krauñcapṛṣṭhāruṇaṃ raudraṃ bāṇajālaṃ vyadṛśyata | rājendra! tau dvābhyām ākāśe bāṇānāṃ bhayaṅkaraṃ jālam iva vitatam, yat krauñcapakṣiṇaḥ pṛṣṭhabhāgasadṛśaṃ lohitaṃ raudraṃ ca dṛśyate sma |
Санджая сказал: О царь, явилась свирепая сеть стрел — красноватая, как спина птицы краунча. Эти двое воинов раскинули в небе страшное плетение древков, столь густое и зловещее, что казалось, оно покрывает сам воздух, усиливая ужас и напор битвы.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse primarily heightens the moral atmosphere of war: when combatants unleash overwhelming force, the battlefield becomes a space where fear and destruction spread rapidly. The poetic simile underscores how violence, once intensified, can seem to blanket the world—inviting reflection on restraint and the grave cost of martial fury.
Sanjaya describes a moment in the battle when two opposing warriors release such a dense volley of arrows that it looks like a net spread across the sky. The arrows appear reddish and terrifying, compared to the red-hued back of a krauñca bird.