Shloka 176
Adhyāya 14: Śalya’s Missile-Pressure and the Pāṇḍava Convergence (शल्यस्य शरवर्षम्)
अगम्यरूपा पृथिवी मांसशोणितकर्दमा | प्रजानाथ! कुपित हुए अर्जुनके रथके मार्गकी भूमिपर मांस और रक्तकी कीच जम जानेके कारण वहाँ चलना-फिरना असम्भव हो गया
agamyārūpā pṛthivī māṃsaśoṇitakardamā | prajānātha! kupite 'rjunasya rathasya mārgabhūmau māṃsa-rakta-kīcakaṃ saṃjajñe, tena tatra gamanāgamanam asambhavam abhavat |
मांसशोणितकर्दमा पृथिवी अगम्यरूपा बभूव, प्रजानाथ। कुपितस्यार्जुनस्य रथमार्गे भूमौ मांसशोणितपङ्केन संलिप्तायां तत्र गमनागमनमसम्भवमभवत्।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical gravity of war: violence does not merely defeat opponents—it desecrates the world itself, turning the very ground into a symbol of collective suffering and moral pollution.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra that the battlefield ground along Arjuna’s chariot-route has become so thick with flesh-and-blood mire that it is impossible to move there, emphasizing the horrific intensity of the fighting.