Shloka 55

Devanagari script

बहुतेरे विजयाभिलाषी तथा अपनेको शूरवीर माननेवाले पुरुष जहाँ-तहाँ पृथ्वीपर पड़े दिखायी देते थे ।। रक्तोक्षितैश्छिन्नभुजैरवकृष्टशिरोरुहै: । व्यदृश्यत मही कीर्णा शतशशो5थ सहस्रशः,कटी हुई बाँहों और खींचे गये केशोंवाले सैकड़ों और हजारों रक्तरंजित शरीरोंसे रणभूमि आच्छादित दिखायी देती थी

Transliteration

raktokṣitaiś chinnabhujair avakṛṣṭaśiroruḥaiḥ | vyadṛśyata mahī kīrṇā śataśaśo ’tha sahasraśaḥ ||

Translation

సంజయుడు అన్నాడు—రక్తంతో తడిసిన, చేతులు తెగిపోయిన, జుట్టు లాగబడిన శరీరాలు—వందలుగా, వేలుగా—భూమంతా చెల్లాచెదురుగా కనిపించింది.

Word by Word

रक्तwith blood

उक्षितैःsprinkled/smeared

छिन्नcut off

भुजैःwith arms

अवकृष्टdragged/pulled out

शिरोरुहैःwith hairs (lit. head-grown)

व्यदृश्यतwas seen/appeared

महीthe earth/ground

कीर्णाstrewn/covered

शतशःby hundreds

अथand/then

सहस्रशःby thousands

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

mahī (the earth/ground)

raṇabhūmi (battlefield, implied)

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 ethical cost of war: the pursuit of victory and self-proclaimed heroism culminates in widespread suffering and bodily ruin, reminding the listener that martial glory is inseparable from grave human loss.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the horrific दृश्य of the battlefield—earth covered with countless slain and mutilated warriors—emphasizing the scale of destruction in the Shalya Parva fighting.