Shloka 366

अध्याय २६ — शल्यस्य सारथ्य-नियोजनं, कर्णस्य प्रस्थानं, उत्पातदर्शनं च

Chapter 26: Śalya appointed as charioteer; Karṇa’s departure; portents

Devanagari script

निहतै राजपुतन्रैश्न क्षत्रियैश्व॒ महाबलै: । उस समय वहाँ मारे गये राजकुमारों तथा महाबली क्षत्रियोंकी लाशोंसे वह युद्धस्थल गन्धर्वनगरके समान भयानक जान पड़ता था

Transliteration

nihataiḥ rājaputraiś ca kṣatriyaiś ca mahābalaiḥ | tadā tatra hatānāṃ rājaputrāṇāṃ mahābalānāṃ ca kṣatriyāṇāṃ śavair yuddhasthalaṃ gandharvanagarasadṛśaṃ bhayānakaṃ babhūva |

Translation

สัญชัยกล่าวว่า—ในเวลานั้น สนามรบซึ่งเกลื่อนไปด้วยศพของราชกุมารและกษัตริย์นักรบผู้มีกำลังยิ่ง ดูน่าหวาดหวั่นประหนึ่งนครคันธรรพ์

Word by Word

• निहतैः: by the slain
• निहतैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निहत (√हन्)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• राजपुत्रैः: by princes (king's sons)
• राजपुत्रैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजपुत्र
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• क्षत्रियैः: by kshatriyas/warriors
• क्षत्रियैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षत्रिय
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• महाबलैः: by very mighty (ones)
• महाबलैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महाबल
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• rājaputra (princes)
• kṣatriya (warriors)
• yuddhasthala (battlefield)
• gandharvanagara (Gandharva-city)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical gravity of war: even princes and mighty warriors, symbols of power and lineage, become indistinguishable in death. The comparison to a Gandharva-city suggests a deceptive splendor—war may look grand, but its reality is fearsome and morally costly.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes the battlefield after intense fighting: many royal sons and powerful kṣatriyas have been killed, and the ground is covered with corpses. The scene is so overwhelming that it seems like a terrifying Gandharva-city.