Shloka 8
गौरुडव्यूह-रचना तथा अर्धचन्द्र-प्रत्यव्यूह
Garuḍa Array and the Ardhacandra Counter-Formation
नुदन् समन्तात् समरे रविरुद्यन् यथा तमः । तेनाजौ प्रेषिता राजन् शरा: शतसहस्रश:
nudan samantāt samare ravir udyan yathā tamaḥ | tenājau preṣitā rājan śarāḥ śata-sahasraśaḥ | jighāṃsantaṃ yudhāṃ śreṣṭha tadā āsīt tumulaṃ mahat ||
Wika ni Sañjaya: O Hari, gaya ng pagsikat ng araw na nagpapalayas sa dilim, sumulong sila mula sa lahat ng panig sa digmaan at pinangalat ang hukbo ng kaaway. Pagkaraan, O pinuno, daan-daang libong palaso ang pinakawalan sa buong larangan. Nang salakayin nila si Bhīṣma—ang pinakadakila sa mga mandirigma—na may hangaring patayin siya, ang sagupaan ay naging napakalawak at magulong labanan.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya code in its starkest form: duty and martial excellence drive warriors to relentless action, yet that same excellence magnifies destruction. It invites reflection on how dharma in war can be both a disciplined obligation and a source of immense suffering.
Sañjaya describes a fierce phase of the Kurukṣetra battle: warriors surge from all sides like sunlight dispelling darkness, and vast volleys of arrows are released. They rush upon Bhīṣma, the foremost warrior, with the intent to kill him, and the fighting becomes intensely tumultuous.