Shloka 406
Adhyāya 18 — Sequential Duels and Formation Pressure
Ulūka–Yuyutsu; Śakuni–Sutasoma; Kṛpa–Dhṛṣṭadyumna; Kṛtavarmā–Śikhaṇḍin
बद्धचूडामणिवरै: शिरोभिश्नल सकुण्डलै: । “अंगुलित्र और अलंकारोंसे अलंकृत हाथ फेंके पड़े हैं। वेगवान् वीरोंकी हाथीकी सूँड़के समान मोटी जाँघें कटकर गिरी हैं और जिनपर सुन्दर चूड़ामणि बँधी है वे योद्धाओंके कुण्डल-मण्डित मस्तक भी खण्डित होकर इधर-उधर बिखरे पड़े हैं। उन सबसे रणभूमिकी अपूर्व शोभा हो रही है
baddha-cūḍāmaṇi-varaiḥ śirobhiḥ śnala-sakuṇḍalaiḥ | aṅgulītrair alaṅkāraiś ca alaṅkṛtāḥ karāḥ kṣiptāḥ patitāḥ | vegavatāṃ vīrāṇāṃ hastī-śuṇḍā-samānāḥ sthūlā ūravaś chinnāḥ patitāḥ | yatra sundara-cūḍāmaṇi-baddhāni yoddhṝṇāṃ kuṇḍala-maṇḍitāni mastakāni khaṇḍitāni vikīrṇāni ca | taiḥ sarvair raṇabhūmeḥ apūrvā śobhā jāyate ||
Sinabi ni Sañjaya: Ang larangan ay nagkalat ng mga naputol na kamay na may suot pang panangga sa daliri at mga palamuti. Ang makakapal na hita ng mga matutulin at magigiting na mandirigma—tila mga nguso ng elepante—ay naputol at bumagsak. Maging ang mga ulo, na may mariringal na hiyas sa tuktok at may mga hikaw, ay nadurog at nagkahiwa-hiwalay sa iba’t ibang dako. Mula sa lahat ng ito, ang digmaan ay nagpakita ng isang kakaiba at di-pa-nakikitang karilagan—isang nakapanghihilakbot na ganda na isinilang sa pagwasak, na nagbubunyag ng mabigat na halagang moral ng pakikidigma.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the paradox of war: even when framed as heroic duty, its visible outcome is mutilation and loss. The 'unprecedented splendor' is deliberately unsettling, prompting reflection on the ethical cost of violence and the impermanence of bodily glory and ornamentation.
Sañjaya, narrating the Kurukṣetra war, describes the battlefield after intense fighting: severed hands with protective gear and ornaments, cut thighs likened to elephant trunks, and shattered, jewel-crowned, earring-adorned heads scattered across the ground—creating a grim spectacle.