Shloka 653
कृष्णोपदेशः, अर्जुनस्य क्षमा-याचनम्, कर्णवध-अनुज्ञा
Krishna’s Counsel, Arjuna’s Apology, and Authorization for Karṇa’s Slaying
क्रौज्चपृष्ठारुणं रौद्रं बाणजालं व्यदृश्यत । राजेन्द्र! उन दोनोंने आकाशमें बाणोंका भयंकर जाल-सा बिछा दिया, जो क्रौंच पक्षीके पृष्ठभागके समान लाल और भयानक दिखायी देता था
sañjaya uvāca | krauñcapṛṣṭhāruṇaṃ raudraṃ bāṇajālaṃ vyadṛśyata | rājendra! tau dvābhyām ākāśe bāṇānāṃ bhayaṅkaraṃ jālam iva vitatam, yat krauñcapakṣiṇaḥ pṛṣṭhabhāgasadṛśaṃ lohitaṃ raudraṃ ca dṛśyate sma |
Sinabi ni Sañjaya: O hari, lumitaw sa himpapawid ang isang mabangis na lambat ng mga palaso—mapula na gaya ng likod ng ibong krauñca. Ang dalawang mandirigma’y naglatag sa langit ng isang nakapanghihilakbot na sapot ng mga palaso, siksik at mabigat ang anino na wari’y tinatakpan ang mismong hangin, at lalo pang pinatindi ang sindak at bugso ng labanan.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse primarily heightens the moral atmosphere of war: when combatants unleash overwhelming force, the battlefield becomes a space where fear and destruction spread rapidly. The poetic simile underscores how violence, once intensified, can seem to blanket the world—inviting reflection on restraint and the grave cost of martial fury.
Sanjaya describes a moment in the battle when two opposing warriors release such a dense volley of arrows that it looks like a net spread across the sky. The arrows appear reddish and terrifying, compared to the red-hued back of a krauñca bird.