Shloka 34
Yuddha-yajña-vyākhyāna (The Battle as Sacrifice): Ambarīṣa–Indra Saṃvāda
शोणितोदा सुसम्पूर्णा दुस्तरा पारगैनरि: । हतनागमहानक्रा परलोकवहाशिवा
śoṇitodā susampūrṇā dustarā pāragair nṛbhiḥ | hatanāga-mahānakrā paralokavahā śivā ||
Wika ni Ambarīṣa: “Ang ilog na iyon, na ang tubig ay dugo, ay lubhang punô at mahirap tawirin kahit ng nakaaalam ng tawiran. Pinamumugaran ito ng malalaking buwaya at nagkalat ang mga napatay na elepante; dinadala nito ang mga nilalang tungo sa kabilang daigdig—ngunit (sa madilim nitong gawain) tinatawag pa rin itong ‘mapalad.’”
अम्बरीष उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses stark battlefield/otherworld imagery to underline the moral gravity of violence and death: actions can sweep beings toward the afterlife like an overflowing, perilous river. Calling it ‘śivā’ highlights a paradox—death can be ‘auspicious’ only in the sense that it delivers the inevitable fruit of karma and leads the soul onward, urging ethical restraint and dharmic conduct.
Ambarīṣa describes a terrifying river—filled with blood, crowded with crocodiles, and marked by slain elephants—portraying an almost infernal crossing associated with death and the passage to the next world. The description functions as a warning and a moral illustration within the reflective, didactic tone of Śānti Parva.