Mahabharata 7.158.175 — Drona Parva, Adhyaya 158, Shloka 175
वासवी-शक्तेः प्रयोगः, घटोत्कच-वधोत्तर-शोकः, व्यासोपदेशश्च
The Vāsavī Spear’s Use, Post-Ghaṭotkaca Grief, and Vyāsa’s Counsel
रथक्षिप्तमहावप्रां पताकारुचिरद्रुमाम् । शरमीनां महारीद्रां प्रासशक्त्यूष्टिडुण्डुभाम्
rathakṣiptamahāvaprāṁ patākāruciradrumām | śaramīnāṁ mahārīdrāṁ prāsaśaktyṛṣṭiduṇḍubhām ||
اُس خون کی ندی میں الٹے پڑے رتھ بڑے بڑے ٹیلوں کی مانند تھے؛ پتاکائیں اس کے خوبصورت درخت، تیر ہی اس کی مچھلیاں؛ اور پراس، شکتی اور اُشتی-ڈُنڈُبھ جیسے ہتھیار سانپوں کی طرح دکھائی دیتے تھے۔
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage uses stark, extended metaphor to expose the moral cost of war: royal emblems and heroic instruments become grotesque features of a ‘river of death.’ The imagery presses an ethical reflection—when dharma collapses into unchecked violence, glory turns into horror, and the battlefield naturally ‘flows’ toward Yama’s realm, reminding listeners of impermanence and karmic consequence.
Sañjaya reports that Aśvatthāman’s slaughter has produced a horrific scene: the battlefield is envisioned as a river of blood filled with weapons, bodies, and shattered war-gear, with scavenging birds and beasts intensifying the terror. The description culminates in the idea that this river runs into the ocean of Yama’s kingdom—signifying mass death and the inevitable destination of the slain.
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