Shloka 68

भीष्मस्य मध्याह्नयुद्धवर्णनम् / Mid-day Battle Description: Bhīṣma Engaged by the Pāñcālas

Devanagari script

विबभौ तद्‌ रणस्थानं स्यन्दमानैरिवाचलै: । नानारागै: कम्बलैश्व परिस्तोमैश्नव दन्तिनाम्‌

Transliteration

vibabhau tad raṇasthānaṃ syandamānair ivācalaiḥ | nānārāgaiḥ kambalaiś ca paristomaiś caiva dantinām ||

Translation

Sañjaya nói: Chiến địa ấy rực sáng huy hoàng, như thể những dãy núi đang tuôn chảy xuống—lộng lẫy bởi các tấm chăn nhiều sắc và những tấm phủ tinh xảo trải trên lưng đàn voi.

Word by Word

विबभौshone, appeared splendid

तत्that

रणस्थानम्battlefield (place of battle)

स्यन्दमानैःflowing, streaming

इवas if, like

अचलैःmountains

नाना-रागैःof various colors

कम्बलैःblankets, coverings

चand

परिस्तोमैःcoverings/spreads, layers (as strewn around)

नवnew, fresh

दन्तिनाम्of elephants

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

raṇasthāna (battlefield)

dantin (elephants)

kambala (blankets/coverings)

paristoma (spreads/coverlets)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse implicitly contrasts the grandeur and pageantry of armies with the grim reality of war: material splendor can mask, but not remove, the ethical weight and suffering that battle brings.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya is describing the appearance of the battlefield, emphasizing how it looked magnificent due to the richly colored blankets and coverings on the elephants, creating an image of massive, mountain-like forms in motion.