Shloka 56

कर्णपर्व — पञ्चदशोऽध्यायः | Karṇa Parva, Chapter 15: Pāṇḍya’s Advance and Aśvatthāmā’s Counterstroke

Devanagari script

संतस्तार क्षितिं क्षिप्रं विनालैनलिनैरिव । धनंजयने अपने तीखे भल्लोंसे वीरोंके सुन्दर नेत्र

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | saṃtastāra kṣitiṃ kṣipraṃ vinālainalinair iva | dhanañjayena apane tīkṣṇaiḥ bhallaiḥ vīrāṇāṃ sundara-netra-bhrū-danta-śobhitān pūrṇa-candramā-samaṃ manohara-mukhavālīn mastakān chittvā-chittvā tatraiva bhūmiṃ kṣaṇena pātayām āsa, yathā tatra vināla-kamalāni bistaritāni syuḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya nói: Dhanañjaya (Arjuna), với những mũi tên bhalla sắc như dao, đã nhanh chóng chém lìa hết lần này đến lần khác đầu của các dũng sĩ—những chiếc đầu có đôi mắt, hàng mày và hàm răng đẹp đẽ, gương mặt khả ái như trăng rằm—và chỉ trong khoảnh khắc đã phủ kín mặt đất nơi ấy, như thể mặt đất được rải đầy những đóa sen không cuống.

Word by Word

• संततार: covered, spread over
• Type: Verb
• Root: संतॄ (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3, Singular, Parasmaipada

• क्षितिम्: the earth, ground
• क्षितिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षिति
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• क्षिप्रम्: quickly
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्षिप्र

• विना: without
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विना

• नालैः: with stalks (stems)
• नालैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाल
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• नलिनैः: with lotuses
• नलिनैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: नलिन
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• इव: as if, like
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• संजय (Sañjaya)
• धनंजय / अर्जुन (Dhanañjaya / Arjuna)
• भल्ल (bhalla arrows)
• क्षितिः / भूमिः (earth/ground)
• नलिन / कमल (lotus)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the paradox of righteous warfare: a kṣatriya’s duty may demand decisive force, yet the poetic imagery also makes the human cost unmistakable, inviting reflection on dharma performed amid tragic consequences.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya describes Arjuna’s battlefield feat: with sharp bhalla arrows he repeatedly beheads opposing warriors, so that the ground appears covered with severed heads, compared to a spread of stemless lotuses.