Shloka 39
Bhīmasena’s Kalinga Engagement and the Approach of Bhīṣma (भीमसेन-कालिङ्ग-संग्रामः)
तृषा परिगता: केचिदल्पसत्त्वा विशाम्पते । भूमौ निपतिता: संख्ये मृगयांचक्रिरे जलम्
tṛṣā parigatāḥ kecid alpasattvā viśāmpate | bhūmau nipatitāḥ saṅkhye mṛgayāṃ cakrire jalam, rājan |
三阇耶说道：“噢，民众之主，有些人—所余气力极微—为干渴所制。倒卧在战场的地上，他们就在那儿寻觅水—噢，大王。”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the stark human cost of war: beyond heroism and strategy, battle reduces people to basic vulnerability—thirst, exhaustion, and the struggle to survive—inviting ethical reflection on the suffering produced by violence.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that some fighters, nearly lifeless and tormented by thirst, have fallen on the battlefield and are desperately searching for water even amid the ongoing conflict.