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Shloka 126

गौरुडव्यूह-रचना तथा अर्धचन्द्र-प्रत्यव्यूह

Garuḍa Array and the Ardhacandra Counter-Formation

शतश: पतिता भूमौ वीरशय्यासु शेरते । राजन! वे प्रचण्ड घोड़े उस रथको लिये-दिये यत्र-तत्र घूम रहे थे। कमरमें तलवार और पीठपर तरकस बाँधे हुए सैकड़ों आहत वीर मस्तक कट जानेके कारण पृथ्वीपर गिरकर वीरोचित शय्याओंपर शयन कर रहे थे

śataśaḥ patitā bhūmau vīraśayyāsu śerate | rājan, pracaṇḍāśvās taṃ rathaṃ nītvā-dattvā yatra-tatra bhramanti sma | kaṭyāṃ khaḍgaṃ pṛṣṭhe ca tūṇīraṃ baddhvā śataśo 'bhihatā vīrāḥ śiraśchedena pṛthivyāṃ nipatya vīrocityāsu śayyāsu śerate |

三阇耶说道:“大王啊,成百的勇士倒在大地之上,卧于他们的‘英雄之榻’。凶猛的战马曾载着战车往来驰骋,如今仍焦躁不宁,在此处彼处徘徊。腰悬利剑,背负箭囊,无数受创的英雄——在交锋中被斩首——坠落尘土,如今便以大地为榻而卧。”

शतशःby hundreds, in hundreds
शतशः:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootशतशस्
पतिताःfallen
पतिताः:
Karta
TypeAdjective
Rootपतित
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
भूमौon the ground/earth
भूमौ:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootभूमि
FormFeminine, Locative, Singular
वीरशय्यासुon heroes' beds (i.e., on the battlefield as a hero’s couch)
वीरशय्यासु:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootवीरशय्या
FormFeminine, Locative, Plural
शेरतेthey lie, they rest
शेरते:
TypeVerb
Rootशी
FormPresent, Third, Plural, Atmanepada

संजय उवाच

S
Sanjaya
D
Dhritarashtra (Rājan)
H
horses (aśvāḥ)
C
chariots (rathāḥ)
S
sword (khaḍga)
Q
quiver (tūṇīra)
E
earth/ground (bhūmi/pṛthivī)
F
fallen warriors (vīrāḥ)

Educational Q&A

The verse underscores the grim cost of war while framing death in battle as the ‘vīraśayyā’—a culturally valorized end for kṣatriyas. It invites reflection on dharma and responsibility: heroic ideals do not erase suffering, and the narrator’s sober witness highlights the ethical weight of conflict.

Sanjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra the battlefield scene: many warriors lie dead or wounded on the ground, while powerful horses and chariots move about amid the chaos. The imagery focuses on the fallen—still bearing weapons and quivers—emphasizing the intensity and devastation of the fighting.