Shloka 32
भीष्मवधाय प्रयाणम् — The Advance toward Bhīṣma and Counter-Engagements
शोणितोदं शरावर्त गजद्दीपं हयोर्मिणम् | रथनौभिरन्नरव्याप्रा: प्रतेर: सैन्यसागरम्
sañjaya uvāca |
śoṇitodaṁ śarāvartaṁ gajadvīpaṁ hayormimam |
rathanāubhir naraśreṣṭhāḥ prateruḥ sainyasāgaram ||
三阇耶说道：那支军队宛如浩瀚大海——其水为血，其漩涡为回旋的箭雨；战象如岛屿屹立，战马如波涛翻涌。在这战斗之海中，人中豪杰乘战车如乘舟楫，横渡其间——此景昭示战争的压倒之势与武士在血腥原野上不屈不挠的决意。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse is primarily descriptive rather than doctrinal: it portrays war as an all-consuming ‘ocean’ that must be crossed, highlighting both the grandeur and the horror of battle. Ethically, it underscores the immense cost of conflict—blood as ‘water’—even while acknowledging the warriors’ steadfast courage and kṣatriya resolve.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the intensity of the Kurukṣetra fighting. He likens the army to a sea of blood with arrow-whirlpools; elephants appear as islands, horses as waves, and warriors move through it using chariots like boats, conveying the scale and turbulence of the battle.