Shloka 5

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

Devanagari script

“मधुसूदन! और भी बहुत-से वीरोंको संग्राममें कौरवोंने मारा और हमने कौरव सैनिकोंका संहार किया ।।

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | madhusūdana! anye 'pi bahavo vīrāḥ saṅgrāme kauravaiḥ hatāḥ, vayaṃ ca kaurava-sainikānāṃ saṃhāraṃ kṛtavantaḥ | artha-hetoḥ nara-śreṣṭha kriyate karma kutsitam | dhig arthān yat-kṛte hy evaṃ kriyate jñāti-saṃkṣayaḥ ||

Translation

三阇耶说道：“摩度苏陀那啊！还有许多勇士在战中为俱卢所杀，而我们也反过来屠灭了俱卢的兵众。人中最胜者啊，为了财利竟行此卑劣之业。可耻啊，那财富——竟使人为了它而毁灭自己的宗亲！”

Word by Word

• अर्थहेतोः: for the sake of wealth (purpose)
• अर्थहेतोः: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्थ-हेतु
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• नरश्रेष्ठ: O best of men
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरश्रेष्ठ
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• क्रियते: is done / is being done
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ
• Form: Present, Passive, Third, Singular

• कर्म: deed, act
• कर्म: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्मन्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• कुत्सितम्: base, vile
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कुत्सित
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• धिक्: shame! fie!
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: धिक्

• अर्थान्: wealth, riches
• अर्थान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्थ
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• यत्: for which / in which (i.e., for the sake of which)
• यत्: Adhikarana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• कृते: when done; (idiom) for the sake of
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कृत
• Form: past passive participle used as locative absolute/idiom with यत्

• होमः: offering, oblation (homa)
• होमः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: होम
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• क्रियते: is performed
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ
• Form: Present, Passive, Third, Singular

• ज्ञाति-संक्षयः: destruction of kinsmen
• ज्ञाति-संक्षयः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्ञाति-संक्षय
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sanjaya
• Madhusudana (Krishna)
• Kauravas
• Kaurava soldiers
• wealth (artha)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse condemns warfare motivated by artha (material gain). It frames such violence as ‘kutsita karma’ (reprehensible action) and declares that wealth is not worth the jñāti-saṃkṣaya (destruction of one’s own kin/community), foregrounding an ethical critique of greed-driven conflict.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sanjaya reports to the listener that many warriors have been killed on both sides—Kauravas killing numerous heroes and the opposing side slaughtering Kaurava troops. In the midst of this grim tally, he voices a moral lament, addressing Krishna as Madhusudana and decrying the war’s material motivations and its cost in kinship bonds.