Shloka 18

Adhyāya 41 — Kṛṣṇa’s Battlefield Briefing and the Renewal of the Great Engagement

Devanagari script

सहस्ररश्मिप्रतिमं ज्वलन्तं दिशश्च सर्वा: प्रतपन्तमुग्रम्‌

Transliteration

sahasraraśmipratimaṃ jvalantaṃ diśaś ca sarvāḥ pratapantam ugram

Translation

桑阇耶说：“它炽烈如千光之日，凶猛灼烧，仿佛向四方八面尽皆焚燃。”

Word by Word

• सहस्ररश्मिप्रतिमम्: like (having the likeness of) a thousand-rayed (sun)
• सहस्ररश्मिप्रतिमम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सहस्र-रश्मि-प्रतिम
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• ज्वलन्तम्: blazing, shining
• ज्वलन्तम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ज्वल्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular, Present active participle (शतृ)

• दिशः: the directions (quarters)
• दिशः: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिश्
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• सर्वाः: all
• सर्वाः: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Plural

• प्रतपन्तम्: scorching, heating, tormenting
• प्रतपन्तम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्र-तप्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular, Present active participle (शतृ)

• उग्रम्: fierce, terrible
• उग्रम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उग्र
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how overwhelming power in war can appear almost cosmic—like the sun—evoking awe and fear. Ethically, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring tension: martial brilliance can dazzle the senses, yet it remains bound to the destructive reality of battle and the moral weight of violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya is describing a terrifying, radiant presence on the battlefield—so intense that it seems to scorch all directions—conveying to Dhṛtarāṣṭra the scale and ferocity of what is unfolding in the Karṇa Parva.