Shloka 853
युधिष्ठिरस्य धनंजय-प्रति गर्हा
Yudhiṣṭhira’s Reproach to Dhanaṃjaya
सस्नुस्तस्यां पपुश्नास्यां मम्लुश्न भरतर्षभ । उन सबके शरीर रक्तसे रँग गये थे। कवच, आयुध और वस्त्र भी रक्तरंजित हो गये थे। भरतश्रेष्ठ कितने ही योद्धा उसमें नहा लेते, कितनोंके मुहमें रक्तकी घूँट चली जाती और कितने ही ग्लानिसे भर जाते थे
sa-snusta-stasyāṃ papuśnās-yāṃ mamluśna bharatarṣabha |
三阇耶说道：“婆罗多族中的雄牛啊，他们在那股水流中沐浴，甚至还从中饮啜；他们的身躯尽被鲜血染透。甲胄、兵刃与衣袍也都殷红如染。许多战士在那里洗濯自身，许多人不觉间吞下满口血水，许多人又被疲惫与昏眩所压倒。”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical cost of war: even when fought under kṣatriya duty, battle produces pervasive suffering and moral shock—so intense that basic acts like bathing and drinking become entangled with blood and exhaustion, reminding the listener of the tragic consequences of adharma-driven conflict.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the battlefield waters were so mixed with blood that warriors bathed in them and inadvertently drank blood; their bodies, armor, weapons, and clothes were stained red, and many fighters became weak and faint from fatigue.