Shloka 39
Gāndhārī’s Battlefield Survey: The Fallen and the Onset of Funeral Rites (शल्य-भगीरथ-भीष्म-द्रोणादि-दर्शनम्)
कुर्वन्ति च चितामेते जटिला ब्रह्म॒चारिण: । भनुर्भि: शक्तिभिश्वैव रथनीडैश्व माधव
kurvanti ca citām ete jaṭilā brahmacāriṇaḥ | dhanurbhiḥ śaktibhiś caiva rathanīḍaiś ca mādhava ||
毗湿摩波耶那说道：“这些苦行的、发结缠绕的梵行者也在准备火葬柴堆——配着弓、配着矛，甚至还有战车的器具，哦，摩陀婆。”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even those committed to ascetic restraint and religious discipline must sometimes engage with harsh realities to uphold dharma—here, ensuring proper rites for the dead. The verse highlights the ethical necessity of restoring dignity and order after violence, while also showing how war’s instruments linger even in ritual contexts.
Vaiśampāyana describes groups of matted-haired brahmacārins preparing funeral pyres in the war’s aftermath. They are depicted as carrying weapons and associated with chariot arrangements, suggesting the scale, danger, or organized nature of the scene as cremation duties proceed amid a still-militarized environment.