aho me paÅ›yatÄjñÄnaá¹
há¹›di rÅ«á¸haá¹ durÄtmanaḥ
pÄrakyasyaiva dehasya
bahvyo me 'ká¹£auhiṇīr hatÄḥ
aho - O; me - my; paÅ›yata - just see; ajñÄnam - ignorance; há¹›di - in the heart; rÅ«á¸ham - situated in; durÄtmanaḥ - of the sinful; pÄrakyasya - meant for others; eva - certainly; dehasya - of the body; bahvyaḥ - many, many; me - by me; aká¹£auhiṇīḥ - combination of military phalanxes; hatÄḥ - killed.
A solid phalanx of 21,870 chariots, 21,870 elephants, 109,650 infantry and 65,600 cavalry is called an aká¹£auhiṇī. And many aká¹£auhiṇīs were killed on the Battlefield of Kuruká¹£etra. MahÄrÄja Yudhiá¹£á¹hira, as the most pious king of the world, takes for himself the responsibility for killing such a huge number of living beings because the battle was fought to reinstate him on the throne. This body is, after all, meant for others. While there is life in the body, it is meant for the service of others, and when it is dead it is meant to be eaten by dogs and jackals or maggots. He is sorry because for such a temporary body such a huge massacre was committed.