Shloka 21
भीष्मस्य मध्याह्नयुद्धवर्णनम् / Mid-day Battle Description: Bhīṣma Engaged by the Pāñcālas
पुत्रास्तु तव कौन्तेयं छादयाज्चक्रिरे शरै: । प्रावषीव महाराज जलदा इव पर्वतम्
putrās tu tava kaunteyaṃ chādayāṃś cakrire śaraiḥ | prāvṛṣi iva mahārāja jaladā iva parvatam ||
قال سانجيا: أيها الملك العظيم، لقد غطّى أبناؤك بهيما، ابن كونتي، بوابلٍ من السهام—كما تحجب السحبُ الجبلَ في موسم الأمطار بستائر الماء المنهمر. وتُبرز الصورة شدة الهجوم وعزم الكاورافا مجتمعين على إغراق خصمٍ واحدٍ شديد البأس في ساحة القتال.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how force can be multiplied through coordinated action, yet it also implicitly points to the battlefield ethic of testing a hero’s resilience: Bhīma is portrayed as a mountain-like figure, enduring a storm of weapons without being easily shaken.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the Kaurava princes collectively unleash a dense volley of arrows at Bhīma, so thick that he is visually ‘covered,’ compared to a mountain hidden by monsoon clouds and rain.