Shloka 39
Droṇa–Dhṛṣṭadyumna-yuddha (द्रोण-धृष्टद्युम्न-युद्धम्) — Tactical duel and allied interventions
बाह्लीकस्तु रणे राजन् धृष्टकेतुममर्षण: । शरैर्बहुभिरानर्च्छत् सिंहनादमथानदत्,राजन! अमर्षशील बाह्लीकने समरांगणमें बहुत-से बाणोंद्वारा धृष्टकेतुको पीड़ा दी और सिंहके समान गर्जना की
Bāhlīkas tu raṇe rājan dhṛṣṭaketum amarṣaṇaḥ | śarair bahubhir ānarccchat siṃhanādam athānadat ||
Sañjaya sprach: O König, mitten im Getümmel der Schlacht bedrängte der jähzornige Bāhlīka Dhṛṣṭaketu mit vielen Pfeilen und quälte ihn; dann stieß er ein brüllendes Löwengeheul aus—um seine Übermacht zu verkünden und Furcht in den Zusammenprall der an das Dharma gebundenen Krieger zu tragen.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya battlefield ethic: prowess is displayed not only through weapons but also through fearlessness and psychological assertion (the lion-roar). Yet it also implicitly warns that amarṣa—uncontrolled impatience or intolerance—can drive aggression beyond measured restraint, a recurring moral tension in the war.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Bāhlīka, described as irascible, repeatedly strikes Dhṛṣṭaketu with many arrows and then roars like a lion, signaling dominance and intensifying the terror and momentum of the combat.