Shloka 22
भीष्मवधोपाय-प्रश्नः (Inquiry into the means to overcome Bhīṣma) | Chapter 103
त॑ श्रुत्वा निनदं घोरं तव सैन्यस्थ भारत । मारुतोद्धूतवेगस्य सागरस्येव पर्वणि
taṁ śrutvā ninadaṁ ghoraṁ tava sainyastha bhārata | mārutoddhūta-vegasya sāgarasyeva parvaṇi ||
Sanjaya said: Hearing that dreadful roar arising within your army, O Bharata, it sounded like the thunderous surge of the ocean when its waters are driven into violent motion by the wind at the time of the full-moon tide. In that moment, Duryodhana, stirred by the tumult of battle, addressed Alambusha—the rakshasa, son of Ṛśyaśṛṅga—about the prowess of Arjuna’s son, likening him to a second Arjuna.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a powerful simile to show how collective violence and fear amplify in war: the army’s roar becomes ocean-like when driven by the ‘wind’ of agitation. Ethically, it highlights how conflict magnifies passions (krodha, bhaya, utsāha), often overwhelming discernment and drawing leaders into escalating responses.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra that a terrifying uproar rises within the Kaurava forces, likened to the ocean’s thunder at full-moon tide under strong winds. In the immediate narrative flow (as reflected in the accompanying prose), Duryodhana reacts to the battlefield situation and addresses the rakshasa warrior Alambusha, speaking of Arjuna’s son as being as formidable as a ‘second Arjuna.’