Shloka 12
भीमसेन-दुर्योधन-समागमः
Bhīmasena–Duryodhana Engagement at Sunset
मध्यंदिनगते सूर्ये नभस्याकुलतां गते । कुरव: पाण्डवेयाश्व निजघ्नुरितरेतरम्,सूर्यदेव दिनके मध्यभागमें आ गये। आकाश तपने लगा। परंतु उस समय भी कौरव तथा पाण्डव एक-दूसरेको मार रहे थे
madhyaṃdinagate sūrye nabhasy ākulatāṃ gate | kuravaḥ pāṇḍaveyāś ca nijaghnur itaretaram ||
Sañjaya said: When the sun had reached midday and the sky grew oppressive with heat and turmoil, the Kurus and the sons of the Pāṇḍus still struck down one another. Even at the height of the day—when nature itself seems to demand pause—the momentum of battle did not relent, for war, once unleashed, drives both sides beyond ordinary restraint.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the relentless, self-perpetuating nature of war: even when the day is at its harshest, hostility continues. Ethically, it suggests how conflict can overpower normal human limits and compassion, pressing warriors into mutual destruction once the cycle of violence is set in motion.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that at midday, as the sun stands overhead and the sky becomes oppressive, the Kuru forces and the Pāṇḍavas continue fighting and killing one another without pause.