Shloka 42
वधाय निष्पेतुरुदायुधास्ते युगक्षये केतवो यद्वदुग्रा: । प्रगृह्य चास्त्राणि धनूंषि वीरा ज्यां नेमिघोषै: प्रविकम्पयन्त:,दुर्योधनका यह कथन सुनकर आपके सभी वीर पुत्र, जो धृष्टद्यम्मका आगमन नहीं सह सके थे, बड़े भाईकी आज्ञासे प्रेरित हो प्रलयकालके भयंकर केतुओंकी भाँति हाथमें आयुध लिये धृष्टद्युम्नके वधके लिये उनपर टूट पड़े। उन्होंने अपने हाथोंमें धनुष-बाण ले रखे थे और वे रथके पहियोंकी घरघराहटके साथ-साथ धनुषकी प्रत्यंचाको भी कँपाते हुए उसकी टंकार फैला रहे थे
sañjaya uvāca |
vadhāya niṣpetur udāyudhās te yugakṣaye ketavo yadvad ugrāḥ |
pragṛhya cāstrāṇi dhanūṃṣi vīrā jyā-nemi-ghoṣaiḥ pravikampayantaḥ |
Sañjaya said: Urged on to kill, those warriors—armed with uplifted weapons—leapt forward like fierce portents at the end of an age. Grasping their missiles and bows, they advanced, making the bowstrings quiver and filling the field with the combined roar of bow-twang and the rumble of chariot-wheels—an image of war’s collective frenzy, where resolve hardens into lethal intent.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how collective martial zeal can surge into destructive intent, portrayed through apocalyptic imagery. Ethically, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring tension: warriors act under duty and command, yet the momentum of battle easily becomes a near-inevitable force that overwhelms restraint.
Sañjaya describes warriors rushing forward to slay their target, weapons raised. They seize bows and missiles and advance with loud, intimidating sounds—the twang of bowstrings and the rumble of chariot wheels—signaling an imminent, coordinated assault.