Shloka 68
Śalya–Bhīma Gadāyuddham (मद्रराज-भीमसेन गदायुद्धम्)
तौ परस्परमासाद्य खड्गदन्तनखायुधौ । हृष्टवत् सम्प्रजद्गवाते व्याप्रकेसरिणाविव,वे दोनों खड़ग, दन्त और नखका आयुधके रूपमें उपयोग करते थे और बाघ तथा सिंहोंके समान एक-दूसरेसे भिड़कर बड़े हर्ष और उत्साहके साथ परस्पर प्रहार कर रहे थे
tau parasparam āsādya khaḍgadantanakhāyudhau | hṛṣṭavat samprajadgāvāte vyāprakeśariṇāv iva ||
Sañjaya said: Closing in upon one another, the two fought as though their weapons were sword, teeth, and claws. Like a tiger and a lion locked in combat, they struck each other again and again with exhilaration and fierce ardor—an image that underscores how war can inflame valor into a near-animal intensity, even as it drives men toward mutual destruction.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how battle can reduce refined martial skill to raw ferocity—"as if" teeth and claws were weapons—warning that exhilaration in violence can blur ethical restraint, even while it displays courage.
Sañjaya describes two warriors who have closed to very near range and are exchanging rapid, forceful blows with great excitement, compared to a tiger and a lion fighting face to face.