Shloka 14
भारद्वाजं शरौघाभ्यां महद्भ्यामभ्यवर्षताम् | तो तथा सूंजयाश्वैव पञ्चालाश्न महौजस:
Bhāradvājaṃ śaraughābhyāṃ mahadbhyām abhyavarṣatām | to tathā saṃjayāś caiva pañcālāś ca mahaujasaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: They poured down upon Bhāradvāja’s son a mighty shower of arrows, great in force and number. In the same way, the high-souled Pāñcālas too pressed the attack, covering him with volleys—an image of war’s relentless momentum, where prowess is tested amid the moral weight of violence and duty.
संयज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the harsh reality of kṣatriya warfare: duty and valor are enacted through relentless combat, yet the very imagery of being ‘rained upon’ by arrows invites reflection on the moral gravity and human cost that accompany martial duty.
Sañjaya reports that warriors unleash a powerful, continuous volley of arrows upon Droṇa (identified by his Bhāradvāja lineage), and that the mighty Pāñcālas likewise intensify the assault, pressing him with sustained missile fire.