Shloka 26

Devanagari script

घोररूपं महाराज भीरूणां भयवर्धनम्‌ | यह देख द्रोणाचार्यकी सेनासे घिरे हुए राजा दुर्योधनने भी रणभूमिमें पाण्डवोंपर आक्रमण किया। महाराज! भी कायरोंका भय बढ़ानेवाला घोर युद्ध होने लगा

Transliteration

ghorarūpaṃ mahārāja bhīrūṇāṃ bhayavardhanam |

Translation

O great king, a dreadful battle—one that magnifies fear in the faint-hearted—arose. Seeing King Duryodhana hemmed in by the army of Droṇācārya, the Pāṇḍavas launched an assault upon him on the battlefield, and the conflict took on a terrifying form, testing courage and resolve amid the demands of kṣatriya-dharma.

Word by Word

• घोररूपम्: of terrible form; dreadful
• घोररूपम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: घोररूप
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• महाराज: O great king
• महाराज: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाराज
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• भीरूणाम्: of the timid/cowards
• भीरूणाम्: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीरु
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• भयवर्धनम्: fear-increasing; augmenting fear
• भयवर्धनम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भयवर्धन
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संयज उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Duryodhana
• Droṇācārya
• Pāṇḍavas
• raṇabhūmi (battlefield)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how war intensifies fear for the timid while demanding steadiness from warriors; it implicitly contrasts inner courage with panic, underscoring the ethical pressure of kṣatriya-duty in battle.

What is happening in the narrative?

A terrifying phase of the battle begins: Duryodhana is described as being hemmed in amid Droṇa’s forces, and the Pāṇḍavas attack him on the battlefield, causing the fighting to become especially dreadful.