Shloka 64
Bhagadatta’s Advance, the Saṃśaptaka Challenge, and Arjuna’s Counterstrike (द्रोणपर्व, अध्याय २६)
क्षिप्रं श्येनाभिपन्नानां वायसानामिव स्वन: । बभूव पाण्डवेयानां भृशं विद्रवतां स्वन:,जैसे बाज पक्षीके चंगुलमें फँसे हुए अथवा उसके आक्रमणसे त्रस्त हुए कौओंमें शीघ्र ही काँव-काँवका कोलाहल होने लगता है, उसी प्रकार भागते हुए पाण्डव योद्धाओंका आर्तनाद जोर-जोरसे सुनायी दे रहा था
kṣipraṁ śyenābhipannānāṁ vāyasānām iva svanaḥ | babhūva pāṇḍaveyānāṁ bhṛśaṁ vidravatāṁ svanaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: “Just as crows, swiftly seized or terror-struck by the onrush of a hawk, erupt at once into a loud clamour, so too the anguished cries of the Pāṇḍava warriors—fleeing in disorder—were heard resounding intensely.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the psychological reality of war: when courage breaks, collective panic spreads rapidly, and the battlefield becomes dominated by fear and lamentation rather than valor—an implicit reminder that adharma-driven violence culminates in suffering and disorder.
Sañjaya reports that the Pāṇḍava troops are fleeing, and their loud, distressed cries rise up—compared to the noisy cawing of crows when attacked or seized by a hawk.