Shloka 25
Droṇa’s Defensive Stand and Abhimanyu Commissioned to Breach the Cakravyūha (द्रोणानीक-प्रतिरोधः; सौभद्र-नियोजनम्)
तावकानां परेषां च मृत्युं कृत्वा निवर्तनम्,तदनन्तर “मरनेपर ही युद्धसे निवृत्त होंगे” ऐसा निश्चय करके आपके और शशत्रुपक्षके योद्धाओंमें अत्यन्त भयंकर युद्ध आरम्भ हुआ, जो रोंगटे खड़े कर देनेवाला था
tāvakānāṃ pareṣāṃ ca mṛtyuṃ kṛtvā nivartanam | tad-anantaraṃ “maraṇepara hi yuddhase nivṛtta bhaviṣyāmaḥ” iti niścayaṃ kṛtvā tava ca śatru-pakṣasya ca yoddheṣu atyanta-bhayaṅkaraṃ yuddham ārabdhaṃ yat roma-harṣaṇaṃ āsīt |
Sañjaya said: Having resolved that withdrawal would come only after making death the price for both your men and the enemy, they fixed their minds on the thought, “Only after dying will we cease from battle.” Thereupon a most dreadful fight erupted among your warriors and those of the opposing host—so terrifying that it made the hair stand on end, revealing the grim ethic of total commitment that war can demand when pride and vengeance eclipse restraint.
संजय उवाच