Shloka 17
सनिस्त्रिंशपुरोवात: शक्तिप्रासर्डिसंवृत: । ज्याविद्युच्चापसंदह्वादो धृष्टदुम्नबलाहक:,उस समय धृष्टद्युम्न एक महामेघके समान जान पड़ते थे। उनकी तलवार पुरवैया हवाके समान चल रही थी। वे शक्ति, प्रास एवं ऋष्टि आदि अस्त्र-शस्त्रोंसे सम्पन्न थे। उनकी प्रत्यंचा विद्युतके समान प्रकाशित होती थी। धनुषकी टंकार मेघगर्जनाके समान जान पड़ती थी। उस धृष्टद्युम्नरूपी मेघने श्रेष्ठ रथी और घुड़सवारोंके समूहरूपी खेतीको नष्ट करनेके लिये सम्पूर्ण दिशाओंमें बाणरूपी जलकी धारा और अस्त्र-शस्त्ररूपी पत्थर बरसाते हुए शत्रु-सेनाको आप्लावित कर दिया
sa-niṣtriṁśa-purovātaḥ śakti-prāsa-ṛṣṭi-saṁvṛtaḥ | jyā-vidyuc-chāpa-saṁdhvādo dhṛṣṭadyumna-balāhakaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Dhṛṣṭadyumna then appeared like a great rain-cloud. His sword moved like the driving easterly wind; he was equipped with weapons such as the śakti, prāsa, and ṛṣṭi. The flash of his bowstring shone like lightning, and the twang of his bow resounded like thunder. Like a cloud intent on destroying the ‘crop’ of foremost chariot-warriors and horsemen, that Dhṛṣṭadyumna-cloud flooded the enemy host, pouring in every direction torrents of arrow-rain and hurling weapon-stones.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how martial power can become overwhelming when driven by resolve: the warrior is portrayed as a natural force (cloud, wind, lightning, thunder). Ethically, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s recurring tension—kṣatriya duty in war can be executed with awe-inspiring skill, yet it remains an instrument of large-scale destruction.
Sañjaya describes Dhṛṣṭadyumna’s ferocious advance in battle. Armed with multiple weapons, he ‘floods’ the enemy ranks by showering arrows in all directions, likened to a storm-cloud that devastates fields—here, the ‘crop’ is the mass of elite chariot-warriors and horsemen.