Shloka 496
अस्त्रयुद्धे द्रौणिपार्थसंघर्षः — Karṇa’s Bhārgavāstra and the Search for Yudhiṣṭhira
Chapter 45
प्लवमानान् दर्शनीयानाकाशे गरुडानिव । “देखो, ये तुम्हारे विशालकाय, महान् वेगशाली, दर्शनीय तथा आकाशमें गरुडके समान उड़नेवाले घोड़े थरथर काँप रहे हैं
plavamānān darśanīyān ākāśe garuḍān iva |
Sañjaya said: “Behold—those splendid horses of yours, seeming to float through the sky like Garuḍas, are now trembling.” The line underscores an ominous shift in the battle’s moral and psychological atmosphere: even the mighty instruments of war show fear, hinting at impending reversal and the fragility of pride amid adharma-driven conflict.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power and splendor are unstable in a dharma-crisis: when the moral order is strained, even the strongest supports (here, war-horses) can falter, serving as an omen against arrogance and a reminder of fate’s sway in unrighteous conflict.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the horses—previously swift and magnificent, likened to Garuḍas in flight—are now visibly trembling, signaling fear, exhaustion, or an inauspicious turn in the ongoing battle.