Shloka 913
चलत्पताकस्तां सेनां विमान द्यामिवाविशत् | जैसे कोई विमान स्वर्गलोकमें प्रवेश कर रहा हो, उसी प्रकार चंचल पताकाओंसे युक्त वह कपिध्वज रथ मेघोंकी गर्जनाके समान गम्भीर घोष करता हुआ उस सेनामें जा घुसा
sañjaya uvāca | calat-patākāṃ tāṃ senāṃ vimānaṃ dyām ivāviśat | yathā kaścid vimānaḥ svargalokaṃ praviśati, tathā cañcala-patākā-yuktaḥ sa kapidhvaja-ratho megha-garjana-samo gambhīra-ghoṣaṃ kurvan tasyāṃ senāyāṃ prāviśat |
Sañjaya said: With banners fluttering, that chariot bearing the monkey-emblem plunged into the army like a celestial car entering the sky. As though a heavenly vehicle were entering the world of heaven, so that Kapidhvaja chariot—its flags restless, its deep roar like the rumbling of clouds—drove straight into the host.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses exalted similes to portray righteous, divinely supported force entering a chaotic battlefield. Ethically, it suggests that when dharma is upheld with steadfast purpose, it advances with a momentum that unsettles armies driven by arrogance or adharma—its ‘sound’ being not mere noise but the moral weight of rightful action.
Sanjaya describes the Kapidhvaja chariot (associated with Arjuna, marked by Hanumān) charging into the opposing army. The chariot’s fluttering flags and thunder-like roar are compared to a celestial vimāna entering the sky or heaven, emphasizing speed, majesty, and overwhelming presence.