Shloka 55
कर्णार्जुनसमागमः — The Karṇa–Arjuna Confrontation
Cosmic Spectatorship and Vows
चुक्ुशुश्व नरव्याप्र यथा व्याप्रा नरोत्तमा: । तेषां तु क्रोशतामासीद् भीतानां रणमूर्थनि,पुरुषसिंह! वे श्रेष्ठ योद्धा व्याप्रोंके समान चीत्कार करते थे। राजन! युद्धके मुहानेपर भयभीत हो चिल्लाते और डरकर सब ओर भागते हुए उन सैनिकोंका महान् आर्तनाद प्रलयकालमें समस्त प्राणियोंके चीत्कारके समान जान पड़ता था
cukruśuśrava naravyāghra yathā vyāghrā narottamāḥ | teṣāṃ tu krośatām āsīd bhītānāṃ raṇamūrdhani puruṣasiṃha |
Sanjaya said: “O tiger among men, the foremost warriors raised cries like roaring tigers. But the terrified soldiers, at the very front of the battle, wailed and screamed; their great lament, as they fled in fear, seemed like the universal outcry of all creatures at the time of dissolution.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts disciplined martial ferocity (the elite warriors’ tiger-like cries) with panic and collapse of morale (the frightened troops’ wailing), highlighting how fear can dissolve order in war and how battle exposes impermanence through pralaya-like imagery.
Sañjaya describes the soundscape at the battlefront: leading fighters shout like tigers, while many soldiers, seized by terror, cry out loudly and scatter; their collective lament is compared to the catastrophic cries heard at the end of the world.