Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 25
Śalya–Bhīma Gadā-saṃnipāta and Śalya’s Bāṇa-jāla against Yudhiṣṭhira
Book 9, Chapter 11
भ्रमराणामिव व्राता: शलभानामिव व्रजा: । ह्वादिन्य इव मेघेभ्य: शल्यस्य न्यपतन् शरा:,शल्यके बाण भ्रमरोंके समूह, टिड्डियोंके दल और मेघोंकी घटासे प्रकट होनेवाली बिजलियोंके समान पृथ्वीपर गिर रहे थे
bhramarāṇām iva vrātāḥ śalabhānām iva vrajāḥ | hvādinyā iva meghabhyaḥ śalyasya nyapatan śarāḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Arrows shot by Śalya kept falling to the earth in dense swarms—like clusters of bees, like bands of locusts, and like lightning-flashes bursting forth from rain-clouds.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in war, force can become overwhelming and wide-ranging; it implicitly invites reflection on restraint and responsibility, since martial power affects many beyond a single target.
Sañjaya narrates the battle scene: Śalya’s arrows are raining down in great numbers, compared through vivid similes to swarming bees, bands of locusts, and lightning emerging from clouds.
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