Shloka 196
Adhyāya 14: Śalya’s Missile-Pressure and the Pāṇḍava Convergence (शल्यस्य शरवर्षम्)
रथानां सवरूथानां विधूमो5ग्निरिव ज्वलन् । शत्रुओंको संताप देनेवाले पार्थ समरांगणमें आवरणसहित दो सहस्र रथोंका संहार करके धूमरहित प्रज्वलित अग्निके समान प्रकाशित हो रहे थे
rathānāṃ savarūthānāṃ vidhūmo ’gnir iva jvalan | śatrūṇāṃ santāpa-dena-vāle pārthaḥ samarāṅgaṇe āvaraṇa-sahitaṃ dve sahasre rathānāṃ saṃhāraṃ kṛtvā dhūma-rahita-prajvalitāgni-samānaḥ prakāśita babhūva |
Sañjaya said: Blazing like a smokeless fire amid the chariots and their protective formations, Pārtha—who scorched his enemies with anguish—shone on the battlefield after destroying two thousand chariots together with their defenses. His radiance was like a bright, flame-filled fire without smoke, a fearful emblem of irresistible martial power.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the awe-inspiring force of a warrior acting in his kṣatriya role: Arjuna’s power is likened to a smokeless, blazing fire—purely manifest and overwhelming. Ethically, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s tension between necessary martial duty in a just war and the terrible human cost expressed through images of burning torment for enemies.
Sañjaya reports that Arjuna (Pārtha) is shining on the battlefield after cutting down two thousand enemy chariots along with their protective coverings/defensive arrangements. The simile of a smokeless fire conveys both his visible radiance and the destructive intensity of his advance.