Shloka 46
Adhyāya 14: Śalya’s Missile-Pressure and the Pāṇḍava Convergence (शल्यस्य शरवर्षम्)
तत्र युद्ध महच्चासीदर्जुनस्य परै: सह । मध्यंदिनगते सूर्ये यमराष्ट्रविवर्धनम्,वहाँ दोपहर होते-होते अर्जुनका शत्रुओंके साथ महाघोर युद्ध होने लगा, जो यमराजके राष्ट्रकी वृद्धि करनेवाला था
tatra yuddhaṁ mahac cāsīd arjunasya paraiḥ saha | madhyaṁdina-gate sūrye yama-rāṣṭra-vivardhanam ||
Sañjaya said: There, as the sun reached midday, a great and dreadful battle arose between Arjuna and his foes—one that swelled the realm of Yama, for it sent many warriors to death. The verse bears the grim moral weight of war: even heroic prowess, unleashed in mass combat, becomes an instrument that enlarges the dominion of Death.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the tragic ethical gravity of war: even a righteous warrior’s valor, when expressed in large-scale combat, results in widespread death—figuratively ‘increasing Yama’s realm.’ It invites reflection on the cost of violence and the inevitability of mortality amid dharmic conflict.
Sanjaya reports that by midday a massive, terrifying fight is underway between Arjuna and his enemies. The battle is so lethal that it is described as augmenting the kingdom of Yama, i.e., causing many deaths on the battlefield.