Shloka 17
शल्य–युधिष्ठिरयुद्धप्रारम्भः
Commencement of the Śalya–Yudhiṣṭhira Duel
तानापतत एवाशु पूरयाणान् रथस्वनै: । दिशश्व विदिशश्वैव कम्पयानांश्ष मेदिनीम्
tān āpatata evāśu pūrayāṇān rathasvanaiḥ | diśaś ca vidiśaś caiva kampayānāṃś ca medinīm ||
Sañjaya said: They rushed in at once, and as they advanced they filled the quarters and the intermediate directions with the thunder of their chariots, making the very earth tremble. The verse underscores the overwhelming momentum of battle, where collective force and martial noise become a sign of impending destruction.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how war’s collective force becomes world-shaking: the roar of chariots and the trembling earth symbolize the magnitude of violence and the destabilization it brings, serving as a sober reminder of the destructive weight of adharma-driven conflict.
Sañjaya describes warriors charging swiftly; their advancing mass fills all directions with the thunder of chariots, and the ground itself seems to quake under their onrush.