Shloka 15
Āraṇyaka-parva, Adhyāya 17 — Śālva’s encampment and the Yādava counter-engagement at Dvārakā
स तैरभिहत: संख्ये नामर्षयत सौभराट् । शरान् दीप्ताग्निसंकाशान् मुमोच तनये मम,सौभ विमानका स्वामी राजा शाल्व युद्धमें प्रद्युममके बाणोंसे घायल होनेपर यह सहन नहीं कर सका--अमर्षमें भर गया और मेरे पुत्रपर प्रजवलित अग्निके समान तेजस्वी बाण छोड़ने लगा
sa tair abhihataḥ saṅkhye nāmarṣayata saubharāṭ | śarān dīptāgnisaṅkāśān mumoca tanaye mama ||
Struck by those arrows in the thick of battle, the lord of Saubha could not endure the affront. Burning with wrath, he released upon my son arrows blazing like kindled fire—an escalation driven by wounded pride and the heat of combat rather than restraint.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how wounded pride and inability to endure injury (amārṣa) can drive a person to intensify violence. Ethically, it contrasts the heat of anger with the ideal of restraint (kṣānti), showing how loss of forbearance escalates conflict.
In battle, the lord of Saubha is hit by arrows and cannot bear it. Enraged, he retaliates by shooting blazing, fire-like arrows at Vāyu’s son (the narrator’s son), marking a sharp escalation in the fight.