Mahabharata 9.55.36 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 55, Shloka 36
Vāg-yuddha and Nimitta-darśana before the Gadāyuddha
Verbal Duel and Omens
लोहिताज्विव क्रुद्धौ प्रतपन््तोी महारथौ । पंजों और दाढ़ोंसे प्रहार करनेवाले दो व्याप्रोंक समान उन दोनों वीरोंका वेग शत्रुओंके लिये दुः:सह था। प्रलयकालनमें विक्षुब्ध हुए दो समुद्रोंके समान उन्हें पार करना कठिन था। वे दोनों महारथी क्रोधमें भरे हुए दो मंगल ग्रहोंक समान एक-दूसरेको ताप दे रहे थे || ३५६ || पूर्वपश्चिमजौ मेघौ प्रेक्षमाणावरिंदमौ
sañjaya uvāca | lohitāv iva kruddhau pratapantau mahārathau | pañjābhyāṃ ca dāḍhābhyāṃ ca prahārakārau dvau vyāghrāv iva tayor vīrayor vegaḥ śatrūṇāṃ duḥsahaḥ | pralayakāle vikṣubdhau dvau samudrāv iva tau duruttarau | tau mahārathī krodhabharitau dvau maṅgalagrahāv iva parasparaṃ tāpayām āsa ||
Sañjaya dijo: Aquellos dos grandes guerreros de carro, inflamados de ira, ardían como dos fuegos rojos. Como un par de tigres que golpean con uñas y colmillos, el ímpetu de esos héroes era insoportable para sus enemigos. Como dos océanos agitados en el tiempo de la disolución, eran difíciles de cruzar. Henchidos de cólera, aquellos dos mahārathas se abrasaban mutuamente como dos planetas semejantes a Marte, cada uno calentando al otro en furia recíproca.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how unchecked krodha (wrath) turns heroic power into a scorching, mutually destructive force. By comparing the warriors to tigers, stormed oceans, and the hot planet Maṅgala, it frames anger as an intensifier of violence that becomes difficult for others to withstand and difficult even for the combatants to transcend—an implicit ethical warning about the ruinous momentum of rage in war.
Sañjaya describes two elite chariot-warriors locked in a fierce duel. Their speed and aggression are portrayed as unbearable to enemies and nearly impossible to overcome, using cosmic and animal metaphors to convey the battle’s intensity and the warriors’ mutual scorching hostility.
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