Shloka 12
अध्याय ५८ — वानरध्वजस्य महेन्द्रास्त्रप्रयोगः
Chapter 58: Arjuna’s Deployment of the Indra-Weapon
ततः प्राध्मापयच्छड्खं भेरीशतनिनादिनम् | प्रचुक्षुभे बल॑ सर्वमुद््भूत इव सागर:
tataḥ prādhmāpayac chaṅkhaṃ bherīśataninādinam | pracukṣubhe balaṃ sarvam udbhūta iva sāgaraḥ ||
Entonces Droṇa hizo resonar su caracola, cuyo bramido era como el trueno de cien tambores de guerra. Al oírlo, todo el ejército se agitó, como si el océano hubiera alzado de pronto una gran marejada.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the power of a single decisive signal to move a collective body—awakening courage, fear, and readiness. Ethically, it points to how leaders and symbols can shape the moral and emotional climate before action, for good or ill.
A warrior blows a conch that sounds as loud as a hundred war-drums. The sound spreads through the ranks, and the entire army becomes restless and stirred, compared to the ocean swelling in a sudden surge.