Shloka 17
यथाग्निरिन्धन प्राप्य ज्वलेद् दीप्तार्चिरुल्बणम् | तथा जज्वाल पुत्रस्ते पाण्डुसेनां विनिर्दहन्
sañjaya uvāca | yathāgnir indhanaṁ prāpya jvaled dīptārcir ulbaṇam | tathā jajvāla putras te pāṇḍu-senāṁ vinirdahan |
Sañjaya dit : « Comme le feu, lorsqu’il trouve du combustible, flambe avec des langues ardentes et s’élève avec violence, ainsi ton fils Duhśāsana s’embrasa de prouesse, brûlant l’armée des Pāṇḍava. Harcelés par ses flèches, bien des cornacs s’enfuirent aussi dans toutes les directions. »
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how unchecked martial fury, once fed by circumstances (like fire by fuel), rapidly intensifies and brings widespread harm—an implicit warning about the destructive momentum of anger and violence in war.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Duhśāsana, empowered and aggressive, is driving the Pāṇḍava forces into distress; even elephant units and their drivers scatter, as he ‘burns’ the enemy host like a fire blazing after finding fuel.