Shloka 37
नारायणास्त्र-शमनं द्रौणि-प्रहारश्च
Pacification of the Nārāyaṇāstra and Drauni’s Renewed Assault
पत्तीनां द्रवतां चैव पादशब्देन मेदिनी
pattīnāṃ dravatāṃ caiva pādaśabdena medinī
Sañjaya dit : Quand le fracas des pas des fantassins en fuite tonna, la terre elle-même sembla résonner et trembler — image d’un effondrement au combat, lorsque la peur et le désordre l’emportent sur le devoir discipliné.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores how war tests dharma: when courage and order fail, collective fear spreads, and even the earth’s ‘response’ becomes a metaphor for the moral and social upheaval caused by panic and retreat.
Sañjaya describes a battlefield moment where infantrymen are running—likely in rout—so that the noise of their feet makes the ground seem to rumble, conveying the scale of the flight and the chaos in the army.