Shloka 4
रणभूमिवर्णनम् — Devāsuropama-yuddha and the ‘River’ Metaphor of the Battlefield
वादित्राणां च निनद:ः प्रादुरासीद् विशाम्पते । आयोधनार्थ योधानां बलानां चाप्युदीर्यताम्
sañjaya uvāca | vāditrāṇāṃ ca ninādaḥ prādurāsīd viśāṃpate | āyodhanārthaṃ yodhānāṃ balānāṃ cāpy udīryatām, prajānātha |
Sañjaya dit : «Ô seigneur du peuple, soudain s’éleva de toutes parts le grondement profond de maints instruments. Et, avec lui, on entendit le grand tumulte des guerriers prêts au combat et des armées qui s’élançaient vers la bataille.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the inevitability and momentum of war once collective forces are set in motion: the instruments, warriors, and armies together create an overwhelming surge. Ethically, it frames the king’s responsibility—he must recognize how decisions and attachments culminate in large-scale violence that becomes difficult to restrain.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the battlefield has come alive with the booming sounds of war instruments and the loud commotion of fighters and advancing troops, indicating that the armies are fully mobilized and battle is imminent.