Shloka 15
रथचिह्नवर्णनम् / Description of Chariot Standards and Allied Advances
भ्रमरैरिव चाविष्टा द्रोणस्य निशितै: शरै: । अन्योन्यं समलीयन्त पलायनपरायणा:,भ्रमरोंके समान द्रोणके पैने बाणोंसे घायल होकर ये रणभूमिसे पलायन करते हुए एक-दूसरेकी आउडमें छिप रहे हैं
bhramarair iva cāviṣṭā droṇasya niśitaiḥ śaraiḥ | anyonyaṃ samalīyanta palāyanaparāyaṇāḥ ||
Duryodhana berkata: “Laksana kawanan lebah yang tersengat dan berkerumun, dihantam panah-panah Droṇa yang setajam silet, mereka—yang hanya berniat melarikan diri—saling merapat, mencari lindung di balik sesamanya saat mencoba meninggalkan medan laga.”
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how fear can collapse discipline and courage in war: when overwhelmed by a superior warrior’s force, soldiers abandon duty and seek safety even at the cost of dignity, revealing the ethical tension between self-preservation and kṣatriya responsibility.
Duryodhana describes troops being struck by Droṇa’s sharp arrows; panicked and focused on fleeing, they crowd together and hide behind one another, like people beset by a swarm of bees.