Shloka 14
Adhyāya 112: Bhīṣma-prati Arjunasya Pravṛttiḥ
Arjuna’s Forward Drive Toward Bhīṣma
तस्य शब्देन वित्रस्तास्तावका भरतर्षभ । सिंहस्येव मृगा राजन् व्यद्रवन्त महाभयात्,राजन! भरतश्रेष्ठ! जैसे सिंहके शब्दसे अत्यन्त भयभीत होकर मृग भाग जाते हैं, उसी प्रकार अर्जुनके सिंहनादसे संत्रस्त हुए आपके सैनिक महान् भयके कारण भागने लगे
tasya śabdena vitrastās tāvakā bharatarṣabha | siṁhasyeva mṛgā rājan vyadravanta mahābhayāt ||
Sañjaya said: “O bull among the Bharatas, at the sound of that (lion-like roar), your own troops were struck with terror. Just as deer flee upon hearing a lion, so did they run away in great fear.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how inner states—especially fear—can collapse an army’s resolve. In dharmic-ethical terms, it underscores the kṣatriya ideal of steadiness under threat and shows how moral and psychological strength can be as decisive as weapons.
Sañjaya reports to the king that the Kaurava soldiers, hearing the formidable roar (contextually Arjuna’s lion-like shout), became terrified and fled—likened to deer scattering at a lion’s sound.