Shloka 18
महाव्यूहप्रवर्तनम् / Deployment of the Great Battle Arrays
धनूंषि विस्फारयतां नृपाणां बभूव शब्दस्तुमुलोडतिघोर: । विमथ्यतो देवमहासुरौधै- ्यथार्णवस्यादियुगे तदानीम्
dhanūṁṣi visphārayatāṁ nṛpāṇāṁ babhūva śabdas tumulo ’tighoraḥ | vimathyato devamahāsuraughair yathārṇavasya ’diyuge tadānīm ||
Sañjaya said: As the kings drew and twanged their bows, a tumultuous and exceedingly dreadful roar arose—like the churning of the primeval ocean in the beginning age, when it was stirred by vast hosts of gods and great asuras. The verse heightens the moral gravity of the battle: the sound is not mere noise, but an omen-like echo of cosmic upheaval, suggesting that the clash of rulers, driven by duty and ambition, can shake the world-order itself.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames battlefield violence within a cosmic register: the actions of rulers are not private but world-affecting. It implicitly warns that when kṣatriya power is unleashed, it can resemble primordial upheaval—therefore it must be governed by dharma and restraint, not mere rage or ambition.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the kings on the field are drawing and twanging their bows, producing a terrifying, thunderous din. He compares this sound to the ancient churning of the ocean by the assembled gods and great asuras, emphasizing the scale and intensity of the impending combat.