Shloka 166
अर्जुनस्य गुरुधर्मविलापः तथा शैनेयकर्णयोर्युद्धारम्भः | Arjuna’s Lament on Guru-Dharma and the Opening of the Sātyaki–Karṇa Duel
ला | वेलेव मकरालयम् । 'सूत! यह हाथी, घोड़े, रथ और पैदलोंसे भरी हुई जो दुर्योधनकी सेना युद्धके लिये उद्यत हो मेरी ही ओर तीव्र वेगसे चली आ रही है, इस सेना-समुद्रको मैं इस महान् समरांगणमें अपने रथकी घर्घराहटसे सम्पूर्ण दिशाओंको प्रतिध्वनित करता तथा पृथ्वी, अन्तरिक्ष एवं सागरोंको भी कँपाता हुआ आगे बढ़नेसे रोकूँगा। ठीक उसी तरह, जैसे तटकी भूमि पूर्णिमाको उद्वेलित होनेवाले महासागरको रोक देती है
sañjaya uvāca | sūta! eṣā duryodhanasya senā hastibhir aśvair rathaiś ca padātibhiś ca paripūrṇā yuddhāya samudyatā mamaiva abhitaḥ tīvra-vegena āgacchati | aham imāṃ senā-samudraṃ mahati samara-aṅgaṇe ratha-ghoṣa-ghaṛgharāhaṭena sarvā diśaḥ pratidhvanayan pṛthivīm antarīkṣaṃ sāgarāṃś ca kampayan agre gamanāt nivārayiṣyāmi | yathā pūrṇimāyām udvelitaṃ mahā-sāgaraṃ taṭa-bhūmir nivārayati ||
Sañjaya said: “O charioteer! Look—Duryodhana’s army, packed with elephants, horses, chariots, and foot-soldiers, is rushing straight toward me at great speed, eager for battle. Here on this vast field of war, I shall halt that ocean-like host from advancing, making every direction resound with the thunder of my chariot and shaking earth, sky, and even the seas—just as the firm land of the shore holds back the mighty ocean when it swells at the full moon.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya ideal of steadfast courage and the moral psychology of resistance: even when faced with an overwhelming force (an ‘ocean’ of troops), one must hold one’s ground with disciplined resolve. The shore–ocean simile frames restraint as strength—power is not only in attack but also in the capacity to check destructive momentum.
Sañjaya describes a massive, fast-advancing army of Duryodhana—filled with elephants, horses, chariots, and infantry—moving toward him. He declares that he will stop their advance on the battlefield, making the directions echo with his chariot’s thunder and shaking the world, like the shoreline halting the surging ocean at the full moon.