Shloka 14
Adhyāya 140: Rātriyuddhe Droṇa-prāpti-prayatnaḥ
Night engagement and the attempt to reach Droṇa
एवं ब्रुवाणा योधास्ते तावका भयपीडिता: । शरपातं समुत्सृज्य स्थिता युद्धदिदृक्षव:,ऐसा कहते हुए आपके योद्धा भयसे पीड़ित हो बाण मारनेका कार्य छोड़कर युद्धके दर्शक बनकर खड़े हो गये
evaṁ bruvāṇā yodhās te tāvakā bhayapīḍitāḥ | śarapātaṁ samutsṛjya sthitā yuddhadidṛkṣavaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: As those words were being spoken, your warriors—oppressed by fear—abandoned the shower of arrows and stood still, no longer pressing the fight, but merely watching the battle. The verse underscores how fear can dissolve martial resolve and turn duty in war into passive spectatorship.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how fear (bhaya) can overpower resolve and disrupt one’s role-based duty: warriors who should act become mere onlookers. Ethically, it points to the danger of letting inner agitation replace disciplined action in a crisis.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the Kaurava fighters, shaken by what has been said, stop releasing arrows and stand watching the combat, indicating a collapse of momentum and confidence on that side.