Shloka 3
अध्याय १४८ — कर्णप्रभावः, धृष्टद्युम्नस्य विरथता, तथा घटोत्कच-आह्वानम्
Chapter 148: Karṇa’s Pressure, Dhṛṣṭadyumna Unhorsed, and the Summoning of Ghaṭotkaca
स रणे व्यचरत् पार्थ: प्रेक्षमाणो धनंजय:,प्रलीनमीनमकरं सागराम्भ इवाभवत् | संजय कहते हैं--राजन्! उस समय अर्जुनके द्वारा खींचे जानेवाले गाण्डीव धनुषकी अत्यन्त भयंकर टंकार यमराजकी सुस्पष्ट गर्जना तथा इन्द्रके वज्रकी गड़गड़ाहटके समान जान पड़ती थी। उसे सुनकर आपकी सेना भयसे उद्विग्न हो बड़ी घबराहटमें पड़ गयी। उस समय उसकी दशा प्रलयकालकी आँधीसे क्षोभको प्राप्त एवं उत्ताल तरंगोंसे परिपूर्ण हुए उस महासागरके जलकी-सी हो गयी, जिसमें मछली और मगर आदि जलजन्तु छिप जाते हैं
sa raṇe vyacarat pārthaḥ prekṣamāṇo dhanañjayaḥ, pralīna-mīna-makaraṃ sāgarāmbha ivābhavat |
Sañjaya said: O King, in that battle Pārtha—Arjuna, the son of Pṛthā—moved about, surveying the field as Dhanañjaya. He became like the ocean’s waters at the time of upheaval, in which fish and crocodiles sink out of sight—so overwhelming was his presence that the enemy’s strength seemed to vanish before him. The verse frames Arjuna’s martial action as a dharmic instrument of decisive force, where righteous resolve manifests as irresistible momentum on the battlefield.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how dharmically directed resolve can become overwhelming in effect: Arjuna’s focused, discerning action on the battlefield is portrayed as a force before which opposing power ‘submerges,’ emphasizing the moral and psychological dimensions of righteous warfare in the epic.
Sañjaya describes Arjuna moving through the battle while surveying the situation. Using an ocean simile, he conveys that Arjuna’s advance is so formidable that enemies are like fish and crocodiles disappearing beneath turbulent waters—suggesting panic, concealment, and loss of initiative among the opposing side.