Shloka 22
ततो नानाप्रहरणैरन्योन्यमभिवर्षताम् । आयसै: परिघै: शूलैर्गदामुसलमुद्गरै:,भारत! तत्पश्चात् वे एक-दूसरेपर नाना प्रकारके अस्त्र-शस्त्रोंकी वर्षा करने लगे। लोहेके परिघ, शूल, गदा, मुसल, मुद्गर, पिनाक, खड्ग, तोमर, प्रास, कम्पन, तीखे नाराच, भलल, बाण, चक्र, फरसे, लोहेकी गोली, भिन्दिपाल, गोशीर्ष, उलूखल, बड़ी-बड़ी शाखाओंवाले उखाड़े हुए नाना प्रकारके वृक्ष--शमी, पीलु, कदम्ब, चम्पा, इंगुद, बेर, विकसित कोविदार, पलाश, अरिमेद, बड़े-बड़े पाकड़, बरगद और पीपल--इन सबके द्वारा उस महासमरमें वे एक-दूसरेपर चोट करने लगे। नाना प्रकारकी धातुओंसे व्याप्त विशाल पर्वतशिखरोंद्वारा भी वे परस्पर आघात करते थे
tato nānā-praharaṇair anyonyam abhivarṣatām | āyasaiḥ parighaiḥ śūlair gadā-musalamudgaraiḥ, bhārata |
Sañjaya said: Then, O Bhārata, they began to shower one another with weapons of many kinds—striking with iron clubs and bars, with spears, and with maces, pestles, and hammers. The scene conveys the war’s escalating ferocity, where combatants abandon restraint and press on through sheer violence, illustrating how conflict can overwhelm ethical limits once rage and survival take command.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how warfare tends to intensify beyond moderation: once mutual hostility peaks, combat becomes a relentless exchange of increasingly brutal weapons. It implicitly warns that ethical restraint is hardest to maintain when anger and fear dominate, a recurring Mahābhārata concern about dharma under extreme conditions.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the fighters have entered a phase of close, mutual assault—‘raining’ blows with many kinds of heavy weapons, especially iron bars, spears, and various maces and bludgeons—signaling a fierce, chaotic engagement.