Shloka 15
जृम्भमाणमिव व्याप्र॑ व्यात्ताननमिवान्तकम् | कथं प्रत्युद्ययुद्रोणमस्यन्तं पाण्डुसूजजया:,भूरिश्रवा तथा जयद्रथके वधसे कुपित हो जब द्रोणाचार्य आये और जीवनका मोह छोड़कर पाण्डव-सेनामें उसका मन््थन करते हुए प्रवेश करने लगे, उस समय जँभाई लेते हुए व्याप्र तथा मुँह बाये हुए यमराजके समान बाण-वर्षा करते हुए द्रोणाचार्यके सम्मुख पाण्डव और सृंजय योद्धा कैसे आ सके?
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca | jṛmbhamāṇam iva vyāghraṁ vyāttānanaṁ ivāntakam | kathaṁ pratyudyayuḥ droṇam asyantaṁ pāṇḍusṛñjayāḥ ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra said: “When Droṇa, casting off all attachment to life, entered the Pāṇḍava host and churned it with his onslaught—showering arrows like a yawning tiger and like Death himself with gaping mouth—how did the Pāṇḍavas and the Sṛñjayas find the courage to advance against him?”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension of dharma in war: even when an opponent appears overwhelming—like Death itself—duty and resolve can compel warriors to confront fear. It also underscores how perception (Droṇa as ‘Antaka’) magnifies the moral and psychological stakes of battle.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra asks Sañjaya how the Pāṇḍava–Sṛñjaya fighters could advance to meet Droṇa when he entered their formation with terrifying force, shooting a storm of arrows and seeming like a predator and like Yama.