Shloka 16
प्रादुरासंस्ततो बाणा दीप्ताग्रा: खे सहस्रश: । पाण्डवान् क्षपयिष्यन्तो दीप्तास्था: पन्नगा इव,तत्पश्चात् द्रोणपुत्र अश्वत्थामाने पाण्डवों और पांचालोंकी सेनाको लक्ष्य करके नारायणास्त्र प्रकट किया। उससे आकाशमें हजारों बाण प्रकट हुए। उन सबके अग्रभाग प्रज्वलित हो रहे थे। वे सभी बाण प्रज्वलित मुखवाले सर्पोंके समान आकर पाण्डव- सैनिकोंका विनाश करनेको उद्यत थे
sañjaya uvāca |
prādurāsaṃs tato bāṇā dīptāgrāḥ khe sahasraśaḥ |
pāṇḍavān kṣapayisyanto dīptāsthāḥ pannagā iva ||
Sañjaya said: Then, suddenly, thousands of arrows appeared in the sky, their tips blazing. Like fire-mouthed serpents, they rushed forth intent on destroying the Pāṇḍavas’ warriors—an ominous manifestation of irresistible force unleashed in the frenzy of war.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how war, once intensified by extraordinary weapons, tends to exceed ordinary human restraint. Ethically, it warns that the pursuit of total destruction (kṣapayiṣyantaḥ) signals a collapse of proportionality and compassion—pressing the listener to reflect on dharma even amid victory-seeking violence.
Sañjaya describes a terrifying battlefield moment: thousands of flaming arrows suddenly manifest in the sky and surge toward the Pāṇḍavas’ forces, compared to blazing serpents. In the surrounding episode (as commonly narrated in this section), this imagery accompanies the unleashing of a powerful astric weapon aimed at mass destruction.