Shloka 36
द्रोणविक्रमदर्शनम् / The Display of Droṇa’s Onslaught and the Debate on Pāṇḍava Regrouping
शोभमानां ध्वजे चास्य वेदीमद्राक्ष्म भारत । हिमवच्छिखराकारां चरत: संयुगे भूशम्,भरतनन्दन! युद्धमें तीव्रवेगसे विचरते हुए आचार्यके ध्वजमें जो वेदीका चिह्न बना हुआ था, वह हमें हिमालयके शिखरकी भाँति शोभायमान दिखायी देता था
śobhamānāṃ dhvaje cāsya vedīm adrākṣma bhārata | himavacchikharākārāṃ carataḥ saṃyuge bhūśam ||
Sañjaya said: “O Bhārata, we saw upon his banner the emblem of a sacrificial altar, shining brilliantly. As the Ācārya moved through the battle with fierce speed, that altar-mark appeared splendid—like a peak of the Himālaya.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how symbols associated with sacred order (the vedī/altar) can appear amid warfare, suggesting the tension in the epic between ritual-dharma and the violent necessities of battle; it also underscores how perception and imagery shape moral and emotional responses to war.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Droṇa, moving swiftly across the battlefield, bore a banner marked with a vedī emblem, which looked radiant and lofty like a Himalayan summit.