Shloka 55
Bhagadatta’s Advance, the Saṃśaptaka Challenge, and Arjuna’s Counterstrike (द्रोणपर्व, अध्याय २६)
सिषिचुर्भरवान् नादान् विनदन्तो जिघांसव: । उस वीरके मारे जानेपर अभिमन्यु, द्रौपदीकुमार, चेकितान, धृष्टकेतु तथा युयुत्सुने भी उस हाथीको पीड़ा देना आरम्भ किया। ये सब लोग उस हाथीको मार डालनेकी इच्छासे विकट गर्जना करते हुए अपने बाणोंकी धारासे सींचने लगे, मानो मेघ पर्वतको जलकी धारासे नहला रहे हों || ५३-५४ ई ।। ततः पाष्ण्यड्कुशाड्गुष्ठै: कृतिना चोदितो द्विप:,तदनन्तर विद्वान् राजा भगदत्तने अपने पैरोंकी एँड़ी, अंकुश एवं अंगुष्ठसे प्रेरित करके हाथीको आगे बढ़ाया। फिर तो अपने कानोंको खड़े करके एकटक आँखोंसे देखते हुए सूँड़ फैलाकर उस हाथीने शीघ्रतापूर्वक धावा किया और युयुत्सुके घोड़ोंको पैरोंसे दबाकर उनके सारथिको मार डाला
siṣicur bharavān nādān vinadanto jighāṃsavaḥ |
Sañjaya said: Eager to kill and roaring fiercely, they drenched him with a dense shower of arrows, as though rain-clouds were bathing a mountain with streaming water. In the moral atmosphere of the battle, the image underscores how collective wrath and the will to destroy can turn warriors into an impersonal force—overwhelming, loud, and relentless—where compassion is eclipsed by the immediate demands of victory.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in war, the intent to kill (jighāṃsā) and the roar of aggression can make combat feel like an overwhelming natural force. Ethically, it invites reflection on how quickly human agency and compassion can be submerged under collective rage and the pursuit of victory.
Sañjaya describes warriors, intent on killing, roaring and pouring a heavy shower of arrows. In the surrounding episode (as reflected in the given passage), Abhimanyu and others begin to torment the elephant; Bhagadatta then urges the elephant forward with heel, goad, and toe, and the elephant charges—crushing Yuyutsu’s horses and killing his charioteer.