Shloka 18
भीष्मपातने कर्णविलापः | Karṇa’s Lament upon Seeing Bhīṣma Fallen
तेन तेन प्रदहतो भूरिगुल्मतृणद्रुमान् “वायु और अग्निदेव--ये दोनों एक साथ वनमें जिस-जिस मार्गसे फैलते हैं, उसी- उसीके द्वारा बहुत-से तृण, वृक्ष और लताओंको भस्म करते जाते हैं ।। यादृशो<ग्नि: समुद्धूस्तादुक् पार्थो न संशय:
sañjaya uvāca | tena tena pradahato bhūri-gulma-tṛṇa-drumān | vāyur agniś ca tau dvāv ekatra vanam āśritau | yathā yathā pathā yātau tathā tathā pradahataḥ || yādṛśo 'gniḥ samuddhūtas tādṛk pārtho na saṃśayaḥ ||
Sanjaya said: “As wind and fire, moving together through a forest, spread along whatever paths they take and burn up masses of shrubs, grasses, and trees, so too did he. Such was the fire, once fanned into a blaze; and such, without doubt, was Partha (Arjuna)—a force that, once set in motion, consumes everything in its course.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the unstoppable momentum of a warrior’s force once fully aroused—like fire strengthened by wind—suggesting that in war, power amplified by favorable conditions becomes difficult to restrain and brings widespread consequences.
Sanjaya reports to Dhritarashtra using a vivid simile: as wind and fire together burn a forest along every path they spread, so Arjuna (Partha), once ‘fanned’ into action, is consuming enemy forces in his advance.