Shloka 13
वारयामास तान् द्रोणो जलौघमचलो यथा । पाण्डवान् समरे क्रुद्धान् पज्चलांश्व सकेकयान्,जैसे सामने खड़ा हुआ पर्वत आती हुर्ह जलराशिको रोक देता है, उसी प्रकार समरांगणमें द्रोणाचार्यने कुपित हुए पाण्डवों, पांचालों तथा केकयोंको रोक दिया था
sañjaya uvāca | vārayāmāsa tān droṇo jalaugham acalo yathā | pāṇḍavān samare kruddhān pāñcālāṁś ca sa-kaikayān ||
Sanjaya said: As an unmoving mountain holds back a rushing flood of water, so did Droṇa restrain them on the battlefield—those enraged Pāṇḍavas, along with the Pāñcālas and the Kaikayas. The image underscores the moral tension of war: disciplined mastery and strategic steadiness can check even righteous fury, yet such power, when used in a fratricidal conflict, also intensifies the tragedy of dharma contested by arms.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the power of steadiness and disciplined command: like a mountain stopping a flood, a composed and skilled leader can restrain even overwhelming force. Ethically, it also points to the tragic complexity of dharma in war—strength and mastery may serve one side’s duty while obstructing another side’s righteous resolve.
Sanjaya describes Droṇa on the battlefield successfully checking the advance of the enraged Pāṇḍavas, along with their allies the Pāñcālas and Kaikayas, using a vivid simile of a mountain halting a rushing flood.