Shloka 36
Bhīmasena–Drauṇi Mahāyuddha
Chariot Duel and Astra-Exchange
ततः शड्खाश्न भेर्यश्व॒ पणवानकदुन्दुभि: | डिण्डिमाश्षाप्यहन्यन्त झर्झराश्ष समनन्तत:ः,राजन! तदनन्तर दोनों सेनाओंमें चारों ओर महान् शब्द करनेवाले शंख, भेरी, पणव, आनक, दुन्दुभि और झाँझ आदि बाजे बज उठे। नगाड़े पीटे जाने लगे। साथ ही विजयकी अभिलाषा रखनेवाले शूरवीरोंका सिंहनाद भी होने लगा
tataḥ śaṅkhāś ca bheryaś ca paṇavānaka-dundubhiḥ | ḍiṇḍimāś cāpy ahanyanta jharjharāś ca samanantataḥ, rājan | tad-anantaraṃ ubhayoḥ senayoḥ caturdiśaṃ mahā-śabda-kārīṇi śaṅkha-bherī-paṇavānaka-dundubhi-jhāñjhādayo vādyāni prāduṣkṛtāni | naḍāgāś ca tāḍyamānāḥ | sahaiva vijaya-abhilāṣiṇāṃ śūrāṇāṃ siṃha-nādo 'pi babhūva ||
Sañjaya said: Then conches, kettledrums, tabors, war-drums and great drums resounded; and kettledrums and clashing cymbals were struck everywhere, O King. Immediately after that, on all sides in both armies, instruments that raise a mighty din—conches, drums, tabors, war-drums, great drums, cymbals and the like—burst into sound. The kettledrums were beaten, and along with them arose the lion-roars of heroic warriors who longed for victory—an outward surge of martial resolve that drives the battle onward.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how collective sound—conches, drums, and heroic shouts—functions as a ritualized ignition of courage and resolve. Ethically, it shows how the desire for victory can unify and inflame warriors, setting the moral stakes of battle: inner intention (vijayābhilāṣā) manifests outwardly as public signals that propel action.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that, after the preceding developments, both armies erupt in loud martial music and cries. Conches and multiple kinds of drums are struck on all sides, and warriors roar like lions, signaling readiness and escalating the battle atmosphere.