Shloka 4
तत:ः शड्खप्रणादश्च तूर्याणां च सहस्रश: । सिंहनादश्न संजज्ञे शूराणां हर्षवर्धन:
tataḥ śaṅkhapraṇādaś ca tūryāṇāṃ ca sahasraśaḥ | siṃhanādaś ca saṃjajñe śūrāṇāṃ harṣavardhanaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Then there arose the blare of conches and, in their thousands, the sounding of trumpets and other war-instruments. A lion-like roar also burst forth from the warriors, swelling their exhilaration and hardening their resolve for battle—an outward sign of the war-spirit that can both inspire courage and inflame violence.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how collective sound—conches, instruments, and battle-cries—functions as a force that amplifies emotion and resolve. Ethically, it points to the double-edged nature of martial exhilaration: it can steady courage and unity, yet it can also intensify aggression and propel violence.
As the armies prepare and the confrontation escalates, the battlefield fills with the blaring of conches and the loud music of war-instruments in great numbers. The warriors raise a lion-like roar, boosting their morale and signaling readiness for combat.