Shloka 33
Chapter 23: Śakuni Reports, Kaurava Advance, and Arjuna’s Penetration of the Host
तदभ्रमिव वातेन क्षिप्पमाणं समन्ततः । अभज्यत महाराज पाण्डूनां सुमहद् बलम्,महाराज! जैसे वायुके वेगसे मेघोंका दल सब ओरसे छिल्न-भिन्न हो जाता है, उसी प्रकार इस आक्रमणसे पाण्डवोंकी विशाल सेनाका व्यूह भंग हो गया
tad abhram iva vātena kṣippamāṇaṃ samantataḥ | abhajyata mahārāja pāṇḍūnāṃ sumahad balam ||
സഞ്ജയൻ പറഞ്ഞു—മഹാരാജാ! കാറ്റിന്റെ വേഗത്തിൽ മേഘക്കൂട്ടം എല്ലാടവും ചിതറിപ്പോകുന്നതുപോലെ, ആ ആക്രമണത്താൽ പാണ്ഡവരുടെ മഹാസേനയുടെ വ്യൂഹം തകർന്നു പോയി.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the fragility of even a mighty force when struck by overwhelming momentum: in war, strength is not only numbers but cohesion and formation; once unity is disrupted, power disperses like clouds torn by wind.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that a fierce assault has caused the Pāṇḍavas’ large army to lose its organized battle-array; he illustrates the scene with a vivid simile of clouds scattered and shredded by strong wind.