Shloka 78
नागानां शृणु शब्दं च पत्तीनां च सहस्रश: । सादिनां द्रवतां चैव शूणु कम्पयतां महीम्,हाथियोंके चिग्धाड़नेकी आवाज सुनो। सहस्रों पैदल सिपाहियों तथा पृथ्वीको कम्पित करते हुए दौड़ लगानेवाले घुड़सवारोंके शब्द सुन लो
nāgānāṃ śṛṇu śabdaṃ ca pattīnāṃ ca sahasraśaḥ | sādīnāṃ dravatāṃ caiva śṛṇu kampayatāṃ mahīm ||
Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “Dengarlah bunyi gajah, dan hiruk-pikuk ribuan askar pejalan kaki. Dengarlah juga dentuman pasukan berkuda ketika mereka menyerbu, menggoncang bumi di bawahnya.”
युधिष्ठिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds attentive awareness in the midst of chaos: a leader must clearly perceive the realities of war—its scale, momentum, and consequences—before deciding what is righteous and effective. It implicitly reminds the listener that dharma in crisis requires alertness, not denial.
Yudhiṣṭhira draws attention to the battlefield’s overwhelming din—elephants roaring, thousands of infantry shouting, and cavalry charging so forcefully that the earth seems to tremble—signaling the intensity and immediacy of the ongoing combat in Droṇa Parva.