Shloka 7
Adhyāya 74 (Book 6, Bhīṣma-parva): Bhīma–Duryodhana re-engagement and afternoon escalation
चण्डवातो यथा मेघ: सविद्युत्स्तनयित्नुमान् । दिश: सम्प्लावयन् सर्वा: शरवर्ष: समनन््तत:ः
caṇḍavāto yathā meghaḥ savidyut-stanayitnumān | diśaḥ samplāvayan sarvāḥ śaravarṣaḥ samanantataḥ ||
ਸੰਜਯ ਬੋਲਿਆ—ਜਿਵੇਂ ਪ੍ਰਚੰਡ ਹਵਾ ਬਿਜਲੀ ਚਮਕਦੀ ਤੇ ਗੱਜਦੀ ਘਟਾ ਨੂੰ ਹੰਕਾ ਲੈ ਜਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ, ਤਿਵੇਂ ਅੰਤਹੀਣ ਤੀਰ-ਵਰਖਾ ਸਭ ਦਿਸ਼ਾਵਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਹੜ੍ਹ ਵਾਂਗ ਡੁਬੋਦੀ ਹੋਈ ਉਮੜ ਪਈ; ਯੁੱਧ ਦਾ ਉਹ ਤੂਫ਼ਾਨ ਕਿਸੇ ਪਾਸੇ ਨੂੰ ਅਛੂਤਾ ਨਾ ਛੱਡਿਆ।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical gravity of war by portraying its violence as a natural catastrophe: once unleashed, it spreads indiscriminately in all directions. The imagery cautions that martial power, like a storm, can overwhelm boundaries and restraint, reminding listeners of the need for dharmic control and responsibility in conflict.
Sañjaya narrates the battlefield scene to Dhṛtarāṣṭra, describing an unceasing, all-encompassing barrage of arrows. He compares it to a storm-cloud driven by fierce winds, with lightning and thunder, to convey the intensity and inescapability of the fighting.