Shloka 35
अभिपेतू रणे पार्थ पतज्रा इव पावकम् | वे विदेह
sañjaya uvāca | abhipetū raṇe pārtha pataṅgā iva pāvakam | videha-kaliṅga-dāseraka-niṣāda-sauvīra-bāhlīka-darada-pratīcya-udīcya-mālava-abhīṣāha-śūrasena-śibi-vasāti-śālva-śaka-trigarta-ambaṣṭha-kekayadeśeṣu nṛpāḥ tasmin mahāyuddhe kuntīkumarārjunam abhyadravan yathā śalabhāḥ pradīptaṃ vahnim | śalabhā iva rājendra pārtham apratimaṃ raṇe | etān sarvān sahānīkān mahārāja mahārathān ||
Disse Sañjaya: Naquela batalha, ó Pārtha, eles investiram contra Arjuna como mariposas que se lançam a um fogo em brasa. Reis de Videha, Kaliṅga, Dāseraka, Niṣāda, Sauvīra, Bāhlīka, Darada, das regiões do ocidente e do norte, de Mālava, Abhīṣāha, Śūrasena, Śibi, Vasāti, Śālva, Śaka, Trigarta, Ambaṣṭha e do país de Kekaya—com suas divisões e seus grandes guerreiros de carro—carregaram contra o filho de Kuntī na grande guerra, como se fossem irresistivelmente atraídos para a própria destruição.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses the moth-to-flame image to show how, in war, collective passion and pride can override discernment: courage without wise judgment becomes self-destructive, and mass aggression may rush toward an inevitable defeat when directed against a superior warrior.
Sañjaya reports that many regional kings and their forces, along with great chariot-warriors, simultaneously charge Arjuna in the great battle, likening their assault to moths plunging into a blazing fire—suggesting both the intensity of the attack and the peril of confronting Arjuna.