Shloka 18
द्रोणपर्व — पञ्चदशोऽध्यायः (Droṇa Parva, Chapter 15): युधिष्ठिर-रक्षा तथा अर्जुनस्य शरवृष्टिः
तथैव भीमसेनस्य द्विषताभिहता गदा । वर्षाप्रदोषे खद्योतैर्व॒तो वृक्ष इवाबभौ,इसी प्रकार शत्रुके आघात करनेपर भीमसेनकी गदा भी चिनगारियाँ छोड़ती हुई वर्षाकालकी संध्याकें समय जुगनुओंसे जगमगाते हुए वृक्षकी भाँति शोभा पाने लगी
tathaiva bhīmasenasya dviṣatābhihatā gadā | varṣāpradoṣe khadyotair vṛto vṛkṣa ivābabhau ||
सञ्जय उवाच—तथैव भीमसेनस्य द्विषताभिहता गदा वर्षाप्रदोषे खद्योतैर्वृतो वृक्ष इवाबभौ।
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse is primarily descriptive rather than doctrinal: it shows how war can cloak violence in dazzling beauty, reminding the reader to distinguish poetic splendor from the ethical weight of destruction, even when performed as a warrior’s duty.
Sañjaya describes Bhīma’s mace during combat: as it strikes the enemy it emits sparks, and its glow is compared to a tree at rainy-season twilight lit up by surrounding fireflies.