Shloka 393
Adhyāya 14: Śalya’s Missile-Pressure and the Pāṇḍava Convergence (शल्यस्य शरवर्षम्)
चुकोप समरे द्रौणिर्दण्डाहत इवोरग: । महारथी सुरथको क्रोधपूर्वक आक्रमण करते देख अश्वत्थामा समरमें डंडेकी चोट खाये हुए सर्पके समान अत्यन्त कुपित हो उठा
cukopa samare drauṇir daṇḍāhata ivoragaḥ | mahārathī surathako krodhapūrvakam ākramaṇaṃ karte dekh aśvatthāmā samareṃ daṇḍe kī coṭ khāye hue sarpa ke samān atyanta kupita ho uṭhā |
سنجے نے کہا—مہارتھی سورتھ کو غصّے سے حملہ آور ہوتے دیکھ کر درونی اشوتھاما میدانِ جنگ میں لاٹھی کی چوٹ کھائے ہوئے سانپ کی طرح سخت بھڑک اٹھا اور نہایت غضبناک ہو گیا۔
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger (krodha) can rapidly intensify conflict: once provoked, a warrior’s mind may become reactive like a wounded serpent. Ethically, it warns that wrath-driven action narrows discernment and can push warfare toward excess, even when framed within kṣatriya duty.
Sañjaya narrates that Surathaka, an elite chariot-warrior, launches a furious attack. Witnessing this, Aśvatthāmā (Droṇa’s son) becomes violently enraged in the battle, compared to a serpent struck by a staff—signaling imminent, fierce retaliation.