Shloka 50
Chapter 51: Saṃdhyākāla-saṃhāra
Evening Withdrawal after Arjuna’s Counter-Advance
नानावर्णविचित्राणि धनूंषि च महात्मनाम् | विस्फारितानि दृश्यन्ते तोयदेष्विव विद्युत:,इन महामना वीरोंके फैलाये हुए अनेक रूपरंगके विचित्र धनुष बादलोंमें बिजलियोंके समान दृष्टिगोचर हो रहे थे
nānāvarṇavicitrāṇi dhanūṃṣi ca mahātmanām | visphāritāni dṛśyante toyadeṣv iva vidyutaḥ ||
Sañjaya nói: Những cây cung kỳ diệu, muôn sắc của các bậc đại hồn ấy, được giương căng và sẵn sàng, hiện lên như những tia chớp giữa tầng mây nặng nước mưa.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the solemn readiness of great warriors: their power is portrayed through a natural simile (lightning in clouds), suggesting that martial strength, when aligned with kṣatriya duty, becomes an awe-inspiring force—yet also a portent of imminent destruction, urging ethical seriousness about war.
Sañjaya describes the battlefield scene to Dhṛtarāṣṭra: the warriors’ bows are fully drawn and gleam in many colors, appearing like lightning within rain-clouds, signaling that combat is about to intensify.