Mahabharata — Bhishma Parva, Shloka 16
भीष्मस्य अप्रतिमपराक्रमः — शिखण्डिपुरस्कृतः प्रहारः
Bhīṣma’s unmatched momentum and the assault with Śikhaṇḍin in the lead
विराटद्रुपदौ वृद्धौ समेतावरिमर्दनौ । अश्रृत्थामा ततः क्रुद्धो वारयामास भारत
virāṭa-drupadau vṛddhau sametāv ari-mardanau | aśvatthāmā tataḥ kruddho vārayāmāsa bhārata ||
三阇耶说道：“婆罗多啊，年迈的维罗吒与德鲁帕陀二王——皆以摧敌著称——并肩向前。随即，阿湿婆他摩怒火炽盛，趋前阻拦，欲将二人遏止。此偈显明：战场之怒使相逢化为角力之争，纵是长者，也会在年龄与身份的伦理重压之下被卷入险境。”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse implicitly contrasts valor with the moral danger of anger: even respected elders enter combat, and an enraged warrior seeks to block them—showing how wrath can override restraint and heighten the ethical stakes of warfare.
Sañjaya reports that the elderly kings Virāṭa and Drupada advance together on the battlefield, and Aśvatthāmā, angered, moves to stop/oppose them.