Mahabharata 9.18.11 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 18, Shloka 11
शल्यवधे कौरवसेनाभङ्गः, भीमस्य गदायुद्धं, दुर्योधनस्य समाह्वानम्
Rout after Śalya’s fall; Bhīma’s mace engagement; Duryodhana’s rally
पुरोवातेन गड़ेव क्षोभ्यमाणा महानदी । अक्षोभ्यत तदा राजन् पाण्डूनां ध्वजिनी ततः
purōvātena gaṅgevakṣobhyamāṇā mahānadī | akṣobhyata tadā rājan pāṇḍūnāṃ dhvajinī tataḥ ||
桑阇耶说道：大王啊，正如大河为东风所搅而波涛翻涌，那时般度诸子的军队也被扰动，阵中起了骚然。
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses a nature-simile to suggest that military strength and confidence are unstable: like a great river disturbed by wind, even a powerful army can be suddenly shaken by opposing force and circumstance, cautioning against overreliance on pride or presumed superiority.
Sañjaya reports to King Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the Pāṇḍavas’ forces became agitated in the clash, comparing the commotion in the army to the Gaṅgā being churned by an easterly wind—an image for the surge and counter-surge of battle.
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