तं वाहनमहानौभिर् योधा जयधनैषिणः ॥
अवगाह्यावमज्जन्तो नैव मोहं प्रचक्रिरे ॥
शरवर्षाभिवृष्टेषु योधेष्व् अजितलक्ष्मसु ॥
न हि स्वचित्ततां लेभे कश् चिद् आहतलक्षणः ॥
वर्तमाने तथा युद्धे घोररूपे भयंकरे ॥
मोहयित्वा परान् द्रोणो युधिष्ठिरम् उपाद्रवत् ॥
taṃ vāhanamahānaubhir yodhā jayadhanaiṣiṇaḥ ||
avagāhyāvamajjanto naiva mohaṃ pracakrire ||
śaravarṣābhivṛṣṭeṣu yodheṣv ajitalakṣmasu ||
na hi svacittatāṃ lebhe kaś cid āhatalakṣaṇaḥ ||
vartamāne tathā yuddhe ghorarūpe bhayaṃkare ||
mohayitvā parān droṇo yudhiṣṭhiram upādravat ||
Into that ocean, fighters craving victory and spoil, thrusting in on their war-teams as on great ships and going under headlong, still showed no faintheartedness. Among the fighters showered with rains of arrows, whose emblems were not yet broken, no one whose emblem had been struck down kept his self-possession. And while the battle -- of dreadful aspect, terrifying -- thus went on, Drona, having confounded his foes, charged at Yudhishthira.
52b2ebd369f1 · published Jul 19, 2026, 3:00:04 PM UTC
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The verse subtly distinguishes two kinds of fighters: those whose "emblems are not yet broken" plunge into the bloody ocean without losing heart, while those whose emblem is struck down lose their self-possession. The outer emblem-banner here is an image of inner support: while it stands whole, a man remains firm even in the deep; the moment it falls, courage abandons him. It is telling that amid the general terror there were those who remained unshaken, proving that even in the hell of battle steadfastness of spirit is possible. And Drona, faithful to his design, under cover of the confusion again rushes toward his chief goal -- Yudhishthira. The verse teaches that steadfastness rests upon an inner emblem -- the unbroken support of the heart; that while it stands whole, a man does not drown even in an ocean of calamities, while its loss destroys the spirit before the body; and that one entrusted with a charge must remember: it is in the hour of greatest confusion that the decisive blow is struck.