तम् उदीक्ष्य तथायान्तं सर्वे द्रोणपुरोगमाः ॥
अभ्यवर्तन्त कौरव्याः पाण्डवाश् च तम् अन्वयुः ॥
स कर्णिकारप्रवरोच्छ्रितध्वजः; सुवर्णवर्मार्जुनिर् अर्जुनाद् वरः ॥
युयुत्सया द्रोणमुखान् महारथान्; समासदत् सिंहशिशुर् यथा गजान् ॥
ते विंशतिपदे यत्ताः संप्रहारं प्रचक्रिरे ॥
आसीद् गाङ्ग इवावर्तो मुहूर्तम् उदधेर् इव ॥
tam udīkṣya tathāyāntaṃ sarve droṇapurogamāḥ ||
abhyavartanta kauravyāḥ pāṇḍavāś ca tam anvayuḥ ||
sa karṇikārapravarocchritadhvajaḥ; suvarṇavarmārjunir arjunād varaḥ ||
yuyutsayā droṇamukhān mahārathān; samāsadat siṃhaśiśur yathā gajān ||
te viṃśatipade yattāḥ saṃprahāraṃ pracakrire ||
āsīd gāṅga ivāvarto muhūrtam udadher iva ||
Beholding him thus advancing, all the Kauravas with Drona at their head advanced to meet him, and the Pandavas went after him. He, with a banner in karnikara bloom, in golden armor, the son of Arjuna, having surpassed Arjuna himself, with a thirst for battle fell upon the great chariot-warriors led by Drona, just like a lion cub upon elephants. Having closed at twenty paces and made ready, they joined the clash; and for a moment there was there a whirlpool, just like that of the Ganga, just like that of the ocean.
ec37ad26807b · published Jul 19, 2026, 3:22:09 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The youth falls upon the great warriors 'like a lion cub upon elephants' — an image of wondrous disproportion: a cub against giants, yet fearsome all the same. He is called one who 'surpassed Arjuna himself' — the highest praise, one that deepens the bitterness to come. The whirlpool of the Ganga and the depths of the ocean depict the moment when two forces collide. It is telling that the tradition already sees a lion in the cub — the breed shows itself from youth. The verse teaches that valor does not wait for age, and the young lion cub rushes at elephants knowing no fear; that in a child of a great lineage the nature of the ancestors is already manifest; and that by calling the youth one who surpassed his father, the tradition prepares the heart to feel the loss more keenly, for what perishes is not merely a brave man, but one in whom was promised the surpassing of the greatest.