वज्राशनिसमस्पर्शैः सुपर्वभिर् अजिह्मगैः ॥
ते साश्वयाना निहताः समावव्रुर् वसुंधराम् ॥
अल्पावशिष्टाः संभग्नाः कृच्छ्रप्राणा विचेतसः ॥
जिताः संख्ये महाराज युयुधानेन दंशिताः ॥
पार्ष्णिभिश् च कशाभिश् च ताडयन्तस् तुरंगमान् ॥
जवम् उत्तमम् आस्थाय सर्वतः प्राद्रवन् भयात् ॥
vajrāśanisamasparśaiḥ suparvabhir ajihmagaiḥ ||
te sāśvayānā nihatāḥ samāvavrur vasuṃdharām ||
alpāvaśiṣṭāḥ saṃbhagnāḥ kṛcchraprāṇā vicetasaḥ ||
jitāḥ saṃkhye mahārāja yuyudhānena daṃśitāḥ ||
pārṣṇibhiś ca kaśābhiś ca tāḍayantas turaṃgamān ||
javam uttamam āsthāya sarvataḥ prādravan bhayāt ||
With arrows whose touch was like the thunderbolt, well-jointed and straight-flying, they were slain together with their horses and chariots and covered the ground. The few survivors, broken, gasping for breath, senseless, defeated in battle, O great king, by armored Yuyudhana — driving on their horses with heels and whips, taking on their utmost speed, they fled from every side in fear.
340bfa022054 · published Jul 19, 2026, 4:08:02 PM UTC
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The survivors "prādravan bhayāt", flee in fear, lashing their horses without a backward glance: terror drives more surely than any weapon. It is notable that the spirit of an army breaks before its bodies do. The verse teaches that fear routs even those left undestroyed: a terrified heart flees without looking back, and so in battle it is not the force of the blow alone that overcomes, but the horror that seizes the shaken — for one defeated in spirit runs, though his body remain whole.