य एष तुमुलः शब्दः श्रूयते लोमहर्षणः ॥
सेन्द्रान् अप्य् एष लोकांस् त्रीन् भञ्ज्याद् इति मतिर् मम ॥
मन्ये वज्रधरस्यैष निनादो भैरवस्वनः ॥
द्रोणे हते कौरवार्थं व्यक्तम् अभ्येति वासवः ॥
प्रहृष्टलोमकूपाः स्म संविग्नरथकुञ्जराः ॥
धनंजय गुरुं श्रुत्वा तत्र नादं सुभीषणम् ॥
क एष कौरवान् दीर्णान् अवस्थाप्य महारथः ॥
निवर्तयति युद्धार्थं मृधे देवेश्वरो यथा ॥
ya eṣa tumulaḥ śabdaḥ śrūyate lomaharṣaṇaḥ ||
sendrān apy eṣa lokāṃs trīn bhañjyād iti matir mama ||
manye vajradharasyaiṣa ninādo bhairavasvanaḥ ||
droṇe hate kauravārthaṃ vyaktam abhyeti vāsavaḥ ||
prahṛṣṭalomakūpāḥ sma saṃvignarathakuñjarāḥ ||
dhanaṃjaya guruṃ śrutvā tatra nādaṃ subhīṣaṇam ||
ka eṣa kauravān dīrṇān avasthāpya mahārathaḥ ||
nivartayati yuddhārthaṃ mṛdhe deveśvaro yathā ||
"This tumultuous sound that is heard, hair-raising — it would shatter the three worlds together with Indra, or so I think. I believe it is the roar of the wielder of the vajra, dread-sounding; now that Drona is slain, Vasava [Indra] plainly comes for the sake of the Kurus. With our hair standing on end, our chariots and elephants in disarray, O Dhananjaya, hearing that heavy, most dreadful roar there — who is this great chariot-warrior who, having steadied the shattered Kurus, turns them back to battle, like the lord of the gods in the fray?"
d022583c80e2 · published Jul 19, 2026, 5:08:17 PM UTC
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Yudhishthira imagines that Indra himself has descended for the Kurus, so superhuman is the dreadful roar. It is significant that even the hairs on his body stand on end — the wisest of the Pandavas is not ashamed to admit his own trembling. The verse teaches that valor lies not in feeling nothing but in steadfastness despite fear; and one who honestly acknowledges dread before the unknown is not diminished by it but stands ready to meet it soberly, turning for understanding to one who knows.