ततः किलकिलाशब्दः शङ्खभेरीरवैः सह ॥
पाण्डवानां प्रहृष्टानां क्षणेन समजायत ॥
हताव् इति तयोर् आसीत् सेनयोर् उभयोर् मतिः ॥
तरसाभ्यागतौ दृष्ट्वा विमुक्तौ केशवार्जुनौ ॥
ताव् अक्षतौ प्रमुदितौ दध्मतुर् वारिजोत्तमौ ॥
दृष्ट्वा प्रमुदितान् पार्थांस् त्वदीया व्यथिताभवन् ॥
tataḥ kilakilāśabdaḥ śaṅkhabherīravaiḥ saha ||
pāṇḍavānāṃ prahṛṣṭānāṃ kṣaṇena samajāyata ||
hatāv iti tayor āsīt senayor ubhayor matiḥ ||
tarasābhyāgatau dṛṣṭvā vimuktau keśavārjunau ||
tāv akṣatau pramuditau dadhmatur vārijottamau ||
dṛṣṭvā pramuditān pārthāṃs tvadīyā vyathitābhavan ||
Then a jubilant roar, with the blare of conches and drums, arose in an instant among the rejoicing Pandavas. "They are slain" — such had been the belief of both armies; then, seeing the delivered Keshava and Arjuna arrive swiftly, the two of them, unharmed and joyful, blew their finest conches. Seeing the joyful Parthas, your men grew troubled.
79718c2d006d · published Jul 19, 2026, 5:12:46 PM UTC
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Both armies had believed the two Krishnas dead — and both were wrong: the joy of the Pandavas and the dread of the Kauravas are born of the same dawning truth. It is telling how quickly the triumph of one side turns to the dismay of the other at the appearance of the unharmed. The verse teaches that opinion untested by truth is unstable and deceives both sides alike; and the appearance of the living where the dead were expected overturns both rejoicing and fear at once — for both had rested on illusion.