Mahabharata — Shalya Parva, Shloka 42
Adhyāya 14: Śalya’s Missile-Pressure and the Pāṇḍava Convergence (शल्यस्य शरवर्षम्)
स तस्य ह्ृदयं भित्त्वा प्रविवेशातिवेगित: । शक्राशनिरिवोत्सृष्टो विदार्य धरणीतलम्
sa tasya hṛdayaṃ bhittvā praviveśātivegitaḥ | śakrāśanir ivotsṛṣṭo vidārya dharaṇītalam |
Sañjaya said: That arrow, splitting his heart, plunged into him with tremendous speed—like Indra’s thunderbolt when hurled, tearing open the earth and entering it. The simile underscores the irresistible, fated force of the missile in the brutal momentum of battle.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the inexorable force of actions set in motion in war: once a deadly act is released, its consequences strike with near-unstoppable momentum. Ethically, it serves as a stark reminder of the gravity of violence and the irreversible outcomes of martial choices.
Sañjaya describes a swift, powerful arrow (nārāca) that pierces a warrior’s heart and enters his body, comparing its force to Indra’s thunderbolt that rends the earth and sinks into it—emphasizing the lethal intensity of the battlefield.
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