Mahabharata 9.17.77 — Shalya Parva, Adhyaya 17, Shloka 77

Śalya-hatānantarāṇi: Madrarāja-padānugānāṃ praskandana and the Pandava counter-encirclement (शल्यहतानन्तराणि—मद्रराजपदानुगानां प्रस्कन्दनम्)

Devanagari script

ततो रथं युगेषां च च्छित्त्वा भल्लै: सुसंयतै:

Transliteration

tato rathaṃ yugeṣāṃ ca cchittvā bhallaiḥ susaṃyataiḥ

Translation

Then, with well-aimed bhalla arrows, he cut down the chariot and also the yokes (and their fittings), disabling the opponent’s mobility in the midst of battle—an act that shifts the contest from mere display of prowess to the harsh ethics of war, where crippling an enemy’s means of fighting becomes decisive.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (तद्-प्रातिपदिकात् अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (no gender/case/number)

• रथम्: chariot
• रथम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: रथ
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• युगेषाम्: of the yokes (of the chariot)
• युगेषाम्: Sambandha
• Type: Noun
• Root: युग
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च
• Form: अव्यय (no gender/case/number)

• छित्त्वा: having cut
• Type: Verb
• Root: छिद्
• Form: Absolutive (क्त्वा), past prior action; agent same as main verb

• भल्लैः: with arrows (bhallas)
• भल्लैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: भल्ल
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• सुसंयतैः: well-aimed / well-directed
• सुसंयतैः: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुसंयत
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural (agreeing with भल्लैः)

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• संजय (Sañjaya)
• रथ (chariot)
• युग (yoke/harness)
• भल्ल (bhalla arrow)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights a battlefield ethic where precision and control (susaṃyata) are as crucial as strength: victory often comes by disabling an opponent’s capacity to fight (the chariot and yokes), underscoring how war rewards tactical restraint and exactness even amid violence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya reports that a warrior, using accurately aimed bhalla arrows, severs the enemy’s chariot and its yokes/harness, effectively immobilizing the chariot and turning the tide of the encounter.