Shloka 12
भीमसेनस्य बहुमहारथसंयुगः
Bhīmasena’s Engagement with Multiple Mahārathas
सुवर्णपुड्खैरिषुभिय्धपक्षै: सुतेजनै:
sañjaya uvāca — suvarṇapuṅkhair iṣubhir gṛdhrapakṣaiḥ sutejanaiḥ; karṇī-nālīka-nārācaiś ca pāṇḍavānāṃ senām ācchādayām āsa. tīkṣṇaiḥ śaraiḥ dhvajān ciccheda rathinaś ca nipapāta.
قال سنجيا: بسهامٍ حادّة ذات سيقانٍ مذهّبة وريشٍ من جناح النسر الرخمي، وبأسلحةٍ مثل karṇī وnālīka وnārāca، غطّى جيش الباندافا تغطيةً تامّة. وبنصالٍ قاطعة قطع الرايات وأسقط حتى فرسان العربات إلى الأرض—صورةٌ لكفاءة الحرب القاسية، إذ يُلتمس الظفر بكسر رموز الشرف وكسر من يحملها معًا.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the battlefield reality that skill and force can shatter both the outward emblems of honor (standards) and the warriors themselves. Ethically, it underscores the Mahābhārata’s tension: kṣatriya-duty demands combat, yet the narrative repeatedly reminds the listener of war’s harsh, dehumanizing momentum.
Sanjaya describes a fierce missile-assault in which the Pāṇḍava forces are ‘covered’ by volleys of sharp, well-made arrows and specialized missiles (karṇī, nālīka, nārāca). The attack severs banners and strikes down chariot-fighters, signaling a decisive, demoralizing pressure on the Pāṇḍava side at that moment.