Shloka 59
Chapter 51: Saṃdhyākāla-saṃhāra
Evening Withdrawal after Arjuna’s Counter-Advance
ततो रुक्मरथो राजन् सायकेन दृढाहतः । निषसाद रथोपस्थे कश्मलं चाविशन्महत्,वज्ञसे भी अधिक प्रभावशाली वह महान् बाण रुक्मरथके शरीरपर जा गिरा। राजन! उस बाणसे अत्यन्त घायल होकर रुक्मरथ अपने रथके पिछले भागमें बैठ गया और अत्यन्त मूर्च्छित हो गया
tato rukmaratho rājan sāyakena dṛḍhāhataḥ | niṣasāda rathopasthe kaśmalaṃ cāviśan mahat ||
قال سنجيا: ثم، أيها الملك، إن رُكمَرَثا—وقد ضُرب بسهمٍ ضربةً شديدة—هوى على مقعد عربته، واستولت عليه غشيةٌ عظيمة (حيرةٌ كاسرة). وفي سرد المعركة يبيّن البيتُ كيف يمكن لبأس القتال أن يُكبح سريعًا بسلاحٍ واحدٍ مُحكم الإصابة، مذكّرًا بأن قوة الجسد والكِبر هشّان أمام جريان القدر وعواقب الحرب.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the vulnerability of the body and the sudden reversals inherent in war: even a capable warrior can be brought to collapse by a single strike. Ethically, it points to the grave cost of conflict and the humbling of pride, reinforcing the Mahābhārata’s recurring reminder that power and life are unstable amid karma and battlefield duty.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that the warrior Rukmaratha is hit hard by an arrow. Severely wounded, he slumps onto the chariot-seat and is seized by intense faintness or confusion, indicating he is momentarily incapacitated in the fight.