Shloka 4
Karṇa’s Camp-Council Discourse: Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Lament, Sañjaya’s Counsel, and Karṇa’s Request for Śalya
Book 8, Chapter 22
सहदेवस्ततो राजन् नाराचेन तवात्मजम् | विद्ध्वा विव्याध सप्तत्या सारथिं च त्रिभि: शरै:
saḥdevastato rājan nārācena tavātmajam | viddhvā vivyādha saptatyā sārathiṃ ca tribhiḥ śaraiḥ ||
قال سَنجايا: «ثمّ، أيها الملك، أصاب سَهَديفا ابنَك بسهمٍ من نوع نَارَاتشا (سهمٍ حديديٍّ ثقيل). وبعد أن نفذه، عاد فطعنه بسبعين سهماً، وأصاب سائسَ مركبته بثلاثة سهام.»
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the grim reality of dharma in wartime: martial excellence and duty-driven resolve can manifest as precise, escalating force, yet the ethical tension remains—victory is pursued through violence against one’s own kin-group, revealing the tragedy embedded in the Kurukṣetra conflict.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Sahadeva wounds the king’s son with a heavy nārāca arrow, then showers him with seventy more arrows, and also strikes the charioteer with three arrows—depicting a decisive, overpowering assault in the battle.