Shloka 63

Devanagari script

तं शिखण्डी रणे यान्तमभ्यद्रवत दंशित:

Transliteration

taṃ śikhaṇḍī raṇe yāntam abhyadravat daṃśitaḥ

Translation

Sañjaya sprach: Als er auf dem Schlachtfeld vorrückte, stürmte der gepanzerte Krieger Śikhaṇḍī geradewegs auf ihn zu. Diese Tat unterstreicht den unerbittlichen Sog des Krieges und das gezielte Ansetzen an einem verwundbaren Punkt in Bhīṣmas moralischer und kriegerischer Zwangslage.

Word by Word

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• शिखण्डी: Shikhandi
• शिखण्डी: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिखण्डिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• रणे: in battle
• रणे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: रण
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• यान्तम्: going, advancing
• यान्तम्: Karma
• Type: Verb
• Root: या
• Form: शतृ (present active participle), Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• अभ्यद्रवत्: ran towards, rushed at
• Type: Verb
• Root: द्रु
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• दंशितः: armed, accoutred (in armor)
• दंशितः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दंशित
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Śikhaṇḍī
• battlefield (raṇa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights how dharma in war is tested not only by courage but by choices shaped by prior vows and ethical constraints. Śikhaṇḍī’s direct charge represents strategic action within a morally complex battlefield where personal principles can become tactical vulnerabilities.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya narrates that Śikhaṇḍī, fully armed, rushes toward an advancing opponent on the battlefield. In the broader Bhīṣma-focused context of this section, Śikhaṇḍī’s advance signals a decisive engagement aimed at exploiting Bhīṣma’s reluctance to fight Śikhaṇḍī.