Shloka 39
भीष्मरक्षण-उद्योगः, शिखण्डि-विवर्जनं, सर्वतोभद्र-व्यूहः
Protection of Bhīṣma, Exemption of Śikhaṇḍin, and the Sarvatobhadra Array
सिंधुराज्ञो<र्धचन्द्रेण वाराहं स्वर्णभूषितम् । उनन््ममाथ महाराज द्वितीयेनाच्छिनद् धनु:
sañjaya uvāca | sindhurājño 'rdhacandreṇa vārāhaṃ svarṇabhūṣitam | unmanmatha mahārāja dvitīyenācchinad dhanuḥ ||
Sañjaya sprach: O König, mit einem halbmondförmigen Pfeil hieb er das goldgeschmückte Banner Jayadrathas, des Sindhu-Königs, mit dem Eberzeichen, nieder; und mit einem zweiten Pfeil spaltete er dessen Bogen in zwei Teile.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even in war, actions carry ethical weight: striking the banner and then the bow shows strategic restraint aimed at disabling and demoralizing rather than indiscriminate slaughter, reflecting the battlefield logic within kṣatriya-dharma.
Sañjaya reports that a warrior (implied from context) uses a crescent-headed arrow to cut down Jayadratha’s boar-emblemed, gold-decorated standard, and then with a second arrow cuts Jayadratha’s bow, effectively neutralizing him.