Shloka 24

Devanagari script

दशभि: सात्वतस्यार्थे भीमो5हन्‌ बाह्लिकात्मजम्‌ | सोमदत्तो5प्यसम्भ्रान्तो भीममार्च्छच्छितै: शरै:,उस समय भीमसेनने सात्यकिकी सहायताके लिये सोमदत्तको दस बाण मारे। इससे सोमदत्तको तनिक भी घबराहट नहीं हुई। उन्होंने भी तीखे बाणोंसे भीमसेनको पीड़ित कर दिया

Transliteration

sañjaya uvāca | daśabhiḥ sātvatasya arthe bhīmo 'han bāhlikātmajam | somadatto 'py asambhrānto bhīmam ārcchac chitaiḥ śaraiḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya sprach: Um des Sātvata (Sātyaki) willen traf Bhīma Somadatta, den Sohn Bāhlikas, mit zehn Pfeilen. Doch Somadatta verlor nicht die Fassung; als Erwiderung bedrängte er Bhīma mit scharfen Geschossen und verwundete ihn.

Word by Word

दशभिःwith ten (arrows)

सात्वतस्यof Sātvata (Sātyaki)

अर्थेfor the sake (in the matter) of

भीमःBhīma

अहन्struck / smote

बाह्लिकात्मजम्the son of Bāhlika (Somadatta)

सोमदत्तःSomadatta

अपिalso / even

असम्भ्रान्तःunagitated, unconfused

भीमम्Bhīma

आर्च्छत्reached / attacked / assailed

छितैःsharp, keen

शरैःwith arrows

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sañjaya

Bhīma (Bhīmasena)

Sātvata (Sātyaki)

Somadatta

Bāhlika

arrows (śara)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores steadiness (asambhrānta) amid danger and the warrior ideal of acting for an ally’s cause. Ethically, it also reflects how battlefield duty and loyalty can intensify cycles of retaliation, where each strike invites a counterstrike.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīma, acting to support Sātyaki, shoots Somadatta with ten arrows. Somadatta remains unshaken and immediately counters by striking Bhīma with sharp arrows, injuring him.