Shloka 24
Droṇa-parva Adhyāya 47 — Abhimanyu’s rapid exchanges, counsel to disable his chariot-system
तथा बृहद्बलं हत्वा सौभद्रो व्यचरद् रणे । व्यष्टम्भयन्महेष्वासो योधांस्तव शराम्बुभि:,इस प्रकार महाधनुर्धर अभिमन्यु बृहदबलका वध करके आपके योद्धाओंको अपने बाणरूपी जलकी वर्षसे स्तब्ध करता हुआ रणक्षेत्रमें विचरने लगा
tathā bṛhadbalaṁ hatvā saubhadro vyacarad raṇe | vyaṣṭambhayan maheṣvāso yodhāṁs tava śarāmbubhiḥ ||
Sañjaya sprach: So zog Saubhadra (Abhimanyu), der große Bogenschütze, nachdem er Bṛhadbala erschlagen hatte, über das Schlachtfeld, hielt deine Kämpfer auf und betäubte sie mit Pfeilschauern wie Wasserfluten—ein Bild jugendlicher Tapferkeit, die sich in unerbittliche, disziplinierte Kraft verwandelt, mitten in der harten Ethik des Krieges.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights kṣatriya-duty expressed as disciplined martial action: after defeating a key opponent, Abhimanyu does not lapse into pride or pause, but continues to restrain enemy forces effectively. Ethically, it reflects the Mahābhārata’s tension between necessary violence in war and the ideal of controlled, purposeful force rather than cruelty.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Abhimanyu, having slain Bṛhadbala, ranges across the battlefield and overwhelms the Kaurava fighters with dense volleys of arrows, described metaphorically as a drenching rain that immobilizes and checks their advance.