Shloka 373
आजपघान भशं क्रुद्धस्तोत्रैरिव महाद्विपम् । तब अर्जुनने अत्यन्त कुपित होकर अंकुशोंसे महान् गजराजको पीड़ित करनेकी भाँति झुकी हुई गाँठवाले नब्बे बाणोंसे राजा श्रुतायुधको चोट पहुँचायी
ājapaghāna bhaśaṃ kruddhas tottrair iva mahādvipam | tadā arjunena atyantaṃ kupitaḥ aṅkuśair iva mahā-gajarājaṃ pīḍayituṃ yathā jhukī-baddha-gāṇṭhābhiḥ navati-bāṇaiḥ rājā śrutāyudhaḥ prahataḥ ||
Sañjaya sprach: Da traf Arjuna, von heftigstem Zorn entflammt, König Śrutāyudha mit neunzig Pfeilen, deren Gelenke sich krümmten, als würde er mit scharfen Haken einen mächtigen Herrn der Elefanten antreiben und quälen. Das Bild hebt die Wildheit des Schlachtfeldes hervor, wo Zorn die Kunst in unablässigen Druck verwandelt und die Kraft des Kriegers zum Werkzeug erdrückender Zügelung wird.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger intensifies martial action: Arjuna’s skill becomes relentless pressure, likened to an elephant being driven by a goad. Ethically, it invites reflection on the danger of wrath in war—how even rightful combat can be colored by uncontrolled emotion, increasing cruelty and the urge to dominate rather than merely to fulfill duty.
Sanjaya reports that Arjuna, furious, attacks King Śrutāyudha and wounds him with ninety arrows. The poet uses a vivid simile: Arjuna’s repeated strikes are like the painful prodding of a powerful elephant with hooks, conveying the intensity and force of the assault.