Shloka 30
कृष्णोपदेशः, अर्जुनस्य क्षमा-याचनम्, कर्णवध-अनुज्ञा
Krishna’s Counsel, Arjuna’s Apology, and Authorization for Karṇa’s Slaying
भीम॑ विव्याध दशभि: कड्कपनत्रै: शिलाशितै: । कार्मुकं चास्य चिच्छेद भल्लेन निशितेन च
bhīmaṁ vivyādha daśabhiḥ kaṅkapatraiḥ śilāśitaiḥ | kārmukaṁ cāsya ciccheda bhallena niśitena ca ||
Sañjaya sprach: Er durchbohrte Bhīma mit zehn Pfeilen, deren Befiederung der eines Reihers glich und deren Spitzen am Stein geschärft waren; und mit einem scharfen Bhalla, einem breitköpfigen, rasiermesserscharfen Geschoss, hieb er auch Bhīmas Bogen entzwei. Der Bericht betont die erbarmungslose Präzision kriegerischer Kunst—Tapferkeit zeigt sich nicht in Worten, sondern darin, die Macht des Gegners ohne Zögern zu lähmen.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the kṣatriya battlefield ethic: decisive action and technical mastery can neutralize an adversary’s capacity to fight (here, by cutting the bow), showing how power in war often turns on skillful restraint or escalation rather than mere rage.
In Sañjaya’s narration of the Karṇa Parva battle, a warrior strikes Bhīma with ten stone-sharpened, heron-feathered arrows and then severs Bhīma’s bow with a sharp bhalla, temporarily disarming him.