Shloka 21
Śalya–Bhīma Gadā-saṃnipāta and Śalya’s Bāṇa-jāla against Yudhiṣṭhira
Book 9, Chapter 11
अभ्यवर्षत धर्मात्मा कुन्तीपुत्रं युधिष्ठिरम् । धर्मात्मा राजा शल्यने वर्षा करनेवाले इन्द्रकी भाँति कुन्तीपुत्र युधिष्ठिरपर बाणोंकी वर्षा आरम्भ कर दी ।।
sañjaya uvāca |
abhyavarṣata dharmātmā kuntīputraṃ yudhiṣṭhiram |
dharmātmā rājā śalyas tu varṣā-karaṇavān iva indraḥ kuntīputraṃ yudhiṣṭhiram iṣubhir abhyavarṣat ||
bhīmasenaṃ śaraiś cāpi rukma-puṅkhaiḥ śilāśitaiḥ |
mahābalī śalyas tu bhīmasenaṃ draupadeyān mādrīputrau nakula-sahadevau dhṛṣṭadyumnaṃ sātyakiṃ śikhaṇḍinaṃ ca pratyekaṃ daśa-daśabhiḥ śaraiḥ samavidhyat |
tataḥ sa varṣā-kāle jalada iva indraḥ śara-vṛṣṭiṃ mumoca ||
Sañjaya sprach: Yudhiṣṭhira, der Sohn Kuntīs, von dharmischer Gesinnung, wurde mit Pfeilen überschüttet—König Śalya, selbst berühmt für seine Rechtschaffenheit, begann auf ihn Pfeile regnen zu lassen wie Indra den Monsun. Mit Pfeilen, deren goldene Federn auf dem Stein geschärft waren, traf der mächtige Śalya auch Bhīmasena, jeden der Söhne Draupadīs, die beiden von Mādrī geborenen Pāṇḍava-Brüder Nakula und Sahadeva, ferner Dhṛṣṭadyumna, Sātyaki und Śikhaṇḍin—und verwundete jeden mit zehn Pfeilen. Danach ließ er einen wahren Schauer von Geschossen niedergehen, wie Indra die Regen in der Regenzeit sendet.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even amid violent conflict, the epic frames warriors through the lens of dharma: the epithet dharmātmā highlights that reputation and inner disposition are judged ethically, while the narrative shows how duty-bound combat can coexist with moral evaluation—without romanticizing the destruction it causes.
Sanjaya reports that King Shalya launches an intense arrow-barrage: first focusing on Yudhishthira, then striking Bhima, Draupadi’s sons, Nakula and Sahadeva, Dhrishtadyumna, Satyaki, and Shikhandi—ten arrows each—likening the missile-storm to Indra’s monsoon rain.