Shloka 8
शकुनिवधः — Sahadeva’s Slaying of Śakuni
with Ulūka’s fall
प्रतिव्यूह्दू बल॑ सर्व रणमध्ये व्यवस्थित: । एन॑ हत्वा शितैर्बाणै: कृतकृत्यो भविष्यसि,“वह अपनी सारी सेनाका व्यूह बनाकर युद्धभूमिमें खड़ा है। तुम इसे पैने बाणोंसे मारकर कृतकृत्य हो जाओगे
sañjaya uvāca | prativyūḍho balaṁ sarvaṁ raṇamadhye vyavasthitaḥ | enaṁ hatvā śitair bāṇaiḥ kṛtakṛtyo bhaviṣyasi ||
Sañjaya sprach: „Sein ganzes Heer steht in voller Schlachtordnung mitten auf dem Feld. Töte ihn mit scharfen Pfeilen, dann wirst du deine Pflicht erfüllt haben—dein Ziel in diesem Krieg wird vollendet sein.“
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames battlefield action in terms of kṣatriya obligation: decisive action against a key opponent is presented as the completion of one’s assigned task (kṛtakṛtya), emphasizing duty and strategic necessity rather than personal hatred.
Sañjaya reports that the opposing force is fully arrayed in formation at the center of the battlefield and urges the addressed warrior to kill that central figure with sharp arrows, implying that this single act would decisively advance the war’s outcome.