Mahabharata (Gita Press) 3.21.3 - Vana Parva, Adhyaya 21, Shloka 3
Dvārakā’s Distress and the Saubha Engagement (द्वारकाव्यग्रता तथा सौभयुद्धम्)
तानाशुगैरापततो5हमाशु निवार्य हन्तुं खगमान् ख एव । द्विधा त्रिधा चाच्छिदमाशुमुक्ति- स्ततो<न्तरिक्षे निनदो बभूव
tān āśugair āpatato ’ham āśu nivārya hantuṃ khagamān kha eva | dvidhā tridhā cācchidam āśumuktis tato ’ntarikṣe ninado babhūva ||
Als jene schnellfliegenden Feinde heranstürmten, hielt ich sie sogleich mit raschen Pfeilen auf, entschlossen, diese den Himmel durchstreifenden Gegner dort, in der Luft selbst, zu erschlagen. Mit meinen eilends gelösten Geschossen spaltete ich sie in zwei und drei Stücke; und daraus erhob sich ein gewaltiger Lärm im mittleren Himmelsraum.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights protective force used with decisiveness: the speaker first restrains the oncoming threat and then neutralizes it swiftly. Ethically, it frames violence as defensive—aimed at stopping harm rather than indulging aggression.
Vāyu describes an aerial confrontation: hostile ‘sky-goers’ rush in, and he counters them with fast arrows, cutting them into pieces mid-air. The result is a loud uproar resounding through the atmosphere.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free Google sign-in keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Mahabharata (Gita Press) in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.