Shloka 34
विवेश पाण्डवं राजन् मर्म भित्त्वातिदुःखकृत् । स तेनातिभशं विद्धः पुत्रेण कुरुनन्दन:
viveśa pāṇḍavaṃ rājan marma bhittvātiduḥkhakṛt | sa tenātibhaśaṃ viddhaḥ putreṇa kurunandanaḥ ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: O King, the missile entered the Pāṇḍava, piercing a vital spot and causing extreme agony. Struck by that blow, the Kuru prince was grievously wounded—by his own son—bringing into the war’s aftermath the bitter weight of harming one’s own kin and the moral anguish that follows.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical and emotional fallout of violence, especially when it turns inward within a family line: even when actions occur in a martial context, striking one’s own kin intensifies suffering and moral burden, reminding the listener that adharma often manifests as self-destructive conflict.
A weapon (or missile) penetrates a Pāṇḍava warrior, piercing a vital point and causing intense pain. The narration emphasizes that the Kuru prince is severely wounded, and strikingly, the blow is attributed to his own son, heightening the tragic tone of the episode.