Shloka 43
भीष्मवधोपाय-प्रश्नः (Inquiry into the means to overcome Bhīṣma) | Chapter 103
स निर्भिन्न: शरैघेरिर्भुजगै: कोपितैरिव । अलम्बुषो भृशं राजन् नागेन्द्र इव चुक़रुधे
sa nirbhinnaḥ śaraiḥ ghorair bhujagaiḥ kopitair iva | alambuṣo bhṛśaṃ rājan nāgendra iva cukrudhe ||
Sañjaya said: “O King, Alambuṣa—pierced and grievously wounded by those terrible arrows, as though assailed by enraged serpents—blazed up in wrath, like a lordly elephant goaded by the hook. In the heat of battle, injury kindled fury, driving him to retaliate rather than withdraw.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how pain and provocation can inflame krodha (anger). Ethically, it cautions that in war—and in life—injury often triggers retaliatory impulses; mastery of anger is difficult, yet crucial for right judgment.
Sañjaya describes Alambuṣa being struck hard by fierce arrows. Compared to an elephant prodded by a goad and to one attacked by angry serpents, Alambuṣa becomes intensely enraged, signaling an imminent counterattack in the battle.