Shloka 30
Adhyāya 111 (Book 6): Daśama-dina-saṃgrāma—Bhīṣma’s Counsel to Yudhiṣṭhira and the Śikhaṇḍin-Led Advance
अभ्यवर्षत दुर्धर्षस्त्यक्त्वा जीवितमात्मन: । वे महाधनुर्धर दुर्धर्ष वीर भीष्म अपने जीवनका मोह छोड़कर पाण्डवों, पांचालों तथा सृंजयोंपर तीखे नाराच, वत्सदन्त और अंजलिक आदि बाणोंकी वर्षा करने लगे || २९६ || स पाण्डवानां प्रवरान् पज्च राजन् महारथान्
sañjaya uvāca | abhyavarṣata durdharṣas tyaktvā jīvitam ātmanaḥ | sa pāṇḍavānāṃ pravarān pañca rājan mahārathān |
Sañjaya said: The unconquerable Bhīṣma, casting aside all clinging to his own life, began to shower the Pāṇḍavas, the Pāñcālas, and the Śṛñjayas with a fierce rain of arrows—nārācas, vatsa-dantas, añjalikas, and other shafts. Then, O King, he turned his assault toward the five foremost great chariot-warriors among the Pāṇḍavas.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a warrior-ethic of resolute duty: Bhīṣma fights with unwavering commitment, setting aside personal attachment to life. It frames detachment (tyāga of self-preservation) as a component of kṣatriya-dharma in the battlefield context, even when the action is violent and morally weighty.
Sañjaya reports that Bhīṣma unleashes an intense barrage of specialized arrows upon the Pāṇḍava alliance (Pāṇḍavas, Pāñcālas, Śṛñjayas). The narration then transitions to Bhīṣma focusing on the five foremost Pāṇḍava great chariot-warriors.