Shloka 19

Bhīṣma’s Fall, the Arrow-bed (śara-talpa), and the Establishment of Guard

Devanagari script

अमड्ल्यध्वजश्नैव याज्ञसेनिर्महाबल: । न चामड्लिके तस्मिन्‌ प्रहरेदापगासुत:

Transliteration

amaṅgala-dhvajaś caiva yājñasenir mahābalaḥ | na cāmaṅgalike tasmin prahared āpagā-sutaḥ ||

Translation

Sañjaya said: “Moreover, the mighty son of Drupada—Śikhaṇḍin—bears on his banner signs regarded as inauspicious. Therefore Bhīṣma, the son of the Gaṅgā, will not strike at that inauspicious Śikhaṇḍin.”

Word by Word

• अमङ्गल्यध्वजः: one whose banner is inauspicious / having an inauspicious banner
• अमङ्गल्यध्वजः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अमङ्गल्यध्वज
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• एव: indeed/just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• याज्ञसेनिः: Yājñaseni (son of Drupada; here: Śikhaṇḍin)
• याज्ञसेनिः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: याज्ञसेनि
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• महाबलः: mighty/very strong
• महाबलः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महाबल
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• अमङ्गलिके: in/with regard to the inauspicious one
• अमङ्गलिके: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अमङ्गलिक
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• तस्मिन्: in him/with respect to him
• तस्मिन्: Adhikarana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• प्रहरेत्: would strike / should strike
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-हृ
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• आपगासुतः: son of the river (Gaṅgā), i.e., Bhīṣma
• आपगासुतः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: आपगासुत
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• Bhīṣma (Āpagā-suta, son of Gaṅgā)
• Śikhaṇḍin (Yājñaseni, son of Drupada)
• Drupada
• Gaṅgā
• Dhvaja (banner/standard)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even amid war, conduct is shaped by vows, codes of honor, and perceived dharmic restraints. Bhīṣma’s refusal to strike Śikhaṇḍin highlights how personal ethics and social-religious notions (such as auspiciousness/inauspiciousness and propriety of targets) can limit violence even on the battlefield.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya explains to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Śikhaṇḍin, Drupada’s child, bears an inauspicious emblem on his banner; consequently Bhīṣma (Gaṅgā’s son) will not attack him. This sets up a tactical and moral constraint affecting Bhīṣma’s actions in the Kurukṣetra war.