Shloka 21
पुत्रस्तु तव त॑ दृष्टवा भीमार्जुनपराक्रमम् । गाड़ेयस्य रथाभ्याशमुपजग्मे महाबल:,एकैकं त्रिभिरानर्च्छत् कड़ुकबर्हिणवाजितै: । उसके बाद सुशर्मा और कृपाचार्यको भी तीन-तीन बाणोंसे बींध डाला। राजेन्द्र! फिर समरांगणमें प्राग्ज्योतिषनरेश भगदत्त, सिन्धुराज जयद्रथ, चित्रसेन, विकर्ण, कृतवर्मा, दुर्मीषण तथा महारथी विन्द और अनुविन्द--इनमैंसे प्रत्येकको गीधकी पाँखसे युक्त तीन- तीन बाणोंद्वारा विशेष पीड़ा दी आपका पुत्र महाबली दुर्योधन भीमसेन और अर्जुनका वह पराक्रम देखकर स्वयं भी गंगानन्दन भीष्मके रथके समीप जा पहुँचा
sañjaya uvāca |
putras tu tava taṁ dṛṣṭvā bhīmārjunaparākramam |
gāṅgeyasya rathābhyāśam upajagme mahābalaḥ ||
ekaikaṁ tribhir ānarccchat kaṅkukabarhiṇavājitaiḥ |
śuśarmāṇaṁ ca kṛpācāryaṁ ca tribhir eva vyadhat ||
prāgjyotiṣanṛpaṁ bhagadattaṁ sindhurājaṁ jayadratham |
citrasenaṁ vikarṇaṁ ca kṛtavarmāṇam eva ca |
durmīṣaṇaṁ tathā vīrau vindānuvindau mahārathau |
etān ekaikaṁ tribhir iṣubhir gṛdhrapakṣopamaiḥ pīḍayām āsa ||
Sañjaya said: Seeing that display of might by Bhīma and Arjuna, your son—mighty Duryodhana—advanced to the chariot of Bhīṣma, the son of the Gaṅgā. On the battlefield he struck each warrior with three arrows, fletched like vulture-wings: he pierced Śuśarmā and the preceptor Kṛpa with three each; and likewise he inflicted sharp pain upon Bhagadatta, king of Prāgjyotiṣa, Jayadratha the king of Sindhu, Citraseṇa, Vikarṇa, Kṛtavarman, Durmīṣaṇa, and the great chariot-warriors Vinda and Anuvinda—each one with three arrows.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage highlights how martial pride and fear operate together: even a powerful leader, stirred by the prowess of opponents (Bhīma and Arjuna), seeks proximity to an elder authority (Bhīṣma) while escalating violence. Ethically, it reflects the Mahābhārata’s recurring tension between kṣatriya duty (display of valor) and the widening harm that war unleashes.
Sañjaya reports that Duryodhana, seeing Bhīma and Arjuna’s valor, goes near Bhīṣma’s chariot. In the battle he shoots multiple named warriors—Śuśarmā, Kṛpa, Bhagadatta, Jayadratha, Citraseṇa, Vikarṇa, Kṛtavarman, Durmīṣaṇa, Vinda, and Anuvinda—each with three arrows, described as feathered like vulture wings.