Shloka 25
Chapter 51: Saṃdhyākāla-saṃhāra
Evening Withdrawal after Arjuna’s Counter-Advance
स राजतो महास्कन्धस्तालो हेमविभूषित: । सौभद्रविशिखैश्छिन्न: पपात भुवि भारत
sa rājato mahāskandhas tālo hemavibhūṣitaḥ | saubhadra-viśikhaiś chinnaḥ papāta bhuvi bhārata bharatanandana ||
Sañjaya said: That lofty standard—its great shaft gleaming like silver and adorned with gold, bearing the emblem of a palm-tree—was cut down by the arrows of Saubhadra and fell to the earth, O Bhārata, O joy of the Bharatas. In the moral atmosphere of the war, the fall of Bhīṣma’s banner signals a visible turning of fortune and resolve: prowess is shown not as mere violence, but as disciplined skill directed toward a decisive objective on the battlefield.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how, in a dharma-framed war narrative, outward symbols of power (a commander’s banner) can fall through focused skill and courage. It underscores impermanence of martial glory and the ethical weight of disciplined action aimed at a clear battlefield purpose rather than mere destruction.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that a tall, silver-like, gold-adorned standard bearing a palm-tree emblem is cut by Saubhadra’s (Abhimanyu’s) arrows and falls to the ground—an emphatic battlefield moment indicating a setback to the side associated with that banner.