Shloka 45
Chapter 51: Saṃdhyākāla-saṃhāra
Evening Withdrawal after Arjuna’s Counter-Advance
अभ्यधावज्जिघांसन् वै शल्यं मद्राधिपं बली । उस बलवान वीरने इन्द्रधनुषके समान अपने विशाल शरासनको कानोंतक खींचकर मद्रराज शल्यको मार डालनेकी इच्छासे उनपर धावा किया ।।
sañjaya uvāca | abhyadhāvaj jighāṃsan vai śalyaṃ madrādhipaṃ balī | mahata rathavaṃśena samantāt parivāritaḥ ||
Sañjaya said: The mighty warrior rushed forward, intent on slaying Śalya, the lord of Madra. Surrounded on all sides by a great array of chariots, he charged—drawing his vast bow to the ear—driven by the fierce resolve of battle, where intention and prowess press against the moral weight of kin-slaying and duty on the field.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the battlefield mindset where a warrior’s intent (jighāṃsā—desire to kill) and martial duty surge forward, yet implicitly raises the ethical tension of violence undertaken as kṣatriya-dharma amid kin and allies.
Sañjaya narrates a powerful fighter charging to kill Śalya, the king of Madra, while being surrounded by a large formation of chariots—an image of escalating combat and tactical encirclement.