Shloka 286
Dhṛtarāṣṭra–Sañjaya-saṃvādaḥ; madhyāhna-saṅgrāma-pravṛttiḥ
Dhritarashtra–Sanjaya dialogue and the midday battle escalation
शरैरबहुभिराच्छिद्य पातयामास संयुगे । राजन्! तदनन्तर क्रोधमें भरे अश्वत्थामाने आधे निमेषमें बहुत-से बाणोंद्वारा शिखण्डीके ध्वज, सारथि, घोड़ों और आयुधोंको रणभूमिमें काट गिराया
śarair bahubhir ācchidya pātayāmāsa saṁyuge | rājan! tad-anantaraṁ krodham-eṁ bhare aśvatthāmāne ardha-nimeṣeṇa bahu-śe bāṇaiḥ śikhaṇḍinaḥ dhvajaṁ sārathiṁ ghoḍān āyudhāni ca raṇabhūmau kāṭa girāyā |
Sañjaya said: “With many arrows he cut them down and made them fall in the thick of battle. O King, immediately thereafter, Ashvatthāmā—filled with wrath—within half a moment, by means of numerous shafts, struck down on the battlefield Śikhaṇḍin’s banner, charioteer, horses, and weapons.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how anger (krodha) rapidly escalates violence in war: wrath sharpens speed and destructiveness, but it also signals loss of restraint—an ethical warning embedded within the battlefield narration.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Aśvatthāmā, enraged, swiftly showers arrows and disables Śikhaṇḍin’s chariot-system—bringing down the banner, charioteer, horses, and weapons on the battlefield.