Shloka 3
स तु भीष्मो रणश्लाघी सोमकान् सहसृञज्जयान् | पज्चालांश्व महेष्वासान् पातयामास सायकै:,युद्धकी स्पृहा रखनेवाले भीष्म अपने बाणोंके द्वारा सोमक, सृंजय और पांचाल महाधनुर्धरोंको रणभूमिमें गिराने लगे
sa tu bhīṣmo raṇaślāghī somakān sahasṛñjayān | pāñcālāṃś ca maheṣvāsān pātayāmāsa sāyakaiḥ ||
Sañjaya said: Bhīṣma, exulting in battle, began to strike down with his arrows the Somakas, the Sahasṛñjayas, and the great bowmen of the Pāñcālas—casting them to the ground on the field.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral gravity embedded in martial excellence: Bhīṣma’s celebrated prowess (raṇaślāghī) results in the felling of many warriors. It invites reflection on kṣatriya-duty and the ethical cost of war—valor is real, but so is the suffering it produces.
Sañjaya reports to Dhṛtarāṣṭra that Bhīṣma is actively dominating the battlefield, shooting down warriors from the Somakas, Sahasṛñjayas, and Pāñcālas with volleys of arrows, causing them to fall on the field.