Shloka 8
धर्मराजस्य चिन्ता, भीमसेनप्रेषणम्, द्रोणानीकप्रवेशप्रयत्नः
Yudhiṣṭhira’s Anxiety and the Dispatch of Bhīma; Attempted Breakthrough into Droṇa’s Formation
उन पराक्रमी कुन्तीकुमारने शत्रुओंके उन बाणसमूहों, गदाओं और प्रासोंको अपने पास आनेपर उसी प्रकार ग्रस लिया, जैसे समुद्र सरिताओंको अपनेमें मिला लेता है ।। अस्त्रवेगेन महता पार्थो बाहुबलेन च । सर्वेषां पार्थिवेन्द्राणामग्रसत् तान् शरोत्तमान्,अर्जुनने अस्त्रोंके महान् वेग और बाहुबलसे समस्त राजाधिराजोंके उत्तमोत्तम बाणोंको नष्ट कर दिया
sañjaya uvāca | astravegena mahatā pārtho bāhubalena ca | sarveṣāṁ pārthivendrāṇām agrasat tān śarottamān || yathā samudraḥ saritāṁ pravāhān svayam āviśya grāsam upaiti tadvad iti bhāvaḥ |
Sanjaya said: With the tremendous impetus of his weapons and the strength of his arms, Partha (Arjuna) swallowed up—i.e., completely neutralized—the finest arrows launched by all those royal lords. As the ocean receives the rivers into itself, so did that mighty son of Kunti absorb the enemy’s volleys of arrows, maces, and spears as they came, turning their assault into futility through superior skill and power.
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights disciplined mastery in righteous combat: superior skill (astra-vega) joined with strength (bāhu-bala) can render even massive aggression ineffective. Ethically, it frames power as controlled competence—defense and counteraction without panic—aligned with a kṣatriya’s duty in a dharmic war.
During the Drona Parva battle, many kings unleash excellent arrows and other weapons at Arjuna. Sanjaya describes Arjuna meeting the incoming volleys and effectively ‘swallowing’ them—destroying or neutralizing them—likening his capacity to the ocean that receives rivers into itself.